my passing thought..

Cooking is an act of love, a gift to the person who eats it.

Food always turns out better when the heart and soul is in it. Anyone can cook a dish. A true chef cooks from the heart, personalizes it and that is what matters.

Earlier today, I cooked a dish in a hurry, without peppering it with love, and it didn't turn out right.

Love is never but a simple thing. It is so easy to forget how clearly it can be defined...
Love -is patient
Love -is kind
Love -it does not envy
Love -it does not boast
Love -it is not proud
Love -it is not rude
Love -it is not self seeking
Love -it is not easily angered
Love -keeps no record of wrongs
Love -does not delight in evil
Love -rejoices with the truth
Love -always protects
Love -always trusts
Love -always hopes
Love -always persevered
Love -never fails.
- Corinthians 13

Lord, help me to live out your definition of love.

Baking with the ladies

was such a pleasure and rare time for us to bond and chill. I used the Devil's food cake recipe that I got from the "Cake Making Made Easy" Chef Eric's culinary classroom class. Modified the recipe a little- added less sugar, used tofutti sour cream instead of yogurt and soy milk instead of milk. It turned out moist and delectable. It is definitely my keeper's chocolate cupcake recipe. We decided not to frost it to keep it simple and healthy.  

Ingredients:
4 oz Bitter or semi sweet chocolate
1.5 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1t baking powder
1/2 t kosher salt
1/4 t baking soda
1/2 c soy milk
1/2 cup vegan sour cream
1 cup brown sugar
6 oz butter
4 eggs

Method:
Preheat the oven to 325F. Butter and flour the cake pans, or place paper liners of the muffin tin, if making cupcakes. Set aside.
Melt the chocolate chips in a bain marie, stirring until the chocolate is mooth. Remove the bowl from the heat and let it cool until luke warm. Sift the flour, baking powder. salt and soda into a bowl. Set aside.
Place the milk and sour cream in a bowl and whip until smooth. Set aside.
Use an electric mixer, cream the sugar, butter until well smooth. Add the eggs in one at a time. Add the melted chocolate and mix until smooth.
Add one third of the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture and then one third of the milk mixture. Make sure that the ingredients are incorporated before adding the next addition. Repeat until all the dry ingredients are added. Place the batter into the cupcake holder or cup cake pans. Bake for 30 minutes and let it cool for 15 minutes.

We made different types using the same batter- heart-shaped cakes, heart-shaped muffins, and regular round ones. :)

Happy Valentine's Day! :)

Chinese Cooking @ LLBN Cooking Studio

Last Wednesday, I did 2 cooking segment on Loma Linda Broadcasting Network. It was a live show~ which means that no errors can be made. Each segment was 10 minutes, making it a total of only 20 minutes. It was really short time to show 3 recipes. When the video was uploaded onto youtube, it was kind of weird looking at myself on TV, embarassing I woudl say. :P

The first one was Tofu Cabbage roll.

http://www.youtube.com/user/LLBNChristianTV#p/u/7/BmbVZ526_h0

Tofu Cabbage Rolls

Ingredients:
1/2 box of firm tofu
4 dried shitake mushrooms - soaked and minced (reserve water for making gravy)
1/2 carrot, diced
Green onions, chopped finely
5 cabbage leaves
1 egg

4 oz water chestnuts, diced finely
Corn starch

Seasonings for tofu mixture :

Salt, pepper, mushroom seasoning, onion and garlic powder

Method:

Squeeze tofu between paper towels to remove excess water. Mash tofu with a fork. Add minced shitake mushrooms, diced carrots, minced green onions, seasonings, egg and corn starch. Mix well. Add enough corn starch to get a thick consistency.

Rinse cabbage, trim the stem and blanch in boiling water for a few seconds until tender.

Fill each cabbage leaf with enough filling and roll up.

Steam the cabbage roll for 10-15 minutes.

For the gravy: Boil the mushroom stock. Add seasonings like vegetarian mushroom oyster sauce, soy sauce and pepper. Add cornstarch mixture and allow the heat to thicken the mixture. Pour gravy over rolls and garnish as desired.

Followed by Oriental Cabbage Salad

http://www.youtube.com/user/LLBNChristianTV#p/u/6/UUd0wYfpL74

Oriental Cabbage Salad

 Salad:
1/2 head cabbage, chopped ( or  Napa cabbage)
6 green onions, chopped

2 Shallots

½ cup corn

12 oz Vegetarian Ham/ Chicken ( Opt. )

Topping

1 package vegan ramen noodle

0.5 tsp garlic powder

0.5 tsp onion powder

1 tsp mushroom seasoning

2/3 cup slivered almonds

2/3 cup shelled sunflower seeds ( OPT)

3 tablespoons sesame seeds

Dressing:
4 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar / lemon juice
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup salad oil

¼ cup sesame oil
1 Tbsp soy sauce

Directions:

1. Crush the ramen noodle into small pieces. Add in the garlic powder, onion powder and mushroom seasoning. Bake the noodles, sesame seeds and almonds in oven for 10 minutes at 350F. Set aside to cool.

