This is very typical Asian sweet, it can be served as dessert or as snack. It is soupy and contain mainly green beans, barley and little balls of glutinous flour know as mochi.

This is one of the food that I love and amazes me that my husband enjoys it… very much…I say that because this is so “Asian”…even many Asian people do not care for it, let alone people that was never exposed to it…

I must admit that the concept of sweet bean soup with mochi. Mochi? Yes, this gooey sticky little balls floating in a not so appealing murky, brownish, greenish color soup…and served iced, cold or warm? Yes, it might be troublesome for some people to accept hehehe! That is why I was so surprised that my husband embraced this dessert/snack so fast and often asks me to make it.

I have been cooking this for a while and it is perfect at any season of the year…I serve it cold/iced during summer and warm during winter. I often have the little mochi balls in the freezer…so when need I boiled them for a few minutes and it is ready to go.

In this particular recipe I added barley and use coconut sugar to sweeten the green bean soup, but you are free to use whatever kind of grains and sugar.

Ingredients:

1 ½ cup dry green beans (mung beans)
1/3 cup barley
Coconut sugar to taste

Fresh made or frozen mochi balls.

Method:

Wash the green beans and soak in water overnight. Do the same with the barley.

Place the bean and the barley in a thermo cooker and follow the instruction, making sure that the beans are fully cooked and soft. In case you do not have a thermo cooker please do the following:

In a big pot add the green bean and barley with water, about 1 ½ in above the bean. Cook until the beans have soften.

Add more water and coconut sugar to your taste. You can adjust the thickness of the soup according to your taste.

Cook the mochi balls accordingly, drain and put in the bean soup, or if you want to serve them cold, rinse the mocha balls with cold water and then add to the bean soup.

I hope you are dare enough to try this simple recipe for Green Bean Soup with Mochi…and hey, you might find out that you like this.

If you enjoy this recipe using glutinous flour you might want to try this Asian inspired Brazilian snack, Mochi Cheese Balls.

Did you know that the bean sprouts that you often see in Asian groceries are germinated from mung beans? Moreover, the starch extracted from these beans is used to make the bean thread or glass noodles, which are popular in Asian cuisine

Thank you for stopping by Color Your Recipes…have a colorful day!

These cookies are great, they are crusty on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside. You will need only 4 ingredients, it is dairy and gluten free…and so simple to make. The ingredients are the same as for marzipan or almond paste, only in different ratio.

I love these cookies at any time with coffee, tea or just as a little snack. They make awesome little gifts, especially during this time of the year.

Ingredients:

14 oz blanched almond
1 ½ cup powdered sugar or confectioner’s sugar
1 egg white
2 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg yolk from the egg white used above (store in the refrigerator)

Method:

To blanch the almonds, place almonds in a bowl and pour boiling water to cover the almonds. Let the almond sit for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain the water and rinse under cold water. Drain the almonds and slip the skin off. Let them dry completely using.

Place the almond in the bowl of the food processor and pulse a few times until fine ground. Add the sugar and continuo to pulse until finely ground. Add the egg white and the almond extract, pulse again until a ball forms (sort of).

Remove the ball from the food processor bowl and make a ball. Split the ball into two pieces and wrap the one and set aside.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mat. Set aside.
With the other one, make a ball and roll with a roller pin into about ½ in thickness. Cut out the dough with the cutter of your choice, make it small, and set them o the baking sheet, just a little apart of each other. Repeat with the second ball of dough. Once all the dough is cut out, uncovered 6 to 7 hours or overnight.

After the cookies have set and dried out, preheat the oven to 400F.

Gently mix the egg yolk and brush the cookies with it. Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes until the top slightly golden.

Let them cool on the wire rack and store in an airtight container.

If you enjoy this simple recipe for Almond Cookies you might want to check on the Roasted Cinnamon Almond from Color Your Recipes.

Did you know that almonds are rich in vitamins and minerals? Almonds are cholesterol free and contain unsaturated fat, which can help reduce your risk for cardiovascular disease.

Thank you for stopping by Simple Recipes and have a great week!

For the longest time I wanted to bake using browned butter…and did not know what to bake until I thought…why not use the brown of the butter for the chocolate chips cookie? And it was exactly what I did.

I just could not believe the aroma that came from browning the butter…I felt like drinking the melted butter…of course I did not, but the smell was very inviting. It is a very simple recipes, very similar to the recipe of my chocolate chips cookies (well, I did not have enough brown sugar, so completer with what I had with regular sugar) and added an extra step for browning the butter, but let me tell you, well worth  the extra pan that I had to wash.

Before I forget, I just added a new page, TRAVEL. There you can find pictures from our recent travels, if you are interested in seeing it…be warned,  it is kind of long, so get some popcorn and a drink 

Now back to the recipe…

Ingredients:

½ cup (1 stick) butter
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
2/3 cup chocolate chips
2/3 cup chopped walnut

Method:

Place the butter in a small pan on medium heat. Let the butter melt by stirring frequently, once the butter melts and begins to foam, continue to cook until brown specks start to form. Be careful so you do not burn it. The butter will have a wonderful nutty aroma. Remove from the heat and let it cool down.

Preheat oven to 3500F degrees.

In a bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer cream together the browned butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract.

Combine dry ingredients to the creamed butter. Stir in the chocolate chips and the walnut.

