My Wonky Pizza

Ok, actually I regret that this post will be about my rant only, sans picture as a proof. Haha. Not that I want to proof anything, but I regret that I didn't take out my phone and snap my pizza, that is wonky but 1000 times better and yummy because I made it myself!! *pat at the shoulder*

Seriously, that's the yummiest pizza I ever had!!! Dang the picture!

So finally in my whole life, I made pizza from scratch. The base and everything. But we are talking about the base people! The base!

I've been tempted to make it myself because

1) order in general pizza (dominos, pizza hut, canadian pizza) is too junky. I don't like them anymore.. always too salty, too flavourful, too junky as in junk food.
2) higher end pizza (italianies, barbera, etc), is yummy..but lets face it, it's expensive and I can't always have it like all the time, like..oh mann I'm bored for dinner, let's order in Italiannies pizza! Well, it kinda weird and I'm not that rich enough
3) frozen base is....kinda ok, but not that ok and it's priced at around 10ringgit for 2 medium base. Ok lah..but not so worth it (comparing to the taste) and I rather have readymade frozen pizza.

So I was thinking, woman, why don't u make your own pizza base!

The thing is, I'm kinda scared, with the kneading and yeast and whatnot..not the process, honestly if I think carefully now, I'm scared if my pizza is blah! LOL!

Hard to admit it you know.

So last night, I faced my fear and measure some flour, brew some yeast with water and sugar, sprinkle some salt, dash some olive oil, knead knead and knead. let it to rest and rise, then knead again. Made some simple topping which is seasoned shredded chicken with pineapple chunk, and pepperoni laden with cheese.

And mannn...the-most-delicious-pizza-ever!

And guess what, my husband siap cakap tiba-tiba, ok so u decide, to buy actifry/airfryer or breadmaker first? Like seriousssllyyy? Because I've been pestering him to buy me breadmaker since I want to make pizza base and bread (typical spendthrift wife symptom) and he said, noooo I don't see we will make bread that often and we can always buy the base and better buy airfryer and suddenly, he changed his mind? Just because my wonky pizza base? LOL!

Oh yeahh..about that wonky pizza.. typically me, I just don't know how to do it, and I don't know how to roll it, so I just pull the dough outside and somehow it doesn't look round, not even squarish, in fact, I don't know what shape is that!! Gagagaga.

And my husband even said, we need to buy pizza pan for our next pizza! I feel like to do the ROFL literally . Woww..my wonky pizza and the impact.

Since I don't have the picture to feast your eyes, I'll post the before and after of the dough. Apparently that's the only picture I took that day, because I want to see is the dough really rise up.

And oh ya, the motive I didn't snap the pizza photo is because I am too upset with the shape at first that I refused to save the moment, and after we bite it, we were busy eating that yummy thing and our hands kinda messy so I forget the phone 

No recipe! Because I am not sure if I get it right. But basically it's 2cups flour + pinch of salt + 1tsp olive oil, 200ml warm water + 1tsp sugar + 1 1/4 tsp dry yeast (add to the flour mixture after the yeast mixture is alive - it makes few bubbles then arise to the top of the water, in about 15-20mins). The original recipe is from salam2benua.blogspot.com and I lost the direct url but u can google it up :- resepi pizza salam dua benua :P

I keep on adding the flour until my dough feels right (not sticking, like the melting cheese to my fingers). So I don't know how many cups of flour that I used. Really. And it's normal white flour, not bread flour or self raising one.

Wonky pizza aside, I love this instant pizza from Dr Oetker. It doesn't taste that instant and act as a quick fix on our lazy days. I've been stocking it up but I'm not sure on the nutrition though. But my fav is Spinaci and the spinach taste so yummy even Zahra loves it (and she hates all vege except for broccoli).

Going crazy with butter cake

We made butter cake last few weekends. It is the easiest recipe I've ever found and not to mention with easiest techniques too, basically you just dump everything and mix it, and they still turn out delicious with nice buttery texture. 

The original recipe was for cupcakes, I've tried it the cupcake way but MrComot request it in cake form so here we are.

Zahra saw this this heart shaped cake pan at Giant and insist to have it.

 I let them do all the creaming and mixing..I help with measuring the stuff and Zahra dumps everything into the mixer. The best part is going crazy with the sprinkles. I had to warn them so many times, don't overdo it, else it's going to be super sweet.

