Chick Night

I hosted a chick night the other night and decided to make cream puffs for dessert. I just about always work on dessert first before entrees and appetizers. I find that if you've got a dessert ready and everything else sucks, well at least you can end on success. It's a bit of an Amelia Bedelia safety net. The first time I made cream puffs was for our Greenlake housewarming party with Theresa and Julie. They were surprisingly easy to make and tasty, too. So I gave another go of it.

My camera ran out of batteries and after recharging I forgot to snap a picture. But they were OK looking. Just trust me.

Cream Puffs
Custard Filling

• 1/2 c sugar
• 5 T all-purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 2 c milk
• 2 egg yolks, beaten
• 1 t vanilla extract

Pastry

• 1/2 c butter
• 1 c water
• 1 c all-purpose flour
• 1/4 t salt
• 4 eggs

Chocolate Topping

• 1/2 c semisweet chocolate chips

For the custard
You can make this a day ahead to chill in the refrigerator.

1. In a small saucepan, combine sugar, flour and a pinch of salt.
   
2. Stir in milk, a little at a time, until smooth.
   
3. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil 60 seconds, then pour a small amount of hot liquid into the 2 egg yolks, and stir.
   
4. Return now heated egg yolks to saucepan and stir, over heat, until mixture starts to bubble again.
   
5. Remove from heat, add vanilla. Cover and chill in refrigerator.

Pastry
How do you get the space in the center? The dough rises by itself! At a high temperature, the pastry rises, and then the rest of the time is drying it out so it holds its shape. Easy peazy!

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C)
2. In a medium saucepan, combine butter and water and bring to a boil.
   
3. Sift together 1 cup flour and a pinch of salt and pour all at once into boiling mixture.
   
4. Stir vigorously until mixture forms a ball. Remove from heat, let sit 5 minutse.
   
5. Add eggs, one at a time, stirring vigorously after each addition.
   
6. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto baking sheet, or pipe into desired shape.
7. Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, then reduce heat to 400F/200C and bake 20 minutes more, or until golden.
   
8. Cool completely.
   

Chocolate Topping
This step is optional, but seriously, who wouldn't want their puff with chocolate?

1. Melt chocolate chips in microwave or slowly over low heat.

Cream Puff Assembly

1. Use a chopstick to poke a hole in the pastry.
   
2. Pipe the custard in. You can use a ziplock bag and cut off a tiny bit of the corner.
   
3. Optionally, you can cut off the top of the pastry, use a spoon to fill it with custard and replace the top.
   
4. Cover with melted chocolate.
   
5. Serve immediately or refrigerate.
   

I also made homemade burger buns (see below), burger patties (ground beef, chopped onions, worcestershire sauce, dried chili powder, fresh ground black pepper, salt), sesame noodles, and a fresh mozzarella salad.


Burger Buns

• 2 1/4 t yeast
• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried onion flakes or 1 tsp.onion powder -- optional
• 2 tablespoons butter -- melted
• 1 egg
• 1 cup warm water (100-105 deg.)

1. Place ingredients into bread machine in the order required by the manufacturer. Run the Dough cycle.
   
2. Turn out onto floured surface and knead by hand 1-2 minutes. Add more flour if too sticky.
3. Divide the dough into 10 pieces. Slap the dough into bun shape -- flattened balls, 4-7" in diameter. Put buns on a lightly oiled cookie sheet and let rise about 30-40 minutes.
4. Optional: Glaze the buns with the egg yolk and 1 t water mixture, then sprinkle with sesame seeds.
5. Bake in 375F/190C oven 12-15 minutes or until golden.

Apples

This week everyone in class has to do a bao gao on where they're from. Since most everyone already knows the major stuff about America, I decided to do mine on where I've lived in Seattle. In researching information about Washington, I found that they are the number one producers of apples in the US. Since I always like to bake and share with the class, I found a recipe that could be easily split among 11 people using apples. WA actually produces an even greater percentage of the nation's red raspberries, but they're not in season here, so apples were the next best choice.

Anywho, I got all the ingredients EXCEPT I forgot the cream cheese! By the time I got it in the morning, it was too late to make, since the dough needs an hour to chill and I was still putting together the pictures for my presentation (as well as what I was going to talk about). So I made them last night after class and brought them in this morning.

Mini Apple Turnovers
These were really delicious fresh out of the oven. However, if you can't have them warm, they are also nice cooled off. The dough comes out flaky as if you've gone through the pain of layering it without any of the work. I found the original recipe's sugar to be too much for the kind of apples available in Taipei now (Gala and Fuji), so I've cut back in the version below. I also lengthened the baking time as the small ovens common in Taiwan aren't as efficient.

• 1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 3/4 c butter, softened
• 1 egg, separated
• 3 T cold water, divided
• 2 c all-purpose flour
• 7 c thinly sliced peeled tart apples (about 6 medium)
• 1 t grated lemon peel
  
• 1/2 c sugar (*reduced from 3/4 c)
  
• 2 t cinnamon
• dashes of ginger, allspice, nutmeg
  

1. In a large mixing bowl, mix cream cheese and butter until smooth. Refrigerate the egg white. Mix egg yolk and 2 T water into mixture. Gradually add flour until well blended. Shape pastry into a ball. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. In a large skillet, combine the apples, lemon peel, sugar and spices. Cook over low heat for 8-10 min or until apples are tender.
3. Turn the pastry onto a lightly floured surface and press to 1/8" thickness. Cut into 24 four inch circles or squares. Top each piece with apple mixture. Brush edges with cold water; fold pastry over and seal edges well. (If you are working with a mini oven as I did, divide the dough in half and keep the other half in the fridge while the first half is prepared and baked.)
   
4. In a small bowl, whisk egg white and 1 T cold water; brush over pastry.
   
5. Place on greased baking sheets. Bake at 190°C for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
   

Pesto Bread

I had some leftover pesto to use up so decided to whip up a batch of Pesto Bread. I looked up recipes on the internet and there were 2 variations. One was a French Bread with pesto rolled into it and the other recipe used milk and olive oil. I decided to go for a soft bread instead of a crusty one and ended up using this recipe.

Pesto Bread
Tastes great fresh out of the oven. Also works well as leftovers, but this loaf didn't last long.

Dough

• 1 1/2 t yeast
• 4 c bread flour
• 1 1/2 t sugar
• 1 1/2 t salt
• 5/8 c milk
• 2/3 c water
• 2 T olive oil

Filling

• pesto
• pine nuts
• mozzarella

1. Add dough ingredients to bread machine in order according to manufacturer's directions using dough cycle.
2. When the dough is finished place on a lightly floured surface and let rest 10 minutes.
   
3. Roll out to a rectangle 10 inches long and about 3/4 inch thick. Spread pesto sauce over dough leaving a 1/2 inch border. Sprinkle pine nuts and cheese.
   
4. Roll lengthwise jelly roll fashion and tuck ends under. Place in a greased 10x4 inch loaf pan (or what have you, in my case an 8x8 on the diagonal). Cover and let rise 45 minutes.
   
5. Brush olive oil over the top and with a sharp knife score the top with four diagonal cuts. Repeat the cuts in the opposite direction. Sprinkle with sea salt.
6. Bake at 215C or 425F for 25 to 30 minutes, until the bread is golden and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom.
   
7. Turn onto a wire rack to cool.

Cinnamon Buns

...or as I like to call them in Chinese, 肉桂屁股 rou4 gui4 pi4gu3. Haha, just kidding. 肉櫃捲 rou4 gui4 juan3 is a better name, literally Cinnamon Rolls. I made them this morning for class. Chapter 2 is about food so our assignment for the week is to bring in some food and present it (describe the ingredients, how to make it, etc). I made a couple batches over Chinese New Year break as well but forgot to take pictures.

I like to use the Sweet Dough recipe from the Good Housekeeping Illustrated cookbook (which is handily not in my possession, but in storage at Angie's house). It's a large batch of dough (8 cups of flour, I think) that you end up splitting to make multiple recipes. Since I don't have it with me, I found the dough recipe on the internet, cut it in half and then just winged the rest of it.

Cinnamon Buns
Lots of people like a glazed bun, but I find the extra sugar makes it too sweet. The filling is to taste - I put a healthy dose of cinnamon, a sprinkling of sugar, and lots of raisins. If my consumers aren't against walnuts I put them in. I think they're better with but some people are allergic or just aren't a fan.

Dough

• 2 1/4 t yeast - 酵母 xiao4mu3
  
• <4 c flour - 麵粉 mian4fen3
  
• 1 t salt - 鹽 yan2
  
• 1/4 c sugar - 糖 tang2
  
• 1 egg - 蛋 dan4
  
• 1/8 c butter, melted - 奶油 nai3you2
  
• 1/4 c water - 水 shui3
  
• 3/4 c milk - 牛奶 niu2nai3
  

Filling

• butter - 奶油 nai3you2
  
• cinnamon - 肉桂粉 rou4gui4 fen3
• optional: pinch of cloves (to enhance cinnamon), nutmeg (to complement), cardamom (for different flavor)
• brown sugar - 黑糖 hei1 tang2
  
• raisins - 葡萄乾 pu2tao2gan1
  
• optional: chopped walnuts - 核桃 he2tao2
  

1. Place dough ingredients in bread machine and set to dough cycle.
   Note: The following steps take up to 2 hours, depending on your rising time.
   
