Deliciously Plain Vanilla Cupcakes

Paiges Dream Birthday Cake

Recipe to try

Yellow Curry

• 1 tablespoon oil
• half a yellow onion, sliced thinly
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1/3 cup yellow curry paste (Mae Ploy)
• 10 baby golden yukon potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 14-ounce can coconut cream (it’s like coconut milk, but even more luscious)
• 1/2 – 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons fish sauce (optional)
• 1–2 tablespoons brown sugar (optional)
• cilantro and rice for serving

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INSTRUCTIONS

1. Heat the oil in a large pot over medium low heat. Add the onions and saute for a few minutes until the onions are fragrant and softened. Add the chicken and curry paste; saute for 3-5 minutes. Add the potatoes and stir to coat with the curry paste.
2. Add the coconut cream and 1/2 cup water to the pot – simmer for 20-30 minutes or until the chicken and potatoes are fully cooked, adding more water depending on the consistency you want for the sauce.
3. Stir in the fish sauce and brown sugar to really take it up a notch. Seriously – so good. Serve over rice.

Bahn Mi Sandwiches

Ingredients

•   2 pounds Open Nature Pork Tenderloin (sliced super thin)
•   1 shallot 
•   3 cloves garlic 
•   1 tablespoon sugar 
•   1 tablespoon honey 
•   2 tablespoons fish sauce or soy sauce
•   2 teaspoons sesame oil
•   1 teaspoon salt 
•   1 teaspoon pepper 
•   4 medium carrots 
•   1 large daikon (or 2 small) 
•   1 and 1/2 tablespoons sugar (to release water) 
•   1 and 1/2 tablespoons salt (to release water) 
•   1/2 cup sugar 
•   1 cup warm water 
•   1 cup white vinegar 
•   oil, for searing pork 
•   1 cup mayonnaise 
•   1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce
•   6-8 bolilo rolls, mini soft baguettes, or hero rolls 
•   1 to 2 English cucumbers, sliced into rounds 
•   2 jalapenos, optional, sliced into rounds 
•   2 bunches cilantro

Instructions

1. Begin by slicing the pork tenderloin very thin. Or better yet, ask your butcher to do this for you! They can do it in about 2 minutes and it will save you tons of time. And they will get it much thinner than you can get it at home. 
2. In a blender or food processor, add the shallot, garlic, sugar, honey, fish sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper. Pulse until combined. It's okay if there are chunks of onion or garlic. You can also just chop the shallot and garlic by hand and mix it all together in a bowl, I'm just lazy. 
3. Add the marinade and thinly sliced pork to a medium bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least an hour, or up to 24 hours. 
4. Make the picked veggies: Chop the carrots and daikon into matchsticks. See photos. You want them to be about the length of a matchstick and the thickness of your average chop stick. It doesn't have to be perfect! Don't stress about it. Just chop them up thin-ish and your sandwich is going to taste amazing. 
5. Add the chopped veggies to a large bowl and sprinkle with 1 and 1/2 tablespoons salt and 1 and 1/2 tablespoons sugar. Use your hands to massage the sugar and salt into the veggies. We're doing this to get the carrots and daikon to release water, so that they will be flexible but still crunchy. After 15 minutes of sitting in the salt and sugar, you should be able to bend a carrot without it snapping (see photo). 
6. Pour the veggies into a colander and rinse them under water until all the salt and sugar is washed off.
7. Rinse out the bowl and make the brine: combine 1/2 sugar and 1 cup warm water, and stir to dissolve. Add the vinegar and a few shakes of salt. Stir it all together.
8. Add the rinsed carrots and daikon to the vinegar mixture, make sure all the veggies are covered, and stick it in the fridge for 45 minutes. (They will keep for months in the fridge!) 
9. When the pork has marinated, heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add about a tablespoon of oil to the pan. Make sure it is shimmering. 
10. Add the pork strips in batches. If you add it all at once, it will not brown. Make sure there is about an inch of space in between each piece of pork.
11. Sear the pork for about 1-2 minutes, then flip and sear for another minute or so. If you sliced the pork yourself, you will probably have to cook it longer because it will be thicker. Adjust the heat as necessary, you want to keep it as high as possible without the pan scorching. 
12. Continue searing until all the pork is cooked. Add more oil as necessary. Set aside on a plate, or put it in the oven on a pan on the "keep warm" setting (170 degrees F). 
13. In a small bowl, combine 1 cup mayonnaise and 1 tablespoon Sriracha (more or less Sriracha to taste). 
14. To assemble: Slice a roll in half lengthwise. Spread both sides with Sriracha mayo. 
15. Top one side with pork, sliced cucumber, sliced jalapeno, lots of pickled carrots and daikon, and fistfuls of cilantro (you can chop it if you want, I just tore it from the top of the bunch.)
16. Top with the other half of the roll and eat! Serve with more Sriracha mayo if you want. 

Creamed Eggs on Toast

2 tablespoons butter 

2 tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon salt 

1 cup milk 

Sharp cheddar cheese (to taste)

2 hard boiled eggs

2 slices toast

In a small pot over medium heat add butter and stir until melted. Sprinkle flour and salt in pan and whisk together with the butter. Cook flour and butter for about 1 minute or until the flour and butter become fragrant. Add about 1/2 of the milk and stir until the mixture becomes thick. Add the remaining milk and stir until the mixture becomes thick. Add cheese, melt. Add chopped egg, reserving some of the chopped egg for garnish. Pour sauce over toast and garnish with remaining chopped egg.

Gyoza

Gyoza wrappers
Ground pork sausage
Onion
Carrot
Garlic
Cabbage
Dash of soy sauce

Christmas Breakfast

Christmas Morning Cheese Sauce

(Double for the 6 of us)

1 cube butter

1/3 cup flour

1 quart milk

1 cup grated extra sharp cheddar cheese

3/4 tsp salt

Melt butter in large sauce pan.  Remove from heat and whisk in flour.  Slowly stir in milk and then return to medium-high heat.  Stir constantly until sauce comes to a low boil for 1 minute.  Remove from heat and stir in cheese until melted.  Add salt and serve warm.

Boiled eggs

Toasted English Muffin

Ham