Whistle While You Cook

Merging my love of fantasy with my passion for food

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Judy Hopp’s Ginger Carrot Cake

I’ve been MIA for a while and it’s because I came down with a nasty sinus infection which was the worst, but I’m feeling much better now and decided to make a cake for Easter, albeit a day or two late. It’s the thought that counts right? So what's more appropriate for Easter than a carrot cake? Yes, I know. Carrot cake. For Easter. Groundbreaking. However, I'm confident that this is one of the most delicious carrot cakes you'll ever taste! Loaded with spices and plenty of ginger, it warms the body as you eat it and the flavors really bring out the flavor of the carrots while giving it a spice edge. With plenty of crystallized ginger this cake definitely packs a punch, much like the heroine of Zootpia, Judy Hopps.

For the cake:

3 1/4 cups flour

1 TBSP ground cinnamon

1 TBSP ground ginger

1 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 TBSP dried orange zest

2 tsp salt

3 cups shredded carrots

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups PLUS 2 TBSP vegetable oil

6 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup chopped walnuts

2 TBSP chopped crystallized ginger

For the frosting:

2 sticks softened butter

2 8 oz packages cream cheese softened

3 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350.

Sift together flour and spices omitting the orange zest.

In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugars and oil until well combined.

Add eggs one at a time until mixture is light and creamy.

Add orange zest and vanilla.

Slowly mix in the dry ingredients until mixture just comes together.

Fold in the carrots, walnuts, and ginger until well combined.

Pour mix into two well-greased tins and bake for 30-40 min until a toothpick comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 10 min before transferring to a wire rack.

While cake is cooling, make the frosting.

In a mixing bowl combine all the ingredients and whip until light and fluffy.

When cake is completely cooled, slice cakes in half and sandwich with the frosting. Frost completely.

Garnish with chopped walnuts (optional.)

There seems like a lot of spices in this cake, and there are. It's kind of a cross between a spice cake and a carrot cake, but I really feel as if the spices in the cake draw out and enhance the flavor of the carrot and isn't overpowering. I truly love this cake, which is saying a lot because I despise cream cheese frosting (yes I know how could I, sue me. I don't care for it) but anything else feels wrong on this cake. Eat it, enjoy it, and whistle while you cook it.

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Hiro & Tadashi’s Katsudon

Big Hero 6 was a movie that I was able to connect with on a level unlike any other Disney movie from my childhood. It's the mere fact that Big Hero 6's main character is a blend of American and Japenese descent just like me. I'm a quarter Japanese! My father’s mother hails from Yokohama (she’s our “Yokohama mama”) and she passed her recipe for katsudon down to my German mother who passed it down to me. Katsudon is a classic dish in Japan that features a fried pork cutlet (tonkatsu) simmering in a rich soy sauce broth, covered in egg, and served over a bowl of rice (donburi.) Growing up, I remember eating this dish quite a bit. It’s my Dad’s favorite dish and is always requested for his birthday. When I was younger and living in Japan, I had the opportunity to experience many of Japan’s dishes and this quickly turned out to be one of my favorites as well. Like father, like son. I’ve had different variations of this dish over the years but my grandmother's reigns supreme. So without further ado, here’s my favorite katsudon.

serves 2

4 boneless pork cutlets

5 eggs 

1/2 cup flour

1 cup panko

1 TBSP sugar

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup dashi stock (or chicken stock if you  don’t have dashi)

 2 TBSP mirin/rice wine vinegar

1 onion, sliced

1/2 cup snow peas (optional)

rice to serve 

2 scallions sliced

Start by seasoning the pork with salt, then bread the pork cutlets in the flour, then 2 beaten eggs, then finally the panko bread crumbs.

Let the cutlets sit for 10-15 minutes so the panko coating adheres and won’t fall off when frying.

In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar, soy sauce, dashi, and mirin until the sugar disintegrates. 

Heat up an inch of oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry pork cutlets until golden brown, 2-3 minutes per side.

Drain oil and add the sliced onions.

Saute until soft and translucent.

