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Priscilla Tsai
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Breakfast Cinnamon sugar donut muffins
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Aug 11, 2010 at 2:54 PM
Don't think about it. Just make these donut muffin things. Now.
I know they are probably horribly unhealthy, but they are extremely good. Downright devilish.
These tender "muffins" are popped out of the muffin tin while they are still hot, dunked in a bowl of delicious melted butter, and then rolled in cinnamon sugar. They taste like giant cake donut holes, so I don't think they should really be called muffins. If you eat them warm, freshly buttered and rolled, you might not be able to stop at just one.
The slight crunch of cinnamon sugar under your teeth ... the decadent butter coating around a warm lightly spiced muffin ... it is just so satisfying to take a huge bite. Munchkins can't even compare.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Breakfast Banana pancakes with macadamia nut sauce
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Tue, Aug 10, 2010 at 2:39 PM
If the buttermilk pancakes I made last week were too tame for you, try these tropical banana pancakes with macadamia nut sauce instead.
Banana pancakes, made by adding two mashed bananas to pancake batter, are a fun twist to plain pancakes. Topped with a creamy toasted macadamia nut sauce and sprinkled with ground macadamia nuts, these are definitely a good reason to get out of bed in the morning.
Similar pancakes are served up at Boots and Kimo's Homestyle Kitchen in Kailua, HI, and are quite a hit. Since Hawaii might be a tad far to travel for breakfast, here's the recipe.
You can make the sauce ahead of time, and just warm it in the microwave before serving.
Friday, August 6, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Kitchen Chemistry / Breakfast The best buttermilk pancakes
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Fri, Aug 6, 2010 at 2:44 PM
I finally made those buttermilk pancakes that were assigned for the MIT Kitchen Chemistry course on pancakes, and I am so glad I did.
My previous "Bette's Diner Buttermilk Pancakes" recipe from Bette's Oceanview Diner in Berkeley is getting replaced. Sorry, Bette!
This new recipe, courtesy of Bon Appétit, produces super thick, fluffy, tender pancakes, like I've never seen come out of my own kitchen before. The sour cream makes the batter incredibly thick, which prevents the batter from spreading out too thin in the pan. And even though I used light sour cream, the results were still fabulous. Be sure not to overmix the batter. Bubbles are good.
To scoop the batter onto the griddle/pan, I used a quick-release ice cream scoop. Don't be tempted to swirl the batter around – just drop it, slightly use the scoop to make the blob of batter a little more circular if it isn't, and leave it. If you swirl it around and spread out the batter, your pancakes will not come out thick and fluffy.
If you aren't feeding an army for breakfast, half the recipe. I halved the recipe and got 10 pancakes.
These luscious hot cakes would be perfect for breakfast this weekend. Get on it! Click here for the recipe.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Priscilla Tsai Butter Chicken
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Aug 4, 2010 at 3:31 PM
Indian food is so delicious, but I'm usually too intimidated to make it at home. Too many spices and too much time required.
Well, here's an easy Indian recipe for butter chicken (aka. murgh makhani). The dish has chunks of marinated chicken cooked in a sauce of butter, tomato, cream, and lots of spices. The bright orange sauce is so rich and flavorful, I feel like I need to learn how to make naan to soak it all up with.
Though super tasty, for juicier chicken, next time I think I might cook the chicken on the grill, kabob-style, and then toss it into the sauce.
Butter Chicken
Ingredients
4 pieces Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (cut into bite-size pieces)
5 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoons Black Pepper
½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
½ teaspoons Garam Masala
¼ teaspoons Cumin
½ teaspoons Curry powder
1 whole Lime, Juiced
1 whole Onion, Diced
3 Tablespoons Butter
1 can (14.5 Oz. Can) Tomato Sauce
1 can (14.5 Oz. Can) Petite Diced Tomatoes
1/4 cup Whipping Cream
1 bunch Chopped Cilantro, to taste
Basmati Rice
Directions
Combine first 9 ingredients and marinate overnight.
Saute the onion in the butter until soft. Add marinated chicken and cook about 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Cook for 30 minutes over medium-low heat with the lid on. Add a few more dashes of curry, cayenne, and garam masala and season to taste. Add the whipping cream and cilantro just before serving over Basmati rice.
