How to Make Bavarian Cream .... then use it for an amazing Mille - Feuille!

As you can see, my husband is my official taste tester these days! 

He has a unique palette to say the least --- nothing Indian, nothing Asian, no Bell Peppers..... and the list goes on. 

But, generally speaking when I ask him what he wants to eat he says " anything you make will be perfect". 

I guess that's what you call trust . 

Anyhow, I digress. 

As promised, here is the recipe video for how to turn yesterdays creme anglaise pastry cream into Bavarian cream and then use it to make the most beautiful and delicious Mille-Feuille. Also known in our childhood as " Napoleon". 

Reconnecting with Recipes: Creme Anglaise Pastry Creme 

Let's get back into story telling shall we? 

Life has been quite a rollercoaster ride since I last posted here: 

• My mom passed away
• There was a proposal
• A wedding was called off 3 weeks prior to the date because someone had the audacity to give ma n ultimatum ( in retrospect, I'm glad he did). 
• I went on a journey of independence and self discovery again - developing my legal career, enjoying my love of makeup, gardening, and raising a puppy all while living on my own.
• Met my current husband when I was least expecting it.
• Got married and moved to Texas
• Went from a one dog family to a five dog family
• Started a clothing line
• Started a craft business ( wood working and clay)

Through it all, I realized every time someone asked my what a dream future looked like, my answer was  the same, year after year. 

    I seem myself on acres of land, maybe a 100 acres. I see my dream kitchen. I see a gazebo in the middle of nature with an amazing view for meditation and morning coffee. I see a huge farm and garden, complete with horses, cows, goats, chickens etc. I see a greenhouse. Finally, I saw an adorable restaurant on the corner of my property where I open my own vegetarian farm to table restaurant. No recipes. Just love and good home cooking from the heart. 

So, once I made the realization that this dream has been my constant throughout all the ups and downs, I came back to food.  I'm back to the blog, I'm posting on YouTube and I'm pursuing this dream. 

I hope you join me as I document this new journey.

Now, to the video of the day, Creme Anglaise. 

As a child, I have so many memories of food. Specific items remind me of my mom and grandma. Lately, I find myself wanting to recreate these recipes as a way to reconnect with them, because I do miss them so much. 

They are missing out on so much of my life and I am missing out on their presence. 

One of the recipes mom used to make was a " Napoleon" made with a creme anglaise pastry cream. 

Now, this is not her recipe, because I don't remember her recipe. But this rendition of it came out insanely delicious. Dangerously delicious. 

I'll be back soon, to show you how I turn this pastry cream into Bavarian Cream and how I make my version of Napoleon. 

 

Blueberry Muffins, a lowfat breakfast option

 The result:  A low fat, healthy, non-guilt, breakfast muffin. 

Ingredients:
3/4 cup oat flour
1 1/2 cup homemade flour consisting of oats, bran, flax and chia
2 tsp vanilla sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup organic % vanilla yogurt ( I used stonyfield)
1/4 cup 0% vanilla greek yogurt
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp sour cream
fresh blueberries

 

More about the ingredients:

Oat flour -  I make my oat flour from scratch when I need it because its ridiculously simple to do.  All I do it put rolled oats in my magic blender and blend. Thats it.

My magic flour -  Its my go to combination of "health". I go to the bulk bin of my local health supermarket, like Sprouts or Wholefoods and purchase the following:  Rolled oats,  Oat bran, Flax Seed, and Chia seeds. There is no real science to this because its just goodness- a plethora of Omega-3, protein, and fiber.  I mix up these "good for you" ingredients and store them. Its a great addition to oatmeal, smoothies, and cookies. This time I decided to blend it up and turn it into a flour.
Vanilla sugar & Baking Powder -  I used the Dr. Oetker brand
Blueberries - I may have used to many blueberries. But really, is there such a thing? Portion out blueberries to your preference...

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Line muffin pan or spray with Pam or Olive oil 
3. In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients ( oat flour, magic flour, vanilla sugar, baking powder, baking soda, brown sugar, powdered sugar)
4. In another bowl combine the wet ingredients ( vanilla yogurt, greek yogurt, eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream)
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just incorporated
6. Fold in the blueberries
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes

 

 

One of the blueberries somehow made the mark of a cross! Pretty appropriate with Easter right around the corner ...  

Chocolate Nut Butter Banana Muffins

Costco, or the " Hundred-dollar store" as I like to call it, has amazing deals, yes?

Bananas for example, you get something like 10 bananas for a little over a dollar. Of course, when you bought them you had every intention of eating them on a daily basis ( for the potassium, you know) and were confident the rest of your family would join in, making sure the bananas disappeared in a matter of days.

