Tilapia

Since my little one is just out of surgery, I have been really busy with him so tonight made a very simple dish with tilapia fillet.  Dry rub it with little paprika, salt, garlic powder, and pan fry with some butter on both sides. Serve with hot rice and some stir fry vegetable.

Sushi

Tried another favorite of mine and my family's.....Sushi.  Well, for a starter I think I have done a good job with it.    Its pretty easy if you get the right type of rice and of course the rolling of the nori (seaweed).

Crab meat with mayonaise, spinach, pickle radish

Fish cake, radish, egg, carrot

Chicken Kurma with Ghee Rice

Its been a cold day today. So, I just headed to the kitchen and thought maybe a nice kurma chicken would be the answer.  I made some ghee rice to go along with it and of course with my cucumber pickle.

Kurma Chicken

Chicken

3 green chillies ( seeded)

cashewnuts

garlic, ginger, onion

cloves, cinnamon stick

kurma curry powder, meat curry powder, salt

Saute the cloves, cinnamon stick in little oil. Blend the onion, cashewnut, garlic ginger onion, green chillies. Add them in the oil.  Put in the cut chicken and the curry powder. Pour little water. Adjust seasoning.

Doughnuts

Thought of surprising my kids for snack time, decided to make one of their favorite....which is doughnuts.  Made my own version of it.  Glazed with chocolate glaze and sprinkle it with some jimmies.

Basic Doughnut Recepi


3 cups bread flour/all purpose flour
2 tsp yeast
3 tbsp shortening
3 tbsp milk powder
200 ml lukewarm water/milk
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp sugar

Mix the yeast and milk. Let it froth.

Add the flour little at a time, most of the time you would not need to use all of the flour. Knead till soft and let rise for 1/2 hour. Roll out and cutout into circle.  Fry it and drain in a paper towel.  Glaze with plain sugar or with frosting.  Enjoy......
Mix all ingredients and pour in the yeast mix.

Cucumber pickle/Fried Noodles

This is my take on one of my mother's favorite pickle dishes. Cucumber and carrot mixed with rice vinegar. Best eaten with chicken briyani or some kinda spicy dish.  Its so refreshing and tangy. Well, she makes it the traditional way and I thought I would do the semi-homemade which is also the easy way.

Cucumber/carrot pickle

1 cup of cucumber ( cut into strips)

1 cup of carrots (cut into strips)

2 red chillies (seeded and cut into strips)

shallots ( 2)

Plum sauce, rice vinegar, salt, sugar, Mae Ploy sweet chilli sauce, 1tsp chilli powder, 1/2 tsp yellow powder

1/2 tsp mustard seed

garlic (2 cloves)

Peanuts ( for the crunch)

Cut the vegetables and soak in a bowl with some salt.  Heat some oil, add mustard seed and let it pop, add the garlic. On low heat, add the chilli powder, yellow powder, rice vinegar, salt and sugar, plum sauce, sweet chilli sauce........taste it.  Finally strain the vegetables and press so all liquid drains out.  Add into the sauce mix. Turn off the fire.  Adjust the seasoning. 

Fried Wonton Noodles

Had some leftover wonton noodles, made a stir fry out it.  Just added some shrimp, fishballs, chives, chinese cabbage.  Well, the kids seem to enjoy it anytime when there is noodles in the house.

Murtabak

It has been a crazy weekend with Deepavali celebration and also school. I was not able to cook since I was too tired from all the running around last weekend but today gonna try making one of the famous hawker food that I love to eat. Its made with roti canai/popiah pastry and wrapped with meat filling and egg. It can be eaten with meat curry or onion pickle.Murtabak is Malaysian traditional kuih(for appetizer or dessert food).  This delicious murtabak can be eaten for breakfast or dinner. Murtabak can use chicken or beef as filling. The meat is cooked with spices and then mixed with egg before spreading it onto the murtabak skin. The traditional way of making murtabak is to wrap the  filling with homemade roti canai.

Since I am not good at making my own homemade roti canai, I need to find the substitute for this delicious murtabak skin. I am  using the popiah skin as the wrapper. Other name for this skin is lumpia as shown in the picture below or you can get the frozen roti canai at the asian grocery store.

Murtabak with onion pickle

Prawn Fritter and Rainbow Jelly

It seems I am going on a food race, well that is not too bad since I just love baking and cooking.  I attempted to overcome my utmost fear in making jelly/agar agar.  I just cant seem to get the right measurement. It always turns out too soft or hard but thank to My Kitchen Snipets website, I managed to make a beautiful rainbow jelly.  Wow, am I so proud of myself.  Also made prawn fritter, which is actually made out of flour, spring onion, b.powder, tempura flour, water and topped with prawns with shell on. Another achievement today.  Eventhough I feel so tired but whenever I look at the food that I have made, its gives me a sense of pleasure and fullness.

Prawn Fritter

Rainbow Jelly

Workout

Workout, workout, workout....thats what I did early this morning. Got up at 7.00 and went to the gym since I have been collecting calories by snacking all the cookies that I have been making.  Ooooh my bed was calling me to come and cuddle myself but I told myself no way..i have to go out and get myself toned little. Well, after heading back home, cooked lunch and then of course decided to make more cookies.....yippee. Thats the part I love most.."baking"

Pineapple tarts and Mama carries 

Dahlia biscuit

Getting ready for Deepavali

Since our Indian Festival of Lights is just around the corner, I thought I would start making all the wonderful cookies that my mother has thought me so that my kids would know what the festival is all about, hmmm not like I know much about it. All we used to do when we were small was just wait for mom to finish making her specialties and we would just indulge in them. Thinking back of all this has made me wonder, how did my mom do all this when she had all 4 of us running around.  She is a tough cookie.  Anyway, here we go, I made Muruku ( a fried snack which is done in a mould into little spirals), Pineapple tarts, Anthill cookies, Dahlia cookie, Beehive cake.  I guess I need to go clean up all the mess that I have done in the kitchen while doing all my cooking, so talk later.......

Ice cream cookie 

Anthill cookie

Muruku

Beehive cake