A quick post: Cinnamon water

I had scored big time from my boyfriend two weeks ago. He gave me some cinnamon sticks that were chilling in his new abode. Other than baking baked goods from it. I wanted to do something different. So I figured, lets make a simple drink:

Cinnamon Water

This link below is where I obtained the recipe. Click to find out more!

Try This Cinnamon Water

Basically you take 1 stick and 1 cup of water, simmer it until you see more color in the water. The darker the water, the stronger it'll be and if think about it, when you pour cinnamon water onto ice, it'll even out the potency of the drink.

I enjoy drinking this drink, because it is a good detox, and helps decreases your appetite. Helps me a whole lot when I feel the urge to open up my pantry, and fridge doors.

Kitchen Pantry Essentials

If you are just learning how to cook and or moving into a new home with a fresh kitchen and want to fill up its cabinets. You should continue reading!

As a kid, I use to hate organizing the kitchen. My family and I would organize all the pots and pans, sorting out our secret stash of store bought mix match Tupperware to Chinese take-out containers. The only part I did enjoy organizing was the pantry, our dry storage. Everything in the cabinets had old spices, oils, bottles and packets of some sorts. It felt like being an old witch cleaning out her vials of potions, and jars of foreign ingredients. I never realized there was immense amounts of recipes you can do with a good pantry. I know for sure my family had a good pantry, since my mom’s the cook of the household and my older sister who likes to bake desserts and also cooks when she has time, who I call her Ate. (Ah-Teh: means older sister in Tagalog).

It’s funny that I never saw myself to be cooking as a career. I always thought I would work my way up in my coffee shop jobs or just some chick at a desk job who’s counting down the minutes to get the hell out of work. Since moving from California to Florida, it has been a long journey from home. Made me appreciate the environment that my family built for me. So it’s new beginnings living in an apartment with seven roommates it is intense but I love it all the more because I cook a lot and I can’t eat all my food.

The Following are spices that I use for my everyday cooking:

Kosher Salt/Sea Salt

Whole Black Pepper

Bay-leaf

Cumin

Paprika

Onion Powder

Chili Powder and Flakes

Lemon Pepper

Coriander

Pickling Spice

Garlic Powder/Salt

Nutmeg

Cinnamon

Cream of Tartar

Cloves

Ginger

Italian Seasoning

Cardamom

Tumeric

The other dry goods that I use for cooking and baking:

Oil

Olive oil

Coconut milk

Diced Tomatoes

Pasta

Rice

White/Brown Sugar

Confectioner’s Sugar

Dark Chocolate Chips

All Purpose Flour

Bread Flour

Active Yeast

Baking Powder

Baking Soda

Distilled Vinegar

Apple Cider Vinegar

Balsamic Vinegar

White/Red Wine

Fish Sauce

Bouillon Cubes

Soy Sauce

Nuts (my favorites are walnut and pecans)

It did not take a whole day to have what I have now in my dry storage, unless you can totally afford everything in one shot then go ahead. This took me 6 months… Every month I bought couple of things here and there. Most of my items I bought at a Publix and Walmart. Just make sure when you buy spices you gotta look at the opportunity cost if you are broke as hell. Choose which is more affordable and if its the only spice you can find and its more than $4. Question yourself if it's worth it. Spices may seem cheap but if you think about it they all add up and there will be holes in your pocket before you know it! Currently I have 26 spices and if each cost about $2 then multiply that it be $52! If you stop by a ROSS or Bed Baths & Beyond and or even visit Amazon, you can buy spice racks that already has spices! You'd probably save a whole lot of money. Like coriander, I could not find a cheaper item and I felt really torn about it but I ended up buying it because I needed it in several recipes that I will make in the future. That, I just gave into my wants versus needs. My pantry is still building and if you have any advice like if you have a recommendation on having an ingredient let me know! Just comment in the comment box!

Thanks for reading, happy cooking!

Sincerely,

KSM

I feel so fat...Why?

Lately I have been eating excessive amounts of carbohydrates, causing me to get so damn sleepy, groggy, or better yet a better term would be a lazy fat ass. Ever since the holidays popped, I've done nothing but cook home comfort foods. What I call comfort foods since I have moved to Florida is my usual  over medium sunny side eggs, rice, and fish sauce, Filipino foods with lots of rice and more fish sauce and then my ultimate favorite:

MAC N' CHEESE

I am so full of this dish. Even now while writing this blog, I am devouring a bowl of it in bed with my favorite drink, Sprite! Since I had to relocate my apartments. I've been craving for nothing but elbow noodles, a fancy cheese sauce, and don't forget my favorite protein: bacon. Second comes pork or beef. If I'm too cheap to buy bacon. I've been experimenting on making mac and cheese. Such as which method is the best way to cook it. Either it be using just butter, cheese, and man cream (aka: manufacture cream for short. Really? For those who thought wrong).  Basically, you heat up your manufacture cream and butter until it boils over, then put your already cooked pasta in with cooked bacon and cheese. Mix that together and it becomes this quick macaroni and cheese. The only problem with this item is that if you let this sit out too long for maybe 15 minutes or depending how cold it gets and or you reheat it. It gets this grainy and weird aftertaste. I want to assume because of the cheese was not fully incorporated into a sauce.

The second method, I would basically mix cooked elbows, meat, any vegetables, and cheese into a buttered deep dish that is oven safe. Then add man cream to it, and cover with foil. Place it in the oven at 350 Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes or until you see the liquid absorbed by the elbows.What I would do then is add my cheese and bread crumbs on top and put it back in the over on broiler for a moment. Allow the topping to get golden brown and boom it is ready to be serve for a party.

My last and favorite method is making a white sauce which is basically milk, and roux (equal parts of butter and flour). Put it over low to medium heat, and allow to thicken to a creamy sauce. It's so good, that I exclude the cheese and eat it with just the sauce, but normally I would add the cheese to the sauce. Sometimes I would even add it last as a garnish.

Below is my recipe of my white sauce. I typically do not measure how much seasoning I want in my cooking, I just wing it and taste as I go to see if it tastes good. 

"Fancy" White Sauce...

2        Cups               Milk

2        Tablespoon    Flour,

2        Tablespoon    Butter

TT (to taste)             S&P (salt and Pepper)

5        Teaspoon       onion powder

1        Teaspoon       ground clove

2        Teaspoon       garlic powder

2        ea.                  Bay-leaf

TT                            4 blend Mexican cheese

If you guys are ambitious on making your own sauce and know for a fact it taste better than my random crap. Not saying it's crap, It's decent. I just know that there are people out there that have better taste than I do. Folks, comment what ya'll did different. I would love to know what goes through your noggin. You will help expand my flavor profiles.

Thank you all for your time to reading this blog. 

Happy Cooking!

Sincerely,

KSM