Pies & Bass - Bexxie’s Food and Music Blog

So I had to use up the last of my rice noodles and some chicken I had defrosted. So I decided to make Asian Chicken Noodle Soup. I wanted to make the sort of soup you get at Noodle Houses. I just love those sort of soups in the really big asian soup bowls that you slurp the noodles down with chopsticks.

I just sort of threw this one together as I did last time so the measurements are just estimates. Also, make sure to thinly slice up the chicken breast to ensure it cooks up quickly. Next time I will mess around with adding various other asian spices and veggies to this one when I have more time. I would have loved to use Enoki mushrooms if I could find them, but unfortunately my supermarket does not stock them. Feel free to add what veggies you like and mess around with the measurements to suit your tastes. Very healthy, filling and delicious!

Asian Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut up into thin slices
8 cups of chicken broth
1/2 cup (4 oz) of thin rice noodles
3/4 cup (6oz) of baby corn
6 green onions (green parts cut into 1 inch pieces, white parts cut into 1/4 inch pieces)
1 cup of bean sprouts
1 teaspoon of ground ginger

Directions:

Bring the 8 cups of chicken broth to a boil.

Throw in chicken, rice noodles, baby corn, green onions (reserving a couple tablespoons for garnish), bean sprouts and ground ginger.

Simmer for 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (no pink).

Ladle into bowls and put remaining green onions on top. Eat with a chopstick if preferred along with a spoon.

Serves 2-4 depending on how big your bowls are.

Now for some music…

I don’t have much to review today but I did buy a couple more albums off of iTunes this weekend. One of them was Kate Havnevik - Melankton. This album isn’t that new. It came out in 2005 but I’ve heard a lot of her stuff on Grey’s Anatomy and finally got around to buying it. She reminds me of Bjork a bit. Her voice and songs are so lush. Here is a video of one of my favorite songs. Its called “Unlike Me”

So I’m leaving to go back to the States next week and need to use up what’s in my pantry and fridge/freezer. Rice noodles happen to be one of those things, along with some frozen tiger prawns. So I decided to throw together a stir fry. I have to admit, I almost didn’t post this on my blog cause I didn’t really like it. It was okay but nothing special. But then I ate the leftovers the next day and ate it all up! I loved it! Maybe it needed some time for the flavors to meld together. Who knows?

Just so you know, I’ve estimated the measurements to the best of my ability since I wasn’t following a recipe. Also feel free to throw in whatever veggies you have on hand. Also you can easily make this vegetarian by omitting the prawns and chicken bouillon.

Shrimp Stir Fry with Rice Noodles

Ingredients:

1/4 cup (2 oz) rice noodles
1/2 large yellow onion, chopped
3-4 green onions (cut into 1 inch pieces on a diagonal)
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 cup of bean sprouts
1/2 pound of cooked tiger prawns (or medium or large shrimp)
tablespoon of soy sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
teaspoon of chicken bouillon
teaspoon of ground ginger
tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds (optional)
tablespoon of vegetable oil

Directions:

Soak the rice noodles in warm water for about 20 minutes.

Heat oil in a wok on medium high heat.

Add garlic, green onion (reserve about a tablespoon for garnish), onion, bean sprouts, pepper, rice noodles, soy sauce, ground ginger, and chicken bouillon.

Mix together well and saute for about 5 minutes if you like you’re veggies slightly more crunchy or ten minutes if you like them a bit softer.

Add the prawns until heated through. Mix in sesame seeds if using.

Put in a noodle bowl or on a plate and garnish with reserved green onions and coriander (cilantro) if you have some on hand.

Stay tuned for “What to do the Rice Noodles Part 2″…

Ok no clever title for this blog entry. I’m just not feeling very witty at the moment. It happens believe it or not! lol

Anyway, I finally reached that moment in my life that when I had leftover, overly ripe bananas, I actually made something with them instead of throwing them out like I usually do. And man, have I been missing out all these years! I pledge from this day forward to always use up my old bananas and make them into something yummy.

I’m not sure who this Aunt Mary is, but whoever she is, she sure knows how to make a banana bread!

Aunt Mary’s Banana-Chocolate Chip Bread
Source:Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening (I used butter)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 bananas, mashed (I used 3 since thats how many I had and it seemed silly to use 2 and throw out the other one)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice*

Directions:

In a mixing bowl, cream sugar and shortening (butter). Beat in eggs, vanilla, pumpkin spice and bananas until thoroughly blended.

