20120715 Beef Stew with Carrots and Onions

It has been a long time since I last cooked something new. I used to cook to relax, but haven't been able to do so with a baby to care for. Even though Olivia is not a fussy baby, she needs attention from time to time. I like spending an hour or two preparing food in the kitchen without any thoughts in my mind, so am still learning how to enjoy cooking while there are interruptions here and there. As my husband was home today, I was able to spend an hour in the kitchen to prepare this stew. Okay, it didn't need an hour but I took my time. Oh how much I miss cooking! This stew tasted good. I took a risk and used rosemary and thyme together. The result was good as the stew was so fragrant. And the crunchy fresh French bread certainly went well with the stew. I've got to plan ahead and cook more again from now on.

INGREDIENTS
3 tbsp olive oil
900g stew beef, cut into 5cm cubes
400g carrots, cut into tiny cubes
5 small onions, finely diced
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried thime
1 bay leaf
salt and freshly grounded black pepper
1 tbsp tomato puree
400g can of peeled tomatoes
3/4 cups red wine
1 cup beef stock

METHODS
1. Heat the oven to 150C. Season beef with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a Dutch oven and brown the beef.
2. Add garlic and dried herbs to the beef, and fry until fragrant. Add wine and bring it to the boil. Then add the carrs, onions, tomato puree, and tomatoes. Use a wooden spoon to break the tomatoes, and top off the stew with beef stock.
3. Bring tge stew to tge boil, cover tightly with a lid, andcook in te oven for about 3 hours. Stir the stew halfway through cooking. Serve with boiled potatoes or crunchy french bread.

20120302 Pound Cake

I have been craving homemade baked goods for days, but finds it difficult to find the time to bake with a 4-week-old baby demanding food every 2 to 4 hours. As the craving got stronger, I decided to make a simple pound cake today. Olivia woke up hungry shortly after I had put the cake into the oven. Thank goodness my parents are visiting, so they helped to remove the cake from the oven while I was breastfeeding. The cake was a beautiful golden brown and tasted really good.

INGREDIENTS
3 eggs
3 tbsp milk (at room temperature)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup flour, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
185g butter (at room temperature)

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 175 degree C. Grease a loaf pan. Line the loaf pan with baking paper, and then spray some oil over the paper.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and vanilla extract.
3. In a big bowl, mix the dry ingredients together. Add butter and half the egg mixture, and mix with an electric mixer until the dry ingredients are moistened.
4. Add half of the remaining egg mixture and mix until combined. Then add the rest of the egg mixture, and mix until well incorporated. Pour into the loaf pan and bake for 55 minutes.

20120219 Beef red curry

(SOURCE: Koken & Genieten magazine - Scherpe rundvleescurry)

I was worried that I would not be able to make this beef stew while caring for a three-week-old baby. But it went really well as it took only less than 30 minutes to prepare. So I simply got everything ready immediately after I had put Olivia down for a nap. Then while the stew was bubbling away on the stove, I could continue to play with/feed/change Olivia. I consider this stew a success, though it didn't have much of a red curry taste as I had added too much water. Next time I will add 500ml of water only as the onions tend to produce quite some liquid too.

INGREDIENTS
2 tbsp butter
1kg stewing beef, cut into chunks
6 small onions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp tomato puree
1 tbsp red curry paste
salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD
1. Heat the butter in a Dutch oven and brown the beef over high heat. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Add the onions and garlic, and fry until fragrant. Stir in the tomato puree and curry paste. Add 900ml of water and bring it to the boil. Reduce to low heat and simmer for 3 hours.

20120218 Tandoori-style chicken with buttered rice

(SOURCE: BBC GoodFood - Brian Turner's Tandoori-style chicken with buttered rice)

It has been a challenge to find the time (and energy) to try out new recipes since Olivia was born. My husband has been helping out loads and cooking simple meals. As we are getting more used to Olivia's needs and are learning to be flexible with our dinner time, I decided to cook something simple today. I prepared the ingredients during one of Olivia's afternoon naps, and then cooked the meal immediately after her feeding at 6pm. It was a miracle that our dinner was not interrupted. And of course, once we finished dinner, Olivia immediately asked for hugs - so our dessert had to wait. I can't wait till Olivia has developed more of a routine so we can better plan our meals around it. People say such a routine will be developed by the time babies are 6 weeks old...just 3 more weeks to go, fingers crossed!