Add the soy sauce mixture and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the snow peas if using.

Slice the pork into strips and lay in the broth.

Take the remaining 3 eggs and lightly beat them. 

Pour eggs around the pork and cover.

Cook until eggs are just set, about 2-3 minutes.

Serve over rice and garnish with scallions.

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Golden Scallop Medallions over Black Pearl Lentils

Pirates of the Caribbean’s fifth installment makes its way to the big screen later on this year. After watching the trailer I went back and rewatched the series and fell in love with William Turner all over again, sorry Jack. 

Pirates of the Caribbean has always been a favorite of mine growing up and being a frequent park visitor. Well, not exactly always. I vividly remember being in Disneyland at the age of 9 and being terrified of going on because of the huge drop in the middle of the ride. I was a very skittish child when it came to rides despite having been on all of them before. So while the rest of my family went on Pirates, I spent my time climbing up and down Tarzan’s Treehouse. Other than that one particular incident, Pirates has always been a park staple. 

My absolute favorite Pirate’s experience, however, goes to Disney Cruise Line’s Pirates in the Caribbean. Mickey and pals show you what it takes to be a pirate and puts your knowledge to the test. Later on, a pirate crew invades the ship and Captain Jack Sparrow arrives to save the night and set off the fireworks show out at sea. My favorite aspect of “Pirate Night” though, is the dinner menu. From conch chowder to tamarind barbecue short ribs, I always look forward to the Pirate’s themed menu. This is my take on a Pirate themed plate, but these medallions won’t force you into eternal damnation.

Golden Scallop Medallions

1 lb sea scallops 20-30*

1 tsp jerk seasoning

1 TBSP golden curry powder 

2 tsp ground turmeric

Rinse scallops and remove side muscle if it’s still attached.

Dry well with a kitchen towel and season with salt. 

Combine the jerk seasoning, curry powder, and turmeric together and dust the scallops.

In a non stick skillet on medium low heat, melt 2 TBSP butter until foamy. 

Sear scallops until golden brown, approximately 2 minutes per side.

Serve over black lentils with red pepper coulis.

“Black Pearl” Lentils

2 cups black lentils 

3 cups chicken stock

½ cup pearl onions

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

2 tsp salt

Bring chicken stock to boil and add the lentils.

Reduce to a simmer and cook 20-25 minutes until liquid is mostly absorbed.

Add pearl onions and cook and additional 5-10 minutes until lentils are tender. 

Finish by seasoning with red wine vinegar and salt.

Red Pepper Coulis

1 jar roasted red peppers, drained

1 jar roasted piquillo peppers, drained

2 TBSP garlic infused olive oil

1 tsp salt

Blend all the ingredients in a blender until smooth. 

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Mrs. Potts’ Tea Biscuits

To say I’ve been excited for the live action retelling of Beauty and the Beast is a gross understatement. I have been biting my nails in anticipation since they first announced that it was actually happening. I saw the first showing on Thursday night and let me just say, I was overcome with emotions. I cried basically the entire movie (which I tend to do a lot just ask any one of my family members) much to the annoyance of my sister. Everything about this movie was sheer perfection in my own humble opinion. The only minor complaint I have is that Audra McDonald did not sing enough for my liking. Seriously, I would listen to her singing Moby Dick, which in my opinion is incredibly dull and I fell asleep multiple times attempting to read, with rapt delight. Aside from the lack of Audra’s incomparable voice, the movie was absolutely flawless. Growing up I had always loved Mrs. Potts and I thought no one would ever be able to provide her voice as well as the great Angela Lansbury, but then they cast Emma Thompson and it was very apparent how wrong I was. I dedicate this recipe to her and Angela, the spirited teapots that taught me that some of life's problems can be solved with a piping cuppa tea.

Mrs. Potts’ Tea Biscuits:

 2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

3 tsp loose leaf tea (I used Lady Grey but you can use any black tea you fancy)

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup (sticks) chilled butter, cut into cubes

Preheat oven to 300F.

Start by blending the sugar and tea together until fine.

