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Spicy Asian Broccoli

December 22, 2011 by 20 Comments

 

If you’ve been reading me for a while, you know about my fixation, er, obsession, um, desperate love for Asian food. You may even have been here long enough to read my sob story about my favourite restaurant ever of all time for eternity Amen closing its doors so the proprietor could retire*. If so, you might even get why -after all those years of getting it nearly every time I ate out- I no longer eat Chinese food in restaurants.

It is, in part, because nothing I have ordered compares in any positive way to the garlic broccoli that Kam Wah served: crisp tender, garlicky, spicy, and no sauce in sight, it was perfect by itself but it also made everything else served with it just that much better. In a bid to satisfy my increasing need for both good spicy garlic broccoli and hermit-like living, I decided to make it happen at home.

I was going to be the Lay-T who was choppin’ brocco-lay! This might be a good time to mention another one of my obsessions. I love Dana Carvey. There. I said it. Any other fans out there?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WR6y71x3tSY[/youtube]

Holy success, Church Lady! It turned out to be a much simpler process than I ever thought to make the ultimate Chinese style spicy broccoli. The key, surprisingly, was to roast it. Who knew? The advantages of using roasting as a method are many, from not having to tend a wok constantly while stirring to the fact that you can make as massive an amount as you can fit in your oven at once. Believe me when I tell you that making vast quantities of this broccoli is what you want to do because as soon as those pans are out of the oven you are going to start snitching in earnest. A spear here, two there, a fistful now… you’re going to eat through broccoli faster than you ever thought possible. Between sneaking bites and the plate full I had at dinner, I ate an entire pan of this by myself.

One piece of advice… be sure to leave nice long pieces of stem attached to your broccoli florets.  Not only is it prettier, it’s just  a shame to lose all that great broccoli to trimming. As long as you keep the stem pieces thin, it will cook through at the same rate as the florets themselves. It’s awfully nice to have gorgeous food that’s frugal, too, isn’t it?

 

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Spicy Asian Broccoli

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Spicy Asian Broccoli

Long spears of broccoli are tossed with Chinese chile-garlic sauce, minced fresh garlic, sesame oil, a bit of raw sugar and this and that then roasted until crisp-tender. This will beat every white cardboard takeout container of Chinese you can get anywhere without exception.

Adapted with thanks from Budget Bytes who in turn adapted it from Cooking Light

Ingredients

  • 4 broccoli crowns
  • 2 ½ tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 tablespoons Chinese chile-garlic sauce (or Sambal Oelek)
  • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • 2 teaspoons raw sugar (or light brown sugar)
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • salt, to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425°F. Lightly spray a large, rimmed baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray (or use a stoneware pan without spray.) Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the canola oil, chile-garlic sauce, sesame oil, raw sugar and minced garlic until even.

Slice the broccoli crowns into long spears, keeping as much of the stem area intact as possible. Do not cut the spears too small or they’ll burn instead of cooking to the desired crisp tender stage. Add all of the broccoli spears to the mixing bowl with the oil mixture and toss until everything is evenly coated. Transfer to the prepared pan, arranging the spears so they are in a single layer and sprinkle with salt to taste.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until there are darkened, black, wilted edges on the cut areas and florets of the broccoli. Remove from the oven and serve immediately with hot, cooked rice or as an accompaniment to a stir fried meats or tofu.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/12/22/spicy-asian-broccoli/

Merry Christmas, friends!

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Rebecca, Recipes, Stretching your dollars, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , ,

Seared Mushrooms and a Mushroom Melt

December 21, 2011 by 12 Comments

I want to talk about my new favourite sandwich.

This sandwich firmly bridges the gap between dude food and chick vittles. Grilled cheese is always the ultimate in sandwichery, but grilled cheese that is crammed to overspilling with seared mushrooms? It’s the best of all worlds. The combination of gooey, salty cheese and umami packed mushrooms with just a hint of onion on buttery toasted rye bread is unparalleled. We’re talking about the kind of food you continue eating after you’re already full just because you want to keep tasting it.

You can go any direction you want with the mushrooms… I opted for baby portabella mushrooms (also known as cremini mushrooms) but you could go with white buttons or chanterelles or any other mushrooms or combination of mushrooms that are readily available and/or ding your chimes. The key is to sear them in a screaming hot pan until you get lovely brown bits on the outside. That’s where the flavour lives in a seared mushroom. While the seared mushrooms are accompanied by a bit of onion and white wine in the cooking and deglazing process, they gain a vibrancy  you don’t want to miss when thinly sliced scallions are stirred in after they’re off the heat.  Sounds good so far, right?

Enter the cheese which no longer has to stand alone.

