Afghan Scallion Dumplings

I found this recipe not too long ago and it caught my eye because of its flavor profile. This dish, Aushak, is originally from Afghanistan. Considering that Afghanistan borders Uzbekistan, which is where my family is from, it used ingredients common to my household. However it also had a bit of an Indian feel to it by pairing the slightly spicy scallion dumpling with a cool and refreshing yogurt sauce.

It took me two hours from start to finish to make everything by myself, including prep time and cook time. Of course to simplify things the meat sauce can be prepared ahead of time and the dumplings can be refrigerated until ready to cook.

I really liked the taste of the dumplings and I thought it was interesting considering I have never had scallions be the center of point of a dish. Usually it is used as some sort of garnish with the protein being the star, however in this dish it was the other way around. My mom in particular loved the dish and helped herself to a second serving.

Afghan Scallion Dumplings

For the meat sauce:
Note: My "meat sauce" didn't turn out very sauce like but rather more like a thick consistency. I didn't have a problem with that but to make it more "saucy" extra water can be added.

• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 lb ground beef
• 2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp freshly grated ginger
• ½-1 cup water (I used tomato juice to give even more flavor)
• 3 tbsp tomato paste 
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and then saute the onions until golden brown. Set aside.
2. Using the same skillet, cook the ground beef until no longer pink.
3. Add the cooked onions back to the pan as well as the garlic, ginger, and coriander. Mix well to incorporate.
4. Pour the water into the pan (use more if wanting thinner sauce) and reduce the heat to low. Allow the sauce to simmer for 5-10 minutes or until it is your desired thickness. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

For the dumplings:

Note: I was able to make 30 dumplings but it depends on the size of the wonton wrappers.

• 2 bunches green onions, chopped (green parts only)
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced
• 1 tsp red chili flakes
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 25-30 wonton wrappers

1. Combine all of the ingredients for the filling and mix well.
2. Place one tablespoon of the scallion mixture onto the center of a wonton wrapper. 
3. Use your finger to gently brush the edges of the wonton wrapper with water. Fold the wrapper in half, from corner to corner, creating a triangle shape. 
4. Press around the filling to get rid of any air bubbles and seal the edges by pressing them together. If desired, the two outer corners can also be brought together into the center and sealed with a bit of water.
5. Repeat with the remaining wonton wrappers and filling.

For the yogurt sauce:

• 1 cup yogurt
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced
• 2-3 sprigs dill, finely chopped

Combine all of the ingredients together and set aside.

To Assemble:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add the dumplings to the pot and cook for five minutes, or until they are all floating at the surface and the water comes back to a boil.
2. Use a slotted spoon to remove the dumplings carefully from the pot and allow them to finish draining in a colander.
3. Spoon half of the yogurt sauce onto the bottom of a large shallow dish. Place dumplings on top and then the meat sauce around the sides. Pour additional yogurt sauce on top of the dumplings.

Hazelnut Napoleons with Lemon Curd and Berries

Ever since I made baked potato skins for my brother over a year ago, he has been asking me to make some sort of dessert using hazelnuts. When thinking of dessert and hazelnuts, naturally Nutella comes to mind but I wanted to make something that didn't necessarily involve chocolate. A week ago, while sitting in a waiting room, I was flipping through a magazine and came across a recipe for hazelnut napoleons spread with lemon curd and piled high with berries. I took note of the recipe and saved it for future use.

Little did I know that an opportunity to make it would come so quickly. During my parents' dinner party over the weekend I used phyllo dough to make spanakopita. I decided that since I already had the phyllo out I might as well use a few sheets to make the napoleons as well (though at a separate time as we already had two desserts that evening).

I made the lemon curd a few days later and assembled the napoleons one night for my mom, brother, and me to share. Although they looked nice with multiple layers they were a bit challenging to eat. Also, the flavor of the lemon curd was quite strong and overpowered the hazelnut. However my brother was still satisfied with his hazelnut craving because I made a second dessert as well. When making the hazelnut-sugar mixture I ended up with way too much. I decided to use the excess by sprinkling it over some store bought dough and rolling it into mini buns (kind of like cinnamon buns but with the hazelnut-sugar inside).

On a side note, I know that typically phyllo sheets are meant to be stuck together using melted butter however for the sake of convenience I usually use PAM as it is much easier and less messy. This time, I chose to actually make the spanakopita properly, as well as the napoleons, and used melted butter between the sheets. I have to admit the butter added a wonderful rich flavor and definitely improved the taste compared to previous times. I learned my lesson: sometimes convenience is good but if you have the time and energy, don't take shortcuts.

Hazelnut Napoleons with Lemon Curd and Berries

For the lemon curd:

• 1½ lemons, zested and juiced
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• Pinch of salt

1. Combine the lemon zest with the sugar and mix well.
2. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, then add the lemon juice and salt.
3. Heat the mixture over low heat for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly, or until it thickens.
4. Whisk in the butter until completely incorporated but do not let the mixture boil. Remove from the heat, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the napoleons:

• 4 sheets phyllo
• ⅓ cup whole hazelnuts, skinned and toasted
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted

1. In a food processor, blend the hazelnuts until fine, being careful not to turn into a paste.
2. Add the sugar and cinnamon and pulse a few times so as to mix everything together. 
3. Working quickly, and with unused sheets covered under parchment/wax paper and a damp paper towel, brush the first sheet of phyllo with the melted butter and sprinkle ⅓ of the hazelnut-sugar mixture. 
4. Repeat with the remaining layers, stacking on top of the first layer and pressing down lightly so they hold together.
5. Cut the stack into 12 rectangles and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes, or until the phyllo becomes crisp and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow the rectangles to finish cooling in the pan.

