Thai Red Curry Chicken

Click here to print the recipe

So this is the end of the year again. Doesn't time fly so fast?

Our little family survived 2013 without any significant injuries, physically and mentally, I think.

J still travels a lot for business, goes out and tries to rock the world. Although from time to time I'm not too thrilled about it, he seems to enjoy his work tremendously, so in general I'm OK with it.

Big C started high school in September, and I have to say I was not prepared for it. All of the sudden it hit me that I only have less than 4 years before he goes off to college. That was the moment when I started to freak out a little bit. 

But he's been doing very well, he keeps himself busy with loads school work, and other activities. 

Little C has been plagued by mysterious shrinking clothes epidemic this year. Either that, or he's been growing up so fast, I found myself buying clothes for him all the time. 

He's also been doing very well. And oh, he's an green belt in Shotokan karate. With his big brother (purple belt), he's been diligently honing his karate skills and competed in a couple tournaments this year with great results.

Stuey the pooch, as usual still holds the title of 'the most likely individual to get yelled at' in our household. He's almost 2 years old and has grown to be a striking 100-pound fur and teeth. 

He recently discovered that human boys are easy to train and make good pets.

We're still dealing with his unhealthy hatred towards deer and various wildlife that call our backyard their playground.

Stuey is murderous scum.

Nobody likes Stuey.

But he's also super cute, and he's hilarious. 

So maybe we'll keep him.

Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 inch fresh galangal (Kha), or ginger
• 3 ounces fresh red chili peppers (or use dried, soak in warm water for 30 minutes)
• 5-10 red Thai bird chili peppers, depending on how spicy you want it to be
• 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil
• 1 can (14 ounces) coconut milk
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons shaved palm sugar, or use brown sugar 
• 1 large lemongrass, white part only, bruised
• 5 kaffir-lime leaves
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 pound chicken meat, sliced thinly
• 1 can (8 ounces) bamboo shoots
• 1/4 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves
• Cilantro sprigs
• Lime wedges (optional)

Directions:

• Using mortar and pestle, grind the first 7 ingredients until they turn into paste form. Alternatively, you can use food processor.
• Heat oil in a dutch pan over medium heat. Add curry paste, lemongrass, lime leaves, and stir fry until fragrant. Add coconut milk and chicken stock into the pan, mix until combined and bring to boil.
• Reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer the sauce for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the bottom from burning, until the sauce is reduced and become oily.
• Add chicken and bamboo shoots. Continue cooking for about 5 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Add peas and bring to simmer until the peas are well cooked. Season the curry with palm sugar, fish sauce, salt and pepper.
• Turn off the heat. Stir in basil leaves. Ladle the curry into serving bowl, garnish with cilantro sprigs. Serve with steamed rice and lime wedges.

Cinnamon Wreath Bread

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Almost done with the holiday season this year. I will be breathing a sigh of relief once I can eat healthier again.
Someone said to me, that Christmas is all about pushing your body to the brink of alcoholism and diabetes. I think that statement couldn't be more accurate.
So while we're still (somewhat) at it, let me present to you some rich and decadent, not mentioning holiday season appropriate, cinnamon wreath bread for your enjoyment.

Ingredients:

• 1 package (8.75 gram) active dry yeast
• 2 cups warm milk 
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar + 1 tablespoon
• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon powder

Directions:

• In a large mixing bowl, mix yeast with warm milk and 1 tablespoon sugar, and let sit for about 5-10 minutes until foamy.
• Add flour, 1/4 cup butter, eggs, salt to the yeast mixture, knead the dough with your hand until the dough turns smooth and elastic, but still a little tacky. Form the dough into a ball, place in a large greased bowl, and store in warm place to let it rise (double in size), about 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. On a floured surface, roll out the dough into 2 large rectangles with 1/2 inch thickness.
• Melt 1/4 cup butter, mix 1/4 cup sugar with cinnamon until well combined. Brush melted sugar over the rolled dough, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar all over. Roll up the dough, then using a knife or pastry knife, cut the log in half length-wise. Twist the 2 halves together, exposing the layers as much as possible. Make the round shape and join the ends together. Transfer to the baking sheet. Repeat the process with the other rectangle.
• Bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes until the top turns golden brown, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees. Continue baking for 5-10 minutes more, remove from the oven.
• Sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon sugar if desired. Serve warm.

