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Priscilla Tsai
Monday, May 9, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Dinner / Pasta Shrimp pasta in a foil package
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Mon, May 9, 2011 at 11:07 AM
Pulling an aluminum foil package out of the oven to serve your guests probably isn't the classiest thing you can do, but you'd be surprised how incredibly easy and delicious cooking this way can be. Ain't no shame in it.
This recipe comes from The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond. Basically, you cook some pasta and make a quick tomato sauce, then you dump raw shrimp over the sauce, and then pour the pasta over that. Then you transfer the entire mix into a foil package and throw it into the oven for 15-20 minutes.
What comes out is a fragrant linguine dish tossed with succulent, garlicy shrimp infused with bold flavors after being steam cooked in fresh, homemade tomato sauce. It was so good I was practically sucking up the sauce with a straw. Well, not really, but I think I may ditch all my other pasta dishes for this one.
A tip: I created and baked the foil package in a baking pan to prevent any liquid from spilling into the oven.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Drinks Margaritas for Cinco de Mayo
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Wed, May 4, 2011 at 2:29 PM
Espolón Tequila asked three top mixologists from New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco to craft what could be the country's first Taco Truck Cocktail Pairing – just in time for Cinco de Mayo. To pair with tacos, the mixologists came up with tequila drinks like Bebida de Puebla (made with Benedictine and coffee liqueurs), Sidra de la Mula (Apple Cider Mule, made with bitters and Sidral Mundet), and Bucking Borracho (made with ginger syrup, lemon and lime juice, and chocolate bitters). Click here to see all the cocktail and taco recipes.
Wanting to get in on the fun, I came up with my own tequila creation: The Cara Cara Espolón Margarita. Made with fresh Cara Cara oranges, limes, simple syrup, and Espolón Tequila, this Mexican cocktail is refreshing and light.
Never one to really enjoy those calorie-laden, super tart and syrupy sweet margarita mixes used a restaurants, I made sure these are just sweet and tart enough, and not artificial-tasting and over done.
I only made a couple of these citrus margaritas, but you might want to make a whole pitcher of these tomorrow.
And if you prefer your margaritas be made for you, check out Creative Loafing's big list of Cinco de Mayo parties here: http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/atlarge/2011/05/03/cl-presents-our-list-of-2011-cinco-de-mayo-parties/
Monday, May 2, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Cookie Peanut butter-stuffed chocolate chip cookies
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Mon, May 2, 2011 at 8:00 AM
What's better than dessert?
TWO desserts!
These cookies are like two desserts in one. Chocolate chip cookie dough batter is wrapped around a Reese's-like peanut butter ball. Eating the resulting cookie is like stuffing a chocolate chip cookie and a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup in your mouth at the same time. I guess you could do that and get the same effect, but this is a much more civilized way of doing it.
Pick your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe for the dough. I used the Toll House recipe. You can find it here. I chilled the dough overnight to make it easier to work with.
For the peanut butter part, combine 1 cup of peanut butter with 1 cup of powdered sugar. Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls and set aside.
To form the cookies, roll a bit of cookie dough into a golf ball-sized ball. Then create a little indent in the middle, while also flattening it a bit, using your pinch-pot skills from elementary school. Place a peanut butter ball in the middle, roll chocolate chip cookie dough around it enclosing the filling completely, and then roll it between your palms to create a nice little round ball. Repeat until all dough is gone.
Place the cookie dough balls 2 inches apart on parchment or silpat-lined cookie sheets. Bake according to chocolate chip cookie recipe.
They're best when eaten warm. I'm sure you can imagine how deliciously ooey gooey they are fresh out of the oven.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Dinner Rice Peepsie Treats
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Apr 27, 2011 at 2:04 PM
... Or is it Peeps Krispie Treats? Or Rice Krispie Peeps?
Anyway, I murdered some Peeps to make this recipe.
I creamated Peeps marshmallows left over from Easter and reincarnated them as Rice Peepsie Treats. I followed the original Rice Krispie Treats recipe on the back of the cereal box, but subbed in my yellow friends for some of the marshmallows. (Since I only had two packages of Peeps (10 total), I had to use some plain marshmallows, too.)
I had originally wanted different colored Peeps to make a rainbow-colored mish-mash, but since I only had yellow ones, I added some drops of food coloring to the marshmallows to make my technicolored Rice Peepsie Treats.
These are definitely better than plain Rice Krispie Treats. Anything rainbow-colored tastes better, right?
Friday, April 22, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Dessert Easter Caramel Popcorn
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Fri, Apr 22, 2011 at 10:18 AM
I've really overdone it this time. Oopsie daisy.
I've created a giant pastel-colored sugar monstrosity that contains ingredients that should probably be kept a secret. This crackcorn, I mean popcorn, needs to be pawned off ASAP. (Thanks, co-workers, for sharing this guilty pleasure with me.)
I first laid eyes on this caramel popcorn recipe while perusing FoodGawker.com. It was just so cute with the pretty colors, the sprinkles, the white chocolate drizzle, I couldn't stop thinking about it for days.
So I just gave it and made the darn thing ... with one cup of butter, two cups of brown sugar and everything else.
