A Change of food...

Here's some food for the eyes. I've been working on these 2 pieces for a few weeks now. They are not quite finished but close. There are bits of each painting that I like and it just seems not quite together for me. Reno Man likes it, so I guess its ok. Still a long ways from where I see my paintings should be.

The top piece still needs the keyboard to be painted in and there is still some shading left to be done in both pieces. Aside from that, they are mostly done.

I just love learning from Jackie at her studio in Crescent Beach called Tiggy's. Not only is she very encouraging, but she is a great teacher with a lovely personality. Come October, I'm going to take the beginner's course with her. That should give me some good basic foundations on acrylic painting. Can't wait.

Potstickers in Egg Drop Soup

It was a rainy, cold Sunday afternoon, after a nap. All I felt like having was a hot soup but it had to be super fast since I was starving having missed lunch because of the nap.

So, to start, I sauteed some minced garlic with oil in a pot. Once golden, I added water and when the water came to a boil, I added frozen potstickers from Costco and some yau choy and let it cook. Meanwhile, I seasoned the soup base with wanton soup stock powder, white pepper, fish sauce and a little sesamee oil. Oh and some soya sauce.

Lastly, when the potstickers are cooked, stir in one beaten egg and gently stir the soup and turn off the heat. Serve immediately with fried onions or cilantro. It help me get through to dinner but best of all, it warmed me up.

Homemade egg noodles

Another meal with cod and pea shoots. But this time instead of putting everything in a broth, I coated the noodles in black sauce, soya sauce, cooked onion oil, fish sauce and sesamee oil. I poached the fish and cooked the pea shoots and noodles in fish broth. I made noodles as a photo prop for my other blog, VISUAL SPACES. I thought it would make a good meal feature for this food blog.

Homemade egg noodles are really easy to make. Just 1 cup of flour, 1 egg yolk, salt and white ground pepper and a little veg stock powder. I kneaded it together with some water until everything forms into a firm dough.

Once it is well kneaded, I ran it through my pasta press a few times to give it a smoother texture to the noodles before I ran it through the cutter. Then I separate the noodles as best as I can with a little flour and dried it over a large mixing bowl.

Fresh noodles cook very quickly compared to that of the dried kind and it is so much tastier and more tender too. Reno Man and I enjoyed this very much.

Chocolate Strawberry Custard Trifle

Yummy! Strawberry season is here. An easy and tasty dessert I'm sure many know how to make. Chocolate cake, masserated strawberries, custard and whipped cream make a great combination.

Beef Curry Pie Two Ways

I made the filling for these tasty treats a couple of days ago. The one above, I call it Beef Curry pot pie since I put it in a pot and covered it with store bought puff pastry. Had I time, I would have made short crust pastry and made it into some turnovers to be frozen.

Below I turned the pie filling into little appys, also with puff pastry and garnished with a few sprigs of lovely parsley from Richard and his lovely wife. I was hoping that the crust wouldn't open but, I guess it added to its presentation.

Now, what did put into the filling? Humm, I think I started with sauteing some minced garlic, then added pureed lemon grass and curry paste. Once fragrant, I added the beef, cubed potatoes and frozen veggies (unthawed) all at once. Gave it a good stirr and added a little water to help the bottom not stick. I also added beef stock and salt and pepper. Then simmered on med-low heat till potatoes were cooked and water has mostly evaporated. I let it cool and used as mentioned above. This pie filling was one of my mum and dad's favourite recipes on mine. I remember making this as a young teenager for my parents. Pastry from scratch too. Certainly brings back memories.

Cod with Rice noodles and Pea shoots

I knew I wanted to have fish today but when Reno Man heard what I was planning to make for dinner, he said that he wasn't hungry because he was full from lunch. Indeed, we had gone out for a lovely lunch at Tropika, a Malaysian restaurant (my fav) and he really had alot to eat. We ordered sambal clams(Malaysian), nasi goreng (Indonesian), char hor fun (Cantonese) and for dessert bubur cha cha(Malay). Oh I forget. We also had roti prata (Indian).

