Sunday night, I tried a new recipe: Chicken with Lime Sauce from Cookinglight, while OCT went for his soccer game.
It was a sweet and tangy dish, and fairly simple to put together. Maybe because I didn't measure the ingredients for the sauce, it came out tasting a bit off, and certainly too watery for only 2 chicken breasts I used...The recipe called for dijon mustard, personally I have never been a big fan for mustard. So maybe that's why I didn't really enjoy this dish. Having said that, I was astonished by the reviews of other cooks who tried the recipe. They thought it was indeed very good and worth repeating. Well, one man's meat is another man's poison. So, I guess I shouldn't rely so much on other people's reviews in the future..... So are you. You should give this dish a try, if you like the combination of lime + dijon mustard.
I also cooked a stirfry mushroom with celery dish on the same night, which I liked a lot. However, it only received a lukewarm response from OCT. I used rice vinegar + sugar as sauce instead of the soy sauce that he is accustomed to. That's why he thought it was an ok dish, not really an excellent one. What to do, he has a wife who likes to experiment with new condiments. Recently, I have been experimenting with rice vinegar. You know, the kind you use in sushi. It lends a very complex flavor to the dish. Sometime when I used it in some dishes, they gained approval from OCT. Well, before he knew what was used, of course.....
Chicken with Lime Sauce
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons olive oil
Cooking spray
3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons lime juice, divided
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon butter
Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove from pan; keep warm.
Add chicken broth, sugar, 2 tablespoons juice, and mustard to pan; cook over medium heat, scraping pan to loosen browned bits.
Combine water and cornstarch in a small bowl. Add cornstarch mixture to pan; stir well with a whisk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cook 1 minute or until sauce thickens slightly. Whisk in remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice and butter, stirring until butter melts. Return chicken to pan; simmer 2 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly heated.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Chicken with Lime Sauce
Saturday, April 22, 2006
Walnut Coffee Cake
I want to make this for OCT's coming lab meeting, so I used a bundt pan; so that it will be more presentable than my usual square pan. As usual, the process of weighing, mixing and cutting was fun! And I was rewarded with a Walnut Coffee Cake in lesser than the expected time mentioned in the magazine!
See how unassuming the cake looks in the bundt pan....
After inverting it onto a large plate
I wonder how the interior looks, so I cut out 2 pieces, one for OCT and one for myself :)
See the brown sugar streak? Isn't this interesting?
As if this is not attractive enough, I quickly went into the kitchen and mix some powdered sugar + milk to give it a final touch.
ok, it looks much better now....
Nice eaten warm, we find this coffee cake tastes even nicer the next day. Having said this, I still prefer Ina Garten's Sour Cream Coffee Cake over this. Maybe because her version's sweeter and more tender. This coffee cake, however, offers a healthier alternative. It will be nice with a cup of coffee. I hope OCT's colleagues will like it.
Walnut Coffee Cake
(Adapted from Cookinglight April 2006)
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (about 14 1/2 ounces)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
10 tablespoon butter, softened
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups nonfat buttermilk
Cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine brown sugar, walnuts, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.
Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk.
Combine sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium-high speed until well combined (about 3 minutes). Add eggs; beat 3 minutes or until combined. Beat in vanilla.
Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture, beating well after each addition and scraping sides of bowl. Spoon half of batter into a 10-inch Bundt pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle half of brown sugar mixture evenly over batter; spoon remaining half of batter into pan. Top with remaining brown sugar mixture.
Bake at 350° for 55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
What a plesant surprise....
I got a parcel from ST again! She sent me my favorite Singer Emil Chow's latest CD : Rainman! Shortly after I heard of his new album from Singapore's radio station....And I am disappointed that I can't get hold of a copy of that because I am oversea.... How thoughtful is ST! She sent me my most wanted item!
Oh, what have I done to deserve such a good friend. A friend who knows me inside out, and have always be there for me.
I listen to the CD over and over again today, the soothing croon of Emil and the thought of ST mist my eyes. And OCT teased me when I broke into tears last night. :( Sometime I wish I am more emotionally stable.
