Culinary Antics

Grapefruit Ice Cream Cake

2011-10-30T08:31:00.000+08:00

Caleb's Passionfruit Ice-cream Cake

2011-10-24T13:14:00.002+08:00

We like Free Range Beef

2011-10-22T12:33:00.000+08:00

... and non free-range too! LOL!
The MOTH is nuts about the Macdonald's Monopoly Game, so we have endless cups of corn (better alternative to the fries!) that I have to put in everything!

More Ice Cream Cakes!

2011-10-13T11:52:00.005+08:00

It hasn't been easy to take pictures of ice-cream, they melt and get eaten up before I can get my camera focused. The cakes are frozen solid so it's given me more time! Shown here are chocolate orange and durian (super popular!)

Here are the flavours I've made so far:

1. Durian (D13 +D24 Blend)
2. Salted Egg Yolk
3. Yuzu
4. Dark Cherry Chocolate
5. Dark Chocolate
6. Banana Walnut Caramel
7. Wasabi
8. Mango
9. Peach Yogurt
10. Strawberry
11. Passionfruit
12. Mango & Passionfruit
13. Lemongrass
14. Gula Melaka
15. Shiraz
16. Cherry & Vanilla
17. Chocolate-orange
18. Sheridan's Coffee Liqueur
19. Vanilla Bean & Raspberry
20. Lavender
21. Lemon Basil (I grow my own)
22. Cardamon
23. Ginger
24. Red Tea

My personal favorites are Passionfruit, Wasabi & Shiraz (of course!)

Lavender & Dark Chocolate
Peppermint
Lemon Balm & Basil
Reisling and Grape
Lychee Martini Sorbet
All kinds of liqueur flavours! (Haven't been able to make all that much as my guinea pigs have always included kids and nursing mothers)

Lussekatter

2011-10-13T11:07:00.000+08:00

I saw this being made on a kid's TV show and it looked so easy! I had some safron sitting in the fridge so I though it'd be fun to try it out. Little Missy helped place the raisins, she was spot on every time!

Ice Cream Cake!

2011-09-02T17:50:00.000+08:00

I've been making so many different flavours of ice-cream lately... I thought I'd try to make a cake! Ice-cream cake is my absolute favourite. I made this with a layer of chocolate cake at the bottom, topped with vanilla bean and very light raspberry ice-cream. Didn't have a chance to add half a bottle of cream liquer in it, as half of the "customers" were kids. Haha!

Crispy Lemon Yogurt Waffles

2011-09-02T17:35:00.001+08:00

I can never understand what's the fuss over those waffles sold at neighbourhood bakeries. They are usually green with an overpowering scent of artifical flavouring, and most of all they are soft and floppy. I much prefer the frozen ones that I like to put in my toaster.

These I made from scratch with a waffle iron borrowed from a dear friend. Super yumms! I added some plain yogurt and lemon rind in my batter (milk, butter, flour, baking soda and salt), and I tried adding some dried blueberries to the last few... What a great way to start the morning! Well, Except that I've had to slave over the waffle iron for 45 minutes just to get a decent sized stack going. And real maple syrup for me thanks!

Decadent Chocolate Fudge Cake

2011-09-02T17:24:00.001+08:00

This is my favourite cake to make as it is easy, and no one seems to mind a slice of it. I'm never totally satisfied with the way my frosting turns out tho... I like the pretty blue pearls!

Beef and Pork Rissoles (with tons of veggies)

2011-09-02T17:20:00.002+08:00

We love to rissoles for our picnic dinners as they are fun to eat without any mess. I like to throw in lots of veges. The usual suspects are leeks, garlic, tomatoes, shredded carrot, cabbage, celery, bell peppers, peas etc. etc. To add some flavour, I like to add some fresh herbs like basil, oregano and rosemary, or corriander powder, tumeric and cumin. The veges should be browned in a little oil first and cooled before you add the meat.

A great way to hide veges for kids (and adults) who won't eat their greens!

Chocolate Orange Pudding

2011-09-02T16:48:00.000+08:00

This is a super easy pudding you can make in a jiffy, no baking and very little mess!

1) Dice up some white / vanilla cake (you can use store-bought) and lay in a jelly mould.
2) Heat about 2 cups of milk and 1 cup of heavy cream, then stir in about 250g dark chocolate.
3) Sprinkle 1 sachet of gelatin and whisk till dissolved.
4) Toss in the grated rind of an orange.
5) Pour into the mould, and chill!

Yumm!

Cardamom Pancakes

2011-04-01T16:54:00.000+08:00

I like to make my pancakes from scratch, and add some ground cardamom for that extra kick!

