The Broke Baker

Author: kaypea

Chicken Karaage
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Anime and people who watch anime often get a bad rap. Anime fans are often associated with weirdos or basement dwellers. Anime itself is often written off as either childish or too “adult.” Granted, they can be both, and sometimes at the exact same time! Still, every now and then, an anime comes along that sticks some tidbits of knowledge into its plot, whether subtly or shoving it in your face. That is one of my favorite things about animes about food and cooking. Most cooking shows on TV nowadays have devolved into circus sideshows of contests to see how horribly they can mess with cooks and still get them to make something edible. It’s not really about the food anymore, which is a shame.

So, when Shokugeki no Soma (Food Wars in English) came along, I was eager to check it out. The story centers around the son of a diner owner that is sent to a highly elite culinary school at the start of his high school career. Given anime’s penchant for making even the most mundane tasks appear epic and grandiose, hilarity ensures. Soma, the titular hero, often creates food so delicious that it elicits borderline NSFW reactions from anyone that eats it. There’s plenty of shots of delicious-looking animated food, amusing gags, and even tentacles (if you’re into that sort of thing). But, most of all, there are loads and loads of recipe ideas and tips. Which brings us to this post…

Towards the end of the first season, our hero is pitted against an evil chicken karaage (fried chicken) franchise that is threatening to put the shopping district where his father’s diner resides out of business. Naturally, it’s up to our plucky hero and his high school friends to save the day for the helpless adult business owners. In order to see what they’re up against, they decide to check out their competitor. In an episode aptly named “Sensual Fried Chicken,” they discover the wonder that is this juicy and tender chicken as the manager gleefully gloats about how awesome her chicken is. After some experimentation, they manage to “defeat” this fried chicken by transforming it into a fried chicken wrap that can be eaten “on the go,” but the flavors of the chicken itself gave them a run for their money.

Watching the reactions to the chicken both made my mouth water and made me want to try making this at home. And, after investing in an extra-fancy deep fryer, I found the perfect excuse to give it a shot. This web page gave me a starting point, and I made a few educated guesses as to the quantities of each ingredients that wound up working very well. I started with making the competitor’s chicken recipe, because it looked less complicated than Soma’s “winning” recipe. The chicken ended up being so good that I don’t think I will ever bother trying the other one. I did tweak it a bit to match my tastes, but it’s still great. My first attempt at this chicken was made using chicken breast, and it was the absolute juiciest chicken breast that I have ever made or eaten. Once I crunched through the crispy exterior, the chicken juices basically danced in my mouth. Since then, I have switched to chicken thighs, but I wouldn’t be against using chicken breast again if that’s the only thing that I could get my hands on.

The marinade is simple to make and doesn’t contain any ingredients that are hard to find. Just throw everything in a blender or food processor and whir until it’s all pulverized.

I used boneless skinless chicken thighs for this. You are welcome to use chicken breast as well. Both will yield tender and juicy results, but I just find that chicken thighs are extra succulent when paired with this marinade. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces (think chicken nugget sized) and place in a plastic freezer bag. Pour the marinade into the bag and shake so that all of the chicken gets covered in the marinade. Refrigerate this for at least 4 hours, but ideally overnight.

About 30 minutes prior to frying, remove the marinated chicken from the fridge and allow to sit at room temperature. Preheat your fry oil. In a bowl, season your potato starch with salt and pepper and stir to combine. Dredge the chicken pieces on the potato starch. There’s no need to dip them in egg or milk, as the marinade is moist enough to get the starch to cling. So, just roll then in the starch and keep moving.

The frying process is in two parts. You fry them once, then remove them from the oil and let them rest for a few minutes before frying them again. This is the key to an extra-crispy exterior. Note that you don’t need a deep fryer with a basket to make this chicken, as long as wherever you are frying has a way for you to monitor the temperature of the frying oil. No one wants a greasy, soggy crust.

These crunchy and juicy tidbits of chicken are delicious enough to stand on their own, but also pair well with a dipping sauce. Sweet chili garlic dipping sauce is a personal favorite, but don’t take my word for it. Try it for yourself!

