Chocolate Dipped Meyer Lemons

Pin It For Christmas, I made VB's grandma some chocolate-dipped Meyer lemons. It's something that she mentioned that she wanted to try and we couldn't find a vendor that sells this product. So what not make it? I made this two ways -- candied Meyer lemons and dehydrated Meyer lemons.

For candied lemon slices, I gently simmered lemon slices in water and sugar syrup for an hour. Then, I let them dry for 24 hours.

For dehydrated lemon slices, I roasted slices low and slow at 150 degrees for 5-6 hours. I lost count how many hours it took. Most recipes that I found online said they're done when they're... done. The most helpful piece of advice I found was when they sound like a poker chip when dropped into a pan, they're done. That's what I got here.

Then, I dipped them, twice!, in sweet dark chocolate. Turned out totally delicious -- tart, sweet and creamy at the same time. I hope Gi likes them!

Vegan Avocado Chocolate (Cup)Cake

Pin It You can't honestly tell me that you're not the least bit intrigued by the combination of those words -- Vegan. Avocado. Chocolate. Cupcake. Turns out, it's not so weird. Many before me, including the great Marcus Samuelsson, were intrigued by this recipe and none was disappointed. The chocolate cake has a whole mashed avocado in it. And you can't taste it at all in the final product, which was moist and light. The icing, on the other hand, is bright green and tastes a bit citrus-y. I happen to like the icing, but VB thought it was weird. "It tastes like avocado..." Well. Yeah...

If you're curious (admit it, you are a little), you can find the recipe from Joy the Baker here.

Birthday Cherry Streusel

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 It's VB's birthday! Happy birthday! I don't bake a lot around here, because VB's grandma always sends us delicious baked goodies. But I always make an exception for VB's birthday. But VB's grandma also gave us a big assist on this one -- she gave me a box of streusel and this medieval torture device looking thing.

It's a cherry pitter! Yeah, I gave that one away. It's an enormous upgrade from the paperclip that I used last time when I made cherry pie. VB's grandma read my sad tale of trying to pit enough cherries for a cherry pie, so she kindly sent me this family heirloom so I can pit cherries quickly and easily. It made this strudel a piece of cake! Har. Har.

 

Totally delicious. Thanks, Gi, for this wonderful dessert!

Spiced Quince Tartlet

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I'm often guilty of making complicated recipes that take too much time and/or have many hard to find ingredients. In my defense, I like to challenge the limits of the human body (mine) on 5 hours of sleep. That's probably why this blog is so incoherent.

Anyway. I want to say, yes, I can too take short cuts and make easy recipes out of simple ingredients. I'm making the crust of this spiced quince tartlet from simple white bread. No pastry, pie crust or dough necessary. No stand mixer, hand mixer, food processor or blender. Just rolled out some plain ol' white bread. That's it!

(Did I mention that quince needs to be poached for at least an hour?)

In case you're wondering, I'm not the genius behind the white bread crust idea. I got the idea from none other than... Melissa d'Arabian. I'm not in her demographics (i.e., moms short on time), so I've never seen her show. But I just happened to catch about 10 minutes of it one Sunday morning and I thought, this is such a brilliant idea!

For these spiced quince tartlet, you'll need:

• 8 slices of white bread, preferably fresh
• 8 ounces of cream cheese
• zest of 1 lemon
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 4 tablespoons of sugar
• 1 portion of poached quince, below
• pomegranate seeds for garnish

For poached quince, you'll need:

• 1 quince
• 3 allspice berries
• 2 star anise pods
• 8 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 7 cups of water
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 1/2 lemon