Combine flour, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture and stir just until combined. Fold in chocolate chips.

Spoon into a greased 9-in.x 5-in. x 3-in. loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 60-70 minutes or until the bread tests done with a wooden pick.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

*I added this to the recipe as I thought I would use it up and thought it would go great with this bread. Pumpkin pie spice consists of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice. If you don’t have it, a combination of whichever of these spices you have on hand will be fine.

So somehow I ran across this band online called Paramore. For all I know they’re super famous and on MTV like a million times a day but I don’t have a tv and don’t listen to the radio so I have no clue. But I found that I couldn’t get they’re music out of my head…

I’m not usually into pop-punk stuff. I like my 70’s, 80’s and even early 90’s punk. None of this ridiculously clean, overly compressed, overly processed recordings you get nowadays. But man, this song is so darn catchy that I had to buy their album off of iTunes just so I could stop watching the video on youtube lol

They’re front woman Hayley has an amazing voice (and amazing hair!) and apparently her live singing sounds just like it does on the recording.

Check out Misery Business, the song I can’t seem to get out of my head…

Hope everyone had a Great New Year! I know I did, playing drunken twister with friends. I’m sure there’s blackmail photos of that floating around the web somewhere…oh well.

I’ve finally gotten around to posting a dinner I made last week of a nice beef fillet and twice baked potatoes. I’ve been busy getting ready to move back to the States so there probably won’t be loads of creative posts going on here for a little while.

Anyway, I got a couple recipe suggestions for twice baked potatoes from some Nesties and combined two recipes from The Cooking Fiend and MikelovesJen (Not sure if you have a blog, I didn’t put it in my saved recipe so if you do, please let me know and I’ll correct this!). If you prefer, you can use ranch dressing instead of the sour cream. I would have tried this but didn’t have any.

Twice Baked Potatoes
Source: a combination of The Cooking Fiend and MikelovesJen

Ingredients:

4 baking potatoes
8 strips of bacon, cooked and cut into small pieces
1 cup of cheddar and gruyere
1/2 cup of sour cream
3-4 green onions, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degree F. Scrub potatoes and then prick with a fork a few times. Bake in the oven for about an hour.

Remove from oven and let cool for a bit. Slice in half and scoop out the insides into a medium mixing bowl being careful not to push through the skin and leaving enough potato so that the skin doesn’t become floppy.

Add bacon, green onions, sour cream and cheese (reserving a few tablespoons). Mix together and then mash until desired consistency. I like mine to be pretty creamy.

With a spoon, carefully refill potato skins with potato mixture. Sprinkle each potato with salt and pepper and remaining cheese.

Bake for another 10-15 minutes until cheese is slightly crispy.

For the steaks, I just rub a little olive oil, salt and pepper into the steak, then brown each side for 5 minutes. Transfer to a preheated 400 degree F oven and cook for about 5 minutes for medium. Cook a little bit longer if you prefer a more well done steak or less than if you prefer a more rare steak.

Now for some electro/synth-pop goodness…

Its Chromeo!

I just bought their new album Fancy Footwork off of iTunes and can’t stop listening to it. It has helped me get through my post-holiday workouts at the gym lately. I highly recommend it if you want to invite your friends round for a dance off.

My mother-in-law asked me to make some cupcakes for our various Christmas family get-togethers we had this year. So I really wanted something Holiday related so I consulted with the ladies on the Whats Cooking Board on the Nest to help me come up with an idea.

I decided on combining Double Coconut Cupcake recipe off of the Good Things Catered blog with a recipe for Snowflake Cake that a fellow nestie, MrsSchoon04, suggested to me. Basically, I made the coconut cupcakes, topped it the a buttercream frosting recipe I found on Allrecipes and added the snowflakes made out of white chocolate from the Snowflake Cake recipe. And voila! This is what came from it:

I know my snowflakes aren’t perfect but I’m pretty pleased with how they came out. I couldn’t find the silver dragees at my supermarket so I had to leave those out but they would have looked really nice! I have to say this coconut cupcake is one of my favorites. The cake is always so moist. You could eat it without the frosting its that good!

Double Coconut Cupcakes
Source: Good Things Catered

Ingredients:

2 1/4 c. sifted cake flour

2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 2/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
buttercream frosting (recipe below)
1/2 bag of shredded coconut
white chocolate snowflakes(recipe below)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Coat cupcake pan with cooking spray with flour for baking. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. 
Place sugar and butter in mixer and mix until well blended (for about 5 minutes). 
Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. 
Add flour mixture and milk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. 
Stir in vanilla.


