Strawberry Bubble Tea and Sweet & Salty Popcorn

A relaxing Sunday afternoon, mostly overcast sky with lucky sunny breaks in between, I revisited Finn Slough, a place not so far away from where I live, a tiny community with distinct looking wooden houses built along a marshy river bank. Every time I go there, I can't stop imagining how life would be like in the old days when it was still a robust fishing village.  The Finnish fishermen may be long gone, but what's left are the remnants that merged with the landscape to create a unique place. Here are some of the pictures taken.

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After a joyful afternoon with some new photos to process, I'd like to have something fun and refreshing as snack. Got a box full of local strawberries the other day.  They were so juicy but still a bit tart.  I also have some tapioca balls that I wanted to try out.  So, I make some strawberry bubble tea, with all natural ingredients, no artificial milk and fruit powder as in a lot of other recipes suggested.

Recipe: Strawberry Bubble Tea

Serve 2

Ingredients:

1      cup strawberries, washed and cut into halves or quarters

1      ripe banana, cup into 1" pieces

1/4   cup cooked tapioca balls

1/2   cup low fat milk

1/2   cup strong tea, cool in the fridge if freshly brewed

3      Tbsp sugar syrup (mix 1/2 cup white, 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1 cup water, simmer until sugar melted)

2      Tbsp sugar or honey (optional)

ice cubes (optional)

Instructions:

Put all ingredients except tapioca balls in the blender.  Process until smooth.  Put tapioca balls in a glass first and then pour in the blended mixture.  If prefer ice cold drink, put a few pieces of ice cubes in. 

Easy enough, right?  Just a few tips to make it right:

• The strawberries I have are still quite tart.  So, to reduce the sugar that I have to put in, I put in a banana.  It increase the sweetness and also the creaminess of the drink.
• There are a few different brands of tapioca balls in the Asian market.  I bought the one that is vacuum sealed and made in Taiwan, where bubble tea originated.  And cook it according to instruction on the package.  The process usually involves cooking the balls in boiling water for 15 to 30 mins and then steep in the boiled water for another 30 mins.  Adjust the timing to get the chewiness texture that you want.
• As the sweetness of the berries varied, adjust the additional quantity of sugar or honey to suit your own taste   

Last week I went to the farmers' market and bought some kettle corns which were so good that me and N finished a big bag in no time. Of course, I will try to DIY so that we can have a continuous supply of it at home.  We always use the Alton Brown method of making popcorn and season it with different spices after cooking.  How to incorporate sugar is a different story because you want the sugar to melt. The Rachael Ray recipe solves the problem:  to put in the sugar with the popcorn in the oil before it pops. The popcorn came out perfectly cooked and tasted just like the one in farmers' market. 

Recipe:  Sweet and Salty Popcorn

Ingredients:

1/4      cup vegetable oil

1/2      cup popcorn kernels

2         Tbsp sugar

1/2      tsp salt

Utensil required:

A  good quality big stainless steel bowl, around 10" in diameter. 

Aluminum foil to cover the stainless steel bowl, poke a few holes on it for ventilation

Oven mitts

Instruction:

1. Heat oil over medium heat in stainless steel bowl until just before smoke comes out.  You can test the hotness by putting a piece of popcorn kernel in.  When it pops, the oil is ready.
2. Add popcorn kernels and sugar in the oil all at once.  Cover the bowl with the piece of holey foil.
3. Put your oven mitts on and start shaking the bowl continuously.  After a 20 to 30 sec., the popping starts. Yes, there is a bit of exercise involved. It will take a few minutes to have the kernels all popped. But don't stop shaking until the popping sound gradually dies down. Turn off the heat.
4. Season the popcorn with salt.

For those of you who are in Canada and US, Happy Canada Day and July 4th!!

All images copyright © Yogi Studio 2011

Caribbean Chicken Wings

Finally got some time to finish off this post!.  Once again, I rely on the food and its taste and color to make the bad weather go away. I am getting tired of this gloomy wintery spring. I want the bright and blooming sun, not the timid and shy one. I believe this Caribbean chicken can perform its magic. The sweetness and spiciness compliments each other perfectly, with the use of the citrus to brighten up the flavor, these chicken wings are scrumptious and addictive.  Don't be scared by the long list of ingredients.  Just gather all the seasonings and put it in the food processor and the marinate is done. You do need some time to marinade the chicken, but the reward for waiting is big. The cooking process is hassle free. What can be simpler than baking and glazing!

I hope you will enjoy this easy recipe and let's hope for better weather everywhere!! 