Atta Hot Cross Bun Recipe

2011-03-31T09:32:00.001+08:00

I've been teaching my daughter to sing the nursery rhyme "Hot Cross Buns... Hot Cross Buns...". She sings "Hot hot buns... hot hot buns!". LOL

Here is my own recipe for making hot cross buns using Atta. I did without the icing glaze this time, but next week I will make them with icing!

Ingredients:

650g atta flour
2 teaspoon instant yeast (or use 1 sachet)
1 tablespoon milk powder
2 tablespoon brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup warm water
1 egg
150g mixed dried fruit
egg + a dash of milk for glazing

Combine all the dry ingredients (leave out the dried fruit) and mix well, then add the water and egg.
Knead for about 10 minutes (I use the dough hook on my kitchen mixer)
Combine in the dried fruit until evenly mixed.
Leave to rise for 1 hour.
Shape the dough into balls (about 5cm in diameter) and leave to rise for another 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to about 210 degrees.
Use a knife to cut a cross on each bun and glaze.
Bake for about 15 minutes.

Yummy Icing:

3 tablespoons icing sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Place in a piping bag and draw a cross on the buns :)

"Don't take my hot hot bun!"

Creamy Roast Pumpkin Soup (Dairy and Gluten Free)

2011-03-30T17:31:00.001+08:00

We often have soups for lunch, and one of our favourites is roast pumpkin. I used to frequent a popular soup chain here in Singapore, but their roast pumpkin does not taste "roasty" at all.

Here's how I make mine...

Whole wheat caraway seed buns

2011-03-29T20:44:00.001+08:00

I sensed that the store-bought sliced wholemeal bread (as well as other fruit loaves and "multi-grain" loaves) that we usually buy, are laden with preservatives. After leaving them out at room temperature for days at a time, no mould appears. I've always disliked what I call "wussy bread" from the local supermarkets anyway... even the whole grains ones are so light and airy, and the fruit ones taste like they have been perfumed. So decided that I would bake bread again. The first batch being whole wheat caraway seed buns, followed by onion bread. Yumm! Nice heavy buns! :p

How to grow sunflower greens

2011-03-18T17:56:00.001+08:00

I love sunflower greens but they are not readily available. So I've been sprouting and growing my own, it's much easier than I thought!

Here's a step by step guide on how to grow your own:

1) Wash and soak about 2 heaped tablespoons of sunflower seeds in a glass jar, after about 24 hours, they will begin to sprout, with little roots jutting out from the seeds. Drain.

2) Prepare a container (with holes at the bottom for drainage) by filling it about 3 inches deep with potting soil. I use a recycled clear plastic container which nectarines and plums are sold in. Spread the seeds on the top.

3) Pour some water all over till a small amount begins to drain from the bottom.

4) Sprinkle a thin layer of potting soil over the top.

5) Spray with a little water daily. In about 36 hours, you will begin to see the shoots poking out from the soil.

6) The sunflower greens will be ready to harvest in 3-5 days!

7) To harvest, just snip off the taller ones just above the soil with a pair of scissors. I prefer to harvest them in 3 stages as some seeds take a bit longer to sprout than others.

Doesn't this look fresh?

2011-03-12T18:06:00.001+08:00

I seldom buy a whole fish coz' I'll be the only one eating it after scrapping off bits for Little Missy. But this red fish (I can't remember the name) looked so fresh I couldn't resist. I like to fry bits of garlic, ginger and corriander root (and some stems) to add to the soy sauce and sugar mixture before I send poor fishy to the steam room.

Top off with corriander leaves and sliced chilli

Cream of broccoli and cauliflower soup

2011-03-12T17:55:00.001+08:00

We love soups and broths of all sorts! They are so quick and easy to make. Roast all your veges in a pot with olive oil, top off with water or stock and simmer. Then stick in your hand blender, and viola!

Served with potato bread and lots of love :)

Sakura Chicken -- a disappointment this time

2011-02-28T17:02:00.001+08:00

Whenever I get a whole chicken from the supermarket, I would get "kampong" for soups or Sakura Chicken for roasts. Sakura chicken is really more tender (esp the breast), but this one time, I was very disappointed with what I got. It was quite tough, and worst of all, the feet had "burn marks". From what I saw on Jamie Oliver's Fowl Dinners, birds with such burn marks on their feet indicate that they have been bred in an overly crowded farm where the ammonia levels in their waste actually cause their feet to burn. :( I really hope that the welfare of the chickens isn't declining, coz' I'd imagine that it affects the consumers' health.

Cekur Manis (a.k.a. Sabah Vegetable?)

2011-02-28T13:58:00.001+08:00

I have used this vege a few times for soups but it's always a hassle removing the leaves from the stems. And I've never known what it's called until I saw it in Cold Storage in a pack like this!

