Kolak Pisang (Sweet Banana Dessert with Coconut Milk)

First of all, I would like to extend my greetings to my dear moslem friends from all around the world, who will soon be entering the month of fasting. Wishing you a blessed month and happy fasting!
I remember when I was still in Indonesia, during the fasting month, people like to have sweets to break the fasting. And only during this month, I noticed a lot of small stalls opened on street selling foods, mainly fresh, cold and sweet dessert. Kolak was one of many things they sold. So to remind me of the feeling of that fresh afternoon air, I made kolak myself 3 days ago...

Ingredients:
- 3 banana, cut into 1.5cm thickness
- 2 sweet potato, peel off the skin, cut into small chunks
- 1 can of jackfruits
- 1 can of palm seeds
- 1/2 can of coconut milk
- water
- 1 block of palm sugar
- dash of salt
- 9cm of pandan leave, cut into 3



Directions:
In a pot, boil the sweet potato in water until almost tender. Add palm seeds, pandan leaves and palm sugar and stir until all the sugar dissolved. Add jackfruit, banana and salt and stir it well. Continue to cook until boiling. Add coconut milk and stir it instantly. Wait until boiling again and turn off the heat by then.
Keep in fridge before serving, or add some ice cubes if you like.

Monthly Menu: Steamed Seasoned Rice with Chicken and Mushroom Topping (Nasi Tim Ayam Jamur)

Today is the last Thursday of the month and as we - some of Indonesian foodie bloggers agree that the last Thursday of every month is the time for us to post our monthly menu. It does not matter when we cooked it, but we are supposed to post it on the last Thursday of the month. And since my position in this globe is further up north-west, I will be the last to post this writing I believe...(the truth is I am a last minute person, I just cooked it for dinner last nite...hahaha..).
It is so good to see Indo foodie bloggers from all around the world post the same menu on the same date...



August menu is steamed seasoned rice with chicken and mushroom topping (Indonesian-nasi tim ayam jamur). And here comes my version of nasi tim ayam jamur, which is loved by my little family, especially my Bianca...



Ingredients:
To make the steamed seasoned rice:
- 1/2 portion of the broth from boiling chicken legs, app. 1lt
- 3 cups of jasmine rice
- 5cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 1tsp of salt

To make topping:
- 5 whole chicken legs, boil until tender, shred the meat, discard fat and bones and keep the broth aside
- 2can of straw mushroom
- 8cloves of garlic
- 4cm of ginger, slice thinly
- 2Tbsp of sesame oil
- 2Tbsp of fish sauce
- 3Tbsp of oyster sauce
- sweet soy sauce as needed
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 3 green onion, chop thinly

To make soup:
- 1/2 portion of the broth from boiling chicken legs, app. 1lt
- 5cloves of garlic
- 2cm of ginger, slice thinly
- salt
- sugar
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 3 green onion, chop thinly
- oil for saute

Side dishes:
- fried wonton, see the recipe here
- chili vinegar (I skipped this one)



Directions:
To make the rice:
In a big pot, place the broth and boil. Add garlic which was previously sauteed with a little bit of oil. Add salt, pepper and stir it well. Add pre-washed rice and stir it for awhile. Close the lid and let it cook until all the water immersed. Keep it aside.

To make topping:
In a wok, saute chopped garlic and ginger with sesame oil until fragrant. Add fish sauce and oyster sauce and stir it well. Add shredded chicken meat and then sweet soy sauce and stir it well. Add pepper, mushroom and a little bit of broth and continue to cook until boiling. Add green onion and stir. Keep it aside.

To make soup:
Boil the broth in a pot and add sauteed garlic, ginger, salt, sugar and pepper and stir it well. When it is boiling, add chopped green onion and immediately turn off the heat.

To cook/steam:
Put the topping in a heat resistant bowl until 1/3 high. And then top it up with the half-cooked seasoned rice. Place bowls in a steamer and steam it for 15-20minutes until the rice cooked.

