#237_deLuscious Carrrot Cake

Carrot Cake
with pineapple and nuts then iced with
Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Two-layer Carrot Cake

Sprinkled with toasted sweetened coconut flakes
not only to garnish the cake,
but also for added flavor as well as texture.
You can also sprinkle some toasted sliced almonds on top.

Please take a bite!!

In case you're wondering what those white stuff are?
The raisins and nuts are tossed in a tablespoon of flour
before adding them into the batter.

Prepare Pans

Line two 10-inch pans with parchment paper before pouring in the cake batter. If you don't have parchment paper, you can use clean copy papers making sure to grease the pans first before placing the papers in the pans, then grease the papers again.

Back home, back in the days when the word "recycling" wasn't a popular word and the term "going green" was unheard of, I used to use the brown paper sacks used by the bakeries which we called "supot ng tinapay". Back then bakeries made their own paper bags and I used those papers to line loaf pans and other baking pans, why not?

Spread Cream Cheese Frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake.

Here's the recipe for the Carrot Cake:

1 cup chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts, toasted)

2-1/2 cups grated carrots

1 cup raisins
(soak raisins in pineapple or orange juice for about 10 min.,
then drain on paper towels)

Wet Mixture:

1-1/2 cups brown sugar

1 cup canola oil

4 large eggs

1/2 cup crushed pineapple (optional)

2 tsp vanilla extract

1) In a mixing bowl, cream together oil and sugar until light and fluffy.
2) Beat in the eggs and vanilla until well mixed.
3) Stir in the pineapple.

Dry Mixture:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda
1-1/2 tsp. baking powder*

1/2 tsp salt

1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cloves

4) Using a wire whisk, whisk all of the dry ingredients together then stir into the wet mixture until all ingredients are incorporated.
5) Fold in grated carrots, raisins and nuts.
6) Evenly divide the batter between the 2 prepared pans.
7) Bake in a pre-heated 350 degrees oven for 25-30 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center of cake comes out clean. Do not over bake as the cake will be dry and crumbly.
8) Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack for about 20 minutes before removing cakes from pans.
9) When completely cooled, frost cakes with the Orange Cream Cheese Frosting.

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

1 stick butter, room temperature
1-8oz. cream cheese, room temp.
4 cups powdered sugar
3 tbsp warm orange juice
1 tbsp. orange zest

Beat butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in powdered sugar and gradually add orange juice. Continue to beat until creamy and spreadable.

ENJOY!!!

Notes from MaMely:
1) The measurements above is just for your guideline. I haven't really used a consistent measurement for frosting as I always eyeball the ingredients and use the "feel method"...if too thick add more juice, if runny, add more powdered sugar.

2) You can use this recipe to make muffins or cup cakes.

3) You can also use one rectangular pan instead of round ones.

4) Toasting the Nuts:
Spread the nuts (pecans or walnuts) on a baking sheet and bake in a 350 degrees pre heated oven until they become fragrant, about 8-10 minutes. Let cool, then roughly chop.

Carrot Cake baked in a 10"x15" pan

Recipe adapted from
http://www.joyofbaking.com/CarrotCake.htm

#236_Pancit Molo or Wonton Soup

Here's an authentic recipe of Pancit Molo, as shared by a fan of PinoyAmericanFavoriteRecipes on Facebook, Reiza Panes, from Iloilo.
Thank you Reiza for sharing this wonderful recipe. MaMely

Pancit Molo is an adaptation of wonton soup, is a specialty of the town of Molo in
Iloilo a well-know district in the province. Unlike other pancit, Pancit Molo is not dry but soupy and it does not make use of long, thin noodles but instead wonton wrappers made from rice flour. Leftover wonton wrappers can also be cut into strips and drop into the hot broth.

Pancit Molo Ingredients:

Filling:
1 cup ground pork
1/2 cup cooked chicken meat, flaked
1/4 cup water chestnuts, chopped
3 tbsp patis (fish sauce) salt to taste
25-30 wonton wrappers pepper to taste,

Stock:
8 cups chicken broth
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
oil for sauteing.

chopped spring onions,

Pancit Molo Cooking Instructions:

To prepare filling:
Combine ingredients in a bowl, but use only 1 tsp green onions, salt to taste, and 1 tbsp patis. Set aside the remaining ingredients for the broth. Put 1 tbsp of the meat mixture in the center of each wonton wrapper.Wrap by folding one side of the wrapper to cover the filling completely, then turning the “unfilled” sides of the wrapper up so that the
dumpling resembles a flower. (The filled portion should be in the center.) Cover the dumplings with a dry kitchen towel and set aside.

