The Nut-house

When it comes to cooking, I owe a lot to my mother, who guided me through those early med school days when I realized that 4 years at an expensive undergrad institution failed to equip me with the skills necessary for survival in a world without meal cards. After about a week of cereal, tuna, and tacos, I made one of the best moves in my life- called home and asked, "how do I cook rice?" And as they say... the rest is history.

One of my mom's (and dad's) favorite foods is nuts; if you open our pantry, you'll be sure to find at least 1 costco-sized bag of walnuts, almonds, pistachios, or cashews on the shelf. Since I'm home this weekend, I decided to pay tribute to the chef who taught me how to cook and join my parents on the nuttier side of life, haha.

Banana Nut Bread
adapted from Cooking Light

-2 cups all purpose flour
-3/4 tsp baking soda
-1/2 tsp salt
-2/3 to 3/4 cup of sugar (add less if your bananas are super, super ripe)
-3 TBS olive oil (**Note: original recipe uses 1/4 cup butter- use if preferred)
-1/3 cup vanilla low-fat yogurt
-2 large eggs
-1.5 cups mashed bananas, ripe best (usually about 3)
-1/4 cup pecans, chopped
-1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
-1/4 cup raisins

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Mix dry ingredients together with whisk- flour, baking soda, salt.
3. In separate bowl, mix oil and sugar together until well blended. (**Note: if using butter, mix melted butter and sugar together, beat with mixer at medium speed).
4. Add eggs, one at a time, to wet mix. Beat well.
5. Add bananas and yogurt. Beat until well blended.
6. Add dry flour mixture to wet mixture. Mix in completely. Try not to over-beat.
7. Gently fold in nuts and raisins.
8. Put batter in buttered 8.5 x 4.5-inch loaf pain. Bake at 350 deg F for 45-50 min. Cool on wire rack.
(**Note: for a crowd-pleasing variation, try with chocolate chips!)

chock full of protein and potassium :)

April Showers

Waking up to the soft pit-a-patter of rain on a lazy Saturday morning is one of the best feelings in the world. No, I take that back. Pulling up the covers, snuggling a little deeper, and snoozing for another hour or two definitely tops it. Days like these are special- when you can just kick back, relax, and enjoy life without a care in the world. And what better way to treasure the moment than with a stack of warm banana pancakes and a cup of joe? As JJ so aptly puts it, "can't you see that it's just rainin'/ there ain't no need to go outside."

Banana Pancakes
adapted from All Recipes- makes about 6 large pancakes

-1 cup all purpose flour

-1 TBS sugar

-2 tsp baking powder
-1/4 tsp salt

-1 egg (if you want to get extra fancy, separate egg white and yolk)

-1 cup milk

-2 TBS butter, melted (**Note: can omit this to cut the fat if planning on serving immediately. if saving some for later, i'd add this so they don't get slightly tough)

-2 ripe bananas, mashed

-1/4 tsp vanilla

-cinnamon

1. Combine flour, sugar, baking power, and salt in 1 bowl. Add dash of cinnamon. In separate bowl, mix together egg, milk, butter, vanilla, and bananas. (**Note: if you want extra fluffy pancakes, only add egg yolk here and follow option after step 2).

2. Stir dry ingredients into wet until mixed in. Batter will be lumpy. Be careful to not over-mix. (**Option for extra fluffy pancakes: Beat egg white separately. Gently fold in to already combined wet and dry mixture).

3. Set lightly greased pan on low to med-low heat. When pan warm, pour batter onto griddle, about 1/3 cup for each pancake. Cook until pancakes golden brown on both sides. (**Note: be careful with the heat!! If it's too hot, your pancakes will burn on the outside and not be cooked in the inside).

4. Serve hot. Top as desired.

can't wait till october!

A little cinnamon and sugar to brighten the day

lately, if i were to pick one spice as my favorite, hands down, it'd be cinnamon. strong, but not overbearing, versatile, adding dimension to both the sweet and savory, and best of all, classic, conjuring up memories of the holidays and good times with every whiff. love it.

this week, i finally got the chance to visit mel and baby alexis- already 6 months old! craziness how time flies. it's official, i'm definitely out of the "jie jie" category and now a full-fledged "ah-yi." haha. anyway, being the well-trained chinese girl that i am, i couldn't just show up empty-handed at her door. and since i'm always looking for a chance to bake, what better opportunity than this to make cinnamon buns!

Cinna-Buns
(adapted from KAF)

**notes: i skipped the icing and halved the recipe- yielded 9 rolls. also, these taste best right from the oven. if waiting until the next day, they definitely need to be reheated first.

