Mini French Toast with Cottage Cheese and Peach

Foodiest!

So for the past three weeks I have been working at this Gourmet Sandwich Shoppe down at Korean Town called Sky Blue Sky ( 605 Bloor St. West Toronto). I just want to pass around good words of this place! The sandwiches are amazing to the max!The owner ( which is my boss, Chad) is an awesome cook. He makes the best cream cheese and cranberry bread, and other soft hearty breads such as lemon zest,and pepper jack! Ah... Its really tempting to eat those bread everyday. Few days ago I brought home some day old Pepper jack bread crumbs. A breakfast full of bread could be heavy on carbohydrate. I have been munching more protein lately, to keep up with my physical transformation goal. So, I thought a French toast with more flavor than just bread will be an awesome recipe to share with you this time.

So basically instead of using slab of breads, I cut out the pieces and marinate them with eggs ( mostly egg white) and cottage cheese, a little salt, pepper and paprika. Once the bread is soaked in egg, it is cooked just like how you make regular French toast. Once done, I drizzle the mini french bread with honey and some fresh peach. It was phenomenal!
Here is the recipe for the detail hows:
Yield: 2 servings of breakfast
* 2 egg whole eggs and 4 egg whites
* 3/4 cup of cut day old breads
* 4 tbsp of 1% cottage cheese
* salt, honey, pepper, paprika to taste
* fresh diced peach or nectarines
* spray of spam vegetable oil/ olive oil

1.First whip the egg white and yolks, add the seasoning and cottage cheese to the mixture.
2. Add in the cut day old breads and let them soak to absorb the moist.
3. Heat the pans with a spray of oil/ olive oil, fry the mixture like you would fry an omelete.
4.Once done drizzle with honey and diced peach or nectarines.

You can always experiment to add/ leave the ingredients to your liking. I find the nectarines/ peach compliments the taste of the the cheese and honey.
I love how this recipe can be assemble in less than 5 minutes, and it tasted mighty delicious!
Hope you will try it sometime!



Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Very Cranberry Curry Chicken Stew

Hello foodies!

How was your thanksgiving?I hope you did not stuff your stomach too full to get tired reading more thanksgiving related recipe!This year is a little special because I dont have an oven anymore ( boo) this is what happen if you are living on a budget rent!But I thank God for a warm shelter!
So no oven = no turkey. We let the turkey take a day off this year- and put the lobster to work!Although days after... I completely missed having the turkey.Your earlier thought might be right about no thankgiving complete without turkey. Anyhow, since the oven is not available, the closest I can get to roasted turkey is a chicken stew!But boy was it really good! This cranberry curry chicken I made days after thanksgiving paid off the lack of cooking facility even more, I was pleasantly suprised how good it turned out.
Maybe you should try it too if you miss thanksgiving on a random day, have no oven or even for a change!

Here is the whats and the hows:


1/2 cup of Dried Cranberry
1 medium spanish onion chopped
2 cloves of garlic minced
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 cup of chopped tomatoes
1 green chillies seeded, chopped
2tbsp curry powder
enough salt
1tsp of brown sugar
4cm cinnamon stick
lime juice to taste
500 gram chicken tigh ( 4-5 pieces)
1/4 cup of water



*Sautee the onion and garlic, chillies and cinnamon stick with the oil
*add in the cranberry, add curry powder
*add in the chicken to brown
*add in tomatoes and brown sugar
*let it simmered,add little water and sea salt to taste
*cover it to simmer for 45 minutes or untill the meat has cooked perfectly ( 74C)
*add lime at the end to freshen up the warm lovely aroma!


I think to me, the cranberry curry chicken is a very
heart warming dish for the coming cold days!I hope everyone is getting ready for winter! That includes saving some space in your stomach for more spicy and comfort foods which will be featured in the next blogs!






Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Dearest foodies!

I have to be honest with you I was all over different places for the past few months. First Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and then Bangkok. What not to love about traveling? Overindulging your mouth with savory treats and sweets! I love it all …, besides the dirty laundry.

