Simple Breakfast Food - Cornbread, Quiche Lorraine, and Scone (玉米麵包, 法式蛋派, 蘇格蘭鬆餅)

Having a proper breakfast seems the right thing to do.  So we started making some breakfast items that are simple to heat up in the morning, and pleasant to consume, esp. with a cup of coffee.  These items could last for a week or so in the fridge.  These recipes are based on some (in some cases, many) online recipes.  We try to make a lighter version of each, by reducing sugar and fat without sacrificing the taste too much.   Incidentally, the breads here are classified as quick breads, because they are leavened by baking powder or baking soda, instead of yeast, hence easier to to make, even for a beginner like me.  

I. Cornbread (玉米麵包)

1. Mix all the dry ingredients in a medium-to-large-sized mixing bowl:  1 cup of all-purpose flour, 1 cup of cornmeal, 1/2 cup of sugar, 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of black pepper, 2 tsp of baking soda, 1 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice (to neutralize the baking soda taste, if not using buttermilk or sour cream in Step 2).  Note- Consider reversing Step 2 and 1 (for smoother texture), by whisking the wet content together first, and then, sifting flours into the mixing bowl (with a strainer), before adding sugar, salt, pepper, baking soda, and vinegar at the end.  Whisk again before pouring the batter into the skillet or baking pan.
2. Now add in the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly: 2 eggs, 1 cup of milk (whole milk preferred, 1% or 2% works with 5-10 minutes longer baking time; or 1 cup of buttermilk, see note below for buttermilk substitute), and 1/2 cup vegetable oil (or 1/2 cup of butter melted, or 1/2 cup of sour cream).  Note- If we add 1 tsp of vinegar or lemon juice into 1 cup of milk and let sit for 5 minutes, we'll have what is generally known as 1 cup of buttermilk substitute.
3. Preheat oven to 375-deg F, and pour the mix from Step 2 into a 10" cast-iron skillet or baking pan.  Note- Alternatively, 400-degF (20-25 minutes) for a slightly drier version, or 450-degF (15-20 minutes, preheat a 10" cast-iron skillet with 1 Tbsp veggie oil in the oven for 7 minutes).  Also, we will try to make cornbread on stove-top next time (with a cast-iron skillet).
4. Bake for 25-30 minutes (add 5-10 minutes for 1% or 2% milk), or (more reliably) until an inserted toothpick (or a single chopstick) comes out clean (without any wet material).  Important- Cover the top of the pan with a piece of aluminum foil, once the top of the bread is in slightly lighter color than desired (to prevent the top of the bread from being burnt).  Let cool and serve.  Here is a picture of the finished product. Note- The more water content in the wet ingredients in Step 2, the longer it takes to bake (add 5 minutes, and try the toothpick-test again).  
   

II. Quiche Lorraine (法式蛋派)

1. Place a pie crust over an 8" or 9" pie pan (follow the instructions of the purchased pie crust).
2. Brown 4-6 pieces of bacon in a frying pan, on low heat, till brown but not crispy.  Take out, let cool, and chop into 1/4-1/2" pieces.  Set aside.
3. Use the left over bacon oil to saute about half a pound of fresh mushroom (sliced).  Drain out the fluid produced by the mushroom.  Set aside.
4. Add 1-1/2 cup of Half and Half and 3 eggs into a small-medium-sized bowl.  Add 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of black pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg.  Mix thoroughly.
5. Preheat the oven to 375-deg-F.  Pour the egg mix on top of the pie crust.  Add the chopped bacon and the sauteed mushroom, and stir them evenly into the egg mix.
6. Bake for 30 minutes, or (more reliably) until the quiche surface is puffed and browned.  Here is a picture of the finished product.  Note- We use Julia Child's recipe as the blueprint for a French-style Quiche Lorraine (bacon, but no cheese).  We added sliced mushroom, but took out the butter.  We also experimented with adding frozen chopped spinach (defrost and drain water to reduce the water content, otherwise add baking time).  The more water content we have in the egg mix (e.g., water in the frozen spinach), the longer it takes to bake the quiche (adding 10 minutes a time, and observe).
   

