Eat4Fun

Jan 15, 2012: Daring Cooks - Green Chile Chicken Tamales

2012-01-15T10:33:00.000-08:00

Maranda of Jolts & Jollies was our January 2012 Daring Cooks hostess with the mostess! Maranda challenged us to make traditional Mexican Tamales as our first challenge of the year!

[Eat4Fun - Happy New Years! I've been wanting to make tamales again, but didn't have a plan. Fortunately this month's challenge gave me the extra push and a new recipe to try out! I decided to try the Green Chile Chicken Tamales.]

Recipe Source: Green Chile Chicken Tamales adapted from Epicurious http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Green-Chile-Chicken-Tamales-108055

Mandatory Items: You must prepare a “dough” and a filling. These must be wrapped in a corn husk, parchment paper, or plastic wrapped and steamed to cook.

Variations allowed: Creativity is highly encouraged. Be it sweet, savory or altered due to dietary preferences and restrictions.

Preparation time:
Soaking the corn husks: 3 hours or up to 1 day

Green Chile Chicken Tamales:
Makes about 24 tamales

Ingredients
1 – 8 ounce (225 gram) package dried corn husks (If you cannot find corn husks, you can use parchment paper or plastic wrap.)

For filling:
1 pound (455 gram) tomatillos (can sub mild green chilies – canned or fresh)
4 – 3 inch (7½ cm) serrano chiles, stemmed and chopped (can sub jalapeno)
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 ½ tablespoons (22½ ml) Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 cups (480 ml) low sodium chicken broth
4 cups (960 ml) (400 gm/14 oz) cooked and shredded chicken
2/3 cup (160 ml) (30 gm/1 oz) roughly chopped fresh cilantro (also known as coriander)

For the masa dough:
1 1/3 cups (320 ml) (265 gm/9⅓ oz) lard or vegetable shortening
1 ½ teaspoons (7½ ml) (10 gm/1/3 oz) salt (omit if already in masa mixture)
1 ½ teaspoons (7½ ml) (8 gm/¼ oz) baking powder (omit if already in masa mixture)
4 cups (960 ml) (480 gm/17 oz) masa harina (corn tortilla mix), I used instant masa mix
1 ½-2 cups (360 ml – 480 ml) low sodium chicken broth

Directions:

1. Place the dried corn husks in a large pot and cover with water.

2. Place a heavy plate or a smaller pot full of water on top of husks to keep them in the water. Let soak for 3 hours or up to 1 day, flipping occasionally until husks are softened.

3. Once husks are softened, boil chicken about 20 minutes or until fully cooked. [I used a whole chicken using the breast and leg meat.]

4. Immediately place hot chicken into the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment. Turn mixer on high to shred chicken (this takes about 3-5 seconds). [My preference is to dice the chicken, especially the breast, against the bias. I don't like stringy meat in tamales.]

5. Place an oven rack on the top setting. Turn the oven on broil. Peel and rinse the tomatillos.

6. Line a heavy baking sheet with foil. Place tomatillos on baking sheet and place under broiler.

7. Broil (grill) until black spots form on tomatillos, then flip and broil (grill) other side. This takes about 5-10 minutes per side depending on the strength of the broiler.

8. Place roasted tomatillos and juices from the pan into a food processor and allow to cool about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and chopped Serrano chiles and process until smooth.

9. Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat.

10. Add the tomatillo puree and boil, stirring continuously, for 5 minutes (it should turn thick like a paste).

11. Add in the chicken broth, stir to mix well. Reduce heat to medium low and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally until mixture coats the back of a spoon and is reduced to about a cup (240 ml).

12. Stir in the chicken and cilantro. Salt to taste.

13. Prepare the dough. In the bowl of an electric mixer, on medium high heat, cream together the lard or vegetable shortening, baking powder and salt.

Mix in the masa harina, one cup (240 ml) at a time.

14. Reduce the mixer speed to low, gradually add in 1 ½ cups (360 ml) of the chicken broth.

15. If the mixture seems too thick (you can taste it for moistness) add up to ½ cup (120 ml) more of the broth 2 tablespoons (30 ml) at a time. (The dough should be a cookie dough like texture).

16. Take 3 large corn husks and tear them into ¼ inch (6 mm) strips. (I would suggest you put these back in the water until use because they dry out and start breaking when you try to work with them.

17. Take a large pot with a steamer attachment. Pour about 2 inches (5 cm) of water into the bottom of the pot, or enough to touch the bottom of the steamer. Line the bottom of the steamer with corn husks.

18. Unfold 2 corn husks onto a work surface. Take ¼ cup (60 ml) of dough and, starting near the top of the husk, press it out into a 4 inch (10 cm) square, leaving 2-3 inches (5 -7½ cm) at the bottom of the husk. Place a heaping tablespoon (15 ml) of the filling in a line down the center of the dough square.

19. Fold the dough into the corn husk.

20. And wrap the husk around the dough.

21. Fold up the skinny bottom part of the husk.

22. And secure it with one of the corn husk ties.

23. Stand them up in the steamer. If there aren’t enough tamales to tightly pack the steamer, place crumpled aluminum foil in the excess space.

24. Steam the tamales for about 40 minutes or until the dough deepens in color and easily pulls away from the husk. [I steamed for 90 minutes.]

[The tamales turned out different. The texture was reminiscent of an English pudding - rich and soft, probably due to the extra lard and baking powder. I'm more familiar with a firmer, denser texture.

The filing was good. The serrano chiles gave the filling a little spicy bite.

Overall, I enjoyed the results.]

Jan 12, 2012: Daring Cooks December - Char Sui and Buns

2012-01-12T20:49:00.000-08:00

Our Daring Cooks’ December 2011 hostess is Sara from Belly Rumbles! Sara chose awesome Char Sui Bao as our challenge, where we made the buns, Char Sui, and filling from scratch – delicious!

[Eat4Fun - Posting a month late on this one. I made all three recipes.]

Recipe Source: I looked at quite a few blogs and various websites as well as referring to various cook books. Through trial and error my recipes are a slight variation. Sara's recipe for marinade using maltose was based on Blue Apocalypse's recipe.

Mandatory Items:
Prepare char sui and then make char sui bao.

[Char Sui served with Spicy Mustard. Dijon can be used as a substitute, but you don't get the kick.]

Char Sui (Cantonese BBQ Pork)

Ingredients

1 pork fillet/tenderloin (roughly 1-1.5 pounds)
4 large cloves of garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon (3 gm) ginger, grated
1 tablespoon peanut oil
1 ½ tablespoons maltose (you can substitute honey)
1 ½ tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon shaoxing cooking wine
½ teaspoon (2 gm) ground white pepper
pinch of salt
½ teaspoon (2 gm) five spice powder
½ teaspoon sesame oil
½ teaspoon pillar box red food colouring [I left out the food coloring.]
(1 tablespoon=15 ml, 1 teaspoon=5 ml)

Directions:

1) Trim the pork loin to remove fat and tendon and slice lengthways so you have two long pieces, then cut in half. By cutting the pork in to smaller pieces to marinate you will end up with more flavoursome char sui. If you want to leave the pork in one piece you can do this as well. Place in container that you will be marinating them in.

2) Combine all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix well to combine. I placed my maltose in the microwave for a few seconds to make it easier to work with. Maltose is quite a solid hard sticky substance.

3) Cover pork well with ⅔ of the marinade mixture. Marinate for a minimum of 4 hours, I find it is best left to marinate overnight. Place the reserved ⅓ portion of the marinade covered in the fridge. You will use this as a baste when cooking the pork.

Cooking Method in the oven

4) Pre-heat oven to moderate 180˚C/350°F/gas mark 4.

5) Cover a baking tray with foil or baking paper. Place on top of this a rack on which to cook the pork.

6) Place pork on the rack and place in oven.

7) Bake for approximately 10 minutes, basting and turning.

8) Turn the heat up to moderately hot 200˚C/400°F/gas mark 6 for the final 20 minutes as this will aid the charring. Cook until cooked through.

Baked Char Sui Bao (Cantonese BBQ Pork Bun)

Filling
350 gm (12 oz) char sui (finely diced)
2 green onions/spring onions (finely sliced)
1 tablespoon hoisin
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
¼ cup (60 ml) chicken stock
1 teaspoon (2 gm) cornflour
½ tablespoon vegetable oil
(1 tablespoon=15 ml, 1 teaspoon=5 ml)

Dough Ingredients

2½ teaspoons (8 gm/1 satchel) of dried yeast
¼ cup (55 gm/2 oz) sugar
½ cup warm water
2 cups (280 gm/10 oz) plain flour
1 egg (medium size - slightly beaten)
3 tablespoons oil
½ teaspoon (3 gm) salt
Egg wash: 1 egg beaten with a dash of water
(1 cup=240 ml, 1 tablespoon=15 ml, 1 teaspoon=5 ml)

Filling Directions:

1) Heat the vegetable oil in a wok or pan.

2) Add diced char sui to the wok/pan and stir then add spring onions, cook for 1 minute.

3) Add hoisin, dark soy sauce and sesame oil to the pork mixture, stir fry for one minute.

4) Mix cornflour and stock together and then add to the pork mixture.

5) Stir well and keep cooking until the mixture thickens, 1 or 2 minutes.

6) Remove mixture from wok/pan and place in a bowl to cool. Set aside until ready to use.

Bun Directions:

1) Place the sugar and warm water in a bowl, mix until the sugar has dissolved. Add yeast and leave it for 10 - 15 minutes until it becomes all frothy.

2) Sift flour in to a large bowl.

3) Add yeast mixture, egg, oil and salt and stir. Bring the flour mixture together with your hands.

4) Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes. The dough should be smooth and slightly elastic.

5) Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Leave to rise until it is double in size. This will take from 1 - 2 hours depending on weather conditions.

6) Once dough has doubled in size knock back and divide in to 12 portions and shape in to round balls.

7) Place a good sized tablespoon of filling on the dough circle. Then gather the edges and seal your bun.

8) Place the bun seal side down on your baking tray. Continue with rest of dough.

9) Once all buns are complete brush surface with egg wash.

10) Place in oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

[Steamed bun - The buns look a little off - bubbly exterior. It should be smooth. Flavor was good.]

Steamed Char Sui Bao (Cantonese BBQ Pork Bun)

Filling
350 gm (12 oz) char sui (finely diced)
2 shallots (finely diced)
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
¼ cup (60 ml) chicken stock
1 teaspoon (3 gm) cornflour
½ tablespoon vegetable oil

Bun Ingredients
1 cup milk, scalded
¼ cup (60 gm/2 oz) sugar
1 tablespoon oil
¼ teaspoon (2 gm) salt
2½ teaspoons (8 gm/1 satchel) of dried yeast
3 cups (420 gm/15 oz) plain flour
(1 cup=240 ml, 1 tablespoon=15 ml, 1 teaspoon=5 ml)

Filling Directions:

1) Heat the vegetable oil in a wok or pan. Sauté the shallots for one or two minutes until soft.

2) Add diced char sui to the wok/pan and stir.

3) Add oyster sauce, dark soy sauce and sesame oil to the pork mixture, stir fry for one minute.

4) Mix cornflour and stock together and then add to the pork mixture.

5) Stir well and keep cooking until the mixture thickens, 1 or 2 minutes.

6) Remove mixture from wok/pan and place in a bowl to cool. Set aside until ready to use.

Bun Directions:

1) Scald milk and then stir in sugar, oil and salt, leave to cool until it is lukewarm. Once it is the right temperature add yeast, leave until yeast is activated and it becomes frothy, about 10 - 15 minutes. [I used quick yeast so this step was skipped - proofing the yeast]

2) Sift flour in to a large bowl.

3) Add milk/yeast mixture to the flour. Bring the flour mixture together with your hands.

4) Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for approximately 10 minutes. The dough should be smooth and slightly elastic.

5) Place in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Leave to rise until it is double in size. This will take from 1 - 2 hours depending on weather conditions.

6) Punch down dough and divide in to 20 equal portions.

7) Roll each dough portion in to a 7 – 8cm (2¾ - 3 ¼ inches) round.

8) Place 1 tablespoon of filling in the centre of the round, gather the edges together at the top and place on a 8cm (3 inch) square of baking paper. Repeat until all dough has been used.

9) Cover and let rise for 20 minutes.

10) Place buns in bamboo steamer, leaving space between the buns.

11) Heat water in a wok until it is simmering and place steamers one on top of each other in the wok.

12) Place lid on top bamboo steamer and steam for approximately 12 minutes.

Results
I thought the char sui wasn't bad and the buns were only okay.

The texture on them was a little off. Maybe it was how I made the dough in the food processor where the dough was more bread like. The buns should be fluffy and soft, but still have a little density to them. The baked buns came out a little dry. The steamed buns came out a little airy.

Jan 10, 2012: Tofu Tuesday - Salt and Pepper Tofu

2012-01-10T23:11:00.001-08:00

It's been awhile since I've had a Tofu Tuesday, but this one is inspired by a dish I had at a local restaurant - Salt and Pepper tofu.

The salt and pepper tofu was deep fried with a flavorful salt and pepper coating. The center of the tofu cubes were soft and custard-like.

This is my attempt at recreating the dish.
I opted to use medium firm tofu since firm would not give a custard consistency while silken may not hold up to the handling.

Salt and Pepper Tofu
1 Block of Tofu, medium firm, cut into 1 inch cubes.
1 T Cornstarch
1/2 t Salt
1/4 t White Pepper
1/4 t Black Pepper
Scant 1/4 t Sichuan Peppercorn, toasted and ground.
1/4 C oil for frying

Garnish
1 Green Onion, coarse chop
1/2 Serrano Pepper, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
a few sprigs Cilantro

Directions
1) Mix salt and peppers in a bag
2) Add tofu to bag to coat
3) Heat oil and pan fry over medium heat until nicely browned on all sides
4) Drain browned cubes on a paper towel.
5) Pour out oil from the pan, leaving about 1 T.
6) Fry the garlic, green onion and Serrano for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
7) Add tofu and mix together
8) Plate and garnish with cilantro

My YouTube Video of the effort.

Nov 14, 2011: Darking Cooks cooking with Tea

2011-11-14T03:51:00.000-08:00

Sarah from Simply Cooked was our November Daring Cooks’ hostess and she challenged us to create something truly unique in both taste and technique! We learned how to cook using tea with recipes from Tea Cookbook by Tonia George and The New Tea Book by Sara Perry.

Mandatory Items: Prepare at least one savory recipe made with tea.

Variations allowed: Variations are encouraged. Feel free to use black, green, or white tea. Herbal teas (which are actually infusions, since they contain no tea leaves) are also allowed.

Eat4Fun - For this challenge, I used my own recipe.

Over the years, I've been working on my own Chinese BBQ sauce recipe. The following are pork spare ribs cooked in the sauce with the addition of tea.

Instead of baking, I use a method I call "braise-glaze". The ribs are braised for about an hour. As the sauce evaporates, it thickens to coat the coat the ribs.

The end result is a falling off the bone rib coated with a sweet Chinese bbq sauce.

Chinese Spare Ribs
1 Slab Spare Ribs, cleaned and trimmed to individual ribs.
1/2 C Ketchup
1/4 C Honey
1/4 C Maltose (or just use more honey)
1/4 C Hoisin Sauce
1/4 C Soy Sauce
1/4 C Onion, chopped
1/4 C Water
1 T Rice Wine
1 T Rice Wine Vinegar
1 T Brown Sugar
1 t Five Spice Powder
1 t Toasted Sesame Oil
2 Cloves Garlic, sliced
Optional: 2 to 6 tea bags (I used Jasmine Green Tea and an English Breakfast Tea)

Directions
1) Clean and trim the ribs.
2) Combine the rest of the ingredients in a large pot and heat.
Note: With the tea, you can add more or less depending upon how much tea flavor you want.
3) When the sauce has combined, add the ribs and stir to coat.
4) Simmer ribs, with the lid ajar, over low to medium low heat for about an hour - stir occasionally to ensure even coverage.
5) After an hour, you can turn up the heat to thicken the sauce, about 5 minutes. The ribs can be taken out for this step (if you feel the ribs are soft enough) or just leave in the pot to cook longer.

Oct 15, 2011: Daring Cooks' Challenge - Moo Shu Pork

2011-10-15T23:46:00.000-07:00

The October Daring Cooks' Challenge was hosted by Shelley of C Mom Cook and her sister Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood. They challenged us to bring a taste of the East into our home kitchens by making our own Moo Shu, including thin pancakes, stir fry and sauce.

Eat4Fun: My YouTube Video of the Challenge:

Shelley selected the recipe for this challenge because it is both accessible and adaptable to a variety of dietary requirements, while maintaining authenticity to what Moo Shu is supposed to be.

Deh-Ta Hsiung, a renowned authority on Chinese cuisine, published a beautiful book called The Chinese Kitchen. The book is a wonderful and encyclopedic volume containing a wealth of information about all aspects of Chinese cooking, from ingredients to process to history. The recipes are accessible, flavorful, and clearly written. His recipe for Moo Shu, like the others, is straightforward and delicious, and is what I am sharing with you for our challenge.

In preparation for this challenge, Shelly contacted Mr. Deh-Ta Hsiung, who is pleased to have his recipe as our challenge. Mr. Hsiung is widely considered an international expert on Chinese cooking, though his original work was in the arts and film-making. Chinese cooking was his passion, though, and he proceeded to take lessons from top Chinese chefs and work in professional kitchens around the world. Having written numerous books and articles, Mr. Hsiung is a respected authority in the world of Chinese cooking.

About this dish, specifically, Mr. Hsiung offered us a brief anecdote from his earliest work, regarding the origins of this dish's name. In The Home Book of CHINESE COOKERY, Mr. Hsiung discusses the dish as follows:

PORK LAUREL (MU-HSU PORK)
Some explanation is needed for the name of this dish. In China, we have a tree called kwei; according to my dictionary, kwei is called laurel in English, and it is a shrub rather than a tree; but the laurels we have in the garden of our London home never seem to flower at all, while the Chinese laurel is a large tree which produces bright yellow, fragrant flowers in the autumn. The pork in this recipe is cooked with eggs, which give a yellow colour to the dish – hence the name. But to add to the confusion, the Chinese name of this dish is mu-hsu pork, mu hsu being the classical name for laurel (are you still with me?). So you might say that calling it pork laurel is taking a poetic license.

Simply put, Moo Shu is a stir fry, containing thinly sliced or shredded vegetables, meat (traditionally) and scrambled egg. It is usually served on flat, thin, steamed pancakes, and is accompanied by a complementary sauce.

Moo Shu pork (the protein most commonly used in Moo Shu dishes) originates in Northern China (commonly attributed to the Shandong province, though sometimes attributed to Beijing), rising in popularity in Chinese restaurants in the West in the 1960's and 70's. As the dish became more popular, different restaurants adapted the recipe to meet their own styles, or to accommodate for expensive or hard-to find ingredients, so there is a lot of variation among recipes. Common among them, though, is a basis of cabbage and the inclusion of scrambled eggs.

The history and etymology of the dish are widely disputed, as indicated by Mr. Hsiung's anecdote above. There are two primary theories as to the origin of the name. Many, including the author of our challenge recipe, suggest that the Chinese characters, read as mu xi, refer to a tree that blooms with small, fragrant blossoms. They suggest that the scrambled egg in this dish is reminiscent of these blossoms, and thus a variety of egg dishes are referred to as mu xi. An alternative suggestion uses the Chinese characters reading mu xu, roughly translating to wood whiskers or wood shavings. The dish is thus named, it is said, due to the appearance of the shredded vegetables and meat, resembling wooden whiskers, or wooden shavings that were used as packing materials.

Recipe Source: The challenge recipe provided for the Moo Shu filling comes from The Chinese Kitchen by Deh-Ta Hsiung. The pancake recipe comes from the same source, though we have also provided an alternate method for preparing them, adapted from a variety of online demonstrations. The sauce recipe provided is from epicurian.com.

Mandatory Items:
You must make Moo Shu pancakes using the provided recipe, a stir fry, and a complementary sauce.

Moo Shu Pork:

Ingredients
2/3 cup (1 oz) (30 gm) Dried black fungus ('wood ears')
½ lb (450 gm) pork loin or butt
¾ cup (3½ oz) (100 gm) bamboo shoots, thinly cut
3 cups (6 oz) (170 gm) Chinese cabbage (Napa cabbage), thinly cut
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (6 gm) salt
4 tablespoons (60 ml) vegetable oil
2 scallions
1 tablespoon (15 ml) light soy sauce
2 teaspoons (10 ml) rice wine
A few drops sesame oil
12 thin pancakes to serve

Directions:

1. Soak the fungus in warm water for 10-15 minutes, rinse and drain. Discard any hard stalks, then thinly shred.

2. Thinly cut the pork, bamboo shoots and Chinese cabbage into matchstick-sized shreds.

3. Lightly beat the eggs with a pinch of salt.

4. Heat about 1 tablespoon (15 ml) oil in a preheated wok and scramble the eggs until set, but not too hard. Remove and keep to one side.

5. Heat the remaining oil. Stir-fry the shredded pork for about 1 minute or until the color changes. Add the fungus, bamboo shoots, Chinese cabbage and scallions. Stir-fry for about 2-3 minutes, then add the remaining salt, soy sauce and wine. Blend well and continue stirring for another 2 minutes. Add the scrambled eggs, stirring to break them into small bits. Add the sesame oil and blend well.

To serve: place about 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of hot Moo Shu in the center of a warm pancake, rolling it into a parcel with the bottom end turned up to prevent the contents from falling out. Eat with your fingers. (See Final Preparation and Serving section below for more complete details.)

Thin Pancakes:

Ingredients
4 cups (960 ml) (560 gm) (19¾ oz) all purpose flour
About 1½ cup (300ml) (10 fl oz) boiling water
1 teaspoon (5 ml) vegetable oil
Dry flour for dusting

Directions:

1. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl. Gently pour in the water, stirring as you pour, then stir in the oil. Knead the mixture into a soft but firm dough. If your dough is dry, add more water, one tablespoon at a time, to reach the right consistency. Cover with a damp towel and let stand for about 30 minutes.

2. Lightly dust the surface of a worktop with dry flour. Knead the dough for 6-8 minutes or until smooth, then divide into 3 equal portions. Roll out each portion into a long sausage and cut each sausage into 8-10 pieces. Keep the dough that you are not actively working with covered with a lightly damp dish cloth to keep it from drying out.

3. Roll each piece into a ball, then, using the palm of your hand, press each piece into a flat pancake. Dust the worktop with more dry flour. Flatten each pancake into a 6 to 8 inch (15 cm to 20 cm) circle with a rolling pin, rolling gently on both sides.

4. Place an un-greased frying pan over high heat. Once the pan is hot, lower the heat to low and place the pancakes, one at a time, in the pan. Remove when little light-brown spots appear on the underside. Cover with a damp cloth until ready to serve.

Alternate method for preparing the pancakes:
Once the dough has rested and been kneaded again, divide it into an even number of small pieces, rolling each into a ball. Working with two balls of dough at a time, dip the bottom of one ball lightly into sesame oil and press it onto the top of the second ball. Press the double layer flat, then roll the doubled pancake layers into 6 to 8 inch circles. In a dry pan, cook on each side until dry and lightly blistered (but without browning). Separate pancakes after cooking.

Alternately (I know, an alternate to the alternate...), if you would prefer not to dip the dough in the sesame oil, you can achieve a similar result with a slight modification. Again working two pieces at a time, roll each piece into a three inch pancake. Using a pastry brush, brush sesame oil onto the top of one of the pancakes, and top it with the other pancake. Further roll the doubled pancake into a 6 to 8 inch circle and cook as the above alternate method. This method was actually our favorite of the three, and yielded the best results – very thin pancakes that held up a little better and had the most authentic texture. We had the best luck brushing a bit of sesame oil on both circles of dough, then sandwiching them together. Just be careful separating the pancakes after cooking them on both sides – heat (steam) does get caught between them, so don't burn your fingers!

Hoisin Sauce:
(source: http://recipes.epicurean.com/recipe/13249/hoisin-sauce.html)

Ingredients
4 tablespoons (60 ml) soy sauce
2 tablespoons (30 ml) peanut butter OR black bean paste
1 tablespoon (15 ml) honey OR molasses
2 teaspoons (10 ml) white vinegar
1/8 teaspoon (⅔ ml) garlic powder
2 teaspoons (10 ml) sesame seed oil
20 drops (¼ teaspoon) Chinese style hot sauce (optional, depending on how hot you want your hoisin sauce)
1/8 teaspoon (⅔ ml) black pepper

Directions:
1. Simply mix all of the ingredients together by hand using a sturdy spoon.
2. At first it does not appear like it will mix, but keep at it just a bit longer and your sauce will come together.

Final Preparation and Serving:

Each of the three components that comprise the complete Moo Shu dish are served separately, and the diner prepares each serving on his or her own plate. Most restaurants provide four pancakes, a serving of Moo-Shu and a small dish of hoisin sauce as a single serving. To prepare each pancake for eating, the following is the most common process: a small amount of hoisin sauce is spread onto the pancake, on top of which a spoonful of the stir-fry is placed. In order to prevent (or, realistically, minimize) the filling from spilling out while eating, the bottom of the pancake is folded up, then the pancake is rolled, similarly to a soft taco. Once rolled, the prepared pancake is eaten immediately.

Eat4Fun's Closing Comments:
1. I suggest using 1/2 the salt called out in the filling recipe.

2. The pancakes is a bit of work. I suggest finding soft flour tortillas or premade thin pancakes at the Asian market, usually found in the freezer.

3. The Hoisin sauce is more like a peanut dipping sauce, but not as sweet as Hoisin.

July 26, 2011: Daring Cooks' Homemade Noodles

2011-07-26T06:50:00.000-07:00

Steph from Stephfood was our Daring Cooks' July hostess. Steph challenged us to make homemade noodles without the help of a motorized pasta machine. She provided us with recipes for Spätzle and Fresh Egg Pasta as well as a few delicious sauces to pair our noodles with!

This challenge is all about getting your hands dirty, by making a style of pasta or noodle without the use of motorized tools. So many cultures make flour as a method of preserving wheat and rice harvest, and then use the flour to make staple food items such as bread and noodles.

As a bonus, I want to challenge you to find examples from your cultural background!

Mandatory Items: Prepare some pasta by hand, without the use of motorized tools, and prepare the appropriate sauce/seasoning to go with it. The concept of "noodle" or "pasta" is being applied very loosely here, as some traditional recipes may seem closer to a dumpling than what you consider a noodle. Use your own judgment and creativity here.

Variations allowed: Many variations are allowed here – no strict recipe is required. It goes without saying that people with dietary requirements may substitute the "traditional" ingredients in favor of ingredients that are appropriate for them. Similarly, substitutions may be made where suggested ingredients are not readily available, or are cost prohibitive.

Steph's recipes can be found at The Daring Kitchen.

Eat4Fun: I've made traditional Italian-style pasta in the pasta for the Daring Bakers' Lasagna Challenge.

I wanted to make something that I remember from my childhood, Rice Noodles (aka Fun).
The difference between mein (as in chow mein) is that mein refers to wheat based noodles while Fun refers to non-wheat noodles.

Recipe is based upon what my mom's recipe. She doesn't measure out ingredients using cups, but this is what I've come up with.

Rice Noodles (Fun)
1 C Rice Flour
2 T Wheat Starch (or Cornstarch)
1 t Tapioca Starch (to give the noodles a little chew)
1.5 C Water (or use a 50/50 mixture of Chicken broth and water)
1/4 t Salt (can omit if using broth)

1) Mix all the ingredients to form a slurry.
2) Use a steamer and an 8 x 8 inch Pyres dish or a round pie pan.
3) Lightly oil (with an oily towel or use Pam) the glass dish.
4) Pour about 1/3 cup of batter and spread.
5) Steam about 3 to 5 minutes.

Finished Rice Noodles (Fun)

What you can make...

Chow Fun

Dim Sum: Rice noodle rolled with Shrimp

Dim Sum: Rice noodle rolled with Pork

Dim Sum: Rice Rolls (Cheung Fun)

Simple Comfort Food: Rice Noodles drizzled with Soy Sauce

July 25, 2011: Daring Cooks' Healthy Potato Salad

2011-07-25T06:29:00.000-07:00

Jami Sorrento was our June Daring Cooks hostess and she chose to challenge us to celebrate the humble spud by making a delicious and healthy potato salad. The Daring Cooks Potato Salad Challenge was sponsored by the nice people at the United States Potato Board, who awarded prizes to the top 3 most creative and healthy potato salads. A medium-size (5.3 ounce) potato has 110 calories, no fat, no cholesterol, no sodium and includes nearly half your daily value of vitamin C and has more potassium than a banana!

This month's challenge is hosted by Jami Sorrento a two year non blogging member of Daring Cooks. What do you think of when you think about Potato Salad? A fat laden high caloric salad that you only indulge in on occasion –and even then you feel guilty? Well this month we are going to challenge you to make the most delicious and healthy Potato Salad. The possibilities of what you can do with a fresh, natural, and versatile vegetable like potatoes are limitless! Did you know that a medium-size (5.3 ounce) potato has 110 calories, no fat, no cholesterol, no sodium and includes nearly half your daily value of vitamin C and has more potassium than a banana?

