Mini Egg Tarts (迷你蛋撻)--Hong Kong Bakery Style

Before we start our regular post, I just want to take a moment of silence with you to remember those who are affected and have lost their home, family, loved ones, or their lives in the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan.  My heart goes out to the victims.  Let us all lend our hands to those who are in need, in whatever way we could.
        

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Egg tarts (蛋撻) or egg custard tarts are baked pastries commonly found in Hong Kong and many other Asian countries, which consist of an outer pastry crusts that are filled with egg custard.  Egg tarts (蛋撻) were introduced in Hong Kong in the 1940s by Chinese tea diners (茶餐廳), one of my favorite place to go after school, with my classmates, to enjoy an afternoon tea. The egg tarts were then introduced in western cafes, bakeries and even dim sum restaurants.  Nowadays, there are many variations of these egg tarts, but the traditional ones are the most popular, still.  Hong Hong egg tarts have two main type of crusts, they are the “cookie” crusts and puff pastry crusts.  Some high-end pastry shops even top these egg tarts with bird’s nest (a delicacy made from the salivary excretions of the swiftlet).  I know that doesn’t sound too appetizing but many believe the bird’s nest has many health benefits, such as aiding digestion, alleviating asthma, improving focus, and an overall benefit to the immune system.  Although I’m no expert in confirming these health benefits, I can tell you that the bird’s nest is very, very ,very expensive; averaging a whooping $60 USD per ounce (by weight, yes, it’s ounce, NOT pound).





Back to these egg tarts, I personally preferred the “cookie” crust (actually, it a very simple pastry crust) over the puff pastry crust, and it is also the kind of recipe that I’m sharing with you.  This crust is buttery, crumbly, crispy on the edges and very delicate.  If you preferred the puff pastry ones, by all means go for it.   I have yet to attempt to make my own puff pastry, so I don’t have a recipe available.  Fortunately, many supermarkets do carry the ready to use puff pastry in the frozen baking/pie crust section to make lives easier.  I made these egg tarts in mini size and they are perfect 2-bite treats.  My kids love them in minis.  Perfect for their little hands and mouths.  :)  And of course, every thing look super cute in mini size.



The egg custard filling is smooth and soft.  The texture resembles crème brûlée or pod de crème, very creamy and not too firm.  It’s exactly how a perfect egg tart should be.  I love the fact that these egg tarts are made with simple ingredients and they turn out to be amazingly tasteful.  It’s best to enjoy them with a cup of hot Hong Kong-style milk tea!  These egg tarts surely brings back many childhood memories.  All sweet and warm memories.     
 


**Note: In case if you’re wondering how the mini tart molds look like, please click here.

Mocha Meringue Kisses

You’re right, more meringue cookies.  I really think I need some help over here.  NO, not help with eating my cookies!  I’m officially hooked with meringue cookies, both making and eating them!  Well, I don’t think there are any therapies out there for this kind of addiction, are there?  Why am I hooked?  Probably, it’s because these cookies are so versatile.  I get to make them into different shapes and different flavors, pretty much like French macarons.  On the other hand, they are much forgiving than macarons.  For sure you don’t have to worry if your meringue cookies turn out to have “feet” or not, cracked tops, or worse, sticking on your baking sheet!  Yeah, unfortunately, all of the above issues happened to me during macarons making in the past, they are too temperamental.  Quite the opposite, meringue cookies turn out to be perfect every single time.  Any way you want to shape them, they are willing to play along, just like a good husband or boyfriend should be. hahaha….okay, that’s a bad analogy.



These Mocha Meringue Kisses are crunchy, crispy and airy.  They melt in your mouth and burst with espresso flavor.  Pop a few of these in the morning and you can skip your cup of joe.  Or even better, pop a few of these while sipping your cup of joe, there you go!   :)

Pork Chops with Vegetable Rice (排骨菜飯)—An award winning recipe, no kidding!

I meant to share this delicious recipe with you all since a while back but never got a chance to do so.  There were always something that got in the way.  Either I had a new dessert creation that I couldn’t wait to post (that happened more than once), or like the giveaway post that’s time sensitive (I want to make sure the winners get the prize(s) before Valentine’s Day).  And the most recent Culinary Smackdown Battle!  By the way, if you haven’t enter your cookie recipe for the Battle, come join us for the fun here.

However, I have a big reason to share this recipe with you sooner, like now!  Yes, you’ve got it, this recipe that just won the Asian Home Cooking Contest!  I’m so thrilled and couldn’t be more happy to share this great news and this wonderful recipe with you.   It’s a wonderful feeling knowing someone out there appreciate your recipe and the love you put into your dishes.

