Where is the birthday cake and the moon cakes?

Sorry no birthday cake. In my last post I ended with a photo of a candle on a macaron.  That was what I gave to my step brother, Vic on his birthday. Where is the birthday cake? Good question! Vic’s favorite cake is baked cheese cake so that was the first thing I did when I came home after attending the Demo on making Macs. (I will share with you in my next post.)  I could not find the recipe that I have used before so I found a new one at allrecipes.com  It looks easy and I followed it to the tee.  The result was disappointing! I do not think it is the recipe. I think it is my oven misbehaving. Guess what, my cheese cake had a burnt top before it is cooked.

So now what? Sometimes, when you are a desperado, you could come up with some clever ideas. Haha, I’ve some macarons in my fridge so I decided to let Vic blow the candle on a mac instead. I got to be creative when I have no birthday cake at the last minute. It worked out fine. hehe.

The three of us, me, my mum and my Quay Lo, each made a dish for Vic’s birthday dinner. My mum made no fish paste yong tau foo, my Quay Lo made Kurma prawns and I stir fried some butter garlic shimeji mushrooms and asparagus.

I think Vic enjoyed himself and was pleased with what we have installed for him.  Before he called it a night, I gave his a personal moon cake in a grand packaging. His favorite is the tradition lotus paste with egg yolk. 

Actually that was the the birds nest box. Yes, double boiled bird nest with red dates and rock sugar was the dessert for the evening. It has been quite a while since I had bird nest and it was delicious. Oooo but cannot eat so often, too expensive lah! 


After a wonderful time spent together, it is time to go home for Vic and Jeanie. As I send them to the door, I handed him another box of moon cakes to bring home to my nephews and niece. 

Then after half an hour, I received a phone call from my Jeanie. She said, “Yee Ku (2^nd sister-in-law), when I reached home, your nephew Calvin saw his dad’s personal moon cake and he asked which shop offered such an elaborate moon cake packaging? I told him it is from Quay Po Cooks. Then, when he checked out the BIG box of moon cakes you gave them, he said, why these moon cake box so light?” Before she went further, I already burst our laughing. OMG!  When he opened each and every little box, there is no moon cake inside!!  Then I realized, I have given them the wrong box, the one that I am supposed to throw away! I laughed SO HARD until all my intestines were twisted. What a way to end a happy night!! When I told my Quay Lo what happened, he shook his head but I knew what that means. “She is LUCY again!” Can you imagine if I have given that box with no moon cakes inside to one of his clients? OOOO EMBARRASSED!! I think next time, when he asked me to arrange anything for his clients, I better tell him this, “Don’t count on Lucy, Honey.” LOL!

Of the three dishes above, I think I will share my mum’s recipe with you first. Once my Quay Lo gives me the recipe for his korma prawns, I will post it. His version of korma prawns tasted a little Indian and a little "Mat Salleh". The flavor was unforgettable.


No fish paste Yong Tau Foo 

Ingredients:
12 small shitake mushroom, soaked and squeezed dry
2 red capsicum, cut into small pieces
3 pcs tau foo, cut into half and sliced 3/4 through the center

2 tbs sunflower oil

2 tsp chopped garlic

oil for frying the stuffed mushrooms, capsicum and tau foo

1/4 c chopped spring onion for garnishing

Method:

Heat oil in wok and fry all the stuffed mushrooms, capsicum and tau foo till filling is cooked and set aside. Heat 2 tbs sunflower oil and put in the chopped garlic and stir fry till fragrant. Pour in the mixture of sauce and let it simmer till thicken. Return all  the stuffed mushrooms, capsicum and tau foo in the work and coat them properly with the sauce and garnish with spring onion and serve. 

Ingredients for the fillings:
300gm minced pork
2 florets wood ear soaked and chopped
3 medium shitake mushrooms, soaked, squeezed dry and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 egg
3 tsp corn starch
1 tsp ground white pepper
2 tsp maggie chicken stock 


Method: 
Mixed all the above throughly and let it marinate for 30 mins.


Ingredients for the sauce:
2 tbs oyster sauce
2 tbs hoi sin sauce
4 tbs water
2 tbs sugar
1 tbs sesame oil


Method:
Mix all the above and set aside for later use.

