Chicken and Mushrooms Sheppard's Pie

For the chicken filling:

2 chicken brests or thighs -minced

1 big onion diced

200 g button mushrooms (quatered)

 4 cloves garlic - minced

optional - green peas

salt and pepper

For the sauce:

olive oil

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp flour

5 tbsp wortershire sauce

1 cup chicken stock  (1/2 cube )

1 cup beef stock ( 1/2 cube -or you can use 2 tablespoon brown gravy powder mixed with 1 cup water)

For the mash:

4 US Russet potatoes - skinned  and boiled

1 cup milk

2 tablespoon butter

1 cup shredded hard cheese (any kind)

1/4 cup chive or parsley

1/4 cup plain yogurt

1 egg yolk

salt and pepper to taste

1.Heat 2 tbsp olive  oil in a skillet and fry the mushroom and diced onions until onion becomes translucent and mushroom nicely browned. remove from pan and put aside. Into the skillet goes the chicken meat. Stir fry until meat changes color. Add in the minced garlic and and the mushrooms/onion. Season with salt and pepper

2. Meanwhile prepare the worstershire sauce. In a saucepan heat up 2 tbs butter and add the flour. Whisc until flour starts to thickens. add in the chicken and beef stock (liquid) and the wortershire sauce. Bring to boil. Pour over the chicken filling in a put the entire mixture in a casserole or individual dish and set aside.

3. As for the mash which is going over the chicken, mash the potatoes. While it is still hot add in the butter and milk and mix well. Add in the yogurt  and cheese. Next in goes the chives and parsley. Mix everything well and season with salt and pepper. To give the mash a crisp sides and peaks, whisk in 1 egg yolk before slathering (or piping) the mashed potatoes over the chicken mixture. Sprinkle with some paprika to give it colour.

Bake in the oven for 30 -40 minutes or better broil for 30 minutes.

Lemony Shrimp and avacado Salad with Mustard vinegrette dressing

The shrimps in this salad provide ample protein for this light meal  .

15-20  medium or large sized shrimps - shelled and deveined (butterfly)

juice of 1/2 a lemon

juice of 1 lime

lettuce, red/yellow bell pepper, 1/2 an avacado, tomatoes

salt and pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper the shrimps and squeeze the lemon and lime in. Heat up the olive oil in a pan and cook shrimps for about 4 minutes.Remove and set aside to cool . Mix all the vegetables and put in the shrimps. Dress with  mustard vinegrette  (recipe available in earlier posting)

 

Wholesome Tuna and Cheese Sandwich or Open Faced Sandwich

Well every one knows sandwich is good for kids but how do we get all the goodness of the vegetables into the sandwich so that the kids are fooled into eating them? I 've come up with this recipe with cut up vegetables to trick my kids into eating them out of my hand..:) 

 Open faced sandwich is great for entertaining

 Wholesome and nutricious ..

Here is what you will need...........................

wholegrain bread slices

1 can of tuna flakes

3 tablespoon of mayonaise

half a stalk of celery diced up real small

1 medium sized tomato cut into wedges and remove the seeds and dice up  the flesh into small pieces too

1 cup grated cheese (any hard cheese you like- I use Beqa cheese)

some kind of lettuce or curly endives

salt and pepper 

Mix all the ingredients together and spread over the bread. Place the lettuce / endives on top and place a second piece of bread on top .

Mushroom Chicken Carbonara with Linguini/Fettuchini

Made this tonight but SHUCKS!!forgotten to take a photo!..will try to make this again (since the kids loved it :)) and post the picture later. OK here's what you will need:

2 tbsp olive oil

250 grams button /shitake mushrooms (sliced)

2 tbsp onion (diced) -optional

a little fatty beef bits (to replace 6 strips bacon since I do not take bacon)

2 skinless chicken thighs (thinly sliced)

100 ml apple juice ( or use water with 1 tablespoon honey)

200 ml evaporated milk (or thick cream)

2 med egg yolk (lightly beaten)

1/2 tsp mustard

1/4 cup fresh parsley (chopped)

1 tsp Italian herbs (optional)

salt and pepper

300 gm linguini /fettucini boiled with salt.

