Seattle Cheese Festival

On Saturday Steven and I revisited Pike Place Market with camera, water bottle, and crackers in tow for the third annual Seattle Cheese Festival. The festival showcases over 200 varieties of international and domestic artisanal cheeses. In addition there are wine tastings, cooking demonstrations, seminars, and scavenger hunts for the kids. Best of all, cheese sampling and most of the activities (with the exception of the seminars) are free! I was afraid it would rain since the weather report predicted AM showers, but it turned out to be a beautiful day so I couldn’t have been happier.

I never found out what this big cheese was.

We wanted to get there before 10 to see the cheese race where local restaurant owners roll cheese down the cobblestone streets of the market but we ran a little late and just missed it. Maybe next year.

The tables were lined with cheese after cheese; it was a plethora of cheese as far as the eye could see. There were imported cheeses from all over Europe including France, England, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, and domestic ones from Washington, Oregon, California, Utah, and Montana. There were cheeses made from cow’s milk, sheep’s milk, and goat’s milk and cheese of all shapes, sizes, colors, smells, and textures, from nutty hard cheeses, smooth soft cheeses, to stinky runny cheese.

Do you dare try the Stilton?

How about the intimidating Roquefort?

Off the top of my head, I recall we tried about 2 or 3 Stiltons, some Roquefort after rallying up our courage, 4 delicious Goudas, an amazing smoked Cheddar, cave-aged Cheddar with lots of crystals, an odd Fontina that left a bitter aftertaste, Comte, Asiago, 3 or 4 goat cheeses, delicious Irish cheese that reminded us of Parmesan, Camembert, and dozens more that I can’t remember. I discovered I’m not the biggest fan of goat cheese. We loved one of the Goudas so we purchased some along with some blue cheese.

Eventually, the little cubes of cheese add up! After sampling over 40 varieties of cheese, Steven and I were full of cheese, crackers, and delicious local bread. I don’t know how we would manage to sample all 200 plus varieties.

More photos from the festival.

The festival is over for this year but I think it will be back next year. It's a lot of cheese and a lot of fun! Cheese sampling goes from 10 am to 5pm but it's best to get there early because the lines get longer and longer. There are sometimes crackers and breads available with the cheese but it's a good idea to bring some crackers with you so you can clear your palate occasionally (you never know when you'll taste a really strong cheese). Also bring a water bottle because you might get thirsty.


As we were leaving, we met an adorable African Gray Parrot, Phineas, and his trainer. Phineas was so sweet and intelligent (about the intelligence of a 7 year old his trainer says). If you point your finger at him and say "Bang!" he swings back and dangles from the trainer's finger. Phineas also did a handstand and back sommersault for us and calmly rested on my palm while I petted his head.






And a trip to Pike Place wouldn't be complete without getting some more Daily Dozen Doughnuts. See more photos here (no smell-o-vision I'm afraid).

Cha Shao Bao Chronicles Part 1: Trials and Tribulations

One purpose of this blog is to document my culinary endeavors. By endeavors I meant experiments, the good and the bad. It’s easy document the successful experiments, the ones that turn out well after the first attempt, like the strawberry lemon bars. It’s more difficult to document the experiments that fall short, the well... how should I put this... the failures.. Usually, I keep experimenting until I achieve the happy ending of a desired result. Unfortunately, Chinese steamed buns have me stumped so I’m wondering if anyone has any tips to make soft and fluffy steamed buns.

Last time I made cha shao, Steven and I ate it all before I could make bao. I promised that next time I made the pork, I would specifically set aside some for bun making. I have tried to make Chinese steamed buns many times in the past, during my inexperienced but ambitious teenage years, only to obtain less than stellar results. Emboldened by my recent successes with sticky buns and brioche (more on this later), I figured I was on a roll (I guess that pun was intended). Now that I’m older and wiser, at least I would like to think that I am, I figured I would have no trouble reproducing the soft and fluffy pristine white buns served at dim sum and Chinese bakeries. Boy was I wrong…

I must have looked at least a dozen recipes. Many recipes called for yeast raised dough made with a starter. So I decided to take this approach. I made a basic starter, then made the dough, let it rise, shaped it into buns, proofed, then steamed them. They looked a little… odd. Frankly they weren’t the prettiest buns on the dim sum trolley but looks aren't everything! I was hoping they would taste good. Well… the good news is that I did a decent job with the filling but the buns themselves tasted chewy and doughy, not the light and airy interior I was hoping for.

The recipe I used came from Ellen Leong Blonder’s Dim Sum: The Art of Chinese Tea Lunch. This seemed like a pretty decent recipe to me. The use of baking powder and baking soda would provide additional leavening power along with the yeast raised dough. The author states that the vinegar makes the dough more tender.

(Half of the original recipe)
Starter
1 tsp active dry yeast (I used instant yeast)
1/2 C lukewarm water
3 Tbsp sugar
3/4 C cake flour

Dough
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp rice vinegar
1 C cake flour
1 1/2 Tbsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp shortening (I used oil)

- The recipe is not entirely to blame for my poor results because I did not have any cake flour, so I substituted AP flour, which I suspect was mistake number one. The lower gluten content in cake flour would result in more tender buns. Also cake flour is bleached so the buns would be whiter than those baked with unbleached AP flour (mine were a bit yellow).

- Another possibility is that I overkneading the dough, leading to gluten formation. I used my Kitchenaid to knead the dough for a good 5 minutes. In retrospect this may not be good for bun dough because Chinese buns are not as chewy as oven-baked bread. Perhaps, less kneading the better.

- I also found some conflicting information about what leavening is best buns. Some say that using a yeast dough is unnecessarily because restaurants use only baking powder and cake flour. On the other hand, some sources attest that using only baking powder will yield bao that are less fluffy than those made with both yeast and baking powder.

- The grind of the flour also seems to be important. Some recipes call for Hong Kong flour, which is bleached, superfine flour. Maybe I'll look into buying this at my local Asian grocer but I think, cake flour would be an adequate substitute. Buns made entirely from cake flour are sometimes too lumpy, thus cake flour should be mixed with some AP flour.

- Some recipes call for milk instead of water. Maybe milk would create a more delicate dough.


What should I do for next time?
- Flour: Hong Kong/special bao flour? Cake flour? 50/50 cake and AP flour?
- Leavening: Yeast + baking powder or just baking powder?
- Liquids: Milk or water?
- Less kneading?
- Longer rise? Longer time for the starter?
- More baking soda + vinegar for an even higher rise?

And the final question? How do I get the bao to look like the ones served at dimsum. The bun itself looks like it blossomed, the filling isn’t entirely encased. Do I snip after I steam? I snipped before I steamed this time and it was pretty far from what they look like at dim sum.

Chicken Provencal - WHB

The other day I was perusing the potted herbs selection looking for a thyme plant for my (future) herb garden but there were so many varieties, it was very confusing. Lemon thyme, lime thyme, caraway thyme, wooly thyme, garden thyme? For someone like me who knows nothing about plants or gardening, having so many options is just too overwhelming. I later found out that there are over 300 different species! Thyme originated in the Mediterranean and because it's indigenous to warmer climates, the major flavor components remain stable in heat and can stand up to the drying process. This allows dried thyme to retain much of its original flavor. Thyme is heavily used in French cooking and is also the main component of herbes de Provence.

Provence is a region in southeast France that borders Italy and the Mediterranean sea. The area is best known for culinary specialties that include bouillabaisse, ratatouille, and pissaladiere, and the herb mix, herbes de Provence. The cuisine is heavily influenced by Spanish, Mediterranean, and Italian flavors and features a prominent use of olive oil, herbs, and tomatoes. Chicken provencal is a French country dish of roasted (or braised in this case) chicken with garlic, tomatoes, and olives. Cook's Illustrated suggests cooking this in the oven, but I didn't feel like heating up the oven so I simmered it on the stovetop. If you wish to cook it in the oven, preheat it to 300ºF and adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position.

