TIRAMISU

Hot weather = cold dessert= Tiramisu = good pick me up! 

No-bake Tiramisu

Idea taken from BBC Good Food Magazine.

Basic ingredients: coffee/kahlua syrup, cream cheese, whipping cream, sponge fingers.

Dip the sponge fingers in coffee syrup and place on bottom of the loaf tin (lined with cling wrap for easy unmoulding).

Hey! that's not a "rat" (bottom right corner) but did not realised that TOTO was on the floor.  He always like to wait around for any bits and pieces of crumbs that fall! 

Spread cream cheese mousse over sponge fingers.

Decided to grate some dark chocolate over the cream cheese mousse before the next layer of sponge fingers

Continue layering, ending with the cream cheese mousse. Cling wrap and place overnight in the fridge to set.

Unmould the Tiramisu - (upside down- so that the 1st layer of sponge fingers is on top)  onto serving plate.
Dust with cocoa powder.

Cut into slices to serve- a thin slice is more than enough for me- its is very rich and creamy.

Cheesy goodness to enjoy over a cup of latte.

Enjoy your  long weekend holiday  and Happy Wesak Day!

MEATLESS MONDAY- KOREAN PANCAKE

20/5/2013

Our meatless Monday Menu.

After my injection for my knees, well-meaning friends have been telling me that I must take foods that have high collagen value. I don't know how far true is it that the body to absorb these collagen or maybe induce the growth of the cartillage itself.        

Some of these foods recommended are Bird's nest, sharkfins, sea cucumbers etc. Well bird nest and sharkfins are out of question, as not only are they expensive but also un-eco-friendly.  The other substitution  are white fungus and coral seaweed (so called "poor man bird nest").  

I always loved Chicken Soup with White Fungus and this was my late mother's favourite soup too- double boiled till the white fungus are really soft and gelatinous, no wonder my mother's complexion was smooth and practically wrinkle-free when she passed away at the age of 85 years :D!. 

The coral seaweed is a more recent available  ingredient and this is supposed to have  very high collagen level.  I have tried dunking it into sweet soup ("tong sui") but somehow I just don't like the texture- it could  melt into a jelly-like drink which can be a bit difficult to swallow!.

So when I came across the recipe from Wendy of Table for Two or More - a salad/kerabu version of making use of these seaweeds, its a must try for me. I have make some changes to the dressing.           

I have soaked the Coral seaweeds for more than 2 days in the fridge, changing water everyday to remove the "fishy" smell.  Drain them and pickle them with lime juices, sugar and salt while I prepare the other ingredients: bunga kantan, red onion, red chilies mixed together with more lime juices, sugar, dash of fish sauce and sesame oil. 

Mixed the ingredients together when you are ready to serve, toss in some sliced cherry tomatoes, cucumbers,  mint leaves and topped with toasted sesame seeds.  Very refreshing and totally  collagen-goodness. For one who dislike them in the tong sui, Sarah enjoyed eating this!  

The next dish: Pan Fried Taufoo with Leeks and Red Peppers in Black Bean sauce.
Heat oil and saute minced garlic and ginger, add some salted black beans till fragrant.
Add the cubed taufoo and fry till lightly golden brown. Add a bit of water and cover briefly.
Add red peppers and lastly the leeks, splash of rice wine
Adjust seasoning and serve immediately.

Finally the highlight got to be this: Korean Pancake with my homemade kimchi.

I made these kimchi using the recipe from Catherine Lau/Flavours magazine.  Though it is easy but I find that the taste of the chili flakes is a bit overpowering and the colour is very red- as can be seen above.   However the vegetables still retain their crunchiness.

I follow the simple batter recipe: 1 cup flour, 1/4 cup rice flour, 1 egg and 1 cup water, mix together till smooth before adding the kimchi and some of its juices and 1/2  sliced onion. 

I am sure this is definitely not the authentic Korean Pancake, but it is very tasty and delicious.

So maybe I need to get some advice and help from my daughter-in-law, Eunice.

MEETING UP FOR PRE-GATSBY DRINK

After much fanfare and good press reviews, The Great Gatsby opened in the cinemas on Sunday.

I could not have missed this show for anything- pictures of those gorgeous jewelleries and fashion were enough to make me want to see the movie, not forgetting the stellar cast as well.

