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I was on facebook and saw an AD that Cathay Pacific is doing on creating an Asian inspired dessert. I thought I can think of something. I like eating chinese Asian pears and using puff pastry but to add a kick to the dessert I decided to use guava paste. Guava paste is a sweet paste made mainly from guava pulp and sugar that is formed into a block. Asian pears are great because it adds sweetness but not so much that it is overly sweet. I was testing out how to present the pear tarts--I made a rectangular tart and as a turnover/small pie. I added some vanilla extract, cinnamon and nutmeg for some added flavor that compliments the Asian pears without being overpowering. The resulting Asian pear tart came out golden brown, crispy, sweet, and not overpowering. This is an easy dessert to make since you use store bought puff pastry. Below is the recipe for the tart version. Hope that my dessert wins.
Also, please vote for my dessert at http://www.facebook.com/cathaypacificUS?v=app_168465223167646#!/cathaypacificUS?v=app_168465223167646 look for the Individual Asian pear tarts. Click like.
Individual Asian Pear Tarts
Makes 8 servings
Ingredients:
1 box puff pastry
3 Asian pears, sliced thin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
Guava paste sauce:
1 container of guava paste, using only half the container
2 tablespoons lime juice
½ cup water, more if needed
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Thaw puff pastry according to package directions.
Cut the guava paste in half and put one half of the guava paste with the lime juice and water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook until guava paste is a sauce like consistency and spreadable, about 4-5 minutes. Adding more water if mixture becomes too thick.
Unfold puff pastry. Roll into a 11 x 12 inch rectangle. Cut 1 inch strips on all sides of the puff pastry. This will be used later as borders around the tarts. You will end up with a 9 x 10 inch rectangle. Cut the rectangular puff pastry in half lengthwise then in half crosswise. You will have a total of 4 rectangles that are approximately 4.5 x 5 inches. Take the 1 inch strips of puff pastry and cut into ½ inch strip lengthwise. Take the ½ inch strip of puff pastry and cut it the same length and width of the rectangular puff pastries. Do the same to the other sheet of puff pastry. Put the rectangular sheets and strips of puff pastry on a parchment lined baking sheet and then in the fridge to chill while you make the filling.
Take Asian pears and peel the skin. Slice the Asian pears in half, take out the center, and slice them into very thin slices. Place in a bowl. Add the cinnamon and nutmeg; toss to coat the slices evenly.
Brush the rectangular sheets of puff pastry with a thin layer of guava paste sauce. Place the strips all around the sides of the puff pastry sheets, pressing gently to adhere. Arrange the Asian pear slices straight across the puff pastry, overlapping the slices. Brush the tops of the Asian pears with the guava paste sauce.
Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes until puff pastry is golden brown and the Asian pears have started to brown. Take out of the oven. Serve hot.
Since we had lots of cheese, milk, and potatoes to use up I decided to make scalloped potatoes. This is an easy side dish anyone can make. All it consist of is potatoes, cheese, salt, pepper, nutmeg, butter, and milk. Also it is very easy to assemble and all you need to do after putting it together is put in oven for 50-55 minutes. Out comes potatoes with cheesy goodness. You can also make this ahead and keep in fridge then take out and bake. Below is the recipe.
Scalloped Potatoes
Ingredients: 3 potatoes, cut into thin slices 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 1/2 cup shredded parmesean cheese 1 1/2 cups milk garlic salt pepper 1/4 tsp. nutmeg 2 tbsp. butter
Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 2. Peel potatoes and cut into slices. Place in salted water so color does not turn brown and it releases some starch, about 5 minutes. Drain and pat dry with paper towel. 3. On stove heat milk, nutmeg, and 1 tablespoon of butter on medium heat. Stir and let milk mixture simmer until it has thickened a bit. Mix the two cheese together. Add a cup of the cheese to the milk mixture. Stir and simmer mixture until it is thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Set aside. 4. In a glass baking dish, place sliced potatoes in an overlapping circle. Add garlic salt and pepper. Pour 1/4 cup of cheese sauce mixture onto potatoes. Repeat with remaining potatoes and cheese sauce mixture. you will have 3 layers. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese mix. 5. Place in 350 degree oven for 50-55 minutes or until potatoes are tender, cheese is bubbly, and top has slightly browned. Serve immediately.