Apparently, I am always on the left side while taking photos :P
(Left: In HK airport express. Right: In Bangkok airport)
Smile and be nice to this gal when you see her in Singapore :) BTW, she is still available....
Bow tie Pasta with Roasted Red Pepper and Cream Sauce
This is a hectic week for OCT as he has 2 presentations tomorrow. Because of this, he has to stay behind until 9p.m tonight, and I have to eat dinner alone :(
Dinner tonight is a new recipe from Cookinglight. I am glad that it turns out nice. When you have a well stocked pantry, making dinner is really a breeze. It suddenly struck me that we have not bought any commercial pasta sauce lately. It's good that we save ourselves some money and sodium loaded pasta sauce for awhile. Anyway, I think I kind of like of the combination of onion + milk + cheese + white wine. You can't go wrong with this. And add on with other stuff like spinach, prawn, chicken, roast pepper etc. The best thing is I got my calcium intake without having to drink milk! Plus I can add wine to my dish without complaint from OCT. Apparently, he kind of enjoy the pasta that I conjure.
Coming back to tonight's dinner. It uses a few pantry's staples like onion, roast red pepper, pasta, parmesan cheese, milk and ham. Though it's a vegetarian recipe, I gave it a twist by adding ham, and simplify some of the steps. I am too lazy to type out the recipe now, but will certainly add it in this entry sometime soon......
Mash banana, mash banana!
Yes, I am happily mashing bananas in the kitchen. Apparently most recipes don't require a lot of bananas. So I end up using one banana each in 3 recipes.
First recipe was very very simple: Banana Corn Muffins, which only 3 ingredients are required-- banana + 1/2 cup milk + 1 box of jiffy corn muffin mix. I only used my measuring cup to mix all three ingredients together. Though simple, the recipe is a loser. The muffins turn out dry and grainy. I wasted one banana in this experiment.
Now, I am down with two very ripe bananas. I struggle between risking another loser recipe or repeat a tried and true banana cake recipe. After checking the index pages of all my cookbooks,
I decided to try the one from Rose Levy Beranbaum's "The Bread Bible". Being an authoritative figure in the baking world, I believe she knows her stuff. Besides, my friend MY in Brisbane constantly uses her recipes, so I decide to go for it!
I make 2 variations using her recipes, one as Banana poppy seed bread and another one as Banana chocolate chips muffins. These seemingly unassuming bread and muffins taste really nice. I love the subtle lemon taste from 1 tespoon of lemon zest. What a clever twist on a classic banana cake recipe!
Now, I hope it can last till we have our picnic on Sunday.....
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
I think I gain weight...
Scary isn't it? I didn't realise it until I weighed myself yesterday. OCT said that's because I haven't been to exercise for the past 2/3 weeks. Finally a wakeup call for me to hit the gym again!
In an effort to shed off the 2 kg I put on, I went gym for the past 2 days. I like the gym in OCT's school a lot, as they have cable channels (we don't have this luxury at home). I especially like the Food Network. Time flies when there's something to distract my attention.
Coming back to food. I got three very ripe bananas from my friend Gerrie. If you were me, what will you do with that?
1. Just eat it as it is
2. Make banana shake
3. Banana muffin?
4. Banana cake?
Stay tune, I will tell you the fate of the bananas tomorrow!
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
No new recipe yet....
Yes, nothing new has come out from our kitchen for the past few days. We had beef stew on Monday night, which should last us for another day or two. I also made some scones to fill up the freezer space over the weekend, out of boredness. And a low fat cheesecake on Sunday night. Nothing particularly exciting. I am still angry with my camera, so I am not going to use it for awhile, hence no photos in this entry.
Read more...Saturday, April 15, 2006
Not my day....
This morning we went to the nearby Forest Park for a stroll, and visited the Tulip Fest that was held in the Jewel Box. We were both awestruck by the beauty of so many Tulips in the garden, and OCT helped me took some really nice shots. I intended to send some photos to my good friend ST, as I remember she loves Tulip.
