Wowww…I made it through this time!

How ya’ll doin’ For the past couple of months since my recent post, I’ve been whippin’ up a lot of recipes, doing my best to be imaginative and creative especially when it comes to budgeting, groceries and everyday meals. I have also recently became so in love with baking, that if not almost every lunch or dinner I managed to bake a bread, buns, pizza..you name it. I was afraid that I can’t do baking…evidently sure I can! I forgot that when I put my mind on things I know I can make it, and so can you!

So, here’s to hoping for more posts!

Serves 4-6 ( or maybe 2-4 ’cause these are totally addicting!)

For the Dough:

• 1 1/2 cups warm water (between 110 – 120 degrees F)
• 1 package active dry yeast or 2 1/4 tablespoons
• 4 1/4 cups Bread Flour
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt

Procedures:
1) In a measuring cup (some people use a large bowl) dissolve sugar and yeast in warm water and allow to sit for 10 minutes, covered. Mixture should be frothy.

2) In a separate mixing bowl, combine flour and salt.

3) Add to yeast mixture. Add melted butter. Mix with paddle attachment of stand mixer or wooden spoon (if you don’t have, like me) until fully combined.

4) Knead dough for a few minutes just until dough is smooth. Do not overknead!

5) Grease a cookie sheet. Pull off pieces of dough and roll out into strips.

6) Cover the dough with a damp cloth (i prefer cheesecloth they’re nice and light and cheap) and let sit in a warm place for 45 minutes to an hour.

7) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F and once heated, pop in the bread sticks. Meanwhile in the microwave, combine the following:

• 1 stick unsalted butter (or 1/2 cup margarine)
• 5 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoons salt

After the bread sticks have cooked for 6 or 7 minutes, brush the bread sticks with half the butter mixture.
Then continue to bake. Bake for 5-8 more minutes.
Immediately upon removal from the oven brush the other half of the butter on the sticks.
Allow to cool for a few minutes before eating.

Bon Apetit!

xx

Meowie

Meowie’s Note:

Sawasdeeka from the Land of Smiles! It took me so long to post, and another apology is not accepted.  It’s been quite busy considering the fact that were living in a village in the northern part of Thailand. So, without further ado… this is one of the Thai dishes that I love and I am proudly sharing it with you.  It is very easy to make, yet the flavours are quite exotic (for those who hasn’t been to Asia yet) and just have this really home-cooked meal goodness.

Also, I used ground pork here.  Where we are it is quite a luxury to have beef in our market. Chicken, pork and fish is quite plenty– although when it comes to seafood there is not much of a variety unfortunately. But whatever it is that we have I make sure  that every substitute is as good as the original one. That’s a bit of a challenge, but when you’re a Cook by heart, your gut instincts tells you and you have to follow it and it’s all worth it!

Enough of the blahs, and let’s get cookin’!

Here are the ingredients:

(Serves 4-6)

1 pound of ground pork, beef, or chicken
8 large cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped finely
6 bird’s eye chilies (or however many you can tolerate) I would usually put less than that, am not a spicy eater! lol.
1 large shallot or medium sweet onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon Kecap Manis
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
about a few leaves of Holy Basil

Procedure(s):

1)    If you have a mortar or an eartherware 9 inch mortar, with a wooden pestle.   Ideal for grinding herbs and spices and for making curry pastes. The   earthenare mortar and pestle also sometimes known as the Laos or Laotian mortar and pestle is commonly used to make Green Papaya Salad (sohm tahm) which is a dish of Issan, or North East Thailand. This set works best for salad making because of its larger bowl size. The spices are mashed up first with the wooden pestle and then the shredded papaya is added. This is then pounded and tossed to blend the ingredients. We go back to our ingredients…pound together the garlic, chilies, and shallot until you get a coarse paste. If no mortar, either chop them all up with a cleaver on a chopping block or pulse them into a coarse paste in a mini-chopper attached to a blender..or whatever just make it finely chopped if you don’t want to mess with such things!

Also known as pokpok, not sure of the correct spelling but....this is how it looks like =)

2)   In a frying pan or skillet, heat up the vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add the paste to it and fry until fragrant.

3)   Add the meat to the skillet and break it up with the cooking or slotted  spoon, cooked until slightly brown.