Fall is a great time of the year for squash vegetables-butternut squash, acorn squash, spaghetti squash, and yellow squash. I bought a nice size butternut squash at the local farmer's market. I usually either make butternut squash soup or make a puree. As I saw a posting on facebook about squash, I asked what else I could make. I also saw online an article about making butternut squash fries. This seemed like a nice way to get my nephews to eat vegetables with them not even knowing they are eating vegetables. (Also since most kids like to eat french fries, I thought butternut squash would be a nice change). The article was telling you the way to make the fries without them coming out soggy and not crispy. The secret was to salt the butternut squash because salt will bring out the moisture. It says to soak them in salt water for 10 minutes then pat dry. After that I decided to salt a bit more and let them sit another 10 minutes. (You might think this would make the squash salty but it did not). Then place the potato and butternut squash fries on an baking sheet lined with foil and oiled. Bake in 400 degree F oven for 15-20 minutes or until crispy and just turning brown, flip the fries over halfway during the baking. The result I got was crispier and crunchier fries. I gave one to my nephew and he thought they were sweet potato fries. This will be one of my kid friendly recipes I will have to keep in my recipe collection. Below is the recipe.
Butternut and Potato French Fries
Ingredients: Top half of butternut squash, cut into thin matchsticks 2-3 potatoes, cut into thin sticks salt pepper Cooking oil spray
Directions: 1. Preheat oven at 400 degrees F
2. Cut butternut squash and potatoes into thin sticks. Place in bowl with water. Salt the water. Let sit for 10 minutes.
3. Drain water and pat the butternut squash and potato sticks dry with paper towels. Place in bowl and salt again. Let sit for another 10 minutes.
4. Line a baking sheet with foil and spray the cooking oil all over the foil. Place the fries on the baking sheet. Spray the tops of the fries with the cooking oil spray. Place in the preheated 400 degree F oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the fries are crispy and lightly browned.
5. Take out of oven and let cool. Place in serving bowl and serve. If not serving immediately, just before serving reheat in 200 degree oven for 5-7 minutes until hot.
My mom's health aide is from Colombia and likes to cook. One day she brought empanadas to eat. I asked her where she got them and she said she made them. I told her I always wanted to know how to make them. She said she would teach me one day. So, last Saturday she and I decided to finally make empanadas. These are the traditional Colombian beef and pork empanadas that are made with a masa (cornmeal) crust not the pie dough kind. Masa crust makes a crispier and crunchy crust with a corn taste. These had a pork and beef filling. Very simple to make with lots of tasty flavorful ingredients. It takes a bit of practice to be able to shape the empanadas and make sure you have an even thin layer of crust for top and bottom so when you fry the empanadas the filling does not come out. The only thing about making empanadas is that they take time to prepare and it is best to eat them the day of. Below is the recipe I wrote from what she told me and showed me how to make. Hope you enjoy and try to make them yourself. You will never buy empanadas again or buy the pie dough version.
Beef and Pork Empanadas
Ingredients: 1 lb. pork, cut into bite size chunks 1 lb. london broil beef, cut into bite size chunks 1 tomato, chopped 3 cloves garlic, chopped 1 cup cilantro, chopped 4 potatoes, diced small 5 green onions, finely chopped salt black pepper 3 packages sazon goya mix 1 bag masa 1½ to 2 cups warm water
Directions: 1. Take beef and pork and put in heavy pot. Add green onions, potatoes, cilantro, tomatoes, sazon goya mix, salt, black pepper, and a little oil. Cook on medium high heat. 2. Stir and let cook until meat is tender and potatoes have cooked down and mixture turns thick and creamy. Turn off heat and let mixture cool.
3. Make masa crust by pouring whole bag into a mixing bowl add about 1 ½ to 2 cups of warm water. mix with hands, adding more water if needed to get a smooth consistency that is not to wet and not too dry.
4. Place a sheet of plastic wrap on the counter. Take a golf ball size of masa and place on plastic wrap. fold over the top of plastic wrap. Using your hands flatten out the masa to an even thin layer. Take off the plastic wrap and add a tablespoon of the meat mixture in the center. Fold over the masa to enclose the meat. Using a glass, put the top of the glass down on the empanada just halfway creating a moon shaped empanada. Press down to seal and cut. Continue with the rest of the Masa and meat mixture to make empanadas.
