Flat Noodle Stir Fry with Garlic Chives

Chili Chicken

Mango Lassi Shorbet

Very simple ice-cream made with mango lassi. This tastes so refreshing without the calories. Made with homemade yogurt and mango puree in cans. These can be bought from the Indian stores. 

Ingredients:

2 cups thick yogurt
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup or more sugar
2 cups mango puree
1 tsp ground cardamon powder
1 cup of ice

Method:

Blend all the ingredients in a Vita mix blender. Puree until the ice cubes are crushed.

Then pour this mixture into a ice-cream maker and chill the mixture for at least 3 hours before enjoying.

Peach and Apple Galette

Egg Garlic Chives Omelet

Vegetable Medley in Cream Sauce

Spicy Homemade Chicken Balls in Noodle Soup

German Chocolate Cake

Ganache covered Butter Cookies

I wanted to make Cruise Ship cookie using this dough. It is a good cookie dough for decorating. I had some cookie dough left and made these cookies. These are delicious cookies and dipping them in ganache made them extra special. 

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sift flour with baking powder and set aside.

Cream butter, salt and sugar with a paddle attachment for about 3 minutes. Scrap the sides of the bowl and mix for another 1 minute. Beat in the egg and vanilla  until well combined.
Reduce speed to low and add the flour a cup at a time and mix thoroughly after each addition.

Form dough into halves and wrap into plastic wrap in refrigerator until ready to use.

Cut out cookies with your favorite cookie cutter and place onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake cookie until edges are golden about 10 to 12 minutes. Let cookies cool on baking sheet until ready to use.

Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients:
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 Tbsp corn syrup
6 ozs cream
1 tsp vanilla

Directions
Place the chocolate into a medium bowl.

Heat the cream with the corn syrup in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer.Then pour over the chopped chocolate, and stir until smooth. Add the vanilla and stir to combine.

Allow the ganache to cool slightly before dipping the cookies. I dipped the cookies once, then let me cool a little then sprinkle a little fleur de sel, then sprinkle a little chopped hazelnut and then pour another layer of ganache on the cookies.

Honey Roasted Norwegian Salmon Salad

 A refreshing salad for a hot summer's day. 

Ingredients for dressing:
1/4 cup light cream
2 Tbsp bottled horseradish
2 Tbsp lemon juice

2 Tbsp tarragon or dill, minced finely

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients for the salad:

2 celery sticks, peel and sliced thinly, diagonally
1/2  avocado, slice 

1/2 Japanese cucumber, cut across thinly or English cucumber
2 cups flaked honey smoked salmon
1/4 cup sliced white onions

1 Tbsp  tarragon or dill, minced finely

Method:

Place cucumber, onions, celery and flaked salmon and add about 1/4 cup of the dressing. Toss gently. Then add the avocados and tarragon and add more dressing if needed. Serve with roasted potatoes.

Savory Scones

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
7 Tbsp cold unsalted butter
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup cream
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup finely minced chives

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Put flour, baking powder, salt in food processor and pulse it about 3 times to incorporate the baking powder and salt. Then add cubed very cold butter. Pulse it until flour resembles breadcrumbs.

Tip the mixture into a big bowl. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, cheese and chives. Then add cold cream. Using a wooden ladle mix until the dough comes together. Remove the dough on a flour board. and form it into a circle about 7 inches and height about 1 /12 inches. Cut it into half using a bench scrapper. Then cut into triangles.

Put them into a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush them with a little cream and bake them for 15 minutes or until golden in color.

Garlic Curry

Beans cooked with spices

Barley Salad

A simple and nutritious salad made with cooked barley. 

Ingredients:
2 cups cooked barley
1/2 cup cooked fresh corn
1/2 cup butternut squash, roasted in oven and cut into cubes
handful of young arugula leaves
borage for garnish

Dressing:

Mix in a small jar the following.
3 tablespoons of champagne vinegar
7 tablespoons salad oil

1 garlic clove, mashed finely
Salt and pepper to taste


Mix barley, roasted butternut squash, arugula and corn  with some dressing. Toss very lightly. Adjust salt and pepper. Serve at once or can be refrigerated and served cold.

