Easy Cakes for Special Occasions

I am sorry for my long absence. I was, ahem (and Lord, please do not strike me for this seeming arrogance), promoted at work; hence, my re-channeled energies kept me away from the kitchen for a while.

To make up for my inattentiveness, I am posting two recipes right now. These are two cakes which are easy enough for busy and exhausted people to make and pretty enough for gift-giving in this harried holiday season.

Cake No.1: JCarlos presented me with this impressive looking peaches and cream cake to celebrate my modest career progression. Since everything was bought ready-made at the local supermarket, he had devoted his efforts to decorating it with a delicate pattern of tiled peach slices.



Peaches and Cream Cake

½ Can Peaches
1 Loaf Madeira / Pound / Sponge Cake
1 Cup Whipped Cream
1 Dash Cinnamon

Drain the peaches. Dice 1/3 of the peaches into small bits. Fold this carefully into ¾ of the whipped cream and sprinkle with cinnamon. Slice the rest of the peaches lengthwise into thin slices. Cut the cake into 3 layers. Spread the diced peaches and cream onto the first and second layer of the cake. Sandwich these together. Spread the rest of the whipped cream on top of the third (and top) layer of the cake. Arrange the thinly sliced peaches on top of the cake, slightly overlapping them at an angle. Et voila! Serve chilled.



Cake No.2: This next cake is a Christmas gift I made for L, who is moving far, far away and needed a present that can be consumed immediately and doesn’t have to be transported interstate.

I actually made it once before ~ a Japanese cheesecake, but I found it too dry, so I added a little bit more cream to make it moister. Unfortunately, this ruined the texture. The cake came out too dense to be a Japanese cheesecake, but at least, it is considerably lighter than a normal cheesecake. And if I don’t really insist on producing a cheesecake soufflé, this tasted of a quite nice cheesecake. I did not bother lining my clay pot (yes, this is what I used as a baking vessel, since I did not have a springform pan), so the thing just won’t come off when it was time to remove it from the pan. Finally, I conceded and sliced the cake into slices, so I could dislodge them without mashing the cake into crumbs. To dress the gift up, I surrounded it with a fruit medley. Fortunately for me, berries were in season, so I had deluxe fruits to make my present look more presentable. I’d have garnished the fruit medley with mint leaves, had I remembered to buy them. I sprinkled bits of glace citrus peel on the salad to make the colors pop even more. I also sprinkled the cake with toasted almond flakes for textural variety and an added flavor.



Japanese Cheesecake with Almond Flakes and Fruit Medley

250 g Cream cheese
100 ml. Cream
80 g Butter
2 T. Corn starch
40 ml. Milk
6 Egg yolks
2 t. Orange extract

6 Egg whites
½ T. lemon juice
½ C. Sugar
1 T. Corn starch

Pre-heat your oven at 150C. Line your baking pan with baking paper, or if you are lazy like me, grease and flour your pan instead.

Melt the cream cheese, cream, and butter over low heat. Cool completely. Dissolve the corn starch in milk. Stir this into the cream cheese mixture, along with the egg yolks and orange extract.

In a big, clean bowl, beat the egg whites with the lemon juice until soft peaks form. Pour the sugar in a thin, steady stream into the whites while continuing beating. Beat in the corn starch until stiff peaks form.

Carefully, fold the whites into the cream cheese. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30 min. in a bain-marie (Place the baking pan into a tall-sided pan that is large enough to hold the baking pan. Pour boiling water into this larger pan, so that a moat forms halfway up the sides of the pan with the cheesecake in it.). Reduce the heat to 125C and bake for another hour. Cool completely. Chill before serving.

Sprinkle with toasted almond flakes and serve with a fruit salad of your choice. Mine’s composed of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, and bits of glace citrus peel.

The cheesecake soufflé I made before…

Cannoli

We made cannoli for Daring Bakers’ November challenge. To be honest, there is not much love between cannoli and me. I did not particularly find anything special with them then and it is the same now. Aside from this lack of affection, the cheapskate that I am, I cannot be persuaded to purchase anything that I do not think I will use at least 10,000 times or, at least, something that I can pass on as an heirloom; hence, I did not find parting with $30 for cannoli forms necessary.