Cheese and mushrooms are a match made in heaven. Both naturally contain those flavour compounds commonly known as umami but together they tickle your taste buds in ways that make your eyes roll back into your head.

It’s a well known fact that I love cheese (aside from the waxing rhapsodic above…) but I tell you the truth when I say it’s the mushrooms that really and truly make this sandwich sing. I cannot emphasize enough how much you should make the seared mushrooms. Make them. Really. Today.  REALLY.  Even if you’re not going to use them in grilled cheese (what are you nuts?!?) you can still have these handy to put on steaks or burgers or wrapped in omelets or topping scrambled eggs or add to sauces or just plain on a fork. They’re so good that I make them with three pounds or more of mushrooms at a time and portion them out in little plastic containers to freeze for the upcoming month. Because a supply of these mushrooms is ever present in my home and freezer, when I read Kevin at Closet Cooking’s post about mushroom grilled cheeses, I was more than halfway there to my rendition of his recipe.

When I’m slicing that many mushrooms at a time, my new  best friend, this Togiharu Gyutou 8.2″ knife sent to me by the folks at Korin.com is absolutely indispensable.

In actuality, I’m so reliant on this knife after just two weeks I can’t remember how I sliced things before I got it. It’s the sharpest knife, by far, that I have ever owned. In fact, I have a little confession.

I knew Korin was sending me the knife and I went a little fan girl over it. I’ve admired their knives from afar for quite some time. While some people collect baseball stats and memorabilia, music trivia and cds, etc… I collect information about my favourite chefs and the gear they prefer. I know Chefs Daniel Bouloud and Chris Costentino both swear by Japanese knives from Korin. That was good enough for me. I was hyper waiting for the package to arrive. When the UPS guy knocked on my door and handed me the package he remarked that the return address looked like it was in the same neighborhood as the old Yankee Stadium. I took that as the only ouvre I needed to start yammering about the knife that was in the box. Evidently, my UPS guy is a fan of great knives, too, because he asked to see it. I opened the packaging, took out the gift box in which the knife was packaged, lifted the lid and made my first mistake. Because the gift box was pretty, I didn’t want to put it down on my floor, so I attempted to hold it and slide the plastic safety sheath from the knife simulataneously. I promptly cut my finger. On the plus side, the knife was so incredibly sharp* that the only indication I had that I’d done such a stupid thing was the little stream of crimson dripping from my finger to the floor. The UPS driver oooed and aaahed over the knife (and I’m pretty sure he missed the quick blood letting I performed on myself) and headed out. I retired to the kitchen to bandage myself** and start slicing things that were not attached to me and my nerve endings.

*Like my dad always says, a sharp knife is a safe knife. That was the cleanest cut I’ve ever incurred in the kitchen. It closed itself almost instantly and healed up in two short days.

**Yes, I keep bandages in the kitchen. What can I say? I’m a klutz.

The way I see it, a good knife cuts stuff, but a great knife slices, chops and cuts in a way that takes the effort out of the task and looks good while doing it.  This is a great knife. Whether you’re slicing onions and mushrooms or chopping kale stems or slicing paper thin strips of pork for tocino (future post teaser!), it makes the job easy.

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Seared Mushrooms and a Mushroom Melt

Seared Mushrooms and a Mushroom Melt

Seared mushrooms are accompanied by a bit of onion and white wine then tossed with scallions for added vibrancy before being combined with a variety of cheeses and turned into the ultimate grilled cheese sandwich.

Make these exceptional seared mushrooms even if you're not a grilled cheese lover. You can keep them handy to put on steaks or burgers or wrapped in omelets or topping scrambled eggs or just plain on a fork.

Adapted from Kevin at Closet Cooking

Ingredients

    For the Seared Mushrooms:
  • 1 1/2 pounds assorted mushrooms, sliced (baby portabellas, chanterelles, button mushrooms, etc...)
  • 1 tablespoon (or more) neutral oil such as canola, peanut, vegetable, etc...
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/2 of a small yellow onion, diced very small
  • 1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
  • splash of white wine or stock
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 3 green onions, green part only, thinly sliced
    • For the Mushroom Melt:
  • 3/4 cup of seared mushrooms
  • 1/2 cup grated assorted nice melting cheeses (I used a mix of Kerrygold Blarney Castle, fontina and extra sharp Cheddar)
  • 2 slices hearty bread like rye or pumpernickel
  • 1 tablespoon butter

Instructions

To Make the Seared Mushrooms:

Place a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium high heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil and heat through until shimmery. Add the mushrooms (you can divide into batches to avoid overcrowding the pan if necessary) and a pinch of salt and use a spoon to distribute the mushrooms evenly in the pan. After you do that, don't stir the mushrooms for at least 1 minute (unless they start to smell or sound like they're cooking too quickly.) The goal is to develop a nicely browned surface on the mushrooms.