To a medium pot, add water, sugar, honey, lemon, cinnamon stick, allspice berries, cloves and star anise pods. Bring mixture to boil. In the meantime, peel, core and slice quince into 8 equal slices. I believe quince is Latin for "stubborn pear" (not really) so use a sharp paring knife and watch your fingers. Once the poaching liquid reaches boil, reduce to simmer and add quince. Poach for at least one hour or until quince turns pink and is fork tender. Refrigerate overnight.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove the crust of sliced white bread. Ideally, you want really fresh bread so it's pliable and easy to work with. But let's get real here. If you have stale white bread that's been sitting in the fridge, this recipe will work for you too. You need to wrap bread in damp paper towels and microwave on high for 15 seconds. Then roll out the bread flat with a rolling pin while it is still wrapped in damp paper towels. Mold the white bread slices to a greased muffin tin. Bake for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, whip together lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar and cream cheese to creamy consistency. Once the tartlets are baked, remove from the oven. Fill each tartlet with cream cheese mixture and pop back into the oven for 5 minutes. Remove tarlets from tin and top each with a slice of poached quince and some pomegranate seeds and serve.

Five-Spice Banana Cupcakes with Coconut Vanilla Frosting. Yes, They Are Vegan(!!!)

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Vegan and cupcakes go together like an elephant and a pogo stick, which is to say, not at all and a bit absurd. Vegan baking is pretty much the final frontier for vegan cooks. If vegan baking can achieve results that are equal or superior to baking with eggs, butter and cream, then there's no reason not to go vegan. Personally, I've had mixed results the few times I experimented with vegan baking. Just the other day, VB made some vegan cookies using a Duncan Hines chocolate cookie mix. The resulting cookies did not brown because there was no butter and they were doughy and a bit dry. Overall, not necessarily a "fail" but I wouldn't call it a resounding success either.

So. When I saw Chef Chloe Coscarelli on Food Network's Cupcake Wars, I was skeptical. Really? This fair-skinned chocolate-maned fairy princess (seriously, she looks like Snow White) is going to magically make vegan cupcakes that are better than all the butter and cream confections? No way, I thought and switched the channel.

(Off topic, but Food Network needs to stop biting off TLC and Bravo. Cupcake Wars is just a copycat of TLC's Ultimate Bake Off and 24-Hour Restaurant Battle is basically Top Chef's Restaurant Wars challenge minus chefs who can actually cook. Bob and Andrea, you are better than copying other people's ideas. Rant over.)

It wasn't until I read this New York Times piece on that episode that I realized her magical vegan cupcakes had beaten the butter-laden competition. There may be something to this vegan baking after all. I took her vegan cupcake recipes and gave them a different flavor profile. For my vegan cupcake attempt, I made five spice banana cupcakes with vanilla icing. I know this sounds kooky, but the five spice powder adds a bit of warmth to the cupcakes. And it makes you wonder, "What is that? Let me take another bite..."

For these vegan cupcakes, you'll need:

• 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup of soy milk
• 1/2 cup of canola oil
• 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon of five spice powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and five spice powder in a large bowl. In another container, whisk to combine soy milk, canola oil, apple cider vinegar and vanilla extract. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Add mashed bananas and stir until all the dry ingredients have been incorporated.

Pour into muffin tins lined with paper cups to about 80 percent full. Bake for 15 minutes. If you're a go-big-or-go-home kind of a person (like me) and used giant cupcake paper cups, then bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cupcakes cool before frosting.

For the icing, you'll need:

• 1/4 cup of coconut oil (It is a white solid and comes in a jar. You can find it at Whole Foods)
• 3 cups of confectioner's powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup of water
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

First, cream coconut oil with a whisk. It won't look like creamed butter, but it should be softened. Add confectioner's sugar and vanilla. While whisking, pour in the water one tablespoon at a time. By the time all the water is incorporated, you should have icing that has a thick butter cream consistency.

Frost your cooled cupcakes and add some walnuts on top for crunch. You're done!

I was really skeptical about the whole thing, especially the frosting. I had tried to make frosting with confectioner's sugar before and they tasted sickly sweet with a very thin consistency. Make no mistake about it, this frosting is sweet, but the coconut oil makes it so fragrant and thick just like buttercream. The cakes are moist and tender with just a hint of spice. These cupcakes are so delicious, they make me wonder, what other delicious flavors of vegan cupcakes can I make?

