I Can Do That!

Strawberry Swirl Bread

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 16 May 2013 21:39:00 +0000

I've been enjoying strawberries since the start of Spring and it seems I can't get enough. I love them with cream or sea salt, and of course with Nutella. I also made a swirl bread from puree and have the slices with strawberry jam.

The jam has only 2 ingredients, strawberries and sugar. It has to be refrigerated and doesn't keep for very long which is not a problem as I consume it right away. It has no store-bought pectin either. I used a few pieces of strawberries that have white shoulders because they contain a bit more pectin than the fully ripe fruits.

Strawberry Swirl Bread

soft bread dough
1¾ cups bread flour
¼ cup cake flour
½ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon instant yeast
2½ tablespoons sugar
100 ml warm milk
45 ml heavy cream
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 egg white

strawberry layer
2 cups strawberry puree
3 tablespoons sugar
1¼ cups all-purpose flour

In the bowl of a standing mixer, whisk together dry ingredients. Heat milk and cream to 110°F and add to the bowl together with the butter and egg white. Mix on low speed for 1 minute; increase speed to medium and knead for 5 minutes until smooth. Transfer into a greased container, cover with plastic wrap, and let ferment on the kitchen counter for 1 to 1½ hours.
While fermenting, place strawberry puree and sugar in a small sauce pan and cook over low heat until reduced to 1 cup. Let cool then stir in flour. Roll into an 8 x 8 inch square. Cover with plastic wrap until ready to use.
Remove dough from bowl and transfer to the counter. Flatten into 12 x 8 inch rectangle. Place strawberry square on top 2/3 of dough. Fold lower third over half of strawberry layer and fold top third over like an envelope, creating 5 layers, 3 white dough and 2 strawberry. Repeat rolling and folding 2 more times. Roll once last time into 12 x 6 inch rectangle. Cut into three 12 x 2 inch pieces and braid. Place in an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour.
Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 20 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes. Serve slices with strawberry jam, if preferred.

Strawberry Jam
2 cups diced strawberries
½ cup sugar

Cook strawberries over medium-low heat until very soft, about 15 minutes. Add sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, for 25 minutes or until thick. Spoon into a jar that has been washed and dried in a 300°F oven for 15 minutes. Put lid on and keep in refrigerator.

I read a tip on facebook on how to keep strawberries fresh longer and free from mold. Wash unhulled whole strawberries in a 10:1 cold water/white vinegar mixture. Towel dry and refrigerate. This really works!

Nutella Mug Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 09 May 2013 17:28:00 +0000

I never knew mug cakes have been made and blogged about for over 3 years already. Time to join; better late than never.

When you have a craving for a cupcake and don't have the time to bake nor the energy to take out the mixer then clean up after, then mug cake is the way to go. It takes just a few minutes to mix and microwave. Talk about instant gratification!

Nutella Mug Cake
recipe adapted from here

4 tablespoons self rising flour

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tablespoons sugar 

1 egg 

3 tablespoons Nutella 

3 tablespoons milk 

3 tablespoons light olive oil

Mix all ingredients in a large mug or in a small bowl and divide batter between 2 medium size mugs (the mug/s should be 2/3 full).

Microwave for 1 minute and 15 seconds, up to 1½ minutes, depending on the wattage of your oven. The cake should be a little wet but not runny. Enjoy while warm, topped with whipped lightly sweetened heavy cream or with fresh strawberries dipped in Nutella.

Light Leche Flan and Calamansi Sherbet

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 02 May 2013 22:31:00 +0000

I've been making and eating ice cream at an alarming frequency since the day I bought a used Italian ice cream maker with compressor a month ago. So today I made calamansi (Philippine lime) sherbet. It's a tad "healthier" because it doesn't have too much heavy cream. I really love the tart and slightly sweet sherbet which is the perfect pair with the equally healthier leche flan (caramel custard) that has just one egg yolk.

Calamansi Sherbet

½ cup calamansi or lemon juice, chilled

2 cups milk or buttermilk, chilled

½ cup heavy cream, chilled
6 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon sea salt

Mix ingredients in a bowl until sugar is completely dissolved. Taste and add more sugar to suit your taste. Let sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes Process in your ice cream machine according to directions. Serve soft or freeze for 2 hours.