Green Beans Cooked in Coconut Masala

Grated Cucumber Salad

Ingredients:

1/2 English cucumber, peeled and grated
3 tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1 small jalapeno, chopped finely
1/2 cup chopped white onions
salt and pepper

Method:

Squeeze the juice out of the grated cucumber. Then add the chopped tomatoes, jalapeno, onions. Mix well with salt and pepper.
Refrigerate before serving. 

Cucumber Stir Fry

Zucchini, Smoked Salmon with mashed Avocado Sandwich

Scones - Apple and Raisin Scones

Ingredients:

6 Tbsp or 3/4 stick unsalted butter, frozen
1/2 cup finely chopped apples, skin peeled
1/4 cup roasted walnut, chopped
1/4 cup raisins
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 large egg
3/4 cup cold heavy cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp sugar for sprinkling

Method:

Preheat oven 400 degrees F.

Beat egg into the cold cream and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk or sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into flour until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add the apples, walnuts and raisins.

Add cream to the flour mixture. Stir just until combined.

Transfer to a lightly floured surface and gathered the dough to form a 6 inch round. Cut into triangles.
Transfer to prepared cookie sheet. Brush the tops of the scones with a little cream.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Serve warm.

Prune Almond Tart

Recipe adapted from this site: http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/20098/prune+armagnac+and+almond+tart

Ingredients

180g (about 20) pitted prunes
1/3 cup (80ml) Armagnac or brandy
1 1/2 cups (225g) plain flour
1/4 cup (45g) pure icing sugar
125g chilled unsalted butter, chopped
2 egg yolks
3 eggs, lightly whisked
1/2 cup (100g) caster sugar
1/2 cup (125ml) cream
1/2 cup (55g) almond meal
2 tbs flaked almonds
Icing sugar, to dust
Creme fraiche, to serve

Method:

Place prunes and Armagnac in a small bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside overnight to soak. Drain prunes, reserving the liquid.

Place the flour and icing sugar in the bowl of a food processor and process briefly to combine. Add the butter and process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolks and process until mixture just comes together. Shape into a disc, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to rest.

Use a rolling pin to roll pastry into a 5mm-thick disc. Line a 23cm (base measurement) fluted tart tin with removable base with the pastry. Press pastry into base and sides, trimming any excess. Cover and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.

Preheat oven to 200°C. Line pastry with baking paper and fill with pastry weights, dried beans or rice. Bake for 15 minutes or until almost set. Remove paper and weights. Bake for a further 8 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.

Reduce oven to 180°C. Combine the eggs, sugar, cream and reserved prune liquid in a medium bowl. Add the almond meal and stir to combine. Place tart case on an oven tray, arrange prunes in base of tart case, pour over egg mixture and sprinkle with flaked almonds. Cook for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and set. Serve warm or at room temperature dusted with icing sugar and with creme fraiche.

Barley Soup with Vegetables

Beans cooked with tofu and black beans

Ingredients:

1/2 lb young green beans
1/2 slightly soft tofu, cut roughly
2 Tbsp black bean
1 1/2 tsp red chili paste
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 Tbsp ginger, finely juliened


Method:
Heat a pot of boiling water to blanch the green beans. Add a little salt and add the green beans. Take a green beans to test whether it is cooked but still retain its crispness. Remove with a slotted spoon and put into a bowl filled with ice to stop the cooking. Remove from the ice and set them on a paper towel. Set aside.

Heat oil in a wok and add the ginger, garlic followed by the green beans. Then add the tofu, the black beans and the red chili paste.
Adjust seasoning (salt and black pepper) and serve warm. 

Greens cooked with Lentils

I used to eat this vegetable which grows as a weed among other vegetables in Malaysia. This vegetable is called "garbage vegetable" translated from the Tamil word. I have a bunch of these vegetables growing in my garden every year and I always pick them very young to cook them. They are very tasty cooked with lentils or just as stir fries with shredded coconut or tofu. 

