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Cooking Monkey

The case of the mysterious cake filling

For the occasion of my son's 8th birthday, my mom ordered a cake from a Chinese (Hong Kong-style) bakery, which is something she's done for several years now. Chinese cakes are somewhat different from western cakes in that they're usually less sweet and--I think but am not entirely sure--made like chiffon cakes, with no butter. The crumb is not too dense, not too moist, and rather springy. So good!

My son's favourite Chinese cake is a cream-and-fruit-filled layer cake. It is simple and delicious, and certainly not as decadent as many western varieties. But when we opened the bakery box we were surprised by its contents:

chinese cake
We reached no consensus on the filling.


What is all that piled on top? Did Gordon Ramsey, in a fit of pique, dump a plate of sub-par noodles on top of my son's cake? I took a smidge of it with my fork. Hmm--soft but not gooey. Slightly sweet, with a familiar yet not readily identifiable flavour. After everyone tried their slices, most of us thought it was red bean (also known by the Japanese name azuki) mixed with something else, though none of us could pinpoint all of the flavours.

Poor kid! My son didn't finish his slice of cake, and many others ate around the filling. As for me, I'll eat almost anything, so I had not one but two servings. (*burp*) The flavour was fine if unexpected; only the aesthetics were lacking. Too bad the filling wasn't piped attractively on top of the cake, or simply spread between the layers. As it was, whenever I looked closely at the filling, I couldn't help thinking of ground meat or something that'd been pressed through a Play-Doh spaghetti-making sieve.
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September 29th 2009 @ 01:55

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Two desserts made with rice: Thai Khao Neeo Mamuang and Indian Kheer

Droooool!

Thai Khao Neeo Mamuang
Thai Khao Neeo Mamuang (mango and sticky rice)


Indian Kheer
Indian Kheer (rice pudding)


For once, I'm letting the pictures do the talking.

See the original recipes here:

Khao Neeo Mamuang - I followed this recipe more or less to the letter, except that I toasted some dessicated coconut and sprinkled it on the rice. Didn't use sesame seeds. Note this recipe doesn't use true sticky rice, i.e., glutinous or sweet rice.

Kheer - I made this almost as stated in the recipe, except that I do love my spices, so I added more than the specified amounts. I used the rosewater, and topped with both toasted pistachios and almonds.
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July 30th 2009 @ 04:46

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Whole wheat crêpes with mushrooms and cheese

Mmmm, we love our crêpes in this house! We're fans of all sorts of flat cakes, as I've mentioned in this blog in previous posts. It's odd, then, that I've never, EVER made savoury crepes before. Dessert crêpes I've made aplenty, but I thought it high time I tried crêpes as a meal.

For our first-ever crêpes dinner, I made whole wheat crêpes and filled them with delicious sauteed mushrooms and rich Béchamel sauce. With a side of simple baked asparagus, dinner was a vegetarian delight!

mushroom cheese whole wheat crepes
Mushroom cheese crêpes with asparagus

Whole wheat crêpes with mushroom and cheese

This recipe makes about 12 filled crêpes, plus a few extra crêpes that can be saved for later. Depending on what sides, if any, you serve with them, each serving is probably 2-3 crêpes.

Crêpes

  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 tbsp canola oil
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup canola oil or as needed
Note: You can store the leftover crêpes, covered and separated with wax paper, in the fridge for a few days.
  1. Blend everything in a blender and refrigerate the mixture for an hour, in a covered container.
  2. Heat a 6"-7" pan over medium heat.
  3. Cover the bottom of the pan with about 1/4 tsp oil; I used a silione brush.
  4. When the pan is very hot, pour in about 2 tbsp of batter all at once. I used a 1/4 cup measuring cup, filled with batter to the halfway mark, to do this.
  5. Tilt the pan quickly so that the batter covers the bottom evenly.
  6. Cook until surface looks dry and use a spatula to flip the crêpe. Cook until the other side is lightly browned.
  7. Repeat with remaining batter, adding oil to pan as needed.
  8. Stack the crêpes on a plate and set aside.

Béchamel sauce

  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • cayenne pepper
  • 2 cups milk
  1. Melt 1/4 cup butter over medium heat.
  2. Stir in 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1/4 tsp salt, and a bit of cayenne pepper.
  3. Cook, stirring, until the mixture bubbles.
  4. SLOWLY pour in 2 cups of milk while constantly stirring with wire whisk. Keep stirring so that the mixture thickens. Do not boil. Set aside.