Leche Flan (Caramel Custard)

5 tablespoons sugar for caramel

5 egg whites

1 whole egg

4 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 300°F.
In a steel skillet, heat sugar over medium-low heat until caramelized and just getting dark brown in color. Pour into 5 dessert ramekins and set aside.
Whisk egg whites and egg for 2 minutes. Add sugar and vanilla and mix until thoroughly blended. Pour into the prepared ramekins over a fine sieve. Place ramekins in a pan with 2-inch high sides. Fill pan with 1 inch hot water. Bake for 50 minutes. Let cool , cover with plasric wrap, and refrigerate overnight before sere serving.

the caramel custard is very creamy you won't miss the yolks

Silver Dollar Pancakes

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:52:00 +0000

Why would anybody make or eat these teeny, at less than 2 inches, pancakes? Because they're fun, I suppose, specially with smoked cocktail wieners and breakfast sausage patties or simply with maple syrup and fresh fruits. The recipe I followed for these pancakes doesn't have butter or milk, just a cup of sour cream. They are very soft and fluffy, not too salty nor too sweet.

Silver Dollar Pancakes
4 tablespoons cake flour
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream

In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. In another bowl, beat eggs then blend in sour cream until thoroughly combined. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and stir just until moistened (do not overmix).

Heat a large skillet on medium-low and spoon 1 tablespoon of batter for each pancake. Or pour into a squeeze bottle and squeeze out approximately 1 tablespoon. Cook for 2 minutes until bubbles form on top, then flip to cook the other side for 1 to 2 minutes. Serve with cocktail or breakfast sausages and top with maple syrup.

Ramps

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 18:34:00 +0000

Ramps or wild leeks are only available for one week in early April every year. I was lucky to find them last weekend at the farmer's market. Although I've read about them almost 2 years ago I never had them until this week. After sauteing them in smaltz (rendered chicken fat) and making compound butter with them, I now understand why these are so beloved by professional and home cooks alike. They have a mellow sweetish garlicky flavor when blanched or lightly sauteed enhancing the taste of whatever you add them to. I especially love them with eggs, I don't know why.

ramp compound butter melting on top of beef steaks

To make compound butter, beat 2 sticks room temperature salted butter and ½ cup finely chopped ramps. You may add zest of half a lemon if desired. Shape into a log on a piece of parchment paper, twist ends, wrap in plastic wrap, and freeze until needed. If you have a silicone pan with 1-tablespoon wells, you can also use that to shape and store the compound butter. I used a 1-tablespoon ice cream scoop for uniformity and accuracy.

chopped ramps, 1-tablespoon ramp compound butter squares

scrambled egg cooked in half a tablespoon of ramp compound butter

ramps and smaltz (plus crispy chicken skins) = breakfast heaven

Banana Peanut Butter Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 15:17:00 +0000

Do you have overripe bananas sitting on the kitchen counter? You can either freeze them with their skins still on then dip in chocolate or mash and make into yummy cupcakes or breakfast muffins. Add crunchy peanut butter to the cake mix then top the cakes with caramel or coffee flavored meringue frosting and your breakfast is good to go.

Banana Peanut Butter Cupcakes
makes approximately 1 dozen
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup mashed banana
½ cup crunchy peanut butter
1 egg
¼ cup light olive oil or soft butter
1/3 cup buttermilk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, whisk together dry ingredients. On low speed beat in the rest of ingredients until fully combined. Fill paper-lined cupcake pans 2/3 full and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until cake test done. Top with your favorite frosting.

The frosting here is meringue or what is called 7-minute frosting which uses egg whites. I prefer it to buttercream which is too rich in my opinion for these cupcakes.

For the 2 or 3-tone frosting effect, fill small pastry bags separately with each flavor/color. Snip ¼ inch opening. Place a large frosting tip (I used star) in a larger third pastry bag and place the 2 filled bags in. Pipe out the frosting on the cupcakes. *Sorry, I couldn't take photos while working with sticky stuff.*

Meringue Frosting

½ cup sugar

¼ cup light corn syrup

2 tablespoons water

2 egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix sugar, corn syrup, and water in a small saucepan. Cover and heat to rolling boil over medium heat. Uncover and boil rapidly to 242°F on candy thermometer.
While mixture cooks, beat egg whites on medium speed in a standing mixer just until stiff peaks form. Slowly pour hot syrup into egg whites while constantly beating. Add vanilla and continue beating until stiff and bowl is cool to the touch.
For caramel frosting, substitute sugar with dark brown sugar and light corn syrup with brown sugar corn syrup. For coffee flavor, add 1 teaspoon espresso powder to egg whites just before adding cooked syrup.

eat with a fork or just take big bites off it

Banana Blueberry Swirl Frozen Dessert

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 23:46:00 +0000

For a healthier frozen dessert I used bananas and added a swirl of pureed frozen blueberries. The bananas are sliced, frozen, then processed until smooth. The creamy bananas have no added sugar but I added a tablespoon each of sugar and heavy cream to the blueberries. It has a little bit of bitterness probably because the bananas were not overripe or I didn't fully remove the fibrous membrane on the bananas. I still like the frozen dessert though. Next time I'll add peanut butter, strawberries, or Nutella.

