Cupcakes for Thanksgivikah

This holiday season marked an historic event: the coinciding of the American Thanksgiving with Hanukkah ( the Jewish "festival of lights").  Many culinary (and other cultural) hybrids were inspired by this special event.  As baking has been my food fixation as of late, my Thanksgivikah involved sharing of dessert items, namely the resilient trendy yet here to stay cupcake.  For my family's Thanksgiving feast, I prepared pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.  

Being that we celebrated Chanukah only a few days following Thanksgiving, I made use of the leftover gooey, sweet, tangy frosting by dying it a blue appropriate for the holiday and using it as icing for my next round of cupcakes -- chocolate-chip vanilla.  This was my first time making chocolate chip cupcakes; they came out a bit dry and dense -- not as good as the pumpkin cupcakes. Nevertheless, I would say they were a hit with family and co-workers, though next time I will probably use a different recipe.

Wansuapona Musu in Sea Cliff

Cool-toned curtains and braided chandeliers add charm to the restaurant's ambiance. 

A couple of specialty rolls at Musu.

(vegetarian roll); sashimi - soy-infused salmon, Spanish mackerel, uni (sea urchin)

Eating Abroad: Hungry in Hungary

Mushroom Paprika with doughy dumplings

Eggs-O-Eggs-O: Shoyu Tamago and Hard-Boiled Duck Eggs

Shoyu tamago (top photo) & hard-boiled duck egg (bottom photo)

Those who know me are well aware that I am somewhat of an egg fiend. I eat boiled egg whites almost everyday and always maintain a stash of large-sized eggs (preferably organic) in my fridge. This is somewhat ironic given that as a child and for a decent portion of my early adulthood, I either avoided egg consumption altogether on the principle that they were gastronomically unappealing or ate them but without much zeal and never actively pursued them.

Somehow within the last year or so, I came to appreciate the versatile protein-packed egg, desiring to try it in all its forms (some of which I have yet to try!) In particular, I have developed an affinity for the hard-boiled egg, which is probably the least exciting/blandest of the food's many incarnations. The cool, moist, clean semi-firmness of the egg white -- its natural moisture sopping up whatever condiment or salt granules you sweep it onto before popping it into your mouth -- and how the white's texture contrasts so well with the mealy, play-doughiness of the yellow interior, these are tactile qualities of the hard-boiled egg that I find appealing.

Therefore, it's no shock that at a local Korean grocery chain - H-Mart! - I was keen just last summer on trying the shoyu tamago sold there. Shoyu tamago translates from Japanese as "soy sauce egg," and though it is a popular in Japan both in ramen dishes and in bento boxes, it is also a Korean appetizer. Judging from the version of the soy sauce egg sold at H-Mart and a recipe available on KFoodAddict.com, I've ascertained that the difference between the Japanese shoyu tamago and Korean jangjolim is that the latter version includes chilies in the recipe. Being a spicy food lover, I'm partial to the Korean adaptation of the dish; however, I prepared shoyu tamago because I didn't have any chilies at hand. I primarily followed the recipe posted on cooking blog Eat Your Greens, but followed some of the procedural advice offered for the same dish on Just Bento.

As for the hard-boiled duck eggs (one is on display in the bottom photo), I recently reacquainted myself with this lesser-known egg. I was shopping in Whole Foods and saw that they were being sold after what was probably a seasonal hiatus. Having tried hard-boiled duck eggs for the first time only less than a year earlier, I recalled not being too impressed with them. I had found their boiled whites to be rather tough and less palatable in comparison to boiled chicken egg whites. Nevertheless, I decided to give them another shot. And I'm glad I did. I found a winning method for optimally preparing hard-boiled duck eggs, as well as a simple yet sinfully good way in which to serve them -- sliced in halves and sprinkled with fleur-de-sel (I used Maldon sea salt flakes, which basically constitute the luxury class of sea salt). With the crispy, crystalline sea salt working to enhance the egg's flavors and the tactile experience of consuming the duck egg, I was surprised by the duck egg's deliciousness. This time around, I was better able to appreciate it -- yes, the boiled white exterior is thicker and tougher than that of the chicken egg, but it is also denser and therefore more meaty. But it is really the yolk that makes the duck egg special: it is creamier, thicker, and less mealy than a chicken egg yolk. Sprinkled with Maldon Sea Salt, a boiled duck egg makes for an excellent snack or appetizer.

Recipes for both Sho-Yu Tamago & hard-boiled duck eggs after the jump!

(Mid)summer Vegetable (Green) Curry

Being that it is Midsummer, preparing a so-called "summer" curry (an adaptation of Summer Vegetable Curry from Heidi Swanson's website, 101 Cookbooks) seemed appropriate. I honestly was not that enthusiastic about making this dish; I pursued it as an alternative (I like trying new things) to a panang curry I made a week or so ago for which I used too much paste, thereby rendering it too spicy for my mother (for whom I had prepared it) to enjoy and as an excuse to use the tin of green curry paste sitting in the pantry. Besides, my reasoning went, my mom had probably never tried green curry before! More babbling (and my version of Swanson's curry) after the jump.

