Red Wine Poached Pears with Cranberry Sauce

For my mom's birthday this year we had a small gathering at our house with family and friends. Of course with Russians, a small gathering isn't actually that small and the food is prepared to feed an army, not the twenty or so people who come. I spent the majority of my weekend preparing food for the party, including my zucchini and carrot ribbon salad and sundried tomato wonton cups (using phyllo instead of wonton wrappers for the shells). My mom also asked me to make my white chocolate and raspberry swirl cheesecake, but instead of a swirl I made a design with rings of hearts on top (I have updated the cheesecake post to include the new picture).

Even though I was already baking a cake, I wanted to feature a lighter dessert option for those who wanted it after such a heavy meal. After discussing with my mom we settled on the idea of poached pears. In the past, I have used poached pears to top my french pear tart with almond cream but I have never made the pears themselves into the stars of the dish. This time, I decided to poach the pears in red wine, along with orange juice and some spices, and then use some of the poaching liquid to create a sauce with cranberries to be served with the pears.

I must say...the pears turned out beautifully. They weren't as red as I had hoped they would be, more of a pink hue, but I think that's because I split one bottle of wine between two pots and added a lot of water and juice. However the taste more than made up for the lack of color. The pears were soft, but not mushy, and the tart cranberries paired nicely with the sweetness of the pears. Surprisingly my brother, a cheesecake lover, proclaimed that the pears tasted even better than the cake and was extremely disappointed to discover that they were all eaten by the end of the night. Considering how easy they were to prepare, and their popularity with the crowd, I definitely will be making these again!

Red Wine Poached Pears with Cranberry Sauce

• 6 pears, peeled with stems still on (I used bosc)
• 1 bottle fruity red wine
• 2 cups orange juice
• 1 orange peel
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/2 cup honey (a little more if you want it sweeter and depending on the wine you choose)
• 1 12 oz bag frozen cranberries, unsweetened

1. Place all the pears in a pot large enough to fit them in a single layer. Make sure not to overcrowd the pears; use two pots if necessary.
2. Pour the bottle of wine and orange juice into the pot. Pour in water until the pears are submerged in the liquid. They may start to float, just make sure there is enough liquid so that they are completely covered if you press down on them.
3. Put the orange peel and cinnamon stick in the pot. Stir in the honey as well.
4. Heat the pot over low heat for 30-40 minutes to allow the pears to simmer slowly. Turn them occasionally so that they develop even color and softness. Once the pears can be easily pierced with a fork, remove them from the poaching liquid and set aside.
5. Pour out the poaching liquid from the pot but reserve about 2 cups. Add the frozen cranberries, unthawed, to the reserved liquid and simmer the sauce over low heat for about 15-20 minutes, or until the cranberries start to break.
6. Serve the pears with the warm sauce poured over top.

Note: I saved my poaching liquid so that I could make another batch or cook something else in it...it was so delicious I didn't want to waste it.

Alfajores Cookies with Dulce de Leche

These cookies have been in my "to bake" list for so long that I almost can't believe I've finally made them. Months ago, at the start of the summer, I made a tart for my cousin's birthday using dulce de leche which is an Argentinean version of caramel. I prepared my own dulce de leche using sweetened condensed milk and after discovering how easy it was, I decided to look up more recipes that involved the delicious caramel spread. When I typed "dulce de leche" into the search box on my favorite website tastespotting.com, there were close to fifty different recipes for Alfajores, a classic Argentinean tea time cookie. I scrolled through many different variations before I finally picked one to make. Yet somehow, the cookies ended up on the back burner and I kind of forgot about them; not intentionally of course but they kept getting pushed back in favor of other recipes.

Fast forward to this weekend, four months later, and I finally baked the Alfajores. Since my cousin is no longer living in Vancouver, I try to make caramel-focused desserts for his visits because I know how much he loves caramel. Once again, I made my own dulce de leche a day in advance and planned to bake the cookies the next evening. Little did I know that my baking pans would be thwarted by the weather; as I was mixing the cookie dough in my Kitchen Aid mixer the power suddenly shut off. We had been having crazy winds all day and the weather had gotten the best of us. It came back on within a minute and I continued making the dough, but then as I finished it shut off again. Seeing as how my oven is electric I had no hopes for baking the cookies that night.

Instead of baking, I spent the evening playing board games with my brother by candlelight. Unfortunately, he beat me in each game we played (I still haven't figured out how that happened) but we had a great time together. Eventually the power came back on, though way too late for me to bake, so I made the cookies the next morning. The dulce de leche was extremely rich so I decided to make the cookies quite small, about 2" in diameter. They tasted lovely both as a little sandwich and with the two halves eaten separately. All in all, these cookies were a long time in the making but definitely worth it in the end.

