Cooking with a Wallflower - Page 93 of 139 -

Asian Inspired Desserts Gluten Free Quick and Easy Vegan Vegetarian

Banana Tapioca Pudding in Coconut Milk

Sliced bananas and mini tapioca pearls cooked in coconut milk. This creamy banana tapioca pudding in coconut milk is a simple yet delicious Vietnamese style dessert.

Vietnamese desserts, termed che, are often in liquid form, kind of like a soup but sweet rather than savory. Usually, these desserts are made with coconut milk or some sort of sweet syrup. Have you had them before? You can often find them at Vietnamese sandwich delis. There are always so many options to pick from, one of which is often this banana tapioca pudding in coconut milk called “che chuoi.”

This particular dessert is filled with bananas and mini tapioca pearls in sweetened coconut milk. Depending on how much tapioca pearls you add, this pudding can be thicker in consistency or thinner. It’s sweet and deliciously fragrant.

What I love about this dessert is that it’s so simple to make. It’s one of those recipes that you can add as much or as little of the ingredients as you want, depending on what you prefer and like.

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Some days, I just feel like eating appetizers.

My friend Jen and I like to meet up every once in awhile at the Cheesecake Factory. Most of the time, it’s because we like getting cheesecake there. They have so many to choose from. But their entrees are soo big that whenever we order entrees we never ever get to the cheesecake because we’re too full.

So instead, we started to go through the appetizers. We would order a few appetizers to share and occasionally drinks.

This last trip was a late birthday celebration for me and a congratulations celebration for Jen getting into a residency program. We ordered crab and artichoke dip with bread, eggroll sampler, and beer battered fries. And we each got a mojito. Basically, a girl’s day out with drinks and appetizers. Perfect. Plus, a ton of inspirations too =)

Honey Chipotle Shrimp with Roasted Garlic Broccolini

Shrimp marinated in honey chipotle sauce served with a side of roasted garlic broccolini. This honey chipotle shrimp with roasted garlic broccolini is simple to make and tastes amazing.

Omg. Do I really need to say more?

I’ve been obsessed with honey chipotle for some time now, and while it’s really just one sauce that doubles as a marinade, there are soo many uses for it, which totally makes my life easier. For this recipe, instead of marinating chicken in the honey chipotle sauce, I used large shrimp. You can use jumbo prawns too. The bigger the shrimp, the tastier it’ll be because those shrimp will be tender and succulent, just the way I like them. And hopefully you will too.

These honey chipotle shrimps are slightly smoky, spicy, and sweet. Together, the flavors are similar to a barbeque without all the hassle of firing up a grill. Since shrimps are easier to cook and has less of a surface area than chicken, you don’t need to wait long before the shrimp absorbs all that flavor. That means you can make this dish for dinner without having to plan in advance. Dinner menu set!

Of course, no dish is complete without a side. And I thought the perfect side to accompany these succulent shrimp is roasted garlic broccolini. I mean, tender vegetables smothered in roasted garlic? How much better can dinner get? I can devour roasted garlic anything by itself.

I know not everyone can get their hands on broccolini, which is a hybrid of broccoli and Chinese broccoli, and that’s okay. Because practically any vegetable will work in place of broccolini. You can try using broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, brussels sprouts, and so many other vegetables. The possibilities are endless.

Vanilla Chia Pudding with Granola

Chia seeds soaked in vanilla almond milk overnight then topped with granola and dried cranberries before serving. This vanilla chia pudding with granola is a delicious and healthy breakfast that requires very little time to prepare.

It’s officially spring!

But, to be honest, it doesn’t feel like spring, at least, not in SF. It’s cloudy and gray, rainy and wet, and super windy and cold. All signs of winter to me.

On the bright side, with the wintery weather, I can now try out my new clear bubble umbrella, which my sister gave to me as a present, and see if it can stand against strong winds. Has anyone tried one of these umbrellas? I feel like it would work better than regular umbrellas which flip when the winds are strong. I mean, what is the point of an umbrella if it can’t endure the rain and wind?

Anyway, I’ve been eating birthday cake for days, like literally, and I still have some left in the fridge, not that I’m complaining because they were sooo good, but I think I really need to start eating healthy again. No more cake, cupcakes, and macarons for me for awhile.

So, I thought we could start the week with a simple and healthy breakfast. This vanilla chia pudding.

You’re probably thinking, “What?! Pudding for breakfast?”

