Mash Potatoes in Muffin Pans

Just mash potatoes plain with butter or you can add yummy ingredients like cooked bacon, cheese, parsley, green onion, garlic, etc. Stuff in to a greased muffin tin, run a fork along the top and brush with melted butter or olive oil. Bake at 375 degrees or until tops are crispy and golden.

Yes we still need carbs in our diet even when we are trying to lose weight so this is a great way to stick with portion control!!!

Also remember there are varying sizes in muffin pans so you can choose the serving size!! Using mini muffin tins you can turn this into a healthy alternative to chips or wedges too. You still get the soft potato centre with the crunch on the outside without all the fat!!!!

White Chocolate Cheesecake with Raspberries

White Chocolate Cheesecake with Raspberries

This particular cheesecake will be enjoyed at a class lunch to mark the end of the term...wish it was to mark the end of exams! This is a very delicious cheesecake and the delicate flavor of the white chocolate plays very well with the fresh raspberries. Totally uncomplicated but totally delicious, this one is in my personal top 5  favorite cheesecake flavors. It would make an amazing dessert for your holiday feast too; I've already decided that it will be served at mine.

A word about baking a cheesecake in a ban marie before starting the recipe. A bain marie is simply a water bath that buffers the direct heat from the sides and bottom of the baking pan to more evenly bake the cheesecake from the sides to the center. 

I bake my cheesecakes in a 9 or 10 inch springform pan that has the bottom and sides wrapped in multiple layers of wide heavy duty aluminum foil which forms a sort of boat that the cheesecake pan sits in. The roll of aluminum foil that I use is about 16 inches wide. I use at least 4 layers of foil to make sure that no water leaks in and ruins the crust of my cheesecake. The aluminum foil wrapped pan is then placed inside a larger baking pan; I use a 12 inch cake pan. Boiling water is then poured into the larger pan filling it from 1/2 to 2/3 of the way to the top.

I find it best to pour the boiling water into the pan after it is placed on the rack in the oven as you are less likely to splash water onto the cheesecake or inside the aluminum foil. I reuse the aluminum foil for several future cheesecakes, adding a couple of layers to it each time just to be safe..

In a small bowl, combine:

• 1 1/3 cups graham wafer crumbs
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 1/3 cup melted butter

Press into the bottom of a lightly greased springform pan. (Grease bottom only!)

Over low heat in a small saucepan, heat to scalding

• 1/3 cup whipping cream

Stir in until completely melted:

• 1 cup good quality white chocolate chips

Set aside to cool slightly while you prepare the rest of the cheesecake batter.

Cream together:

• 3 eight ounce packages ounces cream cheese
• 1/2 cup sugar

Add, one at a time

• 3 eggs

beating well after each addition. Add

3 tsp vanilla extract
melted white chocolate

Finally blend in

1 cup whipping cream

Pour over the prepared base and bake in a bain marie at 325 degrees F for 50 minutes to an hour. The cheesecake should just be beginning to lightly brown at the edges and the surface of the cheesecake should lose any shine when the cake is properly baked. It can still be slightly wobbly just at the center at this point. 

Remove the cake from the oven and run a sharp knife completely around the edge of the pan. This will allow for the cheesecake to shrink as it cools and hopefully not crack (but who cares if it does? I am never bothered by a crack or two in the surface) Allow the cheesecake to cool thoroughly on a wire rack at room temperature. (NOT in the fridge). 

When completely cool cover the top with fresh raspberries and garnish with melted white chocolate if desired.

