Tofu Stir-fry

This is a dish my mum used to cook, and I love it.

Oat Porridge

A tummy warming breakfast for cold wintry morning.

Curry Puff

This simple curry puff is easier to make than the spiral type, but it taste equally good. The pastry is made using Lynda's recipe submitted to Rainbow Connection.

Banana & Walnut Teabread

I suppose it is called 'teabread' because although it looks more like cakes (that you eat with your tea), it is eaten more like bread (sliced and butter) and also it is in the shape of a loaf of bread. More importantly, the leavening agents used are baking powder and bicarb soda instead of yeast, making it more like a cake than a bread. This teabread is simple and easy to bake. Just dump everything in a big bowl and mix with your electric mixer for 2 minutes.



Ingredients:
3 ripe bananas
30 g walnuts, chopped
200 g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
125 g caster sugar
75 g soft margarine
grated rind of ½ lemon
2 eggs
50 g seedless raisins.

Method:
Grease a 23 x 13 x 7.5 cm loaf tin. Set the oven at 180C. Mash the bananas.
Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl. Beat for about 3 minutes by hand using a wooden spoon or for 2 minutes in an electric mixer, until smooth. Put the mixture into the prepared tin loaf. Bake for 1 hour 10 minutes, or until firm to the touch. Cool on a wire rack.


Makes about 12 slices

Minty Chocolate Truffles

Very easy to make and refreshing taken with a cup of hot tea.


Ingredients:
150 g dark cooking chocolate, broken into squares
30 g butter
50 g thick cream
1/2 tsp mint essence

For coating:
50 g icing sugar
50 g dark cooking chocolate, broken into square, melted


Method:
1. To make the truffle, either melt the butter, cream and chocolate together in microwave oven, at lowest setting, at 20 seconds interval, stirring in between interval or heat up the butter and cream together and pour the liquid into chocolate then stir until the chocolate melts.
2. Add mint essence, stir to combine and refrigerate the chocolate for 1 hour. Shape into rounds the size of marbles.
3. Roll the truffles in icing sugar then drizzle with melted chocolate.

Makes about 15 pcs

Melting Moments

I got this Melting Moments recipes from an old-fashion cookbook. It is a very light cookie. Very buttery.



Ingredients:
100 g butter or margarine
75 g caster sugar
2 tbsp beaten egg
85 g self-raising flour
40 g custard powder
pinch of salt
rolled oats for coating
4-5 glace cherries, quartered

Method:
Grease two baking sheets. Set the oven at 180C. In a mixing bowl, cream the margarine and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the egg with a little flour and beat again. Stir in the remaining flour with the salt, mix well, then shape the mixture into 16-20 balls with hands. Space the balls on the prepared baking sheets. Place a small piece of glace cherry in the centre of each. Bake for about 15 - 20 minutes until pale golden brown. Leave to stand for a few minutes on the baking sheets, then cool on a wire rack.

Makes about 16 - 20 pcs

Barbecued Pork Ribs

A bit time consuming to cook, but you can cook this dish while preparing others. The meat is tender and almost falling of the bones. Recipe taken from allrecipe.com and scaled down for 2.



Ingredients:
2 slabs pork spareribs
1/4 cup butter
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup ketchup
1/2 cup barbeque sauce
1/2 lemon, juiced
salt and pepper to taste

Method:
1. Place ribs in large skillet or roasting pan. Cover with lightly salted water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 1 hour. Remove from heat, and drain.
2. Prepare the sauce. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook the onion and garlic in butter until the onion is tender; remove from heat. In a blender, combine 1 cup water, vinegar, ketchup, barbeque sauce, and lemon juice. Pour in the melted butter mixture, and puree for 1 minute. Pour into a saucepan, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, add the ribs, turn down the fire and simmer for another 1/2 hour. Place the ribs and sauce in a roasting pan, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

3. Preheat grill for medium-high heat. Brush grill grate with oil. Grill ribs for 10 to 20 minutes, or until well browned, basting with sauce and turning frequently.

Serves 2

Sweet & Sour Chicken.

As a student many years ago, my flatmates and I often had sweet & sour pork made from minced pork, as it was very easy to prepare and delicious to boot. Later on, I was advised by a cousin who worked in a restaurant to never ever order sweet and sour anything from restaurants. Apparently, restaurants would use their best/freshest meat for dishes that will bring out the freshness of the meat. Sweet & sour sauce is the sauce they use to mask the taste of old meat. So prepare your own sweet & sour meat if you love it. This is a relatively easy dish to cook, and very satisfying.



Ingredients:
400 g chicken breast, skin off, diced abt 2 cm x 2cm
1/2 cup plain flour
1 medium size onion, cut into half, then each into 4 segments, peel off layers
1 small lebanese cucumber, diced
1 tomato, cut into segments
1/8 of pineapple, cut into segments
1 paprika (peppers), diced abt 2cm x 2xcm
2 stalks spring onions, cut into 3 cm length
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tbsp tomato ketchup
2 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
1/2 tbsp lemon juice
water
cooking oil
coriander leaves (for garnishing)

Method:
Heat up oil in a wok / pan (about 3 cups), cpat the chicken lightly with flour, shake off excess and fry until light brown (about 5 mins). Set aside.

Pour away the oil. If there are flour residue, wipe off.

Heat up abt 2-3 tbsp cooking oil, add the onion and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add ketchup and mix well.

Add all the rest of the ingredients, except for chicken. Stir to mix. If it is too dry, add a bit of water. If you add to much water, you can thicken up the sauce with 1 tbsp cornflour + a bit of water mixed together.

Switch off the stove. Add the fried chicken and mix well. Serve garnished with coriander leaves.

Serves 2-4

Turkish Delight

Edith, a friend in Rainbow Connection, asked for suggestion as to what to do with her bottle of rose water. I suggested this recipe, and since I have not made Turkish Delight in such a long time (the previous time being Chrismast 4 years ago, and the result wasn't that great), I was keen to try it out myself. I am very pleased with the result this time. It is chewy with the right sweetness, and the rose water gives a real nice fragrance.



Ingredients:
25g gelatine
350 g sugar
1/4 tsp citric acid
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
2 tsp triple-strength rose water
few drops of food colouring (optional)
50 g icing sugar
25 g cornflour

Method:
Place 250 ml water in a large saucepan. Sprinkle the gelatine on the liquid. Set aside for 15 minutes until the gelatine is spongy. Add the sugar and citric acid, place the saucepan over gentle heat, and stir constantly until dissolved. Bring the mixture to the boil and boil for 20 minutes without stirring. Remove from the heat and allow to stand for 10 minutes.

Stir in the vanilla essence, rose water and colouring (if used). Pour into a wetted 15 cm (6 inch) square baking tin. Leave uncovered in a cool place for 24 hours.

Sift the icing sugar and cornfour together on to a sheet of greaseproof paper. Turn the Turkish delight on to the paper and cut into small squares using a sharp knife dipped in the icing sugar mixture. Toss well in the mixture so that all sides are coated. Pack in airtight container lined with waxed paper and dusted with the remaining icing sugar and cornflour.

Makes about 500 g

Here is how rose water looks like