If you have to cook the mushrooms in batches, just move the previously cooked batch to the perimeter of the pan and add a little more oil before putting in the next batch of mushrooms with a pinch of salt.

When the mushrooms are flecked with brown, toss in the onion and garlic, stir and cook just until fragrant (about 1 minute or less), then add the white wine or stock to the hot pan and scrape up any brown bits that are stuck to the pan. Add the butter and cook, stirring, just until melted. Remove from the heat, taste for salt, then add pepper and any additional salt to taste.

Eat hot or store leftover mushrooms in individual portion sizes in the freezer for up to a month.

To Make the Mushroom Melt:

Toss the seared mushrooms and grated cheese together in a small bowl. Set aside.

Melt half of the butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet or griddle over medium heat. Place one piece of the bread on top of the melted butter, pile the mushroom cheese mixture on the bread, then place the remaining piece of bread on top. Let the sandwich cook and toast until the bottom piece of bread is golden brown. Lift the sandwich with a spatula and toss the remaining butter into the pan. Put your hand on top of the sandwich and carefully flip it over before lowering it to the pan (taking care not to burn your fingers!)

Toast for 1 minute, add a splash of water to the pan and cover for another minute to melt the cheese completely. Remove the lid and continue toasting the sandwich until the bottom is a deep golden brown. Transfer the finished sandwich to a cutting board to slice before plating and eating.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/12/21/seared-mushrooms-and-a-mushroom-melt/

 

Korin.com sent the knife to me to review, but all opinions about the knife are mine.

 

 

Filed Under: Comfort Food, Comfort Food, Component Foods, Product Reviews, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: ,

Black Olive Penguins

December 13, 2011 by 45 Comments

Okay, everyone. Say it with me in 3…2..1…

Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!! Come on. Isn’t that the most clever things you’ve ever seen? At a recent Christmas craft event put on by our homeschool group, one rockstar mom (hi, Tonya!) eschewed the usual brownies, cookies, fudge and mints (not that there’s anything wrong with those and may I please have another serving?) and brought adorable cream cheese filled black olive penguins. I’m telling you, every single person who went past them either squealed or poked someone in the ribs to make them look at the cutest things in the world.

Even more fabulous is that these ingenious little penguins take three ingredients for the basic model and four for the fancified versions (with scarves). Sadly, my usual wait-til-the-line-wears-itself-out-then-get-food approach failed me at the craft fair and by the time I got to the buffet, the penguins had all been pilfered. I cornered Tonya and told her she wasn’t leaving until she gave me the recipe*.

*Okay. That’s not entirely true. I asked nicely, but sometimes I like to make myself sound tough. It’s to counteract the cutesy poo penguins and the overuse of superlative synonyms for adorable. I can’t lose my street cred. Word? Yes? No? Okay. No. I have no street cred. Back to the penguins.

I slept that night with visions of cream cheese filled Black Olive Penguins dancing in my head. Those penguins had to get made and get made fast. I made them for the very special event that was Tuesday happening. Seriously? I didn’t need to wait for anything. I wanted to eat them and I figured, correctly, that my Viking horde could polish off a plate of these in no time.

So. tasty.

We preferred them with green onion scarves. That little nip of onion with the cream cheese and olive really pushed the flavour into another realm. A snowy realm. Filled with penguins!

P.S. Stash these in lunch and bento boxes, take to school events, grown up parties, or just throw together a tray for the world’s most fun afternoon snack. They hold well in the refrigerator for a day or two if covered tightly, so what are you waiting for?

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Black Olive Penguins

Black Olive Penguins

These super cute cream cheese filled black olive penguins are the hit of every party, but they make a seriously adorable late afternoon snack, too!

Ingredients

  • 1 can (about 16) colossal pitted black olives, drained
  • 16 (give or take) small pitted black olives, drained
  • about 4 ounces (1/2 of a standard 8 oz brick) of Cream Cheese- I like the 1/3 less fat Neufchatel here as it is softer and easier to stuff into the olives
  • 16 thin slices (give or take) of the fat end of a peeled carrot
  • 8 green onions, long green section only
  • 16 (give or take) toothpicks

Instructions

Cut a small triangular wedge out of each carrot slice.

Use a skewer or toothpick to push the narrow end of a carrot triangle through the wide hole of each small olive until it pokes out the narrow pitted hole.

Make a lengthwise slice halfway into each colossal olive. Gently hold the olive open and push as much cream cheese into the opening as you can, filling the olive. Use your fingers or a paper towel to tidy up along the edges of the opening.

