#79 BREAD VARIANTS, CALZONE: Recipe #56

I was at the staffroom yesterday and I had the chance to have a "food talk" with my collegue , Hugh, who also likes to cook and bake. He mentioned " calzones" and " pasties". And for last night dinner, I made a calzone , which is basically covered pizza, or should I say extra-large curry-puff.
I have in my fridge , meat filling and boiled potatoes... so, I only have to make the dough (see my bread recipe)and when the dough is ready , I added in the filling and cheese and... the result is wa~laa.
Traditionally calzone 's filling is beef and spinach but you can use whatever filling you want .. I think I want to try pineapple and cinnamon soon :)

#78 Easy fried Chicken fillet: recipe #55

My children love this dish..they are crispy on the outside and tender and moist in the inside. Some people will say why waste time when you can buy this from the fast food restaurant? Well, for me I am very particular about the cleanliness of my dishes and I used fresh sun-flower oil to fry the chicken :) . Enough said, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
300gram chicken fillets- cut into long slices
marinade:
1 dsp chopped ginger
1 dsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 egg-beaten
1 dsp corn flour + 3tbsp water- to make corn flour slurry
salt to taste( a bit more of this sauce is needed as the flour to coat the fillet during frying has no seasoning)

flour mixture:
3/4 cup all purpose flour mixed with 3tbsp corn flour

steps:
marinade the chicken in the fridge for at least 2 hrs but preferably 4 hrs
heat the wok
put in a large amount of oil for deep fat frying
coat each fillet slices with the flour mixture before frying them at medium flame
when the fillets are golden in colour, remove from oil
serve while warm

p/s I ate these fillet with my home-made black berry sauce... yummy!

#77 My First post 2007... Yahoo!

Yeah... I am blogging again... Life has been hectic eventhough its just the fourth day of the new year.
Firstly, the maid is still on her holiday.. and I hate ironing :( ,
secondly, I have to leave my boy with our Ustaz's wife ,
thirdly, I have to throw away my notes because of the recent flood that hit our school ,
fourthly My office space is still in a chaotic state due to the flood...,
fifthly, there's no U turn linking Lambak-Kiri and Rimba, because the soil near to the road and under the road was eroded.. so I have to go to Lambak and back to the highway, which cost me 5-7 minutes of my "journey"time,
and lastly, it seemed that some drivers used the "bahu jalan" to "potong queue" ...this happened especially when I picked my girls from schools, these drivers simply"barged in their cars" eventhough they knew that there were 20 or more cars waiting for their queue.. how selfish.

Happy New year people.. to My students.. learn your ATP, glycolysis and Kreb's cycle :)

#76 GOODBYE 2006 ..WELCOME 2007

Firstly, SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDIL ADHA to all muslim readers. This will be my last post for this year. Reminiscing on 2006 events... these are the highlights of My 2006 year...
* January... at Last my kitchen was complete.. so we no longer eat "Nasi Katok"
* March... I am officially a form six teacher as the new students have officially registered to my class
* May... My 11th Year wedding anniversary... Alhamdullilah
* June.... I passed My Master's degree
*September.... My graduation with My hubby and My Sister, Mimi who graduated her BA with honours.

To be honest... 2006 is a good year... Hopefully 2007 will be too... My resolutions? I suppose there's nothing new... As the years went by.. I am not as ambitious as I used to be.. but I still want to be a better teacher, I still want to be a people person, I want to spend more time physically and emotionally with my family. I want to have more time to watch my children grow up... I want to be a better wife, I want to guide My children to grow into independent yet unique Individuals, I want to realise my dreams...... ... and this list is endless... but you'll have to wait for the post mortem at the end of next year.. :)

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all family , friends and individuals for all the support I've received all these years... particularly for:
My hubby... You know your place in my life... :) Thank you
My children: My treasures... I love you all
My parents and My in-laws: Thank you
My siblings, Bibi, Mimi, Ajim and CT : I appreciate you guys and I love you all (though this is my first time telling you this :) LOL! )
Nini Tutong: My Idol, You taught me values in life

TO EVERYONE..............................

