Angry Asian Creations ...

Honey Mustard Pork Chops

2009-11-03T00:12:00.000-08:00

do you remember that childhood book Charlotte's Web by EB White? i read the book in 3rd grade. i loved it. almost as much as Harriet the Spy. i liked the idea that animals talked to each other, that they had friendships formed, a daily routine that they stuck to. who knew that a rat could be helpful, or that the goose was such a snob? most importantly, it was beyond amazing to me that a spider could spell better than me. all for a pig named Wilbur. during the weeks that my class read this book, me skipping ahead of the class most nights to see what happened next, i never put the correlation between Wilbur, the pig in the book, to the pork we usually ate for dinner. pork was a fairly routine protein at the dinner table growing up, it's cheap and easily assessable. it never clicked that, whoa the pig i'm hoping is saved in the book may also be the pig i'm chowing down on (thịt kho anyone?) oh the innocence and idealism of a child.

i've cooked with pork before but not much. yes, i've made some pretty awesome pork loin dishes this summer found here and here, but pork chops... they were on sale recently, i grabbed the container and on sunday, while Nuria lazed about nursing a hangover, i busted them out for a quick and easy supper. luckily, i had a few crisp apples to pair with the other white meat, along with leftover kale. it's the personification of Autumn. poor charlotte may have saved her Wilbur but the pig on my plate sunday nite was luscious, cooked just thru and the added sweetness of the apples brought it all home for me.

what childhood books do you recall reading that stays with you still... from just the storyline or what the characters ate?

Honey Mustard Pork Chops
adapted from The Everything Cooking for Two Cookbook

2 TBL olive oil
2 center cut bone in pork chops
salt and pepper to taste
2 TBL butter
2 apples, cored and cut into wedges
enough Dijon mustard to coat the chops
3 TBL honey

preheat oven to 450F. heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet on a medium high. season pork with salt and pepper, and brown well, about 2 minutes per side. take out of pan, set aside.

wipe out pan and add the butter. heat on medium until it stops bubbling, and add the apples. season with salt and pepper, sauteeing for about minutes or until the apples soften slightly and brown. remove the apples from the pan and keep warm.

mix together the honey and mustard and rub on top of the pork chops. place the chops on a baking sheet and roast for 6 minutes. let rest for a few minutes and serve with the apples on top. (i don't like my food touching so mine was served side by side)

for the kale, i used this recipe.

today's song: Thome Yorke, Hearing Damage

Recipes to Rival: French Onion Soup

2009-11-01T00:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Recipe to Rivalers,
it took me 3 days to make this month's challenge dish. 3 days! i guess i could've done it all at the same time: making the broth from scratch, the french bread rise and rest time, and carmelizing the onions. that kind of multitasking is smart. it's working smart, not hard. however, i did none of that. nuria started the stock process early on a friday night and i babysat it till about 2am. when she came home from the bars that night i still wasn't done yet! skip saturday for some reason so sunday was hopefully going to be the day i could serve the soup. nope, i realized late that it takes 3 hours to caramelize the onions. yay. fine, monday night then. only, we started the french bread process late sunday evening thinking we could bake it monday when we got home. no. the rise and rest process said we could bake it on TUESDAY. awesome. moral of the story: buy the damn dish already made.

i will say that the soup had many layers to it : sweetness of the onions, richness of the stock, and overall presentation of it all. so fine, it's a labor intensive dish. my last gripe? i forgot my camera that housed pix of this dish at a friend's house and so i had to do a leftover pic that turned out eh. moral of the story: there is none. i've already kicked myself in the ass enough for leaving my camera.

all bitchiness aside, i enjoyed the process of making the stock. even tho canned stock is cheap and less time consuming, there is just something about making your own stock to store in the freezer. currently, i have chicken, beef AND fish stock in my freezer, all tidied up in small containers to be used up for soups and stews.

till next month, stay warm and loosen up those belts, the holidays are a-coming,
Angry Asian and Nuria

for more French Onion Soup, hit the blogroll.

Thanks to Sara of I'm A Food Blog for hosting this month.

Ode to Wandering Chopsticks: Ma Po Tofu

2009-10-29T00:12:00.000-07:00

it's no secret that i harbor a food crush on Wandering Chopsticks, she's the Chị i never had. and i've been fortunate enough to have met her. don't be jealous. Chị WC, as i fondly call her, is wonderful - warm and effusive. i spent a lovely day with her in CA when i was in town for a phamily reunion. if you haven't visited her blog, you should. pretty much most of the things i've learned about blogging, i learned from her.

so i was uber excited when i noticed that this month is WC appreciation month, or more formally, October Tried & Tasted: Wandering Chopsticks, hosted by the Recipe Center. if i don't hit up my grandmother, then i go to WC for my vietnamese food fix. she knows everything. you want to know about fish sauce, she's got something on it. you want to know how to properly wash and cook rice? she's got you. she's like a one stop shop... restaurant reviews, her brand of soy sauce preferences, recipes of many nationalities, gardening tips and basic all around awesomeness. i've already created a few of her creations, and i intend to still use her as a point of reference and inspiration, so this challenge wasn't really much of a stretch for me. i made her Ma Po Tofu, a dish i made some time ago but now i'll just use her recipe cus it is the SHIT. it's effing pure genius. she asked me if she needed to tweek it and i was like, WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?! translation: no, please don't, why mess with pure perfection?

i actually had to make this dish twice in as many weeks. the first time turned out great but the camera that had the pix of such greatness was left at a friend's house and i wasn't about to trek 45 minutes to pick up said camera. my solution? to make the dish again, only this time, directing Nuria thru the process. the only change i made was the amount of spiciness and use of peppercorn. that's just a taste preference, everything else, it's all WC.

i've also been inspired by or made few dishes of WC's:

Lemongrass Chili, her version, which she sent me a stash to compare. again, don't be jealous!
Ca Ri Ga in a French Bread Bowl, she made a Ca Ri Ga Pot Pie (ingenius)
10 Cloves of Garlic Chicken, her version with 40 Cloves
Bò Kho, her version
Steamed Fish with Ginger and Scallions, her version.
Sichuan Green Beans, her version.
Thịt Kho, her version.

Today's song: Charlotte Martin, Darkest Hour

Daring Baker's Macaron

2009-10-27T00:12:00.000-07:00

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern.

Dear Fellow Daring Bakers,
it was down to the wire for me. i baked these little suckers sunday night, with a wallop of a hang over. add to that mix, not much enthusiasm. i think the reason why i did this challenge so last minute is because i'm not a fan of macarons. i don't even know if i'm pronouncing it properly. is it "mack-a-RON" like the guy's name or "mack-a-roooooon" like how i think it should be pronounced, even tho it is missing an "O". actually. a macaroon is an entirely different sweet. this just proves my point that macarons are the devil.

they did not come out fluffy, more flat than anything and entirely too sweet for my palate. further, i was annoyed as shit when it had two bake temperatures! waiting for temps to go up and down, not my idea of how to nurse a hang over. so my results don't have the cute little feets and bodies that everyone else will, but that's ok.

till next month, keep those ovens HOT!
Angry Asian

check out what the rest of the daring bakers came up with on the blogroll.

macaron
Ingredients:

Confectioners’ (Icing) sugar: 2 ¼ cups (225 g, 8 oz.)
Almond flour: 2 cups (190 g, 6.7 oz.)
Granulated sugar: 2 tablespoons (25 g , .88 oz.)
Egg whites: 5 (Have at room temperature)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.

2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.

3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.

4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.

5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).

6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored.

7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Warm & Fuzzy ~ Lentil Soup

2009-10-22T00:12:00.000-07:00

i'm not a naturally warm and fuzzy kind of person. i'm not a bad person but i certainly am not what one would call kind. i'm too practical. and i'm not fishing for compliments or anyone to contradict what i'm saying either. any of my close circle of friends will tell you that i'm not the go-to person for empathy. when i say i'm not naturally like that, that's not to say that i can't be like that. sure, i can do and say all the right things. you just broke up with your boyfriend, i will wail, burn his stuff with you and talk shit about him with you. you need a pick me up, i will be your cheerleader, saying all the right positive things you need and really want to hear. however, when you're sick my first instinct is to haul ass out of the room to avoid contamination. i will wish you luck, tell you to chug some nyquil and call me when you're feeling better. for me when i'm sick, i just want to dig a hole, climb in and wallow alone. i don't like being checked up on, i don't like having to check in, i just want to recover at my leisure, in peace... Alone.

however, i realize not everyone is like me. some people like being coddled, fawned over, taken care of. i get it. when Nuria was feeling under the weather recently, i threw together a lentil soup. apparently it doesn't get too cold in Spain and this schizophrenic changing weather of autumn is wreaking havoc on her system. i did throw in a dash of cayenne pepper, to bring some heat to the soup. whenever i was a sick as a kid, my grandparents would make me rice porridge and load up on the black pepper. used to make me sweat. personally, i didn't love the soup but nuria really dug into it. i'd like to say that i have magic cooking skills, strong enough to cure ailments. cus you know it's not cus of my kindness that is curing her! :)

Lentil Soup
adapted from Almost Meatless by Joy Manning and Tara Mataraza Desmond

1 Tbl olive oil
4 oz bacon
1 small onion, diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 small fennel bulb, diced
1 Tbl tomato paste
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup of crushed tomatos
1 1/2 cups brown lentils
6 cups of water
1 bay leaf
dash of cayenne pepper
1 Tbl balsamic vinegar

heat up the oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. add the bacon and cook till done. remove bacon and set aside. Add the onions, celery, carrots, fennel and salt. adjust the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for at least 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are softened. Add the tomato past, stirring well to coat the vegetables and cook for about 2 minutes to melt the paste. Add the garlic, tomatoes, lentils, bay leaf and water. Turn the heat to high, bring to a boil, and then reduce the heat to medium low. Simmer for 30 minutes. Remove and chuck bay leaf.

now, the recipes calls for pureeing, i ix-nayed that part. it's originally a cheesy soup, with the use of parmesan or romano cheese. i wasn't having any of that. i just served the soup as was, drizzled with balsamic vinegar.