Only $2.80 for a pack (at least 6 servings) and organic too! It says Cekur Manis on the pack. And as I was reading a book entitled "Handy Pocket Guide to Asian Vegetables", I found out that it is commonly known as Sabah Vegetable, Phak Waan Baan (Thai); Sayur Manis (Malay); Katuk (Indonesian); and Binahian (Filipino). I'm a bit curious to find out if there are other ways to cook it. Little Missy loves this, picking every piece of it from her soup!

Grow Great Grub

2011-02-22T21:01:00.004+08:00

I've been reading this book by Gayla Trail, and it has been so inspiring! She writes about how to grow edibles from small spaces. I never knew about worm poo and worm tea before that! Previously I have tried growing some herbs in my "garden", I've never been serious about learning how to maintain them. Most of them have perished. Although, the kaffir lime I grew from seed has been thriving (Mum gave me a fruit from her enormous kaffir lime tree). I now have pandan, rosemary, baby thai basil and some baby mustard greens. I'm hoping that my purple shiso and purple ruffly basil would germinate... not much happening in 2 weeks :( I'm looking for saw-tooth corriander seeds, but I haven't found any yet.

Kaffir Lime

Baby Thai Basil

Fun with Nian Gao

2011-02-22T20:30:00.001+08:00

I had a sweet potato lying around which looked a bit sad, so I thought of combining it with the nian gao which has also been lying around. I sliced up the sweet potato, and pasted a spoonful on nian gao on each slice, it was fun like play-doh! Then I beat up a couple of eggs with salt and dipped each piece in before pan frying! I couldn't stop eating them while I was frying up the next batch :p

Quick Chicken Curry (under 10 min prep)

2011-02-21T16:44:00.001+08:00

Agar agar Cake...?

2011-02-07T17:13:00.007+08:00

It's Little Missy's birthday, so mum thought that it would be nice to surprise her fellow tots at playgroup with a big blue teddy bear "cake". Poor kiddies, they were probably expecting a real cake... until their first bite.
This is actually much more time consuming to produce than a conventional cake, but it has far fewer calories per serving (we hope!), and it's fun to look at. ;)

Ben looks on suspiciously at the Yu Sheng

2011-02-07T17:08:00.005+08:00

"Do I have to eat THAT?"

New Year's Eve Yu Sheng

2011-02-05T08:43:00.005+08:00

No artificial colouring :)

Growing sunflower sprouts

2011-02-02T16:21:00.003+08:00

My sunflower sprouts have been incredibly proliferic, much to my surprise. When I transferred them to this recycled tub, I didn't keep my hopes high. Now over a week later, they just keep coming. I've harvested the "crop" 4 times for my yu sheng, and there are still more coming along. Seems like they germinate at different times. I'm not complaining!

A recipe for Yu Sheng dressing

2011-02-02T16:05:00.007+08:00

A somewhat more traditional dressing for Yu Sheng...
1) 300g plum sauce
2) 1/3 cup toasted sesame seeds
3) juice and rind of 1 lemon
4) about 6-7 kaffir lime leaves (limau purut)
5) 1/3 cup macadamia oil (or any salad oil)
Whiz it all up in a blender or food processor, easy!

More keep warm chow... Nabe

2011-01-31T17:31:00.004+08:00

Pile the ingredients in, add some stock and bring to boil. Spinach, prawns, mushrooms, carrot, scallops, konnyaku noodles, tofu and belly pork! Not quite enough for 3 hungry hippos so we tossed in more.

I like mushrooms!

2011-01-31T16:53:00.009+08:00

A variety of fungi has been mushrooming in supermarkets. I got some from a local grower, Mycofarm. Looked fresher than the imported ones. The Chinese shitake I've gotten in vacuum packs have a very strong chemical-like taste. I've been wondering if it's just the flavour perculiar to those mushrooms or if they have been processed. These ones were great! I love king oyster mushrooms!

Mutton Biryani to warm things up

2011-01-31T16:45:00.004+08:00

Little Miss J has always appreciated spice... but now she won't even eat plain biryani and meat without a generous portion of that curry sauce!

Yu Sheng thanks to the Benriner Cook's Help

2011-01-28T17:30:00.013+08:00

Mum was very curious about the Benriner turning slicer we got, so she paid a visit and I did a demo yu sheng, this time without the konnyaku, and with jellyfish and wakame. I showed her the long noodlely strands that spewed forth from the gadget's bottom and she was really impressed. I did warn her that the Benriner Cook's Help has it's quirks and takes some getting used to. There were times that the hunk of veg did not catch on and the teeth blades got bent! But it seems like from the reviews I've read, it is one of the better turning slicers around. She vowed to buy the contraption this Saturday.

I am not happy about the pictures taken with my mobile phone! But my digicam is so power-hungry, never satisfied with any kind of rechargeables I put in it.

Yu Sheng

2011-01-26T21:11:00.005+08:00

We just bought a turning slicer over the weekend and I've been very eager to try it out. It was fun cranking out all those oodles of vegetables, but it wasn't incredibly easy to use.

Here is the cobbled together Yu Sheng with carrots, cucumber, radish, konnyaku noodles and my home-grown alfalfa and sunflower sprouts. I made the dressing with equal parts of lemon juice, yuzu jelly, tsuyu, sesame paste and macadamia oil. With a sprinkling of bonito (which made up for the yu). Super yummy!

More about the turning slicer later...

Frozen Tiramisu... oh so decadent

2011-01-25T16:15:00.003+08:00

I've learnt that half a kilo of Marscapone and another half a litre of double cream makes quite a lot of Tiramisu. After taking the bulk of it to a party, I decided to freeze the rest to see how it would turn out. Only to have hubby say "Better eat it up!" only 4 days later when I mentioned that we had some left over.

I was quite eager to try it frozen, so we sank our spoons right in, and couldn't stop! This batch was made with a whopping amount of Sheridan's Coffee Liqueur (the only thing that we had in the fridge). I've developed a sensitivity to caffeine so my sponges weren't soaked in as much expresso as I would've liked. More liqueur did the job! Little Miss J enjoyed it almost as much as her Papa did. "More pease.. pease..." Hmm... wonder why she was dancing around in circles while watching China's Got Talent. She must have liked the peacock man!

Can Alfalfa sprout in Singapore's climate?

2011-01-22T20:30:00.013+08:00

Now that hubbs is quite well again, and baby is almost 2, I can get back to tornado-ing about in the kitchen, and in the "garden".

I've caught the sprouting bug... my first attempt in sprouting alfalfa was very successful, much to my surprise. I ate the whole lot at one go after I greened them up!

Instructions:-

1) Soak about 2 tablespoons of seeds in a glass jar overnight (use a jar which holds about 800ml of liquid)

2) Drain the water the next morning and leave in dark place

3) Wash and drain the seeds on the same evening; repeat the rinsing and washing every 12 hours until the sprouts are about 1 inch in length

4) Put them near the window to green the leaves

5) Shake off the hulls and store in the fridge

I didn't quite get to the last step coz' I was too eager to try my sprouts and they tasted great!

Dredful pics taken with my mobile phone. I made a bigger batch of sprouts, now sitting in the fridge coz' they taste better chilled. I alfalfa in my sandwiches!

Day 2

Day 5 -- All done!

I'm now sprouting sunflower, even yummier! I haven't managed to get the black seeds for sprouting and growing sunflowers, so I'm trying with birdseed from the pet shop... hope it works! Getting them to a grow to a crunchy green is quite tricky, requires soil and all. I managed to get mustard, lettuce, tung o and corriander seeds today! Time for more experimentation! :D

Dorayaki

2007-10-29T11:02:00.001+08:00

We used to get dorayaki from Yaohan when I was little. I loved those bean-filled pancakes, so perfectly round and fun to hold and squish. But then again... I loved all kinds of food. Oh well!

Decided to make my own using oatmeal. I sometimes have oatmeal pancakes for breakfast, made with cinnamon, lemon and raisins. For my doroyaki, I used pulverized green tea leaves. Haha! A crazy idea that popped into my head as I was making the pancake mixture.

You can make these small and round, or larger and folded in half :D

Pork Chop Stack

2007-10-29T10:51:00.000+08:00

"Where's the meat?" asks a hungry hubby... I can live without it, but he can't. Poor guy.

Here's a nice treat for him... lotsa meat, big chunky pork chops, soaked in pineapple juice for 3 days, then seasoned with lemon myrtle salt (that a friend gave me), crumbed and pan-fried.

Having in mind that he likes his food saucey (?), I whipped up a garlic tomato sauce, generously poured all over.

Appam

2007-10-26T10:45:00.001+08:00

I love Indian breads... any kind... Northern Southern... wheat flour, atta, rice flour... All go down very well. :))

Thought I might be ambitious to make Appam from scratch... it really isn't easy to get right. Here's my first attempt! Tastes more sour than those I've tried. But really yummy with lots of grated coconut and brown sugar. While the mixture was fermenting, I dreamt about Appam all night!

I must have eaten 8 of them already. :p~ Great for breakfast and dessert, and for mopping up curries! Yum yum!

Thin and crispy... just the way I like it!

Natto!

2007-10-22T15:27:00.001+08:00

How much I love Natto, I can sing its praises till kingdom come! It's really addictive! Especially after you stir it till it's all gooey and stringy... Goes pretty well with Shiso. My mouth is watering. :p~

Aburaage

2007-10-22T15:19:00.000+08:00

Aburaage make handy pockets which can be stuffed with pretty much anything you like. A Japanese lady showed us how she made hers with bean sprouts and spring onions... so healthy and delicious! Mine has bean sprouts, corriander and sliced chilli. Grilled till crispy on the outside!