Banana Blueberry Swirl Frozen Dessert
3 overripe bananas, sliced
½ cup frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar, optional

Cover a small sheet pan with plastic wrap. Place the sliced bananas, cover with plastic wrap and leave in freezer until completely frozen.

Process bananas until very smooth, creamy, and look airy. Transfer into a container, cover with plastic wrap while pureeing the blueberries.

In the same food processor bowl, puree blueberries with sugar and heavy cream until smooth.

Transfer into a small container. Remove banana from freezer and spoon half cup into the ice cream container. Layer 3 tablespoons of blueberries, top with half cup of banana, then repeat ending with bananas on top layer. Make swirls using a table knife. Freeze for 30 minutes before serving.

Moroccan Date and Nut Candies

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 18:11:00 +0000

While rearranging the book shelves, the Moroccan cookbook caught my eye and I started browsing. It's been a while since I opened it. I've used it to make almond milk, clarified butter, and stews. I don't know if the recipes are authentic but so far most of the dishes I already cooked were delicious.

The date and nut candies are very similar to the Chinese candies I used to buy many years ago when they haven't tainted their food products yet with toxic stuff [maybe they did but we were unaware]. The candies also remind me of the Filipino cookies, Food for the Gods. The recipe is very simple, has only 5 ingredients, and no sugar added because the dates have natural sugar in them. The candies are healthy and nutritious, and extra yummy with the addition of small amount of butter.

Moroccan Date and Nut Candies
3 tablespoons water
4 cups dates, chopped
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup walnuts or blanched almonds, toasted and chopped
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Line a 7 x 7 inch tray or baking pan with plastic wrap leaving a 2 inch overhang on both sides.
Cook water and dates over low heat in a skillet for 2 minutes until dates are soft; add butter and cook for another 2 minutes. Divide in half.
Press one half on prepared pan; sprinkle nuts evenly pressing gently onto date paste. Using the plastic overhang, transfer onto the kitchen counter. Cut another piece of plastic wrap and press the remaining date paste. Tip over on top of paste with nuts. Press together lightly. Remove top plastic and sprinkle and pressing sesame seeds evenly. Cut into 1 inch square or diamond shape piece. [Or simply mix in nuts with dates then press on the prepared pan; sprinkle sesame seeds on top, then cut into desired shape.]

Soy Lecithin

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:42:00 +0000

The other day I made salad dressing, refrigerated the half cup left-over, and naturally the oil gathered on top. No matter how I shake the dressing, it's so stubborn and wouldn't want to socialize and mix with the vinegar, unlike store-bought dressing. Then I remembered I have soy lecithin I bought a while back. It's supposed to aid in emulsifying everything from candy bars to sauces to hand cream, and it's also used to make breads rise higher.

I dissolved half a tablespoon of granules in 2 tablespoons warm water and added to the balsamic vinaigrette. I over-processed it and the dressing turned into mayonnaise-like consistency, which isn't a bad thing, actually. I used it to dip fries because I like my fries either with mayonnaise or malt vinegar and this turned out perfect. It's also good with boiled egg.

Balsamic Vinegar Dressing
makes 9 ounces
½ tablespoon soy lecithin powder or granules
2 tablespoons warm water
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
dash of ground white pepper
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup light olive oil

In a small bowl, dissolve lecithin in 2 tablespoons water. In a blender or food processor, place lecithin and water and the next 5 ingredients; blend for a few seconds. Add oil and blend just until emulsified and slightly thickened. Transfer into a jar or bottle and refrigerate until ready to use.

great with tomatoes and vegetables

fat fries

or boiled egg

Grapefruit Salad

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 01:17:00 +0000

We've been drinking fresh grapefruit juice mixed with grated fresh ginger because all of us had a bout with the pesky flu. I'm really liking the bright and refreshing color of pink grapefruit and thought why not make Thai-style salad with them. I added some fresh mandarin orange segments (yes I peeled them one by one), grape tomatoes, tiny cucumber coins, and served on top of mixed spring greens. The slightly tart, salty, and sweet Thai-style dressing goes well with the salad. Yummy!

