Thursday, December 31, 2009

Savory Christmas/Holiday Pie

Have no clue what to make for your New Year Party? How about making this pie? I love making savory pie and this is an easy, quiche-like pie that I prepared for our Christmas. The colorful peppers and spring onions make this pie look really festive and Christmassy. This pie can also be made into bite size appetizer using mini-tart pan. Don’t worries about making it look perfect as this pie is supposed to be rustic looking ;)

Ingredients:

Shortcrust pastry – refer to the recipe here (you can use the store bought pastry)
3 links fresh chicken sausages
½ cup grated cheddar cheese
¼ grated parmesan cheese
3 eggs
¾ cup milk
2 leeks – wash and thinly sliced
¼ chopped red pepper
¼ chopped yellow pepper
2 spring onions - cut small
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Removed sausages from it casing. Heat up a frying pan and cook the sausages until lightly brown. Add in the leeks. Continue to cook until the leeks are lightly brown. Dish out and set aside.
2. Roll out the pastry and place it on a pie dish or small tart pans. Set it aside. Pre-heat the oven to 375 degree F.
3. Combined eggs, milk together. Beat well and add in the two cheeses, salt and pepper. (go easy on the salt as the cheeses might be salty) Mix well.
4. Place the sausage and leeks into the tart shell. Pour the egg mixture into the tart shell. Top it with yellow, red peppers and spring onions.
5. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
6. Serve warm.

Wishing everyone a wonderful New Year! A year full with peace, joy, health and wealth.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Mongolian Beef

This is another Chinese American classic dish here in United State. I am not sure how the name of this dish come about as neither the ingredients nor preparation methods applied have anything in common with traditional Mongolian Cuisine. Mongolian beef consists of sliced beef coated with dark sweet sauce. The best part of this dish is you can tailor it to to suit your taste and you can even add some vegetables to it. I cut back on the sugar as I always find the one serve at the restaurant too sweet for my liking.

Ingredients:

½ pound of beef tenderloin or flank steak
1 medium size onions - quartered
2 stalk of green onions – cut into 1” length
1 small carrot – peels and thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic - chopped
1 tsp of chopped ginger
2 tbsp of soy sauce
Dash of pepper
Some cornstarch – for coating

Sauce:

1 tbsp of oyster sauce
1 tbsp of sweet dark soy sauce (kicap manis)
2 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tsp of brown sugar (more if you like it sweeter)
½ tsp pepper
¼ tsp sesame oil
½ cup water

1. Sliced beef across the grain into thin strips. Marinate it with 2 tbsp of soy sauce and dash of pepper for 30 minutes. Mix the sauce ingredients together and set it aside.
2. Heat up wok or non-stick pan add in about ½ cup of oil. Coat the beef with some cornstarch. When the oil is hot and ready add in the beef and fry until it changes color. This will take about 1-2 minutes. Remove the beef and drain on paper towel.
3. Remove the oil and leave about 2 tbsp of oil in the same wok for stir-frying. Add in the garlic and ginger. Stir-fry until fragrant and add in the onion and carrot. Stir-fry for a minute.
4. Add in the sauce and bring it up to a boil. Add in the beef and continue to stir until sauce reduce and thickens. Check seasonings and add in the spring onions.
5. Dish out and serve with warm rice.

Monday, December 28, 2009

Results of the Christmas Giveaway

I am sure you are eager to know the results of the Christmas Giveaway. I really appreciate your participation and kind comments as I never knew there are so many people reading my blog. It is really fun reading all your kind comments.

By using ‘Random Number Generator’ I type in number 1 to 146 (total comments) and let it drawn the winners.

The first winner is commenter No: 17 (Mangocheeks)




The second winner is commenter No: 51 (Sunshine)




The third winner is commenter No: 2 (Michelle)



Congratulations to the winners and I will email you soon for your address.