Vegetable Stews

2007-10-09T15:06:00.001+08:00

If you love meat, like some individuals I know... then this would not interest you. In fact, like hubby, you'd ask: "No meat?" with a look of disdain. I reassured him that there'd be lots of meat at the North Indian buffet that evening. :))

Konnyaku, eggplant and sugarpeas.

Choko & Kelp.

All stewed in dashi. Yum yum.

Making Yuba at Home

2007-10-08T11:57:00.001+08:00

Thought that it would be fun to make my own yuba (tofu skin) at home, so I started to simmer some soymilk in a pan. Soon, yuba started to form at the top and I fished it out with my chopsticks.

So oishii I could melt into a puddle! Didn't need any sauces or condiments. Had a nice mouthful to eat every minute or so... this went on for about 30minutes, till I was just about soyed over.

Ureshii!

Oishii!!

2007-10-04T10:43:00.001+08:00

Lately, I've been taking a great interest in Japanese Home Cooking. Ooh... the variety of ingredients available in the suupa in Japan... really sparks my curiousity. Just sea vegetables alone... there are so many kinds... the most bizzare I found was funori -- a kind of spiny burgundy coloured seaweed.

And the veggies! All kinds of veggies to be pickled, steamed, deep fried, stewed, stir-fried, and also eaten raw. I had gobo cooked in different ways and decided to replicate the stewed version at home.

And of course, a nice piece of grilled fish and more stewed veggies to go with a steaming hot bowl of gohan!

Oishiiiiiiiiiiiiii

Double Boiled Prawns in Coconut Juice

2007-06-19T11:16:00.000+08:00

Tis the season for pasar malam near our home again!

The only 2 things I buy from there are putu piring (I can eat 10 at a go) and whole coconuts. The coconuts are convenient to consume as they've got their tops cut off. As I was happily sipping one of them, I was thinking of what to do with the rest. Lightning struck in my big eccentric head and I was sufficiently inspired to make this dish.

So easy to make coz' the prawns are double boiled in their own little container with a lid. And the container is disposable too! Actually, they make very good pots for hanging plants.

"Walnut Butter"

2007-06-15T14:43:00.000+08:00

I gave up eating anything containing large amounts of hydrogenated oil about 10 years ago... thanks to a brilliant health-conscious chemist friend, who educated me on the evils of trans fats. Never did like margarine or vegetable shortening anyway. More butter, lard and coconut oil for me!

But I like peanut butter on my toast! I've made my own, but I think walnuts are better for you, so I came up with a walnut butter recipe, though it's more like a spread. I wake up some mornings and think how good life is because I can have toast with my walnut spread. :)

Melitzanes Tiganites

2007-06-08T11:09:00.000+08:00

This is my version of Greek Battered Eggplant. It's excellent as a party finger food or appetizer. Trouble is that it has to be served very warm, which means you have to be slaving over the stove while your guests are enjoying themselves. Eventually, they'll come hovering over the stove too coz' they can't wait to be served. :))

Seafood Pancakes

2007-06-05T11:31:00.001+08:00

This is my version of the Korean dish (Hey-Mul Pajun). It's so easy to make in your own home. The kids successfully learnt how to make it during one of our workshops. They did such a good job... cutting, mixing and spreading and flipping. You should see them! Thumbs up :)

Ba Li Tong

2007-06-01T15:15:00.001+08:00

My sister-in-law first described this exotic food many years ago. She talked about the knocking and sucking at the shell, picking at it with a toothpick, really got me curious...

I actually didn't even get to try it till 3 years ago, in Penang. And one more time in Changi Village. This time I saw a whole bag of it being sold for just $2. They are nice and fresh, still moving!

Despite the way they look, they're really good. That is if you can contort your lips effectively around the openings to get to the small morsels of flesh hidden in the spiral shells.

It's a negative calorie food I tell you. The amount of energy expanded in extracting those guys exceeds the calories they contain. Oh, but I forgot to account for the dipping sauce: chinchalok, garlic, chilli sauce and lime. Sorry!

Black Sesame Cookies

2007-05-29T10:35:00.001+08:00

I have a basic cookie recipe which took a while to perfect. I gave it to a friend to test and see if it could be replicated. She tells me that she's been baking various flavours to give away. A good way to share the calories.

I shall call it "Fund Raiser Cookies" coz' we'll be making some to raise funds for a youth organisation.

Tried some with black sesame. I've already made orange chocolate chip and lemon lavender. Trouble is I couldn't stop eating them!

Pomelo Prawn Salad

2007-05-24T10:31:00.002+08:00

My greatest source of inspiration is my stomach! I usually cook what I feel like eating. :D And lately, I've been feeling like having a big fat salad for lunch every day.