Chicken Provencal - Poulet Provencal
Adapted from Cook's Illustrated

6 - 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
1 tsp of olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 anchovy fillet, minced
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 C dry white wine
1 C chicken stock/broth
1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained
2 1/2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 tsp herbes de Provence (optional)
1/3 C nicoise olives, pitted and roughly chopped
Zest from 1 lemon
2 Tbsp fresh parsley

Heat 1 tsp of olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium high heat. Cook the chicken thighs in batches (4 at a time if you’re cooking 8, since I was cooking 6 small thighs, I squeezed them all in there). Add the thighs skin side down and cook until the skin is crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes. At first the skin will stick to the pot but when they start to brown, they'll release easier from the pan. Turn the thighs over and brown the second side until golden brown, another 5 minutes. Remove the chicken thighs and set aside. Drain all but 2 tsp of fat from the pot.

Add the onions to the pot and cook over medium heat until browned, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, anchovy, tomato paste, and cayenne and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Add the wine and scrape up the brown bits and then add the chicken broth, tomatoes, thyme, bay leaf, and herbes de Provence (if using).

Remove the skins from the chicken thighs and nestle them into the pot with any accumulated juices. Bring to a simmer then either cook in the oven at 300ºF for about 1 hour or barely simmering over low heat for an hour.

Remove the chicken and set aside and discard the bay leaf. Cook the contents in the pot over high heat until thickened and reduced, about 5 minutes. Stir in olives and cook for 1 minute. Then off heat stir in the parsley and lemon zest and spoon the sauce over the chicken. Serve with crusty bread.

Serves 4

This will be my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted this week by Rinku from Cooking in Westchester. Weekend Herb Blogging is an event created by Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen that encourages bloggers to share recipes and information about herbs and plants.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Hainanese chicken rice is a dish that originated in Hainan, a tropical island off the southern coast of China. (It was there that I got picked up by an elephant and ate mangoes the size of footballs on the beach, but I digress...) Soon the dish made its way to Malaysia and Singapore. In fact, it is so popular in Singapore, some would consider it to be the national dish. Singaporeans take chicken rice very seriously and will heatedly debate about which stall has the best chicken rice.

A whole chicken is slowly poached in chicken stock and the rice is cooked in rendered chicken fat and stock. Finally, the chicken is chopped up and served cold with cucumber slices, chicken rice, a bowl of stock, and dipping sauces.

*this is the first time I made this recipe so if you have any special tips, let me know :)

Hainanese Chicken Rice
For the chicken:
1 whole chicken, around 3 1/2 lbs
3 1/4in slices of fresh ginger
3 green onions
Salt
Lots of chicken stock (making chicken stock)

For the rice:
3 C long grain rice, washed and drained
3 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
2 tsp of freshly grated ginger
1 green onion, white part only, thinly sliced (save the green top for garnish later)
3 1/2 C chicken stock from boiling the chicken

*I made the sauces to taste so the quantities are estimations
Chili Ginger Dipping Sauce
8 red chilis, or hot sauce like Sambal Oelek
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice
2 Tbsp chicken stock
Salt

Soy Dipping Sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp Sesame oil
2 Tbsp chicken stock

Other:
1 cucumber

For this recipe, you’ll need lots of chicken stock and a deep, thick walled (to retain heat) pot that can fit a whole chicken.

I can't say for sure how much stock you’ll need. It depends on the size of the pot you use and the size of your chicken but you need enough stock to fully submerge the chicken.

One way to tell how much stock you'll need is to add the chicken to the empty pot then add enough tap water to cover the chicken by an inch or two. Then remove the chicken. Make a mental note of the water level without the chicken. Dump out the water and add your chicken stock to the appropriate level. If you don’t have enough stock, you can add more water so you have enough. You don’t want to boil the chicken in only water because it will leech out too much flavor from the chicken.

Cooking the chicken:
Wash chicken, remove and save the excess fat, you’ll need it for the rice. Rub the entire chicken with salt. Set aside at room temp for about 30 minutes. Stuff the cavity with 3 green onions and ginger slices.

Bring enough stock to cover the chicken to a boil. Add the chicken breast side down and turn the heat down to the lowest setting so it’s barely (only a few bubbles) simmering. You don’t want to boil the chicken but you don’t want the stock to cool down too much either. After 25 minutes, gently lift the chicken out of the pot, let the stock from the cavity drain back into the pot, and set aside temporarily.

Quickly bring the stock back up to a boil, add the chicken, this time breast-side up, then turn back down to low heat, barely simmering, and cook for another 20 – 25 minutes.

Meanwhile in a wok or skillet, heat the reserved chicken fat over medium low heat to render out the oil. You’ll want about 2 tbsp for the rice.

Have a big bowl of ice water ready for the chicken. The chicken is done when juices from the thigh runs clear. When it’s done, submerge it in the bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. This helps tighten the skin and makes it jelly-like and taste really, really good. Let it cool in the ice bath for 10 - 15 minutes, then take it out and cool to room temperature.

Bring the chicken stock up to a boil and skim off the excess fat and scum. Continue to boil and reduce the stock for a more flavorful soup.

Cooking the rice:
Heat the chicken fat in a skillet over medium heat and add the chopped white part of the green onion and rice. Toast the rice until each grain is evenly coated with fat and looks golden.

Stir in the ginger and minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.

Add 3 1/2 cups of chicken stock and transfer this mixture to a rice cooker. I have to admit I always let my rice cooker do all the work and consequently, I don’t know how to cook rice on the stovetop. But Chubby Hubby has some stovetop chicken rice instructions. After some research it seems like the gist is you bring the rice and stock up to a boil in a saucepan over medium or medium-high heat, let it boil until the water level gets down to the level of the rice. Decrease the heat to low, cover the rice and let it cook for 30 - 40 minutes.

While the rice cooks, chop the chicken into bite size pieces and slice the cucumber. Whisk together the dipping sauces. Ladle the stock into bowls and garnish with some sliced green part of the reserved green onion.

Serve the chicken with cucumbers, chicken rice, soup, and the 2 dipping sauces.

Pasta Puttanesca

There aren’t many foods that I dislike but I recently discovered one: capers. The little buds are painstakingly harvested by hand so they seemed like something really special and delicious. I made some spaghetti puttanesca as my first caper dish and surprisingly, I couldn’t stand the taste of them. I can’t explain why I don’t like them, they just taste very alien to me. So if you’re like me and don’t like capers (but I may be alone in this), you can easily omit them from the recipe. But don't let me put you off capers, since many if not most people love them. One day I will give capers another chance, perhaps it's an acquired taste.

Puttanesca is a simple and very flavorful dish with plenty of healthy ingredients so it’s perfect for this month’s "Heart of the Matter" theme, pasta. Tomatoes are a great source of lycopene, a powerful antioxidant, and other compounds that help prevent cancer and heart disease. Studies have shown that the volatile oils in parsley inhibit tumor growth in animals and also neutralize harmful carcinogens. Olives are also a good source of monosaturated fats, omega-3 fatty acids, and vitamins A, C, and E. There is no meat, cream, butter, or cheese in this dish. Another way to make pasta even healthier is to sneak in some whole wheat pasta (Ronzoni is the best brand). I can get away with about 1 part whole wheat to 3 parts regular pasta before Steven notices a difference but I'm slowly trying to add more and more.

