use real butter

Chinese New Year fast approaches and it is time to prepare for the festivities which almost always revolve around food. When I was growing up in Southern Virginia, I hated being Chinese because I looked different from everyone else. We ate food that was completely foreign to my friends. My parents spoke to (yelled at) me in Chinese in front of my friends and I just wanted to disappear. I endured plenty of teasing and bullying because, well… kids are assholes. I did everything in my power to avoid being seen in public with my parents. I wanted so badly to be Not Me.

I won’t bore you with my path to accepting my identity, but once I was there and donned my status as an ABC (American Born Chinese) you couldn’t stop me. Happiness comes from within and baby, I got it. That’s not to say that living the balance between western and eastern cultures is easy, but I’ve come to embrace what I used to reject as a child. Okay, I could do without the constant *guilt* in the never-ending quest to be a Good Chinese Daughter, but otherwise I have to say my Chinese culture enriches my life and I’m glad for it.

Which leads me to the food and superstitions and traditions. There is a veritable boat load of foods you eat for the Lunar New Year and each one means something! I am probably familiar with a mere fraction of them. My family does a giant hot pot filled with ingredients that all signify good things: money, health, happiness, luck, promotion, success, more money… You get the idea. Dumplings, as I’ve mentioned before, are supposed to represent money and in some instances having sons, but let’s not go there. Tofu is luck. Rice cake means a “higher” (better) year. A whole fish means happy starts and endings (head and tail, get it?). Eat something sweet first thing on New Year’s Day so sweet things come out of your mouth all year (I can hear the guffaws of all of my friends…). And there is a lucky ten ingredient vegetable dish called rui tsai. Ten is the lucky number. Eat this dish and all good things will come to you in the new year.

My mom has been making her rui tsai for years. She would bag some up and mail it to me each year before Chinese New Year. Of course, she is Chinese so there is no way she’s going to pay to ship it express. She sent it each year via our crappy US Postal Service and it usually ended up arriving anywhere from 3 to 10 days later. I’m a scientist by training and I happen to understand a lot about food safety. Each year this little package arrived in my mailbox, I felt as if I was playing Russian Roulette. See, under normal circumstances I would toss it in the trash, but my mom put so much effort into making the dish and “mailing” it to me so that I would have “good luck” all year… I felt this strong obligation to have a nibble in spite of potential hospitalization. Jeremy would always stand there watching me with my internal struggle while my chopsticks were poised over the gaping maw of the Ziploc bag. The vegetables were lovely and smelled not toxic, but - I was afraid. Obviously, I have lived to tell the tale year after year.

After last year’s repeat of fearing for my life eating week-old “lucky” ten ingredient vegetable, I swore that I would make the damn dish myself and be done with this ridiculous ritual.

But first, there is another tradition in my family of eating long noodles (not broken) on your birthday for long life. My birthday was in September. In mid-September I found a little lump in my left breast. I have neither lumpy nor huge boobies, and so it was quite obvious. I waited a few weeks to see if it would go away or if I should see my doctor. In the meantime, I completely forgot to eat noodles on my birthday. I panicked the next day when I realized I had forgotten, but the logical part of my brain (90%) said it was okay - calm down. The 10% was saying, “You are so boned!” My doctors were sure I was fine, I’m 36 after all, healthy, no prior medical problems… “Sure, go ahead and sign up for your ski program.” And then one evening in November, my surgeon called to tell me that my results were positive for cancer. Thus began this curious road I find myself on today. I know it has nothing to do with those damned noodles, but you see what these ridiculous superstitions can do to a person, or to me.

That is another reason why I decided to make rui tsai this year. My chemotherapy has rendered me immuno-compromised among many other things. Eating week-old rui tsai from my well-meaning mother is Out.Of.The.Question. She was so desperate that she even offered to FedEx the vegetables to me. Wouldn’t it be hilarious if after all of this, the thing that does me in is stir-fried “lucky” vegetables? I was worried though, because my first ten days after chemo were pretty narsty (for those who only report nausea - that’s great, have a lolly) and for a couple of days I couldn’t nibble a cracker without racking my insides. How could I possibly get the groceries and cook for the New Year? Luckily, I seem to have bounced back just in time for the Chinese New Year (and for my ski program!). At first I thought I was making the rui tsai because of that 10% of my brain, but really, I think the 90% agrees that the best thing to do is go on living life and kicking ass when you can.

