Hungry Hippo

I have fleeting memories of my mother baking upside-down cakes. From what I recall, there was only a short period of time in which upside-down cakes appeared in my childhood kitchen. Back then, I helped out a bit in the kitchen, but I was a bit too young to do much, so my main role was to partake in the "cake demolition". During that period of Topsy-Turviness, I fondly remember devouring cakes topped with either kiwi or pineapple.

Since I had a bag of frozen cherries sitting around and I needed something to remind me of summer, I decided to bust out with a cherry-apple upside-down cake. This recipe is based on the cherry upside-down cake recipe from Epicurious. I made adjustments to the recipe because I wanted a little apple on the top of the cake (for vanity's sake more than taste) and I was a little too lazy to separate the egg whites from the yolks (and all that is entailed once you start the egg separation process). Also, I only had cane sugar, so I went with that.

In the end, the cake turned out pretty well. I have only two criticisms, the first being that I would have liked the butter/sugar topping to have been more caramelized. I guess for the next time, while making the topping, I would ensure that the sugar would have combined a bit more with the butter before placing the fruit. I also thought the cherries tasted a little flat, and that may have been because they were frozen cherries that seemed to have lost a good part of their cherry flavour. I look forward to the summer when I can try fresh cherries in this recipe (another fruit topping may work well--kiwi?). Otherwise, I was pleased with the result.

Topping

• 1/4 C salted butter
• 3/4 C turbinado sugar
  
• ~10 ounces frozen, pitted cherries
• 1/2 golden delicious apple, peeled, cored, and sliced
  

Cake

• 1/2 C unsalted butter, warmed to room temperature
• 1 C cane sugar
• 1/4 t sea salt
• 2 large eggs
• 2 t vanilla extract
• 1/2 C whole milk
• 1 1/2 C all purpose, unbleached flour
• 2 t baking powder

Topping

• Preheat oven to 350 F degrees
• Butter sides of a 9" diameter cake pan with 2" high sides
• Melt 1/4 C butter in the same pan set over low heat
• Add sugar
• Whisk until blended
• Remove from heat and evenly spread mixture over bottom of pan
• Arrange apples slices and cherries in a layer in the bottom of the pan and set aside

Cake

• Using a hand mixer, beat butter until fluffy
  
• Add sugar and salt and beat into butter until creamy
• Add eggs and vanilla and beat until smooth
• Measure and mix flour and baking powder in a separate bowl
• Slowly mix dry ingredients and milk into the butter mixture
• Pour batter over apple-cherry topping in the cake pan and smooth top
  
• Bake cake until deep golden on top and inserted toothpick comes out clean, approximately 55 minutes
  
• Cool cake in pan for 15 minutes
• Invert cake with its pan onto a plate and set aside for 5 minutes
• Lift pan, voila!
  

Weekends are for pancakes, especially freezing cold weekends.


Growing up, we had pancakes almost every weekend, and I always looked forward to them. Since I had family in town, I'd been harbouring a craving for pancakes, which came to a head late Saturday night. I decided to wait for Sunday come 'round, and as usual, I used whatever I had in my kitchen.

This recipe is pretty much the same one that was used by my family. The measurements in this recipe are approximations, as we never measured the milk and flour we used. Most importantly, the batter, after resting, should be able to coat the back of a ladle, but still be runny (see pic). I've heard that this consistency is similar to paint...but seeing as I've not had to paint a room yet, I can't corroborate this observation.

• 2 large eggs (preferably Pete and Gerry's eggs, if near New Hampshire)
• 3/4 C whole milk
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1 t baking powder (Rumford always works well...and it doesn't have aluminium in it)
• 3/4 C all-purpose whole wheat flour (although I've also used unbleached white, and it works well too)
• Salted butter. Enough to grease the pan--essential for achieving crispy, savoury pancake edges, which is my favourite thing about pancakes.

