Foods for You

In many local Asian markets or shopping centers, you will most likely find tapioca drinks or some sort of bubble tea. One of the most well known drink is basil drink, and in Vietnamese it is known as Nuoc E. This drink is the simplest drink ever made and can be completed in less than thirty minutes. This drink uses basil seeds as well as wintermelon extract to give off the sweet taste of the wintermelon fruit. It combines assorts gelatin such as coconut gelatin cubes, green grass jelly, and lychee jelly. Not only this drink is sweetened by the usage of half and half milk.

Ingredients:

1 package of basil seeds
3-4 cups water
~1/2 cups sugar
~5 tablespoons wintermelon extract
2 jars of coconut gelatin cubes
1 can of green grass jelly
~1 jar of another jelly of your choice
Tapioca pearls (Optional)

Steps:

1. Boil the water and then pour the water into a big glass container. Add the basil seed in.

2. Add in the sugar. You can add more sugar to your preference of how sweet you like it.

3. Add in the wintermelon extract.

4. Cut up the green grass jelly into bite size pieces.

5. Add the green grass jelly, coconut gelatin cubes, and your choice of another jelly into the container with the basil.

6. In another saucepan, boil the water. When water comes to a boil, add the tapioca pearls. Turn off the stove after about 5-7 minutes when the tapioca pearls are chewy and soft.

7. To serve these drinks, pour into individual size glasses and add ice and some tapioca pearls. Pour the basil drink in. Then add half and half milk, until creamy as you like it. This is usually about 3 tablespoons.

Tips and Notes:

* You can use any other extract you like, such as strawberry or lychee.

* You can use other jellies or gelatin that you prefer.

I remembered every birthdays my family and I would celebrated, we would buy a birthday cake. We often order the cakes at a local bakery made with fresh fruits, and spread with a light and airy cream frosting. In the middle between the layers of the cake was the fruit filling and the cream frosting. The cream in between the cake made it so moist and soft, even after a few days. Yet this birthday was for a special person, so I decided to bake a cake myself. Instead of assembling the cake with a middle layer filled with fruits and cream, I placed the fruits and cream frosting all on the top.

Ingredients:

6 eggs separated
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoons vinegar
1 1/2 cups all purpose baking flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup oil
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Steps:

1. Seperate the eggs into egg whites and yolks.

2. Beat the egg whites starting out slowly. Add the salt, and gradually add in the 1/2 cup of sugar. Beat the egg whites until it forms a nice firm peak. A firm peak is when the ridges are firm and holds its shape on the mixer. ** Add in the vingear when a firm peak has not formed.

3. Beat the egg yolks and add in the 1/2 cup of sugar till light yellow.

4. Add in the oil, water, and vanilla to the egg yolk.

5. Fold in the flour and baking powder to the egg yolk. Then add the egg whites.

6. Grease a 9 inch diameter pan and pour the batter into the pan.

7. Bake at 350 F for about 25-30 minutes.

8. After it is done, let it cool to allow to frost the cake.

9. Mix the heavy whip cream and vanilla pudding mix. Beat until it forms a stiff peak. A stiff peak is when the mixture is thick enough to spread and holds itself firmly.

10. Make a simple syrup for the cake by heating a pan to combine the 1 tablespoon sugar and 2 tablespoon water.

11. With a spatula or brush, stroke the simple syrup throughout the cake so it stays moist.

12. Using a spatula, spread the cream frosting. Start with a big slab of cream in the middle and work your way outwards. Using a serrated knife, clean off any edges.




13. Decorate the cake with fruits in any fashion desired.

Tips and Notes:

* If you want to have a middle layer of fruits and cream frosting, cut the cake in half. Using a kitchen string tied around the cake and placing toothpicks at certain locations to cut. It is best to firmly hold the top layer, and use a serrated knife for this procedure. Add the cream frosting to the bottom layer, but leave about a 1/2 inch gap around the bottom gap so the cream won't squeeze after assembling the top layer. Add the fruits after spreading the cream. Place the top layer on and spread the cream frosting. Make sure to spread the sides so the layers stay.

* Use any fruits you desired. I used strawberries, raspberries, and kiwis. Others have used cantaloupe, honey dew, or clementine.

* It might be easier to spread the cake of you cut a thin layer of the crust cake on the top.

* On the sides of the cake, you can decorate with fresh fruits or sliced almonds to give the cake its crunchiness.

* It is not an easy task to beat egg whites. It is highly recommended to use a mixer to reduce any work.

Pad Thai is a traditional Thai noodle made from rice stick noodles, and is often served in many Thai restaurants. Pad Thai is a simple dish made with the simplest ingredients, in order to form the most exceptional dish. Pad Thai comes in many varieties: seafood, chicken, or vegetarian. This dish is known for its tangy taste from the tamarind sauce that gives this noodle its hall of fame. The tamarind is a special Southern Asian fruit that produces pod like fruits, where the fruits are often made into different culinary usages such as jam, ice cream, and even sauces.