Kumquat Marmalade

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In fall 2008, I made some marmalade from the kumquats that I picked off my aunt's trees. The marmalade was so delicious that my aunt cleaned out her jar in a week. This year, I'm making this delicious marmalade again, but with a twist.

I used the same kumquat marmalade recipe as last time, except with some minor changes. You'll need:

• 2 pounds of kumquats
• 5 cups of water
• 4 cups of sugar
• juice from 1 lemon
• 3 Earl Grey teabags

First, clean and slice all the kumquats. Last year, I was a little too perfectionist and sliced them really thin. The resulting marmalade didn't have as many fruity bits as I liked. This year, I made thicker slices, about 4 to 5 slices per kumquat. Reserve the seeds and tie them in a cheese cloth bag.

Place the sliced kumquats and the bag containing seeds into a large non-reactive pot. Add 4 1/2 cups of water. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Steep 3 teabags in 1/2 cup of boiling water for at least 5 minutes. Bring the pot to boil. Add juice from 1 lemon and Earl Grey tea. Reduce heat to simmer for 1 hour. Do not overcook. It's pretty easy to overcook this, because it will appear watery. It's just fine if it appears runny. Add 4 cups of sugar. Stir constantly. Cook for another 30 minutes. The marmalade should have a rich amber color. It will gel slightly as you spoon it away from heat. Remove the cheese cloth bag.

At this time, the marmalade is done. It can be canned immediately. I got about three mason jars out of this recipe. Otherwise, you should refrigerate it before serving.

I can't really identify the Earl Grey tea in the final product, but it does add another dimension to this already delicious marmalade. If I get more kumquats, I would try to make this with only Earl Grey tea and no water and see where that takes me.

Lemon Bars

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VB: What are we having for dessert on Super Bowl Sunday?

CG: Well, what would you like?

VB: Lemon bars.

CG: Lemon bars?

VB: It's my favorite.

CG: I didn't know that.

VB: Everyone knows that lemon bars and cherry pies are my favorite desserts.

CG: Everyone who?

VB: Jen knows. She baked those lemon bars at her housewarming party just for me.

CG: Honey, I don't think Jen made those just for you.

VB: No?

CG: Um, no...

Well, now he can't say that I never make his favorite dessert. These are from Joy of Baking and they're relatively healthy -- only one stick of butter and two eggs. I used the lemons picked from my aunt's dwarf lemon tree, so these are fragrant and flavorful. You can find the recipe here.

Lemon Champagne Sorbet

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I picked a large bag of lemons off my aunt's dwarf lemon tree. They are truly amazing -- sweet, juicy, and fragrant. I feel obligated to make something awesome from those lemons. I thought about making lemon curd. I may still do that, but I certainly don't want to end up as the person eating all them butter and eggs. I made some orange lemon marmalade last year. It was very good, but I want to do something else -- something light, refreshing and guilt-free. Lemon sorbet seems like a good idea, but why not jazz it up with that bottle of bubbly in the fridge?

The result certainly lives up to the premise. Very rarely does a whimsical idea in my head turn out so well in reality. Most of my truly oddball ideas end up in the garbage bin (ahem, lavender earl grey cupcakes, anyone?) To make this festive and refreshing little dessert, you need:

• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 1/2 cups of water
• juice from 5 to 6 small or medium lemons
• zest from 5 to 6 small or medium lemons
• 1 1/2 cups of champagne or sparkling wine

Start by boiling water and sugar together until the sugar is dissolved. Turn off the heat and add juice and zest. Make sure you taste the mixture to see how tart it is. I happen to have some really sweet lemons. If you have lemons that are more sour, feel free to cut back on the lemon juice. Unless you like it tart, in which case, add as much lemon juice as you want. Chill mixture in the refrigerator. After the mixture is chilled, add champagne or sparkling wine. I wouldn't use something super fancy in this, but make sure you like the taste.

