Prata Potato Puffs

Another easy delicious snack
Thanks Anncoo Journal for the recipe

What you need:

5pcs frozen prata
10 hard boiled quail eggs (I didn't have so I used 5 hard boiled eggs, halved)
450g potatoes
3tbsp curry powder (I skipped)
5tbsp fresh milk
1 large onion, chopped
1tsp sugar
1tsp chicken stock powder
1 beaten egg

Method:

1. Peel potatoes and halve them, and steam for about 30mins until soft
2. Mash them, leaving some chunks behind
3. Heat a little oil in a frying pan. Sautee onion with curry powder, if using, until onions are soft
4. Add in potatoes, milk, sugar, chicken stock powder. Stir well. Dish up and leave to cool
5. Thaw frozen prata slightly until it can be folded. Dab your hands with flour to prevent the prata from sticking
6. Place potatoes in the middle and arrange eggs on it. Fold it over, use fingers to make pleats on one side of the prata until fully sealed
7. Place prata puff on a lined baking tray and brush the top with beaten egg
8. Bake in a preheated oven of 200degC for about 20mins. Take it out and brush again with eggs, bake for another 10mins or until it's golden brown

Note:
This is really yummy. It can be freezed too, and airfry before consuming

Stir Fry Chilli Potatoes with Green Beans & Petai

Cooked this before using my mom's recipe, this time I tried another recipe and added petai

Recipe is from Xander's Kitchen

What you neeed:

3 potatoes, peeled, diced and fried
a pack of green beans, about 200g, sliced
a pack of petai (stinky beans), about 200g, halved
salt, sugar, a little dark sweet soya sauce (kecap manis), a little chicken stock powder

Blend together til smooth:
15 shallots, peeled
2 small tomatoes (or 1 large), cut into 4
7 large red chillies, deseed
3 red bird's eye chillies (chilli padi), dessed
about 1tbsp cooking oil

Method:

1. Heat oil and sautee the blended ingredients until fragrant and well cooked
2. Add in petai, let cook for a few minutes
3. Add in green beans, mix well
4. Let cook until both softened
5. Mix in salt, sugar, a little chicken stock powder and kecap manis. Check the taste and make adjustment here
6. Add in fried potato cubes and mix well. Serve

Xmas Dinner.. Eve & Day

So, after the Xmas gathering, my family and I, just the four of us, had a descent dinner at home on the eve of the Xmas
And I made this easy crispy roast chicken which my family likes including the kids

 

 

The kids love tearing the crisp skin apart and eat it just with plain rice. I used carrots and corn to roast together with the chicken, as these are vegetables they love the most

 

 

I just estimated the recipe...

 

What you need:

 

1 free range chicken, discard the head and feet and all the extra fats. Keep skin intact

juice of a large lime

salt, black pepper, butter

carrots - peeled and chopped

sweet corns - peeled and chopped

1 garlic bulb

 

Method:

1. Rub chicken all over with lime juice including the cavity, let it stand for about 15mins and then rinse well, pat dry with kitchen towel
2. In a bowl mix salt, and black pepper. Rub chicken with butter all over and continue with rubbing it with salt/pepper mixture. Refrigerate uncovered for a few hours
3. Before roasting, preheat oven to 200degC
4. Take the chicken out of the fridge and fill up its cavity with garlic bulb and the chopped carrots
5. While waiting, prepare a baking dish enough to fit the chicken plus all veggies
6. Rub the cut veggies with butter all over and place them in the dish
7. Place the chicken at the centre over the veggies and roast for about 20mins
8. Remove the dish from the oven and check on the veggies (at this point the chicken will not be browned yet). If the carrots have softened and the corns are cooked, remove them from the dish and transfer to a serving plate (if not you may continue roasting for about 10 more mins)
9. Put the baking dish with the chicken back into the oven and continue to roast until the chicken turned golden brown (mine was about 75mins - it depends on the size of the chicken)
10. Once cooked, remove from oven and transfer to carving board. Let it stand for about 15mins before carving (I didn't do this step as my family likes to rip it off by hand LOL)

 

We love this birdie. The skin was so crispy and tasty. The meat was still juicy. The roasted carrots and garlic were really good as well as the corns, cooked to perfection. Yum!

