adobo down under

Simple buttermilk cake with chocolate butter glaze

2012-02-09T21:21:00.000+11:00

Birthdays always mean cake. No matter what shape and form, colour and flavour, frosted, dusted or plain. Birthday cakes are a representation of the occasion. A symbol of the celebration. It doesn’t always need to be elaborate and three tiered. It can be a bunch of donuts piled up high poked with sparkling candles, or a neat stack of brownies arranged like wooden A-B-C blocks with colourful candles. Birthdays and cakes. Always a great combo. Like fish to water.

This recipe is adapted from Flo Braker’s recipe book, The Simple Art of Perfect Baking. Hand holding instructions, simple base recipes that are for keeps. When I made these for hubby’s birthday last month, it was truly as Zoe Bakes wrote in her blog, “Flo Braker writes as though she is teaching a class, everything is well thought out and explained so that the recipes are nearly fool proof.” Couldn’t have said it better myself. It is absolutely true.

Ingredients for the cake:

250g sifted cake flour

1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda (bi carbonate of soda)

1/4 tsp salt

3 large eggs, room temperature

250ml buttermilk, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

170g unsalted butter, room temperature

300g caster sugar

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 180* C.

Grease the bottom and sides of two 20cm cake pans. Dust generously with flour, shake off excess then line the bottom with round baking paper.

Sift the flour, baking powder, bi carbonate of soda and salt onto a sheet of baking paper, 3 times.

In a small bowl, break the eggs and whisk until yolks and whites are just combined.

In a measuring cup, combine the vanilla with the buttermilk and stir together.

In a big bowl using a hand-held beater, or in the bowl of stand mixer, cream the butter on medium speed until lighter in colour.

Add the sugar to the creamed butter while the mixer is on, in a slow and steady stream. Scraping down the sides every now and then, continue to cream sugar and butter light in colour and fluffy. Takes 4-5 minutes.

With the mixer still on, add the eggs, a tablespoon at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl when needed. Increase speed and continue to mix the batter until smooth, looks fluffy, white and increased in volume (Flo mentioned in her book that is almost resembles whipped cream cheese).

Add the dry ingredients and fold gently using a rubber spatula, alternating with a third of buttermilk mixture. Continue adding the dry and liquid ingredients, folding gently after each addition, ending with the dry ingredients.

Spoon the batter into the pan/s and smooth out with the spatula.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the baked surface springs back slightly when touched in the centre

Place the cake/s pans on a rack and let them cool for 5-10 minutes.

Chocolate-butter glaze

168g semi sweet chocolate
84g unsalted butter

If using chocolate blocks, chop these into match-stick size pieces with a knife.

Half fill a medium sized sauce pan with water and let this simmer.

In a large bowl (that can snugly on top of the sauce pan) place the butter, then the chocolate and melt over simmering water. Do not let the water boil.

Stir occasionally until the mixture is smooth and shiny.

Let this cool for at least an hour before using to glaze the cake.

This was the cake for hubby's birthday last month. Alongside the traditional request of blueberry cheesecake. A simple moist cake that's as delicious by itself, and with the chocolate frosting! Its a keeper! Promise!

How about you? Do cakes adorn your dining table for birthdays and celebrations in your home?

Snapper ceviche (Snapper Kinilaw in Filipino)

2012-01-20T20:11:00.003+11:00

Learning kitchen skills was one of the things I looked forward to when I started my course in Kitchen10. And filleting a fish was one of the highlights last year. Right up there in the top 3. Its not easy, but with the right equipment (a filleting knife) and a lot of practice, it can be a breeze! I’ve tried doing it at home more than a dozen times already. But when I’m head to head with a fish, it still gets kind of intimidating! Those nano seconds can get really entertaining, but we get on and fast forward a few minutes after, voila. We have a significant amount of flesh to consume. So I did not completely mess the fish after all.

This is so easy to prepare. 15 minutes, tops! If and when you find yourself in the Masterchef kitchen and there's that 10 or 20 minutes pressure test, this simple, fast and furious dish should be one of those up your sleeves. Just don't put too much chillies or it'll make George sweat up a storm.

To make this simple snapper kinilaw or ceviche, ask your fishmonger to fillet the fish for you. Half of the job is done already.

Fillet of 1 medium sized snapper, sliced thinly or strips

Half of red onion, sliced

2 knobs (thumb-sized) ginger, diced

1 birds eye chilli, chopped

Juice of half a lime

60ml or ¼ cup white vinegar

Salt and pepper to season (optional)

In a medium sized bowl, stir the ingredients together. Add the fish slices and stir gently to coat the fillets. Let the fish soak for 5-10 minutes.

You can opt to serve the fish with the vinegar mixture or without it.

You can make a bigger serve of this, with a bigger fish. Just let your taste buds guide you with the marinade. As a rule, the vinegar should just be enough to soak all the fish, not to cover them completely.

Make this a few minutes before you intend to serve them. As the longer the fish soaks, the more its cooked by the acid in the vinegar. And the longer it’s soaked, the flesh gets flaky and will not be as good.

In the Philippines, the fish variety locally called “tanigue” (also known as seer fish or wahoo) is used to make this dish. But because this one is made in Australia, I’ve used whatever is the locally available white-flesh fillet variety. I’ve never tried making this dish with other fish varieties, but in various parts of the Philippines, kinilaw or ceviche can also be prepared using fresh anchovies and oysters.

This is a Filipino appetizer, usually served where beer is on the menu. Add some rounds of karaoke there, and you’re definitely in Pinoy surrounds.

Here’s a useful link about varieties of fish and general cooking method.

Glazed ham, first ever attempt

2012-01-18T22:26:00.004+11:00

Please excuse the over excitement over a simple glazed ham. It is something traditional and ho-hum to some, but a first attempt in our little corner. Over the years, oven baked ham that grazed our table were usually gifts or store bought. It just seems like something too daunting to take on, like a massive DIY project. But like all dreams and goals and things that you need to tick off your list, taking the first step and just getting on with it is the best antidote to the curiosity that eventually would have killed the cat. And just like a DIY project, this one is massive! 7.8 kilograms of glazed pork ham bliss. Well, if you're into this kind of thing.

To make this glorious looking ham goodness, friends shared their recipes. First stop, carefully take skin/fat off the ham. Score diamonds on the ham then soak overnight in brine made of:

4 liters pineapple juice

1 cup brown sugar

1 440g can crushed pineapple

1 tbsp cloves

* Use a big deep plastic bowl or container. DO NOT USE aluminum or stainless container as the acid will ruin your pot.

* The ham should be soaked/submerged all the day. If you don't have a deep container, make sure to turn the ham every hour or so to make sure other parts of the ham are soaked as well.

The next day, when ready to bake/roast, preheat the oven 170*C and prepare your roasting dish/pan.

Pat dry the ham and prepare ingredients for glaze.

600g jar apricot conserve or jam

1 can 440g crushed pineapple

1 cup brown (half cup for rubbing, half cup for the glaze)

1/2 cup of the brine

1 cinnamon quill

handful of cloves for studs

Using a medium sized pot or saucepan, gently simmer the apricot jam, crushed pineapple, brown sugar, brine and cinnamon quill over low heat until the mixture has reduced and has a sticky thick consistency.

Rub brown sugar over the ham and stud the diamond scores with the cloves.

Using a pastry brush, glaze the ham with the apricot mixture in a patting motion, making sure all the sides and the diamond scores are covered. Save some of the glaze for basting.

Bake in the preheated oven for 2 hours, glazing every half hour but making sure ham is not getting burned (cover with aluminum foil, if this happens).

This ham was part of our NYE feast and coming out of the oven, it raved Oohs and Aahs with just its looks! Served with some of the left over glaze on the side, the ham took on the new year by storm. Some of it made its way into some pasta carbonara and many omelette dishes well into the week.

Does it have to be Christmas or New Year's eve for ham to graze the dinner table? With its size and effort, I guess its worth it. A smaller and leaner portion can be made with a simple glaze and kept in the fridge for those weekday sandwiches, weekend breakfasts, toasted and topped on some salad, etc. etc. So if making glazed at home is on your to do list, don't wait for the next big holiday. Make it now and invite some friends over! A ham is definitely worth making, and sharing!

