1. Edamame
2. Popcorn
3. Frites with sauce
4. Poffertjes
5. Sunflower seeds

1. Chickpea stew
2. Beef with coconut
3. Lumpia shanghai
4. Pancit bihon
5. Waffles (of course)

1. I would figure out a way to have Kopp's frozen custard shipped out to me. And maybe even a turtle sundae. Or I would fly out there to eat some. Whenever I felt like it. I might need as much money as Oprah for that though.
2. Would anything else maybe be a pretentious use of money? (Although I will admit flying frozen desserts to oneself is pretty obscene!)

Five foods you love to cook:

1. Chicken katsu!
2. Spagbol (spaghetti bolognese). A kid favorite. Use lots of milk.
3. Chocolate chip cookies
4. Cuban black beans
5. Waffles! (duh)

1. Carabou intestines. I had the fortune (good or not is up to you) to try this when visiting my dad's barangay in Aparri, Philippines. A barangay is a specific minicipality consisting of a few blocks or houses (at least in rural areas); basically the equivalent to a barrio in Spanish. Anyway, the local specialty here was stewed carabou intestines. And we had to eat it for breakfast. Mind you, I am a bread/jam/coffee type breakfaster, so Filipino breakfasts were a bit hard on the stomach to begin with. (You get used to the sausage and garlic rice and fried fish after a while though while you are visiting there.) Also, when you are in someone's house (in this case, it was the neighbor's) and they put stewed carabou innards in front of you, you say thank you and eat it. Just ask Kyle. While we were in the Philippines, my family had a great time putting all sorts of stuff in front of him and basically daring him to eat it (crickets, blood stew, you name it) and he was a good sport and ate everything-- and even thought the crickets tasted good. The carabou intestines were a different story. We both just froze our smiles and swallowed as much as possible because, I gotta be honest here, I thought it tasted totally vile. My dad, on the other hand, had grown up eating it and was shoveling it down with a giant smile on his face. Hey, to each his own.
2. Balut (fertilized duck egg). I don't want to come off like a hater when it comes to Filipino grub, but this is another one of my homeland's "specialties" that I can get enough of. Look it up on Wikipedia. Basically it is a partially formed baby duck that you suck out through the shell and you eat it while drinking San Miguel. Yes, this is what Filipino beer food is like.
3. Chinese century eggs. The other day I was at dim sum with some colleagues and the waiter was kind enough to bring out a complimentary dish for us to try: century eggs with jellyfish and pickled ginger. The jellyfish and ginger weren't so bad; and in fact, the ginger was delicious as a palate cleanser. But the eggs. Imagine what rotten eggs would smell like. Now imagine eating said rotten eggs. The only good thing to say about them is that they didn't taste as bad as they smelled. But you know, you gotta try everything at least once.

I can't think of anything else off the bat, but I'll add it if I do.

1. My rice cooker. I can't make plain rice on the stove because of it. When I went to college, a new rice cooker is the only kitchen appliance that I brought with me.
2. My Global chef's knife. I use it every day. I've even brought it on vacation with me if I know I'll have access to a kitchen.
3. Kitchen Aid stand mixer. Don't knead bread without it!
4. Le Creuset French oven. A must have for anything worth braising.
5. Fackelmann vegetable peeler. I bought this at Blokker for two euros. I noticed that the NY Times ran a slide show with a similar object. It fulfills the trifecta of qualities for great gadget design: inexpensive, beautiful, functional.
   

Labels: recipes, the sweet

Labels: waffles

This particular recipe is really easy because all it requires leftover rice; you can use already cooked rice. We always, always have leftover rice, usually sitting in the rice cooker from last night. (Go to any Asian's house. You'll probably find leftover rice from last night in the rice cooker.) One thing I noticed is that this recipe actually works best with room temperature rice. If the rice has been refrigerated overnight, it does not seem to absorb the milk as nicely, and the pudding becomes more soupy. So if you have leftover rice, make sure it is soft and at room temperature. Save the cold rice for fried rice.

If you don't have leftover rice, simply prepare 1 cup of uncooked rice for this recipe, as you would normally cook rice. You can make the below recipe immediately after the rice is cooked, and it'll come out fine.

One thing that makes this pudding extra yummy is that I use a vanilla pod rather than vanilla extract. You get those crunchy little bits of vanilla and a bigger hit of vanilla taste this way.

Rice pudding
makes about 6 servings

Ingredients
2-1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
3 cups cooked rice
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

1. In a heavy medium saucepan, combine all the ingredients.
2. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until mixture comes to a simmer. Lower heat and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened.
3. Serve warm, or refrigerate and serve cold later.

Labels: recipes, the sweet

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Combine the cooled melted butter with the white and brown sugar in the mixing bowl of a stand or hand mixer. Mix at low speed.
4. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat at low speed until combined. Scrape down the bowl and add the flour mixture. Beat together at low speed only until just combined. Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips.
5. Drop the dough in one-tablespoon portions onto the baking sheet, leaving a bit of space around each cookie. Bake for 15 minutes.
6. Remove to a cooling rack and serve warm and gooey.

Labels: recipes, the chocolatey, the sweet

1. Halve the avocado and remove the pit. Scoop out the flesh into a medium bowl.
2. Put the minced onion in a small sieve and run it under cold water. (This keeps the onion from being too sharp.) Shake off the excess water and add it to the avocado.
3. Mash the mixture with a fork, adding 1 tablespoon of vinegar and a couple pinches of salt. Stir and taste, adding more vinegar if necessary.
4. Serve with tortilla chips, or tacos, burritos, whatever!

Labels: recipes, the savory and salty

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch pie pan, and tap out the excess flour.
2. Whisk the eggs in a large bowl until frothy. Add the sugar and whisk. Add the cream, milk and vanilla. Add the flour and whisk until combined.
3. Arrange the raspberries in the pie pan and pour the batter over it. Sprinkle the almonds over the batter.
4. Bake for 40 minutes, or until puffed. It'll be a little custardy inside, but it's good that way. Serve with creme fraich and powdered sugar.

Links:
NY Times: The Minimalist: Clementines in a Blanket

Labels: recipes, the sweet

Labels: the chocolatey, the savory and salty, the sweet, travel

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. (200 C). Butter and flour the molds, generously. This is really important if you are using standard tins, but do it anyway if you are using non-stick because it will still make removal easier.
2. Combine the eggs and sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer. Beat on medium-high until it has tripled in volume and a ribbon forms, about 3 minutes. Beat in the orange zest and salt.
3. Sprinkle one third of the flour over the egg mixture. Gently fold it in until combined. Repeat twice more, with the rest of the flour, being sure to fold as gently as possible.
4. Place the butter in a medium bowl. Stir in one third of the egg/flour mixture. Pour the butter/egg/flour mixture back into the rest of the batter, making sure, once again to fold as gently as possible.
5. Pour immediately into the molds. Bake for 10 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the molds for 5 minutes then remove to a rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve immediately.
   

Labels: recipes, the sweet, travel

Labels: recipes, the chocolatey, the sweet