NIAN GAO

"Nian Gao" (Year Cake) is a typical Cantonese-style (Southern China) New Year steamed cake. It is eaten as dessert and is often given as a gift.

It is used as an offering or "bribe" to the Kitchen God so that he would give a favorable report on the family's behaviour when returning to heaven. If the report is good, then the family will not suffer from bad luck during the year to come...

This requisite sticky rice fruit cake is absolutely delicious as it's sweet and delightful to please! "Nian Gao" has an addictive taste of rice and a unique texture that will drive you crazy. I really love it!

There are hundreds of varieties around, but I've chosen to give you Karen Lee's recipe which was adapted from "Chinese Cooking Secrets". As usual, I have added my own touch to the recipe...

Yields 2 small cakes or one medium cake

Ingredients:
140g Glutinous rice flour
2 Eggs, with whites and yolks separated (~50g)
63g Unsalted butter
110g Castor sugar
90ml Milk
1 Tsp Rum (optional)
100g Candied mixed fruits and peels, diced
1/2 Cup Walnuts, chopped

Method:
1. Grease a loaf pan that is approximately 4"x 8" (or two small pans) and set aside.
2. Beat the egg whites until stiff.
3. Cream together the butter and the sugar.
4. Add the egg yolks and mix thoroughly.
5. Add one-third (a little less than 1/2 cup) of the glutinous rice flour and mix.
6. Add about half of the milk.
7. Continue adding the rice flour and the milk alternately until the entire amount is mixed in.
8. Stir in whichever fruits you are using and the walnuts.
9. Then add the beaten egg whites, folding them into the cake batter.

9. Pour the cake batter into the loaf pan and steam, covered, for about one hour.
10. Allow to cool and cut into thin slices.

Remarks:
Regarding the fruits which are to be used, the Karen Lee suggests 1 cup Chinese dried fruits, pitted if necessary and diced (preserved seedless plums, preserved pears, or Chinese seeded red dates/jujubes).

Serving suggestions:
Eat this cake as a dessert or simply like you would do with any other cake...

(Guilin -Pic by http://bigwhiteguy.com)

MUUUUHHH!!!

Those pictures are used for Swiss milk (Federation of Swiss milk producers) commercials and they are pretty hilarious! I thought that you might like them...

Lovely is a strong cow and if you drink her milk, then you'll also be fit like her!...

(Lovely -Pics by www.swissmilk.ch)

XMAS HOLIDAYS PART I

The following pictures were taken during our Xmas holidays in Grisons.

We stayed in a small village called Felsberg and which is a few minutes away from Chur. That's where my boyfriend's parents live...

Looking in the direction of Domat-Ems...

A bench by the Rhein river on a cold gloomy day...

The countryside around the village of Felsberg...

Beautiful trees...

VALENTINE'S DAY MENU

Zorra of the very interesting "Kochtopf" has asked me to participate to her Valentine Cooking Round-up. As I'm always looking for a new challenge, I immediately started thinking about this event and how I could give a nice cosy touch to this special evening...

"What lies behind us, and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lie."- Ralph Waldo Emerson -

Since, you'd probably not want to spend hours in your kitchen in order to prepare that Valentine's Day meal, those recipes are exactly what you need!

So, here's my idea of a Valentine's Day with a full menu (apetizer, main course and dessert) to help you make your choices. It's an all Italian culinary feast which I hope you'll enjoy wether you are alone or with your loved one!

*****
APERITIVO (APPETIZERS)
Mozarella Cake With Herbs
Olives
Marinated Sun-Dried Tomatoes Antipasta

*****
SECONDO (MAIN COURSE)
Blueberry Pork Chops
Hot Italian-Style Tagliatelle

*****
DOLCI (DESSERT)
Sienese Panforte
Limoncello Or Vanilla Ice Cream

(Romance -Pic by www.love-poems.co.uk)
(The Kiss -Pic by Gustave Klimt www.archive.com)

BLUEBERRY PORK CHOPS WITH HOT TAGLIATELLE

Since I got "The Silver Spoon" for my birthday/Xmas, I thought that it would be a bad idea to try one recipe for you...