Chocolate Marquise

2012-01-16T22:55:00.000+11:00

Challenges are exciting! Food challenges? Well, they’re beyond exciting! Food challenges makes me anxious, in a good kind of way. My thoughts turn to them every waking hour and I’ll be constantly searching for inspiration at every opportunity. And sometimes, the searching and the planning gets the better of me that I’m concocting some massive production in my head and I’m knocked back to reality with a holler from the other room…”MUM! S won’t share!” or “MUM, we need batteries for the Wii remote!” or MUM, there’s a spider in the bathroom!” Yada yada yada yada!” Yeah. Welcome to my world. Where serenity is a luxury, but where chocolates provide harmony amongst the living creatures. As long as everyone shares, that is!

But before you all get sucked into a vertigo of domestic chaos and parenting pandemonium, here’s a chocolate marquise dessert that takes control and restraint out of your vocabulary . Word of caution: for serious chocoholics only. This chocolate awesomeness is an indulgent dessert of 14 eggs and a whopping 1.6lbs (750g) of dark and bitter chocolate wickedness. Totally synchronised with this month's Sweet Adventures Blog Hop theme - Death by Chocolate!

Chocolate marquise is simply chocolate mousse, layered with some chocolate sponge cake and chilled before serving! Served with a dollop of whipped cream and fresh raspberries! Indulgence to the extreme!

The recipe is adapted from The Golden Book of Chocolate published by McRae Books. There were some kinks in the recipe, but negligible at this point. But may be worthwhile to point out to the publishers at a later time. In the meantime, let's enjoy this truly "death-by-chocolate" dessert attempt. This recipe has 2 parts: sponge cake and mousse. Takes a bit of time, but the rewards are worth it!

The sponge cake:

150g plain flour

4 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

4 large eggs

3 large eggs, separated

100g caster sugar

750g of chocolate heaven - Ghirardelli bitter sweet, Nestle Plaistowe Couverture and some Nestle dark chocolate melts

Preheat oven to 180*C. Grease a 30x40cm jelly roll pan or cookie sheet with sides and line with baking paper.

Whisk the flour and cocoa in a medium sized bowl.

In a large bowl with a hand-held beater or a whisk by hand, beat the eggs and egg yolk until creamy. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer, beat the egg whites and sugar until soft peaks form.

Fold in the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture.

Add in the flour and cocoa mixture in 2 batches, gently folding and stirring after each addition.

Spread the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake in the oven until springy to the touch, about 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and cool completely.

The mousse:

250ml milk

75g caster sugar

8 large egg yolks

600g dark chocolate, chopped

150g bitter sweet chocolate, chopped

250ml whipped cream

unsweetened cocoa for dusting

Using a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a hand-held beater, beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and creamy.

In a medium sauce pan, bring the milk to a boil.

Pour half the milk into the egg mixture and continue beating.

Pour the custard mixture back into the pan and return to medium to low heat.

Using a heat proof spatula, stir continuously until it coats the back of a metal spoon. (While stirring make sure the heat is on low-medium and not too hot that it'll immediately cook the eggs. Then you'll get an egg-smelling custard and scrambled eggs in there. To avoid this, lift the pan from the heat every so often while stirring and putting it back on the heat).

The custard coats the back of a metal spoon and stays on without dripping when you run your finger through.

Place the chopped chocolates in a large glass bowl, then pour the hot custard on top.

Stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.

Chocolate mousse in action!

Cover and refrigerate until cool.

Gently fold in the whipped cream, set aside until ready to use.

Assembly:

Line a 23x12cm loaf pan with baking paper.

Cut the sponge in rectangular strips so that it fits inside the 23x12cm pan (we've cut the sponge cakes smaller so that it fits with a bit of space on the sides of the pan, hence we had left bits and pieces which the girls consumed with gusto!)

Sponge cake cutting section

Place one strip of the sponge cake in the pan.

Cover with 1cm layer of mousse. Cover with a layer of sponge and gently press down.

First there was mousse. and then there was cake.

Repeat until all the mousse and sponge are in the pan.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Snug as a bug in a rug. Chocolate mousse showing off!

To serve, turn onto a plate and dust with cocoa. To slice the marquise cake, run your knife through hot water and wipe dry with a kitchen towel then slice. Warm the knife with every slice.

Serve with a dollop of whipped cream and some fresh raspberries!

There's a bonus here too! Since we've cut off the sides and ate bits and pieces of the cake, we had extra chocolate mousse to indulge in! Oh yeah! Did I mention this month's theme is death by chocolate?

chocolate mousse with fresh raspberries!

Sweet. Indulgent. Chocolate. Mousse. Heaven.

Thank you to the hostesses behind the Sweet Adventures Blog Hop: 84th and 3rd, Dining with a Stud, the capers of the kitchen crusader, Delicieux and this month's host The Hungry Australian!

This is a blog hop! So why don't you skip on down to all these gorgeous chocolate deliciousness and be inspired to make, bake and eat your way into chocolate heaven!

Banana cake with mocha frosting and salted candied peanuts

2012-01-14T22:00:00.009+11:00

"Some people like to paint pictures, or do gardening, or build a boat in the basement. Other people get a tremendous pleasure out of the kitchen, because cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing, or wood carving, or music." - Julia Child

We will be moving houses this year. The rental property were occupying at the moment will now be used by the landlord and we're seeking rental properties every weekend. We've anticipated this a long time ago. After the previous owner sold it, and the new owners came in, the inevitable is bound to happen. And we're ready. Somewhat. The property is old and we've managed to keep in tip top shape for 4 years now. But the leaks from the ceiling along the bathroom hallway (evident when it's been raining, which were heavy and sporadic before and after the Christmas holiday) is just not cool anymore. The roofing has been repaired recently, but we've been notified before the holiday break of the owner's plans. So maybe its a blessing.

And while the days we're in this house (we called home for close to 5 years now) are numbered, so to speak... we are taking every opportunity (weather permitting, humidity and all) to cook and bake and roast and grill. After all those years, getting a feel of the oven temperature with its kinks and quirks, we will be parting ways. Ah. Bitter sweet.

Set aside the moving part, we've managed to box some of the stuff we feel will not be used for the next 3 months or so. And that includes pots and pans, new and unused equipments, knicks and knacks and what-have-you's. It's also timing with the new year setting in to clean up the pantry and make use of all (still) edible stuff bordering on their best-before-use-by-dates. And in the midst of all these boxing and cleaning and clearing and organizing, our first cake of the year! The moistest banana cake we've ever tried. Frosted with some adults-only mocha frosting and a signature DL salted and sweet peanuts.

This recipe takes a bit of time management and careful thought and planning to execute. Because there are 3 elements: cake, frosting and topping, it's important that when you decide to make this David Lebovitz recipe, you've got your mise en place all planned out, and your timing as brilliant. Don't be like me. The moment this recipe came to mind, we've packed most of our baking pans so some flexibility had to come in. Instead of two 8cm round cake pans, a square 20cm (and a 5cm loaf pan) was used. Walnuts in the cake were substituted with bitter sweet chocolate bits and instant espresso with coffee essence. But the result was as expected! The cake you'll be proud to serve your family, friends and colleagues.

This took about 30 minutes or more on medium heat (to low) stirring and coating the peanuts. Make the candied peanuts a day ahead. Double the serving if you want. It's also great to keep in a jar for those in between nibbles and snacks. The sweet nuts and the sea salt flakes combo are just sensational!

150g raw or unsalted lightly roasted peanuts

100g caster sugar

45ml water

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Using a medium heavy bottomed pan or skillet over medium heat, combine the peanuts, sugar and water.

When the sugar begins to melt, start stirring. Continue to cook, stirring frequently until the sugar crystallizes.

Turn down heat to low and continue to cook, stirring and letting the crystallized sugar on the bottom of the pan, melt and slightly turn brown.

Using a heat proof spatula, scrape the melted liquefied sugar on the bottom of the pan and stir to coat the peanuts, tilting the pan when necessary.

Once the peanuts look glossy and coated with the sugar syrup, sprinkle the sea salt and the ground cinnamon over them.

Stir a few times then scrape onto a parchment lined baking tray and cool completely.

To make this moistest banana cake, prepare your ingredients:

(I've highlighted the ones which were substitutes from the original recipe)

5 medium very ripe bananas (2 cups), mashed or pureed

350g plain flour

1 and 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 and 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp bi-carbonate of soda

1/2 tsp salt

230g unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 and 1/2 cups caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp coffee essence

2 large eggs, at room temperature

90ml buttermilk, at room temperature

150g bitter sweet chocolate bits

Preheat the oven to 175*C. Grease the bottom and sides of the pan/s and line with baking paper. (In David's recipe, he used two round 23cm pans)

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes.

Add the vanilla extract, coffee essence then beat in the eggs one at a time, beating until thoroughly incorporated.

Mix in half of the flour mixture, buttermilk and the mashed/pureed bananas.

