Chocolate Oreo Cake

This Oreo cake is for my daughter's 17th birthday while we were shelter in place at home during COVID-19 pandemic.

Ingredients

【Cake】
All Purpose Flour - 2 Cups 
Sugar - 2 Cups 
Unsweetened Cocoa Powder - 3/4 Cup
Baking Powder - 2 tsp 
Baking Soda - 1 1/2 tsp 
Salt - 1 tsp 
Vanilla extract - 2 tsp 
Eggs - 2 (replace with 1/2 cup apple sauce for egg-free)
Milk - 1 Cup
Vegetable Oil - 1/2 Cup 
Boiling Water - 1 Cup 
【Buttercream】
Unsalted butter - 3 Sticks  (I use salted, but you can use unsalted and add about )

Salt - 1/4 tsp 
Powdered sugar - 5 Cups 
Crushed OREO cookies (with cream ) - 3 Tbsp 
Heavy Cream - 3 Tbsp 

Steps

【Make the Cake】

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Add all of the dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. Whisk together for about a minute.
3. Add in all wet ingredients EXCEPT the water. Stir to combine.
4. Finally, add in your boiling water, and start slow, and slowly increase the speed to high. Whisk on high for about 1-2 minutes. It should be bubbly! 

5. Prepare (3) 6″ or (2) 8″ baking pans (see cake goop recipe above). Then divide the batter equally into each pan.
6. Bake in the middle of the oven, in the middle of the rack for about 25-30 minutes.
7. Remove form the oven and allow to cool. 

【Make the Buttercream】

1. While your cakes are cooling, make your buttercream.
2. Add in your room temp butter to a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Beat the butter until light and fluffy. Mix for about 2-3 minutes.
3. Add in your powdered sugar one cup at a time. It will look dry.
4. Add in cookie crumbs and cream. Mix for about 4-5 minutes, scraping the sides ever so often. If you fill that the buttercream is too thick, add in a little more cream, one tbsp at a time! 

【Assembly】

Level each layer. Place one layer down, and top with buttercream then add another layer of cake, and continue until you are out of cake. Cover the whole cake with buttercream, and add final touches such as ganache or crushed Oreos! 

Dry Rub Baby Back Rib

One of our family favorites. The dry rub mix can be mixed ahead of time, or you can use any dry rub mixture available from store. 

Ingredients

Baby back rib - 1 slab

Dark brown sugar - 2 TBSP

Salt - 1 TBSP

Celery salt - 1 TBSP

Paprika - 4 TBSP

Black pepper - 2 TBSP

Cayenne pepper - 1/2 tsp

Chili powder - 2 TBSP

Garlic powder - 2 tsp

Onion powder - 2 TBSP

Dry mustard - 2 tsp

Cumin - 2 TBSP

Additional salt and pepper - to taste

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 400°F

2. Mix all seasoning together for rub dry mixture. Then rub the rib throughout and let it sit for half hour or more. 

3. Wrap rib in aluminum foil and put on a baking tray. Bake for 55 minutes.

4. Open the aluminum foil wrap and bake for another 10 minutes to brown the top.

5. Slice and serve.

Red Wine Braised Lamb Chop with Air Fryer

Quick, easy and full of flavors!

Ingredients

Rack of Lamb - 1
Red wine - 1/2 cup

Salt - 2 tsp or to taste
Freshly ground black pepper - 2 tsp or to taste

Minced garlic - 1 TBSP

Italian seasoning - 1 TBSP

Lemon juice - 1 TBSP
Olive oil - 1 TBSP

Steps

1. Trim fat of the rack of lamb and then cut into individual lamb chops. Put lamb chops in a Ziploc bag, add all other ingredients, seal and shake to mix well. 

2. Set Air Fryer to 400°F, then lamb chop in the frying basket. Cook for 6 minutes, take out to flip the pieces, then cook for 2-6 more minutes, depends on how well you prefer. 

3. Serve with grill vegetable, potato, pasta or rice.

Japanese Soufflé Pancakes

Gram cafe & Pancake just opened in San Francisco and they are famous for their premium soufflé pancakes. So I found the recipe online to try.

Ingredients

Eggs - 4 large
Whole milk - 3  Tbsp
Pure vanilla extract - ½ tsp
Cake flour - ½ cup
Baking powder - 1 tsp
Sugar - 4 Tbsp
Vegetable oil - 2 Tbsp, for greasing the pan
Water - 4 Tbsp, for steaming
Toppings & Fillings
powder sugar - 2 Tbsp
Fresh berries
maple syrup

Whipped cream

Steps

1. Gather all the ingredients. You will also need a 12-inch non-stick frying pan (large enough to cook 3 pancakes at the same time) with a lid.
2. Separate egg whites and egg yolks into two different bowls. Put the bowl with egg whites in the freezer for 15 minutes. 