We reached our destination after 30 minutes walk, I was highly distracted by other interesting scene on our way there, as usual. All in all, I think we have taken 60+ pictures in this morning.Excited though exhausted, I can't wait to upload the photos once we were home, even though OCT was using my laptop at that time. Since I have uploaded photos for countless time, it's like a reflex action to press the Enter keys several times without reading the message prompted. After the photos were uploaded, I happily left OCT alone to internet surfing, and went ahead to delete the photos in my memory card.
Big mistake!!!!!!I can't find my photos in my laptop though I was quite sure I uploaded them. Using my limited IT skill, I tried to search through all my file, but to no avail.....All the photos are gone! :(
You won't understand how I feel unless you have had the same experience before. Deep down in my heart, I believe the photos are hidden beneath some files, awaiting my rescue.......I really hope this is the case....sob sob.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Lack of motivation....
I haven't tried a single new recipe yet this week....I think I have tried far too many new recipes, to the point that OCT gets confused when being asked what he thinks about certain recipe. He can't recall he tried the dish that I mentioned, let alone its taste. So, I think, it's time for me to slow down, and revisit some old and reliable recipes.
Yesterday, we had Spaghetti Arrabiata. As the temperature climbing, I prefer to eat something simple over rice with dishes....Oh, and I also went out to stock up on my baking supply! When the price of cream cheese goes below one dollar and butter is half price, I greedily shove many blocks into my shopping basket, and can't wait to get started with another round of baking marathon!
OCT helpfully reminded me of the Tiger Cake incident and suggested that I should half the recipe of whatever I make in the future....well, so that he doesn't have to swallow my failure. Heading that advice, I am making half a recipe of Lemon Cake now! It smells so refreshing in the oven, which is soooo different from the rest of cakes I make.
Fast forward half an hour......
I just have a slice of the lemon cake...it's so nice!!!!And it tastes refreshing, definitely the kind of cake that goes well with a cup of tea. What a relief :)
Fast forward another few hours later, OCT was home. I asked him to try the lemon cake as dinner was not ready.
"OMG, OMG, it's so good, it's so good!!!!!!" He giggled with an exaggerated expression on his face.
"I think you should sell this in my Dad's Singapore shop to revive his dying business." He went on.
"Hello, how many lemon cakes do you want? What? I am rude? So do you still want your lemon cake?" OCT went on with his imaginary scenario of taking order for the lemon cake....
Obviously, OCT loves the cake. He bursted into giggles, and continued to talk to the cake/himself..... I know I hit a homerun, for OCT behaved quite abnormal after tasting the cake.
Now, I wish I had made the full recipe....
Ina's Lemon Cake
Makes two 8-inch Loaves
1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 extra large eggs at room temperature
1/3 cup grated lemon zest ( 6-8 large lemons)
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3/4 cup buttermilk at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the glaze:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 8 1/2 x 4 1/4 x 2 1/2-inch loaf pans.
Cream the butter and 2 cups of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, oneat a time, and the lemon zest.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, the buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the flour and butermilk mixtures alternately to the batter, beginning and ending with the flour. Divide the batter evenly between the pans, smooth the tops, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean.
Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar with 1/2 cup lemon juic in a small saucepan and cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves.
When the cakes are done, let them cool for 10 minutes, then invert them onto a rack set over a tray, and spoon the lemon syrup over the cake. Allow the cake to cool completely.
For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice in a bowl, mixing with a wire whisk until smooth. Pour over the top of the cakes and allow the glaze to drizzle down the sizes.
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Semi Home Made Pizza
Saturday = Pizza Day! Basically, I like everything that's unhealthy. So it doesn't come as a surprise that I like the cheese loaded pizzas. This week however, I decided to make OCT and my favorite version using the Pilsbury pizza dough I bought some time ago.
Baking is really a bliss when you have everything on hand. I made half the pizza with OCT's favorite Hawaiian combo: ham + pineapple+ mozzarella cheese, and a healthy spinach + roast red bell pepper + crumbled Gorgonzola Cheese on the other side. Because I made the pizza myself, i omitted the olive oil that often make the store bought version drenching with oil.
