lilclameats

apple cider > pumpkin spice. makes two dozen cookies

ingredients:

1/2 cup of butter, room temp. (1 stick)

1 large egg

1/3 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of light brown sugar

3 tbsp apple cider jam - i got mine at trader joes, you can also just use apple jam or apple butter!

1/4 tsp sea salt

1 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 &1/2 cup all purpose flour

a cinnamon sugar mixture as a coating (i just mix both of them together to my liking? i don’t measure. but i use around a 1/3 cup of sugar, adding cinnamon to taste)

recipe:

cream butter and sugars together until fluffy-ish and well incorporated 

add egg and apple cider jam, continue mixing

in a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients together (flour, salt, cream of tartar, baking soda)

add dry ingredients to wet and mix until homogenous - the dough will be really wet and sticky

use a cookie scoop and scoop out dough, and coat each ball with cinnamon-sugar

once all dough balls are coated, let sit in fridge to cool for around an hour

after an hour, preheat oven to 350

recoat each dough-ball with cinnamon sugar

bake for 9-10 minutes

its healthy because broccoli is in it. makes a lot, feel free to half the recipe, or refrigerate the leftovers ,cut them up, and deep fry them for fried mac n cheese leftovers .... yum

ingredients:

3 tbsp butter

1/2 cup of milk

1 tbsp flour

1 lb white cooper sharp cheese

1 lb sharp cheddar cheese

1 package of frozen broccoli, chopped

1 box of medium pasta shells, cooked

1/4 cup of pasta water

1-2 tbsp smoked paprika 

panko (optional) 

recipe:

in a pot, over medium heat, melt butter and whisk in flour and milk

whisk in paprika 

cut your cheese into cubes and add to the pot, stir and let melt - whisking throughout

add in chopped broccoli and stir

make sure you boil your pasta in heavily salted water! we’re using this pasta water to give the mac n cheese more flavor

once pasta is cooked, add pasta and pasta water to cheese mixture and stir

if your mixture is too thick, feel free to add more milk or pasta water

you may add more salt to taste if you want

preheat oven to 425

pour your mac and cheese into an oven safe dish, cast iron skillet, or little ramekins

top with panko and/or parm and/or breadcrumbs

hello friends!! long time no see. was cleaning out my freezer and realized that I still had frozen raspberries sooo here we are. i made a gluten free version of these for v-day but honestly I like this classic version better. it’s also nut free for my nut allergen friends. recipe makes 2 dozen cookies.

ingredients:

1&1/3 cup of all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

a pinch of salt

1 stick of butter, softened (room temp for best results!)

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/4 cup of white sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 large egg

3/4 cup of semi sweet chocolate chunks

1/2 cup of frozen raspberries

recipe:

in a bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder - set aside

in a separate mixing bowl cream together butter, brown sugar and white sugar

add in egg, vanilla and salt and continue mixing

once all wet ingredients are well incorporated, add in the chocolate chunks and mix until they are spread throughout! this ensures that all cookies have appx. the same amount of chocolate chunks 

add your dry ingredients in two parts and mix until incorporated 

FOLD (dont mix!) in your raspberries, the larger raspberries might break apart but thats ok! you should get pretty raspberry streaks and chunks

scoop out your cookies (I used my cookie scoop, tagged somewhere on the blog, lol) and place onto parchment paper

let chill in fridge for 30 minutes to an hour

bake at 375 for 11 minutes

let cool and enjoy!

from prep to finish - a one hour meal that is soo flavorful and yummy. i eyeballed measurements when i made this so ~ adjust as needed ~ this recipe is very adaptable!!

ingredients:

protein:

1/2 pound boneless + skinless chicken thighs

6-7 ounces of andouille sausage (appx 2 sausage links, i use the trader joes smoked chicken andouille) 

15-20 peeled + deveined shrimp

* you can easily just omit anything you don’t wanna use, or just do it without protein in the pasta and pair it with a blackened salmon or piece of chicken idk 

seasonings for the shrimp and chicken:

sea salt

smoked paprika

white pepper

garlic powder

onion powder

black pepper

cayenne pepper

*disclaimer, no measurements, u just season until they look well seasoned?? easy on the salt tho

veggies:

2 medium sized bell peppers (i used orange and yellow) cut into 1 cm thick slices 

3 handfulls of spinach

1 cup of cherry tomatoes, chopped (i used baby heirloom tomatoes , so colorful, so fun!)