Spaghetti Puttanesca
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes or substitute cayenne but use less (1/8 to 1/4 tsp)
2 tsp minced anchovies, about 4 – 5 fillets (or you can press the fillets through a garlic press)
1 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes, drained and reserve 1/4 C of the juice
1 Tbsp capers or more to taste, rinsed
1/4 C Kalamata olives, chopped
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp minced parsley
8 oz. pasta of your choice
salt

Start by boiling water for the pasta. Start cooking the sauce when you add the pasta and salt to the boiling water.

Mix the minced garlic with a scant tablespoon of water. Add the garlic, anchovies, red pepper flakes to olive oil in a skillet and heat the mixture over medium heat. Cook until the garlic is fragrant and slightly blond but not brown, about 2 minutes. Add the drained tomatoes and simmer until it slightly thickens, about 8 minutes.

Drain the pasta when cooked.

Stir the olives, capers, and parsley into the sauce and toss with the pasta. If the mixture looks too dry, add in some of the reserved tomato juice. This dish is already salty enough from the olives and anchovies. Parmesan is not used to garnish this pasta.

Serves 2

Be sure to check the round up later this month at Ilva’s blog Lucullian Delights for more heart healthy pasta dishes.
Previous Heart of the Matter rounds for other great recipes.

Century Egg Tofu

Century egg tofu is my favorite way to enjoy these eggs. Silken tofu and century egg slices are drizzled with soy sauce (or soy paste) and sesame oil and topped with green onions and pork floss.

Soy paste is light soy sauce thickened with starch and sometimes sugar. The brand I use is Kimlan. It is used as dipping sauce because the thick consistency clings more readily to food. Using soy paste prevents the dish from being too runny but light soy sauce can be substituted (use less because it might be saltier) if you don’t have soy paste on hand.

Century Egg Tofu - Pidan Doufu
1 block silken tofu
2 century eggs
1 green onion, thinly sliced.
2 Tbsp rinsed and chopped preserved mustard stems (zha cai), optional
1 tsp vegetable oil
Approximately 1 1/2 Tbsp soy paste, to taste
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
About 3 Tbsp pork floss

Steam the block of silken tofu for 10 – 15 minutes and drain. This helps get rid of excess water in the tofu. Let it cool to room temperature and slice into 1/2 in pieces. Personally I like this dish to be at room temperature but it can be served cold too.

Cut the century eggs into slices. First cut in half lengthwise then each half into quarters and each quarter into 2 or 3 slices.

Heat 1 tsp of vegetable oil over medium heat and cook the zha cai for 1 or 2 minutes (if using). Then take the pan off heat and add the sliced green onions and let the flavor bloom in the hot oil. If not using the zha cai, heat up the oil and once hot, take the pan off heat and add the green onions to the hot oil.

To serve arrange the century egg slices on the tofu slices. Drizzle soy paste and sesame oil over the tofu and egg. Sprinkle the green onion (and zha cai) and pork floss on top.

Century Egg Congee

Congee is a porridge made from rice cooked in lots of water or stock. It’s a good way to use up the leftover rice from the previous day. The rice is cooked for a long time until it breaks down and the porridge thickens. It can be as thin as soup or as thick as oatmeal. Congee is very popular for breakfast because it is filling and warms the body. It is also a comfort food for someone who is sick, like chicken noodle soup. Congee is eaten with an assortment of dried, preserved, or pickled condiments. In century egg congee, chopped century eggs and ground pork are added.

Century Egg Congee
There’s no right or wrong way to make congee, since it’s a very informal dish so there's really no official recipe.

1 C leftover cooked rice
3 C water or stock (more or less depending on how thick you like your congee)
3 oz. ground pork, optional
1 green onion, separated into white and green part, then thinly sliced
2 century eggs, roughly chopped
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1/4 tsp sesame oil
Salt
Vegetable oil

Heat 1 tsp of vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the sliced white part of the green onion and ground pork. Brown the ground pork. Then add the rice, water, and white pepper and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and simmer for an hour, stirring occasionally.

Add the soy sauce and sesame oil to the chopped century egg and let it marinade for the time you cook the congee.

If you want your congee thicker, add less water or cook it uncovered for a while and if you want it thinner, add more water. At the end of cooking, stir the century egg and sliced green part of the green onion into the congee. Cook for a minute to let it heat through. Salt to taste, then serve immediately.

Serve with condiments of choice like:
pork floss (rou song)
pickled bean curd
zha cai
bamboo shoots
wheat gluten

Century Eggs

Century egg, also known as thousand-year egg or pidan, is a type of preserved egg that is a Chinese delicacy. Unlike the name suggests the eggs are not hundreds of years old but rather only a few months old. Traditionally they were made by coating chicken or duck eggs in clay but nowadays the eggs are preserved with an alkaline mixture of salt, tea, lime, and wood ash. The preservation process results in the most peculiar metamorphosis. The shell looks speckled and aged making the egg seem like it's been buried for hundreds of years. The white becomes an amber colored jelly-like substance occasionally decorated with patterns that resemble snowflakes or pine tree branches. The yolk transforms into a grayish jade, creamy center. For the most part the white is tasteless but provides a springy texture to the soft yolk that takes on a pungent, savory, earthy, almost cheese-like flavor.

Century eggs are definitely an acquired taste. When I was young, my sensitive palate did not like the strong flavors of the egg yolk, which some would say is the best part, so I only ate the white. Now that I’m older, I love the yolk as well. Since century eggs are a delicacy, they are served in small quantities as an appetizer course. These eggs are also added to rice congee for century egg congee, a very popular breakfast dish. A Shanghainese dish, century egg tofu, combines the eggs with silken tofu.

Because the eggs give off an ammonia smell there is a myth that once upon a time, horse urine was used in making these eggs. However this is just a myth because horse urine is actually a bit acidic whereas you need an alkaline substance for the preservation. Sometimes lead oxide, an extremely dangerous neurotoxin, is used to speed up the preserving process. When buying these eggs, look for packages that clearly state no lead oxide. If the eggs have no clear statement, to err on the side of caution, avoid the eggs from China entirely. The eggs should be refrigerated and can be kept for a month. However, I have kept these eggs for several months in the fridge with no ill effects.

Recipes:
Century Egg Congee
Century Egg Tofu

Strawberry Lemon Bars

Spring is my favorite season. It marks the end of the long and dreary Seattle winter and welcomes an abundance of fresh fruits and vegetables. The other day I picked up some lots of strawberries; four pounds to be exact! At $4.88 how could I resist. Buying 4 pounds of strawberries is quite a gamble. Sure you can check the package for mold or squished berries but you can’t see the ones buried in the middle and you certainly can’t taste the berries. When I got home, I sorted through them and I was astonished to find not a single moldy, mushy, squished, or injured berry. Most were a dark ruby red, with only a few slightly under-ripe berries. As I inspected each berry, I couldn't help but notice that strawberries have the most amazing floral and fruity fragrance. I froze half, ate quite a bit (they were sweet too), and baked with the rest.

These strawberry lemon bars were inspired by strawberry lemonade. If a regular lemon bar is like lemonade, I wondered if I could achieve the same delicate pink color and interplay of strawberry and lemon flavors of strawberry lemonade in a lemon bar. Originally, the plan was to mix strawberry puree with the lemon bar filling. Then Steven asked if I was going to make strawberry swirls, like swirls in cheesecakes. I thought, ya know that’s not a bad idea! It definitely made more sense than mixing it all together because if I mixed the strawberries into the filling I would get orange not a delicate pink due to the very yellow egg yolks. But of course ideas always sound really good on paper or in my head but reality can prove to be different. I envisioned picture perfect swirls of dark red in a sea of bright yellow. When I started making the lemon bars, I realized that the filling is actually really thin. So when I plopped the strawberry puree in, they didn’t exactly swirl like I planned. They ended up just floating around on top of the filling. Hmm... Oh well! So I ended up haphazardly swishing it around. Sure they aren’t as pretty as I pictured them but the important thing is that they taste good! Just like a glass of strawberry lemonade. Mission accomplished!