To serve:
Place the bowl upside down on a plate and carefully remove the bowl, so that the chicken topping will be on top of the rice now. Serve the soup in a small bowl at side. Add fried wonton and chili vinegar at the side too if you like. Serve it warm.

Another Steamed Cupcakes

I think I am just addicted to make steamed cupcakes...to eat it? I just leave it up to my husband and my lil' one....hehehe...
This time around, instead of adding cocoa powder, I added green food coloring. You can find the recipe here.
Just enjoy the pictures!

Pecel Lele (Deep Fried Cat Fish with Chili Paste)

I used to have this meal when I was going to a university in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It was sold on street stalls. Normally they do not only sell it, they also sell deep fried chicken, pigeon, etc. Last week I was craving for it and decided to prepare it myself.

Ingredients:
- frozen cat fish (available at Asian stores)
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1Tbsp of ground coriander
- salt
- water
- oil for frying

To make sambal/chili paste:
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 3 cloves of small red onion
- 12 chili paddy
- 1 tomato
- 1tsp of shrimp paste
- 1Tbsp of palm sugar
- salt
- frying oil



Directions:
I like to buy cat fish which was cleaned before, so I do not need to clean it myself. In a chopper, crush garlic until smooth and then transfer it into a big container. Add coriander, salt and water (app. 250ml) and mix it well. Marinate the fish in it at least for 30minutes (you may make a shallow cut on its stomach, so that the spice will immerse quickly).
Deep fry it in hot oil under medium high heat until brown and crunchy.
To make chili paste: place all of the ingredients in a microwaveable bowl and microwave it for 2min. Then transfer it into a chopper and crush until smooth.
Eat it with warm steam rice and some fresh veggies. You may add some sweet soy sauce into the sambal if you like.

Semur Daging Betawi (Batavian Spiced Beef)

My husband loves this meal and had asked me to make it since 2 week ago, so 3 days ago I prepared it and he thanked me so many times...(even the next day before it's all gone, he said he wants me to make another portion of it...). I did not have any idea he loves it that much...I am sorry dear for postponing for some days...

Ingredients:
- 800gr of beef meat, cut into small chunk
- 400gr of washed mini potato
- 2 block of tofu, cut into 8 pieces each, deep fry until half cooked
- 3cloves of small red onion
- 7cloves of garlic
- 4cm of ginger
- 5 candle nuts
- 4 dried cloves flower bud (I skipped this one)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1tsp of ground coriander
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 2tsp of ground nutmeg
- 1 tomato, cut into 8
- 4Tbsp of sweet soy sauce
- sugar
- salt
- oil for saute
- water, app. 700ml



Directions:
Grind onion, garlic, ginger and candle nuts in a blender until smooth. Saute it with a little bit of oil until fragrant, then add coriander, pepper, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon stick, continue to stir for 2minutes. Add the beef and continue to cook and stir until color changed. Add some water and stir again. Cook until the meat tender. Add mini potato and cook for 10minutes. Add fried tofu and at last add tomato, sweet soy sauce, salt and sugar and stir well. Serve it with warm steam rice and chili paste (if you like).

Sego Gandul/Nasi Gandul

Sego Gandul or Nasi Gandul, literally means hanging rice...but do not expect that you will find the way it means by words. It is a traditional meal from Pati, Central Java. Somebody told me that because it is served with a piece of banana leaf lining the plate, it does not touch the plate, that's why they call it "Gandul", whereas "sego/nasi" means rice.
I was born in Pati, but I confess I had never made this meal before until the other day when I saw Titi and Ayin made and posted it on their blogs.
A year ago, my sister sent me the recipe through email and last week I went through my old inbox to find that particular message with the recipe in it, and I was happy to find it was still there. My sis got the recipe from a lady that lives in Pati, so I trust it is a genuine recipe.

