FuDeelicious!

Chinese New Year goodies

2007-03-11T00:18:00.000-05:00

It's been a while, I know. This year started off so busy. Chinese New Year came and went and all I have left are these fond memories of making a dozen pies of Lor Bot Go, (or LBG as I like to call it). Lor Bot Go is a savory steamed turnip cake with Chinese sausage, mushrooms, dried shrimp, and topped with chopped cilantro or scallions. You can eat it steamed or pan fried, hot or room temperature. It's one of those things you can find at dim sum, a delicious brunch item that goes great with tea.

The ingredients: Fresh white turnips (or daikon radishes), Chinese sausage, dried mushrooms, and dried shrimps

A food processor is extremely useful for shredding the turnip. Otherwise a cheese grater works. Boil shredded turnip in salted water.

Dried mushrooms are great. Just soak em overnight and save the water for cooking.

Dried shrimps are salty and pungent, and adds a nice dimension to the turnips.

Dice up the mushrooms, shrimps, sausages and stir-fry with some garlic.

Rice flour for the "cake" part.

Mix all ingredients into a sloppy slurry.

Divide and steam until solid. The best thing about steamed cakes is that there's no such thing as over baking.

Same thing for steamed cakes, (but that's a different post!)

A little Happy New Year card, a nice ribbon, and there you have it! A nice traditional little food gift for friends and family!

Turkey Lasagna

2007-01-29T15:07:00.000-05:00

15 ingredients went into the making of this turkey lasagna. Purists will scoff, but hey, I'm trying to look out for my arteries once in a while...

Fresh sage, parsley, oregano...

Button mushrooms...

Garlic, onions, spinach, and ground turkey...

Tomato sauce and tomato paste...

Fresh mozzarella...

Parmesean, ricotta and an egg...

Pre-cooked lasagna pasta...

Freakin good if I say so myself...

I didn't have that lasagna pan handy, so I used a couple of regular loaf pans, which apparently made the entire thing stronger and easier to cut and store. I think I'll do it this way from now on.

2007-01-25T23:22:00.000-05:00

Chris is the Salmon King... and I'm the hot dog fried rice Queen!

2007-01-21T10:32:00.000-05:00

I freakin love me a big breakfast on weekends. Eggs, bacon, corn beef hash, waffles, the whole nine... Bring on the high cholesterol!

Strawberry Cranberry Compote

2007-01-10T13:12:00.000-05:00

I am lacking in fruit intake. Started a little food journal of what I eat over the course of a day, and I realize I do not get enough of fruits and veggies!

Anyway, this is my attempt to change that... An easy fruit compote made of strawberries and cranberries, good for... hmm, I don't know what it's good for. Crepes? Toast? It tastes pretty good by itself.

Now if I can only avoid the cream in my fridge!

Lemon Basil Chicken & Mushroom Risotto Wraps

2007-01-08T22:06:00.000-05:00

I went on a fresh herbs binge tonight. This past weekend Chris has been conjuring up some goodies for a catering gig he has next month. Apparently, there was a lot of basil and raddichio left over, so I just decided look up some recipes using those ingredients and the thought of lemon basil chicken and mushroom risotto raddichio wraps sounded... well, it sounded like a perfect dinner to make to use up the rest of the stuff. Of course, since the risotto required fresh oregano and sage, I stopped by the market after work... Sure, I'm all done with the basil, but now I have fresh oregano and sage left! Help!

Anyway, dinner is served...

Admittedly, I'm not a fan of radicchio, but in this case, it works. It's almost like a burrito. Personally, I find it a bit too bitter for my taste. Perhaps plain old lettuce might have worked better.

The sauce for the chicken was really good though. Squeeze some fresh lemon juice into a bowl and marinate the chicken for about 15 minutes. Then in a pan, melt some butter, and sear the chicken. Remove chicken when done, then add white wine and fresh basil to the pan, then finish off with some heavy cream and a little more butter. I couldn't believe how simple it was. The tangy-ness of the lemon chicken countered the aromatic basil and creamy taste of the sauce. In the original recipe it called for the marinade to be poured into the pan too, but I find that unnecessary. Chris didn't think so either. Anyway, it went well with this bottle of french wine someone brought over for New Years. *clink!*

Hmm... Now what do I do with that fresh oregano and sage?? :P

Cognac Cod with Tomato Basil Relish

2007-01-07T20:03:00.000-05:00

Sometimes the easiest thing to make comes out the tastiest.

This tool is freakin awesome. Well worth the $15!

NYE Menu

2007-01-01T22:02:00.000-05:00

Okay, I didn't take pics of all the food, but check it, here's some of the stuff from last night!