Slow Cooked Pork Tacos and Roasted Salsa Verde

Click here to print the recipe:

I'm tired of cooking. I'm tired of eating.

I'm tired of holiday season!

There! I said it!

I don't like December. Holiday season always puts me in foul mood every year, without fail.

The pressure of keeping up with holiday spirit is killing me. 

Like my normal daily life isn't hectic enough, the universe dictated that I need to make time to do tons of shopping, wrap about 50,000 present and wait in line for an hour at the post office to mail them out (I know, I boxed and pre-stamped, but my house sits on a hill with very steep driveway, the postman would not come up and pick up my boxes. And my 'lovely' local post office would not allow me to drop off the pre-stamped boxes. They need to be brought to the counter! Ha!).

Top it all with secret Santas, remembering to give tips to the service guys, holiday baking, and some freakishly fast depleting money in my bank account. I'm done, man! January can't possible come soon enough for me.

I mean, can't we just be nice to people all year long? Give gifts, cooking, baking, get together anytime we want? Why do we have to cram everything in one lousy month, trying to get things done before the deadline? 

I just want things back to normal.

But for my family, especially my offsprings who clearly enjoy the season just like any child would, I grin and bear it. Just like any good person, I keep my coffee (sometimes vodka) induced sanity in place. At the end of the day, who am I to ruin their happiest and most exhilarating season of the year?

Forget the fact that I can't stand the sight of eggnog in my fridge anymore, or the smell of pumpkin cinnamon ginger whatever spice that filled my house, I promise I'll be good and in my best behavior.

Just give me whatever non-Christmas related food for dinner. Something simple, utterly comforting, but ultimately delicious. 

And if you're kind enough, please include some heavy alcoholic beverage with it. 

Cheers! Salute! Gānbēi

Slow Cooked Pork Taco
Ingredients:

• 2 pounds pork shoulder/butt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Ancho chili powder
• 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• 2-3 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
• Salt and pepper
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 cup packed cilantro leaves, chopped
• 20 6-inch soft corn tortillas
• Salsa verde (recipe below)
• Lime wedges and hot sauce to serve (optional)

Directions:

• Rinse pork and pat dry with paper towel. Combine olive oil, chili powder, garlic, cumin, lime juice, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Mix to blend. Rub the spice mix all over the pork until completely covered.
• Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add pork and brown on one side, about 5 minutes. Flip the pork over, and brown the other side. Remove pork from the skillet and transfer to a slow cooker. Cook pork in low setting for 6-8 hours. When the pork is done and tender, shred the meat using 2 forks.
• To serve, place corn tortilla in a hot pan over medium heat, flip over to heat the other side. Place  a teaspoon of chopped onion, chopped cilantro, and a heaping spoonful of shredded pork in the center of tortilla. Top with salsa verde. Serve with lime wedge and hot sauce, if desired.

Roasted Salsa Verde

Ingredients:

• 1 pound tomatillos (about 5 large), husks removed and washed
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 2 Jalapeños, stems removed
• 1/2 onion
• 1/2 cup pack cilantro leaves
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• Salt to taste

Directions:

• Move the oven rack to the top position, turn on the oven to broil. Place tomatillos, jalapeños, garlic and onion in a oven-safe dish. Broil in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft and nicely charred. Move and rotate the vegetables if necessary, to ensure that they're cooked evenly. Remove from the oven and let sit to cool down.
• Transfer tomatillos, garlic, onion, and peppers to a food processor. Add chicken stock, lime juice, and cilantro into the mix. Pulse 4-5 time until salsa turn smooth. Season with salt.

Kiwi Strawberry Tart with Cream Cheese Custard Filling

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Not until I was done baking and in the middle of taking picture that I realized that this tart looks very Christmasy, with red and green beautifully scattered over the top.

I might want to bake another one on Christmas day for dessert.