Smorgasbord / Priscilla Tsai Newk's Express Café
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Aug 4, 2010 at 12:21 PM
I ventured down south to Blakeney Crossing to check out Newk's Express Café.
According to their menu, Newk's will provide you "an express casual dining experience in a refreshing and stylish atmosphere." I'd say I have to agree. My salad was huge and packed with fresh ingredients., it came to our table in a timely manner, and the restaurant is bright and inviting with bright colors and fresh flowers.
At Newk's you order and pay at the counter and your food is brought out to you. It's DIY drinks and their condiment bar is full of pickles, roasted garlic, bread sticks, and more.
On the menu, they've got 9 types of fresh tossed salads, pizzas, toasted sandwiches, and desserts. On the kid menu, they offer dishes like grilled cheese sandwiches and pizzas.
Check out these pics.
Newk's Express Café
Blakeney Crossing
704-846-5909
Friday, July 30, 2010
Food News / Smorgasbord / Priscilla Tsai Patron Secret Dining Society in Charlotte
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Fri, Jul 30, 2010 at 1:04 PM
Patron tequila has put together the national Patron Secret Dining Society which hosts dinners created by local master chefs and mixologists. Guests are treated to elaborate multi-course meals paired with Patron cocktails.
These dinners are secret because seating is limited and the dinners occur under a veil of mystery. Diners aren't told what or where they will be eating, and often have to first pass through riddles or other gateways to get to their final destination.
I, along with twenty lucky Patron enthusiasts from the Charlotte area, took part in a very secret meal last night, Thursday, July 29, when Patron hosted a SDS dinner in Charlotte. By registering on Patron's website, guests were selected though a lottery system this past Tuesday to attend the free dinner. The selected people were contacted by phone Thursday afternoon and told to arrive at the Customshop restaurant at 7:15 pm.
Upon arrival, the only people greeting us were the waitstaff at Customshop. They seemed clueless as to what we were supposed to do next. They handed us a napkin with an address handwritten on it, and a computer-printed map to The Palmer Building.
With napkin and map in hand, we jumped in our cars and searched for our next destination. We arrived at The Palmer Building off of 7th Street and were welcomed into a dark reception area scattered with high-top tables with hazy liquid nitrogen centerpieces. Waiters floated around the room passing out "Sangrita" cocktails and hors d'oeuvres, which included cold cucumber gazpacho, eggplant caponata bruschetta, and grilled proscuitto wrapped figs stuffed with mascarpone.
Finally after 30-40 minutes of slight confusion as to what was to happen next, the Patron representatives introduced Chef Brett Mckee, of Oak Steakhouse and 17 North Roadside Kitchen fame (and who is opening 15 North in Charlotte next month), and mixologist Chip Townsend, from Customshop, who were creating the delightful dishes and cocktails for the night.
At dinner time, black curtains were drawn back and we were ushered into the dining area. Name cards for each guest were set at the candle-lit linen-covered banquet tables. The event looked as elaborate as a wedding banquet. Impressive. The spectacular dinner consisted of four courses and cocktails:
As you can see from the menu, we all ate and drank a lot ... probably too much. But what can you do when the food and drink is so good? Luckily, I didn't need to utilize the "transportation service" that Patron had so considerately arranged for guests.
To get in on future Patron Secret Dining Society events and news, check out patronsocialclub.com.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai Toasted Coconut Custard Tart
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Thu, Jul 29, 2010 at 3:24 PM
I haven't been able to get the coconut cream pie from Capital Grille out of my head since my first bite a few months ago.
Yes, it's been months that I've been dreaming about it. It was just so good. The shortbread-like crust was perfectly flaky and filled with cool, coconutty cream. Topped with mile-high whipped cream, it was a feast for the eyes. I housed most of the dessert before my friend suggested that I stop inhaling the pie and box it up for later. Party pooper.
After searching far and wide on the internet for the recipe, I still haven't been able to get my paws on Capital Grille's version of coconut cream pie.
... But I did find this Dorie Greenspan recipe for Toasted Coconut Custard Tart that comes very close to the coconut cream pie which dreams are made of.