Ingredients:
- 800gr of beef meat with a little fat (I do not like it too much fat)
- 4cloves of small red onion
- 8cloves of garlic
- 5 candle nuts
- 4cm of ginger
- 1tsp of shrimp paste
- 2tsp of ground coriander
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 1tsp of ground cummin
- 1tsp of ground kencur
- 4cm of galangal
- 4 lime leaves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 10 of blanched chili paddy
- salt
- sweet soy sauce
- 1Tbsp of palm sugar
- 1/2 can of coconut milk
- oil for saute



Side dish:
- fried onion
- fried tempeh
- shrimp crackers (I did not serve it this time)

Directions:
Boil the beef with water until tender, keep the broth a side for later use, and cut the beef into small cubes. Crush onion, garlic, candle nuts, ginger and shrimp paste in a blender until smooth. Saute it with a little bit of oil for 2minutes. Add coriander, pepper, cummin, kencur, galangal and lime leaves and stir it well. Add the meat and stir it. Add blanched chili, cinnamon stick, salt, sweet soy sauce, broth and palm sugar. Cook and stir until boiling. Continue to cook for another 10-15min, until all the seasoning immersed. Discard the cinnamon stick and then add coconut milk. Cook until boiling again and turn off the stove.
To serve, line a plate with a piece of banana leaf. Place a scoop of warm steam rice and then pour Gandul over. Sprinkle some fried onion and add some fried tempeh at side. Originally instead of spoon, they used "suru"-a small long piece of banana leaf to eat (see the first picture).

Garlic-Basil Stir Fried Ribs n Veggies

Another Thai cuisine which is easy to make and you may throw any meats or veggies as you like.

Ingredients:
- 600gr of pork ribs
- 250gr of peeled washed carrot
- a bunch of yu choy (Indonesian: sawi hijau or caisim)
- 4Tbsp of Thai garlic-basil stir fry paste
- water



Directions:
In a wok, saute for 2 minutes the garlic-basil paste without oil since it contains oil already. Throw in the ribs and stir it until change color. Add some water, approx. 150ml and stir it well. Continue to cook until boiling and the meat tender. Add carrot, stir and continue to cook for 4minutes. Add yu choy, stir and continue to cook for 3minutes.
Serve it with warm steam rice.

Pastel Isi Ragout (Fried Puff Pastry with Ragout Filling)

I may say that fried puff pastry with ragout filling is my forever favorite snack since I was a little kid. My mom used to make it for us, but often we just bought it from food stalls. For the skin, again I copied the recipe from Ayin's page, but for the filling I just made it on my own style. When I made the skin, there was an accident..I poured too much water and the dough was too watery, so I added some more flour...but then I was worried if it would turn too hard or chewy, so I added more margarine and egg...I spent the whole night preparing the dough, keeping it in the fridge and continued the next morning still struggling with sticky dough...Almost giving up, then I used my own hands for kneading for hours...Thank goodness I was able to save the dough from sitting in my garbage bin...

Ingredients:
-oil for deep frying

To make skins:
-300gr of all purpose flour (at the end I ended up with no measurement..)
-1egg (I used 2)
-1/2tsp of salt
-1/2tsp of chicken broth powder
-water as needed
-50gr of margarine (I used 80gr soft margarine)

To make ragout filling:
-1 whole chicken leg, boil in water and shred the meat and cut into small cubes, keep the broth
-2 carrot, peel of the skin and cut into small cubes
-2 potato, peel of the skin and cut into small cubes
-4 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
-1cloves of small red onion, chop thinly
-2 green onion, chop thinly
-150ml of fresh milk
-150ml of chicken broth
-2Tbsp of all purpose flour/wheat flour, dissolve it in water
-1tsp of ground white pepper
-salt
-sugar
-oil for saute

Additional filling:
-4 boiled eggs, cut into 4 pieces each



Directions:
Mix well all of the ingredients for making skins with a mixer until smooth. Keep it aside for 30minutes and cover it with plastic wrap so that it would not get dry.
While waiting make the ragout filling by saute garlic and onion until fragrant. Then add cut carrot, potato and chicken broth and cook until done. Add chicken meat, salt, pepper and sugar and stir it well. Add the milk and continue to cook until boiling. Add green onion and then the wheat flour mixture and stir it instantly until thicken.
Continue working on the skins by kneading the dough until it does not stick. Flatten the dough on a cutting board and then cut into circle forms. Fill it up with ragout filling and a quarter of boiled egg. Then fold the skin to form half circle shapes and fold and press the margin. Otherwise you may use a fork to press the margin. When all is done, heat up some oil and deep fry the pastries under medium high heat until golden brown, flip it over once. Place them on a paper towel to dry up the excessed oil. Serve it warm with some fresh chili or chili sauce.