Nasi Lemak Recipe

Nasi Lemak Recipe

Ingredients:

Coconut Milk Steamed Rice

2 cups of Long grained rice

4 cups of Coconut milk (Santan)

Some Water

1 inch of Ginger, sliced thinly

2 knots of Pandan leaf, tied it into a knot

1 stick of Lemon grass, smashed

1/2 tsp of Salt

Sambal Tumis

100g of Dried chili

60g of Shallots, blended

30g of Garlic, blended

30g of Dried shrimp paste (Belachan), baked or roasted for about 15mins

50ml of Tamarind juice, mixed with water

100g of medium-size dried anchovies (Ikan bilis), peeled

100g of Red onions, sliced

1 tsp of Salt

2 tbs of Sugar

½ cup of Cooking oil

Pork Rendang

1.2kg of Pork shoulder, boneless

1 pack of Mak Nyonya Perencah Rendang

300ml of Coconut milk

300ml (1 1/2 cups) of Water

100mg of Coconut shred

Kangkong

1 bundle of kangkong (river spinanch); cut stems 1” length
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon garlic; minced

Other Garnish

Hard boiled eggs, as many as you wish

1 small Cucumber, cut into half and sliced

1 packet of Ground nuts, roasted

Anchovies,

Method:

Coconut milk steamed rice

1.      Just like making steamed rice, rinse your rice and drain.

2.      Add the coconut milk, and soak for 10 minutes.

3.      Add salt to taste

4.      Pour 2tsp of oil in the rice cooker, add the rice and let the oil coat the rice

5.      Now add some water.

6.      Add sliced ginger, pandan leaves and lemon grass into the rice

7.      Place it in rice cooker and cook your rice.

8.      Occasionally loosen rice grains with a chopsticks.

Sambal Tumis

1.      Take out all seeds from the dried chilies so that the sambal will not be too hot.

2.      Then boil and blend the chilies.

3.      Place dried chilies, shallots, garlic and dried shrimp paste in a blender, add 1 cup of water (just enough to cover the ingredient) and blend it into a smooth paste (2 – 3 minutes)

4.      Heat a wok with some cooking oil and pour the paste on to the wok

5.      Stir-fry until the paste is almost dry or it changes color

6.      Add tamarind juice and stir fry again until the paste is almost dry

7.      Add dried anchovies and red onions

8.      Lastly, add 1 salt and sugar to taste.

Kangkong

1.      Saute garlic.

2.      When golden brown, add all other ingredients.  

3.      Cover and simmer until done.

4.      Don’t overcook the kangkong.

5.      Serve hot!

Pork Rendang

Rendang is one of Malaysia’s and Indonesia’s most iconic dish. However, it is quite unorthodox to make rendang with pork as many Malaysians and Indonesians are Muslims, and therefore naturally prefer halal meat. Beef and chicken are most common but I am giving pork a try because I have plenty of pork shoulder that I bought when they were on sale.

A classic rendang is a dry coconut stew made by slow cooking meat with spices. It often has notes of lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves with a subtle sweetness from local palm sugar called gula melaka. Recipes seem to vary from place to place but in my opinion, nothing beats a Malay style rendang that is finished with some kerisik, a roasted coconut paste. Rendang goes very well with plain white rice or turmeric rice and as with any stew, it tastes better if you let it sit overnight.

Ingredient:

• 600 g pork shoulder, cut into 2-3 inch cubes
• 2 tbsp shallots, fine chopped
• 1 tbsp ginger, fine chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, fine chopped
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds, toasted and ground
• 1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 lemongrass, bruised
• 4 kaffir lime leaves, lightly bruised
• beef stock/water
• 200 ml coconut milk
• gula melaka
• salt/pepper
• 1 tbsp or so kerisik

Method:

1. Sear pork shoulder cubes until brown at all sides in a heavy bottomed pot.
2. Reserve seared pork in a bowl.
3. Deglaze and remove browned bits with some stock. Reserve the jus in the same bowl as the pork.
4. Saute shallots, ginger, and garlic with 2 tablespoons of oil until fragrant.
5. Add the spices, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaves and saute until fragrant.
6. Add pork and jus to the pot and add coconut milk and enough stock to go up the meat halfway.
7. Season with a bit of salt, pepper, and gula melaka to the desired sweetness.
8. Bring it to a simmer and slowly cook until the meat is “empok” or fork tender, the oil separates, and noticeably dry, at least 2 hours. If the liquid dries up halfway and the meat is not yet tender, top with more stock and continue cooking.
9. About 15 minutes before cooking is done, add kerisik to the stew.
10. Serve with white rice.

