Christmas Cupcakes

Cupcakes are very nice and easy to do it!

Ingredients:

Vanilla Cupcakes:
1/2 cup(113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup (130 grams) granulated white sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
zest of 1 large lemon (optional)
1 1/2 cup (195 grams) all purpose floour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cuo (60 ml) milk

Buttercream Frosting:

2 cups (230 grams) confectioners sugar (icing or powdered sugar) , sifted
1/2 cup(113 graqms) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoon milk or light cream
assorted food colors (if desired)


Steps:
vanilla Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and lightly butter or line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

For the Cupcakes: Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and milk, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, frost with icing. If you want flat topped cupcakes then slice off the dome of each cupcake, with a sharp knife, before frosting. If you want to pipe the frosting, I like to use a large Wilton 1M closed star decorating tip.

For the Frosting: In an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter until smooth and well blended. Add the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the milk and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes). Add a little more milk or sugar, if needed. Tint the frosting with desired food color (I use the paste food coloring that is available at cake decorating stores and party stores).

Makes about 12 cupcakes.

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loves.
by houyan

hoho..gotta tell u guys.tis frosted blueberry banana soup is a very delicious and healthy treat to serve on a hot day.!.Blueberries also pack a powerful punch of good nutrition in a one-cup serving. They’re an excellent source of vitamin C and a good source of dietary fiber and manganese.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups blueberries, divided
1 ripe banana, roughly chopped
1 1/2 cups ice
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vanilla frozen yogurt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions:
In a blender, combine two cups of the blueberries, the banana, ice, milk, frozen yogurt, sugar and lemon juice; whirl until smooth. Into four soup bowls, pour soup, dividing equally. Scatter remaining 1/4 cup blueberries over soup. Top with small scoop of frozen yogurt, if desired. Serve immediately.

Serves: 4
Per serving: 131 calories, 3 grams protein, 28 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fat (1 gram saturated fat)

There is another blueberry orange soup.it's also a healthy soup!

Ingredients:
2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
3 cups orange juice
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon grated orange peel
Buttermilk or plain yogurt

Directions:
In a saucepan bring blueberries, orange juice, brown sugar and cinnamon to a boil; stir to combine. Dissolve cornstarch with water; gradually stir into blueberry mixture. Cook and stir until clear and lightly thickened. Add the orange peel. Pour into a bowl; refrigerate overnight. Serve with buttermilk swirled in or top with a dollop of yogurt. Garnish with blueberries and mint, if desired.

Serves: 4
Per serving: 132 calories, 2 grams protein, 31 grams carbohydrates, 0 grams fat (1 gram saturated fat)

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loves.
by houyan.

Wonton Mee Soup

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound boneless pork loin, coarsely chopped
• 2 ounces peeled shrimp, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped green onion
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger root
• 24 (3.5 inch square) wonton wrappers
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 1/8 cup finely chopped green onion

Steps:

1. In a large bowl, combine pork, shrimp, sugar, wine, soy sauce, 1 teaspoon chopped green onion and ginger. Blend well, and let stand for 25 to 30 minutes.
2. Place about one teaspoon of the filling at the center of each wonton skin. Moisten all 4 edges of wonton wrapper with water, then pull the top corner down to the bottom, folding the wrapper over the filling to make a triangle. Press edges firmly to make a seal. Bring left and right corners together above the filling. Overlap the tips of these corners, moisten with water and press together. Continue until all wrappers are used.
3. FOR SOUP: Bring the chicken stock to a rolling boil. Drop wontons in, and cook for 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped green onion, and serve.
4. Uncooked wontons will keep in freezer for a good 2 months if well wrapped. Thaw before frying, but they can be boiled straight from frozen and cooked 2 minutes longer.)

TO FRY: Heat 2 to 3 cups of oil in a wok until hot. Deep-fry wontons in batches until golden, 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Drain. Serve with dipping sauce or duck sauce, also called plum sauce.

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loves.
by houyan.

Kung Pao Chicken

	Ingredients: 3/4 lb. chicken, boned and skinned 2 tbsps. oyster sauce 2 1/2 tbsps. cooking oil 8 small dried red chilies 4 tsps. minced garlic 2 stalks celery, diced 1/2 red bell pepper, cut into 1−inch squares 1 can (8 oz.) bamboo shoots, sliced and drained 2 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon water 1 tsp. cornstarch 1/3 cup roasted peanuts

Sauce:

• 3 tbsps. Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1/4 cup Chinese black vinegar or balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 tbsps. hoisin sauce
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 2 tsps. chili garlic sauce
• 2 tsps. sugar

Steps:

1. Cut chicken into 1−inch pieces. Marinade chicken with oyster sauce in a bowl and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl.
3. Place a wok over high heat until hot. Add 2 tablespoons oil, swirling to coat sides. Add chilies and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 10 seconds.
4. Add chicken and stir fry for 2 minutes. Remove chicken and chilies from wok.
5. Add remaining 1/2 tablespoon oil to wok, swirling to coat sides. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add celery, bell pepper, and bamboo shoots; stir fry for 1 1/2 minutes.
6. Return chicken and chilies to wok; stir fry for 1 minute. Add sauce and bring to a boil. Add cornstarch solution and cook, stirring, until sauce boils and thickens. Add peanuts and stir to coat.

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loves.
by houyan.