Anyhow, I am grateful for the heartwarming experiences but on the down side, sadly this blog has been put into rest for quite sometime. I felt bad for myself. Making recipes and trying out on the kitchen is a bit harder out here. Most of the time I find myself observing and learning rather than cooking, because on the other side of the world there is so much to absorb and learn. So meanwhile my brain is processing, I thought I’d share with you some other entertainment : a picture of my latest work with Dave Sloan. We named this one Carl burger shot. Its quite meaty and smoky. Reminding me of nice BBQ hangout on the roof top with old friends. This made me feel I miss summer already as I spent summer months away from home. I hope everyone had a blast time wherever you are this summer!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Morels Carot and Almond Pesto Attraction Lasagna

The last but my favorite shot among all was the Wild Morelle mushroom and almond paste with leek pesto lasagna. Nothing beats a succesful mix of flavors! LOVE IT.
So for this session, the challenge was to make all the layers pretty and looking tasty! Take a look of it what do you think?


I love to improvised with food. This is not your traditional tomato sauce lasagna!I used pesto instead because it accentuated the flavor of our earthy morrels, and the almond paste give the richness that cream offer but healthier. Do i need any reason for carrot?They are sweet, source of vitamin A and the color just pop right in your eyes. Gotta love carrot! Off course since this is a wild mushroom lasagna, wild leek is the best companion!

The process of making the lasagna is quite simple.

The ingredients:

• Sauteed Wild mushroom mixture ( morels, chanterele , any kind of wild mushroom or regular you want)
• Lasagna noodle, boiled and cooled
• 2tbsp of butter
• 4 tbsp of of flour to make roux
• beef bouilon / chicken bouilon
  
• Sauteed garlic, pesto, and wild leeks mixture
• Salt , pepper & nutmeg to taste
  
• Raw carrot peeled and shaved into long ribbons
  
• Feta & Mozzarella cheese
• Blanch almond/toasted almond powder (you can use food chopper and add a little water to make the almond paste)
  
• Olive oil to sautee the ingredients

The execution:

• Sautee the mushrooms and the leeks separately or together depending on your choice
• Make the roux from the butter and flour and bouilon, add almond paste ( this will be used as the paste to glue the noodle)
  
• Once this two steps are done, layer the noodle and place the sauce on top of noodles and put different ingredient on each layer.
• Top it off with the sauce and seal it with the feta and mozzarela cheese and garnish it with the morels and wild mushroom arrangements on top!

M Mmm Good!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Fiddlehead Mushroom Omellete

Do you believe that omellete is an ordinary item that could start an extraordinary day? My omellete always do! But what about having omellete everday? Getting tired of it?
Never!!! There are just too many ways of making omellete. Egg is the essential and I love to mix it twist it with something new!


We are so fortunate that the spring in Ontario yield plentiful of beautiful harvests. Fiddlehead was one of them. Some of you might not know the name, but surely when you see it, it makes sense right away.

Fiddlehead also known as cicinate vernation refers to the unfurled fronds of a young fern harvested for food consumption. The fiddlehead, unrolls as the fern matures and grows due to more growth in the inside of the curl. Fiddleheads are usually located by the bottom of a fern plant. It was named so due to its resemblance to the curled ornamentation on the end of the string instrument ( Wikipedia, 2009).

Hand picking fiddle head is a very treasurable moment! You don't get the chance so often!
Once they comes out...they will be gone very quick. Last thing you know spring is over! So here I present to you the more lasting taste of fiddlehead!

The ingredients:

• Mushroom, sweet pepper, feta cheese
• 2 eggs
  
• salt and pepper to taste
• blanched fiddlehead
• olive oil

As simple as early morning! As delicious as you can imagine!

Happy trying!


Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Ramp, Dandelion and Violet dance

Dear : Friends!

I can barely remember the last time I wrote this Blog! The past 4 weeks I have been so lucky to volunteer with Dave Sloan a photographer who was an alumn in my university. He and his wife have been so kind to allow me exploring my artsy imagination on my dream job! Food stylist! He needed to make a portfolio and so did I, so it was a win win situation. I keep telling myself I would be the luckiest person in the world if I could work as a food stylist. Having so much fun, and dealing with the challenges is always a thrill. I cant wait!!!.

Since both Dave and Linda ( his wife) own a cottage up north, they wanted to bring in the wild taste of rustic leeks, dandelion and the smell of the forest to your eyes। We came up with three recipes: The wild salads, Fiddlehead omellete, and the must try Wild Morelle and Almond Lasagna! It was so mouthwatering… except that you can’t ever break the rule number 1: never eat the hero food! Too bad… BUT Good thing I kept the recipe for you to try, and surely you can spoil your eye a little with shot that we took few weeks ago

Here we go:

The salads was consisted of

• Ramps ( wild leeks leaves and stalk , you can use the bulb too)
• Dandelion
• Trout lily leaves ( do not use if it flowered already)
• Lemon zest
• Red pepper sliced in julienne cut.
• Violet ( flower is edible)

Dressing:

• Vinegrette using olive oil, a little red wine vinegar, lemon juice
• Drizzle of honey
• Salt and pepper to taste

The macro look of the salad looks so pretty.