Pour batter into prepared pans. 
Sharply tap the pans once on countertop to remove air bubbles. 
Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. 
Cool in pans 10 minutes on wire racks, and remove from pans. Cool completely on wire racks.



When cupcakes are completely cool, frost with buttercream frosting (recipe below) and roll tops in shredded coconut. Top with snowflake (recipe below).

Chill the cake for an hour to set the frosting and snowflakes. If you
are 
serving the cake on the day it is made, keep it at a cool room
temperature 
after chilling.

Luscious Buttercream Frosting
Source: Allrecipes

Ingredients:

4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla
Food color, if desired

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Beat at low speed until well mixed. Increase speed to medium; scraping bowl often, until light and fluffy . Tint frosting with food color, if desired.

White Chocolate Snowflakes
Source: MrsSchoon04 (not sure where the original source is from, if anyone knows, please let me know so I can put in the correct source. Thanks!)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 (3-ounce) white-chocolate candy bars

Silver dragees for decorating (optional)

Directions:

Line a baking sheet with foil. Put the
 chocolate into a resealable plastic bag and immerse the bag in hot water until
 the chocolate melts. Dry the bag, then snip off a small piece from one
 corner. 
Pipe as many 2-inch snowflakes onto the foil as possible, and decorate
 the 
points with silver dragées, if desired.

Place the sheet of snowflakes
 in the freezer until the cake is ready to decorate (I put mine in the fridge).

And now for the music…

Sia, oh Sia, I have such a girl crush on you!

I thought I would team Sia up with cupcakes as she is very child-like and silly yet sweet. You only have to check out her dancing in silly costumes on her web site to see what I mean (I especially like the darth vader costume!).

Sia is one of the singers from Zero 7 but has been doing a lot of solo projects and they are brilliant! I finally got around to buying Colour the Small One which has the infamous “Breathe Me” track on it (the song at the end of the last episode on Six Feet Under) and the Day Too Soon EP which has this track called “Buttons” which I haven’t been able to stop listening to. The video for it is equally as entertaining in a bizarre way. It has the tendency to make you wince, just warning you. Check it out:

My husband and I decided that we weren’t getting each other presents this year for Christmas since we were going to be emigrating soon and will be making a lot of big purchases when we get to the States. But I still wanted our Christmas to be special for us. So instead, I decided that I wanted to make us a really yummy breakfast and have something that we don’t normally have.

I came across the Cinnabon Knockoff recipe on La Mia Cucina’s blog (one of the founders of the Daring Bakers Blog Roll which I plan on joining soon once we’re a bit more settled after moving). We don’t have Cinnabon’s in England so I was extremely excited to try this out, but obviously more excited about eating them I have to say this recipe is really close to the original except my rolls didn’t rise so much in the middle for some reason. I’m still new to using yeast.

By the way, I meant to have a picture with the icing on it but I was too hungry by that point and forgot so this is all the food porn you get

Cinnabon Knockoff Cinnamon Rolls

Source: La Mia Cucina

Ingredients:

Rolls:

1 pkg. active dry yeast (1/4 oz. size or 2 1/4 tsp.)
1 c. warm milk (105º to 110º F.)
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/3 c. butter, melted
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
4 c. all-purpose flour

Filling:

1 c. packed brown sugar
2 1/2 TBS. cinnamon
1/3 c. butter, softened

Icing:

1/4 c. (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1/4 c. (2 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 TBS. whole milk or add more to get desired consistency
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1/8 tsp. lemon extract (I omitted this as I didn’t have any)

Directions:

For the rolls, dissolve the yeast in the warm milk in a large bowl. Mix together the sugar, butter, salt & eggs. Add flour and mix well. Knead the dough into a large ball, using your hands lightly dusted with flour. Put in a bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place about an hour or until the dough has doubled in size.

Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough flat until it is approximately 21 inches long and 16 inches wide. It should be about ¼ inch thick. Preheat oven to 400º F.

For the filling, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Spread the softened butter evenly over the surface of the dough, and then sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar evenly over the surface.

Working carefully from the top (a 21 inch side), roll the dough down to the bottom edge. Cut the rolled dough into 1 ¾ inch slices and place 6 at a time, evenly spaced, in a lightly greased baking pan. Let the rolls rise again until doubled in size (about 30 min.). Bake for 10 minutes, or until golden on top. I found that I needed to bake mine for about 20 minutes. They were still too doughy in the middle after baking them for 10 minutes.

