Happy Easter 2013

March is the best month of the year as workers in Melbourne enjoy two long weekends during the month. 11th March Monday was Victoria's Labour Day and this is followed by today, 29th March Good Friday and 1st April is Easter Monday. Woohoo!

Fig and Mascarpone Cheese Tarts

For Sweet Pastry : 160g plain flour, pinch of salt, 100g unsalted butter, 50g castor sugar, 1 egg, 1 tsp zest of  orange

For Filling : Place 250g of mascarpone cheese, 120g of thickened cream, sugar and lemon zest in a  bowl and whisk until soft peak, pour mixture into tart shells, top with sliced figs, drizzle with warm fig jam, honey, sprinkle chopped nuts and serve.

Pasta Collection

Dinner for a lazy evening - Tuna Penne with tomatoes and red capsicum

Ingredients : Penne pasta, olive oil, brown onion, garlic, tomatoes, red capsicum, fresh parsley, chilli flakes, tuna in chilli oil, salt, freshly cracked black pepper, parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves.

Method : 

1. Cook pasta in boiling water according to packet direction.

2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a frying pan, add onion and garlic, cook until tender.

3. Add tomatoes, capsicum and chilli flakes, cook until tomatoes and capsicum soften.

4. At last, add pasta and tuna to the vege mixture and toss to coat. Season to taste. 

5. Garnish with fresh basil leaves and parmesan cheese. Serve hot.

Pasta for the kids at work place :

Meat balls and elbow pasta

Beef Lasagne

Pasta carbonara

Tuna Pasta Bake

Spaghetti Bolognese

Sweet childhood favourite

Pan-fried Nian Gao with taro and sweet potato

Fantastic feeling when the Nian Gao is oozing in your mouth ...... less is more.

Ingredients for making the batter : 1 egg, self raising flour, rice flour and a pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients into a smooth mixture, add a little water if the mixture is too thick ...... the consistency of the batter should be able to coat the back of the spoon thickly.

Get You In The Mood

Panna Cotta is a traditional Italian dessert meaning 'cooked cream'. It is made by simmering together cream, milk and sugar. Mixing this mixture with gelatine and letting it cool until firm.

Gula Melaka Panna Cotta with Walnut Praline and Raspberries

A delicate, rich creamy and deliciously wobbly texture

                                                             
Ingredients : 2 tablespoons water, 2 teaspoon gelatine powder, 380ml thickened cream, 120ml fresh milk and 70g gula Melaka

Method of cooking :
1. place the water in a bowl and sprinkle over the gelatine, set aside for for 5 minutes.
2. place the cream, milk and gula Melaka in a sauce pan over medium heat and bring to the boil, stirring occasionally.
3. add the gelatine and cook until gelatine is dissolved.
4. strain the mixture and pour into lightly greased moulds, refrigerate until firm.

Hot Cross Buns

A hot cross bun is a spiced sweet bun made with currants or raisin and marked with a cross on the top, traditionally eaten on Good Friday - from Wikipedia

 Before baking

After baking

Ingredients: 4 cups baker flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons mixed spice, 7g sachets dried yeast, 1/4 cup caster sugar, 350ml lukewarm milk, 2 eggs, 1 cup currants, 1/2 cup dried apricots, 1/2 cup dark chocolate baking chips

For the crosses: Mix together 50g plain flour, 50g water and 1 tablespoon cooking oil.

 Egg wash for glazing

Ready to eat with a cup of hot coffee

果酱百分百

Figs are small, pear-shaped fruit with thin edible skin and sweet pulpy flesh. Although dried figs are available throughout the year, there is nothing like the unique taste and texture of fresh figs. Figs are seasonal fruit available between February to May ( My observation from the garden ). 

Figs are delicious eaten on their own, in salads or in desserts and baking.

Two fig trees and a plum tree

These fig trees are from my 太后's garden, they are lusciously sweet with a texture that combines the chewiness of their flesh, the smoothness of their skin and the crunchiness of their seeds. I have planted one in my garden unfortunately the tree is not growing well .....

I pick some figs from the garden and use the left over figs for jam making ..... jam making is one of my favourite cooking methods, I used to make jam and bring them back to Kuala Lumpur for my family and friends.

Here you go .....  My beautiful fig jam, 100% fruit with limited quantity of sugar

Bumper harvest of figs - they can be brown, purple or black and vary in size. 

Fig jam on toast

I always use avocado to replace butter or margarine on toasts, add fig jam and some sliced fresh figs, it's simply delicious ..... cottage cheese or ricotta cheese are another great option too ...... Ideal for Sunday brunch, tea time or supper ..... use crackers for light snacks.

Happy Birthday To Me

My Gorgeous Birthday Cards From The Kids .....

Thanks to Carly, the centre director for the surprise birthday cake and also to Alice, Anne and Emily for helping the kids to make such beautiful birthday cards for me ..... I will treasure them always .....

Crispy Skin Salmon on Braised Onion Sauce

I cook this dish after watching My Kitchen Rules, the crispy skin of the salmon I have cooked is really spot on......

Crispy skin salmon on braised onion sauce

Normally I cook this dish in two ways, after eating this dish for dinner I will use the left over to make salmon rice the day after. It is pretty easy and convenient after a hard day's work and you are tired of eating out.

I use balsamic vinegar to braise the red sliced onion; it has a contrast texture of the taste, some saltiness, some sweetness and of course some sourness ....... a complexity of flavours and texture ..... haha ... I am thinking like Pete and Menu, the judges of MKR ......

And I'd like my salmon to fully cook through ..... I do not like the pinkish colour in the middle .....

忙, 这个字很有意思, 左面是心, 右面是亡. 太忙了, 心就死了. Magician, thanks for sharing this phase, I wish my 慢活能在不久的未来实现 .....