Seafood Malaysian Laksa

If you have a spare hour or two and want the reward of a Laksa that tastes out of this world, I recommend you head on down to your local Asian Grocer and prepare this Seafood Malaysian Laksa!

I promise you - It is worth every second of your time!

If you are not a food connoisseur like me, buy some Laksa paste from the supermarket and this can taste nearly as good. Or alternatively, take away from your local Malaysian restaurant!

Seafood Malaysian Laksa Recipe

Ingredients

Spice Paste
4-5 shallots, chopped
6-7 cloves garlic, chopped
Thumb size piece ginger, peeled and chopped
1 fresh red chilli (more if you want more kick!)
1 heaped tbsp dried prawns
½ cup water
Broth
12 green prawns
4 tbsp vegetable oil
180 mls of laksa paste
1 litre chicken stock
1 can coconut cream
Fish balls
Fried tofu puffs
1 tsp sugar
Fish sauce
Salt to taste
Juice of 1 lime
Finishing Touches
Rice vermicelli noodles
Egg noodles
Shredded cooked chicken meat (boiled-stock can be used for the broth!)Bean sprouts
Spring onions, chopped
Red chilli, sliced
Coriander leaves
Deep fried shallots
Fresh lime wedges

Preparation

Process in blender, shallots, garlic, ginger, chillies, dried prawns and water until it forms a smooth paste. Set aside.

Shell prawns and reserve meat. Heat oil in a large pot and fry prawns shells for about 1 minute until they turn red then remove from pan. Add spice paste to prawn flavoured oil and fry for a minute before adding the laksa paste. Fry until fragrant, about 2 minutes and pour in the stock.

Bring to the boil and then add coconut cream. It's always good to allow time to simmer for the flavours to come out. Add fish balls and fried tofu. Add sugar, fish sauce and salt to taste. Squeeze in the lime.

Blanch rice and egg noodles in boiling water and transfer some of each to serving bowls. Poach reserved prawn meat in same water. Pour over the broth and top with chicken, prawns and bean sprouts. Garnish with the spring onions, chilli, coriander and fried shallots. Squeeze in the lime before eating (This is a must as that fresh lime really lifts the dish!).

I give credit to the SBS Food website for this amazing Laksa recipe:  http://www.sbs.com.au

Greek Yogurt, Caramel Apple & Macadamia Pancakes

Want some thing tasty for Brunch this weekend?

Try these yogurt Pancakes!

Light and fluffy and when topped with caramelised apples and macadamia nuts, it is just begging to be devoured!

The sweet syrup from the caramel teams perfectly with the light fluffy pancakes, crunchy nuts and soft apples!

Greek Yogurt, Caramel Apple & Macadamia Pancakes

 

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 cups (16 ounces) Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup water

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, yogurt and water. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
• Pour batter by 1/4 cupfuls onto a hot griddle coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with optional ingredients if desired. Turn when bubbles form on top; cook until the second side is golden brown.

Topping:

I topped these with sliced apples sautéed in brown sugar, cinnamon, butter and maple syrup.

I also toasted the macadamia nuts on the fry pan with brown sugar to make a toffee covered macadamia – these had a real crunch to them!

I then I drizzled the caramel sauce produced from sautéing the apples in brown sugar and butter over the pancakes, sprinkled the nuts on top with some more cinnamon and topped with the remainder of the Greek yogurt.

Delish!

 

Hearty Chicken and Veg Pie Recipe

A pie is something I hardly ever make.

For one, I do not eat meat, so apart from a vegetable pie, a fish pie would be the only other thing I would eat, and I can’t seem to find the patience of putting fresh fish into a pie when I can have it fried/grilled/baked instead.

Plus, I would be afraid of overcooking the fish.

To be honest, when I think of a pie, all I can think of is that red meat Mrs. Mac’s pie’s that my brother would demolish after his footy game on a Saturday when we were kids.

Or the Mrs Mac pie that we would stop by the servo and buy on the way home from a family holiday during the long drive home. Here I would be trapped in a car marinating in the distinct Mrs Mac’s pie smell, and trying to avoid that little tomato sauce squirter container that my bro would be covering his pie in, to the point where it resembled a big red mound of sauce.

For these reasons, you can understand why my relationship with pies is non-existent and relates to not very fond memories.

Dating a male, I came to the conclusion that a pie would be something that would appeal to men, as the positive memories from those childhood footy games and the pure indulgence of red meat, sauce and crispy golden brown pastry is something most people (and definitely men) cannot deny loving.

The saying: “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”  becomes FACT here.

This Chicken Pie recipe is simple, hearty, delicious and you can alter it to what’s in your fridge. Plus, it will make any man (or meaty-pie lover), weak at their knees!

Cudo’s to Jamie Oliver for this recipe!

*Note, I have amended this recipe and added more vegetables, as the original recipe simple had mushrooms and chicken - which would also be delicious!

Jamie Oliver- Chicken &Veg Pie

From Jamie Oliver's 30min Meals Cookbook

Minutes to Prepare: 10

Minutes to Cook: 30

Number of Servings: 6

Ingredients

4 x Chicken Thigh fillet (about 720g)

1 onion

2 cloves garlic
a knob of butter/oil

500g pumpkin

3 potatoes

2 carrots

2 stalks celery
a bunch of spring onions/scallions
150g Button mushrooms
5 heaped tablespoons of flour

2 tablespoons English Mustard
1L of Chicken Stock/Broth
a few sprigs of fresh thyme

200ml sour cream/ creme fraiche
1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg
1 sheet of pre-rolled puff pastry
1 egg

Directions

1.    Put the chicken breasts on a plastic board and chop into 1cm strips. Chop onion and crush garlic. Put a glug of olive oil and a knob of butter into a hot, large large wide pan (on stove). Add the onion and garlic and cook until brown.

2.    Then add chicken and cook for 3 min or so.

3.    Meanwhile, chop pumpkin, potatoes, carrots and when chicken is cooked, add pumpkin, potatoes and carrots.

4.    Trim the spring onions and wash then mushrooms, then slice and add to the pan with 2 heaped tablespoon of flour and stir.

5.     Add 2 tablespoons of mustard, 1 heaped tablespoon of creme fraiche and 300ml of chicken stock and stir well. Add 3 extra tbs flour.

6.    Pick the thyme leaves and stir into the pan with the nutmeg, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Leave to simmer until all veggies are cooked. Add more stock if needed.

7.    Lightly dust a clean surface with flour and unroll the puff pastry. Use a small knife to lightly crisscross and score it.

8.    Take the pan with the chicken off the heat. Tip the filling into an overproof baking dish, that is slightly smaller than the sheet of pastry.

9.    Cover the filling with the pastry sheet, tucking it in at the edges.

10.  Quickly beat the egg, and then brush it over the top of the pie.

11.  Put into the oven to cook on the top shelf for around 25min, or until golden.