Beef Rendang

I'm Malaysian but if you've been following my blog, you'd noticed that I rarely cook Malay, Indian, Nyonya food...well food that involves a long list of herbs and spices. I love spicy Malaysian food but Malaysian cooking is tedious. In Malaysia, we take such food for granted because it's so readily available and cheap, it never once crossed my mind that I want to start grinding spices to make my own curries. Besides, we can buy fresh ready-ground herbs and spices from the wet market with no artificial additives or preservatives added. Spoilt, I know =P

But I'm not in Malaysia now, I can either pay a hefty amount of money (as compared to what you pay in Malaysia) for a meh Malaysian meal or I can try making some myself. I saw this beef rendang recipe at Lizzie's blog and thought I had to make it.

Rendang is extremely popular in Malaysia and is one of my favourite meat dishes for nasi lemak. This dish is actually originated from the Minangkabau ethnic group of Indonesia and it involves cooking the meat in spices, coconut milk and kerisik (toasted grated coconut in Malay) for several hours until dry. The slow simmering and then "frying" process makes the meat extremely tender and flavourful. I made a few minor changes and added some tamarind paste as seen at Bee's Rasa Malaysia. Time consuming, but so worth it.

It's even better the next day.

Ingredients: serves 4

• 1kg beef - chopped into small chunks
• 5 tbs cooking oil
• 2 tsp tamarind paste
• 1 cup warm water
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 cloves
• 3 star anise
• 3 cardamom pods
• 1 can coconut milk
• 6 tbs unsweetened dessicated coconut
• 6 kaffir lime leaves (I used dried) - thinly sliced, you can soak the dried leaves in warm water to soften the leaves a little before slicing.
• 2 dried bay leaves
• 1 tbs sugar/palm sugar or to taste (I used black treacle plus 1 tsp sugar)
• 1 tsp salt (or to taste)

Spice paste:

• 5 shallots
• 1 inch galangal
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 inch ginger
• 4 stalks lemongrass - white part only
• 10 dried red chilies - soaked in warm water, seeded or not (your choice!)

Directions:

• Soak tamarind paste in 1 cup of warm water for about 5-10 mins. Remove the seeds after the pulp is softened.

• Roughly chop all ingredients for spice paste. Place everything into a food processor and blend until a paste is formed. I added about 2 tbs of oil to help the blending process.

• Add the rest of the oil to a large pot, add spice paste, cinnamon stick, cloves, star anise and cardamom pods. Fry until fragrant on low heat.
• Mix in the meat.

• Pour in coconut milk, tamarind juice and simmer on medium heat, uncovered.

• While meat is simmering, prepare the kerisik by adding the unsweetened dessicated coconut to a heated pan/ wok. Stir continuously until golden brown.

• Add kerisik, kaffir lime leaves, bay leaves and sugar to simmering meat. Leave to cook for 1 1/2 hrs uncovered.
• Turn the heat up to high and let it cook for a further 1/2 hr. Stir frequently.
• The liquid should have almost evaporated off. When it has done so and the oil has separated, fry the beef in this oil, stirring so that it doesn't stick. It should be thick and very dark brown.

Beef rendang served with pandan flavoured rice, stir-fried pickled cabbage and a sunny side up.

Beef Rendang Recipe (Rendang Daging)

Recipe: Beef Rendang (Rendang Daging) or Spicy Beef Stew with Coconut

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pound boneless beef short ribs (cut into cubes)
5 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cinnamon stick (about 2-inch long)
3 cloves
3 star anise
3 cardamom pods
1 lemongrass (cut into 4-inch length and pounded)
1 cup thick coconut milk
1 cup water
2 teaspoons tamarind pulp (soaked in some warm water for the juice and discard the seeds )
6 kaffir lime leaves (very finely sliced)
6 tablespoons kerisik (toasted coconut)
1 tablespoon sugar/palm sugar or to taste
Salt to taste

Spice Paste:

5 shallots
1 inch galangal
3 lemongrass (white part only)
5 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
10-12 dried chilies (soaked in warm water and seeded)

Method:

1. Chop the spice paste ingredients and then blend it in a food processor until fine.
2. Heat the oil in a stew pot, add the spice paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and cardamom and stir-fry them until aromatic.
3. Add the beef and the pounded lemongrass and stir for 1 minute.
4. Add the coconut milk, tamarind juice, water, and simmer on medium heat, stirring frequently until the meat is almost cooked.
5. Add the kaffir lime leaves, kerisik (toasted coconut), sugar/palm sugar, stirring to blend well with the meat.
6. Lower the heat to low, cover the lid, and simmer for 1 – 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is really tender and the gravy has dried up.
7. Add salt to taste. If not sweet enough, add more sugar to taste.
8. Serve immediately with steamed rice and save some for overnight.

Cook’s Notes:

1. To prepare the kerisik or toasted coconut, just add the grated coconut to a dry wok and stir continuosly until they turn golden brown.

If you like Indonesian or Malaysian cuisines, do check out Spittoon Extra’s roundup of “Waiter, there is something in my Indonesian.”

Adam Liaw's Malaysian Beef Rendang

These last few weeks, I’ve been working on a project with Malaysian Kitchen – a global initiative of the Malaysian Government celebrating Malaysian cuisine around the world.
So to celebrate Malaysian food, firstly, I decided to cook my favourite Malaysian dish – beef rendang.
(Actually, it’s my husband’s favourite dish. I’m just a very good wife.)
I used the recipe from the Two Asian Kitchens Cookbook by Australian Masterchef Winner Adam Liaw.
And let me tell you, it was really simple. So simple that my 6 year old son helped me.
I followed the recipe exactly too!

These are just some of the ingredients in the recipe.
I even bought an actual, fresh coconut – to grate, roast and pound. Ha how authentic is that!
That vulgar looking root at the front is a turmeric root. I’ve never seen one before! It stained my chopping board!
I thought I’d have a problem finding all the ingredients, but to my delight, my local fruit and vegetable shop stocked everything.

I chopped and sliced everything up, while my 6 year old son threw it into a food processor.
Ok I admit working with a fresh coconut was a bit time consuming and overrated in the end. Adam suggests that using desiccated coconut is just as good. And I’ll be doing that next time.

Using the fresh ingredients was absolutely worth it. The smell was already incredible and we hadn’t even cooked anything yet.
We threw the processed stuff into a pot.
Added meat, coconut milk, lime leaves, lemongrass.
Slow cooked it for 2 hours.

And look at that!
Absolutely, mouth-wateringly brilliant.
Everyone knows that brown meat curry doesn’t look good when photographed, so I left the pieces of lime leaves mixed with the meat to add a bit of visual interest. YUMMMM!!!
We fed a dinner party of 6 people, and they were all very, very happy indeed. I felt like such a culinary rockstar :)
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Adam Liaw’s Malaysian Beef Rendang
Serves 4-6
Preparation: 30 minutes
Cooking: About 2 hours
Ingredients
1 tablespoon of oil
1kg of chuck steak, cut into 3cm cubes
3 stalks of lemongrass, white part only, bruised with a pestle
3 kaffir lime leaves shredded
2 teaspoons sugar
400 ml coconut cream
100g grated fresh coconut (or 130g desiccated coconut)
Base Paste
8 eschalots
6 red birds-eye chillies
6 garlic cloves
3cm piece of galangal (peeled and thickly sliced)
3cm of ginger (peeled and thickly sliced)
3cm of turmeric (peeled and thickly sliced)
2 teaspoon sea salt flakes
1. Base paste – Put all the ingredients in a food processor (or mortar) and grind to a fairly smooth paste.
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan and fry the paste, stirring often over medium heat for 5 minutes until fragrant.
3. Add beef, lemongrass, kaffir leaves and sugar and toss to coat in the paste.
4. Add coconut cream and 250mL of water and bring to low simmer. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, then uncover and cook for 1 hour.
5. Meanwhile, dry-fry the coconut in a frying pan until golden brown. Transfer to a mortar and grind to a paste.
6. Add the ground coconut and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve with hot jasmine rice (or coconut rice).
I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!