Pink Grapefruit Salad
fruits and vegetables
2 pink grapefruit, peeled and sectioned
2 mandarin oranges, peeled and sectioned
sliced mini cucumbers
cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
mixed baby greens

Thai-style dressing
juice of 2 limes
2 tablespoons fish sauce
½ tablespoon soy sauce
4 tablespoons sugar

Mix all the dressing ingredients until sugar has dissolved.
Place grapefruit and mandarin orange segments in a small bowl. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of dressing over the fruits. Let chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Chill the vegetables and remaining dressing separately.
To serve, place mixed baby greens on a salad plate. Top with tomatoes and cucumbers. Arrange grapefruit and mandarin orange; drizzle all over with dressing.

Spanish Potato and Chorizo Mini Tortillas

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 20:09:00 +0000

For a grab-and-go breakfast, snack, or baon (packed lunch) these mini tortillas are very convenient and good either warmed in the microwave oven or at room temperature. I made them Spanish potato tortilla style. Next time it'll be bacon, spinach, and cheddar cheese or maybe all-vegetables with white cheese. The possibilities are endless. Just mix and match your favorite ingredients, add them to beaten eggs and you'll have a satisfying and nutritious on the go meal or snack.

Spanish Potato, Chorizo, Cheese Tortilla Muffins
recipe adapted from here
soft butter
5 eggs
¾ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
extra virgin olive oil
2 small waxy potatoes, diced
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
1 small Spanish chorizo, thinly sliced and cut into smaller pieces
1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley
grated Manchego or aged Edam cheese

Preheat oven to 350° F.
Using a small pastry brush, generously butter a 6-cup muffin tin.
In a small bowl, beat eggs and salt. Pour into prepared muffin cups half full; set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a non-stick skillet and fry potatoes until golden. Transfer into a bowl and set aside. Add more oil to the skillet, if needed, and cook onion until soft and translucent. Add to the bowl with potatoes. Stir in the chorizo, 4 tablespoons cheese, and parsley into the potato mixture. Divide into 6 portions; add to the egg. Top each with half a tablespoon of cheese.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Green Jackfruit and Tamarind Soup

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 00:47:00 +0000

I cooked this soup a month or so ago but I went on a break from the blog at the time. I got the recipe, Sinampalukang Langka (green jackfruit in tamarind broth) from Yummy online magazine. I thought at first the ingredients are a bit unusual but I'll eat any sour soup flavored with fish sauce. I like its uncomplicated flavors and will make it again for sure.

Fresh green jackfruit is not available here in the US. I buy the Thai canned ones whenever there is a need for it. If it's available, use the fresh ones. Green jackfruit is a good ingredient for vegan recipes because of its texture and ability to absorb seasonings.

Green Jackfruit and Tamarind Soup
3 cups water
¼ cup tamarind paste, more or less to taste
1 small onion, sliced
1-inch ginger, peeled and sliced
1 can green jackfruit
2 tablespoons dry shrimps, soaked in warm water
2 tablespoons fish sauce
sea salt, to taste
1 green finger chile

In a medium saucepan, bring to a boil water, tamarind, onion, and ginger; let boil on medium heat, covered, for 2 minutes. Add jackfruit, shrimps, fish sauce, and salt and let simmer, covered, for 12 minutes. Add finger chile and simmer for 1 minute more. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately.

Garlic Fried Rice with Salted Egg Yolk

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 01:37:00 +0000

Kulinarya Cooking Club challenge is finally back after a loooong break. The food chosen by Trisha is salted duck egg, called itlog na maalat (salted egg) in the Philippines, a long-time favorite side dish. I haven't met a Filipino who has not eaten salted duck eggs or doesn't like them. The eggs are usually served simply sliced with chopped fresh tomatoes.

I bought a few pieces of salted eggs from the store but they are not very good. The yolks are pale with green rings around them, which is a pet peeve of mine. I just can't stand overcooked eggs. Since there was not enough time to brine the eggs, I cured 2 goose egg yolks in salt. I separated the yolks from the white, left them uncovered for 2 days in the refrigerator to dry out, buried them in kosher salt for 3 days, rinsed, then left them again uncovered in the refrigerator for another day. They became firm enough to slice or crumble and perfectly salted. I decided to slice one and added to garlic fried rice with fried longaniza. Crispy bacon chips also sound great with this fried rice. Simple, familiar, and delicious breakfast food.