A little bit on the brown side as I put it 190 celcius according to the recipe, but it brown too fast so I lower it down to 150 celcius. It's either something wrong with my oven or different ovens really act differently. So test it and use your hunch! Well, the accurate way will be to use a fancy oven thermometer but I am no a baker so it doesn't matter to me, as long it bakes and edible. So hunch is way to go hahaha.

The recipe was taken from this book that I bought during Big Bad Wolf 2012. 

It's for chocolate chip cupcake, but I omit the chocolate chips and replace it with raisins and sprinkles. This will make 6 cupcakes, so I triple it for the cake. (Pls click for a clearer recipe)

 The texture

Sooooo buttery and yummy! It's a very simple but hearty butter cake. MrComot loves this version of butter cake and request me to make it every week. I on the other hand, prefer fancier cake, like orange and peanut butter, or coffee and pecan, well something like that. But this is very easy and you just need the everyday stuff - egg, sugar, butter, self raising flour. Just that. No milk, or buttermilk, or cream, etc. And with easy technique to. Cream everything, then fold with flour.

The best part is...since it doesn't need any fancy method or ingredients, your kids can be the baker! You guys are going to have a lot of fun together, err...minus the mess! But oh well, mess is part of the fun too! At least if you look it that way hehehe. So, have fun!! ;)

La Bodega's Sauteed Mushroom

Just want to share this one simple recipe. I'm not even sure if it's correct, but it tastes the same, so that will do for now :)

We went to La Bodega's about a couple of weeks ago for some heart birthday luncheon with my friends. It was my idea to go there since none of us ever taste Spanish food or go to La Bodega, and reading some raves on the internet, well, we decided to give a try.

Being a first timer, we chose the menu carefully, basically the typical food like sauteed mushroom in butter (their tapas selection). It is served with a basket of bread and the mushroom is a dip.

And oh boyyyy..it's so yummy! Well, anything mushroomy always yummy :D

Anyway, I checked out the menu's description and it's written, mushroom sauteed with butter, garlic and parsley. The simple ingredient really amuses me, I mean, how come only 3 ingredients can give the bursting flavor. I suspect they cheat the menu and put some cream or milk.

Then, I bought a packet of white button mushroom and tried it at home, just for the sake of curiosity  and tell you what, it's real! I mean, only with the 4 ingredients. Amazeballs.

La Bodega's sauteed mushroom. 

My mushroom. Look the same right? Taste the same too!

Ok, I know this is ridiculously easy, but I'm gonna write it here, well, for fun, because it is easy to type too hehehe.

Ingredients:
1 packet of fresh white button mushroom (250g)
Quarter of butter (I just used buttercup)
Chopped parsley (I used dried parsley flakes)
4 cloves of garlic - sliced

How To:

Dump the butter together with the garlic under medium fire
Wait till it sizzles a bit (to get the garlic infused butter flavour)
Then dump the sliced button mushroom
Stir stir stir
Basically the mushroom will be soaked in the butter.
Dump the parsley.
Stir stir stri
The mushroom will be soaked even more, due to the water excess from the mushroom
Sprinkle some salt and maybe flour to thicken it up. But it's nice at it is..depends on your consistency preference.

Done! 

Serve it hot and dip it right away!

We had chicken porridge that night, so dengan chicken porridge pun jadi. But sangat pelik la the combo hahaha.

Anywayyyyyy..after finishing the whole bowl buttery stuff without hesitation *cough* *cough* something strucked me, ooohhh myyy Goddd, what have I done to my artery!

Haha not that dramatic actually, considering I've gobbled a slab of 250g whole butter that is turned to choc-chip cookies. So a quarter is nothing right?

But you can't see that slab of butter in your cookies. On the other hand, it's really a show-off with your sauteed mushroom, so it kinda scares me. So I think I should substitute half of the butter with EVOO in the future. Maybe it won't taste the same, but something worthy to try.


Ok, enough about the mushroom, lets back to the La Bodega's, I was feeling fancy and decided to order the seafood paella

And guess what, rasa macam nasi goreng tomyam je! Not that it wasn't not nice, in fact it was delish but RM70 for "nasi goreng tomyam"? Ughhh.. I know cooking paella is not the same as we cook our fried rice, but oh well, it doesn't matter to me. Haha..I guess, that's why I wasn't born as a Spaniards.

Easy Sotong Goreng Tepung

Tell you what, this is the easiest sotong goreng tepung (fried calamari rings) I found online and the best part is, it works! I have this fear with deep frying squid, that it will pop and the hot oil will scattered on my face. It's scary ok! So I never make sotong goreng tepung until recently because I feel like to have it soooo bad! 

