Wood Tavern

WOOD TAVERN is one of my favorite restaurants in this lovely college town – Berkeley. It is one of those restaurants I immediately fell in love with on my first visit and continue to manage to meet my expectation every time. So when I was scratching my head on where to take my mom for her birthday this year, Wood Tavern conveniently came to mind due to its consistency in maintaining quality new American style cuisine.

Wood Tavern offers a limited seasonal menu that rotates every season. I noticed, however, that while other dishes on the menu changes, there is one dish manages to make its way through the seasonal menu every season - the super thick cut pork chop, which is also my favorite dish here. I can't resist to order it every time I spot it on the menu. As I highly recommended this dish, both of my parents ordered this dish.

We started off with the house bread. The bread was decent. But I only had a small piece as I wanted to leave room for the meal


We order two bowl of aparagus soup as appertizers for my parents. I took a few spoonful and it was quite tasty. The cream, while adding to the pretty presentation, also added a nice kick to the soup so it didn't taste too greeny.

Ju 姐 and I order its famous pork belly to share. The pork belly was really tender and yet cripy on the outside with a nice glaze. I especially liked the plums and figs that went with it. It's really refreshing.

this is the famous grilled double-cut pork chop with bacon, corn, potato and masala cream saurce. The summer sweet corn goes so perfectly with the masala source. The sauce was so addicting that I tempted to dipped the bread in there (excuse my blurry picture please)!

Since both my dad and mom ordered my favorite dish, I thought I would try something new this time. I order the shrimp risotto, which turned out to be a nice surprise! The risotto was cook to perfection, al dented and the saurce had the perfect shrimp taste. One of the best shrimp risotto (in white source) I've ever had. Of course, those who knows me, my favorite risotto is still with La Siciliana Trattoria down the street. hehe!

Ju 姐 is a meat lover, so she ordered the grilled rib eye steak. It didn't say how many ounce this thing was on the menu, but from what it looked like..I believe it's at least 8 oz! The quality of the meat was really good

Dad and Mom and Ju Jei.

We order the warm chocolate cake for dessert the birthday cake (i originally meant to bake my mom a birthday cake but didn't have the time as I was in the middle of another S-1 filing :( )

The chocolate cake comes with a freshly home-made mint ice cream. When I said freshly made I really meant it made in house becase I could taste that they use fresh mint leave! I've never liked mint ice cream but this came in a pleasant surprise. I guess now I can't say I don't like mint ice cream.

Overall, the food was amazing as always. What I found out this time around that impressed me it's the dessert. I am sure I will come back for another special occasion..maybe when he comes.

Tonkasu Ramen @ Izakaya Sozai

I didn't use to like noodle soup/ramen/pho, or simply anything drench in a soup form. Now that whenever I see soup or noodle soup on the menu, regardless where and what I am eatting, I found myself attracted to ordering my daily dose of soup. I blame all this to one of my dearest roommies, Galeen, or Mrs. Wong soon-to-be, or the soup devil! Galeen is an all time soup lover. And if there is one thing she could not live w/o on her food list, it would be SOUP! When we were roomming with her, we made sure soup was always a stable on the dinner table.

So yesterday, after Galeen's UCSF graduation ceremony, we had lunch in Sunset area. We parked our car near Izakaya Sozai and was reminded of their yummy Tonkasu Ramen. As the name entails, Izakaya Sozai is an Izakaya house and not a ramen joint. However, they have got one of the best bowl of Tonkasu Ramen in the bay area. I have had try quite a few ramen joints in the area as well as trying the real ones in Japan, I think this place serves decent ramen. I remember when I first tried out this place when they first opened, I came for the Izakaya (small plates). Since it's Izakaya style, they serve everything small plate and the menu was quite limited, so when we saw filling ramen on the menu we gave it a try. While everything on the menu was mediocre, the ramen was surpringly great. It's nothing fancy, but straight to the point: tasty pork broth, half cooked egg, sheet of seaweed, and springles of union. The noodle was bouncy and chewy too. Now when we return to Izakaya Sozai, we return for the ramen and only complement our meal with the small plates.

btw, their ramen is now on the 2011 SF 100 things to try list
http://www.7x7.com/big-eat-2011-100-things-try-san-francisco-you-die

古法炆牛腩

昨天Mr. F問我這個周末是否又再家煮新菜. 我說不會因為根本沒打計劃甚麼新菜要拭. 後來媽媽早上告訴我說給我買了牛腩要求我煮. 註: 媽媽因不吃牛的關系所以通常不會煮牛的菜式. 如此如此這麼這麼, 我end up cooking this weekend.

