My KitCHEn Experiments

when I cook steak, I season it only by salt and pepper and and quickly pan fry it on both sides for a few minutes with a knob of butter, but I have recently discovered a steak marinate that gives more flavor and makes the meat more juicy.  The original recipe called for a few more ingredients that I didn't have like Dijon mustard so I just made do with what I have on hand. Balsamic Steak Marinade: ingredients: - 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar - 1 tbsp honey or brown sugar - 1/4 olive oil - 1/4 cup water - 1 tbsp minced garlic - salt and pepper how to: - mix everything in a bowl - marinate steaks overnight and cook as you normally would with a side of corn kernels and cheesey broccoli and am all set!!

when the mood to make something sweet and fast for a visit with friends strikes, Tiramisu is my go to recipe. It's fast, easy and no baking required!  Tiramisu ingredients: - 1 pack Italian Lady Fingers ( I used a 200 gram pack which was approx 24 pcs) - 2 packets dream whip and enough milk required to make 2 cups of whipped cream - 1/2 cup powdered cocoa - cup strong black coffee - 2 cups shaved chocolate or chocolate chips how to: - pour coffee in shallow bowl, dip each lady finger and arrange it in a single layer on an 8x8 pan - pour half of whipped cream on top and sprinkle with shaved chocolate or chips - lay down another layer of coffee dipped lady fingers - pour the remaining cup of whipped cream and top with remaining chocolate - with a small sieve, dust cocoa powder all over the cake - refrigerate until ready to serve  forgive me for using all instant! sorry no mascarpone cheese in this recipe just good ol whipped cream!   chocolate fairy p

It has been my habit to make goodies for friends, office mates and family for no special reason other than I wanted to try some new recipe or cooking idea. It's a win win situation you see - I get to satisfy my cooking curiosity and they can feast on the results - that is if it is edible enough!!! I had been seeing poke cake recipes on Pinterest made with vanilla pudding and though it didn't interest me at first, it kept on appearing on boards so I decided to give it a try with the results of which I will share with co workers from a branch of our office where I had been reporting to for the last two months. Poke Cakes were invented in 1969 primarily as a way to increase Jello sales,  jello poke cakes became popular thanks to its festive looks and easy of assembly - all youe need to do is holes in th cake and pour  jello (or pudding) on top which seeps into the holes thus you get colorful lines of flavor. I made a basic chocolate cake thinking of making it into a

Eversince I saw that episode of F.R.I.E.N.D.S wherein Ross smashed that piece of scone in his fury over his ex-wife Emily, I was intrigued. As I have written before I like having tea and what better way to enjoy an afternoon cuppa tea than with dainty baked British pastry to go with it. I love Harry Potter, I love their accent and though it is on a completely unrelated level, sometimes I just like to pretend I am having afternoon tea under the sun in a frilly girly dress, sipping tea from a dainty fine cup with my pinky sticking up. Chocolate Chip Scones ingredients: -2 cups white all purpose flour - 1 teaspoon baking powder - 1/2 teaspoon salt - 1 cup sugar - 4 tablespoons cold butter, sliced - 1 egg - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract - 3/4 cup milk  - 1/2 cup chocolate chips or morsels how to : - Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar - cut the butter into the flour mixture with a fork or pastry cu

Last year for christmas I made caramel apples - I know, I know its for Halloween treats, but I had just experimented making them a few days before the holidays and liked them so much I thought I'd share the sweetness with everyone. During ordinary days when I crave for some sweet, tart treats I make caramel apples but slice them up and pop them in the fridge to cool - ready for snacking after I finished my chores. Caramel Apples Slices ingredients : - 2 green apples - lemon juice - 2 to 3 tbsp milk - 6 to 8 caramels - chopped nuts - chocolate morsels how to: - slice the apples and toss in lemon juice to prevent discoloration and arrange in a serving plate, set aside - melt the milk and caramel in a bowl on top of a double boiler, add more milk or caramel depending on the consistency you want - drizzle on top of sliced apples, top with chopped nuts and chocolate morsels. Chill until ready to serve  tart, sweet, crunchy and chocolately

Everytime I pass by Cinnabon at the mall, the sweet smell of freshly made rolls together with the aroma of coffee never fails to make me stop, take a table and have me some soft, sweet, gooey pecanbon or chocobon with a cup of hot camomile tea. Imagine sipping hot tea in between bites of sweet roll, what a relaxing way to have your sweet tooth satisfied, like hitting two birds with one stone. Normally I'd get out my book purchases and start flipping pages while savoring every bite and sip, other times I loose myself and get enamored by the baker making the rolls behind a glass window. It is not often that I chance upon this cinnamon rolls making demonstration and I kind of hope that there is someone behind the glass window everytime I stop by. I guess I am wishing to get some tips for making the perfect cinnamon rolls by watching. I have honestly tried making cinnamon rolls and though they turned out okay - they are a far cry from the original. I guess I have trouble with

whenever I don't feel like slaving too much in the kitchen and want something fast and cheap, my go to option is to get a whole Roasted Chicken. Yep, we love our chicken, but you got to admit sometimes store bough roast can be a tad bland and dry. In cases like this I dress it up a bit and throw in some veggies and a sauce to give it more flavor and liven it up. Sweet Chili Chicken Stir Fry ingredients: - half a roasted chicken deboned and the meat cut into strips - 1 cup broccoli florets and stems - 1 medium carrot sliced - 1/2 cup broth or water - 1/2 cup of sweet chili sauce (or more according to your taste) how to: - just toss everything in a work cooking until veggies are crisp tender - best served with hot steamed rice  no more bland and dry chicken! this one is saucy, sweet and spicy like chinese take out

Whenever I get a day off work (like today yay!) I make myself some fancy breakfast. Well when I say fancy I meant something my brother does not normally eat - something sweet for breakfast like pancakes and french toast. Today I made myself some banana chocolate pancakes. Pancakes I think is one of the most versatile breakfast items ever. You can make it sweet or savory, healthy or sinful, decadent or skinny from a box or from scratch. I made them from a box, sweet and a bit sinful. I had some left over banana from a previous baking experiment that I wanted to use. I normally just slice the bananas and put them on top of the pancake but since they are a bit over ripe I roughly mashed them (I wanted some chunks) into the batter and omitted the egg instead. I added some chocolate chips of course but opted to sprinkle them on top - sandwiching them in  between pancakes instead of throwing then into the batter. I did not want the chocolate melting and scorching into the pan so I deci

Bread making is one of the things I would love to master. I love the smell of freshly baked bread and it is such a wonder to me that a simple base of flour, yeast and water can be flavored into many different things from savory to sweet. The very first time I made something 'bread like' was pizza crust - I don't know if it can be considered a type of bread but lets just say it is haha! I had just been given a handheld mixer from my aunt who got it as a wedding gift but had never used it. It had various attachements including a dough hook and so I searched for a basic pizza crust recipe and experimented in the kitchen with my dad. The crust (as I remember) was very good considering it was our first time making it. I guess the mixer and the added muscle power from my dad in the kneading process made the dough just right. I was in the mood of making pizza again from scratch and had found a new way to present it via Pinterest. Instead or making a round pizza, it suggested