1/4 of a sweet onion, chopped finely

1/2 stalk of celery, also chopped finely

5 cloves of garlic, minced 

other:

3-4 tbsp cajun seasoning

1/2 box of linguine or fettuccine pasta 

6 oz of chicken broth

1/4 cup of half and half 

3 tbsp tomato paste

dried oregano + basil

1/2 cup of grated parm

1/4 cup of pasta water

dried parsley to top

recipe:

slice andouille sausage into 1/2 cm thick slices

season your chicken and shrimp

while chicken and shrimp are slightly marinating, prep your veggies!

in a pan, on medium high heat preheated olive oil, cook your chicken thighs thoroughly

once chicken is cooked, remove chicken and set aside, then add your shrimp + andouille sausage

in a big pot - cook your pasta. HOWEVER do not fully boil the pasta (i let it boil for 4 mins?)

remove shrimp and sausage once cooked (/sausage has some color)

in the same pan (with the oil that is infused with chicken fat and flavor) add in your: peppers, celery, and onions

once your onions start to turn translucent, add in your tomatoes

once your tomatoes begin to blister and peppers soften, add minced garlic, dried oregano, basil, cajun seasoning and tomato paste and let simmer for 2-3 minutes 

stream in chicken broth + half and half and stir, it should be simmering

add in 1/4 cup of grated parm and stir until its incorporated into the sauce

add in your par-cooked pasta and pasta water

stir then add in the protein you set aside 

once pasta is al dente or to your liking, add in the rest of the parm and spinach

stir and let simmer until spinach is wilted

one thing i live by is that i will never show up to a function without baked goods, regardless of the type of function. college party? cookies and tequila. trying to impress someone? apple galette. a galette is a french term for round, flat, “freeform”, crusty cakes. in simpler terms, a pie/tart hybrid. personally, i love galettes more than pie because the crust should be the star of the show! show up to any function with an apple galette and people will think you’re so polished and cool (or at least i think lol). personally i think they look so rustic and cute and taste sooo good with some french vanilla ice cream. i promise you its actually so easy to make!!

ingredients:

special equipment | a food processor 

for the crust: this is actually just a basic pie crust recipe 

2 & 1/4 cup of all purpose flour + extra flour for your work surface

2 tsp of salt

1 cup (2 sticks) of butter, cut into small cubes 

1 tbsp of apple cider vinegar 

3 tbsp of ice cold water

for the filling: 

4 medium sized honeycrisp apples 

juice of one lemon 

1/4 cup of white sugar

2 tbsp of cinnamon

1/4 tsp of nutmeg

2-3 tbsp of flour 

for the glaze (optional):

3 tbsp of salted butter

1 tbsp of light brown sugar

additional stuff you need:

1 egg, whisked for an egg wash 

cane or turbinado sugar to sprinkle 

recipe:

for the crust:

in a food processor, add your butter, flour + salt together

pulse on low, slowly adding your apple cider vinegar and water

this should take around 2 minutes until a cohesive dough is formed

on a floured surface, turn out your dough and roll it in your flour

roughly roll out your dough into a rectangle (size doesnt matter), and cut in half

stack the halves on top of each other, roll out the dough and repeat previous step

wrap your dough and store in the fridge 

for the filling:

peel and slice your apples into thin slices (around 1/2 cm thick)

add apples to a large mixing bowl

cut lemon in half + squeeze lemon juice into the mixing bowl

mix with a rubber spatula

add 1 tbsp of cinnamon at a time, mixing the apples before adding another tbsp

add sugar, nutmeg  + flour

stir until each apple slice is well coated

for the glaze:

in a small sauce pan on medium heat, melt your butter and stir until butter ~ browns~ 

once butter is browned IMMEDIATELY remove from heat and pour into a bowl

add brown sugar and mix together

assembly:

preheat oven to 375 

on a floured surface, roll out your dough until its around 12-14 inches in diameter. it doesnt have to be a perfect circle !! the shape can be whatever you want. it can even be whatever size you want, just make sure it isnt too thick (anything less than 1/2 cm is in the clear)

to make baby galettes: cut your dough into sixths, and roll out into smaller circles - i go by thickness of dough not size of dough 

transfer the dough onto your baking sheet (that is lined with parchment paper!)