NYE Menu

2006-12-30T17:31:00.000-05:00

We're having a few guests over for NYE, so we're going to spend some time doing what we love: cooking!

I think when it comes to food, we both have our own styles in the kitchen. After some discussion, we agreed that he will do the savory and I will do the sweet. (Let's face it, we both have rather big egos in doing what we do, so the best bet is to each focus on our strengths.)

I decided a little theme to help the direction along. Hey, poker and James Bond has been big this year, so I totally ripped the idea of the internet and created the above invite. Along with 007-related beverages, a classic Bond movie playing in the movie room, we are going to do the following finger foods so everyone can mingle, chill and hang out rather than doing a sit-down 4 course dinner. Although, I can't wait to get rid of my old leather couch so I can totally have a dining table out for dinner parties... (Yep, I'm definitely getting old...)

Anyway, the menu:

Chris's Savory:

Pineapple Jerk Chicken
Sauteed Shrimp w/ Chimichurri Sauce
Ravioli w/ Tomato-Basil Sauce
Roast Beef Tea Sandwiches
Roasted Red Pepper Fondue Dipper Trio w/ Garlic Herbed Pommes Frites,
Onion Rings and Mozzarella Sticks
New England Cod Chowder
Tabouli Salad

Lisa's Sweet:

Truffles Trio
Fresh Fruit Tartlets

The apartment is decked out, everything is pretty much set, playlist selected. All that's left to do is chill the champagne for the midnight toast!

Happy New Year all!

Skate is a Fish

2006-11-29T21:54:00.000-05:00

Have you ever had skate fish? I had it for the first time tonight and it was delicious. Chris made skate with lemon, parsley, yellow pepper and walnuts and it was really tasty. I wonder if it's related to a stingray or something. The way the meat flakes off is interesting. Not like other fish at all.

Thanksgiving

2006-11-25T13:33:00.000-05:00

Pumpkin Pie Preppin'

2006-11-22T20:25:00.000-05:00

One thing I love to do is bake. (My protruding belly is a testament to that.) I made 2 batches of pumpkin pies for Thanksgiving week; one for the family dinner, and one for the friends dinner. It totally reminded me of when I worked in the bakery. Mass production of pies at its finest. Very therapeutic if you ask me.

Salmon

2006-11-09T23:16:00.002-05:00

You know, I never used to like salmon. Now I eat it almost as much as other fish. Maybe I had a first bad experience and continued to avoid it. But Chris cooks salmon really well and before I knew it, I was asking him to make it for dinner on a regular basis. (We've been on a seafood kick for a while now.)

I flaked into it before I took this pic. Consequently, I am also a fan of Yellowtail (the wine). The leftover from the other night was a perfect accompaniment to dinner.

Mussel Man

2006-11-08T22:45:00.000-05:00

Chris loves mussels. Whenever he gets the chance he'll pick up a bag of fresh mussels and proceed to cook with enthusiasm. This is one food he loves to eat, (another being ice cream, but I'll leave that for another post).

I hovered like a hawk, watching his every move so I can provide my faithful readers (all three of you), with a way of making slamming mussels. (And slamming it was!)

The recipe:

1 bag of fresh mussels, cleaned
1/2 a head of garlic, crushed
1 tbsp. scallion, chopped
2 slices of bacon, diced
1/2 bottle of white wine (we used Yellowtail Pino Grigio)
Vietnamese hot chili sauce
1 tbsp. olive oil
salt and pepper

In a wok, cook bacon until crispy, drain and leave half the drippings in the wok
Add olive oil, toss in garlic and half of scallions
Add hot chili sauce, stir until combined
Toss in mussels
Add white wine to mussels and cover for 5-8 minutes or until mussels open up
Remove to a serving bowl and set aside
Reduce white wine liquid still in the wok then pour over the mussels
Sprinkle bacon bits and rest of scallions on top

Even though I'm not a fan of mussels, I ended up eating my fair share of this because of the juice, pouring it over my soba. This dish was lip-smacking good!

Pan fried flounder filet

2006-11-06T23:04:00.000-05:00

Sometimes it's downright sinful, the things we put into our mouths. In this case, it's fish. Flounder to be exact. I felt naughty after eating this. This flavorful concoction of lightly battered, crispy-skinned flounder. So good on my tastebuds, so bad for the waist.

No my lovely, it was meant to be steamed to perfection. Dashed with a bit of light soy and sprinkled with heavenly garnishes of ginger and scallion. But the bad side of me wanted more. More texture. More crunch. And my dear boyfriend happily obliged, fileting the fish himself, I might add.

