Spaghetti Alla Gorgonzola

Posted by Vivian in Pasta

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When I first set eyes on the tempting photos taken by The Little Teochew, I was so enticed to give this a try. But I should have known better that me being a not so great fan of cheese found the taste of Gorgonzola Dolcelatte too strong to my liking.  I ended up topping the pasta with tons of black pepper and parsley flakes to mask the smell.  Kai Koon took to it better but it was so rich that it left him so full from the lunch that he specifically asked to have something light for dinner.  Can't fault the recipe.  I am sure someone who enjoys cheese will find this an interesting dish.

For the next round (yes I am still brave enough to give it another shot!) I will replace it with a different type of cheese, something milder for this uncouth palate of mine.

Ingredients:

• 2 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 80 gm of Gorgonzola Dolcelatte (roughly chopped)
• 6 tablespoon of grated Parmesan
• Butter (about 100 gm)
• 1/2 cup cream
• Pasta (pre-cooked according to instructions)

Preparation:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in and add garlic thereafter.
• Add in cream and turn off heat once it starts to simmer.
• Stir in cheese and allow it to melt completely
• Add in butter. Continue to stir to create a smooth mixture.
• Toss pasta and sauce together and top with black pepper.

Number of Servings: 4

Baked Butter Prawn

Posted by Vivian in Seafood

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This is a really simple recipe that Diana had shared with me a while ago.  So simple that it doesn't require a lot of effort, time and ingredients to put the dish together, but the end result is mouth-watering enough to pass-off as something that the cook had slaved over the stove-top (oven rather).  The disappointing part was that the prawns I got last week wasn't fresh enough to do more justice to the taste.

Oh yes... this dish reminded me of another recipe from my mum which also had tons of garlic (enough to make you smell the after-breath from miles away) and a sinful amount of butter to it.  The difference is that the butter is made into sauce.

Ingredients:

• 800 gm of prawns (whiskers trimmed off) 
• Generous knob of butter (I used about 80 gm) 
• 8 cloves of garlic (minced) 

Preparation:

• Mixed all ingredients together and allow to stand for 30 minutes. (I had cut the butter into morsels and left them on top of the prawns next to a pot of boiling water to hasten the melting process!). 
• Bake prawns for 8 to 10 minutes at 180 degree Celsius. 

Number of Servings: 3 to 4

Mummy's Fried Rice

Posted by Vivian in Chinese, Rice

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Finally something new to add to this blog! I have been in a "recycling mode" for the last 2 months due to lack of time either because of work or other commitments during the weekends. And when that happens, the inclination is to go for dishes that I can whip up without much thinking and with eyes closed. The maid being on home leave for 2 weeks added to that need since I had to juggle all the other household chores alone.

There are many variations to how a fried rice can be done. The ingredients can range from peas, corns, carrots, ham, luncheon meat, button mushroom to pine nuts. The list is contained only by one's imagination. For me, I still like it the the way my mum does it - char siew, Chinese sausage, eggs and spring onion. Perhaps I am bias because I grew up eating her fried rice and to me that is how it should be. I even recall that the zhi char stall had their fried rice done this way back when I was just a kiddo. It was only in the recent years that I started to see all sorts of ingredients being added to it.

When it comes to my fried rice, I am very anal particular about the size of the ingredients. I like it finely chopped, just so that all the ingredients can get into every mouthful. The taste is just not the same if otherwise.

Ingredients:

3 cups of jasmine rice (cooked and left in fridge overnight)
3 cloves of small onion (finely chopped)
3 cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
5 stalks of spring onion (finely chopped and white colour end separately set side)
200 gm char siew (finely chopped)
2 Chinese sausage (case removed and finely chopped)
1 stick of carrot (finely chopped)
4 eggs (beaten and seasoned with light soy sauce)
Light soy sauce
Dark soy sauce (optional)

Preparation:

Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in wok.
Add garlic and onion to wok.
Once fragrant, mix in white end of the spring onions and allow the mixture to cook slightly.
Add in Chinese sausage and carrot.
Stir-fry Chinese sausage to almost 90% cooked.
Add in egg and continue to stir to create a scramble-liked texture.
While the egg is still a little runny, add in rice.
Break up any lumps of rice and mix thoroughly with ingredients in the wok.
Mix in char siew and spring onion.
Drizzle some dark soy sauce for added colour to rice (optional)
Season with light soy sauce to taste.


Number of Servings: 4 to 5