All posts tagged: desserts

Bánh Chuối Hấp/ Steamed Banana Cake

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Every culture likely has a dessert that utilizes overly ripe bananas so they do not go to waste. Vietnam is no exception. We have our version of a banana cake, which uses ordinary ripe bananas and turn them into a special treat. The concept is similar to a traditional banana bread, but you’ll be using tapioca starch and then steaming the cake to create a chewy texture. Add this to your dessert arsenal today. Serving size: one 6 to 7 inch cake / Difficulty: Easy / Time: 30 minutes Ingredients Cake: 6 ripe to very ripe bananas 1/2 teaspoon of salt 1 to 2 tablespoons of sugar 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder for color 1 and 1/2 cups tapioca starch 1/2 cup of water 1/4 teaspoon of pandan extract or vanilla extract Unsalted butter or baking spray to grease the pan Equipment: 6 to 7-inch cake pan or springform pan a steamer big enough to fit the cake a clean kitchen towel Coconut Sauce: 1 can of coconut milk 1/2 can of water 2 teaspoons of …

Bosnian Pita – Phyllo Pie with Apples, Walnuts and Cinnamon Sugar

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Autumn is the perfect weather for apple picking and eating warm meals to welcome the cooler temperature. Apple pie is a classic American dessert to go along with many other seasonal treats. We took the basic Bosnian cheese pita recipe and made our sweet version of apple “pie” with phyllo dough filled with apples, walnuts and cinnamon sugar. It’ll be hard to eat just one slice. This recipe has directions for home-made phyllo dough or you can substitute with frozen phyllo sheets. You may need approximately 10 sheets, depending on the size of your sheet pan. This recipe is customizable for the amount of apples and phyllo dough that you have on hand. Difficulty: Easy (if using store bought phyllo dough) to medium (if making phyllo dough from scratch) / Time: 45 minutes – 1.5 hours and up to 24 hours rest time if making phyllo from scratch Servings: 8 slices Ingredients: approximately 10 frozen phyllo sheets thawed or make the dough below: Dough from scratch: 325 grams / 2 and 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour 1/2 …

Easy 4 Ingredients Coconut Panna Cotta

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Panna cotta is such an easy dessert to make and modify with a few ingredients. This version is made with coconut cream and coconut milk that tastes like fresh coconut meat according to my family. You can add decorations such as pretty flowers like I did for this post or top with toasted coconut strips for an extra crunch. Difficulty: Easy / Time: 15 minutes to make, 4 hours to set/ Servings: 4 Ingredients 200 ml of coconut cream 200 ml of coconut milk 1/4 cup of sugar 2 and 1/4 sheet of silver grade gelatin (160 bloom) (You can buy this easily on Amazon. I prefer to use sheet gelatin as it is much easier to dissolve and use.) Or 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of powder gelatin. You will need to bloom the gelatin in some cold water and then melt over hot water before adding it to the warm cream mixture. Fine Cooking has a good how-to guide on using powder gelatin here. Optional toppings: Toasted coconut strips Directions: Soften 2 and 1/4 sheets of gelatin by soaking …

Coffee and Coconut Jelly Cake

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Jelly cake was very popular in Vietnam in the 1990’s. It required few ingredients and is inexpensive to make. I remembered creating gelatin in rainbow colors with my mom growing up and pouring it into fun molds to create visually stunning cakes. This is our equivalent of Jello and is also a very refreshing dessert for those warmer days. Serving: Makes a 4-inch and 6-inch cake Difficulty: Easy Ingredients: 1 cup of sugar 4 tablespoons of Vietnamese instant coffee with creamer and sugar mix (If you do not have Vietnamese coffee mix, just use any instant coffee with cream and sugar mix.) 1 can of coconut milk 1 tablespoon + 3/4 teaspoon or 10 grams of agar agar gelatin powder (The Vietnamese agar agar gelatin brand that we used is platinum strength. You can buy it at any Asian supermarket.) If you have regular gelatin, the ratio should still be the same. 6 cups of water Equipment: Any mold that you would like to use. I used a 4-inch and 6-inch cake pan for this …

Panna Cotta with Mixed Berry Sauce

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Nothing says summer quite like a berry dessert. One of my favorite restaurant treat is panna cotta. The mixture of creamy panna cotta with a sweet and tart berry sauce is simplicity at its best. This dessert is super easy to make, but still has that wow factor whenever I serve it. Enjoy this summer treat at the end of your next meal. Ingredients: Panna Cotta 200 ml of milk 200 ml of heavy cream 2 and 1/4 sheet of silver grade gelatin (160+ bloom) (You can buy this easily online or Amazon. I prefer to use sheet gelatin as it is much easier to dissolve and use.) Or 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of powder gelatin. (You will need to bloom the gelatin in some cold water and then melt over hot water before adding it to the warm cream mixture. Fine Cooking has a good how-to guide on using powder gelatin here.) 1/4 cup of sugar 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract Berry Sauce 2 cups of frozen berry mix 1/4 tablespoon of lemon Zest …

