My Favorite Meal (As of recently...)

Once I get hooked onto something... I really get hooked. See this meal. I swear I was eating that meal for months! Since I usually cook for myself, I usually have to end up eating leftovers until it's all gone, but for this combo, I find myself cooking it over and over again and never getting bored of it.

Really, it's the simplest components that could be enjoyed separately, but I just love them together. First, it starts off with a simple but incredibly tasty rice pilaf. I make it all of the time and the fact that I can just put all of the ingredients into a rice cooker and walk away is magic; pure magic. Next, comes the fattoush salad dressed in a simple greek dressing. It's all of my favorite veggies in a dressing that keeps everything fresh and light. If I want, I sauté some spinach with some olive oil and garlic, set it all on a plate and sprinkle with some French feta. And yes, French feta is completely different than Greek feta, and much more tasty - in my opinion!

The picture above is how I normally enjoy all of this stuff but honestly, these are simple recipes for you to use with your own discretion. The rice pilaf is excellent under kabobs and the fattoush is awesome on top some lettuce! Let me know how you like to use these recipes :)

Simple Fattoush Salad

Yields: 4  servings

For the salad:

3 roma tomatoes, seeded and cubed

1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cubed

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced

3 green onions, sliced

3 tbsn. chopped fresh mint

For the dressing*:

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp. seasoned salt (such as Lawry's)

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. lemon pepper

1 tsp. black pepper

1/2 tsp. granulated garlic

1 tsp. dried mint

To make the dressing, combine all of the ingredients in a small jar. Seal the jar, then shake vigorously until combined and slightly emulsified, set aside. Toss all of the salad ingredients together in a large bowl. *The dressing makes much more than needed for the fatuous, but is excellent on almost everything, so save for future use. Use just enough dressing to coat the veggies. Set aside to marinade in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. 

Sometimes I like to enjoy the fattoush as a mid-day snack - I love it so!

Classic Rice Pilaf

Yields: 6 - 8 servings

1/2 cup fideo noodles

3 tbsn. unsalted butter, melted

1 cup jasmine rice

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

2 cups water*

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spread the fideo noodles out on a baking sheet and toast until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Make sure to check after 3 minutes just in case your oven is super hot; set aside. In a rice cooker, combine the rice, toasted fideo noodles, butter, spices and water. Cook under the 'white rice' setting. After done, fluff with a fork and enjoy!

*You could use low-sodium chicken stock as an alternative!

Mint Lemon Drops

Gosh, I just don't know what's up with me! I just haven't been in the mood to blog much lately, and cook/ bake really either. I mean of course, I've been cooking and baking, but mainly out of necessity and even then, I haven't had the chance to photograph any of it - for months! Hopefully I'll be out of my slump soon, but until then, I have a couple backlogged posts that will be showing up.

To me, mint and lemon is the perfect summer combination and whether its summer or not, this cocktail is so simple that it's the perfect porch sipper. It's January for peet sakes and we've been having uncomfortable warm weather - uncomfortable mainly for me because I'm longing for a cold, rainy winter  where I can don scarves and boots. But might as well make the best of it with something like this to sip on!

Mint Lemon Drops

Yields: 1 serving

2 shots vodka

1 large lemon, juiced

1 tbsn. sugar

1 bunch of mint leaves, roughly chopped, plus extra for serving

lemon wheels or twists, for serving

In a shaker filled with ice, add the vodka, lemon juice, sugar and mint. Shake vigorously for about 1 - 2 minutes until very cold and combined. Strain into a martini glass. Top off with a lemon wheel, twist or fresh mint. You can also sugar the rim, if desired. 

Com Ga/ Vietnamese Chicken with Mint Rice

Vietnamese Com Ga is probably one of the simplest, homeliest meals of our culture. Simple as it is, it's still one of my favorite meals.

I love how simple everything is, yet there's so much flavor, and the chicken really shines through. That's why it's super important to use free-range chicken in this recipe, because since the chicken is your main ingredient, you really want to use the best quality available. What makes the meal spectacular though, I feel, is the ginger fish sauce! It's sweet, tangy, salty and sooo delicious. Actually almost any kind of fish sauce makes me happy! The mint, cucumbers and marinated onions add great freshness to the dish as well.

The soup is optional but if you've never had fresh chicken stock before, please try this! With the leftover stock, you simply add some fish sauce to season it, then some fresh "Gai Xanh." I'm not sure what the English name of this is but it's similar to bok choy, so you can also substitute that. The broth is just so rich with flavor, it's incredible. I love this meal especially because though it's super healthy, you feel so satisfied after eating it.

