Kitchen Notes: Matcha Swiss Roll

This was my second time making a dessert in the "Swiss Roll" style; meaning it's a soft, sponge-like bread with a sweet cream-based filling. The pumpkin roll with candied ginger came out pretty good and well-liked by TDay2015 eaters.

There were several things that went terribly wrong but I didn't scrap the recipe and start over:

• The sponge batter came out extremely dense; thick like a gorilla glue heavy; it also didn't cook all the way through in the oven and perhaps I didn't spread it out thick enough on the baking sheet because...
• Before folding in the egg whites, the sponge batter wasn't liquid at all.
• When it came to the rolling the sponge up to cool down in a linen kitchen towel, it stuck to the towel - ugh. In fact, when I tried to unroll the sponge to put in the filling... the sponge broke in several pieces because it was sticking to the towel.
• And, not wanting to cut my losses, I produced an extremely unappetizing but edible dessert
• Definitely a #failed #kitchenexperiment

I subbed two ingredients: almond milk for regular cow's whole milk; and 3/4 c AP flour plus 1 tbsp cornstarch sifted together for cake flour.

Ginger Beer: an alcoholic batch

It would appear that I have made my first alcoholic batch of ginger beer, which when fermented correctly yields a carbonated soft drink. I was experimenting with ratios and added more of everything except the yeast (just a teaspoon). Effects-wise, I'd say that I might have reached between 4-5% alcohol and that was only after drinking 8 oz of it.

I'm still unsure of how to properly use a hydrometer; as I don't have enough liquid to test for the size of the hydrometer that I have, nor do I have a container with enough slender volume that I can measure the beer in.

Here are the tested ratios:

1/2 c grated ginger (vs 1/4 c)
1.25 c organic granulated sugar (vs 1 cup)
10 c water (vs 9 cups)

As for the fermenting time: 3.5 days instead of 2
Avg room temp for the ferment was 55-60 F

This batch yielded 2 liters plus 1 pint.

After thoughts:

Too much raw ginger flavor. It was potent and felt like a kick to the head.

The extra sugar did nothing to make the beer sweeter before decanting into flip-top bottles, in fact, the yeast ate it all.

Also, the Active Dry Yeast was very fresh (yes, that's bread yeast).

Crockpot Maple Baked Beans

I have always found that most commercial brands of these beans are too sweet for my taste; though, I wonder how sweet these are supposed to be. Recently I've been watching a food channel on YouTube about 18th Century cooking by Jas Townsend and Son. At least I don't have to build a fire pit or clay oven to bake these.

While it involves simple ingredients, it is fairly time consuming in preparing dry beans for eating. One day I'll have to research why the beans are called navy beans since they are neither navy in color nor boat-like in shape.

In a 5-quart bowl, rinse and soak in filtered water 2 cups of dry navy beans. I soaked these overnight (roughly 12-18 hours), tossed the soaking liquid and boiled the beans on a simmer for another hour.

Soon to be maple baked beans...

Then...

Into the crockpot (slow cooker) for 8-10 hours on low with the following ingredients:

3/4 c filtered water
3/4 c organic maple syrup
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger

Give that a few stirs with the beans before setting the time and putting the lid on.

Buttermilk Oven Fried Chicken

While enjoyable to eat, the food prep and wait times are not. The best part of this is that the chicken cooks in its own fat. Having made this twice now, I thought I should write it up. This recipe ratio is adapted from Epicurious.

Buttermilk Oven Fried Chicken

Marinade Ingredients

chicken body parts
1 c cultured buttermilk per pound of meat

Coating for chicken

1 c homemade bread crumbs
1 c corn flake cereal, pulverised into crumbs1/4 c Parmesan cheese, grated
smoked paprika
garlic powder
chili powder
sea salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
onion powder (optional)
parsley (optional)

Directions

In a shallow bowl or sealable container, add chicken parts. Pour buttermilk and lemon juice over the chicken. Refrigerate for up to 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 400 F. 

Take each piece of chicken and dip it into the coating mixture until it is completely covered. Repeat until all the chicken is coated.

Place chicken in a single layer on a Silpat-lined baking tray or in a lightly oiled glass or ceramic baking dish. Bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 40-45 minutes. Turn chicken over at the halfway timer mark.

A digital thermometer in the thickest part of the meat should read 165 F (for poultry) when done.

Sweet Chili Paste (La Jiao Jiang)

This is an ingredient I didn't have in the pantry. As long as you have a sharp knife, a mortar and pestle or a food processor, the recipe is easy to do. The heat of your peppers determines the heat of the paste. I used red jalapenos because they were the only hot red peppers available in my area, aside from Thai chili peppers which I didn't want to use for this recipe. My biggest complaint about Asian condiments are that I might use them a few times a year and the jar takes up prime real estate in the fridge. By making condiments in smaller batches, not only is it fresher tasting but also there are no preservatives.

The Foodening Blog: chopped red chiles

Store it in a glass jar. Keeps for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Related recipes: Sweet Chili Shrimp

Ingredients

3-5 hot red peppers
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp olive oil (optional)
pinch of salt
1 tsp rice vinegar

Directions

1. Remove the stem from the peppers and discard. Roughly chop the peppers into smaller pieces. Then chop in a food processor with the garlic, salt and vinegar.

2. (optional) In a small saucepan, heat olive oil over low-medium heat and add the peppers and garlic. Cook on low heat for 20 minutes. Let cool before using or storing in a jar.

The Foodening Blog: red chili paste, nearly done

Sweet Spicy Shrimp

This recipe ratio is a definite keeper. It was delicious. I'm not even sure if shrimp has a harvesting season, like crab or other larger seafood. But, I definitely have seen a wide range of prices for raw shrimp; from $5.99/lb (Fubonn, before asian food holidays) up to $13.99/lb (Costco, Trader Joe's). Certainly before the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, shrimp prices were cheaper by a couple of dollars per pound. And, rather than turn this post into a ecowatch rant, here are the directions.

I didn't have any shallots nor cilantro on hand so I omitted both. The cilantro is just for color.

The Foodening Blog: sweet chili shrimp, ready to eat

Ingredients

1 lb raw shrimp, shelled and de-veined
1 tbsp olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp fresh ginger, minced
(optional) 1 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
(optional) 1 small shallot, finely chopped

Marinade for Shrimp

2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp sea salt

Sauce for Frying

1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp raw honey
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2-3 tsp red chili paste

Directions

1. Clean and rinse shrimp. In a large bowl, mix shrimp, cornstarch and salt together. Let stand for 5-10 minutes, or refrigerate until ready to fry.

2. Prepare sauce: combine soy sauce, honey, vinegar and chili paste. Set aside.

3. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add oil and swirl the skillet to spread the oil around. Add garlic and ginger. Stir fry until the oil is fragrant and the garlic hasn't browned. Add shrimp and fry until the shrimp changes color from light gray to salmon pink, about 2-3 minutes. Pour in the sauce and stir until well combined.

4. Transfer to a serving dish and top with (optional) cilantro. Serve hot.