by Ling on August 24, 2010
I yearned for a greasy NYC slice of cheesy pepperoni pizza Sunday night. What did I do? Dress up some maruchuan ramen with hot dog slices, frozen peas, and corn for dinner. Tuesday came, and I craved the exact same greasy slice. Midtown’s 2 Bros Pizza tempted me with its $1 slices and close proximity to work. So naturally I traipsed over in the rain to Hing Won to get some greasy beef & broccoli over fried rice and egg roll for lunch instead.
Six hours and one hour-long chisel class later, I found myself walking out of Trader Joe’s with 10 mini bagels, a bag of pre-sliced ham, a wedge of Fontina cheese, (and my usual stash of low sodium Chicken broth and frozen Mexican goodies). I knew that a small bowl of leftover pasta sauce and a stick of mozzarella string cheese waited for me at home, and I knew exactly what I wanted to make.
This is a throwback to those Bagel Bites you can buy in the frozen section of your local grocery store, except mine are fresher, cheaper, and made lovingly with random leftovers in the fridge.
Ingredients:
Mini bagels, halfed
Pizza (or in my case, pasta) sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese (insert string cheese)
Ham (for health reasons, though pepperoni would be my meat of choice)
Oregano, basil, garlic powder
Optional: Peppers, Onions, Mushroom
Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Line baking sheet with tin foil and arrange the bagel halves on top
2) Evenly spread the sauce on each bagel half and top with the shredded cheese. Sprinkle some oregano, basil, and garlic powder
3) Shred the slice of ham and arrange the pieces on top of the cheese
4) Bake 10 minutes or until cheese is melted
5) Enjoy your bite size pizzas!
It’s not exactly the same as indulging in that nice greasy slice of oozing piping hot goodness, but it definitely put off my craving for another day.
by Ling on August 11, 2010
I can’t bear to waste food. And I absolutely refused to throw away the unopened tube of Smucker’s Seedless Strawberry Jam I had bought months ago with the Skippy Peanut Butter, all in the spirit of making hypothetical PB&J sandwiches for work. However, the May expiration date was fast approaching. With my Google cap on, I foraged the internet for recipes and finally found what I was looking for on the Smucker’s website. I baked the Strawberry Cheesecake Brownies as a 23rd birthday present for a very special friend.
Ingredients:
Non-Stick Cooking Spray
1 package Fudge Brownie mix
1/2 cup Vegetable Oil
1/4 cup water
4 large eggs, divided
2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
1 (14 oz.) can Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup Seedless Strawberry Jam
Instructions:
1) Heat oven to 350°F. Spray a 13×9-inch baking pan with no-stick cooking spray. Combine brownie mix, oil, water and 2 eggs in large bowl; stir 50 strokes with spoon. Spread into prepared pan. Bake 20 minutes.
2) Beat cream cheese until fluffy in large bowl. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk. Mix in remaining 2 eggs, lemon juice and vanilla until smooth. Pour evenly over warm brownie.
3) Stir jam until smooth. Drop by teaspoonfuls over surface of filling. With a knife, swirl jam gently through filling to create marble effect. Bake additional 35 to 40 minutes or until top is lightly browned. Cool 1 hour. Loosely cover and chill in refrigerator for 2 hours or more. Cut into bars. Serve with strawberries.
Look at that pretty strawberry swirl =)
[read more…]
by Ling on August 5, 2010
It’s hard being such a sensory driven person sometimes. It results in little things triggering memories that tug gently at the heart, activating those lingering feelings you sometimes cherish, sometimes wish you could just forget.
This particular memory was one I cherished. The harsh 90 degree weather in NYC had let go for just a few blessed hours, and the crisp fall-like weather brought back memories of Florence as I took my customary 20 minute walk to work. Pinpointing the exact cause of those feelings was near impossible. You just know and feel sometimes without reason, and the memories rushed back – my morning waits at the bus stop by the David, cramming into the tight buses during rush hour amongst young high schoolers chattering away in Italian, driving up the hill and eventually pressing the stop button at NYU’s Florence campus, taking that “walk of death” across the valley covered with swaying olive trees to get to the school buildings.
Enough time has passed that sometimes Europe feels like a dream lived by someone else, a dream I had been fortunate enough to briefly glimpse as it passed by me.
In the spirit of Europe and enjoying the rest of a decadent summer, here is an original recipe for the Nestle Toll House’s famous fudge. Nestle is the largest nutrition and foods company in the world, founded and headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. Satisfy your sweet tooth by making some fudge, but make sure you have friends to share with! (Pictures date back to last summer when Ji, Sondra, and myself made fudge for the first time).
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup Nestle Carnation Evaporated Milk
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 1/2 cups Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
[read more…]
by Ling on August 2, 2010
Sometimes life requires a kick to bring one back to reality, to remind oneself about the things that really do matter and the dangers of hiding away in a dream world. I finally had the opportunity to watch Inception on Sunday ($6 movie tickets at NYC AMC theaters before noon is an amazing deal!), and it brings up many interesting views on reality. What separates reality from the dream? Can an idea that is planted subconsciously continue to eat away at your thoughts until it becomes a reality? If reality is something we create and manipulate, then I better start creating a better reality for myself.
I usually kick back in my comfy foldable chair when the time comes to really focus and reflect. It’s a nice change from my usual position on the bed as I type away, and most definitely a better option for my back. With my debut entry after a 3-month hiatus, I hope to really return to the basics of what I truly enjoy in my spare time – photography as a form of art and expressing myself through words. Finally getting a new job also helps. =)
My visit to the Russian Tea Room actually took place Winter 2009 Restaurant Week. As per tradition, my coworkers and I made our semi-annual pilgrimmage to a nearby restaurant to sample its $24.07 menu. It was actually what I imagined a fancy restaurant in Moscow to be. Prim, ornate, rich colors surrounded us the minute we stepped in. Red, the color of royalty. And topped off with an enormous crystal bear. We retreated downstairs for the mandatory coatcheck and were met by shelves of Russian trinkets and Matryoshka dolls. Impressive display, albeit a bit stuffy.
I started with the Tea Room Red Borscht, a red short ribs broth with pickled red beets, seasonal vegetables, dill and braised beef pirozhki. Soups of such vibrant colors intrigue me, and the borscht proved to be rich and flavorful, an excellent way to start off the meal.
My coworker decided to try the Goat Cheese and Wild Mushroom Blinchik, a crepe filled with mixed mushrooms and melted onions topped with lingdonberries.
As recommended by the various Yelp reviews that we scoped out beforehand, all 3 of us ordered the Boeuf à la Stroganoff as our entrees. Easily the best part of the meal, the restaurant offered a generous portion of the beef filet, which sat serenely atop the bed of house made buckwheat noodles. The wild mushrooms, porcini cream, and red wine reduction created a perfect blend of succulent deliciousness with the meat and noodles, a dish that I quickly inhaled.
[read more…]
