Brownie cookies to ease my mind

 

Do you know that there are words that are mostly useless in this world.  One of them is "sorry."  When the word "sorry" is used, it's often associated with wrong doings with the intention of asking for forgiveness.  

Anyway, It's been a while since I wrote on this blog. I'm sorry for the long absence.  Oh, did you see what I just did....I just asked for forgiveness of my long absence.  But whether I am forgiven or not is not really that important.  It is just perfunctory.  Honestly, how many people would have cared.  The word "sorry" in this context really meant nothing.  Of course the seriousness of the matter is nothing either.

Then what if the seriousness of the matter is much more important.  For instance, losing an opportunity that leads to a dire situation or worse an incident that causes injuries to another person.  In this type of situation, the word "sorry" is most likely offered numerous times.  But opportunity needed at that time is gone and injuries were already inflicted.  The word "sorry" is really not for the victims but for the person that causes the problem.  This is because in many cases, the word "sorry" is useless to the victims.  But perhaps, the word "sorry" might offer consolation to the person who is the source of the problem.

Let me share with you an incident that occurred to me.  I have been in the dumps for a while now due to many reasons.  To make the long story short, I am in short of money, and was unable to find a decent job despite all that college education I have.  So, I picked up an odd job at a warehouse.  As an hourly wage worker, every hour of my sweat is money that I desperately need.  However. one day, my boss came to me and said, I need to clock out because I had worked more than I should according to regulation.  Hey,I may be poor, but not dump.  I asked for the reason as I knew I have not reached the maximum hours that regulation had mentioned.  But my boss insisted that I clocked out.

I was tired as I was working night shift.  Plus in a labor intensive work, I really do not have much energy to reason my way though, so I went home.  However, I realized I was penalized for clocking out early since I didn't fulfilled my required work hours.  I later found out that everything that had happened was an error on the management part.  So, when I confronted my boss about the matter...you guessed it, I have given that most useless word, "sorry."  Really, did sorry help me earn more money? The opportunity for me to earn more money is gone.  I had to tighten my belt a few more notches because or some errors with the management.  I was given many "sorry" but no one really understood the damage that was done.

What is the situation is more dire, especially in an abusive situation.  "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."   Huh, the word "sorry" is really useless in my opinion.  In an abusive situation, whether it is verbal or physical abuse, it is something that is already done and cannot be taken back.  Just like squeezing out the toothpaste from it's tube, you can never put it back.  Sorry is absolutely useless. The pain and the hurt that were inflicted never disappear.

It's funny how the word "sorry" was offered to the victim, which is absolutely useless.  But to the person who offered the word, it justified his/her wrong doings.  It give that person consolation, because of that mentality, "I already said I am sorry."  Now, do you see why I think the word "sorry" is actually one of the most useless word in the world.

  

Along with the word "sorry," another useless word is "why."  Why?   Haha...that was meant to be funny.  Just like sorry, "why" is equally useless.  Of course, this is context depended.  Asking why in the classroom is very much welcome word by teachers.  But when asking "Why my life sucks?" The word "why" becomes a useless word.  There is no why in such context.

You can tell, I have been pondering on this word for a while now, especially when my life is currently in the dumps.  The word "why" often popped up in my mind.  "Why my life is in the dumps?"  "Why this happened to me?"  "Why can't I have a peaceful life?"  "Why can't I be happy?"  Well, there are plenty of "why" I can continue, but they are all useless.  Because, there are no proper answers to them.  The best answer I have is, "It's karma." Yes, it must have been "karma."  Of course, this is not the answer I was looking for.  Then again, what was I looking for.  In this context, the word "why" is really useless.

In my current situation, I don't need "sorry" or "why."  I just need money.  But I don't have enough money, so I can only eat brownie cookie to ease my mind.  I just need something delicious to suppress my stress.  Haha...does it work?  Well, you will just have to try it.

Here's the link to the recipe I used:  https://ciao.kitchen/brownie-cookies/

Steam Dumpling

Steam dumpling or paotzu is a common meal among Chinese.  Of course a favorite in my family.  When I first made paotzu, the whole process seemed complex.  But once the I had the dough down, paotzu can be an everyday item. 