I hope you enjoy the salad if not, enchant your eyes a little!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Pan Seared Fish with Sweet Fermented Chilli Paste and Roasted Tomatoes

Dear :  The food connoisseur!

 

There is nothing better than eating fresh seafood right from the seashore, however if you are far away from the sea breeze, a trip to a local fish market would always be exciting and fresh! Now… a fresh whole fish should have clear eyes and shiny scales. If you buy a fillet however, look for a firm intact flesh. Picking the fresh fish is the key in flavorful and tasty fish dish.

 

As always, I love to experiment on combining flavors. This time we are going to use my  express taste booster : The asian fermented chilli paste. You can get this in most asian ( Chinese and Korean market in a jar. The sweet and hot taste gives a perfect kick that I need to enhance the fish flavor while minimizing the fishy smell that some people can not stand.

 

This dish actually the east meet the west for me. Being brought up in the Asia, fish is most enjoyably consumed by deep frying it, and serving  it on  rice  with the shrimp paste chili sauce. Omitting the deep fried part, I tried to play around with the idea of keeping the crispy skin texture and the goodness inside. Not to forget a little kick of our favorite friend; the chilli sauce. For those who are sensitive to the heat, dont worry, the fermented chilli paste are very mild and friendly! Just give it a try, and you will definetely back for more!

 

The " ingredients":

 

• Fish fillet cut to medium portion (approximately 4 x3 inch) you can use meaty white fish such as Halibut, Haddock, Marlin if not Salmon will do well too.
• Lemon pepper seasoning
• Sun Flower/ Olive oil
• Fresh Tomatoes/ Roasted tomatoes
• Finely chopped parsley
• 2 tbsp Fermented Chilli paste ( Korean or Chinese grocery)
• 1tsp honey
• Cucumber
• Spanish onion
• ½ tsp minced ginger
• Juice from half of lemon & lemon peel
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• Salt to taste

 

The “execution”:

 

• Pat dry the fish, and sprinkle the fish with lemon pepper seasoning

 

• Pan Seared the fish to crisp the skin  for 2 minutes each sides ( I love using iron cast or stainless steels pan so I can put the pan inside the oven right after)

 

• Meanwhile, in a bowl mix  the fermented chilli paste, with lemon juice, honey

 

•  Take off the fish from heat, leave in a little oil in  fish pan

 

• Put the sliced onion,  minced ginger, tomatoes, chopped garlic on top of the fish in the pan

 

• Put into oven to bake at 350 F for 16-20 minutes

 

• Once its done, the aromatic vegetable should infused their flavor through the oil, and the natural juice of the fish will ooze out.

 

• Plate the fish and the onions, tomatoes. Add the mixed fermented chilli paste on the side or you can drizzle it on top of the fish

 

• Cucumber on the side is good for cooling down the palate.

 

In order to add servings of vegetables to your diet, you can add in mixed vegetable salads and use the juice from the fish and the sweet fermented chilli sauce as the dressings.

I can not wait until summer comes and try different fish dishes on the grill! For now…I am taking a break to stroll around the town. See you soon!

 

Love always,

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Brunch o'licious with Blueberry Yoghurt Cheese Dip!

Dearest: Brunch lovers!

 

I totally dig brunch, what about you? Especially on a long weekend when life could stop crowding you a little and give you a little rest ( a magic pause button)- I will definitely seize every single second to relax, while some one else might have gazillions of activity lists waiting for checklists.  Whoever you are, eating should be on top of your list. In fact,brunch is a very neat idea to bring enjoyable catch up with your lives. Whether its  spending time with your love ones, friends, the girls get together, or even your little sunshines…brunch is a very appropriate occasion to pause all the busy shuffle and enjoy good food and good company.