Potatoes are a nutritional powerhouse and you can keep potato salad healthy by using low-fat and fresh toppings that still taste great.

For example, what other fresh and healthy vegetables or toppings do you like? Asparagus, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, olives? Do you have some new salts or a spice you would like to try? How about a different oil or vinegar you have been dying to taste? Here is your chance for TOTAL CREATIVITY!!! You can make your potato salad hot or cold- just come up with a yummy, healthy and fresh potato salad that looks as good as it tastes.

I am so excited about this challenge because first of all I am of Irish decent and love potatoes. Second – I get to see all the delicious creative salads you come up with. I hope we will all expand upon the normal potato salad we make and use some new ingredients or seasonings to make the best, healthy Potato Salad ever.

Mandatory Items:To make any type of potato salad – hot or cold - that is healthy and delicious. We’d love to see all kinds of ethnic and cultural variations!

[Eat4Fun: I'm posting this challenge a bit (very) late, but my take on this salad is to incorporate more vegetables (add color to a potato salad) and use a vinaigrette. One way to make a dish healthy is to cut back on the fat content. Fat has more than twice the calories of carbs and protein so by cutting back on fats you're reducing calories quite a bit.

My YouTube Video:

This is a recipe I made on the fly with ingredients I had readily available.

Recipe
Healthy Potato Salad
3 Boiled potates (about 3 cups diced)
2 T Vinegar
1/4 t Salt
1/4 t Black Pepper
1/2 C Tomatoes, Diced
1/2 C Corn Kernels
1/2 C Cucumber, Diced
1/2 C Carrot Shredded
1/4 C Red Onions, Thinly Sliced {Tip - sliced onions can be soaked in cool water to tone down the spiciness.)
2 T Bacon, Crumbled (Optional)

Dressing
3 T Vinegar
1 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 t Dijon Mustard
1/4 t Salt
1/4 t Black Pepper
1/4 t Garlic Powder
1/4 t Dried Parsley
2 T Blue Cheese, Crumbled (Optional)

Steps:
1) Boil potatoes until fork tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.
2) While still hot, peel and dice potatoes
3) Salt, pepper and sprinkle the potatoes with vinegar. Mix gently. Refrigerate to cool.
4) Top with veggies and make dressing.
5) Potato salad can be dressed a few hours before hand to let the flavors infuse.

May 15, 2011: Daring Cooks' Gumbo

2011-05-15T00:11:00.000-07:00

Our May hostess, Denise, of There’s a Newf in My Soup!, challenged The Daring Cooks to make Gumbo! She provided us with all the recipes we’d need, from creole spices, homemade stock, and Louisiana white rice, to Drew’s Chicken & Smoked Sausage Gumbo and Seafood Gumbo from My New Orleans: The Cookbook, by John Besh.

[Eat4Fun: When I lived in New Orleans, gumbo was delicious comfort food that everyone could make, even the cafeteria at work made good gumbo.

For this challenge, I picked the Chicken and Smoked Sausage Gumbo recipe.]

Recipe Source: The recipes for Drew’s Chicken & Smoked Sausage Gumbo and Seafood Gumbo, as well as the stocks, Creole spices, and rice, are from My New Orleans: The Cookbook, by John Besh (Andrews McMeel Publishing, October 2009).

Notes from Denise:
Roux. Crucial to the gumbo is the roux. According to Besh, there are other thickeners besides flour for making their roux, but only a flour-based roux yields that traditional flavor. As for the fats in a roux, just about anything works. Rendered duck fat, chicken fat, or lard is preferred, but canola oil works nearly as well. Use a 1:1 ratio of flour to fat/oil. Heat the oil first and whisk the flour into the hot oil. This speeds up the process and yields a deep, dark chocolate-colored gumbo. Always add the onions first to the dark roux, holding back the rest of the vegetables until the onion caramelizes. Otherwise, the water in the vegetables will keep the onion from browning and releasing its sweet juices. Chef Link stresses that it’s essential to whisk the roux constantly as it cooks (but not so vigorously that you splatter the roux and burn yourself), because if even a small bit of flour sticks to the pot, it will become spotty, scorch quickly, and burn the entire roux. Also, Link advises against using a wooden spoon to stir the roux, until after the onions are added. A whisk allows the roux to pass through it and reduces the possibility of splashing, as well as getting into the sides of the pan.

Holy Trinity. As a culinary term, Wikipedia tells us the holy trinity originally refers specifically to chopped onions, bell peppers (capsicums), and celery, combined in a rough ratio of 1:2:3 and used as the staple base for much of the cooking in the Cajun and Louisiana Creole regional cuisines of the state of Louisiana, USA. The preparation of classic Cajun/Creole dishes such étouffée, gumbo, and jambalaya all start from the base of this holy trinity. Similar combinations of vegetables are known as mirepoix in French cooking, refogado in Portuguese, soffritto in Italian, and sofrito in Spanish. While a "trinity" may refer to a generic representation of three cornerstone ingredients of a particular national cuisine, a trio of specific ingredients combined together to become essentially flavor bases, much like its original usage within Louisiana cuisine, are also called "trinities". This is often created by sautéing a combination of any three (or at least, the primary three ingredients in a more complex base) aromatic vegetables, condiments, seasonings, herbs, or spices.

Okra. These delicately ridged and tapered green pods, sometimes called Ladies’ fingers, are a member of the mallow family and are bursting with tiny seeds as well as the glutinous compounds that make okra such a natural thickener for soups and gumbos. When buying okra, look for smaller, greener spears. I was able to find fresh okra at Whole Foods. Good frozen okra will also work fine, especially if it’s pre-sliced. In addition to adding it to both gumbos, I deep-fried some okra for garnish on top of the Seafood Gumbo (sliced into ½ inch (15mm) thick slices, dipped in buttermilk, dusted in a mixture of equal parts cornmeal and flour, fried a few minutes until golden, and seasoned with Creole Spices).

Filé powder. Besh tells us filé has been a vital ingredient in Creole gumbo since the mid-1800s, when Choctaw Indians traveled in from communities on Lake Pontchartrain to sell it at the New Orleans French Market, along with bay leaves and handmade baskets. The Choctaws make filé by drying, then finely pounding, the leaves of the sassafras tree into a powder, then passing it through a hair sieve. The leaves, in the form of filé powder, contribute a unique and spicy note to gumbo. Originally, filé was used to thicken the stew when okra was not available, but he likes to use both. He cooks the okra in the gumbo and adds a couple dashes of filé, too, at the end. He also likes to pass filé at the table as a seasoning. The word comes from the French word filer, meaning, “to spin thread,” which is a warning not to add filé while the gumbo is still boiling, as it has a tendency to turn stringy. See link under Additional Information, below, for making your own filé.

Chicken. Drew’s Chicken & Smoked Sausage Gumbo calls for a whole chicken, cut up into 10 pieces. The bones and skin obviously add vital flavor throughout the cooking, especially if you’re using canned broth rather than homemade stock. However, once the chicken was cooked and the meat was ready to fall off the bone, after about 45-60 minutes, I removed the chicken from the gumbo, took the meat off the bones, and discarded the skin and bones. I then tore the chicken into bite-size pieces and returned it to the pot for the remaining 30 minutes. This was a personal preference, and mainly because some of the smaller bones were about to break loose into the gumbo and also because the chicken didn’t really brown well initially when put into the pot with the roux and onions. If you want to leave chicken pieces in the gumbo for serving, bones and all, I would suggest browning the chicken in a separate pot before adding it to the onion-roux mixture.

Shellfish. Gumbo crabs are small blue crabs that have been cleaned and halved or quartered. They are served in the shell, and you pick out the meat as you eat the gumbo. They’re available frozen, usually in 1-pound packages. Ask your fishmonger to get you some if you can’t find them in your grocery, or you can order them online. Fresh or pasteurized lump crabmeat is a reasonable alternative. Do not use shredded or imitation crabmeat. Like the chicken bones in the Chicken and Smoked Sausage Gumbo, these add flavor to the gumbo. I omitted the gumbo crabs and used the 8 ounces (225 grams) of lump crabmeat at the end, plus a few more shrimp (prawns) and oysters. Watch your timing when adding the shellfish at the end to avoid overcooking (add no more than 15 minutes prior to serving the gumbo)!

Sausage. Drew’s Chicken & Smoked Sausage Gumbo calls for 2 pounds (1 kilogram) spicy smoked sausage, cut into slices, and 6 ounces (175 grams) andouille sausage, chopped. I’m not sure what type of spicy smoked sausage to recommend. The andouille we found was pretty spicy, and we also used some Hot Louisiana-Brand Smoked Sausage we found at Whole Foods.

Mandatory Items: Prepare a pot of gumbo, using one of the recipes provided, a variation thereof, or any other gumbo recipe you find that tickles your fancy.

Drew’s Chicken & Smoked Sausage Gumbo
Minimally adapted from My New Orleans: The Cookbook, by John Besh
Serves 10-12

Ingredients
1 cup (240 ml) (230 gm) rendered chicken fat, duck fat, or canola oil
1 cup (240 ml) (140 gm) (5 oz) flour
2 large onions, diced
1 chicken (3 ½ to 4 lbs.), cut into 10 pieces [I cheated here and used a rotisserie chicken.]
2 tablespoons (30 ml) (15 gm) (½ oz) Basic Creole Spices (recipe follows), or store-bought Creole spice blend
2 pounds (2 kilograms) spicy smoked sausage, sliced ½ inch (15mm) thick [I could not find andouille so I used 1 lb of hot links and 1 lb of smoked kielbasa]
2 stalks celery, diced
2 green bell peppers (capsicum), seeded and diced
1 tomato, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
Leaves from 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
3 quarts (3 liters) Basic Chicken Stock (recipe follows), or canned chicken stock
2 bay leaves
6 ounces (175 gm) andouille sausage, chopped [I could not find andouille so I used 1 lb of hot links]
2 cups (480 ml) (320 gm) (11 oz) sliced fresh okra, ½ -inch (15mm) thick slices (or frozen, if fresh is not available)
1 tablespoon (15 ml) Worcestershire sauce
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Filé powder, to taste
Tabasco, to taste
4-6 cups (1 – 1½ liters) (650 gm – 950 gm) cooked Basic Louisiana White Rice [From my recollection, gumbo was served with plain white rice, which is what I made.]

Directions:

1. Prepare homemade chicken stock, if using (recipe below).

2. Prepare homemade Basic Creole Spices, if using (recipe below).

3. Season the chicken pieces with about 2 tablespoons of the Creole Spices while you prepare the vegetables.

4. Make sure all of your vegetables are cut, diced, chopped, minced and ready to go before beginning the roux. You must stand at the stove and stir the roux continuously to prevent it from burning.

5. In a large cast-iron or heavy-bottomed pan, heat the chicken fat, duck fat, or canola oil over high heat. Whisk the flour into the hot oil – it will start to sizzle. Reduce the heat to moderate, and continue whisking until the roux becomes deep brown in color, about 15 minutes.

6. Add the onions. Switch to a wooden spoon and stir the onions into the roux. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Continue stirring until the roux becomes a glossy dark brown, about 10 minutes.

7. Add the chicken to the pot; raise the heat to moderate, and cook, turning the pieces until slightly browned, about 10 minutes.

8. Add the sliced smoked sausage and stir for about a minute.

9. Add the celery, bell peppers, tomato, and garlic, and continue stirring for about 3 minutes.

10. Add the thyme, chicken stock, and bay leaves. Bring the gumbo to a boil, stirring occasionally.

11. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Stir occasionally, skimming off the fat from the surface of the gumbo every so often.

12. Add the chopped andouille, okra, and Worcestershire. Season with salt and pepper, several dashes of filé powder, and Tabasco, all to taste.

13. Simmer for another 45 minutes, continuing to skim the fat from the surface of the gumbo. Remove the bay leaves and serve in bowls over rice. Pass more filé powder at the table if desired.

[The finished Gumbo served over rice and accompanied by buttered bread (for sopping up the extra sauce) and a salad dressed with a vinaigrette (to provide a little crunch and sourness).]

[For dessert, I made a bread pudding with rum sauce. I didn't have any bourbon. :-) ]

Recipe Source: The Food Network: Emeril's New Orleans Style Bread Pudding with Whiskey Sauce

Apr 15, 2011: Daring Cooks - Edible Containers

2011-04-15T23:12:00.000-07:00

Renata of Testado, Provado & Aprovado! was our Daring Cooks’ April 2011 hostess. Renata challenged us to think “outside the plate” and create our own edible containers! Prizes are being awarded to the most creative edible container and filling, so vote on your favorite from April 17th to May 16th at http://thedaringkitchen.com!

Mandatory Items: To make a SAVORY edible container and fill it with something appropriate.

[Eat4Fun: I tried to do something different than using vegetables. Renata provided a couple ideas, such as, the ramen basket and the toast cups. I tried to think of something that was simple and didn't require deep frying. Eggroll wrappers turned out nicely. Those are thin enough to bake or microwave. I tried using bacon. It worked, but was too much effort and created a mess, so in the end I didn't think it was worth it.]

NOODLE BASKET FOR SALADS
Ingredients

1 package ramen noodles (120gm) (4¼ oz)
boiling water (enough to completely cover the noodles)

Directions:
1. Place the dry noodles in a baking dish.

2. Pour boiling water over noodles until completely immersed.

3. When noodles are soft and start separating (about 5 minutes), drain and rinse with cold water.

4. Drain again, and set it aside until it starts getting sticky.

5. Use olive oil to grease the outside of baking cups and arrange them upside down on parchment paper.

6. Arrange noodles as shown in the photos. The sticky noodles will help the strings stay together making it easier to form the basket. 3 or 4 strings across, 3 or 4 strings down, and some strings around the bowl. Push all the excess strings close to the cup to form a lip. Don't overlap too many noodles, or they won't get crispy.

7. Bake at 230°C (450°F) (gas mark 8) preheated oven for approximately 15 minutes or until golden brown.

8. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before trying to remove the noodle baskets from the cups.

9. Let cool completely.

10. Handle with care, the baskets are fragile!

11. You can make the baskets the day before using, they will keep fresh in an airtight container. On the third day it stars losing its crispiness.

12. Fill baskets with your favorite salad. If you're using a dressing, serve it aside or mix it to your veggies just before serving.

EGGS IN TOAST CUPS
Here are a few ideas for breakfast using slices of bread and eggs.

Ingredients:
Slices of bread

What am I going to do with the leftover bread after making these cute flower bowls, you ask....

Place the slice of bread in a buttered pan over low heat. Crack an egg into the “flower” slot and cook covered until the egg is done to your taste.

You may want to add cheese, ham, bacon...

Results:
Ramen baskets on the right.
Baked Eggroll Wrapper (left-forward)
Microwaved Eggroll Wrapper (Left-back)

Bacon Cup (Left) and Toast Flower (Right)

Mar 14, 2011: Daring Cooks Pervian Food

2011-03-14T22:23:00.000-07:00

Kathlyn of Bake Like a Ninja was our Daring Cooks’ March 2011 hostess. Kathlyn challenges us to make two classic Peruvian dishes: Ceviche de Pescado from “Peruvian Cooking – Basic Recipes” by Annik Franco Barreau. And Papas Rellenas adapted from a home recipe by Kathlyn’s Spanish teacher, Mayra.

[Eat4Fun: Fun! We cook Peruvian food! Never cooked nor have I had papas rellenas. Video of my cooking experience and results.]

Recipe Source:
- Papas Rellenas adapted from a home recipe by my Spanish teacher Mayra.
- Vegan Papas Rellenas recipe adapted from the Vegan Good Eats blog (http://vegangoodeats.com/2010/05/papa-rellena/), written by Joel Luks.
- The Salsa Criolla recipe also comes from Joel’s blog.

Mandatory Items: Make at least one of the two recipes. If you chose the ceviche, it must be made with raw seafood and it must be “cooked” according to the method outlined in the recipe. If you choose the papas rellenas, you must make the “dough” according to one of the two recipes, shape the “potatoes” around a filling per the recipe instructions, and fry them in oil. If you choose both, you’re in for a tasty treat.

Papas Rellenas (de carne):
Makes 6

Ingredients

For the dough:
2¼ lb (1 kg) russet potatoes
1 large egg

For the filling:
2 tablespoon (30 ml) of a light flavored oil
½ lb (250 grams) ground (minced) beef
6 black olives, pitted and chopped (use more if you love olives)
3 hard boiled large eggs, chopped
1 small onion, finely diced (about 1 cup (240 ml))
½ cup (120 ml) (90 gm) (3 oz) raisins, soaked in 1 cup (240 ml) boiling water for 10 minutes, then minced
1 finely diced aji pepper (ok to sub jalapeño or other pepper – if you are shy about heat, use less)
2 cloves garlic, minced or passed through a press (if you love garlic, add more)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (4 gm) (1/8 oz) ground cumin (use more if you like cumin)
½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) (2 gm) (1/16 oz) sweet paprika
¼ c. white wine, water or beef stock for deglazing
Salt and pepper to taste

For the final preparation:
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup (240 ml) (140 gm) (5 oz) all-purpose flour
Dash cayenne pepper
Dash salt
1 cup dry (240 ml) (110 gm) (4 oz) or fresh (240 ml) (60 gm) (2 oz) bread crumbs (you can use regular, panko, make your own or use store-bought)

Oil for frying (enough for 2” (50 mm) in a heavy pan like a medium sized dutch oven)
Directions:

In order to save time, you can boil the potatoes, and while they are cooling, you can make the filling. While that is cooling, you can make the potato “dough.” In this way, little time is spent waiting for anything to cool.

For the dough:

1. Boil the potatoes until they pierce easily with a fork. Remove them from the water and cool.
2. Once the potatoes have cooled, peel them and mash them with a potato masher or force them through a potato ricer (preferred).
3. Add egg, salt and pepper and knead “dough” thoroughly to ensure that ingredients are well combined and uniformly distributed.

While the potatoes cool down before finishing the dough, you can make the filling:
1. Gently brown onion and garlic in oil (about 5 minutes).
2. Add the chili pepper and sauté for a couple more minutes.
3. Add ground beef and brown.
4. Add raisins, cumin and paprika and cook briefly (a few seconds).
5. Deglaze the pan with white wine.
6. Add olives and cook for a few moments longer.
7. Add hard boiled eggs and fold in off heat.
8. Allow filling to cool before forming “papas.”

Forming and frying the papas:

1. Use three small bowls to prepare the papas. In one, combine flour, cayenne and salt. In the second, a beaten egg with a tiny bit of water. Put bread crumbs in the third
2. Flour your hands and scoop up 1/6 of the total dough to make a round pancake with your hands. Make a slight indentation in the middle for the filling.
3. Spoon a generous amount of filling into the center and then roll the potato closed, forming a smooth, potato-shaped casing around the filling. Repeat with all dough (you should have about 6 papas).
4. Heat 1 ½ - 2 inches (4 – 5 cm) of oil in a pan to about 350 – 375° F (175 - 190°C).
5. Dip each papa in the three bowls to coat: first roll in flour, then dip in egg, then roll in bread crumbs.
6. Fry the papas (in batches if necessary) about 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Flip once in the middle of frying to brown both sides.
7. Drain on paper towel and store in a 200ºF (95ºC) (gas mark ¼) oven if frying in batches.
8. Serve with salsa criolla (or other sauce of preference) immediately.

Salsa Criolla:
Ingredients

2 medium red onions, cut in half and very thinly sliced (as half-circles)
1/2 chili pepper (your preference)
1 tablespoon vinegar
Juice from 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Soak the onions in cold salt water for about 10 minutes to remove bitterness. Drain.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the onions with the rest of the ingredients, season with salt and pepper.
3. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes for the onions to macerate and the flavors to combine

I've never has Papas Rellena. We found a local restaurant which had the dish. It even came with the Salsa Criolla. Very Tasty

The Papa Rellena I made for the challenge.

Flavors were not as bold as the restaurant one's. I think I would need to double up on the spices and the salt and pepper. Also, I noticed the homemade ones had a very strong mashed potato flavor while the restaurant one's were not as potatoe-y. A lot of potential in this dish. :-)

Mar 3, 2011: Mini Raspberry Chocolate Turnovers

2011-03-03T22:09:00.000-08:00

I was invited to a Oscar Party.
Tried to figure out what to make that was simple, small or bite-size.

Mini Raspberry Chocolate Turnovers
Puff Pastry
Raspberry Jam or Spread
Chocolate Bar cut into 1/2" triangle

Glaze
Egg Wash diluted with 1 T of water
Turbinado Sugar (Sugar in the Raw)

Cut small squares (2" x 2")
Add a 1/2 tsp Jam and a piece of chocolate.
Fold
Coat with egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.

Bake 400F for 15 to 20 minutes.

February 14, 2011: Daring Cooks Tempura and Soba

2011-02-14T00:11:00.000-08:00

The February 2011 Daring Cooks’ challenge was hosted by Lisa of Blueberry Girl. She challenged Daring Cooks to make Hiyashi Soba and Tempura. She has various sources for her challenge including japanesefood.about.com, pinkbites.com, and itsybitsyfoodies.com

Tempura is a Japanese dish of seafood or vegetables that have been battered and deep fried. A light batter is made of cold water (sometimes sparkling water is used to keep the batter light and soft wheat flour (cake, pastry or all-purpose flour). Eggs, baking soda or baking powder, starch, oil, and/or spices may also be added.

[Eat4Fun]: My video on making Tempura...

Soba is a type of thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour. It is served either chilled with a dipping sauce, or in hot broth as a noodle soup. It takes three months for buckwheat to be ready for harvest, so it can be harvested four times a year, mainly in spring, summer, and autumn.

Hiyashi Soba is a popular dish in summer. It's like a noodle salad. Restaurants in Japan serve Hiyashi Soba only in summer. Even if you don't have much appetite because of the heat, Hiyashi Soba can be appetizing. Common Hiyashi Soba toppings are omelet strips, ham, cucumber and grated Daikon. You can also have the noodles just with the dipping sauce.

Recipe Source: Lisa had many different versions of this dish so she combined a few different recipes from around the WWW. Most notably: Zaru Soba Noodles from About.com-Japanese Food; Zaru Soba from Globetrotter Diaries; Perfect Tempura from Pink Bites; Tempura from Itsy Bitsy Foodies; and her Japanese stepmother.

Note: The most important thing is not to overcook your noodles, or you will end up with a gelatinous mass. Have a bowl of cold water and ice standing by, and once you have drained and rinsed your soba place it in the water. The great thing is once that’s done you can leave it in the fridge for up to a couple of hours and it will still be nice and fresh. Take your time and complete each step all of these items work well prepared beforehand, so don’t rush.

Mentsuyu - Traditional dipping sauce:

Ingredients
2 cups (480ml) Kombu and Katsuobushi dashi (This can be bought in many forms from most Asian stores and you can make your own. Recipe is HERE.) Or a basic vegetable stock.
1/3 cup (80 ml) soy sauce or a low sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup (80 ml) mirin (sweet rice wine)

Directions:

1. Put mirin in a sauce pan and heat gently. Add soy sauce and dashi soup stock in the pan and bring to a boil. Take off the heat and cool. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Tempura
Ingredients
1 egg yolk from a large egg
1 cup (240 ml) iced water
½ cup (120 ml) (70 gm) (2½ oz) plain (all purpose) flour, plus extra for dredging
½ cup (120 ml) (70 gm) (2½ oz) cornflour (also called cornstarch)
½ teaspoon (2½ ml) (2½ gm) (0.09 oz) baking powder
oil, for deep frying preferably vegetable
ice water bath, for the tempura batter (a larger bowl than what will be used for the tempura should be used. Fill the large bowl with ice and some water, set aside)

Very cold vegetables and seafood of your choice ie:

* Sweet potato, peeled, thinly sliced, blanched
* Carrot, peeled, thinly sliced diagonally
* Pumpkin, peeled, seeds removed, thinly sliced blanched
* Green beans, trimmed
* Green bell pepper/capsicum, seeds removed, cut into 2cm (¾ inch)-wide strips
* Assorted fresh mushrooms
* Eggplant cut into strips (traditionally it’s fanned)
* Onions sliced

Directions:

1. Place the iced water into a mixing bowl. Lightly beat the egg yolk and gradually pour into the iced water, stirring (preferably with chopsticks) and blending well. Add flours and baking powder all at once, stroke a few times with chopsticks until the ingredients are loosely combined. The batter should be runny and lumpy. Place the bowl of batter in an ice water bath to keep it cold while you are frying the tempura. The batter as well as the vegetables and seafood have to be very cold. The temperature shock between the hot oil and the cold veggies help create a crispy tempura.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan or a wok. For vegetables, the oil should be 320°F/160°C; for seafood it should be 340°F/170°C. It is more difficult to maintain a steady temperature and produce consistent tempura if you don’t have a thermometer, but it can be done. You can test the oil by dropping a piece of batter into the hot oil. If it sinks a little bit and then immediately rises to the top, the oil is ready.
3. Start with the vegetables, such as sweet potatoes, that won’t leave a strong odor in the oil. Dip them in a shallow bowl of flour to lightly coat them and then dip them into the batter. Slide them into the hot oil, deep frying only a couple of pieces at a time so that the temperature of the oil does not drop.
4. Place finished tempura pieces on a wire rack so that excess oil can drip off. Continue frying the other items, frequently scooping out any bits of batter to keep the oil clean and prevent the oil (and the remaining tempura) from getting a burned flavor.
5. Serve immediately for the best flavor, but they can also be eaten cold.

January 19, 2011: Daring Cooks Cassoulet and Confit

2011-01-19T20:42:00.000-08:00

Our January 2011 Challenge comes from Jenni of The Gingered Whisk and Lisa from Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. They have challenged the Daring Cooks to learn how to make a confit and use it within the traditional French dish of Cassoulet. They have chosen a traditional recipe from Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman.

[My YouTube Video]

Cassoulet is a rich, slow cooked stew or casserole that originated in the south of France during the 14th century. It traditionally contains pork, sausages, and white beans as well as a duck or goose confit and then topped with fried bread crumbs or cracklings. The dish is named after its traditional cooking vessel, the cassole, which is a deep, round earthenware pot with slanted sides. This is a dish that traditionally takes about three days to prepare, but is oh so worth all the effort!! A confit, in case you don’t know, is one of the oldest ways to preserve food. It is essentially any kind of food that has been immersed in any kind of fat for both flavor and preservation. When stored in a cool place, confit can last for several months! Typically meats (most often waterfowl) are preserved in fats, while fruits are preserved in sugar.

Recipe Sources:
Cassoulet by Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman as featured on the Travel Channel’s “No Reservations”
Chicken Confit (Using Olive Oil) by Emeril Lagasse, via Food Network

Mandatory: You must make a confit and incorporate it in to a cassoulet.

Variations: You may choose to use any combination of meat or other protein source that you wish. We also encourage you to soak your own beans, but we understand if you decide to use canned. As extra credit, we challenge you to make your own sausages!!

Preparation Time:
For Duck (or Chicken) Confit: 2 Days.
First day, 15 minutes.
Second Day, 2 hours.

For Cassoulet: 3 Days
First Day: 10 minutes, if that
Second Day: Approximately 3 ½ hours, most of which is oven time
Third Day: 1 ½ hours, all oven time

RECIPES

Chicken Confit Using Olive Oil
Emeril Lagasse, via Food Network

Ingredients:
4 chicken leg portions with thighs attached, excess fat trimmed and reserved (about 2 pounds/ about 1 kg total)
1 tablespoon plus 1/8 teaspoon (15.6 ml) kosher salt (**note: if using table salt, use ½ the amount)
1/2 teaspoon (2½ ml) (3 gm) freshly ground black pepper
10 garlic cloves
4 dried bay leaves
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons (7½ ml) (6 gm) black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon ( 2½ ml) (3 gm) table salt
4 cups (1 liter) olive oil

Directions:

1. Lay the leg portions on a platter, skin side down. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of the kosher salt and black pepper. Place the garlic cloves, bay leaves, and sprigs of thyme on each of 2 leg portions. Lay the remaining 2 leg portions, flesh to flesh, on top. Put the reserved fat from the chicken in the bottom of a glass or plastic container. Top with the sandwiched leg portions. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt. Cover and refrigerate for 12 hours.

2 .Preheat the oven to cool 200°F/90°C/gas mark ¼.

3. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator. Remove the garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and chicken fat and reserve. Rinse the chicken with cool water, rubbing off some of the salt and pepper. Pat dry with paper towels.

4. Put the reserved garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and chicken fat in the bottom of an enameled cast iron pot. Sprinkle evenly with the peppercorns and salt. Lay the chicken on top, skin side down. Add the olive oil. Cover and bake for 12 to 14 hours, or until the meat pulls away from the bone.

Cassoulet
Cassoulet by Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman (as featured on the Travel Channel’s “No Reservations”)
Serves 4 - 8 (unless you're Lisa Michele)

Ingredients for Cassoulet

5 cups/1200 ml/1100 g/39 oz dried Tarbais beans or white beans such as Great Northern or Cannelini (if you use canned beans be aware that you will need double this amount!)
2 pounds/900 gm fresh pork belly
1 onion, cut into 4 pieces
1 pound/450 gm pork rind
1 bouquet garni (tie together two sprigs parsley, 2 sprigs thyme and one bay leaf)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup/60 ml/55 gm duck fat
6 pork sausages
3 onions, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
4 confit duck legs

Day One

1.Place the beans in the large bowl and cover with cold water so that there are at least 2 or 3 inches (50mm or 75mm) of water above the top of the beans. Soak overnight. That was hard, right? (Beans will double in size upon soaking, so use a big bowl!)

