Tasty Bits

Pan Seared Halibut Topped with Ginger Scallion & Cilantro

2009-05-12T12:15:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day began early for us. We dined out at a local Szechuan restaurant. This place was bustling with Chinese and non-Chinese patrons and energetic waiters taking orders and serving food. We were seated almost immediately and as soon as we placed our orders, the dishes arrived in probably less than 10 minutes. The food was fabulous and we will definitely return to try out more dishes. If you live around here and interested in checking it out, here it is. Since we dined out the evening before Mother's Day, followed by next day brunch at a dim sum restaurant and more pampering. I so deserved it but I couldn't take it anymore. It's not that I don't enjoy being pampered but to me, eating out consecutively is a bit too much. Not that I'm trying to safe hubby a few bucks but I happen to know that morning that at our local market, there are some deals going on for Salmon, Halibut and Ribeye Steaks. All I wanted for dinner was some fresh tasty, Omega3 packed healthy option, FISH. Since hubby and son are Red Meat kinda guys, my mental menu would work out perfect for everyone. Hence the photo posted here, lightly pan seared Halibut drizzled with hot oil over fish. Everyone was happy at the end of the meal and proceeded to watching a nice movie at the comfort of our own couch. Fruit was our dessert.

What you Need:

About 1 lb of Halibut (about two pieces)
Finely shredded young ginger, about 1 Tbsp, more if you like ginger
Chopped fresh cilantro
About 2 tsp light soy sauce
About 2 Tsbp Olive Oil or Peanut Oil
A dash of Sesame (optional)

Let's get Frying:

Clean and dry fish, set on plate. Heat frying pan over medium high, add 1 Tbsp oil. Lower temp to medium, add fish gently into pan. Leave them there and don't disturb for about 10 minutes. At this point, you can browse through a few pages of your favorite magazine, I like Saveur. Or go to the loo. Or chopped up the condiments, that sounds more like it.

Use a thin spatula, slowly insert under the fish. When it's done right, the fish should come off pretty easily, slowly flip over. The fish should have s light brown crust. Again do not disturb the fish for another 10 minutes at medium temp. The trick to tell whether the fish is done, is when clear juice floats up to the top of the fish. Gently and slowly tranfer the fish with the spatula to warm plate/s if you are sharing. Arrange shredded ginger on top of fish, sprinkle some green onions and cilatro over ginger and around the fish, add a dash of sesame or two. Set the plate/s close to the frying pan. At medium temp, add remaining 1 Tbsp of oil into the pan until warm/hot. Drizzle the hot oil over the fish. Sprinkle remaining scallion and cilantro. Serve imediately. I like to eat mine with fragrant Jasmine rice; and if there is leftover, I'd eat it with "Chook" rice soup for breakfast.

Nachos

2009-05-11T11:44:00.000-07:00

I fixed up this Nachos the day after Cinco de Mayo. Hubby likes it a lot. It is not only tasty but very good looking dish as well. It's pack full of protein and fiber and an absolute fun finger food. I have always enjoyed eating Nacho from a bar during Happy Hours but never ever thought of fixing one at home. Recently I had a girls' night for a movie and drinks after, we dropped by a local billiard and bar for some drinks. This dish is inspired by what we ordered. Another incentive of fixing one at home, it's economical and you can use the best ingredients you can get from the market. Use organic herbs if you can.

What You need:

A heat proof large plate
Fresh Avocados, about 1 mashed with some chunks
Fresh chopped tomatoes, about 1/4 - 1/2 cup diced or chopped
Red onion, about 1/4 cup diced
Thinly sliced scallions
Chopped Cilantro
Canned Refried Beans, I like to thin it down with a TBSP or 2 or water
Canned Black Beans
Salted Tortilla Corn Chips
6 oz of Steak, Ribeye, Top Sirloin or Tenderloin, thinly sliced
A packet of Taco seasonings
A few dashes of Cumin
Mexican style sour cream
Grated Chedder cheese
Lime or lemon juice
Dashes of hot sauce or pickled jalapeno (optional)

Let's Get Fixing:

Pre-heat Oven to 375 degrees.

