Pork Chop Steak

It is a work-from-home day for me. I checked the freezer and we have pork chop. There must be some recipes available online. Nowadays, my first stop for Filipino recipe is www.panlasangpinoy.com. That's where I found the Pork Steak recipe. I did a little bit of adjustments here and there and call it Pork Chop Steak. Anyhow, credit should be given to www.panlasangpinoy.com. As always, it makes me super happy when all the ingredients are already available in my pantry. You should try this out :-)

Ingredients

6 pieces pork chops
5 tablespoons soy sauce
1 piece lemon
1/2 cup cooking oil
1 medium size onion, sliced
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Procedure

1. Combine pork chops, soy sauce and lemon juice in a container. Cover and marinade in the fridge for one hour.
2. Heat a pan and pour the cooking oil.
3. Pan-fry the marinated pork chops in medium heat for 3 minutes each side.
4. Remove excess oil and pour the remaining marinade and water.
5. Let it boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Add sugar, salt and pepper and stir.
7. Simmer for another 20 minutes or until pork is tender.
8. Add onions and cook for 3 minutes.
9. Turn off heat and transfer to a serving dish.

My husband liked it. He thinks this recipe will also work on beef. I will try that out next time. I have to add beef, maybe tenderloin, in my grocery list. :-)

Baked Potato with Toasted Onion and Garlic Seasoning

My husband and I love steaks. He tries to master the art of grilling, and he is getting there, if I may add that we don't dine out for steaks anymore. On my part, I tried to find a side dish that goes well with steaks as well as our Filipino palate. I roam around Safeway and found this seasoning: Toasted Onion and Garlic Potato Seasoning by McCormick. We super love it. You should try it out.

Ingredients

1 35g package of McCormick Toasted Onion and Garlic Potato Seasoning
4 cups cubed red potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
   
2. Toss potatoes with the oil in a bowl.
3. Sprinkle with seasoning and toss again to coat well.
4. Arrange in single layer on foil-lined baking pan. You may also want to grease the foil with cooking spay.
   
5. Bake for 25 minutes.

Yummy, right?

Super Easy Chocolate Cake

There was one night when I was craving for something chocolate-ty. Asked Mr. Google and found this easy and yummy chocolate cake from Every With Rachael Ray's website. This recipe is not only easy to do, the ingredients are most likely already in your pantry. So, here it goes. Enjoy :-)

Ingredients

1 cup flour
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
7 tablespoons unsweetened (non-Dutch process) natural cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan; line the bottom with parchment paper and grease the paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt and baking soda. Make a well in the center, add the eggs and milk and whisk gently to make a thick batter; whisk vigorously 30 to 40 times. Whisk in the melted butter and vanilla just until smooth. Scrape into the prepared pan.
3. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool on a rack for 10 minutes; invert onto the rack, remove the pan and parchment paper and invert again. Let cool completely.

The original recipe calls for dusting of confectioners sugar after cooling the cake. I did not have any at that time. I skipped it. The cake is yummy even without it.

Thanks, Rachael Ray :-)

Oh Yeah! Ensaymada

First and foremost, I want to give full credit to the source of the recipe:

http://panlasangpinoy.com/2009/08/30/filipino-pastry-bread-baking-ensemada-ensaimada-ensaymada-recipe/

And yeah! I was able to make yummy Ensaymada. I know the picture does not look appetizing. But believe me, it is really yummy. It takes a lot of effort though. I slept at past 2am just to finish baking! But then, I am at level "innocent". Effort should be exerted to get to the next level :-)

A side note. The recipe yields more than the 17in x 13in baking tray could take. If you are like me who uses a standard oven, it can only take one tray per layer. So, you need to bake in two batches. Or try to cut the recipe in half :-s. I will try it next time.