Whisk sugar together with flour and salt.

Cut in the butter until pea-sized, then bring the dough together with your hands.

Flatten into a disk, wrap, and chill for 30 minutes.

Roll out the dough and cut into tea bag shapes (or whatever shapes you like but I figured the tea bag shape would be appropriate.)

Bake for 12-15 min until lightly golden brown and the delectable smell of tea is wafting through the house.

Optional: temper 6 oz milk chocolate and dip the ends of the cookies and place on a sheet of parchment paper until set.

These cookies are light, buttery, and have just the perfect hint of tea flavor that pairs beautifully with the milk chocolate. I truly think Mrs. Potts would go head over heels for these delicate little morsels and I hope you enjoy them too! 

Also, bear with me while I try to figure out how to properly photograph my food! 

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Gaston’s Dozen Egg Quiche

 When I was a lad I ate four dozen eggs ev'ry morning to help me get large          And now that I’m grown I eat five dozen eggs, so I’m roughly the size of a barge!

My what a guy, Gaston. Selfish, chauvinistic, brute. I could go on and on but I’ll spare you. In the song Gaston, there’s a running list of everything Gaston is better at than everyone in town and, quite frankly, it seems he’s the best at everything. What inspired me with this recipe is his love of eggs, he eats 5 dozen a day! Now I love eggs as much as the next guy, but 5 dozen a day? I’d probably quit halfway through the first day and never want to see another egg again. It also begs the question: how does he eat all of these eggs? Fried? Scrambled? Hard-boiled? Raw even? The answer is never really given, and I’m probably focusing on the wrong aspect of the movie as there is literally a castle with a Beast inside not too far away, but I was always curious. I was inspired to make a quiche, a French egg tart basically. It uses a lot of eggs, and I could load it up with bacon and sausage to give it another boost of protein for a guy as manly as Gaston. 

To start everything off, I needed to make pastry dough. I used my standard pie crust, but with the addition of paprika for an added boost of flavor. My crust has never failed me, is durable, and has the perfect amount of flakage…I don’t believe that’s an actual word, but I’m going to use it regardless. It starts with a cup and a quarter of flour, half a teaspoon of salt, and two teaspoons of paprika. Using a pastry cutter, cut in 2 sticks of cold butter, cut into cubes. The butter NEEDS to be cold to get that proper flakage (ok, I really enjoy this word.) When the butter gets to be in pea-sized chunks, drizzle in a quarter of a cup of ice water, ice removed. Bring the dough together, being careful not to over mix. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes. 

When your dough has had time to rest, it’s time to roll it out and place it in a 9 inch spring-form pan. A 9 inch spring-form sounds like quite a large pan for a quiche, and normally yes I would agree, however, this is a dozen. egg. quiche. That’s a lot of eggs and I needed a dish large enough to hold not only all the eggs, but all of the other fillings as well. 

Once the dough is in the pan, you’re welcome to trim it now. I wait until after baking as it prevents uneven shrinking of the dough, but trimming at this stage is easier. Dock the dough by piercing it all over the bottom with a fork, place onto a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Allow to cool completely before adding the filling.

For this manly quiche, I went with a leek, bacon, sausage, and goat cheese approach. I started by sauteing 3 leeks, trimmed and washed meticulously, in some butter. Is there anything better than butter? No, there is not. Cook the leeks until they are nice and soft, but not browned. Season with salt and lay along the bottom of the crust. Next comes the bacon, fry up 4 slices of bacon, the thicker the better I always say, chop it up and sprinkle over the leeks. I could have stopped there, but I figured Gaston would need more meat than just bacon, so I added a pound of spicy Italian sausage. Cook the sausage until it’s nice and browned, then before adding to the quiche drain the excess grease off on paper towels. Last, but certainly not least, crumble 4 oz of goat cheese into the mix. Now for the star of the dish: the eggs. Crack one dozen eggs into a large measuring cup or mixing bowl and add a cup and a half of heavy cream. As you can see, this dish is light and diet-friendly. Whisk together with two teaspoons of salt and pour into the the crust. Cover the top with foil and bake at 350 for 40 min. After 40 min are up, remove the foil and bake an additional 35 minutes. Allow to cool before removing the springform lining. Et voila! A quiche as manly as Gaston! Now it only uses a dozen eggs, so he’d need 5 to meet his daily quota, but I think 1 is just enough for me. 