Who says anime is only for kids!?

Chicken Karaage (AKA Sensual Fried Chicken)

Ingredients
- 1/2 large white onion
- 1/2 medium apple
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3/4 cup soy sauce
- 1 1in piece of fresh ginger
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed
- 1-2 cups potato starch (or corn starch)
- salt and pepper to taste
Directions

Combine the first 8 ingredients in a blender or food processor (chop the apple and onion as needed to make it fit) and blend until mostly smooth.

Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces (about 2 inches) and place in a freezer bag. Pour the marinade over the chicken pieces, seal the bag, and shake to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use, at least 4 hours.

About 30 minutes prior to frying, remove chicken from refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature. Add potato starch to a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

Preheat frying oil to 375 degrees. Dredge the chicken pieces in the potato starch and fry for 2 minutes. Remove from oil and allow to rest 3-5 minutes, then fry for an additional 2 minutes. Drain on wire rack or paper towels and serve hot.
October 19, 2016
Fujiya (A Review)

In Miami, it’s sometimes hard to find a restaurant that specializes in one specific type of cuisine. Being the melting pot that it is, a lot of restaurants end up being “fusion” restaurants, or restaurants that offer dishes that originated in different countries. “Latin” restaurants will usually be a combination of Cuban cuisine and any other popular dishes from Latin American countries. Colombian restaurants might offer Venezuelan dishes and vice-versa (although, given the similarities in the cuisine, this is fairly justifiable). And, rarely do you find an Asian restaurant that isn’t a combination of at least two types of Asian cuisine (Japanese-Thai, Sushi and Korean, Vietnamese and Thai, etc.). It’s not impossible, but it’s just not very common.

So, after a bad experience with a sushi order from the local Sushi-Thai joint that I normally ordered from, I started looking around for alternatives. I found Fujiya on Kendall Drive and 137th Avenue through a fairly brief search on Yelp, and was convinced by the high reviews to give them a shot. That, and the fact that they were a straight Japanese restaurant and not mixed with something else. So, the next time that a sushi craving struck, I made my way over there. It’s in a tiny shopping center that’s kind of a pain to get into if you’re coming from the West, as it requires an awkward U-turn on Kendall Drive to reach the entrance.

Fujiya has the standard “diner” feel to it, despite the tables being covered with linen. As soon as you walk in, you are greeted by someone on the staff and, when you’re seated, they bring you a hot towel to clean your hands with. They also bring you a small dish of sunomono, Japanese cucumber salad. In addition to cucumber, their version contains tomato, and sometimes mango or other fruits. The tang of the vinegar in the dressing is cut by sugar and a drizzle of sesame oil. A great way to get your palate ready for what’s to come.

The measure of a Japanese/sushi restaurant often comes from the quality of their fish. Sashimi, therefore, is an ideal litmus test for whether or not a place is worth its salt. In additional to the beautiful plating, all three types of fish in their sashimi appetizer (salmon, tuna, and hamachi) were exceptionally fresh and melted in your mouth.

With sushi, I like to keep it simple. I don’t need a roll with 10 different ingredients to appease me, especially when the ingredients are well-prepared. These salmon rolls were simple, yet satisfying.

The star of the meal, though, was the chicken katsu roll. It is a roll that contains breaded and fried chicken, avocado, and cream cheese. If you are a sushi purist that thinks that sushi should be seafood only, then I urge you to reconsider and try this roll. The roll is intended to be served with a cilantro mayo and eel sauce, both of which I declined (we all know how I feel about mayo). While I am sure that the sauces elevate it to new heights, the roll without the sauce is still strong enough to stand on its own. The chicken is fried to a great crispness without drying it out, so each bite of the roll is an orchestra of creamy from the avocado and cream cheese, crunch from the chicken, and chewy from the rice and nori.

Service is always warm and inviting at Fujiya, like a family-owned restaurant usually is. I will definitely be a repeat customer!