What I used were muffin cups, so I had coppas di cannoli instead, for which, I am sure, purists would hurl a thousand cruel Italian expletives at me. I also baked them instead of frying them. My first two attempts at frying the dough yielded not the hoped for result. I do not know why this is the case since I fry excellent churros and empanadas :( .



Any way, my favorite part of this exercise is what I saw when I pulled my ricotta out of the delicates wash bag which I used in place of cheesecloth. It looked absolutely like a chicken’s bum!



CANNOLI

CANNOLI SHELLS
2 cups (250 grams/8.82 ounces) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons(28 grams/1 ounce) sugar
1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.06 ounces) unsweetened baking cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (approx. 3 grams/0.11 ounces) salt
3 tablespoons (42 grams/1.5 ounces) vegetable or olive oil
1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.18 ounces) white wine vinegar
Approximately 1/2 cup (approx. 59 grams/approx. 4 fluid ounces/approx. 125 ml) sweet Marsala or any white or red wine you have on hand
1 large egg, separated (you will need the egg white but not the yolk)
Vegetable or any neutral oil for frying – about 2 quarts (8 cups/approx. 2 litres)
1/2 cup (approx. 62 grams/2 ounces) toasted, chopped pistachio nuts, mini chocolate chips/grated chocolate and/or candied or plain zests, fruits etc.. for garnish
Confectioners' sugar

Note - If you want a chocolate cannoli dough, substitute a few tablespoons of the flour (about 25%) with a few tablespoons of dark, unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch process) and a little more wine until you have a workable dough (Thanks to Audax).

CANNOLI FILLING
2 lbs (approx. 3.5 cups/approx. 1 kg/32 ounces) ricotta cheese, drained
1 2/3 cups cup (160 grams/6 ounces) confectioner’s sugar, (more or less, depending on how sweet you want it), sifted
1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon (4 grams/0.15 ounces) pure vanilla extract or the beans from one vanilla bean
3 tablespoons (approx. 28 grams/approx. 1 ounce) finely chopped good quality chocolate of your choice
2 tablespoons (12 grams/0.42 ounces) of finely chopped, candied orange peel, or the grated zest of one small to medium orange
3 tablespoons (23 grams/0.81 ounce) toasted, finely chopped pistachios
Note - If you want chocolate ricotta filling, add a few tablespoons of dark, unsweetened cocoa powder to the above recipe, and thin it out with a few drops of warm water if too thick to pipe.

DIRECTIONS FOR SHELLS:
1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer or food processor, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the oil, vinegar, and enough of the wine to make a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and well blended, about 2 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge from 2 hours to overnight.
2 Cut the dough into two pieces. Keep the remaining dough covered while you work. Lightly flour a large cutting or pastry board and roll the dough until super thin, about 1/16 to 1/8” thick (An area of about 13 inches by 18 inches should give you that). Cut out 3 to 5-inch circles (3-inch – small/medium; 4-inch – medium/large; 5-inch;- large. Your choice). Roll the cut out circle into an oval, rolling it larger and thinner if it’s shrunk a little.
3 Oil the outside of the cannoli tubes (You only have to do this once, as the oil from the deep fry will keep them well, uhh, oiled..lol). Roll a dough oval from the long side (If square, position like a diamond, and place tube/form on the corner closest to you, then roll) around each tube/form and dab a little egg white on the dough where the edges overlap. (Avoid getting egg white on the tube, or the pastry will stick to it.) Press well to seal. Set aside to let the egg white seal dry a little.
4. In a deep heavy saucepan, pour enough oil to reach a depth of 3 inches, or if using an electric deep-fryer, follow the manufacturer's directions. Heat the oil to 375°F (190 °C) on a deep fry thermometer, or until a small piece of the dough or bread cube placed in the oil sizzles and browns in 1 minute. Have ready a tray or sheet pan lined with paper towels or paper bags.
5. Carefully lower a few of the cannoli tubes into the hot oil. Do not crowd the pan. Fry the shells until golden, about 2 minutes, turning them so that they brown evenly.
8. Lift a cannoli tube with a wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, out of the oil. Using tongs, grasp the cannoli tube at one end. Very carefully remove the cannoli tube with the open sides straight up and down so that the oil flows back into the pan. Place the tube on paper towels or bags to drain. Repeat with the remaining tubes. While they are still hot, grasp the tubes with a potholder and pull the cannoli shells off the tubes with a pair of tongs, or with your hand protected by an oven mitt or towel. Let the shells cool completely on the paper towels. Place shells on cooling rack until ready to fill.
9. Repeat making and frying the shells with the remaining dough. If you are reusing the cannoli tubes, let them cool before wrapping them in the dough.

