Homemade Raw Apple Cider Vinegar

If health websites are to be believed, raw apple cider vinegar could remedy a lot of common ailments from asthma to colds and coughs and may help in losing weight. ACV is natural and cheap and there's really no harm in having it every day, I guess.

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Pan De Manteca (Cuban Bread)

I have a Cuban cookbook for more than a decade now but I seldom cook anything from it. I borrowed another Cuban cookbook, The Cuban Table by Ana Sofia Pelaez, and compared the Cuban bread recipes. The bread and the sandwich have become very popular among food bloggers whether they are made at home or bought from restaurants. I haven't tried their sandwich nor have I been to a Cuban restaurant.

My Cuban cookbook uses olive oil and The Cuban Table cookbook has pork lard for the traditional bread, Pan de Manteca and omits it altogether for the Pan de Agua. The bread is okay, not great but it's good enough for a Cuban sandwich. Well, any sandwich with double the porky goodness is more than a-okay in my book. I will make the bread again but with a little sourdough or a preferment for a better flavor and texture.

The recipe has plantain leaf strips that are inserted in a slit on top of the bread. I really don't know why it's needed. There isn't any explanation and the instruction is rather vague. I used it because I always have frozen banana leaves but you can leave it out entirely.

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Takoyaki

I've always wanted to make these Japanese street food I keep reading about - takoyaki - crispy fried octopus balls. When I saw a used cast iron takoyaki pan on eBay for a fraction of the cost to buy a Japanese-made one (no made in China for me...EVER!), I just had to buy it. It arrived rusted and dirty but without any scratches or cracks. It only took 3 seasonings (oiling and baking) for the pan to look brand new again. I tested the batter before proceeding with the recipe and it didn't stick at all. I love my new takoyaki pan!

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Cracker Jack Peanuts

Cracker Jack popcorn is not something I buy and eat regularly. The last time I had was probably 1000 years ago, in other words, once in a blue moon. The other day I saw on YouTube a group of adults open a large bag of Cracker Jack and started counting the number of peanuts because the package boasts NOW MORE PEANUTS!
I happen to have a candy cookbook called Southern Homemade Candy Collection by S. L. Watson [borrowed from Amazon Kindle lending program]. The first recipe that caught my eye is the Cracker Jack Peanuts.

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Deep Fried Apple Pie

I never was into McD's apple pie maybe because my tongue got burnt the first time I tried it many many moons ago and I remember it too sweet for my taste.

I didn't know they are now baked instead of deep fried. People who grew up eating the fried version miss the flavor and cooked their own. Serious Eats even bought the baked pies and deep fried them in their kitchen just the way the pies should be.

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Cherry Sultana Cake

I first tasted this moist delicious cake over 25 years ago. The cakes which were from Australia came in a sealed tin that you open with a can opener. I remember the cake was chock-full of moist cherries and golden raisins, not cloyingly sweet, and mildly spiked with liqueur. I don't think stores will ever sell this cake where I live; I can't even find them being sold online They are probably no longer sold in tins, I don't know. Thankfully, there are tons of recipes online and I was able to combine them to make my own moist Cherry Sultana Cake.

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Crunchy Candied Pumpkin and Spiced Pumpkin Coffee Ice Cream

I see pumpkins, pumpkins everywhere, and most of the food blogs I visit are still gaga over the Starbucks™ Pumpkin Spice Latte. I haven't tried their seasonal drink [I've never set foot in a Starbucks™ in over 20 years.] but I have made the yummy treat a few times before. The recipe is here.

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Pastillas De Leche

Pastillas de leche literally means milk bars, pills, or tablets. I'd go with the bars, as in chocolate bars They are teeny tiny, usually less than 1 inch long and ½ inch thick, made with fresh milk, sugar, a little butter, and powdered milk, and optional natural fruit flavoring such as purple yam (ube) and jackfruit. The original candies were made with carabao's (water buffalo) milk which has a higher fat content than cow's milk. I made it a few times before. This time I ended up making 3 batches because the first was a complete fail although I rescued it and made it into milk caramel spread. The second one is plain milk and I added Milo malt drink powder into the third batch.

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Kouign Amann

I was binge-watching The Great British Baking Show on Netflix. I love the show (except for the finale). The hosts are funny and entertaining and the baketestants sometimes are too.

One of the "technical" bakes was Kouign amann. None of the bakers knew or even heard of the Breton bread, much less how to pronounce it. I was surprised because I baked this delicious crunchy with caramelized sugar bread almost 8 years ago when I read about it on David Lebovitz's blog. I've never baked it into small muffin size though and don't remember it being flaky or with visible layers like croissants.

