This post is actually more appropriately titled "how I learn to cook wild rice". We hear the health benefits of whole grains often and wild rice is of course one of those much touted good grains. Growing up in a modern Chinese household, my idea of cooking rice obviously involves an electric rice cooker (fuzzy logic and all...hey that would make it an electronic rice cooker!). Cooking rice over a stove top is simply not done at my home. Who wants the uncertainty of stove top cooking when it is a task easily handled by the trusty rice cooker?

It was with much trepidation that I cooked my first batch of wild rice over stovetop. The instruction clearly said a water to rice ratio of 3 to 1. Sounds simple enough. The Mahnomin Porridge at Minneapolis' Hell's Kitchen opened my eyes to how delicious this grain can be so I was inspired to make my own version at home. However, for everyday eating, that was plenty of cream and syrup. I decided to cook the wild rice in almond milk for richness (without all the calories) and threw in emptied vanilla beans for good measure. This was where I committed the number one mistake of cooking from recipe. I didn't read the instruction to the end which clearly stated "drain the cooking liquid". I certainly wasn't about to drain away vanilla almond milk! Staring at my pot of soupy (abeit delicious smelling) wild rice, I came up with a good idea...oatmeal! With the addition of oatmeal, the porridge thickened up nicely to exactly what I was hoping for. Hooray for another healthy breakfast option!

Ingredients

• 1 cup wild rice, rinsed
• 3 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/2 emptied vanilla bean
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/4 cup raisins
• cream, maple syrup, toasted nuts to taste

Method

1. In a medium pot, bring wild rice and almond milk to a boil. Add in vanilla bean.
2. Turn the heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes until rice is almost tender and split open.
3. Add in rolled oats and raisins. Continue cooking until thicken, about 5-10 minutes.
4. Serve immediately with a splash of cream, maple syrup, and toasted nuts for a more decadent taste.

I've been on a weekly soup making schedule lately and learning to cook with legumes. This southwestern influenced soup is hearty enough for a meal. The flavours of cumin and chipotle remind me of chili. Probably project in the near future.

Ingredients

• 454g black turtle beans, dry
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 1 medium green bell pepper, diced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon chipotle chili in adobo, minced
• 4 tsp cumin
• 250g chorizo, diced
• juice from 1/2 lime
• 2 tsp table salt
• black pepper, freshly ground
• yogurt and grated lime zest for garnish

Method

1. Soak beans in water overnight. Drain the beans of soaking water. Set aside.
2. In a large pot, sautee onion, peppers, garlic, chipotle, and cumin until browned and fragrant. Add chorizo and sautee some more.
3. Pour 7 cups of water into pot. Add beans and bring to boil for 10 minutes.
4. Turn the heat to low and simmer for 90 minutes or until beans are tender.
5. Season with lime juice, salt, and pepper. Garnish with a dollop of yogurt and some grated lime zest. I imagine it would be pretty tasty to eat with toasted corn tortillas but since I don't normally have that at home, lavash is pretty good too (as seen in photograph).

On a few recent trips, I've gotten into the habit of searching out locally-made candies/cookies that are not readily available outside of the area. In the age of national big brands, many of these treats are getting harder and harder to find. However, since most of them have a long history, they often evoke nostalgia and fond memories from locals of a certain age. That just makes my search all the more interesting. It's not just about seeking out some obscure candies. In fact, the reaction and enthusiasm from everyone I speak to is what transcend this experience from shopping to traveling.

Berger Cookies is a Baltimore specialty, Berger Cookies. It's a shortbread cookie covered with an equally thick dark chocolatey fudge topping. Yum! Our quest to find Berger Cookies was an adventure. On our way back from a road to Maryland for some crabcakes in Kent Narrows, I suddenly remember reading about these cookies some time ago. I first thought we could find them in any old gas station...but totally came up short. The clerks had absolutely no idea what I was talking about! Fortunately, a customer over-heard our conversation and described the cookies in detail so at least I knew they really do exist.

