Banh Cam
Outer Layer
We would always talking in Vietnamese because, well, it felt nature to do so. Every aunt and uncle in my dad's side of the family came over from Vietnam in their adolescents or early 20's years of their life. I say my dad's side because everyone has a different role in an Asian family and thus the reunion is only for a certain part of the family.
I would clumsy try to get the the baking power due to the area it was in; the highest part of the cabinet. When I did get it half of it drop on me and I became a ghost. Everyone laugh out loud as if that was the funniest thing they saw, and I was so embarrass that I was a red tomato. When the tense finally cool down I gave her the power as she try to stop laughing for the excitement. She add the baking power and both of the rice flour together and then start to knead them.
She would always say, "Kimberly, you always have to knead your dough with love or it would not taste sweet," she stop knead, "The dough shows your soul and what it looks like within so never feel sad or mad when making your food, okay?"
"The dough knows that crazy," I thought but says okay anyways.
The dough should have a play doh consistency if you knead it right. After that we made a lot of little round balls that she then told me that I made cans instead of balls because mine were really long not circle like at all. Next we would refrigerate the food until ready. Then I got the mung beans that were soak in warm water over night out of the cabinet while Co Huong put everything else in the refrigerate. The mung beans were soaked so that we could boil them in a steamer now for 20 minutes and wait some more.
She then would gossip with the other women while we wait for the mung beans. Then women could gossip forever if they want to. They could be louder then a cricket in a quiet room or silent as the trees. Whatever they were talking about it usually was about each other and how their lives were perfect in every way. Comparing each other lives was a main topic in my family for some reason.
I would then see what was going on in the house sense that I did not want to talk about others or me at the time. I saw my cousins first. My older girl cousins would talk about fashion, makeup, or school life as most of them were immigrants or like most girls in their teens love to talk about that type of stuff. My younger cousins would play games on the computer or go outside to play football or soccer. The older boys would go play basketball or gamble with the older men while talking to them.
Sometimes though everyone would come to the living room and play some card game. It was always fun during this time. The of alcohol, sweat, and perfume was somehow homely and everyone no matter the age would play as if they were going to win it all. The excitement was one of many things that are good in a family reunion. It was fun and now it is time for the finishing touches on the foods.
The mung beans should be mushy and be easily smash by our fingers. The mung bean is then smash in a bowl with the sugar and coconut flakes. Once combine evenly the mung bean paste is then made into little roll balls. This will determine the shape of the actually banh cam.
The second to last steps are to combine the two layers. The dough is smash into a circle so the mung bean paste can be put inside the dough. The filling should be seal completely by the outer layer. Then Co Huong would press sesame seeds around the outer layer of the treat until the sesame seeds were all around the treat.
Co Huong would like preheated the oven and put enough oil to fried the batter. How much? "Well that all depends on how much you are going to cook ", she would say.
When the preheating is done we would put the treat in the fryer and watch it dance in a safe distance. You don't want oil in your eyes. The treats should be ready when golden brown. We don't really know when that is so we just watch it until then flipping it over whenever need. And now it is done.
Everyone would know it is time to eat when the food is one the floor and the aroma has hit their nose. The food cover the whole living room floor and everyone rush to get a sit to start eating the food . We would a then take about the food and other stuff . Everyone would take their chopstick like a weapon and try to get the food they want as if their was a war going on for food. It was grand. The day was a normal family reunion, but every family reunion day is weird that is what makes the day a little bit more interesting.
16 oz glutinous rice flour
1 cup of rice flour
2 1/2 cup water
1 cup of sugar
1 boiled potato, smashed
Vegetable oil, salt, sesame.
1 cup of rice flour
2 1/2 cup water
1 cup of sugar
1 boiled potato, smashed
Vegetable oil, salt, sesame.
Inner Layer
8 oz Mung Bean (no cover), soaked into warm water about 1 hours
1 cup of Sugar
1 cup of Sugar
pinch of salt
1/2 cup of dried coconut meat, grounded.
Preparation:
In the loud morning in winter, my family had come over for a family reunion; a tradition we do twice every year in our family. There are all ages here from the very old folks gambling to the young children playing rugby. All the children and men's all meet and greet people we haven't seen a while and talk about life while the women work in the kitchen preparing the food for the family. Some foods are brought over from homes because it would be to time consuming to do it all in one place but the things we do make at the house would take a day and a half to finish.
The women while working would gossip about their life like busy bees; loud and fast. They would talk about their jobs (nail mostly), husbands, children, and anything to talk about. The loudest of them all would be my aunt, Co Huong. She is a strong person and cook wonderful food. She is my favorite aunt on my dad's side.