A sweet pastry tart shell is filled with a smooth vanilla rum custard that has toasted coconut flakes swirled in. It's then topped with lots of rum-spiked whipped cream and dressed up with more toasted coconut. Heaven on earth.
It's a three-step process to make, but worth it.
(Prior to tart assembly, reserving and eating some of the custard part with a spoon is highly recommended.)
P.S. Here's a pic of the coconut cream pie from Capital Grille.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai Holy guacamole
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Tue, Jul 27, 2010 at 11:36 AM
What's green and creamy, and delicious? (Nope, it's not boogers. Gag, gag. Who does that?!)
Guacamole is incredibly easy to make. The worst part is paying an arm and a leg for avocados at Harris Teeter.
A tip: To get the pit out of the avocado, smack the blade of a heavy knife into the pit, twist, and remove. To get the pit off the knife, simple pinch the knife blade right above the pit and it should pop off.
This guac recipe takes about 10 minutes to prepare. Since it doesn't contain any jalapeños, those Hint of Jalapeños Tostitos Scoops tortilla chips complement it well.
Get dipping.
Holy Moley, Easy Guacamole
3 avocados - peeled, pitted, and diced
1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup diced onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 roma (plum) tomatoes, diced
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper (optional)
In a medium bowl, use a fork to mash together the avocados, lemon juice, and salt (leaving it as chunky as you like). Mix in onion, cilantro, tomatoes, and garlic. Stir in cayenne pepper. Refrigerate 1 hour for best flavor, or serve immediately.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai Lemon curd cupcakes with raspberry mascarpone frosting
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Jul 21, 2010 at 4:18 PM
See ya, my old vanilla cupcake recipes. It's official. We are breaking up. I've found someone else ... Magnolia Bakery's vanilla cupcakes.
I've finally tried Magnolia Bakery's vanilla cupcake recipe. Reviews online for Magnolia's cupcake recipe are all over the place. Some say it's the worst ever, others say it's amazing. Well, I had to see for myself.
I'm giving these a big stamp of approval. The texture of the cake is dense, tender, holds up well under frosting, and is the perfect canvas for any type of cupcake. The directions are simple and not fussy (I can't deal with drama). Although the recipe calls for self-rising flour (which I do not keep on hand), I was able to make my own SRF and we've settled our differences. All is well.
Here, I used the vanilla cake base and added lemon zest to make lemon cupcakes. Though the hint of citrus in the cake is light, you'll get a surprise in the center of each cupcake ... a bite of creamy tart lemon curd.
For the frosting, I used a raspberry mascarpone frosting. Though it tastes pretty good with these cupcakes, I'd definitely consider using a different frosting next time. This one came out soft and un-pipeable. I love frostings that are thick and fluffy, and that pipe out into voluminous clouds on top of cupcakes.
Now that I've found the ultimate cupcake recipe, I should probably settle down and take a break from testing the cupcake waters, eh? I guess it has been cupcake madness recently...
Monday, July 19, 2010
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai Hot-and-Spicy Chicken Cones
Posted By Priscilla Tsai on Mon, Jul 19, 2010 at 8:00 AM
Thanks, Food & Wine procuring and printing this amazing recipe. While flipping through a copy of F&W, I stumbled upon these Hot-and-Spicy Chicken Cones. These chicken wraps are famous to The Mighty Cone food trailer in Austin, TX, and I can see why. Meet my new favorite chicken recipe.
Flour tortillas wrap together a sweet and spicy mango slaw with strips of super crunchy chicken. The crunch comes the clever breading made of ground up cornflakes, red pepper chili flakes, sesame seeds, almonds, sugar, and salt.
So spicy, so crunchy, you'll forget all about Chick-fil-A's new Spicy Chicken Sandwich. The spice is pleasant without too much burn, and the sugar and mango add sweetness. I think you'll be surprised how extremely crunchy these are. I was amazed.
If you're cooking this for guests, you can simplify things by making the slaw the day before.
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Checking in at Heist Brewery 1
NoDa brewpub offers good variety in its libations
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Eat This: Poppy’s Bagel with Lox and Cream Cheese
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Banana pancakes with macadamia nut sauce 5
Topped with a creamy macadamia nut sauce and sprinkled with toasted macadamia nuts, these banana pancakes are definitely a good reason to get out of bed in the morning.