 

Yesterday, brunch was the ultimate clean, fast, nutritious , refreshing time for me. Like most of you I am juggling between more works , works and trying to eat tasty healthy food! I knew already what I felt having for breakfast. Eggs, yoghurt, with some sorts of cream cheese and sliced of toast were mouthwatering! I love the idea  of refreshing fruits in the morning, but to lazy to peel them. I needed something quick. So I made this brunch ‘olicious with Blueberry Yoghurt Cheese Dip. I played around  with cream cheese yoghurt and blueberry to make my toast a super delicious dip!The rest can be traditional but still phenomenal! So…here it goes:

 

The “ingredients”

• 2 eggs over medium ( you can do any style you like)
• Mixed salad with cherry tomatoes
• A slice of toast
• My blueberry yoghurt cheese dip

How to make  Blueberry Yoghurt Cheese dip

• In a blender/ food processor add in:
• 2 tbsp of light cream cheese
• 4-5 tbsp of Balkan yoghurt
• Blueberries ( a handfull)
• Honey drizzle (optional)
• Very little salt to give a savory taste
• You can add very little water to adjust the consistency of your dip

 

My sister loved this dip so much…so did I! its creamy but just right for breakfast because it contained the fruity blueberry ( like a jam) with the tangy cream cheese complimented by the love from yoghurt! I just dip my sizzling toast to this heavenly purple sauce, I even ate it with my salad as the dressing! Very simple and healthy! Its low in fat and add to your daily requirements of the  dairy! Most importantly you can alter the recipe using whatever fruit on hand! I can’t wait to make another dip for tomorrow breakfast! I hope I excite you a little with my purple sauce today!

You should definitely try!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Oh La La Caramelized Chicken Pinneaple

Dear: Aficionado!

 

What comes to your mind if I serve you Oh la la  Caramelized Chicken Pinneaple ? The burst of flavors from the caramel and the tangy pineapple are just indescribable and makes you scream for more!

 

This is my latest recipe “invention” resulted from tons of pineapple left over from another food presentation. The actual idea was not very original I should say, it came from the pork and pineapple stir-fry peeking out from the Styrofoam box from lunch eater on Yonge and Gerrad St.  

So here is how to make it:

 

Ingredient A:

• 4 medium chicken breasts ( diced ½ x ½ inch)
  
• ½ tsp of lemon pepper seasoning
  
• Pinch of salt
  
• Pinch of paprika
  
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  
• 2 eggs white
  
• 3tbsp of cornstarch
  
• Olive oil to fry
  

 

The stirfry ingredients:

• 1 cloves of garlic
  
• 1 cup of pineapple ( chopped)
  
• ½ red bell pepper
  
• ½ vidala onions
  
• Salt and pepper to taste
  
• Juice from ½ lemon
  
• Chilli powder to taste
  
• 1tbsp of honey
  

 

The “execution “:

 

• Season the chicken with all ingredients,  including egg whites, and mix in cornstarch right before frying
• In a pan heat up some olive oil, and shape the chicken to small paddies and fry them until golden brown
• Let them cool off
• Set aside the olive oil to make the stir fry ( approximately 1 tbsp)
• Sautee onions,garlic and bell pepper
• Put in the pineapple , & honey, let it caramelized then add in lemon juice and other seasonings
• Lastly add in the chicken , let the sauce coat the chicken
• Serve it on top of rice bed and ready to eat!

 

I had an oh la la lunch… I hope you will have it very soon too!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Gelfite Fish with Mango and Purple Cabbage salad with beet horseradish

Dear: Food adventurer!

 

I am so relieved the stormy sea has passed and Iam sailing smoothly ( cross my finger)…. Moving on from one project to the next could be overwhelming.  Today, at last I have my peace of mind when everything is done. Don’t get me wrong,  I love school and interesting projects, especially one involving food challenges. Well I go to school for that, so that is expected!

 The highlights of this week were in fact presenting food demonstration and food intelligence test! The first really worn me out just because I had this little perfect idea how it supposed to be done and presented…and off course there were thousand little reasons turns in to a giant catastrophe why it did not turn out as I expected it. Let just say kitchen and whatever comes out of it  equal to my sanctuary and my greatest obsession! I am like a mama bear ready to eat someone alive when they come to mess with my cub ( read : food). But we cant always win can we? So… whatever passed I shall let it drain in the sink. The second challenge could have been more exciting: It involved more traveling than cooking! I was given a task to present kosher food for Passover.

The real challenge: it has to contain secret ingredient for audience to guess.

The problem: there aren’t really any secret ingredients for Jewish food! Besides matzo meal ,gelfite fish and horseradish!

So I managed to deal with that anyway, and served the traditional Gelfite fish with beets horseradish. See http://erasofelegance.com/cooking/ancientrecipes.html

 

Unfortunately with 100 eater expected, only few dare to try, and I was left with piles of Gelfite fish. Enough to feed the whole village, not to mention the flavor is a little bit off my palate. Gelfite fish tastes sweet, almost like a sweet boiled fishcake.

