Finals stress calls for a cheesy mess (plus bonus recipe!)

Hi everyone~ (XAx)

Finals week is literally in a few days. I've been really bunkering down and studying for my anatomy class. I haven't had any energy, inspiration, or time to really do any cooking or baking. Surprisingly, my  cousin, Wes, had been craving something cheesy and crunchy for a while. He loves fried mozzarella sticks. He told me that he and his friends made it before when they were hanging out at one of his friends' house. He prepped everything at home, but he was like "Help me~ please?" So... I did. Hey, studious students need breaks between cram sessions. It is so simple. But please be weary/cautious when frying. (^-^)

My cousin's recipe for mozzarella sticks are super crunchy, because they are double battered. XD Beware of the "club hands!" Designate one hand for the egg dredging and one for the cornstarch and panko. If you are like my cousin, recruit someone to help in one job. XP

I will also include a bonus recipe here... no picture though... It's all Wes and his friend's recipe. Please enjoy!

Tip: When frying in a wok, pot, or pan... and you don't know if your oil is hot? Here is a few tips. I read that if your oil is ready, the surface of oil will have a light rippling effect. But I like to use the bamboo/wooden chopstick method. That's how my mama taught me. Dip the chopstick in the oil, and if you see tiny bubbles form around the chopstick... your oil is ready!

Cheesy Tots!

Ingredients:

½ - 1 package Mozzarella sticks

4 cups of oil (For frying... I used vegetable)

2 - 4 cups Panko breadcrumbs

1 - 1½ cups cornstarch

2 - 4 eggs (beaten)

1 -  1½ tbsp Water or Milk

Cracked Black Pepper (to taste)

How-To:

- Prep mozzarella sticks. Cut into halves, thirds, fourths... or leave them whole!

- In three separate bowls:

         Bowl #1: Put in just plain cornstarch, season with a bit of cracked black pepper.

         Bowl #2: Just add beaten eggs and water or milk.

         Bowl #3: Add in Panko.

- Take mozzarella piece and dredge in cornstarch, then in egg-water/milk mix.

- Redredge back into cornstarch, and then into egg-water/milk mix.

- Now dredge very well in Panko.

- Repeat until all your prepped mozzarellas are done. You can replenish cornstarch, panko, and egg-water/milk mix through the process until mozzarella sticks are finished. (Stay tune for the bonus recipe if you have any leftover!)

- In a wok or pan... or if you have a fryer, heat oil to 350°.

- Gently add a batch (make sure not to crowd the pot) at a time.

- Fry until golden brown.

- Once done, transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

- Sprinkle with a little salt and enjoy!

Easy right? So good. Now... I did promise a bonus recipe (sorry, no picture). So... you're done with the mozzarella sticks, what are you to do with all that left over egg-cornstarch-panko mess? Throwing it away seems rather wasteful. So Wes and his friends came up with the idea of a fried mass. It is like eating fried chips... I think it will be the equivalent to Japanese tempura bits. But my cousin and I just call it, "Fried Bits." Just make sure that you have a little more egg-water/milk mix to hold the panko together for larger pieces of Fried Bits. 

Fried Bits Ingredients:

- Leftover egg-water/milk mix

- Leftover cornstarch.

- Leftover Panko.

How-To:

- In whichever bowl is the largest, add everything in and mix!

- While the oil is still hot in the pot/wok/fryer, carefully drop the mixture in.

- Fry until golden brown... which will be fairly quick!

- Fish out Fried Bits with a sieve and transfer to a paper towel lined plate.

- Sprinkle with a bit of salt and enjoy!

Have fun everyone! Please fry safely! And have a great holiday!!!!!!! (^0^)/

My mama's specialty for Thanksgiving Potluck: Spinach Dip

Hi everyone~ I'm sorry for the SUPER long hiatus. I seriously blame school for this. *shakes angry fist at Anatomy class* I've been lacking sleep and proper appetite cuz of it.

Wow... Thanksgiving is around the corner... And this particular dish is my mama's specialty come any holiday that calls for food. I warn: THIS is not for the health conscience. If you plan to eat this, you will have to throw all thoughts of healthy eating into the wind. Haha.