Sunday, December 27, 2009

Chocolate Truffles

Here’s an easy Chocolate Truffles that we love and I know you will too. These bite size handmade truffles are rich, elegant and stylish. They are great as holiday gifts or even for parties. Instead of picking up a box of chocolate from the chocolate shop why not make it yourself. They are simply delicious and surprisingly easy to make. You can add any flavors to the chocolate from citrus peel, coffee, spices, vanilla or liqueur. While cocoa powder is the traditional used for coating, these truffles can also be coated in confectioners’ sugar, toasted and chopped nuts, shredded coconut or even shaved chocolate.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup heavy cream
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp of Bailey’s or any flavor you like
Toasted chopped nuts, cocoa power, chopped candies etc (for coating truffles)

1. Over medium heat brings the cream to a boil to boil. . Immediately pour hot cream over the chocolate and stir until smooth.
2. Stir in the Bailey’s. Refrigerate until chocolate mixture until it is firm enough to roll into balls. It might take2 hours.
3. Using a small melon baller or ice cream scoop, form 1” balls. Then place the truffle into the prepared coating. Move the truffle around to coat. Place the truffles in small paper cups and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving.

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Merry Christmas!!



To my family, friends and blog readers,
May lovely and happy times decorate your holiday season,
May warm, special memories brighten your New Year,
May the wonder of Christmas be with you forever.

Merry Christmas & Have A Happy Blessed New Year Everyone!!

Monday, December 21, 2009

Strawberry Nut Pinwheels

Is Christmas time again and it is time to do some baking. I didn't bake much this year. Just 4 types of cookies for our cookies swap. I baked my usual Oatmeal Raisin Cranberry Cookies , Pineapple Tarts , Russian Tea Cakes and this Strawberry Nut Pinwheels. I adapted this recipe from Taste of Home Best Holiday Cookies magazine.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup/113 grm butter - softened
1 cup sugar (I used 3/4 cup)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups of flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup strawberry jam
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts

1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla.
2. Combined flour and baking powder and gradually add to the butter mixture. Mix well.
3. Roll out dough between two sheet of parchment paper into 12" square. Remove the top piece of parchment paper. Spread it with the jam and sprinkle with nuts.
4. Roll up tightly like a Swiss-roll style. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.
5. Pre-heat oven to 375 degree F. Unwrap the dough and cut into 1/4" slices and place the cookies on a well-greased baking pan and bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire rack to cool.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

Apple Cake

The weather is so cold this week and we are expecting a snow storm this Saturday. I am finding ways to keep myself warm and the best thing to do is to crank up the oven. I baked some Christmas cookies for our cookies swap and also this Apple cake for my neighbor Nancy’s birthday. I’ve baked so many apple cakes but in my humble opinion this is one of the best apple cakes. This cake is soft, moist, and full of apple flavor. I especially like the crunchy sweet cinnamon apple topping.

Ingredients:

1 cup/226grm of butter
180 grm sugar
4 eggs
2 apples - cut into cubes
200 ml fresh cream
300 grm flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

Topping:

1 big or 2 medium size apples – peel and sliced
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Glazed:

2 tbsp of orange marmalade

1. Prepare an 8” baking pan, greased well and line the bottom with parchment paper. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degree F.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in one egg at a time and continue to beat until light and fluffy.
3. Sift flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour into the butter mixture in 3 badges alternating with the fresh cream.
4. Mix well and lastly add in the cubes apples. Mix well.
5. Pour the batter into the baking pan. Smooth the top.
6. Lightly toss all the topping ingredients. Arrange the slice apple on top of the cake and bake for an hour till golden brown or until skewer comes out clean when tested.
7. Removed from oven. Let it cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then turn it out on the cooling rack.
8. Warm up the orange marmalade in the microwave for 15 second and brush it all over the top of the cake.


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Have you participate in the Christmas Giveaway yet? If not you can still do it here . Closing date 23rd December 2009.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Christmas Giveaway!! (Closed)

Is the holiday season again and while you are shopping for your loved ones it is time for some Christmas giveaway here at My Kitchen Snippets. I am giving away 3 fabulous baking books for three lucky readers.

The first winner will get Muffins Galore by Catherine Atkinson. This book is excellent with beautiful pictures inside. The recipe inside is easy to follow and guarantee great results.

The second second winner will get Cupcakes Galore by Gail Wagman. It’s a super book for cupcakes with frosting for all occasions. Great layout and pictures too.

