Potato - Mozzarella Sticks

Hello everybody! Welcome back to my homemade recipes and I am going to show you one of my favorite appetizers , The Potato - Mozzarella Sticks. These are cheesy and delicious! 

Of course you can order this in the restaurant but this time I am going to share you how to make this in a very easy, affordable and enyoble at home with your family.
So, let's begin!

Ingredients:

1 medium potato - cut into cubes
1 small carrot- cut into cubes
mozzarella- cut into strips
1 pinch of ground black pepper
1 pinch of salt
1 half white onion
2 gloves of garlic

Directions:

1. Place the cut potato and carrot into your pan or you can also use a rice cooker.
2. Add a pinch of salt in the vegetable.
3. Put 3/4 of water from the level of the vegetables (do not put water beyond the veggies) and boil it until it soften. (It takes 15-20 minutes)
2. Check the vegetables using a fork if it is soften enough and ready to mash.
3. Put the soften potato and carrot into a clean plate.
4. Saute the onion and garlic then mix to the vegetables.
5. Start mashing using a fork or a potato masher until it's perfectly fine.
6. Get 2 scope of mashed potato and flattened it on your palm, put the mozzarella stick at the middle and make it as a filling.
7. Cover the cheese and form it into stick. Then put it in your oven for 5-10 minutes, enough to melt the mozzarella.
8. Serve hot and chessy. ENJOY!

Egg Bread (Gyeran-ppang)

According to my research, Gyeran-ppang is one of the famous street foods in Korea. I haven't been there but this recipe struck me most during my research because it is easy to bake, common ingredients and best for my breakfast. Gyeran-ppang is sweet, fluffy and cute little bread with a whole egg inside that is being sold by street food vendors in Korea. 

As I was saying, I found this recipe in my research. Yes, I do search food and recipe everyday and whenever I have a time and internet connection, hehe. I also asked about this food to one of my Korean friends who is now in AU. She laughed and wondered why of all the interesting questions, I chose this! Hahaha.. well, she'd no choice but to tell me some information about Gyeran-ppang. 

According to her, Koreans can't resist of buying Gyeran-ppang because of its sweet and fresh smell, It is affordable, cheap and delicious for your simple snack. Gyeran-ppang vendors use special machine that make them cook few dozens of bread at a time. You can see vendors who are busy pouring the batter on a rack of metal Gyeran-ppang molds, cracking eggs, covering the molds and flipping the molder to make them cooked.

Sounds simple, huh? Yes, it is. Let me share you my Gyeran-ppang that is made in the Philippines!!!

Ingredients:

Good for 3 Gyeran-ppang

1 tbsp. of  melted unsalted butter

3 tbsp. of granulated sugar

a pinch of salt

1 tsp. of baking powder

1/2 of vanilla extract

1/2 cup of all-purpose flour

1/2 cup of milk

2 eggs

1 tsp. cooking oil

Direction:

1. Combine the melted butter, sugar, salt, vanilla, 1egg, flour and milk. Whisk until it's smooth.

2. Preheat the oven to 400 degree F (about 200 degree C).

3. Brush the bottom and the sides of a pan with butter or you can use cooking oil.

4. Fill the pan full of batter. 

Opps! You can use any pans but make sure that it's small and don't put a lot of batter in it or else your Gyeran-ppang won't cook all the way through.

5. Crack an egg onto the center of the batter in a pan. 

6. Bake for 15 minutes or until it's finally cooked.

7. Take out the oven and serve hot.

Making Gyeran-ppang is fun and delicious! Enjoy!!! 

How to Make a Homemade Caffe Latte Without a Machine

To make a cappuccino or latte is ideally you should have a good machine and a milk steamer, but they can be pretty expensive. I am not a barista but this is one of my goals, to have at least a half year training because I am really a coffeholic and I like designing my food and my drinks but I still have a lot of goals and priorities for now. Last December, I was so happy that someone gave me a coffee machine http://www.myhanabishi.com/shop/category.php?id_category=55  as one of his gifts for me, yay! haha :D So it isn't difficult for me to brew and make an espresso. 

Cappuccino and Latte are the Martini's of coffee drinks (am I right?) haha.. simple and delicious with those common ingredients but very easy to completely ruin. 

So, to all mothers out there, fellow coffee drinkers who love to make your coffee without a milk steamer, here is my simple guide how to make a latte without a machine.

CAFE LATTE WITHOUT A MACHINE

What you should prepare:

1. Espresso

2. Milk

3. A tumbler with cover

4. A mug or a cup

Step 1: Make Espresso

Currently, I am using this affordable ground coffee for my espresso. For Filipinos, 3n1 coffee is enough for us and I grown up with my parents using them. But then I realized that I am using the unhealthy one. So now, put a 2 1/2 tbsp. of ground coffee in the strainer and a half cup of water. 

Step 2: Heat up milk

Heat up about half a cup(for latte) or 3/4 (for cappuccino) of fresh milk in the microwave oven or on a pan using a stove until it's hot but don't put it their for a long time. I used a broiler for mine for a minute. If possible, use whole milk for the best result. 

Step 3: Make the hot milk into a thick froth

As you can see the photo above, I used my Starbucks tumbler http://www.starbucks.ph/ (or you can also whip the milk with a wisk if you have it). Put the hot milk into it and closed tightly. Shake well for 30 seconds until you have a thick froth. If you can't see any big bubbles, close it again and shake more :)

Step 4: Pour

After your last shake, pour the milk into the espresso. Use a spoon to get the remaining foam so it will look nicely on top of your coffee and sprinkle some cinnamon powder for the best flavor. 

I am currently using this brand and so far the result is good ^^

http://www.mccormickcorporation.com/

That's it! But of course, a latte made with a milk steamer has a much thicker froth than mine. Good luck and share your experience to me as well.