Anyways, My mama made this for as long as I can remember, and I was always her sou chef. She told me she learned it from a former co-worker from back in the days during a Christmas office party, and then she also found out that the co-worker got the recipe from the back of a soup mix package. But my mom made it her's by altering the recipe little by little over time. For instance, my family prefer a little more mayonnaise because of the bit of tanginess that it has over sour cream. When I make this dish (my mama "retired" from making it), I have to make it in a HUGE batch: one HUGE tub for my cousin, one small tub for the family, and one regular tub for whoever is having a potluck party.

I'm going to post here the a more... reasonable and SANE... measurement... I hope, it works. I'm so use to of making large batches, so please forgive me if it doesn't quite work. But the best part about cooking is that you can adjust/eyeball recipes to your own taste.

Also! I HIGHLY recommend for you to use Best Foods Mayonnaise. Not advertising, but it is tried and true by my family. Best Foods has a more tangy taste to it. It really helps cut the sour/rich taste of the sour cream, and it just rounds out the whole dish. Adjust to your taste of course.

I do warn though... there is going to be A LOT of chopping, and you will probably need arms of steel to do some squeezing. Lol. Its a good workout... at least it is a workout for me when I make it. Lol~

Are you drooling yet?

Ingredients:

1 box frozen chopped spinach

1 small can water chestnut (whole is best, sliced is good too)

2 hard boiled eggs

1 package Korr's Vegetable Soup Mix

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayonnaise (I use Best Foods.)

1 sprig green onion, chopped.

Salt, to taste

Cracked Black pepper, to taste (white pepper is just as good)

How-To:

- In a pot filled halfway with water, boil the spinach until it is thawed and the spinach is warmed through. Once thawed and warmed through, drain over a colander and set aside to cool.

- Boil eggs for about 7 minutes for hardboiled eggs. Once cooked, separate egg whites from egg yolks.

                 - Chop egg whites finely, and put into a big mixing bowl.

                 - In a small bowl, mash egg yolks with a bit of mayonnaise, and mix until smooth (or as smooth as you can get it). Set aside.

- Finely chop green onion, all of the whites and greens.

- Open can of water chestnut, drain well. Chop water chestnut finely. Over a colander in the sink, SQUEEZE a handful of the chopped water chestnuts. It does not have to be completely squeezed dry, but still slightly moist. Toss squeezed water chestnuts into same big mixing bowl with egg whites.

- In same big mixing bowl with squeezed water chestnuts, do the same with the cooled spinach. Squeeze a handful of spinach over a colander, and toss into bowl for mixing.

- In same big mixing bowl, add in soup mix. (Optional, pick out dehydrated pea bits.)

- Add egg yolk + mayo mix, sour cream, and 1/2 cup of mayonnaise.

- MIX!!!! Remember to give a little taste test to adjust level of mayo or sour cream.

- After well incorporated, season with black or white pepper to taste, and season with regular table salt to taste. Remember to give it a taste test to adjust level of mayo, sour cream, or salt.

- Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

- Serve with slices of soft french bread and/or nice slices of crusty french baguette.

Yes... you should refrigerate overnight so the flavors can marry together. BUT!!!! You can eat this right as soon as you finish making it ('tis what my family does). But I highly recommend to give it a little patience and let it sit overnight. Lots of steps and is time consuming, but it is good. I hope you guys enjoy this recipe as much as my family. 

Too much HK period-themed dramas leads to Osmanthus Jello

Hello world! I'm sorry I haven't been on and posting like I should be. I've been well... being me... being lazy... and well, also being busy. Haha.

Okay... to be honest, I've been so immersed in HK period-themed dramas since my last post, I totally dropped everything I wanted to do. Once you start a drama, its hard to stop. So in relation to dramas, I LOVE to watch period-themed dramas. I'm not from that time/era, so I'm always so captivated by how dramas depict the different dynasties with the clothing of the rich nobles and royalties, how the palace and the living quarters looks like inside... and most of all, THE FOOD. =D From the peasant class, one thing that is always present, the ever so reliable... big honkin' steaming plain baos. Traveling snacks, fried stinky tofu and more steaming baos. From the royal/noble class, grand regal dishes like roast pork, braised stuff... and my most favorite, and the main topic of today's post... elegantly made desserts. Ladies of the court in the palace all love to make this... Osmanthus Jello (桂花糕 / 桂花果凍). They all describe the dish as floral, fragrant, refreshing, and gently sweet.

