Pan-fried Sambal Prawns by Patsie Cheong

Taken from Kampung Curry; picture Googled

Ingredients A:
500 gm big prawns
1 big onion (sliced)
1 red chili (sliced)
1 green chili (sliced)

Ingredients B:
10 dried chilies (soaked)
50 gm shallots
25 gm garlic
2 buah keras (candlenut)
1 stalk serai (lemongrass)
1 tbsp belacan

Ingredients C:
2 tbsps sugar
1 tsp asam paste
4 tbsps water

Method:
1. Heat up 4 tbsps oil in pan, stir fry ingredients B until fragrant.
2. Add in all the ingredients A to pan fry until cooked.
3. Pour in ingredients C and pan fry until dry. Remove and serve.

Tip:
Slit a line at the back of the prawn to make it tastier.

Nestle Corn Flakes Lemony Square

Taken from Nestle Corn Flakes serving suggestions

Makes: about 5 dozens

Crust:

85 gm butter

85 gm brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

80 gm plain flour

1 1/2 cups Nestle Corn Flakes, blended finely

25 gm dessicated coconut

2 eggs

Topping:

100 gm caster sugar

1 tbsp lemon rind

5 tsp grated lemon peel

80 gm mixed fruits, cut into pieces

35 gm toasted dessicated coconut

Cool icing sugar, optional

Method:

1. Line a 20 cm square tin with foil. Allow foil to extend slightly beyond edges, greased

2. Cream butter, sugar and essence until fluffy

3. Fold in flour, stir in Nestle Corn Flakes and coconut. Press crust mixture into prepared tin

4. Bake in a preheated oven at 175’C for 12 mins or until edge lightly brown. Remove from oven; cool

5. Meanwhile beat eggs until foamy. Add sugar, lemon juice and lemon peel

6. Stir in mixed fruits and coconut. Then spread topping over crust

7. Bake again in preheated 180’C oven for 10 – 25 mins or until top begins to brown. Let it stand in pan for 10 mins

8. Loosen edges with sharp knife. Grasp foil edges and lift out of pan. Cut into squares when hot and dust with icing sugar, if used

Jeli Mangga (Mango Jelly)

Taken from Dumex mama ceria; Keluaran 2/2009

Serves: 5 cawan

8 gm Agar-agar

600 ml Jus mangga

4 sudu besar Susu tepung Dumex Dugro 1 Plus Madu Asli

1/2 biji Mangga (dipotong kiub)

Method:

Masak just mangga dan agar-agar sehingga larut. Larutkan 4 sudu susu tepung Dumex Dugro 1 Plus Madu Asli dengan 1/2 cawan air suam. Campurkan kedua-dua bahan ini dan tuangkan ke dalam acuan bersama kiub mangga segar. Biarkan sejuk selama 20 min dan dinginkan sebelum dihidang

Mommy’s Berry Slice

Taken from F&N Evaporated Milk

400 ml F&N Evaporated Milk

200 gm white cooking chocolate, roughly chopped

200 gm fresh strawberries, washed and hulled

50 gm icing sugar

300 gm whipped cream

Fresh sliced strawberries, to decorate

Method:

1. Prepare a 9” loaf tin by lining it with cling film

2. Melt white chocolate with F&N Evaporated Milk. Mash strawberries and icing sugar together and stir into chocolate mixture. Fold in whipped cream and pour into prepared moulds. Freeze and serve with fresh sliced strawberries

Cherries for Mommy

Taken from F&N Evaporated Milk

Pie crust:

300 gm plain flour, sifted

1 tbsp icing sugar

1 tsp salt

125 gm cold butter, cubed

90 ml cold water

Custard:

3 eggs

3 egg yolks

125 gm castor sugar

1/4 tsp salt

500 ml F&N Evaporated Milk

2 tins pitted dark cherries in syrup

4 tbsps corn flour, mixed with 8 tbsps water

Method:

1. To make the pie crust, put all dry ingredients and butter in a food processor and blitz until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add water and blitz until mixture comes together. Remove, shape dough into a ball, wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 mins

2. Preheat oven to 200’C. Lightly grease two 8” pie tins. Divide dough into half and roll out to line the pie tins. Lightly prick the bottom with a fork and bake blind for 10 mins. Remove from oven and lower the temperature to 160’C

3. For the custard, whisk all ingredients together and pour evenly into both pie crusts. Bake for 25 mins. Remove and let cool

4. Drain cherries and arrange them on the pie. Heat up the syrup and thicken with the corn flour mixture. When cool, spoon over the cherry tart, chill and serve

M&M Cookies by Elisabeth Siahaja (Cookies Wonderland)

Taken from Popclub Nov 2009

Ingredients A:150 gm unsalted butter
100 gm icing sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla essence
60 gm grated cheddar cheese