Marinade beef with Taco Seasonings and a dashes of cumin for flavor. Lightly brown in the pan, set aside to cool. Scatter the chips into plate, depending on the size, just barely reaching the top of plate. Drop a TBSP or 2 of whole black beans and beef in between chip layer.

Dressing it:
Alternating refried and black beans, drop spoonful of beans all over chips, beef, grated cheese, cover with more chips, add more beef, cheese and beans. Add more cheese on top.

At this point, you will figure out how much or lil' you'd like your nachos. Play with it.

Prop the nachos into the over until cheese slightly melted, about 5-10 minutes. Stick around and check the oven to prevent over heating. It should melt the cheese nicely to a gooey texture and chips become crispier. Remove from over and have ready these items to finalize dressing: chopped tomatoes, then a dollop or two of sour cream and guacamole, then green onions and cilantro. A quirt of lemon or lime juice, hot sauce or pickled jalapeno should make the nachos heavenly.

Eggs Are Good For You

2009-05-10T13:10:00.000-07:00

We use eggs in most of our cooking and baking. I like to serve up fried noodles and rice with eggs. I opt for Omega-3 eggs when I shop. I like the fact that they contain less fat, pack full of Omega-3, and tasty too.

These almost deep-fried eggs are crunchy around the edges yet soft in the center. When hot oil is drizzled over the top of the eggs, there is no need to flip over the eggs. A few drops of oyster sauce and soy sauce, thinly sliced scallion and cilantro and sprinkles of paprika are all you need to dress up the eggs. This is a very tasty brunch or easy dinner. Snacking won't be a bad idea either.
Let's Get Frying:

Two Eggs
1/4 cup of oil
Sliced Scallion
Chopped cilantro
Dash of Paprika or Sliced Bird's eye Chilli or chopped red Bell Pepper for garnish and color.

Heat the wok or frying pan until almost smoking. Pour in the oil. When oil is hot enough. Slowly break the eggs one at a time into the wok or pan. Let them sit and do not disturb for a few minutes. It's fun to watch the eggs transform into little cakes. Use a slotted spoon or any utensils that withstand hot oil. Scoop some of the hot oil and drizzle over the eggs a few times. Watch them slowly covered in egg white. If you like your eggs runny. Scoop them up right away and drizzled sauces over and garnish. Enjoy!

Fastest Fudge Cake

2009-05-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

I have baked this cake a couple of times and each time it's always a success. On my boy's birthday he specifically requested for a chocolate cake. Over the years I've collected quite a bit chocolate cake recipes and this one is a definite keeper. It's easy to whip up, short list of ingredients, all chocolate, moist and dense, and keeps for several days at room temp., covered. The photo is taken a few days later and you can see that that was the last piece on the plate

You can find the recipe here. Enjoy!

Cinnamon Buns

2009-05-10T12:41:00.000-07:00

This is a wonderful breakfast on the weekend. On other occasions I'd make the dough from scratch but if the week started off busy, I'd just pick up a can of Pillsbury dough. It bakes up beautifully and very tasty too. This is my lazy way of serving this breakfast treat to my family once or twice a year.

The icing comes in sugar icing and cream cheese icing. Both are equally tasty if you like it sweet. That's why I said I'd only serve them a couple times a year.

The trick to baking these to a light brown and soft texture is to adjust the oven temp. 25 degrees lower than directed. For example, if it says heat oven @ 350 degrees, go ahead and head the oven up to 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. when you prob the buns in the over, lower the temp. I used convection oven and I like to bake these at 325 degrees. They always come out perfectly brown and soft.

Looking for something cute for your kitchen?

2009-04-25T23:25:00.001-07:00

Accent color to perk up your kitchen collection. There is a giveaway happening here a lovely blog. All you have to do is leaving a few messages as directed on her post, twit a lil', and one more comment and you are done. Wait a lil', till next Wednesday 29th, a winner will be chosen randomly. Best of luck!