Ingredients:

For the tart shell:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
• 1 large egg
• 2-3 tablespoon cold milk

For the filling:

• 1 pack (8-ounces) cream cheese
• 1 1/2 cup milk
• vanilla bean
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 6 yolks from large eggs
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 2 tablespoon brandy (optional)
• 5 kiwi, peeled and sliced
• 2 cup sliced strawberries

Directions:

• To make the shell: In a put processor pulse together sugar, salt and flour. Add butter cubes and continue pulsing until the the mixture resembles cornmeal. Add egg into the food processor, pulse for about 5 to 10 seconds more until the mixture forms clumps and lumps, add some milk if the mixture is too dry. Take the dough out of the food processor, knead lightly to make sure that all of the ingredients are well incorporated. Form the dough into a ball, wrap with plastic and store in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before using.
• Preheat the oven to 375 F. Butter a 9-inch tart pan and set aside. Roll out the dough on a floured parchment paper into a 12-inch round. Using the paper as aid, transfer the dough onto the pan, peel off the paper, and use your fingers to make sure that the dough adheres very well to the pan. Trim the edges and pierce the dough with fork all over. Place the shell on the center shelf of the oven, and bake until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool down completely.
• To make the custard: Place milk in a medium saucepan. Slit the vanilla bean lengthwise using a sharp knife, and scrape off the seeds into the milk. Heat the milk over medium heat until hot but not boiling. Turn off the stove and let it sit to steep, about 10 minutes.
• In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch and egg yolks until creamy. Add hot milk gradually into the egg mixture, continue whisking until all of the ingredients are well mixed. Return the mixture into the saucepan, cook over medium-low heat while whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens and bubbly. Strain the mixture using fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Let it rest to bring the temperature down to room temperature. 
• Add brandy, if desired, whisk to combine. Fill the tart shell with the custard, use rubber spatula to distribute the custard evenly. Refrigerate the tart for at least a couple of hours to chill the custard completely.
• Arrange sliced kiwi and strawberry on top of the tart before serving. Serve chilled.

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Cardamom Sugared Pumpkin Drop Donuts with Orange Caramel Dipping Sauce

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Our Thanksgiving dinner was great, despite of the fact that we just got back from San Diego on Wednesday night, and had to stop at the grocery store to pick up some last minutes ingredients on the way home. But we made it.

Big C got overzealous last week when I took him to Whole Foods to pick up our turkey. He choose a 16 pounder (it's for 4 people) and was very adamant that we couldn't possibly having smaller turkey than that.

As we guessed it, we did not even finish a quarter of the bird, leaving us with plenty of leftover.

So, after Thai red curry turkey, Indonesian style chicken turkey noodle soup, turkey and Andouille gumbo, and turkey fried rice, I can say it with gusto, I'm done with turkey and will not have any of it anymore, until next Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin, however, I still can take. 

I ended up with about one cup left of canned pumpkin, and was thinking about a way to utilize it. 

This is what I managed to make last Saturday, and turned out to be a great afternoon snack.

Ingredients:

For the donuts:

• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• Oil for frying
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon cardamom powder

For the dipping sauce:

• 2 cups orange juice, preferably unsweetened
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons Brandy (optional)

Directions:

• To make the dipping sauce (this, you might want to do first, because it takes time to cook and to cool down): Cook orange juice in a saucepan over medium heat, until it's reduced to about 1 cup. Add salt, brown sugar and heavy cream, stir and continue cooking until the sugar dissolved and the sauce is thick enough to coat the spoon. Remove from heat. Add Brandy to the sauce, if using, mix to combine. Let the sauce rest to cool down.
• To make the donuts: Mix flour, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl; set aside. In a separate bowl, beat pumpkin puree, eggs, milk, and butter until creamy. Using a rubber spatula, add dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture, fold and mix until well blended. 
• Heat the oil in a frying pan to 375 F. Make sure it has enough oil to cover the donuts while frying. While waiting for the oil to heat up, mix sugar and cardamom powder in a large bowl; set aside.
• Take about a spoonful of donut dough and drop it into hot oil. Continue frying in batches, make sure to fry only a few at a time to prevent overcrowding. The donuts are done when they turn golden brown. Transfer donuts to the sugar mixture, cover completely with sugar, shake the excess sugar off, and place then on serving plate. Serve donuts with the dipping sauce and enjoy!