Part Wheat Bread

I'm not a fan of wheat bread, so as a compromise this is a partial-wheat bread that isn't too overpowering in its wheatiness.

• 2.5 c bread flour
• 1.5 c whole wheat flour
• 1.5 T sugar
• 1.5 t salt
• 1.5 t yeast
• 2 T butter, melted
• 3/4 c milk
• 1/2 c water

1. Place ingredients in bread machine. Run dough cycle (1h20).
2. Press onto floured surface into 6"x10" rectangle.
   
3. Roll the dough along the short side. It will lengthen as you roll.
   
4. Place into lightly oiled 9x5 bread pan. The dough should touch the ends of the pan. Loosely cover and let rise for 1 hour.
5. Bake at 350F/180C for 30 min. Rotate pan and bake another 30 min.
6. Remove immediately from pan and let cool for 2 hours. Slice.
   

Spicy Carrot Soup

You can make this soup ahead of time, since the last step is to reheat it after blending. You can vary the level of ginger and spiciness to your taste as well.
10/11/12 Made this for dinner, adding in some crushed red pepper flakes with the onions. Used 5.5 c chopped carrot, which was one full bag. Left out the scallions and black pepper. Served 2 with grilled cheese sandwiches and a salad. Delicious! Leftover soup fit in 2 mason jars.

• olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 large carrots, cubed 1/2" pieces or smaller
• 4-6 c soup stock + water (I use chicken stock, obviously not vegetarian)
• 1 t Thai red curry paste
• 1 T freshly grated ginger
• optional: scallions, fresh black pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large stock pot. Saute the onions until translucent (5-10 min).
2. Add the carrots. Cover, 10 minutes.
3. Uncover and add enough stock and water to cover the carrots. Bring to boil, then simmer for 15-20 minutes or until carrots are tender.
4. Add paste and ginger. Stir. Remove from heat and let rest 15 minutes.
5. Reserve one cup of carrots. Blend the rest in batches.
6. Reheat the soup. Add more stock if it's too thick. Add more paste to taste.
7. Serve in bowls with garnish.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

• 3/4 c milk
• 1/4 c butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 1 3/4 c flour
• 1/3 c brown sugar
• 2.5 t powder
  
• 3/4 t salt
• 1/2 c semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 c chopped walnuts
  

1. Beat milk, butter, egg and sugar.
   
2. Stir in remaining dry ingredients. Mix.
   
3. Stir in chips and nuts.
   
4. Drop into 12 greased or paper lined muffins tins.
5. Bake 18-20 min or until golden brown.

Drop Biscuits

Very fast and simple. Devour as a snack or make as a side for a dinner.

• 2 c flour
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 T baking powder
• 3/4 c milk
• 1/3 c butter, melted
• optional: 1/2 t sugar
  

1. Mix the dry ingredients.
2. Add the butter and mix in with fork.
3. Add the milk and stir just until combined.
   
4. Drop 12 biscuits onto a greased cookie sheet.
5. Bake at 230C/450F for 8-12 minutes.
6. Serve warm: plain or with butter, jam, or gravy
   

Chicken Noodle Soup

I hate celery, so this recipe leaves it out. If I were to do this again, I'd even leave the chicken out. For me, it's mostly about the noodles, the soup and the carrots. I don't remember what I did, or how long it was for - this is my best guess from memory.

• 1 medium onion
• oil/butter
  
• 2-3 large carrots
• chicken stock
• water
• egg noodles
  
• chicken, cooked and diced
  

1. Saute the onions. 5 min
   
2. Add the carrots. 5 min
   
3. Add the stock. 20 min
   
4. Add the noodles. 10 min
   
5. Add the chicken. 5 min
   
6. Garnish with scallions or freshly ground pepper.
   

Sesame Bread

• 2 t yeast
• 3 1/4 c flour
• 1 T sugar
• 1.5 t salt
• 2 t sesame oil
• 1 c + 2 T water
• 1.5 T sesame seeds

1. Add everything but the sesame seeds to your bread machine.
2. Set to French, 1.5 pound, medium crust.
3. At sound of beeps, add sesame seeds. This will happen during the second kneading (around 2h15 remaining).
   
