Homemade Thin Mints

So, yesterday I was making dinner and stepped on a turtle.

Wait, let me rewind.

We have this adorable little triscuit-sized turtle (named Triscuit, hehe) which swims around in a fancy-shmancy bowl that we keep outside, away from the saber toothed-cat that likes to play with the turtle. But Sunday night, the turtle was inside after a bowl cleaning.

We went to bed, forgetting about Triscuit, and in the morning, realized our grave mistake.

Sometime during the night, monster-cat Mao flipped Triscuit out of his peaceful home and onto the floor, and we went crazy trying to find him before work. Alas, he was lost in the (relative) vastness of our apartment.
Fast forward to when I returned home and started making dinner, listening to my siblings trying to find Triscuit. "Tristcuit, you get back here right now!" my sister declared.
As if by magic, a few seconds later, my piggy toe landed on something hard and unusual. My subconsciousness knew what it was, and as I looked down, I shrieked. Triscuit.

So, the lost was found, but my piggy toe is still a little freaked out. Look, don't touch, is my policy when it comes to turtles.

Which leads me to what else is triscuit-sized but doesn't freak me out. Thin mints! The wonderful chocolate-mint girl scout cookie that is always there for you. Actually...no they're not. They're only sold at rare, magical times throughout the year. BUT, they can always be there for you if you know this recipe! 'Cause it's pretty dang close to the real thing--in fact, better.

So apparently it's a thing to keep thin mints in your freezer. I have never tried it, but I have tried keeping these homemade thin mints in the fridge, and they were fantastic--so crisp and minty, with an indulgent coat of chocolate. So I definitely suggest cooling them. Definitely.

A few notes about the recipe before you get baking. I didn't include the original recipe here because Sally's post is so comprehensive. She's amazing, yo. But, here are a few things that I learned while making them.
You CAN use chocolate chips instead of bars of semi-sweet chocolate. They don't melt as well, but just mix them often while melting, and do not burn them. Trust me, not pretty.
I used a fork to dip my cookies into the chocolate, as suggested. However, the tapping part did not go so well since the chocolate chips melted into a pretty thick liquid. What did work was after dipping a cookie, I smoothed the chocolate over the cookie with my finger while balancing the cookie on a fork. Messy, but they ended up with a rustic charm.
As I finished chocolate coating a few cookies, I popped them into the freezer for a few minutes to harden up before stacking them all together in the fridge. Didn't want that chocolate to smudge!

So, with that, get baking!

P.S. Watch where you step in the kitchen. I don't make this stuff up ^^

Find the recipe at: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2016/03/09/homemade-thin-mint-cookies/

Food in Hong Kong

Over Independence Day weekend, our family took a short trip to Hong Kong. Mainly we went to markets and enjoyed a light show on the river. I, of course, was eager to try the local food. Here are just a few of the things we tried!

Egg Puffs, or Eggettes

They are named for their egg carton shape, but they taste like waffles. Fresh out of the press, they are crunchy on the outside and soft--almost custard-like--on the inside.

Hong Kong-Style Milk Tea

This milk tea contains black tea and either sweetened condensed milk or evaporated milk. We went to the restaurant Fan Long Yuen, and they handed it to us in little plastic bottles. It was a little sketchy, what with the bottles unsealed and the tea dripping down the sides. It was obviously homemade, which made it all the better. I took one sip and was in love--it was so delicious, with a strong tea flavor. However, most of my family didn't like it, so I ended up drinking two bottles in a row. I felt like I was on a sugar/caffeine high for hours afterwards!

Dim Sum

Everything I read about Hong Kong food strongly recommended trying Dim Sum, so we went to Tim Ho Wan, one of the cheapest Michelin stars in the world, to get what I read was the best experience. Before eating, I thought Dim Sum was a type of dumpling, but it turned out to be a style of eating. Basically, it is Hong Kong's version of Spanish tapas. We ordered an assortment of small foods and nibbled away. On our table were various types of dumplings: fried dumplings, dumplings with rice, and steamed dumplings, as well as spare ribs and...chicken feet (I passed on that one).

If you get the chance to go to Hong Kong, it is a great place to shop and eat--and don't forget to tell me about what you try!

Brown Sugar Buttered Salmon

You'd think, Taiwan being an island, there'd be a lot more seafood around here.

And by seafood, I mean seafood that I actually want to eat.

