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Pearl Balls dim sum

Posted on November 8, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Uncategorized

Ingredients for about 20 pieces (30 g each):

1 cup or 250 mL Glutinous rice

2 tbsp Cornstarch

20 mL Cold water

450 g Ground pork

2 Scallions, minced (spring onions)

4 Water chestnuts, minced

2 tsp Fresh ginger, minced

1 Egg, beaten

15 mL Soy sauce

20 mL Sherry or shaoxing wine

1 tsp Sugar

1 tsp  Salt

1. Wash the rice in several changes of cold water. Drain, add enough fresh water to cover. Let soak for at least 30 minutes.

2. Mix together the cornstarch and water.

3. Combine all ingredients except the glutinous rice and mix together.

4. Form the meat mixture into small meatballs about 30g each.

5. Drain the rice. Roll the balls in rice so that they are well coated.

6. Line a rack of perforated steamer pan with cheesecloth. Arrange the meatballs in the pan, allowing about 1-2 cm between them.

7. Steam for 30-45 minutes, until the rice is translucent and the pork is done.

Hint: This pork mixture can be used for wonton filling. Put a small spoonful of meat in the center of a wonton skin. Moisten the edges with beaten egg, then fold the skin in half to make a  triangle enclosing the filling (or a semicircle if you are using round wonton skins). Moisten one of the corners on the folded edge with egg, then twist the wonton to bring the two corners together, Press to seal. Wontons can be cooked by simmering, steaming, or deep frying. They are often served in chicken broth as wonton soup.

Onion Rings (3 different recipe variations)

Posted on November 4, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Buffets, Finger Foods

Ingredients for 10 portions (portion size: 90 g, 8-10 pieces):

1 Egg, beaten

250 mL Milk

150 g Flour

1 tsp Baking powder

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Paprika (optional: for colour)

750 g Large onions

Flour for dredging the onions.

Procedure:

Combine the eggs and milk in a bowl. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and paprika together and add to the milk. Mix well. The batter should have the consistency of thin pancake batter.

Peel the onions and cut crosswise into 1/2 cm slices. Separate into rings (save unusable pieces for another purpose).

Place the onions in cold water if they are not used immediately, to maintain crispness.

Drain and dry the onions thoroughly.

Dredge with flour and shake off excess. (This step isn’t always necessary, but it helps the batter adhere.)

Dip a few pieces at a time in the batter and fry in deep oil (175°C) until golden brown.

Drain and serve immediately.

Variations: Beer Batter – Substitute light beer for the milk. Omit baking powder, because the carbonation of the beer will act as a leavener.

Buttermilk Batter - Substitue buttermilk for milk, and use 1/2 tsp of baking soda instead of 1 tsp baking powder.

Buffets (Green Salad with Fennel)

Posted on October 31, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Buffets, Salads

A good salad for a summer buffet, in this recipe fennel is added, which really does lift an ordinary green salad.

Ingredients: for 4-6 persons

1 Head of Fennel

6 Sticks of Celery, Chopped

6 Tablespoons French Dressing

2 Small Lettuces

1 Cucumber

1 Small Green Pepper

1 Bunch of Watercress

Place the fennel, celery and dressing in a bowl. Cover with clingfilm and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours. Wash and drain the lettuces and break into small bite size pieces into a serving bowl. Slice the cucumber, cut the pepper into thin strips after discarding the seeds and pith, and wash the watercress. Then add all these to the lettuce.

Just before serving, add the fennel, celery and dressing and toss together. Serve straightaway. When prepared for a buffet the dressing should not be added to the salad too soon before serving otherwise the lettuce will begin to go limp.

French Dressing

Posted on October 31, 2011 by admin | 1 Comment | Sauces/Dressings

Good with any variety of salads, this dressing is particularly nice tossed in with a fresh green salad. It can also be made in a processor or blender.

Ingredients:

150 ml Sunflower Oil

2 Gloves of Garlic, Crushed

1/2 Teaspoon Dry Mustard

Salt

Freshly Ground Black Pepper

About 6 Teaspoons White Wine or Cider Vinegar

Measure all the ingredients into an empty jar or any container with a lid, twist the lid firmly and shake vigorously until thoroughly blended.

If prepared in a screw-top jar, the dressing can be stored in it, and will keep in the refrigerator for up to a month.

Makes about 300ml

Buffets (Cheese Aigrettes)

Posted on October 25, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Buffets, Finger Foods

The word buffet was originally applied to an item of furniture (low stool, or hassock), but gradually evolved to become  ”a sideboard or refreshment bar for the service of food where guests happily help themselves”.

Buffets are one of the most practical and enjoyable ways of entertaining friends for a meal, they can be formal or informal, inside or outside, food can be hot or cold, and so much can be prepared in advance.

We’ll start with some finger foods recipes and will slowly move on to more.

