Chinese Traditional New Year Sweet - Yuan Xiao (Sweet Rice Ball )

Chinese Traditional New Year Sweet - Yuan Xiao (Sweet Rice Ball )
By May Huang



Filling with mixed nuts; purple color from beets:
Made this year:

Made few years ago:


Filling with Red Bean Paste; yellow color from butter cup:
Made this year:

Made few years ago:


Filling with black sesame paste:
Made this year:

Vegetables in May's Garden - 2010 - Part Three

Some of following vegetables are from a shared garden (with my friend)

Opa - Climbing on trees:










Baby Bao Choy:





Reddish :









Tong Hao:




Garlic:



Chinese Cabbage:

Vegetables in May's Garden - 2010 - Part Two

Following vegetables are from a shared garden (with my friend)

Cherry Tomato:



Opa:




Green Bean:



Another Bean:




Chinese Squish:

It is time for late vegetables

The advantages to do late summer vegetable are:

1) Much less bugs in late summer comparing with late spring or earlier summer.
2) The weather is not that hot/dry in late summer and fall, will need much less water.

That means the late summer vegetables are much easier to take care.

It is good time to start late summer vegetables now. You can do the following late summer vegetables:

1) Radish: you should start now
2) Baby Bao Choy: you can start seeds now, and transfer the plants in 2-3 weeks when the plants are ready.
3) Garlic: you can start in the middle or later of August.

Above are my experience, and I have been doing that for several years. By the way I live in Zone 5.

Vegetables in May's Garden - 2010 - Part One

Following vegetables are from a shared garden (with my friend)

Zucchini:









Water Spanish:



Patato:





Boiled Potato (Recipe: just with salt a little bit green onion, and supper healthy!)



Snow Pea:







Corn:

Chinese Onion Cake

Chinese Onion Cake
By May Huang



Ingredients (see picture below for main ingredients):

A: For dough:
1. 2 ½ C flour
2. 1 C water

B: For filling
3. ¾ t salt
4. ½ t black pepper
5. 1 ½ T canola oil (replaceable with other types of oil)
6. 3 T green onion, finely chopped, green part only

C: For pan fry
7. 2-3 T canola oil

Directions:

1. Mix flour and water well in a container, knead the dough to a smooth ball in the container, cover the container, and set the container aside for 1-2 hours.
2. Mix ingredients listed in B together in a small container
3. Knead the dough again on a working table, equally divide the dough to 2 -3 parts **
4. Use one part of the dough; roll out the dough to a flat sheet using rolling pin. The shape of the sheet should be square or round; and thickness of the sheet should be about ¼ inch. Take one third of the filling and equally spread it on the top of the sheet. Fold the sheet to equal three lays in one direction, and fold it three times again in another direction. The folded the dough should be square shape. Roll the folded the dough out to a flat sheet using rolling pin. See the following pictures for step-by step instruction.
5. Heat 1.5 table spoon of the oil in a flat fry pan with medium temperature. Add the dough sheet to the pan, cook for few minutes, and turn over the onion cake, and cook for another few minutes. The both side of the onion cake should be light golden brown.
6. Repeat the steps 4 & 5 to complete the remaining of the dough.

Note: ** depending on the size of pan, the dough can be divided to less or move parts.

Onion Mixture:




Step by step directions:





Notes: you can serve this Onion Cake with Chinese rice soup, corn meal soup, or broth based soup.

Zucchini Pancake

Zucchini Pancake
By May Huang



Ingredients:

A:
1. 1 ½ C all purpose flour
2. 4 eggs, well beaten
3. ½ C water
4. 1 t salt
5. ¼ t black pepper powder
6. 1 stalk of green onion
7. 2 C zucchini, finely shredded

B:
8. 1 ½ T canola oil

Directions:

1. Mix everything listed in the A well
2. Heat a 12 - inch flat pan with medium temperature, add one tablespoon of canola oil. And make sure the oil is evenly spread over the pan. Add half of flour mixture, and again make sure the flour mixture is evenly spread over the pan, turn over the pancake when one side is light golden brown, and continue to cook, and turn off the heat when the both sides are light golden brown. Transfer the crepe to a serving plate. Add the remaining ½ tablespoon of oil, and repeat above procedure to finish the remaining. It should yelled two 12 – inch pancakes in total.

Notes: you can serve this pancake with Chinese rice soup, corn meal soup, or broth based soup.

Chinese Garlic Chive Crepe

Chinese Garlic Chive Crepe
By May Huang



Ingredients (see picture below for main ingredients):

1. 1 C all purpose flour
2. 1 C water
3. 2 - 3 eggs, well beaten
4. 1 C garlic chive, finely chopped
5. ¾ t salt
6. 1 ½ T canola oil



Directions:

1. Mix the ingredients 1-5 in a container (see picture for the mixture)



2. Heat a 12 - inch flat pan with medium temperature, add 1 tablespoon of canola oil. And make sure the oil is evenly spread over the pan. Add half of the flour mixture, and again make sure the flour mixture is evenly spread over the pan, turn over the crepe when one side is light golden brown, and continue to cook, and turn off the heat when the both sides of the crepe are light golden brown. Transfer the crepe to a serving plate. Add the remaining ½ tablespoon of oil, and repeat above procedure to finish the remaining. It should yelled two 12 – inch pancakes in total.

Notes: you can serve this crepe with Chinese rice soup, corn meal soup, or broth based soup.