Taking #BakingWithMegs Back to My Roots
Ever since I began this blog, I have been trying to remember what one of the first things I have ever made in the kitchen. Thinking back, the first dessert I made is one of my ALL-TIME favorite desserts and today I am going to share that recipe with all of you! In today's post I will be sharing two recipes with you that I believe define my culture.
I am a Filipino-Canadian and I take pride in being the child of immigrants who have worked very hard to pave a path for my success. Now that I am much older I am doing my best to learn how to cook Filipino food from my mom. One thing I can safely say I have mastered is Turon, which is one of my favorite desserts. Turon uses a native fruit from the Philippines called jackfruit and I love this fruit so much and I could probably eat a whole jackfruit if someone were to give me one. Although it is very difficult to get the fresh fruit here in Toronto, the canned fruit works just as well! So keep on reading for my own personal recipe for the Filipino dessert Turon.
TURON
Ingredients:
- Frozen spring roll pastry sheets
- Ripe plantains - for this recipe I used 3 plantains
- Can of jackfruit
- Granulated sugar
- Canola oil
Directions:
- Defrost egg roll by wrapping it in wet paper towels
- Slice jackfruit into thin strips
- Cut the plantain in half. Then cut again along the Center to get 2 thinner slices.
- Take one sheet of egg roll wrapper and lay it in front of you so it looks like a diamond. Place the plantain in the middle of the sheet.
- Layer jackfruit on top of the plantain.
- Sprinkle generous amount of sugar on top.
- To wrap fold the bottom corner towards the top corner. Then fold left and right corners towards the Center. Finally roll upwards towards the top corner.
- To seal the egg roll wet the remaining top corner with some water.
- Pour oil into a pot (want to have enough to cover about half the height of the Turon) and turn stove on to about medium heat.
- Place Turon in carefully when oil is hot.
- Cook Turon until golden brown on each side.
- Place cooked Turon in a container lined with paper towel to absorb any excess oil.
- Let it cool off for a bit and enjoy!
Notes:
- How to pick ripe plantain: The peel should look like a very bruised banana.
- How to get sugary coating: make a sugar syrup and drizzle onto Turon right after taking it out of the pot.
SOUTHERN CORNBREAD
I have now lived in Canada for majority of my life, but before I lived in Toronto I actually lived in Texas! And there are many things that I miss about living down South, one being the weather, but there is so many types of food that has taken me years to find decent substitutes for. Texas has probably the BEST barbecue in the world and fortunately my family has learned to make a decent brisket, ribs and the essential BBQ sauce. However, one thing that goes SO well with some BBQ is freshly baked cornbread and this is one thing I have yet to find here in Toronto. So I took matters into my own hands and tried to find the perfect recipe. After many failed batches, I have finally found the perfect recipe that has satisfied my craving. So keep on reading and please try out this Cornbread Recipe!
Ingredients:
- 6 tablespoons melted unsalted butter + additional butter to grease baking dish
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 heaping teaspoon honey
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
- 3/4 of a cream of corn can
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Use a little bit of butter to grease baking dish.
- Mix in a separate bowl cornmeal, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
- In a separate bowl (I used the bowl for my mixing stand), mix eggs, sugar, buttermilk, melted butter, honey and cream of corn. Make sure you pour in butter slowly and temper the mixture to prevent scrambling eggs in your mixture.
- Slowly add dry mixture (from step 2) into wet mixture (from step 3) until the the batter is completely combined.
- Pour batter into greased baking dish.
- Bake batter until the top has an overall golden brwn color with hints of yellow, approximately 20-25 mins. Test to ensure it is baked fully through, insert a wooden toothpick in the center of the cornbread and if it comes out clean it is finished.
- Remove cornread from oven and allow it to cool before serving. Enjoy!!
So there you have it, this was just a little glimpse of my culture through food! I really hope you all try out one or even both of these recipes! Please come back and check more for a Glimpse of Meagan's Life!
