Hungarian Vegetable Stew (Lecsó)

Lunch today - the Lecsó. After nearly 3 years residing in Hungary, this is only my 3rd time round cooking this refreshing dish *blush* Truth is I get nervous when preparing Hungarian dishes 'cos of the expectation and comparison. So, this is the only Hungarian dish that I "mastered" (without the need to refer to the recipe). In my opinion, this stew definitely outshines the internationally famous gulyás (goulash)

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The base or basic ingredients for Lecsó are tomatoes, onions and sweet paprika. Today I've included hard boiled eggs in the stew which tasted well together and finally, they're great with crusty bread :)

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The following recipe was extracted from the internet loooong time ago (sorry, i've lost the link) .

LECSÓ (pronounced - Lecho)
with sausage
serves 6

INGREDIENTS:

5 large onions (cut them into half and slice them)

6 large cubanell or european style of green peppers (sliced into rings)(Do not use green bell peppers they have a bitter flavor.)

4 large very ripe tomatoes peeled and diced. If the skin is hard to peel put them into hot water for a minutes, then try it again.

150g. of bacon (cut into cubes)

250g. of smoked sausage (cut into rings)

1 Tbs. of tomatoe puree

1.1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. grated black pepper

1.1/2 Tbs. of sugar

1.1/2 Tbs. of paprika

METHOD

Fry the bacon cubes medium brown in a large frying pan. If you didn't get enough fat add a few Tbs. of oil. Sprinkle with the paprika and add the sliced onions. Cook it for 2 minutes and throw all the ingrediens and spices into the pan. Cook it for 1/2 hour with occasional stiring.Taste to see if more salt or sugar is needed.

Chinese Laughing Dumplings (笑口棗)

Don't they look mouth-watering? Thanks Do what I like for sharing this wonderful recipe. Taste wise is as good as the ones I usually get during dim sum breakfast or sunday market..light, crunchy on the outside, soft inside with a hint of sweetness!

Only thing to be aware of is the temprature of the oil when frying the dumplings. Do ensure oil is not too hot or dumplings and sesame seeds would burnt rather quickly.
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Chinese Laughing Dumplings (笑口棗) click here for recipe

Peanut cookies

Lately, all I could think about is food!! It doesnt help that there're so many food blogs offering easy recipes. Like this peanut cookies, preparation took me about 30 mins. only.

The first batch was burnt but guess what? I ate the not-too-burnt ones and I'm hooked! So, I baked it again the next day since it's doesnt require too many ingredients and its ready in a jiffy.

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Verdict : One by one they melt in the mouth..oh, very addictive! You should really try it :)

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Note : First trial the cookies weren't sweet enough. So, i've increased to 1/3 cup of sugar following the recipe of the link below

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Peanuts cookies click here for recipe

source : Little corner of mine


(A)
1 1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour/ plain flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
(B)
1/4 cup sugar (or icing sugar for more melt in the mouth texture)
80g ground coarsed roasted/toasted peanuts
(C)
1/3 cup + 2 Tbp. canola oil

1 egg, beaten for egg wash

Method:

1. Sift (A) into a bowl.
2. Add (B), mix well.
3. Add (C), stir with a fork, the mixture will be crumbly.
4. Use your hands, scoop up the mixture and press it into balls. Place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
5. Glaze the peanut cookies with egg wash.
6. Bake at preheated 350'F oven for 20 minutes. 

Banana Lollies

Banana Lollies - the summer must-eat! Normally I don't fancy those colourful candy confetti, its all just to achieve a nicer photograph. But in this case, everything blended so well..will be making again soon.

Banana Lollies
recipe by foodnetwork (i think)

Ingredients :-
Banana
Bittersweet chocolate, choped
Butter, cubed
toasted walnuts, sprinkling
candy confetti, sprinkling

Method :-
1) melt bittersweet chocolate and butter in double boiler.
2) Dip banana into melted chocolate
3) Sprinkle toasted walnuts or any kind of nuts or sweets for extra flavouring
4) Freeze the lollies in the freezer for 15 mins. and its ready

Pasta with Tuna and hot pepper

One of my best discoveries recently is this recipe from SimplyRecipes. It's so simple that I've been cooking it for the past few Mondays..in fact just ate it for lunch again today ...ah very satisfying!

You can check out the original recipe here which uses arugula. Nowadays since preparing it for few occasions, I didn't bother with the quantity as stated and been doing it my own style.

Ingredients
Pasta (any type)
Canned tuna in oil, drained from oil
Chilli flakes, to taste
a clove of garlic, mince
salt and pepper, to taste
olive or canola oil

Mehtod :
1) cook pasta, al dente
2) heat oil in pan on medium heat. Add garlic and chilli flakes, fry til fragrant. Next, add tuna and shred tuna with a fork, continue to cook for a min. or 2.
3) Pour in the pasta, add salt and pepper to taste. Stir-fry a little more and ready to serve.

Roasted Pork Belly (Chinese style)

The recipe is adapted from Lily's Wai Sek Hong. where the pork should be prepared and marinated overnight, which I didn't have time for. To add to my anxiety was the absence of five spice powder , not available at the stores near me. But am not giving up! So, I home-made the 5-spice powder ( DIY recipe) ;) or rather my version of 2-spice powder as I have omitted szechuan peppercorn, fennel seeds, star anise ..hehe

Verdict : Wow! am sure proud of the result despite the skin being a bit rubbery. I think if I have adhered to Lily's recipe 100% the the rubbery skin would not have occured.

Roasted Pork Belly (Chinese style)
adapted from Lily's Wai Sek Hong


Ingredients
600gm Pork belly
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp five spice powder (just used pinch of clove and cinnamon powder)
1 tsp black pepper

Preparation
1) Preheat oven at gas mark 4 (about 180 degrees celcius)
2) Score the skin of pork belly to get a nice crackling effect
3) Dry fry salt, garlic powder, five spice powder and black pepper for few minutes. Add in sugar into mixture.
4) Rub dry ingredients onto meat and marinade overnight or at least 2 hours (i did it in 30 mins :p
5) Place meat on rack of roasting tray with skin side facing up.
6) Roast for about 40 mins.

Note:-
the crackling effect wasn't to my satisfaction, rectify by dry-frying only the skin in a non-stick pan until achieved the desired effect.

Serving :-
Steaming hot rice with chili dipping sauce

Mother's day

Over here mother's day is celebrated on first Sunday of May, meaning last Sunday. I decided on tiramisu for my partner's mom. Added stawberries syrup in between the layers for a little diff. flavour and colour. It is THE easiest and no-fail recipe..and of course everyone loved it :)