Showing posts from October, 2009

banana bread

October 31, 2009
I was frantically looking for the banana bread recipe (100% fool proof) given to me by Norbi... no luck... the mind just went blankety-blank .... luckily I found an altenative from Ms Janelle, and decided to try her version of banana bread... not bad at all.... but I must keep on trying to look for Norbi's recipe... 4 ripe bananas - mashed 4 tablespoon of golden syrup (or honey) 1 cup sugar 1 eggs 2 cup of self raising flour a pinch of salt Mashed banana in a mixing bowl then add syrup, sugar and stir in. Add egg, sifted flour and salt. Lightly mix until combine. Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake @ 180C for 40 minutes or until the skewer comes out clean. Serve warm or toast it and enjoy it with butter......


Smoked Fish Pie

October 30, 2009
This is a fabulous meal.... especially when the aniseeds and leeks are in season.... one could buy both in market for less than $3 each. And the leek photographed below is only half the size.... 600g white fish fillet 300g smoked fish... I am using Smoked salmon 1 leek (or half in my case) ~ thinly sliced 1 aniseed or 2 baby aniseeds ~ thinly sliced 2 tablespoon plain flour 1 1/2 cup fish stock 1/2 cup cooking cream 1/2 lemon juice 2 tablespoon horseradish cream... alternative dijon mustard pepper 2 sheets puff pastry 1 egg lightly beaten Preheat the oven to 200C. Line a baking paper on a baking tray. Spray some oil. Cut up the puff pastry at least 5cm bigger than the ramekins used. Place it on the baking tray and brush with the egg wash and sprinkle some pepper and salt. Baked until the pastry puffed up. Cool on a rack. Heat up a large pot with 2 tablespoon of olive oil, Add leek and aniseed and stir until the vegetables softened. Add plain flour and coat it well.


Jacket Potatoes

October 28, 2009
Love the spuds....... Large potatoes sour cream rashers - cut into strips chives - finely chopped tasty cheese Choose quite a sizeable potatoes, make a X marking on the potatoes with knife. Coat with a little bit of olive oil, wrap with aluminium foil. And bake at 200C for at least 40 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Unwrap the aluminium foil, and push in the potatoes where the X marking was... Option: either fill up with cheese and back under the grill to melt the cheese or just serve with sour cream and chives with rashers....


Rempah Kari Ikan or Fish Curry Mix

October 26, 2009
Those were the days when my mother and her mother would used the freshly grounded spices to make fish curry...it tasted so good.... this is my version, after a quick lesson from my sister.... To make fresh rempah (spice) for the fish curry... ground all the ingredients.... 6 tablespoon of coriander seeds 2 tablespoon of cumin 1 tablspoon of fennel agak-agak... tumeric powder and chilli powder Then blend together with red onion and garlic... and tumis or saute until fragrant.... The rest of the steps ...follow fish curry published on 1st July 2009


Lemon Cheesecake

October 24, 2009
Did I mention that Miss E loves to make dessert that is rich in taste as well as rich in calories? Yes.. she loves to 'torture' her parents who tried their hardest to have a slimmer waisteline...hahaha! hmmmmm 250g digestive biscuit - crushed in the food processor 125g butter - melted 250g packet cream cheese 395g can sweet condensed milk 2 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind 1/3 cup lemon juice 1 teaspoon gelatine or agar-agar powder 1 tablespoon water Line base of 20cm springform tin with foil or baking paper Add butter to the processed biscuits until combined. Press biscuit mixture evenly over the base and the side of the pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes until firm. Beat cream cheese in a small bowl with electric mixer until smooth. Beat in condensed milk, rind and juice; beat until smooth. Sprinkle gelatine over the water in a small heat proof jug. Stand jug in a small saucepan of simmering water. Stir until the gelatine dissolves. Cool for 5 minutes. Sti


Beef Kheema

October 21, 2009
A nice dish to go with savoury rice. Serve with papadum and tomato chutney.... 700g mince beef 2 tablespoon cumin seed- grounded 2 tablespoon coriander seed - grounded 3 potatoes - cut into 2cm cubes 1 teaspoon of chilli powder 1 onion - chopped Heat up the wok with 2 tablespoon of canola oil and saute the onion until soft. Add the grounded spice. Keep stirring until fragrant. Add mince beef, and lastly add precooked potatoes. Season with salt and pepper.


Wild rice fish jambalaya

October 19, 2009
Lovely crunchy taste of the wild rice... and very easy to cook. The only problem is... to get the wild rice! Some supermarket may stock up ... but then ... wild rice is imported from Canada ... it can be quite costly ... 450g white fish - skinned and deboned and cut 3cm 1 brown onion - chopped 2 garlic- crushed 1 red capsicum - chopped into 2cm 1 green capsicum - chopped into 2 cm 1 tablespoon taco seasoning 1 can diced tomato 1 1/2 cup wild rice mix 150g rashers - chopped 1 3/4 cup of stock. coriander leaves to garnish. Heat up the wok and spray some oil. Saute onion, rashers and garlic until soft. Add taco seasoning and capsicums. Stir for awhile. Then add the stock and diced tomatoes. Season to taste. Mix everything into the rice cooker. Add fish the last 10 minutes before the complete cooking time. ~sfi tip 1 : for stock... boil the fish bones and skins, Season with salt and pepper or use the commercial chicken stock . tip 2 : If ready mixed wild rice mix is


tomato salsa

October 16, 2009
The last dish to compliment my Mexican meal week.... 1 ripe tomato - chopped 1/4 cup of chopped coriander leaves 2 tablespoon lemon juice salt Mix all the ingredients and season with salt. Tip: add corn kernels and a little bit of sweet chilli sauce the complete Mexican Meal....


