Sempoi Choc & Strawberry Bread Pudding

Please don't mind the looks ;) ... the recipe is great ... 

3 small croissants (recommended by the recipe, I used 5 pieces soft white bread with crust)
100g white chocolate, chopped coarsely (I used plain choc)
1 cup raspberries (I used strawberries coz that's all i had, roughly chopped)
1 1/4 cups milk
3/4 cup cream (in case you do not have this, add another 1/2 cup of milk)
2 tablespoon caster sugar (can reduce if you want to control the sweetness)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
3 eggs


- preheat oven 160'c, grease & line large muffin pan with baking paper in every hole
- cut / tear bread into small pieces (not too small though :))
- in a medium saucepan heat milk, cream, sugar & vanilla till over medium heat till boil
- whisk egg in a bowl, 
- remove milk mixture from heat and slowly pour eggs while whisking slowly till well combined
- put bread into muffin pan leaving some space in between for chocolate and strawberries
- pour milk mixture (custard) to fill each hole almost to top
- bake in oven for about 25-30 minutes or till almost springy
- take out pan from oven & let the bread pudding rest to cool in pan for about 10-15 minutes





* the recipe recommended to bake using the water bath method that is by placing the muffin pan in a large baking tray filled halfway with hot water, but I don't have a large enough baking tray to fit my muffin pan so i baked it direct + I love having some crusts :D


Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Lasagne - K Ati's recipe :)

My family lurrveesss lasagne, getting this recipe from a friend, K Ati @ Hariati Jamaludin is just wonderful. Going to make it after this, just couldn;t wait to share the recipe first. will upload the pic later :)

*do not freak out when you read as there's a number of items in the ingredients hehe .. but truly its simple to make .. x worries :)

1 box San Reno instant lasagne slices
1 packet grated Mozzarella cheese for topping

Beef sauce
800 gm mince meat
Olive oil
2 packets of Maggi Bolognese mix (She likes to add this one cos it thickens the sauce..)
1 large bottle of pasta sauce (Dolmio / Preggo /Lego)
4 big onions (finely chopped)
2 whole garlic (finely chopped)
1 can button mushroom (finely chopped)
Tomato sauce / puree
Ground black & white pepper
Dried oregano leaves (finely chopped)
Sugar and salt to taste


- In a large pan / wok , fry off the chopped garlic and onion in a cup of olive oil, until nicely brown.
- Add the mince beef, seasoned with pepper, stri until its cooked.
- Add the pasta sauce, Bolognese mix, tomato puree, mushroom, oregano, pepper
- cook until it simmers or the sauce thickens. Add water if necessary until it reduces into a nice and thick gravy.
- Add salt and sugar to taste (3 to 4 heaps for a start and adjust accordingly)

White cheese sauce


5 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter
1 carton of fresh milk
1 cup of water
2 cheddar cheese slice
Salt & pepper to taste

- Add flour and fresh milk + water on the side and strain so that it doesn’t clot together .
- Melt butter in a deep pan and add the flour mix into the pan, stirring all the time
- Add cheese , salt and pepper to taste.
- Keep stirring consistently on low heat so until the sauce thickens (ala cabonara sauce!!)

Sequence of layer..


1. Beef sauce
2. Lasagne The 1st sequence is purposely different from the rest ….
3. Beef sauce
4. White sauce
5. Lasagne
6. Beef sauce
7. White sauce
8. Lasagne
9. Beef sauce
10. White sauce (to end)
11. Finally to drizzle with mozzarella cheese to cover the top!!


Bake in the oven about one hour until it is nicely brown (not too brown though , or it'll be too crusty!). Ideally, you should do it in the morning if you want to eat it late afternoon (3-5pm) so that it is still warm and nicely set. It will be too runny if you serve them immediately after cook…

Tip : If you do it one day in advance, cut the lasagna (when it is cool) so that it fits nicely in plastic containers and store in the fridge (or freeze it). Heat up in the microwave before serving.

Happy trying ... :)



Wallahhhh!!! Bon Appetit!!

