Memory Lane

Hello!   It’s been a while. I hope all is well with y’all.  Life has been quite hectic.  I also traveled  about 10,000 miles back to my hometown to attend a family reunion.  I took many photos using my cellphone. I also videotaped our (parents and siblings) visit with my brother at my grandparents farm when he and his in-law’s side of the family went to harvest some coconuts for us

Aloha Bites

This post has been on my dashboard since August 12, 2013.  A month after I started blogging, but I made these little bites when the cake pops were on trend.  I’m glad the ingredients and story that goes with it have been written.  Otherwise, I probably won’t remember the tale behind these delectable bites.

Aloha Bites

Photo taken in night time.

Assorted Cake Bites

Having lived in Hawaii, I can’t help but miss the Aloha State.  I have so many wonderful memories there.  The people are very friendly;  the weather is similar to what I was accustomed to growing up; and the island is surrounded with pristine, beautiful beaches, and breathtaking sceneries.  My heart belongs to Hawaii. ❤

It would have been nice if the picture frame was not included in the background. 😦

My mother was quite ill, so I went back to visit  about three to four years ago and rented a car to get around  the island because I didn’t want to  spend most of my time waiting for the bus (takes at least an hour wait on weekends).  I only had four days and I wanted to enjoy every minute of it.  I was so confident that I wouldn’t have any problem driving and sight seeing.  Well,  I didn’t know where my brain was because I got lost! Ha ha! I mean Oahu is a very small island and the possibility of getting lost, especially when you have lived there a decade and a half, is slim. So, I thought.  I had to stop right before the exit and had to think where I should go.  I must have been sitting there remembering how to get to my destination for at least ten minutes. Should I take the exit or should I continue on the freeway?  If I take the exit, where would I end up?  Seriously!  Well, I braved it and took the exit and thank God it was the right way. Whew!

As I was reminiscing about Hawaii,  Aloha bites were born.  These triple chocolate cake truffles loaded with my favorite tropical ingredients such as coconut and Macadamia nuts I swear will make you swoon.  You can add candied pineapple if you wish, but I love the combination of coconut and Macadamia nuts.

 

Photo taken in night time.

You can use your favorite homemade chocolate cake if you wish or you can use what I used here.  To make these chocolate bites, prepare the ganache first.  You can get the recipe for the ganache here.  After you make the ganache, prepare to make the cake bites.

Cake Bites Ingredients:

• 3 cups firmly packed dark chocolate cake
•  Prepared ganache for truffle mixture
• coconut flakes, toasted
• Macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
• Melted chocolates

Directions:

1. Mix the toasted coconut and Macadamia nuts in a small bowl; set aside.
2. In a stand mixer, add the chocolate cake and truffle mixture and gradually beat in low to medium speed for  3-5 minutes or until well-combined.  Turn off mixer.
3. Scoop about 1/2 tablespoonful of the cake mixture and roll in your palm to form  a ball.  Set aside.  Repeat for the remaining mixture.
4. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.
5. Remove from the freezer and place in the refrigerator.  Working one at a time, remove one ball and poke with a wooden pick  in the center and immediately dip in melted chocolates making sure the ball is completely coated.  Remove and let drip.  Gently tap your wrist to remove excess.
6. Sprinkle with the toasted coconut and Macadamia nuts mixture until the truffle is completely covered.
7. Place in a tray lined with wax paper.  Allow to harden a little bit.
8. Remove the wooden pick by using another pick to hold the coated ball in place.  Twist the wooden pick attached to the ball then pull to remove.
9. Dab some melted chocolates to fill the hole by using a wooden pick. Sprinkle coconut and Macadamia nut mixture to cover. Then drizzle with melted chocolate on top of the Aloha bites.
10. Let cool to harden then place in the fluted baking cups.
11. Devour!

That’s all for now.  I hope you are enjoying spring.  If you like this post or my blog, don’t forget to Subscribe or Follow to get the latest recipes.  Please be kind and link back to source if you plan to use or share any of my recipes.  Thank you and have  a great day! 🙂

~Anna

Steamed Mini Yucca-Rice Cakes (Puto)

Yucca-Rice Cakes-original recipe by
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Here’s another Filipino favorite that I created.  These steamed rice cakes were really good!  The brown sugar and yucca (cassava) go very well together.  They are served at parties or at any get together, especially birthdays, Christmas time and New Year’s eve or as a merienda (afternoon snack).   The flavor variations are  coconut, purple yam, mango, pineapple, and chocolate to name a few.  You can add coconut powder and coconut strings, grated purple yam, mango puree, pineapple juice and tidbits, chocolate chips and ground chocolate in the batter.