October 14, 2016
Dulce de Leche Pastelitos
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Ever since a recent experience using puff pastry, I have been dying to find another use for it. The problem is, I’m not a particularly big fan of cooked fruit fillings, as evidenced by the lack of fruit pies and the like on my blog. I kept wondering what I could put in the puff pastry, until it dawned on me one day. It probably helped that it was around the time that I come upon a giant, Costco-sized jar of dulce de leche, but it’s still amazing that it took me that long to think of it. After all, dulce de leche is exceptionally sweet, which is perfect for a crust like puff pastry that is not too sweet. The flavors balance each other out perfectly. You can even add semisweet chocolate chips to the filling for an added twist. Best of all, they’re super easy to make! Unless you’re going to make your puff pastry and dulce de leche from scratch, that is. Otherwise, what takes the longest is waiting for the frozen puff pastry to thaw.

Start by thawing your puff pastry. Once it’s thawed, open it up into flat squares and cut each square into 9 pieces so that you have 18 squares total. Add a spoonful of dulce de leche into 9 of the squares (add some chocolate chips if you want, as well). Brush the outer edges with beaten egg, then place a second square on top and press firmly (but gently) to seal. Brush the tops with additional beaten egg, then sprinkle with sugar.

Afterwards, they go into the oven!

Despite how delicious they look, resist the urge to immediately bite into one of these. The filling is HOT. Like, “burn your face” hot. “Molten lava volcanic eruption” hot. It will hurt you. You will burn your tongue and it will take some of the enjoyment away from eating it. Let them sit at least 20 minutes before you brave an attempt at eating one. Take it from someone who had to rub an ice cube on her tongue (but ate it anyway).

But…I promise you that it will be worth the wait. 🙂 The warm, gooey, dulce de leche delight in each flaky bite of these dulce de leche pastelitos will leave you wanting more.

Dulce de Leche Pastelitos

Ingredients
- 1 package puff pastry sheets, thawed
- 3/4 cup dulce de leche
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1-2 tbsp granulated sugar
- mini chocolate chips (optional)
Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Lay the puff pastry sheets out on a solid surface. Cut each sheet into 9 equal squares so that you’re left with 18 squares. Add a spoonful of dulce de leche to the center of each square, then sprinkle with chocolate chips (if using).

Brush the edges of each filled square with beaten egg, then top with another square of pastry sheet. Gently press down to seal. Brush the tops with the remaining beaten egg, then sprinkle with sugar.

Bake in preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before consuming. Store leftover dulce de leche pastelitos in an airtight container after completely cooled.
October 7, 2016
Sokai (A Review)

Japanese Peruvian fusion restaurants are a dime a dozen in Miami these days, and with good reason. Peruvian food has a lot of Japanese influences. I had been eyeing Sokai for a while, and even walked in once to take a look at their menu and felt my jaw drop at their prices. Still, I am okay with paying extra money for a meal if I feel like I got my money’s worth afterward.

Like most Japanese Peruvian restaurants, Sokai offers a selection of both sushi and ceviche. Being more of a fan of the latter, I decided to stick with dishes that were more traditionally Peruvian. One thing worth noting is that they give each table a tablet in which they can view the menu and place their order electronically, but also still have a server come by and take orders.

Our appetizer was a Cebiche Carretillero, which basically translates to “ceviche of the forklift driver.” I’m not sure why exactly the nae was chosen, but the ceviche itself is yellow pepper ceviche made with corvina and fried calamari. The calamari was, in my opinion, the star of the dish. The ceviche wasn’t bad, if maybe a bit bland as far as ceviches go. However, the calamari was fried perfectly. It had a nice crisp on the exterior and the interior ring was tender and not rubbery.

My go-to entree at Peruvian restaurants is always Lomo Saltado, so that is what I ordered. My first impression of the dish was that the pale crinkle fries were going to be a disappointment. Instead, the opposite happened. The fries were the best part of the dish. Despite looking undercooked, they were actually nice and crispy. The beef, on the other hand, left a lot to be desired. The meat itself was a little bit dry and tough. The sauce helped with this, although the sauce itself lacked the depth of flavor that I expect from a lomo saltado. As with most white rice in Peruvian restaurants, the rice was more al dente than I prefer, but I think that’s just the way that rice is prepared by Peruvians.

