Archive for August, 2008

Choux Whore

Posted by Candace on Sunday, August 31st, 2008

I love choux (pronounced shoe, for those that are confused.) Its a fascinating thing… you cook it on the stove first and then bake it. When it bakes, it magically puffs and becomes hollow. Then you fill the hollow pastry with whatever your heart desires. Make them sweet by filling with whipped cream, pastry cream or even ice cream… or make them savory with a cheese filling. You can even deep fry the dough to make beignets or churros. What’s not to like? Choux is insanely versatile and a delicious vehicle for your favorite filling.

When I saw that Meeta and Tony chose eclairs for our Daring Baker Challenge this month, I was elated! If you can’t tell from my ode to choux above, its one of my favorite things to make/eat. The versatility of this pastry is what makes it so fabulous. The recipe came from Chocolate Desserts By Pierre Hermé. This recipe is over the top decadent, with a rich, dark chocolate pastry cream and dark chocolate glaze.

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August 31st, 2008 by Candace / Filed under Bakery, Daring Bakers, Sweet Tooth / 31 Critiques

Flied Lice and Happy Blogday to Me!

Posted by Candace on Tuesday, August 26th, 2008

Unlike the dentist on Seinfeld who converted to Judiasm in order to make off-color Jewish jokes, I really am Japanese, so its OK that I joke about my Asian peeps…. right?  This leads to a funny story about Asian accents. Many many years ago, my stepfather, Rex worked at Lucy Ho’s, a small restaurant in Tallahassee, FL. Every day when my stepdad would come in, the cook would call out… Herrrrro Lex. I always wondered if he actually tried to say “Herro Lex” if it would come out Hello Rex? Anyone else wonder? I know my mom (who is Japanese, and still has a very thick accent) will laugh at this… you KNOW its funny! Love you mom! :P

Today’s post is a milestone for me… exactly one year blogging!  I’m so happy I let Stephan talk me into food blogging because its become a wonderful hobby for me.  I’ve “met” so many fellow bloggers, and truly enjoy being a part of the whole food bloggin’ thang.  Even better… I now have very organized recipes and have actually looked back when making certain dishes that I really like.  I honestly started this blog to be easy quick dinners, but know I’ve veered a bit from it with desserts.  I just can’t help it. I love to bake… I love desserts in general.  But today’s post of fried rice is going back to my original game plan of easy dinners.  If you’re planning on making rice as a side dish one night, just double (or triple) the amount you make and refrigerate the leftovers.  The next day, in less than 30 minutes, you can have yummy fried rice.

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August 26th, 2008 by Candace / Filed under Asian, Dinner / 21 Critiques

Olive You…

Posted by Candace on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008

Stephan and I are big fans of olives. We eat them in salads, in pasta dishes, standing in front of the open refrigerator with a fork and the jar… it doesn’t matter. We love em. A couple months ago, I received a fabulous sampler of olives and other goodies from AJ Gourmet. They are truly some of the best olives I’ve ever eaten, and come with a variety of stuffings. We have agreed that the Parma Cheese Stuffed is both of our favorites. The Orange Stuffed would be my close 2nd favorite. I just ordered a 6-pack of olives… they are that good.

I’ve been wanting to blog about the olives, but I wasn’t sure you all wanted to hear how good it is to eat these directly out of the jar. So I was eyeing the last jar of olives, and decided to bake an olive bread with them. I used a combination of Calamata and Habanero Pepper Stuffed olives, and the outcome was fabulous. The habaneros made it nice and spicy without being overpowering. Very good stuff. The only thing I wish I did was make sure the olives were dry before stuffing it into the bread. The extra moisture and olive oil made the bread separate a little in some places, but it was still tasty.
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August 20th, 2008 by Candace / Filed under Bakery, Product Review / 13 Critiques

Whip it Good

Posted by Candace on Monday, August 18th, 2008

Every time I whip cream to garnish a dessert, I always tend to make about 10 times what I need. When I see the ridiculous amount in the bowl, I say to myself: Self… don’t use so much cream next time! Then the next time comes, and I do the same thing again… DOH! When am I going to learn? I hate to waste food, so I usually put the extra cream in my coffee for the next few days, or will cut up berries and add a dollop (or two, or three or four).

This time, while making Napoleons, I really overdid the amount of cream, and had to get creative to use it up. So I decide to make Semifreddo. Semifreddo means semi-frozen. Its very similar to ice cream, but you don’t need an ice cream maker. Its painfully easy, just a little whipping, mixing, folding and in about 10 minutes, you’re done. One note: If you’re one of those “scared of raw eggs” types… you’re not gonna like this recipe!
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August 18th, 2008 by Candace / Filed under Sweet Tooth / 25 Critiques

Now We’re Cookin’ for Real

Posted by Candace on Wednesday, August 13th, 2008

This past weekend we finally finished the kitchen. Its been quite a trying time. During this period, our air conditioner has leaked repeatedly, and even worse… our internet was on and off (mostly off.) At this stage in my life, I don’t know how to live without the internet… especially with all the spare time I’ve had because I haven’t been cooking and blogging. Do you know how many times I’ve desperately needed to Google something? Comcast is now and will remain #1 on my shit list. They hire trained monkeys to answer the phones… yes… poo flinging monkeys.

So then, after my kitchen was FINALLY finished, my pooch Sushi got very sick.  I spent countless hours in the emergency veterinarian’s office this past weekend.  After about $500 spent, we find out that she’s having extreme muscle spasms.  All she needed was a muscle relaxer, nice relaxing massage and acupuncture… I declined the aromatherapy and salt scrub, because she just wouldn’t appreciate it as much.  You know… she is a dog after all!

OK… I’ll stop blathering on about my recent woes and get on to the real reason for this post… my new kitchen. I am incredibly happy with my new kitchen. It’s beyond fabulous and everything I was hoping it would be. I did tons of research online before choosing all the items for my kitchen, and felt I got fantastic deals on everything. I’m a major sale shopper/deal lover. 


As you can see, we kept the basic layout of the old kitchen, except removed the old-school bar and did a much larger one level counter height island.  Another thing we replaced was the small double sink with one extra large deep sink.  I could almost bathe in this bad boy…  Surprisingly, the sink is one of my favorite features of my new kitchen.  Ok, that and the quiet dishwasher… and the gorgeous granite… and the fab faucet… and the sassy backsplash… OK… I love it all.  Its ALL my favorite.  :D

If you’re looking to remodel your kitchen any time soon, let me know and I’d love to share some tips with you. Also, we are very very happy with the installers. Dimas and Roberto were very reasonably priced and did a fantastic job. Email me if you would like their contact information. I’m so excited to be back to my regularly scheduled blogging this week!

Check it out and let me know what you think!  For more photos, check out Stephan’s Blog…

August 13th, 2008 by Candace / Filed under Kitchen Gossip / 34 Critiques