And by that, I mean fish.

And, let's be honest, I just want salmon. Lots of salmon.

Salmon has always been my favorite fish. It has a naturally rich and slightly buttery flavor and a tender, flaky texture. And, as if it couldn't get any better, salmon is a nutrient-packed powerfood which magically erases all of the effects of the sugar and butter piled on top of it...oh, wait, it doesn't do that? Well, no matter — the amazing flavor of the sugar + butter + seasoning + salmon is definitely worth it.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, this salmon takes under 30 minutes to make! Take that, weeknights.

Brown Sugar Buttered Salmon
Prep: 10 minutes          Bake: 10-15 minutes

Ingredients:
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Butter, softened
Brown sugar
Salmon fillets or steaks

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 450ºF. Line a baking sheet with tinfoil.
2. Lay salmon on prepared baking sheet.
3. Sprinkle salmon with Lawry's Seasoned Salt to taste (we like it pretty thick).
4. Using an offset spatula, spread butter thickly over the top of the salmon, covering all of it. Don't worry if the Lawry's gets a little moved around.
5. Sprinkle brown sugar thickly over the butter.
6. Bake for 4-6 minutes for each half-inch thickness. Check for doneness using a fork to pull a small section apart. Salmon is done when flaky.

Fluffy Trilogy Cinnamon Rolls

"Fluffy" does not even begin to convey how giant, pillowy soft, light, and airy these cinnamon rolls are.

For starters, the dough rose above and beyond expectations. Literally. It began as one of the softest, most pliable, most delightful-to-knead doughs I have ever handled, and then had a growth spurt worthy of being recorded in the book of Guinness World Records.

Upon punching down the dough and assembling the rolls, I put them in the pan...and a few minutes later they had expanded again before my eyes.

Taking our first bites of the rolls the next morning, my family exploded with comments about how fluffy they were. "And that would be the whopping two tablespoons of yeast at work" was my reply. More yeast than I've ever seen in a cinnamon roll recipe, but it definitely works.

These rolls are the closest I've ever come to my ideal cinnamon roll: easy to make but sweet and beyond soft. I'd rather eat no cinnamon roll than a dense one with a hard crust on top. The best cinnamon roll I ever ate was while we were camping a few years ago. From a Mennonite shop, they were ginormous, pillowy soft, and so sweet. They were perfect in every way except that, upon looking at the package, I saw that they were made of a potato dough, which does not meet the "easy to make" criteria. So, now the search is over; I cannot imagine finding a better recipe than this one.

Not only is the dough practically perfect, but so is the frosting (in my opinion). It is not your average cinnamon roll frosting--what with all the almond extract, nuts, and cream--but it is absolutely divine.

That said, my brother and dad said that the only thing that could make these rolls better was a plain buttercream or cream cheese frosting. Sigh. But as long as I do the baking, I get to control the flavoring, amiright?

You may be wondering about the "Trilogy" part of the title. I was too, at first. These are the cinnamon rolls that are served on the Trilogy cruise ships. They have posted their original recipe on their website, but the recipe I used from Crazy for Crust is a bit easier, but is based closely off Trilogy's recipe.

By the way, apologies for the pictures. They do not do justice to these rolls! I had to use my iPhone because of camera problems.

I am dying to try my own versions of these rolls. Think of all the filling options: chocolate, lemon, strawberry, blueberry and cinnamon, mocha, maple, apple pie... Can't wait to start!

Fluffy Trilogy Cinnamon Rolls

Makes: about 24-27 rolls

Ingredients:

Dough:

1 1/2 cups warm water (~100-110ºF)

2 Tbs. active dry yeast

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

3/4 cup vegetable oil

5 cups all-purpose flour

Filling:

6 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted

2/3 cup brown sugar

2-4 tsp. ground cinnamon

Icing:

1/2 cup finely chopped Macadamia nuts (or your favorite nut)

6 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 tsp. lemon extract

1/4 tsp. almond extract

1/4 tsp. salt

3 Tbs. heavy whipping cream

Make the dough:

1. In the large bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached, put warm water and sprinkle yeast, sugar, and salt over it. Give it a quick mix with a wooden spoon, then let sit for 5 minutes until frothy.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and oil. Add egg mixture and 1 cup of flour to the yeast mixture. Stir with dough hook while slowly adding the remaining 4 cups of flour.