The recipe comes from the blog "Heather Cristo Cooks." She does a great job photographing the entire process. Check out her blog for step-by-step photos.
You could wrap the Easter Caramel Popcorn in little cellophane bags and tie them up with ribbons to make cute Easter treats for kids. (Hey, a little popcorn is a lot healthier than a giant chocolate rabbit, right?)
Tips: I used a bag of microwave popcorn instead of popping my own from scratch, which made it a snap to make. Also, you might want to use a large rimmed cookie sheet or perhaps two sheets because the caramel tends to bubble up and overflow over the edges while baking. To get my finished popcorn to crisp up, I stored it in the fridge.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Cookie Homemade Fig Newtons
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Mon, Apr 11, 2011 at 8:00 AM
Try your hand at these fig-filled cookies.
I did. Mine turned out ugly!
See if yours turn out prettier than mine.
They are homely, but quite tasty. Homemade fig puree is tucked inside strips of rolled dough, wrapped up, and then sliced into bars.
(You can find Black Mission Figs at Trader Joe's in the nuts and dried fruit section. At the Midtown Trader Joe's store, they are located on the bottom shelf in a round plastic container.)
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Priscilla Tsai Honey-Roasted Onion Tart from Bon Appetit
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Thu, Apr 7, 2011 at 9:53 AM
Perhaps I subscribe to too many culinary magazines – I always get inundated with a flurry of them at the same time each month. And while I am excited to crack open every glossy, candy-colored magazine, I can't help rushing through each one just so I can tackle the next.
With a full library of foodie mags that have arrived just this year, I figured it's about time to stop drooling over the pictures and and actually try a recipe.
Bon Appetit's recipe for Honey-Roasted Onion Tart is a keeper. The recipe was published in their Feb. 2011 issue, but can be found online here.
A mess of caramelized honey-roasted thinly-sliced onions and bacon pieces are strewn on top of puff pastry dough slathered with layer of creme fraiche. It makes for a great appetizer.
Find the recipe on Bon Appetit's site here.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / cake Key Lime Cheesecake
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Thu, Mar 31, 2011 at 3:53 PM
Pucker up.
This key lime cheesecake packs a cool, creamy punch. The dense cheesecake sits upon a tropical crust made of coconut, flour, sugar, and butter.
As a big fan of key lime pie, I was eager to try a cheesecake version. I followed the recipe without any deviations, baked the cheesecake in a water bath, and it turned out perfectly crack-free. Success. (Tip: Don't shock the cheesecake right out of the oven by throwing in the fridge. Let it come to room temperature first to prevent cracks.)
To keep the cake dense, don't over-beat the batter. And don't over-bake your crust either ... mine was a bit dark.
Serve it with raspberry coulis or whipped cream and slices of key lime for garnish.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Priscilla Tsai Momofuku Crack Pie
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Mon, Mar 21, 2011 at 8:00 AM
What's in this pie, you ask?
Everything bad for you. Butter, sugar, brown sugar, heavy cream, more butter, oatmeal cookies, and a lot of eggs. But no crack. I guess it's called "Crack Pie" because it's wicked addicting.
This pie recipe comes from Momofuku Milk Bar, the NYC bakery known for their interesting concoctions such as compost cookies.
It's all kinds of ridiculous. The toasted oatmeal cookie pie crust is topped with a gooey butter and sugar filling. The filling has a browned butter, caramel flavor. The consistency of it is gooey – similar to pecan pie, minus the pecans. It's a twist on a chess pie. It's so sweet, it might give you a cavity. It's decadent.
Making this pie was like two baking projects in one. First you have to bake a giant oatmeal cookie. Then you can proceed to make the pie (using the crumbled cookie to make the pie crusts).
The recipe makes two pies, so you need two pie pans. Having only one, I used a pie pan and a tart pan, which worked fine. (Just be sure to maybe line foil underneath the tart pan so the butter from the pie won't seep and out and burn onto your oven like mine did.)
If you are in a hurry to eat the pie after baking, throwing it in the freezer for a fast chill works well. Who has got time to patiently wait for the pies to chill for hours in the fridge? Let's get real.
Sweet enough as it is, I nixed the powdered sugar on top. Yes, the pie is ugly. Might as well embrace it in all it's ugliness.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Breakfast / cake Ina Garten's Lemon Cake ... with a twist
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Mon, Mar 14, 2011 at 8:00 AM
I love Ina Garten's Lemon Cake. It's so tart, tangy, and tasty. Ina's cake is a lemon loaf cake, soaked with lemon syrup, and then topped with lemon glaze.
Craving a slice, I was set on making it this past weekend. I ran into a little problem though – I had no lemons in the house.
When life gives you no lemons, what's a girl to do? I was forced to get creative and I made a grapefruit version of her loaf cake.
The grapefruit cake turned out surprisingly well. It was still tart and sweet, but not as tart as the lemon cake. The grapefruit flavor was a nice change. The original recipe calls for 1/3 cup lemon zest, but I cut the amount of grapefruit zest to just 2 tablespoons, as grapefruit peel is a bit bitter.
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Recipe: Vanilla Coke-Pulled Pork Nachos
How do you get people talking at a party? You put a bunch of melted cheese and pulled pork, put it on some chips, and shove it in their faces, that's how.
