I’m so tired

I bought a Philips Cucina food processor and made homemade sausages with roast garlicky potatoes and a grilled pepper sauce.

I’m totally exhausted from cooking healthy meals(excluding this meal, we’ve cut red meat out of our diets) and exercising. The diaper rash is also wearing me out as I’ve been solely cloth diapering and I’ve been doing without help at home for the past week. Hana’s diaper rash has disappeared but a new heat rash has appeared along the crease of her neck. Argh!

Tiny cinnamon rolls

I use Pampas sheet puff pastry because there’s no rolling involved, its neat and easy and I’m really not up to making puff pastry from scratch!

For the left over sheet of pastry, I brushed it with leftover egg wash and sprinkled cinnamon sugar over. Make your own, about 3 teaspoons of cinnamon to a cup of brown sugar is good. Roll it up tightly and cut into 1cm thick rolls. Brush all over with egg wash and bake at 220C for 10-12 mins

Important note: Use silicon sheets as the filling tends to caramelize and leak out creating crunchy bases that will stick to an unlined baking pan like crazy. Its also going to burn the roof of your mouth, think scorching caramel, so its wise to let them cool a bit.

Mini morsels of something

Figured out a way to use up leftover puff pastry. Leftover from the hen’s party at Farah’s which was great, more subdued this time with the main activity being manicures and pedicures. I drove after a really long time and it was really challenging due to the distance I had to remain in a sitting position with a full stomach. I popped by my grandma’s who was in the opposite block after the party and she fed me a full dinner of chilli crabs! On top of the English tea party(that was the Hen’s party theme) menu items that was already in my tummy, my stomach, lungs and uterus were competing for limited space in my torso. Needless to say besides fidgeting like crazy in the car seat and trying hard just to breathe thru the 45 min drive alone, there were valuable lessons learnt. (which i suspect too may be forgotten at the next party)

 

Tell you bout these mini morsels soon.

Sunday roast..

..was pumpkin. Tossed in a little salt and olive oil and dried rosemary.

Remember how I clear my fridge of leftover vegetables every Sunday? This Sunday while preparing breakfast I did the usual dig and roast routine. This time out came half a pumpkin. I love pumpkin. The sweetness in savoury dishes and desserts with sort of a rooty earthiness is something I really love. I don’t think I grew up eating pumpkin, its not something that stars much in Malay or Asian cuisine. Eventhough it isn’t a root vegetable, I feel its taste is really similar to the root vegetables I grew up eating. My late great grandmother used to eat a lot of tapioca. It was probably an abundant and convenient item to eat since tapioca plants grew like weeds all around her old kampung (malay for village) house.

 

She made so many different dishes out of tapioca, the leaves and the roots. The leaves were usually enjoyed as a savoury vegetable while the root often used to make tea time snacks. She used to chip them, rub them in salt and fry them like potato chips. Often she would simply steam them with a little salt and it would be eaten soft and starchy and hot just on its own. When she felt like mucking around a little, she grated fresh coconut and tapioca and patted them into little cakes then pan fry them. Occasionally she would cube them and boil them in a coconut and palm sugar soup. She didn’t have a sweet tooth though, so she wasn’t big on dessert. Whenever she made something sweet it would be at my request. I loved her cooking and would often ask her to make me tapioca desserts. Sometimes she would substitute yam or sweet potato for the tapioca. She used to make me these sweet potato donuts which were deep fried rings of mashed cooked sweet potato bound with a little flour. After they were drained of oil she drizzled palm sugar syrup over the hot “donuts”. I used to always ask her to make them and always be brushed off with a grizzly angry retort that they were too difficult to make. She was a gruff old thing, tough and shrivelled. I think Asian grandmothers tend to be that way, not very kissy or hugable with rather hot tempers. (At least mine are!!)But she would always make them anyway. Love shows itself in strange ways doesn’t it? Somehow when I ate these slices of pumpkin throughout the week, I thought a lot of her.

Now for a preview of what’s to come:

 

PS: thanks for all the back pain tips, I’m happy to report that its sooo much better now!

Dinner for one and a half

Dinner is usually a one pot or actually one wok affair. I make the base which is lots of fried garlic, prawn, squid, chicken and/or beef in different combinations depending on whats available in my freezer at that time. I then freeze this in portions and take it out for a quick dinner. I fry different noodles:  pasta, egg noodles, rice noodles thick or thin and add different seasoning and sauces. It can be Malay style “mee goreng” with some homemade chilli paste, it can be Chinese style Hokkien egg noodles or it can be a pasta with some tomatoes thrown in. Sometimes when we are in the mood for rice it would be fried rice. Something which I’m not that good at, somehow my fried rice is a 50-50 hit/miss situation.

Pretty plate apparently from the Isaac Mizrahi collection bought during the Robinson’s sale. A steal at S$2 a plate. What do you eat when you’re eating alone?

