Chia Seeds Carrot Cake

I am glad that chia seeds have become a part of my cooking, especially when baking breads, cakes or muffins. Chia seeds will eliminate half of the fat that is used in recipes, and the results will still be moist, tender and healthy.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups cake mix
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup raisins
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream or nonfat yogurt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup chia seeds gel*
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups finely shredded carrots

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°

Using 1 tbs of soft butter and 1 tbs of flour, butter and flour an 8" x 8" round cake dish (try this trick
that I learned from chef Alton Brown on Good Eats –  butter the cake dish; dust flour on the cake dish;

 cover cake dish with plastic wrap; turn cake dish upside down and shake vigorously to distribute the

flour evenly; turn cake dish right side up; remove and discard plastic wrap). Set cake dish aside.

Mix the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg in a bowl. Set aside.
Using an electric mixer and a mixing bowl, beat eggs, sugar, sour cream, chia seeds and oil until well combined.

Add the flour mixture and beat for a few minute.

 Stir in  the carrots, nuts and vanilla.

Pour the batter in the prepared cake dish and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

*To make chia seeds gel – mix 1/4 cup of water with 2 tsp of dry chia seeds

Quick Sour Cream Blueberry Coffee Cake

Nothing could be better than waking up on a winter morning with a hot cup of coffee and a slice of blueberry coffee cake.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups cake mix
2 eggs room temperature
1/3 to 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup chia seeds gel
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/4 cup shredded coconut

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°
In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs, melted butter, sugar and sour cream until all are combined. Add cake mix and whisk about 10 to 15 strokes (avoid over beating the batter). Stir in blueberries and reserve about 1/4 cup to top off the batter. Pour the batter onto a 10" x 6" baking dish. Top with the reserved blueberries and shredded coconut and bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Sour Cream Chocolate Chips Muffin

Sour cream makes these muffins more like cake – moist, tender and with very little fat.
Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
2 tbs dried milk powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 egg
1/3 cup sour
2 tbs chia seeds gel
2 tbs vegetable shortening, melted
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Line 6 medium-size muffin tins with cupcake paper.

Preheat oven to 350°.
In one bowl, mix all the dry ingredients up to chocolate chips.

In another bowl, mix all the wet ingredients and whisk to combine.

Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and whisk until well combined.

Add half of the chocolate chips. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tins to 2/3 full (leaving room for cake to rise).

Sprinkle the top with the other half of the chocolate chips and bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes or when the top is golden brown.

Fish en Papillote

Fish en Papillote is just a fancy term in French cooking for fish wrapped in parchment paper. It is a healthy dish and impresses the diner when served. This dish only appears on the menus of 5-star restaurants. I challenged myself to prepare this recipe at home, and it actually turned out to be quite simple. For this cooking method, just changing a few ingredients will completely bring this dish from Paris to Southeast Asia. Experiment with whatever ingredients that are available and have fun. The fish is marinated and then baked in its own juices with other tasty ingredients and saves cleanup time afterward.
Ingredients:
Two--6 oz salmons (or cod, sea bass)
2 tbs olive oil
1 tsp yellow mustard
1 tbs lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup sliced green olive
1 tbs capers
1/2 cup artichokes, sliced
1/4 cup red onions, thinly sliced
1 tbs fresh oregano, chopped
1/4 cup white wine
2 sheets of parchment paper cut into 14 inch lengths

Directions:
Mix olive oil, mustard, white wine, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a bowl and set aside.
Wash and dry fish.

Prepare parchment paper by cutting them into 14" x 12" rectangles or try to cut the parchment paper into any shape that you like, such as the heart shape (1/2 heart after folding) if you want to impress your date on Valentine's Day. The parchment paper has to be large enough to enclose the entire fish and all the ingredients.

To assemble fish:
Fold the paper into half. Lay the parchment paper onto a working surface.

Place artichokes on the bottom.

Then place the fish on top of the artichokes.

 Spread the chopped olives, caper, sun dried tomatoes and red onions on top of the fish. Drizzle the mustard mixture all over the entire fish, making sure that the edge of all the contents is positioned just beyond the center of the parchment paper.

To enclose the fish, fold one half of the parchment paper over the fish.

 Crimp edges to seal the packet, making sure that none of the juice leaks out.

Place each packet onto a baking sheet. Spray with oil on top of each packet (they will brown when baked – just for decoration) and bake in preheated oven set to 350° for 15 minutes. Remove the packet and place onto plate.