Last Summer's Harvest

2009-04-08T12:41:00.000-07:00

Aren't they gorgeous? These were the few tomatoes I picked from my vege. garden last year. We did not have a perfect Summer in '08, so I am hoping this year would be a better one. We ate them fresh like you'd fresh fruit. I am hoping to get my vege. garden started sooner this time. I know most avid gardeners have already sewed and planted their vegetables.
This Summer, I am going to plant some heirloom tomatoes. Stay tuned.

It was in mid July, the tomatoes still unripe.

A little ripe here.

The green beans...sigh...were gobbled up by deers. They appeared out of nowhere in our neighborhood. They ate most of the pea shoots in my garden. At the same time, they ate up my neighbors' rose buds.

Aww...my ever lush lemon sage. I planted this sage in the garden along with three different types of thyme. I used most of the thyme for stews and braised dishes. These sage leaves have a very fragrant lemony scent but I have not used them any of the dishes. Perhaps on pork chops?

Chocolate Cake with Cocoa Powder

2009-04-08T12:05:00.000-07:00

This cake is dense yet crumbly, just the right sweetness. It's simply delish! The original recipe calls for Hershey's Cocoa but I had Nestle's cocoa powder on hand at the time. I adjusted the sugar content a bit because my cocoa powder is already sweetened. Hubby liked it a lot and devoured it in just a few evenings. Since it was quite a hit, I intend to make it for my boy's birthday party, in cupcakes. This recipe derived from here.

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar (adjust content if using sweetened cocoa)
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa (I used sweetened cocoa)
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
"PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING(recipe follows)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F (lower if using convection oven). Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING. 10 to 12 servings.

VARIATIONS:
ONE-PAN CAKE: Grease and flour 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Heat oven to 350° F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Frost.

THREE LAYER CAKE: Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost.

BUNDT CAKE: Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack. Cool completely. Frost.

CUPCAKES: Line muffin cups (2-1/2 inches in diameter) with paper bake cups. Heat oven to 350°F. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. About 30 cupcakes.

"PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

Russian Tea Cakes

2009-04-07T21:21:00.000-07:00

Whenever Spring is here, I'd usually try to reorganize my notes on my fridge. This time I came across a faded yellow sticky note that's barely legible. It's a Russian Tea Cakes recipe! But I wasn't able to get my hands on it yet...until I finish wrapping up the glutinous rice "Zongzi" I prepared yesterday (I'll further elaborate in my next post). So back to the cookies...I've always loved Russian tea cakes, and back in the days when baking didn't even exist in my busy single life, I used to stroll down North Beach in SF in search of authentic Italian and sometimes European bakery. These cute little sweet cookies were pretty pricey then, and they usually didn't make it out the bakery door. Now that I know how easy they are to make, I am going to bake up several dozens of them. Some for my breakfast with coffee, snack time with tea, and some for my girlfriends. How lovely!

Here is the recipe from All Recipes, with minor changes.

Ingredients:

1 cup butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour (less 3 tbsp)

1 cup finely chopped almonds (I blanched and ground my own)
3 TBSP whole milk powder

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration
cinnamon sugar for variation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). I baked @ 325 degrees F

In a medium bowl, cream butter and vanilla until smooth. Combine the 6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar and flour; stir into the butter mixture until just blended. Mix in the chopped walnuts. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and place them 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. When cool a little, roll in remaining confectioners' sugar. I also like to roll mine in the sugar a second time.

I wonder what's the association of this to Mexican Wedding Cookies. Don't they have just about the same ingredients? Hmmm...who created them first, the Russians or the Mexicans? I googled a bit and found this and this. Now that I found out the cookies hailed from several other countries, mainly Europe. There is this tasty, melt in your mouth Suji or Sugee cookies available in Malaysia that have about the same ingredients, except that some avid bakers like to add powdered milk. I read that it was introduced in India. Anyone?

My Mama's Fried Chicken

2009-03-07T12:38:00.000-08:00

"What would you like to have for lunch?", Mom would ask. "Would you please make fried chicken...mmm". These were the types of conversation I'd have with my mom while growing up. I enjoyed spending my after school hours in the kitchen with Mom. Mom's a good cook and I love making some of her delicious "chow zhou" and Malaysian Chinese dishes for my family. One of her specialties is curry & spices marinated chicken deep fried in hot oil. I still can visualize the yellow fresh turmeric hue on and in between the chicken pieces - each bite is to die for. The best part of it is that back then it was common to rear fowls in the backward. And we had a huge backyard leading to the woods and separated by a stream from our house. The chicken and ducks roamed freely. What we call them nowadays free-range, organic chicken! We kept them as pets and offerings to the heavenly Supreme.