Day Two

1. Drain and rinse the beans and place in the large pot.
2. Add the pork belly, the quartered onion, 1/4 pound/115 gm of the pork rind, and the bouquet garni.
3. Cover with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and continue to simmer until the beans are tender, about 30 minutes more.

4. Let cool for 20 minutes, then discard the onion and the bouquet garni.
5. Remove the pork belly, cut it into 2-inch/5-cm squares, and set aside. (If you plan to wait another day before finishing the dish, wait to cut the pork belly until then.)
6. Strain the beans and the rind and set aside, reserving the cooking liquid separately.
7. In the sauté pan, heat all but 1 tablespoon/15 ml/15 gm of the duck fat over medium-high heat until it shimmers and becomes transparent.
8. Carefully add the sausages and brown on all sides.

9. Remove sausages and set aside, draining on paper towels.

10. In the same pan, over medium-high heat, brown the sliced onions, the garlic and the reserved squares of pork rind from the beans (not the unused pork rind; you'll need that later).
11. Once browned, remove from the heat and transfer to the blender. Add 1 tablespoon//15 ml/15 gm of the remaining duck fat and purée until smooth. Set aside.

12. Preheat the oven to moderate 350ºF/180ºC/gas mark 4.

13.Place the uncooked pork rind in the bottom of a deep ovenproof non-reactive dish. You're looking to line the inside, almost like a pie crust. Arrange all your ingredients in alternating layers, beginning with a layer of beans, then sausages, then more beans, then pork belly, beans, duck confit and finally more beans, adding a dab of the onion and pork rind purée between each layer.

14. Add enough of the bean cooking liquid to just cover the beans, reserving 1 cup/240 ml in the refrigerator for later use.
15. Cook the cassoulet in the oven for 1 hour, then reduce the heat to very slow 250ºF/130ºC/gas mark ½ and cook for another hour.
16. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Refrigerate overnight.

Day Three

1. Preheat the oven to moderate 350ºF/180ºC/gas mark 4 again.
2. Cook the cassoulet for an hour.
3. Break the crust on the top with the spoon and add 1/4 cup/60 ml of the reserved cooking liquid. (Don't get fancy. Just pile, dab, stack and pile. It doesn't have to be pretty.)
4. Reduce the heat to very slow 250ºF/130ºC/gas mark ½ and continue cooking another 15 minutes, or until screamingly hot through and through. Then serve.

January 8, 2011: Basic Scrambled Eggs

2011-01-08T11:50:00.000-08:00

Scrambled eggs is one of those dishes that can be simple, but many people have their variations on the recipe. This is my take on scrambled eggs.

The ingredients are simple - eggs, butter, salt and pepper. Added ingredients range from water, milk, heavy cream, sour cream, creme fraiche or nothing at all.

I opt for simplicity where I generally use milk, water or nothing.

Another variation between recipes is cooking time where recipes call for cooking anywhere from 1 to 5 minutes.

I believe that in a heated pan over medium heat, scrambled eggs should cook in under 1 minutes once the beaten eggs is poured into the pan. Any longer you run the risk of ending up with dry eggs.

Basic ingredients (Scrambled eggs for two)
3 large eggs (beaten/whipped for about 1 minute)
1 T Milk
A little salt
Butter for cooking

My YouTube Video below

Enjoy!

January 5, 2011: Lumpia Shanghai

2011-01-05T07:39:00.000-08:00

I'm been trying to recreate a lumpia (Filipino Spring Roll) that I remember from my childhood.
My first attempt was September 12, 2008: Lumpia and Pancit.

This recipe is an all meat filling recipe. All meat filling is similar to what my Filipino friends and classmates made.

Filling
(Adapted from the Lumpia Wrapper Package)
1 lb Ground Pork
1/3 C Water Chestnut, chopped
3 Shiitake Mushrooms, chopped
1 t Salt
1 t Soy Sauce
1/2 t Garlic Powder
1 Egg

As with my previous posts, I'm starting to use YouTube a lot more.

I even tried CC (Close Captioning) this video.
Enjoy :-)

January 3, 2011: Pork Chops on YouTube

2011-01-03T07:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Belated New Year!

I'm starting to post my food adventures on YouTube under the name, "eat4f1".
This was one of the first I created where we all made a pork chop dinner.

Enjoy :-)

Dec 25, 2010: Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T21:45:00.000-08:00

Today we're having dinner with my brother's.

My contribution is red-cooked (or red-braised) spare ribs.

Red cooking is basically braising meats in a soy sauce based liquid. The soy sauce colors the meat which gives the meat it's "red" color.

Typical recipes call for fresh soy sauce (light soy sauce - not to be confused with the light, low sodium soy sauces) and aged soy sauce (dark soy sauce). The aged soy sauce is what provides a majority of the coloring.

This recipe is adapted from Fuchsia Dunlop's, "Revolutionary Chinese Cookbook."
What caught my eye with this recipe is the use of caramelized sugar instead of aged soy sauce.

Braising Liquid Ingredients
1 slab Pork Spare Ribs (about 2 to 3 lbs)
2 T Brown Sugar
2 T Oil
Ginger (about 5 to 6 quarter size slices)
1/4 t ground cinnamon (or 1 stick)
1 Star Anise
1 Green Onion
1 Clove Garlic
Water or Broth (enough to almost cover the ribs)

The rest is on YouTube.

Enjoy! :-)

December 22, 2010: Winter Solstice Tong Yuan

2010-12-22T13:04:00.000-08:00

Yuan (or Tong Yuan which is similar to Mochi) is a glutinous rice flour "dumpling" soup we ate during the Winter Solstice.

I remember asking my dad why we ate this soup. His answer was "Yuan represented snowballs that occurred during the Winter."

As I grew older, I asked myself, "They lived along the coast in Guangdong, China. It snowed in the Tropics???"

Wikipedia's explanation is the round dumplings represent togetherness and family unity.

Togetherness and family unity. Isn't that's why we all gather around the dinner table?

I digress. Back to the soup...
The soft, chewy dumplings are served in a rich savory broth.

Basic Recipe
1 lb Glutinous Rice Flour
1/4 lb Tapioca Pearls (Soaked overnight, at a minimum, and drained)
1/2 t Salt
Water to form a soft dough (about 1 cup, but add water slowly as you knead).

The key to making the little round dumplings is to keep them small, about 1/2 inch in diameter. Too large... you end up with a large bland, chewy mochi ball.

Also, the tapioca pearls help reduce the chewiness. (A family secret... lol!)

The YouTube Video...

December 14, 2010: Daring Cooks Poaching

2010-12-14T00:11:00.000-08:00

Jenn and Jill have challenged The Daring Cooks to learn to perfect the technique of poaching an egg. They chose Eggs Benedict recipe from Alton Brown, Oeufs en Meurette from Cooking with Wine by Anne Willan, and Homemade Sundried Tomato & Pine Nut Seitan Sausages (poached) courtesy of Trudy of Veggie num num.

For this month, Jenn and Jill decided to focus on a technique that seems intimidating to many, but with a little practice it’s really not that hard at all – poaching. All poaching means is cooking something in simmering (not boiling) water. And what more perfect way to practice the skill of poaching than learning how to poach an egg? They can make a tasty breakfast, or salad accompaniment; there are so many different ways to use poached eggs, and they are used in cuisines from a variety of cultures.

The 1st recipe is one of the most well known poached egg dishes: eggs benedict – an open sandwich of English muffin, Canadian bacon, poached egg, and hollandaise sauce. This rich and decadent dish can be served as a really nice breakfast or brunch for having company over, and is sure to impress! The “daring” with this dish is in successfully poaching an egg in water, as well as making one of the famed mother sauces of France, the hollandaise.

Our 2nd recipe, oeufs en meurette (eggs in meurette sauce), is a classic dish from the region of Bourgogne (Burgundy) in France. It involves poaching an egg in a red wine/stock, which will then turn into a fabulous reduction sauce. One serves the poached egg on top of fried croûtes with sauce, bacon, mushrooms and pearl onions. This is also a great dish for breakfast/brunch as well.

[Eat4Fun - For this challenge I'm making Hollandaise sauce and Bacon Eggs Benedict Deluxe. The deluxing is in the form of tomatoes, mushrooms and sauteed spinach.

Also, I've taken a whole new approach to documenting my results. I'm going video!]

Mandatory Items: To use the technique of poaching an egg.

Recipe Sources:
Hollandaise sauce by Alton Brown
[It's been a long time since I've made Hollandaise. The last time I ended up with mayonnaise. I didn't know about the trick of adding hot water to thin it out the mayonnaise thick sauce.]

Eggs Benedict
[To be exact, Bacon Eggs Benedict Deluxe]

Ingredients
4 eggs (size is your choice)
2 English muffins*
4 slices of Canadian bacon/back bacon (or plain bacon if you prefer)
Chives, for garnish
Splash of vinegar (for poaching) [I used 2 T vinegar per quart of water.]

For the hollandaise (makes 1.5 cups):
3 large egg yolks
1 tsp. (5 ml) water
¼ tsp. (1 ¼ ml/1½ g) sugar
12 Tbl. (170 g/6 oz.) unsalted butter, chilled and cut in small pieces [Used salted butter]
½ tsp. (2 ½ ml/3 g) kosher salt [Since I used salted butter, additional salt was not needed.]
2 tsp. (10 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
Pinch cayenne pepper (optional)

Directions:

Hollandaise Sauce
1. Fill a medium saucepan halfway with water and bring to a simmer.

2. Cut the chilled butter into small pieces and set aside.

3. Whisk egg yolks and 1 tsp. (5 ml) water in a mixing bowl large enough to sit on the saucepan without touching the water (or in top portion of a double boiler). Whisk for 1–2 minutes, until egg yolks lighten. Add the sugar and whisk 30 seconds more.

4. Place bowl on saucepan over simmering water and whisk steadily 3–5 minutes (it only took about 3 for me) until the yolks thicken to coat the back of a spoon.

5. Remove from heat (but let the water continue to simmer) and whisk in the butter, 1 piece at a time. Move the bowl to the pan again as needed to melt the butter, making sure to whisk constantly.

6. Once all the butter is incorporated, remove from heat and whisk in the salt, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper (if using).

7. Keep the hollandaise warm while you poach your eggs in a thermos, carafe, or bowl that you’ve preheated with warm water.

Poaching eggs -
8. If the water simmering in your pan has gotten too low, add enough so that you have 2–3 inches of water and bring back to a simmer.

9. Add salt and a splash of vinegar (any kind will do). I added about a tablespoon of vinegar to my small saucepan (about 3 cups of water/720 ml of water), but you may need more if you’re using a larger pan with more water. [I used 2 T of vinegar for every quart of water.]

10. Crack eggs directly into the very gently simmering water (or crack first into a bowl and gently drop into the water), making sure they’re separated. Cook for 3 minutes for a viscous but still runny yolk.

11. While waiting for the eggs, quickly fry the Canadian/back bacon and toast your English muffin.

12. Top each half of English muffin with a piece of bacon. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon, draining well, and place on top of the bacon. Top with hollandaise and chopped chives, and enjoy!

Bacon Eggs Benedict with tomato, mushroom and sauteed spinach.
Although the egg yolks turned out medium, cooked solid but still golden, the egg whites were very tender, almost melt in your mouth tender. That's the advantage of poaching.

Poaching slowly cooks protein at low heat so the protein molecules bind together loosely, which means tender.

Nov 14, 2010: Daring Cooks Souffle

2010-11-14T00:11:00.000-08:00

Dave and Linda from Monkeyshines in the Kitchen chose Soufflés as our November 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge! Dave and Linda provided two of their own delicious recipes plus a sinfully decadent chocolate soufflé recipe adapted from Gordon Ramsay’s recipe found at the BBC Good Food website.

There are basically two parts to a soufflé recipe: the base and the egg whites. For savory soufflés, the base is usually a thick roux-based sauce made of butter, flour and milk or stock – to which you add the flavoring ingredients and the egg yolks. Sweet soufflés are based on a crème patisserie, or thick custard. The egg whites are beaten separately so that they incorporate lots of air bubbles; then the egg whites are folded into the base and the mixture spooned into a soufflé dish. After baking in the oven, the soufflé will magically rise. However, be warned that what goes up must come down: even a perfect soufflé will start to ‘deflate’ once you remove it from the oven - so be sure to serve it (or photograph it!) as soon as possible. In fact, Dave and Linda think the photographic aspect of this project may turn out to be more difficult than the culinary part.

[Eat4fun: I've always wanted to give a go at making a souffle. Here's my chance.
I'm typically a savory kind of guy, but this time around I choose the chocolate souffle.]

Chocolate Souffle
Adapted From BBC Good Food Recipe by Gordon Ramsay

Ingredients

FOR THE DISHES
2 Tbsp (30 ml) 1 oz (30g) unsalted butter, for greasing
Cocoa powder or finely grated chocolate

FOR THE CREME PATISSERIE
2 tbsp (30 ml) (18 gm) (2/3 oz) plain (all-purpose) flour
2 tsp (10 gm) (0.35 oz) caster (superfine) sugar (regular sugar is OK)
½ tsp (4½ gm) (0.15 oz) corn starch (aka cornflour)
1 medium egg yolk
1 medium whole egg
4 Tbsp (60 ml) milk
5 Tbsp (75 ml) heavy cream (or double cream)
3 oz (90gm) good-quality dark chocolate preferably 70+% cocoa solids, broken in pieces
2 Tbsp (30 ml) (15 gm) (½ oz) unsweetened cocoa powder
Optional: 2 tsp orange zest or 2 tsp minced chipotle chile en adobo or 1 tsp chipotle chile powder. (The chile version is a Monkeyshines favorite!) Optional: powdered sugar for dusting

FOR THE EGG WHITES
6 medium egg whites
6½ Tbsp (95 ml) 3 oz (90g) superfine/caster sugar (if you don’t have it, regular sugar is OK)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to moderate 375 ˚F/190 ˚C/gas mark 5.

2. Take four 1 cup/~240ml soufflé dishes and brush them completely with softened butter. Tip a little cocoa powder or grated chocolate into each dish, roll the dish around tilting it as you do so it is evenly lined all round.

[Instead of four 1 C ramekins, I used a larger 2 quart Pyrex dish.]

3. For the crème patisserie, mix the flour, sugar and corn starch into a small bowl. Put egg yolk and whole egg into a medium sized bowl, beat lightly, then beat in half of the flour mixture to give a smooth paste. Tip in the rest of the flour mixture and cocoa powder and mix well.

[The egg yolk mixture is pretty straightforward.]

[Amazing how the cocoa powder will mix in to form this very dark high viscosity liquid.]

4. To make the ganache, pour the milk and cream into a pan and bring just to the boil. Remove from the heat. Add the chocolate and beat until it is melted and smooth with no lumps.

[Whoa! This ganache is very watery, not like any ganache I've made in the past. Hopefully, the thick egg yolk mixture will compensate for the watery ganache.]

5. Gradually stir hot chocolate ganache into the paste from step 3, and add the orange zest or chile if using. This is your crème patisserie.

6. Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks with an electric whisk. Sprinkle in the sugar as you are mixing. Keep whisking to give stiff, firm peaks to give volume to the soufflés.

[Stiff Peaks. You must have patience with whipping egg whites to stiff peaks. It takes about 5 to 10 minutes so don't give up.]

7. Stir about 2 tbsp (30 ml) of the beaten egg whites into the crème patisserie. Carefully fold in a third of the rest, cutting through the mixture. Fold in another third (take
care not to lose the volume), then fold in the rest.

[Stirred in what was on the beaters plus a little more to lighten up the patisserie.]

[Adding the egg whites 1/3rd at a time.]

8. Spoon the mixture into the dishes. Run a spoon across the top of each dish so the mixture is completely flat. Take a little time to wipe any splashes off the outside of each dish, or they will burn on while cooking.

[Another trick is to wipe the edge of the dish so the mixture forms a little trench between the dish and the mixture. This is supposed to help the souffle rise in the center.]

9. Bake the soufflés for 15-17 minutes. [For a larger dish, I baked about 20 minutes and used a skewer to check for doneness. The skewer should come out clean. I ended up cooking for 30 minutes, but probably could have pulled the souffle out at 25.]

[The next three photos show the rising during cooking.
Just into the 350F oven.]

[About 15 minutes into the cooking.]

[About 20 minutes into cooking. A skewer was used to test for doneness. At 20 minutes, the skewer came out wet so the souffle was allowed to bake another 10 minutes.]

10. The soufflés should have risen by about two thirds of their original height and jiggle when moved, but be set on top.

[The souffle out of the oven after 30 minutes of baking.
A bit overcooked where the souffle seems a little dry. The skewer came out very clean.]

[No fancy plating.
We just dug into the souffle.
The final results were drier than I expected with the texture of a angel food cake. A soft, airy cake. Surprisingly very light, chocolatey and not overly sweet.

We remedied the dryness with a generous dollop of whipped cream. :-) ]

Overall, the chocolate souffle/angel food cake was delicious.

I will probably try the recipe again, but bake only 25 minutes before checking with a skewer. Also, I'll probably try a savory recipe. I'm on the fence whether souffles will become part of my standard recipe collection.

Oct 14, 2010: Daring Cooks - Dolmades

2010-10-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

Our October 2010 hostess, Lori of Lori’s Lipsmacking Goodness, has challenged The Daring Cooks to stuff grape leaves. Lori chose a recipe from Aromas of Aleppo and a recipe from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food.

Stuffed grape leaves, with meat or without, they are delicious on their own or on some pita bread as a sandwich. You can eat them simply, drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice and sprinkle on some feta and you have a delicious appetizer, serve with tomato, cucumber wedges and kalamata olives.

Recipe Source: Two recipes for October.
One of the recipes comes from Aromas of Aleppo written by Poopa Dweck and Michael J. Cohen. The other is from Claudia Roden's, The New Book of Middle Eastern Food.

[I opted to make the one with meat.]

Historical Note: Stuffed grape leaves are a part of many cultures including the Syrians, the Turks, the Greeks, the Lebanese, the Albanians, the Israeli's, the Iranians, the Iraqis and the Armenians (just to name a few). Generally speaking the stuffed part could be in zucchinis/courgette, eggplant, tomato or peppers. Really it also extends to stuffing certain types of fish as well. It is suggested that the origin of stuffed grape leaves goes back to the time when Alexander the Great besieged Thebes. It has also been suggested the Byzantines refined and spiced up the recipe and used the leaves of other vines such as hazelnuts and figs.

Mandatory: The challenge this month is to make a filling and roll it in grape leaves. If grape leaves are unavailable to you then you can use Swiss chard, kale, cabbage or some tough green.

Variations allowed: Grape leaves can usually be found in jars at Mediterranean stores or grocery stores that have ethnic foods. Do stick with a tougher green if you cannot find grape leaves. Spinach, a delicate green, will not hold up to the boiling process. I highly encourage you to use grape leaves if you can.

[Finding brined grape leaves was harder than I thought. I ended up using mostly cabbage leaves. I did plant grapes a few years back, but wasn't sure if the leaves were too mature for stuffing.]

Grape Leaves Stuffed with Ground Meat and Rice with Apricot Tamarind Sauce/ Yebra
Adapted from Aromas of Aleppo by Poopa Dweck and Michael J. Cohen. Published by Harper Collins, 2007

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients for hashu/filling:

1 pound (455 gm) ground (minced) beef
1/3 cup (80 ml) (2 1/3 oz) (65 gm) short grain rice
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (6 gm) all spice
2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (6 gm) cinnamon
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (3 gm) kosher (coarse) salt **if using regular table salt only use ½ tsp.**
¼ teaspoon (1¼ ml) (1½ gm) white pepper
1 onion, chopped **optional**
1 cup (5½ oz) (150 gm) pine nuts **optional**

Directions:

1.Soak rice in water, enough to cover, for 30 minutes. Combine meat, rice, allspice, vegetable oil, cinnamon, salt, white pepper, and if desired, onion and pine nuts, in a large mixing bowl. Mix well.

[Straightforward list of ingredients. I found mixing the spices with the non-meat ingredients make for a uniform distribution in the meat. Also, with ground meats I try to mix and compact as little as possible. I don't want hockey pucks... lol :-) ]

Ingredients for assembly:

1 pound (455 gm) hashu/filling (see recipe above)
36 preserved grape leaves, stems trimmed, drained, rinsed and patted dry
1 tablespoon (15 ml) vegetable oil
6 dried apricots – or more if you desire
3 tablespoons (45 ml) tamarind concentrate **if you can’t find it, you can omit it**
¼ cup (60 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (9 gm) kosher (coarse) salt **if using regular table salt only use 1.5 tsp.**

Notes:
Tamarind is actually fairly easy to find. There is a paste that is in package already made up. You can find it at Asian, Mexican or Indian grocers. You can also find the pods (a little more difficult) and make it yourself. It is akin to a sweet/tangy tea flavor. If you can’t find it, you can skip the sauce all together. The grape leaves will be just as delicious without the sauce. But we hope that those that can find it will use it.

[Interesting tamarind is called out for this recipe. I didn't know tamarind made it out into Middle Eastern/Greek cuisine.

I bought some tamarind to use for another purpose, which I haven't gotten to... so I used some for this dish.]

[What I did was soak 1/4 C tamarind in 1 C of boiling water. I used the 1T to 1/4 C water ratio.
I let soak for about 15 minutes and pressed the entire contents through a sieve. The strained mash is what was used for this dish.]

Directions:

1.Place a grape leaf on a flat surface, vein side up. You can trim the little stem if you would like.

[My grape plant... The plant was found on the clearance aisle at the local garden center. It's been 3 years and it's still alive. :-) One of the reasons I planted a grape was to use the grape leaves. This is my opportunity. lol... It's to cold in my area to expect grapes.

I only picked a few of the youngest looking leaves, a little larger than my hand. It's a little late in the season to use grape leaves, but we'll see if it works.]

[Washed and ready for a 1 minute plunge into boiling water.]

2.Place about two teaspoons (10 ml) of the filling in the center of the leaf, near the stem edge.

[In the mean time, I used cabbage leaves.]

3.Roll the leaf end to end, starting from the stem edge. As you roll, fold the sides of the leaf in toward the center. The leaf should resemble a small cigar, about 2 to 2 1/2 inches (50 mm to 65mm) long.

[Start about 1/3rd from and end to place the meat. The rest is like wrapping a burrito.]

[Rolling the grape leaves... The seem tender enough.]

4.Repeat with the remaining leaves and filling.

a.(You can freeze the stuffed grape leaves at this point. Just line a baking sheet with wax paper. When firmly frozen, transfer to an airtight plastic bag place back in the freezer.)

5.In a medium saucepan put in the vegetable oil and then place the filled grape leaves in the pot.

6.Place apricots in between the stuffed grape leaves. Cover and cook over low heat for 5- 8 minutes or until the grape leaves begin to sweat.

7.Using all three tablespoons, place a little of the tamarind concentrate, if using, over the rolls.

8.Combine lemon juice, salt, and water then add to pan, filling it ¾ full.

[The tamarind mixture poured over the cabbage rolls and dried apricots.]

9.Weigh down the grape leaves with a heat proof plate or board to prevent them from unraveling. Cover and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 40 minutes.

[Weighed down for a 40 minute simmer.]

a.Alternatively, place the saucepan in an oven preheated to moderate 350°F/180°C/gas mark 4 and cook for an hour.

10.Spoon cooking liquid over the grape leaves occasionally. You will know they are done, when the grape leaves are neither soupy nor dry.

11.Tilt pan sideways over serving platter, allowing the grape leaves to tumble out. Try not to handle them individually to reduce unraveling.

a.Alternately you can try spooning them out very gently.

The finished goods!
[The rolls maintained their shape. A good sign. :-)]

[Flavor is not bad. I wasn't sure if I would dig the cinnamon, allspice and ground beef combination. It wasn't too bad and not overpowering.

The cooked pinenuts had an interesting (in a good way) texture, almost like a cooked soy beans/edamame - firm but tender.]

Sep 27, 2010: Toe-Bee is 8!

2010-09-27T21:40:00.000-07:00

Toe-Bee the beagle is now 8 years old! That's 51 in human years!

We had a little treat for the pups!

The par-tay crew! Woo-hoo!

Toe-Bee the Birthday pup is 8 years old [51 human years]. Wow! No wonder he's graying around the muzzle.

Brutus is 12 years old [69 human years]. He's at the age where he has selective hearing, but he still doesn't act his age.

Buster is 9 months [11 human years]. He's the young whipper-snapper amongst us old dogs. Full of energy and the propensity to chew.

Ref: Dog Age Calculator @ WebMD

Sep 27, 2010: Daring Bakers - Decorated Sugar Cookies

2010-09-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The September 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mandy of “What the Fruitcake?!” Mandy challenged everyone to make Decorated Sugar Cookies based on recipes from Peggy Porschen and The Joy of Baking.

She has challenged us to make Decorated Sugar Cookies. She's not talking squiggles random squiggles and dots. She's talking about beautifully decorated cookies that are perfect to give as a gift or to make for party or wedding favours. On top of that, we should theme the cookies around the month of September.

For the cookie, Peggy Porschen’s recipe is ued for the challenge recipe. Sugar cookie recipes commonly have either baking powder or bicarb of soda, but this recipe is a little different in that it doesn’t use a raising agent which makes them great so if you’re using intricate cookie cutters, they hold their shape while baking. Perfect for decorating with royal icing!

[My comments are in red... I'm inexperienced at decorating so there's no way I can make wedding favors... lol.]

[This will be my last Daring Baker's challenge.]

[Life has been very busy and trying to do both a Daring Bakers and Daring Cooks challenge in a month has been difficult to complete with the detail and time I like putting into each challenge.

Also, I don't feel right calling myself a "Daring Baker" if I'm not doing ALL the challenges (even if we are given an option of miss a few challenges a year) or cherry picking the challenges that fit my schedule.

Since I have two years of Daring Baking under my belt where I completed 26 out of 27 challenges, I've decided to retire from Daring Bakers and focus on Daring Cooks. :-)

Who says that guys are afraid of commitment? lol!]

Recipe Source:
Basic Sugar Cookie recipe adapted from Peggy Porschen : http://www.peggyporschen.com/images/press/pdf/Coso-Bride-Oct-Nov-2008.pdf
Also found in her book: “Romantic Cakes” http://www.peggyporschen.com/book-detail.asp?ID=2
Royal Icing recipe adapted from The Joy of Baking : http://www.joyofbaking.com/RoyalIcing.html

Mandatory: You must make the Basic Sugar Cookie recipe provided (unless specific diet restrictions apply) You must make your cookies with the theme of September, whatever that means to you.
Variations allowed:
You are allowed to add your own flavourings to the dough
You don’t have to make your own royal icing from scratch, you may use a store bought mix.

Basic Sugar Cookies:
Makes approximately 36 x 10cm / 4 inch cookies
200g / 7oz / ½ cup + 6 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
400g / 14oz / 3 cups + 3 Tbsp All Purpose / Plain Flour
200g / 7oz / 1 cup Caster Sugar / Superfine Sugar
1 Large Egg, lightly beaten
5ml / 1 tsp Vanilla Extract / Or seeds from 1 vanilla bean

[Fortunately, this challenge doesn't require a lot of ingredients and fancy preparation or equipment.]

Directions:
Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C Fan Assisted) / 350°F / Gas Mark 4.

Cream together the butter, sugar and any flavourings you’re using. Beat until just becoming creamy in texture. Tip: Don’t over mix otherwise you’ll incorporate too much air and the cookies will spread during baking, losing their shape. Beat in the egg until well combined, make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the sifted flour and mix on low until a non sticky dough forms. Tip: I don’t have a stand mixer so I find it easier to switch to dough hooks at this stage to avoid flour flying everywhere.

[I used a hand mixer to incorporate a majority of the ingredients. The dough needed some kneading to consolidate the crumbly dough. I poured it all into a ziploc bag and kneaded. No messy hands! lol!]

Knead into a ball and divide into 2 or 3 pieces.

Roll out each portion between parchment paper to a thickness of about 5mm/1/5 inch (0.2 inch) Refrigerate for a minimum of 30mins.

Cut out shapes with cookie cutters or a sharp knife. Arrange shapes on parchment lined baking sheets and refrigerate for another 30mins to an hour. Tip: It’s very important you chill them again otherwise they’ll spread while baking. Re-roll scraps and follow the above process until all scraps are used up.

[After the dough was rolled between parchment paper, a 3" cookie cutter was used to make rounds.]

[Rounds ready for baking at 350F for 15 minutes. 8 minutes didn't brown the cookies enough]

Bake until golden around the edges, about 8-15mins depending on the size of the cookies. Tip: Bake same sized cookies together otherwise mixing smaller with larger cookies could result in some cookies being baked before others are done. Tip: Rotate baking sheets half way through baking if your oven bakes unevenly.

