Happy New Year 2011!! Recipes

Year 2010 is coming to an end soon at this part of the world. There are many ups and many downs too for me this year and I am so glad it will be over soon. I hope year 2011 will be better for all of us.

Here wishing my family, friends and all my blog readers Good Health, Joy and Peace for the year 2011. Happy New Year Everyone!!!

Happy New Year! - Dairy Foods

{Photo credit: Martha Stewart|}

I wish you all a fabulous New Year's Eve filled with champagne toasts and happiness!!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for visiting Eat Drink Pretty in 2010. We have lots of prettiness in store for the new year!

Doughnut holes with raspberry jam - Dairy Foods

{Photo and recipe credit: Food and Wine}

The new year is almost here which usually means one thing for me...time to get back to being healthy. I am on and off Weight Watchers throughout the year which seems to work for me but I tend to slack off big time around the holidays and then get pretty serious around the beginning of the year.

So what's with the doughnuts? Well, since there are just a few days left before the year is over I am heading to the kitchen to make some of the items that will definitely be off limits while on Weight Watchers...things like fried doughnuts.

What are your New Year's resolutions?  

Korean Pancakes/Pajeon Recipes

Diana gave me a big bag of Korean pancake mix and it had been sitting in my pantry for a while now. I finally decided to try my hand in making Korean pancakes/Pa jeon. This pancake is very simple to make. All you have to do is mix the flour with some water; add in your favorite veggies like carrots, green onions, cabbage, mushrooms and any kind of seafood of your choice. You can omit the seafood for a vegetarian version.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Korean pancake mix
1 cup water
12 shrimps - peeled, deveined, and roughly chopped
1 small carrot, grated
1 cup grated cabbage
3 green onions, thinly sliced
5 button mushrooms – thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Dipping sauce:

3 tbsp Sriracha chili sauce
2 tbsp vinegar
1 tbsp sugar

1. In a large bowl add the pancake mix, salt and pepper. Whisk to combine. Add the water and whisk until smooth. If the batter is looking too thick, add a little more water. The consistency should be like heavy cream, not too watery. Add in the chopped seafood (if using), all the vegetables and mix well.
2. Heat a tbsp of vegetable oil in a nonstick pan over medium high heat. Ladle about 1/3 of the batter into the pan and spread it evenly in the pan. Cook until the bottom is crisp and golden brown. Flip and cook on the other side until golden brown. Repeat with the rest of the batter.
3. Cut the pancakes into wedges and serve with dipping sauce.
4. For the spicy dipping sauce, mix all the sauce ingredients together.

Note: Adjust the spiciness of the dipping sauce according to your own taste.

Cupcakes and Cutlery inspiration challenge - Dairy Foods

Sharon of Cupcakes and Cutlery blog invited me to participate in her inspiration board challenge for December. Please head over to her blog to check out my New Years Eve board including decor, menu and drink ideas.

Thanks to Sharon for asking me to participate!

Photo credits:

Photo Sources (from left to right):
Branches and Lights via Style Me Pretty
Salmon Blini Puffs via Pepperidge Farms
Cocktail via Hostess with the Mostess
Soup cups via Style Me Pretty
Napkins via The Knot
Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup via Style Me Pretty
Cake via The Knot
Girl in dress via Style Me Pretty
Tray passed appetizers via Style Me Pretty
Sparklers via The Knot
Orange paper flower via Style Me Pretty

Ginger sandwich cookies - Dairy Foods

Even though the holidays are pretty much over, the urge to bake cookies never leaves me. I made these ginger sandwich cookies on Sunday morning after browsing recipes on my iPad. These treats are really good, but super filling (they are basically two huge cookies sandwiched between a scoop of frosting). I brought them to work and received a lot of compliments.

Ginger sandwich cookies (recipe adapted from the Food and Wine iPad application: Holiday issue)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses

Filling

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and position racks in the upper and lower thirds.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Make the cookies

In a bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon and salt.  In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter and sugar at medium speed until fluffy, 3 minutes.  Beat in teh egg and molasses.  Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until incorporated, scraping down the bowl.

Working in 2 batches, drop scant tablespoons of the dough onto the baking sheets, 3 minutes apart.  Bake the cookies for 20 minutes, until risen and fallen and slightly firm; shift the sheets from top to  bottom and front to back halfway through for even baking.  Let cool slightly, then transfer the parchment paper to racks to let the cookies cool completely.  Bake the remaining cookies.

Make the filling

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter with the confectioners' sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Beat in the lemon juice.

Arrange the cookies in pairs on a large work surface.  Spoon or pipe 1 rounded tablespoon of the lemon filling onto the flat side of half of the cookies, pressign them together so the filling spreads to the edge.

Note, though the recipe calls for baking for 20 minutes, I found that was too long and the first batch got a bit burned.  I would leave them in for about 15-17 minutes, depending on your oven.

Cranberry Orange Walnut Cake Recipes

There is abundance of fresh cranberries in the market now and I just bought a big packet without knowing what to do with it. It has been sitting in the fridge for nearly two weeks until I finally used it to bake some cakes to be given away as Christmas gift with the cookies. The orange juice and the zest in the cake compliment the cranberries very nicely. The fresh cranberries are tart and refreshing, while the cake is sweet. This loaf will be great for breakfast, afternoon tea especially during the holiday season.