I was too busy salivating to actually see what he used. All I know is that corn starch was key, as was olive oil in a pan. A dash of salt and pepper and cayenne. Some browned garlic bits and parsley for contrast. My mouth was so happy to be eating this.

Will I regret it in the morning? Not if I do the requisite 500 steps on the machine.

Chinese Chicken Omelete

2006-11-03T13:43:00.000-05:00

The other day Chris and I went out to celebrate "Grampy's" birthday. We went to the usual place and had our usual good dinner. Grampy wanted to order a whole chicken, and with only four of us at the table, guess who got to take the leftovers?

Chinese chicken is a bit of an enigma to those unfamiliar with it, but once you taste it, it becomes part of your regular palate when you're eating out in Chinatown. Anyway, I have a great way to fix up those leftovers, (or any other type of chicken for that matter). I just make an omelete out of it.

What I used:

3 small stalks scallion
2 cloves garlic
handful (about 1 1/2 cup) leftover chicken, cubed
4 eggs
1 tablespoon heavy cream (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

It's pretty simple. Just cut up the leftover chicken and brown it with the garlic and scallion in a medium flame. While that's going, scramble the eggs with the heavy cream, and pour it over the chicken when it's beginning to brown. I use my trusty wok for this to create a nice golden brown omelete.

The nice thing is that it's hearty without being heavy as many breakfast omeletes tend to be. Normally I use milk for my eggs, but in this case, heavy cream works well to incorporate the chicken, garlic and scallions. It gives the eggs a bit more substance.

I added a side of skillet potatoes make this a complete (Chris-approved) breakfast, which went incredibly well with my Panama Duran coffee from McNulty's. If you're making this for one, just halve the ingredients. That's it!

2006-11-02T08:25:00.000-05:00

I eat a lot less when I take time to make my food look pretty. I think it's because it takes a bit more effort, and doing so makes me slow down to enjoy eating it. (Normally I whip up a big pile o' food and scarf it down fast.)

Chris brought home a gigantic box of crackers the other day, (we're talking 3lbs), and I wanted to eat it. I love crunchy. We didn't have any cheese at home so I made tuna salad to accommodate. I had a weird craving for olives so I added that in along with red peppers, onions and scallions for garnish. Hey, at least my tuna fish is never boring. And this snack was Chris-approved, which was surprising because he doesn't even like olives!

2006-10-29T15:03:00.000-05:00

Nothing like a stack of silver dollar pancakes to make a weekend morning. I like to add a little vanilla the batter. Makes it more aromatic, I dare say.

Hot Potato!

2006-10-21T11:53:00.000-04:00

I love immigrants. If it weren't for them, we wouldn't have such a variety of delicious food that we can take in as our own. I believe if all the world's leaders sat down together at the dinner table and shared in a happy feast, no one would worry about nuclear threats and wars and such.

Speaking of potato, I was in a mood for a potato pancake this morning. I don't recall where I learned this recipe from, only that I used to make it every Sunday for breakfast in place of hash browns, sometime in my teenage years when I was living away from home.

The premise is pretty simple, (and I'm a fan of simple). Grate some potatoes, slice up some onions, add an egg and flour for binding and skillet it up. (On a related note, I am loving the fact that I'm getting so much use out of the 3 cast iron skillets that I got on sale for $10 at Macy's!)

The recipe:

2 medium potatoes, scrubbed and grated
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 egg
1 tablespoon flour
oil (I used canola oil I'm sure any will do)
salt and pepper to taste

In a bowl, mix potatoes and onions together, salt and pepper
In a separate bowl, mix egg and flour until it forms a batter
Combine both mixtures together and salt and pepper
Heat up about a tablespoon of oil in a skillet at medium temperature
Drop in mixture to form palm-sized pieces, cook about 4 minutes on each side or until it yields a nice crispy, golden brown color

That's it!

In the past I've eaten this with ketchup and fruit jam. Today I dabbed a bit of low fat sour cream to satisfy my newly acquired fondness of the stuff. By the way, you can also grate your onion instead of slicing it. I just find the texture more fun with keeping it sliced, as the onion flavor is more enhanced in the onion itself. (Plus I don't cry as much when prepping!)

Let Them Eat Cake!

2006-10-20T10:51:00.000-04:00

I have a temperamental oven. It is old and rusty and the color of brick, (which evidently matches the brick facade that the owners put up some 30 years ago). Rusty, as I affectionately call her, gives me a bit of a hard time when I bake. The good thing is I can trust her at 350º on most days.

On days she does not want to perform, I have to fidget with the faded knob and keep checking the internal thermometer. There is no slight adjustment in this kitchen. One millimeter apart means a temperature difference of 90 degrees.

