Pineapple Upside-Down Cake...not so desperate housewife

Last Tuesday while checking out the photos of my high school classmate Nancy who had a cake workshop with Heny Sison in facebook. I suddenly got the urge of baking cupcakes. No specific flavor, it's just the feeling of baking something. So I sms Pieter and asked him to buy me milk, eggs and cream.

Pieter and I had a routine every night. After dinner we will sit at the sofa (we both have our own place at the sofa by the way) wrap myself up in the blanket and tuck it under my own body, like a cocoon, and watch our favorite comedy sitcoms. Every Tuesday we also watch Desperate Housewives. Pieter got hooked with the craziness in Wisteria Lane specially Katherine Mayfair

The scene "Katherine has decided that Angie is her new confidant and pre-fight she dropped by to jaw and found Angie looking at a picture and crying. She asks who the mother and child are and Angie says it's her mom and she's dead. Her birthday is tomorrow so Angie gets misty. Katherine gives her a moment before getting back to her crazy saying that her and Angie's plan to take the high road is working and calls her her "partner in crime" and winks. Angie says it's not "their" plan and to keep her out of it but good luck. Katherine says it's her sadness talking and that she'll make her a pineapple upside down cake to cure her depression."

Then there it was...the little light bulb sits above my head...BLINK! and asked him "would you like to try Pineapple upside-down cake tomorrow?"

Buttery, almondy, fruity and sweet. Dense but not dry. It was so good!

pineapple upside-down cake
topping
5 tbsp butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp pineapple juice
6 pieces slice pineapple (add more if you want)

• Place butter, sugar and pineapple juice in a small pan and stir over medium heat. Cook until mixture turns amber color.
• Pour mixture into a 9 inch diameter stick-free cake pan with 2 inch high sides. Arrange pineapple slices on top. Set aside.

cake batter
1 cup flour
1/2 cup ground almond
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk

• Preheat oven to 180 C
• Whisk flour, baking powder, salt and ground almonds in a mixing bowl.
• In separate bowl using hand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg one at a time, beating after each addition. Add vanilla.
• Add dry ingredients alternately with milk in 2 additions each, beating well after each addition. Pour cake batter over caramel and pineapple in pan.
• Bake cake in preheated oven for 45-55 minutes or until cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.
  

Pieter helped me baked this cake.

Stuffed Peppers...Inspired by Rice Pilau

Week ago Pieter and I visited this Turk store at the market near our place. Wow that place is overwhelming with fruits and vegetables and also cheap. Pieter saw these huge peppers and asked me if I can cook something with it. I responded "ok, let's buy a couple of pieces then see what I can do."

I came up with this stuffed peppers. Well, I got the inspired with the rice pilau from my cookbook and decided to use the recipe and added few more ingredients. What's different about this recipe is, I used sun dried tomato instead of tomato sauce or fresh tomato (which is very common in this recipe). I also added raisins for sweetness and cashew nuts for crunch. I was really impressed with the outcome result.

stuffed peppers
2 bell peppers, halved lengthwise, cores and ribs removed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 chicken breast, cut into small bites sizes
50g sun dried tomato, sliced diagonally
1/2 cup cashew nuts, chopped
1/4 cup raisins
1/8 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 cups cooked rice
1/2 cup chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste
grated cheese (optional)

• Preheat oven to 180 C. Heat oil in a large wok over medium heat. add onions and cook until soft and translucent. Add garlic and chicken breast. Cook until chicken is no longer pink.
• Add rice, raisins, cashew, sun dried tomato, ground cumin, salt and pepper. Mix well. Remove from heat.
• Arrange the pepper halves cut side up in a baking dish and fill each pepper half with the rice mixture. Add the chicken stock to the baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle cheese on top of the peppers and bake for further 20 minutes.

Spinach and Shrimp Dumplings

Does anyone of you know this application game in Facebook called "Cafe World"? Ok I'm in level 55 now and Im serving "Siu Mai" Why Am I saying this? Actually it was this game that made me crave to make this dumplings.

I love shrimps but not for Pieter. If you will ask him the reason why he doesn't eat shrimp. He'll answer you with high pitch tone "because they look like an alien, so creepy" But last friday I managed to feed him shrimps for dinner. New food for him and I don't want him to feel scared seeing those shrimps in translucent wrapper so I fried the dumplings...Guess what?! He likes it!