Today's song: Damien Jurado, What Were the Chances

Risotto and Roasted Beets

2009-10-20T00:12:00.000-07:00

for this month's beet n squash challenge, hosted by Leela of SheSimmers and Mel Bouchon For Two, i made a simple risotto, using up some leftover arborio rice from a few months ago. i thought of cooking the beets along with the risotto, because really, the damn thing takes forever to cook up. however, beets take forever and then some to soften. plus, the thought of the rice being dyed a pink kinda reddish hue freaked me out. it would've looked kinda human organ-like. just trust me, it's better the way i did it. not that what i did was very revolutionary, i cooked the arborio rice according to package instructions, for the 20some odd minutes, with some white wine and homemade stock. before that, for about 1.5 hours in the oven, the beets were roasting at 350degrees in their aluminum foil. prior to wrapping and then throwing them in the oven tho, i did drizzle a bit of evoo and sprinkled some rosemary and salt on it. you know, treating it like a potato, a bleeding one at that.

right when the risotto was about done, i unwrapped the beets and cubed them. now, i guess i could've thrown them in with the risotto as i finished up but again, the bleeding thing, turning the pasta/rice red... it's a mental block, i tell you. just couldn't do it. so i used it more as a garnish, rather than an equal.

whatever, it worked. the risotta was still slightly al dente and the beets still had a bite to it. it worked tho, the contrast between the two ingredients.

it can't be said that this dish really reflects my culture. i didn't grow up with risotto or beets, together or separately. however, in recent times, i've expanded my palate. and the way i decided to cook the beets is definitely indicative of my nature: lazy. i'm serious. i'm lazy by nature, i enjoy cooking yes, but holy shit, if there is a chance to cook lazily but the results come out looking like i slaved over it, i'm in.

Six Minute Chocolate Cake

2009-10-16T00:12:00.000-07:00

i found myself in an awful mood last friday. something about the coming cold weather, early sunset really puts me in a funk. it had been a busy day, needy phone calls, random errands and even tho there was a prospect of happy hour with some friends, the cloud over my head would not dissipate. i remember thinking that i shouldn't be so down, nothing can be that serious that i quite literally want to crawl into bed, pull my comforter over my head and ignore everyone. i also remember feeling bad for being in the dumps. now i know it's ok. i mean, it's been a rough week in general, but i've survived it, with a little help from my friends... and chocolate cake.

later that friday night, after Nuria left for an evening out, i found myself too restless to crochet, too preoccupied to pay attention to anything on tv. so i thought back to the one chocolate cake i remember Shannalee of Food Loves Writing made some time ago. {yes, my elephant memory remembers the most random things, but i think, the most important things...} with just a few ingredients that i always have on hand, the mixing was minimal. even tho i didn't actually dig into it until the next day, for breakfast, the aroma of the cake baking soothed something in me. it took me a few minutes to find the recipe, 6 minutes to mix, and at minute 12 of baking, the smell hit me. the cake came out soft, deliciously tacky, leaving a thin coat on my fingers, giving me cause to lick them, quite enthusiastically i might add. i also threw in a handful of reeses peanut butter chips.

Six Minute Chocolate Cake
from Food Loves Writing, from Carol Cutler’s The Six-Minute Souffle and Other Culinary Delights

1 cup sugar (i used 2/3 cup)
1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup oil
1 cup water
handful peanut butter chips (optional, it was handy and it tickled my fancy)

2 Tablespoons vinegar (i used just regular)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Select an 8 X 8 X 2 pan or a 9″ round cake pan. Add all ingredients, except the vinegar, to the pan. Stir with a fork or wire whisk until thoroughly blended.

Add vinegar and stir quickly to thoroughly blend in the vinegar, and immediately place in the hot oven. There must be no delay in baking after the vinegar is added.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the center is slightly puffed and the sides begin to pull away from the pan. Cool. Sprinkle top with confectioner’s sugar or frost with chocolate frosting.

Cooking ahead: Six-minute chocolate cake is better if allowed to mellow for a day.

Today's song: Paolo Nutini, Autumn

Carrot Bread ~ Making Up For Lost Time

2009-10-14T00:12:00.000-07:00

i started wearing glasses in the 5th grade. my (step)mother was horrified. i was already gawky and now this would be another blemish on my person, bad eyesight and having to wear wire rims. she got in her head that she would do what she could do to improve my eyesight. by forcing carrot juice down my throat everyday after school.

yes. 8oz of pulverized carrot juice everyday. my feelings for this particular vegetable was rocky, at best. correction. it was more like "fuck you carrots, damn you to Hell", if that is really a feeling and in my case, yes, it's a feeling.

however, recently, i decided to use up some carrots i had in the fridge, not enough for anything and truth be told, not really enough for the bread but somehow i figured i wouldn't be too heartbroken over it. the bread came out moist, fluffy, absolute perfection. Nuria had two slices right out the oven, and i had a slice everyday for breakfast. my eyesight still isn't great, the glasses are gone ... carrots are not going to save this blemish but at least now i can call a truce on the damn things.

Carrot Bread
adapted from the Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum

1.5 cups plus 1.5 Tbl AP flour
1/2 Tbl baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
3 large eggs
1/2 cup veggie oil
3/4 cup sugar, actually i put in just under that
2 cups finely grated carrots
1/8 tsp allspice
1/2 Tbl cumin

Preheat oven to 350F 20 minutes before baking.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice and cumin. In another bowl, mix together the eggs, oil and sugar until blended. Add the flour mixture and continue stirring/beating just until incorporated. add the carrots and continue mixing.

Scrape the batter into a bread pan (9X5" loaf pan, sprayed with nonstick oil or greased). Bake for about an hour, or until the top is golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. (mine went for about 50 minutes) Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes, then run a small spatula between the sides of the pan and unmold it onto an oiled wire rack. Wrap the loaf well in plastic wrap and allow to sit overnight to distribute the moisture. If you can't wait till the next day, it's fine, just be sure to allow the bread to cool completely before cutting.

Enduring Friendship - Spiced Pork Loin Roast

2009-10-09T00:12:00.000-07:00

*** there will be a giveaway...***

what i find most fascinating about today's technology is that it allows for the most random of people to be in touch. having travelled as much as i did, it's a wonder to me that i'm able to reach out, simply thru facebook, to people i never in a million years thought i would ever talk to again... people i was classmates with in 5th grade, in manila, in an environment where everyone moved every year, in a time when the standard form of cheap communication was writing letters by hand to be mailed (i think stamps were 23cents then!). i have a facebook friend who i knew in 3rd grade, who was friends with my cousin. i have another friend, this one from college, who, while we had a lot of fun working together at a rinky dink bagel shop (sorority girls were our usual target for smack talk) and hanging out at bars, i didn't think our friendship was deep enough to last beyond the time we were actually in school. to be fair, Jessica and i didn't share classes, i lived on campus and she's older than me, so she had a set of her own friends too. Facebook has helped alot in the sense that we know what the other is up to without being intrusive. i haven't seen her in 8 years but like the blue ridge mountains that i loved seeing when driving to and from school, our friendship has endured all this time. and in fact, thru Facebook (or was it myspace?), we found out that we both share a love for Lord the Rings (her dog's named Arwen, how cool is that?!). recently, during some facebook stalking, i found out that she and her husband Curtis have a spice company. naturally, i had to buy something, to show my support and because i just like having different spices in my pantry.

Blue Ridge Blends gives forth custom made spice blends, dry marinades and rubs. um. they even named one after me! don't be jealous. i purchased Saera's Seasoning Salt, because really, i love salt. for me, this is perfect used with my veggies and i have reached for it more when i'm cooking than my kosher salt. i also bought my namesake spice. come on! i had to, i'm way too egotistical not to! the Angry Asian Pork Rub provided a nice kick to the meat, it was not overwhelming, the flavor subtle. i adapted a pork loin recipe around this spice and it turned out lovely.

now as mentioned at the beginning of the post, this is a giveaway post in support for Jessica's company. All you have to do is visit her site, check out her inventory, leave me a comment with which spice you'd like. i will randomly pick a comment and that person will receive the spice blend in the mail. i will ship anywhere in the world. Deadline Friday, October 16th, at noon EST.

Pot-Roast Pork
adapted from One Pot Recipes by Linda Doeser

1 Tbl olive oil
2 oz/55g butter
2 lbs boned and rolled pork loin
1 small onion, diced
2 fresh thyme springs
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar (recipe calls for 2/3 cup hard cider but i didn't have any)
2/3 cup chicken stock or water
8 celery stalks, chopped
2 large potatoes, rough chopped bite-size
2 Tbl all-purpose flour
2/3 cup heavy cream
enough Angry Asian Pork rub to season loin

take pork loin from fridge and bring up to room temp, about 20-30 minutes. rub the season around, coating it.

heat the oil and half the butter in a heavy bottom pan. add the pork and cover medium heat, turning frequently, for 5-10 minutes, or until browned. transfer to a plate.

add the onions to the pan and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, or until softened. add thyme sprigs and return the pork to the pan, with any juices that have collected on the plate. pour in the vinegar and stock, season to taste, then cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Turn the pork over and add the celery and potato. Cover the pan and cook for an additional 40 minutes.

***(i did not add this part) meanwhile, make a beurre manie by mashing the remaining butter with the flour in a small bowl. Transfer the pork, potato and celery to a plate with a slotted spoon and keep warm. Remove and throw out the thyme. whisk the beurre manie, a bit at a time, into the simmering cooking liquid. Cook, stirring constantly for 2 minutes, then stir in the cream and bring to a boil. Slice the pork and spoon over a little of the sauce over it.