Beat eggs in a bowl. Add vanilla extract. Measure and mix baking powder into flour. Combine all ingredients by alternatively adding flour mixture and milk into the egg mixture. Mix until there are no lumps, but do not overmix, or the pancakes will be more gummy than fluffy. Heat pan and melt a small pat of butter. Using a ladle, pour batter into melted butter and cook on medium heat. Flip pancake when bubbles have formed holes in the uncooked side. Cook to a golden brown, then transfer to plate, top with favourite topping and eat standing up at the stove, while you cook the rest of the batter. Pancakes are best straight off the pan. Makes about 6 medium pancakes.
Today I alternated between maple syrup and Sarabeth's strawberry and raspberry preserves. Used one plate for pancakes topped with syrup and another plate for those with preserves--I'm not a fan of topping cross-contamination. Also, you can put those bubble holes to work when topping with maple syrup; the holes act like waffle wells. I think the smooth side works better with preserves.

I have yet to meet a glutinous rice product that I did not like--a statement that leads me to my last act of gluttony.

A couple weeks ago, while celebrating the birthday of one half of Bitch-Dork (the Dork-half), the greediest two of the entourage (I won't name names, but obviously I was one of the two), abandoned the party and went on a snack-run. We headed straight to M2M, a 24-hour Korean grocery store that stocks many tasty Japanese products. We were on a mission: we knew exactly what we wanted and how much food we would be taking on. Heading straight to the freezer section, we pulled out the Mikawaya brand of strawberry-flavoured mochi ice cream. Between the two of us, we had three mochis each.

I haven't actually tried all seven flavours of this ice cream, but I love the pale pink colour of strawberry kind--which comes from beet juice. Looking at all 6 mochi nestled in the tray, these desserts look like something Smurfs would have made.

Mochi is a Japanese product that is actually made by pounding cooked glutinous rice into a paste, flavoured, then shaped--according to Wikipedia. I'm more familiar with the Chinese version of glutinous rice-based desserts, where uncooked glutinous rice is ground into flour, made into a dough, shaped, and then cooked. This difference in preparation may contribute to the fact that the Chinese desserts I've had don't hold up well in the cold. Any refrigeration results in a hard, powdery texture that loses all the appeal of the chewy, gooey consistency of glutinous rice desserts. These mochi ice cream gems, however, are soft and springy on the outside, yet cool and creamy on the inside. Thanks to my partner-in-crime's cold-tolerant teeth, I am able to share this delightful contrast of temperature and composition. Here, I bring you the best cross-sectional view of a dessert in the history of Hungry Hippo Central:

Observe the rice flour-coat of the translucent mochi and the real strawberry seeds embedded in the ice cream.

It's been awhile. I've been off hanging out with Momma and Brother Hippo. They were in town for the last week, and I've spent most of my time gallavanting around the city with them. Highlights included going to the MoMA, where I found this:


Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to credit the artist, but I will find out (and update) the next time I'm there.


And also the Westminster Dog Show...



Now, it's time to get back to food...

In the last few of days, I've added some more blogs and sites to my blogroll. I decided I needed a reference section (Need answers?), which , so far, includes The Cook's Thesaurus and Wikipedia.

I've also listed more friends: Monkey Wearing Chaps (90210 adventures and misadventures), gregnog (visiting his site is like hanging out at someone's house: you can read his comics, play paperdoll with him, listen to his music, and meet his friends), and Bitch-Dork (Pitchfork-who?).

Finally, in the food blog section, I've linked to The Amateur Gourmet, who has witty posts and incorporates pop culture references into his food adventures.

I also want to introduce Goliath, the hamster I've adopted for the site. If you click on Goliath, he'll do a few laps on his hamster wheel. He's a good boy, but try not to feed him too much junk.

I've recently tasted an unforgettable scotch. I'm still not sure if I really liked it or just sort of enjoyed it, but I've been thinking about it far more than I ever have about any other scotch I've sampled.

I do like my scotch. I'm usually grumpy and miserably cold in the winter, and I learned to battle my internal chill by having a little nip of whiskey when I've gone out into the frosty winter nights. Again, one of the many things useful things I learned in Montreal while doing my undergrad studies. So when I was offered to try Brian's new single malt scotch, I couldn't say no (plus it was Chinese New Year's Eve...I had to represent).