III. Scone (蘇格蘭鬆餅)

1. Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl: 4 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/4 - 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 tsp of baking powder, 1 tsp of baking soda, 1 tsp of salt.
2. Mix all the wet  ingredients in a small bowl: 1 cup of sour cream, 1 egg.  Mix thoroughly. 
3. Cut 3/4 cups  (i.e., 1 1/2 sticks) of chilled butter into 1/4" - 1/2" chunks.  Keep the chunks chilled in fridge, until ready to mix.
4. Pour the wet mix into the dry mix, add chilled butter chunks, add raisin, cranberry, or nuts if desired into the mix. Finally, add  1 tsp of white vinegar (or lemon juice). Stir the combined mix with a wooden or bamboo spatula to form a dough.
5. Move the dough to a floured surface, and knead slightly (Try Not to Over-Knead, Over-kneading makes the scones dense).  Use one hand as guard, with the other hand to pushing the dough against the guard to form a 3/4"- 1" thick round pie (or just use a 9" cake pan as mold).
6. Cut the round pie into 8 - 12 wedges, and place the wedges  1 -2" apart on a slightly oiled baking pan.
7. Preheat the oven to 400-deg-F, and bake for 15-20 minutes, or (more reliably) until the top is light brown.

Italian Seafood Stew and Flat Bread (義式燉海鮮, 義式薄麵包)

We went to Cafe Santorini, a Mediterranean restaurant in Old Town Pasadena, over a weekend in late February, 2015. Their Cioppino, the San Francisco-style seafood stew was excellent! And their free dinner bread, Focaccia, an Italian flat bread, was a perfect fit for the seafood sauce. We came back craving for more. So, we searched online for recipes, and tried our hands on them almost immediately. Here is our take based on several excellent sources (see references below). BTW, Cioppino is an Italian-American dish, invented in San Francisco as a stew for catches of the day (from the sea), whereas Focaccia seems to be genuinely Italian.

I. Cioppino- San Francisco-Style Seafood Stew (義式燉海鮮)

For the sauce, we followed the recipe from Epiurious pretty closely, with some changes in the procedure and the ingredients.

1. Sauce-  In a large-sized (10-12" in diameter) flat bottom cooking pan: (1) pour 2-4 Tbsp of olive oil (or veggie oil), add 4 cloves of minced garlic, and saute 2 chopped onions and 1 diced green pepper, for 5 minutes (or until onion is translucent and bell pepper soft); (2) add 1 can (28-oz) of tomato sauce (or 1 28-oz can of diced tomatoes plus 4 fresh diced medium-sized Roma tomatoes; (3) Add 2 6.5-oz cans of chopped clams (or 1 bottle of clam juice); (4) add 1 cup of red wine and 1 cup of chicken broth; (5) season with 1 tsp of hot pepper flakes,  1 tsp dried oregano, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1/2 tsp salt; (6) bring to boil and let simmer for ~60 minutes (with the pot covered); (7) let the sauce cool, and use a blender to puree the sauce (to make the sauce thick and consistent).  Note- The sauce can be prepared beforehand and chilled in the fridge.
2. Seafood- We used mostly frozen stuff (clams, mussels, squid, fish fillet, and shrimp), for the first try. We cooked everything except the shrimp in a pot with chicken broth and water for 4-5 minutes, then add the shrimp in until the shrimp turns pink (about 30-45 seconds. Try not to overcook the shrimp!)  
3. Linguine- In the meantime, we cooked linguine in a separate pot for about 10 minutes (uncovered), or follow the cooking instructions on the linguine package.  
4. Heat up the sauce. This might also be the time to place some Foccaccia (see below) in the toaster oven.
5. With a large plate, set the linguine at the bottom, then place the seafood on top, finally ladle the sauce generously into the plate. Garnish with fresh basil leaves if desired, and serve with toasted Focaccia in a separate plate or basket.

II. Focaccia- Italian Flat Bread (義式薄麵包)

We followed the recipe on Inspired Taste pretty closely, with some changes in procedure and yeast mix.