Stir in the remaining flour mixture and add the bittersweet chocolates (or nuts if using).

DO NOT OVERMIX.

Pour into the prepared pan/s and bake until golden brown or when a skewer test comes out clean, about 40 minutes.

Remove from oven and place on a rack and let cool completely.

And now for the supporting star of the show - mocha frosting! Prepare while the cake is cooling.

280g bitter sweet chocolate

1/2 cup strong brewed coffee or espresso

140g unsalted butter, cut into pieces, at room temperature

Combine the chocolate and coffee in a medium sized heat proof bowl, set over a pan of simmering water.

Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth.

Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter until combined.

Prior to frosting, esure that the cake is completely cool.

Invert the cake onto a serving plate or a cooling rack. Using a spatula , spread the mocha frosting over the cake beginning with the top and going onto the sides, until you've used up all the frosting.

Coarsely chop 1 cup of the candied peanuts and sprinkle over the top of the cake.

Because these is an adult-only moist banana cake, we've shared these to friends and some made their way to the office. Nothing but rave reviews were received! After all, it is a cake with an impressive resume! You can never go wrong with any of David's recipes! That's a promise!

Simple home made pasta sauce plus a trick

2012-01-13T22:25:00.007+11:00

Papardelle in home made pasta sauce

This is a simple pasta sauce which we have been preparing at home and which the girls love. The first ever tomato based sauce they actually ate after eating naked pasta for what seemed like a thousand years. This recipe is so simple we make them on a whim. Well, when pasta is the order of the day.

1 kilo Roma tomatoes, quartered

half bunch fresh thyme, chopped

half bunch fresh basil, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely diced

half bunch fresh oregano, chopped (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

olive oil

Pre heat oven to 180* C.

Line a roasting or baking pan with baking paper or aluminum foil. Line the tomato wedges in the pan.

Sprinkle the garlic and chopped herbs over the tomatoes.

Season with salt and pepper.

Drizzle about a tablespoon of olive oil.

Roast in the oven for 45-50minutes.

Puree in a food processor (or better if you own a blender, use that).

This yielded enough sauce to be used for the evening's dinner plus more (a cup and half) kept in the fridge for future cravings.

Voila! Pasta sauce!

And here's a pasta tip: Roughly break lasagna sheets and cook in boiling water for 8 minutes or until al dente. And there you have: pappardelle! Just make sure you stir the pot constantly to avoid the pasta from sticking to each other.

Pappardelle are the thick sheets of pasta mostly sold in good providore and deli's. But hard to find at your local supermarket. So improvise if you can. And instead of the boring spaghetti, you have something different!

The lasagna sheets turned pappardelle also were part of a carbonara dinner which we made using left over glazed ham from the new year's eve feast.

Carbonara pappadelle with NYE glazed ham

Going back to the star of the show - ze pasta sauce. We are keeping this in our pasta dish repertoire for good. Because being a mum means discovering dishes which my kids will love, this is one simple and humble sauce which shall be the start (base) of many more sauces to come! Magnifico! And as for the pasta noodle, my girls said, "ingenious!" A bit biased maybe. They're my kids after all!

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Raspberry mousse with mango and kiwi garnish

2012-01-02T20:52:00.004+11:00

"For last year's voice belongs to last year's language

And next year's voice awaits another voice

And to make an end, is to make a beginning." T.S. Eliot, Little Gidding

I can't remember when raspberries started making their way into our fridge. First of all they're not as sweet as strawberries. Most of the time a punnet costs more than just a few songs, and most of all they don't last like most berries. But some how, some time ago, in some way, raspberries took us on their pink awesomeness. And when they're in season, we are taken by the reins and succumb to their blushed coral appeal. We usually buy them fresh in punnets and keep them in the freezer. J loves to nibble on them straight from the freezer. Frost and all. She's the one who loves sour and tangy and sweet all at the same time.

Red-crimson-pink-blushed-coral euphoria!

This raspberry mousse was inspired by one of my adventures in Kitchen 10, when Chef A had a few of us join the other class in Kitchen 4 to prepare-cook-and-serve-food-for-service, to actual paying customers. And rostered for dessert, this raspberry mousse rocked my world right there! And so the challenge was to recreate this dessert for our new year's eve feast. Turns out so easy to make and the only bit of hurdle was finding the gelatin leaves (which was a quick visit to The Essential Ingredient in Rozelle, $6.95 for 15 gold standard leaves).

measuring ingredients. mise en place.

2 punnets fresh or 250g frozen raspberries

120g caster sugar

20ml lemon juice

3 gelatin (gold) leaves

250ml thickened cream

Puree the raspberries, sugar and lemon juice in a deep small sauce pan or jug, using a stick blender (or a conventional blender).

*Option at this point, to run the puree through a drum sieve for a smoother silkier mousse. If you opt to do this, you will have lesser amount of mousse, and may have to use more (double) quantities of raspberries to yield the 8 dessert cups.

Puree heaven!

Soak gelatin in cold water to soften the leaves for 5-7 minutes, then quickly dip in a small bowl with about 1/4 cup warm water. Remove and squeeze out gently. Add to the puree and stir gently.

Whisk the cream to soft peaks and fold gently through the puree mix.

Scoop into margarita or martini glasses (or use plastic dessert cups). Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to an hour or until the gelatin has set.

Chillin' and groovin'

While the mousse is chilling, prepare the mango and kiwi garnish.

3 large fresh kiwi
2 mangoes
100g caster sugar
1 cinnamon quill
1 star anise
200ml water

Peel and dice the kiwi and mango and set aside.

In a small saucepan, boil the water, sugar, cinnamon and star anise to make a light syrup. Strain through a fine sieve and set aside to cool.

To serve, top the chilled raspberry mouse with the about 2 tablespoons of the diced mango and kiwi fruits and drizzle with the light syrup. Add more of the fruit and syrup if preferred.

Note on gelatin use. Here's a link if you opt to use powdered gelatin or agar agar as substitute for gelatin leaves,

As is tradition, we spread out some round fruits (Filipino tradition to welcome the new year with round-shaped fruits to attract prosperity) and served up some special dishes to welcome another year!

As this is a delayed post, I'm sure every one had a blast celebrating the coming of the new year, just as Sydney exploded with psychedelic colours and showed the world what a grand diva she is.

We celebrated with our own quirky psychedelic colours in sync with my in-laws from back home with a 70s themed party. Peace, love and happiness to you all for 2012! Yeah baby!

Nectarine upside down cake

2011-12-29T21:15:00.004+11:00

"All the world's a birthday cake, so take a piece but not too much." - George Harrison

December birthdays are always so festive. Actually the whole world becomes festive in anticipation of Christmas, which an office colleagues declares as unfair because everyone gets side tracked, except for the celebrants themselves. It never occurred to me but it does happen. Every year, I take the day off on my birthday and what do I do? Christmas shopping for everyone else! After a few hours of self-centered activities (a spa trip or dinner), the rest of the day is spent buying Christmas presents for every one else. Christmas is my favourite time of the year, that's why!

But birthdays should always be special and unique every year. And birthdays mean cake. So this year the girls helped me make this one. A special summer birthday cake with nectarines, inspired from a Midwest Living recipe found through Pinterest.

Nectarines are very new to us. They're peach-like taste appeals to the girls as much as their quirky pits. We love the yellow variety more than the white and buy them by the box full! There are no fresh nectarines or peaches in the Philippines. If there are, they will cost a fortune and are usually imported from the US or Australia. These are the local stone fruits we've grown to love come summer here in Sydney. Along with Australian white and yellow peaches and cherries and mangoes! My girls love these fresh and these are lunch box regulars soon as the early signs are visible at the local fruit shops. But sometimes, we get too excited and everyone gets over-nectarised. So instead of throwing them away, we keep them in the fridge and this time took David Lebovitz' advice to make use of fruits in baking when they are in season! So here goes our nectarine upside down cake!

5 medium sized nectarines, pitted and sliced

60g unsalted butter

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

150g plain flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

120g unsalted butter, room temperature

150g caster sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

125ml milk

Preheat oven to 175*C.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan on the stove, or using the microwave.

Mix the butter with the brown sugar. Pour and spread evenly into a 20cm round or square cake tin.

Place the nectarine slices on the brown sugar mixture and set aside.

Square cake tin. Brown sugar and butter love!

Don't be too stingy with the fruit! Spread them over the brown sugar mixture as much as you like. No rules here.

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl using a hand-held beater or the bowl of a stand-mixer, cream the butter until soft and creamy.