These day, I often make it, especially mantou (steam dough without fillings).  Mantou is can be eaten as a rice substitute.  It is one of my favorite for breakfast.  Can be eaten plain or together with other side dishes. 

Hard to say no to such a versatile food.

Homemade Ramen

 

In my family, no one can say no to ramen.  Well, we're a japanese household anyway.  But this is definitely one of our family's favourites. 

Every part of ramen is time consuming and special in its' own ways.  First off, the soup.  It is a whole day task.  I usually combined chicken bones and pork bones to make the broth.  This a slow process since it must be simmered for at least 3 to 5 hours for good broth.  The beginning part of the process is the most tedious. This is another of those time, where I pull a chair and my trusty lap top where I slowly skimmed out the "aku" (the white scums that floats to the top as the soup simmer in the beginning part of the process) while watching K-drama.  Once, the soup stop producing "aku" I will let it simmer without care for the next few hours with the lid on.

Then, there's the charsiu (roast pork).  There are many types of charsiu which can be used for ramen.  But I like the roasted version.  There is another version which stewed the rolled up pork belly tied in strings in a good amount of marinade.  But I think this way a soy sauce consuming effort.  Besides, I like roasted meat.

After marinating the chunk of pork (I do not use port belly, but pork shoulder or the butt for a little mixture of fat), I just dump into the broiler for 45 min (depending on the size) and turning it half way through.  I find this way simple and tasty.

The noodles, I often just use packet ramen noodles.  But I have tried to make hand-pulled noodles for my ramen, which turned out good, but the effort was time consuming.  I would have like to make ramen noodles, but it was hard to get lyme water which is a critical ingredients for ramen noodles.  Plus I don't have noodle machine to make the thin or curly shape.

One all three (skipped the noodle making), my ramen can be plate-up (I mean bowl-up).  This of course is at least at 3 day process.  One day for prepping the charsiu meat (marinade at least a whole day before roasting).  On second day, prep for soup.  And at the same time, I can roast the charsiu.  Once these two are done either I can have my ramen that night, or the following day.

Happy slurping!!!

Peanut brittle

 Peanut brittle sound western, but I often have this when I was a child growing up in Malaysia.  Those days, it was never one of my favorites.  But today, I missed them, mostly because I can not get it easily.  So, with the help of Google-sama, I finally found a good recipe to try out.

Asian peanut brittle has sesame in it, but I cannot get good quality sesame here where I am at, so, I skipped them.  Recipe is quite simple, but having too much is really not pretty to the teeth.  The brittleness of peanut brittle comes from the hardened caramel (basically cooked down sugar with butter in this case).

I limit myself to one to two pieces a day if I were to eat, otherwise, I am probably going to have cavities. Hahaha!!!  Anyway, I like to have them around.  Why?  Because us, humans are just weak to sweets.  It is good way to sooth my "glass heart" as many Chinese might relate to this.  What is "glass heart"?  You know, a heart that is easily broken....well, I have days where my heart seems to crack.  I need sweets to glue it back.

Cheesecake Souffle

One of the best creation in our culinary is dessert.  I truly believe we need to have sweets in our dietary system.  Why?  Because it is one of the best ways we can slow down and enjoy a relaxing day.  So, when I am tired or feeling a little broken, what do I do.  I think of sweets to give my emotion a lift.

Yes, I am a normal human being, with ups and downs as well.  So, when I am feeling a little blue, a little down, I make one of my favorite dessert---cheesecake souffle.  Tones of recipes when you google.  Very easy to make but takes time to bake (water bath for one hour).  I often makes it in the evening and unmold it in the morning.  This is just right for my breakfast.  Believe me, it pairs well with coffee.

What better way to make my day first thing in the morning?  Eating good dessert with a cup of my favorite coffee.
 

Chinese New Year 2021 dinner

 My husband is Japanese and I am Chinese Malaysian.  So, this is what happened when we have cross culture celebration.  Tonkatsu, steam garlic shrimp and stir fry vegetables.  And since it was Chinese New Year celebration, I didn't have miso shiro but meatball soup.

Actually, this is more of a every day meal than celebration meal.  Why?  Well, didn't have variety of ingredients to make fancy festive meal. Plus, I was tired of doing a lot when I am the only one cooking.  Imaging all the cleaning I still have to do.  You wonder why my kids and husband are not helping, well, it's a working week.  No holidays here where I am at.