Strawberry (Swirl/Swish) Lemon Bars
(Adapted from Cook's Illustrated Lemon Bar recipe)

Crust
7/8 C all-purpose flour
1/3 C confectioner’s sugar
2 Tbsp cornstarch
A pinch of salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2 in cubes

Lemon Filling
2 large eggs
2/3 C granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp flour
1/4 C lemon juice, from 2 lemons
2 tsp lemon zest, from 2 lemons
2 Tbsp milk
A pinch of salt

Strawberry Puree
1 C chopped strawberries
1 – 2 Tbsp granulated sugar, depending on how sweet the berries are

Mix the chopped strawberries with sugar and set aside to macerate for about 30 minutes. I used about 1 1/2 tbsp of sugar.

Add the flour, confectioner’s sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a food processor. Blend the ingredients together for a few seconds to mix evenly. Then add the pieces of butter and pulse until the mixture is pale yellow and looks like coarse cornmeal. If you don’t have a food processor you can use a fork, a pastry blender, or even your hands to cut the butter into the flour. Cook’s Illustrated recommended freezing the butter then grating it into the flour and using your hands to rub the pieces between your fingers.

Line a 8 x 8 in baking pan with a sheet of parchment. Press the crust mixture into an even 1/4 in layer in the pan bottom and about 1/2 in up the sides. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

When you finish making the crust the fruit should almost be done. Blend the strawberries in a food processor (for a few seconds) or mash with a fork until there are no large chunks. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until thick. We need to cook out some of the moisture in the puree so it gets more syrupy. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and after the crust finishes chilling, bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown.

You can prepare the filling while you bake the crust. Whisk the eggs, sugar, flour and salt in a bowl until the sugar dissolves. Then whisk in the lemon juice, zest, and milk.

Reduce the oven temp to 325ºF, pour the filling into the crust. Drop spoonfuls of the strawberry mixture on the surface. Use spoon or knife swirl/swish the strawberry puree into the filling.

Bake for about 20 - 22 minutes, until the filling feels firm when touched lightly.

Cool to room temp, dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve.

I made these for Meeta’s Monthly Mingle, A Taste of Spring.

Greek Meatballs

Steven and I love gyros but making the meat at home is a bit challenging since we don’t have a vertical rotisserie. I figured Greek style meatballs would be the next best thing. We ate them on warm pita breads with chopped lettuce, tomatoes, sautéed onions, and tzatziki sauce; pretty close to a gyro.

Greek Meatballs - Keftedes
1/2 lb lean ground beef
1/2 lb ground lamb
Half a medium onion, finely chopped
1 slice of bread, crust removed, pulsed in a food processor or cut into small cubes
1/4 C milk
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
Zest from 1 lemon
1 egg
1 tsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp fresh dill or mint, finely chopped (I had some dill leftover from the tzatziki sauce)
2 to 3 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped
1/2 tsp black pepper
About 3/4 tsp salt, to taste

1/2 C or more dried breadcrumbs
Vegetable oil

Heat 1 tsp of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium high heat and cook onions until softened. Remove from heat and stir in minced garlic.

Mix the onions and garlic together with the other ingredients except for the dried bread crumbs and vegetable oil.

To form the meatballs, instead of rolling them individually by hand, use this really cool method I learned from Rachel’s blog, Coconut & Lime:

Sprinkle your work surface with some bread crumbs. Roll about a cup of the meat mixture out into a log then cut into pieces about 1 tbsp for your mini meatballs. Then place the pieces into a wire mesh strainer and sprinkle some more bread crumbs over them. Toss and roll the meatballs around in the strainer over a bowl and you’ll have lightly-coated, perfectly round meatballs. You can reuse the breadcrumbs in the bowl for the rest of the meatballs, then throw away the excess in the end.

Heat about 1 tsp of oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. I didn’t use very much oil because the meatballs exuded quite a bit of oil. If you find that your meatballs are dry, add more oil so they don’t dry out or burn. Brown all sides of the meatballs until they are fully cooked, about 10 minutes.

Makes about 20 meatballs.

Links:
Check out Elise's recipe for Greek meatballs
Kalyn also has another recipe for Greek meatballs. The addition of feta is a great idea! I'll have to try that next time.

Tzatziki - Weekend Herb Blogging

For this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging, I’m using the delicate and feathery, dill. Dill, like parsley, is a member of the carrot family. The leaves are used as an herb and the seed is used as a spice. The larger stems are often tough and woody but they can be saved and tossed into a soup for a light flavoring. Dill is used with salmon, soups, vegetables, and rice all over Europe and Asia. It is also one of the main components in Tzatziki sauce.

Tzatziki is a very popular Greek sauce and appetizer. The word is derived from the Turkish word for “chutney.” It is a mixture of strained yogurt, or Greek-style yogurt, cucumbers, seasoned with olive oil, garlic, vinegar or lemon juice, and herbs. The sauce is traditionally served with pita bread as an appetizer and is the condiment of choice for gyros. I used this with some Greek meatballs.

Tzatziki Sauce
16 oz. Greek style yogurt*
1 cucumber, washed and peeled
3 - 4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 to 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1/2 tsp salt

*Greek style yogurt is much thicker and richer than normal yogurt. If you can’t get a hold of it you can make your own. Place some plain yogurt in a cheesecloth, tie up the edges and hang it over a bowl or place the cheesecloth in a strainer over a bowl in the fridge for a few hours.

Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with a small spoon. Then coarsely grate the cucumber.

Gather the grated cucumber in a cheesecloth or paper towel and squeeze out the excess water, otherwise the tzatziki will be too runny.

Mix the grated cucumber with everything else.


This week’s WHB is hosted by Pat of Up A Creek Without A Patl.

Honey Walnut Prawns

When I was a teenager, there were some foods I did not like; one of which was mayonnaise. To me it tasted weird and when I found out what it was made from, raw egg yolk and oil, I wondered how anyone could like something so strange (seemed icky too). Now that I'm older, I’ve come to appreciate things like fats, raw foods, and mayo. Mayo definitely has its place. A BLT wouldn't be the same without a thin layer of mayo and there would be no potato salad, egg salad, or honey walnut prawns if there was no mayo. Honey walnut prawns is a very popular dish in many Chinese restaurants. It may not be an “authentic” Chinese dish but that doesn’t matter to me because it’s really tasty. When I first tried it a few years ago, I was a bit hesitant due to my no-mayo policy but I liked it so much, I gave mayo a second chance.

Honey Walnut Prawns
1 lb large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 Tbsp Shao Hsing rice cooking wine
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 egg white
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 C corn starch
Oil for frying

Sauce:
1/4 C mayo
2 tsp honey*
2 tsp rice vinegar
1/4 tsp Salt

Glazed Nuts
3/4 C walnuts or pecans halves
2 tsp honey*
Scant tsp water
Sliced lettuce and or toasted white sesame seeds for garnish
*Honey is a pain in the butt to measure so I just eyeballed the amounts

Beat the egg white until lightly foam. Toss the shrimp with rice wine, white pepper, beaten egg white and salt. Let marinate in the fridge for 15 to 30 minutes.

To make the glazed nuts, mix the honey with a bit of water until its smooth and liquidy but not too thin. Toss the nuts with the honey glaze and spread into an even layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 300ºF for about 15 minutes, toss them every 5 minutes. They’ll crisp up when they're completely cool.

For the dressing, whisk all the ingredients together and set aside.

While the oil is heating, dredge the prawns in cornstarch. Heat oil to 350ºF and fry the shrimp for 2 minutes. I didn’t deep fry the shrimp, just pan fried them. Remove and drain on a paper towel lined plate. Then fold the mayo dressing with the shrimp.