The recipe is Paul Hollywood's, one of the two judges on the show. BTW, most of the recipes are posted on PBS website. I like these too but I remember the Kouign amann made with David's recipe tasted better probably because it has more sugar than Paul's.

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Caramel Apple Butter And Apple Mint Jelly

Autumn is almost here, I can already smell it. It's time to make apple butter, jam, and jelly when a wide variety of apples are available in farmer's markets (or grocery stores that sell local produce). Caramel apple butter sounds really good when I heard about it. It really is and with a little sea salt it tastes fantastic. I added a few sprigs of fresh spearmint from my garden while cooking the jelly. I love its subtle flavor. So good.

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Snow Skin Mooncake

I have been trying for a few years now to find or make the toasted glutinous rice for snow skin mooncake without any success. I finally decided to cook the dough/skin on the stove and it actually works. The skin is soft and easy to use. I don't really mind the additional step. The mooncakes are great but I still prefer the baked ones because of their soft cake-y shells.

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Crispy Sauerkraut Fritters

At last, after 1 month of waiting, my lacto fermented sauerkraut is ready and it is delicious, crunchy, and sour. I rarely eat sauerkraut and never knew homemade could be so yummy. Adding it into crispy fritters with smoked sausage and bacon makes it extra scrumptious. Although I might have lost some of the lacto fermentation beneficial nutrients, the fritters are worth the loss. They are crispy and tangy, and with the honey mustard sauce, they're quite addicting. I could easily scarf down half a dozen, maybe more, in one sitting.

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Golden Syrup

the recipe for the dark thick syrup in the middle is provided below

Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival is 35 days from today, on September 27, 2015, which means plenty of time to make delicious mooncakes. I use Lyle's Golden Syrup which is too expensive, about $7.00 for an 11-ounce jar, so I looked online for homemade golden syrup so I can make lots of mooncakes. Golden syrup is an invert sugar syrup that needs acid to prevent crystallization.

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Sourdough Barley Bread

I borrowed from our library a German cookbook titled NEW GERMAN COOKING by Jeremy and Jessica Nolen, published in January 2015. I was not planning to cook German food; I was just curious and because I love reading cookbooks. Two recipes caught my eye: Crispy Sauerkraut Fritters and Sourdough Barley Bread. My sauerkraut still needs a week to ferment, so bread it is. I'll make the fritters next week. The store-bought sauerkraut won't do.

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Lacto Fermented Vegetables

Supercrispilicious!

Fermenting with sea salt brine called buro in Tagalog language has been a Philippine method of preserving vegetables for as long as I can remember. I specially like the spicy mustard greens bought from the wet market. My mother added them to sour soups. I really love burong mustasa with the Chinese-Filipino steamed bun sandwich, cua pao. Another favorite of mine is green mango. I have made both several times but with a shorter period of fermentation and never used the airlock system.

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Dinuguan (Blood) Sausage

Pork blood stew (dinuguan), is a Filipino dish I rarely eat. I cooked it once and I actually liked it. It's made with pork blood and meat, and stewed in vinegar and spices. It's usually eaten in the Philippines together with steamed white rice cakes. Recently, I've read about dinuguan made into sausages and smoked, kinda like the Spanish morcilla. What a brilliant idea!

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Limoncello Lemonade

I don't know why I make Limoncello and other fruit flavored liqueur. I hardly drink alcohol and forget I have them to enjoy once in a while. This batch is almost 3 years old and it's time to check if it has aged enough. I ended up diluting it with mint-infused sugar syrup and freshly squeezed lemon juice. I like it. Sweet, tart, and refreshing with a hint of mint.  

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Rice Krispies Ice Cream Bars

It's ice cream season! Actually I make all year round but I make more frequently during late Spring and all Summer long. 

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Salt Cod Croquettes

For those who still have fish for Fridays during Lent season, here is a recipe for salt cod croquettes. Although I've had croquettes before in restaurants, I've never tried making them at home. If you can't find salt cod in grocery stores you can salt and dry your own. They are good specially with Tartar sauce mixed with sriracha or Frank's hot sauce for a little kick.

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Strawberry Ice Scramble

1 more day and it's officially Spring. Everyday, temperature has been rising and the last patches of snow have finally melted over the weekend. I'll miss the white stuff...not really, but it's time to try the Filipino icy street snack or drink. It's called Ice Scramble which is shaved ice mixed with evaporated milk, sugar, and flavoring, usually banana, and red food color, then topped with milk solids and chocolate syrup.