It’s so healthy and filling, you’ll want to start your day with it.

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This week has been absolutely amazing.

But I’ve had so much birthday cake this week, and so much leftover cake in the fridge, that I’m not sure I’ll be able to cake for awhile…

Which is shocking considering how much I love my chocolate cakes.

I’ll share more birthday photos later. =)

This week’s finds:

Vegetable Miso Soup

Miso soup filled with soft tofu, carrots, bok choy, mushrooms, and edamame. This vegetable miso soup is delicious and perfect for the chilly winter spring weather.

One of my favorite items to order at Japanese restaurants is miso soup. It’s so simple yet so delicious and addictive.

Since there are only a couple ingredients in the soup, I thought I could try making miso soup at home. That way, whenever I have a craving, I can make it in just 30 minutes or so.

But I wanted to add my own twist to the classic miso soup.

There are tons of vegetables in season right now. Which means I want to use vegetables to take this miso soup to the next level.

Chewy Mocha Brownies

Chewy brownies with a hint of espresso in every bite. These easy to make chewy mocha brownies are decadent and perfect for chocoholics.

It’s my birthday!

Thank you soo much for making 27 and 28 the very best! You guys have been through it all with me these past two years! And I’m looking forward to what 29 brings!

So I thought we should start it off right and celebrate with one of my favorite desserts: brownies! Filled with a ton of chocolaty goodness and topped with colorful sprinkles, of course. Because that’s how I like to celebrate!

Chocolate makes me happy! <3

I love brownies because they’re so decadent. How can you resist the chewy brownie edges and the fudgy centers?

Brownies were one of the first desserts I learned how to make. And it was that one dessert I liked baking in the middle of the night as brain fuel for studying.

I mean, seriously. Can you imagine smelling all that chocolate baking in your oven at 1 am?

It’s totally inspiring.

Each bite is filled with chocolate and the slightest hint of espresso. The espresso powder actually deepens the richness of the chocolate.

If you’re a self-declared chocoholic, like me, then I think you’ll love these brownies as much as I do.

Berry Almond Rice Crispies Snack Bars

Homemade snacks filled with dried blueberries, dried cranberries, chopped almonds and sweetened with honey. These Berry Almond Rice Crispies Snack Bars are the perfect snack to carry when on the go.

Homemade snack bars! Finally!

So one of the things I like to do when I’m out shopping at Costco is walk down the snack aisle and browse through the tons of snack varieties that they offer. The problem is that Costco, or any wholesale warehouses you guys have nearby, sells things in bulk. Which means that if I want a box of granola bars or trail mix bars or granola bites or fruit snacks, I’ll have to eat through nearly a hundred of them before I can buy something else. And if you’re like me, halfway through the box, you’ll probably want something else to snack on.

I love that it’s so cheap to buy things in bulk, but sometimes I need a little more variety in my life. For the sake of my taste buds.

Do you feel the same way?

My solution? Homemade snack bars!

Now, you can make your own snack bars at home and in smaller quantities. Yay! Then you can customize the ingredients however you want. Double yay! If you like cashews or pistachios, you can use those instead. Or if you prefer raisins or dried cherries, you can use those. Or if you like your snack bars to be less sweet, you can lessen the sweetener a tiny bit. You can’t eliminate too much of the honey otherwise the snack bars won’t bind together. Then you’ll have more of a granola variety rather than a snack bar, which is totally fine too!

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These chocolates! How gorgeous is this box of chocolate?

I love getting boxed chocolates, but I never want to eat them because they’re so pretty!

Do you have favorite chocolates?

Avocado Smoothie Bowl with Almonds and Granola

Avocado blended until smooth and creamy then topped with roasted almonds and granola. This avocado smoothie bowl with almonds and granola is the most amazing breakfast ever.

I’ve been obsessed with smoothie bowls for awhile now.

What’s not to love, right?

Smoothies are usually filled with so many different fruits and vegetables. You get many of your nutrients just by sipping.

But sometimes, I love having all the extras: the nuts, the fresh fruits, the dried fruits, the granola, or the honey drizzle. All these toppings give smoothies more texture and flavor.

Or maybe it’s just that I really like munching on all sorts of snacks at the same time.

Today, I wanted to focus on avocado. Of course, we’re constantly adding avocados to our foods. You have them in salads, sandwiches, in appetizers, dips and so much more. But I feel like it doesn’t get the attention it deserves as a smoothie or a dessert.

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