Leave to cool on cooling racks. Once completely cooled, decorate as desired. Tip: If wrapped in tinfoil/cling wrap or kept in airtight containers in a cool place, un-decorated cookies can last up to a month.

[I opted to avoid using raw egg whites so I used Wilton meringue powder instead.]
Royal Icing
3 T Meringue Powder
1 lb Powdered Sugar
6 T Water

Beat until stiff peaks.

[For the meringue, I used food coloring to make a yellow color and 1 tsp of cocoa powder mixed with a little water (to form a slurry which makes for easier mixing into the royal icing) to make a dark meringue.]

SEPTEMBER THEME: SUNFLOWERS
I've always been fascinated with sunflowers. These are tall, majestic plants that are able to follow the sun and give us sunflowers seeds to eat. Sunflowers are usually abundant in September.

Last year, a sunflower grew in a patch of soil where no seeds were planted. I think it was a seed from two years ago that survived the winter and decided to grow the following year.

Here's my "evolution of the Sunflower" photo. As I mentioned, I'm not that good at piping, especially when using a plastic storage bag with a end cut off. You can see the different things I've tried to to come up with something decent looking.

Early attempt at piping the petals. I tried to form a leave.

As I experimented around, I started piping lines... which looks better.

Finally, more lines and a ring in the center to hold the eye.

My flower arrangement... lol

Of course, the best looking cookies were in the center. :-)

My inspiration... I'm not sure if this is a sunflower that was in the bouquet, but I think it is. :-)

I've had fun in my 2 years (and a bit) as a Daring Baker. I enjoyed learning new things... My favorites are salted caramels, making puff pastry and making cannoli. The salted caramel is a recipe I make quite often as gifts. :-)

On to Daring Cooks!

Sep 14, 2010: Daring Cooks' Apple Butter

2010-09-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

The September 2010 Daring Cooks’ challenge was hosted by John of Eat4Fun. John chose to challenge The Daring Cooks to learn about food preservation, mainly in the form of canning and freezing. He challenged everyone to make a recipe and preserve it. John’s source for food preservation information was from The National Center for Home Food Preservation.

Hello Daring Cooks! I have the honor of hosting this month's challenge. I’m John from Eat4Fun.

[Yes, that's me! I'm hosting this month's Daring Cooks' Challenge! Woo Hoo!

I wanted to provide a challenge that was unique, provide information that people could use beyond the challenge and a challenge that was vegetarian/vegan friendly. Also, I wanted to use ingredients that were readily available.

I gave two options canning or freezing. Canning requires that you buy jars and lids while, a less expensive option, is freezing where you can find good containers for under $5 for a multi-pack.]

When Lis and Ivonne asked if I would host a challenge, I jumped at the chance. Being a person who enjoys experimenting around with different cooking techniques and learning about new topics, I racked my brain trying to figure out what to present. Chinese cooking? Grilling? Barbecuing? Roasting? Tofu making?

I finally decided on a topic that takes advantage of the time of year where, in the Northern Hemisphere, our gardens and local farms should be harvesting an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables.

For this month's challenge, I hope to whet your appetite on the vast topic of Food Preservation. Food preservation is a broad subject covering canning, freezing, drying, pickling, fermentation and jam making, but for this challenge the focus will be on freezing and home canning. The main recipe for our challenge will be apple butter. However, a couple additional recipes are provided for a little added variety.

Apple butter is essentially an apple sauce that’s been cooked down with spices to form a thick spread. No butter is used in making apple butter. “Butter” just refers to the spreadable consistency of the final product. Talking with a family friend, she mentioned that apple butter was a way of using the scraps, skins and cores, after making apple sauce. The spices were added to flavor the scraps. Nowadays, recipes use the whole apple, which is what we’ll use for this challenge.

Disclaimer: Since I am an engineering geek, I present a lot of technical information on food preservation. The apple butter is actually a very simple recipe, so please do not be discouraged by the information and jargon used in this write-up.

Why Preserve Foods?
There are many reasons – save the harvest from our garden for later in the year, control the ingredients that go into our food, nostalgia (memories of our parents or grandparents), make gifts, satisfaction of making it yourself… etc. For me, it’s curiosity, controlling what I eat and just the satisfaction of making it myself.

Why foods go bad?
Before we start preserving foods, we need to know why foods spoil.

The two main culprits are
1) The obvious culprit is bacteria, molds and yeast/fungi. I call them “bad bugs.” There are “good bugs” that help with fermentation (yogurt, beer, wine, sourdough breads and pickles), but the bad bugs rots foods, gives foods an off taste and can make us sick.
2) The other culprit is enzymes. Enzymes are molecules that occur naturally in food which encourage chemical changes, some of which are desirable - help ripen fruit by converting starch to sugar, soften fruits or vegetables, or reduce acidity level. Some changes are not desirable, browning when an apple is cut, or the fruit becomes overripe where the flesh becomes soft and mushy.

The other supporting culprits are oxygen and unintentional moisture loss. Fortunately, when we eliminate microorganisms, the rest of the culprits are taken care off at the same time.

Good bugs and bad bugs keep growing and growing?
Bacteria, molds and yeast are living organisms that are present at all times – in the air, on surfaces, and on our food. In order for organisms to survive, they need food, water, oxygen (although some microorganisms can survive without oxygen) and a comfy environment.

A better way to remember food, water, oxygen and comfy place to live is by remembering “FATTOM” or “FAT TOM”. No, FATTOM is not the guitar riff to “Smoke on the Water” [F-A-T, T-T, O-M; F-A-Tee-Tee-O-M]. FAT TOM represents the six conditions microorganisms need to grow/multiply.

FAT TOM is Food, Acidity, Temperature, Time, Oxygen and Moisture.
* Food - Microorganisms, like people, need nutrients. Unfortunately, that means microorganism eat what we eat. Some microorganisms can get by with sugar while other need protein. The foods of concern from a food safety standpoint are low acid, protein rich foods, such as, meat, dairy and egg containing foods.

* Acidity – Acidity is a value between 0 to 14 (known as pH) where values less than 7 are acidic and values above 7 are alkaline. For example, water is generally neutral at pH = 7 while vinegar is acidic with a pH between 2.4 and 3.4. Most foods we eat have a neutral to acidic pH where foods with values 4.6 or higher are considered low acid foods.

* Temperature – Temperatures between 40F (4.4C) to 140F (60C) is considered the Temperature Danger Zone (TDZ) where microorganisms can grow. The optimal temperature for growth is typically between 70F (21C) to 100F (38C). Note: In the USA, the FDA is lowering the higher temperature from 140F to 135F (57C).

- Food Safety Tip: Hot foods should stay hot, above 140F (60C). Cold foods should stay cold, below 40F (4.4 C)

* Time – Given the right conditions and temperatures 40F to 140F, microorganisms start growing. Given enough time, the population will grow rapidly to levels that can make us sick.

- Food Safety Tip: Two hour rule and the Four hour rule.
Foods kept at room temperature (in the TDZ) should be refrigerated before two hours. Foods are to be thrown out after 4 hours in the TDZ. For hot days, for example a 90F (32C) day, the time is cut in half.

- Food Safety Tip: Also, cooling foods in the refrigerator, foods should be cooled within two hours (from 140F (60C) to 70F (21C)). Of course, faster is better. For example, a pot of chili beans can be cooled quickly by pouring into a baking dish where the chili beans are spread out into a thin layer.

* Oxygen – Most microorganisms need air. There are a couple bad bugs that don’t need air to grow where Clostridium botulinum (Botulism), being the most notorious bad bug that prefers a no oxygen environment.

* Moisture – Pure water is the key to life while salt water is less desirable.

How does knowing FAT TOM help us preserve food?
Food preservation works by changing the condition of our food to discourage bad bug growth. Food is what we are trying to save and Time is beyond our control. The remaining factors we can change are Acidity, Temperature, Oxygen and Moisture.

Brief summary of how each food preservation method works.
Preservation Method	Acid	Temperature	Oxygen	Moisture
Freezing		Storing foods at 0F (-17.8C) or lower	Airtight packaging
Boiling Water Canner (high acid foods)/Pressure Canner (low acid )	Some foods can be acidified using vinegar or lemon juice	Heats foods to kill bad bugs and neutralize enzymes	Jars form a vacuum seal – creates a low oxygen environment
Pickling and Fermentation	Food is acidified by using vinegar or natural bacteria creating lactic acid			Brines (salted water) and sugars reduce fresh water
Drying			Airtight packaging	Removes up to 90% of the moisture
Jam and Jellies	Vinegar or Lemon juice, Fruits naturally acidic	Cooking, canning or Freezing	Canning will create a vacuum seal	Sugar reduces water available

For this daring challenge, we will be focusing on Freezing and Boiling Water Canning.

Freezing:
Freezing refers to storing foods in airtight containers at 0ºF (-17.8ºC) or lower. Freezing does not kill bad bugs. The cold temperature causes the microorganisms to go into hibernation/suspended animation.

Freezing is the easiest food preservation method, especially with modern freezers.
The main pointers for freezing:
1) Freeze foods quickly. Quickly freezing creates smaller ice crystals. Water is a funny substance where water expands when frozen. This means larger ice crystals can puncture cell walls (such as whole berries) so when defrosted you end up with a mushy mass.
2) Try not to freeze too much at once. Typical advice 2 to 3 lbs (1 kg) per cubic foot (28 L) of freezer space.
3) Containers should be airtight and leak proof.
4) Minimize air and gaps in the packaging. This reduces the chance for freezer burn – drying.
5) Label and date the package. Frozen foods tend to look the same over time, especially when a layer of ice has formed.
6) Vegetables can be blanched to deactivate enzymes. Blanching is quick cooking in boiling water for a few minutes and cooled rapidly in ice water.
7) For initial freezing using pliable freezer bags, freeze on a smooth, flat surface to prevent the bag from molding itself to the rack.

Boiling Water Canning:
Boiling water canning sterilizes the food using the temperature of boiling water. The jars form a vacuum seal which creates a low air/oxygen environment.

Important!
The temperature that water boils varies with altitude. At sea level, water boils at 212ºF (100ºC) while at 5,000 ft (1524 m) water boils at 203ºF (95ºC). What this means is canning (processing) times increase with altitude. Fortunately, we don’t need to do the math. Canning recipes include processing times for different altitudes

Boiling water canning is appropriate for high acid foods (foods with pH values lower than 4.6). Typically, fruits are high acid foods while vegetables are low acid. There are a few fruits that are on the border (pH 4.6), such as, tomatoes. However, some borderline pH foods can be acidified by adding vinegar or lemon juice. In home canning, lemon juice (and lime juice) refer to bottled concentrate, unless the recipe calls for fresh. Also, vinegar refers to vinegar with 5% acidity. The percentage strength can be found on the label.

In the USA, home canning uses Mason jars, a thick-walled jar. The lid is a two piece assembly – the lid with a reddish sealing compound and a metal band/ring.

Jars should be inspected before each use – looking for cracks and chips. Washed with detergent dish soap and dried. To reduce thermal shock (hot food cracking a cold jar), the jars should be kept hot. Clean jars can be kept hot by submerging in the boiling water canner or in a dishwasher. Also, a warm oven can be used.

For processing (canning) times less than 10 minutes, the jars need to be sterilized for 10 minutes in boiling water. For altitudes higher than a 1,000 ft (305 meters), an additional minute is added for each 1,000 ft (305 meters) above sea level.

Figure illustrates the jars and lids used in the USA.

The basic steps for using a boiling water canning.
1. Check your jars for chips, cracks and nicks. Wash and preheat your jars.
2. Fill you canner half full with water. Preheat water to 140ºF (60ºC) for raw packing foods or 180ºF (82ºC) for hot packing foods.
3. Fill jars with food prepared according to the recipe, remove bubbles and adjust headspace.
4. Load jars into the canner. It’s important to keep the jars level.
5. Add more hot water, as needed, so the jars are submerged by at least 1 inch (2.54 cm) of water.
6. Cover the canner with the lid and turn the heat to high.
7. Set timer when the water comes to a vigorous boil. You can lower the heat, but the boil must be maintained.
8. When the time is up, turn off the heat and remove the lid. Wait 5 more minutes.
9. Remove jars making sure the jars are level and set on a towel. Allow to cool to room temperature, undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours.

Terminology
Headspace – is the gap between the top of the container to the level of the liquid or food.
For freezing, headspace is important to ensure there is room in the container for the expanding food. For canning, headspace ensures that a proper vacuum seal will form without the food spilling out of the jars while canning.

Raw Pack (canning) – foods are placed in jars raw and, typically, a flavored liquid is added to the jars before processing. Advantages: Food is not cooked twice. Retains shape better. Disadvantages: Uses more jars. Foods may float due to trapped air.

Hot Pack (canning) – foods are cooked before jarring. Advantages: Foods are cooked down so more can be packed into a jar. Less air in food. Disadvantages: Original shape is lost.

Recipe Source:
Reduced Sugar Apple Butter from The National Center for Home Food Preservation – [http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/how/can_02/apple_butter_reduced.html]

Oven Roasted Tomatoes from Susy Hymas, Master Food Preserver

Bruschetta in a Jar from the Bernardin Canning website.
[http://www.bernardin.ca/pages/recipe_page/51.php?pid=435]

Blog-checking lines:

Posting Date: September 14, 2010

Note:
For making apple butter, I do not have a food mill. The first time I made this recipe, I used apples with the stem and blossom end removed. I pressed the soft cooked apples through a mesh strainer. The resulting apple butter yield was barely 3 cups. Therefore, I recommend using peeled and cored apples to yield 5 to 6 cups of apple butter.

Mandatory:
I want all you daring cooks to try canning or freezing one of the recipes presented in the challenge. If you’re leery about making the full recipe, feel free to half a recipe. How much your freeze or can is up to you. My goal is to have you all become comfortable with food preservation.

The apple butter can be frozen or canned while the oven roasted tomatoes are better suited for freezing. The bruschetta is best canned due to the raw tomatoes. Raw tomatoes tend to become soft when frozen and defrosted.

Variations allowed: If you are familiar with home canning and would like to show us your favorite up to date recipe, please feel free to show us your recipe. Remember to reference the source for your recipe.

Preparation time:
- Apple Butter
Preparing Apples: 10 Minutes (if you leave the skin on)
20 Minutes if you peel and core apples
Cooking: 20-30 Minutes to soften apples for mashing + 2 hours to make Apple Butter.
Boiling Water Canner: 40 Minutes

- Roasted Tomatoes
Preparation: 10 Minutes
Cooking: 1 Hour

- Bruschetta in a Jar
Preparation: 15-30 minutes
Canning: 30 Minutes

Equipment required:
Apple Butter
• Knife
• Measuring Cup
• Measuring Spoons
• 8 Quart (about 7½ litres) Sauce Pan or Pot
• Potato Masher
• Storage Container/Containers to hold 5 to 6 cups
Optional:
o Scale
o Vegetable Peeler
o Food Mill
o Freezer Bags/Containers
o Boiling Water Canner
- Pot with Lid
- Rack
- Jars with lids and bands
- Bubble Remover (can use small spatula or plastic knife)
- Wide Mouth Funnel

Roasted Tomatoes
• Knife
• Roasting Pan
• Mixing Bowl

Bruschetta in a Jar
• Knife
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Cutting Board
• Sauce Pan
• Boiling Water Canner + Accessories
• Scale (Optional)

Recipes: Reduced Sugar Apple Butter Recipe
My preference is to use sweet apples (Golden Delicious) so the need for sugar is reduced. However, tart apples (Granny Smith) can be used. It’s a matter of personal preference.

Recipe: Reduced Sugar Apple Butter
Ingredient	U.S.	Metric	Count	Special Instructions
Apples	4lbs*	1.8 kg	12 Apples	Cut into eights, stem and blossome end removed
Apple Cider	1 Cup	240 ml		Optional: Water or Juice
Sucralose/Splenda	1/2 Cup	120 ml		Optional: Honey, Agave or Sugar - to taste
Cinnamon, Ground	1 Tbl	15 ml
Allspice, Ground	1/2 tsp	3 ml
Cloves, Ground	1/4 tsp	2 ml

Note: * If you used peeled and cored apples. I recommend buying 5 lbs (2.26 kg) of apples.

Gala and Golden Delicious Apples

Directions:
1. Wash apples well and remove stems. Cut apples into quarters or eighths and remove cores.

Note: I ended up peeling the apple at this step.

2. Combine unpeeled apples and cider in 8-quart (about 7 ½ litre) saucepan. Cook slowly and stir occasionally to prevent sticking. Cook until apples are very soft (falling apart).

3. Position a food mill or strainer securely over a large bowl. Press cooked apples with cider through the food mill or strainer to make a pulp. Be sure to collect all the pulp that comes through the food mill or strainer; for example, scrape any pulp clinging under the food mill into the bowl.

Note: Since the apples were peeled, I just mashed in the pot.

4. Combine pulp with Sucralose and spices in an 8-quart (about 7 ½ litre) saucepan. Simmer over low heat, stirring frequently.

Note: A stick blender was used to mix the spices and creates a smoother apple butter. Also, when cooking down the apples, you want to leave the lid ajar or use a splatter screen. This will allow for evaporation. Another trick is to support the lid by laying two wooden spoons across the top of the pot.

5. To test for doneness, spoon a small quantity onto a clean plate; when the butter mounds on the plate without liquid separating around the edge of the butter, it is ready for processing. Another way to test for doneness is to remove a spoonful of the cooked butter on a spoon and hold it away from steam for 2 minutes. It is done if the butter remains mounded on the spoon.

Note: It may be difficult to see, but the sample on the left is the apples sauce from step 3. The apple sauce left a liquid ring while the apple butter did not.

6. Pour contents into desired storage container or multiple containers. I stored my apple butter in 1-cup (250ml) plastic containers with screw on tops. Refrigerate up to 2 weeks, freeze up to a year, and home canning is good for a year.

* The Finished Apple Butter:
Apple Butter is often used as a spread. However, apple butter can also be used as a condiment (pork chops or in marinades) or as an ingredient to an apple quick bread.

* Freezing:
I used a freezer bag where I expelled as much air as possible and minimized the gaps in the bag. Freezer bags work well for storage since they can lay flatter in the freezer than containers.

With a container, you need to ensure you have “headspace”. Headspace is the gap between the food (or liquid level) and the top of the container. Typical, headspace when freezing foods is 1/2 “ (1.27 cm) for straight sided containers. As mentioned previously, water expands when freezing. The headspace allows room for expansion.

Thawing: The best method (Food Safety) is to thaw in the refrigerator for a day.
Cold water, 70ºF (21ºC) or lower, can be used for as quicker way to defrost. The frozen food is submerged under running water. An alternative to running water is to change the water every 30 minutes. If you need an even faster method to defrost and you plan to cook the food immediately, the microwave is another method (of last resort).

* Boiling Water Canning:
For our challenge, apples are high acid foods. Golden delicious apples have an approximate pH of 3.6. Boiling Water Canning is an appropriate method of preserving apple butter.

Apple Butter processing information:
Headspace when canning apple butter is 1/4 “ (0.64 cm)

Processing Time:
15 minutes for altitude of 0 ft (0 m) to 1,000 ft (305 m)
20 minutes for altitude of 1,001 ft (305.1 m) to 6,000 ft (1828.8 m)
25 minutes altitudes above 6,000 ft (1828.8 m)

For boiling water canning, you need a pot that is high enough to cover the jars with at least 1” (2.5 cm) of water. Also, a rack, to prevent thermal shock, is used to keep the jars off the bottom of the pot. Any type of rack will work – a tea towel, a trivet, tying together unused bands… etc. I improvised a rack by tying metal bands to a bamboo sushi mat.

Also, for my pot, I used a large tamale steamer.

Jars are filled using a wide mouth funnel. A plastic bubble remover is run along the sides of the jar, in an up and down motion, to remove air pockets.
The top and side of the jar are wiped down with a damp paper towel.

Headspace is measured to ¼" (6.5mm).

Lids are placed in a pan of hot water (180ºF or 82ºC) to soften the sealing compound.

The lid is seated, centered on the jar and the band is screwed on.
The purpose of the band is to hold the lid down, but not too tightly. Air from the jar needs to escape into the boiling water.

I generally screw down the bands (using two fingers) until resistance stops the band. After which, I give a slight additional 1/4" (6.5mm) twist.

The jars are lowered into the hot water canner. Water temperature is about 180ºF (82.2ºC).
The water level is checked to ensure there is at least 1” (2.54 cm) of water above the jars.
Next, pot is covered and heat turned to high.
When the water comes to a boil, the timer is started (15 minutes). The heat can be lowered as long as the water remains at a boil.

After the 15 minutes are up, the whole canner is removed off the burner (I have an electric stove) and uncovered. Jars are left in the canner for 5 more minutes.

After 5 minutes, the jars are lifted out level.
The temptation is to tilt the jars to drain the water off the top of the lids. Do NOT do that! You don’t want to contents of the jar to running under the seal.

Jars are placed on a dish towel to minimize thermal shock and allowed to cool for 12 to 24 hours.
While the jars are cooling, you may hear a ping or a pop from the lid as it seals. That ping is a good sound. For these three jars, they all pinged within a minute.

After 24 hours, test the seal. The lid should be bowed down (concave), when you press down the lid should not move or pop up. Also, try lifting the jar by the lid only. The lid should stay on if properly sealed. The final thing is to look at the lid to see if there are any cracks or debris caught between the jar and the lid.

Jar Lift:

Storing – Once the integrity of the lids have been checked, it’s best to store the jars in a cool, dark space. The rings are removed. The rings have done their job of holding down the lids in the boiling water canner and are not needed for storage.

Remember to check the lid before you open a jar.
If the lid has become unsealed during storage or the lid is bulging, throw it out.
If the food has mold, become oddly discolored or has an off odor, throw it out.

The canned apple butter can easily store on a shelf for one year.

Additional Recipes:
Tomatoes are a popular home garden plant. There are seasons when we hit the jackpot with tomatoes. Here are a couple recipes that will help preserve the tomatoes for later in the year.

Recipe: Oven Roasted Tomatoes (for Freezing)
Ingredient	U.S.	Metric	Count	Special Instructions
Tomatoes	1lbs	455 g	10 to 12	Cut in half or thirds. Core if needed
Fresh Basil			3 leaves	Chiffonade (Cut into thin strips)
Fresh Garlic			2 Cloves	Minced
Olive Oil	1 Tbl	15 ml
Salt			1 or 2 pinches
Cloves, Ground	1/4 tsp	2 ml

Coring a tomato

Bake 325 F for an hour or slightly browed.

The finished tomatoes can be stored as-cut, chopped or pureed to make a sauce or tomato paste.

Additional Recipe: Bruschetta in a Jar
Recipe Source: Bernardin Canning Website - http://www.bernardin.ca/pages/recipe_page/51.php?pid=435

Recipe: Bruschetta in a Jar
Ingredient	U.S.	Metric	Count	Special Instructions
Plum/Roma Tomatoes *	3 1/2 lbs	1.6 Kg	20 Medium	Wash, seed and chop
Fresh Garlic			5 Cloves	Minced
Dry White Wine	1 Cup	250 ml
White Wine Vinegar	1 Cup	250 ml
Balsamic Vinegar	2 Tbl	30 ml
Sugar, Granulated	2 Tbl	30 ml
Dried Basil	2 Tbl	30 ml
Dried Oregano	2 Tbl	30 ml

* Note: Although other tomato varieties may be used, firm plum tomatoes yield the best results. If using round garden-variety tomatoes, seed tomatoes and drain in colander for 30 minutes then chop.

Headspace: 1/2 “ (1.27 cm)

Processing Time:
20 minutes for altitude of 0 ft (0 m) to 1,000 ft (305 m)
25 minutes for altitude of 1,001 ft (305.1 m) to 3,000 ft (915 m)
30 minutes for altitude of 3,001 ft (916 m) to 6,000 ft (1,830 m)
35 minutes altitudes above 6,000 ft (1,831 m) to 8,000 ft (2,440 m)

1) Place 7 clean half-pint (250 ml) mason jars on a rack in a boiling water canner; cover jars with water and heat to a simmer (180°F/82°C). Set screw bands aside. Heat lids in hot water, not boiling (180°F/82°C). Keep jars and sealing discs hot until ready to use.

2) Wash, seed and chop tomatoes into 1/2 inch (1cm) pieces; measure 9 cups (2250 ml), set aside.

3) Combine garlic, white wine, wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, water, sugar, basil and oregano in a deep stainless steel saucepan. Bring to a full boil; reduce heat. Stirring occasionally, boil gently, covered, 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

4) Pack tomatoes into a hot jar to within 3/4 inch (2 cm) of top rim. Add hot liquid to cover tomatoes to within 1/2 inch (1 cm) of top rim (headspace). Using nonmetallic utensil, remove air bubbles and adjust headspace, if required, by adding more tomatoes and hot liquid. Wipe jar rim removing any food residue. Centre hot sealing disc on clean jar rim. Screw band down until resistance is met, then increase to fingertip tight. Return filled jar to rack in canner. Repeat for remaining tomatoes and hot liquid.

5) When canner is filled, ensure that all jars are covered by at least one inch (2.5 cm) of water. Cover canner and bring water to full rolling boil before starting to count processing time. At altitudes up to 1000 ft (305 m), process –boil filled jars – 20 minutes.

6) When processing time is complete, remove canner lid, wait 5 minutes, then remove jars without tilting and place them upright on a protected work surface. Cool upright, undisturbed 24 hours; DO NOT RETIGHTEN screw bands.

7) After cooling check jar seals. Sealed discs curve downward and do not move when pressed. Remove screw bands; wipe and dry bands and jars. Store screw bands separately or replace loosely on jars, as desired. Label and store jars in a cool, dark place. For best quality, use home canned foods within one year.

Serving Suggestions:
With boiling water canning, very little oil is used since the oils can weaken the seals on the jar.
For the Bruschetta, olive oil and fresh herbs can be added before serving on top of toasted bread or as a condiment to a dish.

Challenge Summary:
For this challenge, I wanted to pique your interest on the topic of food preservation. The subject may seem daunting, due to my long-winded and geeky explanations, however you will find the process of canning and freezing to be very simple.

I do recommend using tested, research based recipes for boiling water canning. There are many research based websites that offer a lot of information and tested recipes which make the whole food preservation process pretty straightforward.

Additional Information:
USDA Guide to Home Canning: http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/publications_usda.html

For food preservation information, canning guides, recipes and how-to for various foods, I highly recommend The National Center for Home Food Preservation website. http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/index.html

Another website is Ball/Kerr/Bernadin (All owned by Jarden): http://www.homecanning.com/
I used the Canadian version of the website for recipes in metric units.

Approximate pH of Foods: http://foodscience.caes.uga.edu/extension/documents/FDAapproximatepHoffoodslacf-phs.pdf

This pdf contains a larger list of references (WSU Extension C1117E): https://cru84.cahe.wsu.edu/ListItems.aspx?Keyword=C1117E

Sep 4, 2010: Dry Fried Chicken

2010-09-04T21:15:00.000-07:00

As some of you may have noticed, I've been cooking from Land of Plenty a lot this week.
The main reason, beside enjoying the recipes, is the book is borrowed from the library. I'm trying to get the most out of the book before I have to return it.

Today's recipe takes advantage of the sale of chicken breast.

Dry Fried Chicken (Ref: Fuchsia Dunlop's "Land of Plenty")
2 Stalks Celery, cut on the diagonal
1 lb Chicken, cut into 1" cubes (I used chicken breast)
3 Green Onions, cut on the diagonal
6 to 8 Dried Chile Pods
1 t Whole Sichuan Pepper
1 1/2 T Sichuan Chili Bean Paste
1 T Rice Wine
1 t Dark Soy Sauce
2 t Sesame Oil

Chicken cut into cubes... Half of the chicken was dusted with cornstarch (not shown).

2) Stir fry the chicken in 1/4 C of oil over high heat for about 5 minutes.
I had the oil leftover from the smelt cooking so I just deep fried for about 5 minutes.

The chicken and oil are drained.
Next, about 3 T of oil was heated for toasting the chile pods and Sichuan Peppers.

After about 1 minute (you can smell the fragrance), add the chicken for more cooking.
Add the Chile paste, cook about a minutes to color the pieces.

Add the wine and soy sauce and slowly cook until the chicken is glazed, about 5 more minutes (10 minutes if you didn't deep fry).

Add the veggies and cook for about 2 more minutes.

The Finished Dish...

While I was sampling during cooking, I thought to myself I should add a little sugar. However, I held back since it wasn't part of the recipe. Fortunately, I followed the recipe. I think the celery provided a little sweetness to balance the savory/unami of the soy, the slightly spicy of the chilies and the numbing/tingling of the Sichuan peppers.

The chicken was a little over cooked, but the flavors made up for the firm pieces of breast meat.

Aug 31, 2010: Tofu Tueday - Savory Tofu Flower

2010-08-31T21:09:00.000-07:00

It's Tuesday and time for another installment of Tofu Tuesday!

The new ingredient for today is Pickled Mustard Tuber.
The ingredients for this brand include Fermented Mustard Tuber, MSG, Salt, Chili, Sugar, Fennel, Licorice, Acesulfame Potassium, Sesame oil and Disodium this and that.

According to the package the pickled mustard tuber can be eaten as is.

