The Best Recipe

This is the best ever recipe and the greatest meal one would like to have.

MAIN COURSE : LOVE

INGREDIENTS : HUGS + KISSES TO TASTE

ALWAYS SERVED WITH A WARM HEART

Dessert - Apple Salad

So what's for dessert today?

Try this - Green apple salad. It is so easy, no cooking is required. Teenage girl should tried this out as green apple is full of vitamin C and anti aging.

I tried this dessert many years ago at my friend's party, it really give you the sense of satisfaction. It was so delicious so I decided to do it at home. But it turn out a failure; it was edible but just less zest. So I consulted my friend the secret recipe behind it. Since then I have been serving people this wonderful dessert whenever I served dinner or lunch.


Some apples are too sweet, some are too sour. I would recommend Granny Smith green apple. It has both sweet and sour flavors just nice for this dessert.

Prepare a bowl of salt water, just 1/2 tsp of salt will do. This will prevent apple from oxidizing (I think this is the word. It turn brown if you leave it without salt water). Peel the skin if you don't like to taste the hardness of the apple skin.


This are peanut candies. Buy the one with sesame seeds (or you can add some roasted sesame seeds later). Don't use ground nuts or roasted peanuts as they wouldn't give you the sweetness of the candy we want.


Grind the candy but don't use machine. The ground peanuts should give you the mixture of some finely crushed and some rough texture.


Next you will need some mayonnaise. If you like it creamy, then you add in more. I normally use 1 tbsp for a bowl of apple.


Scoop up some chilled apple into a bowl, add the mayonnaise, add 1-2 tbsp of ground peanuts. Mix well.

Enjoy!!

Apple's nutrition facts

Apples have been found to reduce the risk of stroke and Type II diabetes and to improve bowel function. It helps prevent the growth of prostate cancer cells (existence of Flavonoids), and the skin of apples seem to inhibit the reproduction of colon cancer cells (existence of phytochemicals).

Two recent studies indicated that eating five apples a week helped lower the risk for respiratory diseases like asthma. Apples also help protect arteries from plaque build up, and eating two apples a day or drinking a 12 ounce glass of apple juice reduced the effects of cholesterol. Also, pectin and other acids in apples help aid digestion.

That’s why apples are great served with rich foods like pork or lamb or duck.

Apples have more nutrients if eaten raw with their skin, but they should be washed thoroughly. Just under that wonderful colored coat lies half of the Vitamin C content of the apple. The skin also has lots of fiber and is the source of the apple’s characteristic fragrance. A raw medium apple (two and a half inches in diameter), eaten with the skin, has only 80 calories, 5 grams of fiber, and is a great source of potassium. It also contains calcium, phosphorus, iron, and Vitamin C and A. The apple is composed of 80-85 percent water, 5 percent protein, and 10-15 percent carbohydrates. It also is sodium free and fat free.

Recipe - Steam Prawns

This is one of our favorite family dish. You can really taste the sweetness of the prawn and the fragrance of the Chinese cooking wine.

I like to cook this dish as it is very convenience and easy to prepare and the most important it keeps my kitchen clean, no after cooking mess, no oily scene. Yes, it is very fast too.

Just one thing, if you are at the high cholesterol risk, may be you have to cut down the intake of prawns.

I always prepare the necessary ingredients earlier and keep them in the refrigerator; as steaming a plate of succulent prawns will take just short 5 minutes.

So you will need about 8 -1 0 big prawns. De-vain them and keep the shell intact. Trim the legs and cut the tail. Cut away the antenna too. So they look neat and presentable. Marinate the prawns with 1 tbsp of Chinese cooking wine, 1/2 tsp of salt and sugar respectively. 10-20 minute will do but you can keep it longer. Just leave them in the refrigerator until you want to steam them.

Now let's prepare the sauce. Mix all the ingredients below in a bowl.

a) 200ml of water
b) 1/2 tsp of chicken stock granules
c) 1 1/2 tbsp of Chinese cooking wine
d) 1 tbsp of abalone or oyster sauce
e) 1 tbsp of wolf berries (Kei Chee). This is good stuff, it enhances ones eyesight.
f) 1 tsp of corn flour

Steam prawn just take 5 minutes. They are best to serve hot so steam them when you are ready for a meal. Arrange them nicely on the plate, spread finely shredded young ginger on top the prawns. Break an egg in the middle.


Then pour the sauce over.

Okay steam them for 5 minutes, no less no more. At Exactly 5 minutes, take them out from the steamer. The prawn will be just cook, they are succulent.

Yummy! Try it out.

Fried French Bean with Dried Scallop

Fried french bean is a little bit too oily so you will need a kitchen towel to absorb the excess oil.

