help wanted!

hello friends!

in less than 1 month, i will be off to europe! i will be doing a 3 week study abroad in ireland and then i will go on to visit berlin and amsterdam. of course i am very excited to see the lands and to eat great food. unfortunately i have never been to these places before and i have no idea where the good foods lie. i am sure i will find some just on my own but it would be nice to have some food destinations to have beforehand. so if you know any restaurants that serve good food for not too many euros please let me know! similarly if anyone has any suggestions on what local cuisines i should try, that would also be great! thank you for being awesome!

sweet mung bean soup

sweet mung bean soup


my grandfather, that is my mother's father, built a large house for the hong family along the river in dan sui in taiwan sometime in the late 60's or early 70's. it was tradition for our whole family to spend our summers here and i did for a large part of my teenytiny person-hood. it was hot, it was humid, there were large bugs, swimming, ghost stories and the little rivalries that went on between the cousins. we also had a great cook that made huge meals 3 times a day, large enough to feed about 20+ people. 2 of my favorites was a dish called luo ba bung (a stewed beef/pork dish) and lu dou tang (forgive me if my pinyin is totally off) or a sweet mung bean dessert soup. i am anticipating making this a lot in the coming months and made up a batch for the heatwave about to sweep through chicago this weekend. it is not too sweet (unless you want it to be), light, refreshing and requires all of 4 ingredients, one of which is free (well i don't pay a water bill so its free for me). it is similar to adzuki or red bean. this is also made with lotus seeds but i like mine plain. you can also add tapioca balls.


1/2 C mung beans
1/4 C sugar
1/2 t vanilla
water

1. rinse the mung beans and soak in water overnight
2. pour the beans and the water it had been soaking in into a pot. let simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
3. pour in the sugar and mix until dissolved. let boil another 20 minutes. if the water is getting low, just add more.
4. stir in the vanilla.

serve it warm or let cool and eat with some ice cubes.

this makes about 4 smallish servings, or 2 plentiful servings.

zabaglione, thats amore

loose berry tart with puff pastry and zabaglione

what in the darn heck is zabaglione?? i will tell you right now! it is a warm italian custard usually made with marsala wine. this recipe makes a sweet, rich and tangy zabaglione and instead of marsala wine i used a sweet zinfandel. puff pastry makes for a nice base for the zabaglione and fresh berries (though next time i think i will try it with a proper short crust pastry). the custard is a bit on the tart side so use berries that are more sweet and mellow if you don't like it so sour. but i like it sour and sexy. (antioxidants are dang sexy!!)

1 sheet frozen puff pastry dough, thawed a bit
4 egg yolks
5 T powdered sugar
3 T white wine
zest of half a lime
juice of 2 limes
fresh berries of your choice

1. using a medium to large cookie cutter, cut out 6 circles of the puff pastry. bake as indicated on package until golden brown. let cool on cookie rack.
2. combine the egg yolks, powdered sugar, wine, lime zest and juice in a small heat proof bowl.
3. prepare a water bath by filling a pot with 1/2 inch of water and bringing to a simmer. place heat proof bowl over the water and whisk continuously until the mixture takes on a light and airy texture. remove from heat and continue whisking until cooled.
4. split each puff pastry piece into two pieces (top and bottom). pour a spoonfool of the zabaglione on the bottom half of the pastry. layer with berries and then another spoonfull of the zabaglione. lay the top half of the puff pastry on top.

sprinkle some powdered sugar on top for beauty!

banana muffins

cinnamon & brown sugar streuseled muffins

recently i baked up a batch of banana muffins for talented knitter, nice neighbor, foodie friend and all around awesome ladyfriend liz! i asked if she cared to write up a review of it for bunny pie site. she said: "yes!!" and knocked that sexy stuff out of the ballpark! here it is!


