Dutch Baby

Pancakes are my go-to breakfast! This is especially true during my busy college days. You just need to mix the batter up, fry it, flip it and freeze it until you need them. But I'm getting tired of the old-fashioned pancakes. So I tried out Dutch Baby. The first time I got a taste of these babies was at the Original Pancake House in Palo Alto California.

A year later, I tried making a Dutch baby from scratch. The result is quite satisfying actually.

Swedish Meatball Pasta

I was cooking for a group of twenty people, which terrified me, because expectation was high! So I decided to go with a safe Swedish meatball with egg noodle pasta with mushroom-gravy sauce. Everything was homemade! that would never go wrong. But I was wrong, it is a simple dish, but you could screw up in so many places if you're not cautious. Anyhow, everyone seemed to have enjoyed it, at least if they were telling the truth. Below is the recipe as inspired by Laura Vitale's.

Peas & Parmesan Gnocchi

I've been wanting to make a light and vibrant Italian dish. So here we go: Peas & Parmesan homemade Gnocchi! It was my first time making Gnocchi from scratch and it was surprisingly delicious. If there was anything I wanted to do better, it would be boiling the potatoes with the skin. Because when you start boiling the potatoes without the skin on, the water from the pot gets in the potatoes and it makes it more difficult to knead the potato dough.

Fresh Lemon Salmon with Sour Cream and Arugula

There was a semester of my college life when I made an oath of being fit and healthy. And so I hit the gym at least twice a week and most importantly, had the most healthy diet throughout the semester. I attempted (so hard) to limit my red meats and start eating fish. I was getting tedious of Tilapia (because that's often what they have in the store. What do you expect in the Midwest?). And so I hit Costco and bought a lot of Salmon. And I mean a lot of salmon. So I had to be creative everyday and create new Salmon dishes. It was the greatest semester of my life. Seriously.







Below is the recipe:

Broccoli Celery Potato Purée

My ultimate most favorite comfort food. And yes, my comfort food is actually vegetarian (I know, I can hardly believe myself too).  But this particular recipe is to die for. Trust me, broccoli could be your new best friend if you treat it right and with the respect it deserves. Looks fancy, but does not need a lot of effort to replicate. The original recipe is with broccoli, celery, and potato, but I improvised with pumpkin and squash as well by merely substituting the broccoli and celery with pumpkin and squash. The delicious orange-color purée below is the pumpkin-squash purée. Perfect for a chilly autumn day.

Below is the recipe:

Belle Mushroom - Leek Risotto

Leek is one of my favorite greens to work with. Its tangy, yet soft mouth-feel is always the star of any dishes. I made a creamy risotto dish with belle mushroom and leek. The mushroom gives the dish an earthy flavor, and so Shiitake mushroom is a substitute. The leek elevates the fragrance and gives the dish a scallion-like punch, finished with a soft, creamy sour cream or crème fraîche.

Below is the recipe:

Guinness Beer Chocolate Cake

The three-layer dessert right here definitely catches everyone's attention around the Thanksgiving table. Thanksgiving isn't always about turkeys, mashed potato, cranberry sauce and bean casserole! I started my thanksgiving day cooking with this beautiful Stout Chocolate Cake. The stout acts merely as an additional bittersweet taste to it as the alcohol evaporates during the process. It was my first attempt to bake it, but it turned out really moist and soft even though I did not set a bowl of water during the baking process. I got this recipe from ouichefnetwork.com. Although this one does not appear to be as sturdy as the ouichefnetwork cake, I'm pretty satisfied with this one.

For the cake:

• 2 cups stout (such as Guinness)

• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter

• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)

• 4 cups all purpose flour

• 4 cups sugar

• 1 tablespoon baking soda

• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

• 4 large eggs

• 1 1/3 cups sour cream

• 2 cups whipping cream

• 1 pound bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Butter three 8-inch round cake pans with 2-inch-high sides. Line with parchment paper. Butter paper.
2. Bring 2 cups stout and 2 cups butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
3. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter equally among prepared pans.
4. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer cakes to rack; cool 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack and cool completely.
5. Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chopped chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Refrigerate until icing is spreadable, stirring frequently, about 2 hours.
6. Place 1 cake layer on plate. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with second cake layer. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with third cake layer. Spread remaining icing over top of cake.
7. Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chopped chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Refrigerate until icing is spreadable, stirring frequently, about 2 hours.
8. Place 1 cake layer on plate. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with second cake layer. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with third cake layer. Spread remaining icing over top of cake.