When Life Gives You Chocolates......Celebrate!

Good morrow. Wish that life can always be as sweet as chcocolates? Why not! Everyone is entitled to hope and dream. In fact, hopes and dreams actually get us going on . Believing that eventually things will get better, helps us in surviving through this unpredictable life.

It is well-known that sweet things always bring comfort(coming from a kitchen-addict's point-of-view), especially during teary times. For that, I want to share this sweet, rich chocolate pudding recipe (from Myresipi.com) with you, with hopes that life would be sweeter and those saddened days be put to a definite end.

Do you like what you see in the photo?

RICH CHOCOLATE PUDDING

Then, why don't you try making these. All you need are:

1/2 cup of cocoa powder

1/2 cup of powdered milk

1 cup of sugar

4 tbsps of cornflour

1/2 tsp of vanilla essence

10g of jelly powder

4 and 1/4 cups of water

1/2 tsp of salt

3 tbsps of butter

Method:

• Put all ingredients except butter in a non-stick pot. Over a low heat, whisk the mixture till it is well-mixed.
• When it starts to boil put in the butter and continue whisking until it thickens.
• Pour into mould and let to cool.
• Put into the refrigerator till set.
• Serve and enjoy!

It's 'Makan-makan' Time!

It's me again. Those who visit my blog know that I am a teacher (who spends more time cooking than marking books). When I attempted new recipes, my colleagues at school would be my official food testers and I really appreciate their willingness to taste the dishes I've prepared.

Besides that, like me, my colleagues in school happen to be food lovers and we'll try to have as many 'makan-makan' sessions as possible during that 20-minute students' recess time. Pot luck is the most favoured option when it comes to this 'ritual'. Of course, being teachers, the non-Muslims would bring bought, halal-certified dishes while the Muslims, would happily bring something home-cooked. Here are some photos I managed to snap(being the ever nosy me!) during our 'makan-makan' time on Friday.

Yummylicious 'Laksa Kedah' specially prepared by .......

Pn Rosniza
(Notice how jolly Puan Tan GS was in the background? Food DOES make people happy)

'MEE GORENG BODO'-according to Cik Ahni who prepared it but sincerely, the taste is very far from 'bodo'

Below are more photos of my official food testers!

Two Gentlemen of Verona? Just kidding! En Azwie and En Aziz

(Did I tell you that we love food? Can you see that bottle of choc chip cookies?)

Teachers are forever young at heart. Don't believe me? Notice those "Peace' signs?

Madame Shama- Le Food Critique

Cik Ahni-slurping the laksa gravy

(Told you the laksa was good. See Cik Ahni's expression?)

With a Moo, Moo here and a Moo, Moo there...

Hiya peeps! What's up? This week has been very hectic for me for there was also school on Saturday! So much of being dedicated huh? Anyway, in this entry, I would like to post something which is very much related to the title.

I believe that everyone is very familiar with the Moos. I like to describe them as very interesting, especially those from the Freesian bred. With that black and white patterns on the skin, they appear very cute-looking to me. Call me a Moo-freak but they are just cute. End of discussion. However, Mr KHz tends to view the Moos differently. Just by looking at them, he can give you a long list of dishes possibly done using parts of the Moos family. To him, the Moos are superbly delicious! Hence this entry on a dish that I have prepared for his supper last night and he gave it 8/10 rating. What? You like the Moos as steak too? I don't blame you. They actually taste superb( and this entry has actually made me craving for my Mak's 'Rendang Pulau Besar').

To share Mr KHz's passion on dishes involving parts of the Moo family, here's the recipe, originally taken from Kimball Recipe Booklet-Vol.1., if you wish to try.

OXTAIL STEW

Ingredients:
1.2 kg ox tail (blanched in boiling water for 3 minutes and drained)
200g tomato puree
1 can of whole tomatoes (chopped)
2 onions (finely chopped)
4 pips of garlic (finely chopped)
2 carrots (sliced into rings)
3 potatoes (cut into wedges)
2 pieces of dried bay leaves
1.5 litre water
2 beef stock cubes
2 tbsps of cooking oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method:

• Heat the oil and saute the onion pieces till fragrant. Put in water and bring to a boil.
• Add in the ox tail pieces and bring to a boil again. Add in bay leaves, lower the heat and put on the lid. Simmer for 1 hour.
• Then, add in the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, carrots, potatoes and beef stock cubes. Put the lid and continue too cook until the oxtail is tender. Season with salt and pepper.
• Serve with slices of french loaf.

Healthy Eating? Cikyah? What?

Good morrow peeps! Do you like(or rather surprised by) the title? Anyway, what do people really mean with healthy eating? Well, I do take the skin off the chicken before cooking. I have ommitted coconut milk in my curry and use chopped tomatoes to thicken the gravy. I try not to put any MSG in cooking and I always insist on fresh ingredients. Am I on the right track to healthy eating? Tell me....

Well, as an attempt to start eating healthily, I prepared this recipe for my lunch yesterday. I have ammended Amy Beh's Healthy Pasta Salad recipe and surprisingly, my colleagues at school enjoyed it. What about me? I enjoyed it too!

Here's the recipe if you plan to have something simple yet filling for your lunch and it serves four.

HEALTHY PASTA SALAD

You need:
400g of tricolour fussili (spiral pasta)
3 pieces of Ayamas chicken ham (or you can put steamed chicken breast cut into small pieces)
1 medium size red capsicum
1 medium size yellow capsicum

For the dressing:
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
freshly cracked black peppercorns

Method:

• Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet (till al dente) and drain.
• Meanwhile, put the capsicums on your stove top and cook till black and charred. Next, put into a bowl and cover with a cling film. Keep aside for 10 minutes.
• Then, slice the chicken ham into small, thin slices and put into a mixing bowl.
• After that, peel the skin of the capsicums and deseed. Slice into thin strips and put into the mixing bowl. Then, put in your pasta.
• For the dressing, put everything in a glass jar. Put the lid on and shake till well-mixed. Pour into the mixing bowl and toss well.
• Serve.
  