Frankly I have not read this literature book.  Normally I either don't want to see the movie tied in if I have   read the storybook and vice versa I will not read the book if I have seen the movie. 

So far there is other movie that I seen without reading the story book was the Les Miserables that I went with Sarah and which I had enjoyed very much. 

This time strangely, I watched this movie with a group of strangers (10 of us meeting for the first time) and yet not so strangers as we have so this common interest - The Paperback Book Club!  

The  fountains outside the shopping mall.

Much photographed mascot of Harrods  

So the arrangement was that we gathered at Cafe Vienna, Level 3 of KLCC for pre-Gatsby Drinks- how very gatsby-like was that except we were not dressed as such :D!!
We each ordered our own drinks and chatted about the movie, the book and getting to know each other before adjourning to the cinema for the show.

I enjoyed the show immensely.  The reviews had said it all and I was not dissappointed at all. 

After the show, I met up with Sarah and both of us decided to go down for dinner at LOKL Coffee in Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, not knowing that they are closed on Sunday.   We then crossed over to  the Reggae Mansion Hotel instead.

They served set lunch too-  only RM14.90.

The bar at the ground floor and there is also a rooftop bar which caters only for the house guests only.

Their menu is not extensive and they offer simple western-style food. Decor is simple black and white tables and chairs. There is a alfresco courtyard in the centre of the hotel.

 Oriental Chicken Chop.

The carrot was a bit hard and one piece literally flew off the plate as I tried to fork it! The chicken portion was rather small (or was I that hungry?) but the sauce was delicious.

  

Sarah ordered a thin-crust Fantasy Island Pizza.  We loved the thin crispy crust and the topping was equally yummy - cheesy and generous with the prawns as well. 

The prices are average and there is no service charges. As the place is near my office, I will definitely check out their set lunch some time later.

We took the LRT back to the station where we have parked the car before heading home to the doggies who were patiently waiting for their dinner!

Thus ended a happy weekend outing.

MEATLESS MONDAY- ONIGIRI

13/5/2013

It is Monday again and I am glad that I don't have to do the cooking tonight.
Thank You Sarah for volunteering to cook Meatless Monday.

After her successful COLD SOBA NODDLES for me on Mother's day, she planned to do Onigiri tonight.

On her menu for dinner was Onigiri served with mixed salad- packet of mesclun salad ie combination of baby greens eg. arugula, lettuce and rocket, tomatoes, cucumber and potatoes dressed with balsamic vinegar, pink salt and black pepper. 

I had always joked that she does not even know how to boil rice (read cannot cook) and was worried about how she is going to feed herself when she go overseas for her studies.   Well she proved me wrong as she managed to boil the Japanese short grain rice to just the right texture (in the rice cooker, of course)! 

 She used this gadget to pack and shape the rice perfectly. The mother is the ignorant one here :D!

One Onigiri done....

Another one and more coming now that she got the hang of it.

She boiled the potatoes and sliced the cucumbers and tomatoes all by herself.   I just helped to finish the dressing and tossed the salad together.

  

 She also blanched the ladyfingers and tossed with sesame oil and bit of oyster sauce - done while I took the doggies for their walk.

A simpled meal prepared with much love and care from Sarah- that's what made it so heart-warming!

HAPPY MEALS :D!

MUSHROOM AND SPINACH GALETTE

Cold Soba Noddles for Mother's Day dinner cooked by Sarah. 

Totally refreshing in the hot weather but equally heart warming!

Still on the thread that homemade is the best,  I baked a Mushroom and Spinach Galette for dinner last week for Sarah and myself.

I had recently suggested to Sarah that since Earth Day happen to fall on her birthday, maybe we should consider eating less meat.  So we agreed or rather I make the decision that we go on Meatless Monday and hopefully, we can contribute to reduce our carbon imprint on this earth.

The recipe was adapted from NoDesserts.

I had prepared the short crust pastry over the weekend.  Instead of rubbing all the butter into the flour, I have decided to leave some bits and pieces instead.    Thought that would make the pastry a bit crispier/flaky and it certainly  did!.