Alfajores Cookies with Dulce de Leche

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup corn starch
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup (4 tbsp) butter, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla 
• 2 egg yolks

To make the Dulce de Leche:

1. Pour out the sweetened condensed milk into a shallow pie plate (I used a glass pyrex). Stir in a few flecks of sea salt and cover with aluminum foil. 
2. Set the pie plate within a larger pan, such as a roasting pan, and add hot water until it reaches halfway up the side of the pie plate. 
3. Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 1/2-2 hours, adding more water into the roasting pan if necessary as it evaporates. 
4. Once the dulce de leche has turned a golden brown, caramelized color remove from the oven and whisk until smooth. Pour into a sealable container and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

To make the Alfajores:

1. Sift the cornstarch, flour, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
2. Cream the butter, sugars, and vanilla together until light and fluffy. 
3. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, and mix until incorporated.
4. On low speed, slowly beat in the dry ingredients and mix until a crumbly dough comes together. If the dough is already crumbly but not sticking together, add a tablespoon of water, but don't overmix the dough.
5. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4" thickness. Cut out round cookies and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Don't worry about spacing the cookies too much as they do not spread.
6. Depending on the size of the cookies, bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. They should be white, not brown, when removed from the oven. My cookies were 2" and baked exactly 10 minutes.
7. Place on a wire rack to cool. Once cooled, spread the dulce de leche on the flat side of one cookie and sandwich with another. Dust with some powdered sugar over top.

Chocolate Chip Buttermilk Pancakes

Ever since my success with my lemon ricotta pancakes I have a new found pancake-making confidence and when I woke up yesterday morning I was seriously craving pancakes. My brother had been asking me to make chocolate chip pancakes for a while now so I decided to make regular buttermilk pancakes and add chocolate chips to half of them. I didn't actually have any buttermilk on hand but apparently it's so easy to make your own. Simply measure one tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice and add enough milk to bring the total volume to one cup and presto....one cup of buttermilk.

The regular version of the pancake tasted great on its own though I'm not going to lie, the chocolate chip tasted even better especially because I used good quality chocolate chips. Growing up in a Russian household, we have things like caviar for breakfast. My dad gave me the idea to spread some of the caviar onto one of the regular pancakes and it was delicious. The saltiness of the caviar combined with the hint of sweetness in the pancake made the perfect bite.

Meanwhile, my family has become quite involved with my blog. Every time I make something new they all ask me whether it will be on the blog. They're also cautious before taking a bite, always asking if I've had a chance to take a picture of the food before they dig in. The picture taking, in particular, is now always on their minds and sometimes they like to come up with ideas on how to best capture my food. For example, my mom came up with the idea to steam the chocolate chips that are sprinkled over the pancakes in the photo, after seeing this technique used on one of our favorite shows Cake Boss on TLC. Then, after my little photoshoot was over and we were right about to eat my mom pointed out that my brother had slathered his pancakes with butter and maple syrup in a very appetizing way, so I took a picture of his plate as well. I love that everyone wants to help me make the blog look as good as possible and I truly enjoy listening to and recreating some of their ideas.

Chocolate Chip Buttermilk Pancakes
Makes about 18-20 palm sized pancakes.

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups buttermilk (or 2 tbsp vinegar + enough milk to make two cups)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• Chocolate chips (I didn't measure how much I used...just eyeballed it)

1. Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
2. Mix together the buttermilk (or milk and vinegar), eggs, and oil.
3. Add dry ingredients to the wet and stir just until combined. It will still be lumpy but don't over mix.
4. Heat a griddle or large skillet over medium heat. Once heated, reduce the temperature to medium low and pour 1/3 cup of batter onto the cooking surface. Allow the pancake to cook until bubbles start to form on the top surface, about 15-20 seconds, then use a large spatula to gently flip the pancake over. Cook the other side until it is light and golden and fully cooked through. Repeat with remaining batter.
5. To make the chocolate chip pancakes you can do one of two things: 1) add chocolate chips directly to the batter and mix them in just until incorporated. 2) Pour the batter onto the cooking surface then sprinkle some chocolate chips onto the pancake and resume cooking as you would the regular pancakes. 

Note: You may have to go through a couple of "test" pancakes before you achieve the right temperature on the griddle or skillet. Finished pancakes can be kept warm in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit while the rest are cooking. 

Chinese Scallion Pancakes

I find it funny that this dish is called "Chinese Scallion Pancakes" considering that these little pieces of bread would hardly be what I consider pancakes. They're not really bread either, more reminiscent of Indian roti or Spanish tortillas. Basically they are composed of a simple dough which is rolled out thin with scallions encompassed in the layers and then lightly fried on both sides.

I must admit that after going to one of my favorite restaurants, a Malaysian eatery, I became enamored with the idea of making my own roti. I found a basic recipe and even watched a YouTube video on how to roll it out, but alas my roti didn't pass the test. It was alright I suppose, but definitely not as good and flaky as in the restaurant and so I gave up and resigned myself to buying pre-made frozen roti and heating them up on the skillet.

Somehow when I saw this recipe it called out to me and made me forget my previous bad experience. I don't know why I thought this time would be different...maybe it was because the name was deceiving or because the pictures made it look so easy, I don't know. Either way it doesn't matter because looking back, I'm glad I decided to give it a go.