Oh well, I can just do the best I can.  It was still a good meal.  Coming a little late, but wishing all a prosperous and healthy 2021!!!

Pineapple tarts for Chinese New Year

 Pineapple tarts, a favorite of my daughter.  Also, a popular must have cookies for Chinese New Year celebration in Malaysia.

It is hard for me buy this here where I am at.  Of course, this means I'll have to make it myself.  With the convenience of online recipes available with just a quick search on Google, I immediately went to work.

First of, the pineapple jam...of course this needs to be made ahead of time.  Easy right.  Yeah, just time consuming.  But with the wonders of technology like the food processor, I don't even have to grate the pineapples like how olden days pineapple jam was made.  With a blitz, my pineapple pulp was ready to be cooked down with sugar into thick jammy consistency.  Yeah, this is where I pull a chair and my little computer with K-drama playing while I stir the pineapple pulp occasionally while it simmers,

Once the jam is done, now on to the next step, the cookie dough.  I just pick the recipe with the nicest picture.  Hahaha...I cannot tell if it taste good or not until I made them, but at least the picture looks good.  Most cookie dough recipe available in the Internet are simple, so, I was able to make that in one trial.  Once the dough is done, chilled for at least half-an-hour.  Then it's ready.  Rolled it out, cut out with cookie cutter and put a dollop of pineapple jam on top.  Recipe even make thin strips to criss cross on top of the jam, but I find that too much work just to buff up the ecstacticness.

Preheat oven at 350 F, popped the trays into the oven and wait for 15 to 18 min.  I like my cookies a little brown.  They are done.  Quite simple right, but it is a 3 days job (I took my time).  One day for jam, another day for dough and final day for shaping and baking.

All in all, it was a satisfying effort for my non-festive Chinese New Year here where I am at.

Thanksgiving meals

Thanksgiving has always been busy for those who celebrate it.  The last few days had been like that for me.  I opted to cook a pork dish than the traditional turkey, much to my son's dissatisfaction (he wanted the traditional roast turkey, of course). On top of that, I have recently pick up trading in the stock market again after being burn big time during the credit crisis.

Yes, I have sacrificed my nap time for stock time.  And it has kept me quite busy as time do not wait for you.  In stock trading, every second counts, especially if one is day trading or even swing trading, which is what I am 'somewhat' doing.  Haha...you must be thinking I'm not taking it seriously.  Well, I'll just move on to food topic for now---side way glance.

Truthfully, I have been swing trading on natural gas...and guess what, winter has been turning its back on me.  What can I do, I am talking about mother nature here....she's is going against the odds this winter.  My heart is bleeding, but well, mother nature is not planning to sooth me, I can only turn to food.

So, this Thanksgiving, I am going all out.  What I mean is making everything from scratch.  I started with dessert, apple pie.  But I don't really like the usual American apple pie, plus I'm not a big fan of cinnamon.  So, I opt for French style apple pie---apple galette, a favorite in my family (picture below).

Next, I prep my meat.  I planned to make rolled pork with olive spread inside.  So, I bought a whole 'loaf' of pork loin.  Yes, the entire 'loaf' was a little over 1 foot long.  I made a brine with salt and brown sugar, sliced open the pork loin by going around in a spiral form so that it was a thin piece of meat that spread about 1'x1"x 10".  Soaked the meat in the brine overnight, so it'll be ready the following day for roasting.

Then, I prepared the bread.  As usual, instead of buns, I prefer french loaf.  Of course, I used started to make it.  I often make it, so making this wasn't a big hassle. The only issue I have was the time it takes to rise especially now in the winter.  It tends to take longer than usual to rise, which also increase the sourness in the bread (since I used sourdough starter).  This is of course not a problem, since my family loves sourdough bread.  But, I find it hard to balance the acidity and the rise of the bread (haha, I still have ways to go in making sourdough bread).  Anyway, the bread did come out nicely.

I also went ahead to finish up the cranberry sauce.  One, it is easy to make and second, I prefer eating it cold.  I like to keep the cranberry sauce on the sour side.  In fact, I even added granny smith apple to perk up the sourness.  This was the last thing I did before turning in for bed, ready for Thanksgiving day.