Alicia Silverstone's Vegan Thin Mushroom Pizzas

So I had been incessantly renewing my borrowed library copy of Cher Horo...I mean, Alicia Silverstone's vegan cookbook "The Kind Diet," and as I am want to do with books in general, and any pursuits that I adore, including tackling recipes, it took months of having the book in my possession before I actually followed through with dog-earing the book and committed myself to making one of the compassionate Clueless star's dishes.

Silverstone's Thin Mushroom Pizzas (with Tofu Cream) was an excellent choice. It has enough prep involved that you are indeed actually making a yummy vegan dish, but is not too time-consuming (for those pressed for time), as the "crusts" are Ezekiel's small-sized tortillas. The pizzas are super savory, unami-packed, with a refreshing lemony zing from the Tofu Cream and the fresh basil topping. The recipe, which I followed faithfully, is linked in the text above. As Silverstone comments in the recipe's blurb, this pizza will be savored by vegans and omnivores alike (provided that they aren't freaks who dislike mushrooms!) One word of advice; be very careful when crisping the pizzas in the broiler. They WILL be done in a few minutes, and if you broil them for too long, they will make a popping sound, indicating that they are burnt or near-burned.

Brownie Bars with Salted Peanut Butter Frosting

Experience has taught me (as well as other Americans, doubtless, whose childhoods included the joyful consumption of the classic Reese's Peanut Butter Cup) that peanut butter and chocolate are a match made in heaven. Imagine my delight when I discovered a recipe for a Cocoa Brownie with Salted Peanut Butter Frosting on the food blog Not Without Salt. Delight and utter fear, to be precise, knowing that while it was my destiny to make this brownie, I would have to summon all of my will power to avoid ravaging the finished product. Such a concern was allayed by my justification that I was making the dessert for a co-worker's barbecue. Unfortunately, I never did make it to that party....

I will probably never bake these brownies again, and that is the highest compliment I can give the author of the recipe. They are just too damn good to have lying around. Especially if, like myself, you are in peanut butter rehab. But enough babbling about my vices; read more about the brownie after the jump!

Funfetti Vanilla-Almond Cake Cookies with White Chocolate Chips

Pretty and tooth-achingly sweet.

Greetings! It has been quite a while since my last post. In fact, I have not posted since September, the first month of the school year in New York City. So it is somewhat apt (or at least telling) that my latest  update since then is in June, the final month of the academic year. I have just finished my first year of teaching, and while the past nine months have been the most difficult and challenging of my life, I have never learned so much in so short a period a time. So consumed was I by this job that it was difficult for me to allocate time for personal, leisurely pursuits, such as maintaing this blog. Hence the excessively long hiatus. But I understand the importance now of designating time for activities that are non-work-related and am better prepared for next year. At least, I am optimistic. My biggest flaw is my inclination towards procrastination; how I waste time browsing the Internet or obsessively cleaning things when my time would be better spent tackling tasks related to work or focusing on my hobbies or honing skills. This is a personal flaw (for lack of a better word) that I am committed towards correcting.

So, speaking of school! The colorful cookies pictured above -- my slightly modified version of Sweet2EatBaking.com's recipe for Funfetti Cake Batter Cookies -- were baked with love for my fifth period ELA students. They behaved so well during my final full-period observation for the year that I decided to reward them with a sweet homemade treat.

Like my students, these cookies are, well, as the name implies, "fun," and vivacious. It's hard to distinguish whether the cookies are so enjoyable because of their sweet components -- crunchy vanilla-rich cookie vehicle, creamy white chocolate chunky chips (MY addition), and brightly-hued sprinkles -- hitting all the right flavor spots or because of the fun, undeniably nostalgic nature of these components -- particularly the sprinkles. Either way, it's a damn good cookie. If I were to make one recommendation, it is to be certain that you don't over-bake them. Remove the cookies from the oven shortly after they begin to turn golden (that is unless you prefer hard cookies). This batch's only flaw, as I perceive it, was that they were too hard. However, this was easily remedied by briefly nuking the cookies, which lent them some softness (in addition to slightly melting the white chocolate chips!)

Here is the recipe, taken from Sweet2EatBaking.com with the only modification being the addition of white chocolate chips:

Funfetti Vanilla-Almond Cake Cookies with White Chocolate Chips

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1¼ cups sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 egg
2½ cups plain (all-purpose) flour
¼ cup corn starch
¾ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ cup rainbow ‘jimmie’ sprinkles
2 tbsp rainbow ‘nonpareils’ sprinkles
1/4 cup of white chocolate chips (or mini-sized chunks)

Procedure:

1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2) Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Then, add the vanilla and almond extracts, and the egg. Beat these ingredients until they are well combined.
3) In a separate bowl, sift the flour, corn starch, baking soda, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in sections, mixing using an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Lastly, add the sprinkles and white chocolate chips to the mix, and combine without utilizing the electric mixer or over mixing, as this will cause the sprinkles' colors to bleed.
4) Scoop cookie dough onto baking sheets, setting them approximately 1½ inches apart (8 cookies per sheet). Bake for approx 10-15 minutes or until a very light golden brown colour.
5) Cool cookies. Store in an airtight container.

Serving Recommendation:
Serve the cookies warm paired with cold vanilla ice cream.