Lemon Thyme Fish with Roasted Sweet Potato

Dinner on Saturday was fish as I had been making chicken and beef dishes. Decided to make something lighter in flavours.

Thyme and lemon went rather well together. The fish was soft and not too dry. A good choice for a lighter flavoured meal. The sweet potatoes could do better; guess I have to look for better ideas for that next time.

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Recipe

Roasted Sweet Potato
Sweet Potato 2 medium
Cinnamon 1/2tsp
Olive Oil 2tbsp
Brown Sugar 1tbsp
Salt 1tsp

1. Cube the sweet potatoes.
2. Marinate it in the other ingredients and bake at 210 degrees C for 50 minutes or until soft.

Lemon Thyme Fish
Fish fillet of choice
Juice and zest of half lemon
4-5 sprigs of thyme
Olive Oil 2tbsp
Salt 3/4tsp
Pepper to taste

1. Marinate the fish fillet together with all the other ingredients for about 1 hour.
2. On high heat, sear the fish on both sides until lightly browned.
3. Bake in an oven at 200 degrees C for 10 minutes, putting in some of the thyme as well.

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Chicken Stew

Dinner on a Saturday was chicken stewed with zucchini and chickpeas in tomato sauce, topped with coriander and feta cheese.

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Recipe

Zucchini 1 medium
Chicken 500g
Tomato Paste 1 can
Diced Tomato 1 can
Onion 1 medium
Chickpeas 1 can

1. Cut the chicken meat into pieces, season with salt and pepper to taste, and brown in your pan. Remove from pan and set aside.
2. Dice the zucchini and onion and cook till soft.
3. Pour the chicken back into the pot. Add in the chickpeas, tomato paste and diced tomatoes with all the juice.
4. Add 1/2 cup of water, cover and simmer for 30-40 minutes.
5. Serve with a sprinkling of herbs or parsley and crumbled feta cheese.

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Beef & Cornbread Casserole

Attempted this recipe which turned out to go pretty well with each other.

Minced beef with corn, capsicum, onions in BBQ sauce and topped with corn bread.

I actually forgot to buy cheese, otherwise it might taste even better. And perhaps I should add some corn starch next time to make the sauce thicker, which I think would be better.

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Recipe

Minced Beef 550g
Capsicum 1 medium
Onion 1 medium
Corn 1 can
Coriander 1tsp
Mixed Herbs 1tsp
Tomato ketchup 2tbsp
BBQ sauce to taste
1 box of cornbread mix

1. Oil your pan lightly, and add in the coriander, herbs, onions and capsicum, cooking until soft.
2. Add in corn and cook for a while more. Transfer to bowl.
3. Brown the minced beef in the pan, and add the onions and capsicum back into pan.
4. Remove from heat, and in ketchup and BBQ sauce to taste. Leave to cool.
5. Prepare the cornbread mix as per instructions.
6. Place the beef in your baking container, and top with the cornbread mix.
7. Bake as per instructions for cornbread mix.

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Mini Burgers

It was supposed to be lamb burgers, but I could not find minced lamb, so beef burgers it is.

I made the buns myself as well, since I wanted a small sized one. The beef patty turned out to be juicy. Saltiness was just right as well. A little Dijon mustard on the base and topped with cheese and romaine lettuce.

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Recipe

Minced Beef 220g
Salt 1/2tsp
Coriander 2tbsp
Mixed Herbs 1tbsp
Pepper to taste

1. Mixed all ingredients together and make into patty size of choice.
2. Sear the surface and sides on high heat in your pan, before turning down fire to medium and cooking to desired doneness.

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Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

I have attempted pancakes many times on my own in the past, but they always turned out dense and not fluffy. Now, I have found the perfect pancake recipe!

I guess the buttermilk did the trick and helped make the pancakes fluffy, just like how cream made my bread softer. The tinge of sourness from the blueberries balanced well with the sweetness of the maple syrup. Blueberries and pancakes just go so well together.