The pickled mustard tuber is salty and crunchy. There's not mustard flavor nor is there any tartness from the pickling. You can taste the MSG, sugar and a faint bit of spiciness, not much though.

Today's tofu recipe is really easy to make.
It's a Sichuan-style Tofu flower. I'm familiar with the sweet version of this and didn't even know there was a savory version.

Recipe is from "Land of Plenty"
Flower Bean Curd

2- 10 oz packages Silken Tofu [I used a 16 oz package]

Seasoning
1 T Soy Sauce
1 T Chili Oil with Flakes
1 t Sesame Oil
up to 1 t Sichuan Pepper, roasted and ground [I forgot this ingredient. The result was still delicious. :-) ]
2 T Peanuts, unsalted, roasted and coarsely chopped
2 T Preserved Mustard Tuber, finely chopped
4 Green Onions, green part cut into rings.

Directions:
1) Soak the whole block of silken tofu in boiling hot lightly-salted water. I simmered a couple minutes and allowed to sit a few more to heat through. [The original recipe calls for parsing out into individual bowls, but I opted to serve family style.]

2) Drain and top with the seasonings. How simple is that? Very!

3) Serve by scooping as much as you like... making sure you take a bit of the topping with each scoop. :-)

I enjoy savory foods. The soft custardy tofu is flavored with sesame oil, green onions, chili paste, mustard tuber and crunchy peanuts.

This was eaten with rice and made for a very simple flavorful Tofu Tuesday.

Aug 30, 2010: Garlic Chives as a Vegetable

2010-08-30T22:53:00.000-07:00

I originally purchased a bunch of garlic chives with the intention of making some type of dumpling. However, I worked the weekend so that plan was put on hold indefinitely.

I was reading through the cookbook, "Land of Plenty" and came across another simple recipe where the garlic chives is cooked with bacon and eaten as a vegetable. This make sense since rice is the staple for China and is kind of bland. The garlic chives being much milder than regular chives provide flavor and is long enough to be treated as a veg.

Flowering Chives with Smoky Bacon
8 oz Garlic Chives (Washed and cut into 2 in lengths)
3.5 oz Bacon (slab bacon preferred, cut into strips about the length of the chives)
2 T Oil
1 t Sesame Oil

1) The garlic chives was washed and cut into 2 inch lengths.

2) Fry the bacon in the oil for a couple minutes (I used strip bacon which I cut into smaller lengths).
The bacon put off quite a bit of fat so I drained all but 2 T of oil/grease.
Stem ends (thick parts) were added first to start cooking, stir fry for about a minute.
The leaves were added and stir-fried for around 3 to 4 minutes.
Add sesame oil just before plating.

3) Wait there's more... My addition to the recipe. :-)
When I uses chives, I like to mix in some beaten eggs.
About 1/4 of the chive-bacon mixture was used and mixed into the eggs. Here I had 4 egg whites (leftover from the Daring Baker's challenge) and 1 whole egg to give the egg whites some "color."

Now we're done! Food's up!

Garlic chives with smoky bacon.

Scrambled eggs with garlic chives and bacon.

Served over brown rice and a couple squirts of Siracha hot sauce.

A simple, yet flavorful dinner!

Aug 29, 2010: Hot and Numbing Fish (Smelt)

2010-08-29T20:40:00.000-07:00

Before going off to work, I caught a few minutes of a cooking show where the Chef made Salt and Pepper Shrimp. Hmmm... That looks good!

Thumbing through Fuchsia Dunlop's Land of Plenty, I noticed a recipe for Hot-and-Numbing Tiny Fish. It looked very similar to a Salt and Pepper Shrimp dish. Hmmm... that sounds good too. I could use shrimp instead of whitebait called out in the recipe.

However, a couple days ago, I noticed wild smelt at the supermarket. Fresh, wild smelt is a once in a year thing so smelt it is instead of shrimp.

Hot-and-Numbering (Tiny) Fish

1 lb Smelt
3/4 C All-Purpose Flour (I also experimented around with cornstarch)

Marinade
1/2 t salt
1 T Shaoxing Rice Wine
2 Green Onions, chopped
2 T Fresh Ginger, chopped

Seasoning
2 T Oil
1/2 t Cayenne Pepper, ground
1/2 t Sichuan Peppercorn, toasted and ground

1) The clean the smelt, wash and pat dry.
Mix the marinade and pour over the fish. Coating thoroughly.
Let sit at least 20 minutes... Actually a lot longer since I went and mowed the lawn.
Note: For Chinese cooking, ginger is a very common ingredient used to reduce fishiness.

2) Drain the fish in a colander, reserving the green onion and ginger.
For coating the fish, I found it easier to use a bag for the flour and shake to coat.
I experimented around with all purpose flour (on the left) and cornstarch (on the right).
I wanted to see how the fish's crispiness would be effected by the coating used.
The flour appears to have a thinner coating while the cornstarch formed a slightly thicker layer.

3) Heat oil to 375F and fry for about 4 minutes. I noticed the oil temp dropped to about 345F during the frying.

4) The cooked fish.
The cornstarch coated fish is above.
Both fish look pretty much the same. The flour was just a but browner. Maillard reaction with the gluten?

5) Seasonings ready for the hot oil - ground Sichuan peppercorn and cayenne.

6) 2 T of oil heated in the wok. Cayenne added to color the oil (about 30 seconds) before the Sichuan peppers were added.

The fish was added to the seasoned oil and tossed around to coat.

The finished dish... or is it?

I saved the ginger and green onion from the marinade.
The wok was heated and the marinade was added to cook down.
The seasoned fish was added to soak up the ginger and green onion flavors.

The fish turned out nicely were the whole fish is edible and crunchy.
I noticed the cornstarch coated fish was a little more crispy than the flour coated fish, but with all the flavor from the cayenne, Sichuan pepper, green onions and ginger, the difference is almost unnoticeable.

Was it hot and numbing?
As I mentioned previously about the recipes in Land of Plenty, the hot wasn't mind blowing but there was a definite low comfortable burn. The numbing effect was there too from the Sichuan pepper.

The hot can be boosted by adding 1 t of cayenne instead of 1/2 t, but would the extra heat throw the balance of the dish off? I guess it comes down to personal preference.

Aug 27, 2010: Daring Bakers - Ice Cream Petit Fours

2010-08-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The August 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Elissa of 17 and Baking. For the first time, The Daring Bakers partnered with Sugar High Fridays for a co-event and Elissa was the gracious hostess of both. Using the theme of beurre noisette, or browned butter, Elissa chose to challenge Daring Bakers to make a pound cake to be used in either a Baked Alaska or in Ice Cream Petit Fours. The sources for Elissa’s challenge were Gourmet magazine and David Lebovitz’s “The Perfect Scoop”.

Recipe Source: The brown butter pound cake recipe is adapted from the October 2009 edition of Gourmet. The vanilla ice cream is from ice cream genius David Lebovitz, adapted from The Perfect Scoop. The chocolate glaze for the petit fours is a larger adapted version of this ganache from Godiva Chocolate and the meringue for the Baked Alaska is a larger version of this meringue from Gourmet, May 1995.

Mandatory: Whether you make the Baked Alaska, the petit fours, or both, you must make the brown butter pound cake as written and the ice cream from scratch.

Variations Allowed: Both desserts can be made in any size or shape, and the ice cream can be any flavor you can think of! For the Baked Alaska, you can flavor the meringue however you want. For the petit fours, you are not required to use the chocolate glaze, or you can add additional flavors. You can also brush the cake with a simple syrup if desired.

[My Comments in Red: Alright now! Another chance to use my ice cream maker I purchased for the previous Daring Baker Challenge!]

Vanilla Ice Cream

1 cup (250ml) whole milk
A pinch of salt
3/4 cup (165g) sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise OR 2 teaspoons (10ml) pure vanilla extract [No Vanilla Bean - all gone from last month's challenge]
2 cups (500ml) heavy (approx 35% butterfat) cream
5 large egg yolks [I'm bold and daring... pushing the salmonella envelope! lol]
1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract

1. Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a medium saucepan until the liquid steams. Scrape out the seeds of the vanilla bean with a paring knife and add to the milk, along with the bean pod. Cover, remove from heat, and let infuse for an hour. (If you do not have a vanilla bean, simply heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a medium saucepan until the liquid steams, then let cool to room temperature.)

[Dissolving the sugar and salt in the milk.]

2. Set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2 litre) bowl inside a large bowl partially filled with water and ice. Put a strainer on top of the smaller bowl and pour in the cream.

[Straining the heavy cream... making sure no chunky bits of butter end up in the ice cream?]

3. In another bowl, lightly beat the egg yolks together. Reheat the milk in the medium saucepan until warmed, and then gradually pour ¼ cup warmed milk into the yolks, constantly whisking to keep the eggs from scrambling. Once the yolks are warmed, scrape the yolk and milk mixture back into the saucepan of warmed milk and cook over low heat. Stir constantly and scrape the bottom with a spatula until the mixture thickens into a custard which thinly coats the back of the spatula.

[Five yolks ready to mixing! One yolk jumped the gun and is ahead of his buddies :-) ]

[Tempering the yolks with the hot milk... adding a little at a time to raise the temperature of the yolks slowly.]

4. Strain the custard into the heavy cream and stir the mixture until cooled. Add the vanilla extract (1 teaspoon [5ml] if you are using a vanilla bean; 3 teaspoons [15ml] if you are not using a vanilla bean) and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, preferably overnight.

[The milk-yolk mixture was cooked until thickened to a thin pourable custard. Strained while adding to the heavy cream. Again, we don't want chunks of in our ice cream.]

[Lastly, 1 T of vanilla was added to the ice cream base. The base was refrigerated 4 hours before adding to the ice cream maker]

5. Remove the vanilla bean and freeze in an ice cream maker.

[20 minutes later... Ice Cream!]

Brown Butter Pound Cake

19 tablespoons (9.5 oz) (275g) unsalted (sweet) butter
2 cups (200g) sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before measuring)
1 teaspoon (5g) baking powder
1/2 teaspoon (3g) salt
1/2 cup (110g) packed light brown sugar
1/3 (75g) cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F/160°C and put a rack in the center. Butter and flour a 9”x9” (23cmx23cm) square pan.

2. Place the butter in a 10” (25cm) skillet over medium heat. Brown the butter until the milk solids are a dark chocolate brown and the butter smells nutty. (Don’t take your eyes off the butter in case it burns.) Pour into a shallow bowl and chill in the freezer until just congealed, 15-30 minutes.

[Browning the butter]

[The finished butter ready for a quick freeze to firm up. Looks like I made beurre noir (black butter) instead of beurre noisette (brown butter). A quick taste of the butter I found no bitterness. Whew!]

3. Whisk together cake flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Beat the brown butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar in an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well, and then the vanilla extract.

[I left the butter a little to long in the freezer. I had to break it down a little with the sugar before mixing.]

[Finally, the butter and sugar fluffed up with the hand mixer. At this point an egg was added one at a time until thoroughly incorporated.]

5. Stir in the flour mixture at low speed until just combined.

6. Scrape the batter into the greased and floured 9”x9” (23cmx23cm) square pan. Smooth the top with a rubber spatula and rap the pan on the counter. Bake until golden brown on top and when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes.

[A very thick batter was poured (actually scraped into a floured baking dish.
Bake 325 F for 25 minutes... Reality - it took 45 minutes.]

7. Cool in the pan 10 minutes. Run a knife along the edge and invert right-side-up onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

[Out of the oven... the pound caked domed a little in the center. I'll just have to trim it off to level the cake. Personally, the crust is the best part of any cake. :-) ]

Chocolate Glaze (For the Ice Cream Petit Fours)

9 ounces (250g) dark chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup (250 ml) heavy (approx 35% butterfat) cream
1 1/2 tablespoons (32g) light corn syrup, Golden syrup, or agave nectar
2 teaspoons (10ml) vanilla extract

Stir the heavy cream and light corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat and add the dark chocolate. Let sit 30 seconds, then stir to completely melt the chocolate. Stir in the vanilla and let cool until tepid before glazing the petit fours.

[Chocolate and the hot cream mixture... before mixing. ]

Assembly Instructions – Ice Cream Petit Fours

1. Line a 9”x9” (23cmx23cm) pan with plastic wrap, so that no sides of the pan are exposed and so there is some extra plastic wrap hanging off the sides. Spread 1 ¾ to 2 cups (450ml to 500ml) ice cream into the pan. Cover with more plastic wrap and freeze several hours.

[Two cups of ice cream spread out into a thin layer on a baking dish. Wrapped and placed in the freezer]

2. Once the brown butter pound cake has completely cooled, level the top with a cake leveler or a serrated knife. Then split the cake in half horizontally to form two thin layers.

3. Unwrap the frozen ice cream. Flip out onto one of the layers of cake and top with the second layer of cake. Wrap well in plastic wrap and return to the freezer overnight.

[A large ice cream sandwich is made.]

[Wrapped and frozen... overnight]

4. Make the chocolate glaze (see above.)

5. While the glaze cools, trim ¾” (2cm) off each side of the ice cream cake to leave a perfectly square 7.5” (19cm) ice cream cake. Cut the cake into twenty five petit fours, each 1.5”x1.5” (4cmx4cm).

[Squaring off the edges. Note - only three edges are shown. The forth went towards a quality control taste test. Me!]

[Eyeballed the cutting... not too bad. The pieces are sort of square... lol]

[Ready for more... but first a little freezer time to firm up.]

6. Glaze the petit fours one at a time: place a petit four on a fork and spoon chocolate glaze over it.

7. Place the petit fours on a parchment-lined baking sheet and return to the freezer for one hour.

[Some pieces were dunked in the chocolate glaze. Wow!]

The Finished Petit Fours

[I'm not that good at piping, but I used melted white chocolate with a little cream.
From Left to Right: Unglazed/Nekkid Ice Cream Petit Fours, Chocolate Glazed Petit Fours and Wedges dipped in chocolate... I call them Petit Threes. :-) ]

I had fun making the Petit Fours. I'm not sure if the freezing did the brown butter pound cake justice. Freezing dulls flavors. The beurre noisette (in my case beurre noir) did not offer up a strong flavor.

Warm pound cake served with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce is probably a better dessert. :-)

Aug 24, 2010: Quick and Easy Tuna Noodle Casserole

2010-08-24T19:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a simple recipe that can be done quickly with what veggies you want. It's something that can be thrown together.

Tuna Noodle Casserole

8 oz Elbow Macaroni - aiming for 4 servings
10.5 oz can Cream of Mushroom Soup
7 oz can of Albacore Tuna, drained and mashed
1/2 Onion, chopped
1 Stalk Celery, chopped
1 Stalk Broccoli, peeled and chopped... Using every bit while the florets were steamed as a side dish.
3/4 C Frozen Peas... I would added more if I had more.
1/2 C milk
1/2 C Sharp Cheddar, shredded
1 T Pimento... Added for color. I would have used carrots. I didn't find any.
1 T Butter

1) Cook the macaroni per instructions... toss in the frozen peas for the last minute.

2) While the mac is boiling, saute fresh veggies.

3) Add the cream of mushroom soup and milk to the veggies. Add Tuna and break up the chunks.

4) Drain the pasta and add to the soup mixture. (You can eat at this point, but being a guy I have to use another dish. lol )

5) Pour into a 8 x 8 baking dish and top with cheese... Bake 350 F until cheese melted.

Service up!

A very simple dish that turned out nicely.
Use any veggies you like.

Aug 19, 2010: Spicy Cold Noodles with Chicken Slivers

2010-08-19T19:29:00.000-07:00

I have some leftover Costco rotisserie chicken. Yum! Yum! Yum!
Another quick meal day with minimal cooking... Recipe from Dunlop's "Land of Plenty"

Spicy Cold Noodles with Chicken Slivers

1/2 lb Fresh Noodles [The recipe calls for wheat noodles which I didn't have. Also, I wanted a quick meal so I used rice noodles.]
1 1/2 T Peanut Oil [I did not need it for the rice noodles.]
3 Oz Bean Sprouts [No bean sprouts so I used slivered Nappa Cabbage.]
4 Green Onions, thinly sliced

Sauce
2 T Sesame Paste + 1 T Water
1 1/2 T Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 T Soy Sauce
1 1/2T Chinese Black Vinegar
1 T Sugar
3 Cloves Garlic, crushed
1/2 t Sichuan Peppers, roasted and ground
2 T Chili Oil
1 T Sesame Oil

1) Mix the sauce and set aside.

The toasted Sichuan Peppers mixed into the rest of the sauce. I tried a dab of ground Sichuan peppers and after a minute my tongue went numb, as expected.

2) Blanch the Nappa cabbage and use the hot water to rehydrate the rice noodles (about 10 minutes). Drain and cool under cold running water.

3) Shred Chicken breast.

4) Plate and Eat
Noodles, chicken, sauce and garnish with green onions and chopped cilantro.

The noodles had a rich sesame paste flavor, with the slight numbing effects of the peppercorns.
Rich, savory, slightly spicy and slightly numbing. :-)

Aug 18, 2010: Cold Pork in Hot and Garlicky Sauce

2010-08-18T22:04:00.000-07:00

It's been record breaking hot here in Seattle. The heat discourages a person to cook.

While thumbing through Fuchsia Dunlop's "Land of Plenty", I came across a recipe that looked like a good one for a hot day.

Cold Pork in Hot and Garlicky Sauce
1 lb Pork Tenderloin
1.5 in Ginger, left whole, but smashed
2 Green Onions, white part - smashed

1/2 lb Bean Sprouts [I also added some slivered Nappa Cabbage. Both were blanched and cooled before serving.]

Sauce:
4 T Aromatic Soy Sauce
2 T Chili Oil
1 T Garlic, crushed
2 t Sesame Oil

Garnish:
Cilantro (or Green Onion tops)

1) Water, enough to cover the tenderloin, was heated to a boil with ginger and green onion.
After a couple minutes, to allow the ginger and green onion to flavor the water, the pork tenderloin is added. When the water came to a boil, the heat was lowered to a bare simmer. The pork is poached for about 30 minutes.

While the pork is simmering, the Aromatic Soy Sauce is made.

Aromatic Soy Sauce
1/3 C Dark Soy Sauce [Dark soy sauce is also known as "old" or "aged" soy sauce. It's typically thicker with the consistency of balsamic vinegar.]
2/3 C Water
6 T Brown Sugar
1/3 Stick of Cinnamon
1/2 t Fennel Seeds [Omitted - none in my pantry]
1/2 Star Anise
1/2 t Sichuan Pepper
Small Piece of Garlic, Crushed

Bring to a boil and simmer 20 minutes. Strain before using.

For the brown sugar, I used a brown sugar candy stick. The weight was equivalent to about 3.5 T of brown sugar.

With the pork cooked and the Aromatic Soy Sauce finished, both were refrigerated (separately) overnight.

The Next Day...
Making the sauce - Well I can't read Chinese, so when I go shopping I read ingredients or look for English words. This chili oil contains peanuts. Interesting.

Garlic and Chili oil shown, the rest of the ingredients for the sauce were added and mixed.

The vegetables were blanched for one minute and cooled. The veggies should retain some crispness to contrast the texture of the cooked pork and contrast the spicy sauce.

The veggies (bean sprouts and Nappa cabbage) were mounded onto the center of the plate.
Thin slices of the cooked pork were arranged around the blanched vegetables. Sauce was drizzled around the pork. Cilantro was used as garnish.

Digging in - Pork, vegetables and cilantro.
Extra sauce was off to the side for dipping or drizzling onto one's plate.

Another seemingly simple dish. The flavors are complex and not overpoweringly hot. Just a slight tingle. As I mentioned in previous post about Sichuan cooking, I'm not sure if the heat (spiciness) is supposed to knock you for a loop or just tingle your taste buds. My taste buds are happy :-)

Aug 17, 2010: Tofu Tuesday

2010-08-17T19:39:00.000-07:00

Things have been busy so I haven't had much blogging time, but it's time for another edition of Tofu Tuesday.

I've been fascinated with the cookbook "Land of Plenty" by Fuchsia Dunlop. I've never had Sichuan cuisine, at least not that I know of, but the recipes I've tried in this book have been flavorful and not overwhelmingly spicy hot. I also enjoy the author presenting authentic recipes that haven't been rewritten (read: toned down) for a Western audience.

Today's recipe is "Fish-Fragrant Bean Curd". There's no fish in it, but in Chinese cooking (at least in Cantonese cookin, which is what I'm familiar with) Fish is usually cooked with garlic, ginger and green onions. Since this is a Sichuanese cookbook, the addition of pickled chili peppers is added to give the tofu a fish frangrance.

Fish-Fragrant Bean Curd
3 T Peanut Oil [I used 2 T Canola Oil]
1 T Ginger, finely chopped
1 T Garlic, finely chopped
3 Scallions, white part cut at a steep diagonal
2 T Pickled Chili Paste
8 oz Deep Fried Bean Curd [I had firm tofu so I pan-fried until crispy]
3/4 C Stock [I used chicken buillon]
2 T Soy Sauce
1 t sugar
1/4 t salt [I left the salt out since I used buillon]
Green onion tops for garnish, sliced.

The fish fragrant flavors - starting on the right going left:
Minced garlic and ginger; Green Onion and Pickled Chilies.
This is my first time using pickled chilies so I didn't know what to expect. Tasting them as-is, I taste a salty, slightly tangy chili. The heat is really mild.

Since I didn't have deep fried bean curd, I pan-fried the tofu in a non-stick pan with about 1 or 2 T of oil. Flipping to ensure even browning.

Onto the recipe:

1) Heat the 3 (or 2) T of oil until smoking. Add the garlic, ginger and chilies and saute to release the flavors, about 1 minute. The pepper while mild did get me coughing a little.

2) Add the rest of the ingredients - tofu, stock, soy sauce and sugar.
Turn down the heat to simmer and allow the moisture to evaporate.
With all of the moisture evaporated, the tofu will sizzle again.
Optional: at this point I added the green onion tops to cook for a minute.

The Finished Dish served family style.

A simple dish with a lot of flavor. The chilies did not add a lot of heat, but their presence was a subtle and flavorful. By allowing the stock to reduce, the tofu obtained a light glaze from the reduction.

Overall, a delicious dish.

I served with brown rice and steamed Nappa cabbage, which is typical of a Chinese meal.
Flavor centerpiece dish with vegetables served on the side... All meant to flavor the brown rice.

Aug 14, 2010: Daring Cooks' Pierogis

2010-08-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

The August 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by LizG of Bits n’ Bites and Anula of Anula’s Kitchen. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make pierogi from scratch and an optional challenge to provide one filling that best represents their locale.

Greetings Daring Cooks! The August Challenge is brought to you by LizG of Bits n’ Bites and Anula of Anula’s Kitchen. This month, we will be exploring the wonderful world of pierogi, those versatile little dumplings, in name and fillings. Almost every culture has one on its menu. They can be made from potato or bread or, in our case, flour. Wikipedia provides a nice overview of various types of dumplings around the world.

Your challenge is to make the dough from scratch and a savory or sweet filling of your choice. Below are some traditional pierogi fillings. As an optional challenge, we would like to see non-traditional fillings that reflect your locale. It could be savoury or sweet. Let’s bust open pierogi and make them a true international dumpling!

Mandatory:
* you have to make the dough from scratch
* you have to make filling from scratch

[Eat4fun: For a full list of recipes see The Daring Kitchen or our hostesses blogs, listed above.
I decided to go with the family recipe provided by Anula. I enjoy trying out family recipes that have been tried and tested.]

Russian Style Pierogi
(makes 4 generous servings, around 30 dumplings)
(Traditional Polish recipe, although each family will have their own version, this is Anula's family recipe)

Dough:
2 to 2 1/2 cups (300 to 375 g) all-purpose (plain) flour
1 large egg
1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt
About 1 cup (250 ml) lukewarm water

Filling:
3 big potatoes, cooked & mashed (1 1/2 cup instant or leftover mashed potatoes is fine too)
1 cup (225 g) cottage cheese, drained
1 onion, diced & sauteed in butter until clear
3 slices of streaky bacon, diced and fried till crispy (you can add more bacon if you like or omit that part completely if you’re vegetarian)
1 egg yolk (from medium egg)
1 tablespoon (15 g) butter, melted
1/4 (1.25 ml) teaspoon salt
pinch of pepper to taste

1. Combine all the ingredients for the filling (it’s best to use one’s hands to do that) put into the bowl, cover and set aside in the fridge until you have to use it.

[For the filling, 3 slices of bacon where coarsely diced and cooked, onions were added after the bacon achieved some nice browning. Nothing worse than eating soggy boiled bacon... :-) ]

[Fresh mashed potatoes were made, the butter called out in the recipe was added to the potatoes, plus the salt and pepper. Remember to season all parts of any recipe for good results.]

[Drained cottage cheese, egg and the rest of the cooled ingredients are mixed together.]

[Finished filling was covered and refrigerated while the dough was made.]

2. Place 2 cups flour in a large bowl or on a work surface and make a well in the center. Break the egg into it, add the salt and a little lukewarm at a time (in my situation 1/2 cup was enough). Bring the dough together, kneading well and adding more flour or water as necessary. Cover the dough with a bowl or towel. You’re aiming for soft dough. Let it rest 20 minutes.

[Straightforward pasta recipe - egg in a well of flour. Beaten and mixed with a fork.]

[Water was slowly added while the flour was being incorporated... eventually, a ball will form where kneading is completed by hand]

[The kneaded dough was satiny smooth and kind off soft. As Anula mentioned, only 1/2 C of the water was needed to form the pasta dough. The dough was covered and allowed to rest.]

3. On a floured work surface, roll the dough out thinly (1/8” or about 3 millimeters) cut with a 2-inch (5 cm) round or glass (personally I used 4-inch/10 cm cutter as it makes nice size pierogi - this way I got around 30 of them and 1 full, heaped teaspoon of filling is perfect for that size). Spoon a portion (teaspoon will be the best) of the filling into the middle of each circle. Fold dough in half and pinch edges together. Gather scraps, re-roll and fill. Repeat with remaining dough.

[After the dough rested, half of the dough was rolled out into a thin sheet.
A 3 inch round cutter was used to make little rounds.]

[A small spoonful of filling was dolloped into the center.]

[The leftover egg white was used to seal the edges and a fork was used to crimp the edges to ensure no leakage.]

4. Bring a large, low saucepan of salted water to boil. Drop in the pierogi, not too many, only single layer in the pan! Return to the boil and reduce heat. When the pierogi rise to the surface, continue to simmer a few minutes more ( usually about 5 minutes). Remove one dumpling with a slotted spoon and taste if ready. When satisfied, remove remaining pierogi from the water.

5. Serve immediately preferably with creme fraiche or fry. Cold pierogi can be fried. Boiled Russian pierogi can be easily frozen and boiled taken out straight from the freezer.

The Finished Pierogis!

I decided to go for a heartier presenation.
Also, in keeping with a "Russian"/"Polish" theme, I made Beef Stroganoff where pierogis were used in place of egg noodles.

The Pierogis were delicious. A very simple filling with subtle hints of smoky bacon and onions flavoring the potato filling.

Anula's family (secret) recipe was a success! Thanks for sharing! :-)

Jul 27, 2010: Daring Bakers Ice Cream Cake

2010-07-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The July 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Sunita of Sunita’s world – life and food. Sunita challenged everyone to make an ice-cream filled Swiss roll that’s then used to make a bombe with hot fudge. Her recipe is based on an ice cream cake recipe from Taste of Home.

The recipe for this month’s challenge has been adapted from this Swiss swirl ice cream cake from the Taste of Home website. Slices of Swiss roll are used to line a bowl and then filled with vanilla ice-cream, hot fudge ice cream topping and chocolate ice cream. The picture looked like so much fun that I have been waiting to make it for a while. What better timing than to make it along with fellow daring bakers to celebrate my three years with this amazing group. I have taken the basic idea from the above website and have developed the recipe. Hope you like it. The recipe does not require a lot of hands on time, but definitely requires a lot of cooling and freezing time between layers. Unlike the original recipe, we are going to make each layer from scratch. So, if you are planning to make it in one day, it might be a bit of a struggle.

Recipe source - Inspired by the Swiss swirl ice cream cake from the Taste of Home website

Mandatory-
* You must make the Swiss rolls, a filling for them, two ice creams and a fudge sauce, from scratch.

* You must set the dessert in a bowl/pan etc in the order given in the recipe-Swiss roll, first ice-cream, the fudge topping and, finally, the second ice cream.

[Eat4Fun: This is my 2 year anniversary as a Daring Baker! I've made 23 of the 24 Challenges. It's hard to imagine the variety of recipes I've made as a Daring Baker. Fun Stuff!]

Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake

[The ice creams were made first so they'd have a chance to set/harden in the freezer. Also, the ice cream recipes are very simple. For the vanilla, it's only cream, vanilla bean and sugar.

In honor of the warm summer we're having, I purchased an ice cream maker. :-) ]

Vanilla Ice Cream-
Ingredients-
2 and ½ C / 625 ml / 20 fl oz of whipping cream
1 vanilla bean, minced or 1 tsp/ 5 ml/ .15 fl oz vanilla extract
½ C / 115gms/ 4 oz of granulated sugar

Method-

1. Grind together the sugar and vanilla in a food processor.

[I've never used vanilla straight like this before. I was expecting to steep the bean in the cream.]