Tada! Pomelo prawn salad. Totally not pre-meditated. I had a whole pink pomelo sitting in the kitchen, waiting for someone to come and devour it. And some shrimpies in the freezer crying out to be rescued from the cold. Life is great when there's food sitting around the house!

A Sweet Experiment

2007-05-24T10:05:00.001+08:00

I tried making a lacy crispy crepe and it turned out alright, though not as well as I would've liked it to be. Next time, I might use a different contraption to get the desired effect. I used a big syringe for this one. Well, it was a brand new one, unopened in the packaging, very sterile in fact! :D

Curry in a Hurry

2007-05-23T17:11:00.001+08:00

I had a craving for curry, which is odd in this hot weather! I usually make a quick chicken curry with lots of veges and sometimes fruit (!)... whatever I have in the fridge. I also made a crepe-like bread to eat with it. We ate almost all of it... which means there wasn't enough for the next day when it would've tasted even better!

That Looks Healthy!

2007-05-21T11:32:00.000+08:00

You'd think we are on a health-kick just because we eat tofu and vegetables! But of course, we're not!

I actually like making (and eating) this version of tahu goreng because it can taste very different every time! For this particular dressing, I used sesame oil, olive oil, brown rice vinegar, Lingham's chilli sauce (yumm!) and Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids. I didn't have any lime in the fridge, but it would be perfect with a little squeeze.

If anyone were to profile my personality based on my salad dressings, I'd be diagnosed with a multi-personality disorder. Just how many? Ask a mathematician.

Real Men Don't Eat Quiche?

2007-05-17T15:20:00.001+08:00

For your information Mr Bruce Feirstein… my husband, who is a real man, ate 2 slices of my Bacon n Onion Quiche for lunch, just a short while ago.

I am so blessed with hubby, who is ever so sweet and supportive. He readily eats whatever I make. Other than his aversion to fish with bones, he pretty much eats every thing else I put on the table. How sweet! 0:)

I too, eat everything I put on the table! And today, I decided to make something I haven’t made in years. No-recipe Quiche. I made mine with chunky bacon, lots of onion, tomatoes, soy milk (we don’t stock cow’s milk in the fridge), Swiss Buendner Cheese (whatever that is...), all topped with Romano Cheese.

To give me some peace of mind about the somewhat decadent ingredients I’ve put in there, I put rolled oats in the crust. Who am I kidding?

Oh well, I don’t normally measure when I cook, and I didn't today (shhh!) but somehow everything fit nicely in my large quiche dish, filled right to the brim. It’s a miracle!

It’s awful to have to wait when your stomach’s rumbling! Tick Tick Tick...

At last! We get to tuck in.

Love the crispy, crunchy pastry! Ok, ok, I confess! I had two slices too, but they were considerable smaller than hubby's!

Petite Patty Cakes

2007-05-14T11:56:00.001+08:00

Didn't have a clue what to make for dinner last night. But I was sufficiently inspired by 5pm to make it in time for our 6pm TV dinner.

Pork & Prawn Patty Cakes on Grilled Potatoes. Seems to have a ring to it. Dressed with balsamic vinegar and a little chilli sauce. :D

Lunch Time!

Laksa Pesto, Oh So Versatile!

2007-05-14T11:50:00.000+08:00

Had it spread on some kind of fish I bought from the market and grilled for a while.

The taste was heavenly! We both thought it tasted like otah, only a lot better!

Laksa Pesto

2007-05-14T11:16:00.000+08:00

Last Wednesday I was inspired to make Laksa Pesto. I have never tried it before but it sounds good. I love laksa leaves, so I went out to buy a whole bunch!

Well, I added some other secret ingredients to the pesto and here's what it looked like. As you can see, I made lots!

And with Spiral Pasta...

Not for ye low-carb diet folks!

Pretty Dumplings... All in a Row

2007-05-08T13:26:00.000+08:00

Suddenly had a craving for dumplings (jiao zi) yesterday. So off I went to the shops to get some minced pork and cabbage, I still had some prawns in the freezer. While at the shops, I got so hungry looking at all the food I decided to buy a snack for myself. Ended up with a whole packet of that colourful steamed rice cupcake thingy (what do you call that?). And so, I broke the rule of not shopping when you're hungry. But... I'm always hungry!

Anyway, I got down to preparing the dumpling filling soon after I stuffed my face with the chosen rice cupcake. Poor guy, the little brown one, he was "The One".

What did I put in that? It looks like kimchi! Well, there's pork, prawns and cabbage... and some other very odd ingredients. Wonder if anyone would be brave enough to guess...

Ok, down to the wrapping. That was easy.

While I was waiting for them to cook in boiling water, I made a dipping sauce with Lingham's Chilli Sauce, apple cider vinger, toasted sesame seeds, sesame oil and some fish sauce. Sounds unorthodox but hubby drank it by the spoonfuls!

