Final Aftermath~

Today , I have officially completed all my final exams and am ready to do some cooking therapy !! To start my spring break off... while most will probably making scandalous trips to Cancun etc., I will be going back home to get some much needed mental rest :) I'm actually looking forward to staying at home with my dad.. swinging some golf clubs...watching TV...eating some good Asian foodz... quite therapeutic actually- just doing nothing .

I thought it would be appropriate to show my dad's Kung Pao chicken attempt #1 as a welcome-back-home symbol ! He didn't stick to the traditional Chinese methods of cooking and pretty much made it according to American methods/taste/ and style. By using low-fat chicken breast as primary meat and opting out peanuts (apparently we're not a big peanut family) my dad with very little advice from me... made this creation below -->

While it definitely tasted edible- much better than the fastfood I get back on/near campus- it still was missing a certain flavor.. tang.. or perhaps key ingredient?... we both recognized it.. the dish was ALMOST there.. but something small but key was absent!? Perhaps a certain bean paste??




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Meanwhile, I was mixing up a batch of brownies- lazy from just coming back - I grabbed an emergency brownie mix (always have a couple laying around for guests/events) and pretty much pulled a SandraLee (for those of you who watch FoodNetwork you'll know what i'm talking about). By adding a 1/4 of a cup approx. of shaved dark chocolate in the batter and adding a little cake flour, my brownies became.. well completely different!! I absolutey loved them! For all of you fudgey-gooey brownie lovers this will not be your thing, but the cakey/bread/puffy type brownie lovers!! this is it!! i'm a huge fan of fudge but my brownies... well what can i say? I want it lighter so I can eat more of it without feeling that super sweet chocolateness gunking down my throat, making my saliva ooze and stick to the back of my mouth! A lighter, fluffier brownie with the same powerful and distinct chocolate flavor is definitely my thing :D You could almost call this so-called brownie a chunk of extra moist chocolate cake... but for me..... its still a brownie :)

--> below: although I find this picture beautiful, the picture does not do the brownie justice i'm afraid.. well alot of my pictures don't do the food justice ! haha well I was pleased with the crackled top that i'm quite fond of and the thickness of the brownies ... this is a great way to start out my spring break :)


--> below: although its not as clear as the picture above, this side view of the brownie proves to show that even with the cakey/fluffy texture, there are still strong brownie-like features you could easily point out. Probably because of my amateur baking skills/knowledge, the bottom is fluffier than the top , which i'm guessing is because of the concentrated heat at the bottom of the pan... either way.. the top was definitely gooey-er than the bottom ... yum... want more :(