Weekend Bounty

Ethan and I love the local Farmer's Market; espeically during the weekends when there're more produce out there! It's an open air market and they have tons of fresh vegetables and fruits that even non vege lovers, like my husband, can't resist the temptation of getting something....just because...:)On top of that, each vendor distributes slices of their fruits in order to lure innocent grazers like my husband and Ethan. Oh yah...they inhale EVERYTHING, did they INHALE!! My little boy was on a sensory overload with all those wonderful luscious fruits baiting at him. He just couldn't resist in grabbing every little morsels given by every vendor. Most of the time I try to be cautious with food given in this manner but I figured that it was pretty much "clean" since it's cut directly from the fruit and not place on anything. Besides, I really can't bear to stop Ethan from all his unadulterated innocent greediness!!!

As you can clearly guess what happened during one of our hunts, we came back with our loot - a whole crate filled with fresh lovely summer strawberries on top with many other things. I wasn't planning on strawberries but really, can you resist such beauty glaring at you..:) Well, I bought my crate, there's only two adults and 1 child, of course, Ethan wouldn't have any problems stuffing his face with just strawberries at every meal but somehow I don't think that would speak much for my husband and I as "good" parents. Besides eating all those strawberries as it would just be too boring....:)



Soooo...I made strawberry jam with half of strawberry loot! And yah...I made it with a little less sugar and substitute that with Splenda to cut the sugar content down a little (Advice: it does give an aftertaste like that of aspartame). Nevertheless I did that to cut all that sugar from jam making and yes I also use pectin which in hindsight, I shouldn't have but I did, regretably. In any case, my pectin didn't exactly jell my jam well and made it more like a compote instead. Nevertheless I thought it tasted very strawberry jam like and kept it as such. I also tried to make a jelly roll out of the homemade jam but it was just too runny and ruined my roll! Since then, I'd looked into other options other than using pectin! Probably will try it again some other time. It was just a little more time consuming that I had initially thought. A little too fussy as well considering that it only has two main ingredients; strawberries and sugar and oh yah, pectin! And all that cleanup?!?!? I don't think my kitchen recovered from my weekend strawberry explosion!

As for the jam recipe using pectin. Do some research on the net, buy the pectin and it usually comes with the instructions right there. You pretty much only need 2 ingredients, like I said, strawberries (if it's gonna be strawberry jam) and sugar. And pectin is a real sensitive ingredient so I guess another "ingredient" would be PRAYERS! :D

Popiah - The Art of Wrapping

On the rare occasions that I make Popiah I try to make a big a bash I could. But no matter how much I make, most is gone by the next day, at the very least! It's just how amazing how fast this easy meal goes. It's fun to eat as you make your own individual popiah and it's also heathly (well...at least I like to delude myself).



Popiah is simply an asian version of a wrap. It's filling is predominately vegetables and the rest of the wraps are mise en place. I've a love-hate relationship with Popiah. I love to eat it but I hate making it and cleaning after it! Just too much work involved and all the food's all gone before you can really enjoy it! LOL

And for the some weird mysterious reason, I can't wrap the popiah to save my life!! Each time I do it, the whole thing just either falls apart or starts to leak!! It's another reason why I hate making this, I can't get a relly nice wrap from it. My husband makes his like a giant burrito when it's supposed to look like a delicate little wrap! He tells me that's the way to prevent the "leakage" and besides you want to get as much you can inside! Totally gross-ness! In any case I try my best to present you the Popiah as close as the ones I usually see at the stores back home...oh well...at least I try... if any one has any tips on getting it "right", plz tell me....:)

Popiah Filling Recipe
Ingredients
-Jicama, 2 mediums
-Carrots, 3 mediums
-Garlic, 3 segments
-Dried shrimps, a handful, rehydrated and drained
-Belly Pork, diced (truly optional)

Method
-Julienne the jicama and carrots, minced garlic and dried shrimps and diced the pork into small pieces.
-Heat some oil in a wok, add garlic and shrimps, fry at medium heat till fragrant.
-Add pork at this point and fry a little bit.
-Finally add carrots and jicama and fry for a while. Add some sugar, salt and pepper to taste. If the mixture seems dry, add some hot water to start steamning all the vegetables. Both the jicama and carrots takes a while to soften. "Steamed" at low heat and covered for at least 15mins. If there's too much liquid at this point, scoop it out, if there's a little liquid, leave it uncovered and heated and the liquid will reduce quite a bit.
-Stirring constantly till the filling's softened but not breaking apart.
-Scoop and leave aside.