4)   Add the remaining ingredients, taste before adding the seasoning. I love my pad kra-pao a little bit sweet (my husband is not in favor with that, but he knows when I make it, he still loves it! hrhrhrhrrhr) so I would add a half a teaspoon of sugar, you can use white or brown sugar either way works fine.  I heard locals just use soy sauce instead of oyster sauce or if they can get away with just the fish sauce alone.

5)   Once the meat is cooked through, check the amount of liquid in the skillet. If it’s too dry, add a little bit of water or sodium-free broth or if you don’t have available you can drop in half of beef/pork/chicken/vegetable bouillon cube with a little bit of water.

6)   Before taking the frying pan or skillet off the heat, add the basil leaves to the mixture and give it a couple of stirs. We just want to wilt the basil with the residual heat that is still in the pan so as not to mute the fragrance of the fresh holy basil leaves and you can always add more if you love Holy Basil as much as I do, but sometimes people don’t like the smell of H.Basil. So ask first if I were you before putting a generous amount.

7)   Serve over a nice hot steamed rice, and another option would be a  Thai-style crispy fried egg on top (aka known as sunny side up) and a tiny bowl of nam-pla prik on the side. Otherwise, you can go ahead and dig in!

I am very fortunate to know the cuisine to my advantage just being here and living the life as a local folk.  I am hoping to learn more and share it with you as much as I can!

As always, Bon apetite!

xx

Meowie

Not my original recipe but sure does makes a good comeback from an oldie but good all time fave: Shumai/Shomai or Siomai whatever you name, call it or how to pronounce it, it’s all mean the same! heeeeeee..so enjoy this very simple and easy to make recipe. bon apetit!

Conveniently Serves Family Size Portion

Ingredients:

1 kilo ground pork

1 kilo ground beef (optional)

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 large carrot, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 tbsps of soy sauce

2 tbsps of fish sauce

1 large egg, beaten

salt and pepper

1 tsp sugar

a pack of 100 pcs. wonton wrappers (round is better used than square ones although it still can work the same)

PROCEDURE:

1) In a large mixing bowl, mix the following: Ground Pork or beef or you can also put together at the same time, soy sauce, fish sauce, carrots, onions, garlic, egg, salt and pepper and the sugar. Also before I forgot you can also use ground shrimp or chicken.

2)Mix all the ingredients well.

3) Afterwhich you prepare the wonton wrappers to be filled with the mixture that you made earlier.

4) Before you prepare for the wontons, prepare to boil water for steaming.

5) When making the Shumai, place the round or square shaped wrapper on top of your index finger and thumb. Push the wonton slowly until it looks like a tiny basket. Fill it up with a teaspoonful of the pork mixture and slowly crimp the wonton on the sides, forming it like a flower. Pinch and pull up and then place it on a clean plate. Repeat the same process with the rest of the wontons.

6) You can now place the wontons on the steamer basket and let it cook for about 20-30 minutes. You will know its done when you see that the pork or beef  is not pinkish anymore.

7) Served well with dipping sauce: Soy sauce with chopped onions, ginger and garlic.

Bon Apetit!

xx

Meowie

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Meowie’s Note:

I remember those rainy days back in my hometown, Bacolod City where I was born and grew up, our dad would cook up a storm in the kitchen and one of my faves that he usually do best (most of his dishes are actually!) is Pochero.  Pochero is a filipino style Meat stew dish that can use either Chicken, Beef or Pork with bananas and tomato sauce. Since filipino cuisine mainly consists of sweet, sour and esp. salty flavors.  This is one of them, our stews are mostly sweet because we put sugar in them even our spaghetti has sugar!

So, feel free to leave me a message if ever I missed mentioning here…thanks for looking and bon apetit!

Ingredients:

Conveniently serves 6-8

1 (3 lb) chicken, cut in serving size pieces

1 lb pork, cut in large cubes

2 chorizo sausage, cut into 1″ pieces

1 large onion, sliced

4 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoon pepper

4 tablespoons oil

10 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 medium onion, finely chopped

 2 ripe tomatoes,peeled and diced or1 small can whole tomatoes

1 lb sweet potatoes or you can also use russet potatoes peeled and cut into chunks

5 pieces of banana saba or green plantains, cut diagonally

1 bok choy, cut acrossin 2″ sections

2 bellppers cut into strips (I use red and yellow, they’re much sweeter and tastier)

4 stalks of mediuam bokchoy or you can have cabbages as an option

a bottle of ketchup or tomato sauce

vegetable oil  for sauteeing

2 cup of chicken or pork broth

Procedures:

1) In one pan heat oil and saute` chicken and pork separately until brown. Set aside the meats when done.