Gaston’s Dozen Egg Quiche

For the crust:

1 ¼ cup flour

½ tsp salt

2 tsp paprika

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, cold, cut into cubes

¼ cup ice water

Preheat oven to 350F

Whisk together the flour, salt, and paprika.

Using a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the flour until butter is the size of peas.

Drizzle in ice water and bring together to form the dough.

Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Roll out the dough and lay it in a 9 inch springform pan. 

Pierce the bottom of the dough with fork and bake for 10 minutes on a baking sheet.

For the quiche:

12 eggs

1 ½ cups heavy cream

3 leeks, washed and chopped

4 slices of thick cut bacon

1 lb spicy Italian sausage

4 oz goat cheese

2 tsp salt

Saute the leeks in butter over medium heat until soft, but not browned, and lay in the bottom of the crust.

Fry up the bacon until crisp. Chop it up and sprinkle over the leeks.

Cook up the sausage, drain, and add to the mix.

Crumble the goat cheese over the rest of the ingredients.

Crack eggs into a bowl and whisk with the cream. Season with salt and pour into the crust. 

Cover with foil. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 35. 

Remove and cool before serving. 

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Belle’s Not-So-Provincial Coq au Vin

In Beauty and the Beast, Belle is constantly dreaming of a life outside of the confines of her small country town. Her favorite story is full of far off places, daring sword fights, magic spells, and even a prince in disguise. Now, people speculate that the story Belle is talking about could be another Disney movie, Aladdin. That movie was still in production when Beauty and the Beast was released, and Disney is know for sliding in Easter eggs in their movies. Recently, however, the director of Beauty and the Beast, Gary Trousdale, has stated it was more of an allusion to meeting the Beast later on in the movie. Whichever way you interpret Belle’s favorite book, I’ve interpreted her dreams of more than her provincial life into a classic French recipe. I’ve seasoned my coq au vin with Middle Eastern spices for an exotic twist that I believe would satisfy Belle’s craving of adventure....even if it’s just through dinner.

4 slices thick cut bacon

2 TBSP Baharat spice mix*

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

8 chicken thighs bone-in, skin on

1/4 cup cognac

4 large carrots sliced thick

1 red bell pepper in a large dice

3 TBSP  flour

2 cups burgundy or bordeaux wine

2 TBSP tomato paste

25 pearl onions (frozen is fine)

1/4 cup green lentils

Start by cutting the bacon into thin strips and place in a large dutch oven (or a large, heavy bottom pot), cooking over low heat to render out the fat until crisp.

Mix together the Baharat, cumin, and smoked paprika and sprinkle over chicken along with salt and rub in. You probably won’t use all the spice mix and that’s ok, we’ll add the rest to the pot later.

Remove the bacon, but keep the fat in the pot.

Sear off the chicken in the bacon grease until browned on all sides. You don’t want to crowd the pot otherwise the chicken will never brown, so you will most likely be doing this in batches. You also don’t need to fully cook the chicken just yet, we’re only browning at this point.

Once all the chicken is browned you can get rid of the excess fat in the pot* and return all the chicken to the pot, at this point it’s alright if the pot is crowded.

Add in the cognac, revel in that wonderful aroma, and use this time to scrape up those wonderful bits on the bottom of the pot. 

Once the cognac has been reduced, sprinkle in the flour and make sure all the pieces of chicken are coated, even if just a little. 

Add the carrots, pepper, tomato paste, and the rest of the spice mix from earlier and cook for a minute before adding the wine and enough chicken stock to have just submerged everything. 

Season with salt and simmer for 5 minutes before adding the lentils.