DIRECTIONS FOR FILLING:
1. Line a strainer with cheesecloth. Place the ricotta in the strainer over a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap and a towel. Weight it down with a heavy can, and let the ricotta drain in the refrigerator for several hours to overnight.
2. In a bowl with electric mixer, beat ricotta until smooth and creamy. Beat in confectioner’s sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and blend until smooth. Transfer to another bowl and stir in chocolate, zest and nuts. Chill until firm.(The filling can be made up to 24 hours prior to filling the shells. Just cover and keep refrigerated).

ASSEMBLE THE CANNOLI:
1. When ready to serve..fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain or star tip, or a ziplock bag, with the ricotta cream. If using a ziplock bag, cut about 1/2 inch off one corner. Insert the tip in the cannoli shell and squeeze gently until the shell is half filled. Turn the shell and fill the other side. You can also use a teaspoon to do this, although it’s messier and will take longer.
2. Press or dip cannoli in chopped pistachios, grated chocolate/mini chocolate chips, candied fruit or zest into the cream at each end. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and/or drizzles of melted chocolate if desired.

Meatballs Stewed in a Spicy Tomato Sauce

Storm season in Brisbane, when the wind is high and the nights are dark, kindles romance in the hearth. And when I say romance, I meant that the nights are conducive to recreating fanciful inspirations from the Arabian nights ~ beef or lamb (which we may be led to imagine the sheikhs and sultans feasted on in the tale), spices, and longevity.

Seriously, you can whip up a batch of these and eat them slowly for a week or so (stored properly in the fridge, of course!). I’ve tried to replicate the texture of adana kebab in the meatballs and stewed these slowly in a tomato sauce that has been enriched with herbs and spices. The spice is more sweet than hot and although the combination is rich, it is far from being cloying.

All you need is a plateful of couscous or rice or pasta or even, bread (anyway, your carb of choice) and a crisp cool salad and you’ve got a veritable banquet before you!

Meatballs Stewed in a Spicy Tomato Sauce



Meatballs:
500 g Ground beef (don’t get the lean variety)
1 T each Black pepper, Sugar, Soy sauce
2 t each Chilli powder, Oregano, Thyme
½ t each Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves, Allspice, Ginger
1 T Vegetable oil
½ c Semolina
½ pc Onion, minced
¼ c Garlic, minced

Sauce:
2 T Butter
1 T Olive oil
½ pc Onion, minced
1 T Sugar
¼ c Garlic, minced
½ t each Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves, Allspice
1 c Wine
2 pcs Bay leaves
1 t each Oregano, Thyme
1 tin Cubed stewed tomatoes
2 t Paprika
Salt, black pepper, and chilli powder, to taste

Combine all the meatball ingredients and let sit for at least 30 minutes. Shape them into large meatballs, which are about 1 ½ inch in diameter.

Heat 1 T of butter in a pot. Brown the meatballs. Add the remaining butter, olive oil, and minced onion. Saute this until the onions are wilted before adding the sugar, garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice. Saute this until fragrant. Deglaze the pan with the wine. Add the bay leaves, oregano, and thyme. Add the tomatoes and paprika. Stir and season to taste. Let he stew simmer for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Stuffed Bamboo Fungus on a bed of Egg Whites

After such a long respite, going back to the workforce is no joking matter. The sleep deprivation and constant adrenaline rush catching the bus, the ferry, and later in the work day, closing offices, take their toll on the human body so much so that one collapses on the couch shortly after a quick m.s.g.-laden dinner of instant noodles.