5. Heat a heavy high sided pot halfway with oil. Heat until oil reaches 375 degrees F. Place 5-6 empanadas in the oil to fry. Fry until golden brown. Place on a towel lined plate. Continue to fry the rest of the empanadas until all done. Cool slightly then serve.
I was watching TV and it was talking about the famous Junior's cheesecake. They were talking about having a contest for the people to create the next Junior's cheesecake. So I decided to try to experiment to see if I could enter. I asked a friend about it and we were thinking of ideas--green tea, chia tea, and early grey tea. Then she said how about lychee and I was like sounds good. aI also said to do almond cookie crust instead of the traditional graham cracker crust. She thought it might be overpowering but I wanted to test it out. So I decided to make a lychee cheesecake with chopped lychees in the cheesecake base, an almond cookie crust, and a lychee puree gelatin on top. I baked the cheesecake then let it cook and then put the lychee puree gelatin on top. The result was a smooth and light flavored cheesecake. The almond cookie crust did not overpower the cheesecake and complimented the whole cheesecake. It was yummy (even my 5 year old nephew loved it). Below is the recipe I came up with and made. Next time I will try to experiment with puree lychees in the cheesecake base. I will definitely enter this into the contest.
Baked Lychee Cheesecake
Crust:
7 almond cookies
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Filling:
2-8 oz package cream cheese
½ cup sugar
3 eggs
1 can lychee, chopped
½ cup lychee syrup from can
Topping:
lychee puree from 1/2 can of lychees
1 tablespoon gelatin
½ cup boiling water
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Wrap aluminum foil on bottom of springform pan and up the sides of the pan. Butter bottom and sides of a springform pan.
In food processor, pulse almond cookies until finely grounded. Slowly add the melted butter until it just comes together. Press cookie crumbs onto the bottom of springform pan. Place in oven and bake for 5-7 minutes. Let cool.
In electric mixer, add cream cheese, lychee syrup and sugar. Beat until smooth and creamy. Add eggs one at a time. Add the chopped lychees and mix until incorporated and smooth.
Pour cheesecake mixture into the prepared pan with crust. Put springform pan in a baking pan. Pour hot water in the pan just enough to go halfway up the springform pan.
Bake cheesecake for 1 hour 15 minutes or until set. Take out oven and let cool then chill in fridge while making topping.
Cut 2 lychees in half and put in center in a circle on top of cheesecake.
Mix the gelatin and boiling water in a bowl. Set aside for gelatin to dissolve. Puree 1 can of lychee in food processor. Strain into a bowl. Add the gelatin and mix. Pour on top of the cheesecake and chill for at least 2 hours until firm. Serve.
Since I had some basil leftover, I was thinking what can I make with basil besides the usual basil pesto or tomato, mozarella, and basil stacks. I had some chicken breast so I decided to make basil chicken. As I was searching the internet to find recipes to base my basil chicken on, I noticed some use ground chicken others used sliced chicken. I liked the sliced chicken. It also uses the thai fish sauce but that is a strong taste not many people like so I omited it and used oyster sauce, sugar, soy sauce and some chicken broth. You are to use thai chiles but since my family does not eat spicy I also omited it. The final dish came out very well. Good basil aroma, nice thick sauce, and tender chicken.
Directions: 1. Keep chicken a little frozen so it is easier to cut. Cut chicken into thin slices. Marinate chicken with some water and cornstarch.
2. Heat wok on medium high heat. When hot add oil. Add chopped garlic and stir for about 1 minute until fragrant but not brown. Add the onions and cook until they are brown, about 4-5 minutes.
3. Add chicken and cook until outside of chicken is just done, about 5-7 minutes. stir all ingredients together. Add oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. stir well together. Last add the chicken broth to create a thick sauce.
4. Add the chopped basil and stir together until fragrant, about another 1-2 minutes. Add the whole leaves and just cook until they are wilted. Place on serving platter and serve.
