Multi Seed Crackers

中文版菜谱：杂粮小饼干multi seed crackers

We all know the health benefits of eating more whole grains and seeds.  But the thing is, although very healthy, whole grain pastry items don’t always taste as good and don’t have the smooth texture as the ones made from refined flour.  

I have been trying making healthy whole grain snacks at home for a while.  After a few tries, I finalized this recipe.  These crackers are now my go to snacks for afternoon tea/ coffee.  

They are crunchy and crispy.  Lots of nuts/ seeds like almond, flax seeds, sun flower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds are added to the crackers to make them super tasty and healthy.  

I used to buy whole grain crackers from wholefood every week.  But these are so much better!  I can cross another whole grain item from my shopping list.  O(∩_∩)O~

Ingredients：

60 g rye flour
60 g oat flour
40 g almond flour
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup of water
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds (both black and white ones)
1/4  cup flax seeds
1/2  teaspoon salt  

Directions：

Preheat oven to 325F/ 163C

Add rye flour, oat flour, almond flour, salt, olive oil and water to a large bowl.  Mix with a wooden spoon or a pair chopsticks.

The dough might be a little wet and sticky.  It is fine.  Cover with with plastic wrap and let it rest for about 10 to 20 minutes.

Mix all the seeds together in another bowl.

Add to the dough.  Knead with hands until everything comes together.

Line up a cookie pan with baking mat or parchment paper. 

Transfer the dough to the center of cookie pan.  Punch it down and then roll it into a even thin layer with a small rolling pin.

Use a pizza cutter or kitchen knife to cut it into small squares.

Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes or until the crackers are slightly golden brown.

Allow the crackers to completely cool down before removing them from baking mat.

They can be stored in air-tight containers or zip-loc bags for up to a week.

They are very crunchy and crispy, loaded with tons of rich hearty earthy flavors.

 These crackers are so tasty that I don’t plan to buy multi seeds crackers from supermarket again.   O(∩_∩)O~

Pan-fried Dumplings with Pork and Zucchini

中文菜谱： 鲜肉西葫芦煎饺

Zucchini became an important vegetable when we were still living in a small town in Michigan.  We were far away from Asian grocery stores.  So I shop at the local farmer market a lot to get fresh produce and sometimes grass fed steaks, which, by the way, were super tasty and amazing. 

Leafy greens thrived in early summer.  When July came, most vegetable booths begin to sell local zucchinis, peppers, potatoes and corns. 

That was when I bought so many zucchinis and learned to develop different ways to cook them.  Besides stir fried zucchini, my favorite way is to dry them first a little, chop them up and then put into dumplings.

Chinese dumplings are like Italian pasta.  The ingredient and flavor combinations are endless.  Any ordinary ingredient like zucchini could be used in dumpling fillings and shine like a flavor star. 

Ingredients：

1 lb pork shoulder
5 to 6 zucchinis
1 pack of dumpling wraps (sold in frozen food section in most Asian grocery stores)
1 tablespoon rice cooking wine
1 to 2 teaspoon oyster sauce
1/4  teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4  to 1/2 teaspoon corn starch
1/4  teaspoon ground ginger
1 stalks of green onions, chopped
Chicken broth/ water  
salt to taste
cooking oil
white sesame seeds
water/ egg wash (for dumpling wrapping)

Directions：

Thinly slice the zucchinis.  Use a food dehydrator to partially dry the zucchinis slices just until they are dry to touch and the edges begin to wrinkle. 

If you don’t have a food dehydrator available, air dry and sundry methods are both ok too.

Grind the pork shoulder with a meat grinder.  If you don’t have a meat grinder, remember to ask for help to do so in the store, or you can also buy the ground pork.

Add ground pork to a medium bowl, along with ground white pepper, oyster sauce, rice cooking wine, ground ginger, and corn starch.  Whisk with a pair of chopsticks or a wooden spoon.  Gradually add chicken stock/water while whisking.  The more and harder you whisk, the tender and more elastic the ground pork filling will be. 

Use a food processor to finely chop the zucchini slices. 

Add to the ground pork mixture.

Add salt to taste.  Mix with a pair of chopsticks until well combined.

Brush the dumpling wrapper’s edge with a little water or egg wash. 

Add a couple tablespoons’ pork filling to its center.

Wrap it up.

Repeat the process until all the dumplings are finished.

Heat a small cast iron skillet over medium high heat.  Add 1 to 2 tablespoons oil, and then about 10 dumplings.  Use more oil and a larger pan if you want to cook more than 10 dumplings at a time. 

Pan-fry the dumplings for a couple minutes. 

Add 1/3 cup of water.  Cover with lid immediately after adding water to the pan.

When all the water evaporates, reduce the heat to medium low.  Sprinkle with remaining chopped green onions and white sesame seeds on top.

The bottoms of dumplings are golden brown.

Remove from heat and serve them hot immediately.

There two of my personal dipping sauces for pan-fried dumplings.  One is a combination of chili oil sauce + soy sauce + balsamic vinegar.  The other is sriracha sauce hot chili sauce.

The crunchy golden bottoms of the dumplings are the best part! 

Zucchini’s flavor really stands out in the dumplings.  The fillings taste juicy, tender and with a significant sweetness from zucchinis.  Yum!

Apricot Filling for Macarons

中文菜谱：马卡龙甜杏酱

I have been baking a lot of macarons lately.  What a sweet obsession! O(∩_∩)O~ 

Different fillings bring different textures and flavors to macarons.  And I have been experimenting all sorts of different fillings.  Because macaron cookies are very sweet, I like macaron fillings to be moist, not too dry nor wet; mild, not too sweet nor greasy.   After lemon custard, I make apricot filling which is also very tasty and refreshing.

Ingredients：

1 cup of dried apricots
1 1/4 to 1 3/4 cups of water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons pectin

Directions：

Add dried apricots and water to vitamix.  Blend on high speed until smooth and creamy.

Add apricot puree to a small sauce pan, along with butter.  Cook over medium low heat.  Stir constantly with a wooden spoon.

Add lemon juice and pectin.  Keep cooking and stirring until the sauce thickens up to coat the back of a wooden spoon.  Remove from heat and allow it to cool down.

After the sauce is cooled down, spoon a couple teaspoons of filling between every two macaron cookies.

Cover with plastic wrap or store in an air-tight container.  Refrigerate overnight to maximize their texture and flavors.