1. Heat 1/2 cup of olive oil with 1 tsp of dry thyme, 1 tsp of dry rosemary, 2 cloves of minced garlic, and 1/4 tsp of black pepper, in a very small pot (4"-5" in diameter), at low heat for 2-3 minutes.  Set it aside and let cool.  Note- Smaller pot tends to heat up a lot faster than a pan (turn off heat after 2-3 minutes, and let cook in residual heat).  
2. Proof the yeast mix in a measuring cup for 5 minutes (with 2.25 tsp dry yeast, 1 tsp sugar, and 1 cup of warm water; make sure the water is not too hot! Lower than 90-deg-F.)
3. Place 1 cup of flour into the big bowl, add 1/4 cup (i.e., half) of the cooled oil-herb-mix, stir evenly and let sit for 5 minutes.
4. Add 1.5 cups of flour into the mixing bowl, stir evenly, and form a well.  Pour the yeast mix into the well, stir evenly with a plastic or wooden spatula.  Flip the dough from the edges to the center with a spatula for 10-12 times (see special note below). Drip in a bit olive oil along the edge of bowl with the dough in place.  Let the dough rise in the bowl under a warm, damp cloth for an hour.  Special Note- No kneading necessary.  Kneading will make the bread dense, rather than light and flaky (see ATK reference below).
5. At this point, we still have half of the oil-herb-mix (~4 Tbsp) left in the small pot.  Use 2 Tbsp of the oil-herb mix to oil a 9x13 baking pan.  Place the risen dough into the pan, press the dough flat into the pan with both palms, and press on the dough with 10 fingers evenly to form dimples on the surface of the now flattened surface.  Drizzle the dough surface with the rest of the oil-herb-mix  Let the dough sit in the pan for 20  minutes (still in a warm place, but no need to cover with damp cloth, as the dough is now covered in oil).
6. Preheat the oven to 450-deg-F, and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the surface is golden brown.  Let cool and serve with Cioppino.  A picture of the finished product is shown below.
   

References
Ciopinno-
- http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/cioppino-106263;
- http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/cioppino-recipe.html;
- http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/cioppino/#ixzz3SSUxZtmv
Focaccia-
- http://www.inspiredtaste.net/19313/easy-focaccia-bread-recipe-with-herbs/,
- (ATK) America's Test Kitchen's TV Show Cookbook 2001-2013

Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana, a creamy Tuscan Soup (義大利濃湯)

This is a slightly revised version of two excellent online recipes (one from TuscanRecipes.com,  the other from Food.com) for a creamy Tuscan Soup, known as Zuppa Toscana served in the Olive Garden Restaurants here in the States. 

In this write-up, we try to make a lighter version of this soup, by using Half and Half instead of Heavy Cream, and reducing sausage and bacon by half.

I. Preparation

1. 1/4 - 1/2 lb of Italian Sausage or your favorite fully cooked sausage ( Pan-fry uncooked sausage; then chop into 1/4"-square chunks).  Set aside.  
2. 4-6 strips of bacon or 2 Tbsp of bacon bits (Pan-fry uncooked bacon till brown but not crispy; then chop into 1/2"-square chunks; or chop first then pan-fry). Drain oil back into the pan, then Set aside.
3. 2 cloves of garlic- minced, 1 onion- diced (Sauté minced garlic and diced onion, in the oil left from bacon browning, or in 1-2 Tbsp of veggie oil; until onion is soft.)
4. 2 medium-sized potatoes (peel and dice into bite size).  Note-  Immerse potato in water once peeled.  Some potato might turn darker color when exposed to oxygen.
5. Kale 3-4 branches (rinse and chop into 1/2"-square chunks).  Set Aside.

II. Cooking

1. Add 1 can of chicken broth (~1.5 cups) and 1.5  cans of water (~2 1/4 cups) into a 8"-10"-diameter pot, add potato chunks, sautéed onion, sausage, and bacon.  Bring to boil, and let simmer till the potatoes are cooked (about 15 minutes, taste to see if the potato is softened to your liking).  Note- Adding more than 1.5 cans of water might make this too soupy to be a creamy soup!
2. Add 1 cup of Half and Half, and the chopped kale, into the pot.  Bring to boil and let simmer for 30 seconds (longer if you prefer soft, i.e., fully cooked, kale leaves).
3. Season to taste with salt and pepper (Taste first, then start with 1/4 tsp of pepper and 1/4 tsp of salt).  Note- Please keep in mind that several ingredients, such as sausage, bacon, and chicken broth, are already salted.