count em, ten

It isn’t really ten vegetables, but ten vegetarian ingredients because tofu is one of my ingredients. I’m missing soybean sprouts, which are some of my favorites. No one in Boulder carries them and my best bet was to drive into Denver, but… the beauty of the ten ingredient dish is that you can substitute another vegetable. I asked my mom if green onions were okay as I had recalled seeing them listed in other versions and she said no. For some reason, according to my grandma, green onions are not okay. I should have known better than to ask why. She said it’s because green onions are hollow (kong) which is bad luck. So I countered that tiger lily buds are hollow. “No they’re not,” my mom replied. “Yes they are.” “Just don’t use green onions.” I bagged on driving into Denver for soybean sprouts and opted for some mediocre looking snow peas from Whole Paycheck Foods. My ten ingredients: Chinese mushrooms, tree ears, bamboo shoots, Chinese pickled cucumbers (slightly sweet and salty - not like dill pickles), dried tofu, tiger lily buds, shredded carrots, cabbage, snow peas, and pickled ginger (I used some Japanese gari - what you eat at sushi bars - unless you are Graeme).

dried tree ears

The tiny black square in the first picture is an amazingly compact package of dried tree ears. This photo is really for Christine’s benefit. Most of the time when you buy dried tree ears (wood ears, tree fungus, whatever you call it) they are loose in a bag and full of sand and tough woody segments. Pain in the butt to clean after rehydrating. But my grandma buys a certain brand (I think it may be Vietnamese?) that is not only incredibly compact, but when the tree ears are rehydrated, they blossom into lovely whole ears with nary a speck of dirt or woody undesirable parts. One day I will identify the brand.

beautiful tree ears

The first step is to rehydrate whatever dried ingredients you are using. In my case, I had Chinese black mushrooms, tree ears, and tiger lily buds. Once those are under hot water, you can address the carrots. Part of the time-consuming nature of this dish is my mom’s treatment of the carrots. She doesn’t like the shredded carrots to get soggy, so after shredding the carrots, she sprinkles about 1/2 teaspoon of salt over them and lets them sit for 5 minutes. Then she squeezes out as much juice as she can and sprinkles the carrot shreds onto a baking sheet. She told me to do this, so I did.

shredded, salted, squozen carrots

I baked the carrots in a 350F oven and stirred them about every 5 minutes. The first try of 15 minutes was too long and I got crispy carrot fries. The second try of 10 minutes worked just fine, preserving the lovely orange color. While you are waiting for drying carrots or rehydrating ingredients, you can start slicing the other items. Since everything is getting julienned I would recommend having a really good and sharp knife. Some good motor coordination helps too.

my sharpest knife makes lovely slices of the snow peas

This Kyocera ceramic knife was a gift from my parents. They called me three times to rave about it before they shipped it to me and requested a photo of it in use on a tomato. Turns out they got a big one for themselves and this mid-size for me. I love it. It is soooo sharp and works like a dream. Very dangerous. Also very fragile (brittle). Not to be used as a cleaver, ‘kay? When the dried ingredients are ready, wash them and squeeze them as dry as you can. The tiger lily buds have a woody end that should be cut off.

remove the woody end of the tiger lily buds

The dried tofu cakes can be found in most Asian markets. I like to slice them into thirds, like a layer cake, which requires a sharp knife. Then I stack them and slice them into strips.

dried tofu

My mom didn’t give me any measurements, but my general guideline was about 1/2 to 1 cup of everything. The pickled ginger and pickled Chinese cucumber were closer to 1/2 cup and the cabbage was almost 1 cup since it shrinks so much during cooking.

the mise en place takes the longest

When you are done slicing everything, each ingredient is supposed to be sautéed in a little vegetable oil and a shake of salt - separately. So I had a large bowl next to my sauté pan and stir-fried each ingredient and dumped it into the bowl until they were all done.

stir-fried

mix the ingredients together

It’s a really refreshing and crunchy vegetable dish regardless of the implications for the Lunar New Year. Slightly gingery and tangy, it is satisfying to eat. I do prefer the soybean sprouts over the snow peas, although the snow peas lend a lovely bright green color to the dish. Maybe I could trade out the cabbage for the sprouts. In any case, it’s done and so I’m hoping I have my bases covered for the year of Rat!