2) On the same pan, add sliced onion,red and yellow bellpeppers, garlic and tomatoes  seasoned with salt & pepper,

3) Once the onions are translucent, reduce heat and  put back the meats (chicken and pork) add some chicken or pork broth and until it comes to a boil for about 30 to 45 minutes.

4) When the meats are tender enough, add the remaining ingredients: the sweet or regular potatoes,bananas or plantains, ketchup or tomato sauce until potatoes are nearly cooked then add cabbage or bokchoy for the last few minutes.

Best served with a side of steamed Jasmine Rice.

Bon Apetit!

I made this when I was still in Bergen Beach, Brooklyn where I still have the whole kitchen and good equipments for myself. Oh well…everything is impermanent and I  have moved on and there will be more to come,  no?  First of all, I love ginger-ale and since were currently residing in Thailand its been quite a nomadic journey for me and my sweet, darling hubby and so far I have not seen a single bottle or can of ginger ale yet…tsk tsk tsk.

Going back to the subject, ginger-ale marinade is simply tasty and keeps the meat super moist and tender.  Hope you find it as dangerously delicious as I regretably miss eating lean meat nowadays…

And for those friends of ours and those who have been following our food site, I apologize for the long silence. As some of you who did not know, Me and my husband moved to Thailand last April 13th of this year from New York. We have been extremely busy with the big transition and adjustments.  Since then I myself have been out of my mind about a lot of things to do and I apologize that I have ignored this site for quite some time. So, since we are currently a little bit more settled, I will do my best to update as much as I can with the help of my husband, Eric the dubbybear.  So here goes!

Ingredients:

Serves 4-8

• 2 pounds whole beef brisket
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsps cornstarch
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• canola oil for searing the brisket
• 1 1/2 cups red pearl onions, peeled
• 1 cup diced carrot or baby carrots
• 1 cup diced celery root (celeriac)
• 1 cup diced turnip
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 (12 fluid ounce) cans or bottles of ginger ale
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cup diced potato
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped

Kitchen Ware/Cookware:    Dutch Oven/ Iron Skillet, Pressure Cooker

Ingredients:

• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 medium onions, chopped
• 1 large carrots, cubed
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 can (14.5 fl. oz.) diced tomatoes
• 2  cans (6 fl. oz.) tomato paste
• 1 can (16 fl. oz.) tomato sauce
• Half bell pepper, sliced
• 1 cup of sliced mushrooms, shitake/portabella
• 1 tbsp. powdered oregano
• 1 tsp. of dried parsley
• 1 tbsp. of powdered basil
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 tbsp. of soy sauce
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 4 cups beef stock
• salt and pepper to taste
• oil

Procedure:

1. Heat oil in a large stock pot and fry onions and garlic until the onions start to appear translucent. Add carrots and celery and continue to fry while stirring constantly. Once the carrots and celery are cooked add bell pepper and continue stir frying a few minutes before adding the mushrooms and a little bit more oil. Continue frying about two minutes with the mushrooms in the mix.
2. Once the mushrooms have softened a bit you can add the diced tomatoes, the tomato sauce, the tomato paste and the beef stock. Be sure to mix it all up and then add the herbs, the soy sauce and the Worcestershire sauce. Turn up the heat in order to bring the sauce to a boil while stirring constantly so nothing sticks to the bottom.
3. Once the sauce is boiling you can turn the heat back down, cover it and let it simmer for at least an hour. You’ll want to check on it every twenty minutes for a good stir. If it seems to be reducing too fast add a little stock and turn the heat down a little or open up the lid a bit to cool it off a bit.

Voila! Serve over the pasta of your choice and enjoy!

Meowie’s note:

Hello everyone! A very belated Happy New Year’s to all of you! I apologize for not updating this foodies website =( it’s been crazy busy for me and my sweet, sweet husband and not to mention, I hate to break it to ya, but I have gotten lazy updating it too, so yes, you’ve got no one to blame but ME! hahahaha.. Sooo…anyhoo…since winter is here, it would be nice to have some nice and warm homey soup such as this.

Presenting…the good ol’

Pancit Molo Soup

Conveniently serves family portion

Ingredients:

• 1 pack molo (or wonton, or siomai) wrappers, it can be round or square shape – both work!