這個炆牛腩的recipe其實好簡單, 是牛腩的最基本煮法. 不過好吃的食物通常做法都是最原始的. Back to the basic 嘛! 所以雖然簡單我也想在這跟你們分享 :)

小tips: 牛腩汆水後，下柱侯醬炒過才炆，比沒炒過的更入味香口. 柱侯醬配合上湯一同炆牛腩，更滋味。

材料
黃牛坑腩︰ 3lbs

蘿蔔︰ 2lbs

陳皮︰ 3塊

蒜茸︰ 3湯匙

生薑: 數片

調味料
柱侯醬︰ 5湯匙

上湯︰ 4湯勺

蠔油︰ 3湯匙

鹽︰ 1/3湯匙

冰糖︰2湯匙

酒︰1湯匙

濕生粉︰ 2湯匙

做法
1.將牛坑腩切件（每件分量約兩隻麻雀牌般大小），放入滾水中汆水八分鐘，盛起過冷河。2.把蘿蔔切件，切成斧頭形狀，放在滾水中汆水約兩分鐘，盛起。3.下大半湯勺油，爆香蒜茸、陳皮和柱侯醬。4.下牛腩及蘿蔔同炒，灒酒，加入上湯、蠔油、鹽、糖及老抽。5.轉用瓦煲以慢火炆一個多小時後，下生粉芡使醬汁變稠身。

Original reference: 高校教室

Mini Fruit Tarts

As things slow down on BSE (client) last week, and as an appreciation to their helps this year, I baked them a batch of mini fruit tarts. I have made large fruit tarts before. Making mini fruit tarts, however, it's my first time. The recipe and procedures are the same. The only difference is that you are working off mini pieces pastry dough vs. the one huge dough you need to roll out for the big tarts. And as expected, rolling out the mini dough is much easier because when the dough is smaller the risk of breaking into clumps and cracks become smaller. In case you haven’t read my post on fruit tarts below, the single biggest stumbling blocks to tart baking (in my opinion) is rolling out the tart dough. So if you are an amateur baker like me and would like to try out making tarts, it’s probably a good idea to start with mini fruit tarts.

Since I have shared the fruit tart recipe in my previous post, I am not going to repeat it again. Everything else is the same except for the portion. This time I have doubled the portion of the recipe to make 16 oval shaped tarts and 17 mini muffin tine tarts.

This is the oval shaped tart mold ("聖安娜蛋撻mold") I bought from my HK visit this past winter.

extra mini tart using the mini muffin tin.

Assortment of mini fruit tarts using my favorite fruits: strawberry, blueberry, and kiwi. Love the color!

I brought this batch to BSE and everyone loves it. This is the beauty and joy of working in the kitchen. It felt so good to be able to make something with your hands that people enjoy and appreciate. There was this lawyer who tried my tart and came in my office to share his cooking experience with me. Before this, I would have never thought he go into the kitchen at all. Again, food does magically bring people together and it often strikes good conversations with people whom you did not think you could have bonded with.

Tiramisu

I just realized I've never made a post on Tiramisu! Tiramisu is my very first experience doing real baking at home. Tiramisu often gives people a "difficult to make" impression due to its complex taste. Though I probably wouldn't recommend it to entry level bakers, I actually don't think tiramisu is as difficult as it sounds. It's a simple "no-bake" cake that also involves mixing of all ingredients. The only key to make it tastes right it's getting the correct proportion of espresso and liquor (tips: my experience has taught me the type of liquor also makes a big difference. For the below recipe I have used Bailey as I found it blend in best with espresso).

