The Making of Flan

I never had a bite of flan. The image of the silky dessert in my cookbook is quite breathtaking. These photographers sure are good. Somehow they managed to capture tranquility, in a piece of partially eaten flan. These images stir up emotions and leave strong impressions. I am left with an urge to be more, to be better, regardless of my cooking skills. I want to make flan!

One problem that brings the whole flan operation to a stand still is the lack of an oven. How can a house not have an oven? I ask my mother this every time I have the urge to bake. When my parents remodeled the kitchen a while back they opted not to have an oven. They don't use it, except to store pots and pans. Hmm? you may be wondering how do they bake cookies and other sweet delights?! Oh that's easy! They just don't. Vietnamese cuisine does not have as many baked goods as the western side of the world. My family in particular does not make many sweet desserts let alone anything that involves an oven. Yea, it sucks for an eager cooking connoisseur, such as myself.

Well, maybe I will try this at my sister's house (she has an oven, but like mom does not use it except for storing pots and pans) or maybe Dan's place (a white boy- very familiar with the oven). But my mother insists that I don't need an oven to make flan. No oven?!? The recipe says oven (and coconut milk and a few other ingredients)! My mother born and raised in Southern Vietnam said that she use to make flan all the time back in the day. She never used any oven, just a steamer. I was very skeptical, but showed my respect by demanding her to prove me wrong. So she's in the kitchen mixing this and that - totally abadoned the recipe I showed her. Where's the coconut milk? I thought that was one of the main ingredients. Why is there coffee? Condensed milk?!?

I can't keep up. I was put in charge of making the caramel syrup. I burned it - just a little! heh?

Making of the custard. Mom is adding condensed milk. ugh.

Put your custard cups in a steamer - not an oven. Pour a thin layer of the caramel syrup in your custard cups. In our case the caramel coffee syrup. Then pour 3/4 of the cup with the custard.

I don't know about you, but it looked mighty unappetizing on this end. I understand that it's been a while for my mom. She probably needs a few practice runs before she can nail it. But it was gross. It tasted like steamed egg custard.

Jazzy Night

Dan bought us tickets to Mark Turner playing at the Jazz Standard located at the Blue Smoke. My first taste of live jazz. I was soo excited.

On our way to the Blue Smoke, I was yapping about the wonderful Anthony Bourdain and how I really wanted to go to his restaurant, Les Halles. As I look up to check the street sign, I was overcomed by intense giddiness. I wave excitedly in the air and said "Dan look Les Halles! Les Halles!" I can't begin to explain how I excited I was. We had to eat there. The thought that I would be in the same place as Anthony was too much for me to handle. Dan humored me and we walked towards Les Halles. It was really lovely. I made Dan promise me to not eat anything at the Blue Smoke, so we could go to Les Halles after the show.

Well, I guess we couldn't resist. We got to Blue Smoke pretty early. The show which is located downstairs at the Jazz standard doesn't start letting people in until 6:30. We had an hour to kill and decided to share an appetizer to calm our roaring tummys. The place was nice. I love the over pillowed bench I was sitting on. The waitress greeted us and told us about a house special - braised beef short ribs in red wine. It wasn't even on the menu. I have to confess that I somewhat kinda dislike barbecue. Wrong place for me to eat. Something about that dark sweet thick sauce bothers me. After staring at the menu and going through all the possibilities we decided to go for the special and share it. It didn't matter to me, since it wasn't my thing.

I admit it was pretty good. If I ever had to eat anything remotely barbecue like, it would have to be this. I preferred the mash potatoes and greens the most. Dan practically drooled on himmself. He ate every gooey morsel of glistening fat that was on the plate.

*Note: The meat was very tender. My knife pierced through it like soft butter. The bones just simply slid off. A meat lover's dream.

It didn't look like we were going to Les Halles. Oh well, I thought. We would save it for another weekend. When we got downstairs to the Jazz Standard, we didn't think we needed any more food. We got a couple of drinks and tried not to think about all the yummy dishes people ordered around us. It took us about 35 min to realize that temptation is stronger than we can ever be. As a waiter passes by, we ask for a menu. We ended up ordering Chipotle chicken wings and a cheeseburger. We were both very dissapointed. What a waste of tummy space?! We should've of known better after years of professional eating.

At least the show was absolutely wonderful!!!~ I truly enjoyed.

Attempt #2 and #3 - apple zeppoles

I wanted to make my zeppoles again. It wasn't perfect last time, but was good enough to try again. I was suppose to use cake flour. I used all-purpose flour. So it was time to try again. I couldn't find cake flour, but learned that you can substitute it by adding 2 tablespoons of corn starch to one cup of all-purpose flour.

Attempt #2
Soo I bought my corn starch and was eager to show off my new skills to my skeptical boyfriend. (He really doubts my cooking skills.) I made my batter in his 3 day old mac n' cheese crusty pot. We washed it, of course! While cooking there was a faint, but noticeable mac n' cheese smell. It was pretty unappetizing. I had a feeling it was gonna turn out bad. But I was optimistic.

Well, let me tell you it was just disgusting. We actually ate 3 whole zeppoles. Each time hoping that it would get better. Sadly, it did not. Into the trash it went.