Place a filled olive, large hole side down, on a carrot round, lining up the white of the cream cheese with the wedge cut from the carrot round. Use a toothpick pushed down through the center to hold the "chest" of the penguin to the "feet".

Push one head, "beak" side lined up with the "chest" and "feet" down onto the toothpicks.

Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/12/13/black-olive-penguins/

P.P.S. See that knife in the photo with the carrots? That is my new best friend (a Togiharu Gyotou knife) sent to me courtesy of Korin.com There will be a review in the next couple days, but suffice it to say that everyone should go by one of them for themselves or as a Christmas present. Right now. The penguin says so.

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, kid food, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Shabby Apple Giveaway Winner Announced!

December 12, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Congratulations, Kathleen S!

“Kathleen S

Did it — and boy am I ever glad I did! Of course, after making these potatoes this afternoon I may need to srder a size up! Thanks for both.”

Please contact me with your mailing address and contact information. You are the winner of this gorgeous plum coloured Shabby Apple dress.

Image used courtesy of Shabby Apple

 

Oh, Kathleen, I think we’ll have to be twinsies. I must own this dress. Thankfully, the 10% off coupon code that the kind folks at Shabby Apple created for Foodie With Family readers is good through January 7th, 2012. If you’d like to take advantage of the discount for this dress of any of their other gorgeous retro dresses or aprons or accessories, just go to Shabby Apple and enter foodiewithfamily10off in the appropriate field when checking out. Voila! 10% off!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Giveaways!

Cheddar and Chorizo Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes and a Giveaway!

December 8, 2011 by 56 Comments

The giveaway info is below the recipe, so make like a scuba diver and keep on going down!

Some of the best food is just not pretty. It’s gooey, gloppy, brown, and not even a little bit elegant. It looks like it’s not worth the paper plate it rode in on. But when the scent wafts to your nose, when you take that first bite and the inelegance of the whole thing gives way to an explosion of flavour, it suddenly transcends the need to be another pretty dish. You plate it how you want. Heck. Sometimes you just skip a plate if the spirit moves you. It doesn’t matter as long as you get the food to your mouth. How can this happen? Isn’t there the axiom about eating with your eyes before you eat with your mouth?  I’m working on a hunch about the phenomenon, though.

I call it my Frog in a Box theory.

Everyone remembers the Looney Tunes cartoon where the down-on-his-luck, unemployed construction worker finds a frog with the extraordinary ability to sing like an angel, right? The man hoards his new found, potentially lucrative critter in an attempt to make money off of it. He goes to a talent agent’s office, talks a big game, plops the frog on the desk where he promptly delivers a resounding, “Brrrrrrrrrrrr-ibbit!” The man and his frog are bounced out on their respective ears* and once the door is slammed shut, the frog sings an aria in the hallway. Oh the frustration! Darned frog!

*Do frogs have ears? I should know this. I feel a homeschooling unit coming on…

After a few more rejections the man takes matters into his own hands and rents a theater where he resorts to trickery to bring in a crowd. (Free beer and chicken, anyone?) He gets a full house, raises the curtain, shoves the frog on stage and once more, “Brrrrrrrrr-ibbit!” The crowd exits, stage left and the frog consoles the man by singing a few popular ditties.

So here’s the deal. This dish is my Frog in a Box. No matter which light, which plating, which lens and which toppings I used, these things just plain looked ugly. And every time I took a bite, I heard a glorious choir in my head. What was a gal to do?  I don’t give up as easily as our  poor Looney Tunes construction worker. I’m posting it anyway, ugly photos and all. That blasted frog was able to escape detection but these potatoes? They’re here for everyone else to try and enjoy. Make them. Try them yourself! Stick it to the frog!

The crispy potato shell holds a creamy Cheddar, chorizo and green onion studded mashed potato filling. Eat them for breakfast, second breakfast, lunch, snack or dinner. Plate them or hold them in your hot little hands while you eat them. Have them with a proper dinner or slap a platter of them on the coffee table for the ultimate hockey or football viewing snacks. You can even make these up to the point where you’d bake them and stash them in the freezer (minus their cap of shreddy-cheddy) until you want to serve them. Top with cheese as directed and bake. How neat is that?

 

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Cheddar and Chorizo Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes and a Giveaway!

Cheddar and Chorizo Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes and a Giveaway!

Crispy shelled, creamy Cheddar and chorizo and green onion stuffed twice baked potatoes are a great comfort food addition to your winter meal and snack repertoire. I've eaten these at breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack time and can promise they're one of the best game day snacks you could ever serve. All that and they're easy, too!