Mise En Place
Ingredients
-2 Eggs, Hard Boiled or Scrambled
-1 Chinese Sausage, Boiled, Skinned, and Diced
-2 TBPS minced garlic
-Bean Sprouts, Raw or Blanched lightly
-Letteuce Leaves, Washed and dried
-Popiah Skins, Buy those ready made ones for Spring Rolls (or make your own! :))
-Sweet Dark Soy Sauce or Kecap Manis (I used the ABC Brand)
-Chilli Sauce (I used the bottled Vietnamese Chilli Garlic Sauce)

Method
-Put each ingredient in individual plates or bowls for each person to make their own "speical" wrap.

Popiah (What I do)
-Putting everything together!
-First place 1-2 Popiah/Spring Roll skin on a clean dry plate.
-Add 1 dry letteuce leave on top, add about 1 1/2 Tablespoon of filling on that.
-Then add a little eggs, a little sausage, a little sprouts, one after another.
-Finally I add the sweet sauce, chilli sauce and wrap like you would with a spring roll.
-I omitted fresh minced garlic in MY popiah, coz that's the way I like it! :) It's pretty much do it your own.

Note: It's a great way for the health conscious coz it's pretty much raw or cooked veges. There are a few "meat" items in here but all in all, it's up to the individual to wrap their own. I wish I had taken pics of the steps in wrapping, unfortunately I couldn't do it coz I suck at wrapping and with all my focus on getting the wrap ready for the pic, I didn't have the time or the extra hands to take pics, throughly sorry. But hey...you learn by mistakes....:) Have FUN!

Texas Summer 2006

This is what happened when you mix water with a little boy!! Yah...you get a water monster!! This summer has been a real scorcher and there are days that it's even too hot to go to the swimming pool at the rec center. So in order to "cool" off, we got a little inflatable paddling pool for Ethan to play in!! Just look at him screaming in excitement!! Oh yah...water...it's the way to go!!

Chinese Barbeque Pork: Char Siew

I think I'm begining to turn into a real snob. If I know I can make a particular dish I would rather cook it than order it when I'm at a restaurant. Now tell me I'm not a snob??? :)

So I made Char Siew the other day and Ed made a passing remark of how surprised he was that I would make it since he didn't think I liked it! Ok.....it's not that I don't like it, I just don't like to order it that often when it's such an easy dish to make! Pretty much marinate the meat, and grill it to perfection! hehehe...easy enough right?? ;) And oh yah, slice it before serving!

Recipe
Ingredients
-Boneless Skinless Pork Hock, washed and patted dried
-Char Siew sauce, any brand but I use Lee Kum Kee (just use to it and easy to find)
-Sugar, preferably brown sugar
-Light Soy Sauce

Method
-Mix all the seasoning in a bowl, test taste it to your liking and then add in the pork.
-Marinate it overnight or longer in the fridge.
-When ready to cook, take the pork from fridge to bring it to room temp and preheat oven to 425F.
-Wrap the pork loosely in aluminium foil and stick it into the preheated oven for 1-1.5hrs (depend on the size of the pork though). The idea is to cook the meat through at this point.
-Then open up the foil to expose the pork to the oven heat and reduce the oven temp to 375F.
-Basting the meat at a 20mins interval till pork is completely cooked through and slightly tender to touch.
-When meat is slightly darkened or reddened (that LKK brand tends to give the meat a slight reddish color, probably due to it's coloring agent) then it's ready to be served.
-Before slicing, cover the pork in foil and wait for juices to "seal" before slicing or the moistness of the pork would just flow out if cut immediately out from oven!


Note: The method above is based on personal experimentations and experiences and all approximate. The pork hock used is roughly around 2lbs, more or less. Amount of seasoning is dependent on individual taste. Enjoy your BBQ pork...;)

Mother Nature

Just something I wanted to share from my photo collection. With all the negativity that we are having these days, sometimes it's good for the soul to look at something positive! I took these pics a while ago, I think in Spring, and just didn't want to post them for some unknown reason. I guess I was just forgetful! Hehehhe.. anyway, these flowers are compliments of the Dallas Arboretum. Ain't they beautiful? Enjoy and have a great week everyone!!! :)

Chicken Curry with Tomatoes and Coriander

This is a very fragrant dish! A great substitute for the regular chicken curry made with coconut milk instead. I'd seen this recipe at the The Star Online and was curious at how the taste would be. I love tomatoes, and although not too keen with one of the ingredients called, nevertheless I decided to give it a shot, thinking(or deluding) that it should be a healthier alternative. Presently I can only say this, this recipe is a defnite keeper!