#75 Stir Fry Meat Curry: recipe #54

I think this will be the last recipe that I will post for this year 2006... This morning I was busy making cupcakes for My auntie's function, so I need to make something simple and not likely to be served for functions. So I came up with this.... and I also cooked the "Nasi Dagang".. this is the 3rd time I cook this "nasi" recipe courtesy of MamaFaMi :) and Saambal udang Nini Imah.. :) will post the recipe another time...

Ingredients:
400gm beef -sliced thinly
1 dsp vinegar
1 dsp all spice powder
1/2 tsp taragon
2 cloves garlic- chopped
1 red chili - sliced diagonally
3 dsp curry powder
1 tsp soya sauce
1 tsp mint sauce
1 tsp chicken stock powder
1/2 cup milk
water
6 long beans- cut into 2 cm size
oil

steps:
-marinade the beef with vinegar, taragon and all spice for at least 15 minutes
- medium fry the meat in a wok till brown but not crispy- drained
-use the same wok but reduce the amount of oil
- add in garlic and chilli
-add in fried meat and curry powder
- add in water, let the meat simmer for a while.
- add in the long bean and the seasonings
-lastly add in the milk to thicken the gravy.
- adjust seasonings and dish up.

btw... these are the cupcakes that I've made for the occassion... :)

#74 HONEY TOMATO GLAZED CHICKEN WINGS: recipe #53

Auni Favourite dish ... You can eat it on its own or eat it with your favourite dish. I ate it with tomato rice. Here's the recipe...

Ingredients
8 chicken wings

Marinade:
juice from 1/2 lemon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp white pepper
1 dsp honey
1 tsp all spice powder
1/8 cup oil
steps:
marinate the wings for at least 15 minutes
bake in oven at 200 C till done

sauce:
Ingredients:
1/2 large onion-sliced
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp Maggi tomato sauce
1 tbsp Maggi Chili sauce
1 tsp chicken stock powder
1/2 tsp mixed herb

-In a wok, heat a little oil
-fry the onion and garlic
-add in the sauces and herbs
-season with chicken stock powder
- when sauce thickens add in the baked chicken to coat them.

#73 Chicken Rice : recipe #52

Over the years I've cooked a number of Chicken rice versions and so is Mamafami. I cooked this as a result of reading Sarina's and Ihsan's blog. The rice looked so delicious that I need to cook for my family as well. Chicken rice is a complete meal as it is served with soup, sliced cucumber, chicken and the sauces. Today's chicken rice recipe is a combination of the many versions of chicken rice I cooked over the years. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did :)

First, make the broth:
Ingredients:
500g chicken (skinned and fat removed),
1 litre water
7 pcs ginger ( garlic sized)
salt and pepper to taste

- put all ingredients in a pot,
- cook until broth boils and off the flame
- cover the pot and do not open the lid for 15 minutes ( to make the chicken tender)

secondly, cook the rice
Ingredients:
3 cups rice- washed and drained
3 cups broth
4 shallots-sliced
2 clove garlic-sliced
1 piece ginger (garlic sized)-sliced
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt ( more if needed)
1 dsp chicken stock powder
1/4 tsp sesame oil
1/3 cup oil

steps:
-heat oil in pot
-fry shallots, ginger and garlic till fragrant
- add in the rice, fry till rice transparent
- add in the broth and the seasonings
- when rice boils, lower the flame, cover lid and cook till done. Alternatively, transfer the rice into a rice cooker.

thirdly: prepare the chicken
- cut chicken into small pieces.
- you can serve them as it is or you can season and deep fry them
-alternatively, you can bake them( see Ihsan's blog)
- however today I placed all the cut chicken into a casserole, put sliced garlic and large onion , I add 1 dsp of oyster sauce and 1/4 cup of the broth before cooking the chicken in the microwave oven for 4 minutes.