Cheese Aigrettes:

Little savoury balls which are good to serve as a snack with drinks. Alternatively, serve at the end of a meal with coffee rather than a mint chocolate.

50g Butter

300ml Water

100g Self-raising flour

2 Egg yolks

2 Egg

100g Well flavoured cheddar cheese (mature…)

Salt, and freshly ground black pepper

Oil for deep frying

Put the butter and water in a small pan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and add the flour all at once. Beat well until the mixture is smooth and glossy and leaves the side of the pan clean. Cool slightly, and then lightly mix the yolks and eggs together and beat into the mixture a little at a time. Stir in the cheese and seasoning.

Drop the mixture in teaspoonfuls into hot deep oil and fry gently until golden brown. Lift out and drain on kitchen paper. Serve warm.

To reheat the aigrettes for a party, arrange them on a baking sheet and heat in the oven at 220°C for about 12 minutes until heated through and crispy.

Makes about 30 and serve 10 persons.

Vegetable Cooking Tips pt1

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Σαμαιρ | Leave a comment | Uncategorized

In this post we discuss the healthiest way of cooking vegetables, while preserving an appetizing presentation.

We’ll divide vegetables  into 4 main categories by colours ( white, green, yellow, and red) , in order to understand how cooking methods affects each pigment differently:

  1. White vegetables: (potatoes, onions, cauliflower) To keep them white, they must be cooked in an acid cooking liquid, for example:  if you are brief-blanching some cauliflower for a Crudités dish, you can add lemon juice to the boiling water in order to preserve and enhance their whiteness.
  2. Green vegetables: (green beans, zucchini, courgettes) Acids are their enemies, they turn them into an olive green colour. Neither alkalis (baking soda) should be added, because baking soda turns them mushy and dissolve out the nutrients. For best results cook them uncovered to release the acids of the cooking liquid, and cook for the shortest time possible.
  3. Yellow vegetables: (pumpkin, yellow pepper) Are the least affected by colour changes, neither acids nor alkalis affect then,
    just avoid long cooking time. Note that tomatoes are considered yellow vegetables, because they are coloured by carotenoids which
    give the yellow and orange colours, Tomatoes aren’t coloured by  red
    pigments.
  4. Red vegetables: (red peppers, beets, rhubarb)  should also be cooked with an acid, alkalis turn them blue to green. Red pigments
    dissolve easily in water, so you must cook them as quickly as possible, and use
    as much water as necessary, not more.

Hindbe b’zeit (chicory Sauteed in oil)

Posted on September 28, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Appetizers

 A very easy, vegetarian, and simple appetizer, you can use either wild or cultivated chicory, I’d rather go for the wild one because of its bitterness.

Ingredients for 4-6 persons (to be served cold) :

1KG Wild Chicory leaves
100 ml Olive oil
250 g Chopped onions
salt
15 ml Lemon juice

Directions:
Wash Dandelion thogroughly in water, cut into small pieces, and put in about 700 ml of boiling water for 1 minute (see note), Drain.
Fry onions until golden brown, add chicory, and fry for 5 minutes while stirring constantly.
Add salt and lemon juice, let it cool, and serve.

*Note: Cooking the Chicory in water before frying it, isn’t an essential part of the recipe preparation, but some people feel that this process helps reduce the bitterness of the chicory, I find this little bitterness pleaseant in the taste of the overall dish, therefore I skip this step.

Butter Beans salad

Posted on April 11, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Uncategorized

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Ingredients:

400 g dried butter beans (Lima beans)
40 g onions or scallions (chopped)
20 g garlic
40 ml lemon juice
20 g chopped parsley
salt , pepper
100 ml olive oil

Directions:

Soak the beans overnight ,
Boil them , start in unsalted boiling water, for about one hour. Remove from heat, drain , and while still hot add lemon juice, garlic , oil and onions, at the end add the chopped parsley.

Can be served hot or cold

“Twix” Tarte

Posted on March 30, 2011 by admin | Leave a comment | Sweets


for 4 to 6 persons

Pie :

300 g Butter
125 g Sugar
5 g Salt
400 g Sifted Flour
10 g Vanillin Powder

Start by mixing the butter sugar and salt, until evenly blended, add the eggs and continue mixing . Then add the flour and mix until you have a soft non sticking dough. Chill well. Place in pie tin mold, and bake at 180°C to 200°C for about 20 minutes, let cool.

Topping:

100 g sugar
50 g butter
300 g Sweetened condensed milk
300 g fondant chocolate ( for the topping)

Meanwhile put the sugar over heat in a deep pan until you have dark caramel, reduce the heat, add butter and stir to melt, add the sweetened milk and bring to boil for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly, take off from heat and spread over cooled pie. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (in a pan over another containing boiling water) and apply it over the caramel sauce.