APPLESAUCE CUPCAKE WITH BUTTERSCOTCH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

Made these cupcakes for a co-workers' birthday. I know some of  my foodie friends will not like the idea of using a cake mix. I don't really mind making cakes out of the box, end products are actually good. Now for the frosting, i want mine from scratch,  taste a whole lot better. Hey...that's my opinion ;)

This recipe is a combination of my previous cupcake recipe with some substitutions. In lieu of oil i used applesauce, which is not a secret, applesauce can be used to substitute the liquid for your cake batter. For the frosting i used the same recipe w/ the addition of the butterscotch ganache.. Viola a successful cupcake....and. is another keeper for sure!!! love the combination!

CUPCAKE BATTER
Ingredients:
1 package yellow cake mix
16 ounces applesauce
3 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Using an electric mix, beat eggs, mix in cake mix, stir in apple sauce. Mix the batter well.
Scoop the batter into the cupcake liners, filling each liners about 2/3 full.
Bake cupcakes for 25 to 30 minutes or insert a toothpick through the center of the cupcake. If toothpick comes out clean, the cupcakes are done.
Let them cool on cookie racks.

BUTTERSCOTCH GANACHE
Ingredients:
1 package (11 oz) butterscotch chips
1 pint heavy cream

In a small pan, bring heavy cream just to a boil. Mix in butterscotch chips, whisk until smooth.
Let it cool or until thickened.

BUTTERSCOTCH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
Ingredients:
1/4 C butterscotch ganache (you can add more if needed)
1 stick butter (softened)
1 package (8 oz ) cream cheese (softened)
3 cups powdered sugar (add one more cup if needed)

Beat butter, ganache, cream cheese in a mixer until well blended.
Add sugar gradually, beating after each addition until mixed and incorporated.
**add more powdered sugar if frosting is a bit runny.
**add a teaspoon of milk if frosting is to stiff.

ASSEMBLE THE CUPCAKE:
1. Spread a little of the ganache on top of the cupcake, just enough that it'll not drip on the sides.
2. Put frosting in a star tipped decorators bag.
3. Start piping from the outer edge working inward.

FILIPINO CHICHARON BABOY (Filipino Pork Rind Cracklings) Kulinarya Cooking Challenge

This month's Kulinarya Cooking Club's Challenge is inspired by the colors of the Philippine Flag. It's actually a challenge for the month of August and September. Hosted by Oggi, Chef by day, Boyet and Ray . 

Thanks for the a great challenge guys.

Required for the challenge:
- Must use and show Red, White, Blue and Yellow on your dish from plate to the garnish
-You may include the color of your garnish for as long as it is edible.

For this challenge i thought of Chicharon . I like my chicharon w/ substance, not a big fan of those "airy chicharon" . For me chicharon means Pork skin with fat and meat,  deep fried until it puffs up and become crispy and crunchy. Chicharon is another Filipino favorite pulutan (appetizer) served with cold San Miguel beer or chilled soda. But i personally like this w/ steamed rice. Like bbq, chicharon are ubiquitous in every street corners. Sold in plastic bags w/ vinegar as the dip.


This is one of my no reicpe recipe. It's the method and the process that's very important in order to have a crispy, crunchy chicharon.


Ingredients:


Pork skin with little fat and meat
water
garlic
salt (rock salt or kosher salt. Depends on how many lbs. of pork you are using, about 1/2 tsp per lbs.)
peppercorns (6 pieces)
bay leaf (3 leaves)


Place all dry  ingredients in a heavy pot adding water until the pork is covered about an inch high.


Bring to a boil until pork skin is tender ( about an hour).


Remove the pork and drain really well.


Cut into bite size and let these air dry or put in the fridge uncovered over night or so.


(IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THE PORK SKINS ARE DRIED. THIS WILL ELIMINATE OR LESSEN THE SPLATTER DURING DEEP FRYING AND WILL MAKE THE SKINS PUFF )


After drying the pork skins overnight you are ready to deep fry them.


Heat up oil and fry the pork skin pieces in batches and cook until light golden brown and puffed up.


Carefully take the chicharon using "spider" or slotted spoon.


Make your dip. There are a lot of choices to go along the chicharon. Traditionally, coconut or sugar cane vinegar is the dip. You can do that or vinegar w/ little of soy sauce and chili w/c is what i have.


Serve with chilled beer -San Miguel or Stella ;) or plain chilled soda.


Like i said i prefer my chciharon w/ rice.


