What's in a Name?

Everyone knows that when you come to the UK from the US (and vice versa) you will encounter different names for a few things. Fries are chips, chips are crisps, and cookies are biscuits. Or are they?

Jammy dodgers, custard creams, bourbons, and digestives are all fantastic (and undoubtedly delicious) examples of the quintessential British biscuit. They are crunchy, often have a layer of filling between two biscuits, and are great for dunking in tea as they tend to maintain their structural integrity despite being introduced to a liquid environment. The chocolate chip, peanut butter, and oatmeal raisin American counterparts on the other hand are chewy, have chucks of extra ingredients mixed in the dough to give it texture, and, in true American fashion, are generally bigger. Though by these broad definitions, we've been eating Girl Scout and Oreo biscuits all along! In the words of Hercule Poirot, sacrebleu!

Jumbled definitions aside, my favourite cookie/biscuit is, and always will be, the ginger snap. As perfected by my grandmother and passed down to my mother and then to me, these cookies (they are chewy and American and can therefore be classified as nothing else) are an absolute delight. My mom usually saved them for special occasions such as holidays and celebrations (though they never were strongly associated with any particular holiday like jello salad and Christmas - perhaps I'll attempt that this year). I'll never forget how pleased I was with myself when I successfully completed my first batch unassisted as a welcome home surprise for the family when they went on vacation to Vancouver and I stayed home to take care of the pets and house.

My little sister and me with a fresh batch of ginger snaps!

Now these cookies have become somewhat of a signature dish for me. Though I struggle to find some of the ingredients out here (particularly the shortening and molasses), each batch has been a huge hit with the friends and coworkers who have tried them. They have certainly become a part of the new holiday traditions I make for myself as I navigate the sometimes difficult waters of spending Thanksgiving and Christmas away from family. It's amazing what a little taste of home can do!

Making ginger snaps on the houseboat. Pay no mind to Carl's delicious Christmas puds.

Ginger Snap Cookies (a la Grandma Rosaline Huppert)

perfect ginger snaps courtesy of my Mom (henceforth known as Mum)

Ingredients

3/4 cup shortening (Crisco butter flavour sticks work best)

1 cup sugar (granulated)

1/4 cup molasses (black treacle will do in a pinch)

1 egg

2 tsp baking soda

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

Directions

1. Mix shortening, sugar, eggs, and molasses well.

2. Blend dry ingredients together and add to first mixture. Mix.
3. Form into 1 inch balls, roll  in granulated sugar and place on cookie sheet, 2 inches apart.
4. Bake at 375°F for 8-10 minutes.

Ginger snaps consumed in LA, Oslo, Cambridge, and Chicago!

I have shared this recipe with several people already and my grandmother loves hearing about how here cookies are enjoyed by many different families now. Please let me know if you try these cookies (pictures would be even better) so I can pass the word along!

Until next time, happy baking! x

The Art of the Sunday Roast

Carl and his roommate at the time (now proud houseboat owner and frequent dinner guest) were the first to introduce me to the wonders of the traditional British Sunday roast. Together, they would roast a chicken (or two if necessary) almost every Sunday for dinner and immediately tried to bring me in on the routine. For a couple months I would sit in awe on a stool in the corner of the kitchen while either one or both of them seemed to effortlessly produce a perfectly timed roast. Sometimes I would try to help with peeling the potatoes or reminding them that we needed some veg (usually carrots or peas).

Every Sunday they would attempt to convince me that now was the time for me to do the roast on my own. I stubbornly refused until finally Carl explained that the timing was not as difficult as it seemed. With Carl occupying my usual position on the kitchen stool, I managed to complete my very first Sunday roast! A few weeks later Carl bought a roasting tin for me on the condition that I would use it every Sunday I was in my flat - just like he had agreed to do with the tin he had inherited from his former roommate (it didn't fit in his houseboat's aga).

my first solo roast

Since then, roast chicken has become a solid standard in my cooking repertoire and I do it every week or so (even if it isn't a Sunday) because the leftover chicken is great for putting in sandwiches, salads, wraps, and pasta for lunches during the week. However, I have made my own little American mark on this great British institution by convincing Carl and his current roommate that corn on the cob is the veg of choice to accompany such a meal!