Sempoi Crispy Chicken Wrap

this is my daugther's wrap, note no tomato & salad .. hummm

Made this for my kids' school lunch today. Ease-my-life recipe :).  All you need:

(Makes 4 wraps)

8 pieces crispy chicken (To make crispy chicken - follow the crispy chicken nugget recipe http://cafesempoi.blogspot.com/2010/07/sempoi-crispy-chicken-nuggets.html)

4 tortillas / thin bread / pita bread even capati would be great
8 slices of tomato
grated cheese
salad
mayonaise
bbq sauce
sweet chilli sauce

- prepare tortilla / bread on celan plate
- place crispy chicken (2 per wrap)

- add in tomato & salad, cheese
- top with mayo, bbq & sweet chilli sauce
- roll tortilla / bread to wrap chicken, press for about 1 minute on a hot pan to get the tortilla / bread to hold firmly

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Cream Cheese Frosting

This is a simple topping great with carrot cake but can also try with other cakes :)

125g cream cheese, soft at room temperature
100g icing sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
60g butter

- in a mixing bowl, beat all ingredient with electric mixer on medium speed till smooth

A friend taught me another way which is also yummylicious:

125g cream cheese, soft at room temperature
1-2 tablespoon caster sugar (depend how sweet you want)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence
1-2 tablespoon mlik, (adding bit by bit, depend on how soft you want the cream to be)

* remember to wait for teh cakes to really cooled down before spreading the cream or hehe you'll end up with watery cream ..

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Strawberries Butterfly Fairy Cake

decorated in a hurry ;)

Made this for my no 3 - Nuhaa's class party this morning. 

Cake - use the Basic cupcake recipe - make minis

50ml Thickened cream - whipped till fluffy

2-3 strawberries (depending on the size, I actually used on 1 coz it was big)
- slice into small wing shaped pieces

- Once cakes are cooled, cut slanting to make V shaped well in center
- pipe fresh whipped cream
- arrange strawberry like wings
- sprinkle with 100s & 1000s or any others you like

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Basic Cupcake

decoed w my girls & mama sometime ago hehehe

After a number of tries, I found this simple-fast wonderful recipe in Woolworth's free newsletter :) & have been making my cuppies using this recipe since.

Preheat oven 180'c
Prepare cupcakes casing in baking tray
(Makes 12 large & about 24 minis)


125g butter, melted & cooled
2 ggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

- whisk all together

1 3/4 cups self raising flour
2/3 cup caster sugar

- mix together in a large bowl
- pour in butter mix & stir all ingredients till well combined 
- spoon into casing according to size you desire
- bake for about 15 minutes or till tester comes out clean
- deco as you like

Sempoi Choc Strawberries Rice Pops & Oatmeal Bar

I was wondering what to do with the girls today, then remembered that I bought a big box of Rice Pops (from a generic brand instead of Kellog's / Nestle's :)). So I surfed for recipes, after a few that I found, I improvised and decided on this. Alhamdulillah it turned out good & are now cling wrapped & refrigerated for their school snacks :)

300g rice pops / rice bubbles / rice krispies
5 strawberries, diced into small cubes
1 cup oatmeal of your choice / granola
- mix rice pops & strawberries till well combined, do not over stir or strawberries will become mushy

150g plain / dark chocolate
100ml cream
50ml thickened cream
125g butter, chopped
3 tablespoon canola oil (veg oil also can)
3-4 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoon maple syrup (optional, I just put it in to give a bit more flavor)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence (optional, I didn't add this because my girls didn't want them but I guess by adding it will enhance the flavor too)

- place all ingredients in a saucepan
- stir over moderately medium heat
- once all has melted & well combined, set aside to cool a bit about 8-10 minutes
- slowly pour into rice pops mix

We experimented with different flavors of the oatmeal

- spoon the choc rice pops mix into a smaller bowl
- add the oatmeal of your choice / granola, mix well
- line a square / rectangle dish / plastic container with non stick paper
- spoon the mixture to fill the dish & press till firm
- refrigerate for about 30 minutes
- cut into desired shape & size, serve or wrap in plastic &  refrigerate till served


* i feel that this is a great & cost saving way for school snacks even for work or anytime of the day.