To serve, add the shrimp on top of a bed of shredded lettuce and sprinkle with candied nuts. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and a spring of cilantro (optional).

Serves 4.

Gruyere Gougeres - A Taste of Yellow

jump to the new blog for gougere recipe

How to Cut Up A Whole Chicken

There are a few benefits to cutting up a whole chicken yourself as opposed to buying the parts separately. You can save some money since whole chickens cost less, you have better control over how your chicken is butchered, and the scraps can be kept for chicken stock. To do this, you’ll need a large cutting board with a gutter for the juices, a sharp chef’s knife, and a pair of kitchen shears. For further deboning (for example for deboning a chicken breast) a boning knife gives you more control and maneuverability. With a bit of practice, a whole chicken can be done in less than 5 minutes, but always be careful!

Disclaimer: This guide contains multiple pictures of chickens and chicken parts, so if you are uncomfortable with seeing this, please don't read the rest of the guide.

Wash the chicken and remove the giblets. Save the neck for stock.



Lay the chicken breast up on your cutting board with wings closest to you (the above picture the wings are away from me so I turned the chicken 180 degrees). To separate the wings, cut a little bit into the breast to expose the wing joint. Here in the picture you can see the wing joint.



Once you can see the wing joint, pull the wing back so you expose more of the joint and see better. Then cut through the joint.



Repeat for other wing and now you have 2 whole wings. Cut the wingtip off and reserve for stock.



Cut through the second joint to separate the wingette and drummette. You can save these for buffalo wings or other dishes.



The legs are attached to the body of the chicken only by the leg joint and some skin and connective tissue. Sometimes the body is already starting to separate from the legs so just cut through the skin. The red circled area highlights where you should cut on the skin. You can see on my chicken the legs are already very separated from the body.



Once you cut through the skin, pry the leg away from the body.



Then bend the leg back to pop out the leg joint.



Cut through this joint but cut as close to the backbone as possible, you don't want to lose the tasty thigh meat, and now you have a leg quarter. Repeat for the other leg.



Flip the leg quarter over, skin side down. You’ll notice a line of fat, this line separates the drumstick from the thigh. Cut down to expose the joint, then cut through the joint and now you have a drumstick and thigh. Repeat for the other leg.



Now turn the chicken over, breast side down.



Using kitchen shears, cut out the backbone. Kitchen shears are much safer for this than a knife because a knife can slip. Save the back bone with the neck and wing tips for stock.



Now you have a bone in chicken breast. Skin side down, cut the breast in half for 2 chicken breasts. You can use a cleaver or a chef’s knife. You’ll need to cut through some bone; this is the most difficult part, so be careful! Now you have 2 bone in, skin on chicken breasts.


(my camera ran out of batteries here)

For further boning, use a small boning knife and make cuts as close to the breastbone as possible to debone the chicken breasts. Remove the skin and now you have 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts.

*a note about chicken breasts: There is a smaller muscle that is attached to the chicken breast, the tenderloin muscle. Sometimes this part tends to fall off from the rest of the breast. This is okay, for example when you're preparing chicken cutlets it's best to remove this piece and save it for stir fry or something else because it usually comes off when you pound the chicken breast.

After you are done cutting up the chicken, wash your cutting board and all other equipment with hot soapy water, then disinfect it with a solution of dilute bleach. This is the best way to kill all the bacteria.

Links:
Cutting up whole chicken at Cooking for Engineers.

Chinese BBQ Pork - Char Siu

Take a stroll down a street in Chinatown and you’ll often see roast duck and char siu hanging in a store or restaurant window. Char siu, or cha shao, literally translates into “fork roasted” because the meat is suspended from hooks while being roasted in the oven. The most distinguishing feature of char siu is its color. While it is usually a dark red, it can range from a barely-red dark brown to a strange pink. The problem with some char siu is that while the color is attractive and smell tantalizing, more often then not, the meat inside is a bland white, that’s dry and difficult to swallow.

I have made many attempts to try to make char siu at home but homemade char siu is plagued with different problems. The meat is juicy but the taste is nowhere close. In addition, without using red food coloring you can’t achieve the deep red color. Overall the meat tastes decent but it does not look like or taste like true char siu. With each attempt, something was still off and I was close to giving up entirely. Steven told me to “just use the stuff in the packet” like his mom. I’ve tried the char siu his mom made from the packet, it wasn’t bad, don’t get me wrong, but I am vehemently opposed to using any sort of seasoning packet. Then Cook’s Illustrated published their version of the recipe. I was extremely eager to try it. You may notice that many of my recipes are adaptations from Cook’s Illustrated recipes because their recipes are usually really great. Their very scientific methodology of testing a recipe’s multiple variations and permutations really speaks to my inner scientist (though their recipes can end up being a bit labor intensive and over-the-top). On the other hand, I was a tad skeptical because how can their recipe be better than the ones in Chinese dim sum books I’ve looked at in the past. Shouldn’t the recipe in those books be more “authentic”?

All doubts were erased when I tasted the final product, lightly charred on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. It was fantastic! The flavor was really close (I can’t say it was spot on because I couldn’t do a side by side comparison), but the meat was so flavorful inside and out, I daresay this recipe is better! The recipe did not use food coloring but a deep mahogany reddish brown was achieved by using ketchup. Sure it’s not an authentic ingredient but that’s a minor detail since it tastes so darn good!

The recipe called for pork butt, a cut from the shoulder, but I used country style ribs instead, which worked wonderfully. I also changed a few of the ingredients, for example decreasing the hoisin sauce because I don't like a strong hoisin flavor. Since the recipe calls for around 4 lbs of meat, the original plan was to make some cha shao bao but the meat mysteriously disappeared so quickly that there was hardly any left to make bao. Next time I make this, I promise I’ll have a recipe for cha shao bao.

Char Siu – Chinese BBQ Pork
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

4 lbs pork boneless butt cut into slices about 1-in thick, or country style ribs
Marinade
1/4 C sugar
1/2 C soy sauce
1/4 C hoisin sauce
1/4 C Shao Hsing rice wine, or dry sherry
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 tsp five spice powder
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
Basting
1/4 C ketchup
1/4 C honey

You will need an oven-safe wire rack and tray for this recipe.

Whisk together all the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl. Add the sesame oil, after you whisk everything together, otherwise the oil combines with the five spice and forms clumps that are hard to incorporate. Measure out 1/3 C of the marinade and set aside.

Pierce the pieces of pork 10 – 12 times all over with a fork. Place in a large zipper lock bag or tray and pour the marinade over the pork. Make sure each piece of pork is coated sufficiently with the marinade. Marinate in the fridge for 3 – 5 hours.

For the glaze, combine the reserved 1/3 C of marinade with the ketchup and honey. Cook over medium heat and reduce it until it’s syrupy, about 4 – 6 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 300ºF. Line a tray with foil and set the wire rack over the tray.

Place the pork on the wire rack. Pour about 1/2 C (enough to cover the bottom) of hot water into the bottom of the tray and cover the tray tightly with foil. Roast on the middle rack for 20 minutes.

Remove the foil and roast for another 40 to 45 minutes, until the edges of the meat start to brown.

Turn on the broiler (keeping the rack on the middle rack), and broil the first side of the pork for about 5 minutes. Then brush the pork with half the glaze and broil for another 5 minutes, until the pork is a dark brownish red and evenly caramelized. Flip the meat over and broil the second side for 5 minutes, then brush on the glaze, and broil for another 5 minutes.

Cool, then cut into slices and serve with rice. If you have extra, you can freeze it, add it to soup, ramen, or fried rice.