2. Punch dough down. Flatten/roll out to rectangular shape. 12"x20" or 16"x21" would do.
3. Spread melted butter on surface followed by the rest of the ingredients. A healthy spread of raisins will do.
4. Start rolling the dough (from the long side). Be sure to roll tightly so as not to have any air pockets.
5. Cut the log into 9-12 pieces (depending on the size of your baking dish).
   
6. Place in greased pan. Cover and let rise in warm, moist environment until nearly doubled (30 min - 1 hour).
7. Bake at 180C for 20-25 min or until golden brown.
8. Serve warm for breakfast or cooled down for a snack!

I brought the dish into class, still warm from the oven. With only 9 pieces in the square dish I used, we had to cut them in half to have enough for everyone (11 people incl the teacher). I think I could have eaten half the dish but held back and ended up with half a roll.

My class continues to be wildly entertaining and I am so grateful for having this teacher and these classmates. Class change period is over, and my class has settled its roster. There was an older American man from Los Angeles trying to get in, but in the end, the school said 10 was the limit for a class. A few others also just peeked their heads in to see if there was room. It's quite a popular class. I feel some concern about the next quarter when I plan to take a month off. The school has changed their policy...instead of letting teachers go at their own pace (with a guideline of 5 days per chapter, 3 days for intensive), they are required to reach and not surpass a certain chapter. I think this will make it more difficult for students in the end and possibly limit our class. So far, I've always been in a class that has gone faster than others -- it's a shame the school is slowing us down.

The Accidental Diabetic

After talking with Popo for FOUR straight hours yesterday, I went to IKEA which is practically across the street. I bought a 12 cup muffin tin - a bit of a splurge, but for lack of bread pans, I thought a muffin tin would do the trick.

So I decided to use up some old apples by making apple muffins. Only, after 20 min of cooking, they were so light in color, I thought they couldn't possibly be done. I left them in 5 min more, and they looked the same. That's when I realized I forgot to add the sugar! But because I had tripled the amount of apple the original recipe called for, and added some extra spices, they turned out tasting alright.

So here's the version of the recipe I made, without the half cup of sugar called for.

Apple Raisin Muffins - No Sugar Added
These make a nice snack or breakfast. They're a bit like pancakes in a muffin form. Just chock full of apples. Since there's no sugar, you get the sweetness from the apples and raisins and extra flavor from the spices. They bake to a very light color - not a nicely browned muffin like other recipes.

1 c all purpose flour
1/2 c whole wheat flour
2 t baking powder
1 t ground cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
dash of allspice
dash of ginger
1/2 t salt
1 egg
1/2 c low fat milk
1/4 c oil (I used olive, but you could use melted butter or canola or even applesauce)
3 c peeled, chopped sweet apple (most call for tart but for lack of sugar the sweet apples I used did the trick - I used 2 small apples)
1/4 c raisins

1. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, spices and salt. (If you wanted to add some sweetness, this is where the sugar would come in.)
   
2. Combine the egg, milk and oil. Stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened. Do not over mix!
3. Fold in the apple and raisins.
4. Fill 12 greased or lined muffin cups.
5. Bake at 375F/190C for 20-25 min. Cool for a few minutes before enjoying!
   

Ricotta

I had some leftover ricotta and didn't feel like making lasagna. There were just a few spoonfuls missing from the small 15 oz container, so I looked up a standard Ricotta Bread recipe and used all of it. Yum! Here's my version with some slight modifications.

Ricotta Bread
This makes an excellent bread just for eating, but also great sandwich bread. It has a nice, dense texture.

2 t yeast
3 c bread flour
4 T sugar
1 t salt
1-2 t dried Italian herbs
8 t melted butter
2 eggs
6 T milk
10-12 oz ricotta (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 c)

Place items in bread machine in order listed and set it to go. 2 lb (large) loaf, medium crust.

Return of the Sandwich Ring

I had another go at making one of my favorite recipes - the Ham Spinach Sandwich Ring. The recipe is in a previous blog post. It came out beautifully, but I didn't get a picture of it until it was nearly all gone. I brought it over to Lucas for a pre-BBQ snack. It went by in a flash - everyone liked it. It came out much better this time than last time.


Since I still can't find spinach in Taipei, I went ahead with this filling:

2/3 c chopped onion
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 T olive oil
2 c chopped fresh Chinese greens (about 4 oz)
1 c chopped fully cooked black pepper ham (from Wellcome)
3 slice Provolone cheese (from Costco)

1. Cook and stir onion and garlic in oil until tender.
2. Add greens. Cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted; cool.
3. Stir in ham and cheese.

For the dough, I used the bread machine on the Dough setting. Unfortunately, I forgot to put in the blade. I realized it was missing after adding the yeast and flour. When the initial mixing was done, it looked very soupy. I thought there wasn't enough flour - so I added more. Then I realized the blade had flour stuck underneath and wasn't on all the way. So once it was on properly, I restarted it and it turned out fine.

Real Bread

"Real" bread is hard to come by in Taipei. Sure, there is the overly sweet, oily bakery breads on every corner. And there is the delicious steamed bread in the form of mantous and baozi. But when you are craving a nice crusty French baguette, they are nowhere to be found. You might think you see them, as there are similarly shaped productions in some bakeries. But when you bite into it, you realize it's been buttered, sweetened or in some other way tampered with to be nothing close to what you were expecting.

So tonight I made my own...

Bread Machine Baguettes
The original recipe called for splitting the dough into 2 pieces. However, the mini oven I'm using doesn't have that much room, so I split it into thirds, making 2 baguettes tonight and saving one piece in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch. This bread is best eaten fresh, as there aren't any preservatives and you want a crisp crust and a chewy inside.

1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 t)
3 1/2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups warm water

1. Place ingredients in bread machine according to manufacturers directions. Start dough cycle.
2. Remove dough with floured hands and cut in thirds on floured surface.
3. Take each piece of dough and roll to make a loaf about 12 inches long in the shape of a baguette. Taper ends.
   
4. Place on greased baking sheet and cover with a towel.
5. Let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.
6. Preheat oven to 450°F/230°C. Place pan of water on bottom rack (This ensures a nice crust).
   
7. Make diagonal slashes about 2 inches apart down each baguette.
   
8. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.
9. Cool. Eat immediately - plain or filled!

Holiday Season

Unlike last year when I nearly forgot about the holidays, this year it was much clearer that xmas was approaching. Around town I saw a few lights, decorated trees and store workers wearing Santa hats. As ever, the holidays do not hold a religious meaning for me but is an excuse to spend time with friends and eat lots of food. So today's entry is dedicated to more recipes!

Lasagna
Finding lasagna ingredients in Taipei is nearly impossible. You can buy the lasagna sheets in the basement supermarket of Shin Kong by the Taipei City Hall MRT. You can find zucchini there also (and much more expensive ones in Jason's, in the 101 basement). You can get Ricotta at City Super in the SOGO on ZhongXiao Fuxing. Mozzarella is more easily available in regular stores, as are eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes. I could not find spinach anywhere, either fresh or frozen. So I substituted some Chinese greens that looked a similar leafy green for my usual recipe. Everything here is to taste - if you like a lot of cheese, load it on. If you hate mushrooms, leave them out.

• 9 lasagna sheets (boiled or use the no-precook kind)
• meat sauce (choice of meat: turkey, beef, pork, chicken; seasoned with garlic, onions, italian seasoning, crushed red peppers or tabasco)

• ricotta
• 1 egg
• leafy greens, chopped (I prefer spinach, but anything will do)
• mushrooms, sliced
• zucchini, sliced
• parmesan
• mozzarella

1. Prepare meat sauce.
   
2. Mix ricotta, egg, parmesan and leafy greens.
   
3. Layer meat on bottom of 9x13 baking dish.
4. Layer 3 noodles. Top with ricotta mixture. Add sliced vegetables. Sprinkle mozzarella.
   
5. Repeat layers: meat, noodles, cheese, veggies, more cheese.
6. Top with last 3 noodles and top with remaining ingredients.
   
7. Top with lots of mozzarella and a sprinkling of parmesan.
8. Bake according to package instructions. Usually once the mozzarella is melted and slightly browned it is ready. If there is a lot of liquid, it should be visibly bubbling. If preparing ahead of time, you can refrigerate after the previous step. Baking time will increase.
   

Oreo Cheesecake
I usually make a pumpkin cheesecake, but it's impossible to find graham crackers in Taipei. So I used oreo cookies to make a crust and decided to try my hand at an oreo cheesecake instead. One large box of oreos from Wellcome suffices for this recipe (it has 2 rows of cookies), though for a thicker crust you could go for another small package.