This vegetable resembles Malaysian spinach in flavor.

You can substitute spinach, kale, Swiss chard for this recipe. Just cook the greens with cooked lentils, and lots of onions and garlic and some green chilies. Towards the end of cooking I add sliced zucchini and cooked for 2 or 3 minutes. 

Pizza - Pesto with Brussels Sprouts

Ingredients:

2 1/4 tsp dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 3/4 cups bread flour
2 1/4  tsp salt

1 cup warm water

Method:

Dissolve yeast and sugar in 1/4 cup of warm water. Mix the oil to the remaining water.

In a mixing bowl fitted with a hook attachment, add 2 1/4 cups flour, salt and the oil water and mix the ingredients on low and slowly increasing the speed to medium high for about 10 to 15 minutes. Add more flour if needed. Mix until you get a silky, elastic dough.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll it into a ball. Place the dough in a lightly-oiled bowl. for about 2 to 3 hours to double.

Punch down the dough and flatten it on a lightly floured board. You can divide the dough and let it rest in the refrigerator until you want to make pizza.

For making the Brussels sprouts Pizza with Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese:

Place pizza stone in the bottom most shelf of your oven. Preheat oven to 500 degree F.

Spread pizza dough with pesto, then sprinkle with finely sliced Brussels sprouts. Then add buffalo mozzarella and bake in a 500 degree F oven.

Note: I added other vegetables like asparagus, artichokes, mushrooms.

Zucchinis cooked with red and mung lentils

Zucchini or courgette (French) is a  variety of summer squash developed in Italy. It can reach a length of four to nine inches long but best picked when they are about three to six inches in length. Zucchinis can be dark or light green in color. It can be steamed, boiled or made into stews (Ratatouille), grilled, stuffed and grated and made into breads, pancakes or fried.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup red lentils

1/4 mung lentils

3 medium zucchinis, cut into cubes

1/2 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 large tomatoes

1 medium onions, sliced finely

2 tsp ginger garlic paste
2 red dried chilies, torn into half

1 Serrano chili, diced

Spices for roasting and grinding:

2 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp black peppercorn

1/2 tsp fennel seeds
3 dried red chilies

Method:

Soak the lentil for about 1 hour. Was and drain. Then add about 2 cups of water or more  and cook them until soft. Set aside.

Dry roast the spices and grind them with a coffee grinder. Set a side. Use according to your taste.

Heat a saute pan. Add some olive oil. Then add the cumin, dried red chilies, and the mustard seeds. Let them splutter. Then add the onions and the ginger garlic paste. Cook until the onions are slightly brown in color. Now add the ground spices, some salt, tomatoes and the green chilies and cook until the tomatoes are soft. Then add this to the cooked lentils. Add some water (zucchini is watery) and adjust seasonings. Then add the zucchinis and cook until the zucchinis are done. This is a slightly thick curry. Serve it with rice or bread.

Potatoes Cooked with Onions

Ingredients:

10 small potatoes, cleaned and boil until soft with skin on
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 Tbsp ginger, finely minced
1 tsp urad dal
1 serrano pepper, chopped
1 large onion, sliced finely

Dry roast
2 tsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp dried pomegranate seeds

Method:

Heat oil in a pan. Add the mustard and urad dal. Let is splutter. Then add onions, green chili and ginger. Saute until the onions are almost caramelized.

Mash the potatoes and add them to the onions. Add salt to your taste and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle a teaspoon of the ground coriander and pomegranate seeds,  Sprinkle some minced cilantro leaves and serve immediately. 

Buffalo Mozzarella Pizza

Cherry Clafouti

Stuffed Zucchinis

Braised Celery

Plum Juice

Fish Biryani

A very simple and delicious biryani made with Rockfish.  I used the Sindhi Biryani powder to make this dish.  