Add the sugar and beat until combined.

Add egg and vanilla and continue to mixing for about 1 minute.

Alternately add the flour and milk in three batches, slowly mixing together with each addition.

Pour into the prepared tin/pan and bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. To loosen cake, slide a butter knife on the sides of the cake pan and invert onto a large serving plate. Cool for a further 15-20 minutes.


Cooling cake, waiting for some loving!

The cake had that slight hint of ripe nectarine (which could be a put off to some) and red skin added a tinge of colour to the caramelized topping. This looked and tasted like the festive cake that it is. Moist and sweet and lovely addition to our cake repertoire. Who say's upside down cakes have to be always be pineapple?

Aahh. Birthday happiness.

A how to post - blanched almonds

2011-12-27T22:28:00.012+11:00

Not the most exciting post there is, (but I reckon this post has the most photos!) but its something learned from Kitchen 10 so worthy of a post. When making the almond bread recently for home consumption and as edible gifts, instead of buying already-blanched almonds, we did the blanching ourselves. Just because there are some things we must try. If not develop the habit out of it, the trying part always becomes a worthy experience – whether it’s a disaster or a success. Trying something for the first time should always be in one’s to do list. It doesn’t have to be grandiose and adrenalin-rushing adventures. It can be anything . Even as simple as poaching an egg, or blanching some almonds.

Pour the almonds into the boiling water

Not much to say here as blanching is what it is – blanching. Boil some water, add the food item and let it sit for about 5 minutes, scoop out with a spider or slotted spoon and voila – blanched food! It can be anything from green beans to broccoli to well, almonds!

The skins get loose in a few minutes. Take off from heat at this point.

The skins easily peeled off. Can you make out my finger prints? Think I'm giving too much away!

Pinch away and voila - naked almonds central!

To peel the skins off, simple pinch the almonds and let it slide from your grip away from the skin. The girls loved helping out taking the skins off which had us left with just enough almonds to bake with. One of life’s simple pleasures – spending time with your kids in the kitchen, helping out as much or as little as they can, eating as you merrily along before a distraction such as TV and DS games breaks the scene and you’re back to your own quiet measures.

Naked almonds and their skins. Yin and Yang.

Skins! Off to your compost bin if you have one or straight into your garden bed!

Green happiness. Buko (coconut) pandan sweet salad. Festive Favourites Blog Hop

2011-12-24T23:56:00.019+11:00

Sweet coconut and pandan salad

I got excited when the hostesses of the Sweet Australian Adventures announced another blog hop with the theme Festive Favourites early this month (with this month's host 84th and 3rd). So excited that all visions of sugar plums danced in my head. Well, not quite exactly those but all these Filipino festive favourites - bibingka (native rice cake topped with cheese or salted eggs), puto bungbong, leche flan, buko pandan and the Filipino tropical fruit salad. But getting carried away is my middle name. I had bought all the ingredients to make the bibingka but never quite got to make it after my macadamia obsession and the endless caramelizing demand got the better of me. It's the silly season after all. So after careful bibingka planning even to the extent of buying 3 packs of banana leaves, I've taken the easier route. To spread some green pandan happiness. No baking involved. Just a lot of chilling and stirring. Cool, right?

This is a favourite in our home but I've never quite gotten to actually making it. In Manila, my brother in law has a special supplier where he gets tubs of these for parties. And its totally the best there is. But we don't have Nathaniel's here so making the salad dessert was the challenge of the day.

If you're keen on making this, you'd have to make a trip to your local Asian or Filipino shop, if there's any close by and get some: nata de coco , buko pandan essence and Alsa Green Unflavoured Gelatin. And while you're there, you can also check if they have frozen pandan leaves and frozen young coconut strips. Otherwise, you can take the challenge further and get some fresh coconut from the market.

Nata de coco - more green love

2 - 90g box of Alsa green unflavoured gulaman (or any unflavoured green gelatin)

3 pandan leaves

few drops of buko pandan essence

1 900g jar nata de coco (doesn't have to be green), drained

4 packs 454g packs frozen young coconut strips, thawed and drained

300ml thicken cream

1 395g can sweet condensed milk


More greens - buko pandan essence, pandan leaves in knots and the Alsa Gulaman (gelatin powder)

Frozen young coconut strips

To make: First stop - gelatin.

Prepare according to packet instructions and quantity - using a small pot boil the water with 3 pandan leaves.

Add the gelatin mixture and continue to mix until gelatin has dissolved. Remove pandan leaves and pour into molds. Chill for an hour or until just set.

Once ready, gently cut into small cubes. Set aside.

Pot with the green wonder - gelatin and pandan leaves

Setting in the traditional Filipino llanera - aluminum oval pans

Assembling the salad

In a large bowl, pour the drained young coconut strips. Add the nata de coco, condensed milk and cream. Stir gently to mix the ingredients together.

Add about some drops of the buko pandan essence (about a teaspoon but not too much as it can be overpowering) and the chilled gelatin.

Gently stir as you don't want to ruin the pandan gelatin.

Pour into plastic recyclable containers and freeze overnight.

Thaw in the fridge for an hour or more before serving.

The gelatin added last - stirring gently

Ready to freeze in recyclable containers

One can't get enough of green happiness, I reckon! Especially during the silly season! A very merry Christmas to you all! I wish you all a festive feast shared with family and friends! And if you're in Sydney during the Christmas break, why not drop by and share some Filipino festive favourites. You might also like to belt out a few songs with the karaoke/videoke. We do have a magic sing at home!

Maligayang pasko sa inyong lahat!

(A merry Christmas to everyone!)

This is a blog hop. Click on the links below to see all amazing festive desserts created by other food bloggers arounds the globe!

Macadamia and maple sticky cinnamon rolls

2011-12-23T21:45:00.001+11:00

In one of the office morning tea a few weeks back, someone brought in sweets from the Bourke Street Bakery. 2 things shook my world – the macadamia honey caramel sticky buns and the chocolate tart and have never been the same since. After that week, I’ve been obsessed with recreating the sticky buns (will settle the chocolate with raspberry tart later). This created serious obsessions with buying packets of macadamia nuts, attempting to caramelize them. And along the way adapting the Pioneer Woman's fool proof recipe – cinnamon rolls.

This fool-proof cinnamon rolls is exactly that. Simple and fool-proof and so the challenge left was to create the sticky sauce – where honey was substituted with real maple syrup.

Recipe for cinnamon rolls from here or Ree's hand-holding-step-step 101 on cinnamon rolls here or you can use whatever rolls or bun recipe you're familiar with.

While your rolls are proving/rising, make this caramel macadamia topping inspired by a Sticky Buns recipe from the Taste of Home

60g butter

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

63ml maple syrup

1 cup chopped macadamia nuts

Combine all ingredients except nuts, into a sauce pan and stir until sugar has melted. Stir in macadamia.

Gently pour onto the prepared rolls.

Bake in the preheated oven as you would the cinnamon rolls - 180*C 15-20 minutes or until golden.

*This sauce was good for three 8cm aluminum trays of cinnamon rolls.

The result – a gorgeous looking pan of cinnamon rolls with crisp macadamia topping. The taste: ho-hum and definitely not mind blowing. It tasted alright like a regular cinnamon rolls bun with some nutty macadamia, but it was a bit dry and not as sticky as it looked. Although my work colleagues consumed the contents of the 2 pans in one sitting, I thought another attempt would be a worthy challenge. Maybe after the silly season. And maybe use that actual Sticky Buns recipe?!

Meanwhile, I’ve got heaps of macadamia nuts to caramelize. The girls and hubby have been infected with my macadamia obsession, they’re raving and ranting for more. The demand is just crazy! I need to find a wholesale supplier! Seriously!

Maple caramelized macadamia nuts

2011-12-22T21:39:00.015+11:00

Kitchen accidents that turn out successfully are a thing of beauty. Take for instance our mixed berry jam that started simply as a kind of experiment which has now become a basic necessity in our home. And this caramelized macadamia nuts are no exception. The initial intention was to create a kind of sticky topping for some rolls recreating a Bourke Street Bakery treat. The first batch was out of 100g pack which after caramelizing and cooling, turned out to be so amazingly good and addictive, there was nothing left to top the rolls. And so our obsession to caramelized macadamia began.

To make these we used:

100g pack or 1 cup natural macadamia nuts

(you can chop them in half if they’re whole nuts)

½ cup caster sugar

1 tbsp maple syrup

Place sugar and macadamia in a sauce pan over medium heat and let the sugar melt, stirring occasionally to avoid sticking on the pan and burning the sugar and nuts. Once sugar has melted, add the maple syrup and continue to stir until nuts are covered by the sugar.