Filling and topping

  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1 lb mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • pinch of herbes de Provence
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tbsp dry sherry (not cooking sherry)
  • 1/2 cup half and half cream
  • 1.5 cups shredded Gruyere
  • ground nutmeg
  1. Melt butter in a pan over medium-high heat and saute the mushrooms, shallot, and garlic.
  2. Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms are browned and the liquid evaporates.
  3. Add herbes de Provence and mix.
  4. Remove about 1/4 of the mixture and set aside.
  5. Add the sherry to the mushrooms in the pan. Then, stir in half of the Béchamel sauce and mix well.
  6. Spoon an equal amount of filling in the centre of each crepe and roll or fold them to enclose.
  7. Place crêpes, seam side down, on a 9x13" sheet with a nonstick silicone mat. (Or use a greased baking sheet.)
  8. Add the cream to the remaining half of the sauce and cook, stirring often.
  9. Remove from heat and pour evenly over crêpes. Sprinkle with cheese and pinches of nutmeg.
  10. Cook for 12-18 minutes in 425 F oven--watch for the cheese to bubble.
  11. Garnish crêpes with the reserved mushroom mixture and serve.

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July 27th 2009 @ 19:05

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Veggie and tofu stirfry with scallion pancakes

One of the more time-consuming meals I made recently incorporates the beloved scallion pancake, a dim sum item served in many Chinese restaurants (in North America, anyway). Scallion pancakes are delicious in their own right as appetizers or for brunch, but I made them with a vegetarian stirfy and steamed rice.

Scallion pancakes are not fluffy and sweet like western pancakes; they're more like a flat bread, such as roti, chapati, or tortilla. They're normally served moderately salted, and perhaps with a dipping sauce. Because of how they're rolled, the pancakes are layered and puff up slightly when cooking


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July 17th 2009 @ 05:56

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Pescado asado (Cuban baked fish)

Pescado asado, is a popular Cuban dish that incorporates baked white fish with some typically Caribbean flavours such as lime and spices. It would go well with Cuban beans (black beans) and rice, moros y cristianos.

Traditionally pescado asado should be a whole fish, but my husband has a 'thing' about not eating or even looking at an entire fish ("I don't want to eat something that's looking back at me"), so I have to use fillets if I want him to eat fish. I used Pacific cod fillets, and I think that Pacific sole or tilapia might work too


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July 13th 2009 @ 08:21

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Danish potato and leek soup

Crisp and delicate, dill is a wonderful accompaniment for fish and vegetables in particular. In a Danish soup, it provides a subtle undertone to the perfect pairing of leek and potato. This soup, the recpe for which I found in International Vegetarian Cookbook (1983), is "[c]ommonplace on Danish dinner tables" and "tingles with the typically Scandinavian vigor of dill weed and sour cream". I had this with homemade bread for a light lunch.

Danish potato leek soup
Danish leek soup

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July 9th 2009 @ 01:36

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Scrumptious raspberry lemon muffins

It's summer here in Ontario, which means it's prime time for berries. We live close to a few great farmers' markets, as well as a supermarket, so our fridge is always stocked with at least several kinds of berries. The freezer is stocked too; the texture of thawed berries isn't always great for eating out of hand, but they're fine in things such as cobblers and smoothies.

Last weekend I made raspberry lemon muffins using fresh local berries. Combined with fresh lemon juice and zest, the muffins turned out beautifully moist and light, and not too sweet. They go very well with a cup (or two...or more) of morning coffee


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July 7th 2009 @ 21:46

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Spaghetti with vodka sauce

Have you tried vodka sauce? I think it's delicious. Naysayers may disagree and even question the point of putting alcohol in tomato sauce, but there's definitely a big difference between a sauce with vodka and one without. If you've never tried it, be reassured by the fact that vodka sauce doesn't actually taste like vodka. Instead, the alcohol enhances the flavours already present in the sauce. Even the 7-year-old pasta fiend in our house adores it.

This is what NYTimes's Food Chain column has to say on the matter: "The alcohol in the vodka enhances the flavor of the tomatoes [in a vodka sauce]. Some flavors are alcohol-soluble, meaning that they will be released only by the addition of alcohol. Vodka can help bring out these flavors without contributing another flavor, as wine or brandy would


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July 2nd 2009 @ 16:54

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


Spinach and mushroom quesadillas

I don't know anyone who doesn't like quesadillas. Consisting of cheese and any number of other savoury ingredients wrapped in a wheat or corn tortilla, and then browned to perfection, a quesadilla makes a great appetiser or main dish.

In these quesadillas, I use fresh spinach, but frozen spinach can be used if that is more convenient. In addition, I love whole wheat tortillas, but any kind may be used; sundried tomato, cheese, spinach, ancient grains--these are all available in the stores here and I imagine they'd be great too


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June 30th 2009 @ 03:12

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


'Lion's Head' soup with noodles

'Lion's Head' soup is a Chinese soup containing meatballs traditionally made with ground pork. The meatballs, whose rugged shape supposedly resemble lions' heads, sit in a warm flavourful broth with a generous amount of napa cabbage (also known as Chinese cabbage) and other veggies.

In lion's head soup, the meatballs are key. Some people make them with chicken or turkey rather than pork, out of preference or necessity. We don't often have ground pork either, as it is a) hard to come by, depending on where we shop, and b) often pretty fatty when we do find it. But pork is an important meat in Chinese cuisine--chicken and pork were the most common meats at mealtimes when I was growing up--so I don't bother substituting it


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June 16th 2009 @ 15:58

Posted By: Irene - Category: No Category
   


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