In a mixing bowl, add the cream and vanilla –sugar mixture and whisk lightly till everything is mixed together. If you are using the vanilla extract, grind the sugar on its own and then and the sugar along with the vanilla extract to the cream.

[Blend all he ingredients and pour into the ice cream maker.]

[The ice cream/soft serve ready for a container to harden in the freezer.]

Chocolate Ice Cream-
[For some reason, the chocolate ice cream never hardened in the freezer. It remained like a slightly firmer version of soft serve.]

Ingredients-
2C/ 500 ml whipping cream
1 C/230gms/8 oz caster sugar
3 tblsp/ 24 gms/1.5 oz of natural unsweetened cocoa powder

Method-

1. Grind together the sugar and the cocoa powder in a food processor .
2. In a saucepan, add all the ingredients and whisk lightly.
3. Place the pan over heat and keep stirring till it begins to bubble around the edges.
4. Remove from heat and cool completely before transferring to a freezer friendly container till firm around the edges. If you are using an ice cream maker, churn the ice cream according to the manufacturer’s instruction, after the mixture has cooled completely.

The Swiss rolls-
[It's been about 18 years since I've made a jelly roll/Swiss roll. This is all new to me since I really dont' remember what I did back then. :-) ]

Sponge cake
6 medium sized eggs
1 C / 225 gms caster sugar /8 oz+ extra for rolling
6 tblsp / 45gms/ a pinch over 1.5 oz of all purpose (plain) flour + 5 tblsp/40gm /a pinch under 1.5 oz of natural unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted together
2 tblsp /30ml / 1 fl oz of boiling water
a little oil for brushing the pans

Method-
1. Preheat the oven at 200 deg C /400 deg F approximately. Brush the baking pans ( 11 inches by 9 inches ) with a little oil and line with greaseproof baking paper. If you have just one pan, bake one cake and then let the pan cool completely before using it for the next cake.

2. In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar and beat till very thick; when the beaters are lifted, it should leave a trail on the surface for at least 10 seconds.

[Mixing the egg and sugar on high took about 10 to 15 minutes... a surprisingly long time.]

[The volume of the two ingredients pretty much doubled in volume. Amazing! I don't remember that happening 18 years ago.]

3. Add the flour mixture, in three batches and fold in gently with a spatula. Fold in the water.

[Folding in the flour/cocoa mixture created a nice striated pattern. I had to take a picture of that. :-) ]

4. Divide the mixture among the two baking pans and spread it out evenly, into the corners of the pans.

5. Place a pan in the centre of the pre heated oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes or till the centre is springy to the touch.

6. Spread a kitchen towel on the counter and sprinkle a little caster sugar over it.

7. Turn the cake on to the towel and peel away the baking paper. Trim any crisp edges.

[I used one pan - an 11" x 17" pan... Results look good, especially trimming off the edges.]

8. Starting from one of the shorter sides, start to make a roll with the towel going inside. Cool the wrapped roll on a rack, seam side down.

[Wrapped in a linen bed sheet that I boiled and dried before using.]

For the filling
2C / 500 mls/ 16 fl oz of whipping cream
1 vanilla pod, cut into small pieces of about ½ cm (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
5 tblsp / 70gms/2.5oz of caster sugar

1. In a large bowl, add the cream and vanilla-sugar mixture and beat till very thick.

2. Divide the cream mixture between the completely cooled cakes.

3. Open the rolls and spread the cream mixture, making sure it does not go right to the edges (a border of ½ an inch should be fine).

[Cream was whipped to soft peaks and spread out as shown below.]

4. Roll the cakes up again, this time without the towel. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge till needed, seam side down.

[Wrapped in plastic film for refrigeration.]

Hot Fudge Sauce

Ingredients-
1 C / 230gms/ 8 oz of caster sugar
3 tblsp / 24gms/1.5 oz of natural unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tblsp /15gms/ 1 oz of cornflour/cornstarch
1 and ½ C /355ml /12 fl oz of water
1 tblsp /14gms/ 1 oz butter
1 tsp/5 ml / .15 fl oz vanilla extract

Method-
1. In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, cornflour and water.
2. Place the pan over heat, and stir constantly, till it begins to thicken and is smooth (for about 2 minutes).
3. Remove from heat and mix in the butter and vanilla. Keep aside to cool .

[Shot of the chocolate porridge... I mean chocolate sauce. :-) ]

Assembly-
[Assembly is pretty straightforward. The longest part is waiting for each layer to set before adding another layer.]

1. Cut the Swiss rolls into 20 equal slices ( approximately 2 cms each ).

[Looking at the cross-section of the Swiss Roll.]

2. Cover the bottom and sides of the bowl in which you are going to set the dessert with cling film/plastic wrap.

3. Arrange two slices at the bottom of the pan, with their seam sides facing each other. Arrange the Swiss roll slices up the bowl, with the seam sides facing away from the bottom, to cover the sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze till the slices are firm (at least 30 minutes).

[Layer Swiss Roll - Complete]

4. Soften the vanilla ice cream. Take the bowl out of the freezer, remove the cling film cover and add the ice cream on top of the cake slices. Spread it out to cover the bottom and sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze till firm ( at least 1 hour)

[Layer Vanilla - Complete]

5. Add the fudge sauce over the vanilla ice cream, cover and freeze till firm . ( at least an hour)
[Adding the chocolate sauce layer... The sauce seemed a little loose, but I made it according to recipe. ]

6. Soften the chocolate ice cream and spread it over the fudge sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4-5 hours till completely set .

7. Remove the plastic cover, and place the serving plate on top of the bowl. Turn it upside down and remove the bowl and the plastic lining. If the bowl does not come away easily, wipe the outsides of the bowl with a kitchen towel dampened with hot water. The bowl will come away easily.

8. Keep the cake out of the freezer for at least 10 minutes before slicing, depending on how hot your region is. Slice with a sharp knife, dipped in hot water.

The Finished Product

[Pretty neat have a Swiss roll layer on my dome cake.]

[I don't know if the chocolate sauce was supposed to be a thick layer or a thin layer. I just spooned in some of the sauce for this layer.

Overall, both ice cream recipes turned out delicious and very chocolaty. The vanilla was good too!

July 14, 2010: Daring Cooks Nut Butters

2010-07-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

The July 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge was hosted by Margie of More Please and Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make their own nut butter from scratch, and use the nut butter in a recipe. Their sources include Better with Nut Butter by Cooking Light Magazine, Asian Noodles by Nina Simonds, and Food Network online.

Background
Nutrition research suggests that nuts are good for your health. Nut butters, or pureed nuts, make it easy to use nuts in cooking. Although peanut butter is a staple in North America, most popular as the star ingredient in peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and beloved in peanut butter cookies and other sweets, it's seldom used in preparing savory dishes. Nut butters -- including not only peanut butter but almond, cashew, and walnut butters -- are common ingredients in many Asian and African countries, used in a wide array of savory dishes. Nut butters add complex & interesting flavors to dishes, provide body & thickness to sauces, and can be used to replace the dairy fats or other oils in recipes.

What exactly is the July challenge?
The challenge is make a fresh nut butter and to use it in one savory recipe (i.e., not a sweet dessert). You choose the type of nut (e.g., peanuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, almonds, hazelnuts, macadamias, etc.). Then puree the nuts into a paste or butter. (Instructions for making nut butters are provided below.) Then use your fresh homemade nut butter in at least one savory recipe. The nut butter challenge was inspired by the article “Better with Nut Butter” by Kathy Baruffi in Cooking Light magazine.

What about dessert? We chose to focus on using nut butters in savory recipes, but we know nut butters make fabulous sweet treats. An extra but optional challenge this month is to use a homemade nut butter in a sweet recipe. The type of nut and the recipe is up to you. Can’t wait to see the results!

[Eat4Fun: Making nut butter sounds like a fun challenge. Due to time constraints, I stuck with the dip recipe provided for this challenge. For a full list of the challenge recipes see the host blogs above or go to The Daring Kitchen.]

Recipes Sources:
White Bean Dip with Rosemary & Sage adapted from Cooking Light, August 2007

Notes:
* We had best results making nut butters in a food processor rather than a blender. My basic two-speed, household blender worked fine for soft nuts like pecans and walnuts, but was unable to blend harder nuts like almonds & macadamias. Unless you have one of those high-powered blenders guaranteed to puree almost anything, we recommend using a food processor.
* The four challenge recipes include instructions for making the appropriate amount of nut butter for the particular recipe. If you made the nut butter in advance, substitute the appropriate volume of nut butter for the nuts.
* The yield of nut butter is about half the original volume of nuts. If you start with 1 cup (240 ml) nuts, you’ll get about ½ cup (120 ml) nut butter.
* We have provided recipes for unsweetened nut butters since the challenge is to use the nut butter in a savory recipe. You may sweeten the nut butters as desired for use as a spread or in dessert recipes.
* Despite the name, there is no dairy butter in nut butters. They are essentially pureed nuts, also called nut pastes.
* To use nut butters in sauces as a substitute for heavy cream, first make a nut cream. Whisk the nut butter with about twice the volume of water, adding more water until you reach your desired consistency. For example, start with ¼ cup (60 ml) nut butter with ½ cup (120 ml) water; add more water as needed.

Simple Suggestions for Using Nut Butters:

* sauce for grilled meat or fish
* topping for pancakes or French toast
* dip with apples or celery
* spread for toast or sandwiches

HOMEMADE NUT BUTTERS

* The process for making various types of nut butters is essentially the same. Pour nuts into bowl of food processor. Grind the nuts in the processor until they form a paste or butter. The nuts first turn into powdery or grainy bits, then start to clump and pull away from the side of the bowl, and finally form a paste or butter. The total time required depends on the fat and moisture content of the nuts; grinding time will vary from roughly 1 to 4 minutes (assuming a starting volume of 1 to 2 cups [240 to 480 ml] nuts). Processing times for a variety of nuts are described below.
* You may add oil as desired during grinding to make the nut butter smoother and creamier or to facilitate grinding. Add oil in small increments, by the teaspoon for oily nuts like cashews or by the tablespoon for dryer/harder nuts like almonds. You may use the corresponding nut oil or a neutral vegetable oil like canola.
* The inclusion of salt in the nut butters is optional and to taste. If you make nut butters from salted nuts, peanuts or cashews for example, you will not need additional salt. We recommend making unsalted nut butters for use in the challenge recipes (and other savory recipes) since the recipes call for salt or salty ingredients. You can then adjust the salt to taste. If you are making nut butter for use as a spread, you should add salt according to your preference.
* Roasting the nuts before making nut butters is optional according to your preference. To roast nuts in the oven, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C/Gas Mark 4). Spread nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet or roasting pan. Bake for approximately 10 minutes or until nuts are fragrant and a shade darker in color. Allow nuts to cool before grinding. Roasted nuts will make butter with darker color than raw nuts.
* It’s helpful to keep in mind that the yield of nut butter is about half the original volume of nuts. If you start with 1 cup nuts, you’ll get about ½ cup nut butter.
* The consistency of nut butters varies from thin & soft (almost pourable) to very thick and hard depending on the fat content of the nut. (See links below for nutrition info on variety of nuts.) Homemade nut butters will probably not be as smooth as commercial products.
* Homemade nut butters are more perishable than commercial products and should be stored in the refrigerator. The nut butters harden & thicken somewhat upon chilling.
* See links at bottom of post for additional information about making nut butters at home.

What variations are allowed:

* We tested the challenge recipes below with particular types of nut butters as indicated in the ingredient list. You are free to experiment with other types of nuts. For example, you may want to substitute walnut butter in the Chicken with Pecan Cream and Mushrooms. You may also substitute the chicken or shrimp in the challenge recipes with your protein of choice.

* If you are unable to eat nuts due to allergies or other dietary restrictions, we suggest you consider making a seed butter (sesame, sunflower, pumpkin, etc) and use it in a savory recipe of your choice. Making seed butters is very similar to making nut butters. We have provided links at the bottom of this post with information on seed butters and recipes. You’re also welcome to use other alternates as discussed in next bullet point.
* If you are unable to eat nuts or seeds, you might consider making a fruit butter and then using it in a sweet or savory recipe. (Fruit butters are fruit cooked to form a paste, see links at bottom of post for recipes.) We are also open to other ideas for those with allergies or food restrictions. For example, pureed beans or pureed roasted vegetables could be used in a variety of savory soups, stews, or sauces.
* If you do not own a food processor or high-powered blender to make your own nut butter, you may complete the challenge with store-bought nut butter.
* Vegans, vegetarians, and those with food restrictions may substitute accordingly in the challenge recipes.

Approximate Processing Times in Food Processor for Nut Butters:
* Almonds: form a thick butter in about 2 to 3 minutes for slivered almonds, or 3 to 4 minutes for whole almonds; the skin of whole almonds will leave dark flecks in the butter
* Cashews: form a smooth, spreadable butter after about 2 minutes of processing
* Hazelnuts: form a firm, thick, and grainy butter in about 2 to 3 minutes; to remove the skin from whole hazelnuts, roast in a 400 degree F oven (200 degrees C/Gas Mark 6) for about 5 minutes or till skins loosen, then rub hazelnuts in a clean dishtowel to remove some of the skin; the remaining skin will leave dark flecks in the butter
* Macadamias: form a soft and smooth butter in about 2 minutes
* Peanuts: form a thick, grainy butter in about 2 or 3 minutes
* Pecans: form a very soft, oily, pourable butter in 1 or 2 minutes; the skins give pecan butter a slightly tannic and bitter flavor
* Walnuts: form a very soft, oily, pourable butter in 1 or 2 minutes; the skins give walnut butter a slightly tannic and bitter flavor
* Pistachios: According to the Nut Butter Primer from Cooking Light, pistachio butter is dry and crumbly with a tendency to clump during processing; they recommend combining it with softened cream cheese for easy spreading and report a processing time of 3.5 to 4 minutes. Please note, we did not test pistachio butter.

[The recipe calls for walnuts, but due to allergy concerns I substituted roasted & salted cashews. Also, used 2/3 t of dried rosemary which was rehydrated in the lemon juice for 20 minutes.]

Walnut White Bean Dip with Rosemary & Sage
Recipe notes: Canned beans tend to be salty, so you may not need additional salt. Taste the dip after blending and add salt as needed.

Ingredients:

½ cup (120 ml) walnuts [Cashews]
1 (15.8 oz/448g) can Great Northern, Cannellini, or other white beans, drained and rinsed
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 Tablespoons (30 ml) fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons (10 ml) fresh rosemary, chopped [2/3 t Dried Rosemary]
2 teaspoons (10 ml) fresh sage, chopped
¼ teaspoon (1 ml) lemon zest (optional)
¼ teaspoon (1 ml) black pepper salt to taste

Directions:

1. Make walnut butter by grinding ½ cup (120 ml) walnuts in food processor for about a minute until it forms a nut butter or paste.

[Cashews ready for a little spin.]

[Hurray! I have cashew butter.]

2. Add beans, garlic, lemon juice, rosemary, sage, lemon zest (if using), and black pepper to the walnut butter in the food processor.

[Add the rest of the other ingredients and blend away!]

3. Process the mixture to a smooth consistency. Taste and add salt as desired.

Garnish dip with chopped walnuts and/or chopped fresh rosemary or sage, if desired. Serve dip with pita wedges, crostini, or assorted vegetables.

[The resulting dip was very thick like canned refried beans. I added an extra squeeze of lemon juice to add a little extra moisture.]

[Even though the dip was dense, there were some good flavors going on. The fresh garlic gave the dip a little spice, the lemon juice a little tart zing and the cashews a little nutty sweetness.

Overall, a very simple, delicious recipe. Also, making nut butter is very simple and a good way to experiment with different types of nuts.]

Jun 27, 2010: DB Chocolate Pavlovas

2010-06-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The June 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Dawn of Doable and Delicious. Dawn challenged the Daring Bakers’ to make Chocolate Pavlovas and Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse. The challenge recipe is based on a recipe from the book Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard

Dawn Nyman from Doable and Delicious owns and operates a recreational cooking school in St. Petersburg, Florida. This is a dessert she made in a French Chocolate class which was very well received by all in attendance.

The challenge is primarily based on a recipe from Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard and is called Chocolate Pavlovas with Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse.

Recipe Source: Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard

Mandatory items: The recipe is comprised of three parts, four if you include the crème anglaise. You must make the chocolate pavlovas, the mascarpone mousse and the mascarpone cream using the recipes provided.

[My comments in red: I've tried making meringues cookies in the past and they've never dried out as I wanted.] 　

Recipe 1: Chocolate Meringue (for the chocolate Pavlova):
3 large egg whites
½ cup plus 1 tbsp (110 grams) white granulated sugar [I used superfine sugar]
¼ cup (30 grams) confectioner’s (icing) sugar
1/3 cup (30 grams) cocoa powder

Directions:
1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 200º F (95º C) degrees. Line two baking sheets with silpat or parchment and set aside.

2. Put the egg whites in a bowl and whip until soft peaks form. Increase speed to high and gradually add granulated sugar about 1 tbsp at a time until stiff peaks form. (The whites should be firm but moist.)

[Egg whites whipped to soft peaks. Time to add the superfine sugar.]

3. Sift the confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder over the egg whites and fold the dry ingredients into the white. (This looks like it will not happen. Fold gently and it will eventually come together.)

[Sifting in the powdered sugar and cocoa powder.]

[Egg whites ready for piping.]

4. Fill a pastry bag with the meringue. Pipe the meringue into whatever shapes you desire. Alternatively, you could just free form your shapes and level them a bit with the back of a spoon. (Class made rounds, hearts, diamonds and an attempt at a clover was made!)

[Piped different shapes - circles, hearts, squares, clovers, dots and a daisy.]

5. Bake for 2-3 hours until the meringues become dry and crisp. Cool and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

[Actually backed 4 hours. I went shopping which took longer than expected. The meringues came out nice and dry.]

Recipe 2: Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse (for the top of the Pavlova base):
1 ½ cups (355 mls) heavy cream (cream with a milk fat content of between 36 and 40 percent)
grated zest of 1 average sized lemon
9 ounces (255 grams) 72% chocolate, chopped
1 2/3 cups (390 mls) mascarpone
pinch of nutmeg
2 tbsp (30 mls) Grand Marnier (or orange juice)

Directions:
1. Put ½ cup (120 mls) of the heavy cream and the lemon zest in a saucepan over medium high heat. Once warm, add the chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let sit at room temperature until cool.

[Making the ganache/melting the chocolate.]

2. Place the mascarpone, the remaining cup of cream and nutmeg in a bowl. Whip on low for a minute until the mascarpone is loose. Add the Grand Marnier and whip on medium speed until it holds soft peaks. (DO NOT OVERBEAT AS THE MASCARPONE WILL BREAK.)

[Lightening the mascarpone with the heavy cream.]

3. Mix about ¼ of the mascarpone mixture into the chocolate to lighten. Fold in the remaining mascarpone until well incorporated. Fill a pastry bag with the mousse. Again, you could just free form mousse on top of the pavlova.

[Combining the mascarpone mixture into the chocolate ganache.]

[The finished mousse.]

Recipe 3: Crème Anglaise (a component of the Mascarpone Cream below):
1 cup (235 mls) whole milk
1 cup (235 mls) heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
6 large egg yolks
6 tbsp (75 grams) sugar

Directions:
1. In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture turns pale yellow.

2. Combine the milk, cream and vanilla in a saucepan over medium high heat, bringing the mixture to a boil. Take off the heat.

3. Pour about ½ cup of the hot liquid into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to keep from making scrambled eggs. Pour the yolk mixture into the pan with the remaining cream mixture and put the heat back on medium. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens enough to lightly coat the back of a wooden spoon. DO NOT OVERCOOK.

4. Remove the mixture from the heat and strain it through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until the mixture is thoroughly chilled, about 2 hours or overnight.

Recipe 4: Mascarpone Cream (for drizzling):
1 recipe crème anglaise
½ cup (120 mls) mascarpone
2 tbsp (30 mls) Sambucca (optional) [I used rum instead of Sambucca]
½ cup (120 mls) heavy cream

Directions:
1. Prepare the crème anglaise. Slowly whisk in the mascarpone and the Sambucca and let the mixture cool. Put the cream in a bowl and beat with electric mixer until very soft peaks are formed. Fold the cream into the mascarpone mixture.

[Combining the heavy cream and the creme anglaise.]

Assembly:
Pipe the mousse onto the pavlovas and drizzle with the mascarpone cream over the top. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and fresh fruit if desired.

[I wanted to keep the shape of the daisy visible so I poured a layer of mascarpone cream on the bottom of the plate and piped on the chocolate mousse.]

[Added a little mascarpone cream into the center of the daisy and topped with a blackberry.]

[Another plate - with a heart.]

Considering all the heavy cream, sugar and chocolate, this dessert turned out to be lighter than I expected and not overly sweet.

Jan 21, 2010: LOP Dan Dan Noodles

2010-06-21T21:27:00.000-07:00

My journey into Sichuanese cooking was brought to you via Fuchsia Dunlop's book, Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking.

In the USA, Sichuan cooking has a reputation of being mind-blowing fiery. However, based upon the recipes I've made so far I would say the recipes are comfortably spicy, but I'm a chile-head. I was half expecting more layers of flavor - salty, sweet, sour and spicy, garlicy... etc, but the recipes I tried seemed to rely on savory and spicy.

Overall, I enjoyed the dishes I tried immensely.

My final dish I plan to make is Dan Dan Noodles. Two recipes are provided in the book, the second recipe appealed to me for the use of sesame paste. I have a lot of Tahini in the fridge from a previous Daring Kitchen challenge.

That's Dan Dan noodles, not to be confused with Bam Bam Rubble, Tom Tom Club (Genius of Love) and not to be confused with Gene Gene the Dancing Machine.

However, cooking, sharing and eating is just as fun where you just want to get up and dance!

Xie Laoban's Dan Dan Noodles

Ingredients
1 lb Fresh Chinese Noodles or 12 oz Dried Chinese Noodles
1 T peanut oil
3 Sichuanese Dried Chiles, snipped in half, seeds discarded
1/2 t whole Sichuan peppercorn
2 T Sichuanese ya cai or Tianjin preserved vegetable
4 oz ground beef
2 t light soy sauce
Salt to taste

For the sauce:
1.2 - 1 t Ground roasted Sichuan pepper
1/4 t salt
4 t sesame paste
1 T light soy sauce
1 T dark soy sauce
2 T dark chili oil with chile flakes

The new ingredients added to my pantry - salted, garlicky preserved vegetable greens and chili oil. I couldn't believe how difficult finding chili oil would be. There is a recipe included in the book, but since I picked this recipe at the spur of the moment I didn't feel like making my own.

This is the preserved vegetables. The main aroma was garlic. A good thing!

Making the sauce - combining the Tanini (sesame paste) and ground peppercorns.

Combining the rest of the ingredients... the resulting sauce was pretty thick, like a chocolate ganache.

Rest of the ingredients are pretty simple.
Whole peppercorn, seeded dried chilies, ground chicken mixed with the rest of the ingredients.

Fry the chilies and peppercorns in 1T of oil until fragrant.
Add the preserved vegetables to fry about a minute
Add the ground meat and cook.
Set aside for later.

When the noodles are cooked - I used fettuccine pasta.
Mix in the sauce and top with the meat filling.

The noodles were nutty, savory with a little punch from the Sichuan peppercorns. I probably undersauced the noodles, but overall I liked the results.

Jun 19, 2010: LOP Ants Climbing Tree

2010-06-19T21:40:00.000-07:00

This is another recipe based upon Fuchsia Dunlop's Land of Plenty... However, I forget to write down the recipe before I returned the book. Looks like I'll have to cook this dish from memory (or I'll just update this post when I get a chance.) I'm glad I take lots of pictures to jog my memory.

Ants climbing a Tree is a weird name for a Chinese dish. I remember watching a film from the 70's where an actor was ordering food over the phone. One of the dishes he ordered was "Ants Climbing a Tree". I forgot the name of the film and the actor (vaguely remember Jack Klugman, but not sure), but I do remember the dish he ordered.

Who would eat ants? Who would eat a tree? What is so appealing about an ant climbing a tree?

I do know about ants and rubber tree plants. Well I have high hopes for this dish.

Ants Climbing a Tree (Approximate)
4 oz Vermicelli
Ground Meat (Chicken for this version)
1 t Chao Hsing Wine
1/2 Salt
1/2 t Dark Soy Sauce
(to taste) Light Soy Sauce
1 1/2 T Hot Bean Paste
2 C Stock
3 Green Onion, chopped

Directions:
1. Soak the vermicelli noodles in water for about 15 minutes.
Marinade the ground meat with the wine and salt.

2. Fry the ground meat until partially cooked. Add the bean paste and stir in to mix and infuse flavors.

3. Add the stock and 1/2 t dark soy sauce.
Cover and simmer about 5 to 10 minutes.
Mix in the green onions before serving, reserve about 1 T per bowl as garnish.

4. Dish out into a serving bowl and garnish with more green onions.

The metaphorical ants (ground meat) climbing up a tree (the vermicelli noodles).

This is a straightforward dish that tasty too - slightly spicy, except for the chili bean paste, this is a familiar dish I've had growing up. I guess we've been eating "ants climbing a tree" without knowing it's "ants climbing a tree."

So far good recipes from Land of Plenty (LOP).

Jun 17, 2010: LOP Kung Pao Chicken

2010-06-17T21:47:00.000-07:00

So far I enjoyed the first dish I cooked from, Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking.

Another popular dish in the USA is Kung Pao Chicken.
Peanuts in a sweet, savory and spicy sauce cooked with Peanuts. Besides the restaurant version, The "authentic" version I'm familiar with was made by a classmate for a graduation party. She (Taiwanese, hence the air-quotes on "authentic") made the dish with chicken thigh meat. I on the other hand used chicken breast which was the best deal at the supermarket.

Kung Pao Chicken
(Ref: Fuchsia Dunlop's Land of Plenty - Gong Bao Ji Ding)
Ingredients
2 Chicken Breast(about 12 oz), cubed into even chunks
3 Cloves of garlic, minced
Same amount of Ginger, minced
5 Green Onions, White Parts Only, coarse diagonal slice
3 T Peanut Oil
8 - 10 Dried Red Chillies, split in half lengthwise and seeded
1 t Sichuan Peppercorns
75g (2/3 cup) Roasted Peanuts

For the marinade:
1/2 t Salt
2 t Light Soy Sauce
1 t Shaoxing wine
21/4 t Cornstarch
1 T Water

For the sauce:
3 t Sugar
1 t Cornstarch
1 t Dark Soy Sauce
1 t Light Soy Sauce
3 t Chinkiang Vinegar
1 t Sesame Oil
1 T Chicken Stock or Water

.

Directions

1.Pour a little peanut oil into the wok and heat until it smokes, swirling the oil around to cover the entire base of the wok. Pour off into a heatproof container. Add 3 tbsp fresh oil and heat over a high flame. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the chillies and Sichuan pepper and stir-fry for a few seconds until they are fragrant (take care not to burn them).

The peppers frying in 3 T of oil.

2.Add the chicken and continue to stir-fry. When the chicken cubes have separated, add the ginger, garlic and spring onions and stir-fry until they are fragrant and the meat is just cooked.

3.Give the sauce a stir and add to the wok, continuing to stir and toss. As soon as the sauce has become thick and lustrous, add the peanuts, mix them in, and serve immediately

Adding the sauce mixture...

Finally, adding the peanuts to coat with sauce

Dished out onto a serving plate...

Another tasty recipe. It's not as sweet as the Taiwanese version that I remember. Also, the vinegar didn't add the tartness I was expecting.

I'm going to sound like a judge on Iron Chef America and state the oil 3 Tablespoons seems a bit much. I could probably get away with using 1 to 11/2T of oil. This is called "making the recipe my own." lol!

I'm thinking of layers of flavor - spicy, tart, sweet and numbing (from the peppercorns). I may try adding distilled vinegar to bump up the tartness of the dish.

However, overall, the Kung Pao Chicken was very good.

Jun 15, 2010: Tofu Tuesday - LOP Mapo Tofu

2010-06-15T22:38:00.000-07:00

I'm familiar with Cantonese cooking. I wanted to expand my Chinese cooking horizons. I found a book in the library Land of Plenty: A Treasury of Authentic Sichuan Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop. I abbreviated the title of the book as, "LOP".

Sichuanese cooking has a reputation of being loaded with peppers and spicy. Spicy food sounds good to me!

So for Tofu Tuesday, I made the classic dish, Mapo Tofu.

Mapo Tofu
Ingredients:
1 block bean curd (around 16 oz), cut into 1 in cubes
2 Leeks, cut into thin diagonal slices
1/2 cup peanut oil [Yes, that's half a cup!]
6 ounces ground beef [I used chicken]
2.5 Tbsp chili bean paste
1 Tbsp fermented black beans
2 tsp ground Sichuanese chiles (optional) [I used Japanese Chiles]
1 cup stock
1 tsp white sugar
2 tsp light soy sauce
4 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with 6 Tbsp cold water [I only used about 1 T of the slurry]
1/2 tsp roasted Sichuan peppercorn, ground

Directions
1) Soak the tofu cubes in salted boiling water. That's salted water brought to a boil... Soak time was about 20 minutes while I prepped the other ingredients.