Pour onto a tray lined with baking paper and let cool.

You can transfer them into jars and keep for when you want to use them. Great for those in-between snacks or while watching your favourite DVD or serve alongside some ice cream. I promise you, they won’t last long.

Mini chocolate cake with chocolate ganache frosting - edible Christmas gifts

2011-12-21T23:27:00.001+11:00

Christmas is a favourite time of the year in our home. The girls are always counting the days as soon as any early signs of Christmas is up – whether its at the shopping centres, mail in catalogues or ads on TV. At times my thoughts turn to how commercialise it has been over the years. Children making never ending lists and parents succumbing to the temptation. Must admit I can get dragged into the commercialism and get carried away myself, but economies of scale always dictates what is just and practical. Which means B will not be getting her own Iphone 4S at the age of 14 even though most of her friends at school have them. And not every single DS and Wii game will be bought because we’ll be sharing some love with the local Rotary Club’s annual gift appeal and this year, we’ve opted to get some pencils and school supplies through World Vision. Not much in the grand scheme of things. But it spreads the real essence of Christmas – appreciating your own blessings and sharing them.

This year, is the start of edible Christmas presents coming from our kitchen. There’s this feeling that it’s a MUST, following 2 semesters of a Commercial Cookery course. So besides the almond bread given to work colleagues and teachers and the chocolate chip cookies for the girls’ simple class Christmas party, these gorgeous looking mini cakes made their way to friends’ homes.

These cakes were made using 9cm spring from cake tins. The cake recipe is the fail-safe perfectly perfect chocolate cake (same one we use for the girls' 8th birthday cupcakes) from the Hershey’s Cocoa container, and iced with a simple chocolate ganache frosting.

The simple chocolate ganache frosting was made with:

1 cup thickened cream

230g/8oz bittersweet chocolate

(We used a combination of 200g Nestle Plaistowe and 30g Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips. Of course, you can use either or any brand. I prefer dark chocolates though.)

Cut the chocolate bar into chunks and place in a bowl with the chocolate chips.

In a small saucepan, heat the cream until just about boiling point. Add to the chocolate and whisk until smooth.

Cool to room temperature.

*The ganache will thicken once cooled which will make for easier frosting. If its too thick or has turned hard, simply whisk (with a hand-held beater or whisk) again until the thickness is of spreading consistency.

The cakes were sprinkled with icing sugar and adorned with mini candy canes before sending off wrapped with lots of love and Christmas thoughts. Ross Grittin has a lovely message today in the Sydney Morning Herald, which I just have to quote, " ... for it's in giving that we receive happiness." Spread the love everyone and be happy!

Really moist banana bread/cake

2011-12-19T21:28:00.008+11:00

Summer has officially kicked in. Really? Yes, really. But wait. Hang on. Where's the sun? Where's the warm breeze? Where's the clear blue sky? Where's the buzzing, annoying flies? Yes, we're in cranky-ville. Kinda got used to the anticipation of sun and heat once December kicks in. But instead, got cooped up at home - weather changes always make me sick. And being at home doesn't always mean lying in for this mum. There's always something to be done. And some bananas on-the-verge-of-browning, were not spared.

This banana bread/cake is the moistest of its kind we've ever tried at home adapted from allrecipes by Rose with some minor tweaks. These were sweet, moist and so good we made them as cupcakes/muffins for the Filipino Christmas Lunch at our local church and bought another batch as sliced loaf to the school's celebration morning tea.

To make this 23cm x 12.5cm banana loaf:

3 medium-sized bananas, mashed

2 eggs

79 ml buttermilk

125ml vegetable oil

1 and 1/2 cup caster sugar

1 and 3/4 cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bi carbonate of soda

1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 170* C. Grease and line loaf tin.

Using a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Add the eggs, buttermilk and oil and mix until all the ingredients come together. (This make take some patience as you will notice they won't like each other very much at first - oil separating from the milk, etc, but it will so don't fear).

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, bi carbonate of soda, sugar and salt.

Add to the banana mixture and gently stir with a spatula or wooden spoon, until the mixture is all combined.

Pour into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 1 hour to 1.5, depending on oven mechanics, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

Btw, did you know browning, rotting bananas make the best banana cakes? I used some lady finger bananas in the first try and it turned out just as nice. Adding some nuts and dried fruits would make this banana bread extra appealing. Which I'm sure you already know. I love that the recipe uses vegetable oil instead of softened butter as in other recipes, which takes a bit of preparation time. This one's definitely one of those fast and furious types. And did I already say its super moist!

* These were made the first week of summer in Sydney, but have been slothing lately after catching the flu bug. A delayed post from ADU

Quick and easy salsa verde dressing

2011-12-18T22:53:00.006+11:00

Using a mortar and pestle, ground a bunch of parsley, basil and 3 cloves garlic. Once greens are almost fine,, transfer to a small bowl. Add 60ml olive oil, juice of half a lemon, salt and pepper to taste and stir to mix through.

Spoon on your grilled salmon, or chicken or anything else that you think might need some extra lovin'.

Creamy cheese rigatoni with chilli and mild salami

2011-12-18T21:52:00.000+11:00

There's a Sydney-based blog that is so inviting with its stunning photos and absolutely mouth watering food! I love What Katie Ate's site because of her classic and vintage food styling. Its something that I hope one day to be able to replicate. In our home, our pasta repertoire is as limited as the number of fingers in one's hands. And browsing through Katie Quinn Davies' site is always inspiring. The minute these photos came into full view, was the very moment I took off for the local providore to get some Pecorino cheese and mild salami and made this for dinner with a few tweaks. This is a lovely creamy pasta dish that was "maginifico" in every bite. The combination of the tomatoes and cream gave it that X factor. And the flavour of the salami just evolves into something beautiful.

To make this creamy rigatoni pasta dish:

500g dried rigatoni pasta

1-400g can diced tomatoes

1 medium sized onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

200g salami or chorizo

150g mushrooms, quartered (we used large cup mushrooms)

1 red chilli, finely diced

25g butter

1 cup cream

1 cup grated parmesan cheese + extra to serve

1 cup greated pecorino cheese

1 bunch basil, chopped

1/4 cup sliced black olives

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Prepare the rigatoni pasta per package instructions. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat about 2 tbsp olive oil then sweat the onions. Add the garlic and cook for 3-5 minutes over medium heat.

Add the butter, mushrooms, salami and chilli and cook for 10 minutes stirring the ingredients together.

Add the canned tomatoes, black olives, cream and basil leaves and stir to combine all ingredients, then add half of both cheeses.

Add the rigatoni and stir to coat the pasta.

Spoon into a rectangular baking dish and top with the remaining cheese.

Bake in a preheated 180* C oven for 30 minutes or until the cheese has melted.

My salami slices were way too big though. Next time, I might just dice them smaller. What's my best gauge that a new dish tried has been successful? When at least one requests to save some for lunch the next day! Makes my heart go a-flutter. Spontaneous trips for ingredients become all so worth it.

Mixed berry jam (or coulis if you may)

2011-12-11T14:30:00.003+11:00

Vaccumming the fridge. That's what I call it. Once a week, I'll try and turn the fridge upside down (well, not literally) and bring out all left-overs for the week and we'll have a feast! Once a quarter, I do the "check-all-expiry-dates-on-jars-and-bottles" and throw out all sad-looking things that have not seen the light of day for a million years. But I'm not that bad at keeping food. Usually, fruits and vegs are kept in the freezer before they become sad and wilted. And one day, while doing a litany of tasks with the girls, we found half a punnet of raspeberry in the freezer, added a punnet of blueberries and strawberries and voila - an accidental jam was created. The girls loved it so much they begged for it in their lunch box the next day! Happy days!

The jam has since gone, and we've made a new batch. This time with precise quantities of ingredients, so we can share them.

2 125g punnets raspberries

3 125g punnets blueberries

1 250g punnet strawberries

1/4 cup and 2 tbsp caster sugar

20 ml water

3 tbsp water mixed with 3 tsp arrow root

In a medium sized sauce pan, stir the sugar and water together until the sugar has dissolved.

Add the fruits and continue in medium heat until the fruits have softened.

Take off from heat, add the arrow root mixture and stir to thicken the sauce.

Return to low heat and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour until the mixture has reduced.

Allow to completely cool before transferring to a jar or container.

* While the jam/sauce is simmering check every now and then to make sure it has not dried up.
* We used this as jam on breads and filling in cakes.
* This mixture strained over a fine mesh or sieve can also be used as a coulis for cold desserts.

