Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Indian Style Sardines


This recipe is for those who fancy sardines and wanna try something new rather than a plain one from cans...there are a few ingredients called for to make the dish much more interesting !

The recipe

Ingredients :

Canned Sardines in olive oil – three tins
One red onion – finely chopped
Garlic – five cloves, minced
Ginger – 2 tbsp minced
tomatoes – 2 medium chopped
Lemon juice – 2 tsp
Cilantro – few fresh twigs
Cumin powder – 2 tsp
Red chilli powder – 2 tsp
Green chillies – 3 , finely chopped
water - 1/3-1/2 cup
Salt to taste

Instructions :

Heat the olive oil from the can in a pan (it should not be smoking hot).
Fry the garlic first, then add the onions, followed by ginger.
Once the onions are translucent enough, add the tomatoes and wait till the tomatoes becomes mushy.
Add the spices, green chillies and fry it little more, and add the sardines with their oil and water.
Check for the seasonings, a bit of spicy and sweet, adjust accordingly.
A good drizzle of lemon juice over it and garnish with freshly chopped cilantro.
Serve it over bed of rice.















Friday, November 22, 2013

Double Chocolate Cookies


Normally, when I feel like baking but don't have much time, I then always opt for cookies which are simple and quick to prepare and get it done but these cookies are not the case !

It needs some times to chill in the fridge but I could say that all the effort made really pays off..it's one of the best chocolate cookies I've ever made and eaten !

The recipe ( adapted slightly from here )

   
INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into larger-than-chip-size chunks

1/2 cup unsalted butter

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1-1/4 cups sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Also set aside half of the bittersweet chocolate to add to the batter at the end.

In the top of a double-boiler, or in a heat-proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, gently melt together the remaining 6 ounces of the bittersweet chocolate, the unsweetened chocolate, and the butter.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract on high speed for about 10 minutes. The resulting mixture will be thick and will form a thick ribbon when the whisk is lifted and allowed to drizzle back into the bowl.

Turn the mixer down to low and slowly add the melted chocolate, scraping the bowl well with a spatula to get it all. Then add the flour, and continue to mix only until just combined. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir the remaining bittersweet chocolate in by hand with the spatula. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours, or overnight. According to the recipe, the batter can be made as much as 4 days in advance of baking.

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Scoop the dough out onto the cookie sheet by tablespoonsful , allowing at least 2″ space between for spreading. Expect the dough to be really sticky.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. When baked, these cookies will puff up, and then collapse and form a shiny, flaky top as they cool, much like a brownie. If you’re in doubt about whether they’re done or not, it’s better to err on the side of underbaking. Allow to cool on a wire rack for a few minutes before removing from the cookie sheet and allowing to cool completely.






























Saturday, November 16, 2013

Carrot Chiffon Cake


After making the butter & jam bundt cake that I previously posted , I then felt like making something lighter which I couldn't think about something else but chiffon cake !

One of sources that is reliable and hardly let me down when looking for a great cake recipe ( especially chiffon cake ! ) is this blog. Coincidently, the blog owner just published her latest post and it happened to be this chiffon cake...hurraayyyyy !

The recipe could be found here. ( I added more sugar ( upto 75 g ) than the recipe calls for )










































Butter & Jam Bundt Cake


It's been a while since the last time I visited foodgawker website , so last week I opened it on iphone to have a look through the photos and my attention was caught with the photo of this cake..I then quickly click to the link to find out more about it and for some reason, I decided to make the cake a minute later!

The recipe could be found here. ( Note : I reduced sugar to only 1 cup )











































Thai Beef and Piper Leaves Curry


Despite being Thai but oddly that I rarely cook Thai food ! I spotted this curry while flipping through my friend's cookbook and I was very convinced to give it a try because I never cooked this curry before plus I felt like eating piper leaves after looking at the photo..so what else could be the better reason ?? Next thing I did is to take a photo of the recipe..:)

I made a curry paste by myself instead of using a store-bought or commercial one. It needed a little effort to do a paste but it really paid off ! For me,  the curry was rich and tasty and I loved the taste of piper leaves cooked in the sauce...just right to my tasting bud but unfortunately, it's too hot/spicy for my husband to handle with... who cares thou ?? ..lol..

        
This is the recipe..
























Pork Tinga


Finally, I am back here on track after a long break since the summer started..not much to say and rather update on what I've cooked and baked recently !

Start off with this gorgeous Mexican dish I've found on one of my following foodblogs ..it's pretty easy to get it done and the outcome is fabulous!!

The recipe could be found here.