I made 12 pieces of dumplings. I steamed the 1st 6 while the rest were dipped fried. Both of them are delicious. I also made my own dumpling wrapper which is so easy by the way. I know there are plenty of ready made dumpling wrapper available in frozen section of the Asian market. But I prefer to make my own because I want challenge and learn as well.

The recipe for the wrapper calls for Tapioca and Wheat starch. But I only need 1/2 cup each and the Asian store doesn't sell small quantity. So I used Plain flour and Corn starch instead. It turned out fine after steaming and frying.

spinach and shrimp dumplings
filling
1 1/2 cup spinach ( I used frozen)
150 g shrimp, shelled, deveined and chopped into small pieces
3 tbsp bamboo shoots, finely chopped
2 tbsp spring onions, finely chopped
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp oyster sauce
1 tsp salt

dough
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup boiling water
1 tbsp oil

• Thaw and squeeze spinach to remove as much moisture as possible. (if you are using fresh spinach blanch and drain it very well, squeeze and chop into small pieces)
• Add the remaining ingredients and mix until combined. Chill in the fridge while making the dough, allowing the flavors to develop.
• Add flour, cornstarch, oil, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add boiling water at once and stir to bring the dough together. Add a tbsp of boiling water if the dough is too dry. Don't overwork the dough but continue shaping until it is smooth and shiny. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
• Roll portion of dough into a long roll, cut into 12 equal pieces, roll each piece on hand until smooth. Cover the remaining dough so it wont get dry.
  
• Roll out dough in 4 inch circles. Form a pouch, put in 1 tbsp of filling, cover and pinch end together and gently curve dumplings to form crescent. Place on bamboo steamer with lightly greased foil, make sure dumplings do not touch each other. Cover with steamer lid and steam for 15 minutes.
• Serve with dipping sauce.

dipping sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp water
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp spring onions

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl.

Erwtensoep

Ertwensoep (also known as snert) is a typical Dutch winter meal. This recipe makes a pretty thick meal of a soup, but that's how it should be. In fact, the Dutch believe that pea soup should be so thick that you can stand a spoon upright in it. However, if you prefer a slightly thinner soup, simply add some more stock. It's traditional to serve this hearty winter soup with slices of rookworst (smoked sausage) and rye bread topped with katenspek (a type of smoked Dutch bacon).

I made this last night, well actually a ready made from UNOX but I added more potatoes, carrots and sausage. It was yummy! Perfect for cold weather.

Chicken Peanut Stir Fry

I'm not in the mood to write anything today except share this recipe. I cooked this for our dinner last night. It was very simple, quick and delicious.

chicken peanut stir fry
2 tbsp peanut oil
1 garlic clove, minced
3 spring onions, sliced
2 chicken breast, cut into bite-sized
1 tbsp ginger, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp chili powder
150 g sugar snap peas
1 can baby corn
2 tbsp chunky peanut butter
2 tbsp soy sauce
freshly cooked rice

• In a small bowl, mix together the peanut butter and soy sauce until smooth. Set aside.
• Heat oil in a wok over medium heat. Add garlic and spring onions and stir fry for 1 minute.
• Add chicken, ginger and chili powder, stir fry for 4 minutes.
• Add sugar snap peas, baby corn and peanut sauce. Stir fry for further a minute.
• Remove from heat, pile onto serving plates and serve with freshly cooked rice.

My very first Kimchi

Kimchi is one of numerous traditional korean pickled dishes made of vegetables with varied seasonings. Its most common manifestation is the spicy baechu (cabbage) variety. Kimchi is the most common banchan, or side dish, in South korea and many South Korean communities and locales. Kimchi is also a common ingredient and combined with other ingredients to make dishes such as kimchi stew (kimchi jjigae) and kimchi fried rice (kimchi bokkeumbap).

I've been eating kimchi for a long time, but never had a courage to make my own. Yesterday Pieter requested to have beef bulgogi for dinner. I replied "sure so I can try my new ceramic knife and try to make kimchi as well".