stack your apple slices in the center of the round, leaving 2-3 inches (1-1&1/2 inches for small ones) of exposed dough on the outer edge (this will be what we fold over)

once all your apples are beautifully arranged, fold the edges of the dough on top of the apples ?? i dont know how to explain this, you can figure this out from the pic

brush the glaze onto the apple filling

brush egg wash onto the crust 

sprinkle cane sugar onto the crust

bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes, until crust is golden brown 

hello friends!! long time no see (lol, my bad). i am back working full time so quick and easy meals are back on the table. i also have a thing against microwaves so this limits my options? does anyone else prefer not to use the microwave/feel icky if they microwave their food? ANYWAYS. whipped up these salmon wraps one day and it took like, 45 minutes tops, including cooking time. recipe serves one. 

ingredients:

4-5 leaves of butter lettuce, crispy romaine works as well!

napa cabbage kimchi (i used around 1/2 cup of kimchi because i love it, but however much you use is up to you)

if you dont have kimchi, you could julienne some carrots and cucumber just for some crunch factor.

trader joes spicy peanut vinaigrette 

1/2 an avocado, sliced thinly 

basil 

one salmon filet (im talking the individual serving size one)

1-2 tbsp sesame oil

sea salt

everything but the bagel seasoning 

garlic powder

sesame seeds (to garnish, optional)

recipe:

preheat oven to 375 degrees 

stab your salmon filet with a fork a few times (i honestly dont know if this does anything, my brain thinks it helps the seasoning get in there quicker)

season your salmon filet with: salt + garlic powder

sprinkle everything but the bagel seasoning all over the filet until it is FULLY covered

drizzle 1-2 tbsp of sesame oil 

bake for 15-20 mins, until the salmon ‘flakes’ apart when you stick a fork into it

while the salmon is baking, wash and pat dry your lettuce, and cut your avo into slices

once the salmon is ready... you just assemble?

i just pulled off pieces of the salmon (as seen in the pic) and put them into the lettuce cups

then (in this order): basil, kimchi, avo, vinaigrette

a beautiful brownie-cookie hybrid, with gorgeous crinkles. chewy, and not overly sweet. not much else to say besides i love these cookies and forget  how amazing they are until i bake them. makes roughly 36 cookies.

ingredients:

3/4 cup of plain white sugar

3 extra large eggs

2 tsp of vanilla extract 

1 cup of semi sweet chocolate chunks, chips, or chopped chocolate (This can be subbed for peanut butter chips too)

5 tbsp of butter

7 ounces of dark chocolate (i use 70% cocoa bars) + 3 ounces of semi sweet choc 

1/2 cup of all purpose flour

5 tbsp of cocoa powder 

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp of reg salt

recipe:

in a mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, vanilla and eggs until it turns into a pale yellow color

in a double boiler: melt your 10 ounces of chocolate and butter

once melted, add your melted chocolate/butter mixture into the wet ingredients and stir until well incorporated and add salt

sift: flour, baking soda, baking powder, and cocoa powder into a separate bowl

slowly add dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and fold in, continue stirring with a spatula until mixture gets thicker and glossy (theres only 1/2 cup of flour so we have to work the gluten!)

stir in chocolate chunks

chill dough in fridge for 30-45 mins

preheat oven to 350

scoop out dough, and bake for 15 minutes

use them often, love them v much. if you’re in the market for some fun condiments...feel free to take a gander!! all sauces can be found at your local whole foods or asian grocery store. however, sauces are linked as well!

thai sweet chili sauce

sweet, spicy and goes good with chicken, spring rolls, literally anything really. i grew up using this brand!!

