Sweet and Sour Chicken

Recipe courtesy of Steamy Kitchen.

Canh Bap Cai Tom Thit (Vietnamese Cabbage Soup)

In a traditional Vietnamese meal, some type vegetable soup, or "canh", usually accompanies the meal as side dish to help wash down the rice and salty main dishes. This soup can be a side dish or can be consumed with rice as a whole meal by itself. Made with cabbage, shrimp, and ground pork, this soup is simple to make, refreshing, and can be enjoyed at any time of year.

10 cups of chicken stock
1/2 lb fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 lb lean ground pork
6 gloves of garlic
3 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp ground pepper
1 medium sized green cabbage, cleaned, leaves separated, and cut into 2-inch strips
4 scallions, sliced

1. Bring the chicken stock to a boil in a large stockpot
2. In a food processor, mince the shrimp and garlic together. Scrape the mixture into a bowl and mix in the ground pork, black pepper, and 1 tbsp of fish sauce.
3. Add the shrimp and pork mixture to the stockpot in large teaspoon-size lumps one lump at a time. Let boil for another two minutes.
4. Add the cabbage strips and the remaining fish sauce and cook for five minute.
5. Lower the heat to a simmer for another five minutes. Stir in sliced scallions and serve immediately.

Orange Ginger Wings

3 lbs. chicken wings
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. grated fresh ginger
2 tsp. grated orange peel
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup soy sauce
cooking spray

Mix the brown sugar, ginger, orange peel, orange juice, and soy sauce in a bowl until the brown sugar is disolved. Marinade the wings in this mixture for at least 4 hours. I like to marinade all my meat in a ziplock bag so that the marinade is absorb evenly. If you use a ziplock bag, make sure to flip the bag half way through the marination time.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and coat with cooking spary. Evenly spread the wings on the baking sheet, and lightly spray them with additional cooking spray. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Turn half-way through the cooking time.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today was hubby's cookie day at work so we wiped up a batch of good ol' chocolate chip cookies. Made with butter and a combination of flour and brown sugars, these cookies are chewy with pleasantly caramelized crunchy edges. I didn't have enough semi-sweet chocolate for the recipe so I added some white chocolate chips which brought a nice surprise to every bite.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) (226 grams) unsalted butter room temperature
3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar
3/4 cup (160 grams) firmly packed light brown sugur
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups (315 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups (270 grams) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup (100 grams) walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) with rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter. Add the white and brown sugars and beat until fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in eggs, one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until incorporated, adding the chocolate chips about half way through mixing. If you find the dough very soft, cover and refrigerate until firm (about 30 minutes).

Drop about 2 tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake about 12 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges. Cool completely on wire rack.

Makes about 3 dozens cookies.