The third winner will get Cake Galore by Valerie Barrett. Plenty of cake recipes in this book with categories like Grandma’s Favorites, Afternoon Tea, Special Occasion Cakes, Healthy and Special Diet Cakes, etc.

If you are a fan of baking and like try out various recipes here’s your chance. All you have to do is write a comment telling me what kind of dessert you like to make or serve at Christmas or any occasions.
Oh, in case you are wondering, this giveaway is open to anyone anywhere in the world and not just for USA readers. Remember to leave your email address in your comment, so that I have some way of contacting you if you win. I will pick 3 lucky winner (s) by a random drawing. Dateline for the Giveaway will be on 23rd December 2009 at 6.00pm (Eastern Time) Good Luck!!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Turkey Pasties

I did these pasties from our leftover Thanksgiving turkey.

Ingredients:

2 cups of leftover turkey meat
1 onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup turkey gravy
1/2 cup cooked potatoes (i used the leftovers)
1/4 cup chopped olives
1 tbsp chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg, beaten
2 sheets store bought shortcrust pastries


1. Mix together the turkey meat, onion, olives, herbs, salt and pepper and bind with half the egg.
2. Roll out the pastry thinly and cut into rounds (size depend on how big you like)
3. Divide the turkey mixture between the rounds, dampen the pastry edges and fold over. Press together to seal.
4. Place the pasties on a baking sheet and brush with the remaining beaten egg.
5. Bake in a preheated 375 degree F oven for 15 - 20 minutes or until well browned. Serve hot or cold.

Saturday, December 12, 2009

Ayam Percik/Malay Style BBQ Chicken

This is such an exotic Malay style BBQ chicken. It has the full flavor of spices and sweet fragrant smell of coconut. This dish is originated from Kelantan, a beautiful state in the Northern East Coast of Malaysian. You can find this dish at every food bazaar during Ramadan month in Malaysia. The Ramadan market will not be complete without the sweet smell of the vendors grilling this special Ayam Percik.

The most important part of this dish is the blended paste. Like many other Malaysian dishes we uses a lot of fresh herbs and spices like Chilies, Lemongrass, ginger, shallots, buah keras and garlic all blended together with some tamarind paste and cinnamon. It gives this dish such a rich and aromatic flavor. The sauce is perfectly sweet, sour, salty and spicy. Traditionally cooked over hot charcoal fire but because of the cold weather here I just baked it in the oven.

Ingredients:

4 whole chicken legs with thigh attached
1 tsp tamarind paste (Asam Jawa)
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 cup of coconut milk
1/4 cup of water
1 tbsp of brown sugar
Salt to Taste

Spice (Blended to paste)

4 candlenuts/buah keras (or macadamia nuts)
6 Cloves Garlic
2 tbsp of chili paste (I used sambal Oelek)
1” ginger
4 shallots
2 lemongrass – sliced thinly

1. Clean the chicken, removed all the skin and fat. Make some light cuts on the surface of the meat. Pat the chicken dry with paper towel.
2. Mix the paste with the rest of the ingredients together in a Ziploc bag. Marinate the chicken for at least 3 – 4 hours. Make sure the chicken is well coated with the marinate.
3. Pre-heat the oven to 375 degree F. Put the chicken in a deep dish together with all marinates. Cover it with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for half an hour. Remove the foil and then continue to bake until chicken cooked and golden brown. Make sure you turn the chicken occasionally and basting it with the gravy.

Note: If you are using tamarind pulp, just mix the pulp with the ¼ cup of water from the recipe.

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Stir –Fry Tom Yam Shrimp

There are so many ready made paste out there now. You can find it in most of the supermarket shelves and it comes in packets or jars. It really makes life so much easier for us if we want to cook some quick meals. I like using Tom Yam paste in some of my cooking. Tom Yam paste is not only for Tom Yam soup but you can use it to make stir-fry, fried noodles and also fried rice. Tom Yam paste can be pretty sour so you have to add some sugar to balance up the taste. This is an appetizing dish and goes really well with rice.

