Oriental Orange Chicken

We bought oranges yesterday. It was a fun shopping trip as I had finally figured out how to let my lil one enjoy the activity as well. My 11 month old daughter prefers being carried over being pushed in her stroller. You can say that she hates it as much as sitting on those toddler seats in push carts. The secret as I have learned it to be is to 1. make her sit in the cart giving her space to reach for the goods and inspect them at will 2. make her enjoy the food at the free taste counters (my lil one had her share of cheese and bread) 3. hand her the items (those safe ones that aren't choking hazards) and allow her to play with them.

Anyway, back to the oranges. I initially wanted my baby to enjoy drinking freshly squeezed orange juice but saw that she looked like she was being punished with each sip so i decided to make Orange chicken instead and let her taste chicken marinated in orange juice...

FOR THE MARINADE
1/2 cup chicken broth
3/4 cup Orange Juice
1/4 cup light soy sauce
1/2 cup packed  brown sugar
3 tbsp rice wine
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
4-5 cloves garlic
1 tsp grated ginger
1 1/2 tbsp orange zest
I used 7 pcs boneless chicken Fillets and cut them into strips but you can cut them into chunks or whichever way it may please you. Dredged them in corn flour mixed with chinese 5 spice powder and shallow fried them they were crispy and brown.

FOR THE SAUCE

Set aside 1/4 of the marinade
let simmer and thicken with corn flour

enjoy

French Macarons - first attempt

I had planned on going to the Cocoa Pantry this morning to buy myself baking essentials and supplies but for some reason I ended up in Sweet Craft in Mandaluyong City. 
It felt like I had died and gone to baking heaven with all the baking goodies they had in the store. I had initially only planned on buying supplies for my cupcakes such as liners, boxes, icing sugar and a round tip but in walking through aisle after aisle of heaven I ended up buying all sorts of stuff.
Anyway, because I had slivered almonds already I figured I'd try making french macarons.
Yes I got ambitious again. and i think this time I over estimated my baking capabilities haha oh well practice makes perfect. I will buy myself a round tip and swear not to overbeat my egg whites next time.

blame it on foodbuzz for featuring macarons as their daily special yesterday...


FRENCH MACARONS
120 grams egg white (approx 3 large eggs)
50 grams white sugar (1/4 cup)
pinch of salt
pinch of cream of tartar
food coloring (optional)


150 grams slivered almonds
170 grams powdered sugar


In a food processor pulse process powdered sugar and almonds til you get a flour like consistency. set aside.


In a bowl, beat eggs on low until foamy, add cream of tartar and beat on medium-high speed , gradually add salt and sugar until stiff peaks form. add food color.


Carefully fold in the almond and sugar mixture until mixture turns glossy.
be careful not to over fold the mixture.


use a piping bag with a round tip and pipe onto parchment paper lined baking tray


bake at 285F for 16 minutes.


fill with ganache or buttercream.


I used nutella buttercream
1/2 stick butter
3 cups icing sugar
1/4 cup nutella

Ebi Tempura

As I drove home from my sister's dorm last night I suddenly had this craving for Ebi tempura and other Japanese food. I'm allergic to shrimp and most crustaceans but it never stopped me from popping an anti-allergy pill and indulging in their savory goodness - especially crabs.

Tempura Batter
1. Sift together 3/4 c flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt
2. add one egg yolk
3. stir in 200ml of iced cold water

the contrast between the coldness of the batter and the hot oil makes the prawns extra crispy

Clean the prawns, removing the head and shell. devein.
dust with corn starch then dip in the tempura batter.

deep fry til crisp =)

for the dipping sauce
combine 2 tbsp kikoman, 1 tsp sake, 1tbsp sugar and garnish with finely grated radish squeezed off of water & juices.

hello happy tummy =)

kitchen experiment - honey mustard lamb chops

I always look forward to weekends because its the time of week where my parents are here in Manila and my sister comes home from a whole week of studying. It's also the only time of the week where I get to go and dine out. This week however, my folks had their own engagement out of town and my sister had to review for her upcoming examinations. So its bye bye to ding out and again I had to make do with what was in the freezer.

