Red Velvet Cake

Magnolia Bakery Red Velvet Cake with Creamy Vanilla Frosting

Cake
3 1/3 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
OR 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
3/8 cup + 2 tsp corn starch
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 ¼ cups sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons red food coloring
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 ½ cups buttermilk
1 ½ teaspoons cider vinegar
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and lightly flour three 9 x 2-inch round cake pans, then line the bottom with waxed paper.
To make the cake: In a small bowl, sift the cake flour and set aside. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
In a small bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa, and vanilla. Add to the batter and beat well.
In a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts, alternating with the flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not over beat.
In a small bow, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.
Divide the batter among the prepared pans. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the layers cool in the pans for 1 hour. Remove from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.
When the cake has cooled, spread the frosting between the layers, then the ice top and sides of the cake with Creamy Vanilla Frosting.

Makes one 3-layer 9-inch cake

Frosting
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a medium-size saucepan, whisk the flour into the milk until smooth. Place over medium heat and , stirring constantly, cook until the mixture becomes very thick and begins to bubble, 10-15 minutes. Cover with waxed paper placed directly on the surface and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
In a large bowl, on the medium high speed of an electric mixer, beat the butter for 3 minutes, until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating continuously 3 minutes, until smooth and fluffy. Add the vanilla and beat well.
Add the cooled milk mixture, and continue to beat on the medium high speed for 5 minutes, until very smooth and noticeably whiter in color. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes (no less and no longer – set a timer!) Use immediately.

Arroz Caldo (with Chicken)

INGREDIENTS

ginger (3-4 slices)
chicken thighs (3 pieces, cubed)
1/2 c rice
1/2 c sweet rice
7 c of liquid (1 can of chicken broth + 5 1/2 c water)
garlic powder
fish sauce
oil

DIRECTIONS

1. Sautee ginger slices for a minute or two, in a little bit of oil.
2. Add chicken, garlic powder, and some fish sauce.
3. Sautee for another minute or two.
4. Add rice and sweet rice. Sautee for another minute, just enough for the rice to soak up some of the juice.
5. Add liquid(s).
6. Let it come to a boil, then turn down and simmer until rice is cooked and at desired consistency (it will be thick).
7. Season to taste when it gets thicker. Stir frequently and keep a close eye on it since the rice can stick to the bottom of pan and burn.

NOTES

I have been cooking this a lot lately. It's easy to cook and doesn't take a lot of ingredients. I thought I'd type of the recipe in case I forget how to do it later on.

I like my pieces of chicken cut small, so I cube them up into 1 inch pieces. I also like my arroz caldo thick. You could probably use less sweet rice and more regular rice if you don't want it as thick...and maybe add more water. If I don't have a can of chicken broth, I just use all water and a buillion cube...but the chicken broth makes it taste better in my opinion.

RESULTS

Yummy! (Or else I wouldn't be cooking it so often.)

Cheeseburger Soup

INGREDIENTS:

4 cups chicken broth
1 T dried onion (or 1/2 medium onion, chopped)
1/2 lb lean ground beef
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup milk
12 oz Velveeta, cubed
2 potatoes, cut in 1-inch cubes
2 small garlic cloves, minced
Tabasco sauce, optional
crumbled bacon, optional

DIRECTIONS:

1. Brown the ground beef. Drain the fat/liquid and add to crockpot.
2. Add all other ingredients to crockpot (except for tabasco sauce and bacon).
3. Cook on low for 5-7 hours.

NOTES:

I used soy milk. It's recommended not to use any milk higher than 2%...or else it will curdle in the crockpot. I also used 16oz of Velveeta. I didn't want to save just 4oz of Velveeta and I figured it wouldn't hurt the recipe to add a bit of extra cheese.

RESULTS:

Very good!! I thought it would be thicker, but it was soupy. We ate it with some bread, but I could've done without it. The potatoes in the soup were good enough starch for me. We also added some bacon bits since we had a bottle of it. It's good with the bacon, but don't add too much or else it will be salty.

Oh, and this recipe made enough to fill about 7-8 bowls. Vuong and I each had two bowls for dinner...then ate it again for lunch the next day.

I will definitely make this again!

source for recipe

Grilled Asian Chicken

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup soy sauce
4 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons honey
3 slices fresh ginger root
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine the soy sauce, oil, honey, ginger root, and garlic. Heat in microwave on medium for 1 minute, then stir. Heat again for 30 seconds, watching closely to prevent boiling.

2. Place chicken breasts in a shallow dish. Pour soy sauce mixture over, and set aside to marinate for 15 minutes.

3. Preheat a grill for medium-high heat. Drain marinade from chicken into a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, and simmer over medium heat for 5 minutes. Set aside for basting.

4. Lightly oil the grill grate. Cook chicken on the prepared grill 6 to 8 minutes per side, or until juices run clear. Baste frequently with remaining marinade. Chicken will turn a beautiful golden brown.

NOTES:

I doubled the marinade recipe, used it on 4 pieces of salmon, and marinated it for about 30 minutes. I cooked it in a little bit of olive oil on the stove. I also took the leftover marinade and boiled it down to use as a sauce.

RESULTS:

I cooked the salmon 5 minutes on each side and that was a little too much. I probably should've done more like 3 minutes on each side or had the heat lower (it was about medium low). It would've been better to have marinated it for longer. The salmon didn't have too much taste without the sauce.

Overall, it was okay. I would make it again, though, with the above adjustments.

Crockpot Breakfast

INGREDIENTS:

32 oz frozen hash browns
1 lb cooked ham cubed ( lean )
1 onion diced
1 green bell pepper diced
1 1/2 c (or 12oz) shredded cheddar cheese
12 eggs
1 c milk
1 t salt
1 t black pepper

DIRECTIONS:

Divide potatoes, ham, veggies and cheese so you can create several layers of each in the crock pot. Start with the hash browns, then ham, onions peppers and last cheese. Repeat until you have several layers. Beat eggs, milk salt & pepper pour over layers in the crockpot cover and turn on low. Cook for 10-12 hours overnight.

12 Servings

NOTES:

I used 26 oz of frozen shredded potatoes since that's what was on sale at the time. I also didn't put bell peppers, since I somehow didn't write that down on my shopping list. I added a small can of chopped olives. Also, I cooked for more like 8-9 hours.

RESULTS:

Yum! Will make this again. I made it for Vuong's family since we decided to get together for breakfast one day. There were 9 of us...and with this recipe there was still plenty leftovers. I think we ate only a little over half of what was in the crock pot? Then we ate a little more for dinner...and I'm eating some right now.

I think I'll put the bell peppers next time. It's okay without them, but I feel like there's something missing.

This recipe is definitely a keeper, but I wonder how I would scale this down for just Vuong and I? 'Cause it might burn if I half the recipe and put it in our big crockpot? Maybe? I guess I'll have to try it out next time! And next time, maybe I'll try to take pictures too.