3. Mix with dough hook for 5-10 more minutes until dough is elastic. It will be soft and a bit sticky. Remove to a lightly floured surface, and knead a few times until dough is no longer sticky. Place dough in an oiled bowl covered tightly with plastic wrap, and let rest in a warm place until doubled in size.

4. Grease three 9"x9" pans or two 9"x13" pans.

5. Punch down dough and split into two balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a 12"x15" rectangle.
6. Spread each rectangle with melted butter, and sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon to taste. Alternatively, mix sugar and cinnamon into melted butter and spread on with a spoon.
7. Roll dough lengthwise, as tightly as possible. Pinch edges to seal.
8. Cut rolls into 1-inch pieces and place in pan so that they are just touching.
9. Either: Let rise for 20-30 minutes, until doubled in size, then bake. OR Cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator overnight. Let come to room temperature before baking.
10. Bake at 350ºF for 20-25 minutes.

Make the icing:
1. In a small bowl with a hand mixer, beat butter and powdered sugar until combined. Add extracts, salt, and whipping cream, beating until smooth.
2. Sprinkle nuts on baked cinnamon rolls, then spread on icing. Serve.
3. Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Unbaked, unfrosted rolls can be frozen for up to 3 months.

Recipe from: http://www.crazyforcrust.com/2016/06/famous-trilogy-cinnamon-rolls/

Original Trilogy recipe: http://www.www.sailtrilogy.com/pages/recipes.php

Funfetti Cupcakes

Did anyone else completely forget about leap day until, well, leap day? Story of my life.

Luckily, though, this week is spring break, so forgetting that February 29 was a thing this year didn't affect me in any huge way. So far break has been pretty laid back (except taxes, *sad face*), as I'm spending it with my crazy-but-awesome cousins. It's always fun to take a break from school and catch up with all of these special people that I missed out on while I've lived overseas, and now at college. They actually got a snow day today, which is pretty exciting--I haven't had one of those in years! So today there is extra time to spend together.

Usually when I visit, one of the girls bakes something with me. This time, Lydia picked to bake funfetti cupcakes. Funnily enough, funfetti perfectly describes her personality: filled with fun, colorful surprises, and always ready to put a smile on your face (case in point: she is shooting me with a fake machine gun as I type this).

Sadly, I don't get to bake cupcakes much anymore. Wait, scratch that, I don't get to bake much of anything anymore. Depressing, considering that baking is a large part of who I am. Want to know Maddie in a nutshell? Baking, and cats. Preferably together, please. Luckily this week I have gotten both, a sweet (haha) bonus to being with my family.

Funfetti cupcakes are perfect for birthday parties, but really, you don't need a special occasion to bake these cupcakes. They are fun, and that's all the reason you need! To be honest, I'm not really the biggest fan of "plain" flavors like vanilla, but I was pleasantly surprised when I bit into these sprinkle-loaded cupcakes and got a mouthful of cake that was sweet, moist, and lacking that telltale chemical-y flavor of box-mix funfetti cake. And as far as cupcakes go, these are pretty easy to make: a few basic ingredients + lotsa sprinkles + some time and love = funfetti cupcakes and happiness!

Make these cupcakes A.S.A.P. to brighten the gloomy end-of-winter days.

Funfetti Cupcakes
Makes: 16

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 Tbs. vanilla
3/4 cup buttermilk*
1/2 cup sprinkles (colorful, preferably jimmies or nonpareils)

Frosting:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/4 tsp. salt
5 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbs. vanilla
1-2 Tbs. heavy whipping cream*

Directions:

Cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line cupcake tins with 15-16 liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, put the melted butter, and mix in sugar with a hand or stand mixer for 30 seconds, until thick and combined.
4. To the butter mixture, add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
5. Alternately mix in the flour mixture and the buttermilk, starting and ending with the flour; do not overmix.
6. Stir in sprinkles.
7. Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full (~1/4 batter per liner). Bake for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire racks before frosting. Store in an airtight container.

Frosting:
1. In a large bowl, beat butter until creamy.
2. Beat in salt and powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time.
3. Beat in vanilla and 1 tablespoon whipping cream. Add more whipping cream if needed to obtain desired consistency.
4. Frost cupcakes using a pastry bag. This recipe makes plenty of frosting to pile it in high swirls.