sesame oil 

ummmm sesame oil rocks. need i say more? so fragrant, use it to cook, or even drizzle it on top of ramen, or popcorn, etc. the world is your oyster. 

mike’s hot honey

omg... on fried chicken.. on pizza... so good

dumpling sauce

what else would i dip my dumplings in?

hoisin sauce

a sauce used in a lot of asian foods, also used to dip your meatballs in for pho. 

sambal oelek

ALSO used in alot of asian foods, a spicy chili paste that goes a long way. great in marinades.

chili oil

on dumplings.. oh my god... mixed with sesame paste and smothered on top of chewy noodles... breathtaking. 

chipotle ranch

my go to dressing at el diablo, and best in your homemade burrito bowls!! 

veggie ketchup

don’t get me wrong, i am not a health nut. but i LOVE this ketchup, its non GMO, has less sugar than heinz and tastes amazing.

fish sauce/nuoc mam

my family uses this fish sauce if we can’t get fish sauce from a vietnamese restaurant. it rocks. if you haven’t had fish sauce before, here is my warning that it is FRAGRANT! i literally went to a fish sauce factory in vietnam, on an island known for fish sauce. so this stuff doesn’t phase me anymore.

oyster sauce

everyone is on the hunt for the best chocolate chip cookie recipe and honestly?? everyone’s tastes are so different. i personally LOVE the bon appetit BA’s best choc chip cookie, but browning the butter just takes so much work when i just want something i can quickly whip up. so voila. here is a recipe for chocolate chip cookies that makes me happy! they are easy, chewy, melty and ... my family ate 48 cookies in three days. 

ingredients:

2 sticks (1 cup) of softened butter

3/4 cup of white sugar

1&1/4 cup of light brown sugar

1 tsp of sea salt ( i used himalayan pink bc thats what we have)

2 tsp of vanilla

1 &1/2 tsp of baking soda

1 tsp of baking powder

2 eggs

3 cups of flour

2 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips/chunks/chopped chocolate

chopped chocolate is preferred but, i only had chips at the time!

recipe:

cream together: brown and white sugar with the butter

add eggs, salt, and vanilla

once all wet ingredients are well incorporated, add in the chocolate chips

this ensures that the chocolate chips are equally distributed throughout the dough

sift together: flour, baking soda, and baking powder

slowly fold in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients

do not over-mix! once all the dry ingredients are mixed in, you’re done

optional, but makes a huge diff: let dough chill in the fridge for 1+ hour(s) the cookies literally taste WAY better if you chill the dough, magic or something

scoop out the cookie dough (i use this cookie scoop) into 2-3 tbsp balls

place 2 inches apart, bake for 8-10 minutes @ 375, the cookies won’t look fully cooked, but once they turn a slight brown, take them out. (it took on average 9 minutes for me)

your cookies will look undercooked but they won’t be! they’ll fully bake off once they cool (~residual heat~)

let cool for 10-20 minutes

i grew up eating japanese milk bread all the time and my mom has been begging me to try to bake it. after SEVERAL tries, i finally got the moist, milky, melt in your mouth, fluffy, texture japanese milk bread should be. 

ingredients:

for the tangzhong starter:

2 tbsp of bread flour

1/4 cup of water

1/4 cup of whole milk

for the dough:

1/3 cup of condensed milk

1.2 ounces of fresh yeast - aka appx. 1 package of active dry yeast

2&1/2 cups of bread flour (regular all purpose also works if you don’t have any bread flour!)

