Too Much Food » Dessert

National Bundt Day 2010 – Persimmon Coffee Cake Bundt!

Pinjing — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 05:58:19 +0000

Ever since seeing The Food Librarian’s epic 30-days-of-bundts posts from last year and this year, I was determined to bake a bundt this year in honor of National Bundt Day. Armed with a basketful of persimmons (our persimmon tree was especially abundant this year again), I decided to bake some form of a persimmon cake. Since my dad had lamenting that he misses eating the coffee cake at Starbucks, I turned David Lebovitz’s Persimmon Bread recipe into a coffee cake by adding a streusel topping.

As this was my first time making a coffee cake, I didn’t realize that the streusel topping literally “melts” into the batter; what seemed like an adequate amount of streusel pre-bake came out kind of measly-looking in the end. However, my parents enjoy their sweets lighter and less on the sweet side, so this was perfect for them. If you enjoy a thicker streusel, I’d definitely suggest doubling up on the streusel portion of the recipe. Also, my parents aren’t the hugest fans of spices like cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg (these spices aren’t present in Taiwanese desserts at all), so I omitted them. If you wish to amp up the autumnal flavor of this cake, feel free to add those in to your taste.

I’m very happy with the way the recipe turned out, despite my multiple changes to the recipe (if you know me, you know I can’t leave well enough alone when it comes to recipe-following). The cake is flavorful, tender and moist, and has some great texture due to the addition of chopped walnuts and raisins. Perfect paired with a steaming mug of coffee for your breakfast or with a nice cup of tea in the afternoon.

Persimmon Coffee Cake Bundt
Recipe adapted from James Beard’s Persimmon Bread, via David Lebovitz
Makes 1 10″ bundt cake

What you’ll need:
For the cake:

1 1/2 cups + 1/4 C all purpose flour (210 g)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup – 1/2 cup granulated sugar, to taste (I used 75g, which is about 1/4 C plus 2 tablespoons)
2 eggs
1 tablespoon flavorless oil (I used vegetable oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup persimmon puree, from extremely ripe hachiya or fuyu persimmons (this took about 4 small fuyu persimmons for me) (8 fluid oz.)
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1 cup raisins
6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled (3 oz., or 84g)
1/2 cup honey (I used raw honey, which is semi-solid at room temperature, see special instructions) (160g)

For the streusel:

1/4 cup almond meal (30g)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (30g)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar (50g)
4 tablespoons butter, cold (2 oz., or 56g)

The procedure:
Make the streusel: In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond meal, all-purpose flour, granulated sugar and salt. Cut the butter into the dry mixture (or use your hands to rub the butter in) until the dough looks crumbly and sticks together when you compress a bit between your fingers. Try not to overwork the dough as the heat from your hands will melt the butter. Just aim for a crumb consistency. Place in the the refrigerator until ready for use.

Make the cake:
Preheat oven to 350F with a rack in the center rack. Line a tube pan or bundt pan with parchment paper and coat with oil or butter, then dust with flour. Set aside while you prepare the cake batter.

If you haven’t already, take your 6 tablespoons of butter and melt it over low heat (do not let the butter brown or boil, we just want to get it to a liquid state).

Special instructions if you’re using raw honey: Add the raw honey to the liquid butter, allowing it to become liquid from the butter’s residual heat. Yes, I know this renders it “unraw”, but we’re baking a cake here, for goodness sake!

Set aside the butter mixture to cool while you work on the rest of the cake.

In a large bowl, sift together the all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda, and granulated sugar.

In a medium bowl, mix together the 2 eggs, persimmon puree, oil, vanilla and almond extracts, and honey (if you haven’t already added it to the butter mixture). While stirring the liquid ingredients, slowly pour in the butter, incorporating it well.

Make a well in the center of the dry mixture and pour in the liquid mixture. Stir with a spatula until there are no visible lumps of flour. Add the chopped walnuts and raisins, and stir a couple of more times to evenly distribute them.

Pour the batter into the cake pan and smooth it out, trying to get an even distribution. The batter is a relatively thick one, due to the viscosity of the persimmon puree and honey. Take the streusel mixture and scatter it over the top of the batter. Place the cake into the oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool on a wire rack, then slice and enjoy! If there are leftovers, wrap them well in plastic wrap to prevent the cake from drying out. If the cake is well-wrapped, it will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days. Past that, I’d keep it in the refrigerator or freezer for future snackage.

Enjoy!