Filling

• 1 lb shrimps (chopped)
• 1/2 lb ground pork
• 1 lb ground beef
• I small carrot (chopped finely) or you can buy it already shredded to save you time if you are very impatient =)
• 1 small singkamas or turnip (chopped finely)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• ½ tsp ground pepper
• 1 tsp of  patis (fish sauce)
• 1/2 cup of chopped scallions

Broth

• 1 lb of beef bones
• 1/2 lb of  salted pork belly (sliced into small cubes)
• 1 cup shredded cooked chicken (from boneless breasts)
• 1 small onion,chopped
• 3 cloves garlic ,crushed
• 2 cubes of beef bouillon
• 3 cups of water
• 3 pieces of dried or fresh bay leaf
• 2 stalks of fresh lemongrass
• 2 tbsp oil
• Toasted Garlic, for garnish
• chopped spring onions, for garnish
• salt and pepper to taste

Procedures:

1)For the filling, mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Take one molo wrapper and put a small amount of filling in the middle. Fold the wrapper making sure that the two ends meet to seal the filling inside and slightly twist the other ends in the center. Do the same with the other wrappers and set aside. Please see the sample video below via youtube:

2) In a saucepan, heat oil and then sauté the garlic and onions. Add the shrimps, shredded cooked chicken,cubed pork belly and beef bones and cook for a few minutes until brown.

3)Add 3 cups of water and go on cooking until it comes to a boil and add the bouillon, dried or fresh bay leaves and fresh lemongrass. Let it simmer for about 30 minutes on medium heat.

4) After the beef broth is completely simmered,take the bones out (you can throw them away or better yet if you have dogs, give it as a treat!) and slowly drop the stuffed molo wrappers into the boiling broth and add seasoning (salt and pepper) for flavor. Cover and bring to a boil again. Adjust the heat to low and allow to simmer for a few more minutes.

5  Garnish with toasted garlic, spring onions and a tsp of fish sauce for added flavor and serve hot.

I hope you enjoy the recipe as much as we do. My husband is now a very good Pancit Molo cook and a fantastic wrapper man. I was very proud of him  (and will always be!) when he made this for the very first time for his mom back in Canada.

Best served with some crispy fried lumpia and white rice on the side. YUUUUUM. nom nom nom.

Have a lovely din din and bon apétit!

xx

Meowie

Ingredients

Conveniently serves 4-6

Cooking spray

• 2  (1-pound) flank steaks, trimmed
• 3  cups  thinly vertically sliced red onion
• 2  cups  red bell pepper strips (about 2 peppers)
• 2  cups  green bell pepper strips (about 2 peppers)
• 4  garlic cloves, minced
• 6  tablespoons  thinly sliced pitted green olives
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 1  teaspoon  dried oregano
• 1  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/2  teaspoon  dried rosemary, crushed
• 1/2  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 6  tablespoons  sherry vinegar
• 3  cups  fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
• 1  tablespoon  no-salt-added tomato paste
• 2  bay leaves
• 1/2  cup  chopped fresh cilantro

Meowie’s Notes:

Do you have that feeling sometimes (or most of the times) that you just don’t know what you’re going to have for lunch or dinner? Well..yeah I do have those moments and that’s what I had last night.   And so I went to the local grocery store and bought some ingredients for making a very simple sandwich which all of us can do. I don’t usually make sandwiches such as these but it is quite quick and tasty.  Easy on the belly too!

Ingredients:

1/2 lb Mesquite Turkey

1/2 lb Chicken Bologna

light mayonaise

light ketchup

dijon mustard

fresh baby spinach

thin slices of fresh cucumber

provolone or cheddar cheese (or whatever cheese you prefer)

whole wheat roll

PROCEDURE:

1) You can toast or have the whole wheat roll as is when making this quick and easy sandwich (like all sandwiches are…they are very simple! lol duh.)

2) Mix the mayonaise, dijon mustard and ketchup.  Spread the mixture on both sides of the whole wheat roll.

3) Assemble the sandwich: place the chicken bologna first, then the cheese, then the Mesquite Turkey, thin slices of fresh cucumber and the baby spinach and voila! it is done!

4) Cut the sandwich in half and best served with some cold water with some lemon. YUhhmMMmm..

Bon Apetit!

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Meowie’s wiki:

Home Made Ravioli

Italian Ravioli

The Ravioli in Italian, basically means stuffed pasta. There are various ways to make raviolis and they may be filled with any combinations of vegetable, meats, ricotta, fish and chicken.