Com Ga/ Vietnamese Chicken with Mint Rice

Yields: 4 servings

1 small, whole, free-range chicken

2 cups rice

4 cups chicken stock (reserved from cooking the chicken)

1 cup mint leaves, julienned

1/2 large white onion, sliced

1/4 cup white vinegar

1 1/2 tsp. black pepper

3 persian cucumbers, washed and sliced

nuoc mam gung, for serving (recipe below)

For the soup:

gai xanh or vietnamese bok choy (regular bok choy is fine too), roughly chopped

fish sauce, to taste

black pepper, to taste

In a large pot, place the chicken (whole) inside. Fill the pot with enough water to almost cover the chicken. Heat over medium-high heat until the water is boiling, then reduce heat to medium to allow the water to simmer and the chicken to cook, about 12 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the chicken to rest and the water to cool down. Once cool enough to handle, remove the chicken from the stock, but DO NOT discard the water. Cut the chicken into small pieces, for easier eating.

In the meantime, put the rice in a large bowl with a few cups of water. Gently swirl your fingers in the bowl to allow the starch to separate from the grains. Once the water becomes white, drain and repeat this process twice more. With each time, the water will get less cloudy. The idea is not to get rid of all the starch, just enough so that the rice will not be too sticky or too dry when cooked. Put the rice in a sieve and drain until the rice is fairly dry. In a rice cooker, combine the rice with 4 cups of chicken stock and cook according to your machine's setting (alternatively, you can also cook this on the stovetop). Right before serving, stir in the mint. You do not want to do this ahead of time because the mint will turn brown.

With the remaining broth, you can either save it for future use or make soup. To make the soup, re-heat the remaining broth over medium heat until just boiling. Add fish sauce, to taste. Add the gai xanh/ Vietnamese bok choy until just wilted. Turn off the heat. Enjoy sprinkled with some black pepper, alongside your Com Ga.

In a medium bowl, combine the onions, vinegar and black pepper. Let sit for at least 5 minutes to allow the vinegar to soften and marinate the onions. To serve, place some rice on a plate. Top with some marinated onions, cucumbers, pieces of chicken and a drizzle of the nuoc mam guon. Enjoy!

Gai Xanh/ Vietnamese Boy Choy:

The ginger-fish sauce concoction & the marinated onions:

Nuoc Mam Gung/ Vietnamese Ginger Fish Sauce

2 - 3 limes, juiced

2 tbsn. fish sauce

2 tbsn. sugar, to taste

2-inch piece of ginger, finely minced

1 red chili, finely diced (optional)

Combine everything until well mixed and the sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Peach Cobbler Bars, Mango Mojitos & A Farewell to Summer

I love summer, but I love fall & winter more! There's something about cold weather, scarves, boots and mittens that make me so incredibly happy. I seriously cannot wait for all things hot chocolate, pumpkin and spiced! Fortunately though, even though summer is incredibly hot and sticky, it provides us with the most luscious fruits of the year: the juicy peach and the perfect mango, two of my favorites! Fruit desserts have always been one of my favorites because their freshness cuts into the sweetness, since I like my desserts not overly sweet.

These bars taught me something important: not all bars have to be super sweet or crispy/ chewy. I'd always had a certain vision of what bars are supposed to be and these are the total opposite! They're cake-y, subtly sweet, delicate and quite possibly the best farewell to summer I could have asked for.

Peach Cobbler Bars

Yields: about 20 bars

Original recipe here.

For the bars:

1 cup unsalted butter, room temp

2 cups sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. almond extract

4 eggs

3 cups flour

3/4 pinch tsp. salt

For the filling:

6 - 8 peaches, peeled and thinly sliced

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

For the glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tbsn. cream

1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a large cookie sheet, set aside. Cream together the butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time making sure well incorporated after each addition. Add in vanilla and almond extracts. Slowly add flour and salt and mix until incorporated. Spread 3/4 of the mixture into the prepared pan. Mix peaches, brown sugar and cinnamon together then evenly distribute over the batter. Drop the rest of the batter by tablespoons over the peaches and bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until edges start to turn brown. Whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla and cream and drizzle half of the mixture over the warm bars. Allow to cool, cut into 3 inch squares and drizzle over the remaining glaze.

Mojitos are one of my favorite mixed drinks on this earth. Most often, I'd prefer a beer or a glass of wine rather than a mixed drink but Mojitos are just always, always sublime. The mix of lime and mint is perfection and so refreshing on a hot summer day!

Add mango, and you've got perfection x 100! Mango is my favorite fruit ever and when you use a perfectly ripe, summer mango in this recipe, it's flavor is just heightened to infinity. Please enjoy this on your last summer day!

Mango Mojitos

Yields: 4 servings

Original recipe here.

several mint leaves

6 oz. rum (I used mango rum)

2 cups club soda

4 oz. simple syrup

4 oz. fresh mango puree

Muddle the mint with a muddler or the bottom of a wooden spoon. Mix all the ingredients together, then serve over ice. Enjoy!