See, my cranberry sauce all served up.  Nothing spectacular, it is really the simplest one to make among the other dishes I had.

On Thanksgiving day, I first baked the potatoes to make potato salad (japanese style).  Since, we are asian family, I often kept some of the dishes asian style like this one.  What is the difference? Well---looking at the name, 'salad' makes the difference with normal mash potatoes.  In japanese style potato salad, it has sliced cucumbers and onions mixed in the mash potatoes.  I also added carrots in the mash potatoes, making it orangy in color as noted in the above picture.

Then I moved on to make the soup.  In most asian meals, they are often accompanied with soups.  So, being the asian family we are, I had to include soup in our Thanksgiving meal.  And to keep with the western theme, I didn't make wonton soup or eggdrop soup.  I decided to make shrimp bisque.  Although this is not a typical Thanksgiving dish, well, it is good anyway.

Next, I moved on to the meat.  I took the meat from the brine and left it to dry while I was making the soup and also making the olive paste to go inside the meat before rolling it.  Actually, instead of calling it olive paste, I just make olive tapanade.  Whatever leftover of this olive tapanade can be eaten with crackers or bread later.

I left the meat to dry about 1 hour.  Pat dry again in case it is still wet.  Spread the olive tapanade on the meat evenly, and then rolled it up.  Tied it with cooking twine and pan fried it in a dutch oven if you have one, or in a pot that can go inside the oven.  Once it is browned on all sides, add a splash of alcohol into the meat and covered the pot.  I used sake, since I don't have white wine handy.  I could have used red wine, but I just decided with sake.  Then put the entire pot into the over covered for 40 min at 375F.  After the 40 min, uncovered, increased temperature to 425F and basque the pork with the juice and cranberry sauce for another 15 min.  Walla, I have my roast rolled pork.

As a last minute decision, I also made two traditional Thanksgiving dishes---brussel sprouts and baked sweet potatoes.

Both dishes are easy to make, recipes are from the internet I found.  So, by 6 pm, I have my Thanksgiving meal ready.

And today, I thinking of chinese again.  As asian family, I lean towards asian meals, though my kids (born here in the States) do not often like it.  Oh well, the person cooking is the Queen!

Today, the day after Thanksgiving, my natural gas stock is  not looking good...weather outside is cold but not frigid cold.  I am trying to sooth my heart with food, which is why I am thinking 'chinese' today.  Soul food to keep my bleeding heart happy.

Happy Holiday everyone!!!

Yesterday

Yesterday was a beautiful day to be out.  I personally do not like to be out that often, but I actually was out in the yard.  And no, I was not outside for picnic or frolicking among the fallen leaves.  I was racking up a whole bunch of eaves and dried leaves, stirring up the small dust storm off the dry dirt.

I often think about my days in the evergreen tropical land, Malaysia.  There is hardly that many leaves I had to rake or sweep.  Nor were there any snow days where I have to shovel, or grass that grew the minute I mowed them down in the spring.  Days in Malaysia were rather easy, if I think about it.

As I aged, I often think about life.  Some people had a hard life, while others not.  But then again.  I believed, whether it is hard or not is a matter of relativity.  I knew someone who often claimed their life is miserable, but that person had three meals and a place to sleep everyday.  Yet, I knew someone who barely had a meal in a day nor a place to live, yet, not a single whisper about such unfortunate circumstances.  I asked, "Are you not angry about the way your life turned out?"  The respond:  "Life is a choice."

Yesterday, I was raking for almost three hours.  It got me thinking.  I probably should just have a picnic and frolic with the fallen leaves, because I have a yard to do so.  Yes, I at least have a big yard to do so.  As I was complaining about why there were so many eaves and leaves, I was glad that my yard is an open nature with lots of trees and animals.  I even found a beautiful pine cone that fell from one of the pine trees.  It is the most beautiful pine cone I have seen so far.  And believe me, I have tonnes of pine trees in my yard.  This pine cone is so big---bigger than my palm, and still green on the edges.  At the bottom by the stem, there is still fresh sap on it.  When I saw it, I thought it was so magical.  It was then, my tiredness from raking was relieved a little.  It put a smile on my face.

