cookies & cream oatmeal cookies

You know when you have a fantastic idea on how to just twist an old recipe? It just comes to you spontaneously and you think, WOW, that’s a great idea?

This cookie wasn’t EXACTLY one of those ideas.

I imagined a cookie that would have chunks of Cookies & Cream candy bar inside. Which I thought would be fantastic since its one of my favorite chocolate bars. I think I was also thinking along the lines that chocolate chunks are used in cookies so why can’t chunks of Cookies & Cream bars be used, too?

I hadn’t really anticipated on the pieces of chocolate dissolving in the heat of the oven… -_- But everyone gobbled up these cookies up within minutes and said they were delicious, so I guess the taste was pretty good, just not what I was looking for.

Maybe next time I’ll just use a mixture of white and milk chocolate chips.

Crispy Cookies&Cream Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon table salt
14 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 Hershey’s Cookies & Cream candy bars, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and table salt in a medium bowl.

Beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Then, add egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Add flour mixture gradually and mix until just incorporated and smooth. Gradually add oats and candy and mix until well incorporated.

Divide dough into 24 equal portions, each about 2 tablespoons. Roll between palms into balls, then place on lined baking sheets about 2 1/2 inches apart. Using fingertips, gently press down each ball to about 3/4-inch thickness.

Bake until cookies are deep golden brown, about 13 to 16 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack to cool.

spicy tuna and california sushi rolls

Whenever I go home, I love cooking with my mom or just being the kitchen, helping set the table or clean up afterwards.

Since Korean food is pretty heavy and hot and the weather’s been kind of warm, my mom suggested making sushi as a light, fresh lunch. I always though making sushi would be really difficult, but something basic like spicy tuna and california rolls turned out to be so much easier than I expected!!!

I love it… I’m never going to buy a spicy tuna roll in a restaurant ever again. Well, maybe not never, but what’s the point when you can make it taste exactly the same at home for a much cheaper cost!
I felt super accomplished yesterday after I rolled out some professional-looking, if I do say so myself, sushi. hehehehehe
This is a really good appetizer for some guests, too, because its super pretty, easy, and looks like it took a lot of effort when it didn’t.

Spicy Tuna and California Rolls

6 cups sushi rice
6 sheets nori (dried seaweed)
6 Tbsp white or black sesame seeds
1/2 pound fresh maguro (raw tuna)
1/2 cup imitation crab
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons sriracha sauce
1 container masago (capelin roe)

1 teaspoon shichimi seasoning
2 cucumbers
1 avocado

Preparation:
Chop tuna and mix with 1/4 cup mayonnaise, srichacha sauce, and 1 tablespoon of masago.
Chop the imitation crab an

d mix with 1/4 cup mayo, 1/4 cup mayo, and shichimi seasoning.
Slice up cucumbers lengthwise and slice avocado into thin slices.
Wrap a bamboo mat (makisu) in plastic wrap. Put a nori sheet on top of the makisu.

Spread 1 cup of sushi rice on top of the nori sheet. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of sesame seeds on top of the sushi rice.

Flip the nori over so the rice is facing down on the mat. Place the tuna mixture or crab mixture (depending on what kind of roll you want) lengthwise on the rice. Add two slices of chopped up avocado and as much cucumber as you like.

Roll up the bamboo mat, pressing forward to shape the sushi into a cylinder. Press the bamboo mat firmly and remove it from the sushi.

If you made a spicy tuna roll, you can stop here and cut the rolled sushi into bite-sized pieces about one inch thick.

If you made a caliofornia roll, spread masago onto the top of the roll and press down again with the makisu before slicing.

If you want a spicy tuna california roll, press spicy tuna on top of the california roll with the makisu before slicing.

Enjoy with soy sauce and wasabi or even sprinkle it with some teriyaki sauce!
Who knew sushi was so easy….
:)

If you have leftover tuna or you want to save some of it at the very beginning, its always good for maguro sushi.. :)

orange yogurt loaf

I haven’t updated in forever!!!

I’ve been really busy with school, etc. life in general so I haven’t been able to cook or bake very much. But I have been eating copious amounts of cake because it was my twentieth birthday last week. I had a white chocolate truffle raspberry cheesecake from my sister, a strawberry shortcake from my friend Sarah (baked from scratch! So good!), a sweet potato (goguma) cake homemade by my mother, and my small group bought me  a white cake from Porto’s Bakery. And of course I ate it alllllll. I think I packed on five pounds just from overconsumption of butter, sugar, and eggs last week.

But I ended my midterms last week so I decided to bake with whatever I had in my fridge.

I was just digging through and I found two oranges, eggs, and some leftover plain yogurt…
There was a recipe that I found a while back featuring grapefruit and yogurt, but seeing as I had oranges instead, I decided to make orange yogurt cake instead!
It was my first time trying out this recipe, but I loved how it turned out! It wasn’t too sweet, and the yogurt made the cake quite soft and gave it a fine crumb, almost like a cross between a sponge and pound cake.
But even better because there’s no butter involved!

No pictures for now, but I’ll update soon. I’m at home for spring break and I forgot my camera USB cord! Ugh.

Orange Yogurt Loaf Recipe

Yield: One loaf.

For the loaf:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 cup sugar
3 extra-large eggs
3 teaspoons grated orange zest (approximately two oranges)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil

For the syrup:
1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 9-by-5 inch loaf pan. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, one cup sugar, eggs, orange zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup orange juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. While the cake is still warm, pour the orange syrup mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

Enjoy with some jasmine or green tea during some chilly weather!
Sun’s supposed to be coming out soon though. I think it’s going to be in the 70s by Wednesday. Time for berry crisps, cool whip, and lemon bars in the summer time!