It may not be the traditional way of making jam (in the absence of pectin and other preserving agents), but it did serve its purpose in our home. Jam on toast and everything nice.

A new favourite - love raspberries!

Banana fritters (turon) and top 10 Pinoy street food

2011-12-07T22:40:00.001+11:00

Street food or hawker food is one of the many things that makes a place unique. Think century eggs and tofu at the Mongkok Market in HK. Or Roti Canai in Malaysia, or Fried Kway Teow in Singapore. And when it comes to hawker/street food, the Philippines is not one to miss out. Showcasing indigenous produce, street hawkers and peddlers are a common sight. Almost every corner in metropolitan Manila is crowded by these enterprising Pinoys - from sliced green mango accompanied with shrimp paste individually wrapped to day-old duck eggs (balut) served warm with small serves of sea salt.

Like all indigenous foods, most of these hawker dishes are part of the nation's staples. And outsiders may take a bit of caution to partake on some of them. Most street foods in the Philippines are characterized by a mixture of flavours and texture which makes it uniquely Pinoy. Some really unique and yucky to new explorers, but just a single taste is usually life changing.

Which brings me to the subject of one of the top 10 street foods in the Philippines - the good ol' banana fritters. Having tried to make these at home has ignited a renewed admiration to all street hawkers in Manila, particularly their pride and years of technique and skill in preparing their wares. I'm not one to say it was easy making these banana fritters. Every time I make them, I come out with completely different looking and tasting dish. Same ingredients, same process, different results. It should be easy but somehow, replicating the same banana cue or banana fritter from that side of the Pacific eludes my oh-so-amateurish culinary prowess. But that will not stop me from sharing my banana fritters 101 (okay, its not actually one hundred and one but you get the idea?!).

5 large lady finger bananas, cut into quarter strips

Square spring roll wrappers, about 10 sheets

1/2 to 1 cup raw sugar or brown sugar

vegetable oil

Peel the skins off the bananas and cut into quarter strips.

Cut the spring roll wrappers into half - diagonally. You should end up with triangle sheets.

Wrap each of the banana strips - starting fro tip of the triangle, roll the wrapper while folding both sides and continue rolling to the end. Rub some water on the edges to seal.

In a deep wok or pan, add oil and heat until smoking HOT. Add the sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar has turned into a syrupy mess.

Quickly add the wrapped banana fritters and fry until the wrapper is crispy and golden and the caramelised sugar has coated the fritters.

Take off from the pan and drain on kitchen paper towels or on a bamboo strainer/spider over a bowl - to drain the excess oil.

Banana Fritters 101:

*The pan needs to be really HOT before you add the vegetable oil. It makes a big difference in heating the fat.

* Sugar needs to be stirred to coat the banana fritters. Otherwise, the sugar will just melt with the oil. You want to sugar to caramelise, not dissolved in the oil.

* Buy firm lady finger bananas - the skins have pale yellow tinge. Not too ripe as you'll end up with soggy bananas after cooking.

And for those of you planning on travelling down or up and experience the 7,100 islands of the Philippines, here's my Top 10 Pinoy Street Foods as voted by expert nationals (well, not exactly food experts but family and friends of adobo down under. They know what they're talking about, so I assure you it's all safe to trust them. Or if you want other suggestions, there are heaps out there. Google it!).

1. Banana cue / Banana fritters - are deep fried lady finger bananas coated in caramelized brown sugar, while the fritters are wrapped (as posted in the recipe). Surprisingly, they rank as the most favoured of all street foods by most Pinoys.

2. Bbq isaw - are barbequed innards of pork and chicken. These are cleaned, boiled, skewered and barbecued along street corners at markets and in most residential suburbs. They are dipped in spiced vinegar and usually eaten as a snack or appetizer with some cold beer. Must try for the brave soul! Its not too bad, really. I mean, I've tried lamb brains so there.

3. Pork bbq - a usual sold together with the bbq isaw, these are pork cubes marinated in truly unique Filipino ingredients and grilled. One of the most common street foods there is.

4. Camote-q (sweet potato strips coated with caramelised sugar) - similar to the banana fritters without the wrapping, these are sweet potatoes deep coated with caramelized brown sugar. These are cooked deep fried and sold in skewers with its equally famous ally - the banana-Q.

5. Fish balls / squid balls / chicken balls - these are as common as jeepneys and tricycles! Although fishbals are not limited to street food dining these days with the surge of small kiosk franchise in shopping centres, nothing can compare to the conventional method of eating fishball in the streets. Grab a stick, prick your own fishballs, count them, dip them in the vinegar/sauce, eat, then go through the cycle again. Pay as eat, or pay before you go. Mind you, the fishball vendor knows how many you consumed!

6. Balut / penoy - not for the faint at heart, balut is a fertilised duck egg that is boiled and eaten from the shell. Similar to the Vietnamese hot vin lon, the Filipino balut is mostly sold by hawkers, from late night to the early hours of the morning. Widely believed to be an aphrodisiac, they are eaten as a high protein snack. As Than Ngo (Noodlies) mentioned, "balut (and hot vin lon) is not for everyone". And Anthony Bourdain said "its a difficult dining experience".

7. Green mango with sauteed shrimp paste - you don't have to be Filipino to love mangoes. The Philippines exports some of the best mangoes across the globe, where the harvest is abundant all year round. Although a liking for the not-yet-ripe green mangoes might take a bit of time to get used to. These green mangoes sold as street food are peeled, sliced (sometimes skewered), wrapped in plastic and served with some sauteed shrimp paste as dip. A must to try - sour and salty, sweet and spicy. Its all there. To give you an idea, Market Manila has a post on this Filipino favourite.

8. Kwek-kwek - is an exotic looking street food at first glace, but simply, these are just boiled quail eggs coated in some batter then deep fried. It is similar to a dish made famous by Dani Venn in the Masterchef Season 3, which is son-in-law eggs. The orange colour is attributed to the addition of annatto seed powder. Best eaten dipped in spiced vinegar.

9. Adobong mani (roasted peanuts) - A great appetizer its commonly available in pubs and bars. Easily replicated at home, but you'll find these more common in the streets. Make-shift carts with fry pans and gas tanks, these are cooked on the spot - deep fried in vegetable oil, with heaps of salt, garlic and sometimes chillies.

10. Taho is fresh silken tofu served with sugar syrup and pearl sago or tapioca. It is originally classified as street food until the food street bandwagon invaded malls and shopping centres. If you can experience buying and eating this from a side street, that'll be a whole new different experience. You'll have to be up early though. Taho peddlers are usually up selling their fares from dawn till 10am. You''ll experience warm and really fresh silken tofu.

All of these are certified hawker food which you can savour at any street corner in metropolitan Manila and in markets around the country. So if you're there for a visit, why not sample a few and be warmed by the hospitality of the Filipinos. Mabuhay!

Coffee flavoured meringue

2011-12-05T22:58:00.003+11:00

Soft. White. Shiny.

It's officially summer in the south eastern hemisphere down under and yet Sydney was embraced yesterday with chills. Just not fair. Especially the last few days the temperature was fluctuating like crazy. Warm and sunny one day. Cold and chilly the next. Warm in the morning, then showers in the afternoon. Our bodies can only take as much temperature changes. Or maybe, I'm not as fit as I thought. 8yo -A has had the colds and coughs and has been absent from school for 3 days and passed on the virus to me plus more. The thing about being sick in this parts is that there's really no time to sit down and rest, especially with school kids and a hubby who has a crazy work schedule. There's still the daily lunch box and meals to be made, errands and bills to pay, etc. etc. Domesticity and parenthood. Story of my life. 8yo-A and me took pocket naps in between shuttling her siblings to school and the afternoon pick up. Which is good, for the most part. Worst part of it is - I don't think I can settle down. These pocket power naps makes me uneasy that there's that part in me that still finds the need to move. Do something. Make something. Whatever. Being at home is no rest for this mum. Oh, look! Those lady finger bananas are turning brown by the second, why don't we make some banana bread out of it? (found a recipe online which claims super moist and shall be for another post).

Crisp. Light brown. Coffee. Kisses.

These coffee flavoured meringue (kisses) were a take off from the great Australian Pavlova Bloghop, where a Cherry Pavlova Mess was created. I was on a roll and got addicted to whipping egg whites! (The egg yolks were put to good use - refrigerated and used in fried rice)

To make these coffee meringue kisses, the pavlova recipe from the Cherry Pavlova Mess was used, but substituted 2 tsp coffee essence for the 1/2 tsp vanilla! Although the 2 tsp only made for a subtle hint of coffee, I reckon another teaspoon would make this a real grown up picker-upper!