Ingredients

  • 6 leftover baked potatoes
  • 4 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1/2 cup room temperature milk or half and half
  • 4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
  • 2 1/2 cups cooked and crumbled Mexican style chorizo , divided
  • 6 green onions, cleaned and thinly sliced
    • Optional for serving:
  • sour cream
  • candied jalapenos
  • additional sliced green onions
  • salsa

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Halve each potato lengthwise. (Before halving each potato, pay attention to how it naturally lays on the cutting board so that after halving, they don't tip when placed skin side down on the pan.) Scoop most of the potato innards into a mixing bowl, just leaving enough in place to maintain the shape of the potato skin. (This means leaving about 1/4" of potato guts in place.)

Smash the potato guts together with the softened butter, milk or half and half, and 2 1/2 cups of the cheese in the mixing bowl until the potatoes are relatively smooth. Stir in the chorizo and green onions until evenly distributed.

Divide the potato filling evenly among the potato shells, spreading the filling to the edges of the potato skins. Sprinkle the remaining cheese evenly over the tops of the stuffed potatoes.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbling and the filling is hot all the way through. Serve as is or topped with sour cream, candied jalapenos , salsa, and sliced green onions.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/12/08/cheddar-and-chorizo-stuffed-twice-baked-potatoes-and-a-giveaway/

 

The Giveaway!

I have a seriously fun giveaway that has me pretty excited. Okay, I lie. I’m stupidly excited about this. In the years I’ve been blogging here, you’ve gotten to know a lot about me; my book/movie/Doctor Who/music/bacon obsessions. It’s all true, but one of the biggest obsessions in my life is…

Wait for it…

Clothing. I love clothing. I love clothes far more than any woman who has carried and birthed five children has any right to be. I love all sorts of dresses- retro dresses, vintage dresses, modern, sleek, voluminous, old-fashioned, cute, sultry… Anything I can afford to buy and I can carry off I adore. I’ve long admired the selection over at Shabby Apple (you HAVE seen their website, right?) and I know from personal experience how their dresses are the kind of women’s dresses that make every woman feel like an old-fashioned movie star- glamourous, sexy, and oh-so-put-together.  Unlike my pauvre potato recipe, their designs look good in any light, any situation, and any lens that catches them.

When Shabby Apple contacted me and offered to give away a dress from a list of dresses to one of my readers I jumped on it. I might’ve even squealed a little bit. I’m telling you honestly their dresses are squeal worthy. In other words, I said yes.  Do you want to see the dress I picked to give away? Hmm? Yes? Are you excited yet? I know I’m not the only dress nut out there. Feast your eyes on this!

 

Image used courtesy of Shabby Apple

Isn’t it gorgeous? Shabby Apple describes the dress as being “Plum-colored folds of soft jersey fabric dip from the shoulders into a ruched waist that runs from bust to hip on this flouncy, ballet-inspired dress.  Perfect for traveling, this dress sports a V-neck and fully lined skirt for extra coverage, so whether at the office or on the road, you’ll feel comfortable and beautiful.” So, so true.

Anyway, let’s get down to brass tacks. To enter for a change to win this incredible dress (think holiday parties and beyond! Dress it up with a jacket and some tall boots for the office or church or a dinner date!) just head over to Shabby Apple’s Facebook Page and like them. (That’s easy enough with to-die-for dresses like that!) Then scoot back over here and leave me a comment saying you did it.

And the nice folks over at Shabby Apple don’t want anyone to feel left out. They’ve issued a coupon code just for Foodie with Family readers: foodiewithfamily10off . This code is good through January 7th, 2012, so get a-shopping. Then you can stand around in your splendid Shabby Apple dress eating one of my Frog in a Box Chorizo and Cheddar Stuffed Potatoes looking magnificent. Maybe the potatoes will even look prettier next to that dress!

The contest fine print: Shabby Apple is providing a dress for the giveaway, but all opinions about their company and their wares are my own.  With apologies to my global friends, this contest is open to US residents only. Winner will be selected using random.org on December 15th, 2011.

 

 

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Breakfast Foods, Comfort Food, Freezer Pleaser, Getting Creative With Leftovers, Giveaways!, kid food, Main Dish, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Snacks, Stretching your dollars Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Champorado (Chocolate Rice Porridge)

November 30, 2011 by 14 Comments

 

Filipino food is some of my favourite  in all of the Earth. It’s not just because it’s great (although it is), but because for most of my youth, it represented the sum total of what was exotic in my life. Growing up in some of the most rural parts of Michigan it was nothing to run across scads of Swedish, Finnish, Norwegian and other assorted Nordic names. I betcha I could pick up a Finnish phone book and rattle off the names like I was born there. My Grandpa was a pastor on a nearby reservation, so Native American names were run of the mill. Polish immigrants? Yep… here and there. Italians? On every street (as few and far between as the streets were.)

