Asian Delights!

Big changes for us - Dr. Obvious has become a civilian and now we're living in the Los Angeles area in San Gabriel Valley near Pasadena.  For the first time in our lives, we're close to an abundance of Asian grocery stores, bakeries, cafes and restaurants.  We love exploring the new delicacies and seeing what treats abound.

Baby Octopus!

Little Man saw these baby octopi at 99 Ranch and exclaimed, "Let's get that!  Pleeeease?!"  My reply (naturally), "You know that you're going to have to eat that, right?"  "Yes, yes, I know.  Come on, Mommy!"  Well, we bought the little guys.  I sliced them open and took out their glands or stomach sacks or whatever those things are that are lodged in their "heads."  Wow, those octopi smell STRONG.  My hands reeked like I'd been on a fishing boat for 5 days.  That smell, by the way, does not wash off easily.

So was all the effort worth it?  The smell?  Um, no.  We love squid and scallops.  These, however, were tough and didn't really taste delicious.  But everyone in the family ate them and we chalked it up as a fun adventure.

Rambutan or Dr Seuss Tree Fruit

Speaking of new adventures, Sweet Pea has a new favorite fruit these days.  They're known as rambutan.  The Chinese call them "Hong Mo Dan" which translates to "Red Hairy Fruit."  We like them better than lychee because they're not as cloying and somehow taste more refreshing.  Little Man named them Dr Seuss Tree Fruit which made us all giggle whenever we ate them after dinner.

Pumpkin Chocolate Cake

This is the time of year when everyone starts cooking and baking with pumpkin in order to celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving and the general fun of autumn.  I was so excited to find this recipe when I was looking for a dessert to make and bring to a dinner party.  Because the rest of the menu was Middle Eastern, I had reservations about making it and thought about baking sesame cookies instead.  When I consulted Major Obvious, he firmly stated, "Your choices are sesame cookies vs. Pumpkin Chocolate Cake by Jacques Torres?  That is a no-brainer.  Who cares if it doesn't match the rest of the meal?"  So, I made the cake and we brought it over.  When our friends heard the story, they excitedly asked, "Did you really make it?  And that's what we're having for dessert?"  When we sat down to eat it, they exclaimed, "That was a good call!  Pumpkin and chocolate is such a fantastic combination."  Amen. 

Pumpkin Chocolate Cake

from Jacques Torres' "A Year of Chocolate"

1/2 cup (1 stick)
plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

3/4 cup light brown sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup canned pumpkin purée

1-1/4 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 ounces (1/2 cup) chopped 60% bittersweet chocolate

1/2 cup dried cranberries, optional

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional

2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, optional

1 tablespoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder, optional

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter and flour a 6-inch bundt pan. Set aside.

Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed to just soften. Add the brown sugar and beat for about 4 minutes, or until very light and creamy. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the pumpkin and beat to blend.

Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt and, with the motor off, sift the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture. Turn the speed to low and beat to incorporate the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture. When well-blended, remove the bowl from the mixer and, using a rubber spatula, fold in the chocolate, cranberries, and nuts.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted near the center comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and invert onto a wire rack. Remove the pan and allow the cake to cool at room temperature.

The cake will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Chocolate Celebration Cake

Last week, my brother (Pan Pan) and his wife (Miss Amy) visited from San Francisco.  Pan and I are very similar...we both enjoy cooking, talk in movie quotes, and laugh really loudly.  Interestingly enough, Miss Amy is very much like my husband, Major Obvious.  They both look forward to dessert, get along wonderfully with children, and love dogs.

When we are lucky enough to have someone come and visit us on their birthday, I love to bake them a cake for his or her special day.  For this reason (and the aforementioned penchant for sweets), I made Chocolate Celebration Cake for Miss Amy.  This recipe makes a very large molded concoction that can easily stand up to any frosting you slather on it, cream cheese, buttercream, or just a huge dollop of freshly whipped cream.  We ate this bad boy with Madagascar vanilla ice cream and enjoyed many subsequent evenings of leftovers with fresh raspberries while watching X Factor or How I Met Your Mother.

Chocolate Celebration Cake

Largely from “Cooking with Mr. Latte” by Amanda Hesser

1 1/2 cups sugar


5 ounces  bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate


¼  pound unsalted butter (1 stick), plus more for greasing the pan


2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda


1 teaspoon baking powder


1 teaspoon salt


1 cup milk


1 teaspoon cider vinegar


2 eggs


1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ - 1 Tablespoon instant espresso

cocoa powder for dusting the pan

Directions


1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Put the sugar, unsweetened chocolate, butter, and 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Place over medium heat and stir occasionally until all of the ingredients are melted and blended.  Remove from the heat and stir in espresso.  Let cool slightly, 15 to 20 minutes. 



2. Meanwhile, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, stir together the milk and vinegar. Grease and cocoa powder a decorative cake pan, a bundt pan or a tube pan.

3. When the chocolate in the pan has cooled a bit, whisk in the milk mixture and eggs. In several additions and without overmixing, whisk in the dry ingredients. When the mixture is smooth, add the vanilla and whisk once or twice, to blend.  Put the batter into the pan and bake on the middle rack until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on a rack.

4. You can also use this batter to make chocolate cupcakes or a layer cake, just adjust the baking times.