Ingredients:


½ pound of shrimps – shelled and de-veined
One big onion – sliced thinly
2 cloves of garlic – chopped
2 tomatoes – cut into wedges
1 tsp or more sugar
3 tbsp of Tom Yam paste
Salt to taste

1. Heat up some oil in a frying pan; add in the onion and garlic. Stir fry until fragrant and onion soften.
2. Add in the tom yam paste; stir fry for a few second. Add in the shrimps and continue to stir fry until the shrimp changes to light pink color.
3. Add about ½ cup of water and the tomatoes. Continue to stir-fry until sauce thicken. Add in the sugar and salt to taste.
4. Dish out and serve with warm rice.

Tuesday, December 08, 2009

Orange Cranberry Raisin Walnut Bread

Have you start your Christmas baking yet? I’ve already baked my fruitcakes and now it is sitting on my kitchen counter aging away. I will give it a dose of rum every now and then until I cut into it on Christmas day. Yea, I am a fruitcake fan but not the pre-packed kind that you get from the supermarket shelves. I just hate those fruitcakes. I only like the homemade kinds with loads of fruits in it. You can check out my fruitcakes recipe here

Before I can have some of my fruitcake, I baked this Orange Cranberry Raisin Walnut bread to get over my craving. This loaf with the flavor of cranberry, raisin and a hint of citrus fragrant tasted great when toasted and with a little spread of butter they are just perfect for breakfast.

Ingredients:

2 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tbsp milk powder
3 Tbsp butter, at room temperature
1 cup water, lukewarm
Zest of an orange
2 tsp active dry yeast
3 tbsp sugar
1tsp salt
½ roughly walnuts, toasted
1 cup cranberries
1 cup raisins

1. Sprinkle the yeast to the lukewarm water, stir well and leave it to froth for about 5 min.
2. Place the hook attachment to the mixer. In a mixing bowl, add in the flours, sugar, milk powder, salt and orange zest. Mix well. Slowly add in the yeast mixture. Knead until the dough pulled away from the bowl.
3. Add in the butter, cranberries, raisins and walnuts. Continue to knead until the dough is smooth and elastic.
4. Form the bread and place them on a baking sheet and cover again and let it rise again to double its size.
5. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degree F. Bake the bread until golden brown and sound hollow when tapped with your fingers.


Note : The winner for the Xagave Giveway is comment No: 5


I will get in touch with you Zoe.

Sunday, December 06, 2009

Beef Rendang/Dry Beef Curry

When we talk about beef rendang, we associated it with Hari Raya (the first day after the end of Ramadan fasting month) it is the main celebration of the Malay communities in Malaysia. Rendang pairs well with Lemang (glutinous rice packed in bamboo tube and smoked slowly on low fire) The Beef Rendang recipe I prepared is pretty special as I managed to grown some turmeric and I used some of the leaves to cook this dish. As with all good rendang, it can be kept up to a week in the refrigerator and if frozen, can last up to a month. This is a rich, wholesome dish is great for family gatherings and for those who are on a diet, better stays away (if you can!).

Ingredients:

2 pounds stewing beef
3 fresh turmeric leaves – sliced thinly (optional)
3 tbsp of kerisik (coconut paste)
3 kaffir lime leaves (limau purut)
2 cup of coconut milk + some water
Salt and sugar to taste

To blend into paste:

10 shallots or 1 big onion
2" of lengkuas (galangal)
2" of ginger
2 stalk of lemongrass
4 cloves of garlic
10 dried chilies (soaked until soft)
10 fresh red chilies
2” fresh turmeric or 2 tbsp of turmeric powder

For Kerisik (coconut paste)

1 cup of fresh grated coconut

1. In a non-stick pan, dry fry the grated coconut until golden brown.
2. Removed and blend it into paste while it is still hot until it is fine and paste like.

This is the turmeric plant.


1) Heat about 3 tbsp of oil in a wok and gently fry the blended paste for 2 minutes or until slightly dry and fragrant.
2) Add in the beef and continue to stir-fry until the beef changes color. Add in coconut milk and enough water to cover the beef. Bring it to boil. Roughly tear up the kaffir lime leaves and add it into the beef. Reduce heat to simmer.
3) Cover and simmer and stir occasionally and cook until meat is tender. If the dish dries up too fast, do add a little more hot water or coconut milk to it.
4) Add in sugar, salt to taste. Add in the turmeric leaves and kerisik (coconut paste)and cook till the sauce dry up. Serve with warm rice.