I shouldn't be too greedy.  That's what yesterday had taught me.  I have a big yard with lots of pine trees, crab apple tree, maple tree, tri-color beech tree and cherry blossom tree among others.  So, why should I cry about raking the eaves and leaves.  I should be frolicking around them or having a picnic under the shades.  My backyard is an open nature.  I don't even need to go elsewhere to enjoy such natural beauty.  I am actually very lucky.

Citrus all-purpose cleaner

I did it!  Citrus all-purpose cleaner has been on my mind for a long time, but I never got around to do it.  Today, as I was making ponzu (Japanese style citrus dressing), I realized I just accumulated a bunch of lime peels.  Not wanting to accumulate trash, I remembered the recipe for a natural all-purpose cleaner using vinegar I read somewhere.

It is so simple that I don't even need to write down the recipe, which for me is a big deal since I am the see-forget type.  In other words, the fact that this super natural cleaner without any additional chemicals popped into my mind means I deserved of a pat on my back.

That said, recipe is to fill up a jar with citrus peels.  And citrus peals any type of citrus will do, i.e. lemon, lime, orange, key lime, etc.  For me, today I use lime peels.  If there are too little peels, just gradually accumulate them by storing the peels in the fridge.  Mixture of different citrus peels will make the smell a little different than just lemon or just orange.  But whichever that works for you.  Once the jar (I used a small jar) is loaded with citrus peels, then fill up the jar with vinegar.  I used distilled vinegar.  Any vinegar will do, but distilled vinegar is more cost-efficient.  Then keep the concoction in a dark place for 2-weeks.  Then strain the peels, and pour the solution into a spray bottle.  The cleaner is ready to go.

So, don't throw away your citrus peels, especially when making lemonade, limenade, orange juice or any type of citrus sauces.  It is economical and free of harmful chemicals.

Yay, guess I need another pat on my back.

Raspberry Shortcake

I have a sudden craving for eating raspberry shortcake.  Plus I just finally found the perfect sponge cake recipe that will satiate my cravings.  The moist and fluffy texture of the cake plus the sweet and tart raspberry fluff cream made my day.  I said it made my day, it actually made the kids day.  My two kids ate more than half the cake in one sitting.  The remainder was gone during breakfast.

Instead of the genoise cake recipe, I used a recipe that is more similar to chiffon cake recipe, except melted butter is used instead of vegetable oil.  But the result was really more than my expectation.

My experience with genoise cake is the cake tends to be a little dry.  Syrup and grand marnier are often used to keep the cake moist but I prefer just fluffy, moist cake texture.  So, I am really glad to use this new technique to make this delicious Raspberry Shortcake.

Japanese Pizza

This morning, I made Japanese pizza for the kids.  It is one of their favorite food.  When I first ate it, I never thought that bread spread with mayonnaise with sprinkle of bonito flakes, cheese and green onions can be so tasty.

I recommend it to anyone who had not try this.  The way I see it, it can be considered a complete meal for anytime, though we often have this for breakfast.

Roll Cake with Raspberry Cream fillings

Roll Cake with Raspberry Cream fillings




Roll cake is something I like to have every now and then.  The fluffiness of the sponge cake and the smooth creaminess with a hint of sweet tartness of the raspberry cream can cure any tiredness of the day.  At least that was what it does for me.  Thinking about that, I just couldn't wait to have a taste it.

So, yesterday, I decided to make one.  Good thing about roll cake is that it doesn't take long to make.  It only took me less than half an hour to bake it.  The smell of freshly baked cake gave a euphoric feeling.  It melted any stress within seconds.

After dinner, I whipped up the cream, add a few dollops of homemade raspberry jam and spread it all over the cake and rolled it up.  Then sliced it and served immediately with a dollop of raspberry compote and a cup of freshly brewed earl grey from Mariage.  Now, how can this not remove all the stress of the day?

Kajang Style Satay

Kajang Style Satay

Last week, I suddenly had a craving for satay.  I searched through cookbooks I brought from Malaysia and found Kajang satay.  Immediately I set to work.  Of course, as usual, I was lacking ingredients.  But being used to such situation, I began substituting or skipping all the ingredients that I did not have.