How hard could it be to make a small batch of kimchi at home? As it turned out, not at all. It's just the waiting (fermenting) period takes a lot of time. But patience is not one of our virtue because after 5 hours of making it, Pieter and I almost finish half of the glass jar. I never expected he will like it as much as I do. He ate more kimchi than me. It was so perfect with beef bulgogi.

kimchi
1 large chinese cabbage
1/2 cup salt
1/8 cup pepper powder (more if you want super spicy)
3 green onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 small onion
1 thumb ginger, peeled
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp fish sauce

• Cut cabbage in half. Wash cabbage and drain, rub salt in each layer of leaves and let stand for 2 hours.
• After 2 hours pour off any liquid, then rinse the cabbage under cold running water for 3 times.
• Squeeze out any excess water then cut into large bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
  
• Combine garlic, ginger, onion and fish sauce in food processor or blender until finely minced. Add pepper powder and sugar.
• Transfer the chili paste into large mixing bowl, add green onions and cabbage. Mix well to combine. (If mixing with your hands, be sure to wear rubber gloves to avoid chili burn.)
• Pack the seasoned cabbage into a large sterilized jar with lid.
• Let kimchi ferment in a cool place for 1 day before serving or putting in the fridge.

Baked Breaded Bacon with Apple and Potato Mash....Inspired by "Hete Bliksem"

"Hete Bliksem" literally Dutch hot lightning. It is a stew consisting of 2 parts potato and 1 part sour apples or pears instead of apples. Stewed or fried bacon as meat and some meat sauce for mashing.

Last night I checked my dutch cookbook and found this Hete Bliksem recipe. I remember we still have few potatoes left and 1 apple in the fridge. I asked Pieter "what if I cook this for my lunch?" He replied "sure you still have your pork in the fridge" Since it's only me for lunch I adjusted the recipe for 1 person (although the apple and potato mash was still too much for me).

The bacon is supposed to be mix together with the potato and apple but I've decided to cook it separately. Actually our kitchen vent isn't working properly and I don't want the smoke all over the kitchen (and me) so I baked it with some breadcrumbs, cheese and parsley. (Pieter, come on! call someone to fix it pls!) Viola! after 30 minutes It turned out really yummy! I had a great and satisfying lunch.

baked breaded bacon with apple and potato mash
250 g potato
100 g apple
200 g bacon (thick slice of bacon)
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated cheese
1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
salt and pepper
1/8 cup milk
1 tbsp butter
pinch of cinnamon

• Preheat oven to 200 C. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and set aside.
• In a bowl mix together the breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley, salt and pepper. Dip in the bacon and gently press the crumbs all over bacon. I didn't use egg here as the fat from the bacon helps enough to stick the crumbs.
• Transfer the bacon to the baking tray and bake for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile peel, core and slice the apple, Put the potato in a pan and cover with water. Add the chopped apple and cook until tender.
• Drain the potato and apple. Heat the milk and add cinnamon.
• Mash the potato and apple to a puree. Add the butter, salt and pepper to taste and just enough spiced milk to make a creamy mash.
• Serve warm with baked bacon.

Strawberry Crème fraîche Cheesecake

It’s been quite some time since I made a cheesecake. Last weekend Pieter and I decided to make Strawberry Crème fraîche cheesecake for his brother's visit. Jacob helped Pieter bring home the furnitures from Ikea with his car and to show my appreciation I baked him this cheesecake.

Everytime I make cheesecake I used graham crackers, but since graham crackers isn't available here in Holland, I used digestive biscuits instead. No complains though because it taste quite the same for me.

The crème fraîche is a left over from my previous recipe and I dont want to throw it away once it get expired. So I used it as substitute for sour cream. Creamy, tangy and sweet. It tasted really, really good!

strawberry crème fraîche cheesecake
for the crust
1 1/2 cups digestive biscuit, crushed
2 tbsp sugar
6 tbsp melted butter

• Preheat the oven to 170 and have ready a 9 inch spring-form pan.
• Combine the melted butter, sugar and biscuit crumbs. Press into the base of the pan and bake until golden, about 10 minutes.
  
• Transfer to rack and let cool. Wrap outside of pan with cling wrap and then followed with foil.

for the filling
400gms cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup crème fraîche
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 can strawberry preserves

• Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar. Add vanilla extract. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in crème fraîche.
  