Chunky Chilli Con Carne

October 12, 2009
This is a lovely Mexican Meal... 'Old el De Paso' Chilli Con Carne sachet is not needed here... Next... I'll be posting guacamole (Wednesday) and tomato salsa(Friday)... 800g gravy beef - cut into 2cm 2 tablespoon of cumin - grounded 2 teaspoon of coriander seeds - grounded 1 teaspoon of chilli powder 1 brown onion - chopped 2 garlic - crushed 1 bottle of pasta sauce 1 cup of water 1 can of red beans 1 can of 4 mix beans Cooked the beef in a frying pan till slightly brown (to seal the juice). Put aside in a plate. Saute the onion and garlic until soft. Add the grounded spice and cook for further 5 minutes or until fragrant. Return beef to the frying pan. Add te pasta sauce and water. Bring to boil. Then transfer to slow cooker and cook for at least 2 hours on high or until beef is tender. Add the beans in the last 30 minutes. Serve with corn chips, guacamole, sour cream and tomato salsa.


Baked Chicken with Kalamatta Olives

October 09, 2009
Easy and tasty dish... before we welcome the hot summer months ....I would be mad to even start the oven !! Imagine... the outside temperature can be in the high 30s or sometimes in the 40s!!! and here we are cooking using the oven... no way! Not only the food will be cooked...we'll be cooked as well!!! 4 chicken breast 1/4 cup of flour 1 can diced tomato 1/2 cup of kalamata olives 1 brown onion - chopped 50g butter 2 tablespoon of chopped parsley Place the flour in the zip lock bag, add salt and pepper. Shake the bag. Place the flour in a plate and coat the chicken breasts. Shake the access flour. Heat up butter in a frying pan. Cook the chicken breast till it just turn golden brown. Place the chicken breasts in a casserole dish. Using the same frying pan, saute the onion until soft. Add the diced tomato. Season to taste. Pour the tomato mix into the dish, cover and bake at 180C for 30 minutes. Add the kalamata olives the last 5 minutes. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve w


Chilli Brinjal

October 07, 2009
A simple dish... enjoyed by Mr H and I... The kids? They were not so keen on this meal...as there is no ' meat ' for my carnivore, Mr H Jr and for the petite Miss E - she's allergic to brinjals... she'll ended up with 'Angelina Jolie's' pouty lips!! 3 garlic chopped 1 red chilli - chopped 2 medium size aubergines or brinjal - cut into chunky pieces oyster sauce soy sauce Saute the garlic until fragrant, then add in brinjals and sauces. Cook until slightly mushy. Season to taste. Lastly add in chilli.


Beef Stew

October 05, 2009
Eventhough we are into the second month of spring.... the weather can be quite chilly sometimes.... this Beef Stew or Bouef Bournignon (if I get the spelling right!) is an excellent meal to serve with crusty rolls... 1 onion - chopped 3 cloves of garlic - crushed 1 carrots 2 celery stalk - thickly sliced 750g of gravy beef - cut into 3cm cubes 200g button mushroom 8 baby potatoes 1 1/2 tablespoon of tomato paste 1 cup of red sparkling grape juice (or 1 cup of dry red wine) 1/4 cup of beef stock (used Massel - vegetarian) Coat a 2 liter flameproof casserole dish with spray cooking oil; cook beef in batches to seal the juices. Transfer to a plate. In the same dish, saute the onion and garlic until soft. Return beef to the dish with the remaining ingredients, bring to boil. Bake covered @180C for 2 hours. Uncover and bake for another 30 minutes until beef is tender and sauce has thickened. Serve with pasta or crusty bread.


Passionfruit Eton Mess

October 03, 2009
The passionfruits are abundant... from our backyard. We'll be having passionfruit with ice cream, passionfruit with cakes and this is Miss E's Eton Mess ... and with passionfruit too! We freezed some in the small icy poles bags (Malaysian Ice Cream~ small longish plastic bags) for later use.... This is Miss E lovely dessert.... 1/2 cup icing sugar 2 passionfruits, plus extra to serve 1/2 cup pure cream 1 cup thick Greek yoghurt 1 tsp vanilla essence 6x10g meringue nests, broken into 2 cm chunks 2 bananas sliced Stir half the sugar with 1/4 cup cold water in a pan over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium low and simmer, without stirring for 1 minute. Set aside to cool. Stir the passionfruit pulp into the cooled syrup. Set aside. In a large bowl, whip cream to soft peaks with whisk or electric beaters. Fold in yoghurt, vanilla essence and the remaining sugar. Fold meringue into yoghurt mixture, then stir in bananas an


Crispy Fried Fish with Red Curry Sauce

October 02, 2009
Having Deep Fried Fish for dinner is a luxury for my kids... I don't often deep fry anything especially fish, as the 'fishy smell' will stick to everything, eventhough you have the ventilation fan on! ... But with this dish... there is no alternative but fry.... 1 whole fish - deep fried 1 brown onion 4 tablespoon of red curry paste fish sauce 1 can Coconut milk 3 thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves In a saucepan, saute the onion with the red curry paste until aromatic. Add kaffir lime leaves, coconut milk and fish sauce with a dash of sugar. Bring to boil, and pour over the fish. Garnish with sprigs of coriander.