This was the case last night as I tested out one lone ramekin of what was supposed to be a molten chocolate cake. The recipe called for frozen cup to hot oven at 375º. Rusty gave me 390º at first, so I gently tapped the knob to the left, to my Sharpie-noted measurements. 5 minutes later the oven went to the desired temp, and I inserted the ramekin with visions of gooey chocolate dancing in my head.

A few minutes later, I took a peek into the oven to check on the progress, only to find that Rusty cooled herself down... waaay down... to 300. After fiddling a bit more I got her back to 375, but by that time, the ramekin already warmed to the point where I can't refreeze to retry. Defeated, I popped it back in the oven to let it finish baking.

The result? No molten, just cake.

Ah well. At least Chris really liked the recipe and continued to eat the entire thing. Tonight, Round 2! Rusty vs. muffin tins. The rest of the batter is going to turn into cupcakes, to be served to the Game Night Gang. Hopefully this batch will come out with a gooey middle!

Pepper Crusted Tuna

2006-10-13T21:07:00.000-04:00

Whenever I ask Chris to make me a dish, he willingly complies to the best of his abilities. This week I was craving fish and lots of it, so I asked for Tuna. As a result? He made me this spicy peppercorn crusted tuna and garlic stir fried veggies. Such a pretty dish.

Walnut Crusted Fish Fillet & Fresh Cilanto Corn Hash

2006-10-10T23:30:00.000-04:00

I like taking close up shots of my food. It's so full of texture. Chris let me cook last night, and I tried this dish to impress. He liked it so I was happy. Pretty healthy too since the only fat I used was a pat of butter in the crust. The crust was made of chopped walnuts, breadcrumbs, parsley, parmesean cheese, dijon mustard, pepper and butter, mixed up and pressed into the seasoned fillets. Bake at 350º for about 10-15 minutes and voila! Crunchy crust, flaky fish, almost no fat. The corn hash was pretty simple also. Fresh corn kernels cooked and drained, roasted red pepper, avocado, chopped cilantro, shallots, garlic, salt and pepper. Add a dash of vinegar, salt and pepper to taste. There were a couple of red potatoes left, so I just boiled it with garlic and mashed. Not bad, eh?

Chocolate Ganache Sugar Cookies

2006-10-09T23:20:00.000-04:00

Just a combination of two of my favorite things: sugar cookies and chocolate ganache. I was going to dip the cookies into the chocolate, but then I realized I just wanted to decorate. The cookies are incredibly buttery. Not super sweet like the store bought brands. It's basically the same recipe as the Mocha Buttons sans espresso.

Pan Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze & Mustard Potato Salad

2006-10-09T11:40:00.000-04:00

There's a reason why cookbooks are the shizznit. It's because the recipes are usually tried and true. That being said, it's still good to have someone in the kitchen who knows what they're doing. In this case, Chris tinkered with a balsamic glaze recipe from America's Test Kitchen, and boy was it flavorful!

The recipe:

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup orange juice (we used low acid)
2 tablespoons of honey
2 teaspoons of oil (we used canola)
2 tablespoons of butter (we used Country Crock)
a pinch of dried red pepper flakes

Whisk pepper flakes, vinegar, juice and honey together in a bowl.
Heat a non-stick skillet medium high, sear salmon until nice and crispy (about 5 minutes). Remove from to a plate the let finish cooking.
Wipe out the skillet and turn heat down to medium.
Pour balsamic and orange juice mixture into the skillet and heat until bubbly.
Whisk in butter, turn down the heat, and reduce until syrupy. Salt and pepper to taste.
Pour over salmon and serve.

That's it! The sauce is light and tangy and matches great with the crispy skin and flaky meat of the fish. The pepper flakes give the glaze a heat that adds depth and complexity to this simple sauce. It's one of those glazes you can literally make up in minutes, which would probably taste good on light meat like chicken or pork.

As a side, we continued with the ATK theme, scouring for a recipe I've seen them prepare on television. Because I didn't have any herbs I decided to switch it up with what I did have on hand, and that's cilantro. (I looove cilantro!) You can find the original recipe at their website. I substituted what I had and did everything else the way the recipe called for. The way this recipe is prepared is the actual key to having great tasting slices rather than mushy bites.