Devastated, I had to come up with a plan to use up all the left over.

 

Texture and flavor are most desirable components to taste in food. So I decided to revive the soft gelfite fish with a crunchier,and more savoury  exterior to give that crispiness to the skin, but keeping the soft filling.  I also added some love of liquorish fennel to the mixture which was perfect to give a depth to the dish. Lastly I presented the Gelfite fishcake with its traditional beet horse radish sauce with mango chutney and purple cabbage coleslaw to give it a balance. 

 The ingredients:

• 600 grams of Gelfite Fish
  
• 1cups of bread crumbs
  
• 2 tbsp  light soy sauce
  
• half of fennel bulb, cored and chopped 
  
• 2 eggs
  
• ¼ tsp of pepper
  
• Dash of lemon pepper seasoning
  

A blend of oatmeal, all purpose flour and nori seaweed, and paprika in the food processor  to make crispy skin.           

 

The “execution”

• Mix the all the ingredients and make into paddies
• Toss it in a blend of our savory flours and then to the frying pan with olive oil
• Once served, slice it with beet horseradish and light mayonnaise

Ps: this edition might  be an eye opener to other culture's traditional food!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Stone Fruits + Vegetables Chilled Soup

Dear : Lovers

How have you been doing during this week? The sunshine has surely been bright and beautiful lately. It made me want to plop myself on top of the moving sky, and move forward to summer. I mean what not to love about summer anyways? I bet you are looking forward for it too. Speaking of summer, the latest food demonstration that Iam about to do in class is one of a kind. We can pick our own theme and do almost anything exciting. My partner and I decided to take a theme on “Bringing Summerlicious Home”. Surely one of amazing things about Toronto is the convenience of getting great length of cuisines within your budget. This is a good chance to explore the different variety of cuisine in Toronto. However, summer often ties in with a lot of socializing, which means, warning on your pocket! Now…I propose why don’t we bring a lovely summerlicious home to our backyard and entertain our guest while keeping the piggy bank safe? I promise you it won’t be painful, rather it will be very gratifying!

This idea of summerlicious actually ties in with another concept of eating local! Ontario produce rocks! Especially during summer, you can almost find everything you need in your local grocery shop! You can check what are fresh  in your local grocery stores or you can go tohttp://www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/availability.html. This way you are supporting our own local produce and get the freshest ingredients that are available!

So I did a little thinking what I can do with the ingredients available in Summer, and today I offer you a Stone fruits with Sweet Bell Pepper Chilled Soup for  Bringing Summerlicious Home

Now for those who doesn’t get what stone fruit is, it is any fruit that has a stone- like seed inside their meat such as nectarines, plums, peaches,cherries,etc.

 Here are the ingredients that you need to make the soup:

• 4 ripe nectarines, seeded, and diced
  
• 2 ripe peaches seeded and  diced
  
• 1 sweet red pepper seeded chooped roughy
  
• Juice from one navel orange/ you can use a readily prepackaged OJ
  
• ( approximately ½ of cup)
  
• 2 carrots peeled, slice thinly to reduce cooking time
  
• A hint of star anise to bring out the earthy flavor of the fruits and vegetable
  
• Pinch of salt
  
• 1 tbsp Olive oil
  
• A dollop of Balkan yoghurt/sour cream
  
• 1tbsp sugar/ honey
  

 

The “execution”

• Sautee all the  vegetables and fruits  with 1tbsp of olive oil
• Add the pinch of salt and sugar/ honey
• Pour the orange juice to simmer the vegetable and fruits
• Add a hint of star anise ( I like to keep it simmer with the soup for 10 minutes as it tends to be really perfumy)
• Simmer the mixture until the fruits and vegetables are fully cooked.
• In a food processor or blender, process the ingredients until it creates a smooth consistency
• For velvety texture, use a strainer to separate the soup from the grainish texture from the fruit skins
• Chill the soup on the refrigerator
• When its ready, on the center of the bowl, put a dollop of Yoghurt/ sour cream
• Pour the soup around the Yoghurt
• Garnish with fresh sliced nectarines / baked nectarine chips

 

Quite frankly, I think this soup is very summerlicious! The vibrant colour  just gives such a joy and warm feeling, on top of the  vitamin and fiber goodness in it!

Its worth the try!

