Good Fortune

Durring the 19th century, a cookie very similar in shape to the modern fortune cookie was made in Kyoto, Japan. It was paired with the Japanese tradition of random fortunes, called omikuij. The Japanese version of this cookie is very different than our modern day fortune cookie: it had darker dough, was a little bit larger, and the batter was made out of sesame and miso instead of vanilla and butter. They do contain a fortune, but instead of putting it in the hollow part of the cookie, the wedged it in-between the bend part.

For chinese new year I had some friends come over and we had homemade fortune cookies (which I made), and my sister and I wrote the fortunes.

The Hardest Part

Trying to shape the baked dough into cookie while it was still hot.

It was yummy.

Chick Pot Pie (Yay!)

Today I made chicken pot pie with a cheddar biscuit crust. I've always wanted to learn this recipe because it's my favorite!! My grandma taught my mom how to make it. Beside being yummy it's also unique because it has biscuits on top instead of a crust.

The Hard Parts

I had to cut butter into the flour with my hands till the resembled course peas.

Waiting to eat it.

Delicious!!!!!

Soft Pretzels

Today I made soft pretzels. Pretzels were invented in A.D. 610 when a kindly monk in Aosta decided that the praying children needed a reward for praying. The monk couldn't come up with anything, so he went into the monastery kitchen and saw a scrap of yeast resembling the arms of a praying child. He sprinkled the dough with salt and named it pretiola, meaning "little reward." And that's how the pretzel was made.

Hard Part-Rolling and Shaping

What I learned is that there is a protein in flour called gluten, and when you knead it the chains of protein in the gluten harden, making it hard to roll. So you have to let it sit before you can roll it so the chains of protein will relax.

It was nutty and amazingly delicious!

The Forbidden Soda

A very long time ago, the ancient greeks believed that the pomegranate was a forbidden fruit through the story of Persephony and Hades, Persephony was the daughter of the greek goddess of the harvest, Demeter. One day Persephony was out watching pigs for a herder. When she was watching the pigs, a crevice opened up under her. Hades flew out of the crevice on a flying carriage of skeletal horses, and took Persephony into the underworld to be his wife, or the queen of the underworld. Demeter made Hades let Persephony go, but before she went, she ate six seeds of the forbidden fruit, a pomegranate, therefore making it so she had to stay in the underworld for six months every year. Also, the "apple" in the Christian story of the garden of Eden, may have been a pomegranate (some would say.) But, I don't care if it's forbidden. I just want to rip it apart, boil it down, and make it into an American classic, THE SODA.

The Hard Part

Nothing really except making a reduction syrup out of sugar, lemon juice, and strained pomegranate juice. A reduction is when you cook of excess liquid, leaving a concentrated version behind.

We turned it into soda by adding some carbonated water.

Light and refreshing, tasty and healthy.

Eggs Benedict: The Little Big Lunch

Today I made Eggs Benedict, If you are unfamiliar with Eggs Benedict, let me describe it's deliciousness to you. Eggs Benedict is a dish of poached eggs resting atop a crusty english muffin and slices of canadian bacon, and topped with a creamy, buttery, sour sauce called "Hollandaise Sauce". Now I've been to Canada and I really didn't see any canadian bacon, all I know is that is  pretty similar to ham.

 Hardest Parts:

I had to poach and egg, which is a process of carefully sliding eggs into boiling water, then chilling the eggs to keep their shape.

I had to make Hollandaise Sauce by whisking eggs over low heat and slowly adding butter and lemon juice.

Well, when it was finally all made, my dad and I sat down to eat it. It was amazing! Savory and acidic and DELICIOUS!

My Adventures in Cooking

And so it begins.

Yesterday was my very first day of homeschooling, and I might be the luckiest kid ever, because my mom decided that I should learn how to cook. I'm already pretty good at cooking, but now I'm getting into the real world of cooking! A couple times a week I will post a picture and description of what I made that day or the day before. Hope you like the blog!