Magic tiramisu

a total hit during Aidiladha...yes, it's magic...because it is sooo speedy, easy to make, yet tastes luxuriously, superbly elegant  and yummilicious! adapted from the Midweek Meals Made Easy...

4 tsp instant coffee granules

100ml boiling water

200g sponge fingers biscuits (saviordi)

2 tbsp caster sugar

160g natural yogurt

500g mascarpone cheese

60-70g plain chocolate, grated or crumbled flake chocolate bars

• dissolve coffee in boiling water
• arrange half the sponge fingers in a 20cm square shallow dish.
• spoon half of the coffee mixture evenly over biscuits
• beat sugar and yogurt into mascarpone, then spread half this mixture over biscuits
• cover mascarpone with remaining biscuits over the second layer of biscuits
• spoon grated chocolate evenly over the top
• chill for 10 min before serving

mushroom, chicken and thyme fettuccine

a yummy, creamy fettuccine...adapted from Donna Hay's pasta, rice+noodles, which i bought at the Big Bad Wolf Books Sale for only RM12...such a good bargain!

500g fettucinne

1 tbsp olive oil

1tbsp butter

3shallots, chopped

2 garlic, chopped

400g mixture of swiss brown mushroom and white button mushroom, sliced

1 tbsp dried thyme

1 cup cream

1/2 cup chicken stock

finely grated parmesan cheese, to serve

• cook the pasta in a large saucepan of salted boiling water for 10-12 min or until aldente
• drain and keep warm
• heat a large frying pan over medium heat
• add oil, butter, shallots and garlic and cook for 2-3 min or until soft
• add the chicken, mushrooms and thyme and cook for 5-6 min
• stir in the cream and chicken stock and simmer for further 5 min or until the mushrooms are tender
• add the pasta and toss to combine. top with parmesan and serve warm

fresh mushroom soup

from the Mind and Mood Foods book...

1 tbsp butter
1 onion, chopped
350g fresh mushroom, sliced
300ml vegetable/chicken stock
300 ml milk
salt and pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

• melt butter in a large saucepan, add the onion and cook gently for 3 min
• add the mushroom and cook for 5 min
• stir in stock, milk and seasoning, then cover and bring to boil.
• reduce heat and simmer for 15-20 min until the mushrooms are cooked and tender, stirring occasionally
• remove the pan from heat and allow to cool slightly, then puree in food procesor
• return the soup to the saucepan, stir in the chopped parsley, then reheat gently until piping hot, stirring occasionally
• serve with bread or pasta (which my kids love very much)

cream of pumpkin soup

fantastic, lovely soup...kids love it with pasta...i personally like it with toasted bread...

1.3kg pumpkin, peeled, sliced and seeded
3 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, shopped
2 garlic, chopped
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 potato, peeled and chopped
1 tsp dried thyme
700ml chicken stock
creme fraiche (optional)

• cut the pumpkin into chunks. heat the oil in a large pan, fry the onion, garlic and cumin for 2-3 min. add the pumpkin and potato and fry, stirring for 5-6 min. add the dried thyme to the pan
• pour in the stock and simmer for 15 min until the pumpkin and potato are soft. whizz in a blender until smooth, then pour into a pan, heat through and season.

• serve each portion woth creme fraiche, lightly stirred in.

tuna and spinach lasagne

quick and easy...

250g lasagne sheets
2 x 200g cans tuna, drained
450g tomato passata
9 pitted black olives, roughly chopped
225g baby spinach
salt and pepper
250g ricotta cheese
4tbsp low fat milk
2 tbsp grated parmesan

• preheat oven to 200 degree celcius and grease shallow ovenproof dish.
• flake tuna, put into frying pan and add the passata. heat gently. stir in olive and spinach, then add black pepper to taste. cover and simmer gently 5 min to wilt the spinach
• spoon a third of tuna sauce into the dish. cover with a layer of lasagne sheets. spreadh half remaining tuna mixture on top and cover with lasagne sheets, then repeat.
• mix ricotta with milk and season to taste. spoon over top of lasagne, then sprinkle with parmesan. bake for 30 min  or until very hot. serve immediately.

Harira Soup

i made this for Hari Raya and served it with crusty bread..it was a hit...! improvised the recipe form The Star..

2 litres water
500g beef, cut into small chunks
2 onions, diced
1 tsp pounded ginger
1 250g can chickpeas
2 carrots, diced
2 celery stick, chopped
6 tomatoes
1/2 tsp tumeric
juice from1 lemon
100g coriander, chopped finely
salt and pepper to taste

• in a big pot, bring to boil 2 litres of water. add the beef, onions and ginger. let the mixture simmer for an hour
• then add the chickpeas, tomatoes, carrots, celery, tumeric and lemon juice. simmer for another half an hour.
• season with salt and pepper.
• let cool. puree half of the mixture and return back to the pot.
• add the coriander
• serve hot with crusty bread

colourful crab and sweetcorn chowder

the kids simply love this colourful, creamy chowder...serve with crusty bread or pasta...from the mind mood foods book...

1tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 garlic, crushed
4 sticks celery, chopped
1 green capsicum, seeded and diced
350g potatoes, diced
175g button mushroom, sliced
300ml milk
450ml chicken/vegetable stock
225g canned sweetcorn, drained
225g white crabmeat, flaked
salt and pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

• heat oil in a large saucepan. add the onion, garlic, celery and green capsicum and cook for 5 min, stirring occasionally
• stir in the potatoes, mushrooms and stock. cover, bring to boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 min, until the vegetables are just cooked
• add the milk, sweetcorn, crabmeat and seasoning. bring back to boil then simmer for 5 min, stirring
• add the chopped parsley, then ladle into soup bowls
• garnish with parsley sprigs and serve with bread (i served with pasta for the kids)

honey and mustard chicken

also from the Mind and Mood Foods Book...sweet and tangy chicken...a lovely dish! it is so finger licking good..!

3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp wholegrain mustard
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic
salt and pepper
1/2 chicken, cut into pieces
fresh herb sprigs (i used rosemary and thyme)

• preheat grill to high
• put honey, mustard, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, herbs and seasoning in a small bowl and whisk thoroughly
• cut 3 slashes in each chicken pieces and place them in a pan
• pour in the honey mixture and mix well
• grill for 20-30 min until the chicken is cooked through

potato, onion and herb bake

adapted from the Mind and Mood Foods Book...

a mouthwatering potato bake...a lovely combination of onion and herbs makes it too hard to resist...yummy!

6 potatoes, scrubbed and thinly sliced
2 onions, thinly sliced
2 tbsp fresh/dried parsley
salt and pepper
6 tbps (or more) milk
2 tbsp butter
fresh parsley, to garnish
sliced fresh mushroom (optional)

• preheat oven to 180 degree celcius
• grease an ovenproof dish. add a thin layer of potatoes over the base, top with a layer of onions and mushroom, sprinkle some parsley, then season with salt and pepper
• continue these layer until all ingredients are used up, finishing with a layer of potato
• pour the milk over the potatoes and dot the top with butter
• cover with foil and bake for 1 hour
• then remove the foil and bake uncovered for further 30-45 min, until top is slightly browned
• garnish with chopped parsley

paprika chicken stew

this recipe was modified from chef norzailina...it was so delicious!

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

3 garlics, chopped

1 tsp chilli powder

3 tbsp paprika

1 chicken, cut into pieces

400ml water

1 can chopped tomatoes

2 sticks celery, sliced

2 tbsp flour

1 small tub sour cream

salt, sugar to taste

• heat the oil in a large saucepan. fry the onion, garlic, chilli powder, paprika till fragrant and translucent
• add in water, then chicken. cook for about 30 min.
• add in tomatoes and celery.
• mix well a little bit of the gravy with flour, then transfer back to the pan. add in the cream.
• simmer till a bit thicken
• serve with rice, bread or pasta.

mee rebus chef wan

i tried the recipe from asian food channel..this recipe was featured in Best Wan!....a real mouth-watering, lip-smacking dish!...

recipe is available here:

http://www.asianfoodchannel.com/bestwan/viewrecipe.php?id=8

try it!

dates and lemon cookies

Jihan helped me to bake this cookies

A:

120g butter

30g castor sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 egg yolk

B:

1 tsp lemon zest

100g dates, seeded and cut into small pieces

30g coconut flakes

C:

50g ground almond

150g flour

egg yolk for brushing the top

• mix well A
• add in B and C and mix well until becomes a dough
• roll flat and cut into desired shape
• brush some egg yolk on top
• bake in preheated oven 160 degrees for 10-15 min

butter prawn

i tried out this recipe from kak jun's blog...absolutely lip-smacking..!

A:

600g prawn

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp sesame oil

B:

3 tbsp corn flour

1 tbsp fish curry powder

C:

3 egg yolk

1 tbsp evaporated milk

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

2 tbsp butter

D:

1 garlic, chopped

cili padi, sliced

curry leaves

2 tbsp butter

seasoning:

1 tbsp oyster suace

1/2 tbsp sugar

1/4 tsp black pepper

• clean the prawn, drain and wipe with kitchen towel
• marinate prawn with A for 10 min
• mix well B and add in the prawn, coat the prawn well with flour. deep fry the prawn till golden. set aside
• heat butter in pan. whisk well C. add in C to the heated pan and keep on whisking inside the pan to get a crispy fried egg crumbs. remove
• heat the remaining butter. add in D. add in prawn and seasoning. mix well. lastly add in the fried egg crumbs. mix well

almond coffee cookies

nestum-based cookies...the tinge of coffee makes it so addicted...!

1 cup sifted self-raising flour

1 1/2 cup nestum

1 1/2 cup ground almond

200g butter

150g caster sugar

1 egg

2 tbsp nescafe mixed with 2 tbsp hot water

100 1000's for decoration

• sift flour, stir in nestum and almond. set aside
• cream butter and sugar. add egg and nescafe mixture
• fold in flour
• shape into small ball and place on lightly greased tray. flatten dough decorate
• bake in preheated oven 180 degrees celcius for 10-15 min

calamari in soy sauce

i added some vegetables into this dish as my little imtiaz loves cubed carrots and potatoes...lovely...

600g squid, cut into rings
1 tsp salt
2 onions, cut into rings
3 red chillies, sliced
2 tbsp oil
3 tbsp sweet soy sauce
1 tbsp salty soy sauce
salt and black pepper to taste
carrots and potatoes, cubed

blended ingredients:
6 shallots
4 garlic
2 cm tumeric
3 cm ginger

• marinate the squid with salt for 15 min.
• heat oil in wok. add in the blended ingredients
• add in the vegetables
  
• add in the marinated squid. mix well
• add in the onions and chilli
• add in the soy sauce
• season to taste
• serve with hot rice