Dough
1 cup lukewarm milk
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup unsalted butter, cut up
4 1/2 cups regular flour
1 3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp instant yeast (regular active dry works fine too- just proof)

Filling
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
3 tablespoons cinnamon

Directions:
1. Combine all of the dough ingredients in a large mixing bowl, stirring until cohesive.
2. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled work surface, knead for 5 to 8 minutes, until smooth. For those lucky enough to have KA mixer (grrrr...) knead with dough hook, for 4 to 7 minutes at medium speed.
3. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise 60 minutes, until doubled.
4. While waiting for dough to rise, soften up butter for filling. Mix sugar and cinnamon together also.
5. Transfer dough to a lightly greased work surface. Roll it into a 16 x 21-inch rectangle. Spread dough with filling butter. Sprinkle sugar and cinnamon mixture liberally and evenly over dough.
6. Roll the dough into a log starting with long end. Cut to about 3/4- 1 inch slices.
7. Place in a lightly greased pan. Cover with plastic wrap. Let the buns rise until they’re nearly doubled, 30-45 min. (be patient!!! this is well worth it!!) Preheat oven to 375.
8. Bake until they’re golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat immediately and cool on rack.



cinnamon and sugar. what a combo :)















waiting for that second rise...















perfect afternoon snack with coffee or milk. enjoy!

Breakfast Blues

back in college, jo and i would wake up every morning excited about the scones in stern dining. laugh all you want, but our cafeteria bakers knew what they were doing! anyhow, in the spirit of nostalgia (since she's coming to visit this weekend!!!!), i decided to make my own blueberry breakfast treats.

Blueberry Scones (adapted from King Arthur's original scone recipe)

Dough
* 2 3/4 cups flour
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 tablespoon baking powder
* 1/2 cup cold butter (note: i cut this into little pieces to make it easier to mix in)
* 1 1/2 cups of blueberry (fresh is better, but all i had on hand was frozen)
* 2 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2/3 cup milk

Topping
* 2 teaspoons milk
* 2 tablespoons sugar crystals
(note: i skipped this step- didn't have the sugar crystals. would definitely add next time for aesthetic purposes, haha)

Directions (check out original site for instructional pics: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/scones-recipe)

1) In a large mixing bowl, whisk together all the dry ingredients.
2) Work in the butter just until the mixture is unevenly crumbly; it's ok to have some chunks of butter not mixed in completely.
3) Stir in blueberries. (note: be careful to not POP them or else they'll end up a lot "bluer" than you would like... as i learned haha)
4) In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and milk.
5) Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until all is moistened and holds together.
6) Grease baking sheet. Shape the dough to two- 6" circles, about 3/4" thick. (note: original recipe says you don't need to grease the baking sheets, but beware!! my scone bottoms got stuck because of that)
7) Brush each circle with milk, and sprinkle with sugar crystals.
8) Slice each circle into 6 wedges. Carefully pull the wedges away from the center to separate them just a bit; there should be about 1/2" space between them, at their outer edges.
9) IMPORTANT for texture and rise of dough: place pan of sliced scones in the freezer for 30 minutes, uncovered. While the scones are chilling, preheat the oven to 425°F.
10) Bake the scones for 20- 25 minutes, until golden brown.
11) Cool and enjoy with coffee/tea/milk.





Verdict: Moist, light yet buttery with a tinge of sweetness.... though i personally would have preferred crispier edges.




Yay, my roomies and i have breakfast for the week... :)

dedicated to joanna han, who shares my love for sheng kee. i am proud to say, i introduced her to this deliciousness...

came across this online... we must try it!!!

Bo Lo Bao, aka Pineapple Buns
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten

1. In a large mixing bow, combine 1/2 cup flour, sugar, yeast, and salt.
2. In a separate bowl, melt the butter in the microwave. Add oil and milk to the butter and warm to body temperature. (no idea what this means...98.6 degrees F??!)
3. Pour butter mixture into the flour mixture, add egges (reserve 1 tbsp for egg wash), and stir well to combine. Beat the mixture for 3 minutes.
4. Add remaining flour, a little at a time, until a soft dough is formed. Turn dough out to a floured surface and knead for 8 minutes, adding small amounts of flour if the dough gets too sticky.
5. Place dough in a large bowl and cover with a clean towel. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1.5 hours. During this time, make the "pineapple topping" (recipe below). After the first rising, punch down dough and let rise again until doubled (about 1.5 hours).
6. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces, and shape into flat buns. Place on lightly greased baking sheets, cover with a slightly damp towel, and let rise until doubled (about 45 minutes).
7. At this point, roll out your refrigerated pineapple topping to a 1/2 cm thickness, manipulating the "dough" as little as possible. If too dry, add a small amount of oil. Use a cookie cutter or a glass to cut out circles (12 total) that are slightly less wide than your buns.
8. Brush the buns with a small amount of water, and place your pineapple rounds on top. Lightly score the toppings with a criss-cross pattern, and brush buns with reserved egg.
9. Bake buns at 375 degrees for 10 to 13 minutes on middle rack.

Pineapple Topping
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp milk
1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder

1. Beat butter and sugar until creamy and fluffy.
2. Add egg yolk, soda, and milk. Mix well.
3. Sift flour and baking powder into the butter mixture. Mix by hand until smooth and not sticky, being careful not to form gluten.
4. Chill topping, wrapped in plastic,in refrigerator for 1 hour or more.

out of the oven!



















yes, the tops are quite large, hehe.














yummy!!