Spicy Cabbage with Frozen Tofu

Ingredients:

• Half of a cabbage, cleaned & sliced to large chunks
• 1/2 of frozen tofu, defrosted
• 4 teaspoons of olive oil
• 2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried garlic
• 1 pinch ground cayenne pepper or 1 teaspoon chilli oil
• 2 teaspoons of soy sauce

Directions:

1. Defrost/thaw frozen tofu. Once its thawed, cut tofu into 1/2 inch thick slices. 
2. Wash and prepare cabbage, cut into large chunks.
3. In a frying pan, put tofu at the bottom of the pan then the cabbage. Drizzle with olive oil then cover the pan for 3 minutes.
4. Add salt, dried garlic crumbles, cayenne pepper or chilli oil, and soy sauce. Flip the tofu slices. Cook for 5 minutes or until cabbage is at desired tenderness. Serve!

Juiniang (Sweet Rice Wine Dessert)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups Glutinous rice
• 1 juiyao (chinese yeast for brewing rice wine) these comes in individual packets of round balls

Directions:

1. Cook the rice in the rice cooker, make sure not to use too much water. The water should just barely cover the layer of rice. 
2. Once the rice is done, transfer the cooked rice to a bowl. Flip it with a pair of chopsticks until the rice is completely cooled and room temperature. 
3. Using 1 chinese yeast ball, dilute the ball in warm water mixture and stir it until it is completely dissolved.
4. Mix the yeast water mixture with the rice and stir to mix it then transfer the mixture to a glass bowl. Sprinkle some dried osmanthus flower on top. 
5. Create a hole in the center of the rice mixture with a spoon. This will allow us to observe the fermentation progress.
6. Put the lid on the glass bowl and wrap the bowl with plastic food wrap tightly then wrap the bowl with a baby blanket. Place it in a warm area in your kitchen but away from sunlight. Let the wrapped bowl sit for 48 hours.
7. After 48 hours, you should see water in the hole from the fermentation process. It is now ready to serve!

Truffle Salmon

Ingredients:

• 2 salmon fillets
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• 4 teaspoons of truffle oil
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro
• 1/2 lemon, juiced

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
2. Place salmon fillets in foil paper. Season with garlic salt, garlic, and cayenne pepper. Rub truffle oil on both sides of the salmon fillets. 
3. Bake for 7-15 minutes depending on the fillets’ thickness. 

Lemon Bars

Crust:

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
¾ teaspoon vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Topping:

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
½ cup fresh lemon juice
2 to 3 tablespoons powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a heavy 8-inch square metal baking pan with foil.

2. Make the crust: In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter with the sugar, vanilla and salt. Add the flour and mix just until incorporated. Press the dough evenly over the bottom of the pan. Bake in the bottom third of the oven until the crust is well browned at the edges and golden brown in the center, about 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, make the topping: In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar and flour to mix. Whisk in the eggs until blended, then whisk in the lemon zest and juice.

4. Turn the oven down to 300°. Carefully slide the rack with the pan out and pour the filling onto the hot crust. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes longer, until the topping is puffed at the edge and no longer jiggles in the center. Transfer the pan to a rack and let cool completely then cut into bars/dust with powdered sugar.

Thai iced tea cake with condensed milk buttercream

Cupcakes:

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1/4 cup condensed milk
• 3/4 cup Thai iced tea mix (see note, below)
• 2 3/4 cups cake flour (unsifted)
• 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 16 Tbsp. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla
• One batch condensed milk buttercream, recipe below

1. Preheat oven to 350F. For cupcakes, grease and flour or line with paper liners 24 cups in muffin pans. For cakes, grease and flour two 8- or 9-inch round pans or one 9×13-inch rectangular pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

2. Whisk together the milk and 1/4 cup condensed milk in a medium pot. Heat over medium or medium-high heat until scalded – steaming with bubbles forming around the edge – stirring occasionally. Add the tea mix, remove from heat, cover, and let sit 10 minutes. Pour through a sieve, coffee filter, or tea screen to strain out the tea. Let the mixture cool to somewhere between room temperature, using the refrigerator or freezer to cool down quickly if necessary. 

3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.

4. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (4-6 minutes). Beat in the eggs one at a time, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next. Beat in the vanilla. Scrape down the beaters and the sides of the bowl as needed.

5. Reduce speed to low and beat in one-third of the flour mixture. As soon as the flour is almost incorporated, add half the milk mixture. Repeat with a second third of the flour mixture, the rest of the milk, then the rest of the flour, making sure not to overmix after each addition.

6. Use a rubber spatula to give the batter a final stir, scraping along the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure all lumps are incorporated and that there are no pockets of dry ingredients hiding in the batter.

7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s), filling cupcake cups about 3/4 full. Bake 20-30 minutes (shorter end for cupcakes and rounds, longer end for sheet cake), rotating pans halfway through baking. When done, the middle of the cake will spring back when lightly pressed with a fingertip and a toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake should come back with a few crumbs attached.

8. Let the cakes cool in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. For cupcakes, remove each one and let cool on wire racks until completely cool. For cakes, run a small, sharp knife around the edge to loosen the cake from the pan, then flip onto wire racks. Remove the parchment paper and flip upright. Let cool on wire racks until completely cool. Frost!

Condensed milk buttercream Frosting

• 2 cups (4 sticks) butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups condensed milk
• 1 2/3 cups powdered sugar, sifted or whisked to remove lumps
• 2 tsp. vanilla

1. Beat butter with an electric mixer until completely smooth, about 1-2 minutes. With the mixer on low, pour in the condensed milk. With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar in a few batches. Add vanilla. Beat until completely incorporated.