Giada's Fruit Spring Rolls

I used to be infatuated with the Food Network Channel, so much so that it became part of my daily routine. I probably owe to it a big portion of my love of cooking and food. Recently though, my food inspiration has solely come from food blogs. On a nice and relaxing day, I decided to tune into the Food Network once more, for old times sake.

One of my favorite Food Network chef's is Giada de Laurentiis. She's absolutely gorgeous and makes some yummy, yummy food. One of my favorite cupcakes is actually from her! Well, I saw her make this fruit spring roll and I was shocked to say the least! I'm Vietnamese and we do NOT make dessert spring rolls, but if Giada gives it her seal, I'd at least give it a shot.
These were definitely easy and pretty to look at! All those colors make me happy. Tasting it you ask? It was odd. But don't scratch it off your list immediately. The flavors were spot on. The mint and the honey with the fruit, how could you go wrong? I especially loved the lime dipping sauce, which added a subtle zing to the sweetness. I was just surprised by the sweet noodles.

But to be fair, if I has used the Pad Thai noodles it might have tasted better since it has more structure than the vermicelli that I used. Next time, I might just toss all the fruit in the dressing and have at it! I literally love that mint-lime dressing.

Fruit Spring Rolls

Yields: 4 - 6 servings

Original recipe can be found here.

For the rolls:

1 1/2 cups cooked Pad Thai noodles, cooled and drained (I used rice noodles)

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup packed mint leaves, finely chopped

6 rice paper rounds

6 medium strawberries, stemmed and sliced

1 mango, halved, peeled, seeded and cut into slices

6 tbsn. sliced almonds, toasted

For the dipping sauce:

1/4 cup packed mint leaves, finely chopped

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup fresh lime juice, 2 - 3 limes

For the rolls, put the noodles in a medium bowl and add the honey and mint. Using 2 forks, toss the ingredients together until the noodles are coated. Dip the rice paper in hot water until thoroughly wet, remove and flatten out on a clean surface. Add some noodles, 3 - 5 strawberry slices, 2 mango slices, and some toasted almonds. Roll the rice paper around the filling like a burrito; first rolling the top over, tucking in the sides, then completing the roll. Repeat with remaining ingredients.

For the dipping sauce, in a small bowl combine the mint, honey and lime juice. Pour into a serving bowl. Serve with the rolls and enjoy!

Mint Chocolate Puddles

I'm not a cookie baker. I like to bake everything else, and hey, I'll even try a yeasted thing every now and then but cookies? Not my forte. Why you may ask? I don't really know but for me, cookies are way too easy to ruin. They can burn within a second, the textures are harder to get right, they're just a tough cookie (no pun intended, ok maybe a little)!

I only have two cookies that I really love and can actually do well, which are these and these. But in the spirit of the holidays, cookies are just about the best thing to give and I figured I should give them another chance; I mean if not at Christmastime? Then when else (Did you notice the reference to Love Actually!) ?

Anyways, I've seen these cookies for a while and they've always been on my 'to do' list and I finally decided to give them a try. And guess what? I wasn't disappointed! These guys cook up pretty fast, so I over-baked a few, but just make sure to pull them out when they look puffy and fragile because once they cool down, they'll be firm enough. AND make sure to refrigerate them as per directions. I got a little impatient and baked them anyways and I think that was the reason for my flat cookies. BUT they were delicious nonetheless. Super chocolate-y, rich but not too rich and of course, loved the mint! Perfect when warm with a cup of milk!

Chocolate Mint Puddle Cookies

Yields: 35 - 40 cookies

Original Recipe can be found here.

Printable Recipe

12 tbsn. butter

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 tbsn. water

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

2 eggs

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3 packages (4.5 oz.) Andes mints

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the sugar, butter and water, stirring occasionally until melted. Remove from heat, stir in chocolate chips until melted, set aside to cool for 10 minutes. Pour chocolate mixture into a large bowl and beat in eggs, one at a time. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir into the chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease cookie sheets. Roll cookie dough into walnut sized calls and place 2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, be careful not to over bake. When cookies come out of oven, press one mint into the top of each cookie, let sit for 1 minute, then after softened, swirl with the back of a spoon to make a patter with the green filling of the mint wafer.

Close up!

Happy holidays everyone!

Mint Chocolate Hi-Hat Cupcakes

Hi Hats! I've been wanting to make these for a while, they just were never meant to be... until now! They are just wonderous to look at, for a while at least.... after an hour or so of looking at them they started to resemble poop... which is not in the least bit appetizing, but I'm sorry for discouraging you because these in no way taste like poop... I assure you that much! I don't usually bake at night as I like daylight for the best photos but there's something about these night shots that are magical; I just adore the bokeh! Or maybe it's the magic of the hi-hat as well...