Main ingredient: Chicken (of course the thighs or legs)
Next, I saw lemon grass.  The space between my brows creased.  This is one of the ingredients that is hard to get here.  It is not something that I can just run out and cut a stalk or two from the neighbor's house.  Nor can I run to the nearby store to buy them.  In other words, they are hard to come by here.  Immediately after lemon grass, another ingredient that made my frown worst was galangal.  Galangal is almost non existence here.  Unlike lemon grass, which I can buy in the next town, galangal is not something that I can get hold of easily.

But satay without these two essential ingredients is no longer satay.  I decided, however it turns out, just let it be.  So, I substituted lemon grass with daun limau purut and galangal with ginger.  Luckily, I have the rest of the spices, including assam paste (tamarind).  I ground and mixed all the ingredients together to make the marinade.  The chicken was cut into small chunks thrown into the marinade. and left it overnight.

The next day, I eagerly got myself readied and began working on the sauce.  I skip the peanuts just because peanuts here doesn't taste good.   The usual peanuts brands I can get are Planters or some generic brands.  So, I wanted to come out with something without using peanuts.  And what I made was more of a sambal sauce.  Oh well.  It was not the best but it didn't turn out too bad.

Grilling the meat:
After I skewered all the meat, I heated up the broiler of my oven and turned up heat for the grill pan.  Using these two methods, I began grilling the satay with a splash of oil.  Coconut fat would have been perfect, but that is another thing that is hard to come by.

All in all, the satay didn't turn out too bad, I must say.  I only regret the sauce.  I guess, I will need more experiments to come up with something more acceptable.

Tea Eggs

I love the smell of tea eggs.  I still remembered going to the malls in Malaysia (where I grew up) smelling tea eggs simmering away in one of the stall.  My pace automatically slowed down and my eyes would search for the huge pot with those delicious eggs.  Those are such nostalgic memories from my childhood.

Today, I woke up remembering those eggs.  Immediately after I sent the kids off to school, I ransack my kitchen to see if I have all the ingredients necessary for this scrumptious dish.  Sometimes, I think my motivation is really powered my appetite.  And "yes" I have all the ingredients except dry mandarin orange peel (but I have fresh one---hahaha!):

8 hard boil eggs
2 star anise
1 cinnamon stick
1 dry mandarin orange peel (I usually try to dry some but haven't done so)
tea leaves (I use jasmine just because it is the only chinese tea leaves I have)
1 bag of tea bag (I got from a friend which is black tea with a hint of spice---perfect!)
1/4 cup soy sauce
sugar and salt (if the soy sauce is not salty enough since I use low sodium soy sauce)
water

Anyway, besides the orange peel, which I toasted it slightly before adding into the pot with all ingredients except the eggs.  I had already boiled 8 eggs for this purpose.  While the pot with all my aromatic ingredients are coming to a boil, I cracked the boiled eggs viciously still taking care not to break the apart.  What I wanted was the trademark crackled pattern on the eggs when soaking the eggs into the dark brown ingredients.  The idea was to keep the crack eggs without peeling them all simmering in the aromatic soy sauce base liquid for at least 6 hours so that the color and taste seeped into the eggs coloring the part that was cracked.  I haven't done this for a long long time, I may even cracked the eggs too much...hahaha!

This is definitely one of my favorite dish, but I am not sure if the kids would enjoy them as much as I do.  As I am writing this, the aroma of the spice kept teasing me to check on it.  To me this is one of the smell of home.  But this may not be true for people here in my little country side town, where barberque prevails.  Probably half the population here do not even know how star anise smells.

I think I will go check the eggs, though this dish is really a hands off dish.  But the smells is just to tempting.  It is just like a little kid asking me to give a hug.  I must go to see this little baby one more time.

The eggs while slowly simmering away!

Strawberry Shortcake

Strawberries are almost to the end of the season.  Not wanting to miss out eating strawberry shortcake, I hurriedly secure myself some strawberries, whipping cream and fresh eggs.  Those are the essential ingredients for a delicious strawberry shortcake.  I made the genoise the night before and left it overnight after slathering the cake with some syrup.  This will keep the cake soft and moist.
The next day, I whipped up the cream with some homemade strawberry jam and layered it in the middle of the cake then whipped up another batch of cream for covering the outside of cake.  My cake was done.  Nothing beats a slice of this sumptuous cake with a cup of mint tea from my garden.