Garlic Fried Rice with Salted Egg Yolk and Longaniza
2 tablespoons light olive oil, separated
1 salt-cured goose, duck, or chicken egg yolk, sliced into 8 pieces
1 medium size longaniza, sliced
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
2 cups steamed rice
sea salt

In a non-stick skillet or wok, heat 1 tablespoon oil and fry egg yolk slices for 30 seconds up to 1 minute on each side; transfer into a plate and set aside.
In the same skillet, fry the sliced chorizo until brown and cooked through; transfer into a plate and set aside. Add the remaining oil into the skillet and stir fry garlic until golden in color. Add the rice, chorizo, and egg yolk. Stir fry for a few minutes. Taste and add salt if needed. Serve immediately with sliced tomatoes.

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Kulinarya was started by a group of Filipino foodies living in Sydney who are passionate about the Filipino culture and its colorful cuisine. Each month we will showcase a new dish along with their family recipes. By sharing these recipes, we hope you find the same passion and love for Filipino Food as we do.

Red Rice

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 19:08:00 +0000

crispy pork hock with steamed red rice and roasted vegetables

There are various Philippine heirloom rice available to buy online but I find the prices of the rice too steep. I had to settle for the cheaper, at $10.00 for a 5-pound bag, Thai red rice which are sold in nearby Asian grocery stores. Thai red rice is a long grain non-glutinous rice similar to brown rice but the color of the bran is red. According to Wiki, only the husks of the rice grains are removed during the milling process, retaining all the nutrients, vitamins and minerals intact in the bran layer and in the germ. Red rice is a good source of thiamine, riboflavin, fiber, iron, and calcium.

The package's cooking time for 1 cup rice and 1½ cups water is 25 minutes but I steamed for another 10 minutes because the rice was not cooked through and the water was not fully absorbed after 25 minutes. Some websites suggest to soak the rice in water for an hour or two before steaming.

To season the cooked rice I added sea salt and a little butter. It is nutty and chewy but also soft enough, and a bit fragrant like jasmine rice. I like it.

I cooked a half cup of red rice for sweet snack/dessert. The half-cooked rice is then simmered in 2 cups of coconut milk, with a pinch of salt, and 3 tablespoons sugar, stirred occasionally. It's almost like corn guinatan so I topped one half with corn. I love it! The other half was cooked until the coconut milk is absorbed and the mixture has thickened. I had that with sliced mango.

guinatan and pudding

To make the crispy pork hock, I used the recipe for Crispy Pig Tails.

Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Fri, 15 Feb 2013 02:22:00 +0000

Bacon! Yes, these cookies have crispy bacon chips and they go really well with extreme bittersweet chocolate chips. When I read about these unusual cookies I just had to make some. They are not too rich nor greasy; they're sooo good.

I halved the recipe from Serious Eats using both extreme bittersweet and bittersweet chocolate chips. I also used very fine raw sugar instead of the combination of dark brown, light brown, and white sugar. Yield for half a recipe is 4½ dozen small cookies.

Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies

½ pound thick-cut smoked bacon, diced

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

¾ cup melted unsalted butter

1¼ cups very fine raw sugar

(or 1 cup dark brown sugar + ¼ cup white sugar)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 cup extreme bittersweet chocolate chips

½ cup bittersweet chocolate chips

In a skillet, cook bacon until crispy. Drain on paper towels; set aside.
Preheat oven to 325° F.
Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl; set aside.
In a large bowl, beat butter with sugar until well combined. Add egg yolk, egg, and vanilla extract. Beat until light and creamy.
Stir by hand flour mixture and mix until just combined. Stir in bacon and chocolate chips.
Using a 1-tablespoon ice cream scoop, drop mounds of dough 3 inches apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets. Bake for 15 minutes. Let cool in pans for 2 minutes then transfer on the kitchen counter or a flat surface until completely cool.

These cookies IMHO are perfect for the Anti-Valentine's Day crowd. Yes there are people who don't feel like celebrating V-Day for different reasons. Maybe they're single or just broke up from their partners, some don't like the color red, and some believe it's a holiday created by greeting card companies. I'm sure they will enjoy some of these sweet savory cookies served on a non-red plate with a glass of icewine, any sweet dessert wine, or espresso. ^ _^

Matcha Daifuku

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 21:05:00 +0000

We've been addicted to mochi ice cream since we first tried them 24 years ago. Nowadays we buy a variety of sweet filled mochi called Daifuku from the Asian store but mochi ice cream is still our favorite.

I attempted to make these a few years ago but I was not completely satisfied and never made again. With lots of help from web sources, I was convinced to try making them again. This time the texture and flavor were spot on, the mochi is soft and chewy. Delicious!

The following recipe looks very simple but the actual wrapping of filling is mildly laborious. It takes a bit of practice and patience, of course.