Ingredients
5 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup butter, melted
¾ cup white sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
3 pieces raw eggs
1 pouch rapid rise yeast (about 2 ¼ tsp)
1 cup fresh milk, warm

Procedure

1. Combine warm milk, yeast, and ½ cup sugar and stir until yeast and sugar dissolves in milk. Set aside to let yeast activate (approximately 10 minutes).
2. In a mixing bowl, combine all the dry ingredients starting from the flour, sugar, and salt then mix thoroughly.
3. Add the eggs, 1/2 cup butter, and activated yeast mixture (these are the ingredients that we combined in number 1) to the mixed dry ingredients. Mix thoroughly until all ingredients are evenly distributed and a dough is formed.
4. Knead the dough until texture becomes fine.
5. Put the dough back on the mixing bowl and cover the top with cloth. Allow the dough to rise for 2 hours.
6. Put the dough on a flat surface and flatten. Punch the dough lightly to release the air inside.
7. Using a dough slicer, divide the dough into four pieces.
8. Roll each piece until shape becomes cylindrical.
9. Cut the cylindrical dough into individual serving pieces (1 serving piece should weigh at least 80 grams).
10. Put the sliced individual serving piece in a flat surface and flatten using a rolling pin.
11. Combine ¼ cup melted butter with ¼ cup white sugar. Using a brush, paint the mixture on the flattened dough. Make sure to paint only the center part of the flat dough.
12. Sprinkle some cheese over the painted area then seal the dough by folding opposite directions and rolling it until a long cylindrical shape is formed (about 14 inches in length).
13. Start forming the spiral Ensaymada shape by crossing the two opposite ends of the dough. The first end should be placed under dough while the other end should be inserted in the middle. (see video for better comprehension)
14. Place the dough in a baking tray with wax paper and cover with cloth. Set aside to rise for another 45 minutes
15. Pre-heat the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes. Remove cloth on top of the tray and bake the dough for 15 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
16. Remove the baked Ensaymada from the oven. Using the remaining melted butter and sugar mixture, paint the top of the baked ensaymada and sprinkle additional cheese.
17. Serve hot. Share and Enjoy!

And the quest continues... Next on my mind... Empanada. :-)

Yema Recipe

I am still on the initial stage of trying to learn how to cook. I am a technical person, having spent my entire career, so far, in Software Industry. Having said that, below are the 7 levels that I have in mind:

Innocent
Exposed
Apprentice
Practitioner
Journeyman
Master
Expert

I would refer to myself as "innocent". I will upgrade my level when I get tired of trying out dessert recipes :-)

My targets, as it is, are still simple dessert recipes. I found a few recipes online that looks easy. But when I tried to follow the procedure, it gives me a headache. Then I stumbled upon Yema recipes on a night that I crave for something sweet... that's not in my fridge. I am sure you had those kind of nights as well. Anyways, Yema recipes are easy to follow and the ingredients are usually available in the pantry. I am not giving credit to anyone as this is kind of a modified version of various Yema recipes available online. This is a simplified version I'd like to call my own. :-) Try it out. It is really good.

Ingredients
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 can (14 ounces) condensed milk
3 egg yolks

Procedure
1. Melt the butter in a sauce pan under low heat.
2. Stir in condensed milk for about 3 minutes.
3. Add the egg yolks and stir constantly.
4. When the desired consistency is reached, turn off the heat.
5. Allow the mixture to cool.
6. Using a 1/2 tbsp measuring spoon, scoop a spoonful of the mixture.
7. Using your hands, roll it into a ball.
8. Serve it in a plate or in mini baking cups.

It took me two tries to get it right. On the first try, I had the heat too high. The egg yolks cooked up before I get the chance to mix it well with the milk. I ended up with a mixture that still taste really good but with a layer of egg yolks. I learned my lesson, low heat on the second try. It takes longer when cooking under low heat but it turned out much better.

A lot of Yema recipes online has some nuts mixed in. No nuts for me as I like my Yema smooth.

And the quest continues...

Blueberry Cream Cheese Tarts

I love to eat. I can cook but not good enough for me to crave for my own cooking. I got tired of eating out and of eating restaurant food. So, I decided to give cooking a try. I started off with dessert recipes from Food Network. Considering my cooking expertise, I choose recipes that are categorized as "easy".

The first recipe I tried is Blueberry Cream Cheese Tarts by Paula Deen. This one is easy, even for me. It is also very delicious. Try it out. May you get inspired, as much as I did, to try out some other recipes.

Ingredients
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 eggs
12 vanilla wafers
1 (21-ounce) can blueberry filling, or other pie filling

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place a paper cupcake liner in each cup of a muffin pan.
3. Beat cream cheese with a hand held electric mixer until fluffy.
4. Add sugar and vanilla, beating well.
5. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Place a vanilla wafer, flat side down, in each muffin cup.
7. Spoon cream cheese mixture over wafers.
8. Bake for 20 minutes.
9. Allow tarts to cool completely.
10. Serve with blueberry filling on top, or pie filling of your choice.

And the quest continues...