French Chocolate Truffles

I decided to try something new this Christmas, aside from the usual holidays cookies or sweets - French chocolate truffles.  This recipe is from a French mom from my son's preschool many years ago.  It's very easy to make and they are delicous.

Ingredients:

• 4 oz bittersweet chocolate (Trader Joe's Pound Plus-Dark Chocolate)
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 4 oz unsalted butter
• cocoa (dutch cocoa is her preference)

Preparation:

1. Melt the chocolate with milk in a pan (or microwave)
2. Add the butter
3. Stir when the butter is melted
4. Put in the fridge for at least 2 to 3 hours until it's hard enough to make it into small balls (I left it in the fridge for at least 3 hrs)
5. Form little balls in your palm, then roll in the cocoa.  

Note: You can add vanilla extract, alcohols, i.e. rum, cointreau, cognac, etc. to the chocolate

Vietnamese Spring Roll

Spring season is here and the weather is getting warmer gradually.  Now is a good time to make Vietnamese spring rolls.  It's a healthy option for a meal with almost no cooking involved, although there is quiet a bit of prepping to do to get the ingredients ready but not too extensive so it is not too bad at all, at least for me.  This is one of our favorite take out foods to buy in Vietnamese food places, along with Vietnamese sandwich.  I learned how to make it from my niece and her boyfriend.  This spring roll is an excellent menu to make for family or friends gathering, everybody takes part in his/her food and each can customize his/her roll, very interactive and hands-on, I would say.  

This spring roll has become part of Asian-American fusion staple in culinary world.  Most catering venues offer the spring roll as one of their appetizers.  Many chefs have substituted the ingredients to fit their target audiences.  For example, any color of bell peppers, carrot, cilantro, green onion, shiitake mushroom have been used as fillings for this spring roll so you can be as creative as you want as long as they work well in the roll.  Staying true to its originality as much as possible, normally I use the following ingredients.  

Japanese Light Cheesecake

My family loves this light cheesecake - its texture is cake-like, not cheesy.  I guess you could call it the Asian version of the regular cheesecake.