2. Mix all salad ingredients. Set aside.

3. Mix all dressing ingredients.

4. Pour dressing over salad mixture and toss together. Just before serving, top the noodle mix.

Serves: 4-6

Finally, mummy's corn soup :)

 http://www.youtube.com/user/LLBNChristianTV#p/u/5/jTpkx6XsW_Y

CORN SOUP

Ingredients

• Shallots
• 5 oz vegetarian ham, finely cubed
• 5 oz water chestnuts, chopped
• 2-3 shitake mushroom, chopped
• 1 tin Vegetable Stock or water ( about 400g)
• 1 tin Cream Style Corn (about 400g)
• 1 Egg, beaten
• 2 tsp Cornflour mixed with 2 Tbsp Water

Seasonings:

• Dash of Pepper
• 1 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce
• Dash of Sesame Oil
• Stir-fry sauce, 1 tsp
• Mushroom seasoning

Garnish:

Sprigs of cilantro and green onions

1. Soak mushrooms in hot water. Squeeze out the water before mincing it finely.
2. Cut veggie ham, water chestnuts, shitake mushroom into small cubes.
3. Heat up the oil and fry shallots until golden brown. Add in mushroom and continue frying for 5 minutes. Add in soy sauce, pepper.
4. Add in the creamed corn into the pot. Fill the can with water or vegetable stock.
5. Add 1 Tbsp light soy sauce.
6. When hot, add in beaten egg or egg white and stir gently, so the egg cooks in strands.
7. Allow it to cook until boiling before adding the corn starch mixture. Give the cornstarch slurry a quick re-stir and add to the soup, stirring quickly to thicken. Drizzle in sesame oil and pepper.
8. Divide the soup into individual bowls.
9. Scatter a few strips of green onions/cilantro on top of soup.
10. Serve.

Sysco Holiday Food Show Pictures 2011

South of France Cooking class

@ Ecole de Cuisine Cooking School....
Menu:
Pizzaladiere ~

Basque style chicken ~

Ratatouille Nicoise ~

The instructor, Chef Zadi did not hand out recipes because he said that it is all about the "touch" and feel. Notes were scribbled and here is a brief description of how each dish was made. :)
The first dish was Pizzaladiere-  a light pizza without tomato sauce.
To make the dough, add 250g flour, 20g sugar, 5g salt into a bowl. Next, add the wet ingredients- 3 eggs, 2 T olive oil, and yeast mixture ( 10g yeast and 1/4 cup H20) to the dry ingredients. Knead the dough until it does not stick to the bowl. Add olive oil into a bowl before placing the well-kneaded dough. Wrap and leave it to proof, approximately 1 hr.

Sprinkle oil into wax paper. Roll out dough onto a quarter sheet pan. Add whatever toppings you like but this was what we used...caramelize onions, anchovies, rosemary, thyme, garlic, heirloom tomatoes, olives. Grate Parmesan cheese on top of mixture. Bake at 400F. Before serving, sprinkle olive oil on top of pizza. :) I love this pizza crust! :)

Time to have some fun with cutting and cleaning chicken... :( Another reason for being a vegetarian.... :P Here are several pictures on the cutting process, after removing all the items inside the chicken...

 Make a slit to see the cartilage. Remove it.

 Use scissors to cut the fat, and middle of the chicken

 Cut it into half and remove more fat at the ends

 Cut the drumsticks side cartilage ends. ( for presentation purpose)

Season with salt, pepper, chopped herbs (oregano, thyme, rosemary), lemon ( cut small wedges of half a lemon, and juice the other half lemon), olive oil, saffron, preserved lemon ( place lemon and salt in container and let it age for a month), 1 Tbsp of Tapenado olive paste.

Place the marinated chicken in a roasting pan. Add chicken stock ( To make: boil chicken bones, water, 50% onion, 25%carrots, 25% celery. Allow it to SIMMER for 24 hours. ) Top with chunks of butter. Bake at 350F for 1 hour. Remove from oven several times and pour liquid over chicken constantly. This is to keep it moist and tender.

The chicken tasted yum! The burst of lemon gives it a tangy feel with flavorful herby aroma. :)

Now on to Ratatouillr Nicoise.... To make tomato composte: Slit the ends of the tomatoes with an "X". Once the water boils, place it in for 30 seconds. After removing it from the hot water, dip it in cold water immediately. Remove the outer skin from the tomato and slice in to quarters. Remove the seeds and use the outer layer. Slice into strips.

Cut the eggplant into round circles, followed by strips. When cooking, be careful not to place too many pieces into the pan as it will "steam" the eggplant. "Brown" eggplant is what we want. Feel free to drizzle olive oil. Add salt and pepper.