We really like the spinach side better than the Hawaiian side. Maybe because this Gorgonzola cheese + spinach combination is new to us, so we actually prefer it. Anyway, the two gluttons quickly finished the whole pizza on our own.
Because I wasn't feeling too well on Saturday, we cancelled our plan to go out and just chill at home. OCT insisted to cook me dinner while I rest. This was what we had:
Simple and nice meal for the weekend.
Friday, April 07, 2006
Spaghetti with Spinach and Gorgonzola cheese sauce
I like cheese, but I don't like to eat it on its own. So I am constantly looking for recipes that call for different type of cheeses. This week, I bought a block of Gorgonzola cheese to try out one recipe, only to find out that I don't have some of the other ingredients..... Thanks to the advance in technology, I found another recipe that uses Gorgonzola cheese, in no time. And we are set for another unpredictable new recipe for the week, again!
Growing up in a Chinese family, my encounter with cheese is understandably, limited. Except for the occasionally sliced Cheddar cheese in sandwiches, shredded Mozzarella on top of the pizzas, and cream cheese in Cheesecakes. I found myself flummoxed by the vast choices available in supermarkets here. Not to mention the countless combination of cheese used in cookbooks.
Coming back to this new recipe. I think the highlight is really the Gorgonzola cheese sauce. Though pungent and salty on its own, Gorgonzola cheese added dimensions to this simple spaghetti dish. Even OCT who is not adventurous in trying out new food, find this delicious. This is the kind of recipe I like. Simple and straightforward in its preparation, but taste sophisticated, and keeps people guessing what's in the recipe. Very much like a good chinese dish, where everything has blended so harmoniously well, that you can never call out all the ingredients.
Spaghetti with Spinach and Gorgonzola Cheese Sauce
1 (9-ounce) package spaghetti
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated low-fat milk ( *I used 2 tablespoons and roughly 3/4 cup of 2% milk)
3/4 cup (3 ounces) crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
8 oz white button mushroom, sliced
1 large yellow onion, diced
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 (6-ounce) bag fresh baby spinach (about 6 cups)
Add the diced yellow onion to 2 teaspoons of hot oil and cook until it turns translucent. Add in mushroom, followed by spinach. Remove all from pan once spinach wilts.
Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.
While pasta cooks, melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly with a whisk. Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly with a whisk. Increase heat to medium-high; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat; simmer 3 minutes or until sauce thickens slightly, stirring frequently.Add in the spinach mixture. Remove from heat, and stir in cheese, salt, and pepper. Combine the sauce and pasta, tossing gently to coat.
Serves 4 Read more...
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Monday dinner: Peanut crusted tilapia & Broccoli with toasted garlic crumbs
Have I mentioned that I love to eat fish? I was very excited when the tilapia fillets were on sale last week, and bought some to try on the new recipes. First to go was pan fried Peanut-crusted Tilapia. Crusted peanuts were used in place of bread crumbs to coat the fillet. OCT went "Hmmm~ very nice" after one bite. I couldn't wait to join him, and had to agree that it's nice, not to mention that it's super easy. The only complaint was it left our small apartment smelt fishy for the whole night!
Instead of the usual stirfry broccoli with soy sauce, I am delighted to find another recipe to tackle them. Brocolli is one of OCT's favorite veggies, so we will eat it at least once a week. This recipe that I saw from Gourmet magazine sounds yummy and different from what we usually eat and use lots of garlic; which I like.
1 1/2 lb broccoli, trimmed and cut into 2- to 3-inch-wide florets (5 inches long)
4 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
1/3 cup olive oil
2/3 cup panko (Japanese coarse bread crumbs)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest
Put 1 inch of water in a 5-quart wide heavy pot, then put a steamer basket inside pot and bring water to a boil. Add broccoli and steam, covered, until just tender, 8 to 10 minutes.Meanwhile, cook garlic in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until pale golden, about 5 minutes.
