New England Clam Chowder

I cant believe Christmas has already passed me by. Never felt like it happened at all. Winter break is almost ending, and when winter quarter comes, it's time to get cracking once again. Many things happened during winter break and I don't really want to blog about it because I don't know where to start. But in terms of food, I haven't really been making anything. For one thing, it's because I don't know where all the things are in the kitchen, and another because I don't really need to. Didn't have any sort of Christmas gathering/party with my friends although I would have liked it. Didn't really exchange any gifts; therefore didn't feel much like Christmas. I made clam chowder today and my mom requested MORE apple pie... I'm really sick of it. Please, no more.

And that's all was left of that pie. So difficult to roll the crust thin because it would always break apart. Not sure what I'm doing wrong. More egg perhaps? And flour?

Gingerbread Cookies

I'm finally back home! It's going to feel so strange being away from my apartment for three weeks. I thought I would make butternut squash soup when I get back to LA but I left my butternut squash and spice rack back in San Diego. Bummer. There's so much that I want to make this winter break-- I'm so excited for that! I'm planning to set up the Christmas tree and lights tonight; hooray for holiday festivities! I'm going to make the most of my three weeks back home and end 2009 with a ..."!" (bang!) Fall quarter's over so everything else will just be "fun, fun, fun!"

First thing I did when I got back was hang out with Illa and make gingerbread cookies. Illa did help spread the frosting... sort of. Then we went to Yogurt Land and saw Natalie there and I stole a Tokidoki spoon. :D Gingerbread cookies turned out great! So soft and chewy and GOOD!

Pictures might come later when I make a new batch :)

• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 cups unbleached flour

Marsala Chicken Pasta

Marsala Chicken Pasta

• 1 serving of Penne pasta
  
• 1/4 onion
  
• 5 baby bella mushrooms, quartered
  
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• ~5 oz chicken breasts
  
• 1/2 tbsp tapioca or corn starch (as thickener)
• 3/4 cup Marsala wine, dry
• 1/4 cup water
  
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• ~A dash of balsamic vinegar
• optional: grated Parmesan to top
• basil & oregano, salt+pepper for seasoning
• some SUGARR! :)

1. Cook penne al dente.
   
2. Oil pan and sauté garlic, onion, and mushrooms until soft. Set aside.
   
3. Chop chicken into bite-sized pieces and cook on medium heat. Set aside.
   
4. On medium heat add wine, vinegar, and broth and let it come to a boil. Let wine/broth reduce for about 2-3 minutes. Dissolve starch into water. Turn to medium-high and add (water+starch). It should be nice and thick when it starts to bubble.
   
5. Immediately reduce heat to low and toss with chicken and sauted mushrroms+onion. Garnish with Parmesan and parsley. Serve.
   

** Note: Have tried the beef variation with beef broth and ground beef. Very flavorfullll.

Fu Yu Ong Choi, Mabo Tofu, Mushu Pork

The previous post was a belated one. A result of me... procrastinating for the duration of the week. Here's another episode of ... what does Jenny eat?

Fu Yu Ong Choi (Water Spinach with Fermented Bean Curd)

Top: Mabo Tofu
Bottom: Mushu Pork

I want to make a little comment about the Mushu pork though. I didn't have Mok Yee (Black Wood Fungus) so I tried substituting in mushrooms. A little weird but close enough?? (As in they're both fungus) I'll post up the recipe for this one:

Mushu Pork

• 1/2 head of cabbage
  
• 2 oz Pork, thinly sliced
• Black wood fungus (mok yi)
  
• 2 eggs
• Ginger root
  
  
• Oyster Sauce
  
• Soy Sauce
  
• Lao Chau (Mushroom Soy Sauce)
• Brown sugar
• Sesame oil
  
• Tapioca Starch (just a little for a slightly thicker sauce)

Some brief instructions?
Make sauce. Just use your imagination as to how much of each to add. Overall sauce should not exceed 1/4 cup.
Scramble the egg first. Fry the pork. Set aside. Cook fungus according to directions. Oil the wok and brown the ginger a little. Then throw the cabbage into the wok with the sauce and cook. When it's almost done, put everything in and give it a good toss before serving. Based off of my memory of my dad's mushu pork. :)

Simply the Best Cheesecake

Cheesecake was definitely one of the hardest things for me to get right. I've made so, so many cheesecakes in the past, none of which I was completely satisfied with. Back then I over-mixed the batter, which made the batter watery and gross. After that I could never figure out how long to really bake the cake. It just never seemed to set properly. When the cake did set, the top would always crack and it would look like the earth opened up and swallowed it.

But this time was better. I baked the cake in a water bath and let the residual heat set the rest of the cake. I was glad that it turned out so perfectly. I baked this for Tim's 20th birthday so I didn't bother too much with getting a good picture. Take my word for it though-- it's delicious. The real picture is at the bottom.

The Best Cheesecake

• 15 crushed graham crackers
• 3 tbsp butter, melted
  
  
• 4 (8 oz) packages of cream cheese, slightly softened
  
• 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup milk
• 4 eggs
  
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flor

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) with a pan of water. Grease a 9 inch springform pan.
   
2. Combine crushed graham crackers and butter. Press onto bottom of pan.
   
3. Cream together sugar and cream cheese.
4. Add milk, vanilla, incorporate slowly. Then add sour cream and eggs. Lastly add in flour.
5. Use aluminum foil to wrap the bottom of the pan and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes in the water bath. Without opening the oven, turn it off and let the cake continue to bake in there for 3-4 hours. Remember to let the cake cool before refrigerating or freezing.
   

Those Cakes Are Poppin'

Red Velvet cake pops! Ever since Alison showed me Bakerella I haven't been able to get my eyes off those sexy looking cake pops. Bakerella makes it look at lot easier than it really is. She does. I had no idea dipping cake balls was so messy. The crumbs turned the melted candy pink =\ Maybe I am just noob at it. But it was fun and definitely cool! I used red velvet cake mix this time. Hooray for mixes! I like red velvet because it's not overly sweet like other mixes. Used white almond bark to dip. Basically just melted the candy and rolled the balls around. I tried taking pictures of every step this time! (No studio lighting but who cares :\) So here's sort of how I made the pops:

1. Made cake according to box instructions. Let it cool and then crumbled the cake into a bowl. Threw in some whipped cream cheese frosting.

2. Mix, mix, mix well until its mold-able!

3. Dip in melted almond bark

4. Stick in the pop sticks and let em cool!

Quesadillas

Heat skillet or non-stick pan to med heat. Spray one side of flour tortilla with PAM cooking spray and lay down on skillet. Sprinkle cheese evenly on half of the tortilla and layer your desired ingredients. After the last ingredient, sprinkle cheese on top, fold, and flip over. Grill until golden brown and crunchy.

Quesadillas

• Medium flour tortillas
  
• Mexican-blend cheese
  
• Pinto beans
  
• Salsa
• Lettuce
  
• Grilled chicken, sliced
  
• Sour cream to dip
  

I'll do a little re-post of the do-it-yourself salsa recipe. After you've tried this, you will never look at store-bought brands the same again, I guarantee it. Try not to substitute other types of tomatoes for Romas. Roma tomatoes have less water content and are redder-- which will make your salsa so much better.

Salsa

• 3 Roma tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 small red onion, diced
  
• 2 tbsp Cilantro, finely chopped
  
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tsp lime juice
• optional: jalapenos, hot sauce