Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

My husband loves pineapple. So, to welcome him home, today I made Pineapple Upside-Down Cake.
In the beginning I was scared that it won't flip nicely; but in the end, it worked out beautifully, as you can see on the photo :) Happy! Happy! Happy!

Here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
Pinch salt
2/3 cups butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup milk
1 cup brown sugar
8 fresh pineapple slices (OR you can buy the canned cut pineapple if you don't want to bother cutting the pineapple)

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Using a mixer, cream 1/3 cup butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy. Then add milk and flour mixture in 2 additions.
Meanwhile, heat remaining 1/3 cup butter and brown sugar in an 8-inch heavy-bottomed, oven-proof skillet over medium heat. When brown sugar melts and starts to bubble, remove from heat. Add pineapple rings in decorative pattern.
Scrape cake batter over top of pineapple rings, spreading with spatula to cover.
Bake until cake tester comes out clean when inserted into centre of cake, about 30 minutes.
Let cake stand in pan for 5 minutes, then put a cake plate on top of the pan and flip it.
 

Super easy Raspberry Triffle Parfaits

If you want to impress your guest but you don't have a lot of time to make dessert, then this is the recipe for you. Because this recipe is using store bought cake, you have very little to do; and it taste amazing!

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1 pound  buttercake , diced
• 4 cups fresh or thawed raspberries
• 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 tbsp granulated sugar
• 3 cups whipping cream

For Garnish:

• 1 oz bittersweet chocolate , grated
• 20 fresh raspberries

Preparation

In large bowl, sprinkle orange juice over cake and toss; let stand for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in blender, purtogether 1 cup of the raspberries, condensed milk and sugar; strain through fine sieve into small bowl. In large bowl, whip cream; fold in raspberry mixture.
Into each wine glasses spoon 2 tbsp of the cake mixture. Top each with heaping 1 tbsp of the remaining raspberries; top with heaping 2 tbsp of the cream mixture. Repeat layers once. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; refrigerate for 4 hours.

Garnish: Top with fresh raspberry and sprinkle with grated chocolate

 

Oven baked rice (with sauteed Crimini mushroom, or not..)

I am a rice lover! Well, I am Indonesian.. Indonesian and rice are inseparable. My mum is worst. She won't feel full nor satisfied without rice. Anyway, one of Indonesian most famous food is Nasi Goreng a.k.a Fried Rice in English; but these days you really have to try to reduce fried food, and cook your meal in a more healthy way. So, an easy and tasty way to make fried rice without frying it, is by baking it in the oven. It's easy, fast and healthier for you. It's also good to make when you want to "clean" your fridge. Whatever veggies and meat you have left in your fridge, you can just throw it in and bake it with the rice.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups rice
2 celery stalks, diced
1 cup sliced Crimini mushroom 
1/2 pound lean ground pork ( we want to be healthy right? So avoid red meat and choose lean meat)
3 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. hoisin sauce, or to taste
1 tbsp. sherry vinegar (or rice wine vinegar)
1 tbsp. sesame oil
3 cups boiling water
2 carrots, dices
2 bokcoy, sliced
Sesame seeds, for garnish
2 green onions, sliced, for garnish

Remember:, you can modify the veggies and meat to whatever you have or want. This recipe is very versatile.

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Add rice, celery, mushroom, carrot, bokcoy, ground pork, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sherry vinegar, sesame oil to a baking dish. Stir to combine. Add boiling water. Cover tightly with foil. Bake until rice is tender and meat is cooked, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Let it rest, covered, for about 5 to 10 minutes.
Fluff rice with fork and stir to mix. Garnish rice with green onions and sesame seeds. Serve while it's hot! YUMMMMM!!!!

Now...the above is the recipe if you want quick, no hassle meal. If you happen to have 25 minutes more, then I suggest you to do the above recipe EXCEPT for the Crimini mushroom. Leave the mushroom uncut and sautee  the Crimini mushroom separately as follows:

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 pounds Crimini mushroom, brushed it clean with damp towel
• Salt and pepper
• 3 tbsp chopped thyme leaves
• 1/2 cup dry red wine (if you happen to like the taste of mushroom, then no need to add red wine)
• 2 tbsp chopped parsley

PREPARATION

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, butter and garlic Add mushrooms and season with salt, pepper and thyme then cook 15 minutes until evenly browned and tender. Add wine and deglaze the pan. Add parsley. Serve it over the oven-baked rice. Ohhh!!! You'll hear the angel sings!! 

Crispy Waffle

I am a waffle girl!!!!I don't like pancake because of the soft texture. Anyway, my wonderful step daughter sent us an Amazon gift card for Christmas and we decided on getting waffle iron.

Now, I am conservative when it comes to waffle. I think the topping should be on top of the waffle, not in it.So if you are like me, then here is the recipe for Crispy Waffle.

Ingredients

2 cups of all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

4 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp white sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups warm milk

1/3 cup of butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preparations
In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking powder and sugar; set aside. Preheat waffle iron to desired temperature.In a separate bowl, beat the eggs. Stir in the milk, butter and vanilla. Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture; beat until blended.Ladle the batter into a preheated waffle iron. Cook the waffles until golden and crisp. Serve immediately.
As for toppings, you can whipped some cream (35%) and sprinkle with grated dark chocolate on top of it; blue berries, raspberries, maple syrup, are just some of the ideas.