The recipe:

2 lbs of small red potatoes, sliced in 1/4 inch thick slices
2 tablespoons of kosher salt
2 teaspoons of chopped garlic
2 tablespoons of white vinegar
2 teaspoons of spicy brown mustard
1/4 cup oil
1 shallot, minced
2 tablespoons minced cilantro

Boil the potatoes in salt water and bring to boil, add 1 teaspoon of chopped garlic to water, reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are fork tender.
Drain and save about 1/4 cup of water that was used to cook the potatoes.
Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.
In a bowl, whisk rest of garlic, vinegar, potato water, mustard and oil.
Add in cilantro and shallots.
Drizzle over potatoes and coat evenly and let sit to let the flavors soak in.
Transfer to a large bowl and with a rubber spatula, mix gently until everything is combined.

That's it!

Chinese Long Beans

2006-10-02T20:45:00.000-04:00

I love long beans. The outside is crisp like veggie stalks, and the inside is meaty without being pasty as some beans are. I liken the taste to japanese edamame, only its bite much smaller. You can usually find these beans in Chinatown, its lengths easily reach from shoulder to wrist.

One of my favorite ways to eat this is to cut it up and add it to an scrambled omelete. Dice up some shallots and stir in some shrimp and you've got yourself a tasty dish.

The ingredients:

2 dozen long beans cut into 1/2 inch pieces (discard ends and tips)
6 shrimps peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 eggs
1 shallot diced
salt and pepper to taste

In a wok or skillet, heat up about 2 teaspoons of oil in medium high heat. Add shallots and render until translucent.
Add shrimp and cook until halfway done.
Remove shallots and shrimps and set aside.
Toss in long beans, and stir fry for about 6-7 minutes. Add shrimp and shallots back in.
Whisk eggs in a bowl and pour over long beans and shrimp mixture, cook until eggs are done.

That's it! Usually this would be one of a couple of dishes eaten family style at a chinese household, but by itself it makes a pretty good meal also.

2006-09-24T18:09:00.000-04:00

Anna and Virginia came over last week craving cupcakes thanks to the batch I made Pete for his birthday. I surprised them with chocolate cupcakes topped with fresh whipped cream, chocolate shavings and a cherry on top. Quite cute if I do say so myself!

Who Needs Spinach?

2006-09-21T08:53:00.000-04:00

Who needs spinach when there is a plethora of other delicious greens you can easily get your hands on?

My personal favorite is chinese broccoli, pronounced guy lon in cantonese. What I love about this dark green veggie is that it is hearty and versatile. You can stir fry it on its own or you can mix it up with other ingredients that will bring out its textural goodness.

With guy lon, you can eat both the big palm-sized leaves and its meaty stalks. When you buy this in the markets just make sure of a couple of things: 1) that the bottom of the stalks have a nice white to it, and that there aren't any holes, and 2) that the stalks themselves aren't any bigger than say 1 inch in diameter. Holes indicate that the veggie is drying out, and larger stalks tend to be tougher. (Tough guy lon is not too fun to eat.) It usually comes in bundles, and is about 1/2 lb to 1 lb per bundle.

My favorite pairing for this choy (vegetable) brings me back to when I was younger, living at home, watching my parents cook. My dad would always stir fry it with cane sugar, ginger and rice wine presenting it on its own in a light syrupy sauce. My mom would add stuff to it playing up its versatility.
In my mom's instance, she'd normally chop it up into two portions, the leaves and the stalks. Doing it this way prevents the leaves from getting overcooked, and the stalks from being undercooked.

Soaked chinese mushrooms and dried scallops (both available at those stores in Chinatown that have the baskets of dried stuff), goes great with guy lon. Add some protein like chicken and you have yourself a delicious and healthy dish that you can eat with rice, rice cakes or noodles.

The best thing about this is that it's a one-wok cooking process:

Stir fry cubed chicken with garlic and ginger, and set aside.
Stir fry mushrooms with diced onions or shallots, and set aside.
Stir fry stalks using some of the dried scallop liquid to aid the cooking, add shredded leaves when stalks are halfway done
When leaves are sufficiently wilted, add in the chicken and mushrooms and finish cooking

It's a simply prepared dish that makes a delicious comforting meal.

Heaven is a Chocolate Cupcake

2006-09-19T11:08:00.000-04:00

Hey, I won't lie. This time I used a boxed cake mix to make the cupcakes. Purists can scoff if they want, but you don't need to go out of your way to make an enjoyable treat. Besides, I'm no food snob. I just know what tastes good.

Anyway, I went with a box of Duncan Hines Swiss Chocolate cake mix and made it as per instructions, then added two tablespoons of sour cream. I don't remember where I learned this from, but ever since I am a fan of sour cream in cake mix. Not only does it add a nice tang, it makes the cake incredibly smooth and moist, and balances the overt sweetness of boxed mixes.