Dinner of roast vegetables

First cut up some vegetables that you think are starting to look a little tired in the fridge. Aurgbergines, peppers, tomatoes, zucchini, pumpkin, onion and garlic are some good things to roast.

Nestle a clove or two of garlic. Scatter some olives. Season well with olive oil, salt, pepper and dried herb of your choice like oregano or basil. Fresh herbs would burn.

Grill for 45 mins to an hour in a hot oven. Finish with crumbled feta and choice of fresh herb: parsley, basil or corriander. Serve with crusty baguette or toasted pita! Dinner in 5 mins prep + 45 mins roasting.

 

On a separate note.. I’ve been using lots of lemongrass products these last few months. I love lemongrass. I think it smells of Asia. Of resorts and sunsets and beaches and spas.

For essential oil to burn, I use Senteurs d’Angkor Lemongrass oil from Cambodia. You can get it at the large Artisans d’Angkor outlets in the airport at Siem Reap or Phnom Penh. This in an oil burner makes me really sleepy and I usually sleep well with this scent in my room.

For something fragrant in the bath I’ve been using A’kin’s Lemongrass shampoo

My latest buy was Lemongrass massage oil, and this by far was the most delicious, potently fragrant massage oil I’ve ever used. From Mt Sapola, they have a new shop at Tampines One.

 

Another by the way, I thought this was a fabulous idea. And beautiful. Made by Quizas. I feel that blogging is a great way to keep in touch with friends, somehow I always feel connected to her by reading her posts. I don’t think Facebook has the same feel, at least for me. Anyway, Quizas, when are you coming over bearing gifts from Italy?

Photo evidence..

..of a sunny side up with a broken yolk, a common occurence in my hands.

This time on foul mudammas or fava beans in a thick sauce. We know it in Malay as “kacang pool”. Its found in a tin and there’s two brands which we buy, one is made in China with a name I can’t remember. Its found in small grocery shops especially in Geylang and another is a name I can’t read:

I buy this brand from Mustafa and its the only place I know which has it. But we buy the tin with the whole beans which I then peel (each bean has a soft shell that protects it). I usually saute some onion and garlic and then add the beans. H likes it that way. Sometime I add a teensy pinch of garam masala or meat curry powder for some spice. Serve with chopped onion, fresh tomatoes, green chillis, a good drizzle of olive oil, a lime wedge to squeeze over and lots of crusty baguette.

This week’s read has been this amazing blog.

This week I’ve been dreaming of ..

..gardens and

sweet flowers.

This week I’ve been listening to my neighbour play “If you’re happy and you know you clap your hands” on her piano to her little toddler. A baby boy who gets so excited when he sees us coming home. He squeals and runs to the gate and shakes our hands while we ask him how his day is. H is called “uncle” and I’m currently nameless to him. I’ll always ask him about his car and that will set him off “car car car car!” a gazillion times. A coming home ritual which all of us look forward to.

This week I’ve been away from my kitchen so my potatoes are sadly sprouting eyes and my vegetables wilting in my chiller. Time for some roasting of those odds and ends like this quick weekday dinner a couple of weeks back:

Roasted aurbergine, olives, garlic, tomatoes in olive oil. Topped with crumbled Greek feta and fresh corriander. Mop with your favourite crusty bread or pita.

Details soon..

V is for vinaigrette

I know, I’m always letting you on things that have butter and fat and sugar and more fat. H and I actually try to eat healthy. And by healthy I don’t mean Caeser’s Salad (croutons, egg yolks, bacon). I always have ready cut fruit at eye level in the fridge so when H feels like a nibble he doesn’t reach for the cookie jar or the ice cream in the freezer. Well, we don’t always practice self restraint I’ll have to admit so we do give in to those cravings once in a while. All the unhealthy food is actually stashed for “guests”, really.

I always make my trusty vinegrette to go with different combinations of flavours in a salad. This is my basic recipe, start with:

-3 parts olive oil, extra virgin

-1 part vinegar, usually balsamic

 

Whisk together to form a basic vinaigrette. To flavour, add the following alone or in combination

-mustard

-chopped garlic and shallots

-chopped fresh herbs like basil or parsley

 

Then season well with salt and pepper. And always add a touch of sugar to lift up the fruitiness of the oil and the balsamic.

 

Dress salad just before serving. I usually include 3 combinations of tastes in my salad

1. Vegetables: salad leaves or in this case tomatoes

2. Cheese: diced feta, shavings of parmesan or any nice eating cheese: gruyere, sharp cheddar

3. Crunch: Toasted hazelnuts was my latest craze, coutons if I have any at hand. Any other toasted nuts are good too.

My best friend’s married!

I started writing this 2 weeks ago, a little belated but rather late than never!

My best friend’s married! It was a busy week for Mel and finally after many many weddings as the best friend and bridesmaid, she’s legally married to someone who can’t be luckier, Haikal! It was such a lovely wedding with fantastic food, family, friends I haven’t met in a long time. Congratulations Mel and Haikal! The set up was gorgeous, the food honestly the best I’ve ever eaten in any wedding and the bride and groom looked fantastic. I’m sorry we were not able to be there the whole time, I would really have loved to. But somehow timing and circumstance is such that my grandma broke her hip and is now scheduled for a hip replacement soon. As with old folks and especially with her dementia, we are trying hard to cope with her delirium and spells of confusion.