Service was great at Sokai. Dirty plates didn’t stay on the table long, and someone was always passing by to check and see what we needed. If the food were just a little better, than I would be more likely to go back. As it stands, I am not in a hurry to try them again.

September 26, 2016
Dulce de Leche Bundt Cake
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I never understood the allure of Costco until I borrowed a membership card from a coworker to help out a friend. My presence there was merely as an escort, but I wound up leaving $60 poorer from just arbitrarily throwing things in my cart that looked good and was priced significantly lower than I could get it in regular stores.

That is how I wound up with a giant jar of dulce de leche. I even mulled over my decision to purchase for a while before I finally went ahead and left it in my shopping cart. The last time that I waited too long to finish a jar of dulce de leche, it dried out and got crusty. Was I really going to be able to use all of it in time? It really kills me to waste food, and I have a few friends that would probably never forgive me if I let perfectly good dulce de leche go to waste.

Enter this dulce de leche bundt cake. I honestly don’t even remember what I was looking for when I came across this cake. I probably Googled “recipes that use dulce de leche” or something along those lines. Before I knew it, I had made this cake 3 times and was asking for someone with a Costco card to pick up another jar of dulce de leche for me. Despite being a dulce de leche-centric cake, it’s not overwhelmingly sweet. The small pocket of dulce de leche is supposed to be closer to the middle of the cake, but it doesn’t matter. It is still a great cake and is not terribly difficult to make. Using all brown sugar adds to the cake’s a subtle caramel flavor.

First, you want to sift your dry ingredients and set them aside.

Next, you make the batter. Cream your butter and brown sugar together, then add some of the dulce de leche. Once the dulce de leche is sufficiently combined, beat in the eggs one at a time. Add vanilla extract. Blend in the flour alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with flour.

Pour about 3/4 of the mixture into a well-greased bundt pan. Gently add the remaining dulce de leche into the center of the batter, then pour the remaining batter into the pan. After that, into the oven it goes!

About an hour later, you’ve got a beautiful bundt cake.

With a surprise little pocket of dulce de leche inside!

Since it’s a bundt cake, it’s great for potlucks and similar events. I bet it would be great with ice cream, but it never lasts long enough for me to find out. Give this cake a try!

Dulce de Leche Bundt Cake

(Adapted from Ambrosia)

Ingredients
- 1 1/2-1 3/4 cups dulce de leche, divided
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
- 4 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
Directions

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease a 12-cup Bundt pan.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, into a bowl and set aside. In the bowl of a standard electric mixer, combine the butter and brown sugar, and cream until light and fluffy. Once creamed , add 1 cup of dulce de leche. Mix well, then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well with each addition. Add in the vanilla extract.

With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the dry ingredients and milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients mixture. Beat until just combined. Do not overbeat!

Add about 3/4 of the cake batter into the prepared Bundt pan. Add the remaining 1/2-3/4 cup dulce de leche in a ring around the center of the pan. Evenly distribute the remaining cake batter in the pan, and gently smooth out the top with a spatula. Don’t press down or tap the pan against the counter to keep your filling from sinking too much.

Bake in the center rack of the oven at 350° for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes, then remove from pan and allow dulce de leche bundt cake to cool completely on a wire rack.
September 16, 2016
Zest (A Review)

Zest is the sister restaurant of Ortanique on the Mile, which I enjoy very much. It opened up not too long ago downtown, and I really wanted to check it out and see if it was as good as Ortanique. It’s August in Miami, which means it’s Miami Spice time. That seemed like a perfect opportunity to check out the place without blowing half of my paycheck.

To my surprise and delight, the delicious “green bread” that is served at Ortanique is served at Zest as well. The buttery green spread still eludes me as to the ingredients, but I have been able to glean from the servers that it contains garlic, parsley, and onion. I’m pretty sure there’s something else in there, though.

