Cherry Tomatoes Salad

Nothing is more refreshing than a bowl of fresh cherry tomatoes salad in summer. This year, my garden produced lots of cherry tomatoes. Unfortunately, I had to compete with hungry deer that keep eating my tomatoes. I did not have this dear problem last year, but since there has been a shortage of rain recently and the deer’s habitat near my home is being destroyed to construct new homes, the deer have been forced to find other sources of food and water, such as my new rosebuds, strawberry plant leaves, and a large quantity of my newly ripened tomatoes. Although I was initially disappointed with the deer’s consumption of my bountiful crop, the feeling was immediately replaced by sympathy for the hungry deer were just trying to survive.

This recipe for the cherry tomatoes salad is simply to use a large volume of tomatoes. It makes me feel good when I eat this salad because it is healthy and tasty. This salad can be served alone as a meal or as an appetizer with cheese and toast.

Ingredients:
2 cups cherry tomatoes
1 cup English cucumbers, diced
1 cup watercress, cut up
1/4 cup chopped sweet white onions
1/2 cup herbs – basil, cilantro, and parsley
3 scallions, green part only, thinly sliced
Dressing
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
1/3 cup good olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions:
Combine cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and herbs in a mixing bowl.
In a glass jar with lid, add all the dressing ingredients and shake well. Pour dressing over the tomatoes and let chill for an hour. Then add watercress and green onions. Toss well before serving.

Chocolate Sponge Cake

This week, my family from California visited me. As requested from my niece, I made this chocolate sponge cake for her. She really enjoyed it. Now, I want to share this recipe. From this cake recipe, I can prepare a breakfast parfait for her, and the rest can be served as dessert with vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients:
1 cup cake flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/3 cup granulated sugar for egg white
1/4 cup granulated sugar for egg yolk
7 eggs (with egg yolks separated from egg whites)
1/4 cup skim milk

Directions:
In a bowl, combine cake flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Sift 3 times.
Let eggs assume room temperature before using.
Using the larger bowl of an electric stand mixer at medium speed, beat egg whites until foamy. Gradually beat in 1/3 cup granulated sugar, beating after each addition. Continue beating until stiff peaks form when beater is slowly raised.
Using the small bowl of the same electric stand mixer, use the same beaters at high speed, beat egg yolks until very thick with a pale yellow appearance (about 5 minutes). Gradually beat in 1/4 cup sugar; continue beating until smooth. Do not under beat. At low speed, blend flour and milk alternately into egg yolks mixture. Use a spatula to scrape the batter off the sides of the bowl.
With a whisk or rubber spatula using an under and over motion, gently fold yolk mixture into beaten whites mixture in larger bowl.
Pour batter into an ungreased 9” x 4.5” round pan without a removable bottom. Bake in a preheated oven set to 350° for 40 minutes or until cake springs back when pressed with finger. Invert and let cool completely.

 

 

Ciabatta Bread

Ciabatta is one of popular Italian breads. I have a couple of nice and easy ways to make this wonderful bread. Some recipes call for no knead Ciabatta bread; I did try a few of them, but the one I introduce here makes me very happy with the result. The origin for this recipe is in the book called 100 Great Breads by Paul Hollywood. I changed his technique a little by using my bread machine to knead the dough. I think it is much easier.

Ingredients:
4 cups bread flour
1/4 cup wheat and corn flour for dusting
1 1/2 cups water
2 tsp active yeast
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs olive oil

Directions:
In a mixing bowl, place 2 cups of flour with 3/4 cup of warm water and the yeast. Using a hand whisk, whisk for 5 minutes. Cover and then let ferment for 4 hours.
After 4 hours, add the remaining flour, water, salt, and olive oil to the fermented flour and whisk to combine. Place all of the flour into the bread machine pan and turn on. Press the dough function to start.
When the bread machine is finished kneading, dump dough into an oily bowl. Cover and let rise for 2 hours.
After 2 hours, dust the countertop with the wheat and corn flour. Tip the dough out onto the countertop, and then oil your hands to shape the dough by stretching it into an 8 inch length. Dust the baking sheet generously with wheat and corn flour and carefully transfer the loaf. Then sprinkle more flour on top of dough.  Cover with plastic and let rise for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 425° and bake bread for 25 to 30 minutes.

 

Easy Fish and Crab Egg Rolls

Egg rolls are a big part of the Asian cuisine. It can be made as fancy as it can be to serve at a banquet as an appetizer, or it can be a simple snack sold by street vendors. These golden fried egg rolls are beautiful to look at and also delicious to eat. Basically, the wrapping is made of with all-purpose flour or rice flour for people who have celiac disease. The filling can be most desired ingredients or are simply available. To please vegetarians, egg rolls can made with vegetables, tofu, and some cooked beans. I sometimes like to have my egg rolls with chicken and some vegetables, such as cabbage, red onions, carrots, and mushrooms. Today, I want to introduce another recipe for quick egg rolls with imitation crab meat and canned salmon. Among Vietnamese dishes, the fried egg rolls are very popular, and they are delicious and very economical.

