Steamed Egg Custard Dessert March 11, 2009

A simple dessert that is super easy to make and super satisfying. The texture of this egg custard is very smooth and can be eaten warm or chilled. Sweetness level can be adjusted to your taste. This Chinese dessert is similar to the Spanish flan!

Unfortunately I ate it before I took a picture. Plus mine were in white bowls so they weren’t that pretty to photograph anyway. Here’s a pic I found online of what they look like.

Steamed Egg Custard Dessert
Makes 4 Chinese rice bowls, will serve 4-6 if using ramekins.

4 extra-large eggs
2 cups milk
~4 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp sweetened condensed milk (optional)

1. Mix all ingredients together trying not to form bubbles. Let mixture sit if a lot of bubbles form so they can pop.
2. For a super smooth consistency you can strain the mixture but I didn’t bother.
3. Pour into bowls/ramekins.
4. Boil water in steamer (or whatever steaming contraption you create). Once boiling, place bowls in steamer and turn heat to medium-low. Steam for 20 minutes. To check if it’s done, stick chopstick into surface of custard, if no liquid custard wells up then it’s done. Custard will feel very soft.
5. Let it sit uncovered until it’s cool enough to grab out of the steamer. Enjoy warm or chill for a few hours until really cold, then enjoy.

Apple Popovers and Chicken and Dumplings! October 23, 2008

Yum Yum Yum. Both these dishes were quite yummy.

I found another recipe I wanted to try using the ramekins. The recipe can be found here and was called Apple Souffle but these are not souffles, the texture is more like popovers. I was dubious if the recipe would actually work because there was no rising agent except for eggs but as they were cooking they popped up like popovers and then I realized what they really were! The only change I made was to add ~2 tsp granulated sugar to the batter to ensure it came out sweet. I made one of these without cinnamon because my dad dislikes cinnamon. And we didn’t eat them with extra sugar or maple syrup because I forgot about that step. They were good anyway.

The one in the back actually tipped over because it had the least batter.

The recipe is very easy. I highly recommend it but cook it right before you want to eat it because they deflated A LOT. These pretty popped up pictures are all right out of the oven.

Close up of the cinnamon-less one.

The chicken and dumplings were made based on this recipe from allrecipes.com. I used about a pound of boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Instead of cream of chicken, I used cream of mushroom. And I used 1 can of milk and half a can of chicken stock just because I didn’t have enough stock (I used the can as a measure). In addition to the onion and celery, I added some frozen mixed veggies (carrot, peas, and corn) and left out the celery seed because I don’t own any.

Very filling! Makes five very big bowls.

Creme Brulee October 22, 2008

I’ve been avoiding baking because I really should cut back on my calorie intake.. but I couldn’t resist. Cindy bought four cuisineart ramekins from a yard sale for a dollar (we love yard sales) so of course I had to do something with them. We went to costco today so I was able to buy cream for cheap.. it’s a little pricey in the small grocery stores near me. I decided to use half and half instead of heavy cream to lower the fat content. Might have affected the overall recipe, I’m not sure.

I used the Creme Brulee II recipe from allrecipes.com. Alteration as suggested in the reviews was to use four egg yolks instead of three.

They turned out a bit liquid-y but it wasn’t too bad. The flavor was great and the sugar crust cracked perfectly (except for the burnt parts which tasted baaad).

I have more cream so may try again for when Cindy comes home. Next project with the ramekins will probably be mini pot pies.. or maybe souffle but not chocolate souffle. Yeah, I’m not a huge chocolate desserts fan.. don’t kill me! I do like chocolate! =P

Yogurt Panna Cotta September 2, 2008

I had a carton of plain yogurt sitting around so I decided to make yogurt panna cotta. I’ve never had it before so I’m not sure what it’s supposed to taste like but I imagine it to be creamy and sweet. The yogurt adds a nice tang to this yummy dessert. I mascerated some strawberries in sugar and added the fruit and the syrup to the panna cotta.

I used the recipe by Baking Bites. Instead of Greek yogurt I used plain non-fat yogurt. I didn’t have buttermilk so I added 1/2 teaspoon of vinegar to milk and let it sit for 5 minutes. Mine didn’t set properly and couldn’t be flipped onto a plate but it was great in the cups anyway. Next time I will add more geletin.

Jello Cheesecake August 12, 2008

This is a very simple and yummy dessert that my family likes to make often. It’s lighter than cheesecake and tastes like whatever flavor jello you use. My family was going to visit a friend’s house in New Jersey for dinner so I made a jello cheesecake to bring over. I actually made two, one for my family so that’s why you see a chocolate crust and a regular graham crust. This recipe was shared to me by my cousin in Vancouver but I’ve altered it through the years.

Jello Cheesecake
Makes 1 pie.

Ingredients
1 (8oz) box Jello, any flavor
1/2 cup hot water
1 (8oz) package of cream cheese, softened at room temperature
1 cup milk (you can use half and half or cream for a richer taste)
1/2 cup sugar
1 pre-made graham cracker crust

Directions
1. Dissolve jello powder in hot water and allow mixture to cool to warm. Mix occasionally to prevent jello from setting and don’t let mixture cool too much or else it will turn into solid jello.
2. Blend softened cream cheese with sugar until smooth and creamy. Add jello mixture and milk and blend until smooth. There should not be any lumps of cheese, if there are lumps that means your cheese was too cold. Try warming it up in the microwave to dissolve lumps.
3. Pour into crust and refrigerate overnight until firm enough to cut.

Enjoy!

My family’s favorite is strawberry with a regular graham crust.