We ordered a ceviche appetizer for the table, which was made with Corvina. The texture of the fish was kind of firm and chewy, and the marinade was less citrusy than what I expect from ceviche. Instead, a lot of the tart came from passion fruit, which actually was a good counterpoint for the creamy guacamole and fried plantain strips that were included with the dish. I think it played well with the texture of the corvina.

My entree was a cocoa and coffee brisket. It was served on a bed of polenta with brussel sprouts. I couldn’t taste cocoa or coffee in the brisket, which is not necessarily a bad thing. The brisket had a little hint of “something,” but not overwhelmingly of coffee or cocoa, which probably would have been off-putting. As expected for brisket, it was positively fall-apart tender, although my specific portion had more fat than I would have cared to have in my brisket.

My friend’s ribeye was also good. It was cooked to a perfect medium, and the chili butter that they served on top gave it a richness and a kick that really took the meatiness of the steak over the top. However, the real start of the dish for me were the loaded baked potatoes. It was like a potato skin and mashed potatoes had a baby, and that baby was made of bacon, scallions, and happiness.

Despite being too full to finish my entree, I didn’t want to leave without having dessert. The passion fruit panna cotta caught my eye when I saw it on the menu, and I didn’t want to leave without trying it. Even now, it is the part of the meal that I remember the most fondly. The tart hint of passion fruit in the rich and creamy panna cotta worked in perfect harmony. All of the fruits that were served with the dessert were at the peak of ripeness. Each piece of fruit was perfectly sweet and firm, and the mango sauce tied everything together. It has been a long time since I enjoy a restaurant dessert as much as I enjoyed this one. I’m still dreaming about this silky custardy goodness.

Chef Cindy Huston does it again with Zest. Their Sunday brunch should be coming back in the Fall, so I will definitely be checking that out. You should, too.

For more information on Zest, visit the web site at http://zestmiami.com/

August 30, 2016
Croquetapalooza 2017
Croquetapalooza, organized by Burger Beast, is a competition event where restaurants vied to see who makes the best croqueta. This event also featured the Frita Showdown, also intended to decide which is the best Frita in Miami. For those of you that don’t get out much, a croqueta (croquette in English) is a small roll that is breaded in breadcrumbs and fried, and a Frita is a sandwich made with a patty of seasoned ground beef and pork (or chorizo) on a Cuban roll and topped with shoestring potatoes . The roll is usually made with potato or ground meats of some sort as the main ingredients. In Miami, croquetas are a staple of pretty much every Latin cafeteria that you can find. The most common kind is usually ham.

Despite being born and raised in South Florida, croquetas were something that I never got into. In fact, I was pretty sure that I hated them until I ate a potato and cheese croquette at a fancy restaurant and found that not all croquetas are greasy mounds of icky ham. So, when I was gifted a ticket to Croquetapalooza, I decided to enter with an open mind.

I decided to tackle the croquetas first, because it meant smaller portions and the lines moved faster. The event was super crowded, and by the time I left it was really hard to move around.

