Flan

I hope everyone had an awesome Thanksgiving! I had the pleasure of hosting a Friendsgiving this year, to celebrate one of my best friends birthdays! We got together and feasted on a relatively traditional Thanksgiving meal (minus the turkey- I went with rotisserie chicken this time to save some time and energy). One of our less traditional items was flan.

My flan actually made an appearance at the Thanksgiving dinner I had with my family. One of my mom's favorite desserts is flan, so I had to make it for her favorite holiday. Since I was also hosting the birthday party the next day, I extra one to share with my friends. Cynthia really liked this recipe, so per her request, I had to share it. Its a really simple recipe to make, and it's definitely a crowd pleaser.

Flan (makes 1 large flan)
1/2 cup Sugar
2 tbsp Water
Drop of Honey
2 tbsp Water
1 cup Cream
1 cup Milk
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
2. In a small pot, bring 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 tbsp water, and a drop of honey to a rolling boil.
3. Cook the sugar until the boiling slows, and a dark caramel color is reached.
4. Remove the pot from the heat and quickly add the 2 tbsp of water. Be very careful when doing this step, as the sugar will boil very hard and can splatter. Shake the pot as the water cools the mixture to evenly thin the liquid.
5. Pour the mixture into a 9 inch cake pan and allow it to cool on a flat surface.
6. In a medium pot, pour cream and milk with half the remaining sugar. Bring to a boil.
7. Whisk 3 eggs with the remaining sugar in a bowl. When the cream boils, slowly add it to the eggs while constantly whisking.
8. Once the cream is fully mixed in, add the vanilla. Allow the mix to cool briefly.
9. Once the sugar has set in the pan, and the mix has cooled, gently pour it into the pan.
10. Place the pan into a casserole dish or large cast iron skillet, and pour water into the larger vessel so that the water level is 3/4 of the way up the pan.
11. Place the larger vessel into the oven and bake for about 2 to 2.5 hours.
12. When the custard has formed a skin, and jiggles very slightly, the flan is finished. Depending on the amount of air at the bottom of the pan, the flan may jiggle less or more. You can test if the flan is cooked by very gently pressing the custard. It should bounce back gently.
13. Remove the flan from the heat, and allow to cool for about 30 minutes.
14. Run a knife along the edge of the pan to separate the flan from the sides of the pan.
15. Place into the refrigerator until it is cooled completely. Turn over onto a plate when cooled and serve cold.

This is a great dessert that you can make in advance, or start and leave in the oven for a while. It's a laid back dessert that doesn't require a whole lot of maintenance to execute successfully. You can put it in the oven, and turn on Netflix for 2 hours while you wait! The best part is that it wouldn't be unproductive ;)

Classic Eggs Benedict

Having brunch on a Sunday is one of my favorite activities. I love eating breakfast food- especially eggs. One of my go-to menu choices is eggs benedict. I love tangy hollandaise sauce on top of perfectly poached eggs. I see it as a perfect balance of tangy, salty, and rich.

Today, we celebrated my mom and stepdad's birthdays with our family. Her birthday is today, and my stepdad's birthday is tomorrow. We all got together to enjoy a meal, and eggs benedict on a Sunday afternoon seemed to be the perfect choice. It's not only my go-to, but also my mom's favorite breakfast item.

Eggs Benedict (Makes 4 servings)
8 Eggs
2 tbsp White Vinegar
3 Egg Yolks
1 tbsp Water
2 tbsp Lemon Juice
1 pinch Salt
2 sticks Butter 
4 English Muffins
8 slices Canadian Bacon
Paprika or Chives