Deep Fried Delicacies I: Kuih Keria (Malaysian Sweet Potato Donuts)

Pinjing — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 05:34:06 +0000

The perils of taking photos at night when you’re standing in the kitchen with your contacts out: Blurry shots.

Way back in July, my mom gifted me with a cute mini-deep fryer for my birthday. I was simultaneously excited and apprehensive at the same time; would I succumb to deep-frying anything and everything that I had? By the end of the night, I had already drawn up grandiose plans to deep fry oreos, twinkies, mushrooms, onions (ala Chicken Charlie) but I never followed through, putting health concerns first.

With the temperature in Southern California finally dipping down to the low 60′s this week (yes, my friends, I consider low 60′s cold. I know I’m a wimp), I finally decided to bust out the deep fryer in an attempt to put on another layer of fat in anticipation of winter. I had some beautiful Japanese sweet potatoes so I decided on making kuih keria, a simple but lovely Malaysian street food.

Kuih Keria is just a combination of flour and steamed sweet potato flesh, shaped into rings and deep fried. Traditionally coated in a sugar glaze that’s left to crystallize (allowing for a great crunch when you bite into one), I opted to just coat them in a layer of granulated sugar. If you’re interested in a great and informative blog post about kuih keria, check out Eating Asia’s article on a father-daughter team in Melaka, Malaysia that turns out beautifully caramelized/glazed kuih keria.

These are delicately sweet, unlike their American counterparts. This donut relies on the sweet potato’s natural sweetness, so try to pick the best sweet potatoes you can for this recipe. These are lovely fresh out of the fryer, with the granulated sugar coating providing a sweet crunch to the fluffy dough. I imagine these would be great in the morning paired with a fresh cup of coffee.

This recipe makes a small batch, as I was testing my fryer. Feel free to double the recipe and make more (you’ll probably want to).

Kuih Keria
Recipe adapted from Seasaltwithfood
Makes 5 mini donuts.

What you’ll need:

125g sweet potato, steamed and mashed
25g all-purpose flour
8 g glutinuous rice flour (a.k.a. sweet rice flour or mochiko)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
pinch of salt
additional spices to taste (cinnamon would go nicely, I think)
oil for deep frying
granulated sugar to coat

The procedure:

Place oil into deep fryer according to the manufacturer’s instructions and preheat to 375F. If you don’t have a deep-fryer, heat up enough oil in a thick-walled pot (at least a depth of 3 inches, I’d say) to a temperature of 375F. As in all situations where there’s a big vat of hot oil involved, make sure you keep an eye on it!

In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, glutinuous rice flour, baking powder, 1 teaspoon granulated sugar and salt. Add additional spices, if using. Add the mashed sweet potato flesh and knead until you get a moist, soft dough. If the dough is too wet, add flour one teaspoon at a time until you get a workable dough. If your dough is too dry, add some lukewarm water; trust your instincts as different sweet potatoes vary in water content. Try not to over-knead though, as overcompacting and overworking the dough will result in tough donuts.

Divide the dough into 5 portions, about 35g each. Use your finger and thumb to poke a hole in the middle, making a cute little donut. You are free to roll out the dough and punch them out if you have donut cutters as well.

Place some granulated sugar in a shallow bowl and have it ready. Place a rack with a paper towel underneath it for the donuts that come out of the fryer. Having tongs ready right about now is good too.

Test your oil to see if it’s hot enough; a great test I’ve always used is to stick a wooden chopstick into the oil. If bubbles form immediately and quickly around the chopstick, the oil is ready. If the bubbles are slow to form, it’s definitely not hot enough. Fry the donuts, two to three at a time, making sure not to crowd the pot. Adding them all at once will make the temperature of the oil drop too much, resulting in oily donuts. Fry until golden brown and cooked all the way through, about 6-7 minutes. Using tongs or a slotted spoon, drain the donuts and immediately drop them into the shallow sugar bowl, turning them to coat. Place on the rack to cool briefly and continue to fry the rest of the donuts.

As with all fried goods, enjoy these donuts as soon as possible as their deliciousness is inversely proportional to the time out of the fryer.

Enjoy!

Mochi Brownie Two-Bites

Pinjing — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 06:05:56 +0000

By now, y’all know that I dislike anything mochi or mochi-like (I know it’s uncharacteristically un-Taiwanese of me to not like mochi), but I think I’ve finally found a mochi recipe that I actually enjoy! I present to you:

Mochi Brownie Two-Bites!