Saute onion until it is caramelized. Add salt and pepper. Remove from pan.

Saute green/red bell peppers next. Add salt and pepper. Remove from pan.

Saute squash. Add salt and pepper. Remove from pan.

Saute garlic next.

( Trick- while chopping garlic, sprinkle some salt. This will keep the oils of the garlic. )

Bread Crumbs: Bake day-old bread in oven until crisp. Place in food processor until finely grounded.

To assemble:

1. Drizzle the bottom of the pan with olive oil

2. Add peppers

3. Followed by Onion and garlic

4. Next is the eggplant mixture

5. Add onions and garlic again

6. Add the sliced raw tomatoes

7. Sprinkle fresh thyme

8. Add squash

9. Top with breadcrumbs

10. Drizzle with olive oil

11. Add pieces of butter on the top layer

Bake at 325 for 35 minutes.

Remove from oven occasionally to drizzle olive oil on top.  

Every chef has his/her way  of cooking. I have been to many cooking class and felt that this was one of the classes that could be more organized and have better sanitary practices. I have to say that the chef knows his stuff and seemed to have great french cooking techniques. Overall, the food we cooked at this class tasted YUM! and I would like to try to make them on my own one of these days. :) I am so glad that J and I were able to go to this class together! :)

Tuscan Kale Salad

~:~ meant to be ~:~
it almost seems that
if it’s meant to be,
all things in the universe conspire to get you there
and if it’s not,
all things in the universe conspire to not get you there.
a lot of times in life, it is so.
i tend to believe it’s meant to be,
the path taken.
- Elvin Ng, MediaCorp Artist

Today, I tried making a salad with Kale and it turned out very nice! It's something new in our cafeteria and people came back for seconds. :)

Inspired by True Food Kitchen Restaruant's visit few weeks ago, this Tuscan salad is made with strips of Italian kale, fresh lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, crushed garlic, red pepper flakes, brown sugar, grated parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. These bright, refreshing flavors combine to bring the sunny flavors of Tuscany to your tastebuds. :)
Kale is among the most nutrient-dense commonly eaten vegetables. One cup provides 1,327 percent of the Daily Value (DV) for vitamin K, 192 percent of DV for vitamin A, and 88 percent for vitamin C. With such rich nutrients, it is a waste to use it as a salad bar decoration.

Ingredients
2 bunches of kale, sliced leaves, midribs removed
6T lemon juice
8 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
salt, pepper, sugar to taste
hot red pepper flakes, to taste
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2/3 cup freshly made bread crumbs

Steps: 
Whisk together lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and a generous pinch (or more to taste) of hot red pepper flake, 2/3 of bread crumbs, 1/2 cheese. Pour over kale in serving bowl and toss well. This will help to "break down" the vegetable and make it easier to chew. Let salad sit for at least 15 minutes. Add bread crumbs, toss again, and top with remaining cheese.

not-your-regular Pizza :)

This pizza creation was inspired by one of the vendors at the TASTE food show that I went to last week. It was not your regular "heavy" cheesy pizza, but rather had a light, fresh touch to it. YUM :) Interestingly, they added ricotta cheese instead of the usual mozzarella cheese. I have never had ricotta cheese on pizza and was determined to re-create this recipe. :) 

 I did exactly what they said- top ricotta cheese, tomatoes and basil on top of the baked dough. Somehow, it did not turn out right....something was missing...they did not reveal their secret ingredient. I bounced the idea off my cook and we guessed that there was probably some cream cheese in the ricotta mix. Hence, I tried making it again, with a few modifications. The verdict - a recipe keeper! Several people liked it and asked for the recipe.... I'm glad it worked out the second time! :) It would have tasted even better with a pizza oven but I did not have one and had to make do with a regular oven.

Ingredients:

15 oz ricotta cheese

8 oz vegan herb cream cheese

2 cups vegan mozzarella cheese

fresh basil

cherry tomatoes

pizza dough ( 2 packets from Trader Joes)

dash of salt

dash of pepper

Balsamic vinegar/olive oil

1 onion, sliced

garlic, minced

Steps:
Take the pizza dough out from the packet to let it sit and rise.
In a mixer, blend the ricotta cheese and vegan cream cheese until fluffy. Add in salt and pepper.
Slice the cherry tomatoes into half and mix it together with a few drops of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Let it sit for several minutes in the refrigerator.
Chop the basil leaves.
Once the dough has risen, roll it out and bake it in the oven for 10 minutes.
Remove it from the oven and top with the ricotta- cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle vegan cheese over the mixture, followed by onions and garlic.
Place it back in the oven and let it continue to bake for another 5-10 minutes, or until the cheese melts. Remove from the oven and just before serving, top it with basil and tomatoes. :)
~~::~~
Happy Mid-Autumn Festival to All! Enjoy your mooncakes! :)