At this point, you can use an ice cream machine to finish the process. Or, you can pour the mixture into a large pan and move the pan into the freezer. Check on it about every 30 minutes to an hour. Scrap with fork to make little ice crystals. Yes, I know that's more like granita. No matter what you call it, it will be delicious.

Note that because the mixture has alcohol in it, it will take a little bit longer to set up in the freezer. Also, it will set up soft, not frozen solid. If you like a firmer texture, replace half a cup of champagne with water.

The sorbet is a gorgeous canary yellow. It's sweet and fragrant with a hint of effervescence. Pretty awesome, if you ask me.

The Brown Derby Grapefruit Cake

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Look at how pretty this cake turned out -- perfectly supremed grapefruit, smooth frosting without crumbs, evenly divided cake layers. Of course I didn't make it. The last time I tried to supreme citrus, it turned into a big puddle of juice.

This is the first cake that VB ever baked and it is also my birthday cake. It is moist, tender and juicy. The technical aspects were executed perfectly. It is the best birthday I've ever had -- not just because the cake is delicious, but also because my sweetie made just for me. The recipe can be found here.

Also, here's a picture of sunrise in Mexico.

Fresh Cherry Pie

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I have new found respect for grandmothers everywhere. Making a pie is hard work. I made this pie using two portions of this basic flaky pie crust recipe and this fresh cherry pie recipe. The hardest part for me was rolling out the dough and transferring it to the pie pan without cracks. I find rolling the dough in between two pieces of parchment paper or plastic wraps helps tremendously.

Also, unless you've got a mean masochistic streak, please use a cherry pitter. I couldn't find one after going to four different stores, so I had to use a paper clip. It was a big pain in the tush. If VB didn't help me out, I'm probably still standing by the sink pitting those dang cherries.

All that hard work yielded one tasty pie. The crust is flaky and the filling is sweet and tart. I would recommend using butter-flavored shortening so that the crust is even more buttery. The best part? It's an excellent excuse to eat ice cream. Cherry pie a la mode, anyone?

Taiwanese Desserts

Pin It This is a teeny tiny sample of the desserts that are available in Taiwan. New desserts are cropping up everyday. Of course, old favorites are constantly being reinvented.


This, for example, is an old favorite. It's silken tofu with yam and taro tapioca pearls in a sweet brown sugar broth. The light and tender silken tofu is a perfect contrast to the chewy and tense tapioca pearls.


This is also silken tofu, but with lotus seeds, white cloud ear fungi, Chinese pearl barley (Job's tear) in clear sugar broth.


This is grass jelly with konjac, sweetened Fava beans (?), and tapioca pearls. The new twist on this classic dessert is the addition of cream, which is drizzled over the top. The cream softens the herbal, almost medicinal, flavor of grass jelly and makes it taste more like dessert. The Fava beans are sweet and creamy -- a perfect contrast to the crunchy and light konjac.


This is a cream puff filled with mango sauce and whipped cream.


Doughnuts are all the rage in Taiwan. But doughnuts in Taiwan are not the sugar bombs that we have in the States. They are crunchy on the outside but chewy on the inside, almost like mochi. There's an intense burned sugar aroma, but it's not sweet at all. The only thing this doughnut has in common with the doughnuts that we know is the shape.


Speaking of mochi, this is a kind of mochi that's very different from the ones that I posted about earlier. This is not filled with anything and covered with crushed peanuts and black sesame seeds. This special mochi is toasted so that it's melt-y and gooey on the inside.


Believe it or not, these are also mochi. They are baked and puffed up. The outer layer is crunchy like meringue, but inside is chewy like mochi. Yes, they are as odd as they look.

Mochi

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I'm visiting Taipei right now. Unless I venture out for food, I've got mochi and instant noodles to eat at home. That would be very depressing if the mochi isn't so good.