If you would like to have a party catered or want to know about cooking classes contact me at fancindy888@gmail.com
for all you Red mango Fans. Here is a deal. $1 smoothies on July 20th. Great way to have a healthy drink, try something new, and not pay the high prices that smoothies usually cost. Have a great smoothie day.
Since in the house we have lots of eggs and bought canadian bacon, I decided to make my version of eggs benedict. It was my first time making hollandaise sauce. You hear all the stories about how people say this is a hard sauce to make because if the butter does not emulsify well with the eggs it will just separate and you get a layer of butter and a layer of eggs. Not very appealing. I found a simple recipe (recipe below) that did not sound hard. Big suggestion, prep all ingredients before starting to make becuase you need to whisk the sauce constantly. (This I learned from stopping to melt butter then go back to see eggs were partially cooked and scrambled). Finally, after cleaning up my first try, I made it again. It was very easy all you need is a strong arm to whisk the eggs til pale yellow and thick. Then add salt and pepper to taste. Then take the egg mix off of the stove and slowly drizzle in melted butter until all incorporated. I put it back on the saucepan with simmering water to bring the sauce back to a thick consitency. Keep warm until ready to use.
Since I had unused egg whites, I decided to make an egg white omelete (this is beeter for you anyways). I used regular wheat bread instead of english muffin. Then cooked the canadian bacon for a minute. Added some blanched spinach for vegetables. Assemble: the toasted bread, canadian bacon, blanched spinach, eggs, then the hollandaise sauce. I made 2 of them. The end result was a creamy sauce and nice contrast with the salty bacon and nice green spinach. Hollandaise sauce:
Ingredients: 2 egg yolks salt and fresh ground pepper dash of hot pepper sauce 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted 1 teaspoon lemon juice Directions: 1. Place egg yolks, lemon juice, and hot sauce in a metal bowl. Place bowl on top of a saucepan with simmering water. Do not let bowl touch the water. Whisk egg yolks until pale thick yellow in color. Add salt and pepper to taste. 2. Take egg mixture off of stove and drizzle in the melted butter while whisking to combine. making sure the sauce does not separate. Then return to the saucepan and whisk until thick again. Taste and add more seasoning if needed.
If you would like to have a catered party, event, or learn about my cooking lessons please contact me at fancindy888@gmail.com.
My friend Mei and I love to cook and have been to many cooking classes. We both were like we can do the same type of teaching and make it affordable for people to attend with good quality ingredients. We both decided to start cooking classes where people can do gourmet food in the comfort of your home for less than 45 min and less money than what you pay in restaurants. The name of our classes is called Everyday Good Eats.
For our first cooking class, we taught salmon cakes, seared scallops, salmon in parchment, restaurant style rib-eye steak, and molten chocolate cake. The class cost $40 with dinner included.
Everyone gathered around the kitchen to see how to prepare each dish. The first dish made was the salmon cakes. This is a very easy dish you can use leftover cooked salmon. There are two ways you can bind the salmon cakes so they do not fall apart--use either mayo or eggs. In my recipe below I use mayo because it gives the salmon cakes an added texture and flavor. I also use mustard for flavoring. I coat the salmon cakes in panko bread crumbs so it can have a crunchy outer texture.
For our other appetizer we made seared scallops. You use the big sea scallops for this dish. Very simple with just a little butter. This way you get to taste the natural flavor of the scallops. This dish is served with frisee salad and a balsamic reduction.
Next we made molten chocolate cake (also called lava cakes). These are individual cakes that have the chocolate center slightly underbaked so the center oozes out the chocolate. This dessert is very easy to make, can be done 1 day ahead, and cooks in less than 10 minutes so you can bake while people are eating the main dish. Recipe below.
For main dishes we had salmon in parchment and restaurant style rib-eye steak. For the salmon in parchment, you can use any vegetable you like. In my recipe below I use onions and red bell peppers. This dish is fast and easy to make and you can prepare the dish a day ahead up to the step of preparing the packets and put in fridge. This is also a versitile dish because you can use halibut, cod, or any firm fish instead of salmon and if you do not like dill you can use rosemary or thyme herbs. For the rib-eye steaks, get good quality USDA Choice steaks. simply salt and pepper and cook. Then add butter during last minutes of cooking. Comes out very juicy and tender.