2 tbsp of milk powder

1 tsp of sea salt

1/4 cup of melted butter

1/2 cup of evaporated milk

1 egg, whisked 

extra evaporated milk for a milk wash

recipe:

tangzhong starter:

in a small sauce pan, over medium-low heat whisk together your bread flour, water, and whole milk

whisk for appx 5 minutes or until the mixture thickens into a paste 

set aside and let it hang out

for the dough:

in a large mixing bowl, mix together flour, milk powder, and salt

in a saucepan, heat up 1/2 cup of evaporated milk, whisk gently until milk is scalding hot

once the milk has reached the desired temperature, remove from heat and stir in condensed milk until dissolved, immediately add in yeast. let yeast mixture hang until foamy. 

in the large mixing bowl with the dry ingredients, add your melted butter, tangzhong, whisked egg, and yeast mixture 

knead together until a wet, but supple dough is formed

i used the dough hook attachment on my mixer for like 5 minutes, scraping the sides down as i went

place your dough ball in a lightly greased bowl and let rise for an hour - an hour and a half, it should not be doubled in size.

once dough is proofed, turn out onto a lightly floured surface:

if you want to make rolls: cut your dough into eight equal parts and roll into little balls

place into a 9 in. cake pan 

cover and let proof for an hour

brush lightly with evaporated milk

bake at 350 for 25-30 mintues

if you want to make a loaf: cut dough into four equal parts

roll out each quarter into a 4x8 rectangle and fold in half, twice

do this for each quarter

place them side by side into a 9x5 loaf pan

cover and let proof until dough has risen to the top of the loaf pan (appx an hour)

brush lightly with evaporated milk

the best use of mushy overripe bananas. banana bread is so comforting to me, and i am proud to say that once instead of studying for an exam, i baked ten loaves. maybe i shouldn’t be proud of that, but it’s just who i am, lol. anyways, i spent the better part of last year trying to find the perfect banana bread recipe, and here we are!! one thing i’ve realized about baking is that it just varies per person, so my recipes tend to not be as sweet as others. makes one loaf. 

ingredients:

4 super ripe bananas

1/3 cup of sugar 

5 tbsp of butter, melted

1 extra large egg

1/4 tsp of sea salt

2 tsp of baking soda

1/2 tbsp of vanilla

1 cup of chopped walnuts or chocolate chips 

1&1/2 cups of flour

recipe:

preheat oven to 350

in a mixing bowl, mush together your four bananas until they basically become a chunky liquid (no better way of saying this)

mix in egg and sugar, then gradually stream in the melted butter and vanilla

once all wet ingredients are combined, mix in your walnuts or chocolate chips

fold in baking soda and flour, until well mixed

line a loaf pan with parchment paper and pour in batter

optional: top with a sliced banana and/or walnuts/chocolate chips

bake for 1 hour or until cake tester comes out clean

there will be absolutely NO spam slander here! yes, it is weird that it is literal ham in a can and it has enough sodium to kill me, but it is soooooo good. quick rundown: spam is so prevalent in asian cuisine because of colonialism/imperialism and the ~war~. but anyways, here is my take on spam musubi. it is a hawaiian take on japanese omusubi. spam musubi is sooo easy to make, super good and just hits the spot. no guarantees this is authentic tho. recipe makes 8 musubis, i get full off of 2. 

ingredients:

for the spam musubi:

1&1/2 cups of sushi rice, prepared as directed 

1 can of spam, cut into eight pieces 

sesame oil

around 3-4 tbsp of oyster sauce 

around 3-4 tbsp of soy sauce

optional: furikake, i use this specific one! but any furkiake is good

if you don’t have furikake, sesame seeds are fine too!

2 sheets of nori seaweed, cut into 4 strips each

a little water to seal the nori 

a musubi mold

if you don’t have a musubi mold, its okay! use the actual spam container and cut off the top and bottom, clean it and ~ voila! you have a mold. 

for the spicy mayo:

1/4 cup of mayo, i use kewpie mayo (its a little sweeter and japanese) 

but i have used regular white people mayo and it has turned out fine!