14-20 oreo cookies (without the creme filling)
1 T butter
4 packages of cream cheese (nearly 1 kg), softened
1 cup sugar
1 t vanilla
4 eggs
12-15 oreos, broken into quarter pieces

1. Crush oreos (in a plastic bag with your hand or a jar) and then pulverize (in a blender or food processor). Add butter and beat thoroughly.
2. Press into bottom of springform pan and bake for 10 minutes at 165C.
3. Cool in freezer.
4. Beat cream cheese and sugar at medium speed.
5. Add vanilla. Beat eggs in one at a time at low speed.
6. Stir in broken oreos.
7. Spread evenly in pan.
8. Bake 1 hour at 165C.
9. Cool in refrigerator over night (at least 4 hours). Garnish with additional oreos.
   

Optional: For a layered version, after beating in eggs, mix a portion of the mixture with pulverized oreos. Put this dark layer at the base, and then top with the light layer.

Healthy Pumpkin Bread
Since I still had that can of pumpkin to use, I decided to make a loaf of bread. I started making pumpkin bread in college. My original recipe had a lot of sugar and oil. After a few years I decided to cut back and found this recipe. It also uses whole wheat flour for some extra nutrition. If you don't have any, you can just use all white. It turns out moist and flavorful. But most recipes do, as pumpkin is just an excuse to combine cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.

1 cup white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/4 t soda
1 t salt
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/4 t ginger
1 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
2/3 cup brown sugar, lightly scooped
1/2 cup milk + 1/2 t lemon juice
1 egg
2 T butter, softened
1/2 cup raisins

Mix dry ingredients (up to ginger) in a large bowl. Mix remaining (wet) ingredients in a medium bowl. Mix wet into dry, stirring just until flour is moistened. Pour into 8x4 greased bread pan. Bake at 350 F/175 C for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until done.

Pumpkin Raisin Cake
I had some leftover pumpkin from the bread so used this muffin recipe to make a cake. It was my first time using this particular recipe. It came out ok - next time I would add more spices, and maybe a little more pumpkin.

1 c sugar
1/4 c vegetable oil
1 egg
1/4 t salt
1/2 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1/2 c milk
1/2 c pumpkin
2/3 c raisins
1/3 c walnuts
1 1/2 c flour
2 t baking powder

Mix all ingredients together. Bake in greased muffin tins at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or 8x8 glass dish for 35 minutes. Easy, moist, freezes well. Makes one dozen muffins or one cake.

Fresh Mozzarella Dish
I love fresh mozzarella. My sister got me hooked on it when I visited her 6 years ago in Paris. Along with tomatoes and basil and seasoning, you just can't go wrong no matter how you eat it - plain or on a cracker.

Fresh Mozzarella
Tomatoes
Fresh Basil
Fresh ground black pepper
Salt
Olive oil

Chocolate Chip Craisin Cookies

Oh ya, last night I also baked cookies. Where I'm dogsitting has an oven so I'm taking advantage (they're very rare in Taiwan - it's only a very small sized one). It's the second time I've made them here and this time I took a picture of the results.




Chocolate Chip Cookies
I have been making this version of cookies since high school. It provides a thick and soft cookie, just the way I like them. I usually put crushed walnuts in but this time used plumped craisins. I also use a recipe with reduced sugar and butter. The *ed items have been reduced from the original.

• 1/2-3/4 cup packed brown sugar*
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar*
• 1 cup butter, softened (not melted)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• a dash of cinnamon (optional)
• 12 oz semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or 1/2 cup craisins

1. Beat sugars and butter in large bowl on medium speed until fluffy, about 5 min. Beat in vanilla and eggs; beat in flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon on low speed. Stir in chocolate and nuts/craisins.
2. Drop dough by large spoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Flatten slightly if you want a final smooth look.
3. Bake at 375F/190C until edges are light brown, 11-14 minutes. Cool on grocery bags or paper towels (to soak up excess grease).
4. Makes 20-40 cookies, depending on size.

Monday: Pizza Pizza

I love making pizza. As much as I love eating Chinese food, it was a pleasant treat to make homemade pizza with Geoff last week. We used his recipe for the dough (in his bread machine) and some of my suggestions for toppings. I don't have his bread machine pizza dough recipe, so I'll share the one I've been using for years instead.

The Dough

I researched different pizza dough recipes and combined them to make the perfect one for my taste. It makes a medium sized crust that's a bit crisp on the outside, soft in the middle, without being too chewy or too crunchy.

• 1-1.5 cups very warm water
• 1 T milk
• 1 T sugar
• 1 package of yeast
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 3-4 cups flour
• pepper, parmesan, oregano (optional, for taste)

1. Combine the water and milk and dissolve the sugar. Sprinkle yeast over the mixture and stir gently until it dissolves (about 1 min). Let stand until a thin layer of foam covers the surface (about 5 min).
2. Add the olive oil, salt and any optional ingredients. Gradually add flour, mixing with a wooden spoon, until a soft ball forms. Knead until smooth (about 10 min). Shape into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm, moist place until doubled (1-1.5 hours).
3. Punch down the dough. Shape into a ball. Divide in half. Let rest for a couple minutes.
4. Shape each piece, handling minimally. Place on 2 lightly oiled cookie shoots. Let rest for 15 minutes.
5. Pre-bake in a 450 degree oven for 3 minutes. This step is optional but ensures the dough will be thoroughly cooked and rises it a bit before you layer on the ingredients.
6. Add toppings of choice. (see below for more information)
7. Bake at 450 degrees until cheese and crust are golden brown (about 15-25 minutes).

Topping Hints

If you're making pizza at home, take the chance to go wild. Add things you normally couldn't oder and see if they go well together. making pizza at home isn't just about having something to eat - it's about experimenting and having fun. The amount of ingredients you need depends on your taste. Always order extra sauce? Then pour it on. Love cheese? Add an extra handful or two.

• pizza sauce, tomato sauce, pesto
• Shredded mozzarella, parmesan, ricotta, feta
• Sliced mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini, onions, spinach, broccoli, roasted garlic
• Sliced tomatoes, pineapple
• Pepperoni, sausage, cooked ground beef, ham, chicken, smoked salmon
  
• Pepper, oregano, basil, garlic powder

Ordering the ingredients

The items on top tend to dry out, items in the sauce and under the cheese will become moist. I advise having onions below (otherwise they'll burn) and putting moister items on top. I also like to deseed the tomatoes...otherwise you can easily burn the root of your mouth biting into a piping hot one.

Dessert Pizza Toppings

Also consider making a sweet pizza for dessert instead. Remember - anything goes!

• Apples, pears, bananas, raisins
• Almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts
• Cinnamon, nutmeg
• Cream cheese

DaHsi, Dashi, DaXi

Wednesday was Double Ten Day (Shuang Shi), a national holiday, so no school. Tuesday night, I went to DaHsi with some teammates to do some beach-camping. This was the same beach I went to to go surfing with John, Becca and Dan. This time again, I went not long after a typhoon. The sand was littered with huge rocks and garbage. We just made the train from Taipei Main Station after some momentary confusion and bad instructions from the ticket seller. Luckily the ticket checker set us straight. We walked north from the station to get some supplies from the convenience store and town market, then headed back towards the beach. On the way, a cute black dog started tagging along. He was our pal the whole weekend, checking up on us every so often, looking for a good tummy rub or checking if there was any food. When we went to sleep, he would bark at any strangers that came near, including early morning fishers other dogs. It was nice of him to protect us, but it also would have been nice not to be woken up so often.

Anyways, Geoff was the man and brought the whole grill set up along with an enormous amount of food - steak, chicken, tofu, eggplants, mushrooms, onions, chopped carrots, and drinks. We had to wait til the next morning for dessert because we were so full. [Camping Snicker-Apple Dessert Recipe: ] He cored apples and then stuck a snickers bar in the whole, wrapped it in foil and then set it in the fire pit. 15 minutes later (or so), they were ready to be eaten - the apple softened, the chocolate melted into a nutty, caramely gooiness that had Mitch licking the foil for a good 5 minutes to make sure he had gotten all of it.

We played some cards - including the Ozzie version of Oh Hell which they call 500. Or maybe that was the other game that was the combo of Bridge and Euchre (I hope I remember the rules to teach Grr and KC). The next morning I taught them slapJack-ooQueen-clapKing and then Vietnamese Poker, which we played all the way home to Taipei. I also played a variation of Spit - except Geoff and Craig's rules were no pile ups! But otherwise the same. We also had a round of rock-paper-scissors, which I won. This isn't really significant, but it reminds of the 3 rounds I won at dinner at the steamed dumpling place last week. This was a trick I picked up from the Northwest Tofu eating gang (Emery, Edmund, Ann, Colin, etc) where when a dish comes each person gets one piece (or however it evenly splits by) - then for the remainder, you roshambo. You participate even if you don't want to eat it. So I played last week the first time for the winnings, and then the second and third times for the glory - I forced Dan to eat a dumpling he didn't even want. Oh the power! This is an all time high of a 4 win streak!

This is how I always pictured camping - gathering your own rocks to build a fire pit, finding dry wood to build the fire, and then laboriously fanning until you have hot flames spouting forth. The camping Christina and I did this summer was very much the opposite - using either the Coleman stove that KC lent us or eating baked tofu sandwiches (no cooking necessary). Trout grilling is similarly easy - you just show up at Angie's house and someone starts a blazing fire effortlessly for s'mores. Or you use a fancy shmancy grill.

p.s. Winning receipt lottery numbers were announced a couple weeks ago. Of the 4 receipts I have from August, no winners.