As for the ganache topping and chocolate shaving, it's simply chocolate and heavy cream:

1/4 cup (4 ounces) of semi-sweet chocolate, chopped up
1/4 cup of heavy cream (you can use half-n-half, but it won't be as rich tasting
1/2 ounce block of chocolate, shaved or grated, saved for topping

In a sauce pot, bring heavy cream to a rolling boil, then turn off heat.
Add in the 1/4 cup chopped chocolate pieces and stir until all the chocolate is melted. You'll know it's done when the cream and chocolate turns a dark brown shiny texture and you don't taste the powder from the chocolate.
Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
Drop about a teaspoon per (cooled) cupcake, then use a spatula (or butter knife) to spread out the chocolate in a circle. (Easiest way is to have the spatula steady, sit the cupcake on the table, and turn the cupcake instead.)
Sprinkle the chocolate shavings on top of the ganache to finish! (Use a spoon, otherwise your fingers will melt the chocolate.)

I happened to have a microplane zester (another one of Chris' toys) to shave the chocolate. If you don't have one, you're fine using a veggie peeler, which will give you chocolate curls instead.

Redemption is Sweet

2006-09-07T21:58:00.000-04:00

Pics from last weekend's mini bake-a-thon. Sour cream apple pies and mocha buttons... Yummy!

Weekend Ennui

2006-09-03T17:21:00.000-04:00

I feel an incredible sense of ennui during the weekend afternoons. Armed with too much free time I get restless. I either try to do some home improvement or bake. Usually baking wins out. It costs less financially, (though I pay more in regards to the waistline.) This weekend is no exception. After failing miserably at making Hong Kong style egg custards, (its ingredients were deceivingly simple), I tried to redeem myself with baking a second batch of mocha buttons. The second batch was good. No chocolate on top, half the baking time as last. Gobbled up in a matter of minutes while watching John Q.

Today was supposed to be another day in. Hurricane Ernesto passed by earlier than predicted and left us with a beautiful late summer day. As usual the boyfriend wants to stay in. He rationalized that we can go out tomorrow since it's Labor Day, (and is currently napping the rest of the afternoon away). I reluctantly gave in, only because I hadn't made any plans, thinking it would be another wet and windy day.

I don't know what is wrong with me, but I can't seem to totally relax and do nothing. My definition of being at home and relaxing means cleaning of some sort. Or some organizing. Or some type of handy furniture rearranging that will make me feel better about being at home.

While he was asleep, I've managed to bake two sour cream apple pies (because I had sour cream and apples left), and shred papers that needed shredding. I think I'll finally get to empty out the last two boxes of books that has been sitting in my office area since I've moved in. To be honest I would have preferred to find some adhesive ceiling hooks so I can finally hook up this hanging lamp on my side of the bed. (The boyfriend seems to think it's just fine that it's on my bedside table.)

Anyway, let me get started before he wakes up and stops me from my type of relaxation!

Chilled Fresh Strawberry Souffle

2006-08-28T13:03:00.000-04:00

I had some extra gelatine packets and fresh strawberries lying around, so how fitting it is to find a recipe that required almost no effort! (Sunday was my bum day, perfect time to chillax in the kitchen whipping up good eats!)

I think the name is a bit of a misnomer if you fill ramekins without parchment papering the sides to give it the extra 'lift'. Plus it's not really a souffle since it doesn't get oven time. Mousse is more like it. The texture is lovely, with its velvety smooth creme and crushed fresh strawberries.

I added an extra touch of sweetness by heating up some strawberry preserves and diced fresh strawberries to top off this cool recipe (translated into US measurements):

1 packet powdered gelatine
3/4 pint heavy cream
3 1/3 tablespoons superfine sugar (regular sugar into a spice grinder for 30 seconds)
1 lb strawberries, washed and hulled
4 egg whites
a pinch of fresh ground black pepper (trust me on this one!)

Dissolve gelatin in 4 tablespoons of water, heat until granules dissolves completely.
In a mixer, mix heavy cream until soft peaks form.
Fold in sugar.
Save a handful of strawberries (about 7-8), crush the rest, and add in black pepper.
In a separate large bowl, beat egg whites until foamy.
Pour and fold egg whites into heavy cream, doing a little at a time.
Pour crushed strawberries into heavy cream and egg mixing, fold in a little at a time.
Divide into serving sizes and chill in the fridge for 3-4 hours. (Better if overnight!)
(Optional) Before serving dice up the remaining strawberries, combine with 2 tablespoons of strawberry preserves and heat until syrupy.
Spoon diced strawberries and syrup over mousse.

Serve!

This one is super simple and delicious! Be sure to take it out of the fridge for 15 minutes or so before serving. I had one straight out of the fridge, and another (not at the same time, of course) 15 minutes out and the one out was much tastier. (Kinda like serving cake at room temperature I suppose.)