Heat olive oil and add the onions and beef bits. Stir fry until onion is slightly browned. Add the mushroom and fry until mushroom is slightly dry. Remove from heat and set aside. Leave the oil in the pan

To the oil add the chicken slices. Stir well. When  the chicken has changed colour, add in the juice (or water and honey) and mustard. Bring to boil . Add the milk (or thick cream) and the mushrooms. TURN THE HEAT OFF. whisk in the eggs and add in the herbs, salt and pepper and the chopped parsley. Toss in the pasta. Voila!! MAMA MIA!!

Daging Ketuk Padang (Crispy Beef Jerky Padang style)

This recipe I learned from my maid who learned from my sister Aina

but mine is extra crispy!! :)

The beef slices are crispy and the chili and onion sweet and mildly spicy.. 

300 grams of beef

4 chillies

1 big onion

1 and a half tablespoon sugar 

pinch of salt

vegetable oil for frying

1. Boil the beef block till cooked through.

2. Thinly slice the beef

3. With a meat tenderizer or a pastel pound the beef slices until resembles torn pieces of cloth (LOL! what a description!)

4. Heat up oil for deep frying (low heat is better)

5. Deep fry the beef slices till crispy. Drain on paper towel.

To make the topping
1. Cut up onions and red chillies into smaller pieces. If you prefer you may take the seeds out. 

2. Using a pastel and mortar coarsely pound the ingredients. If you are using the food processor, a few spurts will do.

3. Heat 3 tablespoon of vegetable oil. 

4. Put in the chillies and onion paste. Fry till translucent. 

5. Add the sugar and salt to taste. 

6. Turn of the heat and smoother over the crispy beef slices.

Chocolate lava cake (aka baked pudding)

WARNING!! NOT FOR THE CALORIES COUNTERS!!

I'm still feeling guilty from yesterday serving! This is the ultimate in chocolate dessert. My first try but with this cake you can never go wrong. The only difference in the quality of the chocolate used ..

This is a recipe from  Foodwishes.com - one of my favorite cooking blog. Please ..please ..please try it ... if you're a chocolate lover

dust with powdered sugar

cake on the outside pudding on the inside

 2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

5 tablespoon butter

3 tablespoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

3.5 oz dark chocolate ( 1 chocolate bar - but remember the chocolate bar in Malaysia is slightly bigger)

3 tablespoon flour

4 tablespoon good cocoa powder

pinch of salt

1. Butter small remekins generously . Sit them in a casserole 

2. Whisk the eggs and sugar till light and foamy (lemon colour)

3. Melt (by defrosting ) the butter and chocolate in a microwave oven for a few seconds

4. Blend in the eggs and sugar mixture

5. Finally add in the cocoa powder, flour,salt and vanilla and mix well.

6. Put in a plastic bag cut in a corner and squeeze into the remekins .

7. Refrigerate for 30 minutes

8. Pour hot water in the casserole and bake in a 425  degrees oven for 15-20 minutes 

9. When cooked, run the sides with a knife and turn onto a plate. Garnish with powdered sugar or strawberries in syrup..yummy....

...ENJOY!.....

Express Penang Hokkien Mee

Aren't we lucky these days.. There are numerous products in the market which can help make cooking a cinch in the kitchen. There is really no excuse to say you don't know how to cook or you don't have time to cook. It just takes a little trip to the supermarket or specialty market to do a little research and come out with the best ingredients to keep in your pantry for rainy days. Some nights like tonight,  when I am not in the mood for an elaborate meal, ready pastes like this Penang Hokkien Mee paste is a real savior! Yes, to make yourself is easy enough.. blend together some dried chillies, red onions, garlic, lemon grass and dried shrimp then fry till fragrant and seasoned with a little sugar and salt before adding water. But hey...why bother when you can have all of that done for you! All you have to do is Mix the paste with water and bring to boil. For the noodles and condiments, its really up to your imagination and whim and fancy. Blanche some yellow noodle, prawns, and greens. Lay them over a bed of Romaine lettuce and pour the soup over . You can also add bean sprout, boiled eggs, fried tofu and fish cakes if you like. This is my how my Express Penang Hokkien Mee looks like....

 Thanks to this wonderful product ....