While the rolls bake, make the icing by mixing the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer on high speed. Add the powdered sugar and mix on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, then add the milk and flavorings. Mix on high speed again until the icing is smooth and fluffy. When the rolls come out of the oven, let them cool for about 10 minutes, then coat generously with the icing.

For a more in-depth step-by-step guide with pictures, definitely check out La Mia Cucina.

And now onto the “currently listening to” section…

I’m really not much of a Radiohead fan, but I have been listening to their new controversial album In Rainbows a lot lately. My husband is a fan so I thought I’d have a listen. It has something for everybody - its funky and jazzy (dare I say danceable?) yet mellow and experimental with a tinge of straight up rock. Check out this silly video for the track “Jigsaw Falling into Place” off the new album. It kinda gives me motion sickness lol

This is the first time I’ve made millionaires’ shortbread and it came out quite well. This recipe is pretty easy to make. Although it needs a bit of patience in between layers. Just make sure each layer has cooled before topping it with the next. Also, make sure to continuously stir the caramel, otherwise it will burn.

These are extremely rich, but the different textures balance out well. The shortbread came out just perfect. It was buttery and crisp, yet light and airy. However, I think next time I’ll make the caramel layer slightly thinner and add a bit more chocolate. But that’s just my preference.

A note about the caramel. There are other ways to make it. I have to admit I was expecting my caramel to be less cloudy looking and more golden brown but I think that’s cause I used light brown sugar instead of dark brown sugar or you can use golden syrup (corn syrup). But it still came out yummy. More of a caramel custard-ey type filling.

Also, I thought since this blog is named after my passion for food and music and since I love to listen to music while I cook, I am going to have a “currently listening to” section to go with each entry. Soooooo…

Currently listening to: Natalie Walker - Urban Angel

Natalie used to be in the downtempo/electronica group Daughter Darling. But has now gone solo and her debut album “Urban Angel” out on Dorado Records has been getting a lot of press and has been licensed to a few hit tv shows like Grey’s Anatomy and Ugly Betty. If you like groups such as Portishead or Zero 7, then Natalie’s album is just for you. Also check out Daughter Darling’s album “Sweet Shadows”.

Now, back to the food!

Millionaires’ Shortbread
Source: “Mary Berry’s Ultimate Cake Book” by Mary Berry. Published by BBC Worldwide, Ltd 2003.

Ingredients:

For the Shortbread:

1 cup of all-purpose flour

1/3 cup of caster sugar

3/4 cup of butter, softened

For the caramel:

1/2 cup of butter

1/2 cup of light brown sugar

2 14 oz cans of condensed milk

For the topping:

1 cup of plain or milk chocolate, broken into pieces

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Lightly grease a 13 x 9 inch baking tray.

To make the shortbread, mix the flour and caster sugar in a bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Knead the mixture together until it forms a dough, then press into the base of the prepared tin. (You might want to use a floured rolling pin to roll the shortbread out. I used a drinking glass since my rolling pin was too long for the tray.) Prick the shortbread lightly with a fork and baked in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until firm to the touch and very lightly browned. Cool in the tin.

To make the caramel, measure the butter, sugar and condensed milk into a pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, stirring all the time, then reduce the heat and simmer very gently, stirring continuously, for about 5 minutes or until the mixture has thickened slightly. Pour over the shortbread and leave to cool.

For the topping, melt the chocolate slowly in a bowl over a pan of hot water. Pour over the cold caramel and leave to set. Cut into squares or bars.

I don’t think this is intentionally a Christmas salad but it’s red, green and white and those to me are Christmas colors so I shall dub this the Christmas salad. My husband has renamed it the “Yum” salad and gives it a 10 out of 10. He actually had two helpings of it and although he does eat his veggies, he’s not a second helping veggies sort of person. So I was really surprised.

This recipe requires slow-roast tomatoes or “Moonblush” tomatoes as Nigella calls them. According to the recipe, you put the tomatoes in a really hot oven and then immediately turn it off and let it sit overnight or all day. I put the tomatoes in the oven in the morning and found I had to turn the oven back on again for about 10 minutes later on in the day cause they weren’t quite roasted enough. So I would keep an eye on them to get the right roasted consistency.

Moonblush Tomatoes
Source: “Nigella Express” by Nigella Lawson. Published by Chatto & Windus 2007.