Ingredients:

1 stick/113 gram soft butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp of orange zest
½ cup orange juice
½ cup sour cream
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
½ cup walnuts – toasted and chopped

Glaze:

½ cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice

1. Line and greased a large loaf pan or two medium size loaf pans. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degree F. Shift the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and set it aside. Combined the orange juice and sour cream. Mix well and set it aside.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy for 5-6 minutes. Add in the eggs, one at a time and beating continuously until well incorporated. Slow down the speed of the mixer and slowly add in the flour in 3 batches alternating with the orange juice – sour cream mixture. The last edition should be the flour. Do not over mix.
3. Stop the machines, using a spatula fold in the fresh cranberries and walnuts. Mix well. Pour into the baking pan and bake for 55 – 65 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and let it rest on the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out on the cooling pan.
4. Let it cool completely. Combined the glaze ingredients and spread it over the top of the cake. Cut and serve.

Note: This cake improves in texture and taste after a day or two.

The holidays - Dairy Foods

The holidays were really good to me; filled with family, delicious food, sparkling wine and most importantly, the weekend was really low-key.

Erik and I celebrated Christmas Eve at my parent's house.  I brought the above bouquet for my mom, which would also be a simple wedding bouquet for a December or January wedding (those are chrysanthemums and hypericum berries).

My brother Ron and his wife Nikki made pickles wrapped in cream cheese and salami.  My husband ate almost all of these, he loves them.
I made mini BLTs (an idea I got from Country Living magazine).  I went the simple route and used store bought Pillsbury biscuits (the smallest ones), fried up a package of bacon and assembled them with a tiny bit of mayo, a slice of roma tomato and a bit of iceberg lettuce.  They were a big hit!

If you are ambitious you can also make them with homemade biscuits.  Check out the Country Living recipe here.
Nikki and Ron also made red velvet cake ball pops.  YUM.
Erik and I celebrated Christmas Day at our house, just the two of us in the morning. This is our cozy living room. 
I made mini quiche for breakfast along with roasted fingerling potatoes and sausage.
Erik and I are completely smitten with our kitty, Kody.  He was very lazy on Christmas Day as you can see.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend as well!

Sugar Cookies/Christmas Wishes Recipes

I baked these sugar cookies at the very last minutes for my nephew Eu-Xin in Malaysia. My friend is going back end of this month and she is taking these back for me. Thank you so much Choy and I am sure my nephew will be very grateful. I am not good at frosting it and in fact this is the first time I am doing sugar cookies. I hope I will do a better job the next time when I have more time to decorate it.

Ingredients:

1 stick/113 gram butter
¾ cup sugar
2 cups flour
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
1 egg
½ tsp vanilla
2 tbsp milk

1. Prepare and line baking sheet pan with parchment paper. Sift flour, baking powder and salt and set it aside.
2. Cream soft butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the egg, milk and vanilla. Mix well. Slow down the mixer and slowly add in the flour in two batches. Mix until just combined.
3. Transfer the dough to a work surface. Shape into two discs, wrap the dough with plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for an hour.
4. Pre-heat oven to 350 degree F. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough to 1/8” thickness. Cut into desired shape and transfer to baking sheets pan, leaving an inch in between.
5. Bake until lightly golden, about 12-15 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
6. Decorate with Royal Icing if desired.

I am submitting this to Aspiring Bakers #2: Christmas! (Dec 2010) hosted by Passionate About Baking

To my family, friends and blog readers

May the spirit of Christmas bring you peace,

The gladness of Christmas give you hope

And the warmth of Christmas grants you love and joy.

Have a Blessed Christmas and A Happy New Year Everyone!!

A cozy little Christmas - Dairy Foods

{Photo credits: BHG Celebrate the Holidays iPad app}

I have awesome holiday plans this weekend; stress-free, quality time with family, food and champagne-filled and most importantly, relaxing.  My husband and I are staying in town (St. Paul, MN) and we only have to travel about 12 miles to get to my parent's house for Christmas Eve.

My husband's family lives in North Dakota and we usually make the 6 hour drive to spend the holidays there. A winter storm never fails to make an appearance to add a little stress to the drive. Once we arrive in North Dakota the time spent there includes comforting German food, lots of movies, lots of laying around. Holidays spent in North Dakota are great, too.

Since Erik and I are staying in town, we have Christmas Day wide open and we decided to create our own tradition. It will include sleeping in, opening stocking stuffers and indulging in a huge, delicious homemade brunch.

These lovely photos come from the Better Homes and Gardens iPad application. It's a great resource for party planning and includes tons of different party themes with decor ideas, menus and recipes.





How amazing do these mini quiches look?  Check out the recipe, looks quite easy.