Stir in panko, pepper, and salt, then increase heat to moderate and cook, stirring occasionally, until crumbs are golden, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in zest.Transfer broccoli with tongs to crumb mixture in skillet and toss to coat. Read more...
Monday, April 03, 2006
Weekend Baking:Carrot Cupcake, Farmer Casserole & Chocolate Hazelnut Biscottis
The tiger cake failure didn't affect me too much after a good night sleep. On the following day, I moved on to make OCT his favorite dinner: Fried Beehoon, that I mentioned in my last post. To jump start my weekend baking project, I started off with Ina Garten's Carrot cupcake. It was a simple recipe, but required a lot of grated carrot.Because of the good experience with her sour cream coffee cake recipe I tried last week, I obediently followed each and every step of the recipe (except of cutting down on the sugar).
As expected, the carrot cupcakes didn't disappoint us! They turned out moist and tasty, and OCT said they won't last long in our house.
Carrot Cupcakes
Make 22 cupcakes
2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
3 extra large eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour plus one tablespoon
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound carrots, grated
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
FOR THE FROSTING (if using)
3/4 pound cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 pound confectioners' sugar, sieved
FOR THE DECORATION (if using)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup grated or shaved carrots
2 tablespoons good maple syrup
Preheat the oven to 400F. Line muffin pans with paper liners.
Beat the sugar, oil and eggs together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light yellow. Add the vanilla. In another bowl, sift together 2 cups flour, the cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Toss the carrots, raisins, and walnuts with 1 tablespoon flour. Add the batter and mix well.
Scoop the batter into the muffin cups until each is almost full. Bake for 10 mins, then lower the oven to 350F and bake for 35 mins, or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack.
For the frosting, mix the cream cheese, butter and vanilla in the bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment until just combined. Add the sugar and mix until smooth.
For the decoration, melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat; add the carrots and maple syrup and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, until the carrots are tender. Spread them on a paper towel to cool.
Whent the cupcakes are cool, frost them generously and garnish with big pinches of sauteed carrots.
On Saturday morning, I baked the Farmer Casserole that I included in my to try list, as breakfast. The recipe required 4 eggs, but I only left with one egg, sitting exclusively in the empty egg tray. It was too late, I had assembled all the other ingredients. So I went ahead, and topped up the balance with milk. Luckily, it turned out ok. Only a bit runny, because ofthe lack of support from eggs.
Anyway, I like it for its simplicity and versatility. It was healthy as compared to other recipes that called for canned cream soup. I think I will add some mushrooms next time too.
In case you wonder, it's not a heavy breakfast dish. OCT has the same concern too, when he saw the chessy topping on the casserole.Actually it was just one thin layer of cheddar cheese. We almost finished the whole tray, which was enough to serve 4 people!
Sunday night, I baked a batch of chocolate hazelnut biscottis. Though this was not my first time baking biscottis, I was anxious to try this version with hazelnut. Call me bias, I think chocolate tastes best with hazelnut. It reminds me of my favorite chocolate since young: Cadbury Hazelnut Chocolate. Hazelnut lent an interesting, not overpowering, almost instantly likable flavor to the chocolate. It blended so well in the milk chocolate that it has become part of the chocolate. If you were to take a blind test on chocolate with different nuts, I bet you can identify the one with hazelnut even before your teeth sink into a piece with the nut in it. Chocolate + Hazelnut is just an irresistible combination. At least for me.
With good faith in Martha Stewart's Tried and Tested recipe, I baked a full recipe this time. This landed me with a full bag of biscottis. Since biscottis can keep for a long time, I am not too concern about finishing them asap like other stuff I baked. But I doubt they can last long, judging from the speed I snack on them. I have already eaten 4 pieces since this morning.
But I think it's ok, since biscottis are low fat snack. It doesn't require a single drop of oil in the dough. (At least for this recipe) How nice is that. And the amount of sugar used was moderate. I used dark chocolate, which is good for the heart too! Ok, all these are just the excuses for another piece of biscotti......