 

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Classic Spanakopita

Dear : yummers

This week has been definitely an eye opening to my food experience as a Torontonian. A school project has allowed me to explore Greek food in a way that is enchanting and inspiring! So  I had to interview Greek people about their experience regarding Greek cuisine inToronto  and compare it to food back home. Having to go around  interviewing people , I was lucky enough to meet so many warm and friendly people on Danforth! Especially Peter of Alexandros, the owner of small gyros and Greek food shop at Danforth. The highlight of the day was he gave us ( me and my friend) free gyros, and off course free knowledge and fantastic experience too!  If you are in the area, this small gyros shop is a must try! Another thing is to learn about Greek cuisine that relies on fresh seasonal ingredients: what could be a better treat than a fresh pick from your local garden? My partner and I ended up visiting few Restaurant in the area, and dine at Pantheon, while on the way home grabbed some coffee , honey balls, and spanakopita.

The latter, was such a winner, I had to remake it and share it with you. It is very healthy, tasty and versatile. You can put almost any vegetable you like in it ( although traditionally its made  of spinach).

So today I present you my Spanakopita!

Ingredients:

• Half Spanish onion chopped
  
• 2 bags of frozen spinach, thawed
  
• 2 blocks of normal size feta cheese
  
• 1 cup of sliced mushroom
  
• 3eggs beaten
  
• ½ cup of chopped sundried tomatoes
  
• 2 cloves of garlic
  
• Pinch of salt and pepper for taste
  
• 3 tbsp of olive oil
  
• Filo dough pastry for crust

The “execution”

• Sautee onion, garlic, and mushroom,sundried tomatoes with olive oil
• Mix in the spinach when the mushroom is golden brown
• Remove from heat when all is cooked
• Grease the baking pan  with some olive oil
• Spread some filo pastry ( about 4/5 layer) on the bottom of the baking pan
• Put in the spinach and mix it with fetta cheese crumble on top
• Pour the beaten eggs over the mixture to bind them together
• Cover the mixture with laryes of filo dough on top
• Sprinkle olive oil on top of filo dough to make it crispy.

This recipe is good for 6 servings.

  

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Yoghurt Yoghurt Pudding Cake with Rhubard and Strawberry Sauce

Dear: adventurer!

 

Finally! I’m here again- doing what I love the most! I must apologize to you for skipping this blog for almost two weeks. Let’s just say that I needed to force myself to do the greater deed ( the diploma) although clearly, I felt very content with my food. Anyhow, enough for unnecessary talk, I am here to kiss and make up, after all what I’m offering you might be so tempting that you forgot about my M.I.A. ( missing in action).

 

So what I’m about to tell you is my Yoghurt Bread Pudding Cake story. I was craving for some sorts of cheese cake, but being me: I didn't want to buy a regular cheesecake, I wanted to make one! So I decided to take a trip down to my neighbourhood grocery store, and bought several staple items, including the cream cheese for the cake. At that point, I have to be honest with you I had no idea how I was going to make the wanted cheesecake. I just had the urge to.

 Off course something went wrong when I least expected it.Guess what? As I opened my cream cheese,  I found it already eaten by molds. Ew…and Damn! But since I had the urge to just cook ( at this point I really don’t care what I was making anymore since I just have to cook) I decided, fine be it you cream cheese! I will definitely do fine without you.

So I decided to do an experiment with Balkan yoghurt instead. My common sense thought it might work since it contained almost the same properties and ingredients of cream cheese:goodness, and taste! So little that I knew – I made my very first improvised dessert:Yoghurt Pudding Cake with Rhubard and Strawberry  Sauce!

  Here is the list of ingredients for the recipe:

• 125 ml whipping cream
  
• 5 tbsp corn starch
  
• 2 egg   1 whole+ 1 yolk
  
• 5tbsp sugar
  
• 5tbsp Balkan yoghurt
  
•  Drips of Vanilla extracts
  
• Pinch of salt
  
• Garnish: Rhubarb and Strawberry Sauce with fresh berries
  

 

The “execution”

• Using a mixer, I whip the egg and the sugar all together until its creamy
• Whipping cream  is added and whipped
• Corn starch is added to give structure and body
• Lastly the Yoghurt is stirred into the batter with vanilla extracts
• I greased a baking dish with  little sprayed oil, then pouring the batter into the mixture
• Then I baked the batter at 325F at almost 25 minutes ( until its golden brown)
• Once the cake is ready, I cut it into pieces and drizzled it with the rhubarb strawberry sauce that I made a day earlier, with extra touch of berries.