This is a tiramisu Ca and I made for Ju姐's birthday last week. For this cake, we had used a 7'' springform pan which serves 8 people. However, please note that the recipe presents below is for a bigger pan (9x13'' pan). So you might want to do the math to adjust all ingredients proportionally if you want make a 7'' cake.

Ingredients:
7 yolks
½ cup (100g) sugar (or less 75g) – ½ for yolks and ½ for white
3 8-oz. (227g) container mascarpone
41/2 tablespoons water
11/2 tablespoons powdered gelatin (use less next time – 1 Tbsp)
3 egg whites
1 cup heavy cream, whipped (dissolve 1 Tbsp espresso powder into cream before whipping)
2 cups cooled espresso
1 cup liquor (I used Bailey)
20-24 ladyfingers
Cocoa powder

For ladyfingers, I personally prefer to use the packaged ones (below) instead of the freshly baked ladyfingers find in local bakery/grocery stores because packaged ladyfingers are thicker, and can absorb more espresso/liquor mixture without getting too soggy so the to keep their shape better.

Directions:
1) In a large mixing bowl stir to combine the whipping cream and the espresso powder. Cover and chill the bowl and beaters in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
2) Pour water into a small bowl then pour powdered gelatin over it. Do no stir. Allow gelatin to absorb all of the water (about 15 minutes) then place the bowl on top of a small saucepan containing simmering water (creating a double boiler).
3) Immediately turn off the heat and allow the gelatin to dissolve completely.
4) In a mixer with the whip attachment, whip yolks and ½ of the sugar until thick and pale in color (ribbon stage).
5) Add mascarpone and whip until well incorporated
6) In a separate bowl, whip egg whites to a soft beak, gradually add ½ of the sugar, then slowly pour in dissolved gelatin. Whip to a stiff, glossy peak
7) When the whipping cream is chilled, beat the mixture until stiff peaks form.
8) Fold whites into mascarpone and yolk mixture then fold in whipped cream.
9) In a separate bowl, combine espresso and liquor.
10) Soak 1 ladyfinger at a time in the espresso mixture.

If you are making round shaped tiramisu using a springform pan, soak ladyfingers in espresso mixture and line up again the rims. Also place some ladyfingers side by side in a single layer over the bottom of the pan. Spoon 1/3 of the cream fillings over the ladyfingers making sure they are completely covered.

Repeat with another layer of ladyfingers by dipping them in the coffee/liquor mixture and placing them on top of the cream. Again, cover the ladyfingers with a layer of cream. Cover the Tiramisu with plactic wrap and refrigerate at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.

To serve: remove the plactic wrap from the top of the tiramisu, sift cocoa powder over the top of the tiramisu or decocrate with shedded chocolate.

I made two layers, but you can make as many as you like depending on the size of your pan.

Very chocolaty chocolate cheesecake

A very belated post again. I made this chocolate cheesecake to celebrate dearest Ca's birthday. Since Ca is a chocolate lover, I thought of making her something with a chocolaty. I found this recipe from one of my favorite bloggers' website: http://lateliervi.blogspot.com and it seems pretty legit. Cheesecake is one of the easiest and yummiest cake to bake and it could never go wrong! So I baked this for her w/o having to take a first try myself. Luckily it turn out to be very delicious.

Make one 8 inches (1 ½ high) cake

Cheese mixture 300g cream cheese200ml whipping cream120g caster sugar2 whole eggs4tbs cocoa powder4tsp freshly squeeze lemon juiceCrust180g Oreo cookies (w/o filling)100g unsalted butter Prep: - Wrap the cream cheese in plastic food wrap and place in microwave on low for 2 minutes to soften it.

- Preheat oven to 160 degree C/325 degree F.

- Wrap the bottom (up to half way) of the pan with 2 layers of foil paper.

- Boil some water for later use (appx. 2 liter).

For the crust:

-Break the cookies into small pieces, then place into a zip lock bag or any heavy weight plastic bag (remove air bubbles), and crush + roll using a rolling pin until cookies become fine crumb.

-Place butter in microwave and heat for 1 mins. over medium heat.

-Pour melted butter into the bag, remove air bubble and close the bag, then shake it to mix the two.

-Pour this mix into the pan; using the back of a large spoon, press crumb firmly to pan until packed; set aside.