Today's Song, 16 Frames, Coming Home

what is left: Watercress Soup with Cayenne Shrimp

2009-10-07T00:12:00.000-07:00

it is weird how the cycles of everyday life changes so much. i used to want to live like a wild bohemian, jet setting around the globe but all the while maintaining a flower child mystique. reality settled in that such a life was not feasible and i thought maybe a Quiet Life would suffice, working day in and day out, holding hands with my Love, laughing with my friends and of course, playing with food to my heart's content. for the most part, that is the life i lead but every so often, the heavens like to remind me that what was left behind can and will pop back up and force me to face it. it's no secret i went thru a very quiet rebellion growing up, silently seething thru 8 years under a strict father's rules and then an additional 4 years of college, away from home but not really because his reach extended that far, despite my efforts to attend an in state college that was 255 miles away.

i wasn't very surprised recently when i received an early morning text from my middle sister pam. she had snuck out of the house, got caught while still out, and refused to go home. it sounded so familiar. the cycle was starting uh-gain, just with a different player. it is tiresome, i'm not even in the thick of things and i'm tired! she won't take my advice to go home, nor will she take my advice to just leave home. so i have nothing left to give her.

kinda like the soup i made recently. my fridge was bare, just the barest minimum of food left, some stuff on the brink of rotting. i had a bag of watercress that i had bought on a lark, for 99cents and never got around to making into a salad. i had a few leftover loose shrimp. so i made soup. the day called for something comforting, something simple, using up leftover ingredients. having used what was left, the meal was creamy with the peppery bite of the watercress and the spicy kick of the cayenne i used in the shrimp. perfection in a bowl, to rejuvenate the one who leads the Quiet Life.

Watercress Soup with Cayenne Shrimp

a bundle of watercress, washed
1 cup frozen spinach
about 3/4 cup day old cooked rice
left over scallions/green onions, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
salt/pepper to taste
2-3 cups homemade chicken or veggie stock
a few shrimps, cleaned and de-shelled
cayenne pepper
milk, whatever amount you want to, creaminess being up to you
sour cream (optional)
olive oil

in a pot, heat up some olive oil. when hot, throw in the garlic and scallions, take care not to burn. next add in the watercress, sauteing until wilted thru. finally add in the spinach. heat thru thoroughly. pour in the which ever stock you're using and bring to a boil. this soup can be as thick and creamy as you'd like. at this point, i normally blend, in batches, with my hand blender until smooth. then i add the milk. salt/pepper to taste.

meanwhile, sprinkle some cayenne pepper over cleaned and dried shrimp. amount is up to you but be careful, cayenne is spicy! heat up some olive oil in a small pan and cook up the shrimp, just a few minutes is needed.

to serve, ladle soup into bowls and add a few shrimps. i put in a spoonful of sour cream because the shrimp ended up being far spicier than expected and i needed to mellow it out.

today's song: Richard Walters, Elephant in the Room

Recipes to Rival: Boeuf Bourguignon

2009-10-01T00:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Fellow Recipes to Rivalers,
it's autumn here. as always, i love seeing autumn in pictures but i don't necessarily like being in the midst of autumn. i waited till the last possible day to make my pot of boeuf bourguignon, it was warm in the early part of the month and i wanted there to be a chill in the air while the beef simmered in the wine sauce. alas, the day before BB-Day, it was wet and dreary. the day off tho, it warmed up considerably, allowing for a lovely leisurely stroll thru Mt. Vernon during a weekend long book fair. figures.

i have a few confessions to make. 1. i can't say that i am a Julia Child fan. i thought her speech was weird and as a kid, had i stood next to her, i honestly would've thought she was a gigantic monster. 2. i do not like red wine so cooking with it is not my idea of good use of my time or good meat that cost me money, as evidenced by my abyssmal attempt back in april with chicken. 3. i thought the movie Julie/Julia was too long, both characters (julie and julia) to be whiny and for the love of god, how in the world did the girl fall asleep while her boeuf bourguignon was in the oven?! (i also did not have the inclination to chug from the bottle of wine as i poured it into my pot.)

my main thing was that on BB-Day i realized i don't have a casserole pan/pot/dish that can be used on the stove top AND in the oven. i'm just not that kitchen equipped (yet!). further, i wasn't sure how i felt about leaving my oven on while i was traipsing in the city, browsing books and eating funnel cake (that was so yum, btw). my twitter friends said it was ok, especially on low 325, but nuria was freaked out and her freaking out spread to me freaking out and i compromised and put the damn thing in a crockpot. she was still apprehensive but i've left my crockpot on all day before and really, they're designed for that!

coming home a few hours later with arms full of books (btw, bought two cookbooks. nuria and i are determined to make 1 recipe/book/week.), we were not hungry as we had pigged the EFF out on funnel cake. so i let it simmer, completed the mushroom and onions step. put it all together and what do you get? utter deliciousness. damn thing took all day to finish and it tasted like it did. the butter in the mushroom and onions hurt my stomach (i hate being a lactard) but the meat was tender, the sauce was divine (i chose a red from Four Sisters) and i can't complain about how it turned out. Jason liked my Beef in Beer Stew better whereas Nuria liked this better. My account rep at work, Steve, really liked this as well. will i make this again... eh. there are other just as tasty beef stews out there that takes less time to come together. i will say that Julia Child knew her shit.

Thanks to our hostess Heather of Randomosity and the Girl
Until next time, keep your stove clean and hot!
Angry Asian

Please click on "Read More" for full recipe.

for more boeuf bourguignon, hit the blogroll.

Boeuf Bourguignon
Yield: For 6 people

Ingredients
A 6-ounce chunk of bacon
1 Tb olive oil or cooking oil
3 lbs. lean stewing beef cut into 2-inch cubes (see Notes)
1 sliced carrot
1 sliced onion
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
2 Tb flour
3 cups of a full-bodied, young red wine such as one of those suggested for serving, or a Chianti
2 to 3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
1 Tb tomato paste
2 cloves mashed garlic
½ tsp thyme
A crumbled bay leaf
The blanched bacon rind
18 to 24 small white onions, brown-braised in stock
1 lb. quartered fresh mushrooms sautéed in butter
Parsley sprigs

Directions
Remove bacon rind and cut bacon into lardons (sticks, ¼ inch thick and 1½ inches long). Simmer rind and bacon for 10 minutes in 1½ quarts of water. Drain and dry.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Sauté the bacon in the oil over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Set casserole aside. Reheat until fat is almost smoking before you sauté the beef.

Dry the beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Sauté it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.

In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the sautéing fat.

Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with the salt and pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole, and turn oven down to 325 degrees.

Stir in the wine, and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs, and bacon rind. Bring to simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers very slowly for 2½ to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.

While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions and mushrooms. Set them aside until needed.

When the meat is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms over the meat.

Skim fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2½ cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons of stock or canned bouillon. Taste carefully for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables.

Recipe may be completed in advance to this point.

FOR IMMEDIATE SERVING: Cover the casserole and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce several times. Serve in its casserole, or arrange the stew on a platter surrounded with potatoes, noodles, or rice, and decorated with parsley.

FOR LATER SERVING: When cold, cover and refrigerate. About I5 to 20 minutes before serving, bring to the simmer, cover, and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes, occasionally basting the meat and vegetables with the sauce.

Notes
Equipment: A 9- to 10-inch fireproof casserole 3 inches deep and a slotted spoon

Cuts of Meat for Stewing:

The better the meat, the better the stew. While cheaper and coarser cuts may be used, the following are most recommended. Count on one pound of boneless meat, trimmed of fat, for two people; three if the rest of the menu is large.

First choice: Rump Pot Roast (Pointe de Culotte or Aiguillette de Rumsteck)

Other choices: Chuck Pot Roast (Paleron or Macreuse a Pot-au-feu), Sirloin Tip (Tranche Grasse), Top Round (Tende de Tranche), or Bottom Round (Gîte a la Noix).

Vegetable and Wine Suggestions:

Boiled potatoes are traditionally served with this dish. Buttered noodles or steamed rice may be substituted. If you also wish a green vegetable, buttered peas would be your best choice. Serve with the beef a fairly full-bodied, young red wine, such as Beaujolais, Côtes du Rhône, Bordeaux-St. Émilion, or Burgundy.

Steamed Red Snapper with Ginger, Scallions & Shiitake Mushrooms

2009-09-29T00:12:00.000-07:00

"The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking you've got to have a what-the-hell attitude.” ~Julia Child

i recently had two chances to face one of my biggest fears in the kitchen: cooking fish. opening a can of ~~whoop ass~~ tuna does not count. i've made Cá Kho Tộ before but it was with a fish fillet, not a whole fish. doesn't count. however, during a recent grocery jaunt, i told nuria to go ahead and pick up whatever fish was on sale that day and we'd make a go at cooking it. she came back with two lovely red snappers, already beheaded, gutted and cleaned. for one, i roasted with a bunch of veggies, a recipe i had spotted in a saveur magazine some time ago. unfortunately, the pictures did not turn out as well as the fish tasted. a few weeks later, i remembered that we had another snapper in the freezer and i decided to steam it, like how wandering chopstick did. my steps are a little bit different and i added shiitake mushrooms. my only regret is, again, the pictures are still not that great. next time i make this, i'll keep the heads. scary but i think it makes for better presentation.

Steamed Red Snapper with Ginger, Scallions and Shiitake Mushrooms
(Ca Hap Gung Hanh)
inspired and adapted from Wandering Chopstick

again, i don't have exact measurements. it's all dependent upon taste and size of the fish.