Pork Chops with Vegetable Rice (排骨菜飯) is a Classic ShangHai dish. My husband and I both love ShangHai cuisine and this is what I would make whenever we crave for the 排骨菜飯. This Pork Chops with Vegetable Rice is comforting, delicious and satisfying. Of course, I put my own little twist on the recipe by adding the shallots toppings.  They are delicious!  Just make sure you get the bone-in, thin cut type of pork chops.  That way, the cooking time is shorter and you’ll get moist and juicy pork chops with a flavorful crust. 



Click here for the link of the recipe that I submitted to the contest.  This site have quite many other Asian dishes as well.  Although I haven’t try others’ recipes, but they all look wonderful and delicious.  Be on the lookout for their next recipe contest.  I can’t wait to see what the theme will be. 
Thank you for stopping by today and have a wonderful week.

Amazing Transformation—Roasted Potatoes with Herbs de Provence to Sausage Hash Brown

Yes, amazing transformation!  Unfortunately, it’s not on my body (I wished though)!  hahaha…of course, I’m talking about food here on my blog.  If you ever run out of side dish ideas, here’s a quick and simple recipe for you. Roasted Potatoes with Herbs de Provence.  I found some multi-color mini potatoes from the market the other day, they were perfect for roasting.  Simply drizzle them with olive oil, season with salt, pepper and Herbs de Provence.  Roasted in the oven until they are golden brown and fork tender.  I love the fragrant that the Herbs de Provence brings to this dish, it really made the flavor pops and not over-powering the natural flavor of the potatoes.



We couldn’t finished all of the potatoes that night, so, I saved them for the next day and transformed them into Sausage Hash Brown.  To make the sausage hash brown, I used some red onions, green, red and yellow bell peppers and ground pork (yeah, I didn’t have sausage at home so I made my own).  I think it’s healthier to make your own sausage because you can use leaner meat or even substitute with ground turkey.



Chopped up the vegetables, seasoned the ground pork.  Then, brown the meat and sautéed the vegetables until they are crisp-tender.  Tossed them back together and there you have it.  It’s that simple. 



For a finishing touch, I added a dollop of sour cream and sprinkles of green onions on top.  My kids gobbled up their hash brown in record time!  It was that delicious.



Last but not least, I'm submitting this recipe to Kitchen PLAY's Progressive Party. The US Potato Board is also sponsoring a wonderful giveaway here at Kitchen PLAY. Simply recreate any one recipe from this month’s Progressive Party, post about the experience on your blog and provide a link to your post on Kitchen PLAY to enter. All qualifying bloggers in each course will be entered to win $100 (6 prizes total).  The deadline is April 15, 2012. Please review the complete contest rules before entering. Good luck!

Culinary Smackdown Battle—Cookies

It was a pleasant surprise to found out that I’ve won the February’s Culinary Smackdown Battle - Hand Held Meat "Pies" on Pretend Chef’s blog. 

My entry was Prosciutto di Parma with Smoke Gouda Crescent.  If you’re new to my blog or don’t remember these crescents, click here for the post.   There’s a video tutorial along with the recipe if you’re interested. 



To carry on the “tradition” being the Culinary Smackdown Battle winner, it is my honor to host the Culinary Smackdown Battle for March.  Since the theme for the past 2 months is savory dishes, I think it’s time for some sweet treats.  One of my favorite sweet treats to make is cookies.  So, it will be the theme for this month’s battle.

Culinary Smackdown Battle - Cookies will be held throughout the month of March. Entries submission starts on March 1st, 2011 through March 29th, 2011. I will be announcing the winner on March 31st. To enter the contest, simply link up your entry below.  One entry per person please, and don’t forget to link back to this post on your recipe post so others can see what sweet treats were cooking back here. 

The cookie entry doesn't have to be a new creation.  It could be a previous blog post you already have.  The Smackdown Battle is open to anyone, anywhere in the world.  I'll select the winner at the end of the month and the winner will host the next month's contest.  The main purpose for this "Battle" is for fun and get to know other bloggers and foodies out there.

Okay, we all need some incentives for contest, don’t we?  Here are the prizes for winning the the Culinary Smackdown Battle.

1) Giada De Larentiis Embroidered Apron – a $15 value



2) Home brand Potholder – a $5 value



Giada De Larentiis is one of my favorite chefs from the Food Network, so I picked this beautiful apron as the prize along with the Potholder.  I think the green shade is pretty and perfect for spring.  Hope you like the prizes.  I'll be looking forward to seeing all of the wonderful treats you're going to submit.