JiaoZi Nut

From my recent postings, you might think I was some sort of niu rou mian nut. But I'm not. I enjoy the dish - it brings back memories of my parents getting noodle bowls (niu rou mian and pai gu mian) - but if there was only ONE dish I could have for the rest of my life, it would be jiaozi! When I was living in NYC, I had a favorite place in Manhattan Chinatown - Lin's Dumpling House. I probably had a slight disposition considering the matching name, but the fact that they had many varieties of dumplings was really the key part - 14 to choose from! I was disappointed that they had closed shop years later.

There was a place in Seattle serving dumplings that a couple people raved about - but I thought was utterly terrible (as is often the case in bad Chinese restaurants in America). The skin was homemade (a plus), but it was too thick and the filling was incredibly boring - mostly just pork. They only had one variety. I never returned. I made them myself at home when I had the energy. Here's my recipe:

JiaoZi - Dumpling
Dumpling making parties are fun and tasty. The mixture is made to taste based on ingredients you prefer and have available. Omit the meat to make vegetarian style. Anything goes with jiaozi - my friend Kevin once made a mango jiao zi because he couldn't eat the pork filling we made.

2 packages wrappers (Shanghai style, not Hong Kong)
1 lb lean ground pork
2-3 zucchini (cabbage can be substituted)
Chinese mushrooms, soaked and chopped
shrimp (uncooked, peeled, deveined, chopped, salted)
thin rice noodles (softened and chopped)
Salt
Sesame oil
Soy sauce
pepper, ginger
minced spinach
garlic
chives
water chestnuts
tofu, firm

1. Grate zucchini, add salt to sweat and drain excess liquid.
2. Add seasonings to pork and mix well.
3. Combine pork, zucchini, mushrooms and mian. Season.
4. Wrap mixture in wrapper with one or two pieces of shrimp.
5. Boil in water until floating and thoroughly cooked - approximately 4 minutes when fresh. Otherwise, freeze immediately. Frozen dumplings take approximately 7 minutes to cook.

Now in Taipei, I can have fresh made jiaozi every day if I want. I try to vary it up a little (with my second favorite, baozi, and then other rice/noodle/bread dishes) but there are some moments where I think about just going all jiaozi all the time. What's prevented me is probably finding a really awesome jiaozi place. I've had a couple recommendations to me so far that I still need to find and try. The closest place to me has workers that just aren't quite as friendly as I would like. There's also a jiaozi chain store that I see everywhere, and have tried a couple times when desperate for a snack.

My current list of places to try:

• Zhou Panzi Dumpling House (周胖子餃子館)
  37 Zhongxiao East Road, Sec 5 (忠孝東路五段37號)
  Taipei City Hall station, facing away from the Taipei 101
• Tung Men Jiaozi Guan 東門餃子 (Dong1 Men1 Jiao3 Zi)
  37, Lane 31, Sec 2, Jinshan S Rd
  02-2341-1685
  11:00-14:30 17:00-21:00
  YongKang St area with a fish pond in front.
  This place has many kinds of dumplings (unlike the other ones I've tried which only have 2 varieties). English menu
  
• Jin Din Rou 京鼎樓 Jing1 Ding3 Lou2 - Tina said this one had good dumplings - I wonder if she meant jiao zi or just xiao long bao.
  * 台北市長春路47号 = Changchun Rd
  * Tel: (02)2523-6639, MRT中山駅
  [Note: There's one in Japan too.]
  

If anyone has any other suggestions on jiaozi places to try, do tell.

Gateau Alexandre

Happy birthday to my little nephew who just turned 1. This entry is for the Gateau Alexandre I made in his honor to help my sister out. Unfortunately, with packing up for my trip, I ran out of time to actually send her any useful information before his birthday. Oh well -- next year.

Here are the pictures of the cake in the making and eating.



And the recipe, as provided by the original creator, Jeanne Oh.

Gateau Alexandre

Three components:
1. pastry cream (for gateau)
2. baked cherries (for garnish)
3. gateau

Pastry Cream
1 cup (242 g) whole milk
1 vanilla bean (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract--bean is better)
1/4 cup (50 g) sugar
1/6 cup (20 g) cornstarch, sifted
3 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon (14 g) unsalted butter, room temp

1. Prepare cooling pan by lining shallow baking pan (or bowl) with
plastic wrap. Set aside.
2. Add milk to saucepan and scrape seeds from the vanilla bean (cut bean lengthwise). Bring milk to a boil and remove from heat. (When the milk violently bubbles over like a volcano, it's boiled)
3. While the milk is boiling, whisk sugar and cornstarch in small bowl. Add yolks to sugar mixture and whisk until the mixture turns pale yellow and is thick and smooth (very important because you don't want clumpy pastry cream). Gradually pour half of the hot milk into the yolk
mixture and whisk to combine. Return the yolk & milk mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens and comes to a boil. Boil for 30 more seconds, then remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the butter until completely
melted.
4. Scrape the pastry cream into the cooling pan, spreading it evenly with a rubber spatula. Cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap directly against the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Cool at room temp. (Note, you can refrigerate (keeps for 3 days) but make sure that you whisk the mixture smooth before use).

Baked Cherries (for garnish)
2.2 pounds (1 kg) fresh cherries, pitted
100 g sugar

1. Mix cherries in sugar. Bake in covered dish at 475 F or (250 C) for 15-20 minutes, stirring from time to time.
2. Allow cherries to cool (approximately 4 hours).

Gateau
3/4 cup (90 g) slivered almonds, food processed finely ground (about 45
seconds)
1/3 cup (30 g) slivered almonds (for garnish)
1 1/3 cup (193 g) all purpose flour
1 teaspoon (5 g) baking powder
4 large eggs
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1 vanilla bean, split
14 tablespoons (200 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon (14 g) orange juice or dark rum
Pastry Cream at room temp (above)
3/4 pound (341 g) sour or black cherries, pitted

1. Sift flour and baking powder over ground almonds. Gently whisk until combined and set aside.
2. Place 3 eggs and sugar in large bowl. Scrape vanilla seeds from bean and add to sugar mixture. Whisk the eggs until thickened and pale. Whisk in the melted (and cooled) butter . Whisk in the dry ingredients and orange juice. Let the batter stand for atleast 20 minutes
3. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Butter two 8 inch round cake pans or one 10 or 11 inch round cake pan. Dust the pans with flour, tapping excess.
4. Whisk the pastry cream smooth and fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch plain tip with the pastry cream (you can also make a makeshift pastry bag by using a ziploc bag and cutting the corner off).
5. Scrape 3/4 of the cake batter into each cake pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Pipe the pastry cream over the batter in each pan, beginning 1/4 inch from the edge of the pan and piping in a loose spiral towards the center, leaving about 1 inch between the coils.
6. Arrange the cherries over the pastry cream, dividing them evenly between the two cakes. Scrape the remaining cake batter over the cherries, dividing it evenly, and smooth it into an even layer, covering the cherries as much as possible.
7. Lightly beat the remaining egg and lightly brush the tops of the cakes with this egg wash.
8. Bake the cake(s) for 30-35 minutes (for 8 inch) and about 45 minutes (for larger), until golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake(s) in the pans for 10 minutes. Invert the cakes and cool completely. Reinvert the cakes to serve.

Assembly
1. Cake on dish
2. Arrange baked cherries on top of cake
3. sprinkle slivered almonds on top.

NOTE: I think this cake would taste fantastic with a taste of
chocolate, but I am uncertain if babies can have chocolate. When Hugh
gets older and develops his own taste, you can alter the pastry cream to
a chocolate one by adding about 4 ounces (154 g) of melted dark
chocolate. Alternatively, you can prepare a chocolate sauce on the side:

Chocolate Sauce
5 oz (142 g) Sugar
8 oz (240 ml) Water
2.25 oz (64 g) light corn syrup
2 oz (56 g) cocoa powder, sifted
8 oz (227 g) bittersweet chocolate, melted

1. Combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Remove from heat
2. Place the cocoa powder in a bowl and add enough of the hot sugar syrup to make a paste, stirring until smooth. Gradually add the remaining syrup and mix until fully incorporated.
3. Add the melted chocolate and blend until fully incorporated
4. Optional: Strain the sauce through a fine meshed sieve
5. Serve warm or chilled (warm is better, I think!)

Photo Essay: Berkeley and Oakland

My last days in Berkeley were spent sleeping with Mo, and sometimes Marcus would join us. Here they are being unusually affectionate with each other.


I also spent my time packing up, getting ready for the return to Seattle. Here, Mo is checking out the huge bag that my sister gave me.


Mo and I became quite attached. Here she is laying down on top of me, preventing me getting any more packing done. We enjoyed this position for a good 20 minutes at least. Such is the pace of my life these days.


