Freestyling on Feeling

I commented to a friend today that I'm slowly regressing into my Chinese culinary roots. To which she retorted, "you're turning into your mother!" Which, in all honesty, wouldn't be such a terrible thing. However that would mean that I had only a arsenal of 6 dishes to make. Awww, sorry Mothership, but we all know it's true. I'm a lot more adventurous in the kitchen, and she's acknowledged that - and I think my attitude around food has rubbed off on her quite a bit. If she likes something I've made, she'll ask me how I did it, what did I change from that last rendition, or if I added something new. I would like to think I've expanded her palate a bit, but one of my favourite "mom" quotes is, "I don't eat the couscous!" (in response to anything cooked, granular, and remotely resembling couscous)

Anyway, getting back to this post. I had a craving for dumplings...homemade dumplings. I have noticed that I don't have any food in my freezer that's quick to prepare and nutritious. Don't get me wrong, I do have a lot of nutritious food in my freezer...in about four different parts or frozen solid! And a spoon can only eat so much oatmeal and yogurt. So I decided to make some dumplings - which take about 10 minutes to cook and served piping hot. I didn't have a recipe in mind, but there were a few things I wanted to integrate - such as sweet potatoes and yams. I was definitely looking for a vegetarian-themed filling and went with:

What a Difference a Few Ingredients Make

I received a lovely gift today - a partially filled ice cube tray, full of egg yolks! You can always count on your mother for random stuff like that. In her defense, I did ask that she freeze egg yolks for me when she makes eggs (1 whole egg + 1 egg white = 1 egg yolk for the spoon!). This means that I will have to cede my jar full of frozen egg whites that is sitting in my freezer. Yes, that's a jar FULL. And then some. What can I say, I make a lot of ice cream! But then again, I post nearly all of my ice cream creations, so regular readers probably do realize that I get through a lot of ice cream.

A Test of Patience

It's really amazing how yeast works. If you have never worked with yeast - it can be quite rewarding, yet frustrating at the same time. It must be coaxed out of its freeze-dried slumber, fed and bathed in a warm milk bath (sugar snack optional) only to be put through the paces in a mixer with the hopes of creating some sweet gas to inflate those bread molecules. Delicious, no? The actual making of bread doesn't take too long, but it's the waiting for those periods of activity that can really drive someone nutty. To make a bread recipe is a real test of one's ability to plan ahead and read a recipe - in my case, I failed.

Bottom line - the recipe turned out beautifully - but it was also finished close to dinnertime! I completely misread the 2nd rise in the recipe. Here's how it went:


Make dough - rise for 1 1/2 hours.
Punch dough down - rise for 1 1/2 hours.
Shape dough - rise for 30-40 min.
Bake for 45 min.


So there you go. Homemade bread, it's delicious - but it take a long time.

For the rises - I left it in the warmest place in my apartment - my bathroom!

Before the third rise - the rolling out & swirling.

Letting the freshly baked loaf rest...as Barricelli suggests, "on its side". It took a great deal of self control not to rip it apart and shove it in my mouth right there. The crust was...buttery and flaky - almost croissant-like.

Ah yes, I forgot to mention. Doused in syrup & then rolled in sugar. Oh yeah.

My twist on it this week was a cinnamon-raisin swirl. Overall, it was great, although I think I could have rolled it out thinner and made the swirl a little tighter. The gaps in the bread wasn't as aesthetically pleasing but made for extra-eggy French toast the next day.

Having my coffee while prepping my breakfast. It was a good Sunday morning :)

The recipe was from the Sono Cookbook by John Barricelli - who mentions that he wakes up in the middle of the night to get started....I can see why!!

A New Kind of Comfort Baking

My comfort "go to" recipes have always been very sweet - chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies, quick cupcakes, and anything else similar. It's never been bread. Ever. Just too difficult - whether it takes too much time or involves too much effort. On a personal preference note - I am not a big bread eater. Don't get me wrong, I love sandwiches and good quality bread, but a loaf can sit in my freezer for months. Months!