Simmer for another 30 minutes and serve hot. If you like feel free to garnish with chopped cilantro, I personally detest the taste of cilantro so I did not.

So there you have it. Now yes, traditionally coq au vin is made with coq, or rooster, but they don’t sell rooster in my grocery store. If they do at yours, and you feel like trying it out, I say go for it! I just personally use chicken thighs since they’re much easier to find. You can also use an entire chicken cut up in pieces instead of just thighs, but there’s something rich about the succulent dark meat in this dish that I love. Hopefully, this dish will inspire you to have dreams of far-off, exotic places, just like Belle. 

*Baharat is a Middle Eastern spice blend. If you can’t find it (I found mine at a specialty food store) it’s simple to make. 1 TBSP black peppercorn, 1 TBSP cumin seeds, 2 tsp coriander seeds, 1 tsp whole cloves, 1/2 tsp cardamom seeds toasted in a dry pan over medium-high heat until very fragrant. Transfer to a spice mill (mine is just a coffee grinder specifically for spices only) and allow to cool before grinding. Once ground add 1 1/2 TBSP paprika, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg. Store in an air tight container.

I know my photos aren’t the best right now, but my Mom is the greatest person on the planet and ordered me some lighting equipment and other tools to help take better pictures so the food will look as good as it tastes!

[whistlewhileyoucook-blog]

Once upon a time, in a faraway land, A young Prince lived in a shining castle. Although he had everything his heart desired, The Prince was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. But then, one winter's night, An old beggar woman came to the castle And offered him a single rose In return for shelter from the bitter cold. Repulsed by her haggard appearance, The Prince sneered at the gift, And turned the old woman away. But she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, For Beauty is found within. And when he dismissed her again, The old woman's ugliness melted away To reveal a beautiful Enchantress. The Prince tried to apologize, but it was too late, For she had seen that there was no love in his heart. And as punishment, She transformed him into a hideous beast, And placed a powerful spell on the castle, And all who lived there. Ashamed of his monstrous form, The beast concealed himself inside his castle, With a magic mirror as his only window to the outside world. The Rose she had offered, Was truly an enchanted rose, Which would bloom for many years. If he could learn to love another, And earn her love in return By the time the last petal fell, Then the spell would be broken. If not, he would be doomed to remain a beast For all time. As the years passed, He fell into despair, and lost all hope, For who could ever learn to love... A Beast?

I’d say “Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite Disney movies of all time,” but let’s be honest here, I’m probably going to say that about all Disney movies so we can go ahead and just get that out of the way. Beauty and the Beast really resonates with me: Belle is an outcast in her village, I felt that way throughout school growing up. She escapes reality frequently by reading, I do the same. From Dracula’s Castle in Transylvania to the Nitta okiya from Memoirs of a Geisha, I have traveled to far off places just by the pages of a book. Belle seeks for a more adventurous life than the small town she’s stuck in, and while I may not live in small town, I do often feel stuck and wanting more. I am so excited to see the movie I’ve grown up watching be translated in a live-action re-imagining, and to celebrate the film I’ve decided to dedicate my first few recipes to this tale as old as time. 

Macarons. Very French, very complicated. In actuality, these delicate almond meringue cookies are not as hard as most people make them out to be. Yes things need to be precise, and yes it’s a bit time consuming, but that doesn’t equate to a difficult recipe and I’m hoping this will help.

Enchanted Rose Macarons

100 grams egg whites

45 grams granulated sugar

6 grams dried roses (make sure they are food safe please)