Croquetas 1-4
- #1: Trust & Co (People’s Choice Winner)
  - Bacon and Manchego cheese croqueta
  - If someone had told me that croquetas could be made with bacon and cheese, then maybe I wouldn’t have vilified them so much all of these years. They got my vote for single-handedly changing my presence at the event from “Well, I didn’t want the ticket to go to waste” to “Wow, maybe croquetas aren’t as bad as I thought. Can’t wait to try the next one.” Salty bacon and creamy cheese are always a winning combination.
- #2: Palomilla Grill (Judge’s Choice Winner)
  - Ropa Vieja and Ham croquetas
  - I didn’t try the ham croqueta because we were given a choice between one or the other. The ropa vieja croqueta’s flavors were very reminiscent of this classic cuban dish, while still remaining faithful to the texture of a classic croqueta.
- #3: Party Cake Bakery
  - Mahi Mahi croqueta with a potato ball
  - This croqueta kind of reminded me of fish sticks, but not in a bad way, I wasn’t a fan of the potato ball that came with it. It was filled with a strange meat filling.
- #4: Pinecrest Bakery
  - Cod, chicken, and ham croquetas
  - The chicken croqueta wasn’t bad, but the other two were below average.
Croquetas 5-8
- #5: Ms. Cheezius
  - Another bacon and cheese croqueta with a balsamic strawberry reduction sauce
  - This was my second favorite of the night, I think. I guess bacon DOES make everything better.
- #6: Tucker Duke’s Lunchbox
  - Manchego cheese and poblano croqueta
  - This croqueta was kind of spicy, and it didn’t retain its shape very well once you bit into it. Still, that was because there was cheese oozing out from where you took a bite, and that’s rarely a bad thing.
- #7: Vicky Bakery
  - Ham croqueta
  - This is basically every croqueta from a Latin cafeteria, ever.
- #8: Estefan Kitchen:
  - short rib croqueta
  - These caught my eye because the plating was so nice and pretty. You could really taste the short rib in the croqueta, which was nice.
Croquetas 9-12
- #9: Breadman Miami
  - Doritos a la Milanesa croqueta: ham, chicken, and Swiss cheese breaded with Doritos
  - Points for creativity, but the flavor combinations didn’t come together for me.
- #10: Doce Provisions
  - Smoked ham and chorizo croqueta
  - The chorizo in this croqueta made it stand out from a standard “ham only” entry, but it was still mostly average.
- #11: Finka Table and Tap
  - Kimchee croqueta and pork croqueta
  - I regret eating the kimchee croqueta first. It was so bad that I had to run to a trash can and spit it out after my first bite. After that one, it kind of tainted the taste of the pork one for me, so I don’t think that I can give it a fair assessment.
- #12: La Fresa Francesa
  - Veal croqueta
  - While the croqueta itself wasn’t much to look at, I appreciated that it was basically a cylindrical veal meatball. That being said, I think that’s also what made it not technically a croqueta for me. It was more of a breaded meatball.
Croquetas 13 and 14
- #13: Atlas Delicatessen
  - Spicy sweet potato casserole croqueta: a vegan croqueta made with spiced sweet potato with a spicy buffalo dipping sauce
  - I appreciate when a restaurant can make something vegan that doesn’t taste awful. However, I also don’t think that buffalo sauce was the right choice to go with this croqueta. The sweetness and the spices in the croqueta were too much of a contrast for it to work.
- #14: Dolores (But you can call me Lolita)
  - Serrano ham and bechamel sauce croqueta
  - Again, average.
And, as if trying all of these little cylinders wasn’t enough, next was to try all of the fritas! Fortunately, there were fewer of these, because my stomach was already complaining about all of the fried food.

Fritas 1-4
- #1: El Mago de las Fritas
  - Vaca frita Frita: A frita that was topped with vaca frita and avocado
  - I love vaca frita, so this was actually a good variation for me. While the meat was a little on the dry side, the sauce and the creamy avocado helped it along. This was my second favorite of the night.
- #2: Tucker Duke’s Lunchbox
  - Classic frita
  - It wasn’t bad, but nothing really stood out to me
- #3: I Don’t Give a Flying Frita
  - A frita with white cheddar cheese, pico de gallo, and “frita sauce”
  - While this frita wasn’t bad, I couldn’t really taste any of the additional components that it had, even though I could see them. It’s like they got lost in the powerful flavor profile of a frita.
- #4: Cuban Guys
  - Classic frita
  - I had a pan con bistec from this place once, and it was really bad. I was surprised when this was one of the better fritas of the night. The patty was juicy and not dry. Well done.
Fritas 5 and 6
- #5: Los Bobos
  - Classic frita
  - With my first bite, I couldn’t find anything special about it. With my second bite, I noticed that the meat was seasoned well to go with the potato sticks. With my third bite, I realized that I didn’t want to stop eating it. So, even though this was just a standard frita, it got my vote because it was the only one that left me wanting more after one or two bites.
- #6: El Rey de las Fritas (Frita Showdown Winner)
  - Classic frita and a frita with fried plaintain and cheese
  - Perhaps the judges were fortunate enough to get one of their fritas with the plantain and cheese on it, which they had ran out of when I got to the front of the line. Instead, I got their classic frita, which was good but didn’t instill that “must take another bite!” feeling that Los Bobos did.
Despite all of the grease sitting in my stomach by this time, I still made some room to check out a few of the other offerings at the event.

Nutella tres leches from Breadman Miami.

Pinecrest bakery was offering tons of desserts to sample in addition to their croqueta entry. And, their desserts were definitely more impressive. My favorite was the triple-layer chocolate mousse, which was rich and chocolatey without being overwhelming.

And, no Latin event is complete without some plantain chips! There were plenty to go around, courtesy of Chifles.

Croquetapalooza was an eye-opening event. I never imagined that croquetas could be anything else but those yucky ham things that people in Miami eat around breakfast time. This event showed me the potential and versatility of croquetas, and maybe even inspired me to try making some of my own. In the end, these types of revelations are the reason why I show up to these things. There is always something new to learn, and something new to try.

Thank you, Burger Beast, for another great event.
August 24, 2016
Twix Brownies
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The part of me that wants to create delicious things is often at war with the side of me that is lazy as heck. Sometimes, I want cake, but I want to nap just a little bit more. Other times, it’s the other way around. There are days where I can totally spend hours preparing an elaborate cake, and days where I want something tasty without spending too much time in the kitchen.

I am not ashamed to admit that, months after racking up on clearance Halloween candy, I was still going through the bags and trying to come up with creative uses for the candy. This recipe came about in a bout of exasperation at having run out of neat ideas for the candy. I mean, I could just EAT it, but where’s the fun in that!? Instead, I just started adding candy bars to different batters and seeing what happened. Brownies are great for that because the batter is thick enough to suspend pieces of candy in. These, however, are more of a “brownie with a surprise in the middle.” Imagine biting into what you think is just a regular brownie and finding the chewy, crunchy goodness of a Twix bar? Yum!

This recipe comes together pretty easily. I used a dessert squares pan so that they would all be the same size, and to elimiate the danger of having brownies that did not have any Twix in them after being cut into squares. Grease each cavity with a little bit of butter or oil.

Then lay a Twix at the bottom of each cavity.

Fill with brownie batter.

And BAKE!

That’s pretty much it. To make things even easier, you could use boxed brownie mix if you so desired. If you don’t have a dessert squares pan, you can also use an 8″ square pan.

Twix Brownies

Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 12 Fun Size Twix bars, unwrapped
Directions

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease a 12-cavity dessert bar pan. Place 1 Twix bar in the middle of each cavity. Set aside.

Combine the melted butter and sugar together in a medium bowl. Stir in the remaining ingredients in the order that they are listed, mixing well with each addition. Divide batter evenly between the 12 cavities of the bar pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with only fudgy crumbs. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before removing from pan.
August 23, 2016
Mango Madness in July – Part 3 (2016 Chapter)

Another year, another Mango Season in South Florida. This is now my third Mango Madness post, as I did this in 2014 and 2015 with great success. But for those of you just tuning in, I will fill you in. During Mango Season, I find myself getting a large quantity of mangoes that I don’t always know what to do with. I mean, mangoes are great to eat just as-is, but there are only so many you can have. Plus, it doesn’t take long for them to go from “just right” to overripe, after which the only thing you can really do is puree it and use it somehow. That was the start of Mango Madness.

As each year goes by, it gets harder for me to think of things to do with mango that I haven’t done the previous year. I spent most of May and June fretting about whether Mango Madness would be as good as previous years, as my brain reserves were running low. But, thanks to Google, feedback from friends and family, and random “Eureka!” moments, I have managed to make the 2016 chapter of Mango Madness just as prolific as the last two!

So, what are some new things that I made with mango this year? Check it out!

Mango Lassi is a accompaniment to spicy food, or just a healthy pick-me-up at any time of the day. Plus, since it’s basically just a mango and yogurt smoothie, it’s super easy to make. Just blend equal parts mango puree and plain yogurt together, then sweeten to taste with honey. I like to bottle it to take to work.

Take the classic Strawberry Cream Cake and make it a Mango Cream Cake! Just replace the strawberries with chopped mango and add a little bit of mango puree to the whipped cream.