Heat skillet with 1 tablespoon of oil on medium-high heat. Add onions, cook until soft about 3 minutes. Add the parsley and stir to combine. Let it cool.
Place the flaked salmon in a bowl. Add mayonnaise, ½ cup of the panko breadcrumbs, the onion parsley mix, mustard, lemon juice, and salt and pepper in the bowl. Gently fold mixture together. (add more salt and pepper to taste). Add the hot sauce at this point if using.
Gently form the salmon mixture into 8 cakes. Each cake should be about 2 inches wide and ¼ inch thick. Put the rest of the panko breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl. Press each side of the salmon cakes with the panko breadcrumbs. Put in refrigerator for 30 min to firm up. At this step you can take the cakes and put on lined baking pan, cover with saran wrap and freeze.
Heat remaining oil in skillet on medium high heat. Add 4 salmon cakes to the pan.Cook until the cakes are golden, about 3-4 minutes per side. Serve hot with the yogurt dill sauce (recipe below)
yogurt caper sauce
Approximately 1 cup
Ingredients:
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1 tablespoon capers, drained and chopped
Salt and Pepper
Directions:
In small bowl, mix yogurt, lemon juice, and capers. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve along side the salmon cakes. Put in fridge if not using right away. This can also be made a day ahead, just stir before serving.
Pan Seared Sea Scallops, with Vinaigrette Reduction
Flip the scallops over. Spoon in the melted butter on top of the scallops, seared for another two minutes. Side of the scallops should becoming golden brown, or crack in the middle.Do not overcook.
Serve immediately, over a bed of frisee or mixed spring salads with balsamic vinaigrette dressing, drizzle some vinaigrette reduction on top of the scallops.
VinaigretteReduction Sauce – poured in a cup of sweet vinegar from Modena in a saucepan, add in 1 tbsp sugar, when it become boil, reduce to simmer till liquid is reduce to half.
Salmon in Parchment (serves 4)
Ingredients:
4-6oz. salmon filets with skin
1 lemon, sliced into 8 slices
¼ bunch dill, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, cut into ½ inch strips lengthwise
1 medium onion, cut into ½ inch strips lengthwise
1 tablespoon capers, coarsely chopped (optional)
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 sheets of parchment paper, cut a half size larger than the salmon filet
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
Put red bell peppers and onions in a bowl and toss with salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Place vegetables on parchment sheet.
Drizzle remaining olive oil on the salmon filets. Place salmon on top of the vegetable mixture.
Sprinkle salmon with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with the chopped dill, add capers if using. Place 2 lemon slices on top.
Bring the 2 longer sides of parchment paper together and fold over the fish and cover completely. Take the shorter sides and fold each side to seal.
Repeat steps 2 to 5 for the remaining salmon fillets.
Place all 4 packages on the baking sheet. bake at 400 degrees F in the oven for about 15-20 minutes. Open package and serve.
Rib-Eye Steak
(Makes 2 servings)
Great steak begins with a good cut of USDA Choice Grade steak; weather if that is a rib-eye or Sirloin, is bound to satisfy.
Ingredients:
2 Rib-eye or Sirloin steak, about a pound each, bone in.
Sear one side of the steak for about 5 minutes, or when it becomes brown, flip side, spoon in the butter and sear the other side for about the same time. Spoon in the melted butter on to the steak. (cooking time might be different depending on thickness and referenceof the steak)
Serve immediately over a warm plate, side with slices of beef steak tomato with Peter Luger Steak Sauce.
Molten chocolate cake
(Makes 6 servings)
This is a very easy dessert where you can make it a day ahead and bake while you are eating dinner so it comes out hot and the chocolate center oozes out.
Ingredients:
6 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
10 tablespoons of unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 tablespoons of flour
6- 6 ounce ramekins
sprig of mint leaves or raspberries, for garnish
powdered sugar for dusting on top of cakes
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Butter and flour 6 ramekins. Shake out excess flour.
In a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate together, stirring occasionally. Cool slightly.
In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until pale yellow and thick, about 8 minutes. Add the vanilla extract. Reduce speed and add the flour. Pour the melted chocolate mixture into the egg mixture. Mix until just well incorporated.