So back to the fish. Although I knew I wanted to make fish for my dinner, I didn't know what kind of preparation I wanted. I was just going to throw the fish into some instant noodle soup but I thought I'd try making it from scratch. I found that it wasn't very difficult.

First I sauteed some minced garlic in a pot with a little oil. When golden, I added hot water, just enough for the soup base for the noodles. While I wait for it to come to a boil, I added seasonings of fish sauce, white pepper, sesamee oil, onion oil, seafood stock powder and soya sauce into the pot of water. When it came to the boil, I added my dried rice noodles, washed pea shoots and piece of cod. I let it gently cook. When the fish was cooked, I served it with fried onions and cilantro. As a dipping sauce, I sliced red chillies into a small sauce dish with soya sauce. I was surprised that it turned out so much like what I would find in Singapore.

When I sat down to eat it, Reno Man's interest perked up. So I asked if he would like a taste. He was sold on the first bite. Good thing I had made a little more than just one serving. So I shared my bowl of noodles. A good, healthy and simple meal.

Macaroni Chinoise?

Here's a recipe inspired by my dearest Reno Man. A few years ago, I was really really sick. Can't get up for 2 weeks kinda sick and my hunny made this recipe for me. It was very yummy and very simple. The only seasoning he used was soya sauce! Not even garlic or any condiments. Anyway, I added a little to it to give it a little variety.

Cooked macaroni
minced garlic
beef cut into small strips
frozen veg & peas
fresh cilantro and sliced bird's eye chilli to garnish.
Sesamee oil and pepper
Oh, can forget soya sauce!

As usual, I sauteed the garlic, then added the beef. Stir fry for 30 secs and add the frozen veg. Once heated through, add cooked macaroni and seasoning. Sitr fry till well mixed. Add soya sauce to taste. When ready to serve, add cilantro and chilli if desired.

Sausages & Meatballs

When I made this for bible study pot luck night, I didn't think I would get the requests I did for the recipe. Reno Man did like it so I took a picture of it but it didn't look very appetizing. So I tried it again and here it is, in a slightly more dignified sight and the recipe as well.

1 finely chopped onion
1 bottle of Classico's Sweet Marinara Basil Sauce (I'm not trying to advertise Classico, but I love this sauce. I use it for most of my tomato based sauce recipes.)
3-4 Bavarian smokies (I bought the ones from Costco)
As many as you like meatballs of your choice. I also used the Kirkland ones found at Costco.
1 stick of cinnamon
1 chopped red pepper
1 tbsp italian seasoning
a little sugar
1 small can of tomato paste
2 packets of beef stock powder.

Ok. I think that is it. So first, sautee the onions with the sliced smokies. Get them nicely browned. This might take a while. Use high heat but you have to keep stirring. Once browned, add the chopped pepper and all the seasoning. Stirr well. Then add the bottle of sauce and whatever is left over. This might be a little think, so add some water. Stirr to mix well. Then add heated / thawed meatballs and simmer for 1 hour on med low heat. Stirr occassionally so that the bottom doesn't stick. Add salt and pepper to taste. That's all to it folks! Enjoy!

Who's got the best burgers in town?

Our bible study group got together on Friday and for some reason we got to talking about burger joints. According to JW, these were fantastic burgers,massive and very tasty. And I though... ah just my kind of burger. Lots of meat! Funnily enough, Reno Man and I have just discovered FATBURGER. Reno Man really likes the burgers there. I had seen it mentioned on tv's Unwrapped and thought it might be fun to check out. So we did. And since then, we have been there every weekend!

This weekend however, after that discussion with JW at our bible study, we decided to check out VERA'S BURGER SHACK. Because of the caution of its size, we just got the classic Vera's burger. Its a single patty with your usual fixings. I really liked it because you can taste the meat and have the condiments enhance its flavours while Fatburger's tend to get over powered but the bun and condiments. Like I said, I like lots of meat! Made fresh right there on the grill, it was for sure the a better burger than Fatburger. Their fries were hand cut fries, the kind that is great with vinegar! All in all a very satisfying meal. I had actually ordered the lamb burger but they were out. So next time, I am hoping they will have it. It sure sounded good.

Its a bit of a trek from South Surrey to Fraser Heights but I'd do it... would you?

Liquor filled chocolates anyone?

Humm. Who says no to chocolate? This bit of tasty morsel was given to Reno Man and I from Chocolate Girl and LivingSword. It was a while back but I was saving it for a day just as today. The weather was lovely and sunny, beckonning us out on the deck to soak in the sunshine and take a little sweet to company us.

Now, this is not a block of chocolate that you can easily get because it has liqour in it, it is not found in our grocery stores. Chocolate Girl buys it from this place .... humm I can't remember where! But it sure tasted good.

Pineapple Rice and Tumeric Wings

I'm not sure why I have never tried making this before today. It turned out better than expected. I happen to have some fresh pineapple in my refridgerator, some left over rice and thinly sliced beef. I found a recipe for pineapple rice with minced beef and I though, why not give this a go. As usual, I never follow the recipe to the tee. Just picked up the ingredients and did my own thing.

As usual, sautee some minced garlic and add the beef that has been cut into thin strips or use minced beef. Then throw in lots of frozen mix veg and peas and stirfry till veggies are heated through. Then add chopped pineapple, you can use drained crushed canned pineapple or fresh, and rice. Stir out lumps in the rice and then add soya sauce, fish sauce and rice vinegar. To give it a little kick, I added finely chopped bird's eye chilli. Chopped fresh cilantro just perfects this dish. Hummm yum! Of course you can have this on its own but I had some chicken wings that I had thawed and wanted to make a traditional Malaysian style chicken with this. Tumeric chicken is really easy. My version is anyway. Traditionally, it is deep fried but I couldn't be bothered and it tastes just as good grilled in the oven and its much healthier too. So I started with cleaned chicken wings which I patted dry with a paper towel. Then seasoned it with salt, then garlic powder and then tumeric powder till well coated. Lay the chicken pieces on a rack with a drip pan and grill in the oven at 375F for about 40 mins. Turn half way through cooking.

Montreal Spiced Pork Tenderloin with mixed veg and rice

Ever go to Costo and wonder if any of their marinated meats are any good? Well, I took a chance on this Montreal Spiced Pork Tenderloin and it was yummy! And oh so easy. Just pop into the oven till just cooked. It comes out so juicy and tasty. Great with any sides. Here I paired it up with steamed rice and stir fried mix veg of asparagus, red pepper, broccoli, cauliflower and brown mushrooms. Was a great combination. Check out how juicy the pork turned out when it came out of the oven.

Sweet Chilli Beef Stir-Fry

This recipe came to me as I was marinating the thinly sliced beef. Just like the recipe before I used top sirloin steak, slightly frozen and thinly sliced. Then I marinated it with soya sauce, sesamee oil, Chinese cooking wine, minced garlic and sweet chilli sauce. Then I prepared the bak choy as in the recipe previous to this.

In a hot wok, heat some oil and when heated, stir in the beef for 1 minute. Then add bak choy, toss well and book till desired tenderness. I also thinckened up the sauce with a little bit of corn starch and water mixture. Just before serving, I topped it with chopped cilantro and finely sliced bird's eye chilli to give it a little more kick! Hummmm. Yummy.

Satay Beef Stir-fry with Bak Choy

Somehow, coke always goes so well with Malaysian food. Hence the coke cans! Besides, they tend to bring a good contrasting colour to my pic! Now this is something I made up. I used Top sirlion steak, slightly frozen so that I could easily slice the beef thinly. Then I marinated it with soya sauce, a little sugar and minced garlic.