 It was surprisingly good! The marriage of tangy sour yoghurt with the sweet sour rhubarb-strawberry sauce was phenomenal! I had to admit I was quite please since it was clearly a blind experiment. So if you want to try at home, you are welcome to try it as well!

PS: If you have a left over of the cake, you can easily moisten the cake the next morning by reheating it! Taste better when it’s hot! Happy cooking!

 

 

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Murtabak Pita Pancake

Dear : Butterflies

I have  not gone shopping for a week.Translated to my language that means I haven’t had fun for such a long time!!! Well….grocery shopping is almost like wonderland - treasure hunting for me.

Instead, I have been nerve wrecked and emotionally exhausted by projects& exams. On top of that, my immune system did not want to cooperate. I had the worse combinations of flu, stomachache, and stuffy nose, which ultimately  killed my appetite . This is why I havent been able to update this blog.

Recovering from these all, I was left with an empty fridge and left over foods…the main ingredient to make a meal now, is a “wicked idea”. When I opened the fridge, instantly I found familiar ingredients that were just  perfect for making Murtabak. Although a little twist was needed.

Here is what I found when I opened my fridge:

• 3 slices of whole wheat pita bread which later were halved.
• Bunch of green onion (around 10 stalks), chopped thinly.
• 5 eggs ( I use 3 yolk and 5 egg whites)
• Left over of canned tuna and canned corned beef ( how sad, but awesome to build the layers of flavors)
• Lastly, 400 grams ground beef as my last protein source of the day. I thawed and boiled them to remove their fat since they were not extra lean beef. ( just my preference)

 

Now, I talked about the recipe with a twist. Normally you have to make the dough for the crust.You can check real Murtabak in this website. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murtabak

But having pita breads is a fantastic shortcut to the ultimate gluttony!

So goodbye complicatedness and welcome innovation!

 

“The execution”:

  

• Make sure  ground beef, tuna and corned beef are churned nicely
• Mix well all ingredients in a bowl besides the pita bread.
• Add half  of chopped Spanish onion for savory taste ( any red onions)
• Add pinch of salt, pepers, paprika and 1 tbsp of curry powder ( you can omit the curry powder for Indonesian Martabak).
• Heat up 100 mL of olive oil in a pan
• Stuff the pita with the filling and fry when pan is hot
• Take out of the frying pan when the pita is golden brown and crispy
• Cool it on top of napkins to absorb the oil
• Make sure you leave enough space to avoid the crust pilling up and becoming soggy.
• Ready to serve with hot chili/ sambal or ketchup.

 

This serving is good for 3-4 people.

 

I have to tell you this: I know when you see the frying pan and the oil it sorts of getting away from my usual healthy mealm, but heck…discretionary calories are okay once in a while! Ultimately I think I deserved this treat after a rough week. But remember, moderation is the key and balanced diet is the overall factor for a healthy body!

 

Love to share my thoughts!

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Lotus Roots with Garlic Shrimp and Sweet Pea Stir Fry

Dear: Food manias!

 

Watching Kylie Wong trip to China and especially her lotus roots treasure hunt was a big joy! It had made me gained more  appreciations of this earthy root vegetable. The prolong process of harvesting the lotus roots really gave me an insight how the work is behind the scene. Thanks to all  farmers hard work!

 For those who does not know, lotus roots grow in a muddy pond, inside the soil. The farmers normally use their bare feet to feel the bulbs, and once they felt it with their feet, they have to yank the roots out from the muddy soil. Not only its labor intensive, it could  really take along time to find a decent, fresh lotus bulb.

 

During my walk to old china town in Dundas and Broadview area, I found a Chinese grocery market that sold lotus roots. Filled with excitements, I decided to buy 2 bulbs to make a stir-fry.

Now...

Ever since I wrote this blog, I have committed to provide a healthy, artful meal that is 

easy to make, easy to your body, and easy to love.

So in this light, I created a recipe that I think have won over my stir fry favorite list. I hope this recipe will win you over too!