Mango Pastelitos already have a dedicated blog post here, and they’re worth trying out!

Mango pastry cream is delicious on its own, but also has many uses. Plus, it’s also a good way to use up a large amount of milk that you may be looking to find a use for. I used this recipe as a guide, but made a few changes. I used fresh mango pulp instead of canned, omitted the cardamom and saffron, and used vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean paste. I also went light on the vanilla so that it didn’t overpower the mango flavor.

With all of that mango pastry cream lying around, I had the idea to make little mango tarts. But, being too lazy to make tart shells, I went ahead and filled store-bought phyllo cups with the cream, and then topped each “tart” with a fresh raspberry. Simple AND delicious.

Mango mousse is delicious, refreshing, and only uses four ingredients. Whip 3/4 cup of heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add 1 tbsp piping gel, then continue to whip until stuff peaks form. Fold in 3/4 cup mango puree and 1/4 tsp vanilla extract, pour into serving cups, and refrigerate until set. Yummy!

Mango Ice Cream Cake! The name should say it all, but I will elaborate. It’s a batch of mango ice cream sitting on top of a blondie. Top with some fresh raspberry sauce, and you’ve got a winning dessert that can be made in advance!

Mango macaron ice cream sandwiches! Using BraveTart’s macaron recipe, I made mango macaron shells by adding 3/4 oz of freeze dried mango to the macaron batter. Make some mango ice cream (my favorite recipe is this one) and freeze it in a 13″ x 9″ pan. Once frozen, cut circles of ice cream about the size of your macaron shells, and sandwich one round of ice cream between two macaron shells.

Replace the peaches in your favorite peach cobbler recipe (I used this one) with mango, and you’ve got yourself a mango cobbler! Since mango is incredibly sweet, I also reduce the sugar in the fruit filling by half.

I love Mango Madness because it really challenges me to be creative and think outside of the box sometimes. Sometimes, it’s even like a race to see how many things I can make before the mangoes go bad. There are things that I would never have thought to make before that I now wonder how I did without. But, the stakes are raised for next year. Will I be able to conjure up some new, mango-centric recipes for next year’s Mango Madness? I guess I had better start brainstorming now!

A big thank you to everyone that supplied me with mangoes this year. As you can see, they were put to good use. Until next year!

July 24, 2016
Honeybee Doughnuts (A Review)

When I first discovered Mojo Donuts, I felt like I had struck gold. But, despite being an amazing donut shop, it is also about an hour away from where I live. So, when Honeybee Doughnuts opened in South Miami, I thought that my days of driving to Pembroke Pines for doughnuts were finally over.

The tiny little donut shop is about a block southeast of Sunset Place. You probably won’t be able to see it from the street.

Like a certain other doughnut shop one county over, they only make a certain amount of doughnuts a day and then close once they have sold out. It’s not a bad business model, and their doughnuts are absolutely gorgeous. You almost feel bad about eating them.

South Miami has certainly felt the doughnut craze, as my options were limited the first time that I came to visit this shop. It makes you kind of sad to see a sign for a doughnut that sounds delicious, but there are none left.

Clockwise from top left: Dulce de Leche with Almonds, Cinnamon Sugar, Nutella, Maple Bacon, Mixed Berry, Apple

A box of a half dozen doughnuts costs about $16, which is a few dollars more than an entire dozen costs you at Mojo Donuts. I can write that off as the cost of doing business in ritzy South Miami. Taste-wise, the doughnuts left a lot to be desired. Most of them tasted like a plain doughnut with a hint of whatever flavor they were supposed to be. The doughnuts themselves are kind of dense and more bread-like than the soft, pillowy doughnuts that I prefer. And, since the toppings on the donuts don’t offer a significant punch of flavor, these have proved to be kind of a let-down.

If I am in the area and craving a donut, I would probably go back. However, for a SERIOUS donut craving, I will continue to drive to Pembroke Pines to Mojo Donuts. That is, until they open their Miami location next month.

For more information about Honeybee Doughnuts, visit their web site at http://honeybeedoughnuts.com/

July 22, 2016