rui tsai : everything your heart desires

Rui Tsai (Lucky Ten Ingredient Vegetables)

1/2 cup Chinese black mushrooms, stems removed and julienned
1/2 cup tree ears, julienned
1/2 cup tiger lily buds, cut into 2-inch strips with woody stem removed
1/2 cup bamboo shoots, julienned
1/2 cup dried tofu, julienned
1 cup carrots, shredded
1/2 cup snow peas, julienned
1/2 cup pickled ginger, squeezed dry and julienned
1/2 cup pickled cucumber (Chinese style), squeezed dry and julienned
1 cup cabbage, shredded (although I prefer soybean sprouts)

Preheat oven to 350F. If your mushrooms, tree ears, and lily buds are not fresh, then place the dried ingredients in separate bowls and cover with boiling water and let sit until soft (about 30 minutes). Wash them of any sand and squeeze the water out. Trim stems as needed and slice into strips. While waiting for the dried ingredients to rehydrate, shred two carrots. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp of salt over the shredded carrots and let sit for 5 minutes. Squeeze the liquid out of the carrots and the sprinkle them over a baking sheet. Bake for 5 minutes, stir the carrots around, and then bake another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. When all of the vegetables are sliced, heat a teaspoon of vegetable oil in a sauté pan and stir-fry one of the ingredients with a dash of salt. When it is cooked, remove it to a large bowl. Repeat for each ingredient, adding each to the bowl. When all cooking is done, toss the vegetables together and serve at room temperature.

Welcome to 2008 everyone! Gong Xi Fa Tsai! I hope folks were able to start the new year off properly and in good spirits. I was pleased as punch this morning despite the 4F reading in the parking lot (that’s -15.5C for those living metric). I can take the frigid temps though, because everyone knows that women who tele are hot. ;) My arm is nearly normal and it didn’t bother me at all!

a little warm up

What I love about skiing our local hill is that I can be home in 15 minutes. That’s great for days like New Year’s Day when there are certain foods I have to make… Actually, it’s Chinese New Year that gets me all panicked about preparing the right foods to eat for luck, health, fortune, this, that, and the other. My grandma and mom have scared it into me! But I tend to do a watered-down version during the western new year, because they scared *that* into me as well. I suppose they figure if you hit the traditions on both of the new years, then you’ve got all of the bases covered, right?

I am a consummate slacker… Last night we had Chinese hot pot for dinner, but I didn’t put ALL of the special ingredients in (for health, luck, fortune, etc. etc.). And on the first of the year, you are supposed to eat something sweet first thing in the morning so sweet things come out of your mouth all year [insert several jokes about my potty mouth here], but we snarfed a couple of cookies before dashing out to ski instead. I didn’t have any of the Chinese rice cakes or make any of the sweet soups or sweet buns… besides, I would end up finishing it all because Jeremy is not a fan of Asian desserts. Not.A.Fan. And this afternoon, it was a pretty impressive feat that I could muster the energy to roll out Chinese dumplings - the steamed version of Chinese potstickers, for dinner.

set upon napa cabbage leaves (it was the end of the head, so the leaves are teeny)

My mom always made us eat Chinese dumplings because she said it represented money. A few years ago I was searching the web for information on what certain foods represent during Chinese New Year celebrations and I read that Chinese dumplings translated into “sleep together and have lots of sons”! *gasp* Apparently, eating dumplings will translate into whatever you want… I dunno - want flannel sheets this winter? You got it. I eat them. End of story.

i know one thing - dumplings guarantee a happy tummy

2008 already promises to be an interesting year for me. It might get downright tough at times, but I am always up for the fight. Just want you all to know that your friendship and love of food make my life all the sweeter and I thank you for it. xxoo

Does it suddenly feel like you’re walking through the enchanted forest with all of the yule logs popping up on food blogs? Enchanted, indeed. It’s the Daring Bakers challenge for December! This month our most beloved founders: Lisa of La Mia Cucina and Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice are hosting the challenge and they picked this traditional pastry.

we knead to bake - oh yes! we most certainly do…

I had never made a yule log (aka bûche de noël) before, but I was familiar with all of the components. The three major parts were: meringue mushrooms, buttercream frosting, and the genoise. I began with the mushrooms.

