Oahu, Hawaii from on of my many work trips earlier this year.
Rainstorm on the right and sunset on the left.
Showing posts with label December project. Show all posts
Showing posts with label December project. Show all posts
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Saturday, December 29, 2012
December Project: Friendship
An oldie but goodie, my BFF of about 20 years, Meeks! Our (mis)adventures are the stuff of legends!
Friday, December 28, 2012
Thursday, December 27, 2012
December Project: Vegetables
I know corn salad on Christmas Day doesn't necessarily scream festive or seasonal, but that's what the Teo clan dined on for our Christmas lunch. Ha!
I first busted out this recipe in the Summer when my friends and I took our picnic basket to Griffith Park to watch Shakespeare in the Park (A midsummer Night's Dream). This corn salad really epitomizes the freshness of Summer (or Christmas, if you're a Teo?). The sweet corn kernels merry well with the tangy tomatoes and kick of red onions, while the balsamic vinegar adds a nice caramel acidity.
8 ears of corn
2 quarts cherry tomatoes ( I used baby heirloom tomatoes the first time and then those yellow ones for Christmas)
3 tablespoons high-quality balsamic vinegar
1 medium red onion
1 quart sugar snap peas (Optional)
1 handful rough-chopped basil or flat-leaf parsley (Optional)
salt, preferably a large, coarse sea salt like Maldon.
pepper
Directions
1. The recipe calls for you to strip raw corn from ears, but I par-boiled mine first for 3-4 minutes since I am not a huge fan of raw corn.
2. Slice all tomatoes in half or quarters depending on your preference. Chop the red onion into a large dice. If using the sugar-snap peas (they can be hard to find when the corn and tomatoes are available -- their seasons barely overlap, and even then you're likely getting corn and tomatoes from the south and sugar snaps from the North.) Anyway, if you're using them, cut in half or thirds to make more bite-sized. Blanch these briefly in salted boiling water. Rough chop the basil or parsley if you are using them.
3. Toss all vegetables in a bowl, along with the vinegar, salt and pepper. That's it!
Serves 4
Recipe from Food 52
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Friday, December 21, 2012
December Project: What's Cooking
There is a lot to love about this time of year- parties, presents, White Christmas showing all weekend long on AMC. There is however, one thing the fat kid in me looks forward to more than anything else... COOKIES. More specifically, holiday cookies!
This year, I decided to take my holiday baking up a notch and make holiday cookies for all my friends and relations, both in LA and Singapore. Phew!
Leading up to the big event, I a) tested potential recipes, 2) ate A LOT of cookies, all in the name of research and subsequently) OD on sweets. At the end of the process, I settled upon these 4 treats to delight the kids-- Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies, Hungarian Apricot Bars, Cranberry Coins, and Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies.
Personally, I loved the Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies the best! The savory aspect of the bacon lends itself well to the sweet ginger cookie and made for a more elevated "foodie" type offering. Meanwhile, Mama T's favorite were the Hungarian Apricot bars, she went so far as to hoard a batch for herself.
Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed bake, bake, baking and hope my yums helped to spread some holiday cheer to those I hold dear.
Here is the recipe for the Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies. Happy Holidays!
Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
8 oz. thick0cut smoked bacon (about 6 slices) cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp plus 2 tsp unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup sorghum syrup ( I used unsulfured molasses instead)
1/2 cup raw sugar, like turbinado
Sea salt for sprinkling
Directions
1. Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally until crisp, about 14 minutes. Pour off the fat and reserve (you should have about 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsp fat and 3/4 cup bacon); transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate. Let bacon and reserved fat cool.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk to combine flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, beat butter and both sugars with an electric mixer on medium-high until fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Beat in reserved bacon fat. Add egg and mix until blended, scrapping down sides of bowl if necessary. Add sorghum syrup and mix until blended. Reduce speed to low and add in flour mixture. Mix until blended. Mix in reserved bacon.
4. Shape dough into 1 inch-balls. Roll balls in raw sugar to coat. Space 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets or jelly roll pans. Flatten balls using the palm of your hand or the bottom of a glass. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt.
5. Bake sheets, rotating halfway through, until edges are set and tops are cracked but centers are still soft, about 8 minutes. Let cookies cool completely on wire racks. Cookies can be store in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.
Makes 5 dozen cookies.
This year, I decided to take my holiday baking up a notch and make holiday cookies for all my friends and relations, both in LA and Singapore. Phew!
Leading up to the big event, I a) tested potential recipes, 2) ate A LOT of cookies, all in the name of research and subsequently) OD on sweets. At the end of the process, I settled upon these 4 treats to delight the kids-- Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies, Hungarian Apricot Bars, Cranberry Coins, and Double Chocolate Espresso Cookies.
 |
| Back off Santa, those ain't for you! (clockwise) Baking, baking!; Cranberry Coins; Cookies in their boxes; Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies. |
Personally, I loved the Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies the best! The savory aspect of the bacon lends itself well to the sweet ginger cookie and made for a more elevated "foodie" type offering. Meanwhile, Mama T's favorite were the Hungarian Apricot bars, she went so far as to hoard a batch for herself.
Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed bake, bake, baking and hope my yums helped to spread some holiday cheer to those I hold dear.
Here is the recipe for the Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies. Happy Holidays!
Smokey Bacon Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
8 oz. thick0cut smoked bacon (about 6 slices) cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp plus 2 tsp unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup sorghum syrup ( I used unsulfured molasses instead)
1/2 cup raw sugar, like turbinado
Sea salt for sprinkling
Directions
1. Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally until crisp, about 14 minutes. Pour off the fat and reserve (you should have about 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsp fat and 3/4 cup bacon); transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate. Let bacon and reserved fat cool.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk to combine flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, beat butter and both sugars with an electric mixer on medium-high until fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Beat in reserved bacon fat. Add egg and mix until blended, scrapping down sides of bowl if necessary. Add sorghum syrup and mix until blended. Reduce speed to low and add in flour mixture. Mix until blended. Mix in reserved bacon.
4. Shape dough into 1 inch-balls. Roll balls in raw sugar to coat. Space 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets or jelly roll pans. Flatten balls using the palm of your hand or the bottom of a glass. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt.
5. Bake sheets, rotating halfway through, until edges are set and tops are cracked but centers are still soft, about 8 minutes. Let cookies cool completely on wire racks. Cookies can be store in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.
Makes 5 dozen cookies.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Monday, December 17, 2012
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Friday, December 14, 2012
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Monday, December 10, 2012
December Project: Something Old
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| Asian Pacific Swim Meet |
I'm the one in the grandma print shirt and velvet pants. Styling from such a young age.
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