Co Huong would always make something that I love to watch or make myself. That particular day she made Banh Cam which literary translates to Cake Orange. It is actually a fried glutinous rice balls. Why is it call Banh Cam might because it likes like an orange that is a dessert. But we will never known why. Co Huong would make this dessert when she needs to make a lot of food for the family but does not have time too. The kitchen was made into two parts; the outside and inside. The outside one is use for cooking. The aroma out there would be to strong for most people. It in the end would look like someone would try to burn the house because of all the smoke. The inside one would be full of women preparing the food to go to the outside kitchen to cook like the busy bee working to feed the family. It was a cramp place but a happy one.
Everyone would be busy making food of all kind to the cha ca to phu to cau la; they were in a hurry going faster than lightning. Co Huong would be in the middle of the kitchen getting the desserts ready. Her famous sponge cake was made in advance. The aroma of the cake was sweet and had add a melocolious mood to the rest of the family so much most of them would sleep or drinking their drinks and gamble some more. Co Huong was like an artist. The water and sugar would dance in the bowl until there was no more. The potato was the boil and mash to go into the mixture this will help the treat not to explode when it is fried. It was an amazing sight to see her at her work. I was always in a dark corner of the room taring so much that if a police pass by he probably thought I was a stalker and send me to the police station.
"Kimberly, stop staring and help me," she would always say in Vietnamese after she notice me the third time.
I would slowly waddle my way over to help and say "Yes, ma'am."
"Kimberly, stop staring and help me," she would always say in Vietnamese after she notice me the third time.
I would slowly waddle my way over to help and say "Yes, ma'am."
We would always talking in Vietnamese because, well, it felt nature to do so. Every aunt and uncle in my dad's side of the family came over from Vietnam in their adolescents or early 20's years of their life. I say my dad's side because everyone has a different role in an Asian family and thus the reunion is only for a certain part of the family.
I would clumsy try to get the the baking power due to the area it was in; the highest part of the cabinet. When I did get it half of it drop on me and I became a ghost. Everyone laugh out loud as if that was the funniest thing they saw, and I was so embarrass that I was a red tomato. When the tense finally cool down I gave her the power as she try to stop laughing for the excitement. She add the baking power and both of the rice flour together and then start to knead them.
She would always say, "Kimberly, you always have to knead your dough with love or it would not taste sweet," she stop knead, "The dough shows your soul and what it looks like within so never feel sad or mad when making your food, okay?"
"The dough knows that crazy," I thought but says okay anyways.
The dough should have a play doh consistency if you knead it right. After that we made a lot of little round balls that she then told me that I made cans instead of balls because mine were really long not circle like at all. Next we would refrigerate the food until ready. Then I got the mung beans that were soak in warm water over night out of the cabinet while Co Huong put everything else in the refrigerate. The mung beans were soaked so that we could boil them in a steamer now for 20 minutes and wait some more.
She then would gossip with the other women while we wait for the mung beans. Then women could gossip forever if they want to. They could be louder then a cricket in a quiet room or silent as the trees. Whatever they were talking about it usually was about each other and how their lives were perfect in every way. Comparing each other lives was a main topic in my family for some reason.
I would then see what was going on in the house sense that I did not want to talk about others or me at the time. I saw my cousins first. My older girl cousins would talk about fashion, makeup, or school life as most of them were immigrants or like most girls in their teens love to talk about that type of stuff. My younger cousins would play games on the computer or go outside to play football or soccer. The older boys would go play basketball or gamble with the older men while talking to them.
Sometimes though everyone would come to the living room and play some card game. It was always fun during this time. The of alcohol, sweat, and perfume was somehow homely and everyone no matter the age would play as if they were going to win it all. The excitement was one of many things that are good in a family reunion. It was fun and now it is time for the finishing touches on the foods.
The mung beans should be mushy and be easily smash by our fingers. The mung bean is then smash in a bowl with the sugar and coconut flakes. Once combine evenly the mung bean paste is then made into little roll balls. This will determine the shape of the actually banh cam.
The second to last steps are to combine the two layers. The dough is smash into a circle so the mung bean paste can be put inside the dough. The filling should be seal completely by the outer layer. Then Co Huong would press sesame seeds around the outer layer of the treat until the sesame seeds were all around the treat.
Co Huong would like preheated the oven and put enough oil to fried the batter. How much? "Well that all depends on how much you are going to cook ", she would say.
When the preheating is done we would put the treat in the fryer and watch it dance in a safe distance. You don't want oil in your eyes. The treats should be ready when golden brown. We don't really know when that is so we just watch it until then flipping it over whenever need. And now it is done.
Everyone would know it is time to eat when the food is one the floor and the aroma has hit their nose. The food cover the whole living room floor and everyone rush to get a sit to start eating the food . We would a then take about the food and other stuff . Everyone would take their chopstick like a weapon and try to get the food they want as if their was a war going on for food. It was grand. The day was a normal family reunion, but every family reunion day is weird that is what makes the day a little bit more interesting.
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