Happy trying ... :)

MyMagnetic Menu

This is my friends' biz .. I truly feel its really a great way to keep simple recipes straight where you can see them :)
http://mymagnetized.com/product/my-magnetic-menu.html

Sempoi Choc Cream Strawberry Tart

One of the quick dessert recipe I've tried. & we can deco it with any toppings & in any way we like :).

1-2 sheet ready shortcrust pastry or can make your own (I'll post the recipe soon)

- cut into round shape using round cookie cutter that can fit into large muffin tray

- bake for about 15mins or till cooked, set aside

6 fresh strawberries, cut into 4/6

1 tablespoon icing sugar

- sift sugar onto strawberries and mix well

250g dark chocolate, roughly chopped

200ml cream

- place choc in a heatproof bowl

- heat cream in a saucepan till boil

- once boil pour into the choc, set aside abt 1 minute

- stir until chocolate melt & thickened

- put inside fridge for abt 5-7 minutes

150ml thickened cream

- whip till fluffy

- assemble pastry cases, spoon choc, topped with cream & strawberries (can also use peach / mix fruit etc

Happy trying.. :)

Sempoi Quickie Chocolate Muffins

My family (esp kids) are almost chocoholic. Found this ease-my-life mini chocolate muffin recipe from a book that I bought for just $2 sometime ago. I've tried a few recipes & it turned out wonderful. Made these muffins (just now) in about 40 mins (including baking time). But I didn't make it mini though, made them large muffin size, so I doubled all the ingredients :)

For 12 mini size muffin:

60g uslated butter (I used the normal butter), diced
60g plain cooking chocolate (I used dark choc), roughly chopped

- melt both ingredients in a bowl over a pan of simmering water (err .. i melted them directly in a pan, u can also do it in microwave, not too long though the chocs can burnt), set aside

2 medium eggs (I've got extra large, so i used 3 since I doubled the amount, if not, 1 maybe alrite)
100g castor sugar (I used only 75g)
100g self-raising flour (yeay! no need for baking powder / soda etc)
30g cocoa powder, sifted

chocolate chips / 100s & 1000s / nuts for topping

- Preheat oven 180'c
- Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl, beat with hand mixer / mixer / by hand for about 1 minute till well combined
- fold in chocolate & butter mixture, slowly till well mixed
- spoon into muffin cases (in tray)
- deco / sprinkle with any toppings of your choice
- bake for about 20 minutes or until skewer / cake tester comes out clean
- cool on wire racks

The recipe suggested to drizzle with Mocha Sauce, didn't try it though coz the girls don't like coffee that much

150g plain chocolate, roughly cjopped
90ml espresso or other strong good coffee
150ml double / thickened cream

- place chocolate, espresso & 4 tablespoons of cream in a small pan over low heat
- simmer till sauce has thickened
- whisk remaining cream till thickened
- drizzle mocha sauce & cream over the muffin or anyway you like ...

Happy trying ... :)

Recipe pics

Salam everyone ... please accept my sincere apologise for the delay in uploading the pics for the recipes (not all though) .. still editing...will come soon, Insyaallah.

Thank you for your support .. :)

Great site for cooking ideas etc

http://www.tastebook.com/

Sempoi Crispy Fish & Chips

A simple & crispy batter. Great as normal fish & chips or for fish burger.

Estimated for 6 people:

1kg white fish fillet (of your choice, I tried with Ling Fish the result was very good)

salt

- wash fish with lime / lemon juice & drain

- marinade with salt & set aside

1 3/4 cups self raising flour

1 1/2 - 1 3/4 cups water

2 teaspoon white vinegar

1 egg

coarse black pepper (depends on your taste)

breadcrumbs

- put flour into a medium bowl make well in center

- add vinegar then egg and whisk till well combined

- add water, whisking slowly (check to see not too diluted) till smooth

- add black pepper to taste

- set aside in fridge for about 10 minutes

- meanwhile, heat oil in deep frying pan

- pour breadcrumbs into a flat dish

- after batter is ready, dip fish into batter covering fully, roll on breadcrumbs

- make sure oil is really hot, reduce heat to medium & fry fish till golden brown

Chips:

3-4 potatoes, cut into wedges or french cut

salt

oil

- rub potatoes with salt, arrange on baking tray lined with baking paper

- drizzle oil (best use olive oil) or any veggie oil

- bake in oven at 180'c for about 35 minutes or till well cooked

or

- steam potatoes in microwave till about soft (opt the salt)

- arrange on baking tray as above & drizzle with oil

- bake about 15 minutes

Serves with sour cream & sweet chilli sauce (try add grain mustard gives more flavor)

Serve also with salsa or any salad of your choice

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Baked Pasta

A simple dish great for breakfast (a bit heavy though) or brunch. Ingredients can be prepared the night before.