Cabbage Soup (aka Vegetarian Russian Soup, 素羅宋湯)

Here is a quick and easy, yet quite tasty, soup for a cold winter night.  You can have it ready in less than 30  minutes.

1. Peel and rolling-cut 2-3 carrots (into smaller bite size).  Rinse and cut a small cabbage or half a large cabbage (into larger bite size).  Cut 4-6 Roma tomatoes or 2-3 tomatoes into bite size.
2. Add 1 Tbsp vegetable oil into a pot (medium-sized, ~10" in diameter).  Stir-fry carrots in the pot for 3-4 minutes until carrot pieces are semi-soft.  Season with 1/4 tsp of salt.  
3. Add 1 can of vegetable broth (or chicken broth, i.e., ~14 oz in weight or ~1.5 cups in volume).  Add 3-4 cans of water into the pot (i.e., ~4.5 - 6 cups).  Add cabbage.  Bring to boil and let simmer for 5-6 minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes, and cook for another 5-6 minutes.  Season to taste with salt by adding 1/4 tsp a time and taste. Note- I tend not to add more than 1/2 tsp of Salt, esp. because the broth is already salted.

Steamed Rising Cake (Fa-Gao 發糕)

Thanks to our good friend, Ann, we are able to share the recipe of this very traditional Chinese New Year pastry. The name 發糕 can be directly translated as Rising Cake, like the rising sun :-), implying a good year ahead all of us. It is very simple to make, yet quite pleasant to eat.

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together (using a balloon shaped egg whisk) in a medium mixing bowl:  1 cup of low-gluten flour (低筋麵粉), 1/4 cup of rice flour (在來米粉, see product package), 1/2-3/4 cup of Dark Brown Sugar, 1 tsp (teaspoon, 5cc) of Baking Powder.  Form a well in the middle of the dry ingredients mix.  Note: The rice flour we use can be found in Chinese Markets, marked as Rice Flour (粘米粉, in a package with red letters).  Please take care Not to get its sister product Glutinous Rice Flour (糯米粉, in a package marked in green letters).  We also tried using 1/4 cup of lotus root flour in lieu of the rice flour.  The result seemed similar.
2. Mix 150 cc of water with 50 cc of milk.  Add this to the bowl of dry ingredients and mix evenly.   Now place the mix in 6 small bowls (~3oz/90cc each), or 4 medium-sized bowls (~4oz/120cc each), up to 90-95% of the bowl's capacity. 
3. Steam the bowls for 20 minutes after full steam is built up in the steamer, and test with a toothpick to make sure the inside is not sticky (add 5-7 minutes for 6 oz/180cc ramekins or custard cups).  Here is a picture of the end product in a bamboo steamer.  Note: Please do not put the bowls into the steamer, until full steam is visible. You can also use a rice cooker to steam them, make sure you don't open the lid in the middle of cooking.  Also, there must be enough headroom for the cake to rise up.  A dome-shaped lid usually works, but the space between top and bottom steam baskets might not be enough.
4. 

Spring Rolls (春卷）

In my family, we eat spring rolls at the lantern festival, which is January 15 in lunar calendar, or the last day of the Chinese New Year holiday.  It is also very common in Cantonese Dim Sum restaurants or Shanghai style restaurants.  It is also a very popular party food.  The recipe here is based on what I learned from my mom.  It is quite different from what you have in the restaurants.