I couldn't take it anymore... 20+ years of hearing about Osmanthus Jello, I finally CRACKED! I HAD to make it!!!!! I did some research online (I based some of my measurements from Noobcook and Anncoo Journal), and some info-search from my family.

Osmanthus flower IS NOT a very strongly fragrant flower. It is very light. In fact, you really have to try to up that scent. Online research all pointed to upping the sweetness and fragrant using Osmanthus Jam/Fructose. I hunted for the elusive Osmanthus Fructose/Jam for about 3 weeks by myself (online and in Asian supermarkets), until my aunt took me to San Mateo's Marina Market. One thing I learned, not all Asian markets sells things like this. Beware, some Asian markets are Vietnamese/Chinese-based, some are Taiwanese-based. To find odd products like Osmanthus Jam, go to Taiwan-based markets. According to my family, this type of jello dessert is more popular in Taiwan, and kind of in Hong Kong and possibly Canton. (Please correct me if I am wrong.) This why I say to look for Taiwan-based markets. The product is pricy, but it is a huge jar. The jam/fructose isn't too sweet... it is a hint of osmanthus flower scent. As for dried Osmanthus flowers, any Chinese herbal shops should carry it, and it is fairly cheap. I got a huge sandwich bag full for only $2, and still don't know what to do with the leftover.

I really wanted to amp up the fragrant even more by using Osmanthus green tea. I don't really recommend it, because the tea will leave a slight odd sweetness... in Chinese, it is call "甘" ("gan," translation: "sweet")... Might be from the green tea. To warn, the tea will make the jello a little cloudy. So you won't have that clear jewel effect.

I also used JUST agar agar bars for this jello. Agar gives the jello a crunch, as to gelatin gives the jello that jiggliness. My family likes the texture of agar more than gelatin, so thus I only used agar. Feel free to use gelatin, just follow the package. FYI, agar sets faster than gelatin. I learned how to use agar agar bars/strips from Brown Cookie Blog (follow steps 1 - 3).

For those who ask about my jello molds, I got my them from Daiso and Ichiban Kan.

 Why, hello little cuties~ (o^-^o) *nom nom nom*

Ingredients:

1 package Agar Agar Bars/Strips

~ 4 cups of Water

3 - 4 tbsp Osmanthus Jam/Fructose

2 - 4 bags Osmanthus Green Tea (optional)

1 - 1.5 tbsp Dried Osmanthus Flowers, rehydrated. (optional)

Sugar (rock or cane sugar is good, white is fine), additional to taste

Jello molds

tooth pick

How-To:

- (Following Brown Cookie Blog's steps 1 - 3; short-hand here->):

          - Break Agar Agar bars/strips to pieces into a pot with cold water and soak for 30 minutes.

          - Drain and Squeeze out water from agar pieces.

          - Return drained-out agar to pot and fill pot with 5- 6 cups of water.

             ***If you want to use the osmanthus green tea:

                  - heat 5 - 6 cups of water to a boil

                  - soak the teabags in the water to desired tea strength

                  - add drained-out agar pieces

           - Let agar pieces come to a boil, and cook until all agar pieces are completely dissolved.

- Add Osmanthus Jam/Fructose and rehydrated Osmanthus Flowers.

- Add additional sugar (or more Osmanthus Jam/Fructose) to taste.

- Carefully spoon or ladle agar mixture into jello molds.

- Refrigerate until set.

- To get the floating flower effect, before jello hardens, use a tooth pick to swirl and stir in a figure 8 or in random zigzags so flowers stay afloat in molds.

Done! Its not that hard. I made it on a rare hot SF day, and it was refreshing. I think I can tweak the recipe a little more for it to be more sweeter, but my family likes it not so sweet. I want to try this recipe again, but with jasmine flowers and tea. Like all the other recipes online for Osmanthus Jello, you can add some rehydrated in sugar water wolf berries so it looks prettier. Sorry it took me so long to post something... please enjoy this one. (^-^)v

Fusion~HA!: Beef Wraps

Long time no post!!! I'm so sorry~ o(╥﹏╥)o

I've been very busy with school and work. And honestly, if I'm not dying from school and work, I'm too lazy to post. (Plus I've been on a diet... can't cook too much good food if you're on a diet.) All the foods I've tried to make has all been... well... un-inspirational. Until... YESTERDAY!!!!! ＼(ﾟｰﾟ＼)

I went to have a nice little luncheon with my mom and my grandmother. Lunch was a simple bowl of fish cake and fish ball noodle soup, some veggies... and... what got me inspired... "Beef Onion Wrap". I ordered it because I saw a few other tables of customers order it. So... I too must try. According to my mom... and the menu said that it is a Northern China "small dish"/snack/appetizer. 