1 red snapper (or any white fish that'll hold up to being steamed), cleaned & gutted
2 Tbls worth of julienned ginger, divided use
2 stalks of scallions (green onions), one cut in 1" pieces and the other diced
soy sauce
fish sauce
shiitake mushrooms, sliced
2-3 Tbl light oil, like veggie or canola (not olive oil which would be too fruity)
sesame oil, just to drizzle at the end for some awesome asian aroma (optional)

with the fish already cleaned, i stuffed it with some ginger and the 1" scallion pieces. i also seasoned inside and out with salt & pepper. then, i loosely wrapped it in foil, creating basically a tent. also, add in a handful of the mushrooms. i don't have steamer so i used my wok, adding about an inch or so of water. then i put in my colander, the water should not reach beyond the bottom holes. bring water to a simmer. put in the foiled fish with a lid on top and allow to steam for about 25-30 minutes (depending on size... just until the the flesh loses it's translucent color and is flaky.)

meanwhile, in a sauce pan add in the oil, diced scallions, the rest of the ginger, soy sauce and fish sauce. heat the sauce thru.

when the fish is cooked, carefully open the foil tent, the steam inside is hot. put fish on plate. arrange the cooked mushrooms and raw mushrooms around fish. slowly pour the hot oil sauce over the fish. finish with a light drizzle of the sesame oil. serve with hot steamed rice.

Today's Song: Toad the Wet Sprocket, Walk On the Ocean

Sept Daring Bakers: Vols-au-Vent turned Bánh Pâté Chaud style

2009-09-27T00:12:00.000-07:00

The September 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking With Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

Dear Fellow Daring Bakers,
you'll be proud of me this month, i started on the challenge early. i went savory and opted to do Bánh Pâté Chaud style. while i appreciated the learning and actual doing process of this recipe, i highly doubt i would ever do it again. it's so much easier to buy it already made in the frozen section of the supermarket. but at least now i know how to do it.

the meat filling i used was also the same filling i used for my wonton soup. totally killed two birds with one stone that weekend.

the end result just so reminded me of my childhood with my grandfather. he loved Bánh Pâté Chaud, the flaky layers and mostly the hot meat inside. i was jumping up and down with excitement over how well it turned out.

as usual, i did the mixing of the ingredients and nuria did the pounding and folding.
for more gorgeous interpretations of this month's challenge, hit the blogroll.

until next time, keep those ovens warm and your rolling pin clean,
Angry Asian and Nuria

(click "Read More" for full recipe)

Prep Times:
-about 4-5 hours to prepare the puff pastry dough (much of this time is inactive, while you wait for the dough to chill between turns…it can be stretched out over an even longer period of time if that better suits your schedule)
-about 1.5 hours to shape, chill and bake the vols-au-vent after your puff pastry dough is complete

Forming and Baking the Vols-au-Vent
Yield: 1/3 of the puff pastry recipe below will yield about 8-10 1.5” vols-au-vent or 4 4” vols-au-vent

In addition to the equipment listed above, you will need:
-well-chilled puff pastry dough (recipe below)
-egg wash (1 egg or yolk beaten with a small amount of water)
-your filling of choice

Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.

Using a knife or metal bench scraper, divided your chilled puff pastry dough into three equal pieces. Work with one piece of the dough, and leave the rest wrapped and chilled. (If you are looking to make more vols-au-vent than the yield stated above, you can roll and cut the remaining two pieces of dough as well…if not, then leave refrigerated for the time being or prepare it for longer-term freezer storage. See the “Tips” section below for more storage info.)

On a lightly floured surface, roll the piece of dough into a rectangle about 1/8 to 1/4-inch (3-6 mm) thick. Transfer it to the baking sheet and refrigerate for about 10 minutes before proceeding with the cutting.

(This assumes you will be using round cutters, but if you do not have them, it is possible to cut square vols-au-vents using a sharp chef’s knife.) For smaller, hors d'oeuvre sized vols-au-vent, use a 1.5” round cutter to cut out 8-10 circles. For larger sized vols-au-vent, fit for a main course or dessert, use a 4” cutter to cut out about 4 circles. Make clean, sharp cuts and try not to twist your cutters back and forth or drag your knife through the dough. Half of these rounds will be for the bases, and the other half will be for the sides. (Save any scrap by stacking—not wadding up—the pieces…they can be re-rolled and used if you need extra dough. If you do need to re-roll scrap to get enough disks, be sure to use any rounds cut from it for the bases, not the ring-shaped sides.)

Using a ¾-inch cutter for small vols-au-vent, or a 2- to 2.5-inch round cutter for large, cut centers from half of the rounds to make rings. These rings will become the sides of the vols-au-vent, while the solid disks will be the bottoms. You can either save the center cut-outs to bake off as little “caps” for you vols-au-vent, or put them in the scrap pile.

Dock the solid bottom rounds with a fork (prick them lightly, making sure not to go all the way through the pastry) and lightly brush them with egg wash. Place the rings directly on top of the bottom rounds and very lightly press them to adhere. Brush the top rings lightly with egg wash, trying not to drip any down the sides (which may inhibit rise). If you are using the little “caps,” dock and egg wash them as well.

Refrigerate the assembled vols-au-vent on the lined baking sheet while you pre-heat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC). (You could also cover and refrigerate them for a few hours at this point.)

Once the oven is heated, remove the sheet from the refrigerator and place a silicon baking mat (preferred because of its weight) or another sheet of parchment over top of the shells. This will help them rise evenly. Bake the shells until they have risen and begin to brown, about 10-15 minutes depending on their size. Reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF (180ºC), and remove the silicon mat or parchment sheet from the top of the vols-au-vent. If the centers have risen up inside the vols-au-vent, you can gently press them down. Continue baking (with no sheet on top) until the layers are golden, about 15-20 minutes more. (If you are baking the center “caps” they will likely be finished well ahead of the shells, so keep an eye on them and remove them from the oven when browned.)

Remove to a rack to cool. Cool to room temperature for cold fillings or to warm for hot fillings.

Fill and serve.

*For additional rise on the larger-sized vols-au-vents, you can stack one or two additional ring layers on top of each other (using egg wash to "glue"). This will give higher sides to larger vols-au-vents, but is not advisable for the smaller ones, whose bases may not be large enough to support the extra weight.

*Although they are at their best filled and eaten soon after baking, baked vols-au-vent shells can be stored airtight for a day.

*Shaped, unbaked vols-au-vent can be wrapped and frozen for up to a month (bake from frozen, egg-washing them first).

Michel Richard’s Puff Pastry Dough
From: Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan
Yield: 2-1/2 pounds dough

Steph’s note: This recipe makes more than you will need for the quantity of vols-au-vent stated above. While I encourage you to make the full recipe of puff pastry, as extra dough freezes well, you can halve it successfully if you’d rather not have much leftover.

There is a wonderful on-line video from the PBS show “Baking with Julia” that accompanies the book. In it, Michel Richard and Julia Child demonstrate making puff pastry dough (although they go on to use it in other applications). They do seem to give slightly different ingredient measurements verbally than the ones in the book…I listed the recipe as it appears printed in the book. http://video.pbs.org/video/1174110297/search/Pastry

Ingredients:
2-1/2 cups (12.2 oz/ 354 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1-1/4 cups (5.0 oz/ 142 g) cake flour
1 tbsp. salt (you can cut this by half for a less salty dough or for sweet preparations)
1-1/4 cups (10 fl oz/ 300 ml) ice water
1 pound (16 oz/ 454 g) very cold unsalted butter

plus extra flour for dusting work surface

Mixing the Dough:

Check the capacity of your food processor before you start. If it cannot hold the full quantity of ingredients, make the dough into two batches and combine them.

Put the all-purpose flour, cake flour, and salt in the work bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse a couple of times just to mix. Add the water all at once, pulsing until the dough forms a ball on the blade. The dough will be very moist and pliable and will hold together when squeezed between your fingers. (Actually, it will feel like Play-Doh.)

Remove the dough from the machine, form it into a ball, with a small sharp knife, slash the top in a tic-tac-toe pattern. Wrap the dough in a damp towel and refrigerate for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the butter between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and beat it with a rolling pin until it flattens into a square that's about 1" thick. Take care that the butter remains cool and firm: if it has softened or become oily, chill it before continuing.

Incorporating the Butter:

Unwrap the dough and place it on a work surface dusted with all-purpose flour (A cool piece of marble is the ideal surface for puff pastry) with your rolling pin (preferably a French rolling pin without handles), press on the dough to flatten it and then roll it into a 10" square. Keep the top and bottom of the dough well floured to prevent sticking and lift the dough and move it around frequently. Starting from the center of the square, roll out over each corner to create a thick center pad with "ears," or flaps.

Place the cold butter in the middle of the dough and fold the ears over the butter, stretching them as needed so that they overlap slightly and encase the butter completely. (If you have to stretch the dough, stretch it from all over; don't just pull the ends) you should now have a package that is 8" square.

To make great puff pastry, it is important to keep the dough cold at all times. There are specified times for chilling the dough, but if your room is warm, or you work slowly, or you find that for no particular reason the butter starts to ooze out of the pastry, cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate it . You can stop at any point in the process and continue at your convenience or when the dough is properly chilled.

Making the Turns:

Gently but firmly press the rolling pin against the top and bottom edges of the square (this will help keep it square). Then, keeping the work surface and the top of the dough well floured to prevent sticking, roll the dough into a rectangle that is three times as long as the square you started with, about 24" (don't worry about the width of the rectangle: if you get the 24", everything else will work itself out.) With this first roll, it is particularly important that the butter be rolled evenly along the length and width of the rectangle; check when you start rolling that the butter is moving along well, and roll a bit harder or more evenly, if necessary, to get a smooth, even dough-butter sandwich (use your arm-strength!).

With a pastry brush, brush off the excess flour from the top of the dough, and fold the rectangle up from the bottom and down from the top in thirds, like a business letter, brushing off the excess flour. You have completed one turn.

Rotate the dough so that the closed fold is to your left, like the spine of a book. Repeat the rolling and folding process, rolling the dough to a length of 24" and then folding it in thirds. This is the second turn.