For the cheesecake:

-Place the cream cheese in a mixing bowl. Using a whisk, whisk cream cheese until blended; add the other ingredients in the following order, sugar --> cocoa powder --> eggs --> lemon juice --> whipping cream, make sure that each item is well blended before adding another.

-Strain the cheese mixture then pour into the cake pan.

-Pour hot water (1 inch in depth) into a roasting pan, place the pan inside the roasting pan and bake for 90minutes. If the water dried out while baking, be sure to refill with more hot water. Once the center of the cake no longer quiver and the sides begin to pull away from the pan then it is done.

-Remove from oven and let cool completely on wire rack. Place in fridge for 3 hours or overnight to set.

Dark Chocolate Glazing

-100g whipping cream125g water40g cocoa powder160g granulated sugar10g gelatin

Prep:

- Pre-soak gelatin in a bowl of cold water, squeeze out excess water; set aside. If using powdered gelatin, add 2 spoon of water.

- Using a small round cookie cutter, scrape curls off a block of white chocolate. Place whipping cream, sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat. Then add in the cocoa powder and bring to boil again or till mixture slightly thicken; stir constantly to avoid mixture sticking to saucepan.

-Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes then add the pre-soaked gelatin; stir until completely melted; strain.

-When cool to lukewarm, pour glazing onto cheesecake and let some drip down the sides. Place back into fridge for another 30 minutes.

Decorate the cake with white chocolate curls before serving.

Japanese Green Tea Red Bean Mouse Cake (日式綠茶紅豆蛋糕)

It's been a WHILE, actually a long while since my last post. It's not that I have forgotten this lovely cooking space, but rather I had been insanely busy the past 5 months! Needless to say, I took a 1.5 month vacation to Asia where I indulged myself in the shopping and food paradise. And immediately after my "luxurious" vacation, I got penalized for the crazy audit busy season! So don't be jealous, life is FAIR... Anyways, before I took off to vacation in late November, I have tried this yummy Japanese cake receipe which it immediately became my favorite cake recipe! I always believe that the combination of green tean and red bean makes the best combo and this recipe combines the best of both world. This cake is really easy to make, though it's more time-consuming... Part 1 – Sponge Cake (use 7” or 8” cake pan) Refer to Sponge/Chiffon Cake recipe

Part 2 – Cake crust (use 8 inch cake pan) Ingredients · 1 cup graham cracker crumbs · 1 Tbsp sugar · 4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted · Pinch of ground cinnamon Procedures: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 2. Mix together cracker crumbs, sugar and cinnamon, then add in melted butter until moist crumbs form 3. Press the cracker mixture onto the bottom of the prepared pan 4. Bake the crust until it is set and beginning to brown, about 12 minutes. Cool.

Part 3a – Red Bean Cheese Mousse Ingredients · 120g mascarpone cheese · 30g sugar · 200g red bean paste · 30g milk · 200g whipping cream · 6g (1 1/3 tsp) gelatin · 30g water Procedures: 1. Pour gelatin over water, put over double boiler to allow it to dissolve completely in the water 2. Beat whipping cream until stiff peak form 3. Beat the mascarpone cheese with a electric mixer to lighten it up then add sugar 4. Fold in milk, in two additions 5. Fold in whipping cream into cheese mixture, in 3 additions, then fold in red bean paste, gelatin mixture 6. Place a small amount of red bean cheese mixture in the center of the cake pan, then place the sponge cake in the middle to hold it in place 7. Pour all of the red bean cheese mixture into the cake pan 8. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour

Part 3b – Green Tea Mousse Ingredients · 100g whipping cream · 40g sugar · 6g (1 1/3 tsp) green tea powder · 3g (2/3 tsp) gelatin · 30g water Procedures: 1. Pour gelatin and green tea powder over the water, put into double boiler and allow them to dissolve completely into the water 2. Beat whipping cream until stiff peak, fold in green tea gelatin mixture 3. Pour green tea mixture over the refrigerated red bean cheese mousse 4. Refrigerate for at least another hour

Part 4 - 蛋糕装飾 - (可以自己随意自由發揮)