Next we went to a large supermarket...once again, to no avail. I asked a store clerk about the cookies and his enthusiastic reaction amused me to no end "OMG, they're great! No, we don't have it at the store." and then proceeded to direct us to another supermarket in the area. I was jumping up and down in joy when we finally locate the elusive cookies! It was quite an adventure trying to find these cookies. Was it worth the effort? A resounding yes! Now I understand that dreamy expression on the man's face at the mere mention of these cookies.

Searching out Chick-O-Stick in Houston was equally amusing if not as adventurous. A few days before I were to travel to Houston, I read an article on regional Halloween candies. Pearson Nut Roll is one of my favourites since tasting it at a post-marathon buffet in the Twin Cities in August. Seeing that the author has similar taste, I trust his recommendation for Chick-O-Stick would be equally worthy. Besides, you can't go wrong with the combination of coconut, peanut butter, and honeycomb...flavours that I just can't refuse.

 I love shopping at Central Market when I'm in Texas. I thought the place is too chi-chi to have Chick-O-Stick in stock but it never hurts to ask. I gingerly approached a group of store clerk with my request. What do you know? The oldest one of them all beamed with a huge smile and said to me "let's go find out". The gentleman then proceeded to tell me stories of how he used to love them as a kid and it's been years since he last had them. I almost jumped up and down in excitement when we located a box of at the front cash register in all its glorious retro packaging. I have yet to give them a try since I'm saving them as a treat. Though truth be told, it shouldn't be long before I rip into that plastic bag...

If I'm not much mistaken, my next candies adventure will lead me to South Carolina. I wonder what awaits me there?

The last few weeks I've gotten into a weekend cooking routine. Part of that routine is roasting butternut squash and puree them so they would be ready-to-eat throughout the week. It was the same thing last night except I got the idea to add some miso to the puree for a hint of asian flavour. A "hint" turned into a "blast" after I scooped out two huge spoonfuls of miso and the whole batch of puree turned into a salty mess.

There's no good reason to throw away food so obviously I tried to think of ways to salvage this bowl of beautiful golden puree. That's when it occurred to me...this is just like canned condensed soup! I can thin it with hot water or dashi as needed and I'll have instant butternut squash miso soup! This is one brilliant idea because I love hot soup for lunch at the office but I'm a klutz with transporting liquid in my lunch bag. This is the perfect solution because chances of spills and leaks for this thick puree is pretty slim. The following is the approximate step in case you want to give it a try too:

1. Roast butternut squash in 375F oven until tender.
2. Peel the squash and puree it in a food processor.
3. Add generous spoonfuls of miso (I used a red organic miso) and puree some more. It should taste too salty for straight consumption.
4. Store in fridge as needed.
5. When you're ready to make soup, have hot water or dashi (japanese soup stock) ready. Plop a few generous spoonfuls of puree into a bowl and thin with hot water until desired consistency.

Is it strange to crave pumpkin pie post-holiday season? Well, I did not have any so now I'm fighting this huge craving for creamy spicy pumpkin pie. Actually, it's the pie filling that I dream about so I decided to make a healthy version that can curb my craving without assaulting my waistline. The result is my butternut squash custard. This custard has all the creaminess you come to expect from a good pumpkin pie but barely any of the fat and empty calories. Butternut squash is an excellent source of vitamin A so you can even say this dessert is good for you!

Ingredients

• one small butternut squash (about 1kg)
• 250mL soymilk, unsweetened
• 60mL maple syrup, medium grade
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Split the butternut squash in half, length-wise. Scoop out the seeds and lightly oil the cut-side of the squash. Place the two halves on a 9x13 baking pan, cut-side down. Roast for about 45min until tender. Cool until you can handle the squash without burning yourself.
2. Peel the squash and put all the flesh in a food processor or blender. Process the butternut squash until it becomes a creamy puree. Put the puree into a large mixing bowl.
3. Preheat oven to 350F and place 24 shallow ceramic ramekin on a baking sheet.
4. In a small mixing bowl, stir together soymilk and maple syrup. In another small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, spices, and a large spoonful of squash puree until there is no lumps. Whisk the egg mixture into the squash puree. Finally, stir in the soymilk mixture until you have a smooth batter.
5. Divide the batter evenly among the ramekins. Bake for about 30min until custard is set. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

If you want to get fancy, you can caramelize some sugar on top of the custard so you have butternut squash creme brulee.