To assemble: Place a phyllo rectangle on a serving plate and spread some of the prepared lemon curd carefully over the surface, topping with some berries of your choosing. Repeat using two more phyllo rectangles to create a stacked napoleon.

Chocolate Crème Brûlée

Over the weekend my parents hosted a dinner party for some friends featuring traditional Uzbek foods. Prior to immigrating to Canada, my parents grew up in Uzbekistan and many of the foods I associate with home are those Uzbek dishes such as plov (a rice pilof), manti (steamed dumplings), and shashlik (kebabs).

For the main course we served manti and shashlik but our appetizers and desserts were not Uzbeki. Because my mom decided to make meringues we had lots of egg yolks left over so I thought to make crème brûlée. Recently I had bought myself a new mini blow torch and made crème brûlée for my uncle's birthday using my previous recipe from three years ago. However this time I wanted to try something new and make chocolate crème brûlée.

Initially, my mom was quite concerned that the crème brûlée would not be smooth because the chocolate seemed to leave little grains when it melted in the hot cream. In order to alleviate her concerns I strained the mixture not once, but twice before pouring it into the ramekins. Although that may seem time consuming, the recipe is actually so easy that I really didn't mind taking that extra step.

As my mom would say, the result was "ah-mazing". The crème brûlée turned out so silky and smooth with an intense chocolate flavor. My aunt said that from now on I should stick to making the chocolate version and forget about my old one (though to be fair she is a little bit of a chocoholic). My brother, also a chocoholic, completely agreed with me. The next day, I received more compliments from my two cousins who tasted the extras I sent home with my aunt. After such rave reviews, I know I will be keeping this recipe around for a while!

Chocolate Crème Brûlée
Note: I used 4.5 oz ramekins and was able to make 13 crème brûlées, filling each ramekin almost completely to the top.

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 2 cups milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 270 grams dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 8 tbsp sugar
• 10 egg yolks

1. Combine the heavy cream, milk, and vanilla in a small pot and bring to a simmer.  
2. Reduce the heat to low. Add the chocolate and whisk briskly until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar. Continue to whisk and slowly pour the hot chocolatey mixture into the bowl. Make sure that you add it slowly and continuously whisk otherwise the hot cream might end up cooking the eggs.
4. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve before pouring into the ramekins. Place the filled ramekins in a large baking dish and fill with enough hot water to reach about halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
5. Bake the crème brûlées at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes. They will be ready when the mixture is mostly set but the tops are still somewhat jiggly when tilted.
6. Remove the ramekins from the baking dish and cool to room temperature before refrigerating for at least 4 hours.
7. Once ready to serve, sprinkle some sugar on top of each custard and place under the broiler for 2-3 minutes, or until the sugar on top caramelizes and turns brown. Alternatively, if you own a mini blowtorch (like I do) use it to caramelize the top layer of sprinkled sugar.

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

When I first started this blog I had created a goal for myself to write at least three posts a month. In the recent months since graduating from university and starting work as a registered nurse I haven't been able to keep up with my blogging. In addition to the fact that I'm busy, I'm also more picky than I used to be in regards to recipes that I consider "blog worthy". That's not to say that I haven't been cooking and baking, or trying out new recipes, I'm just more aware of the time and effort it takes for me to blog about them therefore I make sure that I strongly feel I should write a post about it before I start taking lots of pictures and investing my time in the recipe.

That being said, a few weeks ago one of my very good friends was celebrating her birthday and I helped her husband organize the food for the party. Together with one of her best friends (whose name also happened to start with the letter "N") we made bite-sized party foods including many appetizers and desserts. We joked around that we could call ourselves "N & N Catering" because, apart from a few items, we pretty much made all of the food.

I made three savory items and one dessert: mini pizza bites, mushroom tartlettes with cranberries and

feta cheese, and veggie wraps. For the dessert I made full-sized cookies and cream cupcakes featuring an Oreo cookie half at the bottom of each one, in addition to Oreo bits mixed throughout the batter.

Throughout the party, and afterward too, both of us "N's" received many compliments and thanks for our food. I told everyone that I had a great time preparing everything and it was even more enjoyable knowing that I was doing it for such a good friend. Even though we met not too long ago in nursing school, I feel so close to her and that she understands me so well. I hope that this is just the beginning of a lifelong friendship and that we will have many more great memories to share together.

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes
Note: This recipe makes 24 standard sized cupcakes. I don't tend to like too much frosting on my cupcakes therefore I had a lot of extra and will probably make only half next time, but I have posted the full recipe below.

For the cupcakes:

• 24 Oreo halves, with cream filling attached
• 2¼ cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 8 tbsp (½ cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 2/3 cup sugar
• 3 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk
• 20 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped (I quartered them)

For the frosting:

• 8 oz cream cheese,room temperature
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1. Line the wells of two cupcake pans with 24 paper liners (these cupcakes can't be made without liners because of the Oreo bottoms). 
2. Place an Oreo halve in the bottom of each liner, cream side up. 
3. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir together and set aside. 
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. 
5. Blend in the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract. 
6. With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Add the milk and beat just until combined, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients. 
7. Gently fold in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over-mix.
8. Divide the batter evenly amongst the prepared paper liners and bake for 18-24 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Rotate the pans halfway through to ensure even baking. The cupcakes are ready when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (a little hard to judge if you accidentally poke through an Oreo chunk).  
9. Allow the cupcakes to cool for 10 minutes in the pans before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.
10. To make the frosting: combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Blend in the vanilla extract. 
11. Beat in the powdered sugar on low speed until incorporated and smooth, 1-2 minutes, then increase the speed to medium-high and whip for 4 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.