Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie

I admit,  I am not really a baker. I don't  mind spending the whole day in the kitchen, stirring vigorously the contents of my pans or watch in silent vigil, at a pot full of animal carcass, cooking gently in its own juice. I rarely follow a recipe and measuring ingredients was never been a habit,  so If a dish doesn't turn out as it should be, a little bit of tweaking and seasoning really helps. A tad of butter, a splash of cream , more salt and a bit pepper could always save a dish, well, almost always.

 Baking, however,  is a completely different story. Every gram of flour or sugar, every drop of liquid, the kneading, the beating, the  temperature, the length of baking, is crucial.  Once out of the oven, there's no salvaging  a burnt muffin , a stone hard bread  or a saggy scone. The trash bin has been fed  more often than I want to admit,  with my failed experiments. Along  with it are the frustrated wails and unladylike curses that made me grateful, I no longer live with my mother. If there's something that could make me lose my cool, than it's probably a baked cake that's stuck in the  pan . I try  not play with my happy disposition , so I tend to bake less and cook more. One of the many secrets of hubby's harmonious weekends.

Now, Chocolate chip cookie is my all time favorite cookie, and I have tried and tried baking it, hoping the it would turn out like I want it. Soft, thick and chewy. Recipes look easy enough, but my numerous attempts always end up a failure. My oven yields annoyingly flat, dry and almost crumbly cookies!  After few failed attempts, I simply gave up on it. It has been three years since I've tried baking it and today I somehow felt...lucky. Maybe it's the Glücksbringer ( lucky charm) plant I got for Christmas . With it on the kitchen counter, anything seems possible. Like reaching my nose with the tip of left big toe, win the lottery or have a soft and chewy home-made chocolate cookie. Well, It goes without saying,  that  I was not able to lift my foot past my navel,  forgot to play this week's Lotto, so  I could at least give cookie baking a go. Luck was  beaming at me today, since I've made the thickest, chewiest Cookie ever! Hep...Hep...Hurray! 

 It might take a while and few more yoga sessions before I could twist my limbs and touch  any part of my anatomy with my toe, and it would probably take eternity before I could win anything in the lottery. So in the meantime, let me share this wonderful recipe with you, while waiting for the first two to happen. Eating it certainly makes the wait, a worth while.

Ingredients:

• 360 g all purpose Flour
• 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 230 g Butter, softened
• 100 g granulated sugar
• 200 g Brown Sugar
• 1 tbsp. Vanilla
• 2 Large Eggs
• 255 g Chocolate Chips

Instructions:

1.Sift and whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

2.In another bowl, cream together butter and sugar using an electric mixer until no lumps remain.

3.Whisk in the eggs and the vanilla until everything is well incorporated.

 4.Add in the flour mixture and mix everything together using a rubber spatula, wooden spoon or if using an electric mixer, its dough hooks.

5. Fold in chocolate chips. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.


6.When ready to bake, preheat oven to 190 °C . Line baking tray with parchment paper.
Scoop about 1-2 tbsp of dough ( depending on how big you want your cookie to be), roll into into a ball, place it on the lined tray, leaving about 2 iches space between cookies as they spread once baked. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until golden brown.

 Enjoy it warm and with a tall glas of milk!

Pork and Beans

FF has an uncanny habit of buying grocery items on sale. Sausages, sweets, yogurts, beer or chips. It there's a red label attached to it, he'll be hanging to it like a toilet paper on a wet bottom. He could be every girl's  " Mr. Right " if he shows the same fierce determination at ferreting out shoes or handbags.  Unfortunately, his reaction to cut- priced fashion items is as enthusiastic as a person surveying a dead toenail. A girl could only dream, right?  