Recipe: Caribbean Chicken Wings

Adapted from Sunny Anderson's recipe on Food Network

Ingredients:

1      jalapeno, chopped (if you want it not so spicy, remove the ribs and seeds; use habanero if you want it spicier)

2      Tbsp soy sauce

2      Tbsp honey

2      Tbsp brown sugar

1      Tbsp sugar

1      tsp fennel seed

1      tsp cayenne pepper

1      tsp allspice

1      tsp dried thyme

1/2   tsp ground ginger

2     garlic cloves, chopped

2     green onions, chopped

2      Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2      Tbsp lime

2      Tbsp orange juice

2      lb. chicken wings

Directions 

1. Process all ingredients in except chicken wings in the food processor until smooth.  Reserve 1/2 cup of marinade.  Marinate chicken with the remaining marinade for at least 6 hours or overnight in the fridge.
2. Preheat oven to 350F.  Line a piece of aluminium foil on the baking sheet and then put a bacing rack on top of it. Put the chicken onto the rack. Bake the chicken for 20 mins.Discard the marinade.
3. While the chicken is baking, heat up the reserved marinade in a small saucepan over medium low heat.  Reduce the marinade by about 1/3 or until it is slightly thickened. It takes about 10 mins. 
4. Take out the chicken after the first 20 mins of baking.  Brush it with the glaze.  Increase oven to 400F. Bake chicken for another 15 to 20 mins, until cook through.  Keep an eye on it in the last 5 mins to avoid the chicken to be over-cooked, or burnt.

All images ©Yogi Studio

Lemon Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce

I walk very fast. But I do things slowly.

I don't like cooking dinner after work because I have to rush everything. I like to cook slowly on weekends and enjoy the chopping, the mixing, the tasting of the food.

I'm slow to realize what I really like to do in life.

I'm slow in my blog post. Since I started going back to work last April, I could hardly manage doing one post a month. Of course, partly it is due to my day job, but partly it is also due to my slowness in taking pictures, processing pictures, testing recipes, and composing the post.  But, I enjoy every minute of it. 

To all my readers and visitors, thank you for all your patience. 
I made this last weekend.

Hope you will like it!

Lemon and chocolate desserts are two types of desserts that I love dearly. Lemon cheesecake is especially light and refreshing. Well, 'light' in terms of its flavor and month feel. But it still a cheesecake. To cut down the calories, I made four small lemon cheesecakes. I put the other three in the freezer and will test out different toppings later. The original recipe is using the classic lemon curd as topping. But I wanted to use up some of the frozen blueberries that I still have from last season, so I made this sauce that compliment the lemony flavor impeccably. 

Recipe:  Individual Lemon Cheesecake  with Blueberry Sauce

Modified from Luscious Lemon Desserts by Lori Longbotham & Alison Miksch

Make four 4" wide, 1" tall cheesecakes

Ingredients

Crust:

1     cup graham cracker crumbs       

4     Tbsp (2 oz.) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

2/3     cup sugar

2/3     Tbsp lemon zest

2        8 oz. package cream cheese,  room temperature

2/3     cup sour cream (better to use full fat ones)

1-1/2  Tbsp lemon juice

2        eggs

Blueberry sauce for 1 cheesecake

A handful of  fresh or frozen blueberries, approximately 1/3 to 1/2 cup

1       Tbsp sugar

2        tsp lemon juice

1       Tbsp or more water

Directions:

For the crust: 

1. Place the rack in the middle of the oven.  Preheat oven to 350F.  
2. Stir graham cracker crumbs with melted butter. Mix well. Press crumb to the bottom of  four 4" wide non-stick spring form pans.  To get a cleaner edge, use the bottom of a small spoon to press the crumbs firmly together and clean up the edges.
3. Bake the crust for 8 to 9 mins, or until the crust is set. Remove crust from oven and place it on the wire rack to cool.

For the filling:

1. Reduce oven temperature to 325F.
2. Boil a kettle of water to use as water bath for baking.
3. Process the sugar and lemon zest together in a food processor until the sugar turns yellowish and the zest is finely ground.
4. Using a standing mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese in medium speed, until light and fluffy.  Add the sugar-lemon mixture gradually and continue beating until smooth.  Scarp down the side occasionally. Add the sour cream an lemon juice, beat until combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until fully incorporated. Don't over beat the batter after the eggs are in.
5. Wrap each of the spring-form pans with foil to prevent water from the water bath to go in. Pour batter into spring-form pans and then put them in a small roasting pan or tray.  Put the pan in the oven. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan until water reach halfway of the height of the spring form pans.
6. Bake for 35 to 40mins, until the surface of the middle part of the cake is still jiggly and the surface of the cake loss the grossiness. Don't over bake.  The internal temperature of the cake should be around 160F to 165F.
7. Take the cakes out from the oven and water bath and let them cool on the wire rack  When they are completely cool, remove the foil. Refrigerate them for at least 8 hours or overnight.
8. Remove the ring of the spring-form pans. Serve it plain or with your favorite sauce or toppings.

For the blueberry sauce

1. Heat sugar, blueberry and water together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolved and the sauce reaches a consistency you like, about 4 to 6 mins. Mix in the lemon juice off heat. Let it cool down before serving on top of the cheesecake.  Adjust the taste and consistency by varying the amount of sugar and water.

 All images ©Yogi Studio