Chilling the Dough:

If the dough is still cool and no butter is oozing out, you can give the dough another two turns now. If the condition of the dough is iffy, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes. Each time you refrigerate the dough, mark the number of turns you've completed by indenting the dough with your fingertips. It is best to refrigerate the dough for 30 to 60 minutes between each set of two turns.

The total number of turns needed is six. If you prefer, you can give the dough just four turns now, chill it overnight, and do the last two turns the next day. Puff pastry is extremely flexible in this regard. However, no matter how you arrange your schedule, you should plan to chill the dough for at least an hour before cutting or shaping it.

Dinner of Champions - Eggs Over Veggie Hash

2009-09-25T00:12:00.000-07:00

most of the time i'm inspired to make a proper meal for dinner: rice, meat dish and then soup. that is the typical meal i had growing up, in either grandparent's or parent's house. actually, any typical vietnamese household. one night, i rebelled. partially because i was home alone (Nuria had a date) and partially because i didn't have much in the fridge to drum up two proper dishes. plus, i wanted something quick. breakfast is quick. so i made breakfast for dinner.

Eggs Over Veggie Hash
Inspired by Just Eat Food

1 potato, whatever kind you have handy, cubed
1 stalk of celery, diced into bite size chunks
1 carrot, skinned and diced into bite size chunks
1/2 small onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, diced
whatever spices you like and have handy:
cayenne pepper
italian seasoning
cumin
salt/pepper
olive oil

boil the potato, celery and carrot for a few minutes, till tender. drain. in a skillet, heat up the oil. then add in the onions, sauteeing till translucent. throw in the garlic till fragrant. next, add the veggies and cook till the potatoes have a nice brown color to it, the carrots and celery are soft but still with some bite to it. add seasoning at your leisure, according to taste.

in the same skillet (or if you have another pan), put the veggies to the side and cook your egg sunny side up (how i like it) or whichever way you want to.

serve with egg on top of mound of veggies.

today's song: Jose Gonzalez, Crosses

Odds & Ends Ingredients = Yogurt Panna Cotta Topped with Balsamic Blackberries

2009-09-22T00:12:00.000-07:00

sometimes i just like to throw things together in the hopes that something good will come of it. most of the time it leaves me with odds and ends in the fridge, barely enough for a proper dish but too wasteful to throw out. i should've been a scientist, except i failed biology and chemistry in college, and i barely passed with the lowest level science (environmental science 101) for my general ed credits (D+, thanks). as a result, i'm constantly faced with the dilemma of what to make out of scraps. some time ago i had small portions of sour cream and yogurt and lord have mercy, some almost-rotting-but-not-quite-yet blackberries. i had made oven baked red snapper (with potatoes, olives, and fennel) for dinner and i needed a simple but delightful dessert. in walks panna cotta. simple enough, i've made it before to good results and really, the perfect way to use up scraps.

the only thing i can complain about is that i didn't wait long enough for the panna cotta to set. it was hard to get out of the ramekin but when it finally did (with the assistance of hot water, a knife along the edge and alot of coaxing & cussing), topped with the cooled berries that had simmered in balsamic vinegar, the combination was ...melting. weird description, i know but that's exactly what it did on my tongue. it was soft, almost sweet but not like i was snorting sugar and that added tang of the blackberries at the end was just what i needed.

Yogurt Panna Cotta topped with Blackberry Balsamic Sauce
Panna Cotta adapted from Sugar Plum

2 tablespoons cold water
1 1/2 teaspoons gelatin
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup granulated sugar (i measured just shy of 1/3 cup)
2/3 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pour 2 tablespoons cold water in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over water, stir until dissolved, set aside for a minute.

Whisk together milk and sugar, in a large saucepan over medium heat. When mixture is hot, but not boiling, whisk mixture into gelatin, until well combined. Whisk in sour cream, yogurt and vanilla. Divide mixture into 4 ramekins. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours, or until ready to serve.

Dip the bottoms of ramekins in hot water. Run a knife around ramekin edges, and invert panna cotta onto serving plates. Drizzle with blackberry balsamic sauce, which is just some overripe blackberries and 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar brought to a slow simmer in a saucepan until reduced.

Today's song: Barcelona, Please Don't Go

Grateful & Perfect - Sweet Onion & Tomato Tart

2009-09-18T07:47:00.000-07:00

now that the summer is coming to an end and the end of the year looms, i don't know about anyone else but i'm scrambling to make use of my FSA and get my doctor appointments in. i have the poor habit of ignoring my body, stretching myself to the absolute limits and overlooking any ailments that may pop up and interrupt my busy schedule. however, in recent years health issues have popped up in the phamily -- my youngest sister has thyroid issues, i think every member on the paternal side has cholesterol and blood pressure problems and my oldest uncle has diabetes and a hereditary eye disease (paternal gma has it too). early this month i hauled ass to the doctor, who basically put the fear of Gawd in me. i've gained a lot of weight in recent months, i'm always slightly fatigued, my stomach constantly hurts, and my hair falls out to the point where my bathroom drain gets clogged every few months.

rest assured, i'm fine. in fact, my cholesterol is very, very, very good. kidneys and liver functions are excellent (face to haters who make fun of me for not drinking more) and my thyroid is normal. i lost 3lbs since that doctor visit. i am, however, potentially ~~a lactard~~ lactose intolerant. so i'm cutting out dairy {sob} from my diet to see if that's what's causing my stomach issues. wish me luck.

the news was weight off my shoulders (altho, i still am quite sleep deprived, i don't care what the doc says, 6 hours of sleep is not enough) and i am grateful for my health. (so grateful that i went drinking last night to celebrate, didn't do this blog post on time and i'm slightly hung over). not only am i grateful for my health, but i am grateful to my friends. in my previous post, i mentioned that Wandering Chopstick sent me her stash of lemongrass chili, but she also sent me some mini-tart pans!! i'd been looking for some mini-tart pans for awhile and voila, she gifted me some! don't be jealous. i made Sweet Onion and Tomato Tart to make use of these cute pans and dude, they were good. i'm a little in love with these pans. i'm a little in love with my friends. may your life be filled with these little goodnesses too. and may you always be grateful.

Basil Garlic Crust
from Ezra Pound Cake

1/3 cup fresh basil leaves
1 medium garlic clove
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 8 to 10 pieces
4-5 tablespoons ice water

1. Place the basil and garlic a food processor. Process, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until finely chopped. Add flour and salt; pulse to combine.

2. Add butter. Pulse about 10 times, or until the mixture resembles pea-sized crumbs.

3. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing several times after each addition. After 4 tablespoons water have been added, process the dough for several seconds to see if the mixture forms a ball. If not, add remaining water. Process until dough forms into a ball. Remove dough from processor.

4. Flatten the dough into a 5-inch disk. Wrap it in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (The dough can be placed in a zipper-lock plastic bag and refrigerated for several days or frozen for 1 month. If frozen, defrost the dough in the refrigerator.)

5. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle (or in my case, enough to cover mini-tart pan). Lay the dough over the tart pan, and press it into the pan. Trim the dough, and proceed with the recipe as directed.

Sweet Onion and Tomato Tart
i just kinda made it up

2 onions, sliced thin
1 tomato, sliced
olive oil
garlic, diced
salt and pepper to taste
some peas
dash of balsamic vinegar at the end

i sweated the onions in olive oil until brown and caramelized. when the tarts were ready to go, i plopped the onions in, topped with a tomato slice and strategically placed the peas around. baked in oven for about 20-30 minutes. done.

Today's song: Tori Amos, A Sorta Fairytale

cus i need another condiment in my fridge: Lemongrass Chili

2009-09-16T00:12:00.000-07:00

From an early age on I’ve always liked spicy food. I was capable at a young age to dip my dumplings in chili sauce, and sometimes I could be found picking out the tiny cut chili pieces in soy or fish dipping sauces, to add to my meal. That bite to the tongue, infusing my mouth with heat and causing my eyes to tear up was a welcome addition to whatever food I was eating: sandwiches, rice, noodles, soup, whatever. As I got older tho, my palate changed a bit. No longer was it necessary for me to douse my food in spicy sriracha sauce, rather, with just the right combination and amount, spice can be added to heighten a dish, and not so much overpower it. (I think, also, my stomach just cannot handle the heat anymore!)

This past summer I was able to successfully make my own guinness mustard and the next condiment, one would think, would be ketchup. However, I don’t love ketchup and I don’t use it that much (never mind that I rarely use mustard, but I love it). Homemade chili sauce seemed like the next obvious condiment. The recipes I found looked good but they all had expiration dates of 2 weeks – 1month. Not interested. At least the mustard lasts about 6 months. I need something to last awhile because I was going to make a lot. I needed a jar at home and one at work (my coworker and I like to add spice to pretty much anything we eat for lunch). Wandering Chopsticks’ Lemongrass Chili was just what I was looking for AND she told me it lasts for.ever.