I tried another gluten-free recipe. This time crepes. I would have like to use buckwheat flour, but didn't have any on hand, so used a recipe from one of Gretchen's books. I don't know if lack of refrigeration botched the thickening or if the book was just way off. I had to seriously adjust the ingredients as the batter was way too thin. I filled them with spinach, mushrooms, onions and chicken. This was the side-dish to a delicious dinner that KC and Gretchen whipped up.


On Sunday, my cousin Jim came over to pick me up. We gave him a tour of the house and sculpture garden. Then we were off to Oakland Chinatown for some yummy food at Shan Dong. (The yelp review is pretty good - If you know any chinese at all, read the one from 3/16/07 - hilarious for the mandarin-english translations.)


Unfortunately, we were late in meeting his sister/my cousin, Emily, there. Thankfully she was patient and stayed extra to chat with us. Emily is a teacher in the Bay area, recently returned from 7 years abroad studying Buddhism. Jim is an avid bicyclist and his girlfriend Susan was away working the Lifecycle ride to LA. Since Emily already ate, Jim and I shared 7 dishes (Shan Dong special dumplings, jiu-tsai cakes, sweet do-jiang, seaweed salad, vegetarian bun, a tofu dish, and yo-tiao).


Jim and I walked around Chinatown afterwards, where we spotted this car. That's right, take a closer look at that license plate.


We picked up some mini egg puff treats - which I was excited to try because they're one of my favorite things to get in NYC Chinatown. The woman in NY sells bags for a dollar each, and they're fresh made from her little cart and ready to go in minutes if not seconds. The ones I saw in Oakland were in a cafe, took at least 15 minutes to order and prepare, were 3 times as expensive and tasted like fortune cookies. I wouldn't recommend it.


We also spotted cherries for 99 cents a pound. So I bought a bag to bring home to Gretchen and KC. I put them in a tray next to the 3.99 a pound cherries from Berkeley Bowl and the 6.99 Rainier cherries from the Berkeley Organic Farmer's market. I split the Chinatown cherries into 2 sections - the normal looking ones and the mutant, double butted ones. The blind taste test resulted in the Berkeley Bowl cherries in first place, with the mutant Chinatown cherries in a close second. The others were far behind in 3rd and 4th.


I also made a gluten-free Italian Herb Bread. It turned out really well - even better than the French Bread. I used fresh parsley from Gretchen's garden.

Italian Herb Bread
adapted from The Best Gluten-Free Family Cookbook by Donna Washburn and Heather Butt

1 1/3 c sorghum flour
1/2 c whole bean flour
1/3 c potato starch
1/3 c tapioca starch
1/4 c granulated sugar
2.5 t xanthan gum
2 t instant yeast
1 1/4 t salt
1/4 c snipped fresh parsley
2 t ground dried marjoram
2 t ground dried thyme
2 eggs
1 1/4 c water
1/4 c oil
1 t cider vinegar

1. In large bowl, combine flours, starches, sugar, gum, yeast, salt, herbs. Mix well.
2. In separate bowl, combine eggs, water, oil and vinegar until well blended. Slowly add dry ingredients at low speed until combined. Scrape bottom and sides of bowl. Beat at medium for 4 min.
3. Spoon into 9x5 greased loaf pan. Let rise, uncovered, in a warm, draft-free place for 60-75 min or until dough has risen to the top of the pan.
4. Bake at 350 for 35-45 min (until loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom). Remove from pan and cool completely on rack.

I woke up on my last morning to Marcus sitting at my feet, laying on her back and cleaning herself. KC, Gretchen and I fit in a few more rounds of cards. I had taught them how to play Vietnamese Poker (with a more forgiving format than Tuyet's Grandma allowed) and we'd been playing all week, keeping tally of the score. KC couldn't pull himself out of a huge deficit, and we promised to start over from scratch in Seattle for the next 13 Cards Tournament. (Here's a site with rules pretty close to how we play.)

I flew out of Oakland, to LA, and then to Seattle. Yes, it was cheaper to go south first rather than a direct flight north. Crazy what I'll do to save $50. That was Monday June 11.

Gluten Free Galore

Yesterday I made a gluten-free tabbouleh using quinoa (pronounced key-nwah, not chin-o-uh). My sister usually makes it using cous-cous and others make using bulghur wheat - both no-no's for Gretchen's diet. I forgot to take a picture of the finished product, so here's one in the tupperware container for the leftovers.

Quinoa Tabbouleh
Most time is spent chopping and chilling. This is a refreshing summer dish that can serve as a lunch or appetizer.

2 c water
1 c quinoa
3 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 c lemon juice
3 green onion stalks, minced
1/4 c fresh mint, minced
1 T cilantro, minced
salt
3 roma tomatoes, finely chopped
1 cucumber, finely chopped
(missing: 1/4 c pine nuts, 1/2 c parsley)

1. Rinse quinoa well first so it won't be bitter. Bring water and quinoa to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cover. Cook 15-20 minutes, until water is absorbed and kernels are soft.
   
2. Combine oil, garlic, lemon juice and salt. Mix with quinoa.
3. Add greens and veggies. Mix well. Chill.
4. Serve with bread or over mixed greens.
   

Today I made a gluten-free French Bread. This came out surprisingly well and was really quick to put together, given that it was a yeast bread. The rising time was only 15 minutes! Gretchen really enjoyed this and we ate it plain and with leftover tabbouleh.

Fat-free French Bread
Note that potato starch flour is different from potato flour! Tapioca flour is the same as tapioca starch.

1 1/3 c + 1 T white rice flour
scant 1/2 c potato starch flour
2/9 c tapioca flour
2.5 t xanthan gum
1.5 t sugar
1 t salt
2 t instant yeast
1 t vinegar
2 egg whites, at room temperature
1.5 c warm water (110-115 deg)

1. Grease a French bread pan (or make your own out of a doubled piece of heavy foil about the length of the cookie sheet, to form a long curved mold).
2. Combine flours, xanthan gum, sugar, salt and yeast in large mixing bowl. Whisk well or mix through sieve.
3. Add the vinegar, egg whites, and water. Beat at medium speed for 3 min.
4. Spoon dough into the mold to almost full length. Smooth the top.
5. Cover and let rise for 15 min. Preheat oven to 400.
6. Bake for 1 hour. Turn down to 350 and bake another 15 min.
   
7. While hot, tear it apart to eat. Once cool, cut with knife.

When I was driving home from lunch with my uncle, I noticed a bumper sticker in front of me: Iraq is Arabic for Vietnam

I keep forgetting to take a picture of my uncle whenever I see him. Sitting across from him, I noticed how much he resembles my dad at times and sometimes his mother/my grandmother as well.

Yoko also stopped by today - she loved the house. Here's a link to original pictures: bantadesign Go to Projects - Residential - XYZ House

Day Off

I had the day to myself yesterday to wander around San Francisco. I started in Russian Hill and walked up Polk St (south). I stopped at Quetzal to get a mango-banana-pineapple smoothie. It was delicious. I then went to an Indian grocery store, New India Bazzar, not too far down the road. It's a very small store, especially compared to what I'm used to (Mayuri in Redmond). But they had some idly mix and some chutney powder which was what I was looking for. I still didn't have my debit card on me, so I had to get at least $15 worth to use my credit card. I made out with some papads, cashews and a pongal mix.

I continued walking south then east in order to get through Chinatown. It felt like home again. I miss chinatowns - I realize more and more that Seattle's lack of a decent chinatown makes me sad. I only had one dollar bill on me, so couldn't splurge on all the amazing food I saw - I passed on the boxes of mangoes, fresh made dumplings and bakery sweets like dan-ta (egg custard). Instead, I spent 90 cents to get my lunch: a cha-siu bao (bbq pork bun) and a mantou (steamed sweet roll). It was amazingly delicious. The place was on the right, walking north on Stockton. Its whole front counter was completely dedicated to steamed breads - huge vats of water and steamer baskets. It was like a little piece of heaven.

I continued north and west, crossing over the hill via Vallejo, climbing up the hundreds of stairs and enjoyed the view from the top. I rested at Yoko's trying to get some work done. But the free wireless available was being extremely flaky and driving me nuts. I looked up other free hotspots and considered going to Notes from the Underground, which was a close enough walk. However, by then, I had firmed up plans to meet Theresa at her hotel. She was in town for business. And the Courtyard Marriott she was staying at advertised free wireless in the lobby. So I packed up and took off towards downtown.

I got a chance to look at my cousin's pictures from his recent annual Memorial Day bbq. I also happened on another album - one dedicated to my uncle, his late father. I had only just arrived in France when he passed away and wasn't able to attend the funeral. Looking through the pictures made me miss him and regret not being able to spend more time with him. I think this is part of what drives me to go to Taiwan - to spend time with my only remaining grandparent.

KC and Grr were kind enough to pick Theresa and I from the lobby and drive us over to Richmond, the new Chinatown district. We met Abby at a Burmese place on California and 6th called Mandalay. There were a few interesting dishes (tea leaf salad, rainbow salad) but I think I like a well made Peking duck over the tea-smoked duck there.