Divide the mixture among the ramekins. (can be made 1 day ahead. Covered and refrigerated). Just bring to room temperature before baking.
Bake in the 400 degree F oven until just set around the edges and center still jiggles, about 8-10 minutes. Do not overcook or the lava center flow will not turn out. Run knife around cake to loosen and let it rest in ramekins for about 5 minutes.
Turn onto a plate and dust with sifted powdered sugar. Add a spring of mint leaves or raspberries on top. Serve immediately.
If you would like to inquire about our cooking classes, private lessons, or catering please contact me at fancindy888@gmail.com
A friend from Panama came to visit NY this past week. I decided to have a dinner at my place since our other friend had a baby and it is hard to go to a restaurant. We had 10 people total at dinner. I was thinking of what to make. Since I had a small whole chicken in my freezer, I decided to make Lemon herb roasted chicken (recipe below). I roasted carrots, potatoes and mushrooms around the chicken. I got another chicken since the other one was small. I also made mashed potatoes to go with it. For dessert, I made coconut tapioca pudding (first time making it, recipe below).
The chicken is very easy to make. All you need is a few ingredients and you have a nice meal that looks like you took hours to make. I had two chickens each a little over 3 lbs., which easily fed 10 of us with all the sides. Everyone enjoyed the chicken, potatoes, and coconut tapioca pudding. Below is the recipe for the lemon herb roasted chicken.
chicken with veggies before it is cooked (left); Roasted Lemon Herb chicken (right)
Lemon herb roasted chicken (Adapted from 2 recipes on food network) Serves 4
Ingredients: 1-4-5lb. whole chicken 5 sprigs of rosemary, chop 2 tablespoons 5 springs of thyme, chop 2 tablespons 1/2 bunch of parsley, chop 2 tablespoons 1 lemon cut into slices 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, more for drizzling on chicken 1 head of garlic, halved kosher salt and black pepper 1 1/12 lbs. potatoes, cut into medium chunks 1 1/2 lbs. baby carrots 2 cans of chicken stock, Homemade is best
Directions 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 2. In food processor take the chopped rosemary, thyme, and parsely and process until combined. drizzle olive oil until you form a paste. Using your fingertips carefully work your way under the skin of the chickens to separate the skin from the breast to develop a pocket. Generously sprinkle the inside of the chicken and the outside with salt and black pepper. Schmear the herb paste under the skin of both chickens. Save some of the paste to rub all around the chicken. Drizzle olive oil over the whole chicken. 3. Take the rest of the rosemary, thyme, and parsley and put it inside the cavity of the chicken. Take the garlic halves and lemon slices and also put into the cavity of the chicken. Tie the chicken legs together to hold the chicken in place. 4. Place the potatoes and the baby carrots on the baking pan. Season veggies with salt and pepper. Put chicken on top and roast in the oven for about 15 minutes, get a nice golden brown skin. Baste the chicken with chicken broth. 5. Turn the heat to 375 degrees F. Continue to cook the chicken and basting with chicken broth every 20 minutes. Continue to roast chicken for 1 1/2 hours. (it takes about 17 minutes per lb for chicken to be done). Turn the pan halfway during baking. The chicken is done when an instant-read thermometer says 165 degrees F when inserted into the thickest part of the thigh. 6. Remove the chicken to a platter and let stand for 10 minutes, so the juices settle back into the meat before carving. Serve with the roasted veggies.
Thai coconut pudding serves 8-10
Ingredients: 1/2 cup pear sago/tapioca 1 cup diced taro 1 can of coconut milk 1 cups of water 1/2 cup of rock sugar (use granulated sugar if cannot find rock sugar)
Directions 1. Remove skin from taro and cut into small diced cubes 2. Add taro to a boiling pot of water and cook until tender (fresh taro takes about 20 minutes), drain. 3. In a separate pot, add tapioca to another boiling pot of water. Boil for 5-6 minutes, turn off the heat and cover for another 10-15 minutes. Begin checking tapioca after 10 minutes – the tapioca is done once it has turned translucent (no white center). Drain any excess water. 5. On low heat, add can of coconut milk and 1 cups of water to the tapioca. If you are using rock sugar, add it in during this step since it takes awhile to break down. 6. Add more sugar if not sweet enough. Add small amount at a time. 7. If you prefer a soupier consistency, add more coconut milk or water.