Attempt #3
Today is a new day. I decided - no corn starch. I would add some tapioca starch instead. It actually turned out pretty well. My zeppoles were round and crispy. The first time the batter was too liquidy and could not form a round ball. The tapioca really helped hold the shape. I put in about 1 1/2 tablespoon of tapioca starch.

Here's how my new apple zeppoles turned out:

Going Ethiopian

I'm like every other New Yorker who is reeled in by the not so typical. In fact, the more uncommon the better. This past weekend I was pleased to say I had my first taste of Ethiopian cuisine. My friend took me to a quaint little place on Mulberry St. near Soho called Ghenet, which means paradise. I was welcomed with an exotic yet very familiar aroma packed with spices that my untrained nose can't figure out. The walls were deep red and adorned with raw paintings capturing the essence of Ethiopian life. I was experiencing life from another world.

My friend and I decided to order a combo platter made for two. There were two types of meats chicken and beef. I don't remember the names. We also got to choose up to two vegetables each. We got lentil, mildly spicy bean, split peas and potato cabbage carrot thing. It's served with Injera, which is a pancake like bread that is not only food but utensil. No forks and knives here.

Injera is the folded triangles to the top of the massive plate. It also lines the plate of food.

Injera is the Ethiopian staple bread. It's definitely unique. It is a thin pancake like bread that is sour. Not very sour, but undeniably noticeable. Injera is taken and broken up into pieces so you can pick up globs of food.

The whole dining experience awoken taste buds I never knew I had. There were some things I liked and some I was not so fond of. I can't make up my mind about the bread. I liked the texture and resilience of injera, but I don't know about that tangyness. Overall it was a memorable experience. I wasn't completely floored by the food, but that could be due to the tummy ache I had. I would love to give it another try under better tummy conditions.

Here's our plate. We still had alot left over. It was a bit much for two people, especially one with a tummy ache.

~ New Cookbook ~

I love my new Williams-Sonoma cookbook - Flavoring Southeast Asia. It's nice and big, not to mention a bit on the heavy side. As you flip the pages you can't help but notice how thick and glossy the pages are. I'm not sure if I want to take it to the kitchen. I might end up splattering fish sauce all over it. Anyways, the book is filled with wonderful recipes from Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Laos, and Myanmar (Burma). It also has gorgeous life-size pictures that accompany these recipes. I'm not an amazing cook. I'm not even sure if I can really say that I can cook. I just want to learn about new dishes. How do I know if I'm making Fish Head Curry correctly, if I have never seen it before in my life. Therefore, I conclude that cookbooks without pictures are useless.

Sooo. the first dish I tried making was Bo Luc Lac. I made it with my boyfriend, Dan, who I must thank for this wonderful cookbook. Thanks babe! The Vietnamese dish, Bo Luc Lac translated means shaking beef. Really, no joke! The beef is cut into cubes and when cooking you give the pan handle a quick shake to flip the meat over. The cubes move like a pair of dice, thus the name shaking beef!

Here's what you need to make this sumptuous dish (recipe according to the cookbook):

3/4 lb beef sirloin, cut into 1-inch cubes

6 cloves garlic, chopped (about 2 tablespoon)

1 tablespoon of fish sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

First we need to make the garlic sauce. In a bowl, mix together ingredients, but only use 3 cloves of garlic. The rest is used when you cook.

*TIP: Prior to marinating, put the meat in soda - 7 up or Sprite. (got this from a Vietnamese restaurant that makes excellent Bo Luc Lac) We left it in for 15 min. I think it needs to be left in for about 30 min. We didn't want to wait.

Next - Marinate for 30 min. Drain out the soda and mix beef cubes in the garlic sauce.

Now preheat you frying pan over high heat. Add 2 tablespoon of oil and add the remaining garlic and stir-fry till lightly browned.

Serve with salad and/or rice. We didn't have watercress to make the salad that was to accompany the Bo Luc Lac, so we just had it with white rice.

It was surprisingly really really good. (The above picture does not do it justice!) We are not very good at cooking. In fact, cooking is very stressful for us. We always bicker. This time was no different, yet the results were amazing. It was a tad on the salty side, but with rice it's perfect!

Thinking back on how we made it really puts a smile on my face. I love the sizzling sound that it made when we dropped the cubes on the hot pan. The smell left our place smelling like a restaurant. You don't need acquired taste to enjoy this dish.

ApPle Zeppoles!!

After an intense workout at the gym I sat down to Giada's show Everyday Italian. Guess what she was making!? APPLE ZEPPOLES!!!!! mmm mmm! I was salivating at the thought of biting into those crisp yet soft pillows of heaven. Temptation got the best of me, so I took a stroll to my local Stop and Shop and bought all the necessary ingredients.

1 large granny smith apple (1 1/2 cups peeled and grated)
1/4 cup of sugar
1 stick of butter
1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of water

1 cup of flour

4 eggs

2 tablespoons of confectioner's sugar (this is really up to you)

Olive oil

*I followed Giada's recipe. Here's a link http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_97065,00.html
I did not make the cinammon whipped cream. I did just work out!