Estimated for 6 people:

500g pasta - macaroni, fusili
2-3 sausages
2-3 chiken breakfast slices / pressed chicken, cut into small strips
250g mix veggie - or just carrot, cut into small cubes or just coarsely grated
1 shallot, thinly sliced

preheat oven 190'c, grease baking dish
- cook pasta according to instruction, drain & put in a large bowl
- fry shallot
- add sausages, chicken slices & mix veggies, stir fry till well combined
- pour & mix with pasta
- spoon into a baking dish

250ml (1 cup) cream
125ml (1/2 cup) milk
3-4 eggs (depends on size, if large use 3, if medium use 4, if small use 5 :))
salt & pepper
1 cup grated cheese - cheddar / tasty / pizza

- beat cream, milk & egss till well mixed
- add salt & pepper to taste (not too much salt, please)
- pour into pasta mix
- cover top with cheese
- bake for about 40 minutes or until custard set

* pasta can be cook the night before, custard mix can also be made the night before & refrigerate

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Cream Cheese Topping

A yummylicious simple topping great with carrot cake :). TQ Sab ...

250g Philidelphia cream cheese
2 tablespoon caster sugar
1-2 tablespoon milk

- beat cheese & sugar till fluffy adding milk bit by bit depending how soft you want the cream to be.

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Carrot Cake

This is the sempoiest (simplest) carrot cake recipe taught by a friend. Topped with cream cheese ... yummilicious! TQ Sab!!

1 cup oil

1 cup caster sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

2 cups self raising flour

2-3 carrot, coarsely grated

- Pre-heat oven 170'c, grease & line baking tin with non stick paper

- Mix oil, sugar & eggs till almost creamy

- add vanilla essence & mix well

- add flour & mix till well combined

- add carrot & mix well

- pour into baking tin

- bake till skewer / tester comes out clean

* this is a no nuts recipe, if you want to add walnuts / almonds just put in about 1/2 cup

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Cheesecake - Dila Aman's recipe

Another great dish by Dila Aman. Everytime served, it never last long on the table :).

Preheat oven to 180C

Crust
Digestive McVites or Marie biscuits (crumbled)
25gm melted butter
2 tbsp sugar
-Mix everything and press into a pie baking dish

Filling
500gm philadelphia cheese
1/2-1 cup sugar
1/2 - 1 cup milk
3 eggs
1 tbsp custard flour
lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla essence

- Beat cheese and sugar until creamy. 
- Add egg one at a time, and then add custard flour. 
- Add vanilla essence, milk, and lemon zest. 
- Pour mixture into the crusted pie baking dish. 
- Bake for 45 mins - 1 hour.

Sempoi Cream Caramel - Dila Aman's recipe

This is a very delicious recipe from a good friend. Caramel is not too sweet, complements the soft custard very well. 1 serving is never enough :). TQ K Dila!

400g sugar
2 tbsps water
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 litre milk
6 eggs
lemon zest

- Preheat oven to 180C
- Bring 200g sugar and water to boil until the color is rich brown. Pour the caramel into baking dish or ramekins.
- Bring milk and vanilla essence to boil. 
- Meanwhile combine remaining sugar, eggs, and lemon zest in a bowl. 
- Pour boiling milk into the egg and sugar mixture. 
- Whisk well and strain the mixture into the caramel-coated baking dish. 
- Place baking dish in a roasting tray and pour warm water halfway up the baking dish. 
- Bake for 1 hour (30-40 mins if using individual ramekins). 