Ingredients:
1 package of Menlo wrapping

2 cans of 14.5 oz salmon, drained
1 lb imitation crab, roughly chopped
2 cups cooked kelp (seaweed), shredded
2 cups white cabbage, shredded
1 medium red onion, shredded
3 dried mushrooms, soaked in water
2 cups carrot, shredded
2 cups bean sprouts
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 green onions, chopped
1 tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tbs soy sauce
Black pepper and cayenne pepper
Enough oil for frying
1 egg
Vietnamese dipping sauce

Directions:
In a small pot, fill with water and soak the kelp for 30 minutes. Bring the pot with water and soaked kelp in it to boil. Let boil for 5 minutes, remove kelp and shred. The liquid can be used for cooking, and it is called seaweed stock.
Remove soaked mushrooms from the soaking liquid, discard the water, and shred the soaked mushrooms
In a large sauté pan, heat 2 tbs coconut oil. Add onions and garlic. Sauté for a few minutes or until fragrant.

Add seaweed, cabbages, carrots, and mushrooms.

Sauté the vegetables for 5 to 7 minutes or until the vegetables are wilted. Add bean sprouts and season with salt, sugar, black pepper, and cayenne.

Remove from heat and add the chopped green onions. Pour this mixture into a large mixing bowl. Add salmon and crabs. Use a wooden spoon to combine the mixture well.

 

Separate the wrapping paper.
Break an egg for sealing the egg rolls.
Take one sheet of the wrapping paper and place on the work surface.

 Use a brush to brush the edges of the paper with egg wash.

Place about 2 tbs of the filling in the center of the paper sheet.

 

Fold up the two sides of the paper and the bottom end to cover the filling in the center.

 

 Roll up firmly and place the rolls seam sides down. Continue to roll the egg rolls until all are finished.

In a wok over high heat, add enough oil and bring the oil to 350°. Deep-fry the egg rolls until lightly browned.

Serve with Vietnamese dipping sauce.
To make the sauce, combine ¼ cup fish sauce and ¼ cup sugar with 1/2 cup hot water. Add garlic, lemon juice, and fresh hot chili.

Orange Sponge Cake

One day, I spent an afternoon with my girlfriend, and we ended up talking about the McCall’s Cooking School. She loves all the recipes that have been published by this school. I had a chance to look through her recipe book, and my eyes got caught on an easy sponge cake recipe. I kept most of the ingredients and the method for making it. However, I think that the amount of sugar that the original McCall’s cake recipe calls for is too much, so I made some changes for myself. The cake turned out so wonderfully, and I am so happy about the results.

Ingredients:
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 cup white sugar
6 egg whites
6 egg yolks
6 tbs fresh orange juice
1 tbs freshly grated orange zest
1/4 cup confectioner’s sugar
 9” dia. x 4.5”deep tube pan

Directions:
Sift flour once on a sheet of wax paper. Add salt and sift again. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a small bowl, using an electric mixer at medium speed, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. Gradually beat in 1/2 cup granulated sugar. Continue beating until a stiff peak forms when the beater is slowly raised. Set aside.
In another small bowl, using the same electric mixer and beater at high speed, beat egg yolks until very thick and lemon colored (about 3 minutes). Gradually beat in the other 1/2 cup of sugar. Continue beating until mixture is smooth. Turn the speed to low. Blend sifted flour mixture and orange juice alternately into the egg yolk mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Stop and scrape the batter on the sides of the bowl. Add orange zest. With a rubber spatula, using an under and over motion, fold yolk mixture gently into the whites. Pour batter into an ungreased tube pan and bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes or until the cake springs back when pressed with a finger. Cool completely. Invert cake over a serving plate and shake to release.  Sift the confectioner’s sugar over the top of the cake.

 

 

Vegetable Frittata

This quick breakfast or brunch packed with a healthy choice of vegetables will satisfy everybody.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup chopped white onions
1 tsp chopped garlic
2 cups sliced mushrooms
2 cups fresh baby spinach
1 cup sliced asparagus
1 cup cheese of your choice (Parmesan, jack, fontina, etc...)
3 slices of ham, cut into small pieces
1/2 tomato slice
4 eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbs fresh parsley
2 tbs olive oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375°.
In a small bowl, lightly beat eggs and set aside.
In an oven-safe saute pan, heat oil. Sauté the onion and garlic until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add asparagus and mushrooms and sauté for 2 minutes. Add spinach. Stir to combine. Add ham and arrange the sliced tomatoes around the pan. Pour eggs over the vegetables and top with cheese and parsley. I like to add about 1 tsp of cayenne pepper to my eggs (optional). Place the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove and serve with bread slices.

Pan-Fried Tuna with Tahini Dressing

Tahini is creamy puree of roasted sesame seeds like peanut butter. The Japanese and Korean cuisines use tahini paste very often in their dishes. The nutty flavor of the sesame seed makes wonderful and healthy dressing by combining equal parts of tahini and water. Adding some other flavor, such as garlic, ginger, and vinegar, is another way to dress up some other dishes for grilling in the summer. I created this recipe just to prove that tahini is a good choice for making a quick dinner.

Ingredients:
Two 6 oz. tuna fillets
Oil for grilling
3 green onions, cut into 3 inch lengths
Chopped cilantro
Serve with steamed vegetables or caramelized onions
For the dressing
1/3 cup tahini, store-bought
1/3 cup good soy sauce
1/3 cup rice wine vinegar
1/3 cup mirin (sweet cooking wine)
1/3 cup hot water
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 knob of ginger, minced, about 2 tsp

Directions:
Mix all the dressing ingredients in a jar and shake well to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Wash and dry fish.
Place a nonstick sauté pan over medium heat. Add 1 tbs of oil for each tuna. Pan-fry each side of the tuna for 3 to 4 minutes. Pour 1/4 cup of the dressing over each of the tuna fillets and let cook down for another 2 minutes.  Top each tuna with green onions and cook for 1 more minute. Remove tuna from the pan and place on a serving plate. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.