My mom and I combed over what type of meat was used, type of sauce, type of herbs, type of carb-wrap, etc. So before work, I did a little shopping. For this recipe, everything is from scratch... minus the carb-factor. So... why the title "Fusion~HA!" is because I had to get a little help from the supermarket, I used plain flour tortilla... same ones you use for your soft tacos and burritos. I didn't use/make the traditional wrap used in the original dish. (;;;^~^;;;)

For the meat, I used beef shank. For marinating it, I used the good ol' 嚕水 (pinyin: lu shui; soy-based marinade). I will teach you of course, my own family's recipe. It is good. Great for a lunch (because no mayonnaise, and taste good cold) and/or dinner. Breakfast too if you want to stretch it. 

I used Hoisin Sauce (海鮮醬 )... which according to my family is more of a Southern China taste? Northern China tends to use 甜面醬? I don't know... I like my Hoisin... It is more sweet than savory. Although both types of sauce serves the same purpose... but I think one is more savory than sweet. Not entirely sure. 

"嚕水 burrito"~ XP

Ingredients:

嚕水 (soy-based marinate):

3 pieces star anise

1 tsp fennel seed

2 piece licorice root (甘草 -> pinyin: gancao)

1 piece Chinese brown/tablet sugar (片糖 -> pinyin: pian tang)

1 - 1.5 cup regular soy sauce (生抽 -> pinyin: sheng chou)

3 tbsp dark soy sauce (老抽 -> pinyin: lao chou)
3 tbsp oyster sauce

salt

water (enough to cover)

Everything else:

2 - 3lbs. Beef Shank

1 large cucumber

1 bunch cilantro

tortillas

海鮮醬 （Hoisin Sauce）

How-To:

- In a pot (you can use a pressure cooker pot), fill with water and place beef shanks in. Boil for about 10 minutes to remove the grit and blood from the beef shank. 

- Remove beef shank, and empty the gritty-grimmy water.

- Place beef shank back into the pot.

嚕水 (soy-based marinate):

- In a pressure cooker pot (or large pot) with the beef shank, add all all the ingredients listed for the soy-based marinate. Add enough water to cover the beef shanks. MAKE SURE TO TASTE FOR SALTINESS! Add salt to taste. (If still too salty, add more water.)

- Bring to a boil, and let boil for 5 - 10 minutes on high-flame/fire.

- Shut off fire, and place pot into pressure cooker. Leave alone for 45 minutes to 1 hour. 

      *If you don't have a pressure cooker, you can cook in a large pot over low-flame/fire for about 2 hours.

- After 1 hour (or 2 hours for non-pressure cooker), remove beef shank from pot and let cool. 

Prep everything else:

- Cut cucumber into semi-fine, yet not too thick julienne slices.

- Wash cilantro, and dry.

- Slice cooled beef shank into thin slices.

- Warm up tortillas.

Wrap-Time!!!

- Take 1 warm tortilla sheet, spread hoisin sauce (as much as you like).

- Pile on the cucumber, cilantro, and beef shank slices.

- WRAP AND ROLL!!!!!!! (as tightly as you can.)

*Optional -> After making your wrap, you can lightly toast/grill the beef roll for extra yumminess.

- Now eat!

That is it. Simple right? It is good. My uncle did want to try to use the beef shank meat (although it is cooked with an Asian recipe) into a Mexican-inspired burrito by wanting to add some guacamole, cheese, salsa, etc. Lol. May be next time. As for the pot of soy-based marinate... DON'T THROW IT AWAY! It gets better as you use it. Save the marinate and make some Soya Chicken Wings, Soya Eggs, Soya Tofu... sky is the limit when it comes to that pot of goodness.

I hope you all enjoy this recipe. (^-^)b See you all next time! (Finals are nearing, so I hope to see you all after... assuming my brain hasn't exploded from the examinations.) 

Mmmmm~ Meaty... Lasagna!!!

HOLA!!!!!!