We got fresh squid from Bagan Lalang and it's so tempting so I browse around for the easiest, most convincing and fool proof recipe and I found it here: http://www.myresipi.com/top/detail/4014

Ingredients:

squid - cut into rings

1 cup flour

1tsp baking powder

1 egg

salt and pepper

Steps:

1) wash squid and drain it well, can dab with kitchen towel for assurance

2) marinate the rings with salt and pepper

3) mix the flour and baking powder together

4) whisk the egg lightly, then coat the rings with egg, and then with the flour

5) deep fry for about 4-5 mins (don't make it too long, to avoid overcooked)

I made this twice, experimenting a bit and this what I found:

1) Don't skimp on the oil. First time I made it turn out so nice, but second time, I lessen the oil (the oil merely covering the squid, hence not the deep frying) my squid turns soggy, a little bit like sotong rebus.

2) I think it's better to use white egg only to coat the squid, because it will avoid the froth in the oil

3) You can add cayenne or curry powder in the flour for a little kick

Other than that, this recipe is definitely a go because it's so easy. I had the fried calamari with Thai Sauce and Japanese style mayonnaise and both are equally yummy! And one more thing, don't be afraid of the squid, it won't pop!

Easy Peasy Chicken Stock

Dah lama tak share pasal makanan Zahra.. Her diet is pretty much the same, I just give whatever I have in hands, but her main meal will be soup that we cook every morning. The babysitter will use to soup to mix with her freshly cooked rice in the afternoon. Then I still prepare her fruits puree (apple+pear) for evening snack because she loves this so so so much. She never gets tired of it so far. For dinner I just feed whatever we having on the dinner table, but normally she doesn't eat much because most of the time she is satisfied with milk.

The thing with soup is, we don't have many options because we only have beef and chicken in the fridge. So it always be chicken soup and beef soup. And Zahra doesn't like beef, I don't know why. She will take the soup, not the meat.

Sometimes I made tofu soup as she loves tofu very much. I normally mix it with some chicken to get the chicken broth, but the flavour is not that intense, that's when I decided to make it with chicken stock.

What you need:

Chicken carcass
Any root vegetables - I used potato, carrot, celery
Onions
Some peppercorn - I just used raw blackpepper

It depends on the recipe, some call for garlic and herbs like thyme, bay leaves, etc but that doesn't come in handy so, I just throw whatever I have in hands. It's nothing specific really, the main character will be the chicken carcass :D

Dump everything in a big pot. Fill up with lotsa water. If you want to be very specific, you can search for chicken stock recipe and they will guide how many litre for a carcass, but I didn't bother much so I add it to the brim.

Bring it to boil, and let it simmer with slow fire for few hours - 3-4 hours. You may skim the excess fat that is floating whenever you see it. You can simmer it covered on uncovered. Kalau uncovered, air tu akan berkurang. But don't add water from time to time ok, kalau mcm tu tak dpt stock lah. Anyway I simmer it covered because my pot's lid ada small hole to let the hot air come out, so the broth won't spill while it's boiling.

Let the stock cooled and you can pack it into small portion (I used the breastmilk liner, about 4oz each) and keep it in the freezer. It can last like normal food up to 2-3 months. Edited: To store, discard everything, just keep the liquid/soup. I was a bit sayang to throw the carrot and potato, so I gave it to Zahra, but she doesn't really like it, sebab the taste dah hilang kut hehe. Only the fibre.

The stock making is so easy and convenient. You can use the chicken stock in almost everything - instant noodle soup, tom yum base, vegetable soup, etc etc.

I use it for Zahra's tofu soup. Sauteed some sliced garlic, add the chicken stock, add some water if needed, dump cubed soft tofu and done! :D


Anyway, I read somewhere that it's best if you can brown the chicken carcass in the oven before turn it into stock. I tried this step in my second time making the stock, but not much different on the taste. Maybe I didn't brown it long enough.