modified roast after a bit of practice

The key to the perfect Sunday roast is timing (and a bit of goose fat). Nothing compares to the exhilaration of having everything ready to place on the table at the same time regardless of sides. I love having corn, stuffing, and gravy with my roasts but all you really need is chicken and potatoes:

Roast Chicken and Potatoes (a la Carl)

Ingredients

1 whole chicken

potatoes (see additional notes)

salt

pepper (coarse ground)

oil (I like to use olive or sunflower)

goose fat

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C
2. Place the whole chicken on one side of the roasting tin and pour oil on the chicken and the other side of the tin. Both the chicken and the tin should be coated but not drenched in oil. I usually pour about 2 tablespoons of oil into the palm of my hand and rub it into the chicken then add a bit more to the tin and spread it around with my hand.
3. Sprinkle salt and crushed black pepper on the skin of the chicken. A few pinches of each should do. Be sure to get some on the legs as well so the skin will be crispy all over.
4. Put the chicken in the oven for 45 minutes.
5. While the chicken is roasting, peel and chop the potatoes into 3 or 4 even sized pieces.
6. After the chicken has been in the oven for 45 minutes, remove the tin from the oven and place one or two heaping tablespoons of goose fat on the empty side of the tin. Use the spoon to help melt the fat more quickly. Once the fat has melted, add the potatoes. Be sure to spoon the oil/fat over the potatoes so that they are coated on all sides.
7. Put the tin back in the oven for another hour. Turn the potatoes every 15-20 minutes and spoon over more oil/fat so they are cooked evenly.

Additional notes

We tend to use Maris Piper but Russet potatoes should work just as nicely in the US. The only thing that can ruin this roast is running out of potatoes so I always end up preparing more than I need. I find two potatoes per person is a good starting point and add or remove some depending on how hungry everyone is feeling (or if I know one of my friends tends to eat a lot). The good news is that you can re-roast the leftovers the following day for a quick bite! You can also make the potatoes extra crunchy by boiling them (after they have been peeled and chopped) for about ten minutes and then roughening up their surfaces by shaking them in the pan with the lid on.


Roasts have become such an integral part of my Sundays that I even prepared a roast when I flew back to LA to visit my family! I invited one of my friends who spent a year studying in England as well and she was absolutely thrilled to be having chicken and roasties (potatoes) again. Just like I crave Mexican food whenever I fly into LA, a roast is my meal of choice (second only perhaps to bangers and mash - but that deserves a post of its own) whenever I come back home to England.

my modified roast with a glass of Pimm's made LA feel like London for an evening

Until next time, happy roasting! x

Intro to Filipino

George Bernard Shaw has often been quoted as describing America and England as "two nations divided by a common language." Similarly, Oscar Wilde once said 

"We really have everything in common with America nowadays except, of course, language".

Wherever the sentiment came from, I can certainly relate. People often like to 'take the mick' out of me when I use words like soccer instead of football (and sometimes vice versa - I can never win), pants instead of trousers (pro tip: you'll get funny looks if you utter the phrase corduroy pants in public), and any socal favourites such as dude, totally, like, and wicked. I still haven't quite figured out the appropriate response to strangers greeting me with a friendly "you alright?" (which really is just a way of saying how are you and not checking to see if you have any broken bones).

However, beneath the differences in pronunciation, spelling, and phrases, the English language as separated by the giant pond known as the Atlantic also harbours cultural nuances. In the US, the question "where are you from?" (or even "what are you?") will usually illicit a long winded response about the person's heritage and how their family originally came to the States. For example, I would typically respond that I am half Filipino and half (mostly) German and that while my great-great-great (I think) grandfather on my mother's side came to the US from Germany through Ellis Island and settled in Wisconsin next to author Laura Ingalls Wilder (during her Little House in the Big Woods period), I am technically only a second generation American because my grandparents on my father's side came to the US from the Philippines. In a country consisting almost entirely of immigrants (and their decedents) which places great importance on individuality, people wear their heritage as a badge of honour. 