I'd made this dish so often that my husband is starting to get a little bored with it! :) Too bad for him. My version is a little "soupier" than the original recipe, errrmm, coz I actually treats it like a soup/stew! It's really that good, plus it helps with any nasal congestion...:) You can find the recipe here .

Potato Stew

A simple yet delicious way of cooking potatoes. Potatoes are so underrated these days. It seems that there are so few ways of having potatoes with rice coz there's just too much starch at one setting. And with all those different varieties of potatoes out there, there's so much possibilities of sneaking in potatoes in one's meal without having to feel that there's too much starch intake.

I like this particular way of cooking it since it doesn't involve too many potatoes. Also it's so thinly sliced and savory that you really don't feel the presence of over starchiness! And for the rice eaters out there, this is a good compliment for any rice without it being too filling. A light delicious dish! Let's put it this way, both my husband and son hate eating potatoes unless it's deep fried (to death) and they both ended up inhaling this dish! Also it tends to take on a deeper bolder flavor when it's kept overnight. No kidding!

Recipe
Ingredients
-2 medium yukon gold potatoes, thinly sliced
-2 bacon slices
-Toasted Sesame Seeds
-Mushroom flavored Oyster Sauce
-Soy Sauce
-Sugar
-Black pepper

Method
-Slice potatoes thinly, rinsed till water is cleared and drained
-Julienne bacon into bits.
-Heat very little oil in a pan, add bacon bits and fried till bacon's done. Add those potatoes in and stir around to coat them with bacon bits.
-Seasoned it with some mushroom flavored oyster sauce, soy sauce and sugar. Stir that a bit and then add freshly ground black pepper, add a little more than usual (as in 1 tsp), it'll give it a little kick.
-Then in a little water to cook the potatoes through. Lower the heat to simmer till the potatoes are fork tender and the sauce reduced.
-Dish it onto a plate and sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on top.


Note: Dish can be served at room temperature. I'd previously tried with red (or new) potatoes, russet, and fingerlings. Russet turned out to be too mushy, new potatoes are just not as flavorful and fingerlings are not of the right texture and didn't quite absorbed the "right" flavors. I tried Yukon Gold and I like them best; the texture's right, not to mushy, not too hard. The absorption of the flavors is great and when left overnight, it's even better.

Fried Fish

So simple yet so complicated. Getting the right fish fried at just the right way is one of the toughest thing to master for me. Probably for some people is a breeze but for me is like attaining one of the highest level of cooking skills!! I know I know...might be exaggerating a wee bit here but just think about it, if you overfry a fish, it's nothing but a chewy fried bit of leather!

To get the fish all crispy on the outside and yet tender and moist in the inside is not an easy task! Most fried fish are either over-fried, where the fish is all fried to the point of no return and the fresh fish flavor is all gone, or under-fried, where the fish is not crispy but all soggy with oil! GROSS! I believe that the "right" way to fry the fish depends on the type of fish used, I usually get the best results with fresh catfish. Oily fish, I believe, works well fried too, altough I've yet to try any of those since they can get pretty pricy (at the market) and personally I feel it would be wasted to fry it!

I fried this piece of cod steak seasoned with some salt(sparingly) and black pepper. And also drizzled a little hot oil blended soy seasoning on top of the fish and green oinions to finish the dish. And since I was deep frying, I thought I could also used up some of the Holland red peppers that I had in the fridge. I sliced them up vertically and just put them in the oil before I fried the fish so to give the fish a little spice (at least I thought it would but it turned out that the peppers ain't even spicy at all, they were sweet peppers!!)

The results were pretty good...I came pretty close in achieving that crispy outside and tender moist inside! The main thing is to eat it while it's still hot!!! :) And as for those peppers, they were better left as it is, just looking pretty, coz they were rather chewy and pretty much tasteless! The soy blend was good coz it gave a little sweetness and "smoothness" to the fish and especially to the spring onions. I also added some thinly sliced matchstick fried ginger as garnish as well. I kinda cheated in this recipe coz I used a deep fryer instead of pan-frying it. I find that oil controling is a pretty essential part of getting the "right" fried fish. My temperature used was 275F-280F and that's after "experimentating with various fish, at different sizes and different temps, I find that this was the "best" one for this particular slice of fish that I was working with. I think it also depends on the deep fryer as well...;)

Recipe
Ingredients
-Fish, as fresh as you can get them
-Salt and Black Pepper
-Rice Flour, 1 TBS
-Plain Flour, 2 TBS

Recipe for Hot Oil Soy Seasoning
-2 TBS Oil, vegetable or peanut
-1 TBS soy sauce
-1 TBS sugar

Method
-Clean the fish and then pat it dry with some kitchen napkins.
-Seasoned the fish sparingly (coz additional soy will be added to it).
-Dust it with rice flour and plain flour combination and dip it slowly in the heated oil for deep frying.
-Fried till cooked, takes about 8-10mins, depending on the size of the fish (so I just set the timer just in case I forget!!)