Stir fry soy bean sprouts and minced pork

This dish brings me back to my school days where we were asked to grow some bean sprout during our biology class.  It was interesting to see how they grow.  Of all the three science subjects, I love biology the most.  Probably the reason is because I was neither good at chemistry or physics . 

Bean spouts are nutritious and it is popular among restaurants and salad bars.  It has high concentration of essential vitamins, protein and starches.  They can be used in making soups, stir fry with salted fish and many more.  Being an "Ipoh Mali" girl (a girl from Ipoh), it is easy to love bean sprouts because Ipoh bean sprouts are the best!

Ingredients:

270gm soy bean sprouts, chopped

270gm minced pork

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp chopped garlic

½ cube bullion chicken stock, mashed.

Mehtod:

Heat oil in wok and sauté garlic till fragrant.  Add minced pork and sauté till whitish in color and add soy bean sprouts and stir fry till pork is light brownish and completely cooked.  Add chicken bullion and mixed well. Serve hot.

Steam minced pork with “Tung Choy” (preserved cabbage) - featured in Dishfolio

This dish brings back childhood memories.  It is one that my mum would prepare and leave in the fridge before she left for work so when I returned from school, all I have to do is to cook rice and when the rice is almost done, I would slide the pork on to the top of  the rice in the cooker and let it all steam together for about 30 to 40 mins till the pork is cooked.

Serving: 3 - 4

Ingredients:


300gms  of ground/minced pork


3 tbsp of tung choy (washed) (preserved Chinese cabbage)

1 tbsp Chinese wine

1 tsp of sugar


1/4 tsp pepper


1 tbsp of corn starch

½ cube chicken bullion

1 tbsp of sesame oil



Method:


Mix all the ingredients in a slightly deep plate that fits the rice cooker and marinate for 30 mins.
When rice is going to be cooked, place plate on top of rice and let the steam of the rice cook the meat for about 15 mins.

I have submitted this entry to  Malaysian Monday.  Do check out 3 hungry tummies or test with a skewer for more information.

Stuffed tomatoes and zuchinni in onion gravy - Featured as top 9 at Foodbuzz & at Group Recipes

I always keep some homemade pork pate in my freezer.  There are so many things I can make using pork pate and stuffed tomatoes and zuchinni is onion gravy is just one of the dish.  This dish should be served with freshly baked baguettes.

Ingredients:

Serving: 2

Preparation for pork pate:
600 gm minced pork of beef

   1 cup chopped fennel ( very fine )

   1/3 cup chopped spring onion

   1/2 medium size green onion

   ½ clove chopped garlic

   ground black pepper and salt to taste

Method:
Pulse blend 1 clove garlic and ½ medium size onion in a small amount of olive oil until almost combined into a spread. Add the blended mixture to a large bowl with the minced pork.  Mix with cleanly washed hands while adding  finely diced fennel and spring onion. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Shape the meat patty into ball, cover and place in the freezer for 1 hour.  Take it out of the freezer and put in the fridge till cooking time.

Preparation for vegetables:
2 plum tomato

1 zuchinni

1 cup frozen mixed vegetable

Method:
Cut of ¼ of the top of tomatoes and scrap out all the seeds
Cut zuchinni in about 1 ½ in long each piece and scrap out all the seeds.

Boil the mixed vegetables with ½ ts salt in water for about 2 mins, drain and set in the serving plate.

Stuff tomatoes and zuchinni with pork pate generously. Heat 1 tb olive oil, add vegetables with the meat side down and fry for about till meat is complete cooked.  Take out the vegetables and set them on the serving plate.

Preparation for sauce:
1 tb olive oil

1/2 tsp caramelsauce

1 tsp chopped garlic

1 tb chopped onion

¼ cup chopped spring onion (only the green part)

½ cube chicken stock bullion

1 tbs oysters sauce

1/2 tsp ground white pepper

1 cup water

1 tsp corn flour dissolve in 2 tbs water

Method:
Heat olive oil and fry garlic till fragrant. Add chopped onion and fry till translucent. add water, oyster sauce, chicken bullion  and ground white pepper.  Lower heat and let simmer for 1 min.  Add corn starch mixture to thicken the gravy. Pour the gravy over the vegetables and serve.


Note: if there is balance of pork pate, you can always keep in the fridge and use it for another recipe.