3. In the meantime, add milk and vanilla to the egg yolks and whisk until thick and frothy. Sift the cake flour and baking powder into the bowl. Whisk to combine thoroughly (but do not over-mix). Set aside.
4. After 15 minutes, take out the bowl with egg whites from the freezer. The egg whites should be half frozen. Now start beating egg whites. When the egg whites turn frothy and pale white, gradually add in sugar (roughly ⅓ at a time). Continue to whip the egg whites. The egg whites will become glossier and firmer. Stop beating when you lift up the hand mixer and the egg whites stand right up with stiff peaks slightly bending over.

5. Heat the large non-stick frying pan over the lowest heat. Brush with cooking oil and lightly remove any visible oil (otherwise the pancakes will have a spotty pattern). Keep the heat on while you combine egg whites and egg yolk mixture.
6. Take ⅓ of egg whites and add to the egg yolk mixture. Whisk together. Next, take half of the egg whites and add to the egg yolk mixture. Using a whisk, gently fold in without breaking the air bubbles in the egg whites.  Now transfer the egg yolk mixture into egg whites. Carefully fold in two mixtures together without breaking the air bubbles. Make sure to gently mix the batter thoroughly!

7. Since I was not skillful enough to do this freehand. I used a mousse ring lined with parchment paper to help cooking the pancake. Place the rings on the frying pan, and then scoop the batter to make a tall pancake. Set timer for 6-7 minutes, add 1 Tbsp water in empty spaces inside the pan and cover with the lid. Water keeps the pancake moist. 

8. After 6-7 minutes passed, remove the rings and parchment paper, flip the pancake VERY GENTLY. Add water in empty spaces, cover the pan, and set a timer for 4 to 5 minutes to cook the other side on the lowest heat.

9. Once they are nicely browned, transfer the pancakes to your serving plates. Place fresh cream on the pancakes and top with berries. Dust the pancake with confectioners’ sugar and drizzle with maple syrup. Enjoy!

Sautéed Spinach with Garlic (蒜蓉菠菜)

This is simple way to cook most leafy vegetables, such as spinach, pea spout(豆苗), water spinach(空心菜). The key to success is to put enough garlic and not to overcook.

Ingredients

Spinach - 1/2 - 1 lb

Garlic - 5 cloves, or more, minced

Oil - 1 TBSP

Salt - to taste

Steps

1. In a frying pan over high heat, add oil and minced garlic, fry until garlic is soft and fragrant.

2. Add spinach, cook until the leaves are soft. 

3. Add salt to taste. 

Braised Beef Shrank with InstantPot (卤牛腱)

A common homemade Chinese cold dish that can be consumed alone or be put on top of soup noodle. All ingredients are for reference only, mostly they are "to taste".

Ingredients

Beef shrank - 2 pieces

Ginger - 3 slices
Clovers - 3

Star Anise - 2

Bay leave - 3

Soy sauce - 1/2 cup

Dark soy sauce - 3 TBSP

Cooking wine - 3 TBSP
Salt - 2 tsp

Rock Sugar - 2 tsp
Green onion - 3
Water - enough to cover the meat
Red chili pepper (optional)

Steps

1. Put all ingredients in instant pot, close the lid and seal, press Meat setting and cook for 35 minutes.

2. when it is done, transfer meat and sauce to a covered pot. Place the pot in refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours. Remove the fat on top.

3. Slice and serve. Can put some of the sauce on top if it is too dry. 

Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Bake

This is a quick one-pot meal.

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts - 1 lb (2 pieces), cut into 1-inch pieces
Extra-virgin olive oil - 1 TBSP
Small yellow onion, chopped - 1 cup
Garlic - 2 cloves, minced
White rice - 1 cup

Chicken broth - 2 1/2 cup
Heavy cream - 1 cup
Broccoli florets - 2 cups
Shredded cheddar - 1 cup
Panko bread crumbs - 1/4 cup
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Steps

1. In a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat, heat oil. Add onion and cook, stirring, until soft, 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 minute more. Add chicken and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 6 minutes more.

2. Stir in rice, heavy cream, and 1 cup of the broth. Bring to a simmer and cook until rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Add remaining 1 1/2 cups broth, broccoli, and cheddar cheese and cook until broccoli is tender and cheese is melt, about 10 minutes.

3. Heat broiler. Sprinkle chicken mixture with bread crumbs and season with salt and pepper. Broil until golden and crispy, about 2 minutes.