For keeps. Away from little hands. There's caffeine in there!

Store in nice jars, these coffee meringue kisses are great as edible Christmas presents! Just don't know how long it would keep for. I'm thinking maybe 5 minutes?! These are seriously melt in the mouth treats!

Brioche bread and butter pudding

2011-11-29T22:37:00.001+11:00

Puddings made with bread and butter are just the easiest things on the planet! If there is one sweet dessert recipe that should be included in your repertoire, it should be the humble bread and butter pudding. It is a simple baked dessert or morning/afternoon tea treat. It is easy. The ingredients are almost always, staples in your everyday pantry. Easy, simple and yet quite impressive when served.

This Brioche Bread and Butter Pudding was one of the 2 dessert tasks last week in Kitchen 11. Supposedly simple, but Chef A had other plans. He insisted that with the time we had in class, we could make brioche from scratch – Plan B. And try I did. First attempt failed. – dough thrown out. Second attempt 50/50 – dough looked wet but we still went ahead and baked them. The turn out? Nice looking brioche loaf and muffins, but hard as rock. Great for practicing tennis, as what Chef A jokingly said. So after wasting about 5 egg yolks, it was time to go back to Plan A – use the dry store ready-to-use brioche and prep for dessert.

This recipe is from the Prepare Cook and Serve Food for Service, TAFE NSI Booklet.

1 loaf brioche bread

7 eggs

450ml milk

450 ml cream

230g caster sugar

50g sultanas

1 tsp vanilla extract / essence

apricot jam, for spreading

butter, for spreading

icing sugar

Preheat oven to 160*C.

Grease baking dish or ramekins (use either a medium-sized oval or rectangular dish or individual oval ramekins) with butter.

Slice the brioche bread thinly, retaining the crusts.

Spread with butter and jam.

Layer into a greased baking dish or ramekins.

Sprinkle sultanas and orange rind over the bread.

In a large bowl, with a balloon whisk, mix the eggs with the sugar. Add the vanilla, then the milk and cream and gently mix together.

Pour the custard over the bread and ensure it is well soaked in prior to baking.

Bake at 160*C for 40 minutes and almost set in the centre.

Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve warm with Sauce Anglaise and a sprig of mint.

*Sauce anglaise is one of the greatest creation there is in the dessert world! A tricky recipe learned in Kitchen 10 which shall be for a future post or you can have a look at David Lebovitz post).

And to make up for all the egg yolks lost and egg whites gained, a corner of Kitchen 11 was concocting some other sweet dessert - a practice attempt at the classic Aussie Pavlova with dramatic results (see photo). Which paved the way to the Cherry Pavlova Mess, which hopped its way into the first ever Australian Pavlova Bloghop which made its way into our tummies, which made everyone smiled and my heart melted. Amen.

Make some brioche bread and butter pudding today! It's easy! You don't even have to use brioche. Any bread would do! In fact, we've got so much mini croissant that might just end up being pudding later on in the week!

Cherry pavlova mess

2011-11-26T22:57:00.004+11:00

Pavlova. Cream. Cherries. Mess. Heaven.

Six years in Sydney and playing around in the kitchen, cooking and baking and creating all kinds of culinary mess and never ever did this classic Australian dessert icon make its way from our oven to our table. More of from Woolies shelves to our table. Convenience, right? Yeah, but not quite. A Filipino learning to be Australian should have tagged this as priority in her kitchen cooking projects. It's one of those dishes/recipes tucked away somewhere with hope of some day giving it time and effort and love. Some kind of unfinished business in the kitchen similar to Irvin's list from eatthelove. I've separated yolks from whites many many many many times, but never got around to making pavlova! But after meeting and connecting with some of the amazing food bloggers now hosting a Pavlova Blog Hop - 84th and 3rd, The Hungry Australian, Delicieux, The Capers of the Kitchen Crusader and Dining with a Stud, there's no more excuse not to try and make the classic Pavlova at home.

Making Pavlova is not really difficult these days, thanks to the technology of hand-held beaters and stand mixers. Beating egg-whites to the stiffest stage possible is easiest now with modern equipments as opposed to how it would have been back in 1935 when the supposed Hotel Esplanade chef Bert Sachse made this dish for the visiting Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova (Whether or not it was Sachse in Australia or a NZ chef who made the first pavlova is still debatable at this point, but that's a matter we can leave for the historians!) Back to this classic Australian dessert....

This Pavlova recipe is adapted from the joy of baking

4 egg whites (used free-range XL eggs)

1 cup caster sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp white vinegar

1/2 tbsp corn flour

Pre heat the oven to 130* C. Line a baking tray with parchment paper (you can also trace a 20cm cake tin on the parchment paper as guide to a perfect circle)

In a large bowl with a hand-held beater (or the bowl of the stand mixer), beat the egg whites until foamy or frothy

Foamy, frothy egg whites

Add the caster sugar, a tablespoon at at time and continue beating/whipping until the meringue (sugar and egg whites mixture) can form stiff peaks, and looks shiny.

Stiff peaks

Stiff peaks! Meringue! Love!

Add the vanilla extract and continue beating.

Tip the white vinegar over the meringue and sprinkle the corn flour, then using a spatula gently fold the meringue until the mixture comes together.

Spoon the meringue into the baking pan and spread evenly with a spatula.

Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the pavlova has a pale cream colour.

Turn off heat and leave the oven door oven for another hour to let the pavlova rest and cool completely.

White!

Off-white! - Such a drama queen! Our Pavlova!

The trickiest part in making this dessert, like making meringue is the absolute perfection in technique, heat and timing. But no matter how it turns out - pristine white and uncracked, or whimsically dramatic with a darker tinge and full of cracks, top it with some cream and fruit or make a mess out of it... heaven!

Pavlova mess with cream and nectarine poached in cherry syrup

Pavlova topping 1:

1 cup thickened cream

1 tbsp icing sugar

1 cup fresh cherries - pitted

Pavlova topping 2:

1 cup thickened cream

1 tbsp icing sugar

2 nectarines, pitted and diced

1 tsp strawberry jam mixed with some sour cherry syrup

Whip the cream and sugar together until stiff and thick.

Spread on top of the pavlova and top with the fruits.

What's the greatest reward in making a pavlova? The choice of topping is endless! And you'll be rewarded with heaps of love and kisses, enough warmth to melt your heart but hopefully not your pavlova!

Thanks again to the ladies behind the first Australian Pavlova Blog Hop - without your endless reminders in twitter, this Filipina learning to be Australian would never have had the opportunity to create a big sweet mess in our little kitchen. Sometimes, all we really need a little nudge and inspiration - to say "today is the day I did something for the first time". One tick off my own kitchen's unfinished business! And actually opened a lot more messes to create in our kitchen such as coffee meringue, which shall be for a future post.

Australian Pavlova Bloghop - Check out other Pavlova recipes below. Clicking on an image will open the link with a new window.

Almond bread

2011-11-22T22:16:00.000+11:00

As its approaching Christmas, there’s been an accumulation of lists on our refrigerator door. Evolving wish lists from the girls which they place there and add a few as wishes pop into their little heads. More puffles and Club Penguin stuff mostly take up the space. A few books and some art stuff. B who is now 14 has announced that she doesn’t need a list this year and that she’s only wishing for 1 thing: an iPhone 4S. Don't we all?! I mean, how amazing is Siri, right?! Ah. Christmas. Silly season indeed. The season that brings out one's inner child.

For what seems like ages, it has been my plan to make home-made goodies as Christmas presents to friends and families. Despite the depleting inventory of my reused jar collection, Christmases have come and gone and no home-made goodies left our home as cute-gourmet presents. Most of them have found solace and company in lollies and gummies, some cookies, left-over baking ingredients, sugar, flour and other staples. They are serving their purpose for now. And then finally, a light bulb lit in the form of Almond bread!

A few weeks back, in one of the lessons in Kitchen 11, Chef A had one of us make some almond bread to accompany the dessert for the day . He had this tried and tested recipe from his files which turned out nice and crispy almond breads/biscuits similar to the Italian biscotti. I’ve been meaning to make them since. When SMH featured them last month in Cuisine, that was it. These are the easiest home made gifts for Christmas.

I’ve tried them twice. The first time did not turn out good – the bread was crumbly when I started to cut them with a serrated knife (bread knife) which can only mean I’ve over-baked it. And so a second attempt was obviously in order. This one turned out just right. After 20 minutes in the oven, the bread is still soft, cooled and then kept in the fridge overnight. Using a bread knife/serrated knife, the bread is cut thinly and then baked for another 5 minutes or until crisp.