I'm not going to lie and pretend that I whipped these "pancakes" up in no time; it was time consuming. Ideally the time and effort spent on continuously rolling and re-rolling the dough should produce a layered, flaky effect. Unfortunately, I couldn't really achieve the desired level of flakiness but I don't think that the taste suffered as a result. Knowing this, I'll probably cut down on the extra rolling next time and do it all in one step.

The real reason why I know I'll make these again is because they tasted great with the dipping sauce. The scallions embedded within the pancake retained their crispiness even when flattened out and it was pronounced because of the gentle frying. The sauce also had the perfect Asian taste to it and you could tell it was specially designed to compliment the scallions in the pancake. Of course if planning to make these, I would definitely recommend eating them right away because they taste best fresh off the hot skillet.

Chinese Scallion Pancakes
Note: These directions reflect my new adaptation of shortened rolling time. In the original recipe, the toasted sesame oil and scallions were applied in two separate steps, with the coiling and rolling performed twice.

For the pancakes:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup boiling water
• 2 cups thinly sliced scallions (green parts only)
• Toasted sesame seed oil
• Olive oil

For the dipping sauce:

• 1/3 cup mirin
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2-1 tsp fresh lime juice
• 1/4-1/2 tsp red chili flakes (depending on how spicy you want it)
• 1/2 tsp grated garlic
• 1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger (or a 1/4 tsp powdered) 
• 1/2 tsp sugar

1. Whisk together the dipping sauce ingredients and adjust for any preferences. Set aside. 
2. Blend together the flour and water, using a food processor or mixer, until a smooth dough forms. Form the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl covered with a damp towel. Let it sit for about 30 minutes.
3. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead a few times on a lightly floured surface, then separate it into four separate balls. Keep one out on the counter and cover the remaining three with the towel.
4. Roll out the first ball of dough into the thinnest, roundest shape possible. Place about a tablespoon of the toasted sesame oil in the center and use a brush to distribute it evenly over the entire surface of the dough, adding more oil if needed. 
5. Sprinkle a handful of scallions evenly across the entire surface of the dough. 
6. Roll up the dough tightly so that it forms a long, thin cylinder. Coil the cylinder into a round shape, like a snail shell, and gently tuck the end underneath. 
7. Carefully flatten the dough and roll it out again into a thin, round pancake. Set it aside and repeat with the remaining three pieces of dough.
8. Heat some olive oil in a large skillet big enough to fit one pancake over medium-high heat. Working one at a time, place the pancake onto the skillet and fry until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes on each side. 
9. Use a pizza cutter to cut each pancake into wedges and serve immediately with the dipping sauce and any extra chopped scallions if leftover.

Breakfast Burritos

Last Sunday I made these burritos for breakfast and it was a great hit with my family. Similar to a breakfast frittata, these burritos are a great way to use up random leftovers in the fridge and still feel like you have created a complete breakfast. In the past, I've tried applying this concept using pitas because I love how they taste, but I found that the bread became too soggy and the filling would start to fall out. By wrapping everything in a tortilla the filling is held in place and makes the burrito manageable to eat.

The great thing about these burritos is that they take very little time to make since the only things being prepared from scratch are the scrambled eggs. Apart from that, you're free to put anything and everything into the filling. Also, I was able to eat one on the go by wrapping it in aluminum foil and then tearing away at it as I ate, kind of like in the Mexican fast food restaurants.

I highly recommend making these burritos sometime soon, so here are the simple steps:

1. Gently whisk a little bit of milk into some eggs and add a touch of salt and pepper. Scramble the egg mixture and set aside in a small bowl.
2. Gather all the filling ingredients you want to use. There are no hard and fast rules but I would recommend a veggie component, such as zucchini, mushrooms, or peppers, a meat component, such as sausage or shredded deli meats, an aromatic, such as onions and garlic, and a spice component, such as red pepper chili flakes. Saute the filling ingredients in some sort of sauce (I used tomato sauce but salsa could also work) and season to taste. 
3. Remove the tortillas from the packaging and microwave for 30 seconds to one minute, or until they're soft and pliable. Working with one at a time, spoon some filling across the bottom third of the tortilla, leaving room on the sides to fold them in. Top with some scrambled eggs and shredded cheese. I also chose to add some chopped cilantro, but pretty much any herb can be used. For a more Mexican flavor try slicing some avocado and layering them on top of the eggs. Be sure not to put too much filling otherwise it will be difficult to wrap.
4. To wrap the tortillas bring up the bottom so that it covers the filling completely. Fold each side inward then proceed to roll the bottom of the tortilla up, holding the sides in at the same time.
5. Place the burritos, seam side down, onto a baking tray with a little space between each one. Carefully spray a little bit of water onto the tops of the burritos (I just wet my hands and flicked water droplets off of them). This will help the tortilla crisp in the oven. 
6. Using the broiler setting, put the burritos into the oven for 3-5 minutes. This is where it gets tricky because it depends on the intensity of the broiler (I used the "HI" setting) and the position of the rack. Watch carefully for the tortillas to become lightly browned on top. At that point take the tray out of the oven and flip the burritos over so that the soft underside is facing up. Repeat the same process with the water and put back into the oven until the burritos are lightly browned again. Serve alongside some salsa, sour cream or guacamole for dipping.