beat the egg whites to stiff peaks

piping tops and stems

Aside from the final assembly, this was by far my favorite part of the challenge. I made my mushrooms small because I am small-food obsessed, remember? Because I love to hike and backpack, I have spent many hundreds of miles walking gorgeous woodlands admiring the different plant life that adorns trees - both fallen and living. I made the required mushrooms, and then I made some shelf mushrooms, and then I cut some little fungi (tree ears) from orange and yellow fruit roll ups while Jeremy ate all of the scraps. The meringues required much longer baking time than the suggested 50-55 minutes. I baked mine for an hour and 45 minutes.

a little daub of wet meringue at the base of each top

assembled shrooms ready for a little more baking

The assemblage of the mushrooms was terrific. I used the tip of my digital candy thermometer to poke a small hole in the base of each mushroom top, piped a bit of wet meringue for glue and attached a stem to each one. Every single mushroom was just too flipping cute.

Next up was the buttercream. I have a good standard Swiss meringue buttercream recipe that I use extensively. This one was pretty similar, except it called for a lot more butter. Based on my experience, I thought the resulting amount of buttercream would be cutting it close. I am risk-averse, so I decided to increase the recipe by 50%. I heated the egg whites and sugar to 140F and then whipped them for a loooong time (20 minutes or more) before it cooled down enough to accept softened butter without melting it.

gorgeous swiss meringue

I didn’t think the coffee buttercream in the recipe would be very dark, so I made half of the batch coffee and the other half chocolate. Unfortunately… I increased everything by 50% except for the butter. I think I’m so used to my standard recipe that the original amount of butter (3 sticks) sounded right for my increased 6 egg whites when I should have used 4.5 sticks.

chopped semi-sweet chocolate

folding the melted chocolate into the buttercream frosting

The genoise recipe looked suspect to me. I’ve made a lot of genoise recipes and this one had far more egg yolk content than I was used to. It whipped up in volume just fine.

the batter should hold a ribbon for 8 seconds

spread onto a prepped half sheet

After folding in the flour and cornstarch, I poured the batter into a jelly roll pan. As it baked, it seemed to do just fine. When I pulled it out of the oven, I noticed that the crumb structure was too egg-ish. Perhaps it is my elevation, but instead of a moist and airy crumb, I had larger air pockets and a stiffer structure to the cake. *unhappy*

spreading coffee buttercream

rolled like a ho-ho

I barely had enough coffee buttercream to cover the entire cake with a thin layer. It rolled up without too many problems, although the cake was more brittle than other genoises that I’ve handled. Once rolled, I wrapped it in wax paper and chucked it into the refrigerator to chill for an hour. I lopped off one end that looked a little ragged and then cut both ends on the diagonal. The chocolate buttercream was definitely darker and better looking for the log’s exterior.

happy cluster of mushrooms

I dusted with cocoa powder for that dirt effect. Then I dusted with powdered sugar for that snow effect. I cut up green fruit roll ups to mimic pine needles.

where fungi love to grow

my absolute favorites: shelf mushrooms

Overall, this cake was too sweet for my liking. I thought it was heavy on the buttercream frosting and that the texture of the genoise was horrid. That could have been my altitude, but I’m suspicious of a spongecake that is so heavy on the egg yolks. The mushrooms were fan-freaking-tabulous and our friends sat around popping one mushroom after another into their mouths. If I were to make this again, I’d use whipped cream for filling with a softer and lighter (less egg yolk) cake base. I’d keep the meringue mushrooms and would have to think hard about replacing the exterior frosting with a whipped cream base (I do think the buttercream looks better for the outside). A good and fun challenge and a springboard for new variations. Thanks so much, Lis and Ivonne!! Be sure to check out ALL of the other Daring Bakers yule logs. Happy holidays to all.

ye olde yule log

Yule Log
from Perfect Cakes by Nick Malgieri and The Williams-Sonoma Collection: Dessert

Serves 12. Cake should be stored in a cool, dry place. Leftovers should be refrigerated.

plain genoise
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
pinch of salt
¾ cup of sugar
½ cup cake flour - spoon flour into dry-measure cup and level off (also known as cake & pastry flour)
¼ cup cornstarch

one 10 x 15 inch jelly-roll pan that has been buttered and lined with parchment paper and then buttered again

Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Half-fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat so the water is simmering. Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, salt and sugar together in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer. Place over the pan of simmering water and whisk gently until the mixture is just lukewarm, about 100 degrees if you have a thermometer (or test with your finger - it should be warm to the touch). Attach the bowl to the mixer and, with the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until the egg mixture is cooled (touch the outside of the bowl to tell) and tripled in volume. The egg foam will be thick and will form a slowly dissolving ribbon falling back onto the bowl of whipped eggs when the whisk is lifted. While the eggs are whipping, stir together the flour and cornstarch. Sift one-third of the flour mixture over the beaten eggs. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the flour mixture, making sure to scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl on every pass through the batter to prevent the flour mixture from accumulating there and making lumps. Repeat with another third of the flour mixture and finally with the remainder. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake the genoise for about 10 to 12 minutes. Make sure the cake doesn’t overbake and become too dry or it will not roll properly. While the cake is baking, begin making the buttercream. Once the cake is done (a tester will come out clean and if you press the cake lightly it will spring back), remove it from the oven and let it cool on a rack.

coffee buttercream
4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
24 tablespoons (3 sticks or 1-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 tablespoons rum or brandy

Whisk the egg whites and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Set the bowl over simmering water and whisk gently until the sugar is dissolved and the egg whites are hot. Attach the bowl to the mixer and whip with the whisk on medium speed until cooled. Switch to the paddle and beat in the softened butter and continue beating until the buttercream is smooth. Dissolve the instant coffee in the liquor and beat into the buttercream.

Filling and frosting the log: Run a sharp knife around the edges of the genoise to loosen it from the pan. Turn the genoise layer over (unmolding it from the sheet pan onto a flat surface) and peel away the paper. Carefully invert your genoise onto a fresh piece of parchment paper. Spread with half the coffee buttercream (or whatever filling you’re using). Use the parchment paper to help you roll the cake into a tight cylinder. Transfer back to the baking sheet and refrigerate for several hours. Unwrap the cake. Trim the ends on the diagonal, starting the cuts about 2 inches away from each end. Position the larger cut piece on each log about 2/3 across the top. Cover the log with the reserved buttercream, making sure to curve around the protruding stump. Streak the buttercream with a fork or decorating comb to resemble bark. Transfer the log to a platter and decorate with your mushrooms and whatever other decorations you’ve chosen.

meringue mushrooms
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup (3-1/2 ounces/105 g.) granulated sugar
1/3 cup (1-1/3 ounces/40 g.) icing sugar
unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting

Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Have ready a pastry bag fitted with a small (no. 6) plain tip. In a bowl, using a mixer on medium-low speed, beat together the egg whites and cream of tartar until very foamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar while beating. Increase the speed to high and beat until soft peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Continue until the whites hold stiff, shiny peaks. Sift the icing sugar over the whites and, using a rubber spatula, fold in until well blended. Scoop the mixture into the bag. On one baking sheet, pipe 48 stems, each ½ inch (12 mm.) wide at the base and tapering off to a point at the top, ¾ inch (2 cm.) tall, and spaced about ½ inch (12 mm.) apart. On the other sheet, pipe 48 mounds for the tops, each about 1-1/4 inches (3 cm.) wide and ¾ inch (2 cm.) high, also spaced ½ inch (12 mm.) apart. With a damp fingertip, gently smooth any pointy tips. Dust with cocoa. Reserve the remaining meringue. Bake until dry and firm enough to lift off the paper, 50-55 minutes. Set the pans on the counter and turn the mounds flat side up. With the tip of a knife, carefully make a small hole in the flat side of each mound. Pipe small dabs of the remaining meringue into the holes and insert the stems tip first. Return to the oven until completely dry, about 15 minutes longer. Let cool completely on the sheets. Garnish your Yule Log with the mushrooms.

marzipan mushrooms
8 ounces almond paste
2 cups icing sugar
3 to 5 tablespoons light corn syrup
Cocoa powder

To make the marzipan combine the almond paste and 1 cup of the icing sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on low speed until sugar is almost absorbed. Add the remaining 1 cup of sugar and mix until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add half the corn syrup, then continue mixing until a bit of the marzipan holds together when squeezed, adding additional corn syrup a little at a time, as necessary: the marzipan in the bowl will still appear crumbly. Transfer the marzipan to a work surface and knead until smooth. Roll one-third of the marzipan into a 6 inches long cylinder and cut into 1-inch lengths. Roll half the lengths into balls. Press the remaining cylindrical lengths (stems) into the balls (caps) to make mushrooms. Smudge with cocoa powder.