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Chicken Rice - Cik Mat & K Tina's recipe

Chicken rice is a great favorite of my family. This recipe is the simplest to make and wonderfully delicious! Thank you to wonderful friends - Cik Mat & Kak Tina for this really great recipe.

2-3 garlics, crushed
2 inch ginger, crushed
2-3 stalks of spring onion or celery (I've tried both seperately, both gives good flavor to the soup)
2.5-3 liter water (depends on the size of chicken)
1 whole chicken (cleaned & cleared inside & all)
sesame oil
1-2 cubes of chicken stock
salt & pepper

- boil water with garlics, ginger & spring onion till simerring
- put in whole chicken & boil till chicken cooked
- remove chicken from pot, set aside & brush with sesame oil
- add chicken stock cubes to soup, season with salt & pepper to taste
- once all well tasted, switch off heat.

for Rice:
2-3 cups of basmati / any long grain rice, washed & drained
2 garlics, crushed or sliced
1 inch ginger, crushed or sliced
3 stalks of spring onions
1 tablespoon oil

- heat oil, saute garlics, ginger & spring onions
- pour in rice, stir over low heat for a while (about 1-2 minutes)
- add soup above to cook rice, amount of soup follow the instruction to cook rice, basmathi cooks well with teh ratio 1 cup rice: 1.5 cups fluid

serves with sliced tomatoes, cucumber & lettuce with garlic & chilli sauce & soy sauce

* I've tried roasting the chicken & it tasted great after brushing it with sesame oil. It was soft & moist inside with crispy skin.

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Bolognaise Sauce

Obviously its again no rocket science. This is the way I've learned & practised making the sauce till now :)

* estimated serves 6 people
pasta - spaghetti or any of your choice
1 medium size onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
500g mince beef / chicken
dried oregano
1 medium carrot, diced into small cubes
6 fresh button mushroom / 10 canned mushroom / whole can of champignon (smaller sized)
3 tomatoes, diced / 1 can of italian tomatoes
500ml pasta sauce (i mix 2 types of  sauce, family fav = bertolli / preggo / stromboli; use any brand of your choice)
salt, pepper & sugar
olive oil / canola oil / veg oil

- heat oil in a medium - large saucepan, on medium heat
- stir fry onion & garlic
- just almost brown, add beef & continue frying till beef all almost cooked with its stock still available in pan (do not overcook, it'll be dry), add oregano
- add carrot, mushroom & tomatoes, continue stirring to well combined
- pour in sauce, mix well, slightly reduce heat & let the sauce simmer till quite thick
-add salt, pepepr & sugar to taste
- once quite thick, off heat & let to set for about 5 minutes
- serve warm w yoru choice of pasta with sprinkles of parmesan cheese

Happy trying .. :)

* I sometime have half of the bolognaise leftover, I use it to make lasagne :)

Scrumptious cakes (Malaysia only, sorry)

Salam & hi everyone,

Say your loved ones / friends / neighbours etc birthday, wedding etc is around the corner yet you don't have enough time to bake a cake / cupcakes ... don't panic, visit this link (click on my title above :) & order them online :) .. all at the fingertips!

Sempoi Banana & Custard - My Aunt's signature dish (TQ Acik Intan :))

8 - 10 almost ripen banana, sliced half vertically

- Fry / grill banana (without flour)  with some oil on a small frying pan

- After it's fried, arrange in a casserole dish or any square dish.

Custard:

4 cups water

2 egg yolks

50g caster sugar

40g custard powder

1/2 a-can of condensed milk

a pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla essence

-mix custard powder with water till dissolved

-put all ingredients into a saucepan

-cook over medium heat stirring until custard thickens

-once thickened, remove from heat pour onto banana

-set aside until cooled 

- serve

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Homemade Burgers with pancake

Its brunch again today before school restarts tomorrow :). Was wondering what to make for hubby & kiddos till Irdina said, burgers ma. Okeee .. but no burger buns & it'll take some time to make. Then remembered that I bought pancake mix few days ago. Why not fuse up burgers & pancake? :D so here's what they had ..