And the chicken carcass is only RM2 or so in Giant ;)

MrComot's Twist

Hyeeee..how are you guys? Any Monday blues? Hehehe

Last weekend was a fruitful one. My house is super cleaned, including the bathrooms, windows and fans! Hahhh no pat at my back, all is because weekend maid! Haha. Not that I'm lazy okay.. We just can't finish cleaning the whole house on the weekend. Maybe not cekap enough :(

Anyway this is my first time taking part time maid. It is RM75 for 2 person for 3 hours, and they managed to clean everything, including wash the porch! Not too bad eh? They arrived at 8AM when I'm just woken up and still in my pajamas, dengan semangat berkobar-kobar "Ok kak! Kita start atas atau bawah dulu?" Seriously, such enthusiasm caught me in the act and I was so gelabah ok, OMG mana nak bagi penyapu nak bagi vacuum, berus..and what to do..seriously my brain can't start that early. But fret not, they know their thing, I don't have to instruct anything.

Anyway since the house is sparkling clean, I refused to cook because afraid of staining the kitchen can? Haha..so end up ordered in pizza. Even though I said no eating out doesn't mean we can't have outside food but inside the house eh? We even ordered the pizza online! Ahh the wonders of living in technology era :D

But outside food will always be outside food. Too much sodium, not healthy, and not satisfying. So we decided to have home-cooked meal for dinner and at the same time minimize the risk of messing our kitchen as much as we can. Bake chicken, Jamie's style it is! :P

Zahra was a bit cranky and I need to attend her til her sleep time, so MrComot cook everything from scratch. Including cleaning the chicken! Oh my..I'm so proud of him (and geram at the same time, because bila ni I nak tunjuk skill ni!!! skill yang tak ada gagagaga).

So this is what we had for last Saturday's dinner, readied just nice right after I put Zahra to bed.

Lemon Rosemary Chicken Thigh

We were so full with pizza on the day, so just have it with lotsa greens. Don't be fooled by the dark brown skin. The skin is crunchy with a little bit chewiness and the meat is sooooo juicy and tender!

Here is the exact recipe for 2 :D
2 chicken thigh - cleaned
1 stalk of rosemary - chopped
1 lemon - squeezed
Salt and pepper to taste
Condiments (onions, garlic, potatoes, tomatoes - anything you like)

Marinate everything, the longer the better, we marinate just about 45mins, lined your oven tray with aluminium foil, placed everything inside, we used onions and tomatoes only, bake (up and down) at 250 degrees for 45 mins and voila!

It's indeed a very simple meal but fulfilling. And no mess! Just an oven, 2 plates and 2 pairs of fork and knife. Ohh and chopping board, strainer, of course but still! No extra wok or smokey house after that.

And the best thing is, the cost is like RM10 only!!

Chicken - RM5
Rosemary - RM2
Lemon - 50sen
Baby tomatoes - Rm2
Salad - leftover frm last weekend but if you buy the new one is like RM2-4 I think..

The most important is, it's healthy.

I'm starting to watch what I eat and learn to love healthy diet because I want to live longer healthily! But right now still can't get rid of the sugar crave. I take chocs and boxed fruit juice everyday (they are spoiled sweet!). Have to do it bits by bits ;)

Dinner with Little One

I supposed to start working yesterday (Monday) but Zahra's babysitter requested for a leave today, so I decided to extend my maternity leave 2 more days.

Yesterday was a challenge day because it is my first time I was left alone at home with Zahra, but I think I did a good job as a Domestic Goddes on the run (ha ha ha) as I managed to cook dinner for us! Only I didn't manage to fold the clothes, do the laundry, sweep the floor, etc. Haiyohh..susah rupanya jadi housewife.

Anyway this is my first time cooking after soooo long. I decided to whip out something simple so it can be eaten fresh and hot when MrComot's back. I prepared everything at noon and start cooking once MrComot arrived.

I just pan grill salmon, since it is small pieces, I make it three. With basic marinate but it suits salmon very well, trust me. Salt + pepper + chilli flakes.

Then using the same skillet, fry minced garlic with diced tomatoes. I used 4 cloves garlic and 2 medium ripe tomatoes.

Boil spaghetti ahead, then toss it and then dump into the skillet. Sprinkle some pepper, just for a distinct taste because salmon already has loud flavour. I also add a dash of Maggi chicken granule but you can omit this if you want to be totally healthy, no big difference.

And voila! Our dinner! I wish I can bake some vege but my option for vege still very limited (most of them are 'cold' and I still pantang, like mushroom, brinjal, zucchini)

By the way, this is my first time making salad dressing. I tried the French Dressing (forgot the link but it's pretty simple as I can memorize it)

Original recipe request

Olive oil

Brown sugar

Lemon juice (I replace with apple cider vinegar)

Black pepper

Paprika (replaced with chili flakes - free from Dominos)

Halved garlic

Pinch of salt

Don't have exact measurement, agak-agak je, and surprisingly it is good! I mean, I like this type of dressing. But I bet lemon will make it better than ACV.