Argentinian Beef Empanadas

Empanada is a type of baked or fried turnover consisting of pastry and filling, common in Latin American. The name comes from the Spanish verb empanar, and literally translates as "enbreaded", that is, wrapped or coated in bread. After my trip to Patagonia where I had tried different type of empanada, I figured to give it a try. I found this recipe for Agentinian Beef Empanadas, and modified to use the wrapper from this recipe. 

Ingredients

【Wrapper】
Flour - 3 cups
Lard - 1/2 cup (used ghee)
Water - 2/3 cup, very warm
Salt - 1 ½ tsp
【Filling】
Ground beef - 2 lbs, 20% fat
Olive oil - 3 TBSP
Onion - 2 medium, chopped
Red bell peppers - 2 small, seeded, chopped
Ground cumin - 3 TBSP
Paprika - 2 TBSP
Dried oregano - 1 TBSP
Cayenne pepper - ¼ tsp
Low-sodium chicken stock or broth - 1½ cups
Sugar - 2 tsp
Raisins - ½ cup
Salt and pepper to taste

Steps

【Prepare the Filling】

1. Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large pot over high. Cook beef, breaking up with a spoon, until browned but not completely cooked through, 6–8 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl with a slotted spoon, leaving as much fat in pan as possible.

2. Reduce heat to medium and cook onion, bell peppers, and remaining 1 Tbsp. oil, stirring, until tender but not browned, 6–8 minutes; season with salt and black pepper. Add cumin, paprika, oregano, and cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add chicken stock and reserved beef along with any accumulated juices to pot. Stir in sugar, 4 tsp. salt, and ¼ tsp. black pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring and scraping up any brown bits, until most of the liquid is evaporated, 15–20 minutes; taste and season with salt and black pepper, if needed. Stir in raisins. Transfer to a medium bowl, cover, and chill at least 3 hours.

【Prepare the wrapper】
1. Melt lard in a small saucepan over low heat. Immediately mix with salt and 2/3 cup very warm water.
2. Add lard mixture to flour and knead into a smooth dough. Refrigerate until cool, at least 30 minutes.

3. Roll out the dough and cut out disks.Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

【Assembly】

1. Preheat oven to 375°C. 

2. Let dough sit at room temperature 15 minutes to temper.

3. Place some filling in the center of each round. Brush water around half of outer edge of each round. Fold round over filling and pinch edges to seal. Using a fork, crimp edges.

4. Transfer empanada to a parchment-lined sheet tray, spacing 1" apart. Repeat with remaining rounds

5. Bake empanadas, rotating tray halfway through, until golden brown and slightly darker around the edges, 25–35 minutes.

Do Ahead: Filling can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled. Unbaked empanadas can be made 3 months ahead; freeze on sheet tray, then transfer to freezer bags and keep frozen.

IKEA Swedish Meatball with Cream Sauce

Amid the pandemic, IKEA shared its iconic meatball recipe with step by step video.

【Meatballs】

Grounded beef - 2 lb
Grounded pork - 1 lb
Onion - 2, finely chopped
Garlic - 2 clove, crushed or minced
Breadcrumbs - 3 cups (crumbed about 8 slices of bread)
Egg - 2, substitute with 1/2 cup plain yogurt
Whole milk - 5-10 TBSP
Salt - 1 TBSP + to taste
Pepper - 1 TBSP + to taste
【Cream sauce】
Dash of oil
Butter - 3 TBSP
All purpose flour - 1/4 cup (40 g)
Vegetable stock - 2/3 cup
Beef stock - 2/3 cup
Heavy cream - 2/3 cup
Soy sauce - 2 tsp
Dijon mustard - 1 tsp

Steps

1. Combine beef and pork mince and mix with your finger to break up any lumps. Add finely chopped onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg and mix. Add milk and season well with salt and pepper.

2. Shape mixture into small, round balls. Place on a clean plate, cover and store in the fridge for 2 hours (this will help them hold their shape whilst cooking).

3. Preheat oven to 350°F.
4. In a frying pan, heat oil on medium heat. When hot, gently add meatballs and brown on all sides. Place meatballs on a cookie tray.

5.  Cover the tray with aluminium foil. Bake in oven for 30 minutes.

5. To make the sauce, melt butter in a pan. Whisk in flour and stir for 2 mins. Add vegetable stock and beef stock and continue to stir. Add heavy cream, soy sauce and Dijon mustard. Bring it to simmer and allow sauce to thicken.

6. When ready to eat, serve with your favorite potatoes – either creamy mash or mini new boiled potatoes. Enjoy!