For this home made ravioli recipe here are two methods for making the pasta dough:

Ingredients for Pasta Dough

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, un-bleached
• 1/2 cup semolina flour
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp. salt

Fontana Method

Combine both flours, salt and mound on a large flat work surface. Make a hole in the center of the mound with your fist or a small bowl to create a well or the “Fontana”. Next, crack the eggs into the center of the well and beat gently with a fork or similar tool in order to break up the yolks. Using one hand, begin bringing up the flour from inside the well or flour wall to mix with the eggs. Move in a clockwise motion. Use your other hand to keep the outside of the flour wall together and upright. Try to avoid breaking through the wall.

Continue working the flour into the eggs until a ball of dough is made that is not soupy and holds together keeping it’s shape. If you have excess flour, push aside. Keep kneading the dough till a smooth ball is made. If the dough is sticky, add a little more flour but do not add too much. This will make the pasta dough tough.

When the right consistency is obtained, set the ball of dough on a floured surface, cover with a bowl or damp cloth and let set for 30 minutes. When you are ready to roll out, cut dough into 4 smaller balls.

Hand Cut Method for Ravioli

Roll out one of the smaller dough balls to create a 12 x 10 inch rectangle. If you do not have a ravioli form, take a ruler and mark gently with a kitchen knife 6 rows of five 2 inch squares. In the center of each square place a small amount of your preferred ravioli filling and gently cover with a second sheet of pasta dough using the same rolling method as before.

Using your fingers or the bottom edge of your hand, press down between the rows to create a seal on all four edges of each ravioli. Then take a pastry wheel and cut between the rows in both directions. You now have 24 Ravioli ready to cook.

Using a Ravioli Form

Roll out dough same as above to fit a ravioli form leaving a 1/2 inch over-hang. Using the top of the form, make a slight impression on the dough and place a small teaspoon of desired filling in each impression. Cover with a second layer of pasta dough and using a rolling pin, press down firmly and roll over the top of form to cut the ravioli. Turn the form over and gently press out the individual pieces. Place on floured sheets or wax paper until ready to cook.

Making Pasta Dough in a Food Processor

For making Pasta dough in a processor, insert metal blade and using the same ingredients as above, add eggs and process till smooth. In a separate bowl combine the two flours, salt and slowly add to the egg mixture till a ball is formed and the dough leaves the side of the mixing bowl clean. If dough is too sticky, add more flour. If it is too thick or dry add small amounts of water and continue to process.

When the right consistency is achieved, knead the ball of dough on a floured surface for 4 to 5 minutes, then set aside and proceed as shown above.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE MEAT BALL SAUCE:

1 lb. ground beef

1 lb, ground pork

1 cup of Red Onion, chopped finely

1/2 cup of Carrots, chopped finely

4 cloves of garlic, chopped finely

1 stalk of celery, chopped finely

1 piece of red bell pepper, chopped finely

1 egg

1/3 of a cup of seasoned bread crumbs

3 tbsps of cornstarch

fresh basil, julienned

Optional: make your own tomato sauce or buy a canned or pre-made tomato sauce

4 tbsp. tomato paste

salt and pepper for seasoning

2 tbsps. of Worchestershire sauce

olive oil for sauteing

Parmigiano  reggiano

PROCEDURES:

1) In a deep bowl mix the following: Beef and Pork, onion, garlic,cornstarch, worchestershire sauce, egg and the bread crumbs, don’t forget to season it with salt and pepper. Roll into a ball in a size of a golf ball.

2)Preheat the oven for 350 degrees before frying the meatballs. On a heated pan, cover it with olive oil and place all your meatballs make sure to have enough space to cook evenly. Once everything is browned, transfer the meatballs unto a baking dish and put inside the preheated oven, cover with an aluminum oil and cook for 30 minutes.

3) While the meatballs are in the oven, Saute the following: onions, garlic, celery, onions and carrots mix them thoroughly let it simmer for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, add the tomato paste, stirring constantly and then the tomato sauce. Let it simmer for 30 minutes.

4) After 30 minutes, stir the sauce to remove the clumps from the bottom of the pan. Remove the meatballs from the oven and place it on the simmering pot of marinara sauce, stir in till all the meatballs are covered with the sauce, let it simmer for another 5-1o minutes. Serve on top of the Homemade raviolis and top it with parmigiano reggiano and julienned fresh basil.

boun appetito e grazie per aver visitato!

xx

Meowie

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