Merely a week into my conscientious efforts at saving time and effort on cooking when I finally got tired of Nissin’s flavor selection and summoned enough energy to cook some real food, which requires at least a couple of hours of leisurely prep.

The result was, of course, stupendously satisfying ~ what with the varying textures and nuances of flavor that simply cannot be matched by instant ramen (no matter how delicious I truly find them) with their accompanying spice packets.



You may have trouble finding bamboo fungus in your area. (There is apicture of a pack of it on the far right of the picture on right.) I saw numerous entries on the internet irreverently likening its form to that of condoms. Do not be put off by this disgusting comparison. Bamboo fungi are quite bland on their own, but they absorb the flavors you cook them with admirably well. What I truly like about them is their springy crisp texture which is completely unique. It is like biting into an intricate fibrous network, which makes for a wonderful experience as your teeth sink into one layer after another of crisp tenderness (you will understand this oxymoron better when you have bitten into one yourself).

Before I bore you anymore with this eternal spring of rhapsodies, let me tell you what you can do if you cannot find bamboo fungus. A suitable substitute would be slicing gourd of most kinds (wintermelon, hairy melon, sponge gourd, or even zucchini) into long rectangular shapes and quite thinly (thickness, not shape). You can lay the stuffing on one end and roll the vegetable up like a scroll or a sushi roll, while making sure to tuck the stuffing in neatly at both open ends. Secure the end of each roll with a toothpick before cooking.

I am giving you a recipe for about a third of what is seen in the pictures. I made too many; and consequently, my plating is heavy, messy, and not as nice as if there are less (or if I had a larger serving plate).




Stuffed Bamboo Fungus on a bed of Egg Whites

12 – 15 pcs. Bamboo fungus, washed and soaked in water

Stuffing:
125 g Chicken thigh, skinned, boned, and chopped
125 g Prawns, shelled and cleaned
10 g Pork fat / Fatty bacon
½ T Garlic, minced
2 Stalks of Scallions, chopped
1 t Ginger, chopped
1 T Rice wine
1 T Corn starch
2 t Salt
1 t Pepper

Egg whites:
3 Egg whites
2 c Water

Sauce and Garnishes:
2 c Stock (Chicken, Pork, Seafood, or Dashinomoto)
2 t Corn starch dissolved in 1 T water
Dash of Sesame oil
1/3 c Carrot slices, blanched, to decorate
2 Shiitake mushrooms, poached, to decorate
2 Prawns, shelled and cleaned
1 Sprig Coriander, washed, to decorate


To make the stuffing, place all the Stuffing ingredients in a food processor and grind until a sticky smooth paste forms. Place this in a piping bag with a plain / round large tip. Squeeze the water out of the bamboo fungi and when they are dry, stuff them one by one. Carefully, to avoid tearing the bamboo fungus, stretch one end of it wide enough for the piping bag tip to fit. Pinching the other end together (so the stuffing would not be forced out of the other end of the tube of bamboo fungus), start piping gently, but forcefully. When the tube feels full and snug with stuffing, neatly press both ends to tuck and level the stuffing. Repeat with the other tubes.

To make the shredded egg whites, simmer 2 c. of water in a 6-8 inch saucepan. Pour in the egg whites. Let this poach for about 3-4 minutes. Take the egg white out while being careful not to tear it. Roll it up and slice crosswise thinly (1/8 inch) so that you end up with shreds when the slices unfurl. Set aside.

To make the sauce and garnish, simmer the stock. You can blanch the carrot slices and cook the shiitakes and prawns in this. Take the garnish out of the stock when they are done. Place the bamboo fungus in the simmering stock. Leave them for a few minutes before turning the tubes (to ensure the entire circumference absorbs the liquid). When the stuffing is cooked through, take the tubes out with a slotted spoon. Thicken the stock with the cornstarch solution. Add the sesame oil then turn off the heat.