If I tried to give a similar response I would probably be thought of as a bit mad (though I doubt many strangers would drop the stereotypical politeness to laugh in my face). Instead of being Filipino or even a hapa - a term for a person of mixed Asian or Pacific Islander heritage which apparently has not made its way into British vocabulary - I am simply referred to as the American.

I'll skip the full lesson in British history but if I had to make slightly educated guess, I would say years and years of fighting between groups in the British Isles, limited movement of the inhabitants, and difficulty tracing anything further back than the relatively short timespan of US existence has resulted in the people choosing to identify themselves by their nationality as opposed to their heritage. For instance, my friends from Glasgow and Swansea would see themselves as Scottish and Welsh respectively (and yes, they all hate the English and love to cheer for any opposing team for all sporting events).

So when I first arrived here, it sometimes felt a bit strange to be identified by my nationality (my accent is a dead giveaway) and not my heritage. I decided the best way to deal with my minor identity crisis was with food and have been happily been preparing some of my grandmother's favourite Filipino dishes. One which is particularly close to my heart is chicken adobo. I have had to make a few modifications now that I am currently without a slow cooker but it still has been a big hit with all of my friends.

Housemates and me having Filipino Food Night

Grandma Aurea's Chicken Adobo

Ingredients

3lb chicken (breast cut into pieces or whole thighs and legs)

1/2 tbsp white wine vinegar

1/2 cup soy sauce (I prefer low sodium)

4 garlic cloves crushed

4 bay leaves

1/2" chopped ginger root

5 black peppercorns (leave whole)

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in a pan, cover, and marinate for 1-2 hours.

2. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Uncover and simmer for 15 minutes.

The chicken is best served over rice. In England, basmati seems to be the most common type but I have found that 'sushi rice' (sold in Oriental/Asian markets) is a good approximation for the typical white (sticky) rice that I am used to eating. Recently I have taken to serving green beans on the side using a recipe I found here. I have also discovered that it is okay to leave the chicken uncovered and simmering for a bit longer if you need more time to get the other components of the meal together.

Chicken adobo, green beans, and rice all timed to perfection! 

Sautéed Green Beans and Mushrooms 

Ingredients

500g green beans, trimmed

200g mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup butter (I used margarine and it worked just as well)

1 onion, chopped

1 tsp garlic powder (garlic salt also works)

3 tbsp water

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. In a pan, melt butter and saute garlic, onion and mushrooms.
2. Add green beans and pour water then season with salt and pepper.
3. Bring to boil and simmer over low heat for 5 minutes or until beans are tender and crisp.
4. Transfer to serving plate then serve.

I have several other Filipino dishes up my sleeve and will hopefully find time to post them soon! 

Until next time, mangan tayon! x

When Life Gives you Lemon (Extract)

I'm halfway through a nice long post about ethnicity and my favourite Filipino dishes but I thought I should really try to get at least one recipe up here. 

In March, I was given the opportunity to attend a conference in Paris on French nuclear standards and at the last minute Carl decided to tag along. On our last day, we visited a patisserie which Carl's mum recommended and Carl tried macaroons for the first time. Needless to say, he became hooked (just like I was already).  So when Carl and his flatmate acquired the most amazing food processor/blender/general awesome kitchen gadget we knew we would have to try our hand at macaroons. You can get the basic recipe here.

For our first attempt, we made a pistachio version. We followed the instructions (including the last little bit of the chef's tip) which included replacing half of the ground almonds in the meringue with ground pistachios, adding green food colouring, and mixing some chopped pistachios in the buttercream filling. We found that a ridiculous amount of food colouring was required to give the meringue a nice green hue but after we removed them from the oven, the green was hardly noticeable. They tasted great but we decided to save the pictures until we could get the macaroons to look as good as they tasted!

We planned for weeks to do a second batch but never seemed to have enough time on the weekends. We finally made a pact not to leave the flat on Sunday until we made the long awaited treats. I came up with the idea ages ago and was absolutely thrilled with the result. So, without further ado:

Lemon Raspberry Macaroons

lemon raspberry macaroon displayed beautifully by Carl

Ingredients

175g icing sugar

125g ground almonds

3 large free-range egg whites

75g caster sugar

1.5 tbsp lemon extract

yellow food colouring gel

raspberry jam

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Whizz the icing sugar and ground almonds in a food processor to a very fine mixture, then sift into a bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites with a pinch of salt to soft peaks, then gradually whisk in the caster sugar until thick and glossy. Stir in the lemon extract and food colouring carefully.