2. The recipe called for beef, but chicken breast was at 1/3rd of the cost.
Chicken was cooked in the 1/2 C of oil at medium heat.

3. After the chicken has browned, add the chili paste, chili flakes, black beans. Cook until fragrant.

4. Add the drained tofu, stock and let simmer for about 5 to 10 minutes... to allow the flavors infuse into the tofu. Add the leeks and continue cooking another 5 minutes. Thicken with the cornstarch mixture.

5. Garnish with the ground peppercorn.

Restaurant Sichuan food is much more spicier. However, this version gives a nice tingle to the lips and the fermented black beans offers a nice complement.

The red oil bathing the dish seemed a bit much. Based upon the amount of oil left in the dish, I could probably cut the oil by 2/3rds. Would it effect the dish?

Overall, a good dish.

Jun 14, 2010: Daring Cooks - Pates

2010-06-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

Our hostesses this month, Evelyne of Cheap Ethnic Eatz, and Valerie of a The Chocolate Bunny, chose delicious pate with freshly baked bread as their June Daring Cook’s challenge! They’ve provided us with 4 different pate recipes to choose from and are allowing us to go wild with our homemade bread choice.

Hostesses:
Valerie, from The Chocolate Bunny
Evelyne, from Cheap Ethnic Eatz

They decided that this month’s challenge would be: pâté. It’s incredibly versatile, it has the potential to be beautifully presented, and it’s perfect for summer (think picnics in the park.

Traditionally, pâté is meat-based, and often includes liver, or gizzards, or other potentially icky animal parts. But, because we realize that not everyone likes that kind of pâté, we have also included recipes for fish pâté, and vegetable pâté. However, if you know that you enjoy liver pâté, but are a little squeamish about cooking with liver, we urge you to give it a try: after making these, neither of us will ever buy meat-based pâté ever again! Having said that, the meatless pâtés are also very tasty.

Now, since pâté is rarely eaten alone, we are adding a second part to this challenge: you will have to make a bread, to go with your pâté. We’ve included a really good recipe for French baguette. However, because baguette is quite time-consuming to make, and because we know that the Daring Bakers have already made baguette a while ago, we’re also giving you a quicker recipe for a sandwich loaf, which you can also choose to make as little rolls, with white or whole wheat flour. But really, we’re giving you free range for the bread part of the challenge: if there’s a daring bread recipe you’ve been dying to try, and you think it would go well with your pâté, go for it!

Mandatory:
-You must prepare one pâté recipe listed below and one bread recipe of your choice.
- Your pâté has to 1) be baked or refrigerated (or both) for a significant amount of time, so that 2) you have to be able to unmold it onto a serving dish. This is to avoid the possibility of someone puréeing a bunch of vegetables, putting the mixture in a jar, and calling it "vegetable pâté": that is not a pâté, that is a spread.

[My comments are in red: I've always wanted to try making a pate. Chicken livers is one of those underutilized foods we have. For this month's challenge, I decided to make a chicken liver pate and the tricolor vegetable pate (I like pesto.) For the bread portion of this challenge, I made the French Baguette recipe included in this challenge. For the pate recipes, I made half recipes.]

Chicken Liver Terrine
Yields one 25 by 12,5 cm (10 by 5 inch) terrine or loaf pan
1 tbsp duck fat, or butter
2 onions, coarsely chopped
300g (11 oz) chicken livers, trimmed
3 tbsp brandy, or any other liqueur (optional)
100g (3 1/2 oz, 1/2 cup) smoked bacon, diced
300g (11 oz) boneless pork belly, coarsely ground
200g (7 oz) boneless pork blade (shoulder), coarsely ground (or ground pork see note below)
2 shallots, chopped
1 tsp quatre-épices (or 1/4tsp each of ground pepper, cloves, nutmeg and ginger is close enough)
2 eggs
200 ml (7 fl oz, 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp) heavy cream
2 fresh thyme sprigs, chopped
Salt and pepper

NOTE: If you cannot find ground pork belly or blade, buy it whole, cut it into chunks, and pulse in the food processor. You can also replace the pork blade with regular ground pork. [I used a food processor and ground up some pork loin.]

Preheat oven to 200ºC (400ºF, Gas Mark 6).

Melt the fat or butter in a heavy frying pan over low heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until softened. Add the chicken livers and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes, until browned but still slightly pink on the inside.

Remove the pan from heat. Pour in the brandy, light a match and carefully ignite the alcohol to flambé. Wait for the flames to go out on their own, carefully tilting the pan to ensure even flavoring. Set aside.

[The exciting part of this challenge, lighting a fire! :-)]

Put the minced pork belly and blade in a food processor, then add the onion-liver mixture and the chopped shallots, and pulse until you obtain a homogenous mixture – make sure not to reduce it to a slurry.

Transfer to a bowl, and gradually stir in the chopped bacon, quatre-épices, cream, eggs, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper, and mix well. Spoon the mixture into a terrine or loaf pan, and cover with the terrine lid or with aluminum foil.

Ready for the oven!

Prepare a water bath: place the loaf pan in a larger, deep ovenproof dish (such as a brownie pan or a baking dish). Bring some water to a simmer and carefully pour it in the larger dish. The water should reach approximately halfway up the loaf pan.

Put the water bath and the loaf pan in the oven, and bake for 2 hours. Uncover and bake for another 30 minutes. The terrine should be cooked through, and you should be able to slice into it with a knife and leave a mark, but it shouldn’t be too dry. Refrigerate, as this pâté needs to be served cold. Unmold onto a serving platter, cut into slices, and serve with bread.

Right out of the oven two hours later!

NOTE: This pâté freezes well. Divide it into manageable portions, wrap tightly in plastic film, put in a freezer Ziploc bag, and freeze. Defrost overnight in the fridge before eating.

[I decided to the the vegetarian pate so people would have a choild and it looked live a very simple recipe.]
Tricolor Vegetable Pâté
Yields one 25 by 12,5 cm (10 by 5 inch) terrine or loaf pan
Line your pan with plastic wrap, overlapping sides.
White Bean Layer
2 x 15-ounce / 900 ml cans cannellini (white kidney beans), rinsed, drained thoroughly
1 tbsp / 15 ml fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp / 15 ml olive oil
1 tbsp / 15 ml minced fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
2 garlic cloves, pressed

Mash beans in large bowl. Add lemon juice, olive oil, oregano and garlic and blend until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Spread bean mixture evenly on bottom of prepared pan.

[First layer down in a plastic cling film lined container.]

Red Pepper Layer
7-ounce / 210 ml jar roasted red bell peppers, drained, chopped
3/4 cup / 180 ml crumbled feta cheese (about 4 ounces)
Combine peppers and feta in processor and blend until smooth. Spread pepper mixture evenly over bean layer in prepared dish.

Pesto Layer
2 garlic cloves
1 cup / 240 ml fresh basil leaves
1 cup / 240 ml fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/4 cup / 60 ml toasted pine nuts
3 tbsp / 45 ml olive oil
1/2 cup / 120 ml low-fat ricotta cheese
Mince garlic in processor. Add basil, parsley and pine nuts and mince. With machine running, gradually add oil through feed tube and process until smooth. Mix in ricotta. Spread pesto evenly over red pepper layer.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

To unmold, invert pâté onto serving platter. Peel off plastic wrap from pâté. Garnish with herb sprigs and serve with sourdough bread slices.

French Baguette
yield: Three 16" baguettes
Starter
1/2 cup / 120 ml cool water
1/16 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 cup / 240 ml flour
Dough
1 tsp / 5 ml active dry yeast
1 cup to 1 1/4 cups / 240 ml to 300 ml lukewarm water*
all of the starter
3 1/2 cups / 840 ml flour
1 1/2 tsp / 7 ml salt
*Use the lesser amount in summer (or in a humid environment), the greater amount in winter (or in a dry climate), and somewhere in between the rest of the year, or if your house is climate controlled.

Make the starter by mixing the yeast with the water, then mixing in the flour to make a soft dough. Cover and let rest at room temperature for about 14 hours; overnight works well. The starter should have risen and become bubbly.

Mix active dry yeast with the water and then combine with the starter, flour, and salt. Mix and knead everything together—by hand, mixer or bread machine set on the dough cycle—till you've made a soft, somewhat smooth dough; it should be cohesive, but the surface may still be a bit rough. Knead for about 5 minutes on speed 2 of a stand mixer.

Place the dough in a lightly greased medium-size bowl, cover the bowl, and let the dough rise for 3 hours, gently deflating it and turning it over after 1 hour, and then again after 2 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased work surface. Divide it into three equal pieces. Shape each piece into a rough, slightly flattened oval, cover with greased plastic wrap, and let them rest for 15 minutes.

Working with one piece of dough at a time, fold the dough in half lengthwise, and seal the edges with the heel of your hand. Flatten it slightly, and fold and seal again. With the seam-side down, cup your fingers and gently roll the dough into a 15" log. Place the logs seam-side down onto a lightly greased or parchment-lined sheet pan or pans.

Cover them with a cover or lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the loaves to rise till they've become very puffy, about 1 1/2 hours. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat your oven to 450ºF (240ºC).

Using a very sharp knife held at about a 45° angle, make three 8" vertical slashes in each baguette. Spritz the baguettes heavily with warm water; this will help them develop a crackly-crisp crust.
[Spritzing the dough with water]

Bake the baguettes until they're a very deep golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack. Or, for the very crispiest baguettes, turn off the oven, crack it open about 2", and allow the baguettes to cool in the oven.
[Fresh bread out of the oven!]

[Plating begins with unmolding the pates. These naked pates have a pale appearance. I guess they haven't been out in the sun that much! lol...]

[I decided to dress up the plate with chopped pistachios, feta, caramelized onion-apple-bacon jam, currants and fresh bread. I topped to pates just to give them some color... the equivalent of wearing Hawaiian shirts. :-) ]

Both pates turned out nicely!
Tricolor Veg Pate

Chicken liver pate

　

Jun 13, 2010: Calzone with Pesto

2010-06-13T19:29:00.000-07:00

A calzone is pretty much a folded, into a half moon shape, pizza. I was looking to make the calzone heartier so I added fried potatoes with leek.

The dough was the other half of TJ's pizza dough.

Calzone
3 Potatoes, diced
1 C Leek, chopped
Pesto
Pizza Dough

Directions:
1. First cook the potatoes until brown.
Add the leeds when the potatoes are fork tender.

2. Fill the calzone... sauce all around, add fillings to one side of pizza dough

Fold over and crimp with a fork

Bake 500F for about 10 minues.

Cut calzone in half and serve!

Jun 12, 2010: Pizza with Chicken and Pesto

2010-06-12T20:19:00.000-07:00

Another item I like at TJ's is their fresh pizza dough.
There is enough dough for two 14 inch pizzas.

I was craving pesto pizza so I went with the cliche and made chicken pesto pizza.

Pizza with pesto and chicken
6 oz Pizza Dough (half a bag)
Chicken Breast
Lemon
Salt
Pepper
Thyme
Garlic Powder
Pesto Sauce
Mozzarella Cheese

1. Season the chicken breast and squeeze in the lemon.
After 15 - 20 minutes, pan-fry until cooked.

Simple ingredients.

The TJ's pizza dough was sticky, probably around 65% baker's ratio.
I tried to make a round pizza, but it stuck to my hand hence the abstract looking shape.

Bake 500F (Preheated oven) for 7 minutes.

Done and ready to eat!

Jun 11, 2010: Pasta with Pesto Cream Sauce

2010-06-11T21:18:00.000-07:00

Now that I've made pesto I wanted to add some to pasta. Also, I had about 1/2 C of heavy cream in the fridge that I wanted to use.

Pesto Pasta
2 Cloves Garlic, smashed
1 T Olive Oil
1/2 C Heavy Cream
1 C Pesto
Pasta
Pea
Corn

Directions
1. Saute the garlic in olive oil until fragrant. Just trying to flavor the oil.

2. Add the heavy cream and pesto... stir and allow to slightly thicken.

3. Cooks some pasta... at the last minute I decided to add peas and corn.
The peas and corn were added to the boiling pasta during the last 2 minutes.

4. Slowly add sauce... amount is to your liking. :-)

Pesto, Pasta, Parmesan... Simple and delicious.

Jun 10, 2010: Pesto

2010-06-10T18:58:00.000-07:00

Pesto is one of those sauce/condiments that I enjoy, but have not made.
It's a simple recipe with only five ingredients and I usually buy a large container of pesto (4 ounces) at TJ's, that half of it goes in the bin.

I researched online and found many proportions plus some recipes add other leafy greens to supplement the basil.

However, my goal was to keep the recipe simple.

Being a geeky engineering type, I wanted to keep the ratio simple too.
Since there were so many variations, I decided to use 2 as the number to remember.
For example, 2, 1/2 and 1/4 which is (1/2) of (1/2)

Basic Pesto
2 C Basil leaves (works out to the entire 4 ounce (including stems) container of basil)
2 Clove Garlic
1/2 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 C Pine Nuts, toasted
1/4 C Parmesan Cheese, Grated
Salt as needed.

Direction:
Place half the oil and everything else into the food processor.

2. Blend and slowly add the rest of the olive oil.

That's it!

Jun 01, 2010: Dragon Fruit

2010-06-01T19:29:00.000-07:00

The strange and funky stuff that can be seen at Asian markets.

A couple years ago, I spotted this type of fruit at the local Asian supermarket. I didn't buy it at that time and figured I'd pick it up the next time around. I went back the following week and didn't see anymore.

Two years later... I finally found it again!

It is called "Pitaya" or "Dragon Fruit"

Funky egg looking thing is the fruit from a cactus that's about the size of my paring knife or a baseball.

Cutting into it... there's a thick rind with a whitish/grayish flesh speckled with black seeds.

The fruit scoops out easily.

The texture is similar to kiwi - smooth and crunchy with seeds. The flavor was kind of bland, slightly sweet, which reminded me of an unripe watermelon.

Apparently, the seeds are viable so I'll save a few to dry for planting. The weather is probably too cold, but it would be interesting to see the seeds do grow.

May 27, 2010: Daring Baker's Piece Montee

2010-05-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The May 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Cat of Little Miss Cupcake. Cat challenged everyone to make a piece montée, or croquembouche, based on recipes from Peter Kump’s Baking School in Manhattan and Nick Malgieri.

This month’s challenge recipe is for a Piece Montée, which means literally “mounted piece.” You may know this dessert by another name – Croquembouche (“crunch in the mouth”). I have been fascinated by this dessert for a loooong time. In fact, I saw Martha Stewart make one on her TV show about 15 years ago and have always wanted to try my hand at one, though never had a good enough excuse…until now! In all seriousness, the piece montée is the traditional wedding cake here in France. They are often served at baptisms and communions as well.

The classic piece montée is a high pyramid/cone made of profiteroles (cream-filled puff pastries) sometimes dipped in chocolate, bound with caramel, and usually decorated with threads of caramel, sugared almonds, chocolate, flowers, or ribbons. Modern pastry chefs have taken to assembling this dessert in all manners of shapes and sizes, and you should feel free to express your creativity too!

Recipe Source: The recipes for this month’s challenge come from Peter Kump’s Baking School in Manhattan and were originally created by famed pastry chef, Nick Malgieri. Please note you must make your own pate a choux (puff pastry) and crème patissiere. And your piece montée needs to be a mounted structure with some height to it.

Note: This recipe has 3 main components: the pate a choux, the crème patissiere, and the glaze used to mount/decorate it. While you can purchase or make a cardboard conical structure to build your piece montée or use toothpicks as an aid, it is relatively easy to assemble it using just the baked pate a choux as the main building blocks and the glaze as the glue.

[Oh, No!
Pate a Choux is my archnemesis from a previous Daring Baker's Eclair Challenge. Pate a Choux is easy in terms of concept and making, but for some reason I had a difficult time getting the rise while baking in the oven. Hopefully this time around things will be different.]

[I made the Chocolate Pastry Cream.]
Vanilla Crème Patissiere (Half Batch)
1 cup (225 ml.) whole milk
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
6 Tbsp. (100 g.) sugar
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
2 Tbsp. (30 g.) unsalted butter
1 Tsp. Vanilla

Ingredients are pretty straight forward...

Directions:
1. Dissolve cornstarch in ¼ cup of milk. Combine the remaining milk with the sugar in a saucepan; bring to boil; remove from heat.

2. Beat the whole egg, then the yolks into the cornstarch mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so that the eggs do not begin to cook.

[Here I'm tempering the egg yolk mixture with a little of the hot milk. This slowly warms up the egg mixture so we don't end up with scrambled eggs.]

3. Return the remaining milk to boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, continuing whisking.

4. Continue whisking (this is important – you do not want the eggs to solidify/cook) until the cream thickens and comes to a boil. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla. [Since I'm adding chocolate, I held off on the butter until the end.]

For Chocolate Pastry Cream (Half Batch Recipe):
¼ cup (about 50 cl.) milk
3 ounces (about 80 g.) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

5. Milk and chocolate were heated in the microwave... about 30 to 45 seconds. I waited about a minute before mixing.

6. Mix until smooth. [Note: I also added the butter here from step 4.]

7. Whisk into pastry cream when you add the butter and vanilla.

[At this stage, the chocolate is smooth, but seem loose. However, the pastry cream is pretty thick.]

8. Pour cream into a stainless steel/ceramic bowl. Press plastic wrap firmly against the surface. Chill immediately and until ready to use.
[Note: For some reason, the pastry cream did not thicken in the fridge, it turned out like a soft pudding sauce.

My solution: I recooked the pastry cream and added another 1 T of cornstarch/1T water to thicken the pastry cream. Below are the lumpy results. I chilled the pastry cream and pressed through a fine sieve to mash out the lumps.]

Pate a Choux (Yield: About 28)
¾ cup (175 ml.) water
6 Tbsp. (85 g.) unsalted butter
¼ Tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup (125 g.) all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

For Egg Wash: 1 egg and pinch of salt

Pre-heat oven to 425◦F/220◦C degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Preparing batter:
1. Combine water, butter, salt and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and stir occasionally. At boil, remove from heat and sift in the flour, stirring to combine completely.

[Sifting the flour into the hot liquid.]

2. Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly until the batter dries slightly and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.

[Note to self: Try making pate a choux in a steel pan. I'm using a non-stick pan so it's hard to gage when the pate a choux is pulling away from the sides. Instead, I cooked about 5 minutes.]

3. Transfer to a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon 1 minute to cool slightly.

4. Add 1 egg. The batter will appear loose and shiny.

5. As you stir, the batter will become dry-looking like lightly buttered mashed potatoes.

6. It is at this point that you will add in the next egg. Repeat until you have incorporated all the eggs.

[Patiently mix the egg in. You want the dough to form soft peaks when you pull the spoon out of the batter... so you may not need all of the last egg. However, I did use the entire fourth egg.]

Piping:
7. Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a large open tip (I piped directly from the bag opening without a tip). Pipe choux about 1 inch-part in the baking sheets. Choux should be about 1 inch high about 1 inch wide.

8. Using a clean finger dipped in hot water, gently press down on any tips that have formed on the top of choux when piping. You want them to retain their ball shape, but be smoothly curved on top.

9. Brush tops with egg wash (1 egg lightly beaten with pinch of salt).

[The egg wash will give the baked choux a nice brown appearance.]

Baking:
10. Bake the choux at 425◦F/220◦C degrees until well-puffed and turning lightly golden in color, about 10 minutes.

11. Lower the temperature to 350◦F/180◦C degrees and continue baking until well-colored and dry, about 20 minutes more. Remove to a rack and cool.

[Out of the oven... looking good.]

[I have a couple flat choux which will probably puff up when I fill, but most likely they'll just be eaten as samples/quality control. lol]

12. Can be stored in a airtight box overnight.

Filling:
When you are ready to assemble your piece montée, using a plain pastry tip, pierce the bottom of each choux. Fill the choux with pastry cream using either the same tip or a star tip, and place on a paper-lined sheet. Choux can be refrigerated briefly at this point while you make your glaze.

Use one of these to top your choux and assemble your piece montée.

Hard Caramel Glaze:
1 cup (225 g.) sugar
½ teaspoon lemon juice

[Warning! Be careful when working with hot sugar... This stuff is 300F. I absentmindedly tried to knock a drop of this stuff off a bowl and it stuck to my finger. HOT!]

1. Combine sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan with a metal kitchen spoon stirring until the sugar resembles wet sand.

2. Place on medium heat; heat without stirring until sugar starts to melt around the sides of the pan and the center begins to smoke. Begin to stir sugar. Continue heating, stirring occasionally until the sugar is a clear, amber color.

3. Remove from heat immediately; place bottom of pan in ice water to stop the cooking. Use immediately. [I did not do this step... If I cooled too quickly the sugar would solidify before I could get to it.]

Assembly of your Piece Montée:
You may want to lay out your unfilled, unglazed choux in a practice design to get a feel for how to assemble the final dessert. For example, if making a conical shape, trace a circle (no bigger than 8 inches) on a piece of parchment to use as a pattern. Then take some of the larger choux and assemble them in the circle for the bottom layer. Practice seeing which pieces fit together best.

Once you are ready to assemble your piece montée, dip the top of each choux in your glaze (careful it may be still hot!), and start assembling on your cake board/plate/sheet. Continue dipping and adding choux in levels using the glaze to hold them together as you build up. (You may want to use toothpicks to hold them in place – see video #4 below).

When you have finished the design of your piece montée, you may drizzle with remaining glaze or use ribbons, sugar cookie cut-outs, almonds, flowers, etc. to decorate.

[The finished Piece Montee, Croquembouche]

The pate a choux turned out. The chocolate pastry cream was a problem so I'll probably use a different recipe next time. I thought the hard caramel would be chewy, but as the name "croquemboche" implies there was a nice crunch to the cream puffs.

Overall, flavors were good. The pate a choux and the spun sugar/hard caramel worked together to give a crunchy cream puff.

May 25, 2010: Tofu Tuesday - Ginger Tofu Fa

2010-05-25T22:07:00.000-07:00

After the last Tofu Tuesday's Mango Pudding, I wanted to make another sweet tofu dish.

The best tofu for this dish is silken tofu.

The following is my improvised recipe. Trying to keep it simple:

Silken Tofu in Ginger Syrup

1 lb Silken Tofu
1 C Water
1 11 oz Can Mandarin Oranges, drained with juices reserved
1 Chunk Ginger
1/4 C Sugar
3 Slices Candied Ginger, Julienned

1) 1 Cup of water and the drained syrup from the oranges gave me 1 1/2 C of liquid.

2) Peel and slice the ginger.
I picked up a tip on skinning ginger from all the cooking shows I watch.
Instead of using a vegetable peeler, you can use a spoon to scrape off the skin, which worked very well.

3) Simmer the tofu, sliced fresh ginger, liquid and sugar for about 20-30 minutes. Flip the tofu block after 10 to 15 minutes.

When done, I strained out the fresh ginger and chilled the tofu and syrup.

4) The chilled tofu fa was sliced and mixed with the oranges.
Garnished with the candied ginger.

The finished dish...
Slightly sweet and mildly gingery.
You can still taste the tofu, which is fine by me. I don't like overly sweet desserts.
However, if you want a stronger syrup, the sugar can be increased to suit your preferences.

I think this is a nice refreshing dish best served cold. :-)

May 23, 2010: Onion Apple Jam

2010-05-23T21:00:00.000-07:00

Onions, for some reason unknown to me, have been very expensive at over $1 per pound. I'm used to seeing onions at half that price.
I thought I'd be smart and buy a large 5 lbf bag of onions. The problem with buying a large bag is that you need to go through a lot of onions before they rot out. I was at that point trying to decide what to do with a mass of onions... Something I've always wanted to try - Onion Jam.

Onion jam isn't really a canned product, but more of a slow cooked oniony, favory, bacony, sweetish condiment.
Here's my go at Onion-Apple Jam

Onion Apple Jam
5 Onions, sliced (about 6 cups)
2 slices Bacon, chopped
1 Apple, chopped (I had Pink Lady)
1/2 C Chicken Broth
1 T Apple Cider Vinegar
1 t Brown Sugar
Couple pinches of Thyme
Few Grinds of Black Pepper
Couple pinches of Salt

Directions:
1) Brown the chopped bacon - render the oil, remove bacon and reserve.

2) While the bacon is cooking, slice the onions... not too fine unless you want them to melt when they cook down.

3) Add the onions, a couple pinches of salt, thyme and a few grinds of black pepper.
Stir to mix. Cover, lower heat to slowly cook the onions.

4) When the onions are soft, taste... I wanted just a touch more sweetness so I added 1 t of brown sugar. Add the vinegar, stock and apples.
Increase heat to medium to futher browning and reducing.

5) The finished Onion-Apple Jam... Ready to be used.

Sweet onion flavor, with a little tartness from the apple cider vinegar, texture and sweetness from the apple with a hint of smokiness.

Possible usage - as a condiment served with pork chops.
Brings new meaning to "pork chops and apple sauce." :-)

May 20, 2010: Stacked Enchilada Again!

2010-05-20T21:18:00.000-07:00

I decided to redo this month's Daring Cook challenge, Stacked Enchilada . I wasn't keen on the mushy results so I wanted to see if frying the tortillas more, until crispy would make a difference. Also, I had enchilada sauce leftover from last night.

Red Stacked Enchiladas.

Ingredients
12 Corn Tortillas
2 C Chorizo and Potato
2 C Enchilada Sauce
4 oz Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded (my last bit)

Directions:
1. Fry the tortillas about 1 to 2 minutes per side until brownish and stiff.

2. Coat with enchilada sauce.

3. Add half the potato mixture... followed by another layer of tortillas, potato and a final layer of tortillas.

4. Bake 425 F for 20 minutes. For the last 5 minutes, add the shredded cheese to melt.

5. Let rest about 5 minutes before serving... nice, melted cheese! :-)

6. Served with avocado, lettuce and salsa.

Flavors were good. The center wasn't as mushy as last time, but still soft.
I think I'm just not a stacked enchilada type of person. My preference is for rolled enchiladas. :-)

May 19, 2010: Chile Rellenos

2010-05-19T21:44:00.000-07:00

Quick quiz:
What do you do when you have roasted pepper, cheese, eggs and chorizo/potato filling?

Answer: Make chili rellenos (battered stuffed chile peppers)!

I was trying to decide what to do with the leftover roasted chiles. While watching a Mexican cooking show. I don't remember which one. There was a segment on chile rellenos where they showed a cook making the batter with beaten egg whites and egg yolk.

Hey! I can do that! I've always wanted to make chile rellenos, but I that the batter was a big deal, but whipped egg whites and egg yolks I can do.

I just improvised on this recipe.

Chile Rellenos
Ingredients

4 Pobalano Chiles, roasted (not too soft since you will be stuffing), skinned and seeded
1 1/2 C Chorizo and Potato filling
4 oz Monterey Jack Cheese, shredded - that's all I had left.
2 eggs, separated (egg whites whipped to soft peaks before adding egg yolks)
1/2 t salt
Flour for dusting
Enchilada Sauce [I used canned sauce]

Seeding the Peppers
1. Since the intent is to stuff the pepper, make 1 slit into the pepper so you can remove the seeds and vein. Use a paring knife to cut the seeds away from the stem.

2. I found that using a spoon helps with skinning and scooping out the seeds.

3. Mix the cheese into the potato mixture.

4. Stuff the pepper. You don't want to overstuff it since you want the pepper to trap the ingredients. You can gently cradle the pepper as you fill. Use toothpicks as needed to suture the pepper.

5. Making the batter - eggs whipped to soft peaks. Egg yolks and salt added and mixed in.

6. Lightly coat each pepper with flour and dip into the batter. The stem makes for a nice handle. :-)

7. Coat thoroughly and off to the fryer.

8. Fry in 350F oil. Cook each side about 2 to 3 minutes.

9. Drain before serving
Remember to remove the toothpicks!

10. Served with enchilada sauce, queso blanco, shredded lettuce and salsa.
Remind your guest to watch for toothpicks! :-)

11. Ready for a bite. Potatoes and surprisingly cheesy. :-) The lettuce adds a nice crunchy contrast to the stuffed chile.

May 18, 2010: Chorizo and Potato

2010-05-18T21:31:00.000-07:00

The thing about grinding your own and using fresh ingredients is that meat can go off a little quicker.

I cooked the chorizo with potatoes so that I can use for other dishes without having to worry about the pork going off.

Ingredients
1 lb Green Chorizo
5 Potatoes, 1/2" dice (about 3 to 4 C)
1 C Broth
1 t Dried Parsley
1 Clove Garlic, minced
Salt, Pepper and hot sauce to taste

Directions:
1. Pan fry the chorizo about 5 to 7 minutes.
[Note: Steam is giving the photo a blurry appearance.]

2. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer... about 15 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender. Since I planed to use in other dishes, I tried not to overcook the potatoes.
[Note: Steam is giving the photo a blurry appearance.]

The key to this week is quick and simple. Can't go wrong with meat and potatoes. :-)

May 17, 2010: Green Chorizo Torta

2010-05-17T21:36:00.000-07:00

The chorizo has melded overnight. I decided to make a simple, quick meat with it. A green chorizo torta. A torta is a Mexican sandwich served on a round roll.