A delicious mistake

2006-08-27T19:18:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I didn't totally follow the recipe for these Mocha Butter Balls, but the results were still pretty good tasting. (At least that's what Chris said after sampling 1/3 of the baked batch.) The Epicurious recipe called for confectioner's sugar to be dusted over after 18 minutes in the oven, and a 5 minute cool-off. I took the cookies out at 12 minutes, (which I personally think was already too long a period), and melted chocolate over the top. Despite the fact that these Mocha Butter Balls weren't really buttery. However, they were crunchy cookies, not overly sweet. Very good with milk. Not too bad of a mistake...

Individual Espresso Brownie Cheesecakes

2006-08-26T23:08:00.000-04:00

I'm so happy with my little experiment. I was torn between making espresso brownies or cheesecake this weekend's end of summer BBQ that I decided to see if I could combine the recipes both and come up with one super cake.

Added to the dilemma was the fact that I didn't want to make one giant cake if it turned out to be really bad. So instead, I decided to use my muffin tins to see if I can make a batch of small cakes. This way, if it sucked, at least it wasn't one big sucky cake. (After fretting a bit I picked up some ready made pie crusts, strawberries and heavy cream, in case the combined dessert was a complete failure.) It was also a fellow BBQ goer's birthday, and I promised to make her something sweet.

Luckily however, after shrinking down a couple recipes, I came up with a pretty decent new recipe created out of a simple cheese cake and espresso brownie recipes.

Tonight when I gave the birthday girl her batch, she promptly had two within a matter of minutes. Maybe her progressing pregnancy had something to do with it, but she did say it was good, so that was good. I also made a batch using the mini muffin tins, and present it to another friend earlier, but the verdict is still out on the mini ones.

Anyway, I have to find the cheesecake recipe portion, but I'm sure any cheesecake recipe will work. The idea is to bake the espresso brownie part just enough then top it with cheesecake and finish baking so both layers come out just right.

Here's the espresso brownie recipe:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 oz. unsweetened baking chocolate, melted
1 tbsp instant espresso powder dissolved in 1 tbsp boiling water
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease muffin tin.
In a bowl, combine flour, and salt, set aside.
In mixer, blend sugars, then add softened butter and mix to form a grainy paste.
Add melted chocolate and coffee, beat until smooth.
Add eggs and vanilla extract, beat until smooth.
Stir in flour mixture and chocolate chips until blended.
Spoon about a tablespoon of batter into each or until it's halfway.
Bake for about 10-15 minutes, remove when it's halfway done.
Top with cheesecake mix and return to baking for another 10-15 minutes.

I was thinking about covering these with melted chocolate to give it a bit more dimension, but the way it is is just fine. (I think I would just prefer it to have a touch more chocolate flavor.) The cheesecake top is nice and creamy and smooth, and the brownie bottom is a nice dense contrast with the morsels of chocolate chip. It's not achingly sweet. Plus the muffin tin makes great serving sizes. I popped each one in muffin liners and they looked so cute! I was almost sad to give them away because they're so freakin adorable! Ah well. It was fun.

The 'To Make' List

2006-08-23T21:57:00.000-04:00

Espresso brownies as requested by Chris
Chocolate cheesecake birthday cake as hinted by Zanna
Fresh fruit tarts for Lilly
Mochi ice cream (for myself!)
Peach cobbler (because peaches are in season!)
Cookies for Lyta

hmm... who else?

By the way, Medaglia D'oro instant espresso with a shot of Frangelico is the bomb diggity!

Chocolate Hazelnut Tarts

2006-08-20T11:49:00.001-04:00

Tested out a tart recipe today. Switched out creme fraiche and substituted sour cream. Replaced the vanilla and added Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur). Used Splenda instead of sugar. The sour cream balanced out the sweetness of the chocolate, and the liquor added just a touch of nuttiness. The verdict? Tangy but not overly so. Sweet but not thick. The whipped cream on top is made with cocoa and a shot of hazelnut liquor. (C helped with the piping.) Word of advice here: avoid the premade tart shells and make your own.

Chocolate Hazelnut Tart Filling:

1 cup of semisweet chocolate (chips or finely chopped blocks)

1/2 cup of milk

1/8 cup of Splenda (or 1/4 cup of sugar)

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon Frangelico (or 1 teaspoon vanilla)

1 cup of sour cream (or 1 cup creme fraiche)

Add chocolate into a bowl and set aside.

In pot, bring to a boil milk, and add Splenda and salt, mix completely and turn off heat.

Pour milk into chocolate bowl and let the chocolate melt.