To my KCC members , after reading the challenge i think i missed one color ;). Well, i do have the colors alright, but technically i'm missing the white w/c was supposed to be in the plate, my white steamed rice. Pls.....pretend it's in there ;) . Thanks, for this challenge, this was clever ;p

TONKATSU (Japanese Breaded Pork Cutlets)

Tonkatsu literally mean Ton= Pork, Katsu = cutlet. A quick, easy Japanese dish. This is one of my "go to" dish if i crave for some Japanese food aside from sushi of course.

Add more ingredients to this like fried egg and you'll have a totally new dish called Katsudon but we will  do that some other time.

Ingredients:

8 thin-cut pork loin boneless center cut chops (Pork chop is good too)
2 cups panko breadcrumbs
1 cup flour
1 egg (beaten)
½ cup milk
½ tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
4 cups cabbage ( I used napa cabbage, shredded)
Canola oil for cooking

You will need three shallow bowls for the egg wash method.

*** You will also be doing the left hand dry, right hand wet method as well to avoid a mess.

1^st bowl – flour mixed with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2^nd bowl – combine egg and milk, add salt and pepper.  Mix and beat. Set aside
3^rd bowl – panko breadcrumbs mixed with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat oil in a skillet on medium heat.

Dredge pork cutlets in the 1^st bowl (flour), then coat them in the 2^nd bowl (egg wash) using your left hand (wet).

Then coat with panko (3^rd bowl using your right hand, dry). Press cutlets so panko will adhere to the meat
.
Gently drop coated pork cutlets into the hot skillet by batch. Don’t overcrowd your pan this will produce moisture.

Since the pork cutlets are thinly sliced, fry them for 3 minutes on each side or until brown.

Set cooked pork cutlets on cookie rack to let excess oil drip. I don’t recommend paper towel, it will urn your crispy pork cutlets mushy and soggy.

Tonkatsu Sauce:

½ C Worcestershire sauce
¼ C Catsup
¼ C ponzu * ( you can use Teriyaki Soy Sauce)

* Ponzu is a Citrus ( Yozu) seasoned soy sauce

Mix and whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl.

Breaded Pork Cutlet on a bed of shredded cabbage, with steamed white rice, tomatoes and Tonkatsu sauce.

I told you this was easy, quick and delicious. 

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES

Fall season means good bye to your vegetable plants that is if you are from the Mid-west area. I still have tons of tomatoes. The green ones i have to pick before it gets frozen. We have been on frost advisory lately. I have plans on pickling some of them, hopefully i'd find the time to do so. You can also make them into salad, but frying them is the  best way to go..it's  our favorite.  Frying them while it's fresh is a good thing, in my opinion. It's crunchy and juicy and a hint of tart...yum!!!

This recipe is my version. Traditionally,  fried green tomatoes calls for cornmeal but i used panko. It just gives more crunch to the fried tomatoes. But if you can't buy or find panko don't fret...do the cornmeal or any regular breadcrumbs.

Ingredients:

4 medium sized green tomatoes (wash, slice into 1/3 inch thick) *
½ cup milk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
½ cup flour
1 cup panko bread crumbs *
1 ½  tsp salt (divide into 3)
1 tsp pepper (divide into 3)
Canola oil for frying

* I prefer thick slices to have a crunchy end product as opposed to thin slices that will turn soggy after frying.

*Panko Breadcrumbs are Japanese breadcrumbs. Thanks to “supply and demand” they are now available at every supermarket near you ;) Few years back, you can only buy them at Asian stores. If you haven’t tried using them yet, I highly suggest that you give these a try in lieu of the breadcrumbs we used to know ;). If you want to achieve a crispy/crunchy texture, Panko will definitely give you that!

*** You will need three shallow bowls for the egg wash method.
*** You will also be doing the left hand dry, right hand wet method as well to avoid a mess.

1^st bowl – flour mixed with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2^nd bowl – combine egg and milk, add salt and pepper.  Mix and beat. Set aside
3^rd bowl – panko breadcrumbs mixed with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat oil in a skillet on medium heat.
Dredge tomato slices in the 1^st bowl (flour), then coat them in the 2^nd bowl (egg wash) using your left hand (wet).
Coat sliced tomatoes w/ panko (3^rd bowl using your right hand, dry). Press tomato slices so panko will adhere to the tomato slices.
Gently drop coated tomatoes into the hot skillet by batch. Don’t overcrowd your pan this will produce moisture. Fry the tomatoes for 3-5 minutes on each side or until brown.
Set cooked tomatoes on cookie rack to let excess oil drip. I don’t recommend paper towel, it will make your sliced tomatoes mushy and soggy.
I love to serve this w/ sriracha and vinegar dip.

Tart green tomatoes coated w/ panko and fried perfectly = crispy/crunchy on the outside and warm and juicy on the inside.