Note: I added some potatoes to this dish too. All you have to do is peel and cut it into chunks, pan fried them until lightly brown (this will prevent the potatoes from getting mushy when you cook them) and add it into the rendang when the meat is nearly done.

Thursday, December 03, 2009

What To Do With Leftover Turkey

Is has been a week since Thanksgiving. Each year after our meal I will stand in the kitchen staring at the piles of leftover turkey and wondering what am I going to do with it. Mmmm turkey pot pie, turkey sandwich, turkey pizza, turkey dumplings etc.. Well, here are some of the meals I prepared from the leftovers this year. I think I am tired of the taste of turkey and no more turkey for me until the next thanksgiving. Now you know why we eat turkey only once a year ;)

Turkey Pasties (recipe coming up soon)

Stuffing Meatballs - for this appetizer I used the leftover sausage stuffing. I used 2 cups of stuffing, one egg and mix everything together. Shape it into small balls and fried until golden brown. Voila!! Served with some leftover cranberry sauce.

Turkey Curry Puffs - for this I used the ready made empanadas wrappers. As for the filling you can refer to the recipe here

Turkey Rice Porridge - I cook this porridge using the turkey drumstick. I used 1/2 cup of rice, 1/2 cup of glutinous rice, 2 carrots, 1/2 cup of peanuts, one small onions. Put it in the slower cooker with few cups of water (depend on how thick you want the porridge to be) and let it cook for a few hours. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle some sesame oil before serving.

Tuesday, December 01, 2009

Sweet Dinner Rolls and a Giveaway (Now Closed)

Nowadays everyone trying to eat more healthy and like everyone else I am trying to cut down on sugar and consume it in moderations. I have heard about this great product called Xagave (pronounced Za-gah-vay) that is an organically grown premium blend of nectars derived from Agave Tequiliana (Blue Agave) and Agave Salmiana (White Agave) plants. It is an answer to all the blood sugar woes. Xagave offers a number of health benefits over regular processed sugar; including calorie savings, fiber and calcium content, and low glycemic index. A lot of people are reluctant to try sugar substitutes in their recipes because they are worried about loss of flavor and after taste but Xagave is different. It has a mild and perfectly sweet flavor making it great for all kinds of drinks, dressing, sauces and baking. I bake these sweet bread using Xagave and the bread turn out so soft and moist. You can hardly tell that there is no sugar in the recipes. Thanks to the representative of Xagave for giving me the sample of this wonderful product along with the cookbook.


Xagave would like to give away a bottle of Xagave and the Delicious Meets Nutritious cookbook to one lucky winner. The giveaway will end on December 6th 2009 at 6.00pm (Eastern Time). All you have to do is leave a comment with your email address here and I will randomly draw the winner . GOOD LUCK!!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Cooking Bread.com

1 1/2 cups milk
2 tablespoons shortening
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup Xagave or honey
4 - 4 1/2 cups bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon salt

1 egg - for egg wash

1. Pour milk into a saucepan and bring to a scald. Set aside. Pour the Xagave or honey into a large bowl, add in the shortening and butter. Pour in the hot milk. Stir till all the shortening and butter is melted. Add in two cups of flour and mix till smooth. Allow to cool to a temperature of 110F
2. Add in the salt and yeast. Mix till smooth and allow to rest uncovered for 15 minutes. Add in another cup of flour and stir. Add some flour to a flat surface and pour out the mixture on top. Begin to knead and slowly add in more flour as you need. You may or may not need all the 4 1/2 cups of flour. You just don't want the dough to be to sticky. Knead for 10 minutes
3. Pour a little oil into a clean bowl. Place your kneaded dough into the bowl and turn over till all sides are very lightly coated. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 1 hour or till double in bulk
4. At this stage you can shape your dough into any shape you like. Cover with plastic wrap for 1 hour or till double in size. Brush the tops with an egg wash to get that shiny coating. Sprinkle with some sesame seeds or poppy seeds.
5. Bake in a pre-heated 350 degree F oven for 15-20 min (depend on the size of your buns) or until golden brown.