I've been all about Asian cuisine and flavors lately. I don't know enough about them to be really sure what is Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, etc. so I'm just going to say "Asian." I've been cooking and eating out in this genre often lately. Just had sushi, fried rice, soup and wontons when I went out for dinner with a friend yesterday...and I've made dumplings with dipping sauce twice in two weeks...and crab and cheese wontons. The wontons I've made before, several times...the dumplings were a new venture. I'd never tried to cook anything like that before, but I used to love eating the ones that came in the box in the freezer section. Since I don't like to eat frozen prepared food much anymore, I thought I had to give up on dumplings. But then I saw a Facebook post from a cousin that had just made homeade dumplings! I checked out her recipe, and others online, and combined a few of them to come up with this one.
Vegetarian Pot Stickers
Ingredients
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 Tbsp. fresh ginger, finely minced
• 1 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms
• 1 cup white cabbage, shredded
• 1 cup carrots, shredded
• 1 cup chopped garlic chives or chives
• 1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 package round dumpling skins, also called gyoza
• Salt to taste
• Olive oil
Directions
In a wok or large saute pan, add a little oil and saute onions and ginger for about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and stir. Add the cabbage, carrots and chives, saute for 6-8 minutes, enough to cook them but not make them soggy. Season. Add the sesame oil when mixture is cooled. Fill the gyoza skins, making half moon dumpling shapes, keeping the bottom flat (seal the skins with a dab of water on the edges, if necessary). In a hot non-stick pan, coat with oil and place dumplings. When bottom gets brown, add 1/4 cup of water and immediately cover. This will steam the dumplings. Carefully watch the dumplings and completely evaporate the water so that the bottom gets crispy again and sticks to the pot.
A couple of tips for this recipe...you can find almost everything in this recipe at a local grocery, except for the dumpling skins. A lot of people will tell you that wonton skins are the same thing and just to use them. Don't listen to them!! They are different, and the only place I know of to get the dumpling skins is at an Asian grocery. I got a few packages at one visit and put them in the freezer, they keep well there. Also, this recipe is time consuming, and best tackled in a team. I tried making them myself and it took me at least an hour and a half from start to finish. To save time, you can also use cabbage and carrots that are already shredded by purchasing the pre-packaged coleslaw mix in the produce section, but I don't recommend it. I think the reason this recipe works so well is because of all the fresh flavors that come together when using fresh produce. The last thing you'll need to bring this recipe together is a good dipping sauce. I got this recipe online somewhere but I can't recall where. I've also added an ingredient or two...
Asian Dipping Sauce
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
• 1/2 lemon, zest and juice
Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Yield: about 1/3 cup
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
Gingerbread Cupcake with Maple Cream Cheese Icing
I love food. Especially dessert. And while it would be impossible to choose a favorite dessert, I'm pretty sure cupcakes would at least be one of my top ten things to bake, and eat. Coming up with different combinations for the cake and icing flavors and testing them out is so much fun! My latest venture is a seasonal cupcake that I came up with...a gingerbread cupcake with maple cream cheese icing.
I got the recipe for both of them on the Martha Stewart website, though I got them separately and it was my brainchild to put them together. (I think the typical pairing for maple-flavored frosting is with carrot cake, so it wasn't a huge stretch.) Baking the cupcakes turned out great...the batter tasted delicious, they
baked up well and the whole house smelled like gingerbread. The icing was very easy to make, and while it tasted great and was probably one of the best cream cheese icings I've made, it wasn't very maple-y. I even added extra maple syrup, but this made the icing a little thinner than I would have liked. A friend of mine suggested I add some natural maple extract next time, which I didn't even know existed but, after looking into it, discovered that it indeed did exist, and is commonly used in icings. Here's the recipes, they're not difficult at all, which is unusual for Martha Stewart recipes. I'll definitely make these cupcakes again...and again.
Gingerbread Cupcakes
Ingredients
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1 cup unsulphered molasses
• 2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
Directions
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 10 jumbo muffin tins with paper baking cups, and set aside. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil. In a bowl, combine boiling water and baking soda; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, ground spices, salt, and baking powder; set aside.
2. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter until light. Beat in the brown sugar until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the molasses, baking-soda mixture, and flour mixture. Beat in the eggs.
3. Fill the cupcake papers three-quarters full, making sure that the batter is divided evenly. Bake cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center of them comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cupcakes cool a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
(The only thing I did not follow was making them in "jumbo" muffin tins. I poured the batter into regular sized cupcake pans, it made 16, and I adjusted the baking time accordingly, 25 minutes instead of 30)
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
Directions
1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add maple syrup, vanilla, and confectioners' sugar; continue beating until well combined and smooth.
(Remember, the maple flavor is very subtle. In fact, I couldn't taste it at all, and I doubled the amount of maple syrup. If you're looking for a bolder maple flavor, try the extract, I certainly will next time.)
I got the recipe for both of them on the Martha Stewart website, though I got them separately and it was my brainchild to put them together. (I think the typical pairing for maple-flavored frosting is with carrot cake, so it wasn't a huge stretch.) Baking the cupcakes turned out great...the batter tasted delicious, they
baked up well and the whole house smelled like gingerbread. The icing was very easy to make, and while it tasted great and was probably one of the best cream cheese icings I've made, it wasn't very maple-y. I even added extra maple syrup, but this made the icing a little thinner than I would have liked. A friend of mine suggested I add some natural maple extract next time, which I didn't even know existed but, after looking into it, discovered that it indeed did exist, and is commonly used in icings. Here's the recipes, they're not difficult at all, which is unusual for Martha Stewart recipes. I'll definitely make these cupcakes again...and again. Gingerbread Cupcakes
Ingredients
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1 cup unsulphered molasses
• 2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
Directions
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 10 jumbo muffin tins with paper baking cups, and set aside. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil. In a bowl, combine boiling water and baking soda; set aside. In a large bowl, sift together flour, ground spices, salt, and baking powder; set aside.
2. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter until light. Beat in the brown sugar until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Beat in the molasses, baking-soda mixture, and flour mixture. Beat in the eggs.
3. Fill the cupcake papers three-quarters full, making sure that the batter is divided evenly. Bake cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center of them comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let cupcakes cool a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
(The only thing I did not follow was making them in "jumbo" muffin tins. I poured the batter into regular sized cupcake pans, it made 16, and I adjusted the baking time accordingly, 25 minutes instead of 30)
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
Directions
1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add maple syrup, vanilla, and confectioners' sugar; continue beating until well combined and smooth.
(Remember, the maple flavor is very subtle. In fact, I couldn't taste it at all, and I doubled the amount of maple syrup. If you're looking for a bolder maple flavor, try the extract, I certainly will next time.)
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