It was Saturday and we were at our favorite supermarket. He was yet again totally wrapped up in his search for  things he don't need and I don't like. The sudden manic glint of his eyes was all so familiar as he dashes forward to grab something that might slip off his almost quivering palms. Then, he triumphantly raised his hand holding a huge jar of baked beans with a 1 euro stamp on it. Normally, I just roll my eyes at his childish  delight for finding cheap grubs but I just grinned back.  I haven't  seen baked beans at  our groceries before, but then again, American food items  are rarely seen at our German grocery shelves. Looking at it brings back some distant childhood memories. My family often eats canned pork and beans for a quick fix . Served on hot rice, we don't even have to warm it, plus it's relatively cheap and filling. My only complain as a kid was, not having enough meat chunks on it. Eating it was a tedious game of hide and seek. Finding the the tiny speck of meat was the challenge and the winner takes it all. When our luck runs out, we simply rename the canned food, "Bean and Beans" in commemoration of the non existent pork. If the piece of meat ends up on my plate however, I always save that for last, eating and savoring it with the last spoonful of rice. Aaaahh happy , silly childhood memories. I gave FF an affectionate pat on the back before putting his precious loot in the cart.

Cooking the beans was a brisk  plus it tasted mighty fine too. The best euro we've ever spent if you ask me. Way to go Hubby!

Ingredients: 

Baked beans (1 kg)

1/2 cup of BBQ Sauce 

1 cup of tomato ketchup

1 onion

3 cloves of garlic

1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup of Apple cider vinegar

3 tbs. of brown sugar

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper to taste.


Cooking Instructions

 Put BBQ Sauce, tomato ketchup, brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce.

Add in cider vinegar..

 Whisk ....whisk....whisk away until everything's well combined.

Heat a bit of oil in a pan. Sauté diced onion and chopped garlic until aromatic.

Add in cubed pork. Toss and let it brown.

Add the BBQ - Ketchup mixture. Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat. Season with salt and pepper, add in bay leaf.

Cover pot, pan or whatever you're using and let the meat and sauce simmer gently for about half an hour or until pork is just-tender. Add 1/2 Cup of warm water if Sauce thickens too much or dries out.

Add in the beans ( On sale or not ). Stir well. Cook for another 15-20 minutes.

Done!

Now this one porky beans!

Chicken Afritada Recipe

If I were to call an Afritada dish something, it would be a "classic". Along with Adobo, Sinigang and Lumpia,  this is one dish, almost every Pinoy household knows how to cook.  This tomato based stew is sold in  every run the mill Carenderias, cooked in many feast and special celebrations  or simple lunches and dinners back home. 

There's something comforting about this dish, plus it is easy enough to make . FF embraced this dish like a Filipino when I first cooked it. After all, it has everything he likes in a dish. The chicken, the potatoes, the carrots, the paprika  and of course, the tomato sauce. He generally loves tomato based dishes, so having this on the table is no- brainer.  The vegetables and meat needed in this dish is present in every  local markets and conveniently enough, all grocery shops. 

Just like any other dishes, every household has its own way of cooking Afritada. Some fry the potatoes and carrots first, some put sausages and peas in it. Pork and chicken is commonly use in this recipe and one can even combine both. This is how I did mine.

The Ingredients:  

•  2 chicken thighs and half chicken breast fillet, chopped into serving portions
• 2 small or 1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• juice from 1 lime or 3 calamansi
• 3 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 4 -5 potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges
• 2 bell peppers, sliced
• 2 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 400 ml tomato sauce 
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• 3-4 bay leaves
• salt and pepper ( you can use fish sauce instead of salt)
• 350 ml warm water
• vegetable oil for frying
• optional: chili peppers ( if you want it spicy)

Cooking Instruction:

 Marinate chicken pieces in soy sauce, minced garlic and lime juice for about an hour.
Crack the stove up to high. Heat a bit of oil , brown the meat pieces ( marinade and all) and take out from the pan. In the same pan, saute onion until transparent and aromatic. Put the meat back into the pan, stir until well combined. Pour tomato sauce ,50 ml warm water and pineapple juice. Bring the dish to a boil and once bubbly, turn the heat down to medium, let the meat and tomato sauce simmer for 15 mins, covered.

 Add in bay leaves, sliced carrots and potatoes. Cover the pan and continue simmering for 10 more minutes. If the sauce dries up too quickly, add a cup full of warm water and lower the Heat.

 Once the potatoes and carrots are just-tender, add in chili slices ( if using) and sliced bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper or Fish sauce if you like. Let the dish cook for 5 to 7 more minutes.  Serve with white rice and enjoy !

 

Chicken Afritada ala Emily