When Cikyah Goes Fusion

Yesterday evening, I went down to the kitchen and realised that I had to whip up another dish for the ones prepared earlier had been gobbled up for lunch. How fortunate I was to notice a bowl of cold rice on the kitchen counter. Well, since Mr KHz had mentioned his craving for fried rice, I finally came up with this idea. Since I have to finish my button mushrooms, let's go fusion and here is the end product:

THAI-STYLE FRIED RICE WITH SALTED FISH WITH MUSHROOM OMELETTE

By the way, do they match? What do you think? Anyway, if you're feeling under the weather, just whip up this simple fried rice recipe(owned by cheiza@Myresipi.com) as I'm very confident that it can definitely beat the blues.

You need:
3 cups of cooled, cooked rice
3cm piece of salted fish( I used salted mackerel )
1 onion(halved and thinly diced)
3 pips of garlic(bashed)
5 bird's eye chillies (bashed)
2 long beans (cut into small pieces)
1/2 a carrot (diced)
2 tbsp of oyster sauce
1 tbsp of fish sauce ('nampla')
2 tbsp of cooking oil
salt (if necessary)

Method:

• Heat the oil in a wok. Then, put the salted fish. Using the back of your spatula, mash the salted fish and fry till fragrant and slightly crispy.
• Next, put in the onion, garlic and chillies and stir well. Put in the vegetables, oyster sauce and fish sauce and keep on stirring.
• Put in your rice and mix well. Have a taste in case you need to add more salt.
• Serve hot.

Apa Tengok-tengok? Nak Gaduh Ke?

Ooooooppppp! Nanti! Nanti! Jangan gaduh-gaduh. Makan gado-gado tak apa. Resepi ni cikyah dapat dari KualiOnline. Bahan-bahannya dan resepi kuah kacangnya pun cikyah dah ubah sedikit. Berselera ke tengok gambar kat bawah ni? Apa? Nampak sedap? Cuba la......

GADO-GADO

Bahan-bahan:

• 5 batang kacang panjang (dipotong-potong sepanjang 2 inci dan dicelur sebentar)
• 1 batang timun ( buang empulurnya dan dipotong-potong sepanjang 2 inci)
• 3 keping tempe (potong nipis dan digoreng garing)
• 3 keping tauhu ( potong dua setiap satu, digoreng garing dan dihiris-hiris 1/4 inci tebal)
  
  Untuk kuah kacang:
• 1 cawan kacang tanah ( digoreng tanpa minyak, buang kulit dan ditumbuk halus)
• 8 batang cili kering(dipotong2,buang biji dan direndam dengan air panas dan ditoskan)
• 2 batang cili merah
• 5 ulas bawang merah (dihiris nipis)
• 2 sudu besar gula
• 2 sudu besar kicap manis
• 1 sudu besar asam jawa (diramas dengan 1 cawan air dan ditapis)
• 2 sudu besar minyak masak
• garam
  
  Cara-cara:
• Susun sayur-sayuran, tempe dan tahu di dalam sebuah pinggan hidang.
• Dalam kuali, panaskan minyak dan goreng cili kering, cili merah dan bawang merah hingga garing.
• Kemudian, masukkan ke dalam lesung batu dan ditumbuk hingga lumat dan masukkan semula ke dalam kuali bekas menggoreng tadi.
• Masukkan kacang tumbuk dan bahan-bahan lain.
• Masak menggunakan api sederhana hingga mendidih dan masukkan garam secukup rasa.
• Bila pekat, padamkan api dan hidang bersama sayur-sayuran, tempe dan tahu tadi.
• Untuk merasa gado-gado, gaulkan kuah dengan bahan-bahan tadi dan biarkan mereka 'bergaduh'.
• Nah......sekarang boleh makan.

When The Going Gets Tough, The Tough Gets....'Larder-Ransacking'!

On Thursday morning, I cannot really figure out what to cook for lunch. On weekdays, only the kids have lunch at home so usually, I just have to figure out what's for dinner. At certain times, I really cannot think of what kind of dish to prepare. It feels as if I have cooked everything. If there's 'a writer's block', I wonder, "Is there is 'a cook's block' too?" When I am in this condition, I will go 'larder-ransacking' and here is another dish that I would recommend if ever you are having 'a cook's block'.

SIMPLE SPAGHETTI WITH CHEESE AND HERBS SAUCE

To save you from a hard time figuring out what to prepare, you just need:

• 250g spaghetti (ccoked according to instructions on the package and drained but save 1 and 1/ cans of the water used for boiling)
• 1 can of Prego Cheese and Herbs sauce
• 150g chicken fillet (cut into small pieces)
• 1 medium size yellow onion (chopped)
• 2 pips of garlic (chopped)
• 1 can of button mushroom (sliced)
• a handful of parsley (chopped)
• 1 1/2 cans of water used to boil the spaghetti ( I used the sauce can to measure)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and ground white pepper to taste
• parmesan cheese
  
  Method:
  
• In a large pot, heat the olive oil and put in the chopped onion and stir till translucent but do not brown the onion pieces.
• Next, put in the chicken pieces and stir till cooked.
• Then, put in the sauce. Stir and put in the water. Keep on stirring till the sauce is bubbling.
• When the sauce thickens, put in your spaghetti.
• Put the chopped parsley and add salt and white pepper to taste.
• Stir till the spaghetti is well-coated and pile onto a warm serving platter and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
• Bon apetit!