 

The next day on Xmas day, my sis & her DH came over for the usual Xmas dinner and gift exchange time. This time I cooked chicken cordon bleu, avocado mango salsa and scalloped potatoes au gratin and I also baked light fruits cake. My sis and her DH brought their homemade Dutch bitterballen which I always love :)

 

So here's the recipes I used for my cooking that day...

For the Cordon Bleu, I adapted from Emeril Lagasse

What you need:

4 boneless and skinless chicken breast
salt and black pepper
4 slices ham (I used honey baked)
4 slices Swiss cheese
1 cup all purpose flour
2 large eggs
2 tbsp. fresh milk
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp garlic salt
some cooking oil

Method:

1. Place chicken breast on a cutting board, layer a clingwrap over it and pound til evenly flattened
2. Remove the clingwrap, rub salt and pepper over it and place ham on one side of the chicken followed by cheese on top of the ham. Fold the other side of the skin over to the other side so it'll cover the ham and cheese slice
3. Press lightly to flatten and seal the edges, making sure the ham and cheese tucked securely inside the chicken
4. Pour flour on a plate. Mix together egg and milk, whisk in a bowl. And pour breadcrumbs on another plate and mix in garlic salt
5. Heat cooking oil in a
6. Put stuffed chicken breast on the flour, coat evenly. Transfer to the egg mixture bowl, making sure it's dipped thoroughly and then next to the breadcrumbs mixture, coat evenly
7. Do the same to the rest of the chicken and keep in the refrigerator for about 30mins
8. Heat oil in a non stick skillet over medium heat
9. Place the chicken slowly, top with 1/2 tbsp butter, be careful not to overcrowd the skillet. Fry til golden brown at the bottom about 4 to 5mins. Flip to the other side and put another 1/2 tbsp butter over it and fry for another 4 to 5mins til the chicken is evenly browned and cooked through
10. Serve immediately while it's hot with Parmesan Dijon mustard cream sauce (recipe below)

Recipe for Parmesan Dijon mustard cream sauce...
Source: Mel's Kitchen

What you need:

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1 cup milk
1 tsp chicken stock powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp Worchestershire sauce
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

Method:

1. Melt butter. Stir in flour, whisking constantly, cook for 1-2 minutes
2. Slowly pour in milk while whisking quickly. Stir in chicken stock powder and salt. Whisk constantly over medium heat until the mixture begins to simmer and thicken, about 3-5 minutes
3. Once it has bubbled and thickened, remove from heat and stir in mustard, worcestershire sauce and parmesan cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve warm over the chicken

***I made a mistake on that day, thanks to my ignorance not reading the recipe thoroughly first. Instead of using one chicken breast for one cordon bleu, I used two! So I put the ham and cheese on the chicken breast and then I put another slice of chicken breast over it. I ended up with giant and thick pieces of chicken cordon bleu! After frying them, I found that the centre part wasn't fully cooked so I cut them into two and place them on a slightly buttered baking sheet, and baked them til cooked, about 200degC for 20mins. I couldn't get the cheese oozing out because of this :(
Well, I will give this a try the right way next time and update here...

Next dish is Scalloped Potatoes Au Gratin
Yummy cheesy and creamy, a great companion to the chicken dish
Source: Ellie Krieger

What you need:

1 1/2 kg potatoes, rinse well and slice into 1/8" thick
750ml cold skimmed milk
1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
2 cloves of garlic, minced
a little dried thyme
1 3/4 cup grated Swiss cheese
1 1/2 tsp salt

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180degC. Grease a rectangle baking dish (I used 20x30x5cm)
2. Boil potato slices til just tender. Drain and let slightly cool
3. Put milk and flour in a saucepan and whisk til the flour dissolved. Add in garlic and thyme, heat over medium fire and stir to a boil and is thickened. Remove from heat, stir in salt and 1 cup of the cheese until melted
4. Arrange half of the boiled potato slices in the baking dish. Pour half of the cheese sauce over it. Arrange the remaining potatoes and lastly pour the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese
5. Bake for about 25mins til bubbling. Change oven to broil function and broil til the top is evenly browned, about a few minutes. Serve immediately

Now the last dish for the main meal is the refreshing avocado mango salsa

This is the second time I made this and I still enjoyed it a lot
Recipe can be found HERE

The quantity doesn't look much but I was really stuffed. Yum yum...