 Photo courtesy of butterflyrubrics

I had a little incident with the making of the mint tea. Pouring hot tea into a glass jar is a very bad idea. There was a shower of tea down my kitchen counters and into the cabinets with a dramatic shattering of glass. It was lucky Yati brought the drinks including iced tea so that was poured into the mint filled jugs instead. I was really happy that all the planning paid off and the girls each played their part with the lovely goodie bags prepared, the door gifts, the individual gifts for Mel, the “games” and just being so participative and enthuisastic about the dancing. I now have video evidence that some of us just can’t move with the rhythm, I’m definitely in that list! Of course some moved like they’ve been born with it!

 Photo courtesy of butterflyrubrics

 Kebabs grilled by the ever helpful H. We struggled with the disposable BBQ pit, it lit promisingly at the begining but unfortunately wasn’t strong enough and died out pretty quickly. We had to use additional charcoal and lots of fanning before it worked well enough. Though the kebabs looked a little charred, it still tasted pretty good! I marinated it with ginger, garlic, chilli powder, salt, pepper and a little yogurt. It was skewered with bell peppers and pieces of white Bombay onion which grill up and turn really sweet.

I spent several days preparing for the party, including the trial run for some of the recipes. I made baba ghanoush, recipe from one of my favourite blogs on Middle Eastern food and more.  

Tahina from Mustafa

I tried a new recipe for pita bread the weekend before the party. I was attracted to this recipe as it involved little kneading and an overnight rise in the fridge which cut down my prep time on the day itself. For lunch I had topped the dough with minced beef inspired by this, baked it and topped it with a cucumber and yogurt salad when they were slightly cool.

 

Dessert was semolina cake, vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of fresh passionfuit pulp.

Semolina Cake or Basbousa

 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 cup superfine sugar

2 small eggs

2 cups fine yellow semolina

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

Dried apricots, cut into quarters

Syrup (recipe follows)

Cream the butter and the sugar and then beat in the eggs. Stir in a 1/2 cup water. Sift together the semolina, baking powder, and soda, and stir into the butter mixture to form a smooth batter. Preheat the oven to 170C. Lightly grease an 8-by-12-inch cake pan and pour in the batter. Spread it evenly with the back of a spoon and then score across the top of the cake parallel lines going from the bottom left corner to the top right and vice versa, to form diamond shapes. Place an apricot piece in the center of each diamond. Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, when the cake should be firm and lightly browned. Prepare the syrup as described below and pour it, spoonfuls at a time, over the hot cake. Stop when the cake will not absorb any more and set the cake aside to cool before serving.

 

                Syrup

1.5 cups sugar

½ cup water

Juice of 1 lemon

Over a medium heat dissolve the sugar in  water, add the lemon juice and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and gently boil the syrup for 10 minutes.

 

About potatoes and salad

One of my favourite shows on the Asian Food Channel is Chef at Home. Besides that, I’m totally addicted to the River Cottage series.  Chef Micheal Smith gives lots of recipe ideas and infinite possibilities of twists and variations to a recipe. He recently made a potato salad with smoked salmon and talked about how you can make variations of a potato salad by using different potatoes, different dressings, different herbs and different add ons to a salad.

I had a really good potato salad recently and I was intrigued at the combination of potatoes in the salad. It had waxy local potatoes, red skinned potatoes and Russet. There was a combination of textures, creamy from the russet, whole and starchy waxy potatoes and the red potato was slightly crunchy.Last weekend it was my turn to cook for the family so I kept it simple with tenderloin steaks, steamed corn and a potato salad.

For this variation, I stuck to the classic combination of eggs and potato, using russet and waxy potatoes. I added finely diced celery for crunch and green onion for some bite. In the dressing, I used a combination of sour cream and mayonaise in equal proportions with freshly grated black pepper and salt. To make your salad extra tasty, here are some tips:

-season at every stage, season your water well while boiling the potatoes and season the dressing, then season the final salad if need be

-beat the eggs with the dressing first to dissolve the yolk in the dressing and gives it a richness from the yolks rather than chunks of yolk in the salad

-dress the salad while the potatoes are still hot, this causes it to absorb the dressing better

-potatoes are really tasty with their skins on, but this depends on the potato. Red skinned potatoes are fine, the “washed” potatoes from Cold storage are good with the skins on too. I tend to peel my Russets as they have a thicker skin.

-cut the potatoes in large chunks, larger than you’ll like them because they break up slightly during the dressing process

-think texture in your salad, different textures from different potatoes, the slight crunch of shallots or celery, the springiness of the egg whites, the creaminess of the yolks

You can find a basic recipe in a post I wrote last year and make it your way, potato salad is very very forgiving.