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Flour Tortillas

I cookedPuerco Pibil for the umpteenth time which I always have with white rice. I suddenly wanted the pork dish wrapped in flour tortillas. I made a small batch of tortillas using a recipe that doesn't have baking powder (not recommended). Rolling the dough into thin rounds was time consuming and the dough tends to shrink when transferring to the skillet. Then I remembered I have an electric tortilla maker I bought from eBay many years ago. It was for baking something else, not for making tortillas, but I have forgotten about it after storing it. Story of my life: Buy it, store it, and forget it!

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Portuguese Muffins and Korean Walnut Bread

King Arthur Flour catalog sells Portuguese muffins mix. I've never heard of these flat bread before. They are similar to English muffins but a bit sweeter and don't have "nooks and crannies". The Portuguese call them Bolo Lêvedo. They are cooked just like English muffins, in a griddle or cast iron skillet on a stove top, not in the oven. KAF recipe bakes them in the oven.

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Sriracha Caramel Corn Puffs

Sriracha sauce, caramel, corn puffs together. The best combination. Sweet, slightly spicy, buttery. You can't eat just one bowl. Why didn't I think of making this earlier?

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White Chili Spaghetti Bake

The current chilly temperature isn't likely to leave us any time soon. Times like these make me hope global warming is real because we could use some "climate change" right now. *Where the heck is algore BTW?*

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Kung Hei Fat Choi 2015

For this year's Chinese New Year, steamed rice cakes, the ones with cracked tops, tested my patience. I almost gave up but third time's the charm. I don't know what I did wrong the first 2 times but the tops were smooth and a bit too sweet for my taste. I removed 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and somehow they came out soft, fluffy, and have cracks (smiles) on top.

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Homemade Powdered Ginger

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I use fresh ginger regularly but not a lot of the commercial ginger powder. A small container becomes stale, bland, and not as aromatic before I'm able to use it all up. I can't remember the last time I bought and I was shocked that it costs so much. The smallest container of McCormick® is $7.00 and some fancy bottled "gourmet" brand is $15.00. Really?

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Black Forest Cake

The last time I made Black Forest cake was maybe 4 or 5 years ago. The urge to make was triggered by a cookbook called The Art Of French Pastry by Jacquy Pfeiffer. I borrowed the book after reading so many glowing reviews specially the Black Forest cake which one rater said "the best recipe ever". Well, I didn't try the recipe, returned the book, and rated it 1-star because the recipes are the same ones you can find in many many baking books. The author offers nothing new or revolutionary and I didn't like the endless anecdotes about his childhood, etc. I can't understand why cookbook authors have to talk about their past and the people who influenced them. They should either write a cookbook or a separate memoir, but please don't mix the two. But the most disappointing is the supposed to be great Black Forest Cake. Pfeiffer adds gelatin to both the cherry liqueur syrup and the heavy cream frosting. I'm sorry, but no. The cake shouldn't have gelatin, nah uh.

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Honey Cake (Lekakh)

The ingredients in this Jewish spiced honey cake (lekakh in Yiddish) remind me of fruitcake but without molasses. Honey cake is usually served during Rosh Hashanah. Joan Nathan (I adapted her recipe) says "it's also served at the birth of a son, weddings, and generally all happy occasions".

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Napa Cabbage And Radish Kimchi

I always have cabbage kimchi in the fridge. I love it in fried rice and with roasted Korean sweet potatoes. I have never made it though because it's always available from the Korean grocery store. The other day, I ran out of Kimchi and the store surprisingly also didn't have any and I was in the mood to snack on the pan-roasted sweet potato I have. I binged (yeah, I don't google anymore) the recipe right there at the store and decided I'll make for the very first time. I already have the seasoning ingredients in my cupboard; all I had to get was a piece of Napa cabbage and 2 pieces of very tiny baby Korean radish. It is an easy recipe to make in a day. The recipe I chose doesn't have fish sauce. I can definitely say the flavor is exactly like the store-bought which doesn't have fish sauce either.

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Goldilocks™-Style Ensaymada

I've loved ensaymada (the Filipino version of the Spanish ensaïmada) since I was a small child but I have rarely eaten the fluffy cake-like Goldilocks™ version. To me it's not ensaymada; it's more like a variety of sweet bread and the only thing it has in common with the Spanish ensaïmada is the procedure of rolling the small pieces of dough, brushing with butter, and shaping into a coil. The coil serves no purpose because the bread becomes one fluffy thing, no visible layers in the crumb. Filipinos often call it Philippine brioche but I again disagree. I've made brioche many many times and they are not the same; not even close.

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Kefir Cheese Ranch Dip

I eat kefir milk and cheese as often as I can because of the healthy benefits I get. I make kefir cheese dip regularly for dipping potato crisps as well as fried greens and raw vegetables. Mildly tart kefir cheese tastes better IMHO than sour cream and goes well with Ranch dressing powder.