Ingredients: (to make 50 spring rolls)

1.  1lb lean pork
2.  1lb medium shrimps
3.  1 package bean curds (4 pcs)
4.  1 can bamboo shoot strips (see picture)
5.  1 package yellow Chinese leeks (韭黃）
6.  1 package bean sprouts
7.  10 dried shiitake mushrooms
8.  2 packs of spring roll wrap (see picture)

Spring Roll Wrappers	Bamboo shoots

Prepare the Stuffing:

1. Peel and de-vein shrimps, add 1 tsp salt and wash it in running water.  Use paper towel to pat it dry.  Cut each shrimp into 3 or 4 pieces. Put it in the fridge while preparing other ingredients.

2. Slice pork into thin strips,  marinate it with soy sauce (1Tbsp), salt (0.5 tsp), corn starch (1 Tbsp), vegetable oil (0.5 Tbsp).

3. Soften the mushrooms in warm water for one hour, remove the stem and cut them into thin strips.

4. Slice the bean curds into thin strips.  I first slice it horizontally into 5-6 slices (you may slice it into 4 depending on the thickness of the bean curd, be careful don't cut your finger), then cut the slices.

5. Wash the yellow Chinese leeks thoroughly, they usually have a lot of dirt.  Cut them into 1.5 inch strips (same length as the bean curd).

6.  Open the bamboo shoot can, drain the water.  If the strips are too long, cut them into 1.5 inches

7. Using high heat, heat 2 Tbsp vegetable oil in a stir-fry pan, stir fry the meat until cooked.  Use a spatula to separate the meat since the corn starch will make them stick together. Take the cooked meat out.

8.  Add 0.5 tsp salt in the shrimps and coat them with 1 Tbsp corn starch.  Heat 2 Tbsp vegetable oil in a pan and stir-fry shrimps until they change color (use high heat). Add 2 tsp cooking wine when they start changing color.  Take the shrimps out.

9. Heat another 2 Tbsp vegetable oil, now add mushrooms first (add 0.5 tsp salt and stir fry for 2 minutes),  then add bean curds, bamboo shoots, add another 0.5 tsp salt and 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1tsp sugar, stir fry for 2 minutes.  Now add bean sprouts and stir fry for another 2 minutes when the bean sprouts are turning soft. Lastly, add the yellow Chinese leeks and mix well with the rest of the vegetables (at most 1 minute).  Turn off heat and add meat and shrimp back in and mix everything well.  You can add some chicken extract (雞精) and white pepper.  Taste it and add more salt if needed.  Take the stuffing out from the pan and try to drain the juice out of it as much as possible.

Wrapping the Spring Rolls

1. Open the spring roll wrap package.  Separate the wraps very carefully.  Make sure you don't break them.  Cover them with a damp paper towel to prevent them from drying. Add one Tbsp corn starch in a bowl of water (maybe 4 Tbsp), mix it well.  This will be used to seal the spring roll.

2. Lay one sheet of wrap diagonally on a clean flat surface.  One side of the wrap is smoother than the other side.  Make sure you put the smooth side at the bottom.  (see picture)

 

3. Put two spoonfuls of stuffing at the bottom half of the wrap.  Spread the stuffing about 3 inches wide.  Also, make sure the stuffing is free of juice, otherwise, the juice will soak through the wrap and break it.

4. Tug the tip of the wrap around and under the stuffing, roll it once then fold the both sides in then roll it all the way. (see the second and third pictures on the left).  Wet the wrap tip with the corn starch water (use your finger) and seal it.  It won't seal very tight, so when you put it on a tray, may sure the tip is faced down.

5. Lay the uncooked spring rolls on a baking tray.  Do not stack them.

6.  Heat about one inch of  vegetable oil in a big frying pan.  Ideally, the oil should be enough to submerge the spring rolls.  If you don't want to put too much oil, 1/2 inch is okay.  You may have to add more oil in the process because the spring roll wrap soak up a lot of oil.

7. When the oil is hot, line the spring rolls in the pan as shown in the picture on the left. The open tip side should be at the bottom.  Turn the heat to medium to prevent it from burning.  When the bottom side turns golden, flip it once.  When both sides are golden, take them out.  Put the spring rolls on a drainer first to let the oil drain.   Line the plates with paper towel and put the spring rolls on top of the paper towel.  Again, try not to stack them.  You might want to pat them with paper towel too.  Let them sit for 5 minutes then serve.