Then there was my mom’s friend, Tecla. She was from the Philippines and was most emphatically not Nordic. She was always dressed to the nines while most of us were in parkas and mukluks.  She sat down on the edge of the piano bench when my mom played and belted out the latest love songs that were on the radio. Her nails were always long and filed and dramatic and brightly coloured. She was most definitely not the same as everyone else around us and she was exciting. Most thrilling of all was her food. It was so different from everything else I had ever eaten -adobo chicken, lumpia, tocino, pancit- it was bursting with flavour and boy was it good. Even better, she shared it her mouthwatering dishes with us every chance she got. To this day, my last supper meal* includes lumpia.

*Are you familiar with the “last supper” game? It’s simple, but it tells you a lot about people (and vice versa.) All you do is consider what, of all you’ve ever eaten or would like to eat, you would request for your last meal if you could choose anything. So how about it? What would you have for your last meal?

While the wonderful world of Filipino food obviously rocks the savoury, I would be remiss if I didn’t wax rhapsodic about one of the easiest and most head-explodingly delicious dishes they have to offer: Champorado.

Champorado is, in short, chocolate rice porridge (or rice pudding, if you will.) It’s rich. It’s filling. It’s creamy. (Although you don’t add milk  unless you want to while serving. That creamy texture comes courtesy of magical rice.) It’s chocolatey. It’s breakfast. It’s snack (I dare you to serve this to your kids and then try find a more popular after school snack. Go on. I dare you.) You don’t have to know how to do anything more complicated than measure, boil, stir, scoop and eat. FFFTW (Filipino Food For The Win!)

As if all this wasn’t already enough, consider this. You can whip up a huge pot of Champorado and keep it in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator. Scoop out enough for a serving and gobble it up cold, or reheat it with a splash of evaporated milk (as it is usually served), half and half or plain old milk.

Every single time I make Champorado, I get the song “Desperado” stuck in my head, but I walk around the kitchen singing it this way at the top of my lungs: “Chaaaaaaaam-poh-rah-doh! Why don’t you come to your senses…” I don’t recall Tecla ever doing this particular tune, she was more of a “Wind Beneath My Wings” kind of lady, but somehow, I think she would approve.

Thank you, Tecla, wherever you are…

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Champorado (Chocolate Rice Porridge)

Rating: 51

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Champorado (Chocolate Rice Porridge)

On cold winter days, there's nothing like a breakfast, late afternoon or bed time snack of Champorado: a rich, chocolate laden rice porridge that comes to us courtesy of the Philippines. Eat it hot, warm, room temperature or cold, plain or the way most folks do with a good splash or two of evaporated milk, plain milk or half and half. This is comfort food extraordinaire!

Adapted from Tecla and Jun-Blog

Ingredients

  • 1 cup sticky or sushi rice, uncooked
  • 5 1/4 cups water
  • 6 ounces finely chopped bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate (or semi-sweet chocolate chips. In other words, half a bag of most brands.)
  • 2 tablespoons to 1/3 cup of raw sugar (or granulated white sugar), according to preference
  • pinch of salt
    • Optional for serving:
  • evaporated milk, half and half, or plain milk to pour over the porridge

Instructions

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, stir together the rice and water and the pinch of salt and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally to keep the rice from sticking to the bottom. When it reaches the boil, immediately drop the heat to low and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking, or until the rice is soft and swollen.

Turn off the heat, stir in the chopped chocolate (or chocolate chips) and sugar, cover the pan, and let stand undisturbed for 5 minutes. When 5 minutes are up, remove the lid and stir vigorously until everything is evenly coloured and very chocolatey looking. Serve hot, warm or cold with a good splash or two of milk on top.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/11/30/champorado-chocolate-rice-porridge/

Are you on the hunt for more great Filipino recipes? Try two of my most trusted resources (great blogs, incredible recipes, beautiful photography):

Jun-Blog In his words, he’s a Philippine born, San Francisco based professional food and cookbook photographer, so you know his stuff is going to be gorgeous, but the recipes. Oh, his recipes. They’re mouthwatering and always great. I can’t recommend him highly enough!

Burnt Lumpia I’ve been a loyal reader of Marvin since long before I ever put fingers to keyboard here on Foodie With Family. He is always witty, always fun and his food is to die for. Plus, his pen name is Burnt Lumpia, for crying out loud. Lumpia. As in my death row meal. How could I not love him?