Green Onion Pancake - Weekend Herb Blogging

This week is my first foray into Weekend Herb Blogging, hosted this week by Glenna of A Fridge Full of Food, and I’m featuring my favorite herb, the green onion. The green onion, also called the scallion or spring onion (or shallot in Australia), is a member of the allium family which includes the onion, garlic, leek, and many others. Technically speaking, scallions are younger and do not have a bulb whereas green onions have a small partially formed bulb, but for the most part, the names are used interchangeably. The green onion is an herb that’s indispensable in Chinese cooking and it’s the one herb I always have in my fridge. The green part is milder in flavor and is much like an herb whereas the white bulb is stronger and more oniony. Green onions are often served raw, but one thing I learned from my dad is to slice and panfry them quickly in a little bit of oil. He calls it “bao,” which means to burst. The flavor of the green onion bursts in hot oil, which changes the flavor and releases the aroma. Raw green onions can be a bit harsh and sometimes soapy tasting, but heating them in oil cuts the harshness, rounds out the flavor, and makes it much more aromatic. You’ll notice a big difference in the smell; raw green onions don’t really smell like anything but after panfrying, it smells amazingly fragrant. The green onions and hot oil is then added on top of foods like tofu or tossed in a salad.

Green onion pancakes (cong you bing) are a breakfast and snack staple in China and Taiwan. Unlike a traditional pancake, it is made with dough instead of batter. The end result is a chewy flatbread. Panfrying the pancakes releases the aroma from the green onion and makes them smell irresistible. Boiling hot water is used to gelatinize some of the gluten in the flour making a chewy pancake. A combination of hot and cold water creates a dual textured, chewy and crispy pancake. Whether you use all hot water or both hot and cold is up to you. Traditionally lard or peanut oil is brush the dough but I used butter instead.

Green Onion Pancake

2 1/2 C AP flour
3/4 C boiling water
1/4 C cold water
1/2 tsp salt
About 3 Tbsp butter, softened
About 3 Tbsp finely chopped green onion, 2 – 3 green onions
Oil for pan frying


Add flour and salt to a bowl, pour in hot water and stir to combine. Let the dough cool down a bit then add the cold water and knead the dough until smooth. You can do this in a standing mixer, food processor, or by hand.

Put the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rest for an hour.

Roll the dough into a snake and divide into 8 pieces. This will yield 6 in pancakes about 1/4-in thick. You can divide the dough into more pieces for smaller, cuter pancakes.

Take one piece of dough, leaving the rest covered, and roll it out into a large and thin circle, the thinner the circle the more layers the pancake will have. Spread a very thin layer of softened butter on the dough, about 1 teaspoon. Sprinkle or spread about a teaspoon of chopped green onions on top of the butter.

Roll up the dough into a tight tube. Then take the tube and form a coil and pinch the seam shut.

Do this to the remaining pieces of dough, so you have 8 rolls. You can chill it in the fridge for a few minutes to solidify the butter or just proceed to rolling them. Roll out each bun into a pancake, depending on the thickness you prefer. For a chewier pancake keep the pancake a little thicker; if you want a crispy thin pancake, roll it out thinner.

You can stack the pancakes in between sheets of plastic wrap and freeze the extras.

Heat some oil in a skillet over medium heat and fry each side of the pancake for a few minutes until it’s crisp and golden brown. Drain on paper towels to blot away excess oil. Cut into wedges and serve with soy sauce or soy paste if desired.

Yields: 8 6-in pancakes about 1/4-in thick.

Weekend Herb Blogging is a wonderful event created by Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen and this week it’s hosted by Glenna of A Fridge Full of Food.

Shrimp Scampi

Pasta comes to the rescue a lot around here, especially if we’re looking for a quick meal. Last night I made a simple Shrimp Scampi. It’s a snap to make so it serves as a great weeknight dinner. The interplay of robust garlic, tangy lemon, and fresh parsley with tender succulent shrimp in a delicate white wine sauce is fantastic. A teeny tiny bit of cayenne adds a kick but it’s completely optional. Adding the lemon juice and zest and parsley last helps preserve their bright flavor.


Shrimp Scampi with Linguini

8 oz. large shrimp, peeled and deveined (smaller shrimp can be used but shorten the cooking time)
1 small shallot, finely chopped
3 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
Juice of half a lemon, about 1 to 1 1/2 Tbsp
1/4 to 1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/4 C dry white wine
2 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped
2 tsp olive oil
2 Tbsp butter
Salt and pepper to taste
cayenne, optional
8 oz. linguini (I used spaghetti)

The cooking goes by very quickly so I did my ingredient prep as I was waiting for the water to boil.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil for the pasta. When you drop the pasta in the water, start cooking the scampi.

Season the shrimp with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tsp of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat and cook the shrimp until they turn opaque and just pink, about 30 seconds to a minute or so each side. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

Return the pan to the stove, add 1 tbsp of butter and the shallots. Cook over medium heat until the shallots are translucent and begin to brown around the edges, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the white wine and deglaze the pan, scraping up the brown bits from the pan, then add the lemon juice, bring it to a boil then take off heat. (Remember to keep an eye on your pasta)

Off heat, whisk in the remaining tbsp of butter, lemon zest, parsley, and a little bit of cayenne. Add the shrimp and pasta, toss to combine and serve immediately.

Serves 2.

As for the other half of the lemon and remaining zest on the peel, you can juice the half and freeze the juice in an ice cube tray for another day. You can also freeze the peels to save them. Grate the peels while they're still frozen; don't let the peels thaw or they'll be too squishy to zest.

Links:
This will be my entry for Presto Pasta Night. Presto Pasta Night is hosted every week by the wonderful Ruth over at Once Upon a Feast. Be sure to check out this week's roundup on Friday.

Gnocchi

After I read “Heat,"I wanted to pack up my bags, fly to Italy, and learn the techniques passed down from generation to generation for authetic Italian dishes. A girl can dream right? Gnocchi is one dish I wanted to learn how to make. I have never had a really good gnocchi but they’re rumored to be little pillows as light as a cloud that melt in your mouth.

I didn’t expect much to come out of my first attempt because gnocchi is something that takes a long time to get right. There are many factors that can affect the gnocchi. It's easy for them to become chewy and dense but recipes have many tips to help prevent this. Potatoes should be baked rather than boiled to minimize the amount of liquid they absorb. I learned from Elise that older potatoes are drier and better for gnocchi. Although, many recipes call for an egg, it can also contribute to dense gnocchi so eggs should be avoided. You should use as little flour as possible to bring the dough together but enough so the dough isn’t sticky. Knead as lightly and as little as possible, the more you knead, the stickier and denser the dough becomes and the more flour you will have to incorporate. That's a lot to keep in mind for something that only requires 2 ingredients. Oy!

Since gnocchi are so light, they are best accompanied by a light sauce with some (I like a generous amount) grated Parmesan on top. A classic sauce is one of browned butter and sage. A smooth tomato sauce is another good pairing with gnocchi. Gnocchi can be frozen on a tray then in a zipper lock bag and keep for 1 month.

Potato Gnocchi
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

2 lbs Russet potatoes, about 4 – 5, washed
1 1/4 C AP flour (you may need to use up to 1 1/2)
1/2 tsp of salt

Poke holes all over the potatoes and bake the potatoes at 400°F until you can pierce them easily with a skewer or knife and feel no resistance, about 45 minutes to an hour. Be sure to bake the potatoes long enough so they lose as much moisture as possible.

When the potatoes can be handled, peel or cut them in half and scoop out the flesh. Put the potatoes through a ricer. A potato ricer is ideal because it keeps the potato fluffy so I might go out and buy one for next time. Alternatively, you can gently break and fluff up the potatoes up with a fork. I read that you can push it through the back of a fine mesh sieve but that didn’t work for me. Smitten Kitchen’s Deb used a grater to grate the potatoes. I have to try this sometime because it sounds like a great idea. Spread the riced potatoes over a baking sheet or large cutting board to allow the potato to dry out some more.