Ingredients:

2 slices of Rock fish, cut into big chunks
1 cup yogurt
1 Tbsp garlic paste
1 Tbsp ginger paste
1 tsp Chili powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/8 tsp salt

a handful of mint leaves
a handful of cilantro leaves
2 green chilies, chopped
3 Tbsp Sindhi Biryani powder
1 1/2 tomatoes, sliced

1 1/2 cups of basmatic rice, washed and soaked
1/4 cup or less evaporated milk
2 pinches of saffron

Method:
Combine the yogurt, garlic and ginger paste, chili and turmeric powder and salt with the fish and marinate for 30 minutes.

Heat some olive oil and cook the tomatoes until soft for about 5 minutes. Then add the mint and cilantro leaves and the green chilies and cook for about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove and let it cool. Once cool blend into a fine paste and set it aside.

In a big pot bring water to boil. Add about 3 tablespoon salt. The water should taste quite salty. Then add the soaked rice and cook the rice until 70 % done.

While the rice is cooking, add some oil to a heavy bottom wok and add the sindhi biryani powder. Cook for about 3 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. The add the fish and mix to combine with the mint and cilantro paste. Turn off the heat. Make sure the seasoning is to your taste.
Now to make the biryani, scoop the basmatic rice from the boiling water with a strainer and layer it on top of the fish mixture. Spread the rice evenly. Then sprinkle some saffron on the rice.

Take some of the rice water and mix with 1/4 cup of ghee and sprinkle on the rice. You can sprinkle some fried onions, chopped coriander leaves and fresh chopped mint leaves.

Cover the wok with aluminium foil, followed by a cover. Put something heavy on the cover to seal it tight.

Cook for about 5 minutes on high then lower the heat and cook for another 4 or 5 minutes. Fish does not take too long to cook.

Serve with cucumber, onion and pineapple salad.

Pork Chop with Berber Rub

Beans and Artichoke Stir Fry

Panzanella

This bread salad is a Florentine favorite which is popular in summer. The basic ingredients are day old bread, tomatoes, onions, basil and a dressing made out of olive oil and vinegar. 

Ingredients:

3 cups tomatoes, cut into bite size
3 cups day old bread, like ciabatta (remove crust)
1/2 cup cucumber cut into bite size
1/4 white sweet onion, slice
1/4 cup sliced olives
1/2 cup fresh basil, torn into little pieces
1 tsp mashed garlic

For the vinaigrette:

1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
salt
black pepper


Method:

Crisp up the bread by putting it into a 350 degree F oven until is crunchy. Cut bread into bite size pieces.

Whisk all the ingredients for the vinaigrette together. Adjust salt and pepper. Keep aside.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, white onion, and mashed garlic Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Adjust seasonings. Allow the salad to sit for about 20 minutes to allow the bread to soak the juices from the tomatoes and the vinaigrette.

Just before serving, mixed in torn basil leaves and add a little more olive oil.  I also sprinkle a little grated Parmesan for added taste.

Enchiladas - Turkey Chili

Ingredient:

1 1/2 lbs ground turkey

1 large onion, chopped

2 slices bacon, cooked until crisp and set aside

2 medium tomatoes, chopped roughly
1 1/2 cup tomato sauce

1 tsp cayenne pepper

2 Tbsp chili powder

3 tsp sofritto paste

2 Tbsp cumin powder

1 tsp garlic powder

2 cups chicken broth

1 red bell pepper, roasted and cut into chunks

1 Tbsp ginger garlic paste

1 14 ozs can red kidney beans, wash and drained

Method:

Heat olive oil, then add chopped onions, ginger garlic paste and saute until slightly brown. Then add the chopped tomatoes and cook until they are very soft. Now add the ground turkey followed by the cayenne, chili, cumin, garlic powder and the sofritto. Cook for about 15 to 30 minutes. Then add the tomato sauce and chicken stock and the bacon. Let the mixture cook on a low simmer for about 1 hour.

Adjust seasoning, salt, pepper and spiciness. Now add the kidney beans and the red bell pepper.

Use this to fill up your tortillas and make them into enchiladas and topped with buffalo mozzarella and baked for about 15 minutes until bubbly. The top the enchiladas with slice green onions and pickled jalapeno and serve with Mexican crema and salsa verde.