What a brilliant way to make use of your green tomatoes before cold season comes.

CHICKEN SALAD VERONIQUE

I bought a lot of seedless green grapes. They were on sale for 99 cents a pound, bought 5 lbs...sshhhh... i know!!!!  I got so excited only to realize we (Husband and I) can only eat so much of these humongous sweet crunchy green grapes  ;).

So, i went to my fridge and check what else can i do with them aside from eating them as it is, which is just fine because they are sweet, but really i bought so much. Anyways, back to my fridge, i have all the ingredients for chicken salad. I had the a-ha! moment....and thought of CHICKEN VERONIQUE...

What a great excuse to make a fancy chicken salad. I love this salad served with green leaf lettuce or with bread. I tried doing a wrap since i have some tortillas in the fridge also. Wrap worked out so good as well, give it a try.


 

Just wanted to show how huge these grapes are...as big as the soup spoon ;)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. chicken breasts (boiled or roasted) ***

1/3 cup chopped celery

1 ½  cup green seedless grapes, halved ( it will depend on the size of the grapes, you can add more if you want)

1/3 cup roasted skinless almonds (chopped or slivered)

1/4 cup craisins (optional)

1 cup mayonnaise (add more to make a creamier salad)

2 tablespoon white vinegar ( I used white balsamic)

2 tablespoons honey

salt & pepper

*** Store bought rotisserie chicken (use the breast only) or
*** boil chicken with S&P, celery, onions and water, bring to a boil until chicken is cook. Let chicken cool down.

Cut chicken breasts into small dice.
 In a large bowl, combine chicken, celery, grapes, almonds and craisins.
 In another bowl mix together mayonnaise, vinegar, honey, salt and pepper. This will be your dressing.
Fold and toss in the dressing over chicken mixture to coat.
Let this chill in the fridge for an hour, so flavor can set.
Serve as is or w/ croissant or wrap.

 

TERIYAKI MUSHROOMS

This is so simple, easy yet so delicious. I call this K.I.S.S.(Keep It Simple Sweetheart...okay, okay S really means Stupid ha!ha!ha!) .This is actually one of my no recipe recipe dish ;) All you need are 3 ingredients (mushrooms, teriyaki sauce, canola oil) and viola! you have a wonderful appetizer or side dish.

Clean and wipe your mushrooms with damped towels.
Preheat your oven at 360 degrees F
Cover your baking pan with foil or parchment paper to save you from washing the pan. Spray or wipe oil around your baking pan

Arrange mushrooms on to your baking pan.

Drizzle each mushrooms w/ Teriyaki sauce.and oil mixture.

Bake for 40 minutes or until mushrooms are tender.

Viola!!! So juicy and delicious.

STUFFED MUSHROOMS - ASIAN STYLE

September is National Mushroom Month! Who makes up this things anyways? not that i'm complaining...i actually love the idea.

So in honor of the National Mushroom Month, i challenged myself to come up with my own recipe for stuffed mushrooms. I thought of an Asian theme, ha! surprise, surprise! lol! I had some Chinese sausage in the fridge and spinach , so that became my main ingredient for the filling.

Husband and I both love, love these stuffed mushrooms that's why i'm sharing it! You can absolutely substitute Chinese sausage for other variety of sausage such as Polish sausages or Mexican sausages.

These are great as appetizer but if you know us better, it was our dinner served with steamed white rice. Yum!!!!

Ingredients:

1 dozen of medium to large button mushrooms (they are in season so you should be able to buy the large ones)
4 pieces of Chinese sausage-lop cheung f :(chopped- you can use the food processor)
1/2 C Panko breadcrumbs
1/2 C Chicharon (Pork rinds/ cracklings) crushed
1/2 cup fresh spinach (cleaned and chopped)
2 T soy sauce ( start w/ 2 T and add more if needed)
2 T unsalted butter
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
1 small sweet onions (chopped)
water if necessary

*** Salt and pepper aren't necessary, the Chinese sausage has enough of those.

1. Clean / wipe mushrooms w/ damped towel. Take out the stems, chop and these will be part of the filling.

2. On a hot pan, saute the sausage. Stir to brown the sausage, gradually rendering the fat.

3. Stir in the garlic and onions, saute until onions are cooked. Add the chopped mushrooms, stir until mushroom stems are cooked and all mixture are incorporated.

4. Add in 2 T soy sauce, taste and add more if needed. The sausages are already seasoned that's why soy sauce should be added little by little. Add little water if you think the filling is too dry.