• Transfer filling to crust. Place cheesecake in roasting pan. Add enough hot water to roasting pan to come 1 inch up sides of springform pan.
• Bake for 40-50 minutes or until firm. Leave to cool in the oven for 1 hour before chilling well.
• Run knife or metal spatula around rim of pan to loosen cake. Top with strawberry preserves just before serving.
  

Lemon Bars

Yesterday I emailed Pieter asking if he wants to bake lemon bars with me, so I told him after office please drop by at the supermarket to buy the ingredients we will need. He responded to me via sms "ok I will buy everything you need" When he got back home we had dinner and started with our operation lemon bars.

What I like about teaching Pieter is that he is so eager to learn, he follows everything I tell him, copying everything I do (which sometimes led him to burn his finger, like touching the lemon bars right after it came out from the oven) Honestly, He did all the work. He zest and squeezed the lemons, pressed the crust into the pan, whisked all the ingredients for the filling, and finished the final touches. Me? I ended up being his assistant and the photographer.

Lemon bars is a combination of a buttery shortbread crust with a tangy lemony filling. But I prefer to mellow out the sharp acidity of fresh lemons so I added a bit of milk. The shortbread crust is a winner...I love the creaminess from the butter. It's just simply perfectly balance.

lemon bars - makes 9
crust
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/4 cup confectioner's sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt

• Preheat oven to 180 C. Line 8x8 square baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside
  
• In a bowl of your electric mixer or with a hand mixer, cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
• Add flour and salt and beat until the dough just comes together.
• Press into the bottom of your baking pan and bake for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned.
  
• Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

filling
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/8 cup milk
2 large eggs
1 tbsp grated lemon zest
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp flour
1/8 tsp salt

• In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, egg and flour. Stir in lemon juice, milk, lemon zest and salt until well combined.
• Pour the lemon filling over the crust and bake at 180 C for 18 - 20 minutes or until filling is set.
• Removed from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
• Cut into squares and dust with confectioner's sugar. Serve immediately.
• Wrap left over bars with plastic wrap and keep refrigerated up to 2 days.
  

île flottante

île flottante or floating island in english. Why it's called floating island? well..it's a meringue floating on a sea of custard sauce. Nice uh?!

Anyway, this is my own version of floating island. Originally the custard is made from milk only but I used half and half and I'm telling you it tasted much better. I also poached the meringue in simmering water instead of milk. But you can use milk as you please.

This dessert is definitely one that impresses. Pieter’s reaction was “whoa!” when I showed him my very 1st floating island. (this was my 2nd by the way) He didn't even want to touch it as he told me it was too pretty to eat.

floating island - serves 4
for the meringue
2 cups water
4 large egg whites, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
toasted slice almonds (optional)

for the custard
2 cups half and half
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

for the caramel
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup water

to make custard:

• Bring the half and half to a boil.
• Put the yolk and sugar in a heavy saucepan and whisk vigorously until thick and pale. Still whisking, drizzle in a little of the hot half and half, this will temper the yolks so they won't curdle. Whisking all the while, slowly pour in the remaining half and half.
• Put the saucepan over medium-low heat and, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, cook until the custard thickens, lightens in color and coats the spoon.
• Remove from the heat, stir in vanilla and strain the custard into 4 dishes, and let cool to room temperature.
  
• Cover with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap down against the surface of the custard to keep a skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 8 hours.

to make the meringue:

• Bring water to a gentle boil.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form. Add sugar 1 tablespoon at a time and continue beating until stiff peaks form.
  
• With a wooden spoon, scoop a balls of the meringue into the simmering water. Don't over crowd the pan.
  
• Poach the meringues for 1 minute, gently turn them over and poach 1 minute more, then lift them out with a slotted spoon out of the water and onto the towel.
  
• The meringues can be stored for about 1 hour, loosely covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator until ready to use.

to make caramel: this can be made just before you serve the floating island as the caramel harden too quickly.

• Stir the sugar and water together in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves.
  
• Increase the heat, bring the sugar to a boil and cook without stirring, swirling the pan occasionally, until the mixture is a deep caramel color and has the consistency of a thick syrup.

To assemble:
Get the custard out of the fridge, Place a meringue on top of each serving dish, drizzle with caramel sauce and sprinkle with toasted almonds. Serve immediately.