Granted, you put chocolate in anything and I’ll eat it, but that’s beside the point. If you really think about it, mochiko (also known as mochi flour, sweet rice flour, glutinous rice flour) is really suited for brownie making. I don’t know about you, but my idea of a perfect brownie is one that has a thin, crispy shell that yields to a fudgy, chewy interior. Brownies made with regular wheat-based flours run the gamut from being fudgy to cakey, depending on how long you bake them. Two minutes too long in the oven and your perfect fudgy brownie has become a dry, stiff piece of “cake.” However, you don’t really run into that problem if you replace regular flour with mochiko; mochiko, when baked, becomes chewy, with your baked good having a crispy interior and a chewy middle. Sounds like the perfect brownie to me. And best of all, if you’re gluten-intolerant, this recipe is gluten-free!

This recipe comes from The Cinnamon Quill, a beautiful food blog that I discovered recently. If you enjoyed this recipe, please hop on over and comment there as well.

Mochi Brownie Two-Bites
Recipe for Dark Chocolate Infused Mochi Cake via The Cinnamon Quill
Makes 12 mini cupcake-sized brownie two-bites.

What you’ll need:

2 oz. (1/2 stick, or 4 Tablespoons) of butter, melted and cooled slightly
1/2 cup sugar, plus additional for dusting the pan
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 C dutch-processed cocoa powder
2.2 oz. mochiko (sweet rice, or glutinous flour)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 oz. (or 6 tablespoons) lite coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

The procedure:

Spray a 12-cup mini cupcake pan with vegetable oil or rub with butter, then dust lightly with granulated sugar. Preheat oven to 350F.

Combine melted butter and sugar, whisk until pale and completely incorporated. Add the lightly beaten egg and mix again until completely incorporated. In a separate bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, mochiko, baking powder, making sure no lumps remain. Add this dry mixture to the butter/sugar/egg mixture and mix lightly with a spatula until there are no visible pockets of dry mix. Pour the coconut milk and vanilla over the top and fold into the batter until the batter isn’t lumpy. Divide evenly amongst the cupcake tins. Bake for 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the brownies rest 5 minutes in the tin before turning them out onto a rack to cool completely before eating.

Will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days and can be refrigerated. However, with most foods made with mochiko, refrigeration renders them much denser and slightly more chewy. If this isn’t to your liking, you can microwave them gently and they should soften back up.

Note: This recipe is welcome to add-is like chocolate chips, chopped nuts, and dried fruit. I wanted to experience pure mochi-ness so I opted out.

The obligatory innards shot. Mmm.

Enjoy!

Ice Cream in Winter: Peppermint Cookies and Cream Ice Cream

Pinjing — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 02:47:03 +0000

Busy busy busy! Sister is home and family and friends are visiting, half of the family is sick with the flu and cough (first it was my mom and me during Thanksgiving, now it’s my Dad and my sister’s turn), so between the coughs and the visits I’ve hardly had time to cook or bake. I have been browsing all the fabulous holiday creations my fellow bloggers have been putting out and I want to try to make them all!

However, I did manage to have enough time to put this delicious ice cream together. I had bought a pack of MimicCreme vegan cream substitute and was itching to try it out and figured an ice cream was the best way to put it to the test. I was so happy after the freezing process that my ice cream was scoopable and creamy straight from the freezer (though putting in 3 tablespoons of vodka couldn’t hurt, I guess). For me, that is vegan ice cream success. This recipe is a Philadelphia-style ice cream (which means it doesn’t use egg yolks), so it doesn’t require cooking and comes together really quickly if you have all your ingredients chilled at the time you’re ready to make the base. If you’re not lactose intolerant or vegan, feel free to substitute heavy cream for the MimicCreme in this recipe and for more lusciousness, you can convert it to a custard-based ice cream (you probably can omit the vodka if you do this), but keep in mind that would require you to cook the ice cream base first.

Peppermint Cookies and Ice Cream
Makes approximately 1 quart

What you’ll need:

2 cups unsweetened plain MimicCreme vegan cream substitute (or, 1 16oz. aseptic package)
50g sugar (or more, to taste. I prefer my ice creams on the less-sweet side)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 pinch of salt
3 tablespoons vodka
3 tablespoons corn syrup
6 peppermint oreo cookies (I used Trader Joe’s Candy Cane Joe-Joes, which are delicious by themselves), crushed

The procedure:

Using a blender, blend the MimicCreme, sugar, vanilla, extract, salt and vodka until smooth. Chill the base thoroughly, at least 4 hours or overnight, preferably.