some sriracha

recipe:

for the spicy mayo:

squirt your desired amount of sriracha into a bowl full of mayo

stir into well incorporated

i honestly do it until i get the orange color i prefer, and it depends how spicy you like it

for the spam musubi:

in a bowl, mix together your oyster sauce and sauce until well incorporated

add your spam into the bowl and just let it marinate for half an hour to an hour or so

once done, in a hot pan with a teeny bit of oil, fry your spam until golden and brown. drizzle a little sesame oil overtop the spam before they fully brown

place your musubi mold over a strip of nori

stuff your musubi mold with some rice (i honestly do not know how much i rice i put in? its approximately 3-4 times the width of the spam though, i dont know, this is between you and how much you love sushi rice)

press down onto the rice to make it ~ even ~ and flat

sprinkle furikaki onto your rice

place your spam into the mold 

optional: add another layer of rice if you want (but if you do, make the first layer thinner) and repeat the previous rice step)

press down, and slowly and gently lift your musubi mold

wrap the sides of the nori strip around your mound of spam and rice, and wet the nori a little to connect the pieces

repeat until you have used all your spam!

honestly the easiest vietnamese dish you can make, ever. if you are not ~ethnic~ no need to fret, you can find all of the ingredients at your local grocery store in the asian aisle! it honestly requires basically no cooking or seasonings? just prep and roll. goi cuon reminds me of the summer when my extended family comes over and we just sit and eat for hours. anyways, these are super refreshing and you can eat soooo many, and they’re super customizable! p.s: sorry the picture is bad

ingredients:

18-20 shrimp, peeled and deveined 

1/2 pound of pork belly (optional)

EXTRA OPTIONAL: sometimes we also use these chicken meatballs from costco too and they’re sooo good. not traditional but if you’re lazy.. its easy. 

carrots, cut into long, thin slices 

cucumbers, also cut into long, thin slices

mint leaves

thai basil or regular basil leaves

green leaf lettuce (washed and dried)

salt

1 tbsp of sugar

ground peanuts (optional)

hoisin sauce 

peanut butter (to your liking)

optional: sriracha or sambal 

rice paper, (banh trang)

rice vermicelli 

a bowl of hot water 

recipe:

in a pot, add some salt, sugar, and your pork belly. add water until your pork belly is well covered

boil your pork belly for around 30 minutes (until the pork belly is fully cooked)

boil your shrimp and cut in half lengthwise 

prepare your vermicelli per the packaging 

to make the dipping sauce:

in a saucepan, add your hoisin sauce and peanut butter over low heat

if you like it spicy: add a little sriracha or sambal 

there aren’t any real measurements, its up to your liking! 

add ground peanuts in once both are well incorporated

assembly: okay so there isn’t no good way to explain this, it just takes practice

dip your rice paper into hot water to soften it. do NOT let it sit in the water, just dip for like 5-10 seconds until the rice paper is wet.

place your lettuce, vermicelli, herbs, carrots and cucumbers, shrimp, and pork on the middle of the rice paper

fold the sides of the rice paper 

tightly roll it to get a little summer roll

repeat and enjoy!

honestly don’t know what to name these, they’re inspired by milk bar’s compost cookie, but with my favorites instead! what i love about this is that you can sub anything out for things you like - like mini peanut butter cups, walnuts, cereal, oatmeal, raisins, etc.. pls forgive the mediocre picture. i promise you they taste amazing. a perfect blend of sweet, salty, chewy, and crunchy. makes 36 cookies, also perfect if you reheat them in the microwave for fifteen seconds.

ingredients:

2 cups of flour

1 tsp of baking soda

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 tsp of vanilla extract

1&1/2 stick of softened butter (3/4 cup)

pinch of salt

2/3 cup of toffee/ chopped heath bars

its approximately 2-3 heath bars

1/3 cup of pretzels, broken into various sizes

1 cup of chocolate chunks

sidenote: all of those measurements are up to you! if you like more toffee, add more, and less of something else!

1 cup of light brown sugar

1/3 cup of white sugar

some coarse sea salt for sprinkling 

recipe:

preheat oven to 325 degrees

cream together: both sugars and butter

add in egg, egg yolk, and vanilla

once all wet ingredients are well incorporated, fold in toffee, pretzels, and chocolate chunks

sift in and fold: flour and baking soda

once your dry ingredients are well incorporated, scoop into 36 dough balls (or however many cookies you want, depending on cookie size)

once again: i consistently use this cookie scoop 

bake at 325 for 15-16 minutes!

they will look a little pale, and undercooked but thats normal! 