We've had lamb in the freezer for a while now. I didn't want to touch it as I had no idea what to do with it. We have no grill pan and my Ate was the one who always cooked lamb chops for us. I wanted to eat meat so bad hence this kitchen experiment.

For the Marinade:
1/4 cup of dijon mustard
1 lemon sliced
1/4 cup of honey
1/4 cup kikoman soy sauce
salt
pepper

I baked them at 350F for 15-20 minutes until there was slight caramelization of the marinade and browning of the meat.

They turned out surprisingly tender and tasty. delish with mint jelly.  I ate mine with pasta.

Strawberry Swirl Cupcakes

Ambitious little me. 
I'm in the process of convincing myself that i can bake. 
note to self: "yes tanya, you can bake". 
So even if im not really a huge fan of cheesecakes, i decided to try making mini cheesecake cupcakes. 
(why mini? honestly, im just scared that I'd fail and that an actual cheesecake might not set.)

The original recipe was for a raspbery swirl cupcake but i used strawberries in mine.

i love the swirling part. 

Making small dots and then swirling them with a toothpick

STRAWBERRY SWIRL CHEESECAKE CUPCAKE

adapted from Annie

Crust:

1 1/2 c crushed graham

4tbsp unsalted butter, melted

3 tbsp sugar

press one teaspoon on each cupcake liner

bake in 325F for 5 minutes

just until it sets

for the Strawberry swirl

blend 6oz fresh strawberries and 2 tbsp sugar

strain through a fine mesh sieve

set aside

for the filling:

2 lbs cream cheese

1 1/2 c sugar

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla

3 large eggs

to assemble fill the cups with 3/4 filling

make dots using the strawberry sauce

and swirl using a tooth pick

bake at 325F for 15-18 minutes or until set.

the cupcakes will create a dome at first but it'll flatten and deflate one cooled.

chill before serving 

enjoy

Colorful Cinnamon Meringues

Oh what a delight when upon checking on today's top 9 the first picture i saw were of pretty cinnamon meringues from Scarletta Bakes. 

I have been fond of merengues since i was a little kid but have never tried making my own. I never realized how easy they were. and how cute they could be.

CINNAMON MERINGUES

adapted from Scarletta Bakes

6 large egg whites

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1 c. confectioners’ sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon (the original recipe called for Canela, which i didnt have)

just mix cream of tartar, cinnamon and egg whites and in a mixer with whisk attachment

until frothy

add sugar and continue whisking til soft peaks form

bake in a baking sheet lined baking tray at 200F for 25 minutes or until meringues are slighty browned.

enjoy

baked buttermilk chicken fillets

To say that buttermilk is hard to find in the Philippines is an understatement.

Just like whipping cream and heavy cream, Big supermarkets and small ones alike rarely carry it. You have to make an extra effort to drive by a specialty store (baking supplies store), which is usually out of the way, just to get one.  

Anyway,  i find that nothing makes chicken more tender than buttermilk. Soaking chicken in buttermilk for at least an hour or overnight makes it extra extra juicy and tender.

Forgive me for the lousy presentation, i was starving and couldn't wait to dig in already.

BAKED BUTTERMILK CHICKEN FILLET

2 pcs chicken fillets

1/2 cup buttermilk

paprika

salt

peper

cayenne pepper

flour

panko

olive oil

1. wash the chicken with cold water and lightly pound it

2. soak chicken in buttermilk, drown the fillets for at least an hour but best over night

3. season with paprika, salt and pepper

4. dredge in flour, shake off excess

5. quickly dip in buttermilk

6. press on a plate of panko, be generous

7. drizzle with olive oil

8. bake in the oven at 350F for 12 minutes or until crust is golden brown