Further, she sent me a sample of hers to compare with what I came up with. Don’t be jealous. when i inherited my last pattypan squash, i also snagged two chilis of unknown origin and heat factor. alright. i had a handful of chilis hanging out in the freezer and thanks to the last recipes to rival challenge, i had a few stalks of lemongrass handy. while i followed the outline of her recipe, i pretty much added things at my leisure. the end result was just right for my tastebuds. a bit sweet and salty and plenty hot. WC's sample was hotter and tasted strongly of lemongrass, with a lingering heat right at the base of my throat. again, don't be jealous she hooked me up with her stash! :)

what i would change for the next batch, because this would make excellent gifts now that i know it travels well: i would puree until it's smoother, maybe add some water or more oil to make it less dense. i'd like to put the concoction in a squeeze bottle for easier dispensing. i'm kinda anal about anybody who partakes in this spice fest to use only clean spoons (as one should but i definitely vocalize it loud and clear...) when digging into the jar. keep in mind, the spice factor is entirely up to you but for the instructions and list of ingredients, hit the recipe.

today's song: the Spice Girls, Spice Up Your Life

Comfort in a Bowl - Grandma's Wonton Soup

2009-09-14T00:12:00.000-07:00

did i ever tell you the story of when, at the age of 8, i ate 24 of my grandmother's wonton dumplings? no? well allow me. 24 may not seem like a lot, or maybe it does, but at the time, i was a scrawny little shit, shorter than most of my classmates and while i never went to bed hungry, i can't imagine it was cheap keeping me fed. i wasn't aware of all the details, but i do recall grandmother counting pennies for my lunch money everyday and that is why she holds such prime real estate in my heart.

what i recall of that day is that grandma put a bowl of hot soup in front of me, heaping with wonton dumplings, the wrappers slick but at the same time wrinkly, clinging to the meat filling. and every time i emptied my bowl with a declaration that i wanted more, she would smile and make me more. for awhile, rather than extolling my grades (because back then, i really was a good student) or pimping my dance moves (Michael Jackson had nothing on me), she would tell anybody and everybody that i ate 24 of her wonton dumplings in one sitting. a pat on my head would follow. rather than be embarrassed, i would be comforted. yet another thing grandma was proud of me for, eating an assload of her food, something so easy and so damn good.

so when last weekend i felt like ass warmed over, i wanted comfort food. something to warm my very being, something that could possibly put more spring in my step. i spent all day saturday not only working on my DB challenge and a homemade chili concoction, i made grandma's wonton dumplings. it is unbelievable and magical to me that despite how much my head and stomach hurt, i was able to stand in my kitchen all day and prepare this comfort food. because let me tell you, wrapping dumplings takes a hot minute! i meant it when i said on twitter that cooking/baking is such a balm for anything, especially when the end result brought such comfort to my sick body.

Wonton Soup
adapted from memory

*again, i don't have exact measurements, i dumped a lot of stuff in a bowl

Wonton wrappers
about 1 lb ground pork
wood ear fungus, rehydrated in hot water, roughly chopped
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, finely diced
some vermicelli noodles, hydrated in hot water, roughly chopped
fish sauce to taste
4oz pate
homemade chicken stock (really, you can use any kind of stock you want)

mix ground pork, fungus, onions, garlic, vermicelli, and pate together. add a dollop in the middle of wonton wrapper and make sure that you seal the meat in. i went simple and just folded the wrappers diagonally and sealed with a water/cornstarch mix. store in container covered with damp paper towel until ready to cook.

to cook, add to simmering pot of water (or stock) until wrappers are translucent. it doesn't take long for the meat to cook thru. to serve, put in bowls and pour hot stock over dumplings. consume as is, or dipped in hoisin/chili sauce.

Today's Song: Pat Monahan, Always Midnight

A Few Life Certainties: Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies

2009-09-10T00:12:00.000-07:00

of a few things i am certain: country music can be oh so sad sometimes (i'm listening to Sammy Kershaw's Matches right now), i am incapable of coloring between designated lines, i like reading obituaries (maudlin and emo, i know) and wedding and birth announcements (that should even out the whole creepy dark vibe and tip the scale to just plain sappy), and i don't like icing. that may be kinda un-american, verging on just odd but the sweet stickiness of icing does not sit well on my palate. even when my mother used to cut back the sugar in her icing, the richness of the butter in the icing would get to me. i always always always leave icing untouched on a slice of cake, sometimes my plate looking like it's playing host to an icing carcass. and don't get me started on fondant. since picking up the whisk and spatula, committing to following the rules of baking (ie. doing the exact measurements thing) and really making an effort to create edible sweet confections, i've been introduced to butter cream, ganache, and flavored whipping cream, and i'm still certain: icing is icing and icing is evil. and not in a good way.

so, dear readers, you'll be surprised and maybe even turned off to find out that i pulled a completely hypocritical thing this past weekend. i used an exorbitant amount of icing for delicious almond chocolate chip cookies and... well. um. the icing was store bought. I KNOW! but the thought of playing with the powdered sugar, butter and tracking down some amaretto liqueur annoyed me. so i bought whipped vanilla icing and called it a day. however, rest assured, these cookies turned out lovely. chewing, soft with a hint of crunch. definately good cookies. for certain.

Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies
slightly modified from Bella Eats who adapted from Giada di Laurentiis

makes 4 dozen cookies or 2 dozen cookie sandwiches

1/2 cup rolled oats
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour (i used 50/50 AP and Whole wheat flour)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar (i used about 2/3 cup of brown sugar, not very packed)
1 cup granulated sugar (again, about 2/3 cup of sugar)
2 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 tsp pure almond extract
1 (12 oz) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup whole almonds, toasted and chopped

i scaled back the amount of sugar used to offset the sweetness of the icing. i also broke down the prep into two days, a la NY Times Chocolate Chip Cookies, not adding the oats and chocolate chips until the day of baking (48 hours later).

Method:

Preheat oven to 325*. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Finely chop oats in a food processor (we used a small chopper) (i did this step separately and 48 hours later), mix in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer beat the butter and sugars in a large bowl until fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl and beat in the eggs and extract.

Add the flour mixture in 3 batches and mix until just blended.

Gently fold in the chocolate chips and almonds, and in my case, the rolled oats as well.

Drop dough (about one rounded tablespoon each) onto cookie sheet, two inches apart.

Do not flatten.

Bake until cookies are golden, about 13 minutes.

Cool the cookies on sheets for 5 minutes and then transfer to wire cooling rack.

Can be eaten sans icing (but with a glass of cold milk) or sandwich icing between two cookies.

today's song: Kings of Leon, Revelry

**i was at this show Tuesday night. great band.

Taste of Yellow: Mini-Ginger Cheesecake Topped with Lemon Curd

2009-09-08T00:12:00.000-07:00

my thought process in making these mini-cheesecakes was to comfort my roommate. she is in the throes of Harry Potter. when i made these last week, she was towards the end of the 5th novel and i knew a death was eminent. something needed to be available to her to nibble on. it was the least i could do, after all, i was the one who introduced her to the wizarding world.

the flavor of the cheesecake was a bit of puzzle for me. i normally go with the standard coffee or chocolate but this time, i noticed that LiveStrong with the Taste of Yellow 2009 was happening around now. so i went with lemon and ginger, for a last hoorah for summer and to show my support to such a worthy cause. this project is a way for food bloggers to raise awareness of cancer issues, thru their own experiences, indirectly or directly. i say a prayer to all who have been touched by this disease in any way.

Mini-Ginger Cheesecake Topped with Lemon Curd
adapted from The Craving Chronicles and Wives with Knives, respectively.

*note, i used a simple graham cracker crust. for 12 mini cupcakes molds, i used 5 sheets of graham cracker and i *think* 3TBL melted butter and just put them on the bottoms.

for the cheesecake filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/8 cup of sugar
1/8 cup of ginger syrup
4 pieces of candied ginger, finely diced

Preheat oven to 375° F. Line 12 cups of a mini muffin tin with paper liners or grease each cup very well.

For the filling, combine all the ingredients except for the candied ginger and mix with a handmixer, until smooth. Fold in the candied ginger. Spoon mixture into the cups, evenly distributing throughout all the cups.

Bake for 7-8 minutes. You don't want to cool them all the way thru, because the lemon curd will be put on top and then baked. It'll all bake thru at that point.

for the Lemon Curd:
4 egg yolks
1 tablespoon corn starch
1/2 cup of sugar, 1/4 ginger syrup
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 teaspoons worth of diced candied ginger
2 tablespoons butter

Blend egg yolks with the cornstarch, ginger syrup and sugar in a saucepan. Place over low heat and slowly whisk in water and lemon juice. Increase heat to medium, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Remove from heat, add lemon zest, candied ginger and butter. Cool for 10 minutes.

When ready to assemble, spoon over top of mini-cheesecakes. Bake for another 8-10 minutes, but no more than 15 minutes, until edges turn golden brown. Cool completely on rack before refrigerating. Serve cold.

i served this the next night and it was creamy with just a hint of tartness. the ginger taste was mellow, which is how the roommate likes it.

Today's Song: Kings of Leon, Notion

wishing for an indian summer but settling for stuffed pattypan squash instead

2009-09-04T00:12:00.000-07:00

if there were ever an appropriate time for me to begrudge autumn and the coming cold, it would be now. right when the day begins with just a bite of crisp coolness, a stark contrast to just the previous week, when the hazy heat pressed down on us mercilessly. it was like a flip of a switch, all of a sudden it got cold. and while the rest of my peers are rejoicing in the break in high temperatures, i lament over the loss of it. i suppose that the beauty of spring and autumn is the brutal extremes of winter and summer. somehow this thought still does not make me feel better about the rushing cool breeze that carries the hint of something mildly sinister throughout my abode.

when i inherited another pattypan squash this week, i decided to forgo the soup and stuff it instead. what with the chorizo i used and baking it in the oven to complete the cooking process, the end result presented something quite autumn-like. reddish-orange, warm and toasty, something hearty to dig into on a cool night, which is becoming quite common place now that september has crept in. i am still crossing my fingers for an indian summer tho.