Churn the ice cream base according to your ice cream maker manufacturer’s directions. During the last minute of churning, add the crushed peppermint oreo cookies.

Pour into container and freeze thoroughly. Scoop and enjoy.

Whatever you celebrate, I hope you have a relaxing holiday season and a happy new year!

Pinjing Eats Fast Food: Mister Donut

Pinjing — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 01:19:11 +0000

Sigh. Let’s talk, Mister Donut. I want to like you, I really do, but every time I’ve tried one of your cutesy bubbly donuts, I am inevitably disappointed. There are two camps of donut lovers, those who like the fluffy raised donuts and those who like cake donuts. You see, I’m a cake donut girl, through and through; I don’t like my donuts to be light and fluffy. Donuts should be sugary, have a tight and moist crumb, be heavy and hit my stomach like a greasy brick. Give me an old fashioned buttermilk over a Krispy Kreme glazed anyday. If I wanted diet food, I would have ordered a salad.

But Mister Donut, your donuts are neither my beloved cake donuts nor are they the fluffy, yeasted donuts that others like. They’re a chewy, bread-like “QQ” alien hybrid that was tailored to suit the Taiwanese palate. If there is food texture that I dislike more than anything, it’s that “QQ”-ness that my fellow Taiwanese love so much (I’m such an anomaly; someone must have forgotten the “must love anything ‘QQ’ gene when they were putting me together . . .).

But somehow, I keep buying your donuts. Why? Is it because they’re so damn cute? Note to self: stop buying things because they’re cute. Because usually it’s all a deception.

Let me recount a recent trip to Mister Donut (my fourth). See this box of mini donuts? Cute, right? Straight out of the box, they are perfectly round and the frosting is evenly applied; they’re so perfect they look fake!

I hate to disappoint but these weren’t great; too chewy and the frosting’s flavor was quite artificial and waxy. If I wanted bread, I would have bought bread. But I’m not saying they’re bad per se, they just don’t suit my personal taste. If you just happen to like things like mochi, gummies, and anything with that “QQ” texture, then you might like Mr. Donut. But not me.

Mister Donut
Purchased at 一中街 location
台中市北區三民路三段110之1號
04-2225-4883
Locations all over Asia (Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Philippines, China, Thailand).

Edit: Apparently they do have “cake” donuts, according to their website. Should I go back and try them? Argh! Why do I keep wanting to go back despite being disappointed every single time?

Yearning For Autumn: A Simple Apple Galette

Pinjing — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:47:44 +0000

Oh, autumn, how I love thee. Despite having the time of my life and eating wonderfully here in Taiwan, I totally missed that glorious transition from summer into fall. Apparently in Taiwan, it’s a hot, humid summer all year round (ok, I have been informed by my relatives that it does get cold sometimes during December . . . maybe). Maybe it’s a sign that I’ve spent enough time here, but my heart is aching for that chilly, smoky breeze that signals the changing of the seasons back home. My sister and I used to always say that we could “smell” autumn coming for this very reason . . .

So, as of late, I’ve had conflicting emotions; I love it here in Taiwan and would love to spend another month here (there’s still so many things I want to do) but something in my heart keeps telling me to rush back home, to stand on more familiar ground, to be reunited with my dad and my sister, to cook in my own kitchen again and to eagerly anticipate what are easily my three favorite holidays of the entire year: Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Readers, please humor me as I live autumn vicariously through this simple apple tart that I baked two autumns ago; to me, this galette is the epitome of everything autumn: delicately spiced apples, comforting buttery pastry, and a return to baking.

Simple Apple Galette
Makes 1 9″ tart

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Simplest Apple Tart

What you’ll need:

For the dough:

1 cup (120 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (3 oz., or 84 g) unsalted butter, frozen, cut into 1/2″ pieces
3 1/2 tablespoons chilled water

For the filling:

2 pounds apples (I used one Fuji, one Braeburn), peeled, cored and sliced (save the peels and cores)
3 tablespoons sugar

For the glaze:

1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar

The procedure:

Make the dough first: sift together the flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the frozen butter cubes with your preferred method of choice; I used a pastry blender, then my fingertips (though a food processor or two knives would work just as well). Make sure that you do this rather quickly, you want to keep the butter as cold as possible to insure a light, flaky pastry dough. No need to blitz the heck out of the butter; just cut it in until the biggest pieces are about the size of large peas.