Then I prepared the bak choy. Just washing each leaf and separating the leaves invidually. Then I prepared my satay sauce. You can buy this from and Asian grocer instant or a pre-mix. I used a pre-mix where I just added water anda brought it to a boil for a few minutes. Next I put my pan on high heat and added a little oil. When the oil was hot, I added the beef and fried it for about 30 secs before adding the bak choy. This takes a little skill with 2 cooking utensils to toss till the bak choy is wilted. Finally, I add the satay sauce. Once it is well mixed and the meat and veggies area well coated with the sauce, I quickly serve it hot with steamed Jasmine rice. Oh! I think this is my current favourite. So quick and easy. And clean up is that too! -end-

Black Bottom Cup Cakes

I just couldn't resist these mouthwatering sight whose recipe comes from Eleanor's blog. I think hers turned out better or at least hers looks better through lenses. She was the one who directed me to Smitten Kitchen who is hosting the recipe. Really easy recipe and lots of helpful hints. I was really excited to taste them but I found that these need to get quite cool before they really show a good tasting. I did use a piping bag to pipe the filling into the cupcakes. I also made some large and some mini just to see which works better. I've only tried the mini ones and they are yummy... but only after they were well cooled. When they are just fresh out of the oven, they tend to taste a little cheesy, overpowering the chocolate.

What can I call this?

Humm, not sure what I would call this. All I know it that I really liked it. I used a pack of pre-marinated chicken thighs (hot buffalo style) from Save-ons (local grocery store). Cooked them in my non-stick pan first, once it was nicely browned and cooked through, I added broccoli and cauliflower and a little water to deglaze the pan. I also covered the pan and let the veggies steam till cooked. Lastly, I added some shrimp and a little light soya sauce. It didn't take too long for the shrimp to cook. I served this with freshly cooked Jasmine rice. I'm open to suggestions as to what to call this dish.

I have also used these hot buffalo style chicken thighs in a salad. I just love how the chicken is marinated. Wish I could recreate it instead of buying it from Save-ons.

Another Quick-fix!

Hot days call for simple finger food. With all the summer weather, Reno Man and I decided it would be very nice to have our lunch on our deck. I wanted to make egg salad sandwiches but I didn't quite have the right bread or the other items one ususally find in an egg salad sandwich. I did have hot dog buns, cilantro and red onion. So that was what I used. Mashed boiled eggs with finely chopped cilantro, red onion, mayonaise, french's mustard, salt and pepper. I also took out some on the bread from the centers of the hot dog buns and stuffed them with the egg salad. They worked well.

Meanwhile, I had some egg rolls in my little toaster oven. Those were also good. Ofcourse they were store bought (again from Costco). I mixed a sauce of sweet and sour and some Vietnamese hot sauce. Surprisingly enough, it worked well with the egg rolls. Sitting out on the deck with a couple of cokes with this weird combination, seemed to work.

A platter of fun!

Its been so hot that I decided to do a play on little plates , tapas. The croissants were fresh from Zerelli's Mediterranean Market that I got that morning. The first tapas I had was marinated cherry tomatoes with balsamic vinegar and evoo. I added chopped fresh basil and red onion and topped it with lovely creamy goat cheese! Oh this combination is always a winner. The second tapas was garlic crimini mushrooms with butter and olive oil. This was lightly sauteed and served as is. We had this for lunch and it hit the spot nicely.

Fried MiFun (vermicelli)

Easy fried vermicelli. I guess it very simillar to fried rice though with using noodles to stir fry, I like to use green leaf veggies like bak choy or yau choy or kai lan.

First I sauteed some minced garlic. Then I browned some sliced chicken that had been seasoned with soya sauce and pepper. Then I added alot of veggies. This time I used yau choy and sugar peas. Then I added the prawns and vermicelli that had been soaking in warm water. Before stirring, I added sweet and thick dark soya sauce and a little light soya sauce. OH! I also added a shredded carrot and tossed it all till well mixed. This type of noodle does not need very much cooking. It just needs to be warmed through. It will start to break into tiny pieces if this is over cooked. Also keep this stir fry relatively dry. Too much liquid or sauce will make the noodle mushy. To spice it up, I added some sambal after adding the veggies. It just gave it a bit of a zing. Oh! Don't forget to add a splash of fish sauce. It just adds to the flavour of the noodles. Just don't sniff the sauce from the bottle. Trust that it will taste good!

Another decorated cake!

Just another decorated cake. This was made for Cecelia for helping me with a class when I was feeling ill. Its a 4" chocolate cake covered with blue butter cream and royal icing daisies! I personally like how this one turned out.