Anyway, they all stayed intact while they were cooking. Hey, must have gong fu for that! Tada!

Back in the heat of things

2007-04-27T15:15:00.000+08:00

It takes me a long time to get used to this heat and humidity again. Going to the market is a challenge. Not only do I have to lug my excess baggage around in shorts that are way too tight, I have to jostle my way through the crowd and queue up for my pork.

I made Apple Char Siew the other day. Yum yum, sorry I forgot to take a pic. But I did take a pic of my lunch… Turmeric & Tomato Chicken. Nicely de-boned thighs, marinated for 30 hours and then cooked under the grill. I had that with short grain brown rice and some cheap white wine. Crisp on the nose and…. better in my stomach! LOL

We're back!

2007-04-27T14:22:00.000+08:00

... from the Land of the Long White Cloud. ;)

Of course we didn't go there just for the food. Though I must say it was constantly on our minds. They have some pretty good ice-cream and wine! Most of the restaurant food is cooked in too much salt. So I did some cooking, when I could, in various kitchen configurations! Most intriguing was this huge communal kitchen that served the lodges, motel units and backpackers. I was most interested to see what people were cooking. From the scruffy young bloke who heated a can of spaghetti to the seasoned couple who whipped up a hearty well-balanced meal. How our diets have changed in this day and age. Blue-eyes having stir-fry with rice and yellow-skinned me and hubby having soup with bread. I craved for soup everyday while I was there, even at breakfast. What's new...?

I made lots of beef & lamb dishes! We also tried blue cod & sea urchin. I didn’t cart around any seasoning, but I bought a great sea salt & black pepper grinder from the supermarket! You realize how little you really need when you’re travelling. It is once again so unfortunate that all the food I cooked turned out so delish. One night we ate 700g oxtail, 2 lamb shanks & some seafood, just for dinner! And another night, we wolfed down the whole leg of lamb! Well, the short of it is that I have excess baggage of 3kg. Thankfully the airline didn’t charge us for that.

The wine (oooh, some nice boutique vineyards we visited) probably added more calories to our meals. Well, you need something nice and dry to wash down all that red meat right? You should also see the size of the ice-cream cones there. Not to mention I was always on the look-out for chunky date scones, good cheeses, hot chips and other snacks. My shorts don't fit anymore.

Happy Meal

2007-02-23T13:52:00.000+08:00

Who can explain the great feeling of elation when I'm having something yummy? I often get in a state of euphoria when I'm having something like an Indian vegetarian meal. And for a while after that I'll be singing like a bird...

I made a small scale Indian vegetarian meal for lunch today. Dahl and Chickpea Curry, Tumeric Cabbage and Tomato Olive Salad with Chapati and a Wild Rice blend. Whoooo Wheeeeee! Loved it, loved it, loved it!!

Can't wait for dinner time! Then I can have this again. If sis comes for dinner, I'll whip up a fish curry. Then we can have a banana leaf meal and live like a queen.... a bollywood queen. :D

Friday Night

2007-01-29T17:46:00.000+08:00

I was pretty sickly over the weekend, and my body reacted to the anti-biotics I was taking. For once, I didn't feel like eating anything today.

Anyway, here's what we had for dinner on Friday night... us and our guests...

Lychee Chicken in a white wine sauce

Squid with home-made lemon mayonnaise...

Frenchbean Salad...

Achar...

Mandarin Orange Almond Cream... much quirkier than the traditional variety!

Time for a lie-down....

My Stomach Could Use a Rest

2007-01-25T14:46:00.000+08:00

I think those durian puffs did not agree with my system. I had a hard time at the market this morning. Thankfully, there are many restrooms all over the place in Singapore!

Here's a good lunch for you if your stomach isn't too pleased with what was loaded in it... Chicken Noodle Soup... Asian style.

I'll try to write a recipe for it here:

What

1 chicken breast, 1 thigh, skin-off, bone-in
1 piece of ginger (thumb-size), smashed or pounded
about 7 cups water
250-300g dried noodles, any sort (I used something like a spinach linguine)
1 1/2 cups blanched bean sprouts
chopped herbs (basil or coriander, I used culantro)
chopped chilli (optional)

How

1) In a soup pot, simmer the chicken and ginger in water for about 1 hour. *Tip* Add a few dried scallops for added flavour.
2) Cook the noodles in water with a few drops of oil (any edible kind); drain.
3) Shred the chicken and arrange on top of the noodles with bean sprouts.
4) Ladle the chicken broth on top and garnish with herbs and chilli.
5) Serve piping hot.

There! You could also add toppings such as fried shallots or garlic, preserved mustard greens (tong chye) etc.