Add the chilled water one tablespoon at a time, stirring with your other hand, just until the dough just holds together (you might not need all the water, depending on your flour and the humidity of your kitchen). Dump the dough out on a mat and pat into a circle about 1.5″ inches thick. Double-wrap it in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes (or up to 2 days).

After the chilling period, take the dough out and let it sit on the counter for 10 minutes; this allows the dough to soften slightly so that when you roll it out, it doesn’t break into a million pieces on you (trust me this has happened to me and it’s not fun nor pretty). Roll out the dough on a lightly floured mat into a 14″ circle, about 1/8″ thick. Using a pastry brush, dust off the excess flour. Carefully transfer the dough to a sheet of parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

Preheat the oven to 400 F (205 C).

To fill the tart, overlap the sliced apples on top of the dough in a ring 2 inches from the edge and continue towards the center. To complete the tart, fold over the edges of the dough. It doesn’t have to look perfect, the beauty of a galette lies in its rusticity.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar over the dough edge and 2 tablespoons of sugar over the apples. Use more or less sugar to your preference.

Place the baking sheet in the center of the oven and bake the galette for 45 minutes, or until the apples are soft and have slightly browned edges. Try to rotate the tart every 15 minutes to ensure even browning of the crust.

While the tart is baking, you can work on the glaze; place the reserved peels and cores in a large saucepan with the sugar. Pour enough water into the saucepan just so it barely covers the peels and sugar and simmer for 25 minutes. Strain the apple-infused syrup through cheesecloth and set aside. Your kitchen will smell amazing at this point.

When the tart is done baking, remove from the oven and slide it (parchment and all) off the baking sheet and onto a cooling rack. Let it cool for at least 20 minutes before brushing glaze over the tart.

Slice and serve immediately, alone or alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you’re feeling decadent.

Not only is this fall-inspired tart delicious, it’s super easy to make; make it for your next party or gathering and everyone will be in awe of your baking prowess.

Mid-Autumn Festival: Taiwanese Mooncake Survey

Pinjing — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 01:28:16 +0000

We’re in the midst of Mid-Autumn Festival (otherwise known as 中秋節 or Autumn Moon Festival) here in Taiwan; besides Lunar New Year (which occurs between the end of February and the beginning of March of every year), Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the biggest and most important holidays here in Taiwan. It’s a time where families have reunions, celebrate the harvest by eating mooncakes and gazing at the moon, and make offerings of food, fruit and flowers to deceased ancestors. There’s many different stories about the origin of the holiday, but I’ll leave that to others to explain.

Mid-Autumn Festival occurs on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar (October 3rd this year, unusually late). I am fortunate enough to be here in Taiwan this year to celebrate it with my extended family, something that I’ve never gotten to do before. Moreover, I’m all the more excited because I get to witness firsthand how the Taiwanese celebrate the holiday; growing up in the US, opportunities to experience elements of my culture are few and far between. So my dear readers, you can imagine how important this Mid-Autumn Festival is to me this year. My only regret is that my dad and my little sister won’t be here to celebrate it with us as my dad wasn’t able to take time off from work and my sister has started her last year at university. So, Dad and 妹, if you’re reading this, 中秋節快樂 and I miss you!

People here usually celebrate by holding family get-togethers, having barbeques outdoors (while basking in the moonlight) and gifting mooncakes to family and friends. In the weeks leading up to Mid-Autumn Festival, all bakeries in Taiwan push out and market their mooncakes aggressively; the trend in the past few years has been to move away from tradition and towards more innovative mooncakes, such as savory mooncakes (I’ve seen pesto and walnut mooncakes), ice-cream mooncakes (Haagen-Daz sells a package of six) to ones that include more Western flavors (chocolate, earl grey tea, rosewater flavored mooncakes). While I appreciate innovation and change, I find that I still enjoy the traditional mooncakes the best.

An example of a typical Taiwanese mooncake that incorporates both sweet and savory fillings (mung-bean paste with pork and mushrooms)

An inescapable consequence of all the mooncaking is that you will inevitably be gifted with numerous boxes of mooncakes by family and friends; it seems as though every time we meet up with someone, we leave with yet another box of cakes (I think at one time we had 6 boxes of mooncakes sitting in our fridge, keep in mind each box contains at least 6 mooncakes, making that at least 36 cakes for 4 people in our household . . . and typically mooncakes do not contain any preservatives; these are time-sensitive materials, people!). So as of late, mooncakes comprise a large portion of my diet. Keep in mind that these are calorie-dense foods (a 100g portion contains approximately 400-500 calories. I guess you could take it along with you on a run as a Taiwanese-style energy bar . . .)