To make the filling:-
1.  Spinach has been blanched and dropped into icy water and then drain and squeeze dry. This can be done beforehand and kept frozen till needed.
2.   Chopped the spinach  and saute with butter and olive oil.
3.  Season lightly with salt and dash of lemon juice.
4.   Dish up and set aside
 5.  Saute diced onion till soft.
6.   Add fresh sliced mushroom and splash some white wine and let it cook till soft
7.   Return the spinach and mix together
8.   lastly add some cream and adjust seasoning to taste.

To Assemble:

Roll out the pastry in a circle- pastry must be quite thin.
Add some breadcrumbs to the Mushroom and spinach mixture
I also added some pine nuts or any other chopped nuts (optional)
Spoon the fillings in the centre of the pastry, leaving around 1" around
Gently pleat the pastry to envelope the fillings. Egg wash the pastry
Bake for 15-20 minutes in pre-heated oven 180C till golden brown.
Enjoy!

HOMEMADE IS THE BEST

A VERY HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

This is the time of the year where mothers are treated as queen, shower with gifts and feted with costly meals (very commercialised no doubt, but as a mother I love it too)!
  
So just a suggestion for you to do some cooking for mother instead.

These are 2 of my homecooked version of classic cafe food.

Many cafes or bakeries  nowadays offers BIG breakfast or All day breakfast.

I found a perfect recipe to cook Poached Eggs - easy and fuss free. I have to say a BIG Thank You to Baby Sumo of Eat Your Heart Out blog for the recipe.

Simply, bring a pan of water to boil- then lower to a simmer
Meanwhile brush a  piece of cling wrap lightly with oil
Place cling wrap (oiled side up) in a small ramekin/bowl.
Gently break the egg into the cling wrap
Take it out of the bowl and twist cling wrap together
Gently lower the egg into the simmering water and leave for 2-3 minutes
Remove with slotted spoon and gently pull cling wrap away.
Slide the poached egg onto serving plate- easy right?

Big Breakfast - Poached Egg  with asparagus,  bacon, cherry tomatoes and served with homemade Hollandaise sauce done by Sarah. (Oh yes - hurray!)

Top it with a glass of Blended StrawberryYogurt drink.

Wonder whether I will get this in bed come this Sunday morning :D.

Another simple dish is Tomato Soup.
 

Big, beautiful  ripe tomatoes - blanch quickly in boiling water and remove to ice-cold water to get rid of their skin. Deseed and chop up roughly. Saute some diced onion with butter till soft.  Add the chopped tomatoes and chicken stock.  Bring to boil and let it simmer till tomatoes are soft.

Had some of these wonderful, fragrant basil - they are a perfect match- add some chopped to the soup and leave some as garnish- accordingly to your taste.
Remove the soup and blend  till smooth (unless you have a hand blender).
Return blended soup to the pan and bring to boil. Add whipping cream and adjust seasoning.
 

I served the soup with toasted bread and sliced brie cheese- double yummy.

The tomato soup is creamy and delicious. It does not look reddish as I did not add any tomato puree or canned tomatoes.

Last night, we (myself, my sister Jennifer and sister-in-law Evon) were treated  an early Mother's day dinner at the Pumpkin Garden Steamboat, Jalan Lombong, Off Jalan Cheras, Kuala Lumpur together with my daughters and nieces. Thank You Esther for the treat! PS : where are the photos by the way?

  

LONG LIVE AUNTY!

She is a feisty  95 years old grand lady.  Her face maybe lined yet it mirror only the gentleness of her character and complacent nature.  And she can still play a mean game of mahjong too!

Surrounded by children and grandchildren.

The first plate was so charmingly called "Love Steps" combination. "Love Steps" as in TVB drama about the love that binds a couple together.

Their signature  Roasted Suckling pig- a business empire which my deceased uncle started.

It was definitely a grand feast-there were tender braised baby abalone from South Africa each, flavourful braised dried scallops,  soft and collagenous (mine own word) braised Fish Maws, springy  braised sea cucumbers, fresh succulent steamed "Soon Hock" fish and not forgetting those heart-warming  bowls of Double Boiled Sharkfins Soup- another plus for all the collagen that ladies needed (ok men too)!.
  

I do need this photo for my further reference. This was done so professionally.
You can see my previous post on making this Birthday Buns :D.

May God Bless you with many more healthy years!