 Carefully cut the top wide open to serve.

Quiona Sweet Dinner Rolls

I always make these sweet rolls when I have leftover quinoa from the day before; The quinoa puts these sweet rolls into the healthy-tasty bread category that everyone will love at the first bite.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup warm water
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tbs dry milk powder
1 tsp salt
2 tbs sugar
2 tbs soft butter
1 cup cooked quinoa
2 1/2 cups bread flour + 1/4 cup more, if needed
2 tsp active dry yeast

Directions:
Place all the ingredients in a bread pan machine in the order listed above. Press the dough function to start. When the dough cycle is finished mixing, kneading, and rising, the machine will beep.
Remove dough from the bread machine and place onto a lightly-floured surface. Shape dough into a long log (about an 18 inch length). Cut log into 12 small pieces of dough and roll each into a smooth ball.
Use 1 tbs soft butter to spread onto the bottom of a 10" x 10" diameter baking dish. Place dough balls onto the baking dish. Cover with kitchen towel and let the dough rise in a warm place for another 45 minutes or until the dough almost double in size or place in the refrigerator overnight to rise slowly. If refrigerated, bring dough out to sit at room temperature 1 hour before baking,

Top dough with 1 tbs butter and bake in preheated oven set to 375° for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Stuffed Tofu with Tomato Sauce

Tofu has very little flavor and comes in three different kinds: silken, soft and firm; Creating a satisfying delightful dinner by pairing this aromatic entrée with tomato sauce and stuffed with shrimp and pork will bring out the best of a tofu dish.
Ingredients:
One – 12 oz firm tofu (1 block tofu)
Filling:
2 oz shrimps, peeled, deveined, coarsely chopped
2 oz ground pork or chicken
1 scallion, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 tsp each minced ginger and garlic
1 tsp salt and black pepper
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp cooking wine
2 dry shitake mushrooms, soaked and chopped
1 tsp cornstarch
Sauce:
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cup white onions, chopped
1 medium ripe tomato, chopped
1 tsp cornstarch
Garnish with chopped cilantro

Directions:
Combine the filling mix well and set aside.

Cut tofu block into 4 equal squares (about 3" x 3")

 Cut out a small pocket on one side of each tofu square.

 Carefully remove more tofu inside each pocket to make room for the stuffing. Put 1 tsp of filling into each tofu square.

After putting filling into each tofu square, the remaining filling mix can be rolled into small balls to pan fry with the tofu squares.
In a nonstick pan over medium heat, add 2 tbs of canola oil. Add tofu and fry each side until golden brown. Remove tofu.

In the same pan, prepare the sauce by adding onions and cook until softened. Stir in tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes.

Add the rest of the sauce and bring back tofu. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Serve with a bowl of rice

Vegetarian Stir-fried Rice Noodles

Stir-fried dishes are, in the main, healthy and fresh, using vegetables and lean meats or other good ingredients to great effect. For this dish, fermented tofu is in the sauce, and fried tofu and eggs are the main ingredients to make this dish tasty and healthy
Ingredients:
1/2 lbs fresh rice noodles (banh pho tuoi)
2 tbs peanut oil or canola oil
2 oz fried tofu, cut into thin strips
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 small onion, cut into thin wedges
1 cup total of broccoli and cauliflower, cut into bite-size pieces and blanched
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1/2 cup total of carrots and red sweet peppers, julienned
1 glove garlic, minced
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup coriander, chopped
Sauce:
3 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs lime juice
1 tsp ketchup
1 tsp of fermented tofu (1cute)
1 tbs oyster-mushroom sauce
1 tsp sambal oelek (South-East Asian chili paste or tuong ot an pho)
1/4 cup vegetable stock or water
Garnish with 2 tbs roasted chopped peanuts

Directions:
In a sauté pan over high heat, add 1 tbs oil. Add egg to make a thin omelet. Cook for 15 seconds or until just sent. Roll up and thinly slice.

In a wok over high heat, use the remaining oil.

 Add onions, garlic, carrots and red peppers and cook for 5 minutes.
Add broccoli, cauliflower, tossing well.

 Stir in Noodles, omelet, tofu, green onions and sauce. Stir sauce to coat with noodles.

 Add bean sprouts and cilantro.

Remove from heat. Place noodles onto plate and sprinkle with roasted peanuts.