To assemble, Place the shredded egg whites in the center of a serving plate. Arrange the tubes around them in a sunray pattern. Drizzle sauce over this arrangement. Place the carrot slices on top of a third of the egg whites. Place the shiitake mushrooms on top of the egg whites next to the carrots and the prawns next to the mushrooms, overlapping the mushrooms and carrots a bit. Glaze with more of the stock. Top with a sprig of coriander that has been bent to curve into a gentle circle. Serve hot.

Daring Bakers Challenge: Macarons!

I've completed my first ever Daring Bakers challenge this month. The challenge was macarons. Indeed, they were quite temperamental ~ when you thought you had them right, they would do something unexpected.

I started out with a first batch of macaronage that looked promisingly like magma, as prescribed by the other blogs and members of the Daring Bakers, which I then patiently divided into two ~ one with extra cocoa and the other plain. The plain one turned out flat like lengua de gato and the chocolate ones looked quite more macaron-like but they didn't develop 'feet' and were very much perforated on top, like wafer.

After closely observing pictures of different successful macarons, I realized that they probably have to air dry before baking, so that the top forms a membrane, which would prevent rising air from perforating the macarons while they’re cooking; and also, as the dry macaron top separates from the rest of its wet body, a ‘foot’ would form.

My second batch saw some measure of success, but I feel I may have caramelized the macarons too much because my oven was too hot. I was quite sure that had I had the courage to incur David’s (the landlord) wrath by noisily grinding more almonds into almond flour for my third batch, I would have learned very much by then and would have achieved the pinnacle of macaron-dom indeed; instead, I shall leave that third testing to you.

To make Burnt Sugar Macarons filled with Chocolate Almond Mazapan, simply follow the recipe below, but crank up the oven temperature by 20C or so and bake the macarons until light brown. For the chocolate almond mazapan, mix 1/2 cup of toasted almond meal with 21/2 T of heavy cream and 1/2 cup of melted semi-sweet chocolate. If you use half a tablespoon of filling for each pair of macaron, you should be able to fill about thirty-five sandwiches.

Basic Macaron Recipe by Claudia Fleming

Preparation time: Not taking into account the amount of time it takes for you to bring your egg whites to room temperature, the whole baking process, including making the batter, piping and baking will probably take you about an hour to an hour and a half. How long it takes to make your filling is dependent on what you choose to make.

Actual baking time: 12 minutes total, plus a few minutes to get your oven from 200°F to 375°F.

Equipment required:
• Electric mixer, preferably a stand mixer with a whisk attachment
• Rubber spatula
• Baking sheets
• Parchment paper or nonstick liners
• Pastry bag (can be disposable)
• Plain half-inch pastry bag tip
• Sifter or sieve
• If you don’t have a pastry bag and/or tips, you can use a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off
• Oven
• Cooling rack
• Thin-bladed spatula for removing the macaroons from the baking sheets
• Food processor or nut grinder, if grinding your own nuts (ouch!)

Ingredients
Confectioners’ (Icing) sugar: 2 ¼ cups (225 g, 8 oz.)
Almond flour: 2 cups (190 g, 6.7 oz.)
Granulated sugar: 2 tablespoons (25 g , .88 oz.)
Egg whites: 5 (Have at room temperature)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.
2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.
3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.
4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.
5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).
6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored.
7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Yield: 10 dozen

Leche Flan Cake

For those of us who are substantially impoverished, a few staples in the cupboard are essential to survival ~ flour, eggs, milk, and lots and lots of sugar! These are all cheap and would make a variety of filling, frugal meals. What is most important, though, is being able to whip up fancy desserts to combat depression from these very same ingredients.

I celebrated my partner’s birthday with a homemade cake that will not break the bank. It is divided into two components ~ one being leche flan; and the other, sponge cake. If its twin, crème caramel, is not familiar to you, leche flan is a rich egg yolk custard topped with a caramel that is tinged with a hint of bitterness, sort of like a more solid creme brulee without the burnt sugar.

The cake was exceptionally delicious where the bittersweet caramel soaked through. It tasted almost alcoholic.