Read more...Friday, March 31, 2006
Shredded Carrot-Ginger Pancake
The new recipe for yesterday night was Shredded Carrot Ginger Pancake. I cooked it as side for our dinner, with Kraft Shake & Bake Parmesan Chicken. Big mistake! The chicken was dry and very salty. And the pancake? I think it tasted weird, but OCT thought it was ok. He is definitely the most accomodating person I have ever known, when it comes to food....
Ok, I must admit that I made a few modification to the pancake. Maybe that's why it didn't taste as nice as I thought it would be. Nevertheless, I used the leftover of the chicken and carrot pancake to make beehoon tonight and it turned out really delicious. OCT even said that he has not had food this nice for a long time. Now, what is he implying?
You can try the Shake and Bake from Kraft, at your own risk. But I strongly discourage you to do so, unless....I don't know! Unless you have nothing to do with your money and chicken breast?
As for the carrot pancake, maybe it's the user error, but judging from the effort and time of shredding carrot, I think I probably won't repeat it.
Shredded Carrot-Ginger Pancake
1 cup coarsely shredded carrot (about 1/2 pound)
1/2 cup chopped onions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
3 eggs
3 tablespoons cracker meal
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided
Cooking spray.
To prepare pancakes, combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Combine eggs, cracker meal, and salt in a small bowl. Add egg mixture to carrot mixture; stir to blend.
Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a nonstick griddle or large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-low heat. Using about 1/4 cup batter per pancake, spoon 4 pancakes onto hot pan, spreading each to a 4-inch diameter. Cook 4 minutes on each side or until bottoms are lightly browned and cooked through. Transfer to a plate; keep warm. Heat remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in pan; repeat procedure with remaining batter. Transfer to a plate; keep warm. Garnish with green onion strips, if desired.
After dinner, I felt really lousy and finished a tub of Edy's ice-cream. I decided to bake something to give my confidence a boost. So, I went for a recipe that I have eyed on since last week : Tiger Cake. This is how the final product looks:
Pretty huh? It looks exactly how it is supposed to look. BUT, a big BUT.....it tasted awful! So awful that I contemplated to throw it out of the window. What a bad day. First I had a lousy meal, then a recipe, which was recommended by 2 reliable sources turned out worse than mediocre.
Oh, and I must add that I had a really tasteless crumb cake from BN's Starbucks. It felt like a brick on hand, and tasted.....I can't find a word to describe it. In short, I felt cheated for what I paid. Though it's not a lot, but it's enough for me to get another cup of coffee. Whatever, yesterday was definitely not my day!
Read more...Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Salmon Teriyaki Bowl
I couldn't believe it when OCT said he had never heard of Yoshinoya. So, just to show him what they served back in Singapore, I decided to cook him the Yoshinoya style teriyaki salmon bowl. Why salmon? Because it's sitting conveniencely in the freezer and I love salmon.
This time, I tried Teriyaki sauce recipe from another source.
1/4 cup thin soy sauce
Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoons brown sugar
4 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon mirin
1/2 tablespoon white sesame seeds
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets
Preheat broiler.
Combine all but sesame seeds and salmon in a saucepan. Bring to boil and slowly simmer until a syrupy consistency is achieved, about a 50 percent reduction. Let cool completely.
Add sesame seeds and salmon and marinate for 1 hour. Remove salmon from marinade and bring sauce to a boil.
Broil Salmon until flesh flakes easily. About 10 minutes.
When I asked OCT for his comment on this teriyaki sauce as compared to the previous version, he has unfortunately forgotten how the first one tasted....So, he was happy with this version too. I especially like the addition of sesame seed, for the subtle nutty taste. Read more...
Aglio e Olio
After hunting for cherrie blossom in the afternoon, I decided to cook something easy for dinner. For me, easy = pasta. So, we had bacon aglio e olio yesterday night. Just nice to use up my bacon and flat leaf parsley.
It's the simplest recipe for pasta. Just remember to use lots of fresh herbs,(parsley, basil, oregano, rosemary, whatever) extravirgin olive oil and garlic. Because this recipe is so simple that it doesn't need a written instruction, I decided not to include it here. (ok, it's my recipe. and I don't know the exact amount of all the ingredients used)
In case you really want to know:
First, cook the pasta, as you normally would, until al dente.