With the help of two spoons, spoon the dough on to a wax paper, cover cookie sheet or a silicone mate, 1 inch apart.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or just until edges are slightly brown.

Makes two dozen cookies.

Did you know that browned butter is “beurre noisette” in French? It means hazelnut butter and it is often used in French pastry production. The process of browning the butter starts with placing the butter in heat until the butter melts and begins to foam. The color will be from a yellow to golden tan to a toasty brown. Brown butter is very versatile and can be used wherever butter is used.

Thank you for stopping by Simple Recipes and have a great week!

I know, I know there are hundreds of recipes for flan and here I am sharing another one…but trust me, this recipe is very simple and only requires a few ingredients. Moreover, I can assure you that whoever tries this flan will fall in love with it. It is not overwhelmingly sweet and the texture is silky and creamy. There are no words to describe it! It is true that it is loaded of calories, but we need to indulge ourselves once in a while right?

You can bake the flan in small size ramekins or when going to a potluck, I like to bake the flan in a pyrex form. Everytime that I am going to a potluck party and do not know what to bring…or do not feel like cooking/baking…flan is the solution. It is simple,easy and enjoyed by all…Okay, enough of bragging about this flan, let’s go to the ingredients and method.

Ingredients:

Caramel
½ cup sugar
Enough water to dissolve the sugar, approximately ¼ cup

Flan
1 can of condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk)
3 cans of skim milk (measured by the condensed milk can)
5 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method:

Caramel

In a small pan place the water and the sugar, mix until the sugar is dissolved. Boil the sugar mix until the water is totally evaporated and the sugar is thick and brown. Do not mix while it is cooking otherwise the sugar will crystallize. Carefully pour the caramelized sugar into the ramekins and gently rotate the ramekin so the caramel is evenly spread. Let the sugar cool down and set the ramekins aside.

Flan

In a blender add all the ingredients listed under “flan”, make sure that it is well mixed. Pour into the ramekins where the brown sugar is already hard. The flan mixture will be liquidy at this stage. Bake the flan in water-bath (banho-maria in Portuguese) for approximately 1 to 1 ½ at 275F. The top will be slightly golden and when gently shaken, the flan in ramekins will feel settled.

Let it cool completely and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Before serving, place a plate larger on top of the ramekin and in one movement, flip the ramekin carefully on a plate. Tap on the ramekin a couple of time and the flan will slide on the plate together with the caramel sauce

Garnish as  desired and serve.

If you enjoy this simple flan recipe you might want to check on a richer version of flan recipe.

Did you know that flan recipes are found as far back as ancient Rome and is was originally a savory dish? The word “flan” is derived from the Latin “flado”, which means flat cake.

Thank you for stopping by Simple Recipes and have a great week!

Yay! I finally got some rhubarb… I always see rhubarb recipes but never had a chance to try it. So yes, this is my first time cooking with rhubarb and I must admit that I love it. So, before the end of Summer I want to share this simple recipe for rhubarb frozen yogurt…I love the tartness and the fragrance of rhubarb, and I can tell you that I will definitely be cooking/baking more with it in the future.

I was a bit nervous not knowing what to expect…but making the rhubarb stew with a little sugar was easy and it cooked in less time than I expected. Once the rhubarb stew/jam was ready, all the work was left to the ice cream machine. Make sure that your ice cream bucket is in the freezer at least overnight before you follow the recipe.

Ingredients:

3 stalk rhubarb (approximately 1 ½ cup chopped)
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 cup Greek nonfat yogurt
1 – 2 tablespoon agave syrup

Method:

In a small sauce pan add the chopped rhubarb, sugar and water. Cook until the rhubarb turns soft, almost like jam consistency (it took me approximately 10 minutes). Let the rhubarb stew/jam cool in the refrigerator.

In a medium bowl mix together the yogurt with the rhubarb stew/jam and add agave syrup to your taste.

Place the yogurt mix into the ice cream bucket and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to a freezer container, freeze for a couple of hours before serving.

If you enjoy this simple recipe for rhubarb frozen yogurt, you might want to check on Strawberry Frozen Yogurt or Mango Frozen Yogurt.

Did you know that rhubarb in considered a vegetable in spite to be known as ingredient used in many desserts? Rhubarb is very low in calories and has been used for medicinal purposed in Chinese Medicine.

Thank you for stopping by Simple Recipes and have a great week!

This is a very simple recipe for a very light banana loaf…this loaf is very airy and spongy. I adapted this from the Banana Spongy Cake, I omitted the walnut and instead of muffins cups I make them into a mini loaf, which I great as a gift.

Ingredients:

3 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
¾ cup mashed banana
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ cup canola oil
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon rum

Method:

Preheat oven at 350F.
In a bowl sift the flour with baking soda, baking powder and ground cinnamon. In another bowl mix the eggs, vanilla extract, rum, sugar, mashed banana and mix until ribbon stage, which it will take approximately 10 minutes.

Add the flour mix to the egg and banana mix, mixing gently. Once the flour has been incorporated, add the oil.

Pour into the prepared 3 mini loaf pans and bake at 325 F for approximately 30 minutes (lower the temperature once the pans are in the oven) or until an inserted wooden pick comes out clean.

Cool on the wire rack and serve, or wrap the loaf and send to a lucky friend 

Did you know that bananas are naturally radioactive? It is because of its high levels of potassium and a small amount of potassium-40, which is the largest source of natural radioactivity found in animals and humans.

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