fourthly: making the soup
- top up the remaining broth with water
- season it with chicken stock powder
- add fried shallots and chopped spring onions

fifthly: making the soya sauce dip;
mix the following:
- 1 dsp light soya sauce+ 1 dsp sweet soya sauce+ 1/4 cup water + 1/2 tsp sesame oil

lastly : making the chili sauce * also yummy with "cucur udang" and steam boat dishes :)
Ingredients:
3 red chili
2 cloves garlic
1 dsp oyster sauce
-blend the above ingredients and cook until boiling. Once boiled, add the following:
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp vinegar
- continue cooking till sugar dissolves.

~~~~ serve the rice set with sliced cucumber~~~ Happy eating !!!!

#72 "Merica" Chicken; recipe #51

"Merica" in Indonesian means White pepper. One day, My family and I went to an Indonesian restaurant, and we ordered White pepper fried chicken. We liked it very much, however, it was quite expensive. When my children requested me to cook this dish one day, I took the challenge and I came up with this. My version however is baked rather than fried. Again, I cook this with estimation :)

Ingredients:
1 spring chicken- skinned and cut into smaller pieces
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp salt
1 dsp white vinegar
1 tsp white pepper

steps:
mix everything and marinate for at least 15 minutes
mix the marinated chicken with 2 tbsp oil
put in casserole and bake at 200 C till chicken is done

gravy:
4 shallots , 1/2 large onion , 2 dsp oyster sauce and 1 dsp water - blend
1 tsp( heap) white pepper
1 dsp soya sauce

steps:
heat oil in wok
fry the ingredients above, the remaining marinade and juice of chicken after they are baked
adjust seasoning and cook till gravy thicken before pouring them over the baked chicken.

Bon appetit~

#71 Baked Potato version 2: recipe #50

I was watching the National Geographic Channel when I saw the celebrity chef, Jamie Oliver made this dish. This is a very simple dish that anyone can make . Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
nearly cooked potatoes- skin removed and each cut into 4
a generous amount of olive oil
salt
cracked black pepper
mixed herb

steps: mix all ingredients and 1/4 cup of water
put the potatoes into a casserole
bake for at least 15 minutes or till potatoes become tender inside

#70 Stir fried Cucumber with Taucho : recipe#49

I like to eat cucumbers. I either eat it raw or make simple dishes out of them. The only cucumber dish that is quite elaborate is the "acar nyonya " style that took hours to prepare. This recipe I obtained from my "ultimate chinese cook book'. I especially want to share this with Mamafami, who is on a quest to find the different ways to cook cucumbers... so Mama , this is for you.

Ingredients:
2 medium cucumbers- seeded and julienned
1 clove garlic - chopped
2 pcs ginger-size of garlic- chopped
1 red chilli- chopped
1 stalk spring onion- chopped
salt
water

seasoning ingredients
1 tsp honey
2 tsp taucho ( salted soya bean)
1/8 sesame oil
1/2 tsp chicken stock powder

steps:
1. mix cucumber with salt for 10 minutes, drained
2. heat a little oil in wok, fry in the garlic and ginger
3. add in the rest of the ingredients and 2 tbsp water, cover wok.
4. Adjust seasoning and cook till done.

n/b : mixing salt to cucumber remove the water from cucumber cells, as a result the cucumber is slices will be more crunchy.

#69 Cinammon Pretzels: recipe #48

Hisyamuddin is always fascinated with pretzels. He learned the shape from his favourite " Snack-time" show. So today to make his dream comes true, I made a batch of Cinnamon pretzels and as expected, he was very excited... he made my day :)

Ingredients :
5g dry yeast + 1 dsp sugar+ 4 tbsp water - leave for 10 minutes
2 cups bread flour
1/2 cup oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

steps:
-mix everything into a bowl till a dough is formed
-knead the dough well and keep it in an oiled bowl. cover bowl with moist tea towel
-leave the dough to rise doubles its size
-cut dough into 6 equal parts
-each part to be shaped into pretzel shape
-brush the pretzels with solution of bicarbonate sugar ( 1tsp soda+ 1dsp water)
-leave the pretzels to rise for 15 mins
