Favorite Soup

When I was a child, my Dad always cook different kinds of soups. All of them are my favorite since my Dad is the best cook for me. One of my favorite is the mushroom soup which made me think that I can cook it as my dad's. I tried to copy his way of cooking but I didn't get the taste that he always make.

The ingredients of this soup are:

- Butter

- Onion

- Garlic

- Flour

- Evaporated Milk

- Chicken Stock

- Mushrooms

First, I melted the butter and sauteed the onion, garlic and the mushroom. Sauteing the mushroom until it sweats will enhance the flavor on it. At first, I am hesitating on what should I do next. Should I put the flour first, the milk, or the chicken stock. What I did is to put the flour and the stock to get the level of the thickness of the soup. After a minute, I put the milk on, and bring them to boil. And also, salt and pepper for a better taste. And there you have it.

When I tried my soup, I am surprised that what I did is better than what I expected to be. The flavor of the mushroom is just perfect with the creamy soup. I am surely share this recipe with my friends who loves creamy soups as well.

Dumpling Taste

Dumplings

My next blog is to choose one of Pasta, Noodle, or Dumpling to make. I would rather chose to have dumplings than the two other. Although pasta and noodle is good, the dumplings is more appetite to me.

I made pork and shrimp dumplings for this blog. I didn't make the wrapper for this but it contains wheat flour, water, coconut oil, and salt. Upon on my research, just mix them all together and let it sit for an hour before making it as the wrapper. Using the pasta maker, the dough can be size and shape it as what you wanted to. This pastry is just as easy as making the pasta as well.

Pork and shrimp mix:

          - Pork

          - Shrimp

          - Eggs

          - Garlic

          - Green Onion

          - Cornstarch

          - Salt and Pepper to taste

If the pork and shrimps are set, it's ready to fold it into the wrapper. I choose the dumpling to deep-fry it so that the wrapper would be crispy as I wanted it to be. This dumpling can also be steamed, or put in into a soup.

To make it a soup:
          - Cold water
          - Chicken broth/powder
          - Watercress
          - Salt and Pepper to taste

Bring water and chicken broth/powder in a boil.Add the dumplings and let it cook for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the watercress. Don't forget to add the seasoning as well.


Ready to serve!

Pickled Green Papaya

My next blog is to choose one item which we can do it in pickling, preserving, and/or fermenting. I chose to do the Green Papaya for pickling. Pickling is which the food is preserved in vinegar. This is one kind of a dish that can enhance the taste buds.

I made the step-by-step procedure on how to make this papaya.

Papaya:

I peeled the papaya and I took off the seeds and grated it.

I put the papaya in cheese cloth and squeeze it until the liquid comes off to take out the bitterness of it.

Carrots:

I peeled the carrots and Julienne it.

Bell Pepper:

Took off the seeds and cut it into Julienne.

Ginger:

Cut it into Julienne.

Garlic:

Peeled and thinly sliced.

Shallots:

Peeled and divided into 8 slices.

White and Brown Sugar:

Peppercorn:

Vinegar:

Into a pot, combine vinegar, salt, white sugar, peppercorn, ginger, garlic and brown sugar. Bring to boil.

Add the bell peppers, carrots, and shallots. Remove from heat.

Pour the mixture into the papaya and toss it.

Let it sit for 2 hours.

Ready to put it into a jar!

This will be ready to serve after 12 hours. It can be served with a fried meat or a fried fish.

When I tried to eat this dish, I knew that this pickled papaya is also good to eat with chicken and pork barbecue.  The taste was just wonderful because of the flavors of the ginger and the peppercorns along with the vegetables (green papaya, ginger, carrots, red pepper). It not too sour nor sweet because it has the perfect combination of the sugar and vinegar.

Fruit Hunter

St. Lawrence Market is the place where I chose to buy a fruit for my next blog. This Market is one of the famous markets in Toronto. It is not only about the freshness of meats, fruits, and vegetables but it is also because of the cheap prices. This is the reason why I chose this market to go to for my research. As I walked around this market, I saw some different kinds of fruits and vegetables that is new in my eyes.