First sprinkle 1 1/4 C of flour and the salt over the riced potatoes, then bring the dough together and gently knead a little until smooth. You only want to incorporate the flour with the potatoes. If the dough is sticky add more flour, up to 1 1/2 C total (I misread this and thought it said additional... oops that's a lot of flour). Be careful not to overwork the dough, the more you knead the stickier the dough will get and the more flour you will end up incorporating (a mistake I made).

Have a pot of simmering water ready. Break off a piece of the dough and form into a gnocchi. Cook this test piece to gauge if you need to add more flour to the dough. The gnocchi is ready when it floats. If it tastes mushy, work in another 2 Tbsp to 1/4 C of flour. It's better to try a piece of the gnocchi than ruin an entire batch.

To make the gnocchi, roll a portion of the dough into a log about 3/4-in diameter and cut into 3/4-in pieces. Roll the piece down the tines of a fork. The grooves from the tines and the indentation from your finger will hold the sauce.

Simmer the gnocchi until they float, about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes (3 minutes for frozen). Serve with sauce and grated parmesan.


I still haven't gotten the hang of rolling them down the tines part. My gnocchi were a bit dense and chewy, probably because I kneaded too much and added way too much flour. It was still fun so I’ll try again soon.

Links:
Elise’s simple recipe for potato gnocchi
Deb is smitten with gnocchi

5 Yum Yum Sup Sup - Five Favorite Places to Eat in Seattle, WA

I was recently tagged by Tigerfish of Teczcape with a food meme to share my top 5 favorite places to eat in Seattle. Seattle is known for fresh seafood, primarily salmon and lots of it, and coffee (Starbucks anyone?) but there are also many immigrant populations here so there is a wide variety of different cuisines to choose from. I have to admit Steven and I don’t dine out much but there are a few places that we love. We are always on the lookout for “cheap eats" and many of these are close to the University of Washington, where Steven and I spent our days for the last 5 years. So without further ado, here are some of Steven and my favorite places to eat (in no particular order).

1. Le Fournil
This French bakery has a wide assortment of breads, croissants, tarts, and pastries. On sunny summer days Steven and I would take a leisurely walk from the University across the Eastlake Bridge to the bakery for their lunch specials. For $7 (now it’s $8) you get a sandwich (quiche, salad, or soup), a drink, and an individual dessert. Our favorite sandwich is the pate and cornichon sandwich. It features a generous layer of luscious pate, sliced cornichons, and a thin layer of Dijon mustard on a fresh baked baguette. It’s soooo good! As they make our sandwiches Steven and I would stare at the glass display case debating which pastry to try that day (the strawberry tart, chocolate eclair, or cream puff, it’s so hard to decide). They also have a breakfast special: an espresso and croissant (they’re quite big if I remember) for $3, a great way to start your morning.

2. Campagne
Campagne has been around for a long time. Tucked away in Pike Place Market, it is a small intimate restaurant that serves classic French food. Pomme frites ala canard, duck confit, tart tatin, (all so good) the list can go on and on. Steven and I can’t wait to go again though it is fairly pricey. If you live in the Seattle area, give Campagne a try (they participate in the 25 for $25 deal in March and November and occasionally have promotions like $20 buck duck, 2 course duck dinner) or visit their less expensive sister restaurant, Café Campagne that serves bistro fare.

3. Mirak
Korean BBQ is always fun and tasty, just don’t wear your Sunday’s best and leave your coat in the car because you will inevitably leave smelling like oil and smoke. I still remember Steven's parents telling me to wear an old t-shirt. Each table is fitted with a gas grill built into the center of the table. The barbeque menu offers various cuts of meat, beef, chicken, etc. Platters of marinated meat are brought out, along with rice, Romaine lettuce leaves, and an array of small side dishes. You cook for one another, serve one another, then finally talk and relax while sipping corn tea. It’s a very hands-on dining experience and a great place to go for family meals.

4. Thai Tom
There are lots of Thai restaurants on the Ave also known as the University Way. Lined with restaurant after restaurant, it is the epicenter of University District dining. This hole-in-the-wall Thai joint is tiny, you might walk right past it if it wasn't for the line that stretches out the door and onto the sidewalk. Thai Tom is the best thai restaurant in the U-Distict and one of the best in Seattle. It features an open kitchen where you can watch the chef work his magic so the best seats are at the counter, which are the front row seats for the seemingly choreographed show of sauces, ladles, blackened woks, and fire. There will almost always be a line but wait is worth it. Their pad thai is delicious, my only complaint is I wish I get more because I love pad thai.

5. Honeybee’s Cafe
Honeybee’s is gone now but I want to pay tribute to my all time favorite lunch spot that sustained me, Steven, and many of our friends through our college years. The sandwiches were great and the crinkle-cut garlic salted fries were always hot and fresh. A half sandwich and a side of fries was the perfect size lunch for me and it was only $3! The whole sandwich and an even larger side of fries was only $6 to $7. Whenever Steven and I needed an afternoon snack we would order just the side of fries. The menu featured a variety of hot and cold sandwiches including the “Turkey-Bacon-Avocado,” “BBQ Chicken Quesadilla,” “French Dip,” and the sandwich Steven and I would get most often, the “Create Your Own,” with pastrami and salami (and cheddar, pepperjack, and usual sandwich fixins'). We always ordered a side of ranch to dip our fries in and pretty soon we became regulars and the owners knew our order. It was pretty awesome. Honeybee’s was always a popular place but sadly, during my last year of undergrad, it came under new management and was turned into yet another teriyaki joint on the Ave that featured a strange combination of Japanese and Korean food and some sandwiches. While the sandwiches had the same name as the Honeybee's classics, they just weren’t the same. The eccentric music was gone, our beloved owners replaced with unrecognizable new ones, and the adorable name replaced with a cheesy “Udublicious” (then renamed again Yummy Bites). Sadly, Honeybee’s is no more.

5 1/2. Last Bite (or Sip)
Jones Soda Company is based in Seattle, Washington. It features many unconventional soda flavors, my personal favorites are “Crushed Melon” and “Green Apple.” Recently, the company switched from using HFCS to cane sugar. The unique bottle labels are photographs that can be submitted by anyone. During the holiday season they have limited edition collector’s flavors like “Green Bean Casserole” and “Mashed Potatoes with Butter,” which probably tastes as good as it sounds (ick). Anyways, the best part is that Friday afternoons are Free Soda Fridays (I think from 3:30 to 5pm) so you can just walk in and grab your favorite soda from their fridge.


So with that, I’d like to tag other fellow food bloggers around the world to share their favorite places to eat.

1. Add a direct link to your post below the name of the person who tagged you. Include the state and country you’re in.

Nicole (Sydney, Australia)
velverse (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
LB (San Giovanni in Marignano, Italy)
eastcoastlife (East Coast, Singapore)
Tigerfish of Teczcape (California, USA)
Amy of Nook and Pantry (Seattle, WA, USA)

2. List your top 5 favorite places to eat at your location.

3. Tag 5 other people (preferably from other countries/states) ..and let them know they’ve been tagged

I would like to tag:

1. Sig of Live to Eat (Seattle, WA, USA) – I want to know where fellow Seattleite Sig and Siv like to eat.
2. Patricia of Technicolor Kitchen (Sao Paulo, Brazil) – I’ve always wanted to go to Brazil and want to know what to eat so I'm eager to hear what Patricia loves.
3. Melting Wok (Covina, California, USA) – Bettina (Steven’s sister) is down in SoCal for college so I'm eager to know what's good so Steven and I can go when we visit.
4. Anh of Food Lover’s Journey (Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) – Australia is also on my to-visit list and I wanna know what Anh likes to eat.
5. Gattina of Kitchen Unplugged (New Jersey, USA) – I haven't visited the East Coast in a long time so I curious to see what Gattina likes.

