Hi everybody! I am so sorry I have been away during the past days due to problems with my internet connection (again). This was incredibly annoying because not only I was unable to read all your lovely blogs as I use to do, but I also missed doing online research for references to serve my diploma thesis writing.

I still have no idea what went wrong actually, but after taking apart and rebooting everything several times, it miraculously started to function again. And while I was cut off and felt deprived for almost the whole week, I was so much comforted when I received a package on Tuesday. And inside was happiness!

~ happy honey made by happy bees ~

As you can see, I could not wait to try a spoonful. It is so, so good! Before I tried this, I had no idea what “creamy” actually means. This is creaminess in perfection!

~ mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm ~

Thank you so much! *hops ups and down, dances happily*

Besides happiness, the honey actually stands for something else: It shows me how much blogging has enriched my life since I started around half a year ago. I have met so many lovely people through it, and maybe some of them are going to become real friends.

It has also widened my area of thoughts and behaviors and got me into experimenting more than I had ever imagined because it gives me inspiration to try new things out, come up with new things on my own, and share them with you. For example, during the past days, I have experimented with marinating (something I have never done before). My first attempts were very simple, involving only a few ingredients, but those were sufficient already to turn a plain, stringy turkey cutlet into a very tender and flavorful delicacy. Encouraged by this experience, I started elaborating the recipe, and in the end came up with this.

Spicy Orange Marinade

1/2 cup

Ingredients

1-2 oranges (or 1/2 cup orange juice)
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, peeled and cut into slices
6-7 slices fresh gingerroot
1/4 tsp dried chili flakes
1 handful fresh basil leaves

Directions

Extract the juice from the oranges and mix the soy sauce into it. Then add garlic, ginger, chili, and basil leaves. Done!

This marinade goes very well with Asian dishes. So far, I used it with poultry, but I can imagine it will also be wonderful with white fish, salmon, tofu, or beef. Just put whatever you want to marinate into a bowl with the marinade so everything is covered by the liquid, and leave it in the fridge for a few hours up to overnight. Then it is ready for grilling, roasting, or pan-frying.

Have you ever tried to marinate meat or something else? How did you do it and like it?