One fruit that catches my eyes is the "pomegranate". I've been always hearing this kind of fruit since then but I am not really familiar with it. This fruit is also seasonal which blooms on September to February in Northern Hemisphere. While in Southern Hemisphere, it is from March to May. It can be used making a juice, smoothie, and alcohol beverages. It is also used in cooking and baking. I choose this fruit not only because it is not familiar for me but it is interesting to try.

Pomegranate

I cut them into half using the knife but I did not know that I should just tear out the skin and not to cut them. The effect of cutting it is because there is a big possibility of cutting the seeds to.

 I also took the seeds off of the skin and just rinse it.

At first, I thought it would be just one kind of a sweet fruit. When I ate it, the sweetness and sourness of the seeds are blending. It is also a juicy seed which it make me want to try to make a smoothie some other time. Upon eating this, I thought of making these seeds as a dessert. A dessert that can be serve to special occasions which I know the kids would love it.

Melted White Chocolate

Add the pomegranate on the melted white chocolate.

Mix the white chocolate and pomegranate evenly and put it in the fridge for an hour.

And here you have it.. Pomegranate White Chocolate.

From this experience that I had, I learned that I can always turn a fruit into something else. I just need to have more imagination on how I can make it.

New Taste Experience

If I would try to taste one thing, that is sweet potato. It is normal to everyone to eat this but I haven't tried it so far. It pushes me to try this because some restaurants have this "fried sweet potato" and some of my friends told me that it is delicious. Back home (Philippines), they used to make this sweet potato as a dessert or snack. Today, I am making a Caramelized Sweet Potato which I know that this will make me start loving this kind of vegetable.

Sweet Potato

First, I peeled the sweet potato and sliced them. Upon peeling and slicing them, I felt that this sweet potato is so hard.

I fried them using vegetable oil and while frying them, I put some brown sugar on it until it caramelizes.

Before eating the Caramelized Sweet Potato that I made, I don't have any idea how it taste like and if it really taste good or bad. It could be sweet if it cooked well. It could be bitter if it cooked too much because of the sugar. I don't even know if it is soft or hard. I feel excited on tasting this kind of food because at the first time, I will eat sweet potato. I also feel excited because this first time would be great because I cooked it myself.

Now that I tried this caramelized sweet potato, I would probably eat this more often. It is surprising because I didn't expect that I would like it so much. And yes, I just don't like it but I love it. The combination of the brown sugar and the sweet potato is so much perfect. It is sweet enough for a dessert and/or snack. And I would probably recommend this to my friends for them to know how appetizing it is. If I rate this from 1(lowest) to 10(highest), I would most likely say that this is 10.

Culinary Biography

I am Karla Joy Javier, a lady who is dreaming to be a Chef in a well-known hotel. I am currently enrolled into Culinary Management Program in George Brown College.

Entering to Culinary Program is not as easy as I've thought. It is important to have skills and hard work before reaching the success. But then again, I am still excited to learn something new about cooking that I need to know. I am expecting that this will help me to reach my dreams. I am looking forward to gain more knowledge on becoming a Professional Chef someday.

My Father is my inspiration when it comes to cooking. I always look up to him and I want to be like him someday. When I was a child, I am my Father's little helper who always wanted to help him cook in our small kitchen. This little thing helped me out to know what I really want to do in life.

When I grew up, I discovered to myself that I am loving what I am doing. I want to be a successful Chef someday because I want to prove myself to my Father that I can do what he can do and I can make what he can make. In the future, I just don't want to have a good job but I want a "career" that I can earn a lot of experience, learn new things, and to show my skills to everyone while enjoying.

At the moment, I am not working in this industry but sooner or later, I will be trying to get into a restaurant who works in the kitchen. I always wanted to work in a restaurant for me to have more experience and to apply things that I am learning at my College.

My Dad and I loves to cook for my Mother and Sister for them to feel special in our own little ways. By doing this, I believe that our family gets better and stronger. Thus, eating together will help us to communicate to each other despite of our busy schedules and help us to have a family bonding.