Seasoning
-Heat oil in a separate pan and the rest of the soy and sugar in another. When the fish is done, place on a plate, and place green onions on top(if used) and then add heated oil followed by the soy mixture.
-Serve and eat while hot!

At the Zoo

This was about two weeks ago, on a Monday, it wasn't AS hot since we went there in the morning.......


Oh yah....he loved those huge carps!! He would gaze at them FOREVER!! And when I told him that we need to move on, he told me to sit there with him!! Errmmm....fish...not very interesting....on a plate....maybe tasty!! *sigh*


Still staring at those fish....*sigh*.....he wanted to hold and kiss them but I had to tell him that they can't stay out of water...and he decided that the best thing was to hop in with them to give them a hug!! Hence no picture of that, I was trying to pull him back before he got into that tank!!!! He was serious!!


He went into the goat compound and thought they were cows....mini cows??? LOL Ok...there were lots of them goats and he wanted to chat them all up!! Probably asking them about their daily routine and food supply??? He does that with our dog too, would sit next to the dog and gestured about, chatting away, dog cared less...


I think those goats are really tame or pretty much so used to human contact that they didn't even flinched when Ethan approached them and hugged them *YICK* (oh yah, when he got to the car, he had a serious wipe down and change of clothes....somehow goat naturelle doesn't appeal to me)


Ethan had a hard time leaving the petting zoo but I told him he could ride the merry-go-round and have some lunch at MacDonald's if he would move along!!


He loved the merry-go-round but I was really queasy after the ride (motion sickness!). He was still holding on to his little monkey and was a little upset that monkey didn't get to sit on one of the rides! Ermmm....


Oh yah, at MacDonald's, got his first Happy Meal! Didn't even know that it came with a toy!! Hehehe...that's how often I eat there!! All in all, he had a great time at the zoo, he was really focused on what animals he (and monkey) wanted to see. He loves the sneezing pony(who sneezed a couple of times on him *geez*), the boring elephants (who just kept on chewing and chewing on grass??) and those huge pretty carps (which pretty much kept swimming)...oh well...

However I'm totally impressed with how Ethan behaved! He was very well-behaved, he listened and he followed my instructions! I was kinda afraid to let him "loose" in the zoo, afraid that for some unforeseen incident that he might run off, get himself caught in a cage where he was lunch for some hungry animal or something (ok...paranoia talking but still). But Ethan was so sweet and disciplined! He was more or less by my side and was even a little playful while still being careful! It was great, wouldn't mind bringing him back there again. We had a totally great day..:)

Lemon Bread/Bun with Pure Lemon Oil

Leave me at the grocery store for longer than I need and I'm bound to end upwith more than what's intended on my original grocery list!! I saw this Lemon Oil on the same aisle as I was searching for my grapeseed oil. And I've read about lemon oil but thought I had to special order it, didn't know that my favorite store carries it too!!

Basically pure lemon oil is used for cooking and baking in place of lemon essence or zest. Of course, with pure lemon oil, the fragrance is more intense, more vibrant and more "lemony"! When I opened the bottle, the fragrance was so intense that it perfumed all over my kitchen!!!(also, small kitchen!) And when baking it, the whole kitchen was full of "lemony" goodness. The smell is UNBELIEVABLE!! Gives a new meaning to the word aroma therapy; it was all lemon heaven! As for the flavor, the lemon taste is so intense that I really can't help to think where I've been baking without this oil.



As you can see, I bake some lemon bead/buns (yah, still on my bun crusade) glazed with lemon and lime zested royal icing. This bread turned out wonderful! It was soft in the inside and crusty on the outside and with the glaze, it's a little sweet and a little tart. The amazing thing is that when you break the bun apart, you are immediately welcomed by that wonderful lemon smell! You can gobble a few buns down and not even realise it, it's THAT light and heavenly (self bragging!! hehehe...sorry...it was THAT good)



Must make it known that this is pure lemon oil used for cooking and not be mistaken with lemon ESSENTIAL oil used for cosmetic or cleaning purposes. Two different things, one is edible and the other's not!! So make sure if you do buy it, look for them in the oil aisle and read to make sure that it's for cooking/baking!!