Episode 4- Chun Li

The Costume

What can I say? She is the first female playable character to appear in a 1-on-1 fighting game. It was the first time I was allowed to play video games with my brothers because "You can play The Girl." Little did they know, Chun Li was the best character EVER. Soon after that I was whooping their butts regularly and not allowed to play with them anymore... Chun Li holds a special place in many gamer's hearts especially mine and thus the costume was born. The iconic white Ox Tails (hair buns) along with the blue and gold outfit never fails to make someone's day. 

Only picture of Interpol Chun Li! 

Taking about 10 hours of work, the main portion of the costume is a modified traditional Chinese dress pattern and the fabric is polyester. I was never able to find boots I was completely happy with in white, so I decided to make a custom Chun Li. Omitting the sleeves made for a more comfortable temperature during Otakon, a July convention with temperatures ranging from 90-100 degrees outside. Originally the costume also sported black and gold bun covers as well as black boots and white bracelets. Over the years I have modified it to add more traditional white bun covers and black bracelets. During DragonCon in Atlanta last year It was paired with stilettos instead of boots for a bit of fun. And for a costume party it was transformed further with a police badge and handcuffs for an Interpol Chun Li. I still however quest for the perfect white boot!
This is the last you will see of this Chun Li however, as of this episode it has been retired to be remade! The newest Street Fighter has released Chun Li in a brand new form with a sexy black dress and cute red shoes! But the lure of Blue and Gold defiantly calls to me. So both will be made!

The Black dress shall be made to detail while the Blue will remain a custom. Those familiar with Yaya Han will have seen her beautiful Chun Li custom (If you have not, click here!) and what an inspiration she is! I see lots of fabric in my future!








The Episode
Chun Li has been on my brain for the last few months what with Dragoncon and Halloween having just passed, so before I put this Chun Li into full retirement, I figured it needed one last day in the sun! I did lots of reseach about street food in China before choosing my recipes. I read lots of blogs and articals about the best places to go and which vendors to look for. From there I researched traditional and moderen recipes to use as a good base, then I scoured around for videos on proper cooking technique. Next came experimentation, I mention in the video not to worry if your first crepe does not come out perfect even though it would appear that mine did. There were plenty of recipe fails before I got it right, I was in full crepe making mode by the time I started filming! The French actually have a saying for that which is  "la première, c'est pour le chien" or "The first is for the dog". 


The Recipes

Jian Bing

For the Crepe-
3/4 cup All Purpose Flour
3/4 cup Cake Flour
1 Tablespoon Oil
1/2 cup Whole Milk
1/2 Water

For the Filling-
Green Onions, sliced thin
Chopped Cilantro
Sesame Crackers
3 Eggs
1/4 Cup Hoisin Sauce
1/4 Cup Thai Chili Sauce
Anything else you might enjoy! (shredded meat, cheese, scrambled egg, grilled tofu etc.)
Directions-
Whisk together the flours, oil, water and milk in a large bowl, it should resemble thin pancake batter, if it is too thick, add another tablespoon or two of milk.
Combine the Thai Chili sauce and the Hoisin sauce in a small bowl and crunch up the crackers into bite sized pieces. Crack all three eggs into a bowl and beat together.
Spread 1/2 cup of batter onto a large non-stick skillet or large frying pan. After about 10 seconds the crepe will set and you can spread a thin layer of beaten egg onto the crepe. Sprinkle on your cilantro and green onions and let the egg solidify (become not runny). Using a large spatula, flip the crepe over. Spread on your Hoisin mixture, sprinkle on your crackers and add any other fillings you might like. Once the crepe has turned golden brown on the bottom, gently fold up the crepe like a burrito. Serve hot!

Chuànr (pronounced Cha-war)
Meat- Pick your favorite! Lamb is very popular in China- about 1 pound cut into 1 inch pieces or 1/2 inch strips
Seasonings-
1 Teaspoon Chili powder
1 Teaspoon Cumin 
Combine both in a bowl
Sauce-
1/2 cup Honey
2 Tablespoons Yellow Mustard (Chinese hot mustard is good too!)
1 Teaspoon Minced Ginger
Combine all in a bowl
Directions-
Heat a large grill pan or outdoor grill to medium high heat. If you use seasonings, season the meat first on all sides before grilling. If you use sauce, the meat will go onto the grill first and the sauce added after it has begun to cook. Add meat to the grill, cook as desired. About 5-7 minutes per side depending on the meat and its thickness.
Serves 2

