Archive for Western Food

A Simple Weekend Dinner – Buffalo Wings, Garden Greens, Butter Rice, Potato Salad, Celery Sticks

November 6, 2009 · Filed under Western Food · Tagged , ,

Good morning, dear friends :D

Come weekends, I am usually unsure of what to cook for dinner as it is either an elaborate affair since everyone is home and can have dinner at the same time, or I don’t cook dinner and we eat out. Eating out can be costly if done too often and cooking lavish meals can be quite tiring as I would like to rest on weekends, too!  :roll:

So, when the right mood hits me, I can cook a simple but yet delicious meal in a short time. For my family, they love Western food as we often have Chinese food during weekdays. Here are ideas that you can follow if you don’t know what to cook for your family :idea:  (click on the names to get the recipes I had posted before)  :-

mini-Buffalo Wings Saturday Dinner 002

Buffalo Wings … smothered in Barbeque Sauce

*

mini-Buffalo Wings Saturday Dinner 001

A simple Garden Salad with a Lemon Juice-Olive Oil-Garlic Dressing drizzled over it

*

Easy, Aromatic Butter Rice

*

mini-Buffalo Wings Saturday Dinner 003

Yummy Easy Potato Salad (recipe below)

*

mini-Buffalo Wings Saturday Dinner 005

Celery Sticks with a Sour Cream Dip

Yummy, Easy Potato Salad Recipe

Ingredients :-

1 1/2 kg or 3 pounds potatoes – skins scrubbed clean

5 large hardboiled eggs, shelled

1 cup of chopped scallions or green onions

1 small red onion (peeled and chopped finely)

A little bit of finely chopped carrots for colour (optional)

1 tbsp of creamy mustard (I used the type for hot dogs)

4 tablespoons of mayonnaise

Salt and Pepper to taste

Method :-

1) Boil the potatoes whole in a pot of water for about 20 minutes or until they can be pierced easily with a knife or skewer.

2) Remove potatoes and run under cold water to cool down. Cut into chunks or cubes to your preferred size.

3) Mash hardboiled eggs

4) Mix in mustard, mayonnaise and chopped scallions/green onions

5) Season to taste

6) Add in the potatoes and mix thoroughly.

7) Refrigerate until serving time. This salad tastes better if prepared in advance, say at least one hour. :wink:

Do have a wonderful weekend! :D


With best wishes,

choesf :D

*

Leave a comment »

How To Make Wine Vinegar by Paul Kovi – Recipe posted by Louise

October 18, 2009 · Filed under How To's & Guides, Western Food · Tagged , , , ,

Good evening, dear friends :D

Ah, my wonderful blogger friend, Louise, has shared this recipe  on how to make our own wine vinegar at my About page and I thought to set up a new post here so that you can have easy referral to it. I’m very sure you will be delighted to find a way of making your own vinegar. :wink:

All credits of this recipe goes to Louise who has a really interesting blog called “Months of Edible Celebrations” – every day of the year, there are some fascinating festivals or themes going on and Louise has certainly put in a lot of research, thought and heart into writing those articles.

Thank you very much, dear Louise, for sharing this recipe with us! I know I will enjoy making the vinegar and thinking about Count Dracula and Transylvania!  :D

READ HERE for Louise’s fascinating post titled “Nibbling my way to Count Dracula’s Castle” for more recipes and information….

With best wishes,

choesf :D

transylvania

Hi choesf,


I will be posting a few recipes from the following book in the next day or so, (I haven’t decided which day yet as it is a sort of halloween themed post, Dracula included:) Anyway, the following recipe is one I will be posting. I thought you might appreciate so I am posting it here not to interfere with your regular posts. I tried to email you but it seems I either misplaced your email address or never had it. I am a bit hurried but I wanted to get it off to you before I forget. Hope you like it, Louise…

A Wine Vinegar for Autumn from Transylvanian Cuisine by Paul Kovi

Ingredients :-

  • A bunch of green grapevine tendrils
  • 2 ounces raisins or dried, pitted sour cherries or cornel
  • 1 ear of young corn
  • 2 ounces lentils
  • 3 quarts dry white wine
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 or 2 pieces fresh and ripe fruit (any kind), cleaned and stemmed

Instructions :-
1. At the beginning of the summer fill a wide-mouthed glass gallon jar one fourth full with the following ingredients: green grape vine tendrils,raisins (or dried sour cherries or cornel) ear of corn, and lentils. Pour in enough wine to fill jar halfway and stir in half the honey.


2. Cover the top of the jar with cheesecloth and tie it down. The mixture will first ferment then turn cloudy before it eventually clears up.


3. When 2 weeks have elapsed, place the jar in a cool but not too cold spot. Add 1 or 2 pieces of cleaned, stemmed ripe fruit of the season to the jar and let stand.


4. At the beginning of September add enough wine to the jar to fill it. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons honey. Place the jar in a sunny spot again for 1 week (be sure the contents do not become too warm), then return it to a cool spot.


5. Do not move the jar until the first days of October. By this time the vinegar will have a layer of sediment on the bottom, and will be clear on top.


6. Carefully siphon off a bottle (1 quart) of the clear, ready to use vinegar and fill the jar again with the same amount of white wine.


7. If the vinegar is handled carefully (not moved or shaken), it will not spoil. This procedure of draining off the clear vinegar should be repeated again from time to time (taste it occasionally, and siphon it about every 2 to 4 weeks). Be sure to replace the removed amount with fresh wine. It produces a very good vinegar.

Variations:

Using an existing vinegar base, one can prepare new vinegar from a favorite wine and some fruit (or other sugar-containing plant) in the following manner:

Fill a 2-quart wide-mouthed jar with wine (or with any kind of fruit soaked in wine), Cover the mouth of the jar with cheesecloth and tie it down, then put the jar in an evenly warm place.

The top of the wine will develope a skin after a while; stir it back into the wine by shaking the jar. Continue this process until 1/4 or 1/2 quart gelatinous wine skin forms. Transfer this gelatinous wine to a similar size jar. Fill the jar with some vinegar from the recipe above.

Let stand in cool spot. When the contents settle, slowly siphon off the top for use. Replace the removed amount with fresh wine. Be sure to siphon off new vinegar at least once every 4 weeks. Bottle the vinegar and store it in a cool place.

Note: If the wine develops a skin on top, be sure to skim it off. Wine vinegar prepared in such a manner can be used as a base for flavored vinegars as well.

Comments (2) »

My Deepavali & Hari Raya Haji Festival Food

December 29, 2008 · Filed under Festival Food, Malaysian food, Western Food, Whole Lunch or Dinner Menus · Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

Good evening, dear friends :D

I have been feeling under the weather these few days and although I want to write here, my lethargy and “uncooperative brain” is not allowing me to do much. So, seeing as I have some photos taken earlier for you, I’ll just post them all here and add on the recipes later.

On the day of Deepavali (the Hindu Festival of Lights) in October, I cooked a full Indian meal for the first time and my hubby was very impressed. He loves Indian curries but somehow, I thought they were difficult to cook. But then, since I love to celebrate the various culture’s festivals with some unique feasts, I decided to take out my dusty “Malaysian Cookbook” and look up some Indian recipes.

I had also cooked some Rasam (sour soup) and made some cucumber achar, but I forgot to take pictures of them.

Here are pictures of my Deepavali feast -

deepavali-dinner-001-small

A creamy, delicious Mutton Curry with carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, coriander leaves, cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves, cardamon, fennel and cumin

*

deepavali-dinner-002-small

Ayam Kurma, which is a very mild (almost non-spicy) Indian Chicken Curry

*

deepavali-dinner-003-smallNasi Briyani – good quality Basmati Rice cooked with ghee (clarified butter), spices, mint leaves and garnished with crispy, golden fried shallots. Here, some Ayam Kurma gravy has already been poured onto the rice ..

*

Then, for the Muslim festival called “Hari Raya Aidil Adha”, I cooked some Dried Chicken Curry (Chicken Rendang, Rendang Ayam), Peanut Sauce (Kuah Kacang) and made some Ketupat (Compressed Rice in Coconut Leaf Casings). I finally perfected my Ketupat recipe this time because the other two times, the ketupats were either too sticky or hard.

Here are the pictures for my Hari Raya Haji feast -

ketupat-kuahkacang-001-small

Fresh, woven coconut leaf casings for making Ketupat – filled up to 55 % with long grain rice (I used good quality Kedah, a state in the northern region of Malaysia) grown rice, and boiled over low heat in salted water for 4 hours

*

ketupat-kuahkacang-002-small

Cooked Ketupat, ready to be cut into cubes and eaten with Kuah Kacang, Chicken Rendang, some sliced cucumber and raw onion

*

kuah-kacang-small

Kuah Kacang or Peanut Sauce to go with Ketupat or Satay

*

chicken-rendang-smallMalay Dry Chicken Curry or Chicken Rendang

*

For my Christmas Roast Turkey Dinner, I had cooked a 15-pound turkey, with mashed potatoes, broccolli, green peas, baby carrots, and a fresh button mushroom stirfry. However, I couldn’t show you their photos because they looked rather dodgy…… :oops: , anyway, I had photos of last year’s Christmas Eve Roast Turkey Dinner here. :wink:

I wish you a Happy New Year! :D

With peace and joy,

choesf :D


Comments (6) »

Yummy Meatballs & Potatoes with Gravy, a la Swedish/Ikea Style

October 22, 2008 · Filed under Western Food · Tagged , , , , ,

Beef Meatballs, Steamed Potatoes, Ikea Gravy, Steamed Broccolli, Buttered Brown Rice,  Lingonberry Preserve 

Yummy Konnyaku Jelly

Yummy Konnyaku Jelly

 Dessert was Konnyaku Jelly

Ikea Lingonberries

Ikea Lingonberries

Ikea Gravy Mix For Meatballs and Potatoes

Ikea Gravy Mix For Meatballs and Potatoes

Good evening, dear friends :D

My children and I love going to the Ikea Furniture Store located in Mutiara Damansara just for the coffee and the Swedish food - especially  their really yummy Swedish Meatballs and Potatoes. However, Ikea is located quite far from where we stay and thus, we don’t often go there as much as we would like to. :cry:

So, I decided to re-produce a little bit of “Ikea or Swedish flavour” for dinner in my home. :idea: :lol:

What I had stocked up from Ikea were 10 packets of Ikea Gravy Mix for potatoes (I put them in my freezer) and a bottle of Lingonberry Preserve. With a few packets of Marina brand of frozen beef meatballs, I was all set to cook this yummy meal in a jiffy. You can also do the same at home and this is much cheaper than eating at the Ikea restaurant.

All I needed to do was -

1) cooked some Butter Brown Rice (just add some butter, chopped shallots, a cup of frozen peas/carrots/corn), a pandan leaf, some chicken stock, and 1 tsp of salt. While this is cooking..

2) I scrubbed some potatoes and steamed them for 20 minutes, until a knife can be pierced through them easily. Set aside to keep warm.

3) Next, I  steamed the 50 meatballs (for 7 persons) for 10 minutes…reserving any liquid left there to make the gravy. Set this aside in a covered casserole to keep warm.

4) Then I steamed my brocolli and carrots for 5 minutes. While this was cooking…

5) I prepared the gravy according to the instructions on the Ikea packet. Just a word of caution – there is a lot of MSG contained in the mix, and therefore, I used only 2 packets of the gravy mix and added some water plus a beef (or chicken, if you like) stock boullion and then thicken the sauce a bit with a cornstarch mixture. I didn’t have any cream on hand to mix into the gravy as instructed and I added full cream milk instead…the gravy tasted great anyway!

Voila! This Ikea style dinner was ready in just 45 minutes! Well, except for the rice, which may take longer according to the cooking method. :D

Happy Cooking! :D

choesf :D

Comments (6) »

A Favourite Yummy Easy Baked Potato With Toppings Recipe

August 28, 2008 · Filed under Western Food · Tagged , , , ,

Baked Potatoes With Corned Beef & Cheese Topping

Good morning, dear friends :D

Potatoes are a real favourite in my home, especially with the kids – french fries, German Potato Salad, Potato Skins, Potato Chips, Stewed Chicken with potatoes….well, you get the idea! :lol:

I have seen many versions of potatoes cooked this way, but I first learned about this recipe from my dear Romanian friend, Rose. and her recipe had cheese and ham. For me, I just varied the toppings and worked with whatever ingredients I had at that time.

Although I called it Baked Potatoes With Toppings, in actual fact the potatoes were steamed until cooked, when a knife can be easily pierced through them.

Here is my recipe for the potatoes that I had cooked for my Beijing Olympics Opening Ceremony mini party. Hope you like it – I know kids will. :D

Baked Potatoes With Corned Beef & Cheese Topping

Ingredients -

2 kg potatoes (any amount you like but I would suggest you make a lot of these as they go very fast and they keep well in the fridge for the next day’s snack)

Some grated cheese (I had mozzarella then, but cheddar or parmesan would work nicely, too)

1 can Corned Beef

1 medium onion, peeled and chopped

salt and pepper

2 tbsps of oil

* Optional – chopped tomatoes or tomato salsa and green onions for garnishing

Method -

1) Scrub the skin of the potatoes until clean and steam them until they are done, about 20 minutes over medium heat. You can boil them, too, but with this method, you will have to keep an eye on the potatoes to make sure that they don’t get overdone and burst from the skin.

2) While the potatoes are cooking, in a non-stick pan, heat up the oil and cook the chopped onions for aboout 2 minutes.

3) Add in the corned beef and stir thoroughly to cook for about 3 to 5 minutes.

4) Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celcius or 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

5) Cut the potatoes into halves lengthwise and place them onto a baking tray.

6) Rub a little salt onto the top of the potato halves.

7) Top with some grated cheese, followed by the corned beef and then a good shake of pepper.

8 ) Baked for about 5 minutes, or just until the cheese is melted and slightly brown.

Bon Appetit! :D

Comments (4) »

Easy, Yummy Cottage Pie

July 15, 2008 · Filed under Western Food, Whole Lunch or Dinner Menus · Tagged , , , ,

Good evening, dear friends :D

Usually when I run out of ideas on what to cook or when I don’t feel like cooking an elaborate, time consuming meal, I like to go for those one-pot meals. I always have lots of potatoes stocked up as they are so versatile to cook in any cuisine and my family goes crazy over any food that contains potatoes. :lol:

As I have not been cooking regularly over the past few weeks (my hubby is suffering from a pinched nerve and almost everyday, I am at the doctor’s or chiropractor’s office with him) and therefore, my kitchen is not as well stocked, last weekend, I decided to work with what ingredients I had and came up with the idea of adapting Gordon Ramsay’s Shepherd’s Pie recipe to make a Cottage Pie. :idea: Thanks to Wilks from UK who commented at my Shepherd’s Pie post, I now know the difference between Shepherd’s Pie and Cottage Pie. :wink:

I substituted minced lamb with minced pork and beef and the end result was just as delicious. You won’t believe how large was my Cottage Pie – I used a round baking pan that was like 20 inches in diameter and 3 inches high and my family all had generous helpings of it. Of course, you know by now that I always cook in big batches and we are always glad to have any of the leftovers for lunch the next day! :lol:

There was a simple fresh garden salad (the usual – lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cucumber) with a Thousand Island dressing on the side to go with the Cottage Pie, and dessert was San Francisco Vanilla Ice Cream with fresh strawberries. Yummy!

I’m going to bed now as it is almost 11pm and I shall wish you Sweet Dreams tonight! :D

Do have a wonderful day tomorrow.

With peace and joy,

choesf :D

Leave a comment »

Paella In A Chinese Wok (Delicious Spanish One Pot Rice Meal)

May 31, 2008 · Filed under Western Food, Whole Lunch or Dinner Menus · Tagged , , , , ,

Paella cooking in a Chinese Wok :D

Happy Saturday, dear friends :D

Whenever I don’t know what to cook for dinner or I don’t really want to spend too much time cooking, I would come up with simple, “one-pot” or “one-dish” meals – like Chinese Claypot Chicken Rice, Spaghetti, Fried Noodles, etc – just one dish with all the carbohydrates, meat and vegetables in it! Easy! :lol:

A few days back, I was watching a cooking show that featured delicious cuisine from Spain and I was inspired to cook Paella, a Spanish rice dish, for dinner. Paella is a typical Valencian rice dish from Spain and the name Paella is the Valencian name for “frying pan.” But as you can see from the title of this post, mine is actually a Spanish rice dish cooked in a Chinese wok – just for the fun of it! :lol:

I had a quick look in my refrigerator to see what ingredients I have and I was all set to go in cooking this exotic rice dish for my family. The 3 key ingredients in Paella is rice, saffron and olive oil…. but if you don’t have saffron, you can substitute it with some sweet paprika and 1/2 a teaspoon of turmeric powder for the yellow colour.

I am happy to say that my hubby and children loved this rice dish very much – it was very flavourful and delicious, and therefore, I hope you will give this recipe a try. It is really easy to prepare and I have simplified the recipe below for you with some pictures :wink: –

Recipe for Paella (serves 8 persons)

Ingredients -

Cut into desired sizes – tomatoes, yellow and red sweet bell peppers/capsicums, french beans

2 sliced large onions, 2 tbsps saffron (if don’t have this, replace with 1 tbsp paprika and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder), 1 tbsp paprika, and 6 cloves of garlic, chopped

Some prawns – washed and seasoned with 1 tsp salt and some pepper

Some cubed salmon – seasoned with 1 tsp salt and some pepper

1/2 a chicken – cut into bite sizes, seasoned with 1 tbsp salt and some pepper


5 1/2 cups rice

2 chicken stock cubes

3 tbsps salt

2 tbsps sugar

lots of freshly cracked black pepper

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

(* optional on standby, required during cooking – an additional 1/2 cup or more water or stock)

Method -

1) After preparing the seafood, meat and vegetables like above – wash the rice and then measure the required water that is needed to cook the amount of rice.

2) Separate the rice and the water. Set both aside. (It is even more delicious if you have fresh chicken or fish stock and you substitute the amount of water with the stock. I was cooking with what I have at that time)

3) In a wok, heat up the cup of olive oil.

4) Tip in the chopped garlic. After stirring until they are aromatic and slightly golden in colour, add in the sliced onions.

5) After 2 minutes, put in the chicken pieces and stir for about 3 minutes, to seal in the juices.

6) Pour in the water (or stock) that you have measured earlier to cook the rice, and put in the saffron, paprika, tomatoes and bell peppers.

7) Bring to a boil and let it simmer for about 3 minutes to let all the flavours infuse.

8 ) Add the rest of the ingredients – rice, salmon, prawns, chicken stock cubes, salt, sugar and pepper.

9) When they come to a boil, check the taste to see if additional salt is required. The liquid should taste more salty than usual as by the time the rice is cook, the rice will balance out the saltiness and be just right.

10) Lower the heat to medium low to start cooking the rice. Be sure to stir thoroughly to prevent the rice from sticking at the bottom.

11) Cover the wok tightly (I put a weight on the cover) for about 2 minutes and then remove the cover to stir the rice again – we want to make sure the the rice at the bottom gets to the top and vice-versa, to ensure the rice cook evenly with the liquid. Put back the cover for another 2 minutes.

12) Put in the french beans now – this is so they don’t get overcooked and they are still crunchy to the bite when the Paella is eaten.

13) If you think the liquid is drying up too fast and the rice may not get fully cooked, add in a bit at a time the water or stock on standby. Stir to mix thoroughly the ingredients.

14) Repeat step (11) until almost all the liquid is absorbed by the rice. From the picture above, it will be about 4 more minutes before the next step ….

15) Now, turn off the fire and leave the wok covered tightly to let the rice finished cooking, say about 15 minutes more. (I used this time to clean up the kitchen and have a shower).

16) Serve hot with a good shake of Parmesan cheese and black pepper on the rice.

Voila! We now have a famous Spanish rice dish to serve our family! Bon Appetit! :D

My dinner – a plate of Paella with some sliced Japanese cucumbers on the side :D

Comments (6) »

My Simple Baked Salmon Dinner On A Hot Day

May 20, 2008 · Filed under Uncategorized, Western Food, Whole Lunch or Dinner Menus · Tagged , , , , ,

Stewed Potato Wedges, Tomato Salsa/Salad, Buttered Rice, Salmon Steak with Butter Garlic Sauce, and a slice of lemon

Good evening, dear friends :D

For the past few weeks, the weather in KL has become really hot and humid and with this kind of weather, I usually do not like to spend a lot of time in a hot kitchen! Planning my dinner menu then becomes a challenge as I want the food to be enjoyable but I only want to dash into my kitchen, do the necessary chop-chop, cook-cook, clean-clean and then run out of my kitchen and have a refreshing cold shower first, before I serve dinner to my family! :roll: :lol:

This Baked Salmon Dinner was what I cooked for my family two Sundays ago and I am posting the recipes here at the request of my dear friend from the US, Helena. I hope you will find these recipes easy to follow and I can assure you that they take very little time to put together (if you follow the instructions below), but they are healthy food and taste great!

In order to be efficient in the kitchen (i.e. zip in and zip out of the kitchen), we need to plan and strategise in our mind first what needs to be done in what order.

The Tomato Salsa/Salad needs to be prepared first as it takes some time (the longer the better) for the flavours to come together -

Ingredients & Method -

5 tomatoes, washed and diced

1 large onion, peeled and diced

some chopped green onion or coriander leaves/cilantro

Juice from 1/2 a lemon (more if you like this sour)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

some pepper

** just mixed all the ingredients together, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate until serving time.

Next, prepare to cook the Buttered Rice -

Ingredients & Method -

Prepare your rice as you would normally cook it. I just added the following -

1 cup frozen mixed vegetables

1 medium onion, peeled and diced (optional as sometimes I don’t put this)

1 cube chicken stock bouillion per 3 cups of rice, crumbled

2 pandan or screwpine leaves, for added aroma (optional)

1 tbsp salt

1 tsp sugar

dash of pepper

4 tbsps butter

Note – make sure to give the rice a good stir when it boils to mix the chicken flavour and butter thoroughly

While your rice is cooking, preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celcius or 360 degrees Fahrenheit, and go on to prepare your Salmon Steaks -

I really love the flavour and texture of salmon and it is really easy to cook. When the weather is not hot, I like to pan fry my salmon steaks in some olive oil and butter. But this time, I just baked them and they tasted very good, too!

All I did was just to rub the salmon steaks with some salt and black pepper, drizzle them with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle some sliced onions and bell pepper on top…..and in they go into the oven to be baked until they are just cooked (not too long – insert a fork into the centre or thickest part of the steak to check.) The cooking duration depends on the thickness of the steaks. Mine took about 20 minutes.


While the salmon is cooking in your oven, prepare your Garlic Butter Sauce and Stewed Potatoes Wedges (actually you can roast your potato wedges, too, but at that time, I was in the mood to have them stewed instead :lol: ) -

1) To 4 tbsps of melted butter in a medium heated pan, add in 2 tbsps of chopped garlic and give it a good stir.

2) Stir in 3 tbsps of flour and give it a good stir to make a roux.

3) Then add in a cup of milk, season with salt and pepper and when it comes to a boil, the sauce is ready. Serve this with the salmon steaks.

For the Stewed Potato Wedges, the potatoes were washed and cut into thin wedges (to cut down cooking time). Heat up some olive oil in a pan, tip in the potato wedges, add enough water to just cover the potatoes, season with salt, pepper and soy sauce. Bring to a boil and simmer covered over a low fire until they are just soft…about 15 minutes.

Voila! The Baked Salmon Dinner is ready to be served! All in, I think I only spent about 40 minutes in the kitchen preparing and cooking this meal. I hope this post will encourage you to cook up a delicious meal efficiently in as short amount of time as possible for those moments that you don’t want to slave too long over a hot stove in the kitchen, or simply for those days that you want a minimal fuss but yummy dinner! :wink:

Bon Appetit! :D

Comments (12) »

Yummy Homemade Hamburger Buns & Beef Patties

April 28, 2008 · Filed under Uncategorized, Western Food, Whole Lunch or Dinner Menus · Tagged , , , , ,

Good evening, dear friends :D

These days, the prices of our staple foods such as rice and bread have gone up considerably among other things and most households have to cook their meals more often. Last week, I decided on a simple dinner of homemade hamburger with french fries, instead of haviing the usual Ramly Burger takeouts.

However, for some reason, I couldn’t find any hamburger buns as they were out of stock at the grocery stores and a supermarket that I went to. In the end, as I have already bought my minced beef, I decided to try making my own hamburger buns for the first time and I’m glad I did – my family said the buns were so soft and delicious and the large hamburgers were so delicious!

Another reason why I wanted to make my own buns was I am always disappointed with those commercial buns on sale – they are only 2 1/2 inches across and I honestly think they are meant for children instead of adults with voracious appetites…..and oh, we were so excited to dig into those hamburgers that they went so fast and I didn’t even have time to take a picture of an “assembled hamburger” ! :lol:

But here are some pictures to interest you and the recipes for the hamburger buns and beef patties are after the pictures …


Bun Dough an hour after kneading in Bread Machine


Uneven rounds of dough set aside fo 30 minutes to double in size before baking :lol:


Hamburger Buns baking …


Ready to eat golden 5-inches wide Hamburger Buns (they can be made smaller into 30 dinner rolls) They don’t look perfect and I always tell my kids …”it’s okay…..if it looks ugly, it must be homemade..and anything homemade is made from the heart and bound to be yummy!” Anyway, these buns taste absolutely great, just like those that we get from the bakeries.  :wink:


Beef patties panfried in some olive oil and butter. I used a potato masher to press down the patties to prevent them from shrinking too much :wink:


Some garnishings for the hamburgers


Some dill pickles


Homemade Hamburger Buns (bread machine recipe)

(makes 12 large hamburger buns or 30 small dinner rolls)

1 1/4 cups milk, slightly warmed
1 large beaten egg
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup white sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 3/4 cups bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1. Place all ingredients in pan of bread machine as per the order above according to manufacturer’s directions.

2. Select “Dough” setting.

3. When cycle is complete, turn out onto floured surface.

4. Cut dough in half and roll each half out to a 1″ thick circle.

5. Cut each half into six 3 1/2″ rounds with inverted glass as a cutter.

6. Place on greased baking sheet far apart and brush with melted butter.

7. Cover and let rise until doubled, about one hour.

8. Bake at 350° for 9 minutes.

9. Note: Oven temperatures vary so check after 9 minutes to see if done. Some reviewers baked these anywhere from 12 to 15 minutes.


For those of you who would like to knead the dough by hand -

1) mix the yeast granules and sugar into the cup of warm milk. Set aside for 5 minutes.

2) in a large mixing bowl, put in the dry ingredients.

3) make a hole in the centre and pour in the milk mixture together with the beaten egg.

4) knead until the dough is incorporated and lumped into a nice, smooth ball.

5) leave in a covered bowl in for 1 hour until the dough has risen.

6) remove dough from bowl, and continue with Step # 5 in the recipe given above. Remember to put some flour on the work surface.


Hamburger Patties (Beef)

1 1/2 kg minced beef

1 egg

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp pepper

3 tbsps Worcestershire sauce

1 cup breadcrumbs


1) Combine all ingredients above in a large bowl, mix thoroughly, cover and set aside in the refrigerator to let the flavours infuse together.

2) Shape into desired size and thickness and cook according to your preference.


Bon Appetit! :D


Comments (8) »

A Retro 50′s Dinner Menu – The Way To A Man’s Heart

April 27, 2008 · Filed under Western Food, Whole Lunch or Dinner Menus · Tagged , , , , , , , ,

Good evening, dear friends :D

I simply love my “Asian Food Channel” which airs all types of cooking show and just now, I was enjoying watching an episode of “Cookworks”, which is hosted by Chef Donna Dooher and the theme for that show was “Retro – The Way To A Man’s Heart.” In those days, women were mainly the stay-at-home types, taking care of their household and family. Wow, even Chef Donna and her students had their hair coiffured and hair-sprayed like the 50′s hairstyles, and their dressing reflected that era, too. Remember the housewives in the movie, “The Stepford Wives?” Well, you get the idea of their look… :lol:

Anyway, Chef Donna was teaching her students how to prepare a very typical 50′s meal and some basic techniques of cooking, and on the menu were -

Shrimp Cocktail
Caesar’s Salad
Beef Stroganoff
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing
Martinis

I am putting together the recipes here because I would like to create this classic dinner for my family one weekend, and we will call it a “Retro 50′s Night!” As I am typing this and describing the menu to my husband, he is already getting impatient and is asking me to cook this ASAP! Well, like the popular saying – “The Way To A Man’s Heart Is Through His Stomach.” So, ladies, do cook up a storm and have your man drooling with delight!! :lol:

(Recipes courtesy of The Cookworks)

Shrimp Cocktail

Shrimp:

1 lemon, halved
1 onion, quartered
2 tablespoons salt
1 bay leaf
10 black peppercorns
1 pound shrimp, unpeeled

Cocktail Sauce:

1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons grated fresh horseradish
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon hot sauce
2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves

For the shrimp:

In a medium pot filled with water squeeze the lemon and drop in along with the onion, salt, bay leaf, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil over high heat, simmer for 5 minutes to develop the flavors.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the shrimp. Gently cook until the shrimp turn pink and opaque. Strain, cool, and peel the shrimp. Refrigerate to chill through, about 30 minutes.

For the sauce: In a small pot combine the ketchup, horseradish, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Warm over medium low heat to develop the flavors, about 5 minutes. Chill in the refrigerator, about 30 minutes. Stir in the parsley just before serving.



Caesar Salad

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 cup bread, cut in 1/2-inch cubes
3 hearts romaine lettuce
1/2 cup Caesar Dressing, recipe follows
1/2 cup shaved Parmesan

In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and bread cubes, tossing well to coat with oil. Toast in the skillet for 7 minutes until golden.

Or in a large mixing bowl, pour the olive oil and minced garlic first before putting in the pieces of bread, mix thoroughly before toasting them in the oven until they are golden brown.

Tear the romaine hearts into bite size pieces. Toss with the Caesar Dressing making sure to coat all the leaves generously. Garnish with shaved Parmesan and the garlic croutons.
Caesar Dressing:

3 anchovy fillets, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped capers
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 egg yolk*
1 teaspoon minced garlic
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup heavy cream
salt

In a medium bowl mix together the anchovy fillets, capers, mustard, egg yolk, and garlic. While whisking vigorously add the vegetable oil in a slow, steady stream. Whisk in the red wine vinegar and lemon juice. Stir in the heavy cream and season, to taste, with the salt.

Will keep for several days stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

Yield: 1 cup

Preparation Time: 10 minutes


Beef Stroganoff


2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 1/2 pounds beef tenderloin, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons clarified butter
1 cup sliced fresh button mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup white wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3 cups demi-glace or stock
1 1/4 cups sour cream

Serving suggestion: egg noodles or fettucine, cooked

In a large pot heat the oil over high heat. Season the beef with the salt and pepper and saute until browned. Remove the beef from the pot and set aside, pour off any excess fat in the pot.

Melt the clarified butter in the pot and saute the mushrooms and onions. Add the white wine and simmer until reduced by 1/2. Stir in the tomato paste and mustard and cook for 2 minutes. Add the demi-glace and beef, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the sour cream and adjust the seasoning. Serve on a bed of warm egg noodles.


Carrot Cake


Cake -

1 cup unsalted butter, plus 1 tablespoon for cake pan
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups grated carrot
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus 2 tablespoons for cake pan
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup hot water
10 ounces finely chopped fresh pineapple, or tinned (well drained)

Icing -

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 pound cream cheese, room temperature
2 cups icing sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Special equipment: an electric mixer and 2 (9-inch) cake pans

For the cake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In an electric mixer cream together 1 cup butter, sugar, and cinnamon until smooth and fluffy. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Fold in the grated carrot. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix 1/2 of the flour into the butter mixture, then add 1/2 the water, mix well. Mix in the remaining flour and water. Fold in the pineapple.

Grease 2 (9-inch) cake pans with the remaining butter and dust with the remaining flour.

Divide the batter evenly between the 2 cake pans. Bake for 35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then remove from the pan and cool completely.

For the icing: Cream together the butter and cream cheese until smooth.Whip in the icing sugar and lemon juice.

Slice both cooled cakes into 2 layers. Spread the icing in between the layers as you stack them up. Ice the top and sides of the cake to finish.

Frosting tip – Spread a thin layer of icing onto the cake and chill it first. This step will make the cake crumbs stay in place and not mess up the frosting process. Then, spread a thicker layer of icing onto the cake. :wink:

Happy Cooking! :D




Comments (4) »

« Previous entries
Next Page »
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 177 other followers