Stuffed Pattypan Squash

1 pattypan, i'd say it was about 2lbs
1 spanish chorizo
1/2 cup day old cooked rice
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, finely diced
1 tomato, rough chopped

first soften the pattypan by baking it for about 40-45 minutes at 375*. cut off top and gut it of seeds. i didn't want to make it completely hallow because the entire pattypan, skin included, is edible. (so be sure to clean the squash completely) note, you should season inside of squash with salt. i forgot and it was kinda bland.

meanwhile, to make the stuffing, cook the chorizo in pan, grounding it. add in the garlic and onions, sauteeing and mix well together. add in the rice to warm thru, then add in the tomato. all done. stuff squash with mix.

throw back into oven at 350 for another 15-20 minutes, till squash is soft but not mushy. i thought of making a sauce but i was pretty lost with what kind so i ate as was.

today's song: Jason Mraz, You and I Both

Recipes to Rival: Lemongrass Risotto & Peas

2009-09-01T00:12:00.000-07:00

Dear Fellow Recipes to Rivalers,
this month's challenge is risotto. not only that, the broth to be used in said risotto had to be homemade. further, it had to be vegan & gluten free. it is hosted by Debyi of The Healthy Vegan Kitchen. the only change i made to this was that i used peas instead of asparagus. Nuria is not a fan and asparagus can be high up there in price. while the dish itself is vegan, i served it as a side to a meat dish. i made a lovely baked 10 cloves of garlic chicken. overall, the meal itself was lovely. the lemongrass broth provided a lovely aroma, reminiscent of an asian kitchen, the chili provided a kick at the base of the throat, not all that unpleasant and i added the peas at the last possible minute, so they were still firm and vibrantly green. i used a spanish moscato wine, giving the risotto an added sweetness.

i would definitely make this again, i have bag full of arborio rice to use up after all. i've made polenta cakes before, i wonder if it's possible to make risotto cakes? hmmm... the ideas! to see what everyone else made, hit up the blogroll.

and so, another challenge completed. till next time,
Angry Asian

Please click "read more" for the recipe.

Asparagus and Lemongrass Risotto
by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero from Veganomicon

Time: 1 hour 20 minutes Serves 4-6

Lemongrass Broth:
3 cloves garlic, whole and unpeeled
1” piece fresh ginger, sliced into ¼” slices
1 small stalk lemongrass, or 1 TBSP dried, chopped lemongrass
3 cups vegetable broth
3 cups water
3 TBSP tamari (or soy sauce, or more broth)

Risotto:
½ cup cooking sherry or white wine (D'Aquino Pinot Grigio is a good choice, any dry white wine, or just water)
1 lb asparagus
2 TBSP vegetable broth
1 cup basil leaves (Thai, if you can find it), sliced into thin strips
2 TBSP chopped fresh mint
6 large shallots, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 serrano red chile, sliced very thinly (or ½ – 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes)
1 ½ cups Arborio rice
1 tsp sugar (optional)
2 TBSP lime juice
Chopped roasted peanuts and lime wedges, for garnish (you can use pine nuts or sliced almonds instead of the peanuts)

1.If using fresh lemongrass, peel away and discard any brown stems from the stalk. Slice the stalk in half lengthwise and cut into 3” to 4” lengths, then julienne.

2.Give the garlic and the ginger a could whack with the side of your knife, keeping them whole. Prepare your herb pouch, if using.

3.Place all of the broth ingredients in a large stockpot and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain the broth, discarding the vegetables and herbs. Pour the broth back into the pot, cover and simmer over as low a heat as possible to keep warm.

4.Slice the asparagus into ½” pieces, removing any tough parts from the bottom of the stem. Separate the tips from the stems and place each in separate bowls.

5.In a medium-sized heavy-bottomed pot, saute the asparagus in 1 TBSP vegetable broth over medium heat until bright and crisp tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the basil and mint, saute for 30 seconds, remove from heat and set aside.

6.Add the remaining tablespoon vegetable broth to the pan. Saute the shallots and garlic, stirring occasionally, until shallots are very soft, about 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in the serrano and rice, saute for about 8 minutes, until the rice smells slightly toasted. Add the cooking sherry (or white wine) and stir constantly until the liquid is absorbed.

7.Now, time for relaxation and stirring. Get a glass of your favorite beverage, turn on some soothing music, or a good movie. Ladle about ½ cup of the broth at a time into the rice, stirring constantly until each addition is absorbed. Stir and cook until the rice is creamy but still somewhat firm in the center.

8.When the broth is almost gone, stir the sugar and lime juice into the remaining broth before adding it to the risotto. You may add more water or vegetable broth in ¼ cup increments if needed. This will take about 35 minutes.

9.Stir the asparagus stems into the risotto and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes, until the asparagus has reached desired tenderness.

10.Garnish each serving with the asparagus tips, chopped roasted peanuts, and lime wedges.

forgo the glass of milk this time: Milk Cake

2009-08-31T00:12:00.000-07:00

a few weeks ago (gawd, i am so far behind in my blogging!) i made a luscious cake for a friend's 30th birthday. an occasion that i didn't even partake in because another friend was celebrating her birthday that evening. to make up for my absence i offered to bake him a cake. he requested a custard cake, which of course brought to mind something fruity. but he wanted chocolate, so i thought maybe something boston cream pie-like? then he corrected himself, saying it was more like a chocolate mousse cake. mmmkay. so i sent him a list of about 10 (!!) links to my fave baked goods from tastespotting and foodgawker, one of them being the tri-mousse cake. i hoped he wouldn't choose that one, because seriously, i've already made it. over it. he responded with his top 3, and i could choose whichever. fine. i love being the one who makes the final, executive decision.

before i go into his verdict, i do want to say that two things happened while making this:

1. i did not have corn starch. so i had to substitute flour. fyi: for every 1 TBL of cornstarch, use 2TBLs of all-purpose flour.

2. i effed up the layers. as in, i forgot the damn biscuit mid way thru 2nd pour of the milk layer. i screamed in agony, my roommate found me crouched on the kitchen floor writhing in actual pain. she had to scoop out the layer and put in the biscuit for me, i was so distraught. yes, i was that dramatical.

Mike's verdict, he's so eloquent: in between the alcohol, i had a piece of cake. the best way i can explain it is, it tasted like a chocolate covered cream puff. Not sure if that was what it was supposed to taste like, but it did. i don't know if freezing vs. refrigerating it makes a difference. we let it sit out so it wasn't frozen, but not mush. very easy to cut through, not messy. would i eat it again while drinking? sure. Would i eat it sober? Sure.

Milk Cake slightly altered from Palachinka, only because i didn't have a *major* ingredient.

Biscuit
2 eggs
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1.5 Tbsp cocoa powder
2 Tbsp warm water

Beat eggs with sugar. Sift flour, cocoa and baking powder in a separate bowl and fold it into the egg mixture. Add water and stir.

Bake in a preheated oven on 350°F for about 15 minutes in a 8" diameter spring-form pan, or until toothpick inserted comes out of the biscuit clean. (I used a 9" because it's what i had)

Bake 2 biscuits like this for the cake.

Milk cream
670ml (roughly 2 3/4cups) milk
70g corn starch (5/8 cup or in my case, 1 1/4 cup of flour, altho i think i only used half that amount for fear it would come out cake-like)
2.5 Tbsp sugar
70g white chocolate (5/8 cup)
170g margarine, on room temperature (3/4 cup)
100g powdered sugar (7/8 cup)

Mix 1/2 cup milk with sugar and corn starch. Pour remaining milk in a pot add white chocolate and cook on medium heat until it boils. Reduce the heat and pour in corn starch mixture, stirring constantly. Continue to cook until it thickens. You will know it is thick enough if, when you scrape the bottom of the pot with the spoon, you can see the bottom. Let cool.

Beat margarine with powdered sugar and beat in milk cream.

Topping
140 g milk chocolate (1 1/4 cup)
3 Tbsp milk
2.5 Tbsp sugar
100 g margarine (1/2 cup)

Put all the ingredients into a double boiler and cook until you get nice cream. Leave it to cool.

Assembling: 1 biscuit, half of the milk cream, half of the topping, repeat.

to be fair, my roommate helped with the conversion. i would've been lost without her.

today's song: Kings of Leon, Use Somebody

August Daring Bakers: Dobos Torte

2009-08-27T00:12:00.000-07:00

The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

Dear Fellow Daring Bakers,
i was so thrilled this month that we were doing an actual cake. Further, i had an actual event to offload said cake. i'm thinking, tho, based on the recipe and activity on the boards that i could've gotten away with halving this recipe and making miniatures instead, and it would've come out fine. as it was, because i was attending a company lunch and feeding whoever was in attendance that day, i decided to double the cake recipe (to offset any flubbing of the layers as well). i knew the amount of butter cream was going to be enough, because i hate having extra. (i'm not an icing kinda girl...)

had i planned correctly, i would've done this challenge over two nights but as it was, one of the nights was date night and so my 4 hours after work the day before the picnic was spent sweating my ass off in the kitchen as Baltimore went thru a killer heat wave. in addition, Top Chef premiered that night and i had to watch because there were 3 local contestants, one of them being Bryan Voltaggio of VOLT. thru two degrees of separation, i had to cheer him on, plus i'm headed there for lunch this weekend. :)

my first layers looked ugly and the subsequent ones came out a tad thicker than i would've liked but still rather pretty. i flubbed majorly doing the caramel topping and even tho i liked the pix of other bakers' on the boards, i thought it was too cumbersome on top. the commute into work that morning with the cake in the passenger seat was dire for some reason. i decided to just break off the caramel pieces that weren't effed and stick them randomly on top. how's that for cumbersome?

my coworkers were rather impressed with the cake. i flecked the sides of the cake with some almonds. my account rep Steve said the cake was "rather spongey" and my office girlfriend Courtney preferred the cake cold. (in regards to that, i had left the cake out at room temp on day of picnic and there were some pieces leftover, which was put in the fridge. the next day, Courtney had a piece and it was firmer and the icing not as soft.)

please click "Read More" for recipe/method.
to see how other daring bakers fared, hit the blogroll.

Thanks for such a great challenge this month Angela and Lorraine!