100 grams almond flour

200 grams confectioner’s sugar

2-3 drops pink gel food coloring

Start by grinding granulated sugar and dried roses in either a food processor or blender until fine. In the bowl of a stand mixer add the egg whites and rose sugar and mix until sugar is well absorbed into the egg whites (Normally I would have a picture here but in my excitement I forgot to take photos as I went along...oops!) Starting with the mixer on a speed setting of 4 whip the eggs and sugar for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, increase speed to 6 and whip another 2 minutes. Can you guess what’s next? Increase the speed to 8 and whip another 2 minutes!! Well, actually, whip for 90 seconds, then add the food coloring, and finish out the last 30 seconds. The meringue should be at the stiff peak stage, if not keep whipping until it is. The stiff peak stage is when you take the whisk out of the bowl and the meringue forms a stiff peak at the end, funny how that works out, huh? You could also test the stability of your meringue by turning the bowl upside down, over an unknowing friend’s head is always more fun, and the meringue will stay in the bowl instead of plopping onto your victim’s head. Once you have your meringue at the right stage, sift the almond flour and powdered sugar over the top and start folding: 37-40 times to be exact. The mixture should start getting a little runny and not be a stiff meringue anymore. The best way to test if you’re ready to start piping, that is if you aren’t sure and need to check, is to take a spoon of the macaron mixture and drop it onto a plate. If the batter smooths over and settles, but doesn’t spread, it’s ready. Fill a piping bag and start piping! I have a wonderful silicon macaron sheet that has nifty little circles that I pipe into and it makes life a lot easier....well at least when it comes to making delicate french cookies. I highly recommend getting one, their inexpensive and last a lifetime. If you don’t have one then just get some parchment paper and a small cookie cutter and draw circles on the backside of the paper. Flip over and pipe! Tap the tray against a counter to release any hidden air bubbles and let sit and dry. I usually like to let them sit no less than an hour just to ensure that they’re going to be perfect when they come out of the oven. Speaking of, you should probably preheat that to 350F while you wait. The macarons are ready to bake when you lightly touch the top and it’s nice and dry. They should also have a nice shine to them. Bake for 11 minutes, and when they come out allow them to rest for 5 minutes before carefully lifting off the baking sheet. 

Swiss Meringue Buttercream with Candied Roses 

2 egg whites

120 grams granulated sugar

250 grams unsalted butter, softened. 

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tbsp finely chopped candied roses

So there’s my rose macaron shell, but I really wanted to drive home the rose flavor, so I made a swiss meringue buttercream with chopped candied rose petals. Swiss Meringue buttercream, to me, is the best buttercream. It’s sweet without being too sweet, it has a nice structure when piping, and the texture is marshmallow-y and perfect. Some may find it a bit daunting and, once again, it takes time to make, but the end result is oh so worth it. In the bowl of a stand mixer over a pot of simmering water combine the egg whites and sugar and whisk until well combined. Side note: Don’t let the bottom of the bowl touch the water, it should be suspended over it allowing the steam so heat the bowl gently. With the aid of a candy thermometer, cook until it reaches 140F. Bring the bowl over to the stand mixer and start whipping. Whip until the bottom of the bowl is cool to the touch and it looks like you have a bowl of whipping melted marshmallow. It takes a couple of minutes so have patience! If you add the butter before the bowl and meringue in turn are cooled down enough you’ll melt the butter, the mixture will turn into a soupy mess and things will not taste good, so be like Belle and read while you wait! Once the meringue is cooled properly, start adding softened butter gradually by the spoonful, allowing the previous spoonful to be fully incorporated before adding the next. Once all the butter is added add the vanilla, roses, and if you’re so inclined a drop or two of pink food dye. 

When the shells and buttercream are both ready, pipe a layer of buttercream onto half of the macaron shells and sandwich with the other half. Yes I know that probably goes without saying but hey, I’m trying to be thorough here. Now if you’re impatient like me, start digging in. Hey, you made them after all, you deserve it! Or store in an airtight container and store in the fridge overnight. When you do this, the flavor gets a bit more intense and the shells soften just slightly to be perfect, or I may be crazy and none of that happens except in my own head. In any case, I’m definitely making another batch of these for the premiere of Beauty and the Beast and sneaking them into the theater to enjoy!

A couple of things to note when making macarons: 1. Use a clean, grease-free bowl (wipe it down with a paper towel with a little lemon juice or vinegar if you’re unsure.)  2. It is possible to over whip the meringue. Stop just at the stiff peak stage. 3. I find the best way to pipe the macarons is by keeping the piping bag straight up and down and piping directly downward.