Fluffy and Crisp Waffles

Surprisingly, I haven't made waffles since I moved from Miami.  I was a bit obsessed when I first got my waffle maker.  I used to make them every week :), and I tried all kinds of recipes.  Since my little cousin from back home was staying over for the first time, I wanted to make a good breakfast for her.  Unfortunately, I couldn't find my manufacturer's waffle recipe book, which was surprisingly good, so I had to Google new recipes.  I took a big risk with a recipe that only had one review, but the ingredients looked pretty promising.  The recipe actually turned out to be my favorite!!  With a little tweaking, the texture was perfect--tender, fluffy, and somewhat crispy (I cook mine for 15-17 minutes, depending on the amount of batter--I like my waffles on the darker side).  With a little added sugar, the sweetness was spot on, and the honey created a great flavor!  I enjoyed my waffles with some homemade syrup (I use a little butter flavoring instead of maple) and scrambled eggs to which I added some chopped up pork left over from last night's dinner.  Talk about deeeelish!

Try this recipe out and let me know what you think.  I just added  a TB or so of sugar for added sweetness. My batter was runny and much looser than I prefer, so I also added about 3/4 cup of flour to get a somewhat thick, but still liquidy (as opposed to pasty) batter.  Just eyeball it.  A thicker batter makes for a denser waffle.  For the eggs, I separated the whites and beat them to soft peaks with a mixer before folding them into the blended battler.  The recipe with my adjustments makes 5 Belgian-waffle-sized waffles.  Enjoy :)!

Pineapple Filling for Cakes and Pastries

Pineapple Filling

      looks ugly, tastes amaaaazing ;)   

Ingredients:
fresh pineapple, peeled and chopped
cinnamon
sugar to taste
1-2 TB of dark rum
pinch of salt
2 TB or so of cornstarch (sift over the pineapple sauce while in the pan, sifting avoids lumps)
          Do NOT try to be exact with this.  Just add enough to get a desirable consistency that is not wet, but not overly stiff and jello-like either.  After about a minute on medium to medium high, you get the full effect of the cornstarch in terms of thickening.

Procedure:
This recipe is very much freestyle.  I didn't measure anything.  The recipe was inspired by the delicious filling used in Dominican cakes and the awesome homemade marmalades that abound there.  I just chopped some pineapple into chunks (maybe try 1-1/2 cups or so) and put it in the blender with enough water to get it going.  I pulsed it until I got a consistency still slightly chunky and not too watery.  Then I put that on the stove over medium to medium high with some sugar, cinnamon, 1-2 TB of dark rum, and a pinch of salt and added in about 2 TB or so of cornstarch to thicken it so that it would not run or get the cake wet.  End result = mmmmm mmmm, talk about GOOD!

Super Moist Homemade Basic Yellow Cake Recipe and Cake Decorating!

Hi everyone!

So I'm taking a cake decorating class at my local craft store (that was super affordable, I might add), and look what I did!!!!  Yay!!!!  Don't mind the off-balance decorations in the center.  Everything outside of the shells was pretty much me just practicing everything that we'd learned that day.  I guess I got lucky that it actually ended up looking somewhat balanced ;).  I'm super proud!  This is what we learned in our third class session.  Pretty awesome, especially considering how little I paid.  Anyhow, I just wanted to pop in and say that I will likely be posting cake decorating pics and tutorials soon so stay tuned!

I also wanted to share the ridiculously good cake recipe that I used for this cake.  The basic recipe is at the link below.  The cake turned out super moist and had a great flavor.  Instead of 1 cup of sour cream, I just did 1/2 cup fresh pineapple juice and 1/2 cup sour cream + 1TB of dark rum.  I had this cake with a yummy  homemade pineapple filling, which you can find in my other post.

http://homecooking.about.com/od/cakerecipes/r/blc13.htm

The frosting was just the shortening-based buttercream frosting that is typically used for decorating cakes.  Butter becomes soft at room temperature and the frosting becomes to soft to hold the shape of things like flowers.  

FYI, for those who are curious, below would be stiff peaks.  That is NOT what you want.  If you do stiff peaks, you cake will have air bubbles.  Soft peaks is when the peaks that form kind of curl over or lean a bit at the top after you lift the beaters, whereas in the photo below they sit up straight and stiff.

without flash

with flash--see the stiff peak toward the center?

Ingredients

2-1/4 sifted flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

2 sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature

2c sugar

4 egg yolks

1/2c fresh pineapple juice (you can just blend fresh pineapple and strain)

1/2c sour cream

1 TB dark rum

4 large egg whites

 homemade pineapple filling

Procedure

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and line two 8 x 3-inch baking pans or one 12 x 3-inch pan with parchment. 

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. 

Cream the butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy and light in color, about 2 minutes on medium speed. Add the sugar and continue to mix until fluffy and light. 