Whisk bowl until chocolate and milk is incorporated.

Whisk in Frangelico and egg yolks into chocolate.

Whisk in sour cream.

Pour into individual mini tart shells and bake at 350º for 25-30 minutes.

Cool and let chill for 1 hour in refrigerator.

Chocolate Whipped Cream Topping:

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 teaspoons cocoa powder

1 teaspoon Frangelico

2 teaspoons sugar

Whip everything until fluffy, then pipe or spoon onto tart tops.

That's it!

Fresh Lime Mousse

2006-08-08T21:07:00.001-04:00

I decided to try out this recipe after using less than half of the limes that Chris got from the market. (After having made 2 quarts of limeade, I still had about 3 left.) To be honest, I never made mousse before. And the first time I used lime in a recipe was when I first made the limeade. (Garnishing with wedges doesn't count.)

Anyway, the mousse turned out pretty tasty. Tangy, but tasty. (I did cut I created a couple different versions to see if it works well with jello and chocolate... The verdict? Not bad with strawberry jello, but great with chocolate!

Here's the recipe for the mousse:

1/4 cup water
2 1/4 tsp. (1 package) unflavored powdered
gelatin
1 cup granulated sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp. finely grated lime zest
2/3 cup fresh lime juice (about 8 limes)
4 egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

Fill a bowl with ice and water (to be used to cool down the mixture later).
Pour the water into a saucepan and add gelatin. (Gelatin will swell.)
Stir in sugar, salt, lime zest, lime juice and egg yolks.
Place over medium heat and stir, until the mixture thickens and the gelatin melts completely. (Do not boil the mixture.)
Set the pan in the ice water until the mixture is cooled. (Be careful not to let the ice water into the pan.)
Remove the pan from the ice water and let stand at room temperature.
In a large bowl, combine the cream and confectioners’ sugar.
Using a wire whisk or an electric mixer on medium speed, beat until soft peaks form.
Add the lime mixture to the cream and, with a rubber spatula, fold together until smooth.
Pour the mousse into serving sized cups. (The recipe calls for 1/2 cup ramekins, but you can use whatever you have!)
Refrigerate the mousse until it is cold and firm, 2 to 3 hours.
Remove it from the refrigerator 20 minutes before serving.

That's it!

*This recipe contains partially cooked eggs as well as gelatin.

Savory Braised Pork

2006-08-06T19:59:00.000-04:00

Braised Pork recipe: (C didn't measure but I took notes )

• 3lb pork shoulder
• 2 medium onions diced
• 4 stalks of celery diced
• 4 red chili peppers left whole
• 2 tomatoes diced
• 2 tbsp fresh garlic
• ketchup
• salt and pepper to taste

Sear meat in pan with canola oil until all sides are browned.
In stock pot, brown onions, celery, tomatoes, garlic, add a healthy squeeze of ketchup, salt and pepper to taste.
Add pork to the stock pot.
Add chicken stock halfway covering the meat, bring liquid to a boil, then turn down heat to let simmer until pork is tender. (A few hours)
Serve!

That's it!

Sumatran Spiced Limeade

2006-07-27T20:17:00.000-04:00

I think Chris was going to make this recipe one day when he decided he couldn't pass up those juicy limes at the supermarket which were 8 for $1. There was a recipe printed out, stuck on the fridge. Coincidentally, there were stalks of lemongrass hanging out by the wire shelf. Searched through the pantry and found everything else I needed. Perfect! A drink for the siblings that were going to arrive in a couple of hours, ready to taste the boyfriend's chef creations, (which, by the way, was a pan-Asian fare).

Limeade Recipe:
Makes 4 cups

• 4 1/2 cups of water
• 2 inch piece fresh ginger
• 2 4 inch cinnamon sticks
• 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
• 3 tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 3 stalks of lemongrass
• 3 tsbp. palm sugar

With the handle of a knife, bruise stalks of lemongrass. Cut off tips and ends and tie into knots.
In a large pot, add lemongrass, cinnamon sticks, cloves, palm sugar and ginger, and bring to a simmer. Do not boil.
Add palm sugar and stir until completely dissolved.
Turn off heat and add lime juice.
Refrigerate until cold. Serve in glass with ice. Add slice of lime and cinnamon stick for garnish.

A note: the recipe called for 3 whole cloves, but I substituted ground since I didn't have any.

The combination of tart and sweet is perfect for a hot summer day, and the spiciness of the ginger and cloves provides a slight kick. This has become my favorite drink to make this summer. I've never been to Sumatra, but after sipping this, I am whisked away to the Indonesian island (if only by the tastebuds)!