Most of the mochis that I've had are wrapped with thick and chewy glutinous rice dough. That's all well and good if you like that sort of thing. But this particular kind is soft and pillow-y. This mochi is filled with lots of black sesame paste. It's just sweet enough to be satisfying. Doesn't it look just heavenly?

Five-Spice Chiffon Cupcake

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A while ago, I had some very interesting desserts at Bushi-Tei. One of the desserts that we all loved was a five-spice chiffon cupcake. My home version is pretty simple, but delicious. I take a basic chiffon cupcake recipe, like this one, and add 1/2 teaspoon of five-spice powder and 1/4 teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg. If you look at the picture above closely, you can see flecks of five-spice powder throughout. To me, the five-spice flavor is not strong enough. Next time, I would increase the amount to 1 teaspoon or more.

Flavors aside, the texture of the cupcake is excellent -- tender, light and moist. I dare say even better than the restaurant version I had. Sure, I can frost this baby up, but I love the contrast between warm fresh-out-of-the-oven cupcake and cold creamy vanilla ice cream. The only downside is that the recipe makes way too many cupcakes (about 30 or so). Oh well, I just have to buckle down and eat hard. It's a scarfice I'm willing to make.

Update: The cupcake is kitteh approved. Tangerine nom'd one of the cupcakes while I wasn't looking. For once, she's helping in the kitchen.

Sponge Candy

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These came in the mail as part of an Easter care package. I've never had sponge candy before but now I can't stop eating it. The honeycomb inside tastes like crunchy molasses, with just a hint of burned sugar bitterness. This one is going on my list of recipes to try in the near future.

More about sponge candy (sometimes called sponge toffee) here.

Chocolate Chip Cupcake

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A preview of dessert for tomorrow night. The chocolate pipping on top looks pretty messy (sorry, amateur hour here), but it is chocolaty deliciousness.

• 1 stick minus 1 tablespoon (100 grams) of butter at room temperature
  
• 1/3 cup (50 grams) of cake flour
• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (60 grams) of corn starch
• 1/3 cup minus 1 tablespoon (70 grams) of sugar
• 2 eggs
  
• 1/2 cup (60 grams) of chocolate chips
• 1/2 of a bar (60 grams) of bittersweet chocolate
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  

Combine butter, flour and corn starch using an electric mixer until the mixture becomes a smooth paste. Add salt, sugar and eggs (one at a time) until the mixture is smooth. Mix in chocolate chips and stir until chips are evenly distributed in the batter. Fill cupcake pan lined with paper cups and bake in 350 degree oven for 18 to 20 minutes.

While the cupcakes are baking, melt bittersweet chocolate in a double boiler. Fill a small plastic bag with melted chocolate. After removing cupcakes from the oven, snip off a corner of the plastic bag and pipe chocolate through the hole over the cupcakes. The recipe makes about 8 cupcakes. But fewer than 8 will show up at dinner tomorrow. Sorry. I had to eat one to make sure it's good. And it is.

Green Tea Red Bean Marble Cake

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This recipe combines two common elements in Asian desserts -- green tea (matcha) and sweetened red beans. The first time I read this recipe, I knew I had to try it. And eat all of it (cue evil laughter)!

• 3/4 cup minus 1 tablespoon (110 grams) of bread flour
• 2 tablespoons (15 grams) of corn starch
• 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/3 cup (60 grams) of milk
• 1/3 cup (60 grams) of vegetable oil
• 1 heaping tablespoon (30 grams) of honey
• 2 1/2 teaspoon of green tea (matcha) powder
• 4 teaspoons of water
• 7 (200 grams) egg whites
• 2/3 cup (110 grams) of sugar
  
• 1 cup (120 grams) of sweetened red bean
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  

Line baking pan with parchment paper or spray with nonstick spray. Combine green tea powder with water. Set aside. Combine flour, baking powder, corn starch and salt. Set aside. Combine honey, vegetable oil and milk. Set aside. Whisk egg whites using a stand mixer and add sugar slowly until the mixture forms stiff peak.