So, I chose to cook "Blueberry Pork Chops (Braciole Ai Mirtilli)" as this dish is very easy to prepare and seemed quite humble. I was eager to see what it would give... And as an accompaniment, I invented those hot Italian-style tagliatelle which are perfect when eaten with the pork chops as their sweetness contrasts with the spiciness of the pastas.

The meat is tender, the blueberry sauce is delicate yet very tasty and the pastas don't overpower the beautiful aromas of the meat and sauce, but rather enhances the whole dish with a round garlicky touch and a little aphrodisiac warmth confered by the chilli pepper...

Simply de-li-cious!!!

Serves 2

Ingredients:
3 Spare-rib chops
Plain white flour, for dusting
20g Unsalted butter
2 Tbs Olive oil
130ml Red wine
225g Blueberries
75g Clear honey
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste (optional)

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F).
2. Dust the chops with flour.
3. Heat the oil and the butter in a small flameproof frying pan.
4. Add the chops and cook, turning occasionally, until browned all over.
5. Pour in the red wine and cook until it has partly evaporated.
6. Season with salt (and pepper).
7. Pass the blueberries through a food mill and mix with the honey in a bowl.
8. Spread this mixture over the chops, then cover the pan.
9. Transfer to the oven and cook for 15 minutes.
10. Leave to stand for 10 minutes, then serve.

HOT ITALIAN-STYLE TAGLIATELLE

Serves 2

Ingredients:
200g Dry tagliatelle
40g Unsalted butter, creamed
1 Clove garlic, crushed
1 Medium red chilli, seeded and chopped
5 Tbs Fresh parsley, chopped
A handful dried boleti mushrooms, soaked in water and sliced
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Method:
1. Add the crushed garlic, red chilli, salt and pepper to the butter and mix well.
2. Cook the tagliatelle and drain.
3. Heat a frying pan.
4. Add the butter mixture and the mushrooms.
5. Fry over medium heat for about 1 minute.
6. Add the pastas and stir-fry gently for about 2 minutes, then add the parsley.
7. Mix well and serve.

Remarks:
Don't overfry the pastas; they should not be crispy nor dry; just like normal pastas should be (al dente).

Serving suggestions:
Eat the blueberry pork chops with the tagliatelle and a delicate winter salad (chicory, radicchio, romaine lettuce with walnuts, olive oil and dark balsamic vinegar). Serve with a Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon or a Médoc.

(Ponte Vecchio, Firenze -Pic by Renato Nasi www.trekearth.com)

SIENESE PANFORTE

"Panforte" is an Italian confection from Siena in Tuscany. It dates back to the 13th century and enjoys a wide popularity in Italy. Originally, it was baked for Christmas, but now we can eat or buy "panforte" all year long...

"Panforte" means "strong bread" in Italian and it's named so, because of it's spicy flavor. This delicacy is, in fact, a kind of cross between, candy, spice bread (Lebkuchen) and fruit cake. "Panforte" is a flat and dense round "cake" which is quite hard and chewy.

If you've never eaten that speciality, then you'd better get cooking very fastly as it's an absolute hammer! It is a bit similar in taste to Florentine cookies and is the ideal treat to end a good meal... DELIGHTFUL!!!

Recipe for a 22cm/8" round pan

Ingredients:
100g Toasted and hulled hazelnuts, coarsly chopped
100g Toasted blanched almonds, coarsly chopped
100g Candied lemon, finely chopped
100g Candied orange, finely chopped
50g Plain white flour
2 Tbs Unsweetened cocoa powder
2/3 Tsp Ground cinnamon
1 Tsp Spices for "spice bread"/Lebkuchen/pain d'épice*
100g Light runny honey
100g Castor sugar
Icing sugar to sprinkle over the top

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F).
2. In a bowl, thouroughly mix the hazelnuts, almonds candied lemon, candied orange, flour, cocoa, cinnamon and spices together.
3. In a pan, slowly heat the honey and sugar while continuously mixing, until the mixture slightly foams.
4. Remove straight away from the heat.
5. With a wooden spoon, incorporate to the ingredients in the bowl and knead slightly.
6. On the previously greased round pan, press the dough down with your fingers so that it is flat and in shape.
7. Bake for about 30 minutes.
8. Cool for a few minutes and remove from the pan, then finish cooling on a wire rack.
9. Sprinkle with icing sugar.