You can use store bought blanched almonds here, or you can buy almonds with the skin on. Simply boil some water, then simmer the almonds gently for about 5 minutes. Once a bit cool, you can squeeze the skins off the almonds and they will come off easily.

This recipe is adapted from Chef A's collection of tried and tested kitchen recipes which he quietly shared in Kitchen 11.

2 egg whites

1/2 tsp salt

120g caster sugar

120g plain flour

120g whole blanched almonds

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Prior to baking - pale brown colour

Preheat the oven to 180* C.

Grease and line a loaf baking pan or a disposable aluminum loaf tray.

Using a stand mixer or hand-held beater, beat egg whites with salt until frothy or foamy.

Slowly add the sugar (a tablespoon at a time) and continue beating to form a meringue.

Using a spatula, gently fold in the flour, almonds and cinnamon.

Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for 30-40 minutes at 180* C. (I've baked them for 20 minutes because we have a crazy oven that fluctuates its temperature as it breathes. If you have a trust worthy oven, just follow the actual recipe of 30 minutes, then check every 5 minutes to make sure the bread has not burned. The bread should be cooked but pale in colour.)

Cool on a wire rack, then wrap in cling film or foil and place in the freezer for 1 hour (or in the fridge overnight).

Slice thinly with a serrated knife and place on a baking tray.

Bake in 140* C preheated oven until crisp or for 5 minutes.

Store in an airtight container.

Post baking - crisp and golden brown

The inspiration to make home-made Christmas presents came when I saw these mouth-watering divine caramel sauce from the Betty Croker website via Pinterest. The one important thing to consider when making edible gifts is the shelf-life of the food. For which the caramel sauce reviews and feedback was not as I had hoped for. So, I'm betting my wooden spoons on these breads/biscuits!

How about you? What are your Christmas gift giving plans this year? Do you like making home-made edible presents? Would you like it if you got one of these jars for Christmas?

Black and White Calamansi

2011-11-16T21:34:00.000+11:00

The calamansi (pronoused ka-la-man-see)

The calamansi portrays an interesting aura in black and white. They're actually unrecognizable. Who would think these are calamansi (a Filipino lime variety similar to the cumquats). They look more like some sort of gum balls.

Thank you Susan from The Well-Seasoned Cook for another exciting Black and White Wednesday! Looking forward to this week's gallery!

PS - These calamansi (well, some of them) were used to make this sweet and tangy Calamansi (and lemon) cake from previous post.

Calamansi (and lemon) cake

2011-11-15T23:02:00.003+11:00

We had a lovely weekend with the Oandasan’s at Ropes Crossing and then spent the entire Sunday spring cleaning for the quarterly Ryde Council Clean Up day. Its amazing how much junk we hold on to. After a quarter, we still have stuff to get rid off like empty boxes from purchases (aka stand mixer, rice cooker, etc etc)! Why in the world we keep those empty boxes puzzles me. We keep them up for a few months, but then throw them away after a few. Ah. The human mind is indeed perplexing.

Calamansi (sometimes called Cumquats)

When D gave me these gorgeous green and yellow calamansi last week, I had no plans with them except for the occasional juice and some squeezed in soy sauce for a traditional dip with pork skewer bbq. But when Trisha of Sugarlace tweeted about a calamansi cake, it was an “Aha why not!” moment! I have had a recipe for lemon yoghurt cake which we usually make when lemons abound so the calamansi was a trial-and-error idea. And while calamansi are too small to get some rind of these beauties, we still used some lemon rind and maximized on the calamansi juice for the flavour.

Calamansi is a Filipino indigenous lime variety, which is similar to the local cumquats. Its seldom that these are available locally – either you get a small snack-pack size zip lock bag for $2 at Filipino shops, or you can get them by the kilo courtesy of friends like D. Thank God for friends!

The recipe I used for the cake is the Lemon Yoghurt Cake posted awhile back with ingredients obviously tweaked and substituted and adapted the calamansi glaze/icing from Sugarlace’s post.

1 and 3/4 cups sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cup oil (we used vegetable oil)

grated rind of 1 lemon

1/2 tsp salt

5 tsp calamansi juice

1 cup natural yoghurt

2 cups self-raising flour

In a bowl, mix rind, oil, eggs and sugar with a fork.

Add remaining ingredients (salt, calamansi juice, yoghurt and flour) and combine well.

Pour into a 20cm cake pan and bake at 180 degrees C for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack for about 15 mintues or more.

Glaze/ice the cake when the cake is entirely cool.

Calamansi Glaze/Icing

1 cup icing sugar

3 tbsp calamansi juice

Mix with a whisk in a small bowl until smooth.

Like all sweet and tangy combo cakes, it takes a mature palate to take in the taste. The calamansi flavour actually kicks in each bite. A very distinct flavour from lemon or lime. The cake is moist, sweet and just a tad bit tangy. A somewhat Filipino cake, dressed in Oz.

PS - This is my first attempt at actual food styling - used a pale blue fabric off cut. After listening to Peter from Souvlaki for the Soul during the conference workshop and reading more of his brilliant tips from his latest post, I've been hunting around second hand shops looking for those odd vintage and classic pieces. I just hope I'll be able to stop to catch up on some more cooking! It does get kind of addictive!

Tartlet of caramelised onions with clotted cheese and roasted tomato

2011-11-12T13:26:00.000+11:00

It has been an exciting week! After the fabulous day, my tweeting ability has multiplied a thousand fold. Well, maybe exaggerating a little bit. But still learning. This was in my twitter timeline on Friday" #ff. And embarrassing as it may be to admit it, but I had to consult good ol' friend Google. I'm hopeless, but will keep up. Technology is amazing!

Now going back to the kitchen, these entrees were from last week's Lesson 4 in Kitchen 10. Was on the roster for entrees/appetizers. And this kept me going from 3-7pm. It did take that long, including resting the dough, blind baking the pastry, making the clotted cheese, roasting the tomatoes and cooking the caramelised onion. What made it exciting was cheese making and making the short crust pastry - a first time for this Pinoy chef wannabe. And while its seems overwhelming to look at the long list of ingredients and to do's, this can be done in a home kitchen on a weekend. Who say's multi-tasking is only for the corporate environment?

ready for service

Enough of the chit chat! Let's get to work! First things first! Savoury short pastry!

125ml water

250g unsalted butter

500g flour

1/4 tsp salt

The basics of short savoury pastry: 1-2-4: meaning one part water, two parts fat, four parts flour.

Cut the butter into small cubes, and rub the flour with the butter in a large bowl until it resembles fine crumbs. (This is something that doesn't happen in a rush. You need to rub rub rub the flour and butter for a good 15-20 minutes to get good results. You know you're done rubbing when there are no more big lumps of butter, instead of you have a bowl of grainy flour).

Add the salt and the water and mix together using your hands. You will create a soft dough.

Do not overwork.

Wrap in cling plastic and rest for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.

After resting, grease the tart pans with butter or oil spray. Line the pastry onto the pan, cutting edges with a kitchen scissor then press firmly.

the dough pressed onto 8cm disposable tins

Cut out round or square baking paper and lay these onto the pastry. Use baking beads or beans and pour these onto the pans. Bake blind for 15-20 minutes in a 200*C preheated oven.

the pastry ready to be baked blind using mixed beans

The pastry is ready when they are golden and are easily lifted off the pan/molds.

Set aside to cool.

Its time to make the fillings! Roasted tomatoes first!

5 large Roma tomatoes

1/4 bunch thyme

salt and pepper

Cut the tomatoes into quarter. Season with salt and pepper and chopped thyme.

Place on a baking sheet or roasting tray and slow roast at 140*C for approximately 40 minutes.

And while the tomatoes are roasting in the oven, prepare the caramelized onions.

200g (about 2 medium sized) Spanish onion, sliced

1 garlic clove, minced

20g brown sugar

1/4 bunch basil

50ml olive oil

20ml balsamic vinegar

In a medium sized pan, sweat the onions with garlic and olive oil.

When cooked (onions have softened), add the sugar and caramelise, add vinegar and seasoning.

Set aside in a plate or bowl and cool.

To serve: arrange the caramelised onions and roasted tomato in the pastry. Serve topped with clotted cheese and some basil leaves. Or if you're not making the cheese, fresh ricotta or some crumbled feta would be just as great.

Have a great weekend everyone! And while we're still coasting through the middle of November, best to get on with some Christmas shopping!