- Before baking, brush the pretzels with butter and sprinkle Cinnamon sugar on top of it ( see my #61 post)
bake the pretzels at 200 C until it's cooked.

~Happy munching~

#68 Easy baked potato: recipe #47

Auni loves this dish. Very simple... and very yummy!
Simply, peel potatoes, cut cross wise into semi thin slices, add in salt, mixed herb, cracked black pepper and a small amount of water. Put the mixture in a casserole, bake at 200 c until potato slices are cooked ... then add mozzarella cheese on top and baked again till the cheese melts and turn slightly brown

#67 Cream of Corn Soup- English style: recipe #46

The usual corn soup that Bruneians like to eat will be the chinese style ones that contained oyster sauce, eggs and crab's meat. I browsed through the net to search the recipe for the English version of the corn soup and found this... The taste was light and I certainly would make this again.

Ingredients:
1 dsp butter- I used sunflower spread
1/2 onion-chopped
1 can cream corn
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste
chopped parsley -to decorate

step:
1. melt butter in pan , add in the chopped onion
2. fry onion till light brown, add in the corn.
3. add in the milk and season well.

#66 Scones: recipe #45

I enjoy blogging... I enjoy sharing my passion with people. Apart from able to get in touch with friends , families and ex-students, I've gained the so-call "blogger friendship" with people I never met before.
Mamafami's blog is one of those that I always check, everyday. Few days back , she had made the scones that made me "drool" from this side of the world. (btw she is a enthusiastic Malaysian Mom who live in Malawi ~ frankly I do not know the existance of this place until I read her blog ..hehe.) Thank you Mama...for the recipe..and everything.
So today, I made scones for breakfast . My hubby and I had ours with mixed fruit jam while the kids had theirs with nutella... mmmm yummy!

Ingredients : 2 cups self-raising flour ~ I ran out of this so I used 2cups of flour and 2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
30 g butter ~ cut into small pieces
1/2 cup fresh milk ~ I used 1 cup
1/2 cup water ~ I omitted this as I just used milk

Method :
1. Preheat oven to very hot (220 C) (I preheated mine at 180 C) 2. Sift flour and salt together into a large bowl. Add butter and rub in lightly using fingertips.
3. Combine milk and butter.
4. Make a well in the centre of the flour. Pour in liquid all at once, reserving about a teaspoon for glazing. Mix quickly to a soft dough.
5. Turn onto a floured board (use self-raising flour). Knead lightly. Press or roll out to form a round about 2 cm thick.
6. Cut using a floured plain round cutter or cut into triangles using a floured knife. Place on a greased oven tray and glaze with milk.
7. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until scones sound hollow when tapped.
8. Cool on wire rack. Serve with jam and cream.

Note :
Salt is optional. However, it does enhance the flavour of the scones.

My creative side was also active this morning so I " threw in", butter and flour, ( rub in method), add icing sugar, add almond powder divide the mixture into 2 potions. To one, I add in chocolate chips and egg and to the other,I add in cocoa powder, white chips and egg. The resulting cookies? here it is... and as usual.....I did not measure the ingredients...

#65 Mustard Taucho baked chicken recipe #44

As usual, Old habit die hard.... as a result, I make this with estimation.

Ingredients:
chicken parts ~ about 7: skinned and fats removed
1/2 lemon
about 2 dsp mustard
about 1 tbsp taucho
about 1 tsp honey
oil about 1 dsp
mixed herb

steps:
marinade the chicken at least 15 minutes
place chicken in an oil casserole- keep the left-over marinade for gravy
bake at 200 degrees , now and then baste the chicken with the juices , do not allow the chicken to get dry.
bake till chicken is cooked
assemble chicken on a plate-keep the juice and oil from baking for the gravy

for the gravy:
heat oil in wok
fry in 1 tbsp flour, stir till flour turns light brown
add in the leftover marinade
add 1/2 tsp of mixed herb
add in 1 dsp taucho
add in chicken stock and soy sauce
lastly, add in the remaining juice after baking,
cook till the gravy bubble