Green Tea Daifuku
filling
store-bought or homemade sweet red bean paste

for the cutting board
toasted soybean flour (kinako) or toasted rice flour
sieve

matcha mochi
1 cup glutinous rice flour
½ teaspoon matcha
2 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup water

Shape sweet red bean paste into 1 inch balls; cover with plastic wrap to prevent drying out.
Sift some kinako or rice flour on the cutting board; set aside.

Make the mochi: In a glass bowl, whisk together flour, matcha, and sugar.

Slowly add water and stir until mixture is smooth. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave on high for 1 to 2 minutes, depending on the wattage of your oven. Stir with a wet silicone spatula, cover, and cook for another 2 minutes or until mixture is thick and translucent.

Transfer on the prepared board. Sift more flour on top of mochi and flatten into a rectangle and with a dough cutter, divide into 10 equal portions. Stretch out the sides of one piece, removing excess flour with a pastry brush, and place one ball in the middle. Gather the edges and pinch together. Place daifuku seam side down on a plate dusted with kinako or rice flour. Let cool completely before serving.

Fresh Strawberry Daifuku
Follow directions for matcha daifuku omitting matcha and increasing sugar to ¼ cup. Wrap a whole small strawberry. You can also dip the strawberry in Nutella before wrapping in mochi.

Cider and Black

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 00:43:00 +0000

For Christmas last year we had a drink called Cider and Black, a mix of dry hard cider and blackcurrant cordial. Hard cider, which has the same alcohol content as beer at about 5% in volume, is becoming popular at least here in Virginia. I like the combination of hard cider and blackcurrant because it's very light and slightly sweet. It's a ladies' drink, I guess.

I made blackcurrant cordial from frozen fruit and bought Virginia dry hard cider.
To make Cider and Black: half-fill a tall glass with ice, add 4:1 dry hard cider/cordial, stir, and enjoy.

Blackcurrant Cordial

1 pound frozen blackcurrant
half pound sugar
1 cup water
juice and zest of 1 lemon

In a medium stainless steel saucepan, heat blackcurrant, water, and sugar to a gentle simmer, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Simmer for 3 minutes. Add lemon juice and zest and simmer for 3 minutes. Let cool completely. Pass through a fine sieve; transfer cordial into a sterilized bottle and refrigerate until needed.

Crema Catalana

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 22:52:00 +0000

I've had this Spanish dessert just once in a restaurant many years ago. I don't know why I never prepared it at home but then again I've never made its French version, Crème Brûlée, either. The Spanish sweet cream is lighter than its cousin as it has fewer egg yolks and uses milk instead of heavy cream.

Most of the recipes for Crema Catalana have a tablespoon of cornstarch for every 2 cups of milk and 3 egg yolks; sugar is usually ¾ cup. I reduced the sugar to ½ cup and cornstarch to ½ tablespoon. I also made another version without cornstarch. I loved both but the one with cornstarch has a smoother creamier consistency and it also takes a shorter time to cook.

Sweet Catalan Cream
500 ml whole milk
rind of 1 lemon
half a vanilla bean, split
3 large egg yolks
½ tablespoon cornstarch, optional
¾ cup sugar

In a sauce pan, bring milk, vanilla bean, and lemon rind to a boil. Simmer for 3 minutes; remove rind and discard.; remove vanilla bean, wash, and dry for another use. Set aside heated milk
In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks with cornstarch, if using, and ½ cup of sugar until mixture is creamy. Gradually pour into the sauce pan with milk, stirring until smooth. Slowly heat the mixture on low until it begins to thicken, taking care not to let it boil. Pour into 4 heatproof shallow dishes, allow to cool, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Right before serving, preheat broiler and sprinkle 1 tablespoon sugar evenly over each dish. Place dsh under the broiler until sugar begins to caramelize. Let rest for a few minutes before serving.

to caramelize the sugar, I used a preheated round iron

which is part of a set of shallow dishes

Homemade Rice Wine

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 01:15:00 +0000

I was trying to make Manapla-style puto which I was told years ago has wild yeast or rice yeast as leavening agent. I looked online for white rice yeast, found this website about Philippine rice wine called tapuy and several other blogs on how to make rice wine at home, then quickly abandoned the puto. White rice yeast from the Philippines is impossible to get here in the US but I was able to buy from our local Asian store a packet of Chinese red rice wine yeast. I used this yeast and a cup of black glutinous rice and followed the recipe from the Filipino website.

I let the rice ferment for 72 hours at about 85° F inside the oven with the light on. The wine is good, very light and slightly sweet but I think I should have let it ferment one more day. It's in the fridge and I hope it doesn't turn into vinegar.