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Turrón Ice Cream

It's the first day of October and the temperatures are falling but it doesn't mean I have to stop making ice cream. Yes, I make ice cream all year round. 

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Milky Way Candy Bar Sauce

I've always wanted to try making candy bar dessert sauce and when I saw Mars bars sauce and pancakes briefly mentioned in David Mitchell's new novel, THE BONE CLOCKS, I just had to make. I wasn't sure if Mars bars are sold here in the US so I used Milky Way Midnight instead. 

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Ice Cream Cones

I bought a used stovetop pizzelle iron from eBay mainly to make ice cream cones and thin cannoli shells. The iron is I think cast aluminum, not cast iron. I experimented combining ice cream cone and pizzelle recipes. I had to adjust the amount of oil so the cones don't stick to the cooker or get burned. The iron makes 5-inch cookies. The designs are shallow and don't make very pronounced cookie impressions which is fine by me. They are crispy and the thin cannoli shell shapes are great filled with softened ice cream then stored in the freezer before serving. It's a lot of work to make but worth the time and effort.

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Korean Steamed Eggs

We had lunch at a Korean restaurant last weekend and although the food wasn't that great to write home about, there's one dish I liked, the steamed eggs. Not only was it a good dish but it was on the house too. They probably knew it was our first time in their place or everybody gets a free steamed egg dish.

The egg dish is simply flavored with probably chicken broth and had a very light texture like a custard. It had on top sliced scallions, bits of carrots, and red pepper flakes. I liked it enough to look for recipes online which are plentiful, and recreated it, adding a sprinkling of hot red pepper powder for a bit of bite. What a great side dish, or it can be a main dish served with a small bowl of steamed rice.

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Aloe Vera

The Asian grocery store stocks tons of Korean aloe vera drinks mixed with fruit juices and a few of my blogger friends have started promoting them for their supposed health benefits. There's a long list for possible cures but also a warning for negative effects to the body.

According to the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, aloe, which includes the plant's extracted juice, has been studied for potential effects on psoriasis and other skin issues, along with internal issues like constipation and diabetes. The center also notes studies indicating potential anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. Other institutions such as the American College of Angiology report potential strides for heart conditions, while those studying dental and oral issues also cite potential benefits for treating and medicating oral diseases and conditions.

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Chocolate Swirl Brioche

I baked these chocolate swirl rolls 8 years ago when I was still a newbie at both baking and blogging. I used a recipe for sweet bread but couldn't recall the chocolate filling ingredients. They were good but not as pillowy soft and satisfying like these rolls I made following Peter Reinhart's Poor Man's Brioche recipe. Just perfect. Totally addicting.

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Malaysian Style Sos Cili

The Asian grocery stores in my area for some reason does not carry Malaysian sos cili (chili sauce) anymore for many years now, although they are still available from online stores. It's similar to ketchup but has a stronger chile flavor which I really like. It is not too hot, is sweet, and has the right amount of flavorings.

According to Wikipedia Malaysian Sos Cili has tomato puree, chili juice, sugar, salt and some other spices or seasonings to give the spicy, but not too hot, taste. There are sos cili that have no tomatoes though. Also, some countryside commercial varieties use bird's eye chile together with its seeds to raise the level of heat of the sauce.

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Baked Chicken Marinated in Soy Sauce

Filipino cuisine is in my opinion a tad unique. It's a fusion of Chinese, Filipino, Spanish, and American flavors. Perfect example of Filipino Chinese Spanish is Chicken Arroz Caldo.

This dark brown baked chicken is an attempted copycat of the delicious baked chicken by a Filipino Chinese restaurant in the Philippines called SAVORY. This is where these different influences come in. The restaurant, although in English has the Spanish pronunciation of SABOR (flavor, taste) with a short a, and b is between B and V. If you are in the Philippines, don't make the mistake of pronouncing it as sv-r; otherwise people won't know which restaurant you are looking for. 

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Calamansi Muffins

Filipino food blogs don't seem to get enough of calamansi muffins because I keep reading about them. I tried to bake following the recipes available on several websites but I was not happy with the cakes. The dry-ish muffins lacked flavor and they were too sweet for my taste. I also didn't like that it's almost like chiffon cake. There's nothing wrong with soft fluffy cakes but I prefer moist and dense muffins. 

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Pork Belly Lechon Roll

I will never be a vegetarian as long as there is fatty pork belly calling my name at the grocery store. Pork belly with its skin on is my favorite part of the hog. There is no shortage of ways to cook it. This time I made a small slab into a roll seasoned in the style of Philippine roasted pig and slow-baked it in the oven. It takes 2 days to prepare and roast. The roll is flavorful enough, no sauce is necessary.

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