Bolu Kukus (Steamed Cup Cake)

Every time my husband works afternoon shift, I feel like spending more times in my kitchen during the night while waiting for him to be home. And what I do is mostly making some snacks...and it is always fun to do it...
This time, I made steamed cup cake...this was the first time for me to make it myself...long time ago, I used to watch my mom making it. I copied the recipe from Ayin's page and modified it by adding vanilla.
I could not wait to see the result, and when I opened the steamer lid, I was so pleased with the result and leaping in excitement...
Thank you Ayin for sharing the recipe...

Ingredients:
-2 eggs (I used extra large size)
-250gr of sugar
-1Tbsp of ovalet
-200ml of soda drink/soft drink (I used Dr. Pepper)
-300gr all purpose flour
-1tsp coloring (I used 1Tbsp of cocoa powder)
-1tsp of vanilla



Directions:
Place eggs, sugar and ovalet in a mixing bowl and mix it well until stiff. Add flour and mix it again at lower speed until all distributed evenly, continue to stir even though you may feel it hard . Add the soda drink and mix it again. Add the vanilla and stir it again. Take out a quarter of it and transfer it in a smaller bowl, then add the cocoa powder and mix it well with a wooden spoon.
Prepare the steamer by heating it for at least 10minutes. Line the muffin tin with cupcake paper. Fill up 3/4 of the cup with the white dough and then top up with the cocoa dough. Steam it for at least 20minutes, do not open the lid during steaming. It is better to steam it in small quantity (I did steam 4cups for each 20minutes). Let it cool off on a wire rack, do not leave it on the muffin tin since it would get soggy.

Es Lengkeng Merdeka! (Simply..Longan Drink)

This is my entry for Red and White Foodie Photography Contest, a collaboration of three foodie bloggers, Dhi-Fitri-Dwi. After a little while and lot of hesitation and procrastination, eventually I've finished writing this post.

In the spirit of August-month of our Independence day, red and white which represent the color of our national flag is used as a source of our creativity in food photography. As I am a beginner in food photography, I do not expect much, I just want to have fun by joining this event and make the event merrier! Here is the picture I've submitted.

The story goes behind the picture...
I have been living overseas for a better of 5 years. Even though I live far away from my beloved country-Indonesia, I feel attached to Indonesia. There are some reasons why I feel so attached to Indonesia..
- I am married to an Indonesian guy, so our every day life is full of Indonesian cultures..we try to maintain the good ones, eliminate the bad ones and compile it with good Western cultures too.
- My husband prefers Indonesian foods than Western ones, so mostly I prepare Indonesian foods and keep Indonesian spices in my kitchen.
- I speak to my 16mo old girl in bahasa Indonesia...so bahasa is our first language at home.
- Sweet soy sauce is my husband's forever favorite condiment...and it should be made by Indonesian company, he loves one particular brand.
- We have some Indonesian friends that gather every Sunday afternoon for Bible studying and prayer meeting, and we do speak Indonesian during the sessions. Oh yeah and the best part is we share Indonesian food after the meeting...

Even though I feel so attached to my country, it does not mean that I do not miss Indonesia. Indeed, I do miss Indonesia terribly much. I miss my extended family whom mostly still reside in Indonesia, I miss the real Indonesian foods sold on street-so I do not need to spend time cooking, I miss shopping good things at a bargain price, I miss "becak" a tricycle public transportation-so I do not need to walk to get to short-medium distance, and a lot more..my list would go longer than you expected. Well, life goes on...I love my country but the fate brought me to live far away from it...