Only 5 ingredients you will need to prepare: finely chopped garlic (1/2 tbsp), baby anchovies(1 tbsp), dried scallops (2 pieces), 1tbsp of oyster sauce and french beans.

Soak the dried scallops for at least 30 minutes. Break the scallops into stripe similar size as anchovies.


Heat up generous amount of oil. Fried the french beans for about 1 minute or 70% cooked.


Leave the fried beans on the kitchen towel to get rid of the excess oil. Now fried the anchovies and scallops. Put them both on the kitchen towel too.

Pour away the excess oil, leave about 1/2 tbsp on the wok (or saucepan). Saute the garlic, return the fried beans, anchovies and scallops backed to the wok.

Add 1 tbsp of oyster sauce. Mix well and they are ready. When cooked, the french beans should be crunchy. If the texture is soft, then they are overcooked.

Try it out. It is very delicious. The french bean is very sweet by itself.

I always storing up some anchovies, dried shrimps and dried scallops for contingency as sometime you might not have fresh ingredients on hand. And these 3 things can do many wonders.

Mango Sago Pudding

We Malaysian can always find mangoes easily and there are always so many different varieties around. Some imported one can be bought from supermarket but they are really expensive.

People said it has been the national fruit of India. Some Hindu refers mangoes as their "food of the gods" and the leaves are ritually used for floral decorations at Hindu marriages and religious ceremonies.

Mangoes are very low in saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium. They are also a good source of dietary fiber and vitamin B6, A and C.

For those who are physically active, whether working out or constantly on the go, mangoes are a great way to replenish that lost potassium.

So we are going to make this healthy and holy fruit pudding and have a blessed day. It is wonderful to have a bowl of cold mango sago pudding on a hot sunny day. Yummy!

What you need is a reasonable sized ripe mango which given sweet smell and colored yellow. The look of the mango itself is very appealing. Make sure the mango is 100% riped otherwise you can't really taste its sweetness and aroma.

Firstly, cook the sago. Sago was cooked when it turned transparent and you thought it has gone missing in the hot boiling water. Separate the sago from the water using a sieve and soak in the water. Let the sago to chill in the refrigerator.



Secondly, peeled the mango and cut it into half. Keep it chill if possible before you blended it. The mango I used today is called Chukanan Mango.

We are going to blend half of the mango with 1 tbsp of sugar and 3 ice cubes using a blender to make a smooth paste (like a smoothie). Pour the mixture into a nice dessert bowl. Add 1 - 2 tbsp (or more if you like sago) of chilled cooked sago into the paste, 2-3 tbsp of cold water if you don't like the paste too sticky and mix well.

Lastly, cut the other half of the mango into cubes. Spread on top of the mango smoothie.

This mango sago pudding provides a very strong mango smell and pleasant flavor. It is very delicious. Try it out and it is best served chilled.


Enjoy!

Cheese Tarts - Part 2

Here are some pictures on the process of making the tart shell.

Do you know how to clean the mess especially the bowl used to cream butter? Yes, use the soft spatula to scrub the bowl first then pour hot water into it.

Cream the butter, sugar and egg.
Add flour gradually





Jenn is making a tart shell

Now Everybody Can Bake - Cheese Tarts

My friend Ailee came over yesterday to teach me how to bake a delicious cheese tarts. The process wasn't as difficult as I thought.

This is what you need:
125g of butter
50g of granulated sugar
1 egg
250g plain flour
1/2 tsp of vanilla essence (optional)

Cream butter (soften) and sugar together at medium speed until fluffy. Add the egg and continue at medium speed until they are well mixed.

Now pour the flour gradually into the mixture and mix them with spatula or wooden spoon. When the mixture has become coarse dough, use hands instead to rub the dough until they are well mix and smooth.

Press a small piece of dough into the mould one by one. This will make about 60-70 pieces of small tart shells (bite size). Making tart shells need some skill but you will become more skillful after you have done a few tarts.


Bake the tart shells in the oven at 180 degree Celsius for about 15 minutes. The tart shells just like biscuits so you can actually prepare more and keep it for future use. What you have to do is just prepare the cream cheese and bake them one more time.

This is the freshly baked tart shells.



Now we are going to prepare the cream cheese.
250g of cream cheese
20 g of butter
50 g of granulated sugar (or lesser)
1 egg

It is best to first chop or break the cream cheese into smaller pieces (as it is quite hard) before cream it with butter and sugar. When the mixture turn fluffy, gradually add in the egg. Keep beating until they are well mixed and harden.

Fill the tart shell with cream cheese. Add a bit of blue berry jam, make a design or a pattern with a tooth pick. Bake them at 150 dc for 10 minutes (not to hot as the tart shells have already baked earlier).


As I love blue berry jam so I top it up.