Chicken Cacciatore

There are lots of recipes for Chicken Cacciatore but this one is to die for! This recipe can be done quickly or longer. If you don't have a lot of time then of course you can serve it right after it cooks in the oven. But if you want to go an extra length for this recipe, after the chicken is done in the oven, put it in a slow cooker for few hours in low heat; and what it does is, you chicken will be SO tender and it will fall apart nicely.

INGREDIENTS

6-8 pieces of chicken mix of chicken thighs (and/ or drumsticks)
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 sprig each sage, rosemary and thyme, chopped
1 can pitted black olives
1 to 2 tbsp. tomato paste
3/4 cup red wine
4 pieces of jarred roasted red peppers, sliced
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 cup chicken stock
2 tbsp. chopped Italian parsley, for garnishing

500 gram of linguini or spaghetti 

PREPARATION

Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Heat a large oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Add 3 tbsp. olive oil. When oil is hot, add chicken and cook until pieces are browned on all sides, about 5 minutes per side.

Add onion, garlic and herbs and sauté until vegetables start to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the olives and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes. Add tomato paste, stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the wine and bring to a boil. Let reduce for 5 minutes. Add roasted red pepper, diced tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring to a boil.

Heat the oven to 350F. Transfer to oven. Bake until chicken is cooked through about 35 to 40 minutes. 

When the chicken is about done in the oven, bring water to boil in a large pot. Season generously with salt. Put the pasta in the boiling water and cook until al dente, about 5-6 minutes. Of course you can always pick it up and taste it or you can do what the Italian does, throw the pasta into the wall and if it sticks, then it's al dente :)

Serve the pasta on a dish and top it with the chicken and the sauce. Garnish with chopped parsley.

If dinner is still awhile away or you have few extra hours, after the chicken finish in the oven, put it in a slow cooker on low heat for few extra hours. It will make the chicken more tender and the meat will fall apart nicely.

So if you do put the chicken in the slow cooker, then cook the pasta when you are just about ready to eat.

Yield: 4 servings.

 

Minestrone Soup

This is probably the best way to get yourself (or your kids) to eat vegetables; and God it's SO good!!
It requires a lot of chopping and preparation, but it can feed the entire village! (I'm kidding!) Well..the entire family (up to 8 person). As leftover, it's perfect as it gets better and better each day! If it gets too dense after a few days, just add chicken stock when you heat it up.

It can also be a vegetarian dish, for those who are vegetarian. Just skip the bacon and use vegetable stock instead.

This soup is very filling because of the beans, so it can be a meal by itself. Serve it over baguette and be prepared to smile when you see your kids eat their veggies and tell you how good this is!


INGREDIENTS

3 (14 ounces) cans white beans
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
8 ounces bacon diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, diced
3 carrot, diced
1 sprig rosemary, chopped
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 bokcoy, sliced
1/2 white cabbage, chopped
3 leeks, sliced (don't use the leaves because it's hard)
3 zucchini, diced
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
7 to 8 cups chicken stock
Handful basil, chopped
Handful Italian parsley, chopped
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving
Baguette, cut in diagonal, for serving

PREPARATION


Mash half the beans and leave the remaining half whole. Set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large pot and sauté bacon, garlic, onion, celery, carrot and rosemary for 5 to 7 minutes.

Add tomatoes, bokcoy, cabbage, leeks, zucchini, and beans (whole and mashed), bring to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes.

Season the soup with salt and pepper. Add 7 cups chicken stock and bring to a boil. (If you prefer a thinner soup, add 1 cup more chicken stock.) Reduce heat and let the soup simmer, uncovered, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. 

Finish the soup with basil and parsley. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and baguette.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Schwartz's Deli, Montreal, Canada

Here at Schwartz's Deli you can expect THE best smoked meat; and when I said the best, it's seriously the best! Expect queing outside the door for about 10-20 minutes before you finally can get some seats! Even in the winter, people will line up for some smoked meat. This is one of the reasons why I don't want to be vegetarian! So, try their smoked meat with pickle and fries; and pair it with Black Cherry soda! Somehow the combination of those bring me straight to heaven!!

Gosh..it's 2013!

Time flies....Yup! I guess no one will argue with that!
What's new with me? What should I write? What have I achieved in 2012?
Well..I guess I can say that I have become a full time house wife and learnt how to cook; and now..I am quite a domestic goddess! I used to admire those who can cook, or bake; my idol usually is a range of chefs on TV..Nigella Lawson, Anna Olson; But now..I kinda love the new me. I love to challenge myself in the kitchen, trying new recipes, even if sometimes the name is unknown to my knowledge. And so far I have impressed myself, and my husband!

So, in 2013, I will try to blog about my cooking; posting my favourite recipes. Food that I have tried in my own kitchen and loved. And hope that it will benefit others!

Happy New Year! May 2013 brings lots of happiness and joy! Be happy! Life is too short to be anything but happy! Enjoy good food!Life is too short to eat crap food! :)