4. Done in about 3.5 hours.
   

Apple Pancakes

Very easy to make. Lots of variations possible. Hard to go wrong. This comes out as a very thick pancake.

• 2 eggs
• 1 c yogurt
• 1/2 c milk
• 1 t vanilla extract
  
• 2 c flour (I used 1/2 c whole wheat)
• 1 T sugar (+ 1 T brown sugar)
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 t baking powder
• 1/4 t baking soda
• 1 t cinnamon
• nutmeg
• 2 medium apples (1 coarsely grated, 1 chopped)
• butter (for frying)

1. In large bowl, beat eggs. Add yogurt, milk and vanilla.
2. In separate bowl, combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, salt, powder, soda, spices).
3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Mix. Add apples. Mix.
4. Over medium heat, melt butter in frying pan. Drop batter into 3 circles (or however many fit depending on the size of your pan). Batter will be very thick (much thicker than traditional pancakes).
5. When nicely browned, flip to cook other side.
   
6. Remove to plate. Eat hot off the plate or keep in oven to serve later.

Variations and Notes

• flour: all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, or mix
• sugar: white, brown, or mix. You can also leave it out altogether.
  
• extract: vanilla or almond
• yogurt: I used the no sugar added AB yogurt widely available in Taipei. It is incredibly runny. If you are using a thicker yogurt you may need to add more milk to soften the batter. If you don't have yogurt, you can use all milk.
• apples: if you like a bite, chop the apples. If you don't want to sense they are there, grate them all. Increase to 3 apples. A tart variety supposedly turns out better - but all I've used is Fuji, so can't attest to it myself.
• spices: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, allspice, cardamom. Whatever your favorites are, dump them in.
• temperature: anywhere from low-medium to medium-high. If the first batch burns, turn it down.
• amount: this made 9 medium sized pancakes for me. Number depends on size. 4/8/10 I used Ticino yogurt and it made 12 pancakes total (8 medium and 4 large).
• thickness: if too thick, add some milk.
  

Potato Soup

Serves 5-8 as an appetizer.This makes a creamy, chunky potato soup.

• 1/2 large onion, diced
  
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• butter
• 4-5 russet potatoes, cubed (bite sized)
• 1 t salt
  
• black pepper
• crushed red pepper
• 4-5 c milk
• 4 oz cream cheese (half a block), cubed, room temp
  
• optional garnish: shredded cheese, chives, scallions, black pepper

1. Melt butter in stock pan.
2. Add onion and garlic. 5 min
3. Add potatoes and spices. 3 min
4. Add milk. Simmer 25-30 min or until potatoes are tender.
5. Partially blend mixture. Continue heating until thickened. Add cream cheese to further thicken.
6. Transfer to serving bowl and garnish.

Variations

• Use chicken stock instead of milk.
• Use cheddar or another type of cheese instead of cream cheese.
• Add Dijon mustard with the milk.
  

Carrot Soup

This recipe uses pretty basic ingredients and is easy to make. I used some chicken stock that came from P's mom - P says it's the most amazing stuff. It's a paste in a jar. The soup came out quite well. I'll have to use it again to try some chicken noodle soup. R, S, M and MM were big fans.

• 2 extremely large carrots, or 5-8 medium ones, sliced/chopped
  
• 2 large potatoes or 6-8 small ones (washed skin or peeled), cubed
  
• 1 medium onion or half a large onion, chopped
  
• 2-4 T butter
• 3-6 cloves garlic
• 4-6 cups water
• chicken stock paste/cubes
• 1 c milk
• optional: black pepper, salt, ginger, grated cheese, fresh basil
  

1. Melt butter in stock pan. Saute onions for 5 minutes.
2. Add carrots, potatoes and garlic. Cook for 3 minutes.
3. Add water and stock. Bring to boil and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until carrots and potatoes are tender.
4. Reserve 1 cup solids.
5. Blend remainder in batches.
6. Return to pot and add milk and reserved solids. Heat if necessary but don't boil.
7. Sprinkle with freshly grated black pepper (and/or other toppings).

Variations

• If you like a chunkier soup, reserve more than one cup of vegetables.
• If you like a thicker soup, reserve less and/or use less water.
• If you like a thinner soup, use more water/milk.