I'm so sorry that I've been absent for so long. Between the Winter Mayhem and starting anew in a new college (yes, I'm back in school after graduating from other college)... I just wanted to vegetate away from things. I do promise that I have a few recipes to post, but for now I post this: LASAGNA!!!!

I love lasagna. One of my childhood favorite, and yes, I was influenced by Garfield to try and like lasagna. Besides, the tomatoey sauce. Bits of meat. The gooey cheese. Best of all, the chewiness of the layers of pasta. Oh man. Heaven.

This one, I tried from Bon Appetite: Smoked Cheese and Sausage Lasagna. I modified it a little due to well... "fat control". Let's face it, a new year means new years resolution, which also means the word "diet" comes to mind. And lasagna is no diet food right? But we all want that last great dish before we put ourselves into another year of "dieting".

The original recipe calls for whole-milk ricotta, and prosciutto... and Italian pork sausages. Sweet or hot Italian sausages is up to you, but I opted out of the pork and used chicken. Sweet Italian chicken sausage. I completely opted out of the prosciutto. I used reduced fat or skim milk ricotta. Also instead of gourmet smoked mozzarella, I just buy good ol' pre-packaged shredded mozzarella or the shredded Italian blend.

Also, I ventured into trying the no-boil lasagna... its not bad. Its thin, so I didn't get the chewy bite of the pasta. Also, gently soak the pasta sheets if you do want to try the no-boil.

I cannot stress the need to let your lasagna sit for at least 5 minutes. That 5 minutes means all the difference between a soggy lasagna and a structurally strong lasagna. So PLEASE let your lasagna sit for 5 minutes untouched!

I didn't let my lasagna sit... see the puddle? For shame~ (=A=)

Ingredients:

Oil

1 pound Italian Sausage (pork, turkey or chicken, sweet or hot, but casing removed)

1 medium onion, fine chopped

1 stalk of celery, fine chopped

1 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp fresh basil, julienned
2 - 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 - 2 cans (28oz) Italian style diced tomato (I say 2 cans for a more watery sauce, 1 if not so watery)

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 box lasagna pasta sheet (about 12 sheets; I used the no-boil type, if you use the boil type, please follow box direction)
1 "can" (15 oz) ricotta cheese (reduced fat, skim, or whole milk)
1 egg
2 - 2½ cups mozzarella (grated best, but shredded is fine)
Salt and Pepper

How-To:


Sauce:
- In a big pan, heat some oil and brown sausage meat. (You can brown some bacon or prosciutto first before the sausage meat... I've tried using bacon bits for this dish before and it works too.) Once cooked, scoop into a bowl and set aside.
- Same pan, toss in onion, garlic, and celery. Sautee until onion is translucent.
- Add tomato paste and dried oregano. Stir.
- Add the whole can(s) of diced tomato with juice. Stir.
- Add cooked sausage with the juice. Stir.
- Add basil and some fresh cracked black pepper. Stir.
- Turn heat to medium-low and let simmer for about 15 minutes... Just so the flavor merry together.

Cheese mix:
- In a big bowl, mix ricotta cheese with egg and 1 - 1½ cup of shredded (or grated) mozzarella. Stir to combine well.

Pasta:
- Follow directions for pasta on the box if you plan to use boil pasta.
- For no-boil, gently soak pasta sheets in warm water as you layer the dish. This provides extra moisture to the pasta as you bake, so you don't get a crunchy lasagna.

Assembly:
- In a casserole dish (~13x9x2 dish... or a nice deep medium dish), ladle about 1 cup of sauce into the dish.
- Layer about 3 sheets of pasta.
- Spread a nice layer of ricotta mixture.
- Top with more tomato sauce.
- Repeat pasta, cheese, and tomato sauce steps until all sauce and/or cheese is used up.
- Last layer is finished off with remaining tomato sauce, and top generously with remaining shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Preheat oven to 350°F, and bake for about 40 minutes. If you use no-boil pasta, test doneness by sticking a bamboo screwer all the way through the layers. If there is some light "snapping" as the skewer pokes through the layers, the pasta is not done.
- After baking, take out of oven and let lasagna stand for 5 minutes.
- After 5 minutes... TIME TO DIG IN!!!!

Lots of steps, but it is very filling. I hope to try a veggie lasagna one day... using tomato sauce instead of a cream sauce (I find recipes with cream instead of tomato). But for now, this is pretty darn good... I've already made this dish about 3 times. Good luck!