Step 1: Peel and grate your apple. Approximately 1 1/2 cups.

Step 2: In a medium saucepan - Combine butter, salt, sugar and water over medium heat.
Step 3: Take pan off heat and stif in flour.
Step 4: Return to heat and stir continuously until mixture forms a ball (3-5 min)
(No pictures for these steps because I was too caught up in cooking)

Step 5: Transfer to medium bowl. Using an electric handmixer on low speed - add the four eggs BUT beat one egg at a time. Beat until smooth.


Step 6: Add the grated apple and stir.

Step 7: Get you oil ready! To fry, Giada used a small ice cream scooper and carefully dropped a rounded tablespoon of the dough into the sizzling oil. (I didn't have an ice cream scooper, so no perfectly round shaped zeppoles here!)


Step 8: Remember to turn it a couple of times. It should be puffed and golden. (About 4 min)







**(My zeppoles were not all so round. These were the roundest I could get them. Most looked like deflated teardrops.)



Final Step: Sift some confectioner's sugar on the zeppoles. Are you salivating?



The zeppoles turned out pretty well. I have to admit I was little bit dissapointed. It was not as crispy as I would like. Maybe it's because I couldn't make decent round balls or maybe their was too much wetness from the apples. I did realize my apple grating was all wrong. It was too long and stringy. It needed to be short and stubby. That made it harder to make nice round balls


***Oh well! I will try again soon. I still applaud myself for making delicious - not so crispy or round - apple zeppoles.

Sunday Night

I am sitting on my couch all by myself watching Sliding Doors (chick flick) with a nice bowl of Che Bap. What is this Che Bap I am speaking of? It's my favorite Vietnamese dessert of course!! Well to me it's just homemade comfort food. Right now I'm a bit down and this really hits the spot.

Here's how it turned out. I made it myself!

I like to eat it chilled. Sometimes I even put an ice cube in it. But you can eat it warm too. It's creamy and on the thick side. It's not too sweet unless you want it to be. I don't think Asian desserts are very sweet. I love how the tapioca pearls are swimming in my mouth as I chew on the bits of corn. It's fabulous! But people with texture issues might not find this so appealing. I on the other hand love having different textures in my food.

Pho? Anyone?

YUM!!!! Me and mom went to eat some Viet today. I love going out to eat. We both ordered Pho. I had the Pho Thai Sach. Thai means raw meat. Sach is tripe (cow stomach). It's not as scary as it sounds. If you ever had Pho, then you know it's always served with thinly cut slices of beef. This is layed on top of the noodle. Then very hot beef broth is poured over this. When it is brought to the table, you gotta quickly dip your meat into the soup, so that it can cook. It's very tasty and filling. It's great during these cold winter months.

Never had Pho? or Viet? Here's what to expect:

You are welcomed with some nice hot tea. It helps loosen up phlegm (sorry to be gross- this is how my parents encouraged me to drink tea).

After a gander at the menu, you finally decide to pick the traditional and hearty Vietnamese dish - Pho. A seperate plate of garnishes come (as seen below) that is very necessary in eating Pho. It contains bean sprouts, thai basil and lemon wedges. You can add according to your preference.

Pho is finally here! Did you know Pho is the fastest thing you can order in a Viet restaurant? They always have the soup brewing hot all day, from morning to closing time. All they gotta do is put some noodle and whatever meat you'd like in a bowl and pour the steamy savory soup over it. mmm mmm goood! (Note the raw meat in the soup - submerge in soup!)

Add your bean sprouts, basil leaves and don't forget to squirt some lemon on!~

This is what my bowl looks like when I'm done. I was too caught up in taking pics that I forgot to eat the last strands of noodle. Darn!

Hope you enjoyed my lunch as much as I did!! =)

The Evolution of FOoD

To the early hunter and gatherers food was a means of survival. No need to worry about marinating, getting the best cut or even cooking the meat. Nope. You catch your meat and you eat it. Ahh. The simplicity of it all. Now we're surrounded by complicated cooking techniques that can be more dangerous than your daily barefooted hunt. I'm sure you've heard of houses being burned down due to the infamous fry daddy.

Today food is very accesible, maybe too accesible to us Americans. We don't hunt, unless you include driving to your local chinese take out. If you haven't already figured it out, food is not just for survival these days. It's much more than that. Here's why:

1. We use food to instigate social gatherings. Extended families and long lost friends come together over large feast. Eating is a joyous event. Why shouldn't it be? It's fullfilling one of our most primal urges.


2. We use food as entertainment. The flying knives in hibachi steak houses don't make the food taste better. But it sure is cool! And let's not get started on how a whole channel is dedicated to food. Food has never been so popular.


3. We use food to create a social heirarchy. I know it's hard to believe, but it's true. Eating souffles and dishes with truffle shavings are meant for the upperclass.

**Don't fret! You too can be a savvy diner. You don't have to eat like Andrew Zimmerman or Anthony Bourdain to be hip. You can go out for Indian or Viet. I hear that Vietnamese cuisine is totally IN. I picked it up in some magazine while browsing the supermarket. It's o.k if it doesn't have a slab of cheese over it. It can still taste just as good.