Leche Flan (Creme Caramel)

Leche Flan

Ingredients:

10 egg yolks
1 can condensed milk
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup nestle all purpose cream
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup water


Preheat oven to 375F.

To make the syrup, mix water with sugar and bring to boil. Simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour in the leche flan mold and set aside.

Beat the egg yolks together with the rest of the ingredients.

Pour the mixture in the mold.

Cover the mold with aluminum foil and put it on top of an aluminum pan with hot water. The water level should reach at least 1/3 of the height of the leche flan mold.

Bake for 40-45 minutes. Insert a clean and dry toothpick at the center of the mold covered with aluminum foil, if the toothpick comes out clean, it means the leche flan is cooked. Turn off the oven and leave the leche flan inside the oven for 5 minutes.

Cool and refrigerate before serving.


***What to do with the left over egg whites? Slice some mushrooms and green pepper. Saute in a pan together with the egg whites. Add pepper and salt. Continue stirring until the egg whites are cooked. Serve hot with bread or rice.

Creamy Garlic Penne Pasta

Creamy Garlic Penne Pasta

1 pack penne pasta (16 oz)

1 cup chopped tomatoes

5 cloves garlic, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 can meat sauce or spaghetti sauce
1/3 cup cream cheese
1 tbsp sugar
sliced sausage
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
black pepper



Cook the penne pasta in one gallon of boiling water as directed in the package. Add one teaspoon salt if desired. Drain and set aside.

Heat the pan, add the chopped garlic and onion. Add chopped tomatoes and sausage then  sauté for 2 minutes. Add the meat sauce and bring to boil. Add the cream cheese, grated parmesan, sugar and pepper and cooked for another 3 minutes.

Pour on top of penne pasta and serve immediately.

Orange Chicken

Orange Chicken

Sweet, tangy and crispy -- that's how my six year-old son describes my orange chicken recipe. It's actually one of his favorite dishes. And I must admit, it took me a while to perfect this recipe. I remember the first time I tried to cook orange chicken, it was too sweet. The second time, it was fine. But I knew I can make it taste better, I knew something's missing. So when I tried to cook it for the third time, I made the sauce first. I didn't stop experimenting with the sauce until I achieved that sweet, tangy and spicy taste.

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into small pieces
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup corn starch plus 1 tbsp corn starch
1/4 cup flour
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 tsp crushed red chili pepper
1 tbsp rice wine
1/4 cup water
1 1/2 tsp salt
pepper
oil for deep frying

For the sauce:
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp water
5 tbsp brown sugar
zest of 1 orange
zest of one lemon
4 tbsp white vinegar
juice of 1 lemon


Mix beaten egg, salt and pepper in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix 3/4 cup corn starch and flour, stir in water. Then add the flour mixture to the egg mixture. Add the chicken and stir to coat.

Heat oil in a pan for deep frying. Add chicken, fry in small batches at a time. Do not overcook the chicken, just fry it 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.

You can make the sauce while frying the chicken. Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mixed well.

Drain chicken on paper towels and set aside. Clean the pan. Add 1 tablespoon  oil.

When the pan is hot enough, add the minced ginger and garlic. Stir fry for about 10 seconds then add the crushed red chilli pepper. Stir for 5 seconds then add the rice wine.

Add the sauce and bring to boil. Add the cooked chicken, stir and mix well.

Dissolve 1 tablespoon corn starch in in water. Add to chicken. Heat until sauce is thickened.

Transfer in a plate, serve and enjoy!

Orange Chicken

[My Version of ] Chicken Cordon Bleu

People think baking is hard to do and that it needs a lot of practice to perfect a recipe. But you know, I consider baking as the easiest and fastest way to prepare a dish. So for today, let me share a simple chicken cordon bleu recipe.

This is my own version of cordon bleu. A popular cordon bleu recipe requires ham slices and Swiss cheese. Since I ran out of ham, I used turkey bacon instead.

Ingredients:

1.5 lbs boneless chicken breast, halves
1 egg beatenhalf cup bread crumbs
turkey bacon
Swiss cheese slices (or mozarella)
salt and pepper
1 tbsp parmesan cheese (optional)


for the sauce:

2 cups water
1 chicken cube
1 tsp corn starch
1 tsp lemon juice
1 can all purpose cream (or 2 tbsp sour cream plus half cup evaporated milk)


Preheat oven to 350F. Grease baking dish with cooking spray.

Mix breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese, season with pepper and set aside.

Pound the chicken breast into 1/4 thickness. Season with salt and pepper. Place 1 turkey bacon slice and 1 Swiss cheese slice on top of the chicken breast. Roll up the chicken breast, carefully dip the roll in egg wash and secure with toothpick. Sprinkle rolled chicken with seasoned bread crumbs. Bake in the oven at 350F for 35-40 minutes.

To make the sauce:

Mix all the ingredients. Bring to boil, stirring constantly.

Remove the toothpick from the chicken. Pour sauce over chicken, serve and enjoy!

Chicken Cordon Bleu

Banana-Q

I have been craving for banana-Q since last week, and today I decided satisfy my craving.
I don't have saba banana, but I do have plantain. I also have brown sugar, but oh no I don't have sticks. Anyway, forget about the sticks, I'm still gonna make my own version of banana-Q.

I like my banana-Q with sesame seeds, so before frying the plantains, I sprinkled some sesame seeds first in the pan. It would take 2-3 minutes to brown the seeds. Then transfer the fried sesame seeds in a plate and set aside.
 
Next, I sliced the plantains. Heat the pan and put about 1/2 cup of oil. I fried the bananas first, 4-5 slices at a time.When both sides of the bananas turned light brown, I sprinkled the brown sugar on top of the banana slices.

You have to wait for the brown sugar to melt before turning the banana slices one by one, then sprinkle sugar again and wait for the sugar to melt again. When the sugar started to melt, sprinkle fried sesame seeds, then carefully stir the banana slices and cook for 1-2 more minutes. Transfer in a plate with paper towel, then serve and enjoy!