.....Except you didn't and they didn't, and now you are left with a pile of bananas similar to this:

I had begun to doubt my baking abilities. Recently, my baking experiments were not coming out up to par, I think the latest one could be best described as an unintentional Pake ( See, Drop Dead Diva).  But, thankfully, I've redeemed myself -- even without eggs at my disposal I managed to create a winner today :)

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1/2 cup almond butter
1 cup turbinado sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
 3 tbsp flax seed, opened with a few tablespoons of water
2 cups banana
2 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoon baking powder
10 squares trader joes dark chocolate ( lb)
1/3 cup sour cream

Directions

• Preheat oven to 360F
• Mix dry ingredients and set aside
• Cream together butter, peanut butter, almond butter, vanilla  and sugar until soft and creamy
• Add eggs, or in my case the egg replacement ( flax seed meal + water) and vanilla extract
• Now add the bananas.... cream until nice and smooth
• Add half of the dry ingredients, then the sour cream
• Add the second half of the dry ingredients
• fold in chocolate (chips)
• Bake for 25 minutes

Just some backyard grilling...

Almost everything is better homemade, right? 

Its a warm summer day but there is just enough of a gentle breeze to take the outdoors from bearable to pleasant. My sister's boyfriend was kind enough to spending the entire day at our place, keeping us company while our parents had to spend the day at the doctors.... and he's one of those guys who has a healthy appetite.

First, my sister suggested ordering pizza, but I wouldn't have it. We had all the ingredients at home to make a decent meal. All I had to do was say  " homemade hamburgers?" and the kids forgot all about the pizza. 

I prepped the ground meat with onion powder ( I prefer fresh grated onions, but sis vetoed it and I wasn't in the mood to argue), salt, pepper, teriyaki, and a dollop of ketchup.  In the meantime, I got a pan of onions caramelizing with a bit of turbinado sugar and olive oil.

Served on a grilled whole wheat bun with homemade thousand island dressing, caramelized onion, mixed greens and cheddar cheese --accompanied by homemade oven baked fries. 

Sunday Brunch: Breakfast Potatoes and Cheesy Scrambled Eggs

  

There is nothing I love more than cooking for loved ones and witnessing the smile of contentment on their faces after their first bite. 

My cousins from northern California have been spending the last week with us and we decided to culminate their visit with a trip to Disneyland, where else? lol 

Three sisters in the sweltering California heat on the Jungle Cruise

                                                          

My sis and I

Sisters + Cousin

Somehow, after a 20 hour day at ( or enroute) to Disneyland, I woke up in the morning while the rest of the family was in sweet slumber and quietly left for Sunday Mass. Wouldn't you know, just as I got home, the sleeping beauties had just awoken and were groggily fumbling around the kitchen searching for sustenance. 

After a quick look in the pantry and fridge I decided to make breakfast potatoes and cheesy scrambled eggs. 

Disclaimer/Reminder: I don't cook from recipes and I almost never measure the ingredients I use to make my meals, but I can tell you the ingredients and provide general direction.

Cheesy Scrambled Eggs 

• Organic Brown Eggs
• A splash of Milk
• 1/3 Asiago, 1/3 Cheddar, 1/3 Mozzarella
• Salt and Pepper 

To get soft fluffy scrambled eggs you must be patient and cook them on a medium low heat, stirring occasionally.

Breakfast Potatoes

• Russet Potatoes
• Parsley
• Green Onion
• Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper
• Fresh  Tomato

Coat the bottom of a nonstick pan with a thin layer of olive oil and preheat. Next, wash and cube the russet potatoes -- add them to the pan. Cover the potatoes with a glass lid and let it cook on medium high, stirring occasionally, while you prep the rest of the ingredients. Wash the herbs and tomato, finely dice them and set them aside. Once the potatoes are fully cooked and crispy add the remaining ingredients and let it cook for another 30 seconds or so. ( I like the herbs to stay fresh)

My cousin, the happy customer

Breakfast

Sunny side up egg + Avocado Toast + Red Onions 

...Not kissing anyone today! lol

White Bean and Potato Salad

White Bean and Potato Salad

This one is easy enough. Perfect for a warm spring or summers day. Note: I prefer to stay away from canned/proccessed products whenever I can so I chose to boil the white kidney beans myself after having soaked them in water for 24 hours.

Ingredients:

Russet potatos, boiled

White Kidney Beans, soaked for 24 hours then boiled

Red onion

Fresh Dill

Salt, Pepper

Olive oil

Fresh lemon juice

Potato Leek Soup

This Potato Leek soup came out to be amazingly delicious.

