The New Year Flan

While waiting and counting down for the New Year, I already finished my dinner and homemade flan. This delicious and delightful dessert is a perfect for any special occasion. The important thing is I want to wish everyone a happiness, excitement and sweet surprises on your doorstep. Wishing you and all your dear ones a fabulous New Year! 
When it come to make a dessert for special occasions like New Year. I have been searching for this recipe for a while and finally  baked this homemade flan. There were a few ingredients such as a sweetened condensed mike, evaporated milk, eggs, and granulated sugar and it can be made ahead. Let's get started ka. 

Ingredients: 

3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar 
1 can or 12 oz evaporated milk  
1 can or 14 oz sweetened condensed milk, if you do not like sweet you can take 1/8 cup out from the can.  
1/4 cup cream cheese (optional) 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
2 teaspoons orange liqueur (optional) 
strawberries for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees 

In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, melt sugar until golden in color. Carefully pour hot syrup into 9-inch round glass baking dish, turning the dish to evenly coat the bottom. Set aside.

In a large bowl, add cream cheese, evaporated milk, condensed milk, eggs, and vanilla extract, orange liqueur, and beat until smooth. Pour egg mixture through the strainer to get rid of the little lumps. 

Place the baking dish on the roasting pan and fill it with warm water to reach halfway up the sides of the baking dish. 
Bake in the preheated oven about 60 minutes or until cooked through. Let cool completely and refrigerate at least 4 hours, I kept it in refrigerator over night. 

To serve, run a sharpe knife around the inside of the mold to release the flan. Invert a plate on the baking dish, flip the dish over and gently remove it. Serve cold and garnish with strawberries if desired. Enjoy ka.   

Delicious ka!

Matzo Ball Soup

Today was very cold and windy so I decided to make one of my favorite soups. This matzo ball soup required a few ingredients, which I already have in my pantry including matzo ball mix, eggs, and vegetable oil. The classic matzo ball soup is served in the chicken broth but today I made it with the vegetable soup. If you like a simple and meatless version you might have to try this recipe. Let's get started ka. 

Ingredients: Serves 2 
1 package Matzo Ball Mix
2 large eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Vegetable soup 
Napa cabbage, cleaned and sliced 
2 onions, cut in quartered 
3 stalks celery, sliced including leaves 
4 cloves garlic, smashed   
soy sauce 
salt and ground pepper to taste 
water 
chopped parsley or dill for garnish 

Directions 
Make the vegetable soup, in a soup pot, pour water and bring to a boil over a medium heat. Add onion, celery, garlic, napa cabbage, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Bring the heat to medium low and simmer until veggies are soft. Check the seasoning and add more salt and soy sauce if desired.  Strain the vegetable broth with the mesh strainer. Reserve cooked veggies for later. 

Make the Matzo Balls, in a medium bowl add the matzo ball mix, 2 eggs, and 1/4 cup of vegetable oil, and mix until uniform. Let stand  for 15 minutes in refrigerator. Using wet hands, form the mixture into the balls, I made 4 balls. 

In a soup pot bring a vegetable broth to a boil. Drop Matzo balls into the boiling soup, cover tightly and reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes. Add cooked veggies and check the seasoning. Serve hot and garnish with chopped parsley or dill. Enjoy ka. 

Delicious ka! 

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

It was raining again and I would rather be at home with my kitty girls. They were sleeping all day and did not bother me while I was making lunch. Meanwhile, I am a huge fan of Ree Drummond and of course I have one of her cookbooks. I like her roasted creamy butternut squash soup recipe but also like to add some spices such as a pinch of curry powder and cumin. I love butternut squash and this is also the another recipe : spiced butternut squash soup.

Ingredients 

1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into cubes 

2 medium carrots, peeled, seeded, and cut into cubes 

3 cloves garlic, smashed 

fresh thyme 

2 small onions, diced 

3 stalks celery, diced 

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground curry powder 

2 teaspoons honey

milk, I used 2% milk 

vegetable stock or chicken stock, here is my homemade chicken stock recipe 

olive oil 

1 tablespoon butter 

salt and ground black pepper to taste 

sour cream for serving 

dill to garnish  

Directions 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees  

Spread the squash, carrot, garlic, thyme on to the baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast until they are tender about 30 minutes. Use the spatular or shake the pan to flip all veggies halfway through. Set them aside.

In a large soup pot, cook the onion in the olive oil and butter over medium heat until soft and translucent. Stir in diced celery and cook for a few minutes. Add roasted butternut squash and carrot including garlic into the pot. Add chicken or vegetable stock. Add ground cumin, curry powder, salt and black pepper. And heat the mixture and cook until veggies are tender. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup in the pot until smooth. Please be careful and use the low speed because soup is very hot. You can also use a food processor or a regular blender. Add milk, honey, and stir well.  Let it simmer for several minutes and check the seasoning. Serve the soup with a dollop of sour cream and garnish with dill leaves. Enjoy ka. 

Yummy!

Minestrone - Bean and Pasta Soup

This Minestrone or an Italian Soup is perfect for a rainy day and can be served as a main-meal. Meanwhile, I got inspired to make this hearty soup from one of our favorite Italian restaurants "Bertucci's." Their food and service were very good. I really like this soup because I can use whatever I have in the refrigerator such as tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, carrot, onion, celery, and snap peas. I also made homemade chicken stock that created more flavorful soup. So let me show you how I made it. 

Ingredients 

4 cups cranberry beans, cooked, or two 15 oz cans cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed  
1 cup small pasta shapes, cooked to al dente and drained  
1 zucchini, halved, cut into thick strips and cubed
1 carrot, peeled, chopped
3 celery stakes, sliced, leaves included 
2 tomatoes, diced 
2 cups spinach, chopped 
10 oz snow peas, chopped or green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces  
1 onion, diced 
4 cloves garlic, minced 
10 oz white mushrooms, quartered, I used king oyster mushrooms, cut and cubed 
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin 
1/2 teaspoon ground curry powder 
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 
7-8 cups chicken broth 
salt and ground black pepper to taste 
2 tablespoons olive oil 
2 bay leaves 
minced fresh parsley 
Parmesan cheese to serve 

Directions 

Sock the cranberry beans over night and boil the beans until tender. Drain well.  

In a large pot, heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and minced garlic and cook until translucent. Stir in carrot, celery, and cook for 3-4 minutes or until softened. Add mushrooms and snow peas. Then add the chicken broth and bay leaves. Season with ground cumin, curry powder, salt, and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to simmer. Add diced tomatoes and beans. Simmer on low and add chopped spinach. Finally, add cooked pasta and chopped parsley. Stir and simmer until the soup is piping hot. Taste and adjust the seasonings. 
Serve the delicious Minestrone soup in a bowl with grated Parmesan cheese. Enjoy ka! 

Delicious ka!