These cupcakes were gooey mint-chocolate-y deliciousness. I wanted to try something a little different than the traditional hi-hat so I decided to go with chocolate mint, using my favorite stumbled upon recipe. I heard some mixed views on Martha's recipe, so I went with this one, using a meringue frosting instead. I was so proud of them and how pretty the mountains were, but alas they were too pretty for their own good and as fate would have it they got crushed while I was transporting them.... aww shucks!

First, you bake your cupcakes and let them cool:

Then you make your frosting, kind of tricky...

Then you coil that frosting up to the heavens high (and enjoy the nice bokeh in the back too)!

Then you finish the rest off, and let them chill in the refrigerator:

Then, melt your chocolate coating:

Until it's nice and smooth:

And so the dipping commences (and more enjoyment of bokeh as well):

Mint Chocolate Hi-Hat Cupcakes

Yields: 24 cupcakes

Slightly adapted from The Barmy Baker; recipe can be found here.

Mint Chocolate cupcake recipe here.

(But you can use any cake you'd like!)

For the frosting:

4 large egg whites

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

3/4 tsp. cream of tartar

For the chocolate coating:

2 cup semi-sweet chocolate

2 tbsn. vegetable oil

Cook the cupcakes and let them cool completely. For the frosting, place the egg whites in a bowl of an electric mixer. In a heavy-bottomed sauce pot, combine the water, sugar and cream of tartar and bring to 215 F. Next, start to whip the egg whites until they form stable peaks. Continue heating the sugar mixture to a final temperature of 283 F. Once the peaks are firm, whip on high while adding the hot sugar mixture (VERY carefully)! Then add the vanilla and continue to whip until the whites are at room temperature. Once cool, pipe onto the cupcakes and refrigerate while you are making the coating. To make the coating, combine the chocolate and oil in a double boiler until melted and smooth. Dip the frosting into the chocolate mixture until well coated, using a spoon to pour on top if needed. Allow the excess to drip off and place them on a rack lined with foil/ parchment paper to catch the extra drips. Refrigerate until hardened and set-up. Enjoy!

Chocolate Mint Cupcakes

Girl scout cookies. Really... that's all I need to say to get your mouth salivating and your heart fluttering isn't it? Since finals have been over, I've been dying to make Baking Bites' thin mint and samoa copycats, but honestly after a week of no sleep and being on the verge of death, those were a little too much for me too handle. I thought I'd meet in the middle and make thin mint style cupcakes instead, but I've honestly seen 3 - 5 different versions and I couldn't decide which one to use, so I set up a little experiment:

Specimen #1: Chopped Andes Mints

These came out super, super moist, almost like a chocolate lava cake. It had sufficient mint flavor and was my favorite of the three.

Specimen #2: Chopped Thin Mints

Surprisingly moist, since I thought the crushed cookies might make the cake a little dry, but it didn't have enough mint flavor for me. The crushed cookies did add nice texture though.

Specimen #3: Mint Extract

Definitely minty but still not enough for me. It was kind of just 'blah' if you know what I mean, it was whatevers, I could live without it. 

Final Decision: The one with the chopped Andes mints was definitely the best, it was an out of this world moist but not minty enough for me. None of the cakes were minty enough for me actually. In the end, I decided that if I wanted the gold, I would definitely have to be gutsy, so I added mostly chopped Andes, some chopped thin mints AND mint extract to the final cupcake batter. A little overboard you say?!?! I say NOT! Delicious! The most moist cake you will ever meet and so full of fresh minty flavor. I used Simply Recipes' cream cheese mint frosting which perfectly balanced out these cupcakes with its bit of tang. It was just sweet enough but not overly so.

Chocolate Mint Cupcakes

Yields: 24 Cupcakes

Printable Recipe

1 box of Chocolate Devil's food cake or 1 recipe of Devil's food cake

1 box of Andes mints

1/4 sleeve of Thin Mints or Keebler Fudge Shop Grasshopper Cookies (5 cookies)

 1/4 tsp mint extract

Make cake batter according to the directions. Chops the Andes mints and thin mints finely, add to the batter. Add the extract and mix well. Divide the batter among a cupcake pan lined with cupcakes liners. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely, then frost.

Mint Cream Cheese frosting

Original recipe can be found here. 

4 oz. or half a package of cream cheese, at room temperature

4 tbsn. butter, at room temperature

1/4 tsp. of mint extract

1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar

1 - 2 drops of green food coloring

Using an electric mixer, whip the butter and cream cheese together until smooth and creamy. Add the mint extract, then the powdered sugar, 1/2 a cup at a time until well combined. Add the food coloring to your color preference. Frost your cooled cupcakes and enjoy!