Curry Puffs
Tuesday, March 10, 2020Curry Puff, a snack filled with curried mixture of meat, onion, and potato, is commonly found in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Alternatively puff pastry (homemade or readymade) can be used. To fry or to bake them is not the question, because they both taste very good.
Dough | Curry Filling |
---|---|
|
|
- In a bowl, combine curry powder, chilli powder and Worcestershire sauce. Stir in 2 tablespoons of water to make a thick paste. Heat oil on high and stir fry onions and curry paste for 2 minutes. Add in minced meat, diced potatoes and bell peppers. Cook until the meat has turned browned. Pour in water and let simmer on slow-heat for approximately 20 minutes until potatoes are soft. Stir in sugar, and season the mixture with salt and pepper. Continue to cook until it is about dry. Transfer to a bowl and leave aside to cool.
- To make dough, sift together the flour, salt and baking soda in a mixing bowl. Rub ghee into the flour mixture until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add water gradually and press into a ball. Knead the dough by pushing away, using the heel of your hand until smooth. Wrap in plastic film and let it rest for half an hour.
- On a lightly floured work surface roll out the dough thinly. Cut into circles, 8 cm in diameter. Flatten each round with a rolling pin, fill with a tablespoonful of the filling. Fold pastry over to make a half circle and crimp at edges. Alternatively fill one pastry circle with 2 tablespoons of filling, top with another circle, then seal and crimp at edges. Deep fry in hot oil until golden. If you prefer them baked, brush the tops of each curry puff with the egg wash and bake in the 180C/350F hot oven for 25 minutes.
Keto Cauliflower Garlic Bread
Tuesday, March 03, 2020If you are on the low carb diet and love garlic bread, then you MUST try this healthier keto cauliflower garlic bread alternative that I have found on Delish. It is naturally gluten free, full of flavours with fresh herbs and garlic and easy to make too. However, you can still taste the cauliflower here, so next time I would cut it back to half of what original recipe called for.
|
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F and line a standard-sized loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Place riced cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl, cover and microwave for 3 minutes until soft and tender. Let cool. When cool enough to handle, transfer cauliflower to a clean kitchen towel and squeeze to release as much moisture as possible.
- In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together almond flour, baking powder, salt, egg yolks, melted butter, minced garlic and cauliflower. Fold in 1/3 of egg white to lighten up the batter, then fold in the rest of the egg white until well incorporated. Fold in fresh herbs.
- Pour the batter the prepared loaf pan. Bake in the middle of hot oven until the top is golden, about 50 minutes. Remove and turn out on a wire rack to cool completely before slicing.
Crisp Sumac Spiced Nuts
Tuesday, February 25, 2020Crisp walnuts and Brazil nuts glazed in spicy cayenne and citrusy, tangy sumac with coconut sugar make great party nibbles or as a topping for the salad, oatmeal or pancakes. Any mix of nuts (cashews, pecans, almonds) will work for this recipe—just be sure to allow them cool completely to ensure a crisp texture before serving or storing. Besides sumac, za'atar, a blend of herbs, salt, sesame seeds, cumin and sumac, would be another wonderful Middle Eastern condiment to spice up the nuts.
|
- Preheat oven to 150C/300F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, and set aside. Combine sumac, coconut sugar and black salt in a bowl.
- Beat egg white until very foamy. Stir in nuts, combining well. Add in sumac mixture until evenly coated. Spread coated nuts in a single layer onto the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake nuts in middle of preheated oven, stirring at half time, until crisp and golden, about 30 to 35 minutes.
- Remove baking sheet from oven, and let cool completely. Break up nut clusters. Store nuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Blueberry Flaxseed Muffins
Wednesday, February 19, 2020These lightly sweetened blueberry muffins are moist, fluffy and bursting with freshness and flavour. Made with spelt flour, crushed flaxseed and Quark (German fresh cheese), they make a great addition to any breakfast, brunch or coffee-break menu.
|
- Preheat oven to 200C/400F. Lightly grease a 6-hole giant or a standard 12-hole muffin pan.
- Combine spelt flour, crushed flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda, salt and 80 grams of raw sugar in a bowl. Make a well in the centre.
- Whisk butter, Quark, eggs, egg white, and vanilla in a jug. Pour into well. Add blueberries and gently fold until just combined.
- Divide the batter into the muffin holes and sprinkle each with some raw sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes if using giant muffin pan and 15-18 minutes if using standard one until nicely golden brown.
Tomato Caramel Candy
Friday, February 14, 2020A delicious soft caramel candy recipe made with just 3 ingredients that you can easily made at home. The fun ingredient here is salted tomato juice, but it can be replaced with water or other juices for different flavour.
Caramelization is the removal of water from a sugar, proceeding to isomerization and polymerization of the sugars into various high-weight compounds. Compounds such as difructose-anhydride may be created from the monosaccharides after water loss. Fragmentation reactions result in low-molecular-weight compounds which may be volatile and may contribute to flavor. Polymerization reactions lead to larger molecular weight compounds, which contribute to the dark brown color. Wikipedia
- 200 g Tomato juice, salted
- 400 g Caster sugar
- 60 g Kerrygold butter, diced
- Line a loaf pan with tin foil and generously grease the bottom and sides with corn oil. Set aside.
- Place sugar and tomato juice in a saucepan. Cook the mixture over the medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves and mixture just begins to simmer. Stop stirring. Continue to cook the mixture over medium heat until it reaches 120C/240F.
- Turn the heat off, then stir in the butter until well incorporated. Turn the heat back on, continue to cook over medium heat until the thermometer reads 125C/250F, the firm ball stage. Remove from heat immediately and set the pot aside to cool for a few minutes.
- Pour into the prepared loaf pan and cool until set. Cut into rectangles and wrap with baking paper. Store the caramels in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Rosemary, Black Olive and Cheddar Scones
Monday, February 10, 2020These savoury scones, fresh out of the oven, are perfect for afternoon tea, or breakfast and are bursting with a rich, sharp Cheddar and fresh rosemary and black olives that add a pop of colour, texture and flavour. The leftover make a wonderful accompaniment to soups or casseroles for a cozy and comforting dinner.
|
- Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Whisk together the spelt flour, baking powder, baking soda and black salt in a bowl. Rub in ghee until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add in chopped rosemary, olives and Cheddar. Gently mix together.
- Pour in cream and mix with a fork until it can be gathered into a soft ball. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and gently knead a few times.
- Using a lightly floured rolling pin, gently roll dough out until 2cm-thick. Using a 6cm heart-shaped cutter, cut out scones. Press leftover dough together. Repeat to make 12 scones.
- Place them on prepared tray. Brush with cream and bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until golden. Serve scones with homemade jam or butter.