As for me, I like my food pristine. Especially on a day like this! ;p

Vegetarian Sensation

2007-01-24T11:45:00.000+08:00

I had too much food for dinner last nite! I couldn't resist, Indian Vegetarian... one of my favourites :p~ Carbo overload!! And durian puffs for dessert! Woooh!

Anyway, I was still hungry this morning. After a couple of small bagels, I decided to whip up something for lunch (already!). I had some giant shitake mushrooms in the fridge... thought I'd stuff 'em. Inspiration sprang, "I'll make something like a risotto!". I fished out the leftover rice, cherry tomatoes, and the crab mushrooms I just bought yesterday.
Not that my rice was the right kind, it was brown, but the results were fantastic... if I may say so myself. Haha! First I had the tomatoes sauteed with the browned onion and garlic, lots of -tomatoes... Lycopene!! Then I added the rice and finely-chopped mushroom stalks. Herbs, salt n pepper, then the crab mushrooms.

I pre-baked the mushrooms for a while, stuffed them and sat them on a bed of boiled greens. Finally sprinkled with chopped chilli, and drizzled with avocado oil! It's so good for you. I could've sprinkled some parmigiano or romano... but I thought I'd be a purist just for today. :D

This dish could be called Duo Funghi Surprise. Hahaaaa!! Risotto Mushroom Cup? Crab Risotto Cradle?? Best as an appetizer. But we're having that for lunch. Maybe 3-4 of them!

Fish Tale

2007-01-23T12:42:00.000+08:00

We had grilled fish last night. A big chunk of pan-seared fish on a bed of sauteed spinach, topped with home-made horseradish mayonnaise.

OK, the mayonnaise was whipped up in the last minute coz' the top looked a little bare. It went really well. :D The fish was nice and firm, not oily. I think it's the kind most commonly used in sliced fish soup. I cooked it skin on of course! ;) Paired well with Chardonnay.

All this talk is making me hungry. LUNCH TIME!!

Over the Weekend

2007-01-22T14:10:00.000+08:00

We had hot pot on Saturday! It was perfect, considering the weather. The thinly sliced meat I marinated tasted yummy after a hot bath in our steamboat. Haha! On top of the usual, we also had fresh kelp from Japan and Konnyaku! My family was skeptical about the Konnyaku, but it was highly favoured with just one bite!

After that, I experimented with making Almond Pudding -- a cross between a pudding and a jelly. Our Sunday guests liked it... but I think Hubby was my best supporter! Here's what it looked like:

After a 30minute run/walk, the dinner we had more than compensated for the calories burnt! I didn't take any pictures because we were all out of battery power! I'm determined to make the same menu again!

Today, I threw in some left-overs and made fried rice for lunch. It had all kinds of things in it, including those dried little white fishies, beans, carrots, onion, eggs, and my home-grown basil. I love basil... any kind! Oh, and here's a tip: add about 1/2 teaspoon of tumeric powder in your fried rice for colour and flavour.

As it must be a habit, I simply had to go find something sweet to eat after that, so I decided it'd be the mango in the fridge. It's the best I've had in a long time. Most large mangoes of this variety had been picked way too early. This was firm, fragrant and very very sweet!

I'd lie quite content even after a simple meal like this! :D Nap Time!

Whatever Energy Bars

2007-01-19T12:41:00.000+08:00

After returning from grocery shopping this morning, I was inspired out-of-the-blue to make energy bars... from WHATEVER I had in the pantry and fridge. Flax, pumpkin, sesame seeds; walnuts; dried cranberries, raisins, sultanas, figs & wolfberries! I have no idea how energy bars are made but my ingredients were mixed together with 2 eggs and a little water to a crumbly mixture. Of course I ground the flax to a meal 1st. Then I shaped them to a kind of shape that was convenient. Haha! There goes that "ding!".

Wow, they look great! I can' t wait to eat them. OK, I'll wait just 5 minutes. In the meantime, I'll take a picture.

OK, maybe they don't look so great. But they are yummy! They taste like they could keep you full for hours. Haha! I like this kind of texture in my mouth -- hearty and meaty. Unlike the local bread, which I call 'Wussy Bread'. And those colourful flavoured breads from certain popular bakeries... eeks!

I wonder what possesed me to bake today. I don't bake much. I generally cook foods that can fill my large-capacity stomach. Which reminds me... I made a funny-looking salad yesterday! Dressed with home-made vinaigrette of course. I recommend this with BBQed meats. See!

What's for lunch today? Some pork stew I made in the slow-cooker yesterday -- belly pork; carrots; ginger; preserved black beans... nothing super exciting. Tonight we're going to Bukit Panjang to try this tze char place recommended by the friends we are meeting. Not exciting to me, but the hubby likes this kind of food. Wonder if they'll let us bring our own wine. Perhaps a Reisling and a Shiraz.... :D Wash down all that oily food. (I wish!)

I wonder how long I'm gonna keep this up for.... ha...