Thus, to celebrate the Independence day, I want to take a part of this special event...even though it is small, I believe I may contribute this way..

Inspired by red and white, I made this simple longan drink. It is very easy to make and suitable to our current weather. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:
-1 can of longan fruits in syrup
-5Tbsp of cocopandan flavor syrup (made in Indonesia)
-4glasses of cold water
-ice cubes

Directions:
In a big bowl, mix all of the ingredients and stir it well. Keep it in the fridge to make it cooler. To serve, place it in clear glasses. The recipe is good to make 5glasses of the drink.

Happy Independence Day Indonesia....! We do love you...

Puff Pastry with Modified Boston Cream Filling (Kue Sus Isi Boston Krim)

My husband loves these puff pastries and we normally got it from bakery shops in town. He loves the ones with Boston cream filling. I started to love them too. And definitely these were what I made as soon as I got a new mixer.
The recipe of the skin is copied from Judith's page (Thank you bucil for sharing the recipe and for encouraging me that I can do it!), and the filling I got it online but then I modified it.

Ingredients:
For skins:
-150ml fresh milk
-100ml water
-80gr margarine
-1/2tsp of salt
-1tsp of sugar
-180gr of all purpose flour
-4 eggs



For filling (modified by me):
-135gr sugar
-500ml fresh milk
-1/2 vanilla bean (I used 2tsp of vanilla)
-30gr of corn starch
-5 egg yolk (I used 4)
-3Tbsp of butter (I used margarine)

In a pot bring to boil water, milk, margarine and salt and then turn of the stove as soon as it is boiled. Add the flour little by little and stir well until smooth and does not stick. Keep it aside until it is cooled. When it is cool enough (room temperature is fine), add eggs one by one and keep on stirring. Preheat the oven at 350F for 5-10minutes. Using pipping bag and tip, place the dough on a tray which has been layered with some margarine, gives enough space in between. Bake it in the oven for 30minutes at 350F. Do not open the oven door before it is done. Cool it down on a wire rack. The recipe is good to make 15 medium size puff pastries.
To make the filling, in a pot, cook and stir with a wooden spoon sugar, 375ml milk and vanilla under low heat, until dissolved. Gradually turn up the heat. Meanwhile, put cornstarch in a bowl and whisk in 125ml of milk until smooth. Add egg yolks and whisk again until blended. Slowly pour the hot milk mixture into the yolk mixture and stir it well with a wire whisk. Transfer it back to the pot and cook and stir it under medium heat until boiled. When it is boiled, turn off the stove, add the margarine and stir it instantly. Keep it in a fridge.
To serve, cut the skins in the middle and then fill it out with the filling.



When I was trying to take pictures of these pastries, my little girl was around and she was busy trying to help me with the photo taking. But instead of helping, she was disturbing me by picking up one of the pastries (and I kept putting it back) or positioning her body to prevent the natural light, so I would not get enough light to take good pictures. I was trying hard to keep her away, but what can I do with that little innocent face? So as I did the photo taking quickly (you may notice a slightly blur picture..), I handed in one of the pastries to her...she was so happy to lick the filling and eat it all up.

Steamed Banana Leaf Wrapped Beef (Botok Daging)

Inspired by one of Mindy's posts and since I got some banana leaves in my freezer, last week I made this steamed beef. To be honest, Balinese recipe sounds too complicated for me...that's why I did not make that Tum Sapi, but this botok. Thx for inspiring...Min...

Ingredients:
-400gr of ground beef
-1/2can of coconut milk
-3 eggs
-12 Indonesian bay leaves
-banana leaves and tooth picks for wrapping

To be crushed in a chopper/grinder until smooth:
-12 chili paddy or bird's eye chili
-3 cloves of small red onion
-8 cloves of garlic
-1tsp of kencur
-4cm of galangal
-5candle nuts
-salt
-sugar



Directions:
In a mixing bowl, mix well all of the ingredients and the smooth spices except bay leaves and wrapper. Then place 1 bay leaf on banana leaf and top it with 2-3Tbsp of the mixture. Wrap it the way you see on the first picture and seal with a tooth pick.
When all is done, steam it in a steamer for 45minutes. Eat it with warm steam rice.