Burger:

Follow the recipe by Curtis Stone that I posted yesterday, just improvise a bit by adding:

1/2 large carrot, grated finely (just to get my kids eat veg)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs


- shape burger mixture in a ring mould or just do it by hand
- grease grillet / frying pan
- cook till burgers are nicely done


pancake:


I used ready to make pancake mix (Green's) but it'll be great to do your own:


1 egg
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup full cream milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla (can opt this for savoury pancake)
1 cup self raising flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
a pinch of salt


- whisk egg & sugar
- add the rest ingredients & mix well
- cook batter on greased pan


* serve with salads & sauces as preferred
** i ran out of salads ;), the pic will show just the burger & pancake ...

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Pastry - Maggie Beer's wonderful recipe

According to Maggie Beer, traditional pastry requires time & skill. However here she shared 2 of her pastry's recipes that works great in a fraction of time & simpler method.

Rough Puff Pastry

250g (1 2/3 cups) plain flour
250g cold unsalted butter, cut into 1cm cubes
a pinch of salt
125ml (1/2 cup) iced water

- place flour on a clean work surface, make a well in center
- put butter & a pinch of salt in the well
- using a pastry scraper or knife, cut butter into flour until quartered into size (what it means is to mix the butter with the flour by using the scraper & knife instead of rubbing)
- again make a well in center, pour the iced water 
- using scraper or knife work the butter & flour mix into the water until form large clumps , do not knead dough
- using hands, form dough into a loose ball, it should look lumpy but should hold together
- roll dough on a floured surface to about 1cm thick rectangle, flipping pastry 2-3 times, dusting w flour to prevent sticking
- keep in rectangle shape, fold like an open book, brush away excess flour
- fold the dough again like a close book, wrap in plastic & refrigerate for 10 minutes
- repeat the rolling, folding & chilling process 2 times more
- after the 3rd time use the pastry for any dish you like i.e. pie, quiche, tarts 

Sour cream pastry 

200g cold, unsalted butter, roughly chopped
250g (1 2/3 cups) plain flour
120g (1/2 cup) sour cream
a pinch of salt


- process butter, flour & salt in a food processor until resembles like breadcrumbs
- add sour cream & process until just combined
- shape into a ball, wrap in plastic & refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.
- she suggested that shape the pastry according to recipe in baking pan / dish before refrigerating 

Happy trying... :)

Sempoi Sambal Belacan (Shrimp Paste Sambal) - Hubby's signature dish :)

I just cannot make good sambal ;) perhaps because I only eat them when cooked as base for a dish. But hubby makes great sambal belacan (endorsed by a big number of family members & friends :)). It's great as a dip or as base for stir fry.

Estimated amount of about 1/2 cup:

4-5 red chillies
2-3 green chillies
a few small chillies (be careful it can't be burning with this ;) so depends on hot hot you want the sambal to be)
about 10-15 dried anchovies
1 1/2 - 2 tablespoon shrimp paste (my hubby uses belacan from Sarawak, its obvious coz he is from there :))
slices of lime / lemon 

- wash chillies, remove top stalk, cut into small chunks
- was anchovies but not too long or it'll be soggy
- put all ingredients into a mortar grinder
- pound all ingredients till almost fine 
- serve fresh, squeeze lime / lemon juice to taste or use it as a base for stir fry 

Happy trying ... :) 

Sempoi Cleansing Fruit Juice

Its not rocket science but this juice I had yesterday was really refreshing. I've improvised a bit the juice by 'fusioning' it with an ingredient from another juice I've tasted before.

2 medium size carrots

2 large red apples

2 stalks celery

1cm ginger

- blend together using fruit extractor

- do not add water / sugar

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Homemade Burger - Curtis Stone's Recipe

600g mince beef
2tbsp olive oil
1/2 brown onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp Worcetershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 large egg beaten

- Heat tbsp of oil in heavy small saute pan over medium heat.
- Add onion, salt and pepper and saute till tender. Stir in minced garlic.
-Mix cooled onions and garlic mince, mustard, Worcetershire sauce, 1/2 tsp salt.
- Add egg. divide mixture according to your preferred size and place in 4-inch ring moulds.
- Preheat pan or bbq for meduim-high heat. brush bread roll with butter. Grilll,  patties until brown then turn, cook until meduim-rare, or to your liking.
- To serve, place lettuce on bun then patties and cheese on top.