 

Ingredients:

• 2 bulbs of lotus roots, peeled and sliced thinly to quicken cooking time
• 400 Grams of peeled shrimp ( veined)
• A handful of sweet peas
• A handful of oyster mushroom ( you can use shitake or chanterelle)
• Half of red sweet pepper
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 stalk of green onion
• Chicken bouillon or chicken broth
• 1 tbsp of olive oil
• 1tsp of sesame  oil to enhance the earthiness of the lotus and mushroom ( you can always add more at the end if its not enough)
• Pinch of sugar for a sweet savoury taste of the shrimp
• 1tbsp of fish sauce or soy sauce ( choose light soy sauce with less sodium if you can)
• Splash of Chinese cooking wine

 Tips: Slicing the lotus before hand and soaking it in water with salt will allow the cooking process faster.

The “ execution”

 

1. Pre heat a wok or stir fry pan with the olive oil and sesame oil
2. When pan is hot, sautéed the garlic, mushroom and sweet peppers.
3. When mushroom has absorbed the flavor, stir in lotus roots and sweet peas
4. Cook until lotus roots change its colour to slightly translucent  from opaque
5. Add in the shrimps and sautéed until its cooked
6. Add in the Chinese cooking wine to give a depth to the dish
7. Add chicken stock and let it cook and simmered.
8. Sprinkle the dish with green onion.
9. Ready to serve for 3-4 servings with rice.

Have a savory meal! I hope you enjoy the  Lotus Garlic Shrimp Stir Fry as much as I enjoyed it!

 

Passion + Patience

*Gastrobutterfly*

A food to your soul.

Baked Banana Cereal Dessert with Dark Chocolate drizzle

Dear : The lovely readers…

 

Its been a while since I wrote any new recipes…

Few days ago I walked by kitchen stuff and got myself a blow torch.

I had always wanted blow torch since forever….It seems so versatile…

It comes handy in almost any dessert, not to add the rustic feel it gives, and the seductive smell of caramel!

Oh how I love them!So, I decided to make a very healthy dessert inspired by caramelized banana that is normally served with ice cream.

However instead of using ice cream, I am using skim vanilla yoghurt with bold dark chocolate drizzle to give the depth and oomph that is definitely addicting!

However I feel so dumb toward the “execution” I just realized that the torch did not come with the butane!!! I was so ready to whip the dessert that it almost made me cry. I thought well … this is just another challenge on getting good ideas to make it work. So for those who does not have blow torch…don’t worry this recipe works almighty fine!

 

Ingredients: ( 2 servings)

 

3 bananas ( you can slice it thinly to let it baked more evenly)

3 tsp sweet condensed milk

Oil spray

A pinch of salt

1 tbsp brown sugar

Drips of vanilla extract

5 tbsp of vanilla yoghurt  ( unsweeatened)

A cup of any left over cereal, crushed  to your preferred textured ( I used the oatmeal crisp that comes with almods, and crushed it coarsely with pinch of salt )

1 tbsp of nutela chocolate

1 block of dark chocolate ( Bakers)

4 tbsp of skim milk

 

“The execution”:

1. Put the sliced banana nicely on a tin foil
2. Drizzle  the banana with the  sweet condensed milk ( this will help to glue the cereal)
3. Coat the drizzled banana with the cereals
4. Spray  some oil lightly  to make it crispy
5. Bake for 10 minutes at 300F,
6. Mean while you are waiting, we are going to make a deep dark chocolate sauce with the  4tbsp of skim milk, nutella, and also the dark chocolate block. Let it melt on a  low temperature.  Ideally a double bath is a perfect way for melting  chocolates ( a glass bowl on top of a bowling pot) This will avoid the chocolate being burnt. Otherwise, you can always use regular pans but put a very low temperature ( I don’t suggest this).  Voila your chocolate sauce should be slightly bitter. You can always add sugar to sweeten the sauce to your palate.
7. Now another thing we should get ready for  is the yoghurt. I like to put a slightly acidic base to balance out the sweetness in the banana, as well as to give an awesome substitution for the fatty ice cream. Yoghurt is healthy for your tummy  and it taste yummy!so why not?

So mixed the 5tbsp of yoghurt with drips of vanilla extracts to enhance the aroma.

 

8. Take out and drizzle with brown sugar and put it back on slightly higher       temperature to make it caramelized ( this is where blow torch can come handy)
9. When everything is done, you can  start the fun part: composing  your plate. The yoghurt as the base,the banana, and then the chocolate sauce drizzle. You can almost add nuts such as hazelnut or almonds or fresh strawberries. Otherwise it would taste awesome already!

 

Happy eating, I hope you love it. By the way, you have fulfill 1.5 servings of bananas just eating this dessert! Not too mention the hearty good ingredients it contains!

 

 

Passion + Patience

Gastrobutterfly

a food to your soul.