Lately, I've been hankering for some fried chicken and picked up a free ranged whole chicken the other day. Roast it or fry it? I like either way but since I decided to have an impromptu dinner party with some friends, I decided to deep fry it, sort of. As much as I love fried chicken, the thought of saturated fat and cholesterol prompted me to part fry on pan and part roast in the oven. This is a quick and less messy method way of deep frying. Firstly I used 100% peanut oil which can withstand high level of heat, brown the chicken pieces, then prop them skin side up on a rack over cookie sheet in the oven. Roast in the preheated 320 degrees convection oven for about 35 minutes. It was easy and fuss free, minus cleaning up the leftover grease on the sheet. The saturated fat left on the sheet could have been consumed...eeek. You can at least feel guilt-free eating fried chicken cooked in this method, while not compromising the crispy texture, aroma and taste.

Enough said already. The recipe I improvised a lil' has a wonderful combination of good for you spices.

Curry & Spice Marinated Fried Chicken
(Malaysian Style)

Grind into paste:
5-10 shallots, sliced
5-10 garlic cloves, mashed
20-30 curry leaves
1-2 lemongrass white part only, thinly sliced
1" Galangal (a type of ginger commonly used in Thai cooking), peeled & minced
1" Ginger, peeled & minced
1-2" Fresh Tumeric, peeled and minced (sub. w/powder if you can't find fresh one)
1 TBSP Curry Powder for meat
Salt to taste

One whole chicken, cut up into 8 pieces or smaller.

1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup flour

Method:
Pound or grind all of the above into a paste. Marinade the chicken, for at least a few hours. Marinating overnight yields deeper flavor.

Before frying, dust chicken with part rice flower and part flour to give skin a crisp. Pan fry skin side down until light brown. Flip over, and lightly brown. Fry them in smaller batches and do not crowd them as they could end up steaming the chicken pieces. Place a rck over cookie sheet lined with foil if you prefer not to deal with scraping and cleaning. Transfer chicken pieces to rack and roast @ 320 F degrees for 35 - 40 minutes depending on the the size of chicken.

Ramen for a quick fix anyone?

2008-10-03T14:08:00.000-07:00

Gourmet Ramen Noodle Soup with Prawns...and egg, and vege

I love ramen noodles every once in a while especially when I am really busy and tired and all I wanted was a bowl of steamy noodle soup. It's not the healthiest food to eat but if you add in a few other nutritious ingredients, they might even be better than some fast food you get out there.

All you need is a pack of remen noodles with seasonings. I like chicken or shrimp flavors, with sesame oil.

Ramen instant noodles
Bok choy or other green leafy vege
at least 6 prawns, I left the shell intact, and slit an opening to devein and clean
few drops of sesame oil
white pepper powder for some kick
an egg for extra protein, optional

Cook noodles separately, let the water boil, drop in noodles, dish up into a serving bowl when noodles start losening. I like mine slightly firm, besides it will continue to cook when you add hot broth later. Boil sufficient water to make broth, add half pack of seasoning or to taste (since prawns add sweetness to broth). Firstly, add prawns, let a quick boil then simmer, dish up when prawns begin to turn pink, dish up and put on noodles. Proceed on to adding vege til leaves wilted slightly, again I like to make mine slightly crunchy, dish up and add on top or side of prawns. Lastly, whisk up an egg or drop whole in the simmered broth, cook to doneness or the way you like it. Add a few drops of sesame oil and dashes of pepper. Pour broth over noodle bowl. Viola! It's really tasty!