In two batches, add the dry ingredients and wet ingredients to the egg white foam. Fold in gently. Take 1/3 of the batter and add green tea mixture. Mix well. Add sweetened red bean to the remaining 2/3 batter. Mix well. Combine the two mixtures gently, leaving a marbled texture. Bake in 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.

The cake is light and oh so pretty. The slight bitterness of green tea and the sweetness of the red bean remind me of desserts from home.

Steamed Lemon Sponge Cake

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I made these in my rice cooker! It's weird but true. These are moist and airy. The silky texture is similar to Malay cake (ma lai go). I also like the lemon aroma and flavor without the tartness.

• 1 teaspoon of lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
• 5 (250 grams) eggs
  
• 3/4 cup (180 grams) of sugar
• 11/12 cup (2/3 cup plus 1/4 cup or 190 grams) of cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon plus 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
  

Mix eggs with sugar using a electric mixer until the mixture holds a ribbon. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Thoroughly combine all the ingredients together and let the mixture sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Fill cake pan lined with parchment paper. Steam for 20-25 minutes. If you don't have a rice cooker or a steamer, I suppose you can bake these in a muffin pan. But the texture may not be as delicate.

I have resolved to do more late night baking (or steaming, as the case is here), so I can always have dessert for breakfast.

Update: Those measurements are way off. My kitchen scale is malfunctioning, so I had to wing it. And my math is no good (hanging head in shame). I made my cake using the cup measurements indicated above. The cake came out really delicious, so I might have stumbled upon something special. One day I have to make this recipe again according to the actual weight measurements and see what difference that makes.

Honey Sponge Cupcake

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Since my aunt was so gracious to let me borrow her cookbook, I thought I'd bake some honey sponge cupcakes from the book and bring them over tomorrow.

• 2 tablespoons (30 grams) of honey
• 2 tablespoons (20 grams) of vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon (20 grams) of sugar
• 1/3 cup (50 grams) of cake flour
• 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt

Mix honey and vegetable oil together and heat over a double boiler until the honey becomes runny. Set aside. Beat eggs and sugar together using an electric mixer until the mixture turns pale yellow and forms a ribbon. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Combine all the ingredients and let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Fill muffin pan lined with paper cups. Bake in 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. The recipe makes about 10 cupcakes.


The cake is very light and tender with a hint of honey flavor. And it's not sickly sweet like most desserts. The downside is, I have to resist the urge to eat them all tonight.

Golden Orange Zest Cake with Apricot

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I had one orange left and thought I should do something with it. Bake with it, of course!

• 1/2 stick (80 grams) of butter at room temperature
• 1/3 cup (70 grams) of sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon of orange juice
• 1 tablespoon of orange zest
• 1 tablespoon (10 grams) of corn starch
• 1/2 cup of cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 tablespoon (15 grams) of almond powder or almond meal
• 1/4 cup (40 grams) of candied orange peel or dried apricot, chopped small
• a small pinch of salt
  

Cream butter and sugar together until the mixture turns pale yellow. Add egg, orange juice, and zest. Mix together. Sift flour, baking powder, almond powder, corn starch and salt together. Combine wet ingredients with dry ingredients. Add chopped orange peel or dried apricot. Bake in 365 degree oven for 20-25 minutes. The recipe should fill 2 ramekins.


It has a very intense orange flavor. The almond meal (which you can find at Trader Joe's) adds body to an otherwise delicate cake.

Molten Lava Cake

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Molten lava chocolate cake, topped with berries and vanilla ice cream. I don't like this particular recipe. The cake cannot be unmolded without turning into a goopy mess. Yes, I'm aware that it could be due to the baker's inability to properly follow directions. Clearly, this is not a fool-proof recipe. Anyways, it's chocolaty and melty if you just eat it out of the ramekin like pudding. I have to find a recipe that will produce cakes like Beard Papa's fondant au chocolate. That's a true lava cake.

The recipe is courtesy of the ladies at showmethecurry.com and can be found here.