Crab Omelet with Tomato Sauce (Fuyunghai)

I had a good school friend coming from Australia last week. He spent 2 whole days in Edmonton just to pay a visit for my family. On the first day, we picked him up to go for dinner at a Malaysian restaurant closed to his hotel. Then on the second day, I invited him to come over to our place for dinner. Since I did not have enough time to prepare fancy meals, I just bought 3 kinds of Chinese meals consist of tofu, mushroom and chicken and prepare one more meal and dessert. For the meal, I chose to make this omelet, since I had all the ingredients on stock and it does not take much time to prepare.

Ingredients:
To make the omelet:
- 2 can of crab meat, discard the water
- 5 egg
- 1 carrot, peel off the skin and shred it thinly
- 1/4 can of sweet green peas, discard the water
- salt
- pepper
- sugar
- oil for frying

To make sauce:
- 1 carrot, peel of the skin and shred it thinly
- 3/4 can of sweet green peas, discard the water
- 1 onion, chop thinly
- 1 tomato, cut into 12
- 2Tbsp of tomato paste
- 2cm of ginger, slice it thinly
- 1Tbsp of fish sauce
- 1Tbsp of oyster sauce
- salt
- sugar
- 1Tbsp of maizena or corn flour, dilute it with a little bit of water
- water
- oil for saute



Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients except oil, in a mixing bowl. Beat the eggs well. Then fry it with a little bit of oil and flip it over until both sides are done. Keep it aside.
In a pan, saute chopped onion with a little bit of oil until fragrant. Add ginger and tomato and continue to saute until the tomato becomes soft. Add some water (app. 200ml), fish sauce and oyster sauce, stir and cook until boiling. Adjust the taste with salt and sugar. Add shredded carrot and green peas and cook for 2minutes. Add the corn flour mix and stir it instantly until you get thick consistency.
To serve, place the omelet on a serving plate and then pour the sauce on top. Eat it with warm steam rice.

Terik Daging (Sweet Spiced Beef Stew)

Getting bored with rendang and other spicy recipe, this time I made sweet spiced beef and added with some tempeh and tofu. This meal came from central Java I guess, since the dominant taste is sweet. But it took us several days to finish it up.

Ingredients:
- 800gr beef flank, boil in water until tender and cut into small cubes
- 3 blocks of tofu, cut into 8 pieces each, deep fry it until half-cooked
- 1 block of tempeh, cut into 24 pieces, deep fry it until half-cooked
- 1/2 can of coconut milk
- 4 cloves of small red onion
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 5 candle nuts
- 1tsp of seedless tamarind
- 1 block of palm sugar
- 3 Indonesian bay leaves
- 4cm of galangal, cut into 2
- 2tsp of ground coriander
- 1tsp of ground cummin
- salt
- sugar
- oil for saute
- water



Directions:
In a blender, blend onion, garlic, candle nuts and tamarind with a little bit of water until smooth. Saute it with a little bit of oil in a pot until fragrant. Add bay leaves, galangal, coriander and cummin and continue to saute for another 2minutes. Add cooked beef, fried tofu and tempeh and then some broth. Cook until boiling. Add coconut milk and palm sugar. Stir it will until all the palm sugar dissolved. Adjust the taste with salt and sugar. Cook until boiling again and the water decreased by half and then turn of the heat. Serve it with warm steam rice.

Fruity Pudding with Homemade Strawberry Syrup

I was extremely happy when I got some packages of agar powder from my auntie in California two weeks ago (thank you Bou Bulan..). It is a bit hard to find that particular Indo brand here and I like to use that brand...that is why I was so happy to have them on stock in my kitchen now. My daughter loves to eat pudding made of that agar powder and I usually try to serve it with various flavor.
This time I mixed it with canned fruits and I made strawberry syrup as well.