This morning I made idlies for breakfast - mix 1 part idly mix with 1.5 parts water. Spoon into greased idly pan and steam for 12-15 minutes. Serve with chutney (chutney powder mixed with oil). Simple and delicious.

Cold Buckwheat Noodle Salad

Here is the recipe I used to help make dinner tonight. My hosts, Gretchen and KC, are on a gluten and dairy free diet, so I chose this cold noodle dish using buckwheat noodles and made sure to use wheat free soy sauce and tofu. I bought the wrong kind of sesame oil - I'm used to the Chinese kind, which is dark and very fragrant. We went to the local Whole Foods, where I only spotted a plain kind of sesame oil. I compensated by adding more soy sauce - but really, the flavor should come from the sesame. You can adjust the recipe by adding rice wine vinegar to the sauce, or even using meat instead of tofu (shrimp, beef, etc). Carrots also make a good addition, for health and color. You can substitute peas for the spinach. This dish is great in the summer when you want something cool and refreshing. It is also a colorful dish with the variety of vegetables.

Cold Sesame Noodles
Serves 4

16 oz (2 packages) buckwheat noodles (usually wheat free, but check ingredient list)
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
1/3 cucumber, cut into thin strips
1 or 2 green onions, chopped
5 cloves garlic, chopped
chopped ginger
sesame oil (dark kind)
soy sauce/tamari (wheat-free)
1 T sugar
spinach
salt and pepper
smoked tofu (or baked tofu if you can find one made with wheat-free soy sauce), sliced into fat strips
cilantro

1. Cook the noodles according to package instructions. Do not overcook. Rinse immediately with cold water until noodles are cold. Transfer to serving bowl and sprinkle with some sesame oil.
2. If you have plain tofu, heat it with some garlic, soy/tamari, salt and pepper to add flavor. Otherwise, just heat up the tofu in a skillet.
   
3. Optionally, you can cook the red pepper. Remove to bowl.
   
4. Heat the spinach in pan until wilted. Chop.
5. Heat 2 teaspoons sesame oil, chopped ginger and garlic over low heat. Remove from heat and add sugar and 2 T soy. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Pour over noodles.
6. Combine tofu and other vegetables in bowl. Toss to mix.
7. Garnish with cilantro.
   

The obstinate abstaining pistachio

The Facts
1. As I've mentioned, my sister likes using whole wheat over all purpose flour.
2. I've been making a lot of really sweet treats (apple dumplings, tapiocas, etc) lately.
3. There were 4 ripening bananas on the counter, not to mention a dozen bananas in the freezer hogging space (leaving little room for the few leftovers of the jiao-zi batch the other day).

The Idea
I decided to make a healthier, less sugary treat using up the bananas and whole wheat flour. I went with a diabetic recipe I found online - no white sugar, no eggs, little fat, and 4 bananas. It's even vegan! I was doubtful of the vanilla extract and raisins - I think a true banana bread should be unadulterated - using the full flavor of bananas. However, this was the only one I could find using all whole wheat flour so I decided to give it a try.

The Recipe: Whole Wheat Banana Bread and Muffins
2 T honey
3 T oil
1 t almond extract
4 ripe bananas, mashed
2 T lemon juice
2 c whole wheat flour
2 t baking powder
2 t baking soda
1/2 c raisins (a must!)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. Mix honey, oil and extract.
2. Add bananas and lemon juice. Mix well.
3. Sift flour, baking powder and soda together. Stir into banana mixture.
4. Fold in raisins and nuts.
5. Spread batter in one loaf pan and 6 muffin cups. Bake at 350 deg F/180 deg C. 20 min for muffins, 40-55 minutes for loaf (depending on size).

The Results
The muffins cooked well, but the loaf I kept in quite a bit past the 35-40 minute directions in the original recipe. Each time I checked it with a fork it was still quite gloppy. I tried a muffin after it had cooled off and it tasted awfully bland. The kids knew I had made something and were waiting for it the rest of the evening and through dinner. I thought they'd take one bite and then I'd have to finish up leftover muffins (they can be quite picky sometimes), but to my surprise they loved it. I think it might have been the idea of a treat, the moistness of the muffins and the existence of the raisins. I had another one and knowing ahead of time it wouldn't be the traditional sweet (or maybe b/c it had more raisins) made it taste better. I had a few slices of the bread this morning and it was quite moist and tasty. I don't think I'd make this again calling it a banana bread - but certainly again for a healthy quick bread - maybe next time adding some chopped apple or what not.

Today
Today I had quite a delicious lunch at a friend's - 2 wonderful curries and a fresh cabbage-chicken salad, ending with fresh watermelon and pistachios. Maddie went off with Katie and her daughters to Base de Loisirs, and Wubby and Hugh went down for a nap with mom, so I found myself with a little alone time. I decided to make rice pudding using soy milk (another thing about my sister is that she doesn't like using cow's milk). It was my first time making rice pudding - it's only recently that I even developed a taste for it. I remember in college I didn't like it at all. Anyways, I ended up merging two recipes when halfway through one I realized the maple syrup had developed a furry coat it really shouldn't have been wearing.

Rice Pudding with Soy Milk
Another vegan recipe! It's times like this I wish Meredith was around - it's rare anything I cook goes without at least one of butter/milk/eggs.

1 cup thai rice
4 cup plain soy milk
1 small cinnamon stick
1/8 t salt
1/4 c sugar
1/2 t almond extract
1/2 c raisins
cinnamon, nutmeg, or 4 spices

1. Combine the rice, 3 cups of soy milk and the cinnamon stick in a medium sauce pan. Bring to a boil at med-high heat.

2. Add salt and reduce heat to med-low, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the sugar, extract and 1 more cup of soy milk (as necessary). Cook for 15 minutes longer (or until rice is cooked through and absorbed most of the milk).
4. Stir in the raisins, remove the cinnamon stick and transfer to serving bowl(s). Sprinkle with desired spices. Serve warm or chill.

Notes: Don't rinse the rice - you want all the starch for stickiness. I would say you can go up to 5 or 6 cups of soy milk depending on your rice - the thai rice I used absorbed all the liquid so it wasn't much of a pudding - more like a sticky rice dessert. If you're busy and don't have time to stand around stirring a pot, use a baked rice pudding recipe. And if you're really lazy, you could just use leftover rice and skip the whole cooking process.

Miscellaneous
Thanks Mike for telling me you're reading! It's hard to know sometimes. From my counter map, I can see what cities I have regular readers in but I can't tell who each marker is specifically. We were just chatting about my French language ability - which has seriously gone downhill. I remember visiting my sister in Paris years ago and being able to follow a completely French conversation. Ever since going to Taiwan where I had to use a lot of Mandarin, I've found that my French recall is at an all time low. The other day someone called and thought he was talking to my sister. I wanted to say, "No, I'm her sister" but ended up saying "I'm your sister". I didn't even realize my mistake until my sister told me a week later, saying I must have really confused the guy. The reason is because "ta" in chinese is "her", but in french it's "your". Oops!

For years I've been telling people that my brother-in-law spoke better Chinese than my sister - always an impressive fact. It turns out I may have been misleading people, as it is all relative. Apparently, when they were living in China, people expected my sister to speak perfectly since she looks Chinese. On the other hand, Edo, a tall white guy, wasn't expected to know any. So when he spoke at all, they were easily impressed. But when my sister spoke, she sounded mentally disabled (their words not mine)! Haha, I can only imagine what I'll have to go through if I ever land myself in China what with having even worse Chinese skills than she started with.

Vietnamese Theme

Late Blossom
I just finished reading a great book by Laura Lam, Late Blossom Memories of life, loss and love in Viet Nam. I wish I had read it before my last trip to Vietnam. I recognize some of the street names she talks about in Sai Gon and nearby locations (Cu Chi and the large Cao Dai temple). It's an autobiography set during times of war in her home country, against the French, the Americans and internally amongst the Vietnamese. Not only is she surrounded by the ugliness of war, but she grew up with an abusive mother and an onslaught of predatory men. Despite all the trials in her life, there are lights, too, including her beloved grandmother, understanding friends, and a remote but encouraging father. She details life growing up and moving in to adulthood and trying to escape.

Laura is actually a good friend of my sister's and had invited us over for dinner in her garden a few days ago. At that point, I had only read the first few chapters - but even so, I had that blog feeling again - like I knew so much more about this person than I would otherwise. And I knew that I would shortly find out a lot more. I didn't know if I should mention it (I've started your book) or leave it alone, as it was am emotional time in her life, and I didn't know the whole story yet.

Once I finished the book last night, I realized that I had met some of the other characters in the book - except that they're not characters - they're real people. If I said anymore, I'd ruin the ending of the book, so I'll leave it at that. Amazon seems to frequently run out, but it gets restocked every so often. For anyone in Seattle that wants to borrow it, let me know. I highly recommend it to anyone planning on going to Vietnam and also any American who is open to reading about another viewpoint on the Vietnam War. Though part historical novel, it relates to the modern world shedding light on the war in Iraq. It's also a great read in itself, and made me wonder what a memoir from someone in my parents generation might be like, with their own struggles in China and Taiwan.