Safer Beauty...a good find

2008-10-03T12:39:00.001-07:00

Ever question the wisdom of applying chemicals like phenoxyethanol to your delicate skin? What is it anyway? Well, let's say it's a cancer causing ingredient in most of the skin care we use everyday. We all want to look good and feel good about our skin. And we are tempted to try out any skin products out there that claim can treat certain skin problem, well, we maybe putting our skin in harms way, at least in the near future. I personally feel that expensive items aren't necessarily effective and beneficial. They can easily contain more harmful ingredients that we aren't familiar with. Have you ever wondered those big confusing ingredients listed on the label. Myself, for one don't usually bother to find out what they were. I recently found out about this website launched by the non profit environmental working group, and it's easy to use website that provides information on more than 25,000 personal care products and nearly 7,000 ingredients. Searchable by brand, type, and ingredient, the site ranks products according to known risks. Also worth bookmarking: it's "What not to buy" list. Keep these worst offenders out of your beauty regimen.

Food For Thought...of the day

2008-10-03T12:02:00.000-07:00

What are ...Anthocyanins?

Anthocyanins give many fruits and vegetables their deep blue, red or purple hue. For that reason, these pigments are sometimes used as a natural food coloring. More than just a source of pretty color, though, anthocyanins have substantial health benefits, too. A recent study from Ohio State U. shows that these compounds can slow the growth of certain cancers. To reap the rewards, stock up on brightly colored produce such as raspberries, blackberries, bilberries, radishes, and purple corn.

The best time to stock up these colorful nutritional berries is in Summer to late Summer. I like to pick blackberries from our neighborhood backyards. And I have baked them in muffins, lemon cakes, and simply eat them fresh. Sprinkle a loadful on top of cereals is one of our fave morning power breakfasts. Other ways of eating colorful fruits and veges. is to load up with colorful bell peppers. Bell peppers as far as I know is one of the tastiest veg both for kids and adults. Another of my fave fruits is Pomegranate. I remember growing up in my home with pomegranate trees in front of our yard. I will update this subject with photos when I get my hands on these tasty seedy fruit.

Black Raspberry Muffins

2008-09-26T20:33:00.001-07:00

My neighborhood is changing. Nowadays, we will hear the sounds and see the sights of children playing in their front yard and the neighborhood's private cul-de-sac street. There are more younger families moving in with young children. We are delighted to have them especially my lil boy. There are a couple of elementary school sisters who would come and invite my boy to play with them. They love to ride their bikes up and down the street. Occasionally, the girls would stop by to hang out with us. A couple of weeks ago they brought us half dozen of eggs from their grandparents' farm. How sweet! I told the girls that I would use the eggs on one of my baking days. Of course I did not wait long, couple days later, I got all the ingredients ready and prepared my oven for a bake job. Since berries are in season and they are full of antioxidant, so I figured these would be a yummy treat for the kids. I used whole wheat entirely with loads of black raspberries. Instead of using butter, I used EVOO and sour cream for a moist texture. The muffins turned out to be really good, tangy, mildly sweet, and melt in your mouth. The bake yielded more than a dozen of muffins and we all had plenty to munch on. We even ate some for breakfast. Yummo! Here is the recipe if you are interested:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon milk
2/3 cup sugar
8 Tbsp warm melted butter (1 stick)
1 teaspoon vanilla
11 oz of fresh blackberries, cut in half (often available at Trader Joe's)
(You can use frozen blackberries if fresh are not available.)

Catch of the Day

2008-09-26T12:38:00.001-07:00

My lil' prince went on a field trip to the trout farm yesterday and brought home a trout for me to cook. Doesn't it look like a rainbow trout? The trip turned out to be a distressing one for this lil guy. Each kid had the opportunity to catch a fish with a fish net. To my lil boy's astonishment, they clunk the fish that he caught and gutted it clean so he could bring it home for mommy. He was very upset at the spot and had wanted to bring home the fish alive. Although I love fish, I wouldn't take on the pleasure of watching the fish getting smacked right in the head. Let alone this darling kid who thought the fish was in great pain and said "ouch". I feel his agony. It was hard for me to explain it to him but I managed to make him understand that this a fish that is edible and that's why it had to be done that way for consumption. This sort of "horrific' scene should be kept away from lil kids, in my humble opinion. At the end of the day, we revisit our day and talked about his feelings and his playdates with his friends. And I assured my boy that next time we will take him to the pet store and let him pick out a fish and bring it home alive.