INGREDIENTS
4 rounded tbsp Greek yoghurt
2 tsp tomato puree
3 garlic cloves, crushed
4 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 tsp ground ginger
3 tsp medium curry powder
500g chicken fillets, cut into large cubes
2 tsp sunflower oil
For the buttered rice -
25g butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
250g leftover cooked basmati rice
4 tbsp hot chicken stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 180 degree C. In a bowl, mix the first 7 ingredients together and stir until the chicken is coated.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan and quickly saute the chicken for 1 minute to seal. Cook the chicken on the top shelf of the oven for 8 to 10 minutes until tender and lightly charred.
3. Meanwhile, make the buttered rice. Melt half the butter in a pan and saute the onion over a high heat until soft. Add the rice and allow to just warm through, and then sprinkle over the stock. Season.
4. Grease four ramekins with the rest of the butter. Divide the rice between them and arrange on a baking sheet, then cover each one tightly with foil. Place on the second shelf in the oven and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes until all the stock has been absorbed.
5. Serve the buttered rice with the chicken.

20120126 Scrambled Eggs

I love scrambled eggs but could never get them right. They either are too runny or have a rubbery texture. This morning I gave scrambled eggs another go and was half satisfied with the result. The eggs tasted good, but I think I overcooked them just a little too long - again! Next time I may add a bit more milk, or simply replace milk with cream. Oh well, that's the fun of cooking - try and try again until you get it right!

INGREDIENTS
2 large eggs
2 tbsp milk
dash of dill
salt
freshly grounded 4-season pepper
25g butter
2 buttered toasts

METHOD
1. Whisk the first 5 ingredients in a bowl until all they are well combined.
2. Heat the butter in a non-sticking pan over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, pour in the egg mixture and let it sit. When the eggs begin to solidify, use a wooden spoon to scrap the eggs from the sides of the pan and fold them over into the middle. Repeat this until eggs are slightly runny and softly set. Remove from the heat and leave it for a bit to continue cooking.
3. Once the runny bits have disappeared, transfer the eggs onto two sliced of buttered toasts.

20120125 Butter Chicken, v3

(SOURCE: TastyKitchen - Butter Chicken)

I craved something rich and flavorful, so decided to make butter chicken again. As my last attempt to modify the butter chicken recipe was a success, I decided to tweak the recipe a little more again to give the chicken more flavor and a little bit of a kick. Oh the butter chicken had such an intense flavor and it was just so good!

INGREDIENTS
500g boneless chicken, cubed
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp tandoori masala spices
1 tsp salt
a dash of chilli powder
2 small onions, diced
30g butter
300g passata
300g chopped tomatoes (canned)
2 tsp dried coriander leaves
250ml cream, at room temperature

METHOD
1. Combine the first 5 ingredients and marinate for at least 2 hours.
2. Heat the butter in a pan and saute the onions until soft. Add the marinated chicken and cook for 10 minutes. Add the passata, chopped tomatoes, and dried coriander. Simmer for 20 to 30 minutes with the lid on. Lastly, add the cream just before serving.

20120124 Sesame Oil Chicken

(SOURCE: RasaMalaysia.com - Seasame Oil Chicken)

I loved how the entire kitchen was filled with the aroma of sesame oil when I heated the oil in the wok, so I expected a very intense and flavorful dish. But unfortunately, I didn't smell or taste any sesame oil in the chicken - how disappointing! I wonder if it was because the sesame oil I used was not good enough, as the original recipe recommended a "toasted/dark sesame oil" which has a more intense flavor. Next time I will look for the toasted sesame oil at the Chinese supermarket and give this dish another go.

INGREDIENTS
500g little chicken drumsticks
2-inch piece of root ginger, cut into thin strips
1.5 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp dry sherry
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 cup water
3 dashes white pepper

METHOD
1. Heat the sesame oil in a wok over high heat. Add the ginger and stir fry until fragrant. Add the chicken and fry a little before adding the soy sauce, oyster sauce, sherry, and white pepper. Continue to stir-fry until the chicken is about 70% cooked.
2. Add water and do a few quick stirs. Cover the wok with a lid and turn the heat to medium to low heat, and let the chicken cook until the sauce thickens and the meat becomes tender. This should take about 10 to 15 minutes. Add more water if the sauce dries up. .

