6 February 2006
Episode 3: Coke vs Coke Zero
6:33 | 9.4mb | QuickTime 7
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- High-Definition [99mb]
Coke Zero supposedly tastes exactly the same as regular Coke, but with zero calories. Curious as to whether or not the 2 drinks actually do taste the same, I conducted a little taste test. Can my tongue be trusted to tell me the truth?
posted by Becky at 1:18 | 2 comments
5 February 2006
Rosewater
After having mentioned rosewater while preparing baklava in our 1st episode of the vidcast, I realised that some people might have no clue what I was talking about. Rosewater is a by-product from when rose oil is made, and its flavour and scent are rather distinct. And since loads of rose oil is needed for the perfume industry, rosewater is relatively inexpensive. The bottle I bought cost less than $2.
Rosewater is used in a lot of South Asian and Middle Eastern desserts. It is also 1 of the main ingredients in sweet lassi. I like it for the flavour and the lovely bottle.
posted by Becky at 0:04 | no comments
4 February 2006
Egg Salad Schema
The other day I went to a deli for lunch, and I ordered an egg salad sandwich. When I took the 1st bite, I realised that something didn’t seem quite right. As I ate my sandwich, I wondered why I felt dissatisfied with it. My tastebuds told me that the egg salad was made with mustard and green olives. Whenever I make egg salad, I always use just eggs, mayonnaise, and a bit of relish. My friend, Gisela, makes egg salad similar to mine, but she sometimes adds small pieces of cucumber, apple or grapes for a bit of a crunch, which is fine by me because adding any of those items doesn’t change the flavour very much.
Being unhappy with my sandwich made me realise that perhaps when you’re so satisfied with the way you prepare something, you don’t want it any other way. I certainly am not against creative or experimental forms of cooking, but it’s almost as though I have a mental schema for egg salad. Just like how you always expect Coke to taste the same [remember how badly New Coke flopped?], I have an expectation for how egg salad should taste, even though I know that there are loads of different recipes out there. And I bet if you really think about it, you’ll come up with some foods about which you feel the same.
posted by Becky at 18:44 | no comments
30 January 2006
Episode 2: Super Bowl Dips
7:59 | 11.7mb | QuickTime 7
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In honour of the Pittsburgh Steelers making it to the Super Bowl, I made some dips for our 2nd episode. These are some really simple dips that would be great for a Super Bowl party.
Thanks to Rob for letting me wear his Steelers shirt for this episode. It was too big, so I pinned it in the back. Unfortunately, I’m still getting used to how to stand and move around without letting my back face the camera, so you can see the pin in a few shots. Oops! I’m still learning :)
Anyhoo, here are the recipes~
Southwestern Cheese Dip
prep time: 10 min. | total time: 17 min.
For the show, I halved the recipe because Jimmy & I had just eaten Mexican food for lunch, so we didn’t want a bunch of cheese dip lying around. Below are the actual measurements.
16 oz. Velveeta cheese, cubed
1 can Ro*tel diced tomatoes & green chilies, drained
1/4 c. green onion, chopped
1 tsp. ground cumin
1. Mix all ingredients in a large microwavable bowl.
2. Microwave on high 6–7 minutes until cheese is melted, stirring every 3 minutes.
Green Onion Veggie Dip
prep time: 10 min. | total time: 40 min.
1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. green onion, chopped
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
1. Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender until smooth.
2. Cover and chill for 30 minutes before serving.
Fruit Dip
prep time: 5 min. | total time: 35 min.
1 c. cottage cheese
2 Tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1. Blend all ingredients in food processor or blender until smooth.
2. Cover and chill for 30 minutes before serving.
posted by Becky at 0:24 | 1 comment
25 January 2006
Episode 1: Baklava
14:48 | 21.1mb | QuickTime 7
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- High-Definition [229mb]
For our first ever vidcast, I decided to make baklava, and below you will find the recipe. I hope you find the episode tasty. If you have any feedback, feel free to leave a comment.
Baklava
prep time: 30 min. | bake time: 45–60 min.
Make sure to remove the phyllo dough from the freezer and place it in the fridge at least 1 day before making the baklava. Take the phyllo dough out of the fridge and let it sit out for a few hours before starting, but leave the dough in the box until you begin or it will otherwise quickly dry out.
1 pound phyllo dough
2 c. finely chopped nuts [walnuts and/or pecans]
1 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1 Tbsp. nutmeg
1 Tbsp. rosewater
2 sticks margarine or unsalted butter, melted
syrup [see below]
1. Preheat oven to 350° with rack in middle of the oven.
2. Mix nuts, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and rosewater in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Brush 9 x 13 inch pan with melted butter using a pastry brush. Lay down a sheet of phyllo dough. Then brush it with melted butter. Lay down another sheet of phyllo dough, brush with butter and continue until half of the pound of phyllo dough has been used.
Note: If phyllo dough is larger than your pan, simply fold it over at the edges. But alternate what side you fold over or you will end up with lopsided baklava.
4. Spread nut mixture evenly over first half pound of phyllo dough.
5. Lay down rest of phyllo dough over nut mixture, sheet by sheet, brushing butter on each sheet of dough.
6. Cut into desired pieces prior to baking. Bake 45–60 minutes or until golden brown.
7. While baklava is baking, make the syrup:
1 1/4 c. water
1 T rosewater
1 c. sugar
few drops lemon juiceCombine ingredients in sauce pan and boil on stove until syrup thickens. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
8. After removing baklava from oven, pour cooled syrup on warm baklava. Let baklava cool.
posted by Becky at 23:30 | 1 comment
18 January 2006
Hello~!
Welcome to 35unger.com, a community food blog. To get this party started, I have mirrored my food-related posts from iheartpreston. I hope you enjoy our site!
posted by Becky at 3:45 | no comments
16 January 2006
A Chocolate & Marshmallow Potato
The Idaho Candy Company started in 1901 when the founder began selling chocolate door to door. Soon enough the company was making dozens of different candy bars, so they then built a factory in Boise, which they still use to this day. The Idaho Candy Company’s most famous chocolate bar is the Idaho Spud, which is a potato-shaped, cocoa-flavoured marshmallow centre covered with dark chocolate and sprinkled with coconut. [Nope, no actual potato.] A couple reviews I read didn’t speak too highly of the bar, describing the centre as “disgusting,” “spongy,” and “a grained marshmallow.” I’m not sure if I’ll be able to find 1 anywhere around here, but I’d love to try it out for myself. I can’t pass up trying at least 1 potato-shaped candy bar that’s been in production since 1918, despite the negative reviews.