Banana Muffins

2008-09-26T12:25:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since last baked some banana muffins. I have this recipe that is a no fail every time I bake it. This version is from Ina Garten's that consists of three large bananas. I only things I make it differently is using EVOO instead of butter. I like it this way and it's much healthier. Another version I have on file is called Kona Banana muffins and it uses mainly very ripe bananas, 4-6 bananas at least. The trick to making this full flavor and moist is by beating the bananas to submission.

I made these batch for both my girlfriends and our kids. They turned really good, fluffy and pack with nutrient. This time I made it entirely different. Since there were only two bananas sitting in my fruit bowl, I had to scale down the amount of flour called for. Then I added flax sees and other fibers, a few spoonfuls of yogurt and sour cream, and topped half a dozen with sliced almonds and oats. Finally sprinkled with some organic sugar. I used only a fraction of sugar called for in the recipe, hence the sugar topping.

Dark Noodles

2008-09-07T02:32:00.000-07:00

I made this batch of noodles for lunch a few weeks ago. This is a simplified version of black noodles from the streets of KL. I omitted lard and used only EVOO, chicken broth, dark soy sauce, shrimps, yau choi, white ground pepper. Lots of minced garlic and shallots are also key to making this dish tasty.

School is starting...yeah

2008-09-07T01:24:00.000-07:00

My 4 year old will begin his Pre-K session next week. One of the kid's parent held a meet and greet pool party today. This is a wonderful way of getting to know one another, especially the kids. Some kids are born outgoing and some are on the quiet and shy side. If you have preschool age kids, this is a great way to let the kids warmed to their new environment. I am glad that my lil guy is very social, a bit too social though and I need to be watchful of him especially around strangers.

Most of the folks showed up and I'm glad to see that there will be mostly 4s and some nearing 5 in the class. While the kids splashed and played in the pool, we adults chatted and shared dishes we brought in. I brought two dishes to share. I should they are more like snacks. Finger food would make much sense in a gathering like this. So I made a tuna dip, to go with corn chips. And truffle brownies, a healthy version.

I used TJ's truffle brownie mix studded with chocolate chips. I substituted omega-3 eggs and olive oil for 1 stick of butter. And the result is really good. We like ours to be crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. And you can say that you can eat it without so much of a guilt. Lower in saturated fat and heart healthy. By the way, I think everybody liked it, because the plate is empty! The truth is, I brought only half of what I baked. Here is why...LQQK.

See the hole in the middle? Nope, it wasn't a defect. My lil' guy decided to take a taste of it while it was chilling out on the counter and I had gone in the shower. He then came to me with a big smile on his face with brown crumbs around his mouth. Can you visualize that? So that's why and also because it tasted really good!

Previously, I'd make the brownies from scratch. But from time to time, using a premix can yield pretty tasty brownie, you just need to tweak it a lil.

As for the tuna dip, the picture did not turn out well, but nevertheless.

I thought it was pretty tasty. I used two cans of quality tuna in water, squeezed really dry. Two lime juice. Half an onion. Some black pepper. If you have cilantro, mince and mix in. That's all. This tuna mix goes really well with lime flavored chips, but won't go wrong with plain salted chips.

Fish Curry my way, the healthier way

2008-09-07T00:35:00.000-07:00

I had a hankering for spicy fish the other day and decided to make my own. This time, I did not feel like making it the conventional way and decided to give this healthy lighter version a try. It turned out really well and it actually satisfied my craving.

These are my secret ingredients - Sambal loaded with lots of spices included shallots and garlic which are two very important ingredients in making a tasty curry the Malaysian way. I found this sambal at a local Asian market and it's imported from Holland. Go figure, Holland = Indonesian. You might want to think it's a cousin of Sambal oelek, but I have to say that this chili sauce is a short cut to making a tasty spicy chili paste.