20120122 Chinese-style braised beef, v2

(SOURCE: BBC GoodFood - Chinese-style braised beef one-pot)

I made this dish a couple of months ago and loved its vibrant flavors. This time I moderated the amount of ingredients a little in a hope to make the dish a little less sweet. The key is the dark soy sauce! I got the dark soy sauce from a Chinese supermarket this time - it tastes more intense and less sweet than the soy sauce I got from the local supermarket. The meat was so tender and rich in flavor - thumbs up!

INGREDIENTS
3 tbsp olive oil
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1.5-inch piece fresh root ginger, peeled and shredded
1 bunch spring onions, sliced
1 red chilli, thinly sliced
1kg braising beef, cut into large chunks
1 tbsp plain flour
2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
3 tbsp dry sherry
3 tbsp dark soy sauce (from a Chinese supermarket)
500ml beef stock

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 150 degree C. Toss the beef in the flour. Heat the oil in a dutch oven and brown the beef in batches. Remove beef from pan and set aside.
2. Add the garlic, ginger, onions and chilli to the pan, and fry until fragrant. Then add the five-spice and fry for another minute. Then add the beef and stir until combined. Splash in the sherry, scraping up any meaty bits.
3. Pour in the soy sauce and stock, bring to a simmer, then tightly cover, transfer to the oven and cook for 3 hours. Stir the meat halfway through.

20120120 Chocolate Chip Cookies

(SOURCE: A friend)

I am feeling a bit restless today and have trouble sitting still. So I looked into my cupboard to see if I can whip something yummy up. I see I still have a bag of chocolate chips and cranberries from Christmas, so why not bake some chocolate chip cookies? My friend gave me this recipe several years ago, and it is perfect because I have all the ingredients listed! And the cookies are nice and chewy - perfect for a mellow Friday evening.

INGREDIENTS
1 cup plus 2 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
110g butter, softened
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup mix of chocolate chips and dried cranberries

METHOD
1. Heat the oven to 175 degree C. Grease a baking sheet.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat until the mixture if smooth and creamy. Gradually add the flour, baking soda, and salt into the bowl and beat until blended. Stir in the chocolate chips and cranberries.
3. Drop the dough by very rounded tablespoonfuls onto the greased baking sheet, spacing the mounds about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes, or until nicely browned.
4. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and let it cool for about 3 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a rack and let them cool completely. Makes about 18 cookies.

20120117 Sookhe Masale ka Murg (Dry Masala Chicken)

(SOURCE: Indian Cookbook by Pushpesh Pant - Sookhe Masale ka Murg)

I chose this recipe as it requires only a handful of ingredients, and it has an interesting way to cook the chicken - you have to parboil the chicken before frying. This article explained that parboiling chicken before frying will help to reduce the amount of oil used for frying and to cook the chicken faster. The original recipe still used 1 cup of ghee to fry the chicken, so I am not sure the author chose to parboil the chicken to use less oil for frying...But anyways, I have modified the recipe quite a bit by reducing the amount of chilli powder and oil used. The little drumsticks were finger-licking and super garlicky! I think they will be great for barbecue too. So next time I will just parboil the chicken and then pop them onto the barbecue for about 5 to 10 minutes.

INGREDIENTS
1/4 tsp chilli powder
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp turmeric powder
6 garlic cloves, crushed
6 black peppercorns, crushed
600g little chicken drumsticks
1 tbsp olive oil
salt

METHOD
1. Marinate the chicken with the first 5 ingredients, then set aside in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
2. Pour 1 cup of water into a large heavy-based pan and add 1 tsp of salt. Add the marinated chicken and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the water has evaporated and the chicken is cooked through. Remove the drumsticks from the water and place them on a kitchen tissue to dry a bit.
3. Heat the oil in another pan over low heat, add the chicken and fry for 10 minutes, or until golden brown.