The following recipe will yield exactly the same cake as the one in the picture, although my own preference is a thicker layer of leche flan. I feel that the smooth, rich texture of the leche flan does not shine through with such a thin layer of it. Next time, I will double the quantity of leche flan and halve the quantity of the sponge cake.

If you prefer just leche flan without the cake, you can double the leche flan recipe and cook this in a smaller pan, so that the mixture comes to about 2-2.5 inches thick. You can steam this on low heat or bake in a bain-marie at 200F for as long as it takes to set.



Leche Flan Cake

1 c Sugar
7 Egg yolks
1 c Evaporated milk
¾ c Condensed milk
2 t Vanilla / Grated lemon zest

¾ c Sugar
2 c Cake flour
1 T Baking powder
2 t Salt
3 Egg yolks
¼ c Oil
1/2 c Water
5 Egg whites
¾ c Sugar

Melt 1 c Sugar until it caramelizes. Be careful not to burn it and make sure to watch it closely as it melts. It could very, very rapidly turn from pale to burnt. Pour this into an 8-inch square pan. Combine the 7 egg yolks, milks, and vanilla. Strain this into the pan with the caramel.

Combine the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add the yolks, oil, and water into it. Mix until smooth. In another bowl, whip egg whites until soft peaks form. While beating, add the sugar in a thin, steady stream until stiff peaks form. Carefully fold the flour mixture into the stiffly beaten egg whites. Pour this on top of the custard. DO NOT STIR or agitate. Bake in a bain-marie at 350F for about 1 hour. Cool. Serve chilled.

Almond Milk

What an exciting adventure we’ll have with what, until now, has been a cherished secret recipe. It is a beverage that is a wonderful way (because it is utterly delicious) to treat a whooping cough, but like absinth, is tinged with drama and danger.

Now, to make it sound truly magical… here are the three vital ingredients: xin ren or apricot kernels, water, and time. Xin ren is the name for almonds in Chinese and it is strange that they are NOT almonds, but instead, are apricot kernels. Regardless of this nominal confusion, it does smell sweetly like strong almonds and, as an aside, I suspect that Gabriel Garcia Marquez was referring to bei xin ren when he wrote about bitter almonds in Love in the Time of Cholera.



In Chinese traditional medicine, xin ren is used as a tonic for the lungs ~ it has warming properties (yang principle), soothes the lungs, relieves dry cough, and lubricates the large intestines. There are two kinds, which must be used in tandem, to make your potion potent. There is the bei xin ren (literally, northern apricot kernels or bitter almonds, which is the smaller bag on the right) and the nan xin ren (literally, southern apricot kernels or sweet almonds, which is the larger bag on the left).

Here is the dark, mysterious part. Be careful when using bei xin ren. It contains (deep breath!) cyanide(!) and may be mildly toxic, even when cooked properly, which you should, at all cost. As a precautionary rule, I do not give this to children or pregnant women, but I have found it generally safe for the consumption of courageous gourmands like myself.

While it simmers, the perfume of xin ren will waft out of the pot, drift from your kitchen to fill your entire home with an incredibly sweet scent, much to the envy of the excluded kids and women with child. I add a little rice powder to thicken the milk and just a tad of sugar to mildly sweeten it.



Almond Milk

100g Bei xin ren (northern apricot kernels or bitter almonds)
200g Nan xin ren (southern apricot kernels or sweet almonds)
1.5 L Water plus extra for rinsing
½ to 1/3 c. Sugar
1/3 c. Rice flour (NOT glutinous / sticky rice flour) dissolved in 2/3 c. Water

Rinse the apricot kernels to make sure they are clean. Soak the rinsed apricot kernels in 2 cups of water overnight. With a powerful blender or grinder, grind the apricot kernels and some of the soaking water to a smooth, fine paste. Put this paste, along with the soaking water and 1 L. of water, into a saucepan. Bring this to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 1 to 1.5 hours. Add sugar, to taste. While stirring the pot continuously, pour in the rice flour solution. Keep on stirring the almond milk over the heat until it thickens like a cream soup. Serve hot to preserve its efficacy.