You can put them in a festive or clear plastic bags and tie with a sophisticated bow and give them away as gifts for Christmas.  Your friends will appreciate them, especially those who don’t have time to make them or own any steamer and yearn to have them.  Below are coconut and chocolate rice cakes I made last year.

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I and some people had been in quest to find the “authentic” recipe because they are just out of this world.  “Once you popped, you can’t stop” as the potato chips commercial say.  That’s how good they are.  My grandmother knew how to make them, but she passed on before I could ask her.  I tried all the recipes I could find on the web, but the results were not the same.  Moreover, the instructions were not that specific.  They don’t really give you the “secret” process on how to make them “authentic”.  Yes, I discovered there were many secrets making authentic rice cakes.  I experimented many times and almost gave up, but one day, I finally achieved it.   The rice cakes below were made with 100% rice flour and the ones above were a combination of rice flour and all-purpose flour.  My children loved them.

Rice Cakes
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I was so proud of myself.  But…guess what happened?  I lost my note in the process of tidying up.  It took me a long time to discover the “secret” and lost it that easily.  Believe me, I was extremely sad and disappointed that I stayed away from the kitchen for a very long time.  Yes, it was that important to me.   It reminded me of my childhood and my grandmother.   I miss the good old days and my beloved, gracious grandmother.  I feel comforted making the authentic  rice cakes somehow. 

My quest now is to find the recipe I created.  It’s a must!  I could not remember all the ingredients and the measurements.  So, I settled to create the yucca rice cakes for now until I find the time to do all the experimenting I did previously using the 100% rice flour.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cup of rice cake flour mix (available at Asian stores)
• 1/2 cup of frozen grated cassava or yucca root, completely thawed
• 1 C firmly packed dark brown sugar
• ½ C sweetened coconut flakes
• 1 ¼ C water
• 5 teaspoons vegetable oil
• Butter

Note:  You will need a steamer, a mini muffin baking tin, a pastry brush, and cheese cloth

Directions:

• Add about 1/2 of water in the steamer.  Wrap the lid of a steamer with cheesecloth to prevent water from dripping to the rice cake batter while cooking.  Cover the steamer.   Bring water over high heat to a rapid boil.
• Add the rice cake flour, water, coconut flakes, dark brown sugar, 1/2 cup grated cassava, and oil in a large bowl.   Whisk until well mixed. Let stand for 5 minutes.
• Scoop the batter into the buttered 12-piece mini muffin pan and steam for 15-20 minutes* or until cake is shiny and bounce back when pressed.
• Brush the top of the steamed cakes with butter. Transfer to a serving platter or a basket lined with wilted banana leaves and serve warm or at room temperature.  When cooled, cover the mini rice cakes with a plastic wrap to prevent skin from forming.   Enjoy.

*Note:  Cooking time and achieving the crack in the center of the rice cakes varies depending how rapidly the water is boiling.  Adjust accordingly.

That is all for now.  If you like this post or my blog, don’t forget to Subscribe or Follow to get the latest recipes.  Please be kind and link back to source when you use or share any of my recipes.  Thank you for stopping by.  Until next time.  Have an awesome day!

~Anna

©annascuisine.wordpress.com (2013)   Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material herein without expressed and written consent from this blog’s author, Annabelle Bedell, is strictly and completely prohibited.

Peach and Coconut Smoothie

Note:   If  this recipe inspired you to use as a guide to make your own, please be considerate and credit annascuisine.wordpress.com.  Thank you!

Even though the temperature may get cooler during autumn, there’s never a bad time for a smoothie.   Here’s yet another nutritious and easy smoothie recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 organic peach low-fat yogurt
• 1 cup ice cubes
• 1/2  fresh peach
• 3/4 cup coconut milk (45 calories per 1 cup)
• 1/4 cup coconut sport strings (optional)

Add all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.  Enjoy. 🙂

Yucca Bites

Can you believe that these mouth-watering, chewy, chocolate bites have only four ingredients?