pour on chicken.

#64 Durian Spread Muffin: recipe #43

During one of the groceries shopping, I bought a container of Durian spread which cost B$3.90. The spread had been in the fridge for sometime now, and I had to do something about it before it end up in the trash can...

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Durian spread
1/2 cup butter or Sunflower spread
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 egg ~ beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 and 1/4 cup flour

steps
-cream butter, durian spread and sugar
- add in the egg, salt, soda and milk
-add in the flour
- bake at 160 degrees until muffin are cooked

#63 Fried Udon with Clam : recipe #42

This is another simple version of what you can do with Udon.
Ingredients:
Udon 400g
1 can roasted/fried clams
1 shallot-sliced
1 clove garlic-sliced
green "sawi"- cut
chicken stock, The popular " sos cili singapore" , dark soy sauce and sweet soy sauce to taste.

steps:
Heat oil in wok
fry shallots and garlic
add in the seasoning and the green " sawi".
when the sawi is half-cooked aldd in the udon and clams, cook till udon become soft and starchy.
adjust seasoning... according to your taste

#62 EGG CUCUMBER SALAD : recipe#41

This recipe is one of the earliest cucumber recipe that I ate in wedding receptions and "Doa Selamat" in the ol' days .. and that was about 30-33 years back. However, this recipe is "endangered" as very hardly people served it in functions . My aunt Rosiah in Tutong, still prepare this dish and I am going to share this with you...

Ingredients:
1 cucumber
1/2 large onion ( cut crosswise)
1 clove garlic- sliced thinly
1/2 to 1 hard boiled egg ( sliced crosswise)
1 fresh red chilli- sliced crosswise
2 tbsp dilute coconut milk
juice from 2 limes
salt to taste

steps: mix everything. let it stand for about 20-30 minutes before serving. If you want to prepare this earlier, keep it in the fridge

#61 BREAD VARIANTS: recipe #40

Yes.... Exams are over... If I passed the exams, it will be a miracle... you see.. with the holidays and doing the household chores ( My amah is on her contract leave), it's so difficult to concentrate. I only learned at the last minute...

Anyway, my last post was on spiral bread . Well, the bread recipe is so versatile that you can use it to make other yummy recipes like the ones below:

PIZZA.... YOU CAN USE USE YOUR FAVOURITE TOPPING... I used my meat sauce


WHAT ABOUT CINNAMON PINWHEEL ? spread the dough with butter and sprinkle a mixture of cinnamon and sugar ( 1 level teaspoon cinnamon powder plus 4 dsp sugar), roll the dough into a long cylinderical "thingy" and before baking... sprinkle some more cinammon sugar...


AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST ... if you are tired with the rolls and the pizza...why not use the dough to make pies? like these ones...all you have to do is to "USE YOUR IMAGINATION"..happy cooking everyone!

#59 SPIRAL MEAT FILLED BREAD recipe#39

During our first wedding anniversary, one of the gifts given by My hubby was a classic bread cook book, since then the book became my reference book whenever I wanted to make homemade breads. Today, I made a bread that has meat filling. I used my frozen curry meat filling, a left-over after I made " kuih cara". Any filling of your choice is excellent for this bread.

Ingredients for the bread:
2 cups bread flour
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup oil
3/4 cup water
5 g yeast + 1 tsp sugar+ 4 dsp warm water ~ to be left for 10 minutes

steps:
-Mix the dry ingredients, add in the oil, and yeast mixture and lastly water
- knead well and leave dough to rise in a bowl for 1 hr
note: the inside of bowl must be glazed with oil and ensure the bowl is covered with damp tea-towel
- after the dough has risen 2 times its size, transfer the dough onto a clean surface
- flattened the dough
- spread the filling on top of it

- roll the dough

- form a circle from the rolled dough


-cut the circle, halfway see pic below:


- twist the sections, leave the dough to rise again and glaze it with egg yolk before baking at 200 degrees.


- when bread is cooked, cool it on a wire rack befor transferring it on to a plate



-after an hour.......