Pearl Milk Tea 
2 Teaspoons Light Tea (Green, White, Jasmine)
2 Cups Boiling Water
1/8 Cup Sugar or Honey
16oz glass filled with Ice
1/4 Cup Whole Milk
1/4 Cup Cooked Tapioca Pearls (Find them at most Asian Markets or at an online retailer)
Directions- 
Brew tea for about 5 minutes or according to your tea's instructions. Coat the cooked pearls with the sugar or honey and let them sit while the tea is brewing. Add the pearls to the glass of ice and top with tea till almost full. Add the milk, more or less is always ok, and enjoy!
Serves 1

Episode 3- St. Pauli Girl

The Costume

 Jennifer Fabello- 1982

This costume came together very quickly about three days after our return from Germany. It was about an hour project without a lot of sewing. Many of the pieces were grabbed from a few other costumes when the idea struck! The fun part of this costume was looking up all the different St. Pauli Girls throughout the years and watching how the costume changed year by year. Another fun part was the hair! The original bottle portray's a brunette while the newer bottles portray blonds (5 years running they were Playboy Bunnies!). I decided to go with old school, it required a lot of hair spray and curl cream! I also broke out the red lipstick which doesn't happen very often. Added a double dose of blush and some beer mugs and I was ready to go!

Jen England- 2011

The Episode
The best part of this episode was the research! I learned about the Yearly St. Pauli Girl contest, the original brewery was in Bremam, Germany right next to the former St. Paul's Monastery and the beer is made for export only and is not actually sold in Germany! And here I though it was just a great beer! My favorite food ever is giant pretzels, no joke, I could probably live off them, Haribo Gummy Bears and beer. Maybe in the future when puppies stay puppies forever... anyway, while in Germany, I at my weight in pretzels and loved every minute of it, in fact, I felt I didn't get enough so I dug out my old pretzel recipe for this episode! We also went to a restaurant where they served over sized plates of EVERYTHING. They even had an eating challenge that involved spaetzle and over 112oz of beer! Spaetzle is a German staple, it is hard to find a restaurant without it, which is why I chose to put it in this episode!

Recipes
Pretzel
1.5 Tablespoons Active Dry Yeast
2 Tablespoons Honey
1.5 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
3 Cups All Purpose Flour
1 Teaspoon Sea Salt
2 Eggs
1.5 Cups Warm Water (100 degrees is usually good)
Directions- Bloom the yeast in the warm water and honey for about five minutes, the yeast will be puffy and foamy, if it isn't, your water may have been too hot or too cold. In a large mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the yeast mixture, both flours, salt and one egg. Kneed on low for 30 seconds, then add the second egg. If your dough looks a little dry, add more water 1 tablespoon at a time until it comes together. When the dough ball comes together, dump it out onto a lightly floured surface and kneed it by hand for five minutes. Be careful not to tear or rip the dough as this will break up the gluten fibers, don't over kneed! Coat a large bowl in olive oil and add your dough ball, coating it lighting in oil as well. Let it rise till it has doubled in size (about an hour and a half). Remove the ball from bowl onto a floured work surface and kneed about three times, cut the sections for your pretzels, roll or stuff as desired (see video). Dip the pretzels in a mixture of baking soda and water (3 tblsps baking soda to 2 cups water) Cook at 400 degrees for 6-8 minutes depending on size. Enjoy!
Makes about 8 Pretzels

Spaetzle
1 Cup All Purpose Flour
.5 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 of 3/4th Cup Milk (use a 3/4th measure and fill it half way...)
1 egg
Seasonings (video uses 1/4 teaspoon each of garlic powder, onion powder and rosemary)
Large pot of lightly salted boiling water
Directions-
Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix with a wooden spoon. Over the pot of boiling water, force the dough through a holed apparatus (colander or a skimmer spoon). Let the dough cook until they rise to the top of the water. Remove from the water and place them into a bowl with a bit of butter to keep them from sticking together. Preheat a frying pan to medium high heat with 1 tablespoon butter. Add the spaetzle and toss till golden brown all over. Serve with a bit of sour cream.
Serves 2.

Summer Beer Spritzer 
2 Cups Lemon Lime or Ginger Soda
1 Cup of Lighter Beer, Pale Ale, Heffeweizen or Light Lager (St. Pauli Girl anyone?!)
Directions-
Combine in a large mug or glass, DRINK IT!
For the younger American crowd, St. Pauli Girl makes a Non-Alcoholic beer that anyone can buy!

CASTLES! IN THE BLACK FOREST!