5. Remove from heat, fold in the chopped spinach and let cool. Right before stuffing add the panko bread crumbs.

6. Put diced butter in the mushroom cups before adding the filling. This will make mushrooms moist.

7. Stuff all mushroom cups then top with crushed chicharon

8. Bake at 360 degrees F for 45 minutes or until mushrooms are cooked.

9. Drizzle w/ sriracha or soy sauce. Enjoy!!!

Like i mentioned...we served this w/ rice!

Chinese Sausages

Ready for the oven!

Very flavorful.  

Yummy with sriracha!

Love the crunchy texture of the chicharon,

KRUPNIK (POLISH BARLEY SOUP) AND POLISH SAUSAGE WITH CARAMELIZED ONONS SANDWICH

Y: 6

Recipe from C&F Food Inc.



3/4 cup Pearl Barley (washed and rinsed)

4 teaspoon sour cream

1 large onion, chopped

8 cups soup stock

1/2 cup butter

1 small carrots, diced

1 small turnip, diced

1 medium leek, chopped

1/2 cup celery, chopped

2/3 cup mushrooms (porcini or anykind)

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper



Simmer barley in 2 cups of stock until tender. Add butter gradually. Add chopped vegetables and the remaining stocks. Bring to a boil until vegetables are tender. Season to taste. Add a dollop of sour cream when ready to serve.



* I DIDN'T HAVE BEEF STOCK SO I USED BEEF BOUILLON

Cook the sausages together with the onions. Saute onions until caramelized. 

Serve on a submarine rolls

Peanut Butter Chili Fudge Mallows (Fudgey Mish- Mosh)

I know there are similar recipes out there, but this fudge was totally made just so i can save some items that were expiring that's why i originally called it "Kitchen Sink Fudge". But i have to change the name because Kitchen Sink Fudge doesn't sound appetizing right? Erin suggested Fudgey Mish- Mosh which i like ;) but then, i would like the readers to at least get an idea what kind of a fudge these are, so i opted to call it Peanut Butter Chili Fudge Mallows a.k.a Fudgey Mish Mosh.. Thank you Erin ;)

Wow!!!! these were really good.  It was actually a toss between cupcakes and fudge but opted for the later all because it was easier to make! ha!ha! No regrets though!

I  love the flavor profile. You get a hint of chili, a  hint of a bitter sweet from the chocolate. You can taste the salt flavor, the crunch  from the almonds and of course the peanut butter flavor. Then  the sweetness from the marshmallow and a hint of sour and creaminess from the cream cheese. Oh yeah!!! This is a keeper for sure!
Who would have "thunk it" a successful recipe was made out of saving expiring ingredients rather than throwing them away;)

1  8 oz. cream cheese (Philadelphia)
1 small bag of mini marshmallows ( I used GFS brand)
1 pack of 12 oz semi sweet chocolate chips (Nestle)
2 bars of Moser Roth chili chocolate
1 cup peanut butter
1 cup chopped  roasted and salted almonds

1. Melt chocolate with peanut butter and cream cheese in a sauce pan over low heat. Stir until mixed and smooth.

2. Fold in the marshmallow and almonds.

3. Pour into parchment lined baking pan and chill until firm.

4. Cut into ½ inch cube. Cutting it bigger will be too sweet.

Persian Pomegranate and Walnut Stew (Koresht - e - Fesenjan)

4 pcs. chicken leg quarters
1 large onion, sliced thin
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 lb walnuts, toasted and ground
1/2 cups pomegranate syrup
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1-2 T sugar (depending on taste and sweetness of juice)
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
2 T lime juice
salt and pepper to taste
3 T olive oil
**water if needed

Brown chicken pieces in a heavy bottomed pan in oil. Remove and set aside. Using the same pan, sauté onions and garlic. Season with salt, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg, stir and fry for a minute.

Mix in the walnut into the mixture. Add the browned chicken pieces and toss to coat. Stir in the pomegranate syrup. Bring the mixture to a boil. Add little water if chicken needed more cooking. then reduce heat to low and simmer for at least an hour until the sauce is thickened, the walnuts release their oil and the sauce has reduced to about half..

Add and stir in lemon juice and sugar according to taste. Adjust seasoning if needed. Continue cooking for a 20 more minutes. Mix in the ground cardamom few minutes before serving.

I like to serve these with steamed rice but you can serve these with warm pita bread.

These taste better the following day.

Recipe adapted from

 Koresht - e -Fesenjan!

DC Challenge Edible Container Winner (SZECHUAN CHICKEN ON CRISPY CHICKEN SKIN BOWL)

Hello, i didn't have the chance to thank everyone for voting and making it possible for me to win the first Daring Kitchen Cooking Challenge Contest. 

FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART I THANK YOU ALL FOR THE UNTIRING SUPPORT. OH I KNOW HOW IT WAS TO VOTE AND VOTE AND VOTE  DAY IN AND DAY OUT FOR HOW MANY WEEKS? HA!HA!  BUT IT WAS GREAT!

THANK YOU TO THE DARING KITCHEN FOR THIS CONTEST. BEING A MEMBER IS INDEED A CHALLENGE. IT IS EXCITING TO WAIT AND SEE WHAT THE NEXT CHALLENGE WILL BE. WITH THE ADDITION OF THE CONTEST I'D LIKE TO BELIEVE THAT IT MADE US MORE ENTHUSED AND KEPT OUR CREATIVE MINDS GO THROUGH THE ROOF!!! EVERY ONES DISHES WERE EXCEPTIONAL. 

THE DARING COOKS’ JUNE, 2011 CHALLENGE: HEALTHY POTATO SALADS FROM AROUND THE WORLD!

Stunning photos, delicious recipe choices, and a whole lot of gumbo love is what you provided us last month, Denise, and we couldn’t be happier (we’re a lot fuller.. but nonetheless.. ) for it. Thank you for presenting a wonderful challenge that many people had never tried before. This was the first time I’ve had Gumbo and I’m TICKLED PINK to have these recipes as the seafood Gumbo I made was OUT OF THIS WORLD. I read pretty much the same the same sentiment from so many people.. I think we can all agree it was a great introduction into Creole cooking! Thank you so much!!

As promised.. we have our winners, courtesy of the Daring Kitchen readers’ votes! Grand prize goes to TaGa_Luto for her Szechuan Chicken in Crispy Chicken Skin Bowl! Congrats, Pia! 

And our runner up is Monkey Queen for her Pear and Beet Dried Bowl Filled with Cheddar Cheese Soufflé! Congrats to you too, Renee! Yay! I’ll email you both very soon! 

Many, many thanks and congratulations to all of our top 5 finalists.. the votes were SO CLOSE and I’m not just saying that.. the voters had a tough time picking the winners. Terrific job everyone!! 

Big thanks to everyone who has sent in their Member Spotlight questionnaires, and who have volunteered for cookbook/product reviews or FoodTalk articles! I’m good now for a bit on everything except FoodTalk Articles – still have lots of openings for the 2nd half of 2011 if ya’ll are interested! Just drop me a line at lamiacucina AT adelphia DOT net and I’ll get you on the roster.

This month we’ve got another fun challenge that is totally open to creativity.. and the lovely people at the United States Potato Board are sponsoring this challenge so we can help get the word out about what a delicious, nutritious and versatile vegetable potatoes really are! So have fun! Cook outside the box and outside your comfort zone.. let your imaginations run wild! 

Lis

xoxo

This is the winning dish.
SZECHUAN CHICKEN ON CRISPY CHICKEN SKIN BOWL

 

HEALTHY POTATO SALAD FROM AROUND THE WORLD - DARING COOKS CHALLENGE FOR JUNE 2011 PART 2

Part two for the DC June Challenge. This brings back memories. My mom makes this for special occasions. I don't have her exact recipe. My version may not be as good as my mom but i know it's close enough! ha!ha!  I'm calling this " Filipino Potato Salad".

Ingredients:

FOR THE SALAD:

1 lb.Yukon Gold Potatoes (washed)

1/4 C Carrots (washed, peeled, diced)

1/4 C Celery (washed, diced, same size as carrots)

1 T Chives (washed and chopped small)

1 small Red onions- you can use sweet/vidalia onions (peeled, minced)

1 dozen Eggs - i used quail eggs (hard cooked). 4 if using regular eggs.


FOR THE DRESSING:

2 C Mayonnaise (start w/ 1/2 then adjust if necessary)

1 T Honey1 1/2 T Pickle Relish

1/4 C Pineapple tidbits (drained but save about 1/2 cup of the juice)

1/2 C Cheddar cheese (diced same size as carrots)

pinch of salt and pepper

1. Boil potatoes in a salted water until cooked for 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender but not too soft. Let the potatoes cool.

2. Mix the salad dressing until you get the consistency you like. Taste and adjust add pineapple juice if needed. Set this aside in the refrigerator while you're prepping the rest of the ingredients.

3. Cut the vegetables in uniform size.
4. Peel potatoes and cut in cubes, bite size.
5. Cook quail eggs in boiling water for 15 minutes. Cool and peel. cut in half.

6. Mix all ingredients. Taste and adjust.

7. I served this w/ grilled mushroom burgers..