Evelyn’s cafe

I hate buying things that are labelled “Asian” or “Oriental” — it’s so vague.  But…as luck would have it, I created this dressing because I fell madly in love with the salad dressing at Matsuri in Federal Hill.  You can add different herbs to give it a Southeast Asian flavor…or you can leave it as-is and call it Japanese…but really, it’s just “Asian” in flavor.

Here are the ingredients in our dressing — play with the quantities to get the flavor you like.  Keep in mind, I make ours in a rather large quantity each time, so I’ve tried to adjust the amounts so you won’t end up with a half-gallon of dressing.

• Peanut butter, approx. 1 cup (I use the organic peanut butter from Costco)
• Sambal (red chili sauce), 2 T
• Canola oil
• Dark brown sugar (do not use raw sugar, use brown sugar….raw sugar doesn’t blend well)
• Kosher salt, 1 tsp
• shallot, 1 minced

Mix peanut butter and dark brown sugar in a bowl, microwave for about 1 minute until soft enough to stir.  Make sure sugar is blended well.  Add salt and shallot.  Drizzle in enough canola oil to make a smooth dressing.

This also makes a yummy dipping sauce for satay or as a dressing for vegetable wraps.  Or you could do what I’ve wanted to do with Matsuri’s dressing and just drink it when nobody’s looking.  Mmmm.

And more…

Whole cakes, fresh fruit tarts, and cookie bars are available with 24-48 hours notice, depending on the quantity needed. Prices range from $25-35 each.

Cake flavors*: Butter, chocolate, coconut, red velvet, lemon — 9″ layers, a double-layer cake will typically serve 8 to 10 people.
Frostings: Chocolate (milk or dark), espresso, coconut, lemon, chocolate ganache, vanilla, peanut butter, cream cheese buttercream.

*Cakes can also be ordered as a bundt cake — serves 10 and is glazed.

Fruit tarts: 10″ tarts with a buttery shortbread crust and a cream cheese filling, topped with fresh seasonal fruit. Typically serves 8 to 10 people.

Cookie bars: Your choice of oatmeal raisin, chocolate chip, brownies, butterscotch fudge, chocolate toffee. One half-sheet pan will typically yield 20 large bars, 50 small.