Jiao Zi

The humble dumpling. In Western-style cuisine it is a simple staple, a source of carbohydrates and great comfort food. Done Chinese style, it is a work of culinary art. Jiao Zi (or Gow Gee, in the Mandarin dialect) is a concoction made of dough stuffed with meat and/or vegetables. It is often served as part of dim sum. Proper preparation takes a bit of time and effort. But the results, when done correctly, are well worth it.

Ingredients

Wrap:

4 cups white flour
1-1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp salt

You’ll want to acquire the correct type of Chinese flour, whether you use rice flour or wheat flour. Ordinary Western-style wheat flour has a very different consistency when prepared.

Chill the water to just above freezing and dissolve the salt into 2 cups of it. Blend thoroughly and add the extra 1/2 cup only if the dough isn’t completely wetted. Knead well and ensure that the result is firm. If needed, sprinkle in a bit more flour. Then chill the dough.

Filling:

1 lb lean ground meat
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp brandy
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp white pepper

Combine all the ingredients, then stir. Don’t overdo it in order to avoid making the meat mushy.

Bring out the chilled dough and separate a piece into two parts. Flatten each section until they’re about 1/8 inch thick. Layer the meat mixture onto one then cover with the other. Crimp the edges until the result looks something like a white fortune cookie crumpled around the rim. Repeat until you’ve used up all the dough and meat.

The raw dumpling can be boiled or fried, as desired.

To boil, use a pot large enough to cover the dumplings with a couple of inches of water. Bring the water to a boil, then layer the Jiao Zi along the bottom of the pot. Stir gently to prevent them sticking together. Continue heating until the mixture boils again. Add a cup of cold water and allow to come to a boil again, then remove from heat.

To fry, simply line a wok with a layer of sesame oil and bring to a high heat. Then toss in the dumplings. Remember that woks cook very quickly. You’ll need to keep the dumplings moving in order to get them evenly cooked on both sides. It’s particularly important to ensure that the meat inside is well done.

enjoy it.
loves.
by houyan.

Banana bread is a sweet-tasting bread which is cooked into loaves made from mashed bananas. It is a quick bread that utilizes baking soda to help it rise or acts a leavening agent for the bread. Many cooks like to make variations in their banana bread recipe by adding nuts or raisins or other ingredients. It is a simple recipe that does not need complex ingredients and does not even need an electric beater if you do not have one.

Banana bread was popularized in mid 1900’s when baking soda was also popularized. In some Asian countries, banana bread is a regular food and can also be served as an alternative to white bread.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter for shortening
5 over-ripe bananas, mashed well
2 ½ cups sugar
4 eggs
¾ cup buttermilk
3 cups flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla

For this banana bread recipe, combine shortening, bananas and sugar. Slowly add eggs, one at a time and beat well. Sift baking soda, flour and salt together. Alternately add the other dry ingredients along with the buttermilk to the batter mixture. Add the vanilla and nuts and mix the banana bread recipe mixture well.

You will need two greased loaf pans for the entire banana bread recipe mixture. Do not fill to the top since the banana bread recipe will rise, you might like to give at least an inch space from the rim of the loaf pans. Bake the mixture for seventy to eighty minutes at 325 degrees or until a toothpick comes out clean from the bread.

This banana bread recipe does not call for any complicated procedure to make it and it taste great as well. Children love the sweet taste and so do adults. It can also keep for several days which make it worth cooking. It is also a great way of making use of overripe bananas that almost everybody hates to eat.

Banana bread is also a nutritious alternative to white bread and can also be made with wheat bread or whole grain. There are many variations to the traditional banana bread but the more effective banana bread recipe calls for overripe bananas. If you do not use overripe bananas, the tendency is that the top of the banana bread loaf will remain moist and you will have a hard time distinguishing if it is already done or not.

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loves.
by houyan

Chocolate Cookies

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C) and place the rack in the center of the oven. Have ready a 9 x 9 inch (23 x 23 cm) square baking pan that has been lined with aluminum foil across the bottom and up two opposite sides of the pan. Set aside.

In a stainless steel (heatproof) bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar and vanilla extract. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (with a wooden spoon) after each addition. Stir in the flour and salt and beat, with a wooden spoon, until the batter is smooth and glossy and comes away from the sides of the pan (about one minute). Remove 1/2 cup of the brownie batter and set aside. Place the remainder of the brownie batter evenly into the prepared pan.

Then in the bowl of your food processor (or with a hand mixer), process the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla, and egg and process until creamy and smooth. Spread the cream cheese filling over the brownie layer. Spoon small dollops of the reserved brownie batter evenly on top of the cream cheese filling. Then with a table knife or wooden skewer, swirl the two batters without mixing them.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes or until the brownies start to pull away from the sides of the pan and the edges of the brownies are just beginning to brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Refrigerate the brownies until they are firm enough to cut into squares (at least two hours). Once chilled, remove the brownies from the pan by lifting with the ends of the foil and transfer to a cutting board. With a sharp knife, cut into 16 squares. It is a good idea to have a damp cloth nearby to wipe your knife between cuts. These brownies can be stored in the refrigerator for several days.

Makes about 16 - 2 inch squares.

Ingredients:

Brownie Layer:

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

4 ounces (114 grams) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 1/4 cups (250 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1/2 cup (70 grams) all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

Cream Cheese Layer:

8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, at room temperature

1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 large egg

Source:

Medrich, Alice. 'Cookies and Brownies'. Warner Books, Inc. New York: 1999.

enjoy it.
loves.
by houyan