Mini quiches (recipe from BHG)

Ingredients

1 15 oz package rolled refrigerated unbaked piecrust (2 crusts)
1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese blend (2 oz)
1/2 cup finely chopped red sweet pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped peppered or smoked cooked ham
1 Tbsp. thinly sliced green onion
1 1/2 tsp. all purpose flour
1/8 tsp. Italian seasoning, crushed
1/8 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup half and half, light cream or milk
Fresh herb sprigs, such as basil, oregano, or thyme (optional)

Preparation

Let piecrusts stand at room temperature according to package directions.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Cut each piecrust into four equal sections (eight sections total).  Press piecrust sections onto the bottoms and up the sides of eight 4-inch fluted individual tart pans with removable sides.  Trim excess dough from tops of pans.

Line each pastry shell with a double thickness of foil.  Place pans on a baking sheet.  Bake for 7 minutes.  Remove foil.  Bake for 2 to 3 minutes more until pastry is set and dry.  Remove from oven.  Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.

In a medium bowl combine cheese, sweet pepper, ham, green onion, flour, Italian seasoning, saltk and black pepper.  Divide mixture evenly among pastry shells.

In the same bowl, beat together eggs and half and half.  Pour egg mixture over cheese mixture in each pastry shell.  Bake for 20 minutes or until filling is set.  Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.  If desired, top each quich with a fresh herb sprig.  Makes 8 servings.

I'll be taking off the rest of the week and returning with new posts on Monday.

I wish you all a wonderful holiday!

Apple Cranberry Tea Ring Recipes

Weather is so cold and snowing outside and the best way to warm up the house is doing some baking. But it is definitely not a good idea to make bread. Wrong move on my part and because of the cold making this loaf of bread took me over 6 hours from start to finished baking. It just refused to rise. I even stick it into the warm oven to help with the proofing. The end results, I would prefer it to rise a bit more and softer. Nevertheless, it tasted good. I think this tea ring will be great for Christmas breakfast or brunch.

Ingredients
Dough recipe adapted from Taste Of Home recipe book.

3/4 cup warm milk (70°F to 80°F)
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons water (you might not need it)
3 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3-1/3 cups bread flour
2-1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

FILLING:

1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 tbsp of sugar
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup of chopped fresh apple
1/2 cup dried cranberry
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Egg wash

1 egg -beaten

Glaze

1/2 cup confections’ sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice

1. Place all the dough ingredients except for the water into a mixer attached with the dough hook. Mix the dough until comes together. If it is too dry add in the extra water a tablespoon at a time.
2. Continue to knead until the dough is smooth. Place it in an oil bowl, cover it with a cling wrap and leave it in a warm place to rise double in size for about 1 to 2 hours (depend on the temperature of your environment)
3. For the filling, combined sugars, cut in the butter until crumbly. Stir in the dry cranberries, raisins and walnuts and set it aside.
4. When the dough is done, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll into a 20” x 10” rectangle, sprinkle with the sugar mixture and top it with the chopped apple within 1” of the edges.
5. Roll it up tightly like a jelly-roll, starting with a long side; seal ends. Place in a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan; bring both ends together, seal it to form a ring.
6. With scissors, cut from outside edge two-thirds of the way toward center of ring at 1-in. intervals. Separate strips slightly; twist to allow filling to show. Cover and let rise until doubled, about an hour. Brush it with egg wash.
7. Bake in a preheated at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove and let it cool complete on a cooling rack. Mix the glaze and drizzle it all over the ring.

Note: To prevent overbrowning you can cover it with foil during the last 10 minutes of baking.

I am submitting this bread to Yeastspotting

Real party: a Joyeux Noel Christmas Dinner - Dairy Foods

This gorgeous dinner party will not only get you into the holiday spirit but will make your mouth water! Paula of Frog Prince Paperie sent me this impressive event she designed and hosted for her in-laws to celebrate the holidays.

As told by Paula:

My father's family is from the New Orleans area, and our cooking at holidays always has a strong cajun/southern influence. It's from this I took my inspiration to create a Joyeux Noel dinner complete with an appetizer and dessert spread in neutral creams, dark brown and teals.

Some of the unique details...I used family heirlooms to display the pre-dinner appetizers and our desserts. The desserts were all made from family recipes we make every holiday, but I modified them all to be bite sized, so we could all have a little of each with a little less guilt!

I designed the placecards, boxes, menus and food labels and accents; all proceeds from these are going to the Alzheimers Association. The chair ruffles are a DIY project that were super easy to make - they are a 7 inch strip of material with two loose basting stiches pulled tight to make ruffles. They were folded in half and pinned to ribbons draped over the tops of the chairs with boxwood sprigs and tiny bulbs as accents.

This menu is beyond impressive.  And I thought I was decent at throwing dinner parties...um, no, there is no comparison.



Adorable favor boxes. 

A beautiful tablescape.

No detail was forgotten.  The crystal napkin rings are from Trade Winds Tiaras.





The appetizers look absolutely divine!  Raw oysters and homemade crab dip?  Delicious. 





If you thought the appetizers were lovely check out this dessert display! 





Thanks so much to Paula for sending this truly amazing dinner party my way.  I can only hope my future dinner parties will be as gorgeous and delicious as this! 

Be sure to check out Frog Prince Paperie on Etsy!