Remark:
Don't overbake, otherwise the panforte will be hard!
Keep the cake wrapped in cellophane for up to 2 weeks.

Serving suggestions:
Cut in thin slices and serve with a homemade (or not) limoncello or vanilla ice cream.

* If you can't find them, then use 1/3 Tsp ground cinnamon, 1/5 Tsp ground cloves, 1/5 Tsp ground nutmeg, 1/5 Tsp ground Coriander, 1/5 ground anise and a pinch ground allspice.

(Siena -Pic by Marek Lubiarz www.trekearth.com)
(Panforte -Pic by www.dolcimessagi.it)

QUICK NO-FAT APPLE CAKE

To start the week healthily and, as lately, I seems to buy more and more butter, I decided to bake a fat-free cake! Luckily, I also had a few apples which were looking a bit sad, so after a bit of googling, I found what I wanted: a "Quick No-Fat Apple Cake" recipe.

I was a bit sceptical about it as I wondered what kind of "pudding" or "omelet" it would give, but I was positively surprised by this cake as it was, without doubt, a REAL cake!!!

Since, it was prepared without any kind of fat, this cake was a bit more dense and elastic than your average rich butter cake, but it was very soft and fine. The apples and the spices gave a delicious aroma and the light molasses added a caramelly sweetness...

I recommend you to try it if you are fed up of continuously seeing the butter disappear from your fridge or if you are looking for an eatable diet treat...

I found the recipe on www.recipesource.com and operated of few changes for my own pleasure and yours, I hope...

Ingredients:
170-180g Plain white flour
1 1/2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Ground cinnamon
A pinch ground nutmeg
A pinch ground cloves
80-90g Castor sugar (depending on how sugary you like things)
1/3 Cup (~83ml) Skim milk (or normal milk)
2 Egg whites (~50g)
1/3 Cup Light molasses, light honey or corn syrup (I used "mélasse à tartiner")
2 Boscop apples, peeled, cored and cut in 1,5 cm wedges
Topping:
Ground cinamon, to taste
Light brown sugar, to taste

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and spices.
3. In a medium bowl, using a whisk, thouroughly mix the sugar, milk, egg whites and syrup/molasses/honey together.
4. Gradually stir into dry ingredients in order to form a smooth batter.
5. Add 2/3 of the cut apples in the batter and mix carefully.
6. Pour the batter into a rectangular cake tin and place the leftover apples on the top.
7. Sprinkle with sugar and ground cinnamon.
8. Bake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
9. Cool on a wire rack.

Remarks:
If you wish, you can also use brown sugar for the batter.
Don't beat the batter!

Serving suggestions:
Eat for breakfast or at any time of the day.
For those who are not observing a diet, spread butter on your slice of cake...

(Scale -Pic by www.scales-r-us.com)

EARLY MORNING

Seven in the morning. The French Salève mountain from our Kitchen and living room...

A few minutes later. Our village from our two front rooms...

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT....

This morning I found A WASP IN MY FRIDGE!!!

Let me explain...

Well, this morning, I was going to grease a cake tin, so I opened the fridge door and reached for the butter compartment where I stock my empty butter wraps and I nearly closed my hand on a…. wasp!!!

Since we are still enjoying frosty days, I was a bit flabbergasted and shocked. And, of course, the question which hasn’t stopped turning in my head and torturing me since that incident is: how on earth did it get into that fridge?!?!

Well, that is still a mystery to me, but there are sometimes strange things around us and Mother Nature beholds certain secrets we never get to understand or unravel!…..

(Wasp -Pic by www.calvin.utvinternet.com)

SUNNY VEYRIER

A nice sunny afternoon in Veyrier (view from my bedroom)...
At the back, you can see another mountain, it's the Jura which we also share with the French.