Calamari Spaghetti

Recently, I saw a Healthy Chinese Cooking Show that actually suggested eating squid, calamari, octopus and cuttlefish to lower your cholesterol.  That was completely news to me as I always thought these have the highest cholesterol level among all other seafood and which should be avoided. But they said when you clean your calamari, squid, octopus and cuttlefish completely (don't eat the internal organ and the eggs), then the cholesterol level is not too bad.  Furthermore, it has good vitamins and minerals that the body needs such as Vitamin B2, B3 and B12, potassium, magnesium, zinc, selenium, iron, protein and phosphorous that are actually good for us.  It also has omega 3 fatty acids such as DHA and EPA which can lower bad cholesterol.  However, how you cook and prepare this is important too, raw (as in sushi), steam, or lightly stir-fry is best compared to batter it and deep-fry and eat it with dipping sauce.  For people with already high cholesterol level, consult with your doctor first as this piece of information is very new to me too.  Food high in cholesterol doesn't mean it will raise your blood cholesterol such as egg and squid, unlike food high in saturated fat.  In any case, moderation is still the key, occasional treat shouldn't be a problem.

Purple Sweet Potato Mochi Cake

The inspiration of making this mochi cake came from a Korean mom that I talked to.  I never thought of adding sweet potato into a mochi cake until I tasted some that she made.  Hers was different with orange sweet potato and some other things that she added (she didn't give me the recipe though).  Since I LOVE the purple sweet potato because of the color and sweetness, I wanted to recreate her recipe and hence this recipe was born.  I was glad to say that it was a success and we all loved it very much.  On the day it was baked, the crust was crusty and the mochi was chewy with the sweetness from the sweet potato and a little sourness from the raisins, just perfect!  The crust will turn soft on the 2nd day but just as chewy and delicious!  This is definitely my keeper recipe that I want to make all the times.  Next time I want to try it with taro and play with this recipe a little.  Feedback to me if you ever try it!

Seriously it was so hard to stop at just one piece, got to have two!!  Self-control....self-control....

Crispy Pumpkin Cookies

Yeah!  I did it!  I managed to create a crispy pumpkin cookies!!!  Two years ago, I tried my hand on soft pumpkin cookies which I didn't really like as I preferred my cookies to be crisp and tasted like cookies instead of cake.  I told myself that I was going to experiment and come out with a crispy cookie recipe but never really gotten to do it.  So, this year I took on the challenge and happy to announce that I created a delicious crispy pumpkin cookies that we all liked and easy to make.

As you know, my recipe got to be easy to whip up.  And this recipe only required a hand whisk!!  What a plus right for busy mom or for someone who just want to make cookies fast with minimally washing required.  I added the dried cranberries just because I have about 1/2 cup left and I wanted to finish it.  You can omit it or use raisins or chocolate chips, it's up to you!

Your house will smell like pumpkin and spices when you bake these cookies.  My girls totally loved this and said it tasted like pumpkin.  I think the cinnamon and cloves paired really well to bring up the full flavor of this cookie.  Warning:  It is hard to resist, so self-control needed in eating these cookies!

Stir-Fried King Oyster Mushroom

This recipe was adapted from Growing Up in a Korean Kitchen, a cookbook.  In this cookbook, it has a recipe called sauteed oyster mushroom with scallops.  I didn't have oyster mushroom nor scallops, but I have a packet of king oyster mushroom.  I was interested in trying out the sauce from that recipe.  It has a combination of soy sauce and lemon juice.  Interesting sauce, sourish because of the lemon juice.

Banana Carrot Pulp Muffins

With the frozen bananas and carrot pulp in the freezer, I thought of why not just combined the two?  Hence, this muffin was created.  It took the fragrant of banana and not a bad eat I tell you.  This muffin cup that I used made a big muffin so my girls only had half as their breakfast.  I added walnut in this too!

I think the banana flavor stood up because I used canola oil (neutral) and all-purpose flour (neutral).  It might taste and smell different with different oil and flour used for instance olive oil and whole wheat flour, might even have a different texture too. 

Showing you the inside of this muffins.  It's moist and soft with the fragrant of banana!

Sweet and Sour Salmon Fish

This is a remake recipe of my recipe here.  While trying to think of a different way to serve my salmon, I remembered I once cooked a sweet and sour sauce that I liked.  When I went to look for the recipe, alas!  it was without any measurement!!  Now I know it must be hard for beginner to create a sauce based on the ingredients listed.  So, I wrote it down for you and also for myself (convenient) and my girls (they won't know how much soy sauce to add or how much sugar or vinegar to put, etc. to create a sweet and sour sauce!).  Anyway, I measured the amount, pen it down and tried it myself and we all loved it, it turned out delicious so I shared it here with my readers.

Believe it or not, I frequently came to my own blog to look for my old recipes that I have forgotten (old age?).  I have created lots of recipes over the years and I am actually glad that I documented them in this blog which I can always come back and refer to, even when I am in another country or someone else kitchen.