If anyone else would like to do this meme, leave me a note so I can link to ya. I’m looking forward to seeing your favorite places to eat (other the delicious food everyone makes at home).

Waiter There's Something in My... Bread! - Pecan Sticky Buns

“These are really good,” Steven said for the fourth time, as he unrolled and tore off pieces off his sticky bun. Rarely does he give something so much praise but these sticky buns were exceptional. I’m always happy when he likes the food and I was particularly happy and relieved today because the buns took half the day to make. As the buns were baking, Steven went from room to room and opened all the doors. I asked what he was doing. He replied, “I want the whole house to smell good.” They came out of the oven right before dinner time so we officially ruined our appetites.

I was a bit intimated by this month’s WTSIM because I don’t bake bread. My first and only bread was a loaf of no-knead bread. Originally I wanted to try to make a brioche but I really wanted to try this sticky bun recipe. It even has a brioche-like dough so it was perfect! Unfortunately being a total bread novice, I accidentally misread teaspoon as tablespoon and added 3 times more yeast. Yikes! No wonder the dough rose so quickly. So I froze that yeasty abomination, hoping to be able to salvage it someday and started over with a new dough. This time adding the right amount of yeast and everything went swimmingly, sorta (in my rush to remake the dough, a few eggs rolled off the counter... I hope that's not bad luck).

I actually made a 2/3 recipe because I was afraid the whole recipe would have been too much. I also made the mistake of baking a 2/3 recipe in an 8 x 8 pan, which is half the size of a 9 x 13, so the buns were really cramped. So either make a 2/3 recipe in a 9 x 9 pan or make the whole recipe in a 9 x 13. Cutting the recipe in half is really tricky since there are so many ingredients (like the eggs) that are hard to divide in half. But these are so good and if you’re going through all the trouble, it’s probably best to make the whole recipe. You can freeze or give away the extras to friends and family and they’ll love you for it. The original recipe called for corn syrup but I didn’t have any so I used honey instead. Honey is sweeter than corn syrup so I cut back on the sugar. If you choose to use corn syrup you may wish to add a bit more brown sugar. Toasting the pecans separately keeps them crispy and you avoid steaming them underneath the buns. The recipe is a bit labor intensive but oh so worth it. As for the botched dough in the freezer, I’m open to any suggestions as to what to do with it.

Update: I made these again (full recipe) in a pyrex and they were done in under 30 minutes. Even though I didn't use a pizza stone the caramel still cooked pretty evenly. Being able to look at the bottom of the bun was really handy, don't let the caramel get too dark otherwise it'll get hard like candy. If you find that the caramel is cooking too fast move the buns up a rack. But for me lower middle rack worked just fine.

Sticky Buns with Pecans, recipe for a 9 x 13 pan (recipe for 9 x 9 at the end)
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

Dough
3 eggs, room temp
3/4 C buttermilk, room temp
3 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
Package of instant yeast, 2 ¼ tsp
4 to 4 ¼ C AP flour
6 Tbsp melted butter

Caramel Glaze
5 Tbsp butter
1/2 C brown sugar
3 Tbsp honey
1.5 Tbsp milk
Pinch salt

Cinnamon Sugar Filling
1/2 C brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
Pinch salt
1 Tbsp butter, melted

Pecan Topping
3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp brown sugar
3 Tbsp honey
1 pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 C pecans, toasted and chopped


Whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, sugar, salt, and yeast. First add half of the flour and melted butter and stir into a loose batter. Using the dough hook of a stand mixer, add all but 1/4 C of the flour, and knead on low speed for 5 minutes then check the status of the dough. Dough should be moist but not sticky. The dough should be sticking to the bottom of the bowl (the little round divot at the bottom of the bowl) but should not stick to the sides. If it sticks to the sides of the bowl, add more flour. Knead for another 5 minutes. Then turn the dough out to a lightly floured board and knead another minute by hand and bring the dough into a ball. Dough should be smooth and a tiny bit tacky. If you do not have a stand mixer, you can knead by hand but knead twice as long, for 20 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a bowl lightly sprayed with nonstick spray. Then spray the top of the dough so it doesn’t dry out. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and put in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. I use my huge 2 quart pyrex measuring cup to measure dough rise. The markings on the side are perfect for telling me when my dough has doubled.

For the glaze, combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and whisk together over medium low heat until the butter has melted. Pour into your baking pan and spread the mixture evenly over the bottom of the pan and set aside.

Combine all the ingredients for the cinnamon sugar filling and set aside.

When the dough has doubled, gently turn it out to a lightly floured surface. Roll it out to a rectangle. If using a 9 x 13 pan, roll out into a 16 x 12 rectangle. If using a 9 x 9 pan, roll out into a 12 x 12 rectangle. Melt a tablespoon of butter and brush the dough, leaving a 1/2 in border on the top edge. Using the remaining butter to butter the sides of the baking pan.

Spread the cinnamon sugar evenly over the dough, leaving a 1/2 in border along the top edge. Smooth and gently press the filling on the dough. With the edge closest to you, start rolling the dough into a cylinder; keep the roll very taut and tight. Pinch the seam shut. The log may be thick in the middle and taper out to the sides. Press the ends in and gently roll and stretch out the log until you have a log of uniform thickness, 18 inches if using a 9 x 13 pan or 13 inches if using a 9 x 9 pan. Using a serrated knife, gently saw through the log to cut even rolls, 12 for 9 x 13 or 9 for 9 x 9.

Place each bun, cut/pretty-side down on the filling in the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let the rolls rise until they are puffy and pressed against each other, about 1 1/2 hours. At this point you can put them in the fridge overnight and bake them the next morning (overnight instructions are at the end).

The original recipe specified to bake these on a pizza stone, but since I was using a Pyrex pan I was a bit wary of putting Pyrex on a hot stone so I didn’t use one. If using a pizza stone, adjust your oven rack to the lowest position and preheat the oven to 350°F while the dough rises. The pizza stone takes a while to warm up. If not using a stone, adjust your oven rack to second lowest position and preheat the oven to 350°F but you don’t need to preheat as early.

Bake the buns for about 25 to 30 minutes, the tops should be golden brown and the center should read 180°F. If you’re using a glass pan, you can sneak a peek at the bottoms to make sure they’re done before you take them out of the oven.

Cool the tray on a wire rack for 10 minutes. While the buns cool, you can toast your pecans in the oven if you haven’t toasted them earlier. Then invert the pan onto a platter or cutting board. Scrape any goo in the pan onto the buns.

Prepare the topping as the buns cool. Heat butter, brown sugar, honey, and salt in a small sauce pan over medium heat whisking occasionally until bubbly. Then off heat, stir in vanilla and toasted chopped pecans. Spoon a dollop over each bun and serve.

Recipe for 9 x 9 pan
Dough
2 eggs, room temp
1/2 C buttermilk, room temp
2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1.5 tsp instant yeast
2 1/2 to 2 3/4 C flour
4 tbsp butter, melted

Caramel Glaze
3 1/2 Tbsp butter
5 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp milk
Pinch salt

Filling
5 Tbsp brown sugar
1.5 tsp cinnamon
Pinch salt
2 tsp butter, melted

Topping
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 pinch salt
3/4 tsp vanilla
1/2 C pecans, toasted and chopped

Overnight Sticky Buns
After shaping the buns, refrigerate overnight. The next morning, place them in a warm water bath for 20 minutes, and then continue with the 1 1/2 hour rise in a warm place. Proceed with the rest of the recipe.

Last bite!


*note to self: I need to find more places to take pictures. My dining table is getting a little boring. :P

Links:
A big thanks to Andy over at Spittoon Extra for hosting this month's WTSIM. :)