San Francisco

West Coast forever.

Australia

For my college graduation present, my parents bought me a plane ticket to visit my best friend who lives in Australia. I stayed in Sydney for 3 weeks and it was by far the best vacation I have ever taken. Australia is beautiful.

I miss my friend but life goes on I suppose.

Recipe: Baked Avocado Fries

Not really a surprise that I love avocados. They’re the quintessential California fruit and they're so versatile. I like avocados on burgers, sandwiches, chili, tacos, omelets, salads, etc. Totally “nature’s butter”. When I first tried Baked Avocado Fries, my mind was blown. It’s crispy on the outside and so creamy on the inside. The key is to eat it hot out of the oven because leftover cold and soggy avocado fries are gross.

Baked Avocado Fries
Adapted from Beth Cooks
Serves 2-3

Ingredients

2 firm but ripe avocadoes, pitted, peeled, and sliced into ½ inch wedges

¼ cup white whole wheat flour

2 large eggs

1 ¼ cup breadcrumbs

oil spray

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp parmesan cheese, grated

mustard (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees fahrenheit.

Spread out the flour, egg, and breadcrumbs in 3 separate bowls.

Coat avocado slices in the flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs.

Place on a cookie sheet and spray the wedges with oil spray and sprinkle with salt and parmesan cheese.

Bake for ~20 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with mustard for dipping and eat immediately.

Recipe: Pork & Fennel Sausage Roll

One of my favorite bakeries in Australia that I went to is Bourke Street Bakery in Surry Hills. When my friend suggested we go, I had no idea how popular and hip the bakery was. But when we arrived in the morning, there was a line out the door of people waiting to pick up a pastry or coffee. The smell of freshly baked bread and pastries was intoxicating. Upon further research, I found out that the two bakers/owners even published a book!

The first time I went, I had the Goat Cheese and Mushroom Quiche while my friend got the Pork & Fennel Sausage Roll. We sat outside at one of the wooden tables and enjoyed every bite of our pastries. My friend raved about the sausage roll!

We decided to venture out to Bourke Street Bakery for the second time just two days after our first trip. I got the Pain au Chocolat in an effort to try something new on the menu but my friend of course got the sausage roll again. Despite the cloudy day, we sat outside on a wooden table again and chitchatted.

So after hearing my friend rave about the sausage roll and after tasting it myself, four days after I returned home from my trip to Australia, my friend challenged me to make the Pork & Fennel Sausage Roll myself. Challenge accepted!

The sausage rolls took quite a bit of effort to make and after doing it once, I concluded that it should only be reserved for special occasions. But it turned out really good and tasted very similar to the original roll sold at Bourke Street Bakery. I mean, the best part of cooking and baking is seeing the tangible results of all the effort put into it, and there is no joy as great as when the results are successful.

Pork & Fennel Sausage Rolls

Adapted from Jessie - Cooking Moments

Makes 12 "8 cm" rolls

Ingredients
2/3 pound ground pork
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp olive oil

1 ½ tsp ground fennel

½ tsp dried thyme

½ tbsp breadcrumbs

1 tsp salt

pepper

½ egg

2 sheets frozen puff pastry, semi thawed

egg wash (½ egg + ½ tbsp milk)

sesame & fennel seeds for sprinkling

tomato sauce to serve (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.

Heat olive oil in a saucepan and saute the garlic and onion until fragrant. Add celery and carrot and cook until soft, ~5 minutes over medium-low heat. Once cooked, turn off heat, set aside, and let cool.

Then place ground pork, vegetables, herbs, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl. Mix and stir in one direction until the meat is gluey.

Cut puff pastry sheets in half, into two rectangles for each sheet. Divide the meat into four equal portions and roll into sausage shapes until the pastry's length. Place one portion of meat up the center of pastry. Brush egg wash on all edges and roll up to enclose filling.

Cut the roll into three pieces. Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame and fennel seeds.

Repeat until all the filling is used.

Place on baking pan and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees fahrenheit and continue to bake for another 10 minutes or until golden.

Serve warm with tomato sauce.

Recipe: Zucchini Bread

Let's talk zucchini bread. I never liked this particular type of quick bread very much because I was convinced it was too vegetable-y and who wants vegetables in their bread?! But after baking this, I've completely changed my mind about zucchini bread. It's perfect for breakfast or snack with a cup of coffee or tea.

Because I don't like sweet breads, I cut down on the sugar. I also used white whole wheat flour instead of a mix of whole wheat and all-purpose flour because I like the lightness of white whole wheat while still keeping the whole grains and fiber intact. I also personally don't like the usual spices in traditional zucchini bread, like cloves, so I omitted those but feel free to add ginger, cloves, or even walnuts if you prefer.

Zucchini Bread
Adapted from My Little Celebration
Makes 12 slices

Ingredients

1 2/3 cup white whole wheat flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 ¼ tsp bakng powder

½ tsp baking soda

½ tbsp cinnamon

¼ tsp salt

½ cup milk

2 tbsp canola oil

2 tbsp honey

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract
1 ¾ cup zucchini, shredded

cinnamon sugar for topping

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, oil, honey, egg, and vanilla. Stir in zucchini.

Pour wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and stir just until combined.

Evenly spread the batter into a 9-inch baking pan lightly coated with cooking spray or lined with parchment paper.

Evenly sprinkle cinnamon sugar over batter. Bake until toothpick placed in the center comes out clean, ~15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before turning the bread out onto the counter to cool completely.

Slice and eat!

Recipe: Avocado Toast

Avocado toast seems to be all the rage lately and with good reason. Avocados are incredible!

I haven't actually tried the avocado toast at Cafe Gitane in New York but the recipe that I used is a recreated version of the restaurant's. I had it for breakfast with a side of scrambled eggs.

Avocado Toast
Adapted from The Kitchn
Serves 1

Ingredients
1 slice of whole grain bread
1/2 avocado
1 tsp lemon juice
salt and pepper
red pepper flakes

Instructions
Toast the slice of bread.
Meanwhile, in a bowl, mash 1/2 an avocado using a fork and mix it with lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
Spread the mixture on top of the toast and sprinkle it with red pepper flakes.

New York City Part 2: Cherry Blossoms

At the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in New York.