Apricot tarts

There are days when I just wanted to eat some really refreshing tartlets.  And it just so happen I had some frozen apricots, so, I decided to make some apricot tarts.  This is a mix and match recipe.  Basically, it is pie dough for the shell, custard for the fillings and of course half apricot for the topping.  Just put all together and bake in the oven, we have tartlets.  I glazed them with a little strawberry jam for extra shine...hahaha.  Probably better if I use apricot jam, but I didn't have any.
Anyway, it was not as delicious as I have hope it to be, because the apricot was too sour.  I should have cook the apricot in syrup before using it.  I will try it again next time.  But overall, it is not that difficult to make.  Have a try.

Sables - Butter cookies

I made this a while ago...one of kids' favorites.  They have been bugging me to make it, but I was too lazy to do so.  I got this recipe from American Test Kitchen.  In my opinion, this is one of the best butter cookie recipe available.  Anyway, the recipe is quite simple, but the process of making them is not so straight forward, especially when making the checkered ones and the spiral ones.  But the effort is well worth it when I see the kids' face.  They absolutely love it.
Actually, when I was young, I saw these cookies in a recipe book (probably from one of my grandfather's collections), but I had never tasted them.  I always wanted to try them.  So, there you go...just make it!

Sanma with ground peanuts coating（サンマのにつけピーナッツあえ）

When we were living in Kobe, Japan there was a store in Motomachi that sells Iwashi no gomaae (Sardines with ground sesame).  It was so delicious.  There is absolutely no way we can get it here in Cheney, WA.  I wanted to recreate it here at home.  But all I could get is frozen sanma.  It is several times bigger, but taste really good when stew.  So, I thought perhaps I can do the same as iwashi.  The second problem, toasty flavorful kin goma (golden sesame) is hard to come by here (actually none at all).  I have not seen it in any of the asian grocers here.  Thus, the next substitution would be using peanuts which are also several times bigger than sesame.  Hahaha...I guess big is good (as the saying goes in America!)  We call this sanma no nitsuke pinattsuae.

I used the same process as stewing iwashi basically, which is to simmer it in a little vinegar together with sliced ginger until it is reduced to more than half.  Then add soy sauce, sake and sugar in equal portion (enough to cover the fish) and continue shimmering until the liquid is about 1/4 of the original.  Shut the heat and add lots of ground peanuts.  Basically, the peanuts will absorb the rest of the liquid and become pasty so that it will coat the fish.  Done!

It actually turned out good.  I still need a few adjustment such as making it sweeter (my preference).  So, next time I'll add a little more sugar.  Also, frozen fish can be be quite fishy, so, it is important to preprocess the fish with vinegar and ginger.  Do not skip this step!

And this dish can keep for a few weeks, so, it will be a good emergency food.  I'll probably try to make this for shogatsu next year.  Hahaha!!!

Molasses Cookies

I read a article a couple days ago about a miracle mineral that is good for our body---that is magnesium. It is a mineral that is absolutely vital for our body, which contribute to "nearly 300 biochemical reactions...within our body," (quoted from Organicauthority.org).  So with this in mind, I wanted to use ingredients that is rich in magnesium for baking.  And one thing came to mind---blackstrap molasses.  It is available widely in grocery stores, though I personally prefer the one without sulfur in it.  The recipe I used is from Martha Stewart's Molasses Cookies.  As usual, I made a few minor changes in the recipe to suit my family's taste.

Firstly, I often find recipes from the US are often too sweet.  In this case, I reduce the sugar to 1/3 cup of sugar.  And I skip some of the spices, mostly for personal taste.  I prefer less spiciness in cookies.  Then I set to work.  This is a fairly simple recipe.  I didn't even work up a sweat.  Once the dough is formed, it needs to be refrigerated for at least half an hour.

I form it into a ball and press it down with a glass with flat bottom to about 1/4 in thick and about 1 1/2 in apart.  And into a pre-heated over of 375 F for about 13 minutes (I prefer cookies a little crispy).  I guess this is probably why the color of the cookies is a little darker than Martha Stewart's.  Nevertheless, I like it.  It is definitely a good cookie to have with a cup of milk.  Not to mention, it is loaded with complex flavor and essential minerals such as magnesium.