Homemade Red Rice Wine
makes 2 cups
1 cup glutinous black rice
water
3 tablespoons ground red rice yeast
glass jar, glass bowls, glass bottle
parchment paper
8 x 8 inch square muslin
sieve

Toast rice in a wok, stirring constantly with a spatula to prevent burning, for about 15 minutes. Let cool slightly then wash and drain twice. Place in a medium pan, add 3½ cups water, and soak for 2 hours.
Let boil over high heat, turn heat to simmer, cover, and cook for 1 hour or until water is fully absorbed by the rice. Let cool completely. When cooled, stir in rice yeast.
Transfer into a sterilized glass jar or bowl. Cover with a large piece of parchment paper and secure with a string or elastic band. Leave in a warm spot for 3 to 4 days, checking if the mixture does not have fungus or nasty stuff growing in it. Taste the mixture after 3 days. It should be slightly sweet and mildly acidic.
Boil muslin and a sieve in water for 2 minutes to disinfect. Place the muslin on the sieve and place the sieve on top of a sterilized glass measuring bowl. Pour the fermented rice on the sieve pressing the rice with a rubber spatula to extract all the liquid.
Scrape the rice wine mash or lees into a sterilized jar, cover, and refrigerate until ready to use. Pour the rice wine into a sterilized bottle, cap, and refrigerate.

rice wine mash/lees can be added to soups or desserts

Champagne Mini Cakes

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 15:46:00 +0000

Here's a nice idea for New Year's Eve celebration: cute mini cakes baked with champagne or non-alcoholic sparkling wine. I got the idea from here but used a different recipe for the cakes, frosting, fruit, and chocolate garnish.

Champagne Mini Cakes
1½ cups cake flour, sifted
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¾ cup superfine sugar (measure then blend on medium in a blender)
6 tablespoons buttermilk, room temperature
6 tablespoons champagne

Preheat oven to 325° F.
Line mini cupcake cups.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a mixing bowl, beat together eggs and vanilla. Pour in sugar slowly while beating. Stir in buttermilk and champagne. Gradually add flour mixture, mixing just until lump-free; do not over mix for light and tender cakes. Fill cups 2/3 full.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing.

To serve in a champagne glass
halved pitted cherries or sliced strawberries
champagne
lightly sweetened whipped cream
chocolate sauce

Place fruit in a small bowl and add some champagne; let sit for 10 minutes.
Peel off paper liners from cakes.
Pipe a little whipped cream on the bottom of a champagne glass. Add one cake on top and pipe more cream. Place a few slices of fruit then swirl a little chocolate sauce; add one more layer of cake, cream, fruit, chocolate sauce.

Chocolate Sauce
8 ounces semi sweet chocolate, chopped

1 cup heavy cream

½ cup light corn syrup

Place chocolate in a glass or metal bowl. In a small stainless steel saucepan, heat cream and corn syrup to a simmer. Pour over the chocolate and let sit for 3 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Let cool slightly then transfer into a serving bowl. Refrigerate leftover sauce; rewarm over low heat before using.

Merry Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Tue, 25 Dec 2012 14:16:00 +0000

Wishing you a blessed and joyful

Christmas

Bimuelos for Hanukkah

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 18:52:00 +0000

Happy Hanukkah to all my readers!

Searching for fried food to make for the Jewish festival of lights holiday, Hanukkah, which began December 8 and will end on the 16th, I was surprised to find that the sweet snack called bimuelos which are very similar to the Filipino buñuelos are actually related. Although the recipes are different, they are both deep fried and served with syrup or honey or simply dusted with sugar. The tiny snacks are really really delicious drizzled with honey. It's also good with caramelized condensed milk but I prefer them with honey. I had for lunch all the bimuelos in the picture after photographing them. I couldn't resist the crispy crust and light as feather puffy honeycombed crumb.

these bimuelos have a light puffy

honey-combed crumb and crispy crust

Bimuelos
3½ cups all purpose flour
1½ teaspoons instant yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1½ cups warm water
2 tablespoons light olive oil
1 teaspoon pure orange extract, optional
light olive oil for frying
honey, orange blossom syrup, or icing sugar

In the bowl of a stand mixer with flat beater attachment, mix together flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Add water, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and extract if using and beat on medium low for 5 minutes until smooth. The dough should be loose and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and leave on the kitchen counter for 1 hour. Stir dough with a rubber spatula, cover, and leave for another half hour.
Heat 2 inches of oil to 375°F. Dip 2 teaspoons in the oil. Using both teaspoons, put small balls of dough into the hot oil and fry until puffed, crisp, and golden, turning them to brown evenly. Lower the heat a little to give the bimuelos time to get cooked inside before they get too brown. They should be light with irregular rather than perfectly round shapes. Serve with honey or syrup, or dust with powdered sugar.
To make syrup: Boil 1 cup sugar, ½ tablespoon lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and half cup of water until thickened to coat a spoon. Stir in half a tablespoon of orange blossom water. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Red Velvet Doughnuts