 As for the light fruits cake, I used recipe from Kenneth Goh of Guai Shu Shu

Fresh from the oven

 

 

 

This impatient me cut the cake while it's still quite warm, hence the messy cut :)

 

 

 

What you need:

 

250g butter, room temperature

250g mixed dried fruits (I used dried cranberries and golden raisins)

250g castor sugar

150g self raising flour

100g unbleached all purpose flour

4 eggs, lightly beaten

50ml fresh orange juice

1 tsp vanilla essence

 

Method:

1. Soak mixed dried fruits in orange juice for 15mins. Drain and squeeze excess juice out of the fruits and set aside, also the juice in separate bowls. Mix a little flour with the dried fruits
2. Preheat oven to 160degC. Grease and line an 8inch square pan
3. Cream butter and sugar til light and fluffy and light. Add in egg one at a time, beat thoroughly after each addition
4. Fold in mixed fruits. And then fold in orange juice and flour, doing it alternately start and end with the flour
5. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 45mins or until the skewer comes out clean and the top is evenly browned
6. Cool in the pan for about 10mins and transfer to a cooling rack

 

Sweet, light, soft, and delicious pieces of fruity cake accompanied by Kronenbourg 1664 :)

 

This post is linked at Cook and Celebrate: Christmas 2015 hosted by Yen from GoodyFoodies, Diana from The Domestic Goddess Wannabe and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids at here.

 

 

***Please pardon the quality of all the pics above, they were quickly taken just with my mobile phone LOL

Homemade Hash Browns (Laura Vitale)

These hash browns don't look like the typical type we usually find in frozen section at the supermarkets or in Mac Donalds
But taste wise, this is just as good! And it's even better - it's homemade! No unknown ingredients in it :)
It's tasty and crispy. Very addictive!
This is so good not only for breakfast, but also as a snack :)

Recipe is from Laura Vitale. I always love watching her cooking videos. She always makes me hungry LOL

 

 

What you need:

 

1 large potato, peeled and grated

1 tbsp plain flour

2 tbsp grated onion (I sliced and grinded it)

1 egg white

a small pinch of salt, a dash of black pepper, vegetable oil

 

Method:

1. Fill a bowl with cold water. Place potatoes immediately in it after grating, let sit in the water for 10 mins
2. Remove potatoes from water using potato ricer. Add a little bit of potatoes at a time and squeeze all the excess liquid. Place them on a kitchen towel to dry them a bit more
3. Add the potatoes into a large bowl and add in flour, onion, egg, salt and pepper - mix together till well combined
4. Heat oil on a non stick pan over medium high heat (just a few tbsp - just enough to cover the bottom)
5. Scoop about 1/3 of the mixture onto the hot pan, flatten as much as possible (to maximise crispiness)
6. Cook about 5mins until it's really browned and crispy
7. If the potatoes get dark sooner, reduce the heat

 

This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (July 2014 Event: Potato) - organised by Zoe (Bake for Happy Kids) and Mui Mui (My Little Favourite DIY) and hosted by Jasline (Foodie Baker)

Potato Cheese Meatless Bitterballen

I always buy potatoes in supermarket where it always comes in big bags
As a result, I always have leftover
This is one snack you should try if you feel like indulging in something savoury
This Dutch inspired snack is pretty addictive. This is a modified version by using potato. I made before using bread as one of the ingredient and it's real good. The original version only uses plain flour - I shall try also :)

 

 

What you need:

(recipe source: Sajian Sedap)

 

2 tbsp butter

50g plain flour

250ml fresh milk

300g potatoes - steamed, peeled and mashed (weight after mashed)

50g finely grated cheddar cheese

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp nutmeg powder, a little sugar

For coating: egg white , breadcrumbs

 

Method:

1. Heat butter and add in flour. Mix til lumpy
2. Gradually add in milk, stir continuously til smooth. Remove from heat
3. Add in potato salt, pepper, nutmeg, cheese
4. Shape into balls - size according to preference, mine was about 3cm diameter
5. Roll balls into breadcrumbs, dip into beaten egg, and roll again into breadcrumbs til well coated
6. Deep fry in a wok with hot oil til evenly golden brown
7. Drain and after about 10 minutes, transfer to a plate lined with kitchen towel
8. Serve hot. Best eaten with bottled chilli sauce

This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (July 2014 Event: Potato) - organised by Zoe (Bake for Happy Kids) and Mui Mui (My Little Favourite DIY) and hosted by Jasline (Foodie Baker)

 

Potato Buns - Another Recipe

Been lazy in blogging lately. Dunno why. Perhaps the crazy weather
Anyway, the thought of my rotten blog has won, so I am writing now :)

Sharing what I baked a few weeks ago which yet to be blogged
Not that I didn't enjoy these buns. In fact I loved it!
The potato buns I baked the first time was good, but to my preference, this one was even better

Recipe is from NCC Indonesia (original recipe is Potato Donuts)

What you need:

500g bread flour
50g full cream milk powder
11g instant yeast
200g potatoes (weight after steamed, mashed and cooled)
100g sugar
75g butter
1/2 tsp salt
4 egg yolks
100ml cold water

Egg wash: 1 egg lightly beaten with 1 tbsp milk

Method:

1. Pour all wet ingredients into the bread maker pan (egg yolks, cold water and potatoes), followed by dry ingredients (bread flour, milk powder, yeast, sugar, and salt)
2. Start bread maker for dough making
3. After kneading for 5 minutes, throw in butter
4. Let the machine do the kneading and first proofing
5. Once done, take the pan out from the machine and knead briefly to let the air bubble out
6. Weigh each dough 30g, flatten and put in filling in each dough
7. Shape into balls (or whatever shape you prefer) and arrange on lined baking pan
8. Second proofing til doubled in size, cover them with damp clean cloth
9. Brush the top with egg wash and bake in preheated oven of 180degC til golden brown, about 20 minutes
10. Once out from the oven, brush the top with butter

These buns remained soft til the third day, my kind of bread :)

Banana chocolate filling:

Chocolate chips filling:

Grated cheddar cheese filling:

A keeper recipe. Will definitely bake this again, the next time will be following the recipe - donuts :)

Indonesian Style Potato Gratin (Pastel Tutup)

This is a typical Indonesian dish, some eat as snack, some eat as a meal
The people said it's an influence from both Chinese and Dutch food
It's not exactly the same as potato gratin, quite different, but it's the same kind of dish
The usual potato gratin uses sliced potatoes layering the top of the dish as well as the bottom, sometimes at the centre too alternating with creamy filling
This dish I made also uses potatoes but mashed til smooth, and it's only placed at the top of the dish covering a layer of hard boiled egg slices on top of the not so creamy filling

It's been a few years since the last time I had this yummy savoury dish, such a great refresher to be able to have this dish again this time, in conjunction with this month's LBT challenge : pastel tutup :)
Quite easy to prepare, but involves a lot of chopping, and the filling has to be completely cool before covered with potato layer

Recipe is from my mum
(with this recipe below I got a 20x30cm rectangle pyrex and four 5" ramekins)

What you need:

For the potato layer:
10 medium size potatoes - steam, peel and mash
3 tbsp butter
2 pinches of ground nutmeg
salt, pepper, sugar

For the filling:
1 large onion, chopped
250g chicken breast - skinless, boneless, boil til cooked and then chopped finely
carrots - chopped finely
a handful of black fungus - soak til soft, chopped finely
bean vermicelli - soak til soft, cut short
two handfuls of frozen peas
10 hard boiled eggs - peel and slice thinly
1/2 cup fresh milk
enough water - around 2L
salt, pepper, sugar, ground nutmeg, a little butter

To sprinkle:
grated cheddar cheese

For the potato layer:
Mix all ingredients while the mashed potatoes are still warm

For the filling:

1. Sautee chopped onion til soft and fragrant
2. Add in chicken, carrots, and water
3. Bring to boil and simmer til carrots turn soft, around 5 minutes
4. Add in milk, stir well
5. Add in black fungus, frozen peas, stir well til peas are cooked
6. Add in salt, pepper, sugar, nutmeg, milk, stir well
7. Adjust the taste and add in bean vermicelli
8. Stir well, bring to boil and off heat

How to assemble:

1. Pour filling on the pans and let cool (it has to be completely cool)
2. Arrange egg slices on top after it's cooled and cover with potato layer (my mum just pressed by hand but I prefer to use piping bag)
3. Brush the top with mixture of egg yolk and butter
4. Put oven in grill mode (top heat only) and grill til the top is browned
5. If cheese to be sprinkled on top, please do so after brushing the top with egg wash

I had some leftover potato in the piping bag, so I piped smiling faces on the ramekins and flowers on the pyrex :)

 

 

 

Oh, yum!

Kueh Potato Bingka

First time I made this kueh, it turned out to be cake like, cos I beat the batter for too long
Finally I did my second try, this time is a success :)
This time I did the original version, without pandan paste

Some sweet snacks can be addictive, and this is one of them

Within the same day, it's all gone! The next time I will definitely make 2 recipes hehe...

You may view the recipe here

I only omitted the pandan paste and this time I didn't use oven to bake, instead I used my snack maker (you may view the snack maker pic here)

I'm submitting this kueh to Aspiring Bakers #12 Traditional Kueh hosted by Small Small Baker

 

Fried Soft Bone Milk Fish & Stir Fry Chilli Potatoes With French Beans

These dishes are perfect to finish up a big portion of hot fluffy white rice, and you'll ask for the second serving! *grin* (not a great idea for those carbo-conscious hehe...)

Yummy fried soft bone milk fish - cooked in pressure cooker

What you need:

( for 2 large size milk fish)

7 cloves of garlic - peeled

3 pcs of 5cm yellow ginger - peeled

enough water

2 large size milk fish - cleaned and cut into 2parts each

salt, sugar and a few pcs of bay leaves

oil for deep frying

Blend garlic and ginger til smooth

Fill in pressure cooker with enough water to cover the 2 fish

Add in the blended garlic and ginger, salt, sugar and bay leaves

Press function meat/bean and wait til completed and function changed to keep warm, cancel and repeat the function meat/bean one more time (doing it twice will make the bones soft)

After completed, drain away the water, heat oil enough to deep fry the fish, deep fry til golden brown

Now, this is to accompany the fish

Stir Fry Chilli Potatoes With French Beans

What you need:

4 medium potatoes, diced

7 shallots, thinly sliced

french beans, cut

oil, salt, pepper, red chilli paste, a little palm sugar

Heat oil, fry diced potatoes til golden brown - set aside

Using the same pan with just a little oil, sautee shallots til fragrant, add in red chilli paste, add in french beans, water, salt, pepper, sugar - mix well amd simmer til french beans softened and water lessened, adjust taste

Add in fried potatoes - mix well

Baked Salmon With Herbs With Grilled Asparagus & Mashed Potatoes

Yummy dinner..... What a combo! Even the kids love them to the bits! :)

                                            The baked salmon......

The grilled asparagus.....

The mashed potatoes.....



What you need:

1 salmon fillet (I used 800g)

5 cloves of garlic - finely chopped

1 tsp chopped parsley

olive oil, salt , black pepper

Marinade the fillet with salt & pepper, keep in the fridge for 1hour

Prepare a baking dish/pan, lightly grease and place the fillet on it

Sprinkle chopped garlic and parsley, and olive oil

Bake in preheated oven of 175degC for 20minutes approximately

(use a fork to check whether it's cooked, poke on the fillet and twist the fork a little to see the inner part)

For the asparagus:

Cut the bottom part of the stem, wash clean, place on the preheated non stick grill pan which has been lightly greased with olive oil. sprinkle with a little salt and pepper, cook both sides

For the mashed potatoes:

Steam 3 potatoes til well cooked, peel and mash til fine and mix with a dollop of butter, a little garlic oil and salt and pepper

(adding with chopped parsley would be nice too, but I didn't)

Simple and yummy dinner - indeed :)