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Breakfast Foods, Comfort Food, Comfort Food, Filipino Food, kid food, Rebecca, Recipes, Stretching your dollars, Vegetarian

Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Layer Cake with Ganache

November 28, 2011 by 11 Comments

It’s birthday season around here, as I may have already mentioned once (or twice)… With the exception of the one child who requested shepherd’s pie for his birthday dessert until I informed him he could have it for dinner AND have a proper cake or pie, everyone has asked for something spectacular. Last week was no different, but the pressure was amped up a bit. My eldest and youngest were born on the same day, eight years apart. Birthday feasts and desserts take on a special level of crazy when two people are egging each other on in the brainstorming process.

Mercifully, the eldest wanted fried chicken and the youngest wanted fried chicken nuggets. (Bless you child. Your nuggets were boneless, skinless chicken thighs dredged in the same coating as your elder brother’s fried chicken. And it was good.) The youngest deigned to allow the eldest to have a fruit salad even though, as he has repeatedly informed us he does not “wike fwoot.” And then came the negotiations on the cake.

Cake, for crying out loud.

How complicated does it need to be*? The answer to that, evidently, is extremely complicated. Eldest wanted a vanilla cake with strawberry layers. Youngest, again, informed us he doesn’t “wike fwoot”. Youngest wanted chocolate. Eldest didn’t want plain chocolate. Eldest suggested combining chocolate and mint. Youngest now decided he didn’t “wike mint”.  Eldest suggested I make two cakes. Youngest agreed. And then one of them, can’t quite remember which since my head was spinning on its axis, said, “Why don’t you just make a huge chocolate and vanilla swirl cake? Then you can put ganache** over the whole thing!”

*This is a question I should be past asking considering one year they wanted a realistically shaped/decorated globe cake, another year someone wanted a 3-D Tardis, and so on and so forth. But I am an optimist. Some day someone will ask me for a sheet cake with nothing on it. Then I’ll probably cry.

**Because my children do say things like, “Put ganache over the whole thing!” I suppose this means I’ve spoiled them.

Phew. It’s the lead-up to the cake request that stresses me out the most. Swirls I can do. Swirls I have done. But my previous swirly cakes were a bit more on the dry side (intentionally) since they were to be layered with ice cream. This cake was to be a moist, stand-alone (if you count being smothered with ganache as standing alone) birthday beauty. Enter butter… and quite a bit of it.

 

Let’s talk about ganache just for a moment. If you’re not familiar with it I’ll break it down for you. Ganache is equal parts heavy cream and chocolate, melted together and gently stirred until it magically turns into a thick, glossy, chocolate spread. And oh, what a chocolate spread. When refrigerated, it is thick enough to roll into balls  to nibble,  drop into hot milk for hot chocolate, or coat with cocoa powder or chopped nuts or more melted chocolate for homemade truffles, or, or, or… to frost or sandwich between cookies, or CAKES.

So, to recap, we have a big layer cake made with lots of butter covered with dark chocolate and heavy cream. Very diet friendly. But diets have no place in a home with five sons. This is my justification and I’m sticking with it. Would anyone else like to join me here on Delusional Island? We have cake. And ganache.

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Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Layer Cake

Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Layer Cake

Birthdays (or any occasions, for that matter) get a delicious boost when you serve this moist Chocolate Vanilla Swirl Layer Cake frosted with dark chocolate ganache.

Ingredients

    For the Cake:
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons, separated
  • 1 1/2 cups cake flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 sticks butter, softened to room temperature
  • 1 3/4 cups fine or superfine sugar
  • 4 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups whole milk, warmed to room temperature plus 4 tablespoons, separated
  • 2 level tablespoons dark cocoa powder
    • For the ganache:
  • 16 ounces (2 cups) heavy cream
  • 16 ounces chopped dark chocolate or bittersweet chocolate
    • Optional for garnish:
  • Melted white chocolate for drizzling

Instructions

To Bake the Cake:

Preheat oven to 325°F.

Butter and flour two 8- or 9-inch round cake pans.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy and pale in colour.

Beat the eggs in one at a time, fully incorporating each egg and scraping down the bowl between each addition. Beat in the vanilla.

Add about 1/3 of the milk, beat to incorporate, then 1/3 of the flour, again beating to incorporate.

Repeat this process, scraping down the bowl as necessary, until all of the milk and flour are added and mixed in evenly.

Divide the batter equally between two mixing bowls. In one, add 2 tablespoons of milk and the additional 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Whisk until smooth.

In the other bowl, whisk in the cocoa powder and remaining 2 tablespoons of milk until smooth.

To create the swirls, scoop 1/3 of a cup of the white batter into the center of each prepared pan. Follow this with 1/3 of a cup of the chocolate batter directly into the center of the white batter in each pan. Repeat the process -white batter, chocolate batter, white batter, chocolate batter- each time, pouring the batter directly into the center of the contrasting batter. This will form concentric circles (and when baked, the stripey swirls) of contrasting colour. Repeat until you run out of batter.