Firstly, I sliced up about half an onion, throw in a few sticks of lemon grass, a few curry leaves and lime leaves in a pot without any oil. Stir till fragrant, add a tablespoon of the chili sauce and a tablespoon of tamarind sauce, give it a brief stir till incorporated. Nowadays, when I eat fish, I tend to be selective in the type of fish I eat. I used salmon in this recipe. Omega-3 fatty oil, can't go wrong with it. I used about a cup of fat free chicken broth before I add chunks of fish. Bring the pot to a boil, then turn it down to slow simmer. To add more flavor, I like to add a cut up tomato or maybe two. Season with salt, to taste. Give it a gentle stir. Fish cooks very fast, I turned the heat off when the fish turned a bit firm. It will continue to cook while it's still hot.

The dish sure hit the spot that afternoon. I served it over a plate of (actually two) hot steamy jasmine rice.

If you are interested in trying, here is what you will need to have:

Fish, go for Salmon (great taste, the spices complements and eliminates the fishy smell)
Lots of shallots and garlic if you want a deeper and more intense flavor
Curry and lime leaves (available at most Asian and Indian stores)
Lemongrass
Chili Sauce
Tamarind Sauce, substitute lemon juice if you want
About 1 cup of chicken broth, or any type of broth you have on hand
Tomatoes
Salt and sugar to taste
Jasmin Rice

I don't use specific measurements and taste as I cook. The end result should be spicy, tangy, slightly sweet (use a lil' sugar to counteract with spiciness) and aromatic. Enjoy!

Steamy Steam Boat?

2008-09-04T15:13:00.000-07:00

As Fall season is approaching, I often crave for a nice hot pot to welcome the cooler weather. It becomes quite an occasion when friends and family are in town for visit. Some has called it an unforgettable feast. If you have not tried one, you might just want to give it a try at some point. it's very simple to fix, all you need is a very good pot of broth, fresh vegetables, fresh thinly sliced meats, seafood, good sauce to dunk the meat and seafood in.

The picture above is a hot pot dish served at a restaurant in Malaysia. You will notice that the pot contains mostly meatballs. When I make my hot pot at home, I like to fix up a variety of meat, seafood, stuffed vegetables, and more vegetables.

Steamboat meal (it's often referred to as Hot Pot) in the U.S. This meal evolves around family members and is usually prepared during Lunar Chinese New Year's Eve. Family members from near and far return home during this important once a year gathering and gather around the table and eat together. We also call this meal Family Reunion Dinner. I like to fix this meal in the winter simply because it's fitting and it brings warmth to both the heart and soul. I grew up eating lots of seafood, mainly fish. We have abundant seafood all year round. We love to serve shellfish, prawns and fish, and with lots of greens during this meal.

A Visit In Malaysia

2008-09-04T12:33:00.000-07:00

I made a visit to Malaysia last year mainly to see my family, Mom especially. I had the most enjoyable visit since I last visited a few years back. Seeing and reconnecting with family is memorable and priceless and I will do again in a heartbeat when the time is right. I spent most of my visit accompanying my mom everywhere. We hung out at Starbucks Coffee, strolled in morning markets and had old fashion Malaysian breakfast, hangout with her at dialysis treatments (she's a diabetic patient), we chatted about younger days, and we laughed a lot.

Malaysia is a beautiful and vibrant country. It's gotten very congested in big cities, KL especially. Vehicles of all makes roam the streets and cities, day and night markets are everywhere, Western influences...well, everywhere. In fact, KL resembles the big city I once lived in, San Francisco. High rises, new restaurants, cafes, international cuisines, foreign expats, indeed a huge cultural melting pot.

Check out the exotic items in the markets.

Start Blogging, a decisive day

2008-09-03T10:52:00.000-07:00

So, I've just created my blog today. Not too sure what subjects I'll be writing about more. But since my life evolves around food, family & friends, I think that's what I'll concentrate for the time being. There will be travel journals at some point on this blog.

I have so much to write about but don't know where to begin. Yet I am enthralled by the amazing blogs I've read out there and realized that there is a writer in each of us. I am going to find it, write it and share it. I welcome ideas, suggestions, and look forward to hearing from you blogger and non-blogger who are willing to read my inexperience journals. Here is a start. Welcome to my blog!