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 20:00:00 +0000

I'm seeing red food items everywhere, it's the season after all. One of the baked items I wanted to make since I saw them in one of the blogs I visit are those cute red velvet cake donuts. I never liked cake donuts so baked them with yeast and topped with slightly sweet maple flavored whipped cream. You can also dip them in cream cheese glaze, if preferred. Yummy with either topping.

Red Velvet Doughnuts
dough
2½ cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons instant yeast
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¾ cup milk
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon cider or raspberry vinegar
1 tablespoon red food dye

cream cheese glaze
4 ounces softened cream cheese
½ cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk

maple flavored heavy cream
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar, or to taste
1 teaspoon maple extract

Doughnuts: Heat milk to almost boiling; let cool to 115°F. Whisk together flour, yeast, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer. Add the hot milk, vinegar, butter, and food dye. With paddle attachment, mix on low speed for 2 minutes until all the flour is moistened. Leave for 2 minutes. Replace attachment with dough hook and knead on medium low speed for 5 to 8 minutes until dough is smooth and supple. Transfer dough into a lightly greased container, cover with plastic wrap, and let double in volume, about 1 hour. Turn dough out on a smooth surface and roll to ¼ inch thick rectangle. Use a doughnut cutter to stamp out doughnuts. Or use doughnut pans if you have them. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F and bake until slightly puffed, about 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely in pans.
Cream Cheese Glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together cream cheese and powdered sugar, add milk and stir until smooth. Add powdered sugar or milk as needed. Dip the doughnuts halfway into the glaze and transfer to a cooling rack set over a piece of aluminum foil. Leave for 20 minutes until glaze has hardened.
Maple Flavored Heavy Cream: Beat ingredients to stiff peaks. Pipe on top of donuts. You may add green food dye if you want the donuts to look Christmas-y .

Best and Worst 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 19:03:00 +0000

I read about 35 fiction and 5 non-fiction books this year and viewed hundreds of movies, half were foreign language. Most on this list came out in 2012; some a few years ago. Not included here are non-fiction books and movies.

Books Fiction
Best

1Q84
Haruki Murakami

Prague Cemetery
Umberto Eco

Timbuctoo
Tahir Shah

Odd Apocalypse
Dean Koontz

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet
David Mitchell

Worst

50 Shades of Grey
E. L. James

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Stieg Larsson

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
Seth Grahame-Smith

The Man from Beijing
Henning Mankell

The Casual Vacancy
J. K. Rowling

Movies (Fiction)
Best

Marvel's The Avengers

50/50

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

Coraline

Headhunters

Worst

The Hunger Games

Brave

Drive

The Raid: Redemption

The Adventures of Tintin

Music

Charmer
Aimee Mann

Made Possible
the bad plus

Never Trust a Happy Song
Grouplove

>I was too lazy to link to amazon; if you are curious or interested, the amazon box is at the right sidebar.

Thanks for visiting.

Butter Babycakes

noreply@blogger.com (Oggi) — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 22:45:00 +0000

The recipe for these cakes had been in draft for many months already but I couldn't find the time to bake them. These are supposed to be Filipino style butter cake made with Danish butter. The photo of the individual mamon-like cake that inspired me to look for a recipe was on one of my facebook friends' weekend breakfast table.

I can't remember if I have seen or eaten these cakes back in the Philippines. Maybe I have but they probably weren't called butter cakes when I lived there a few hundred years or so ago. These ones I baked are similar to but much lighter than pound cakes. They are good, although I'd like them to be more buttery and I will increase the butter to ¾ or a full cup next time I bake these again. And I'll add cheese powder too just like the one my friend posted on fb.

Butter Babycakes

2 ½ cups cake flour, sifted
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons whole milk powder
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs
6½ ounces milk
soft butter for greasing molds, optional

Preheat oven to 325° F. Line individual molds with baking paper or generously brush with soft butter.
In a small bowl, sift flour and baking powder together.
Cream butter, sugar, salt, and milk powder until creamy and fluffy; beat in vanilla extract. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add milk alternately with the flour and blend till well combined.
Pour batter into prepared molds and bake for 30 minutes or until cake test done. Leave on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from molds and let cool completely.