Love and Sunshine,
Angry Asian

Equipment
2 baking sheets
9” (23cm) spring form tin and 8” cake tin, for templates
mixing bowls (1 medium, 1 large)
a sieve
a double boiler (a large saucepan plus a large heat-proof mixing bowl which fits snugly over the top of the pan)
a small saucepan
a whisk (you could use a balloon whisk for the entire cake, but an electric hand whisk or stand mixer will make life much easier)
metal offset spatula
sharp knife
a 7 1/2” cardboard cake round, or just build cake on the base of a springfrom tin.
piping bag and tip, optional

Prep times

Sponge layers 20 mins prep, 40 mins cooking total if baking each layer individually.
Buttercream: 20 mins cooking. Cooling time for butter cream: about 1 hour plus 10 minutes after this to beat and divide.
Caramel layer: 10-15 minutes.
Assembly of whole cake: 20 minutes

Sponge cake layers
6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups (162g) confectioner's (icing) sugar, divided
1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (112g) sifted cake flour (SUBSTITUTE 95g plain flour + 17g cornflour (cornstarch) sifted together)
pinch of salt

Chocolate Butter cream
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (200g) caster (ultra fine or superfine white) sugar
4oz (110g) bakers chocolate or your favourite dark chocolate, finely chopped
2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons (250g) unsalted butter, at room temperature.

Caramel topping
1 cup (200g) caster (superfine or ultra fine white) sugar
12 tablespoons (180 ml) water
8 teaspoons (40 ml) lemon juice
1 tablespoon neutral oil (e.g. grape seed, rice bran, sunflower)

Finishing touches
a 7” cardboard round
12 whole hazelnuts, peeled and toasted
½ cup (50g) peeled and finely chopped hazelnuts
Directions for the sponge layers:

NB. The sponge layers can be prepared in advance and stored interleaved with parchment and well-wrapped in the fridge overnight.

1.Position the racks in the top and centre thirds of the oven and heat to 400F (200C).
2.Cut six pieces of parchment paper to fit the baking sheets. Using the bottom of a 9" (23cm) spring form tin as a template and a dark pencil or a pen, trace a circle on each of the papers, and turn them over (the circle should be visible from the other side, so that the graphite or ink doesn't touch the cake batter.)
3.Beat the egg yolks, 2/3 cup (81g) of the confectioner's (icing) sugar, and the vanilla in a medium bowl with a mixer on high speed until the mixture is thick, pale yellow and forms a thick ribbon when the beaters are lifted a few inches above the batter, about 3 minutes. (You can do this step with a balloon whisk if you don't have a mixer.)

4.In another bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 2/3 cup (81g) of confectioner's (icing)sugar until the whites form stiff, shiny peaks. Using a large rubber spatula, stir about 1/4 of the beaten whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remainder, leaving a few wisps of white visible. Combine the flour and salt. Sift half the flour over the eggs, and fold in; repeat with the remaining flour.
5.Line one of the baking sheets with a circle-marked paper. Using a small offset spatula, spread about 3/4cup of the batter in an even layer, filling in the traced circle on one baking sheet. Bake on the top rack for 5 minutes, until the cake springs back when pressed gently in the centre and the edges are lightly browned. While this cake bakes, repeat the process on the other baking sheet, placing it on the centre rack. When the first cake is done, move the second cake to the top rack. Invert the first cake onto a flat surface and carefully peel off the paper. Slide the cake layer back onto the paper and let stand until cool. Rinse the baking sheet under cold running water to cool, and dry it before lining with another parchment. Continue with the remaining papers and batter to make a total of six layers. Completely cool the layers. Using an 8" spring form pan bottom or plate as a template, trim each cake layer into a neat round. (A small serrated knife is best for this task.)

Directions for the chocolate butter cream:

NB. This can be prepared in advance and kept chilled until required.

1.Prepare a double-boiler: quarter-fill a large saucepan with water and bring it to a boil.
2.Meanwhile, whisk the eggs with the sugar until pale and thickened, about five minutes. You can use a balloon whisk or electric hand mixer for this.
3.Fit bowl over the boiling water in the saucepan (water should not touch bowl) and lower the heat to a brisk simmer. Cook the egg mixture, whisking constantly, for 2-3 minutes until you see it starting to thicken a bit. Whisk in the finely chopped chocolate and cook, stirring, for a further 2-3 minutes.
4.Scrape the chocolate mixture into a medium bowl and leave to cool to room temperature. It should be quite thick and sticky in consistency.
5.When cool, beat in the soft butter, a small piece (about 2 tablespoons/30g) at a time. An electric hand mixer is great here, but it is possible to beat the butter in with a spatula if it is soft enough. You should end up with a thick, velvety chocolate butter cream. Chill while you make the caramel topping.

Lorraine's note: If you're in Winter just now your butter might not soften enough at room temperature, which leads to lumps forming in the butter cream. Male sure the butter is of a very soft texture I.e. running a knife through it will provide little resistance, before you try to beat it into the chocolate mixture. Also, if you beat the butter in while the chocolate mixture is hot you'll end up with more of a ganache than a butter cream!

Directions for the caramel topping:
1.Choose the best-looking cake layer for the caramel top. To make the caramel topping: Line a jellyroll pan with parchment paper and butter the paper. Place the reserved cake layer on the paper. Score the cake into 12 equal wedges. Lightly oil a thin, sharp knife and an offset metal spatula.
2.Stir the sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved into a smooth syrup, turn the heat up to high and boil without stirring, swirling the pan by the handle occasionally and washing down any sugar crystals on the sides of the pan with a wet brush until the syrup has turned into an amber-coloured caramel.
3.The top layer is perhaps the hardest part of the whole cake so make sure you have a oiled, hot offset spatula ready. I also find it helps if the cake layer hasn't just been taken out of the refrigerator. I made mine ahead of time and the cake layer was cold and the toffee set very, very quickly—too quickly for me to spread it. Immediately pour all of the hot caramel over the cake layer. You will have some leftover most probably but more is better than less and you can always make nice toffee pattern using the extra to decorate. Using the offset spatula, quickly spread the caramel evenly to the edge of the cake layer. Let cool until beginning to set, about 30 seconds. Using the tip of the hot oiled knife (keep re-oiling this with a pastry brush between cutting), cut through the scored marks to divide the caramel layer into 12 equal wedges. Cool another minute or so, then use the edge of the knife to completely cut and separate the wedges using one firm slice movement (rather than rocking back and forth which may produce toffee strands). Cool completely.

Angela's note: I recommend cutting, rather than scoring, the cake layer into wedges before covering in caramel (reform them into a round). If you have an 8” silicon round form, then I highly recommend placing the wedges in that for easy removal later and it also ensures that the caramel stays on the cake layer. Once set, use a very sharp knife to separate the wedges.

Assembling the Dobos
1.Divide the butter cream into six equal parts.
2.Place a dab of chocolate butter cream on the middle of a 7 1/2” cardboard round and top with one cake layer. Spread the layer with one part of the chocolate icing. Repeat with 4 more cake layers. Spread the remaining icing on the sides of the cake.
3.Optional: press the finely chopped hazelnuts onto the sides of the cake.
4.Propping a hazelnut under each wedge so that it sits at an angle, arrange the wedges on top of the cake in a spoke pattern. If you have any leftover butter cream, you can pipe rosettes under each hazelnut or a large rosette in the centre of the cake. Refrigerate the cake under a cake dome until the icing is set, about 2 hours. Let slices come to room temperature for the best possible flavour.

Storage
I (Angela) am quite happy to store this cake at room temperature under a glass dome, but your mileage may vary. If you do decide to chill it, then I would advise also using a glass dome if you have done. I should also note that the cake will cut more cleanly when chilled.

Variations
Shape: The traditional shape of a Dobos Torta is a circular cake, but you can vary the shape and size if you want. Sherry Yard in Desserts By The Yard makes a skyscraper Dobos by cutting a full-size cake into four wedges and stacking them to create a tall, sail-shaped cake. Mini Dobos would be very cute, and you could perch a little disc of caramel on top.

Flavour: While we both love the dark chocolate butter cream and this is traditional, we think it would be fun to see what fun butter creams you all come up with! So, go wild! Or, you could brush each layer with a flavoured syrup if you just want a hint of a second flavour. Cointreau syrup would be divine!

Nuts: These are optional for decoration, so no worries if you're allergic to them. If you don't like hazelnuts, then substitute for another variety that you like.

something cold for a hot summer day: Watermelon Soup

2009-08-25T00:12:00.000-07:00

there are some things that i find unnatural. for example, rhubarb. i realize that i've reconcilled with this vegetable but i still think it's rather unnatural, despite it being a natural produce. to me, it looks like a bleeding celery stalk. so when i tried a cold soup for the first time the summer before 6th grade, in Seoul, South Korea, even tho it was seasoned nicely, i thought it was unnatural and actually, i thought "this would probably taste better warm." same thing with gazpacho when i first tried it about 9 years ago. i gave gazpacho another chance last week with Nuria, again, my reaction to it was rather tepid. one would think i'd give up already. however, i did enjoy me some cool cucumber avocado soup last summer (that's more to do with the fact that i love avocado...) and since this summer is all about trying different things, i decided to make a watermelon soup, to use up all the extra watermelon i had laying around.

the end result was nice. it was sweet, the salt bringing out the natural sweetness of the watermelon, but the creamy goat cheese added another layer of flavor. i could just make out the hint of garlic in the background, and the balsamic vinegar was a nice touch of tang.

Watermelon Soup
i made it up, kinda. i'm sure it's already been created, i just threw things into a bowl and pureed to my heart's content

watermelon
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
ripe tomato, divided. diced to be topped and chunked to be pureed with mixture
salt and pepper for taste
1 garlic clove

again, no measurements. use your tastebuds for this one. essentially, i added all the ingredients and pureed until smooth. i had a few leftover diced tomatoes and watermelon pieces and crumbled goat cheese to garnish with. i also added a few drops of olive oil and balsamic vinegar for looks. there were so many other things i would've liked to have added: cucumbers, cilantro, green peppers, some herb...

today's song: ana carolina and Seu Jorge, E Isso Ai