Not that I’m complaining of course; mooncakes aren’t despised and passed around like fruitcakes during Christmas are; people scarf them without nary a thought to diet and coronary health. But I’m getting side-tracked; let’s talk about mooncakes, yeah?

I’ve decided to do a little survey of all the mooncakes I’ve sampled here; I apologize in advance for the poor quality of the photos, most of these were taken in the middle of the night in my bedroom (I tend to sneak these as a midnight snack . . .)

First up is a 蛋黃酥 (salted egg yolk mooncake with sweetened red bean paste). Like a cross between the heavier, square Cantonese mooncakes and the lighter Taiwanese mooncakes, this example features a flaky egg-washed crust that characterizes many Taiwanese pastries, but a filling of super-smooth sweetened red bean (azuki) paste.

The sweetness of the red bean paste is tempered by the salty cured egg yolk. As a kid, I hated any pastry with egg yolk, but now I love them. The interplay between the salty and sweet flavors is what makes these mooncakes so delicious.

My uncle (who is a devout Buddhist vegan) sent us these vegan mooncakes; these are made with a shortbread-like cookie crust, with a filling of sweetened bean paste, assorted nuts and sesame seeds, as well as a bit of curried chopped mushrooms.

It seems strange to mix both savory and sweet flavors together in a pastry, but this is commonplace in Taiwan (you’ll find that many of the foods here incorporate both elements of sweet and savory together, it’s a “traditional” quality that is prized by the Taiwanese).

Here’s an example of a super-traditional 綠豆椪 mooncake; these were purchased at Yu Jan Shun (裕珍馨), a famous bakery located in 大甲 (Dajia). These feature a tender, flaky pastry skin that is only achieved by making a croissant-like laminated dough. However, while croissants use butter as a fat source, the fat used in this pastry skin is typically made from lard (if not vegetarian) or shortening (if vegetarian). The ones made with lard are more fragrant as it imparts a nice “porky” essence to the cake. This one didn’t contain any meat, but these mooncakes traditionally include a bit of chopped pork and mushrooms in addition to the sweetened mung-bean paste filling (again, here we see the inclusion of both sweet and savory). You’ll see an example of this later . . .

I especially enjoyed this as the mung-bean filling was super smooth, moist but not oily, having a “sandy” but not gritty texture, giving it a wondrous, silky mouthfeel. It’s hard to describe the qualities that made this mooncake so delicious but I assure you I literally was smiling the entire time I was eating this . . . These were exceptionally made, to say the least.

This mooncake (白豆沙小月餅) was from yet another well-known pastry house, 老雪花齋 (how to translate this? Anyone?), this time located in nearby 豐原 (Fengyuan). This one is similar to the one above except that it features a sweet white-bean filling. Again, beautifully made and smiles all around.

Finally, here’s an example of the traditional savory-sweet mooncake; this one comes from yet another famous pastry shop located locally here in Taichung. Apparently this old pastry shop’s cakes are so popular that people need to queue up at the store to purchase them . . . However, these were quite disappointing; the pastry shell, while flaky, was poorly made. It was a bit too dry (maybe they were skimping on the lard?), therefore making it devoid of that “tenderness” that allows well-made pastry skins to envelop their fillings. Moreover, the bean-paste filling was too sweet and oily, the pork filling was char-siu-like (sweetened meat with sweet-mung bean filling?) All of this added up to a mooncake that didn’t properly balance the savory and sweet. My mom and I took a few bites of this purportedly “famous” mooncake and decided we couldn’t finish it, it was just too disappointing.

I don’t like to leave on a bad note; however, we will inevitably sample more mooncakes in the next few days, so I will try to post some reviews on those as well! I hope you enjoyed learning about Taiwanese-style mooncakes and I wish you a very happy Mid-Autumn Festival!