To make broth: – Saute onion and garlic in oil until light brown. Add chicken stock and the remaining salt and patis from the filling. Allow to boil, the drop the stuffed dumplings into the boiling broth.Stir the remaing meat mixture into the broth. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.Season with pepper to taste. Before serving, garnish with chopped spring onions (or kusay, a greens leaves most likely like green onions, but flat), and chopped celery. More often we put evaporated milk after it's out from the stove to make it real creamy and taste good.

Note: My mom had to make her own wonton wrappers before, because if you buy in the supermarket they put preservative and sometimes it's too frozen and it cracks once fold and not smelling good. Pancit Molo is one who should not miss to try when you go to Iloilo, especially the one right in Molo district.

Added by Reiza Panes
to "PinoyAmericanFavoriteRecipes"

Pahabol from Reiza:
...........Yes this is truly the best especially if you make your own wonton wrappers ... but for me before i put my "molo ball" to the soup i have to steam it first for a few minutes just to half-cook the fillings inside. Set aside, put in a wax paper to let it dry for a while. Once my soup is cooked and done i place my molo balls to it, but dont stir so much in order not to break the balls. Take out from the stove and add evaporated milk ... garnish it with chop celery stalks and a little of green onion leaves, top it with unpeeled shrimps, a little of shredded chicken breast ... and nice if you sprinkle it with toasted garlic to smell good. It's fantastic!

Update: 1-1-12

Here's the Pancit Molo made by Alma, a reader of this blog. She posted this picture on her FaceBook page....see her comment below on the comment box.Mmmmm, Yum-O!!

#235_Pizza Rolls, Pizza and Calzones

You can make three different kinds of Pizzas by using one dough recipe.

Pizza Rolls, a.k.a. Strombolis

For fillings, I used rotisserie chicken breasts and cream cheese, fresh diced chives and garlic powder. Added Sliced ham in some and pepperoni in some and more cheese.

Before the rolled bread hit the oven, I sprinkled some grated cheddar cheese on top.

Here is the Pizza Dough recipe:
2-1/2 cups warm water
1 tbsp sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
2 cups whole wheat
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp instant yeast
3 tbsp vital wheat gluten
1 tsp salt

1) Put everything in the bread machine pan in the order listed above starting with the water.
2) Set the bread machine on dough cycle and let it do the mixing and kneading.
3) Let the dough rest in the bread machine pan for about 25 minutes or until it is almost doubled in size
4) Deflate the dough then take it out onto a floured surface and divide into 8 pieces or divide into half. Use one half for pizza rolls and the other half for other varieties.
5) Roll out dough into rectangles and fill with your meat/veggies fillings, then roll them up.
6) Brush top with egg wash then sprinkle with grated cheese.
7) Bake in a pre-heated 375 degrees oven for 18-20 minutes
Baking time depends on the variety of bread.

Calzone
Calzone is like a stuffed pizza or turnover.

The dough is rolled out into a disk like a pizza crust. Spoon fillings on the half side of dough then fold the other half over completely enclosing the fillings by folding the edges in and pressing with a fork.

Brush Calzones with egg wash (egg yolk plus a little water) then bake in a 375 degrees oven for 20 minutes.

Pizza

The beauty of making pizza at home is that you can customized the fillings. I don't particularly like tomato sauce in my pizza, so I made this Hawaiian style without tomato sauce. I just spread some mozzarella cheese on the pizza crust then added pineapple pieces and slices of ham, then put some of the chicken/cream cheese filling that I used to make the pizza rolls. Baked the pizza for 25 minutes at 375 degrees.

Hawaiian Pizza

Pizza crust recipe 2
Here's another recipe for pizza crust with an in-depth step-by-step procedure, posted by an online friend. Click here, then scroll down to the "comments".