Hip to be Square - Lemon Squares

Very delicious and very quick to do! Instant dessert which my family devoured immediately. This is the simple recipe.  But one version would include limoncello to accent the lemon flavor and another would top it with cream cheese.

Ingredients:

6 tbsp butter or margarine

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 eggs

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel

3 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2- 3/4 powdered sugar

Grease an 8x8x2-inch bakig pan.  Beat butter for 30 seconds; add the 1/4 cup sugar and teaspoon salt, beating till fluffy. Stir in the 1 cup flour.  Pat dough onto bottom of pan.  Bake in a 350 F oven for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile,  beat eggs; add remaining 3/4 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, lemon peel, lemon juice and baking powder.  Beat 3 minutes or till slightly thickened.  Pour over baked layer.  Bake in a 350 F oven 25 to 30 minutes longer till light golden brown around edges and center is set.  Cool.  Sift powdered sugar on top.  Cut into squares.  Makes 16. (Nora Daza: A Culinary Life)

My Kitchen: What's Cooking?

CHOPPING

SLICING

 SEASONING

COOKING

 PLATING

Today, the hubby decided to make Szechuan Beef, the family's favorite dish, ever! The recipe calls for a lot of slicing and chopping of ginger, garlic, onions and spring onions. Using a round aluminum tray is very helpful. Of course, slicing and chopping are a breeze if you have a sharp knife. And the seasonings -- Chinese wine, black bean sauce and plum sauce -- are a must to make the Szechuan Beef always delicious. In cooking the dish, a kawali or wok is indispensable. A reliable gas range is the cornerstone of every kitchen. Finally, it all comes together in a deep white platter.

Bread-y Or Not: Honey Quick Bread

According to the Fannie Farmer Cookbook "quick breads are made without yeast from batters which require no kneading and do not have to rise before going into the oven." This appealed to me; I wanted to do a quick baking. For honey bread, I mixed the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients (which had honey as the star ingredient) and beat it thoroughly for 20 minutes. And then I baked it for 50 minutes. The result? Tasty and good with coffee.

Tri-colore: Berry Trifle

Berry Trifle is made of pastry cream (soft custard), sponge cake (or ladyfingers as used in mine), whipped cream and fruits. The only real work is making the pastry cream where you mix sugar, cornstarch and eggs on the one hand with milk, vanilla and salt on the other. Stir over low fire to thicken. Add butter and stir until smooth. Allow to cool completely. Afterwards, the fun begins - layering. The outcome is heavenly! (Thanks to Yummy Magazine's Aileen Anastacio.)