Bake, rotating midway through, for about 35 minutes or until the cake tests done.

Let the cakes cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes before turning out onto the racks to finish cooling.

To Make the Ganache:

Heat heavy cream in a heavy-bottomed saucepan just until it is about to boil. Pour immediately over the chopped chocolate in a heat-proof bowl and let stand undisturbed for 5 minutes. Using a wire whisk, gently stir in one direction until the ganache becomes glossy and evenly dark. Let stand at room temperature, stirring occasionally, until thick.

To Assemble and Frost the Cake:

Level out your completely, 100% cooled cakes and cut each into two even layers.

Place one layer on a cake plate then add a layer of ganache, spreading to the edges and evening out as you go. Repeat with the remaining layers.

Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining ganache. If you have uneven areas, you can put the cake into the refrigerator for 10 minutes or so, then use ganache to fill in the spaces.

If desired, drizzle melted white chocolate over the top of the cake to garnish.

Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour before slicing.

Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/11/28/chocolate-vanilla-swirl-layer-cake-with-ganache/

 

Happy Birthday to my sweet bookends.

My Chocolate and my Vanilla…

Am I the luckiest mom in the world or what?

Filed Under: Cakes, Desserts, Holiday Food, Instructional, kid food, Kitchen Techniques and Hints, Party Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , ,

Fromage Fort (Cheese Spread)

November 23, 2011 by 6 Comments

We interrupt these Thanksgiving preparations to bring you a Public Service Announcement. This is only an announcement. This post will take less than five minutes to read and less than five minutes to prepare. You may then return to cooking for your feast:

Did you get invited to a last minute shindig? Do you need just-one-more-thing to round out your holiday feasts? Do you love cheese?

That last question is the most important really, because this is a recipe for cheese lovers. Serious cheese lovers only. Because this is how you use up the odds-and-ends in your cheese collection. You do have a cheese collection, right? A nub of Romano, a hunk of Cheddar, a couple tablespoons of crumbled bleu, some Asiago pieces rattling around in a bag or a drawer or a container in your refrigerator…

Well, the French ride to the rescue here, with the classic Fromage Fort. Fromage fort translates as “strong cheese” and believe you me, there’s nothing wussy about it. It is CHEESE writ large. It is a cheese spread from the country that many people find synonymous with cheese.

So what is Fromage Fort like? (Look away, my French friends. You may be horrified at this description.) It’s kind of like good ole American pimiento cheese, but minus the pimientos and plus wine. How could you possibly go wrong?*

*Let me tell you how you could go wrong. You could use Velveeta or American cheese. If you do that? You’re totally on your own. Blech. Don’t misunderstand. There’s a time and a place for both of those, but neither of those belong here. Emphatically. Amen.

The only specialty item you’ll need is a food processor. That’s kind of non-negotiable here for the best texture. Other than that, the world is your Fromage Fort oyster. You can make this five minutes before running out the door or a week in advance. The longer it sits, the stronger it gets!

Serve with crackers or crusty bread or veggie platters or on baked potatoes or pretzels or… or… or… You get the idea!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Important Cheese Eating advice: When making Fromage Fort, try to steer away from using too much from the bleu cheese or really salty cheese families (Asiago, Romano, Parmesano). Let those be “accent” notes. Use a milder cheese (Cheddar, Jack, etc…) as the melody!

 

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Fromage Fort (Cheese Spread)

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Fromage Fort (Cheese Spread)

Fromage Fort -French for strong cheese- is a classic recipe that uses up odds and ends in your cheese collection. This slightly garlicky cheese spread touched with a flavour of white wine makes a wonderful appetizer or addition to any cheese course when served with crackers, crusty bread or crudites.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound of assorted cheeses (Cheddar, Asiago, Romano, Parmesan, Monterey Jack, Colby, Swiss, etc...)
  • 1/4 cup of dry white wine (or more, depending on desired texture)
  • 1/2 a large clove of garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
  • Cracked black pepper to taste
  • Optional: Chopped herbs for garnish

Instructions

Grate cheeses and add to the bowl of a work processor fitted with a metal blade. Add remaining ingredients and fix lid onto the food processor. Process until you have a spreadable consistency. Check the texture. If you want it runnier, add a splash of white wine and process again. Scrape into a bowl or a ramekin. Cover tightly and refrigerate until ready to serve, up to a week.

If desired, garnish with chopped herbs.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2011/11/23/fromage-fort-cheese-spread/

 

Filed Under: Accessible Ethnic, Appetizers & Snacks, Comfort Food, Comfort Food, Getting Creative With Leftovers, Holiday Food, Rebecca, Recipes, Snacks, Stretching your dollars, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
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