If you would like to have a catered party or event, you can contact me at at fancindy888@gmail.com
My friend decided to have a pre-summer BBQ at her place. She was telling me about the food she wanted to make. She had hot dogs, Kelbasa, pesto shrimp skewers, mushroom skewers, sausage and peppers, grilled pizza, and cranberry-white chocolate oatmeal cookies. For dinner we made hamburgers with cheese and roasted pepper mayo and for dessert we had dark and white chocolate and peanut butter drizzled bananna slices. All the food was delicious. I especially liked making the grilled pizzas with pita bread and tortillas. The torillas gave a nicer crispier crust. There were toppings---tomato sauce, fresh mozarella, cheddar cheese, basil, caramelized onions, tomatoes, feta cheese, artichokes, and olives. I think the grilled pizzas is going to become a staple food we do at BBQs. So easy to make and people can put what they like. I made a tortilla like calzone to hold my toppings of mozarella, tomatoes, olives, and basil.
It was a nice day--a little cold but glad no rain. There were about 12 people that came. A good way to bring people together to just hang out, eat great food, and enjoy the beginning of summer to come. Hopefully more BBQs and delicious food to come.
Dark and white chocolate and peanut butter drizzled sliced bananas
This party all came about when a few friends were talking about anchovies and liking them on pizza. I was saying we should hang out and how I like making homemade pizza. So, we decided to make a homemade pizza party. We all brought toppings that we liked on our pizza. This is a great way to have a party and something very simple your friends can make. We had Anchovies (of course, this started the whole idea of the party), spinach, onions, sausage, shredded and fresh mozzarella, and portobello mushrooms. I made the sauce from scratch (recipe below, you can also buy store bought but when you see how easy it is to make you will never buy again!). I did not make the pizza dough since it takes a while to let it sit and proof up. I bought the dough (will try next time to make dough). Took the dough and cut into 4 equal size portions. I taught them to stretch the dough with your hands by pulling and rotating the dough. You can make it as thick or thin of a crust you like. I like making thin crust. Another way to help stretch the dough is to use a rolling pin and roll out and rotate the dough after each rolling to even out the crust. (You do not want certain parts of the dough to be thicker than the rest because it will not cook properly). Then you put the tomato sauce, toppings, and cook in oven or about 10-15 min. until crust is golden brown and cheese has melted. Then cut the pizza and enjoy!
Pizza with chunky tomato sauce (top left); Pizza with toppings (top right); first pizza made with veggies, anchovies, cheese, and spinach on one side and sausage, spinach, anchovies and cheese on other side (bottom left); second pizza made where I got better at making the pizza dough round with added topping of portabelllo mushrooms ( bottom right).
Simple Homemade Pizza recipe: (makes 4 personal size pizzas) One store bought dough Homemade tomato sauce, recipe below any toppings you like (basil, sausage, spinach, anchovies, etc.) Fresh and shredded mozzarella
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 2. divide the pizza dough into 4 equal pieces and roll it out to a thickness of your liking by taking the dough and stretching it between your hands pulling and rotating as you stretch to get an even crust. You can use a rolling pin if needed to roll the dough out. 3. Once pizza dough is shaped into desired thickness, take tomato sauce and spread it on the dough leaving a 1/4 inch border so the sauce does not leak. 4. Add the cheese, your toppings you like and put in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
Tomato sauce: one 28oz can of crushed tomatoes 1 6oz can of tomato paste 1-2 tablespoons of dried oregano 2 garlic cloves, chopped finely 1-2 tablespoons of fresh basil, chopped finely salt to taste
1. On the stove top, put the tomato sauce, oregano, garlic, basil and salt in a saucepan on medium heat. 2. Let sauce simmer for 30 minutes to get maximum flavor, stirring occasionally. 3. add 1-2 tablespoons of tomato paste to help thicken the sauce. Sauce will also thicken once cooled. 4. Add more salt to taste if necessary. If sauce is too chunky for your taste, strain sauce using a sieve. 5. cool completely and if not using immediately put in refrigerator.