Ingredients

3 Leeks 
Extra Light Olive Oil, 3 tbsp 
Butter, unsalted, 2 tbsp 
Potato, raw, 4 cup diced (
Organic Free Range Chicken Broth, 4 cups
Garlic, 3 cloves
Celery, raw, 2 stalk, small 
Heavy Whipping Cream, 4 tbsp
Sea Salt
Fresh Cracked Pepper
1 pinch TJ 21 season salute

Optional: 1/4 cup Gouda, 2 Tbpn Parmesan

Directions

1) Make sure to cut and wash the leek well, it tends to hide dirt.
2) In a large soup pan, add diced leeks, garlic, celery, olive oil, butter and seasonings
3) Sautee on medium till the kitchen smells great and the leeks has softened.
4) remove one cup of the mixture and set aside
5) Add 4 cups of peeled diced potatoes and 4 cups of organic chicken broth
6) Bring to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are cooked
7) transfer soup to a blender and blend
8) Return it to the pot, add the reserve leeks and the whipping cream
9) Can be served with a garnish of cheese if you'd like

Serving Size: 11- 1 cup servings

Nutrition(w/ cheese): 

149 calories, 9 grams fat, 14 grams carbs, 2 grams fiber, 3 gram protein 

Raw Vegan Breakfast

Raw. Vegan. Pure..... and very filling.

Ingredients: 

1 small banana sliced

1/4 cup old fashioned oats, uncooked

1/8 cup kashi crunch

1/4 cup Silk Vanilla Coconut milk

1 small apple diced, 

2 tablespoon wheat bran

1 table spoon hemp seeds 

1 tablespoon ground flax seed

  

The dry ingredients will begin to absorb the coconut milk and the fruit adds crunch and sweetness. 

It's simply heaven in a bowl... in fact I think it may be how I start the day tomorrow -- with a bowl of heaven :)

(I'm sappy, I know. Gotta love the creative license) 

I think I've ruined Chinese take-out for myself

Kung Pao Chicken

I used my recipe found here . Somehow, it seemed even better this time around.  My little sister gave it a 9/10 ... the deduction becuase she found it a bit on the spicy side for her taste.

Orange Chicken ( Sauteed, not Fried)

I chose to recreate the classic "orange chicken" without frying the chicken in fat. Instead I quickly sauteed it, then simmered it in my homemade sauce. 

The sauce is similar to the kung pao sauce used above. However it differs in that I added orange zest and fresh squeezed orange juice. As the sauce and chicken simmer together the flavor not only intensifies but the chicken absorbs the flavor.

My little sister gave this one a 10/10. 

I officially cannot enjoy either of the above meals from a restaurant any longer -- i tried. But I always say homemade is much better than restaurant food becuase I control the ingredients, the quality and the methods. 

Yes, it has been a while since I've posted regarding food. It just isn't occupying as much of my attention as it used to. There are a few more priorities in life I need to address before I can resort back to one of my luxurious hobbies of cooking/baking.

SAUTEED GREEN BEANS OVER A BED OF BASMATI RICE

Just like the title suggests -- simple and satisfying.

First sautee the onions until they are translucent. Then add sliced garlic, mini bell peppers, and mushroom. Finally, add the green beans and sautee for a couple minutes. You can serve it at this point if you like your veggies on the crisper side. However, if you like them " well done" allocate 1 part white wine to 2 parts broth.  ( ie: 1/8 cup white wine and a 1/4 cup broth). Add the wine and let it sizzle and dance for a moment, then add the broth and cover the pan. Allow it to simmer for another 10 minutes on low heat.

Serve over a bed of white rice. I think it would work great on top of a baked potato as well!

Inspiration: Tiramisu

Layers of coffee cake infused with a brandy caramel sauce and heightened by a marscapone creme filling

Foodbuzz Festival 2011 - Review

I'm just going to say it -- I'm disappointed.

I didn't make it to the events Friday night, but the consensus among the blogger on Saturday morning was already foreboding. The event did not compare to the previous years. In fact, it seemed that each year the event got consistently less exciting. I have my theories, but I will keep them to myself for now.

The morning sessions on Saturday were entertaining. The first panel emphasized that to be successful a blogger must be his or herself and that there is a LOT of work that must go into a blog over years to accumulate into a successful product.  A few tips on what that hard work entailed specifically would have been nice but I guess they don't want to share any secrets ;)

The second session was about taking good photos without using a DSLR camera. One option is by using a "point and shoot" camera ( ie: my $100 camera from Costco), another option is to use a micro four-thirds camera ( but it cost upwards of $700) and finally, using an iphone camera.  Did I learn anything from this session? It only reinforced what i knew

1) Make the best of whatever camera you have
2) Natural Daylight works best
3) Take a copious amount of pictures and hopefully you will get a winner among the bunch.