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I was trying to recall a dessert that I’ve had as a child when I went to visit my grandparents.  They made us dig the ground for “kamoteng kahoy” (Casssava or Yucca root), grated them, then squeezed the liquid out of the cassava and shape it in a mold.  I remember my cousin’s wife put  them in a pot with water and steamed it.  It was very good.  So, I tried to experiment in the kitchen and reinvent it, but I came up with this recipe instead.  This is probably my most favorite recipe I’ve ever come up with because of the beautiful memory attached to it.  It’s chewy and delicious and can you believe it has fiber?  This is clean eating folks.  It’s steamed and made with only four ingredients.  A  healthy, satisfying dessert or snack I promise it would make you swoon.  Another chocolate lover pick.

Yucca or Cassava is a tubular-shaped root vegetable that bares a resemblance to sweet potatoes.  It is low in fat and has generous amount of vitamins and minerals according to  my research.   You can find out more information about it at http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/yucca-root-nutrition-1631.html.   Yucca root is available at any Asian stores or any local grocery stores that sell Asian food.

Yucca Root (Cassava)

Fresh and frozen grated Cassava

Shape into an inch balls.

This is what it looks like when it’s cooked.

Jazz them up with colorful party picks and serve them at your party.

Yucca dipped in melted chocolates.

You can serve the Yucca bites without dipping them in melted chocolates if you prefer and jazz them up with colorful party picks and serve them at your party.  Take note that if you are serving the yucca balls without dipping them in melted chocolates, cover them with a plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out.  Remove the wrapper before serving.

*Note:  This recipe yields for only 10 yucca bites.  Just double or triple the recipe if you want more. 

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup firmly packed coconut flakes
• 1 cup frozen and thawed shredded Yucca root or Cassava
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons  firmly packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips, melted

Directions:

1. Bring water in a steamer to a rapid boil.
2. Squeeze the yucca to remove any excess liquid.
3. Mix all the ingredients. Scoop one teaspoon and shape it like a ball about an inch.
4. They will plump when you cook them, so don’t make them bigger than an inch size.
5. Place them in the steamer and steam for 50-55 minutes.  Remove and let cool for 15-20 minutes.
6. Poke one of the yucca balls with a toothpick and dip in melted chocolate.  Place on a plate lined with wax paper.
7. Carefully, remove the toothpick and dab a little bit of the melted chocolate to cover the hole.  Let the chocolate harden.
8. Repeat with the remaining yucca balls.  To make Yucca truffles, dust the balls with cocoa.

Enjoy!

If you like this post or my blog, don’t forget to Subscribe or Follow to get the latest recipes.  Thank you for stopping by.  Have a great day!

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©annascuisine.wordpress.com (2013)   Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material herein without expressed and written consent from this blog’s author, Annabelle Bedell, is strictly and completely prohibited.

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The Ultimate Hot Chocolate Oatmeal

Chocolate lovers, you would want to add this to your recipe collection.  Oh, so good!

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I’ve been reminiscing about my childhood lately and I can’t help but think about my parents, especially my mother.  I am so grateful for her perseverance with teaching my siblings and I how to cook and be responsible.  As a child, I just wanted to play with my  friends.  My mother was resolute when it came to teaching and discipline.

A mother’s cooking is special because it will stay in a child’s memory for the rest of her life.  It’s breakfast time and I was thinking about what to eat, preferably something that will give me that “pick me up”  feeling.  I remember my mother made this delicious chocolate oatmeal.  I was craving it, so I decided to make my own version using the Godiva hot cocoa that my friend gave me or the Ghirardelli premium hot cocoa chocolate mocha flavor.  Mmm…

You have probably tried everything there is for breakfast, right?  Well, you haven’t tried this.

Ingredients:

• 1 packet (1.58 oz.) of instant Quaker Weight Control Banana Bread oatmeal (has 7 g protein, 6 g fiber, 1 g sugar) or an oatmeal of your choice
• 1 tablespoon Godiva hot cocoa or Ghirardelli premium hot cocoa chocolate mocha flavor
• 1 cup water
• Fried plantain
• Fresh mango cubes
• Toasted coconut
• 1 oz. Ghirardelli dark chocolate, melted

Directions:

1. Add water to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Add the Godiva hot cocoa or Ghiradelli premium hot cocoa chocolate mocha and oatmeal. Stir.
3. Cook for 2 -3 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Serve in a bowl with the mango and plantain.
5. Sprinkle with toasted coconut and drizzle with the melted dark chocolate.  Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

If you like this post or my blog, don’t forget to Subscribe and Follow to get the latest recipes.  Thank you!

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©annascuisine.wordpress.com (2013)   Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material herein without expressed and written consent from this blog’s author, Annabelle Bedell, is strictly and completely prohibited.

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