1. Prepare your poaching liquid by filling a medium sized pot with water, and then adding a couple tbsp of vinegar. Bring the liquid to just under a boil, and reduce the heat to medium-low heat to maintain the temperature.
2. In a small pot, combine yolks, water, and lemon juice. Whip the yolks until they become pale and thickened.
3. Gently heat the yolk mixture while constantly whisking. Make sure that you're scraping the sides and bottom constantly to prevent curdling. Make sure your heat is low as you do this. The mixture will begin to froth and then thicken.
4. Once thickened, add the butter slowly. If the butter is softened, it will make this process easier. Reserve 1 tbsp of butter.
5. Once the sauce is made, you can add salt to taste, add additional lemon juice if needed. Set aside the sauce.
6. Crack one egg into a small ramekin. Have a slotted spoon an a paper-towel lined plate available. You want to make a thick layer of paper towels to soak up excess water.
7. Gently tip the egg into the pot of poaching liquid. Use the spoon to very slowly swirl the water. This will help maintain the shape of the egg.
8. Gently swirl the egg for about 1.5 minutes, until the white has cooked, but the yolk feels very soft. Remove the egg with the slotted spoon, and tip it onto the paper towel to soak up the excess liquid. Repeat the process for the remaining eggs.
9. Toast each half of the english muffins. Once toasted, spread the remaining butter onto each piece.
10. Quickly heat the canadian bacon on both sides, you want to lightly brown it.
11. Place a piece of canadian bacon on each piece of toasted english muffin, and then add the poached egg on top. Spoon a generous portion of hollandaise sauce on top of each egg and sprinkle with paprika to garnish.
 12. Serve immediately, and enjoy!

This recipe does take a little time and multitasking, but I assure you, it is SO delicious. The richness of the egg yolk was a perfect complement to the sourdough english muffin and salty canadian bacon. It was the perfect way to celebrate a special occasion, and I would definitely make it again. Happy birthday Umma and Appa!

Garlic and Pecorino Dinner Rolls

I love carbs in any form- rice, noodles, bread, potatoes- really anything. Bread is one of my favorite snacks. I use it to hold me over when I'm needing a snack, and even sometimes as a meal, albeit pretty unhealthy.

This recipe is one of my favorites. It's a soft bread with a nice crust. It's perfect for any occasion, and it holds well. The flavor is very mild and neutral, and it can really be used for pretty much anything. Plus, it's easy to make, and you don't need a bread machine!

Garlic and Pecorino Dinner Rolls (Makes 3-4 dozen rolls)
1 cup Water
1 tbsp Yeast
1 2/3 cup Buttermilk
1/3 cup Honey
2.5 pounds Flour
1 tbsp Salt
1 stick Butter

1 tbsp Minced Garlic
4 tbsp Butter
Chopped Parsley
Shaved Pecorino Cheese

1. Combine yeast with warm water to allow it to dissolve.
2. Combine flour and salt in a large bowl
3. In a separate bowl, place buttermilk and honey and mix together.
4. Add the yeast to the liquid ingredients.
5. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and begin to knead.
6. Add softened butter in and knead the dough for 10 minutes.
7. If you have a standing mixer, instead of kneading by hand for 10 minutes, use the lowest setting with a dough hook to knead for about 7 minutes.
8. The dough should be a very smooth mass.
9. Place into a greased bowl (use baking spray) and cover with plastic. Allow to rest for 2 hours.
10. Once the dough has risen about 3 times the size, remove from the bowl onto a clean surface.
11. Cut the dough using a bench scraper or dough divider. Scale out into 1.5 ounce balls.
12. Roll the balls in a circular motion with your hand cupped to make a smooth surface. The motion should pull the dough towards the bottom, smoothing out the top.
13. Place the dough spaced out on a greased baking sheet or casserole dish. Cover very loosely with film, and allow to rest another hour.
14. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. When dough has risen at least twice its size, unwrap the film and bake until golden brown, about 25-30 minutes.
15. Make garlic butter with melted butter, garlic, and parsley.
16. When the bread is done baking, allow to cool briefly. Then, brush butter liberally over the top.
17. Shave pecorino over the top and serve immediately.

If you are not serving this bread fresh, be sure to place it into the refrigerator. You can reheat the bread in the oven or very briefly in the microwave (20 seconds) prior to serving.  you are saving it for later, brush with butter when you serve it. This bread is perfect for any
occasion and can be made in advance. Just remember to share it!

Avocado Ice Cream

I've heard that your taste buds change every seven years or so. Avocados actually used to one of my least favorite foods. I couldn't stand them, and I would pick them out of everything. Now, I actually have grown to like avocados. 

My good friend, Cynthia, posted a recipe to my Facebook the other day that she wanted to try out together. She came over and we decided to give it a go! I adapted the recipe by Alton Brown just slightly to get the recipe below!