Ingredients:

1 package rice noodles
1 lb shrimp
2 cups bean sprouts
2-3 eggs
1/2 cup of roasted peanuts
1 lemon sliced into wedges


Tamarind Sauce:
2 teaspoons tamarind paste
3 tablespoons fish sauce
3 teaspoons sugar
2/3 cup water

Steps:

1. Boil the water, and then add the rice noodles. Let the rice noodles soften in water for about 10-15minutes. Then drain the rice noodles with cold water, so that the cold water can shock the rice noodles.

2. Combine all of the sauces needed in the same bowl to make the tamarind sauce.

3. In a hot pan, add the oil and and stir in the garlic. When the garlic is aromatic, add the shrimps and stir fry until it is half way cooked.

4. Push the shrimps to the side, and crack the eggs to the side where it is empty. After a few seconds, break up the eggs up into many pieces. Continue to stir fry the shrimp and eggs.

5. Add in the noodles, and stir fry it. Then add the bean sprouts and chives.

6. Sprinkle with roasted peanuts and squeezed fresh lemon.

Tips and Notes:

* Instead of using shrimps, you can use chicken or tofu.

* At many local Asian markets, ready made tamarind sauce is sold. You can buy that instead to reduce the additional work.

* Some people use Sriracha sauce for extra spice

Ingredients:

1 lb. shrimp
1 shallot
1 bunch of green onion
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon  of black pepper

2 spoons of water
2 tablespoons of sugar

Steps:

1. Marinate the shrimp with the listed ingredients: shallots, green onion, fish sauce, and black pepper.

2 .In a saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Then add the sugar and stir until the color is caramel and the texture is sticky.

3. In another pan, wait till the pan is hot and add the oil. Then add the shrimps and fry it until it's half way cooked.

4 Once the shrimps are half way cooked, pour the caramel sauce into the pan and continue to stir fry until it's fully mixed.

Tips and Notes:

* This is best when served hot.

* It's optional to leave the shell and head on for the shrimps, but I peeled them off.

It's hard to blend something healthy like bananas into something sinful like chocolate, but this muffin makes everything exceptional. With the right amount of bananas to subtly add enriching flavors to the chocolate is unbelievable. I'm not always a fan of banana flavored foods, but this muffin had made me rethink about.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4-5 ripe bananas
1 egg
1 stick butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup milk
1 cup chocolate chips, additional for sprinkles

Steps:

1. Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt together until they are mix.

2. In a separate bowl, using a wooden spatula or a potato masher, mash the bananas until they are no more thick clumps.

3. Add the egg, butter, vanilla, and milk to the bananas and stir until well combined.

4. Add in the dry ingredients to the banana mixture, and stir.

5. Add the chocolate chips.

Ingredients:

1 1/9 cups butter
2 1/4 cups self rising flour
1 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs
2-3 cups durian pulps
1-2 tablespoons milk

Steps:

1. Mix the butter and the sugar until light and creamy

2. Stir in the eggs.

3. Fold in the flour. Mix well.

4. Add the durian pulps and mix well.

5. Pour into greased pan.

6. Bake at 350 F for 40-45 minutes.

Tips and Notes:

* This is the first time that I used self rising flour, and this flour is a simplified version of the combination all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. If you do not have any self rising flour, you can off course use all purpose flour and add about 1 teaspoon each of baking powder, baking soda, and salt. However, I highly recommend that no salt be added because this can cause the cake to be too salty. I did not really like the self rising flour because it made the cake a little salty.

* Durian: I like to put extra durian in my cake so that each bite has a piece of durian. However, if you don't like too much durian, but just enjoy the smell of durian, then you should just use 1/2 cup of durian.

* Rememeber to beat the eggs before adding it to the butter and sugar mixture if you do not have a mixture.

Cinnamon coffee cake is an ideal match when drinking coffee. The wonderful smell of the cinnamon sprinkled throughout the cake as you enjoy your nice cup of coffee makes life worth anything. This cake is not too sweet, but moist and sweet enough to pair with coffee or by itself. I love going to Starbucks, and when I order my strawberry frappicuno, I would also want to order some sort of coffee cake to eat while I'm enjoying my frap. Now you can have Starbucks in your very own home. All you need is the few ingredients to make this cake, and your cup of coffee.

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons powdered sugar ( Optional)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and greased pan with nonstick spray.

2. Mix together the butter and 2 CUPS of sugar until light and creamy.

3. Add one egg at a time. Then add the sour cream and vanilla to the butter mixture. Mix until well blended.

4. In another bowl, combine the baking flour, baking powder, and salt.

5. Add half of the dry ingredients ( flour mixture) to the butter mixture. Mix well until well blended. Then add the other half of the flour mixture. Mix well.

6. In a small bowl, combine the leftover 1/4 sugar, cinnamon, and brown sugar.

7. Pour half of the batter into the greased pan. Than sprinkled half of the cinnamon mixture. Pour the remaining batter mixture into the pan. Than pour the remaining cinnamon mixture into the pan.

8. Bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes, or until when insert a toothpick, it comes out clean.

Tips and Notes:

* Powdered Sugar is optional. This makes the cake taste a little sweeter.