instantly sprinkle sea salt on top once out of the oven

let cool for 10-15 minutes

for starters, i do not know the difference between vietnamese flan and regular flan. i just know it is a byproduct of french colonialism (when history meets food). anyways, banh flan is something i grew up eating and would order it at the vietnamese restaurant for dessert every week. but now, we can make it ourselves :) makes 4-6 personal sized flans. 

ingredients:

6 eggs, whisked

1/3 cup of condensed milk (you can add more if you like it super sweet)

1/2 cup of brewed cafe du monde coffee 

2 &1/2 cups of boiling hot water 

ramekins or cute little jars for the flan

1 cup of white granulated sugar

a strainer

recipe:

in a small sauce pan, caramelize the sugar under low heat. (just let the sugar sit and melt, stirring with a heat resistant spatula)

while the sugar is caramelizing: in a mixing bowl, mix the condensed milk, brewed coffee, and hot water together until dissolved

in a separate bowl, whisk six eggs together

once eggs are whisked thoroughly, strain the eggs into the condensed milk/water/coffee mixture. 

stir well.

once the sugar is caramelized, divide the caramel into your ramekins or whatever vessel you plan on using. work quickly, because as soon as it cools it becomes stick and eventually, hard!

pour your flan mixture into each ramekin

steam in a large pot on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes. it might take longer depending on the size of your ramekins/how much flan is in there

you’ll know when the flan is fully cooked when they firm up and don’t jiggle

remove from steam, cover, and refrigerate overnight or until cold.

cookie flavored cookies? say less. makes thirty-six cookies.

ingredients:

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1/3 cup of white sugar

1 stick of butter, softened

1 tsp of vanilla

1 cup of cookie butter

1 large egg

a pinch of salt

1 tsp of baking soda

36 hershey kisses (appx. 1/2 a 11oz bag)

1/4 cup of white sugar to dust

recipe:

preheat oven to 375 degrees

in a mixing bowl, cream together brown sugar, white sugar, butter, and cookie butter

mix in the egg and vanilla

sift in baking soda, salt and flour

form dough into 36 little balls

roll each dough ball in white granulated sugar

bake for 8 minutes

remove, press hershey kisses onto each cookie (you’ll get those beautiful cracks) 

return to oven for 3 more minutes

during this quarantine, i have been slowly cleaning out my fridge/freezer/pantry and stumbled upon a lot of frozen shredded coconut - so here we are! these puff pastries are filled with coconut, salted egg yolk, and toasted sesame. a perfect blend of sweet, salty, and nutty. i cheated and used pre-made puff pastry. this can be made vegan!

ingredients:

12 oz thawed, finely shredded coconut (it has to be previously frozen! not the dried ones in the baking aisle!)

8in x 20in puff pastry sheet

¼ cup (and maybe a little more) of coconut milk. (i’m talking this kind, not the cow milk alternative)

¼ cup of plain white sugar, or even better, coconut sugar (if you have it!)

¼ tsp sea salt

1/3 cup of toasted sesame seeds

¼ cup of un-toasted sesame seeds

optional - 2 salted egg yolks, grated

1 egg whisked, to make an egg wash (can substitute with honey diluted with water to make it vegan)

recipe:

thaw out your pastry sheet and cut into 12 2x4in rectangles

preheat oven to 375

prepare egg wash

for the filling:

in a wok, or pan, over low heat, pour your shredded coconut and sugar in. sweat it out, do not brown/toast the coconut

add in coconut milk, to make sure the mixture is moist, add add in additional coconut milk if needed.

turn off heat, stir in toasted sesame seeds and grated salted egg yolks

assembly:

make sure your puff pastry is completely thawed out

for each 2x4in rectangle, place a heaping tablespoon of filling in

fold the pastry sheet in half, pushing the filling in while you seal the edges

it will seem like a lot of filling, but you just have to push the filling in while you seal the edges together

your final product should kind of resemble a ravioli

repeat until you run out of puff pastry sheets

using a fork, completely seal the outer edges of the pasties by pressing down, similar to how you would for a pie crust

apply egg wash and top with untoasted sesame seeds