Avocado Ice Cream (Makes 1 quart)
2/3 cup Sugar
1.5 cup Milk
1 cup Heavy Cream
3 Avocados
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
1/2 tsp Salt

1. Prepare your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. This may involve freezing a vessel for 24 hours.

2.Heat milk and sugar on the stove until it is completely dissolved. If it boils, set it aside to cool for at least 5 minutes. 

3. Place avocados, heavy cream, lemon juice, and salt into a blender and blend until well pureed. 

4. If you do not have a blender, use an electric mixer to cream avocados and slowly add the cream, lemon juice, and salt until it becomes smooth. 

5. Slowly blend the milk into the mixture and mix until smooth and incorporated. 

6. Place the mix into the fridge until cooled completely. 

7. Churn the mix in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. Remove from the ice cream machine when the mixture looks like soft serve. 

8. Place into a freezer-safe container and harden in the freezer for 3-5 hours. 

9. Allow the ice cream to thaw slightly before scooping into a frozen bowl and enjoying. 

This ice cream is delicious! It's smooth and tasty without being too sweet. It's got a slight earthiness to it that is really perfect for a hot summer day. Plus, avocados make it kind of healthy, right? 

Chocolate Cake with Caramel Buttercream

Caramel and chocolate basically go hand in hand, right? This is a great recipe for a rich, delicious, and simple chocolate cake that is nothing short of awesome. I layered a chocolate cake with caramel buttercream and poured caramel sauce over the top of the cake for a gooey caramel cake!

Chocolate Cake with Caramel Buttercream
1 box Chocolate Cake Mix
Ingredients on the Box of Cake Mix

1 stick Butter
4 oz Shortening
3 oz Powdered Sugar
3 oz Sugar
2 Egg Whites

1/2 cup Sugar
2 tbsp Water
1/3 cup Heavy Cream
2 tbsp Butter

1. Mix the cake batter according to the box's instructions and bake into cake pans.
2. Allow the cake to cool completely.
3. Cream butter, shortening, and powdered sugar together until completely soft and incorporated.
4. Combine egg whites and sugar and heat in a bowl on top of a pot of boiling water.
5. Allow the egg white mixture to get to about 140 degrees F. The sugar will be completely dissolved into the whites at this point.
6. Remove from the heat and whip to stiff peaks.
7. Mix the meringue into the butter and shortening mixture.
8. Heat sugar and water over high heat. Do not stir.
9. Once the sugar begins to take on some color, swirl the pot. Have the cream ready by this point.
10. Once the sugar gets to an amber color, quickly remove the pot from the heat.
11. Pour the cream into the sugar, and stir. Be careful, the sugar will boil up very quickly.
12. Add the butter and allow the caramel to cool completely.
13. Once the caramel is cool, fold half of it into the buttercream.
14. Save the remaining half for the top of the cake.
15. Slice the cake into 3 even slices using a serrated knife.
16. Once sliced, trim the uneven parts, and then layer the cake with buttercream. This is easiest when you use a piping bag to pipe the buttercream in layers on the cake.
17. Then, put a layer of buttercream on the top. Place the cake into the fridge to set up for about 20 minutes.
18. Check the caramel sauce to make sure that it isn't too thick. If it is so thick that it will not flow at all, heat it very gently until it flows slightly.
19. Make sure that the caramel is not hot or too warm. Then, gently pour it on top of the cake and allow it to come down the sides.
20. Serve immediately.

I used cake mix to make this cake. It actually works great! It's easy, but also very moist and fluffy. The best part of this cake is the buttercream, so there's no reason to spend too much time making the cake itself! 

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there! I hope you felt super appreciated today! I really have a lot to be thankful for. My dad is an awesome man who really leads by example. He's a great supporter and caregiver and has always been a great source of advice and encouragement. My stepdad is also a great man. He treats my mom with a lot of respect and love, and cares for me and the rest of my family as if we are his own. Both my dads are so selfless, loving, encouraging, and are great examples of what heads of households should look like. They help me to strive for more and pursue my passions. I hope everyone is able to show their dads some love this day! :)