Ingredients:
- 1 package of clear agar powder
- 1 package of red agar powder
- 1000ml of cold water (700ml+300ml)
- 400ml of fresh milk
- 1 can of cut mixed fruits, discard the syrup
- 18Tbsp of sugar

To make strawberry syrup:
- 1 box of fresh strawberry (approx. 350gr)
- 200ml of cold water
- 150gr of sugar



Directions:
In a pot, mix well the clear agar powder with 700ml cold water. Cook and stir until boiling. When it is boiling, add 9Tbsp of sugar and mix it well. Pour it in a molding bowl. Add the canned fruits. Keep it in a fridge until harden.
While waiting, make the second layer of agar by mixing the red agar powder with 400ml milk and 300ml cold water. Cook and stir until boiling and then add 9Tbsp of sugar and mix it well. Pour this agar on top of the harden first layer. Put it back into the fridge until harden.
To make the strawberry syrup, blend the fresh strawberry with cold water in a blender under high speed until smooth. Place it in a pot and cook until boiling. Add sugar and stir it well. You may add some more sugar or decrease the amount of it to meet your desired sweetness. Continue to cook and stir for 10minutes until thicken. Keep it in fridge.
To serve, cut the harden pudding and pour some cold syrup over it.

Banana-Strawberry Smoothie

The other day I bought lot of bargained banana in a wholesale store coz all of us love bananas. And seemed like they would turn bad quick and I have to use it up. So in order to use up the banana, I made this fresh smoothie. I still had some fresh strawberry too, so why not mix them up?

Ingredients:
- 2 banana, cut into small chunks
- 10 strawberry, cut into half
- 350ml fresh milk
- ice cubes
- 3Tbsp of sweet condensed milk



In a blender, place all of the ingredients, and blend it at high speed for 2minutes. You may add some vanilla ice cream if you like. Then transfer it into 2 glasses (the ingredients is good to make 2 full glasses of smoothie). Add some more ice cubes as you wish.

Siomay Bandung

After getting everything set up in our new apartment, we invited some friends to come over for a housewarming. We did it two weeks ago on Sunday afternoon. I cooked this siomay Bandung and my husband cooked fried noodle. One of the guests said that she had not had siomay for two years, she was so happy that I served it on that day..and I am happy it's all gone in a blink of eye..(even though I had to face some complaining neighbors for the loud noise that we made that day...).

Ingredients:
- 800gr of fish paste (you may use other meat too)
- 800gr of shrimp, discard the shell, head and tail
- wonton skin, available frozen in Asian store
- 3 bitter melon, cut into half lengthy, then cut again 5cm in length and discard the seeds. To minimize the bitterness, soak in salted water for at least 20min
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 4 cloves of small red onion
- 3 green onion, chop thinly
- 3Tbsp of fish sauce
- 3Tbsp of oyster sauce
- 1Tbsp of sugar
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 3Tbsp of corn starch



Side dishes:
- 6 boiled eggs, discard the shells and cut into 4 each
- 4 blocks of tofu, cut into 8 triangle pieces each and steam
- 20 small red washed potato, boil
- cabbage, cut into small pieces, steam
- peanut sauce/dressing, see the recipe here
- sweet soy sauce
- hot chili sauce
- lime juice

Directions:
In a chopper or food processor, put garlic, onion and shrimp and then process it until smooth. Transfer it in a mixing bowl and add ground pork, mix it well. Add the rest of the ingredients, except bitter melon and wonton skins, mix it really well (remember to add the corn starch the last). If you think the mixture is too dry, add fish sauce, do not add water. If it is too dry, add corn starch.
To make the siomay, using a teaspoon, take one teaspoon of the mixture at a time and place it in the middle of the wonton skin. Then fold the skin up to form a sack and pinch the side of it using fingers, let the top of it opened to air contact. Do it again and again for half of the mixture. Use the other half to fill the bitter melon. Steam all of them for 30-45minutes.
To serve, arrange some of the siomay, bitter melon, potato, tofu, cabbage, and egg in a plate. Then pour the peanut dressing on top. Add sweet soy sauce and hot sauce as you wish. Drizzle the lime juice over.