Popovers

Can you believe the end of the year is already here? It has gone by so quickly, with a blink of an eye, a few pinches of this, a handful of that and lots of sprinkles with  garnished passion, this year has gone by under my nose, but a new year of hope and prosperity awaits.  A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR to all family and friends.

I find that making POPOVERS at the end of the year is appropriate, POP the old year and bring OVER the goodness to the new year to come.

The popover is an American version of Yorkshire pudding in England. These impressive popovers have only a few humble ingredients - eggs, milk, flour, salt and butter and they make your meal special.  Made well they should have large crowns, lightly crisp. golden brown exteriors and tender, moist, airy interiors crisscrossed with custardy webs of dough.  This recipe is adapted from America's Test Kitchen and unlike most popover batters, this one is smooth, not lumpy.  HIGH HEAT is crucial to the speedy, high rise of these popovers. 

Pumpkin Cinnamon Christmas Tree Bread

I got up early on Christmas Eve to make this bread so that i can post the recipe and wish all family and friends a very Merry Christmas but i had a problem with my computer and am not able to do so until now.  Sorry about the late wishes but the bread turned out so well and the fragrance of Christmas filled the whole house and woke everyone up earlier than usual.  I am sharing how this bread is shaped and to WISH YOU ALL A MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Pumpkin Tang Yuan/Tong Yuen With Dried Persimmon in Cinnamon and Ginger Sweet Soup

Winter may just be getting started, but those looking forward to a bit more daylight have not much longer to wait. This Saturday that is today is the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere and it will experience the shortest daytime and longest nighttime. After the Winter Solstice, days will become longer and longer. As ancient Chinese thought, the yang, or muscular, positive things will become stronger and stronger after this day, so it should be celebrated.  So to keep up with traditions, i have made Pumpkin Tang Yuan/Tong Yuen and served with a sweet soup that has Korean influence Cinnamon And Ginger With Persimmon (Soojunggwa).

With this recipe i would like to wish all family and friends HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE