My Joanna Can Cook !!!

Looking at this spread of food on her plate makes me happy and today I know that she can really cook and look at those fresh herbs she uses on all her food. I am glad that I trained her to eat fresh herbs which is so good for health.  And here I was worrying about her , thinking whether she can cook something good and nutritious for herself besides cooking an egg and survive on instant meal.  Now that I know she eats proper healthy food , I can finally sleep well.  I stole this picture from her blog :p but this picture comforts me a lot. I guess all mothers are made that way. Worrying about their children's meal and their future. I am one I admit.  A confession to make here...:)) And know what , she knows how to buy artichokes and cook them....that really surprised me for over here I seldom buy them....so still waters run deep ... LOL!

I look forward to see more of her cooking from her blog

but she is up to her neck with assignments at the moment

 so no time to post up all the

food she cooked for herself

.....so I have to  learn to wait patiently...:P

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Italian Chicken Stew

It was Pot Bless time again last Sunday!   I just didn't know what to cook and bring for the pot bless and after putting the brain in full motion, I decided that I should cook Italian Chicken Stew....a dish , to be enjoyed by the  the young and old  :) And you know what ? This dish turned out to be the house favourite that night.  A very flavorful and tasty chicken stew infused with aromatic italian herbs ....a beautiful stew to serve with pita bread, pasta or steaming hot rice.

Happy Birthday Joanna :)

To Our Darling Jo 

( we did this cake together ...remember ? )

read this post dated February 3rd 2009

Happy Birthday Today !

May God's richest blessings be upon you  today and 

throughout the year - and may those blessings flow through you 

to touch the lives of everyone you meet.

~ Gary Smalley And John Trent ~

( stole this from Jo's blog :p )

Many ,  many years , in time long ago

The day that God gave me you

I got a very precious gift indeed

Blessed me many years  through

But, years seem to pass so rapidly

For it seems as if, only yesterday

Your little frame, was in my arms

Yet see how you’ve grown today

As you celebrate this Birthday

We wish, the very best for you

Life be filled with joy and peace

And countless dreams come true

Today you may well have grown up

But in our heart, you will always be

Our special tiny little Baby Girl

The one that God gave to us

Have a wonderful birthday in Sheffield !

we miss you........ <3 <3 you so muchie

can't wait to have you back with us :))

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Candied Yams

Candied yams...hmmmm this is the first time I read of it. Over here we called this yam , sweet potato and we don't normally candied it for it is already sweet by nature. Depending on the country, the term "yam" is used to embrace many tubers, including the sweet potato, which is no relation. But after I found out how Curtis Stone candied these yams, I knew I had to try it out, just for curiousity sake and true enough, it was great and great as a side dish for any meat dish. It goes well with roast meat especially. Yumm Yumm !

I will normally cook these yam into  sweet yam soup with coconut milk or just have them steamed or deep fried in egg flour batter with glutinous rice cake but roasting them and candied them is my first time !  :)

Kaffir Lime Leaves Flavored Chicken Bits

Another dish that Josh likes is this Kaffir Lime Leaves Flavored Chicken Bits. Very exotic in taste, a blend of spiciness with the strong aroma of preserved black beans and enhanced by local fresh herb , the lovely fragrance of kaffir lime leaves . Appetizing to the dot. Chicken breast, cut into bite size making it easier for the aromatic flavor to be infused into the meat. If you like something savoury, this is a flavor packed chicken dish :) Simple and yet easy to prepare dish. Good for people like me who just want to sit in front of the idiot box and watch the soapy korean drama :p  These korean dramas are so addictive....just like their kimchi !

Pan Grilled Salmon Steak With Mango Salad

Piggy Josh came back last Friday and I was so happy to cook something he likes . He has not been back since the sister Jo  flew off to Sheffield . He loves cod and salmon. But cod is so super expensive here , we do not have much opportunity to eat them except on special occasion :(  it is about  RM90 approx USD30 per kilo )  So I bought salmon instead ( about RM49 approx USD15 per kilo ) . He likes it pan grilled till the outer layer is crispy. Instead of using italian herbs or fresh herbs, I used balsamic vinegar and sea salt. Simple yet delicious. I love the taste of balsamic vinegar and I have been using it quite often lately in my cooking. Balsamic vinegar is a condiment originating from Italy . You will be surprised that it blends well with meat, fish and veggies though it is basically used for salad dressing.  I am adventurous when it comes to cooking. I know no boundaries where cooking and baking is concerned :p

Pan Grilled Prime Rib End Pork Chops

Cooking for just the two of us can be quite brain taxing unless we eat out but Daddy is not game at eating out these days without his babies.  So most of the time we eat in . He is a meat eater and me basically loves just fish and veggies. But most of the time I will either char boiled or pan grilled some meat for him :) And to make thing easy, I pan grilled prime rib end pork chops with balsamic vinegar and mandarin  for the two of us with some side veggies...braised cabbage with balsamic vinegar and steamed sweet corn with a small dollop of butter. Mmmmm this made someone very happy ..this is one delicious pork chop that I know will be in the dinner menu from now on :p   This is what I cooked for dinner when I am  too lazy to cook CHINESE  :p and too lazy to wash up after dinner  LOL! All the food presented on one plate and these save washing and time....I am now watching a korean drama !!!  And Daddy will suffer from now on :p

Hot Pot /Steamboat Just For 2 :)

Last weekend, I just don't feel like eating rice , so I told Daddy " Hey, let's have hot pot, we the local here called it the steamboat . And surprisingly he said " Yessss.... " LOL! So, we went out early on Saturday morning to do our marketing and bought our favourite food for the steamboat. Needless to say, yours truly has been set free from the cholesterol diet list, which I put myself on , thus get to enjoy some seafood and favourite arteries clogging kidneys , mud crabs , clams and shrimps. My cholesterol reading came out to be 4.3 perfect for my age :p so I can well afford to indulge in all these sinfully rich food. As my motto for this year is ..." eat in moderation " don't deprive myself of these arteries clogging goodness and die an unhappy woman...LOL!  The most important thing is the chicken broth for the steamboat and the chilli sauce for the cooked ingredients. Since , we both wanted something simple and yet nutritious, so opted for the chicken broth with soloman's seal  ( yuk chok ) and fresh cordyceps and a tablespoon of wolberries. As for my family, another must have item is the garlic oil . The wonderful fragrance of fried garlic truly makes the whole steamboat taste good.  

A Simple Dinner For Jo Before The Take Off @ Sun Marpoh Restaurant

This post is long overdue :p  We took Jo for dinner a day before she took off to Sheffield via Manchester.  This is her favourite food haunt when we eat out and thinking that she will miss this , we had our dinner there and ordered her favourite dishes....and just today I read her lastest post and found that she CAN COOK !!! Wasn't I glad when I saw the food she cooked for herself...check it out on her blog if you are curious enough to want to know what she cooked for herself  :)   She  really knows how to put the ingredients together to make a delicious dish..  Now that I know she can cook and not having to eat out of tin food makes me the happiest Momsie now :))  Now I know where her no recipe cooking talent came from !  LOL!

Stuffed Portobello With Leftovers

At times,  I just don't know what to cook and I will just look into the fridge and will be looking inside it for at least 10-15 minutes....believe me, I get cool air for a short 15 minutes :p  Trying to cook something nice out of whatever is left in the fridge is not easy at times. I can just gaze into the fridge yet cannot think of anything... I saw some portobello, some crab meat, some bacon chips , a small block of mozzarella cheese and some what not...haha then an idea just came to me. Why not stuff the portobello with whatever leftovers there are in the fridge. Why not ?  So , this is what comes out of them after 15 minutes of gazing into the fridge :) Stuffed portobello would be great for they are the most meaty compared with other mushrooms.  At times, I would like to make something without a recipe. No recipe food would be great at times :)

Enokitake In Chicken Herbal Soup

This is a simple yet full of nutrition kinda soup . Enokitake  is such  a versatile mushroom. You can have them in stir fry, in sukiyaki ( hot pot ) or in soup.  I added them to my chicken herbal soup and it tasted fantastic. I double boiled the chicken herbal soup for 1.5 hr and I added the bunch of enokitake into the sweet scented herbal soup and I tell you it is heavenly after a hard day at work. This would be great for a cold and wet night. I wish I could fedex it to Jo  :p  She told me the weather was cold and wet since she arrived. Poor darling...and here the wicked Momsie is teasing her with this delicious steamy hot soup ;p . I told her to have hot mushroom soup  for the time being and to keep herself  warm :)

This soup can be prepared a day earlier. For me, I double boiled them the nite before. When it cools down , I keep them in the fridge. I just have to heat them up and add in the enokitake when dinner time comes. Easy...isn't it ?  I prefer to double boil chicken herbal soup , for I like the clarity of the soup rather then direct boiling , the soup will be cloudy.  

Pan Grilled Portobello And Aubergine Puffs

This is a great puff to have for a light dinner...all you have to do is pan grilled some portobello mushrooms , aubergine slices and tomato cherries with olive oil.....drizzle some balsamic vinegar over them. Filled the portobello with grated cheddar cheese and bacon chips...placed them on top of  baked puff squares.....my oh my gosh , a delectable yummilicious puff square fit for Queen  Momsie Elin :p  Actually ,this is not a recipe from any cookbook but taking what is left in the fridge, put them together and yahoo....a delicious-ness that even Daddy got to acknowledge that this is a really quick and easy to prepare light delicious meal .  I really don't mind having this everyday , seriously ! The bacon chips added extra flavor to the portobello .

Restoran Super Kitchen - Chilli Pan Mee & Traditional Pan Mee Soup

This is the famous chili pan mee ( flat flour noodles with  chilli ) in Batu Road , Kuala Lumpur. They have 6 branches all over - Batu Road,  Cheras ( Yew Lik ), Kepong ( Beside Carrefour ), Kota Damansara (PJU5) ,  USJ 9 ( Beside CIMB)  ,  SS2 ( Chao Yang PJ ) .  

We had our lunch here before leaving back for Ipoh. We ordered their famous chilli pan mee and tried out their famous dumplings . Jo used to talk and raved about this special chilli pan mee and now I finally get to taste it . Thanks to Jo's Bunny for taking us there . It was great and the hot chilli flakes complemented the flat flour noodles well. Comes with a generous portion of fried crispy anchovies, well seasoned mince meat, fried garlic and a well done poached egg and garnish with chopped spring onions.  You have to add the hot chilli flakes , the amount is up to your own taste and squeeze the calamansi juice on to the flat flour noodles. A bowl of deliciousness and now I know why Jo used to talk about this special famous chilli pan mee :) Of course being a hot stuff  chilli person , I added 3 teasp of this pungent hot stuff into my bowl of mee and mix- stirred them together till well combined.  Yummy !

Sayonara. さよなら。- For The Time Being :)

The time has finally arrived....the send off is inevitable...:)  I know for sure I will miss her and she will miss me  :)  Her plane was 2am , so we decided to have a beer party for her before we send her off  * wink . Well, actually while waiting for our buffet dinner to start at 7pm , we dropped in at the hotel lounge to have a glass of beer...for the weather was so hot...scorching hot !  We had a very happy time together before the send off . A toast to her every undertakings from now on. Have fun dear Jo :) 

Mandarin Layered Cake By Jo - Piggy Gal :)

I am the happiest Momsie for today, for my baby gal had succeeded in making her first mandarin layered cake with frosting :)  and she made this for her friend's dad's birthday.  I am really proud of her  and I hope she will continues to bake even after she graduates .  

She will be leaving for UK tomorrow and I wish her a safe flight there and all the best in her studies. A mother's prayer for her child is the most genuine prayer ever ! :p

I will write a post on her baking experience and share the recipe on her behalf after I come back from KLIA , on my the other new blog Elinluv's Sweet Delights . So, please do drop by there to check out the recipe . Meanwhile , just drool at the photos here. Will post up the recipe there as soon as I return from KL on Saturday.  Stay tuned for this delectable Mandarin Layered Cake !  

I have posted up the recipe on Elinluv's Sweet Delights . Do hop over to read more on it :)

A well done birthday cake by Jo that I am proud of !

And that made me the happiest Momsie on Earth :p

** Have a safe journey my dear Jo.....

and May God continues to pour forth His Blessings Upon You !

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Wasabi Prawns

Upon reading Anncoo's post on wasabi prawns a few months back, I had been wanting to cook this dish as I am a great wasabi fan and finally last night I was able to cook it after all and satisfied my curiousity on how the wasabi will blends with the shrimps. Two of my favourite ingredients, combined together , really explode in my mouth. Wonderful dish ! I gave it a tweak by blending the wasabi with a few tablespoons of coconut cream and the end result , a wonderful and  flavorful wasabi cream to coat the crispy fried shrimps .  This is a wonderful shrimp delights for those who love wasabi and shrimps :)