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Recipe
(makes 8-12 pancakes)

Buttermilk 2cups
Flour 2cups
Baking soda 1tsp
Baking powder 2tsp
Salt 1/4tsp
Sugar 2tbsp
Vegetable Oil 1/4cup
Eggs 2

1. Mix all the ingredients together.
2. Heat your pan on low heat and scoop in desired amount of batter.
3. When edges are a little cooked and top begins to bubble, flip over and cook on other side for another 1-2 minutes.

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Deep Dish Pizza

 

Dinner on Saturday night this week is deep dish pizza. Deep dish pizza is commonly found in Chicago, at least that is what I watched on shows before. This is entirely home-made, as I made the dough myself, as well as the pizza sauce.

  

Lots of mozzarella cheese!

 

Topped with veal sausage and salami. Dough did turn out to be pretty soft and not overly dry.

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Recipe 

Dough
Bread Flour 250g
Caster Sugar 1tsp
Salt 1/2tsp
Yeast 1tsp
Unsalted Butter 3tbsp
Water 250g

1. Mix all ingredients, with the exception of butter, together and allow dough to proof until doubled.
2. Spread the dough onto work surface. Spread the butter on it, and roll the dough into a cylinder.
3. Make a book-fold and proof again in a fridge for 2-3 hours.

Pizza Sauce
Crushed/Diced Tomato 1 can(~250g)
Basil 3tbsp
Onion (medium) 1
Salt 1/2tsp
Olive Oil 1tbsp
Black pepper to taste

1. Saute the onions in a pot first until translucent.
2. Add in the tomatoes including the water.
3. Mix in remaining ingredients and bring to simmer until reduced.

Assembly
(250g Mozzarella cheese needed)

1. Spread olive oil in baking pan. Put ball of dough in; spread and press against and up sides.
2. Put in half of mozzarella cheese, followed by sauce.
3. Add in desired ingredients and cover with remaining cheese.
4. Bake at 210 degrees C for 30 minutes.

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Beef Sukiyaki

Dinner on a Saturday..

Wanted to do a deep dish pizza, but I shall leave it for next week. Been some time I ate sukiyaki, so I decided to cook myself. However the sauce I bought was not as nice as what I bought last time. Shall stay away from Kikkoman next time!

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Okonomiyaki

If there is a dish that I am absolutely partial to, it has to be okonomiyaki. I simply love mix of okonomiyaki sauce, mayonnaise and seaweed.

Last made this a long time ago. Been thinking of doing it again, but decided to do it now, especially after the lousy one I ate at Watami.

 

I added prawns and squid as well.

 

Finished off my dinner with a Red Bean and Mochi I bought at Isetan Orchard. A little too sweet for my liking.

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Recipe

Ingredients:
(A) Flour 120g
(A) Salt 1/2tsp
(A) Soup Stock (Chicken/Fish/Vegatable) 150ml
(A) Milk 30ml

Cabbage 500g
3 Eggs
Salt 1/2tsp
Ginger powder 1/2tsp
Any other meat or seafood as you wish

1. Combine all the ingredients labeled (A) and rest in refrigerator for about 2-3 hours.
2. Slice the cabbage any way you wish, but neither too small nor too big.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the 3 eggs lightly. Add in salt and ginger powder (In actual Japanese cooking, I believe they added the red preserved ginger, but I substituted with ginger powder. Optional, but somehow I think it enhances the overall flavour somewhat.)
4. Pour the egg mixture into the batter and mix well.
5. Put in cabbage and mix well.
6. Heat oil in a pan until hot.
7. Just before pouring the ingredients in, lower to low heat. Cook for about 5-7 minutes.
8. Place your meat/seafood on the top and flip over. Cook for another 5 minutes or so.
9. Serve generously with okonomiyaki sauce, mayonnaise and seaweed!

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