3. Fold half the almond and icing sugar mixture into the meringue and mix well. Add the remaining half, making sure you use a spatula to cut and fold the mixture until it is shiny and has a thick, ribbon-like consistency as it falls from the spatula. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm plain nozzle.

4. Line 2 baking sheets with baking paper. Pipe small rounds of the macaroon mixture, about 3cm across, onto the baking sheets. Give the baking sheets a sharp tap on the work surface to ensure a good 'foot'. Leave to stand at room temperature for 10-15 minutes to form a slight skin. This is important - you should be able to touch them lightly without any mixture sticking to your finger. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.

5. Match up the macaroons according to size and use the jam to bind the flat faces of two rounds together.

We found that the jam made these slightly soggy the next day so I recommended only adding the filling at most a few hours before you plan on enjoying these lovely treats.

Next weekend, Carl and I are planning on making some more macaroons with different flavours. At the moment, we're thinking about doing chocolate, Nutella, or possibly salted caramel. Hopefully they'll come out just as nice!

Until next time, enjoy! x

261 and 774

A few weeks ago I bought a new book: 1000 things to do in London. I've been living in England for almost two years now and have worked my way through most of the main tourist attractions (especially once I started to take the train down almost every weekend to see Carl). We thought trying some of the things in this book would be a fun way to make sure we take advantage of all London has to offer and decided to kick things off with a couple local places.

261: Eat ice-cream at Gelateria Danieli

I made the mistake of forgetting to take pictures, but I'm still going to cross this one off the list. Gelateria Danieli is a quaint little shop right beside the Richmond Green. With the recent spate of exceptionally hot weather (by London standards at least), we decided it was the right time to grab some ice cream. Carl was up first and ordered a scoop of coffee in a cone. My years of experience eating gelato on orchestra tours paid off as I wisely asked for the special. I was rewarded with a scoop of tiramisu gelato that tasted like heaven (and oddly enough, an awful lot like the world's best gelato served at a tiny restaurant tucked away somewhere in Venezia). I begrudgingly shared a bit of mine in exchange for some of Carl's coffee as we walked over to the Green to find a place to sit. In the end, we couldn't decide who had won the 'dish-off'. I guess that means we'll have to come back for round two!

774: Drink in a German beer garden

As soon as we walked into the beer garden I felt like I was back in Munich again. It is all open air seating at long wooden tables right by the river with a little stand where you can place your order and collect your beer. I knew we came to the right place when I spotted someone walk by with a pint of Erdinger (a wheat beer from a town just outside Munich that I visited a couple years ago). I decided to make this my treat so I had Carl grab us a couple of seats at the end of one of the tables and ordered two bratwurst plates and two pints of Erdinger. While I was waiting in the queue to collect the beers, Carl frantically tried to get my attention and ended up resorting to calling me. He had seen a man sit down at a nearby table with a giant stein (a full litre of beer!) and was now desperate to have one of his own. Unfortunately it was too late to change the order so we tucked in and vowed to get steins next time.

Erdinger and bratwurst! 

Halfway through our tasty meal one of the employees walked past our table carrying an enormous platter absolutely bursting with assorted meats and potato based sides. We must have practically been salivating at the sight because we walked over to us afterwards to explain that it was meant to be shared by a party of 8 people and that you could even reserve your own table (any takers?)! Of course, we were immediately distracted by the woman at the till removing the giant Black Forest gateau from the glass display case and cutting off a slice. Without saying a word, Carl immediately walked straight to the till and ordered a slice for us. Appetites ruined and sweet teeth (tooths?) satiated, we finally gave in and bought a stein to share.

Before

and after: the stein and me!

Stein's has definitely claimed a spot near the top of the list of my favourite places in London. I can't wait to get enough people together for that platter and polish off a stein all by myself!

Until next time, happy eating! x