*You can replace buttermilk by combining 3/4 cup milk + 1 tsp. white vinegar and letting sit for 5 minutes.
*You can replace heavy whipping cream for milk, but the consistency will not be as creamy.

Recipe from: http://www.crazyforcrust.com/2014/02/perfect-funfetti-cupcakes/

Fudgy Brownies

Dense or cakey?

Rich or mild?

Mix-ins or solid brownie?

Frosted or plain?

Chewy or crumbly?

Gooey or dry?

Warm or cool?

Fork or fingers?

Think. Carefully. Your answers could be life changing as they will determine whether or not you will like these brownies.

Dense, rich, gooey-chocolate-chippy, and oh-so-sweet, eat 'em with a fork or your fingers, they will melt in your mouth. Decide to make them, and they will satisfy every chocolate craving you have.
*sighs with delight*

It's been way too long since I made brownies. I mean, it's probably been years. *gasp* I know, too long. So, I decided to make the richest brownies I could find to make up for lost time.

Good decision, good decision.

Eaten a la mode with homemade cinnamon ice cream, I practically died. SO GOOD. They are exactly my idea of a perfect brownie (meaning they are as chocolatey as can be). So–long story short–this recipe is a keeper.

See ya when I wake up from dreaming about these brownies!

Fudgy Brownies
Makes: 12-16 brownies

Notes:
*Be very careful to measure the flour accurately.
*Use bittersweet chocolate for a darker flavor.
*Alternatively, you can bake the brownies in a 11x7" baking pan for 35-40 minutes.

Recipe from: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/04/30/chewy-fudgy-homemade-brownies/

Pai Cookery Class, Thailand

For Christmas break this year, my family visited Thailand. It sounds far away, but when you're already in Taiwan (where my parents and younger sister are currently living), it's actually only a few hours by plane. We split our time between Bangkok (the capitol city), and Koh Samui (an island).

By sampling different foods as we strolled the streets, we discovered that there is a fair amount of Thai food that we like. Since we have also learned that cooking classes and food tours are a lot of fun and a good way to experience a culture (note our Rome food tour and Chicago cooking classes), we decided to do a cooking class here.

We settled on a cooking class taught by a Thai lady, Pai, in Koh Samui. In typical Faber fashion, we embraced the local culture and rode three mopeds to the class.

As we approached, Pai waved at us, the only white people in sight. After cooling down in her dining room, we started cooking. There was a long table with little stations for each of us; we all had our own cutting board, mortar and pestle, and trays of ingredients for the three recipes. We were making stir fried vegetables, pad Thai, and either green or red curry.

First we prepped all of the ingredients. She explained what each one was and how to cut it. There were some interesting ones, like tamarind, tofu, and fish sauce. We cut the carrots into little flowers, unzipped the snow peas (I failed miserably on at least five snow peas before I understood what she meant), and ground a bunch of spices together with a mortar and pestle to make the curry sauce. Pai explained to us the difference between red, green and yellow curry: red curry (the least spicy) uses a large dried red pepper, green uses small fresh red and green peppers, and yellow curry uses  a small dried red pepper as well as some curry powder. I chose red curry and I removed all of the seeds from my chili—my curry was NOT going to burn my tongue off! My red curry turned out to be the least spicy of all of ours, which I was quite content with. Dad chose to make green chili, and it was way too spicy for me!

After prepping, we went out to the porch where there was a little stove and table for each of us. We used woks, sometimes cooking one half of a recipe then shoving that part up onto the side of the wok and cooking the rest of the recipe in the bottom of the wok before mixing it all together. It was certainly efficient! One thing that surprised me about this part was that we added sugar to all of the recipes. It makes the dishes have a sweeter flavor than I am used to in cooking. I really liked this part of the Thai food!

At the end, we sat down with our meal and ate up. I liked everything, but I think my favorite was the stir fried vegetables—the sauce was so good! Everyone had a different favorite, though. Although I wanted to, there was no way I could finish all of my food (except the vegetables, obvi).

As we left Pai gave us each a recipe book, and despite some of the strange ingredients, hopefully I will be able to recreate these dishes at home sometime! But probably not all at once, because the whole class took about two hours...and we didn't even do the preparations ourselves for some of the food, like the chicken. My whole family enjoyed this class, and when I recreate the dishes sometime, I will post the recipes here!

Here is the link to Pai's website: http://paicookerysamui.com