Happy Trying... :)

Sempoi K Batiah's Strawberry Bread

A friend made this bread sometime ago yet the taste still lingers in my mouth. Though she got it from the internet, but since she made it, I attribute the deliciousness to her ... :)

2 cups of fresh strawberries
3 1/8 cups of all purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs beaten
1 1/4 cups chopped pecan or any other nuts

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175C). Butter and flour loaf pan but she used baking paper instead.
- Slice strawberries and place in medium sized bowl. Sprinkle lightly with sugar, set aside.
- Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda in a large bowl: mix well.
- Mix oil and eggs into strawberries.
- Add strawberry mixture to flour mixture, mixing until dry ingredients are just moistened.
- Stir in pecan or nuts.
- Pour batter into loaf pan.
- Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until tester inserted comes out clean.
- Let cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes.
- Turn loaf out, and cool completely.

* it was great with a cup of hot chocolate / mocha ... :)

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Quiche - My Mama's Signature

mama's made quiche ... much better looking than mine hehe

This is a dish that never fails to satisfy my family's pallette, it's my mum's evergreen quiche...simple & scrumptious everytime...but this is my version surely no where near my mum's :)

1 sheet shortcrust pastry to fit 26cm baking pan (my mum makes her own ... pastry somehow is not friendly to me hehe :))

filling
1 medium sized onion, finely chopped
1 can (or 2 small cans) tuna (my mum use tuna in water, i used what's in my cabinet, sorry mama)
1 can button mushroom / champignon, quatered / sliced, according to your preference
6-8 medium prawns, remove shells & cut into bite pieces (about 3 pieces / prawn)
a pinch of salt & ground nutmeg

custard
250ml cream
3 large eggs
a pinch of ground nutmeg
salt & pepper to taste

3/4 cup grated cheese, Kraft's blue boxed cheddar cheese has been the favourite

- preheat oven 170'c, lightly grease pie / quiche dish
- place pastry till filled up side of dish
- blind bake for about 8-10 minutes, do not over cook

- saute onions
- add prawns, tuna & mushrooms, stir till well combined
- add salt & nutmeg, & stir fry till slightly dried

- beat cream, eggs, nutmeg, salt & pepper till well combined

- spoon filling into pastry, spread evenly
- pour custard, maing sure to fill evenly
- sprinkle cheese on top all over
- bake for 35-45 minutes or check that custard is quite 'springy'
- remove from heat & let set till cooled

* serving it on the day its made is obviously the best, but you can also make this a day ahead, keep it in the fridge once cooled, heat up in microwave whenever you want to eat it.

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Ginger & Tamarind Juice Infused Fried Crayfish

1 medium size raw crayfish @ udang kara (any type of prawn can also do :)),
1 1/2 inch ginger, match stick sliced (or anyway u like)
1 small onion / half large onion, sliced
1 green chilli, cut vertical halfway intact
1/3 cup tamarind juice (about a tablespoon of tamarind pulp mix with 1/3 cup water)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon of sugar
1 tablespoon oil


- take out flesh & discard shell, cut into small bite pieces
- saute ginger, onion, green chili till about caramelized
- put in crayfish, stir fry
- midway, add tamarind juice, soy sauce & sugar
- continue stir fry till well combined & broth slightly reduced
- do not overcook crayfish or it'll be too chewy


* i tried with prawn 2 days ago & the taste was good as this .. :) (that's what my family & a friend told me ;))


Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi Basic Dough for Pau (TQ Aunty Nina :))

500gm plain flour sifted together with 1/2 teasp salt
2 teasp instant yeast
100gm sugar mixed with 250 ml warm water to dissolve
2 tabsp shortening
2 teasp double action baking powder

- Mix sifted flour with instant yeast in a big mixing bowl
- Slowly add in sugar syrupand shortening.
- Knead into a pliable dough
- Cover with a piece of wet clothand leave to prove till double in bulk.
- Add baking powder and knead again till smooth.
- Leave to rest in 30 minutes.
- Dough is now ready to be shaped.