Ingredients:

1 lb (about 24) of cherry or other baby tomatoes
2 teaspoons Maldon salt or 1 teaspoon of table salt
1/4 teaspoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
2 tablespoons of olive oil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Cut the tomatoes in half and sit them out cut side up in an ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with the salt, sugar, thyme and olive oil.

Put them in the oven, and immediately turn it off. Leave the tomatoes in the oven overnight or for a day without opening the door.

Slow-roast Tomatoes, Goat’s Cheese and Mint Salad
Source: “Nigella Express” by Nigella Lawson. Published by Chatto & Windus 2007.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb rocket or spinach salad
7 ounces of soft goat’s cheese
1 batch of moonblush tomatoes
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh mint (I omitted this as I didn’t have any.)

Directions:

Arrange the salad leaves in a large dish and then scoop out spoonfuls of the soft goat’s cheese and dollop it here and there.

Add the cooked-down, intensely red moonblush tomato halves.

In the same dish the tomatoes have been cooking in, whisk together the lemon juice and oil and pour over the salad.

Scatter with the chopped mint.

Serves 8

So like I said before, soup is one of all time favorite things to eat and french onion soup is waaaay up there on my favorite kinds of soup. I found a recipe on Allrecipes for it and modified it a bit. I used gruyere and mozzarella but you can also use Swiss cheese or Provolone. This is actually the first time I made it so I think there is still room for improvement. But it still came out quite good!

French Onion Soup
Source: Allrecipes

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of butter
3 onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon of white sugar
1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups of beef broth
2 cups of chicken broth
1/4 cup of red wine
1 bay leaf
1 french baguette
4 ounces of gruyere cheese, shredded
4 ounces of mozzarella cheese, shredded
salt and pepper, to taste

Direction:

Melt butter or margarine in a 4 quart saucepan. Stir in sugar. Cook onions over medium heat for 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

Stir in flour until well blended with the onions and pan juices. Add water, wine, and beef broth; heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low. Cover soup, and simmer for 10 minutes.

Cut four 1 inch thick slices of bread from the loaf. Toast the bread slices at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) just until browned, about 10 minutes. Reserve the remaining bread to serve with the soup.

Ladle soup into four 12 ounce, oven-safe bowls. Place 1 slice toasted bread on top of the soup in each bowl. Fold Swiss cheese slices, and fit onto toasted bread slices. Place soup bowls on a cookie sheet for easier handling.

Bake at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C) for 10 minutes, or just until cheese is melted

And what could be better than having soup all on its own, than having soup with a sandwich! I decided to make paninis with the leftover gruyere, some gammon ham and tomatoes. But you can fill paninis with most combinations of meat, cheese or veggies. I used my George Foreman grill but you can use a regular grill or grill pan.

Ham, Cheese and Tomato Panini
Source: Myself

Ingredients:

2 ciabatta rolls
1 tomato, sliced
2 pieces of gammon ham
4 ounces of sliced or shredded gruyere cheese
tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

Preheat grill to medium heat. Slice ciabatta rolls in half. Arrange ham, 2 or 3 tomato slices and cheese onto the sandwich. Brush bottom and top of sandwich with olive oil. If using a grill pan, grill on both sides for a few minutes each until cheese has melted. If using a George Foreman, grill for about 4 minutes.

I didn’t get to celebrate Thanksgiving this year since I’m in England and they don’t celebrate it here. We actually had chicken fingers and fries on Thanksgiving (I bet your soooo jealous haha). So I thought, this dish slightly resembles a Thanksgiving meal because of the ummmm…stuffing I suppose. Okay, maybe not at all. But it seemed Thanksgiving-ey to me in my head so I had a tiny celebration while eating this.

Anywaaaaay, I’ve made this dish a couple of times when I haven’t had much time to cook. Its so quick and easy to prepare but still tastes yummy! Also, it might just be my oven, but I found I had to cook the chicken for about 5-10 minutes longer than the recipe called for. And if you like mushrooms, I think some sliced mushrooms in the casserole would work well.

Swiss Chicken Casserole
Source: Allrecipes

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
6 slices of Swiss cheese (I used mozzarella. It was all I had.)
1 (10.75 ounce) can of condensed cream of chicken soup
1/4 cup of milk
1 (8 ounce) package dry bread stuffing mix
1/2 cup melted butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish.

Arrange chicken breasts in the baking dish. Place one slice of Swiss cheese on top of each chicken breast. Combine cream of chicken soup with milk in a medium mixing bowl, and pour over chicken breasts. Sprinkle with stuffing mix. Pour melted butter over top, and cover with foil.

Bake 50 minutes, or until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.