Recreating an Old Favorite: Black Sesame Polvoron

Pinjing — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 09:07:46 +0000

One of my favorite Taiwanese confections are 杏仁餅 (almond chess cookies; or, as I like to call it, almond-flavored crack), a sort of marzipan-flavored candy with a crumbly, sandy, shortbread texture. They’re slightly sweet, buttery, with a salty backnote, and pair perfectly with a nice cup of hot tea. However, it’s hard to find these things in the U.S.; since the ones I see in Asian supermarkets usually are loaded with tons of additives and preservatives, I tend to shy away from buying them. Since it doesn’t really seem worth it to buy a $2000 plane ticket back to Taiwan to purchase freshly made 杏仁餅, I made up my mind to make them myself.

Recently I came across this recipe from Rose at Spots For Dates via tastespotting for Filipino polvoron. Looking at the recipe and the photos, I saw how similar the Filipino polvoron was to the Taiwanese 杏仁餅; perhaps this was the recipe I was looking for?

At the time of making these, I didn’t have any almonds, so instead of subbing them for the macadamia nuts in the original recipe, I used freshly toasted and ground black sesame seeds. You may substitute your favorite nut/seed in this versatile recipe; just make sure they’re finely ground (but ground so much they turn into nut butter) to facilitate the shaping of the polvoron and for the best texture and mouthfeel.

Black Sesame Polvoron
Makes about 20 pieces, depending on shaping method

What you’ll need:

1/3 C (80ml) black sesame seeds, lightly toasted until fragrant
1/2 C (4 oz., 125 g) butter
3/4 C (330 g) all-purpose flour
1/4 C (45 g) granulated sugar
1/4 C + 2 Tablespoons (90 ml) powdered milk
pinch of salt, to taste

The procedure:

If the black sesame seeds you have are raw, place them in a large skillet over low heat and toast until fragrant. Try not to leave the pan as it’s difficult to tell whether black sesame seeds are burnt. Go by smell; once the seeds smell fragrant and nutty, scrape the seeds into a bowl and set aside to let cool.

Grind the cooled sesame seeds into a fine powder. I use a suribachi that I bought at my local Japanese supermarket; these things are super easy to use and they do the job quite well (you get a mini-workout in the process too!). If you can’t find a suribachi near you, a spice grinder or a coffee grinder would work equally well.

In the meantime, prepare the roasted flour by heating your large skillet over medium-high heat; once hot, dump the flour in and spread it around the pan and turn the heat down to medium-low. Keep stirring the flour so that it doesn’t burn, roasting it until it turns a golden color and lets off a nutty fragrance. Keep your eyes on the flour so that it doesn’t burn (unless you want random bits of burnt flour in your final product, an unfortunate mistake I made the first time I tried making these).

Once the flour is done roasting, scrape the flour into a bowl and set aside; return the skillet to the heat. Dump in your butter and let it melt (but don’t let it brown, we just want it melted). Once the butter is melted, add the roasted flour, sugar, powdered milk and a pinch of salt and stir with the spatula so that all ingredients are well mixed; at this point, it should look a bit gritty or sandy. Continue stirring, allowing the milk powder to toast, once it smells fragrant, take the pan off the heat and pour the mixture into a bowl and let it cool slightly.

At this point, you can shape the polvoron in several ways; the easiest is just to press the mixture into a well-oiled, foil-lined baking pan and cut into the shape you desire after it’s been refrigerated. If you feel like putting more effort into it, you could try using a mold like I did here (I was trying to recreate the chess piece shape that I remember so fondly). Essentially the basic process for shaping is the same whether you use a pan or a mold, take the polvoron mixture, press into the mold, pop it out of the mold (if not using a baking pan), and place on a sheet lined with wax paper or foil and refrigerate. Once refrigerated, the polvoron’s shape will set. Just make sure you shape the polvoron while the mixture is still warm; once it’s cooled, it is much more difficult for the mixture to stick together.

Or, if you can’t wait for the polvoron to set, you could eat it hot, straight off the burner in all its sandy goodness. I’m sure if you sprinkled it on top of yogurt or ice cream, it’d be delicious (Note to self: try this next time I make polvoron . . .)

Enjoy!

A Fail and a Success: Cocoa (Chocolate) Olive Oil Crinkle Cookies

Pinjing — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:57:37 +0000

In my ongoing quest to clean out my pantry, I had planned on using up a bag of vegan carob chips that I had bought; however, I had forgotten exactly when I had bought them (first sign of bad things to come?). I had bookmarked this lovely chocolate olive oil crinkle cookie recipe at Nook & Pantry to try; I measured out all my wet and dry ingredients, and was preparing to melt down the carob chips and found that they would NOT FRIGGIN MELT.