Tasty chicken/meat pau:

Mix and marinate for 20 minutes:-
300gm chicken/meat diced
2 tabsp oil
2 tabsp oyster sauce
1 tabsp chopped garlic and shallots
1 1/2 teasp dark soy sauce
1 1/2 teasp cornflour mixed with 3 tabsp water for thickening
3 tabsp sugar
3 tabsp fried sesame seeds (optional)
1/2 teasp pepper
1/2 teasp salt or to taste
1 teasp sesame oil (optional)

- Heat oil and saute chopped garlic and shallots till fragrant
- Add chicken/meat ad stir fry till cooked.Add cornflour mixture to thicken.
- Dish and leave to cool.
- Add sesame seeds and mixed well.
- Put some cooked filing onto the circle and wrap into the shape of a pau.
- Leave to prove for 30 minutes or till fluffy before steaming.

Note: You may reduce the amount of sugar in your filing and add more pepper if you want it more
spicy.

* I tried this pau but with red bean filling .. you can buy ready red bean paste or boil red bean till just about soft, add sugar & mash, set to cool then make the pau.

Happy trying ... :)

Sempoi All-In-At-Once Chicken Soup with Angel's hair pasta

10-12 medium cut chicken pieces
1 inch (about a thumb's size) ginger
2 cloves of garlic
1 medium size onion (yellow / red can do), cut into 8 pieces
2 potatoes, cut into 8 pieces
1 large (or 2, 3 depends on your taste) tomato
1/2 stalk celery, cut into medium size pieces
3 button mushrooms, sliced or cut into small pieces
water - depends on how much soup you want
salt
ground black pepper (i like coarse, depends on your taste)
Angel's hair pasta (or any pasta you like)

- defrost the chicken in microwave (I did in hot water just to seperate them)
- boil water
- once simmering, put in chicken, once starts to boil put in all ingredients except salt & pepper
- once chicken is tender, put in salt & pepper
- once cooked, serve with pasta (cook pasta according to instructions on packet)

* this is one of the quickest dish that I find very helpful when in a rush, all in it took about 40 minutes - preparation & cooking, I didn't wait for the chicken to full defrost ;). It'll be good to try when you reach home from work, get in all into the pot & u can go to freshen up, pray .. etc

Happy trying .. :)

Doa untuk Orang yang Memberi Makan

Teringat ke doa ni .. moga menjadi manfaat buat semua ... Insyaallah :)

Maksudnya: "Ya Allah, berilah makan kepada orang yang memberi makan kepadaku dan berilah minum kepada orang yang memberi minum kepadaku" Amin.


- antara adab makan ialah membaca doa sebelum dan selepas makan. selain itu, sebagai tanda penghargaan kepada tuan rumah atau orang yang mengendalikan jamuan, doa ini juga boleh dibaca mengiringi doa sebelum atau selepas makan. begitulah yang diamalkan oleh Nabi Muhammad saw, baginda cukup prihatin dalam perkara melibatkan hak orang lain dan hubungan kemsyarakatan.

- dipetik dari buku 101 doa daripada hadis-hadis sahih - Ustaz Zahazan Mohamed

Sempoi Peanut Butterscotch Cake

A great recipe especially for you who love crunchy peanuts :) 

Topping:

125g butter

2 tablespoon brown sugar

2 tablespoon white sugar

2 tablespoon honey

11/2 cups chopped peanuts

Cake

12/3 cups plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

3 tsp baking powder

125g butter

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

- lightly grease a square cake tin and line base w baking paper

- to make topping, melt butter + sugars + honey in a saucepan over medium heat, stir in peanuts. once well mixed pour & press into cake tin and let it set for a while.

- meanwhile, preheat oven 180'c.

- to make cake, sift flour w salt & baking powder.

- rub in butter into flour then add sugar & mix.

- make well in center and add in beaten eggs, add milk & vanilla essence & mix well.

- spread cake mixture over peanuts topping.

- bake for 50 minutes or till skewer comes out clean.

- once cooked, take out from oven and turn out immediately onto a rack, remove paper if sticks to topping. 

- press lightly topping onto cake and let it cool. topping will set in position as it cools then cut to serve.

* it may sound kind of complicated hehe but its quite an ok process ... x worries

Happy trying ... :)