We cracked open his bottle of Laphroaig 10 Year Old. Before even approaching my lips, I noticed the pungent smoky-medicinal smell of the whiskey. I drank it neat, with a glass of water on the side. I tasted it's charred, caveman-like flavour and immediately sat up. I mean that it literally tasted like a bearskin-clad caveman, had he have rolled around in his charcoal-y firepit. I imagine that this would be the equivalent of licking burnt wood which has been coated with the essence of a sweaty, musky, wet animal. Normally, drinking scotch gives the sensation of having leather and warm velvet(the low-shag variety) in the mouth, and sometimes, depending on the scotch, with a hint of cigar smoke. Not when drinking this particular 10 year old--it was more akin to having a group of hyperactive preadolescent boys attempting to play speed metal on aluminium garbage cans inside my mouth--I felt like it was all over the place and slightly overwhelming. Basically, this scotch demanded your attention, and continued to beg for it as it left an aftertaste of burning wood.

Upon closer inspection of the information booklet included with the Laphroaig scotch, we found that the intense smokiness can be attributed to the blue peat smoke that is used to dry the malted barley. This peat is only found on the "remote island of Islay in the Western Isles of Scotland". The Laphroaig distillery also produces a 15 year old whiskey that has been described as the older, sophisticated brother of the 10 year old--without all the sharp angles of the younger scotch. This is one 15 year old that I'd like to meet.

The highlight of the Laphroaig booklet, however, was the information on how to join their "Friends of Laphroaig" club. As a member, you instantly get a plot of land in Islay. And every year, if you visit the distillery, you receive a dram of whiskey from them as rent for your land (what is a dram?). Visits from land owners are encouraged, as you then get to identify your plot. To do so, you are loaned "size 12 wellingtons, headgear against low flying geese, a hip flask of Laphroaig whiskey, a life belt and an anchor: on the breeziest of days we wouldn't want you blown out to sea." The idea of wearing oversized, rental rubber boots, fending myself from sadistic geese, and trying to prevent myself from drowning in the sea sounds kinda fun. It sort of reminds me of a mini-quest from the Legend of Zelda games. Except here I'd get some smoky-ass whiskey instead of magical elixir.
Photographs courtesy of Brian. Thanks!

Last Sunday was Chinese New Year's Day. We welcomed in the year of the dog by having Malaysian food.


Oversea Asian Restaurant is run by Chinese-Malaysians (apparently, the owner is originally from Kuala Lumpur) and has been identified as one of the best Malaysian restaurants in Manhattan. I've read reports that Flushing has the best anything-that-is-asian-restaurants, including Malaysian, but because it takes so long to get there by subway, I'll have to save those restaurant visits for a day-trip just to sample all the food out there.

This restaurant has produced the best Malaysian food I've tasted in Manhattan. I tend to crave Malaysian hawker food, which is characterized by food being sold out of stalls and/or carts--like hot dog stands in NYC. Oversea Asian does a good job with these types of dishes.

Some things stand out, especially the appetizers. One dish, young tofu, is, I think, the best appetizer on the menu. Young tofu involves stuffing various tofu/bean curd products or vegetables with a fish/shrimp paste, and frying these pieces. It is then served in soup, which comes in two flavours--clear chicken broth or in curry soup (left, shown here in broth). I prefer the curry soup; it is one of the few dishes I've found that I can say has the perfect amount of flavour--salty and spicy and just plain good. The chicken soup is also full-flavoured, so it is by no means the lesser choice. The young tofu soaks quickly soaks up the soup it's served in, so consuming it as soon as the bowl arrives at the table showcases its crispy deliciousness, but waiting until the young tofu soaks up its soup results in a whole 'nother taste explosion!

The other dishes that warrant mentioning are the roti canai (pictured right) and the satay, both also appetizers. The chicken curry that accompanies the roti is definitely something to talk about. It has a mild heat, creamy coconut taste, and compliments the light layers of the roti well. The roti here is much less greasy than I am used to, but I think I like this "low fat" cousin of the K.L. roti.

The large selection of noodles dishes is impressive and I have yet to try all of them. The fried noodles have proven to be pretty good in general. I enjoy the seafood scramble egg chow fun, but I'm not a fan of the fake crab meat that's included. I think the dish would do better without. The Hokkien chow mee (see left) is one of my favourites (complete with fried pork fat...mmm...), although it's got nothin' on Grandma's version!

I think it liked being there. I know I did.