Mango Refrigerator Cake, Vietnamese Iced Coffee and Garlic Fried Rice (Sinangag) from NEW ASIAN CUISINE

Mango Refrigerator Cake Mango Refrigerator Cake Courtesy of Quick & Easy Asian Desserts Serves 4–5 Preparation time: 40 mins Chilling time: 4–5 hours 6 large ripe mangoes (about 61/2 lbs/3 kg) Two and half packets (75 sticks) lady finger biscuits (61/2 oz/200 g per packet) 2 cups (500 ml) canned mango juice Three x 8-oz (250-g) pack cream cheese 2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream 3 cups (375 g) confectioner's (icing) sugar 1. Peel the mangoes and slice the flesh away from the pits, then slice the flesh thinly. Divide into three equal portions and set aside. 2. Divide the biscuits into 3 portions. Work with one portion at a time. Dip the biscuits, one at a time, into the mango juice. Arrange the biscuits in a 12 x 8 x 2 in (30 x 20 x 5 cm) baking pan, with the tops of the biscuits facing down. 3. Beat together the cream cheese and heavy cream in an electric mixer. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until the mixture is smooth. Divide the cream cheese mixture into three equal portions. 4. Spread 1 portion of the cream cheese mixture over the biscuits. Arrange one portion of the mango wedges over the cream cheese mixture. 5. Dip the second portion of biscuits, one at a time, in the mango juice and layer over the mangoes. Spread one portion of the cream cheese mixture on the biscuits and arrange one portion of the mangoes on top. 6. Dip the remaining biscuits in the mango juice, one at a time, and arrange on top of the mangoes. Spread the remaining cream cheese mixture on the biscuits. Arrange the remaining mango wedges on top. Chill for 4–5 hours, or until firm, before serving. Lady finger biscuits are sweet, crumbly biscuits sold in packets in supermarkets. Graham crackers may be substituted if lady finger biscuits are not available. There are 27 sheets in each box (14 oz/408 g) of graham crackers. Each sheet can be broken down into 4 pieces. One other substitute for finger biscuits will be the “broas” sold at Filipino specialty stores. Reprinted with the express permission of Tuttle Publishing, a member of the Periplus Publishing Group.

Vietnamese Iced Coffee Vietnamese Iced Coffee (or Cafe Sua Da) is sweet, lush and almost like a dessert to me. It's a sure pick-me-up and definitely my favorite Vietnamese drink. Here are step-by-step photos! by Jaden Hair, Steamy Kitchen You'll need: 1) Medium coarse ground French Roast coffee: You can use any type of coffee really, many Vietnamese use Cafe Du Monde French Roast Chicory coffee, but as long as the coffee is medium coarse ground, you can use it. Fine ground coffee would fall right through the little holes of the coffee press. 2) Canned sweetened condensed milk: It's the sweet, sticky, thick stuff – NOT evaporated milk! No substitutions here! 3) Vietnamese coffee press: You can find at any Asian market – usually less than $4.00. Here are some resources. 4) 1 tall glass: filled to the brim with ice 1 short glass: to brew the coffee Add 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk to a glass Add 2 tablespoons of ground coffee to the base of the coffee press Screw on the press tight. The coffee should be packed well. Read more

Garlic Fried Rice (Sinangag) Not to be confused with sinigang, or sour soup, sinangag is a simple yet satisfying garlic fried rice. Often served as a breakfast staple, sinangag makes good use of day-old rice that is past its prime having lost its fresh-cooked stickiness. When marinated meat (tapa) is paired with sinangag and a sunny-side up egg (itlog), the trio is a classic breakfast combination that has morphed into tapsilog in Filipino vernacular. Longsilog replaces tapa with longaniza (sausage). Tocilog uses tocino (sweetened pork) and bangsilog, bangus (milkfish). Then there are the American flavors of baconsilog and cornedbeefsilog, inevitable additions to the Filipino-American breakfast. Garlic Fried Rice (Sinangag) By Andrea M. Aranas, Author, The Filipino-American Kitchen Serves 4 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 small cloves garlic, chopped 4 cups (725 ml) cooked day-old long-grain rice (see Steamed Rice recipe, page 21) 1⁄2 teaspoon salt 1⁄4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Heat the olive oil in a 10 to 12-inch (25 to 30-cm) nonstick skillet or wok over medium-low heat. Add the garlic, cooking and stirring until lightly toasted to a golden brown. Add the rice and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until each grain is heated through and lightly fried. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle the rice onto a platter and serve hot. Variation: Salmon and Garlic Fried Rice. Leftover salmon makes a terrific addition to the classic garlic fried rice. If you’re using canned salmon, completely drain any canning liquid before using. After toasting the garlic in the oil, add 11⁄2 cups (175 g) cooked flaked salmon to the skillet and sauté for 1 minute. Add the rice and cook until warmed through and lightly fried. Season with salt and pepper. This sinangag recipe embraces the basic flavors of garlic and rice without distraction from common additions of soy sauce, fish sauce, ginger, scallions, or shallots. Using long-grain rice is an important factor in achieving a fried rice that is perfectly fluffy and separated. Medium and short-grain rice tends to be moist, even after a day or two, which leads to sticky clumps of fried rice. Reprinted with the express permission of Tuttle Publishing, a member of the Periplus Publishing Group. Source : newasiancuisine.com