Two 4 oz patties.

Cooked about 7 minutes on the GFG.

While the patty was cooking, I made a Serrano chile mayo. It's not a normal tartar sauce as it would appear. :-)

The rest of the toppings - shredded lettuce, salsa, avocado and sliced tomatoes.

The finished sandwich - dressed.

Ready for a big bite!

That sandwich was good, but I expected the chorizo to pack a little more punch. I'll have to double up on the peppers and make sure I puree all that stuff before mixing with the pork.

May 16, 2010: Green Chorizo

2010-05-16T19:33:00.000-07:00

I have roasted green chiles leftover from the Daring Cooks' challenge so I looked for a simple recipe.

Here's another simple recipe from Mexico - One Plate at a Time, hosted by Chef Rick Bayless

Green Chile Chorizo (Link: http://www.rickbayless.com/recipe/view?recipeID=236)
Chorizo Verde
Makes about 1 1/2 pounds (3 generous cups)

Ingredients

1 large fresh poblano chile [I had roasted]
1 or 2 fresh serrano chiles, stemmed and roughly chopped [I had 1 roasted serrano and 1 roasted jalapeno]
1 medium bunch of cilantro, tough lower stems cut off, the leafy part roughly chopped
1 1/2 pounds ground pork (you’ll need pork that’s a little fatty - 25 to 30% - and preferably coarsely ground) [I used country style ribs with the intent of using a food processor.]
3 tablespoons spinach powder (available on the internet) [I was debating whether I should make my own spinach powder by drying my own, but did not have the time... I left this ingredient out.]
2 teaspoons salt

Directions

1. Roast, skin and seed the peppers.

2. Mix and pulse in a food processor.

3. Hand mix to ensure complete mixing. Cover and refrigerate for several hours before frying.

Note: I should have pureed the chiles, cilantro and salt first to make a paste, before adding the meat. As you can see, there are still large leaves of cilantro in the final blend.

May 14, 2010: Daring Cooks Roasted Green Chile

2010-05-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

Our hosts this month, Barbara of Barbara Bakes and Bunnee of Anna+Food have chosen a delicious Stacked Green Chile & Grilled Chicken Enchilada recipe in celebration of Cinco de Mayo! The recipe, featuring a homemade enchilada sauce was found on www.finecooking.com and written by Robb Walsh.

Our hostesses chose a Stacked Green Chile & Grilled Chicken Enchilada recipe using tomatillos. They recognize that some of you may not have access to fresh or canned tomatillos, or you may have already mastered a tomatillo sauce, so feel free to make any homemade Mexican style sauce that will challenge you.

Cinco de Mayo celebrations in the U.S. seem to get bigger and better each year. We don't know if that's because of the increasing Mexican-American population in the U.S. or if it's just a great excuse to have a fiesta with fabulous Mexican food. Either way we hope you'll join us in a little Mexican fiesta for May's Daring Cooks Challenge.

Recipe Source (Two recipes):
Fine Cooking (Online),
Stacked Green Chile & Grilled Chicken Enchiladas,
Green Chile Sauce

Notes:
1. Roasting the Anaheim chiles is a critical part of the Green Chile sauce. More information about how to do this is included below, but please resist the temptation to rinse the chiles to remove the skin or seeds. You will lose lots of flavor if you do this!!
2. If using a broiler to roast the chiles, lining the broiler pan or baking sheet with foil greatly simplifies the clean-up process!
3. You may want to consider using gloves when peeling and removing seeds from the chiles. I keep a set of gloves in the kitchen for just that purpose. All it takes is one hand to the eye or nose for a lot of pain to set in!

For those who can't find tomatillos... Audax Artifex makes the following recommendations -
I've done some research on substitutes for tomatillos and came up with green gooseberries (which you can easily get in Australia and New Zealand) which look and taste very similar to tomatillos but gooseberries can be tarter than tomatillos so use only 3/4 of the recipe amount or add some sugar. A number of recipe sites in Australia mentioned this substitute and they stated it was a good sub for tomatillos.

I just got a phone call back from a mate of mine who does a lot of Tex-Mex cooking he suggests green tomatoes with tamarind paste (1 kg tomatoes with 2 tablespoons of tamarind paste) which he says is the best sub he has found - the tamarind paste is very tart and adds that unique taste. Also he says that green tomatoes with equal amounts of lime juice and prune juice (no added sugar) is better than lime juice alone.

Tomatillos look like green tomatoes, except they're encased in a husk that you peel off using.

For this challenge we'll be roasting green chiles.

Roasting Fresh Chiles
1. Coat each chile with a little vegetable oil. If you are doing only a couple chiles, using the gas stove works. For larger batches (as in this recipe), grilling or broiling is faster.

I've never used my broiler so this is a chance to break it in after owning it for 6 years.
Also, I didn't bother oiling the peppers before roasting.

2. Lay the oiled chiles on the grill or baking sheet (line pan with foil for simpler clean-up). Place the grill or broil close to the element, turning the chiles so they char evenly. They should be black and blistered.

Char, baby, char!
Remember to turn on your vent fan and open some windows. :-)

3. As they are completely charred (they will probably not all be done at once), remove them to a bowl and cover with plastic, or close up in a paper bag. Let them rest until they are cool.

The charred peppers were placed in a bowl and covered to steam.

4. Pull on the stem and the seed core MAY pop out (it rarely does for me). Open the chile and remove the seeds. Turn the chile skin side up and with a paring knife, scrape away the skin. Sometimes it just pulls right off, sometimes you really have to scrape it.

5. DO NOT RINSE!

I found that using a spoon made for easy skinning and seeding. Tongs were used to steady the pepper so I don't accidentally get pepper juice onto my hand and eventually into my eye. Fortunately, I don't contacts.

Green Chile Sauce
Ingredients

1½ pounds Fresh Anaheim chiles (about eight 6 to 8 inch chiles) 24 ounces 678 grams - roast, peel, remove seeds, chop coarsely. Other green chiles (NOT bell peppers) could probably be substituted but be conscious of heat and size!)
7-8 ounces Tomatillos (about 4-5 medium)212 grams - peel, remove stems
4 cups Chicken broth (32 ounces/920 grams)
1 clove Garlic, minced
2 teaspoons yellow onion, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ tsp Kosher salt (add more to taste)
¼ tsp Black Pepper (add more to taste)
2 tablespoons Cornstarch (dissolve in 2 tablespoons water, for thickening)
Hot sauce, your favorite, optional

Directions:

1. Put a medium saucepan of water on to boil and remove the papery outer skin from the tomatillos. Boil the tomatillos until soft, 5 to 10 minutes. You can also grill the tomatillos until soft.

Instead of boiling, I went broiler crazy and started charring all the other sauce ingredients.

Slightly charred :-)

I added a jalapeno just in case I wanted to boost the heat level. However, I opted not to use it in the end.

2. Drain and puree in a blender or food processor.

3. Return the tomatillos to the saucepan along with the chicken broth, chopped green chiles, minced onion, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper.

Ready for the cooking.

4. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

5. Add the cornstarch/water mixture and stir well. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened and reduced to 4-5 cups, another 10-15 minutes.

6. Adjust seasonings and add hot sauce if you want a little more heat.

Stacked Green Chile and Grilled Chicken Enchiladas
2 Boneless chicken breasts (you can also use bone-in chicken breasts or thighs)
3 tablespoons Olive oil or other neutral vegetable oil (use more as needed)
Kosher salt and pepper
12 Small Corn tortillas (5-6 inch/13-15 cm). (you can also use wheat tortillas or other wraps)
6 ounces grated Monterey Jack, 170 grams (other cheeses (cheddar, pepper jack, Mexican cheeses) can be used. Just be sure they melt well and complement the filling)
Green Chile Sauce
Cilantro for garnish, chopped and sprinkled optional

1. Heat a gas grill to medium high or build a medium-hot charcoal Coat the chicken with olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Instead of grilling a chicken, I went to the local Costco and purchased a rotisserie chicken. Inexpensive and tasty with the emphasis on easy.

Also, I used the bones and meat bits to make a stock for the green chile sauce.

2. Grill the chicken until just cooked through, 4-5 minutes a side for boneless chicken breasts.

3. Cool and then slice into thin strips or shred.

4. In a small skillet, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat until very hot. Dip the edge of a tortilla into the oil to check – it should sizzle immediately.

5. Using tongs, put a tortilla into the pan and cook until soft and lightly brown on each side, about 15-20 seconds per side (at the most).

6. Drain on paper towels.

7. Add oil as needed and continue until all 12 tortillas are done.

8. In a baking dish large enough to hold four separate stacks of tortillas, ladle a thin layer of sauce.

9. Lay four tortillas in the dish and ladle another ½ cup (4 ounces/112 grams) of sauce over the tortillas.

10. Divide half the chicken among the first layer of tortillas, top with another ½ cup of sauce and 1/3 of the grated cheese.

Tortillas are fried and layered into a baking dish

11. Stack another four tortillas, top with the rest of the chicken, more sauce and another third of the cheese.

12. Finish with the third tortilla, topped with the remaining sauce and cheese.

13. Bake until the sauce has thickened and the cheese melted, about 20 minutes. Let rest for 5-10 minutes.

Baked 450F for about 20 minutes. Finished off with Mexican cheese, Queso Blanco. A semi-crumbly cheese almost like Feta, but not as crumbly and salty as Feta.

14. To serve, transfer each stack to a plate. Spoon any leftover sauce over the stacks and sprinkle with cilantro, if you wish. The stacks may also be cooked in individual gratin dishes.

The final dish... the stacked enchiladas topped with queso blanco and fresh tomatillo and avocado salsa. Mexican style brown rice and shredded lettuce. The shredded lettuce adds a nice cooling crunch to contrast the rest of the dish.

Overall, the flavor of the dish was good. The stacked enchiladas were a little mushy in the center... so that means I should have fried the tortillas a lot more darker, crunchier.

Recipe: Tamatillo-Avocado Salsa

May 13, 2010: Easy Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa

2010-05-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

I'm a little late for Cinco De Mayo, but I was watching a TV cooking show, Mexico - One Plate at a Time, hosted by Rick Bayless.

He demonstrated a super simple salsa that require no cooking, just cutting up some veggies and using a food processor or blender. Also, the salsa looked delicious too.

Reference: Recipe from Season 7 of Mexico - One Plate at a Time

Link: Crunchy Tomatillo-Avocado Salsa
Salsa Verde Crujiente con Aguacate

Makes about 2 1/2 cups

Ingredients

8 ounces (about 4 medium) tomatillos, husked and rinsed
1/2 cup (loosely packed) coarsely chopped cilantro
Hot green chiles to taste (roughly 2 small serranos or 1 small jalapeño), stemmed and roughly chopped [I used two roasted pepper - 1 serrano and 1 jalapeno]
1 ripe avocado, pitted, flesh scooped from the skin
1 small white onion, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
Salt
1/4 C water so the blender/food processor can create a puree.

Directions:

1) Combine the water, cilantro, half of the tomatillo - coarse chopped and half of the avocado. Process into a coarse mixture.

2) Chop the onion and rinse through a strainer. This will take some of the bite off the onion.
Chop the remaining tomatillo and avocado - about 1/4" dice.

3) Pour into a bowl and combine. Add salt to taste.

4) Cover and refrigerate until needed.

A nice slightly tart green salsa that's very simple to make. The salsa gives a refreshing brightness to a dish.

I think a clove of garlic would be a nice addition too.

May 04, 2010: Tofu Tuesday Mango

2010-05-04T21:06:00.000-07:00

Today's dish, Mango Pudding, is actually not tofu, but a gelatin dessert that looks like tofu.

In Cantonese, it's called "Mango Tofu Fa." Tofu fa (literally: Tofu flower) is usually made with silken tofu served in a light sugar syrup. However, I've heard this referred to as "mango fa" [mango flower], "mango tofu fa" and, according to wikipedia, "mango bo'ding' [phonetic Cantonese pronunciation of mango pudding].

The recipe is loosely based upon Dim Sum by Ellen Leong Blonder

Original Recipe
1/2 C water
2 Envelopes (2T) Unflavored Gelatin
1 1/4 C Sugar
2 Mangoes
1 C half & half
1 3/4 C boiling water

Why I did something different...
Well, I'm on this kick about making stuff with unflavored gelatin, like Panna Cotta, but worried that I'll end up with gummi bears instead of a delicate dessert. Of course, I decide to make mango pudding when mangoes are out of season where I could only find frozen mangoes.

Hmmm.... not much mango flavor here. It's the best I have at the moment.

My version is sort of a hybrid between mango pudding and panna cotta where I use a ratio of 3 cups of fluid for every 1 pack of gelatin.

1/2 C water
2 Envelopes (2T) Unflavored Gelatin
1 1/2 lbf Frozen Mangoes
2 C Heavy Cream [That's what I had in the refrigerator]
2 C Water
6 T Whole Milk Powder
3/4 C Sugar [or more to taste]

1. Bloom the gelatin in 1/2 C water.

2. Combine the mango, heavy cream, water and milk powder and blend into a smooth shake.

3. Strained the mango shake to get rid of any strings.

4. Over low heat, added 3/4 C of sugar. I generally add half the sugar in a recipe and add more as needed to taste.

5. Add the gelatin mixture and stir until dissolved.

6. Pour into a baking dish, cover with cling film and refrigerate overnight.
Cut into cubes before serving.

The mango pudding.

The mango flavor was rather mild. In fact, it tasted more like pear pudding than mango.

I should have just made a 3 cup batch with 1 envelope of gelatin. Also, talking with a coworker, he believes mango pudding is typically made with yellow Manila mangoes instead of the Tommy Atkins mango found in US supermarkets.

I'll have to try again when mangoes are in season. Also, I'll follow the recipe a lot closer. :-)

Apr 27, 2010: Daring Bakers All Steamed Up!

2010-04-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

The April 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Esther of The Lilac Kitchen. She challenged everyone to make a traditional British pudding using, if possible, a very traditional British ingredient: suet.

The challenge Esther set for us this month is to try a very British dish and a very British ingredient.

The actual recipes (I am giving you a choice) are pretty simple really but the cooking method and the core ingredient are something that many people do not use or do on a regular basis if at all.

Some of you will know about the British and the word pudding but for those that don't we use the word for many things:

1) Black pudding and white pudding a sort of meat and grain sausage. Black pudding uses blood as well as meat.
2) Pudding — a generic word for desert
3) Pudding — any dish cooked in a pudding bowl or pudding cloth normally steamed, boiled but sometimes baked.
4) An endearment i.e., "How are you today my pudding?"

For this challenge we are using the third meaning a dish cooked in a pudding bowl or cloth, though many of you may opt to do a sweet version in which case version two also applies!

The special ingredient is suet. Please, please don't worry if you can't get it. I will be suggesting alternatives but if you want to stretch yourselves and try some very traditional British dishes do try and source some as it does make a difference to the texture and Daring Bakers is all about trying things you wouldn't normal do or use. Please remember there are alternatives so please don’t worry if you can’t get or don’t want to use suet !

So what is suet?

It is the hard but flaky fat found on the inside of a cow or sheep around the kidneys and that area of the body. Suet in its raw form crumbles easily into small chunks so much so that my butcher says it covers his floor in bits if he doesn't have it taken out as soon as possible. In fact unless he knows he has a customer for it he has the abattoir take it out and throw it away and when I want some he gives it to me for free! It also melts at quite a low temperature, which has an effect on how it works in cooking. In some places such as the UK it is sold processed which basically means it is grated and combined with flour to keep the individual pieces from clumping together, and it becomes a sort of dried out short strands, almost granular in texture.

[Eat4Fun: No luck finding suet so I used shortening.]

Mandatory elements of this challenge are:

1) to make a suet pudding using real suet or as close a replacement as you can manage or is acceptable to you; and
2) to cook it by steaming or if you want to be even more traditional by boiling tied up in a cloth.

Recipe Source: Recipes come from the following sources: Delia Smith’s Complete Cookery Course, The pudding club (www.puddingclub.com), Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management and the Dairy Book of Home Cooking and my family’s recipe notes!

[Eat4Fun: Many recipes were given for this challenge and I decided to make the steamed sponge pudding - Spotted Dick. For the full list of recipes see the Daring Kitchen or Esther's blog, The Lilac Kitchen]

Steamed Suet Pudding, sponge type.

(100 grams/4 ounces) All-purpose flour
(1/4 teaspoon) salt
(1.5 teaspoons) Baking powder
(100 grams/4 ounces) breadcrumbs [used whole wheat sliced French bread]
(75 grams/3 ounces) Caster sugar [used regular granulated sugar.]
(75 grams/ 3 ounces) Shredded suet or suet substitute (i.e., Vegetable Suet, Crisco, Lard) [75 g of Crisco turned out to be about 7T]
(1) large egg
(6 to 8 tablespoons) Cold milk

Variants:
Spotted Dick - Add 75g/ 3oz currants and 25g/1 oz of mixed chopped peel with the sugar [Wasn't sure if chopped peel referred to candied or zest. I used about 1/2 t of zest.].

1. Sift flour, salt and baking powder into bowl.

[Since I used shortening, I treated the dry ingredients, plus the sugar, and the shortening like I would a pie crust. First the dry ingredients are pulsed in a food processor to "sift" the ingredients. Next, the shortening is added an pulsed until combined.]

2. Add breadcrumbs, sugar and suet [sugar and fat was used in step 1].

[For breadcrumbs, I used whole wheat bread. The reasoning was to add some color and texture to the steamed pudding.]

[After a few pulses, coarse breadcrumbs!]

3. Mix to a soft batter with beaten egg and milk

[The recipe reminded me of bread pudding... so instead of milk I used heavy cream.]

[Since I was making Spotted Dick, I next added the currants. Tiny raisins the size of a BB pellet.]

[I wasn't sure what chopped peel referred to... candied citrus peel or zest? I used about 1/2 t of lemon zest.]

4. Turn into a buttered 1 litre/ 2pint pudding basin and cover securely with buttered greaseproof paper or aluminum foil.

[As I was going through the cabinets looking for a bowl, I found a rectangular glass dish with a glass lid. Looked perfect for the job and I didn't have to worry about covering the batter.]

5. Steam steadily for 2.5 to 3 hours

[For a steamer, I used my improvised wok steamer. The wok has a large dome lid so I'm able to cover the setup completely.]

[After 3 hours, we have a sponge pudding!]

6. Turn out onto warm plate, Serve with sweet sauce to taste such as custard, caramel or a sweetened fruit sauce.

[The spotted dick was turned out onto a serving dish.]

[I viewed this as a bread pudding so I knew (or had it stuck in my mind) that I wanted to to a rum sauce for the dessert. Thumbing through one of my cookbooks, I found a Creme Anglaise recipe which called for vanilla and liqueur. My liqueur of choice is rum.

Slices were served with rum Creme Anglaise.]

[My first ever bite of Spotted Dick and British pudding in general.]

I wasn't sure what to expect from this challenge. Suet in a dessert dish and steaming on top of that lead to some apprehension on my part.

However, the end results turned out very nice, reminded me of a very rich (from the shortening) and moist (from the steaming) quick bread, such as, zucchini bread, but with currants/raisins instead of zucchini.

Also, the rum Creme Anglaise was a nice complement to the dessert.

Overall, a surprisingly tasty challenge.

Apr 14, 2010: Daring Cooks Brunswick Stew

2010-04-14T00:11:00.000-07:00

The 2010 April Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Wolf of Wolf’s Den. She chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make Brunswick Stew. Wolf chose recipes for her challenge from The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook by Matt Lee and Ted Lee, and from the Callaway, Virginia Ruritan Club.

[Eat4Fun: Brunswick Stew is a recipe I've heard about quite often, but never really looked into it. I always thought it was named after a New England city, Brunswick, Maine. I don't know why I thought Maine, but apparently the stew is a Southern classic.

Wolf from Wolf's Den is our host for this challenge and provides the history behind this recipe. I learn something new with all these challenges. :-) ]

Brunswick Stew has a long, and oft debated history. Brunswick, Georgia claimed that the first Brunswick Stew was created there in 1898. There is, at the Golden Isles Welcome Center on Interstate 95, a bronzed stew pot with a plaque proclaiming this fact.

However, Brunswick, Virginia claims that the first Brunswick Stew was created there by a camp cook named Jimmy Matthews in 1828, for a hunting expedition led by Dr. Creed Haskings, a member of the Virginia State Legislature for a number of years. He was said to have used squirrel in the original Brunswick Stew created for the group when they returned. The hunters were at first skeptical of the thick, hearty concoction, but upon tasting it, were convinced and asked for more.

Every year, there is an Annual Brunswick Stew Cookoff that pits ‘Stewmasters’ from both Virgina and Georgia against their counterparts, and takes place every October in Georgia.

In the early 20th Cent, the rivalry of the two Brunswicks helped make this dish as popular as it is today, and it quickly became a pan-Southern classic. Some recipe call for the original addition of squirrel, but most allow for chicken, turkey, ham, or pork, even beef on occasion. Rabbit is also used. The vegetables can vary widely from variation to variation, however, the Brunswick Stewmasters recipe says *exactly* what is used in competion stews, and states that “Adding any additional ingredient(s) will disqualify the stew from being an original Brunswick Stew.”

However, most agree that, Brunswick stew is not done properly “until the paddle stands up in the middle.”

The first recipe is more traditional - long and involved, as can be many Southern recipes. The second was the very first Brunswick stew I ever tasted. Both are fairly straight forward and easy, requiring no special equipment, techniques, or super hard to find ingredients.

Recipe Source(s)- The first is from “The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook: Stories and Recipes for Southerners and Would-Be Southerners” by Matt Lee and Ted Lee”, and the second from the Callaway, Va Ruritan Club, who hand out cards with their recipe printed on them, every year at the Blue Ridge Folklife Festival, and where I tried my first ever Brunswick Stew.

Mandatory- You must use one of the two recipes provided. Now, to not exclude our vegans/vegetarians, if you’d like, use vegetable stock and leave out the meats. It won’t be a ‘true’ Brunswick Stew, but it’ll have the spirit of one.}J There’s no gluten anywhere in this that I’m aware of, so we’re good in that regard.

[I opted to to do the first recipe so for the second recipe please see Wolf's Den.]

Variations allowed-
Recipes may be halved if you choose.
You may substitute any vegetables you don’t prefer. You may use fresh, canned or frozen vegetables. My variations are included in the notes. For example- some recipes include okra in their stew, others use creamed corn.
You may sub out the rabbit for pork, turkey, beef, or even another game animal if you have it available.

[Thank goodness we can sub out the rabbit. I wouldn't even know where to find rabbit.]

Brusnswick Stew
Ingredients-
Recipe One, the Long Way-
From “The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook: Stories and Recipes for Southerners and Would-Be Southerners” by Matt Lee and Ted Lee

Serves about 12

1/4 lb / 113.88 grams / 4 oz slab bacon, rough diced
2 Serrano, Thai or other dried red chiles, stems trimmed, sliced, seeded, flattened
1lb / 455.52 grams / 16oz rabbit, quartered, skinned
1 4-5lb / 1822.08- 2277.6 grams / 64-80oz chicken, quartered, skinned, and most of the fat removed
1 Tablespoon / 14.235 grams / ½ oz sea salt for seasoning, plus extra to taste
2-3 quarts / 8-12 cups / 64.607-96.9oz Sunday Chicken Broth [I used homemade stock]
2 Bay leaves
2 large celery stalks
2lbs / 911.04 grams / 32oz Yukon Gold potatoes, or other waxy type potatoes, peeled, rough diced
1 ½ cups / 344.88 grams / 12.114oz carrots (about 5 small carrots), chopped
3 ½ / 804.72 grams / 28.266oz cups onion (about 4 medium onions) chopped
2 cups / 459.84 grams / 16.152oz fresh corn kernels, cut from the cob (about 4 ears)
3 cups / 689.76 grams / 24.228oz butterbeans, preferably fresh (1 ¼ lbs) or defrosted frozen
1 35oz can / 996.45 grams / 4 cups whole, peeled tomatoes, drained
¼ cup / 57.48 grams / 2.019 oz red wine vinegar
Juice of 2 lemons
Tabasco sauce to taste

[In place of rabbit, I used chicken. To keep it lean and similar to rabbit, I skinned the chicken. However, I did leave the skin on the wings. Also, for extra flavor and keeping it Southern, I used a smoked turkey wing.]

[Chopped aromatics.]

[Bay and chili pods]

[Yukon potatoes and red tomatoes.]

Directions-
1-In the largest stockpot you have, which is hopefully larger than the 5 qt ones I have, preferably a 10-12 qt or even a Dutch Oven if you’re lucky enough to have one, fry the bacon over medium-high heat until it just starts to crisp. Transfer to a large bowl, and set aside. Reserve most of the bacon fat in your pan, and with the pan on the burner, add in the chiles. Toast the chiles until they just start to smell good, or make your nose tingle, about a minute tops. Remove to bowl with the bacon.

2- Season liberally both sides of the rabbit and chicken pieces with sea salt and pepper. Place the rabbit pieces in the pot and sear off all sides possible. You just want to brown them, not cook them completely. Remove to bowl with bacon and chiles, add more bacon fat if needed, or olive oil, or other oil of your choice, then add in chicken pieces, again, browning all sides nicely. Remember not to crowd your pieces, especially if you have a narrow bottomed pot. Put the chicken in the bowl with the bacon, chiles and rabbit. Set it aside.

[After frying the bacon, the chicken was slightly browned with the chili pods. With all of the flavorful pan fond on the bottom, I added the aromatics to sweat and loosen the fond.]

3- Add 2 cups of your chicken broth or stock, if you prefer, to the pan and basically deglaze the4 pan, making sure to get all the goodness cooked onto the bottom. The stock will become a nice rich dark color and start smelling good. Bring it up to a boil and let it boil away until reduced by at least half. Add your remaining stock, the bay leaves, celery, potatoes, chicken, rabbit, bacon, chiles and any liquid that may have gathered at the bottom of the bowl they were resting in. Bring the pot back up to a low boil/high simmer, over medium/high heat. Reduce heat to low and cover, remember to stir every 15 minutes, give or take, to thoroughly meld the flavors. Simmer, on low, for approximately 1 ½ hours. Supposedly, the stock may become a yellow tinge with pieces of chicken or rabbit floating up, the celery will be very limp, as will the chiles. Taste the stock, according to the recipe, it “should taste like the best chicken soup you’ve ever had”.

[Butterbeans is another name for lima beans. I look for frozen lima beans and could not find any. I ended up with dried beans, which I rehydrated overnight. As a result, I added the beans early in the cooking process.

Broth and the smoked turkey drumstick was added to the limas and aromatics.]

[Next, I added the chicken to allow for all the flavors to meld and cook.]

4- With a pair of tongs, remove the chicken and rabbit pieces to a colander over the bowl you used earlier. Be careful, as by this time, the meats will be very tender and may start falling apart. Remove the bay leaf, celery, chiles, bacon and discard.5 After you’ve allowed the meat to cool enough to handle, carefully remove all the meat from the bones, shredding it as you go. Return the meat to the pot, throwing away the bones. Add in your carrots, and stir gently, allowing it to come back to a slow simmer. Simmer gently, uncovered, for at least 25 minutes, or until the carrots have started to soften.

[The meat is retrieved and taken off the bone.]

5- Add in your onion, butterbeans, corn and tomatoes. As you add the tomatoes, crush them up, be careful not to pull a me, and squirt juice straight up into the air, requiring cleaning of the entire stove. Simmer for another 30 minutes, stirring every so often until the stew has reduced slightly, and onions, corn and butterbeans are tender. Remove from heat and add in vinegar, lemon juice, stir to blend in well. Season to taste with sea salt, pepper, and Tabasco sauce if desired.

[Next, the potatoes and tomatoes, plus more broth and the meat is added to continue cooking]

[Finally the frozen vegetables is added for the last bit of cooking. Finished off with the vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.]

6 You can either serve immediately or refrigerate for 24 hours, which makes the flavors meld more and makes the overall stew even better. Serve hot, either on its own, or with a side of corn bread, over steamed white rice, with any braised greens as a side.

The Finished Dish:
When I think about Southern cooking, I think about corn bread. The Brunswick stew was served over corn bread.

The stew had a rich smokey ham flavor which reminded me of red beans and rice.

A very nice, flavorful, hearty Southern meal.

Apr 06, 2010: Tofu Tuesday Hodge Podge

2010-04-06T18:49:00.000-07:00

Today, is a hodge podge recipe... looking to make something quick and healthy plus I have frozen shrimp scampi in the freezer and leftover ham from Easter.

Tofu Hodge Podge
1 lbf Firm Tofu, cubed
3 Green Onions, sliced
1 Carrot, diagonal sliced
1/2 C Red Bell Pepper, diced
1 Stalk of Celery, diced
1 Clove Garlic, minced
1 C Ham, mined
Frozen Shrimp Scampi
Salt and Pepper to taste.
Egg Noodles

As usual with firm tofu, I like to pan fry with salt and pepper to brown and crisp up the tofu.

Add the rest of the ingredients, give a quick mix and cover to cook.

Serve over noodles (or rice). Salt and pepper to taste.

Quick, simple and fairly good. It's not 3-Star Michelin, but it does hit the spot.