Bánh Tiêu Mật Ong/ Honey Glazed Sesame Hollow Donuts

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Bánh tiêu is essentially the Vietnamese version of fried dough or donut. One can find them sold throughout any town from street vendors. These donuts differ from American donuts due to bánh tiêu having a hollow center. This creates a light and fluffy donut with a chewy texture, which also has a light crunch from the sesame seeds. To take this traditional hollow donut up a notch, I incorporated honey into the batter and also applied a light honey glaze. This version of bánh tiêu has just the right amount of sweetness that my family cannot get enough of.  This recipe makes 12 donuts and takes about 2 hours with proofing time. Ingredients: 2 and 3/4 cup of bread flour / 400 gram 1/2 cup of water 1/2 cup of 1% low-fat milk 3 tablespoons of sugar 1 and 1/4 teaspoon of salt 1 packet of vanilla sugar or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 1 teaspoon of instant yeast 1 teaspoon of baking powder 1/2 cup of sesame seeds 2 tablespoons of honey Honey glaze …

Chè Nhãn Hạt Sen / Longan and Lotus Seed Summer Pudding

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Summer in Vietnam can be brutal with the average temperature hitting in the high 80F’s and with the suffocating humidity, it can feel like it’s 100F degrees. I remembered taking two to three showers a day when I was visiting my family in July. As a result, locals turn to refreshing food and drinks such as longan and lotus seed summer pudding served with a generous scoop of ice in order to keep cool. This chè comprises of sweet longan, crunchy lotus seeds, and other ingredients that are also common Chinese herbal medicine known to have cooling properties. Don’t worry…this dessert will not taste like medicine but it does help keep your body from melting during a hot summer day. Ingredients: 1 cup of dried lotus seeds 1/2 cup of dried logan meat (You can substitute with dried lychee.) 8 dried red dates (red jujube) 12 dried black dates (dried Ziziphus jujuba mill) 1 cup of rock sugar. 1/4 teaspoon of salt 5 cups of water Directions: Soak all the dry ingredients for 1 hour …

Vietnamese Banana Cake / Bánh Chuối Nướng

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Vietnamese Banana Cake or Bánh Chuối Nướng is a cross between a bread pudding and a spongy cake. One can see the French influences on Vietnamese cuisine with this cake. Add a few spoonful of creamy coconut sauce and you have a delicious desert anytime of the day. Difficulty: Easy / Servings: 8 / Time: 2 hours to prepare and 1 hour to cool Ingredients: 10 whole steamed sapa banana (approx. 2 frozen packages found in any Asian supermarket). You can substitute with regular ripe bananas. 8 slices of white bread 4 tablespoons of melted unsalted butter and 1 teaspoon of melted butter to coat the pan 1 teaspoon of vanilla sugar or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 1 tablespoon of tapioca starch 4 tablespoons of sugar 1 egg 2 cans (14 oz) of coconut milk 2 tablespoons of condensed milk 1 cup of milk 1 tablespoon of white wine or rum 9 inch spring form pan Directions: Cut 4 bananas length wise and cut the remaining 6 bananas into thin round slices. Add the bananas …

Chè Khoai Môn / Taro with Sweet Rice Pudding

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Taro is one of the most versatile root vegetable in Vietnamese cuisine. It is used often in both savory and sweet dishes. One of the more popular rendition of taro is chè khoai môn or taro with sweet rice  pudding. Steamed taro is added to a ginger syrup, mixed with sticky rice pudding and topped with a spoonful of coconut milk. This desert is deceptively simple and is also a wonderful snack or dessert. Difficulty: Easy / Servings: 6 / Time: 1 hour Ingredients: 2 cups of sweet rice 4 lb. of taro peeled 1/2 cup of julienne ginger (approximately 1 large ginger root) 2 cups of sugar 1 can of coconut milk 1/2 tablespoon of tapioca powder 1/4 teaspoon of salt     Directions: Peel and cut the taro into fist size segments. Steam the taro for 30 minutes. It will be easier to cut the taro into smaller cubes once the taro is cooked. Once the taro is cooked, cut them into 1 inch cubes. Heat a pot with 6 cups of water …

Vietnamese Caramel Flan

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One of my favorite dessert growing up is my mother’s flan. My mother’s version is creamy and fluffy. Her trick is to steam the flan instead of the traditional baking method. This method only takes 15 minutes to cook and the flan comes out perfect every time. This is an easy and elegant dessert for anytime of the day. Impress your guests at the next dinner party with this make ahead dessert. This dessert is rated easy and takes 30 minutes to prepare and another hour to chill in the fridge before serving. This recipe makes approximately 5 servings. Ingredients 6 large eggs 2 cups of whole milk 1 lime 18 tablespoons of sugar (8 for the batter and 10 for the caramel) 5 oven proof baking cups Steamer that fits 5 baking cups Directions Make the egg batter: Crack 6 eggs into a mixing bowl. Using a whisk, slowly stir to break up the eggs. Don’t beat it hard and fast as it will add air bubbles to the batter. This changes the batter …