Add plenty of extra virgin olive oil (this will be your pasta sauce) to a non stick skillet. When the oil is hot, add in minced garlic. I like garlic. So I used a lot. Fry until fragrant, stir in fresh herbs ( about one palmful). Season with sea salt and red pepper flakes for some heat. At this point, stir in the pasta, and coat well with extra virgin olive oil. Add in at least a palmful of freshly grated parmesan cheese.Stir well.
Serve it with more salt and cheese to taste.
See, simple right? Oh, I also used bacon. Just fry the bacon until crisp before the abovementioned procedure. And drain bacon on paper towel. Stir them in before serving.
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Cherrie Blossom Hunt in the Botanical Garden
I have never seen cherrie blossom in my life, so you can imagine how excited I must be when I know that cherrie blossom is blooming in the botanical garden. This afternoon OCT and I went to check out the garden and started on a "cherrie blossom hunt". I was ecstatic and forced OCT to snap photos of me with cherry blossom.
"Take one more...."
"one last one......"
"See, there's another one by the lake!"
"How to pose?"
"Like this?"
"How about this?"
"And this?"
"Or should I go closer?"
So much about cherrie blossom. Actually other plants in the botanical garden are blooming too.
"See my garden?" (just kidding)
"OCT, what is this?"
A rabbit! And he wasn't moving. He must had thought that we didn't see him. I went quite close to where he was, but he was still not moving, gave me enough time to take a good shot of him. Hey rabbit,nice shot!
Read more...
Chicken Edamame Bowl
It's Sunday night, we came home late from shopping. But that didn't deter me from cooking a proper dinner, and the next day lunch for OCT. Not to mention I have to catch up with my "to try list", from my subscribed cooking magazines and other library books. So, we have Sesame Chicken Edamame Bowl, stirfry spinach and broccoli for dinner.
Sesame Chicken Edamame Bowl reminded me of the rice bowls served in Yoshinoya, where they have chicken/beef/seafood served on a bed of soft, sticky sushi rice. One of my friends like it a lot, but I think they are over-priced for what they offer. Maybe I should get the sushi rice and top it with teriyaki chicken/salmon, and invite friends over for a Yoshinoya meal, just for fun.
Coming back to the Sesame Chicken Edamame Bowl. OCT said it's tasty, but he didn't like the edamame. Too bad. The dish had SO MUCH edamame that he was bounded to get some onto his plate. hehehe.... Though it's yummy,it was definitely not a "WOW" to me. I have cooked chicken stirfry with similar ingredients before, but not with edamame. Anyway, edamame didn't lend any assertive taste to the dish, but was sweet and nutty itself. It's a good addition, in term of nutritional value, but I think the dish won't suffer much without it. I guess the best part is all the ingredients come from the freezer. (Chicken breast, edamame, stirfry bell pepper) So, you can pull it out whenever you run out of fresh ingredients or time, or both.
Sesame Chicken Edamame Bowl
2 teaspoons canola oil
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh lemongrass
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 cups frozen shelled edamame (green soybeans)
2 cups frozen bell pepper stir-fry mix
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce (*I also added some dark soy sauce for colour*)
1 tablespoon mirin (sweet rice wine)
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/4 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 cup (1/4-inch) diagonally cut green onions
2 teaspoons dark sesame seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
Heat canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
Add ginger, lemongrass, and garlic; sauté 1 minute or just until mixture begins to brown. Add chicken; sauté 2 minutes.
Add edamame and bell pepper stir-fry mix; sauté 3 minutes. Combine soy sauce, mirin, sesame oil, and cornstarch, stirring with a whisk. Add to pan; cook 1 minute.
Remove from heat. Stir in green onions, sesame seeds, and salt. Serve over rice.
Yield: 6 servings (*I halved all the ingredients for just the 2 of us. Even that, it can easily serve 3/4 people if you have other dishes too*)