Debbie Carlos is the Asian Martha Stewart
(editor's note: lol)

A neighbor of mine and I often lament that there is a lack of good bakeries in Chicago. Note, not a lack of bakeries but a lack of good bakeries. Our standards are not that high, we define a good bakery as 1) offers a range of traditional baked goods 2) has affordable prices and 3) doesn’t close at 7pm or have odd business hours which no sane person could ever remember or get their ass to in time. Honestly, that’s our criteria. We’re not asking for a lot!

Because of this, those of us in Chicago with a sweet tooth have to get a little creative. This translates into pulling out the Kitchen Aid mixer, dusting off the baking manuals, and taking matters into our own hands. Lucky for me, Debbie Carlos did just that and delivered a little care package full of homemade banana muffins.

Everything about these muffins screams heaven. The only problem was that they didn’t last very long in my house! The “Good Girl” part of my brain kept telling myself that I should be savoring them, eating them bite by bite, and making them last throughout the week. Unfortunately, the “Homer Simpson” part of my brain won out and I managed to inhale multiple muffins simultaneously in a matter of seconds. Note: this is not recommended as it may lead to muffin crumbs attaching to your shirt (and then you unknowingly walk around with said crumbs attached to shirt, boo).

About the muffins: they were the perfect ratio of butter to flour, which resulted in a nice fluffy texture substantial enough to keep me full. A pinch of cinnamon sugar crumbled on the tops added just a smattering of sweetness. Also, I have been meaning to ask Debbie how she prepared the bananas (mashed? Sliced? Blended?) into the mixture because the strong banana flavor was really showcased in this little treat. Yes, it is definitely a banana muffin as the name says so those afraid of banana-flavored foods should stay away (yay more for me!).

Ever since Debbie shared these, I’ve been dreaming about making my own. They would be perfect with the Sunday New York Times and a cup of Ceylon tea. Or as a mid-day snack during a particularly grueling day at work. Or as a midnight snack when you can’t fall asleep. Really, I think any time might just be perfect for these!

-eam


1 1/2 C flour
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
3 bananas - MASHED!!!
3/4 C sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 C melted butter

for the streusel:

1/3 C brown sugar
2 T flour
1/8 t cinnamon
1 T butter

1.preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease muffin pan if you are not using muffin liners.
2. mix together 1 1/2 C flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. in another bowl, mix together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. make sure to slowly temper the egg/banana/sugar mixture before pouring all the melted butter into the bowl so the egg does not cook.
3. pour banana mixture into dry ingredients and mix until just moistened. spoon batter into muffin cups.
4. in another bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 T flour and cinnamon. cut in the butter until it resembles a coarse meal. sprinkle amply on top of the muffin batter.
5. bake muffins from 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

check out liz's wonderful knitted creations on her knitting blog!

hort couture

this year for the first time i decided to give container gardening a go. i have never grown anything other than maybe a pot of basil and a couple of house plants but early spring i began harvesting seeds from the fruits and vegetables i bought at the market and started some things from seed. i think i got a little obsessive as my boyfriend remarked that i am about one step away from wanting children.



here is a picture of my little back porch veggie patch. plants growing include: red peppers, strawberries, a red sunflower, lemons, avocado, basil, rosemary, parsley, zuchinni and tomatoes. its not much as i don't have that much back porch space (what you see there is pretty much it. the other half is the neighbor's side)and its not that pretty but i love it. i sit out there for extended amounts of time and just look at them - is that weird? anyway!





here are some strawberry blossoms and there are a couple more on the way! so exciting! yesterday i went to the printers row book fair going on all this weekend and picked up a few books including The Chef's Secret Cookbook by Louis Szathmary. there was a nice fresh strawberry tart recipe in there that caught my eye and of course i thought the cover would look very pleasing in my collection so i picked it up for about a dollar!



the printers row book fair has a surprisingly large amount of cookbooks. it was weird but awesome. also i got to see miss alpana singh talk! for those who don't know, she is america's youngest master sommelier and host of Check Please! on pbs.

well i hope everyone is having a beautiful weekend and i will keep you posted on my vegetable babies and of course, i've got some yummy recipes lined up.