The final session discussed using social media to increase awareness of your blog and your presona. They were huge advocates of using twitter. But the degree of twitter-dependency they suggested seemed almost anti social to me. I would much rather meet and have conversations with individuals in person instead of "making friends" of twitter.  They also advocated using facebook and google plus. The pitch for google plus is that it is in its beginning phases and its something you can be a part of before it booms. It's something to think about, but I'm not convinced. However, apparently google has adopted hash-tags recently, so if you create a page for your blog and post a status update like " #pumpkin pie in the oven", people can search pumpkin pie and you will show up.

Finally, I don't want to stress about my blog being "perfect" in everyway. I want to have the freedom to ramble, to make mistakes, to talk about whatever my heart desires in whatever" blog voice" I feel like. It's like when you are in love with a certain subject and enjoy researching and reading about it until you take that class in college where they overanalyze it, subject it to scrutiny and dissect all your thought and opinions on the subject matter -- stressing you out so much over aiming for that " A" that your passion for the subject turns to disdain. I don't want that to happen. If changes occur, it'll be because I feel its right.

There was a "goodbye" bunch this morning in San Fran. Yesterday, the majority of bloggers I spoke to expressed hesitation and a blatant lack of enthusiasm for attending and I can't blame them. I myself chose to stay in Palo Alto and hang out with my friend rather than make the drive to SF for what was likely going to be another disappointing experience.

Plus, it's just food and honestly people ( not bragging, I swear) but my food would have been much more satisfying than the foods I had yesterday and last night.  If i can make the same meals with a better quality and a more satisfying flavor, then i'd rather do that than go have a "free" meal.....

_____UPDATE____

r

Thai Spiced Sweet Potato Fries by ALEXIA

 

Dill Tossed Fries by ALEXIA

Tyler Florence Cooking Demo

How do you like your greens?

Do you indulge in your favorite foods then compensate by taking a 2 oz shot of pure kale juice like this??

or do you prefer to cook your veggies and eat them as a meal??

Recently, I went to a japanese BBQ restaurant. What did I order? An order of spinach and the mushroom medley?

How do you "BBQ" these veggies you may ask? In foil, just as shown below ...

Using foil, create a pocket. Make sure to secure all ends by folded multiple times. Next, stuff the foil pocket with as much spinach as possible

Now add salt, pepper, 2 cloves of freshly sliced garlic and a pat of butter

Seal well

Now you can either place the above packet on a BBQ and grill on both sides for about 5 minutes each (Depending on the heat of your BBQ) or you can do as I did and set your toaster oven to 450F for 10 minutes.

The result? Fresh fragrant juicy spinach will all the vitamins and liquids retained. Sadly my copious spinach turned into barely a 1/4 cup of cooked spinach.  Next time = larger pocket, bigger oven, more spinach :)

Served along side : fries made of russet, and purple sweet potato; scrambled eggs with swiss and gruyere ( I ended up giving away all my fries to my youngest sister-- I enjoyed the eggs and spinach too much as is)

Tonight I'm spending the rest of the evening googling past Foodbuzz Festival blog posts by fellow bloggers because that's where I will be this weekend!

Pizza Please

Homemade pizza is a staple home made go to meal when you are in a rush but you still want to control what is going into your food, am I right?

I chose to make a 1/2 vegan, 1/2 vegetarian pizza.

I used Trader Joe's Pizza sauce but added fresh garlic and fresh basil maybe a little too much....; Trader Joe's whole wheat dough; mozzarella; red onion; mushrooms

Make sure you let the dough sit out for at least 1 hour to reach room temperature, if the dough is too cold it will be too elastic and wont spread out into the shape you want.

 This time around I put the basil inside the sauce instead of on top because it tends to dry up and lose flavor when it's just sitting on the cheese. But, the basil was too pungent this time around. Solution?? Leave the basil under the cheese, but sparingly used and placed on top of the sauce instead of spread all throughout it.

Preheat the oven to 450F and bake for about 15 minutes

Goodbye Juice Feasting, Hello Holidays

Well, I was able to juice fast for 5 days before the "need" for solid food took over. I'm not sure how other people do this for 30-60 days, but I think i makes a difference if you are living somewhere alone, focusing on the fast. I on the other hand was surrounded by people constantly eating and cooking.

Still i'm proud of my 5 days. Its a good start. I think I'm going to continue juicing on and off. I'm also going to make pure green juice shots and try to take that daily. IE: just 1-2 oz of kale juice.

One of my favorite and most palatable green juices was simply the juice of honeydew:

I broke my fast with something unconventional I think -- yogurt. I felt like my body was craving probiotics. Either way, I feel fine now. No crazy sicknesses or stomachaches. 

I'm slowly getting into the season with a trip to our local pumpkin patch where we picked up the following beauties: 

Mr. Scarecrow

Mrs. Scarecrow

Baby Pumpkin

Beautiful Indian Corn

Pumpkins of all types, colors and sizes

I love the deep orange color on these!

 I hope this put you in the holiday season too!!