I just met Laura again tonight, telling her that I finished her book. She was eager for feedback and happy to hear that I put in an order for my own copy. She plans on donating all proceeds to help build a school in her home town, and with any extra money, working towards a hospital and improved roads and bridges (there aren't any roads left, as they were all bombed - there hasn't been enough money to have them recreated). There is so much work to be done, she hardly knows where to start, or if she'll be able to make the financial goals. The book is only sold through Amazon right now, and is on automatic re-order when their supplies run out - so don't be deterred if the site says that there aren't any in stock.

Che Chuoi
Yesterday, I also made a Vietnamese banana coconut tapioca soup. The blend of flavors was quite nice and it makes a nice cool summer dessert (yesterday it was more than 25C/80F).

Che Chuoi: Sweet Banana Soup With Tapioca and Coconut
This makes 4 servings (or 3 adults and 2 kids, including seconds)

• 2 cups water
• 1 (14 ounce) can light or regular coconut milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup minute tapioca
• 2 large ripe bananas, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1-2 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted

1. Bring water and coconut milk to boil in a medium saucepan.
2. Add sugar, salt, and tapioca.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low, letting it cook for about 30 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Stir in bananas. Remove from heat and let stand for 15 minutes. Note: After you add the bananas, don't stir too much, it'll break up the fruit.
5. Serve hot, or chill for 3-4 hours.

Da Nang
This all brings me back to thoughts of Vietnam and the leftover blogging I have to do. Most of my time in HCMC and Ha Noi are written up (here in the blog or on My Map) - it's my time in Da Nang that was left out. This was my favorite part of the trip, where I got to spend a lot of time with various members of Tuyet's family, who have lived in the area for generations. I happened to keep a small journal during my stay and have notes on each day's activities.

The summary of it is that I really enjoyed spending time with Grandma, 2 of her sons (one they call Uncle 10, because he was the 10th child), and their wives, and a bunch of cousins. I met numerous other family members and friends, all of whom were extremely generous. They fed us much too much food, both to be my tongue's delight and waistline's disappointment. Most days were lazy, as we couldn't adjust to the heat and intense sun enough to get in real exercise. Instead we watched a lot of movies (which were something like 3000 dong each for rent, about 20 cents US), did a lot of sudoku puzzles (that were quite challenging for being in a teenage magazine), and spent a lot of time at the internet cafe (doing a lot of research for future travel).

Towards the end of the trip, we got Tuyet's elusive cousins to play with us. The youngest cousin (6 or 7) was an only child, and seemed to be lost in a world that revolved around her. I played several card games with her, not always understanding the rules (b/c I learned by watching), and also b/c she would change them to suit her at times. The oldest (17, but looked 13) who lived in the house, Sang, was learning English and French in school. He along with a few other cousins seemed extremely shy and disinterested in us at first. We broke through the barrier and were soon hanging out each night after or before school.

WARNING: The following journal notes are for the seriously bored, as there are a lot of minute details here.

30 Jan 07 - Night time arrival to Da Nang
Our flight from HCMC was delayed 2 hours on Vietnam Airlines, but eventually got us to Da Nang. Two of Tuyet's uncles picked us up at the airport on motorbikes. When we arrived, despite having dinner on the flight, Grandma had prepared a lot of food for us. She said it was a light snack, but it was really quite a filling meal on its own: rice, fake squid, noodles and greens, veggie dish, tofu. She watched us eat and seemed disappointed that we didn't want to clean up all 5 plates. She encouraged us to change into jammies, lending me one of her own. I was worried about it being the wrong size, as she is a lot shorter than me - but I forgot that my height is really due to a long torso - so her jammy pants fit fine (with a little bit of a low rise look). We spent a few minutes taking pictures with Grandma in bed - she got a kick out of looking at the photos on the digital camera - immediately showing her jovial nature. She had an easy time laughing and smiling, and seemed to be able to enjoy life. Her uncles seemed of a similar nature, and made me feel at ease, despite the huge language barrier - me not knowing any Vietnamese, and them not knowing any English. I also met some of her cousins briefly, who were quiet, and seemed to want to do their own thing.

31 Jan 07 - Morning Walk, Market, Weeding
We had discussed joining Grandma on her morning walk the previous night, but when the alarm went off at 4:45 am, Tuyet didn't show any signs of rising. It wasn't until Grandma came in to wake us up that we got a move on. We were finally out the door at 5:35 am - when it was still pitch dark out. We walked down a short path, between other houses and to the main road, where we started walking towards the temple. As the sun rose, we could see a beautiful silhouette of boats on the water against the skyline. Fishermen were examining their catch (shrimp and crabs). On our way, many people were returning down the hill and commented on the lateness of Grandma's start. I think the 5 am start time was a compromise and that she usually goes at 4 am.

With a delayed start, Grandma didn't want to go all the way to the temple, so we stopped to do some calisthenics, which included some stretching, swinging and what I call butt raises. It was a form of push up but a lot easier. The ground was hard and my belly full, so when I attempted real push-ups it proved too difficult a task. I looked at Grandma and she was just lifting her butt up and down without moving her arms. That seemed a lot easier, so I decided to do what Grandma was doing. I think she laughed at me as much as I laughed at myself.

We returned home, and Tuyet went straight back to bed. I wanted to spend more time with Grandma and see what a normal day would be like for her. She went to the market, so I went along as she picked up pork, 3 duck eggs, greens, onions, herbs, carrots, potatos and examined some seafood. There was a lot of tossing of the seafood on small trays back and forth, and then the market lady throwing Grandma's money back at her - each one not wanting to accept it. Something similar had happened with the pork lady. I'm not sure if it was because of my presence or if it was a normal occurrence because of Grandma's status in the community. (Tuyet explained later that this side of the family was very well off because of her Grandma's ability to handle money.)

When we returned home, the maid spoke to me in Vietnamese and tried a lot of hand gestures that I also failed to understand. I thought it best to retreat to my room and join Tuyet in napping. We woke up for what I would have considered lunch, but Grandma was calling breakfast (I think it was her personal goal to fatten us up by feeding us more food at more meals than we could handle). This was another filling meal (rice, pork, greens, fried duck eggs mixed with green onions, 2 oranges). Tuyet and I took a walk with one of her uncles back to the same market, via a different route, hitting it from the other side. It was a lot emptier later in the day, with most of the food stalls cleared out completely. Tuyet picked up a pair of shorts (planning on using it for future trekking). When we showed it to her family, everyone laughed - Vietnamese girls don't wear shorts, so it was a funny purchase to them. I learned to play 13 Cards (Vietnamese Poker) with Grandma and Tuyet (once the power outage forced Grandma to stop watching her dubbed chinese soap). We took another nap at 1:30 for a few hours.

When we woke up from the second nap, we went outside to toss a disc (to help prep me for the tourney I had signed up for) in the driveway. Given the tight space, it wasn't really the exercise I was looking for, so we began to help Grandma and an Aunt weed - making sure not to pull the onions or other plants. I got a nasty bite from a tiny fire ant that made me feel like my finger was burning. We went back in, sat in front of the TV, had dinner (rice, fish, stewed pork and carrot), showered (everyone tends to shower the same time of day, once the water heater is turned on), more TV, and then played 13 cards with Tuyet's little cousin and Grandma, before retiring early for the night at 8 pm. Despite 2 naps, the 5:35 am walk really did us in.

1 Feb 07 - Hoi An and Marble Mountains, Grandma 2
Tuyet and I took a walk on the beach with some light jogging and stretching, in the morning. We returned home to play more cards before an excellent breakfast: rice paper, dry and wet, with pork and greens and a dipping sauce. A family friend picked us up in his car - we were hoping that an uncle would join us, but it turns out that most of the family gets quite car sick but are fine on motorbikes (Grandma is in this category as well, and gets around town by hitchhiking).

We drove to Hoi An, a quaint touristy town with lots of small shops. We considered getting me some tailor made skirts, but it was too expensive for same day service ($20 US), especially considering that Tuyet's aunt could do it for cheaper in Da Nang (we would later find out that because of Tet preparations, nobody would be available to make anything). All the bookstores had copies, not originals and were charging a hefty price. We passed many foreigners trying to bargain the price down quite unsuccessfully ("But this isn't even the real version - I'm not going to pay full price"). The three of us had lunch at a Vietnamese place, costing us 140,000 dong total. We had asked for a small meal, but ended up getting a huge bowl of rice and at least 6 side dishes (vegetables, a whole fish, pork, octopus, sprouts, herbs, soup) - it was way too much (again)!

The family friend drove us around planning on taking us to an island - but we scrapped the plan when we found out it was under renovation. We planned to stay until evening, so took a nap in a parking lot. But we found out the light event at night wasn't going to happen since it was so close to the new year. So we drove to Tuyet's other grandmother's house - which was quite different from where we were staying. She too chewed betel leaves and had black teeth - but she was completely senile - asking every 5 minutes who Tuyet was, after being told each time that she was her niece. This drove Tuyet absolutely mad. We took a drive to Marble Mountains, which reminded me a lot of the Batu Caves in Kuala Lumpur. This was a Buddhist version, with more caves, and pagodas, that I enjoyed very much. At the base were a lot of shops selling scultpures and carvings.