Ingredients B:
260 gm all-purpose flour
20 gm milk powder
2 gm baking powder
1 gm baking soda

Ingredients C:
M&M candies

Ingredients D:
Melted white chocolate

Method:
1. Beat A till fluffy and light
2. Sift B and fold in lightly till become dough
3. Roll the dough into 5 mm thickness and use cookie cutter to shape as desired
4. Place onto a greased tray, bake for approximately 20 mins with temperature of 180'C
5. Decorate with C and D when cookies are completely cool

Revolutionary thoughts from Astroview Oct 2010

Before they became objects that changed our world, items such as the telephone and light bulb existed as mere ideas in someone's head. Here's a look at some of the best ideas that have become indispensable everyday things:

Ice-cream cone:

More than a century ago, ice cream was food for the rich and was only served in cups or plates. It wasn't until a St Louis' fair in 1904 that the ice cream cone was born. Ice cream vendor Arnold Fornachou ran out of dishes to serve his ice cream. Neighbouring vendor Ernest Hamwi, who was selling Zalabia,  a wafer-like pastry, decided to help him out by rolling the Zalabias into cones and placing the ice cream on top

Potato chips:

Before there were potato chips, there were only potato fries. Then one day in 1853, in a New York restaurant, a fussy diner complained that the fries were too thick and soggy and rejected them. Irritated, chef George Crum decided to get back at the customer by slicing the potatoes extremely thin and frying them until they were so crispy they cannot be skewered by a fork. But instead of getting angry, the diner loved them and chips quickly became a hit at the restaurant!

Microwave oven:

It was 1945. Engineer Percy Spencer was experimenting on a magnetron, a device that can fire high intensity of radiation, when he realised that the chocolate bar in his pocket had melted. Intrigued by the discovery, he tried placing popcorn and an egg near the magnetron. Sure enough, the popcorn popped and the egg exploded. Two years later, the radiation was fed into a metal box and it became the world's first microwave oven.

Note: Pictures googled

Chinese made easy

Whipping up a Chinese meal at home is not rocket science as Kylie Kwong will have you know. Here's a simple, invaluable advice to achieving success in the kitchen every time!

According to Kylie...
"There are no tricks to Chinese food. You need to use the freshest ingredients and only take on recipes that you feel confident with" she says. Follow her advice and you'll soon be able to impress with Chinese cuisine!

1. Follow the recipe instructions carefully and find yourself a wok that suits your stove
2. If you don't have a gas cooker, I recommend an electric wok. They're rather powerful when it comes to stir-frying and work well with a steamer basket too
3. Bear in mind that dishes generally take some time to prepare but little time to cook. So it's important to have all ingredients prepared - washed, trimmed, sliced and diced - before you start cooking, because when you crank up that wok, or put that fish into the boiling steamer, or lower that prawn into the deep-frying oil, it all happens very, very quickly!

Stock up on these:
Make sure your pantry is well-stocked with these utensils and ingredients which Kylie swears will give your cooking the greatest chance of being a delicious success!

1. A good wok
2. Bamboo or aluminium steamer
3. Good-quality soya sauce
4. Chinese black vinegar
5. Peanut oil
6. Chicken stock (home-made) in the freezer
7. Spring onions
8. Ginger
9. Chillies
10. Coriander
11. Sesame oil

Taken from Astrolife July 2010

Hokkien Noodles by Kylie Kwong

Taken from Astroview July 2010; picture googled

2 tbs finely diced ginger
1 tbs dry sherry
1 tsp cornflour
1/2 tsp white sugar
Dash of sesame oil
1 tbs light soy sauce
2 free-range chicken breast fillets, thickly sliced on the diagonal
600 gm fresh Hokkien noodles
1/2 bunch choy sum
1/4 cup peanut oil
1/3 cup finely sliced braised dried chinese mushrooms
1 large white onion, cut in half and then into thick wedges
1 medium carrot, julienned
1 tbs oyster sauce
2 tbs water
5 spring onions, trimmed and cut into 10 cm lengths

Method:
1. Combine ginger, sherry, cornflour, sugar, sesame oil and half the soy sauce in a bowl. Add chicken and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hr
2. Blanch noodles in boiling salted water until al dente (about 4 mins). Drain, refresh in cold water and thoroughly drain again
3. Trim ends from choy sum, then cut crossways into 3 and wash well
4. Heat oil in a hot wok until the surface seems to shimmer slightly, then stir-fry the chicken for 1 min
5. Add mushrooms, onion and carrot, and stir-fry for 1 min
6. Add oyster sauce and water and stir-fry for another 30 secs
7. Finally, add noodles, choy sum, spring onions and remaining soy sauce and stir-fry for about 2 mins, or until chicken is just cooked through and noodles are hot
8. Dish out in bowls and serve immediately