With the recent turn of cold weather I have been suffering through, I've been craving more substantial baked goods, especially those that are not super-sweet. A couple of weeks ago I hosted my first ever Chinese dinner - it was more like a banquet really (I can only cook for 4...or 10 - nothing in between!) and I served steamed lotus paste and red bean buns. These are simple sweet bread with a mildly sweet filling. It is almost savory in nature - but for a Chinese spoon, it's extremely comforting. It brings me back to my childhood - eating dinners in loud restaurants and being served red bean, lotus and hot tapioca desserts at the end. I'm starting to go on a tangent here - but I'll post later with more pictures from the Chinese dinner.

Anyway, I made a recipe from the latest Martha Stewart Living - a Chocolate Swirl "Coffee Cake" - it's more like a loaf/cake...or for those who visit Solly's in Vancouver - it's like a fluffier chocolate babka! (which is my favourite item there) A sweet yeast dough is swirled with a bittersweet chocolate filling, topped with a rough streusel and then drizzled with icing. And amazingly, it wasn't that sweet.

It was however - a lot of work! Breads are definitely a weekend project. Start the dough, take the dog for a nice long walk and then prepare for the second rise (and filling). Wait for the second rise while watching some TV or doing some light cleaning and then pop your creation into the oven. Chill and enjoy the amazing smells that will fill the space. The worst is when it is done - and you still have to wait! I'm not sure what it is about freshly baked bread, but you definitely have to wait for it to cool. I believe it may have something to do with the yeast finishing the reactions and/or the crust and bread to settle. Anyway - a very  long wait later, I finally got to take a bite of this delicious bread/cake - and wow!

I have 27 Valentines at work!

There aren't a lot of ladies at my workplace - typical of the industry I suppose, and I would like to think I play a role in bringing the few of us together every once in a while. A coworker suggested the company "commission" some Valentine themed cookies - and I really couldn't think of a better way of giving us gals a nice treat for putting up with the stinky boys.

Unfortunately I ran into a problem I've had in the last few years - I do not have a large heart-shaped cookie cutter. In the past, I've used a plastic stencil to trace & cut out shapes - but this year I decided to freehand the hearts. I think it added some originality and personality to the hearts - no two were alike! (just like in real life, yuk yuk yuk) The recipe was a basic sugar cookie dough and then decorated with pink & white royal icing and Smarties. Each cookie was also personalized with their name written in chocolate. Each cookie was also gifted with some small chocolates or gummies - what a delicious day!

Some photographic evidence...

Taste Teaser

The chocolate broke easily as my teeth sank into the dark brown coating. It made a satisfying snap as it crumbled into the marshmallow and then onto my tongue. Although the coating was not perfectly tempered, the taste was in no way compromised - it was sweet and rich without being overwhelming. As I inhaled, I could taste peanut butter and graham cracker hit the back of my throat. The taste of nostalgia wafted through my nose as I breathed in those familiar smells of my childhood and when cookies weren't so complicated. It crumbled with no resistance, crumbling in a buttery chocolate mess in my molars. I gently separated a cloud of marshmallow from the cookie - how can something be light and rich at the same time? It was like biting into a cloud, a silky cloud of spun sugar that transported me into confectionery heaven.

 Just a tease of the post to follow....

A New Year - Time for....?

Yes, yes, yes, I know - it's been too long! I definitely haven't been idle though - it's still as busy as ever in the spoon kitchen with all kinds of fun treats being churned out. It's just taking me a while to transition those projects into a post here - but they are on their way!
I'm going to try and post more often - and perhaps not necessarily about stuff that I have made, but my thoughts on any interesting culinary trends that I think are particularly relevant or interesting. I try and make 'my rounds' of my favourite blogs - so why not share some of those gems with you?
I hinted in a couple of posts about something I was working on for the holidays - it was a cookbook! Yes readers - I published my very first cookbook! Granted, it was a small collection of recipes, but I was so touched so see the genuine reactions of the recipients. I wanted to give something back to those who have been so supportive of my culinary efforts and I think they were taken aback by how much I have done in the last year or so. I'll post a couple of snapshots of the final product as well as some tips for those who are considering doing small scale self-publishing as well! (it's easy!)