We drove home and Grandma was just returning from the market with fresh fish for dinner. We enjoyed a small dinner (rice, fish, smoked fish, noodles, greens) and then played games on Sang's computer (Box, a logic game, and Pikuchu, a matching game with logic). Somehow we ended up playing 13 cards together where the loser had to do pushups. Tuyet's little girl cousin ended up stealing the deck of cards, so we amused ourselves by reviewing Sang's French book (which put Tuyet to sleep on his bed at 9:30).

2 Feb 07 - Lazy Day, Internet
Tuyet and I started the day off with another short walk on the beach. I enjoyed a Central breakfast (noodles, veggies, fake meat, herbs, sauce) but Tuyet just had ramen. We took a walk and spent an hour at an internet cafe, before returning home so that Tuyet could return to her other Grandmother's house. I stayed behind and spent a couple more hours at the internet place. I wasn't hungry, so tried to skip lunch and went to our room to think. The maid woke me up at 3 pm and started laundry. I watched her prepare lunch - a sort of Vietnamese tubular zong-zi, that she peeled and cut with wire into slices. She sent me back to bed 15 minutes later. 25 minutes later she came back and said a few things in Vietnamese and used a lot of hand gestures that I couldn't understand. It seemed like she was asking for 2000 dong (which is too little - that's like 15 cents US) or 200,000 dong (which isn't a lot by American standards, but seemed quite a lot for Vietnamese). I tried to tell her to wait for Tuyet to come home, but I'm not sure I got that across. I think the only thing we both understood was that neither of us understood the other. I went down for lunch and found that they had fried the zong-zi slices and ate it with a soy dipping sauce. They sent me back to my room 10 minutes later, while Grandma laid on the couch and an aunt was eating another dish (leaving me wondering if they were cooking special dishes for us, or if I was really experiencing the normal daily life). Tuyet returned from the other grandmother's house and we watched the 3rd X-Men movie. Dinner was rice, tofu, beans, and a really tasty squash soup. We watched another movie, Accepted, and went to bed.

3 Feb 07 - Buffet Lunch, Lounging
We got up before 8, took a walk, played cards with Grandma and an Aunt, had breakfast (a square zong-zi with soy sauce), and then sat on the front swing watching while an uncle and 3 helpers moved 2 huge potted plants from the front of the house, to further down the driveway past the mini fish pond. Uncle and his wife (the mother of the small girl cousin), took us on motorbikes to her mother's house for a buffet lunch, an honoring memorial of her father, that started with a morning prayer and then an afternoon feast. There were 3 tables set up with more food than Tuyet and I were able to handle. Plates were literally piled up on top of each other, reaching to the edges of the tables. It was delicious and left me thinking that I could eat Vietnamese food for life. And that was before the dessert (tapioca and red bean). We returned home at 3:30 and admired Tuyet's large food baby. We watched another movie (the heat of the day and lack of transportation prevented us from doing anything more interesting) in Chinese with subtitles. We played computer games and did Sudoku puzzles, had a light dinner (rice, fish and something else), and then more Sudoku until 10:30 pm.

4 Feb 07 - Sick Day
I had a rough night, waking up at 3 in the morning feeling crampy. After a bathroom run, I took a cipro pill at 4:30. I spent the rest of the morning resting in bed, while Tuyet spent time at her other grandmother's house. I slept most of the time asleep - otherwise trying to convince Tuyet's family that I did NOT want to eat or drink anything, including the bowl of porridge they brought me. The most I could do was drink water, but even that seemed to set me off. I wondered what it was - one of the dozens of dishes I had at the lunch buffet? Something else? Unknown. But I had faith in cipro and knew I just needed 24 hours rest. Grandma on the other hand seemed angered by my resolve to not eat anything.

5 Feb 07 - Da Nang market
We took a morning walk as usual and then had an udon breakfast that her uncle got for us. We went into town center with 2 uncles to get the Vietnam Air tickets to Hanoi, to connect with our flight to Bangkok. We stopped to get a Vietnamese dessert (ice with a mixture of items, a green noodly dish with yams, and mung bean balls with coconut). And then to the big market, where her aunt has a fabric stall. I admired the fruit, was overwhelmed by the smell of drying seafood, and picked up a huge bag of pistachios as a gift for Grandma. We returned home to do more puzzles, check internet, eat dinner (rice, soup, fish, tofu, squash), and watch a movie (Munich). Aunt and Uncle returned home with a second dinner - wanting us to try another traditional central dish before leaving - 2 kinds of banana leaf wrapped glutinous rice flats and meat sticks with rolls.

6 Feb 07 - Another Lazy Day
I woke up at 7 am feeling nauseous again. Uncle insisted two of us join him on a bike, which was a tight fit. We were surprised to see he just drove us around the corner to get a pho breakfast. The location was near the internet place, so we insisted on walking home and stopped to get more movies. We went to the beach to help work off all of the food we'd been eating - finding a dead crab and a live oyster. After taking a lot of pictures, we went back to the internet station to purchase flights for Cambodia. We returned home at 2 pm to enjoy an asian pear and lunch. We went movie crazy (John Tucker Must Die, Just My Luck, Blood Diamond), played cards with the little cousin, enjoyed a veggie dinner with Grandma, and then later a duck and porridge dinner with Uncle 10 and Aunt, and pistachios with the whole family. After showering, we went back for internet late at night. This felt a little awkward, as the internet cafe is just in someone's living room. She said it was ok to be there that late, but when we turned around, the doors were locked, the chairs were folded up and no one was around - they had gone to bed! On return, we found that we had been locked out. Shouting didn't wake up anybody in the house, but it did wake up the neighbor - a friend of the cousin, who climbed down his roof and went inside to get someone with a key. He went back over the gate (so much for security).

7 Feb 07 - Last Full Day
We walked to breakfast around the corner with an uncle and had white noodles, while listening to ghost stories about the uncle and hearing about how Grandma was prepped for marriage at the age of 14 and had her first kid at 18. We took a short walk on the beach and returned home to hang out with Sang - he did his homework and I worked on making puzzles for him and Tuyet obsessed over taking pictures of the beach finds. Uncle 10 showed us a math puzzle (a pre-written number, you write a number, he writes something, you write another, he writes one and it all magically ends up being the pre-written total). We also spotted a huge snail with jabba-da-hut like qualities. Lunch was noodles, pork, greens.

More cards with Grandma, Aunt and cousin in the sitting room. Tuyet got fed up with Cousin 2's "you suck" comments and he went off to take pictures with my camera. Another internet check, returning home at 4:15 pm to have Grandma's fresh rolls. Tuyet's dad actually invented the recipe, but grandma perfected it - including an excellent sauce. Grandma'a brother came over and kept speaking to me in Vietnamese, not being able to believe that I didn't know any (by this time I learned how to say Have/Don't Have to play 13 cards: gaw, cum gaw). "Ask her if she can understand what I'm saying now" Tuyet translated for me. "It's so easy to speak - how can she not know?!" Another walk through the village. And more food, some flat rice noodles with yummy topping and leftover dipping sauce.

8 Feb 07 - Send Off
Grandma woke us up too early to go. With the extra time, she tried on Tuyet's yellow backpack, marveling at the weight and size. She sent us off with banana leaf wrapped rice goodness (Vietnamese zong zi). An uncle drove us and our luggage to the airport in a car. 2 other uncles and an aunt showed up on motorbikes later to join us in waiting. I made the mistake of having another Vietnamese coffee just outside the airport.

Missing Bits
One night we went into Da Nang center for drinks and karaoke with one of Tuyet's cousins and his friend and the friend's girlfriend. It was my first private karaoke room experience.

I heard a little bit of the family history, including how Tuyet's mom would feign craziness to avoid unwanted suitors. A trick I'm not surprised that Tuyet would start using to fend off bachelors her own mother might set up. There was an incredible amount of pressure on Tuyet to get married - every relative we met would bring the subject up over and over. Another common topic was about eating more. They seemed to view a big waistline as attractive, which was in direct conflict with our American view of a slim one. This was a hard battle to fight, as I really would have loved to eat as much as possible, given how delicious all of the home cooked food was and knowing it was for a limited time only. However, once we couldn't zip/button our pants, it was clearly a problem.

Grandma did a fair amount of cooking for us, but it was customary for her daughters (in law) to do the cleaning and some amount of cooking. These tasks would have fallen on Tuyet as well, except that she is still single. It was perhaps the one good thing coming out of her not being married, as we could just sit back and relax. I must say it did take some getting used to, not being allowed to clear the table or help prepare food. But after listening to all the hounding about getting married and needing to have babies, I think Tuyet enjoyed her brief moments of relaxation after eating and not having to clean.

Given the communication barrier and Tuyet's absence on occasion, I asked her how to say certain things that I thought would be helpful for me.
Eat - an - ong
Hungry - doi bung
Full - naw
Rice - com - gum
Do you want more - nua - ne
Go upstairs - len lau
Sleep - ngu - ngoa
Laundry - yak do
Thank you - cam ung
Grandma - Nguy - Ngo ia (no beginning 'N' - Nw-eye)