I had originally been patient and put them in a makeshift double boiler and after a good 10 minutes all I had to show for my efforts was a chalky, brown-grey, caulk-like paste that didnâ€™t look appetizing at all. Undaunted, I decided to throw it into the microwave and heat it in short bursts, and even when my chips continued to dry out I threw in a tablespoon of coconut oil in a half-hearted attempt to save the chips.

In the end, the carob chips remained dry and pasty (they probably had dried out a long time ago), so I ended up reverting to an old kitchen tip that had you substitute 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of oil for every ounce of chocolate in a recipe. It was my first time trying this technique and in the end, the cookies came out just fine!

These cookies are chewy, rich in chocolate flavor and keep quite well; after a week in the fridge they’re still chewy and delicious. Not to mention heart-healthy with the use of olive oil instead of butter. Here’s the recipe as I made it:

Cocoa (Chocolate) Olive Oil Crinkle Cookies
Makes 1 dozen cookies.

What you’ll need:

30 g (6 Tablespoons) natural cocoa
60 ml (4 Tablespoons) extra virgin organic olive oil
90 g (1/2 cup) raw cane sugar
1/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
75g (1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons) whole-wheat pastry flour (can substitute all-purpose here)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
30 g (1/4 cup) confectioner’s sugar for decoration

The procedure:

Whisk together the cocoa, flour, baking powder, and salt.

Whisk together the olive oil, sugar and instant espresso powder until well combined. Beat the egg with the vanilla extract lightly and add it to the olive oil mixture.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Place dough in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours to firm up; this makes rolling the cookie dough into balls easier.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Prepare a cookie sheet by lining with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Place confectioner’s sugar in a shallow bowl.

Roll dough into balls (about a tablespoon amount per ball); then roll each ball in the confectioner’s sugar, making sure all parts of the ball are covered. Place dough on the cookie sheet at least 2 inches apart. Use hands to lightly press down on the balls to flatten slightly.

Bake for 8 – 10 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through. Cookies will crack open while baking and when done will still look a bit shiny in the cracks. Let the cookies sit on the sheet for 5 minutes to firm up slightly before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Cookies will keep at room temperature in a airtight container for a few days; after that, feel free to place in the fridge (if they last that long).

Sticky and Gooey: Honey Caramel Cashew Bars

Pinjing — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 20:53:02 +0000

If honey, caramel and nuts are your thang, look no further.

Modified from recipe for Pine Nut Honey Squares from Baking Obsession.

Feel free to substitute any other nut or seed for the cashews in this recipe.

Honey Caramel Cashew Bars
Makes one 8″ square pan, or 64 1″ squares.

What you’ll need:

your favorite shortbread dough for the base
1/3 cup honey (I used a clover honey)
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick, or 2 ounces) Earth Balance (if not vegan, can use unsalted butter), cut into 1″ chunks.
1 1/2 cups raw cashews

The procedure:
Preheat oven to 350 F and roast the cashews, stirring every 5 minutes until golden brown and fragrant. Make sure to keep an eye on them as they will go from done to inedible very quickly. Set aside to cool. If using cashews that are already roasted, skip this step.

Increase oven temperature to 375 F.

Roll out dough base to 1/4″ to 1/8″ thick, depending on your preference and press into the base of a lightly-oiled, parchment-lined 8″ square pan. Prick the bottom lightly with a fork to prevent the dough from puffing up, then place the pan in the freezer for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, partially bake the shortbread crust for 20 minutes while you prepare the topping.

Roughly chop the cashews. Combine the honey, brown sugar, and salt in a heavy saucepan, stir to combine and bring to a boil. Let it boil for 2 minutes without stirring, then add the butter and stir, allowing it to continue boiling for one more minute. It”s critical to keep an eye on your caramel to prevent it from burning.

Remove the caramel from the heat and quickly stir in the cashews, coating them with caramel. Pour the filling over the crust (which should still be hot from baking, as this allows the caramel layer to spread out easier), smooth out as best you can and pop it back into the oven. If it’s not completely smooth, don’t worry, as the baking will “liquefy” the caramel once again. It’ll all work out in the end.

Bake for 15 minutes (or until the filling is nicely caramelized and bubbling). Transfer to a cooling rack and wait until cool to slice (careful as it’s like molten lava fresh out of the oven.)

I cut mine into 1″ squares as these are quite rich. These bars are gooey, fragrant and buttery; enjoy them with a nice cup of coffee or tea for a nice snack.