Add the egg yolks, one at a time, being sure each is well incorporated before adding the next one. Add the vanilla. 

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the sour cream and pineapple juice, beginning and ending with the flour. Be sure the mixture is completely blended after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl, and beat for 1 minute. 

In a separate bowl, with clean beaters, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter with a rubber spatula. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pans and smooth with a rubber spatula. Bake in the preheated oven, 60 minutes for the 12-inch square pan or 45 to 50 minutes for the 8-inch pan. The top of the cake should be nicely browned. Test for doneness with a skewer or a toothpick; the tester should come out dry and clean. 

Authentically Delicious Southeast Asian Stir Fried Pork and Squash

My boyfriend's dad loves to cook.  Though he isn't exactly the emotional, warm and fuzzy type and I definitely am, food is one of those things I feel connects souls.  I love to sit down with his dad and talk about traditional Cambodian food and learn a few recipes here and there. Stir fried pork and kabocha squash is actually one of my favorite Cambodian dishes.  The overall flavor profile of this dish is absolutely divine!  The rich flavor of the squash is an unexpectedly excellent accompaniment to the pork.  This stir fry is one of those things that's nothing like the sum of it's parts.  The squash acquires a velvety consistency, the pork is tender and flavorful, the garlic acquires a mild sweetness, the saltiness of the fish sauce balances the sweetness of the sugar and garlic, and the oyster sauce gives the dish depth, while the black pepper serves to break up the sweetness.  The green onion, although my boyfriend's dad does not use it, really adds a wonderful little pop of flavor that I just love!  The comparatively milder flavor of this dish makes it a wonderful introduction to Cambodian cuisine.  

Although it looks very similar to buttercup squash, don't be fooled.  Kabocha squash is a Japanese squash that is much firmer and has a much deeper, richer, sweeter flavor than buttercup squash.  The firm texture makes this squash ideal for stir fries.  With that in mind, I would strongly caution against substituting another squash in this recipe.  Although the preparation of the squash takes a bit of skill on the peeling and chopping end of things,the end result cooks so quickly that the overall time investment is actually quite minimal.  Just grab your squash and sit down in front of your favorite show, and it'll be done before you know it, maybe about 7 minutes.  For strategy tips, pay attention to the photos below.  Cut the peeled squash into wedges, then stand the wedges on their side and cut slices thickness-wise, as seen in photo #3.  From these slices, cut matchsticks, as demonstrated in photo #4, and there ya go!  Try this super easy and delicious dish and let me know what you think.  Yum, yum, YUM!!

What to do with the other half of the squash???  Bake it and eat it either plain or sugared; bake it into bread, sweet buns, muffins, or pancakes; or add in very thin slices to a frittata.  This squash works well in any recipe that uses pumpkin, buttercup, or butternut squash.  Don't forget to roast the seeds for a tasty snack ;).

Cambodian Stir fried Pork and Kabocha Squash

Ingredients:

1/2 kabocha squash, peeled, seeded, and julienned (sold at some supermarkets and most SE Asian markets)

1 1b of pork (pork sirloin preferred--shoulder or butt can also be used, my boyfriend's dad often uses pork belly), sliced into matchstick-like pieces

3 large cloves of garlic, minced

1TB oyster sauce (http://www.khiewchanta.com/images/oyster-sauce.jpg)**

1 TB fish sauce (http://www.pinoyoutlet.com/image/cache/data/sauces/three-crabs-fish-sauce-682ml-500x500.jpg)**

a generous pinch of sugar (maybe around 1/2 TB or so)

cracked black pepper (maybe around 1 tsp)

1 green onion, sliced into thin rings

oil for cooking

**These items are found at any SE Asian market.  The brands photographed are the recommended brands.  They are only about $2 or $3.  For those in Northern VA, you can also find these items at Global Foods.

Procedure:

*All of the amounts above are approximate.  This dish is pretty freestyle.  Adjust to your taste preference or until you sense that the flavors are sufficiently balanced.  The only thing that will really mess up the dish is overcooking the meat

1. Marinade sliced meat in a modest amount of salt along with garlic for a minimum of 30 minutes.  This step is not traditional, but I find that the resulting flavor is superior. 

2. Pat marinated meat dry, being sure to remove any excess moisture, as the moisture will result in a watery stir-fry.  

3. Heat oil in a pan over medium high to high heat.  

4. Once the pan is hot, add in meat and squash and stir frequently to prevent overcooking

5. Season the ingredients with the oyster sauce, fish sauce, sugar, and black pepper.

6. Continue stirring frequently to allow for even seasoning and cooking of the ingredients.

7. Once the meat is about 85% or so done, sprinkle the green onion over the top, lower the heat to about low or medium low.  Cover, and let cook for two minutes.

8. Serve with Jasmine rice and enjoy!