Mix everything, shake well and keep refrigerated for a night (I think, dun really remember) but I just made it that noon.

It was a really satisfying dinner, maybe because both of us love salmon but the spaghetti and salad was good as well. Anyway, I planned to have a 'dinner-for-two' where we can eat peacefully and talk, really talk without disturbance. So I feed Zahra in advance, make sure she's full and comfy and on the aircond, put her on the bed and make sure she sleeps before we eat.

And guess what?

The moment we dunk our fork in the spaghetti, she woke up and made noises. So in the end we have to take turn eating while one of us layan her borak. Nottttiiii girl! Tak bagi mummy and daddy dating kejap even in the house.

Oh ya..by the way, when MrComot arrived that evening, I greet him with a kiss at the door and he said;

"Best nyaaa..balik kerja ada wifey sambut macam ni"

And that night we really talk about me being housewife. Main reason is because it's heartbreaking to send Zahra to babysitter because she is a boobies-baby. I tried to give her via bottle before and she can take it, only she will cry and wail macam kena dera! Have to pujuk-pujuk her saying things like 'sayang..sama je..susu mummy jugak..minum la..mummy suap ni' bla bla bla and after a while baru she takes it within sobbing. Mana la tak sedih..

MrComot doesn't mind me being a hw but we have to take things slowly. I have to have my own plan as well, can't simply quit like that. What I'm going to do as extra thing at home, I know I'll barely have time for the extra thing once I become full time housewife because they are so many things I have to do, but that's not the excuse. I still need to nurture my personality and skills. I have so many plans (craft la, baking la, sewing la, PR la) but my biggest weakness is no strong will.

Hmmm..we'll see how la later. But for now Zahra, you go to babysitter first ok sayang? Sorrrryyyyyyy :(

Oklah..gotta go sidai baju pulak. Daaaa!

The Sweet New Year

Hi all,

Happy 2010!!!!

How are you guys doing so far? With the resolutionssss and all hehehe..

We didn't celebrate much this year (as if we did previously, duh~~), but we went to the Curve on 31st evening only to find out that they are having this big concert with a lot of prominent artists!

MrComot: Kalau you tak preggy me dah ajak u stay to watch the fireworks

Haha..seriously, I don't have that energy to join the crowd la. Terberanak kang.. We were out from the Curve right before the rush, around 6PM.

Jaclyn Victor rehearsing

Other thing also changed since I'm heavily pregnant, we didn't host MrComot's ritual BBQ party (he's been doing this every year before married to me). But I think the other fellas also not that available that day since nobody 'kepochi' about it.

Since we only have each other that night and nothing in the freezer for dinner and both are to lazy to go out, I decided to whip out a simple pancake recipe taken from here - Pinkstilettos. I made half of the batter by the way. Again, this is my first time doing it and it's super easy, so I highly recommend this mix.

It's more or less like making a 'lempeng' only that, lempeng is very traditional, only flour + water + egg + salt whilst this mat salleh recipe have to add milk and oil. Since it's easy peasy, I don't have any tips to share only that be careful not to burn it!!

Like we did on the first pancake haha

The other pancakes turn out beautiful

Our new stock (this is why we went to Curve previously, just to get this!) - choc chip, nutty coconut, belgium choc cake, and rum & raisins. The Curve outlet has limited choices by the way, I'm still waiting for baseball nut and love potion :(

MrComot's - he 'design' this himself ok. We have this competition, whose pancake look nicer, boleh? If u notice, siap ada cherry toinggg sebijik on the smaller pancake hahaha. He's not a fan of cherries, but for the sake of photographing..sabar jer la.

Mine, stacked with lotsa berries and cherries.

MrComot was so funny ok. He refused my snapshot because he said I made his pancake look ugly. Eeiiiii.... so I let him taking all the shots and you should see him - with acrobatic positions to snap his pancake :P

So whose is nicer? :P

We had this in front of the TV watching channel-to-channel. We planned to eat Maggie mee if still hungry afterwards but surprisingly, the pancake is really fulfilling. Too bad we didn't have honey in hand, I can have it on its own without the choc sauce and icecream.

So that will be our new year celebration this year.

Talking about this I remember that I never really have resolution for the previous years because I don't see the point of having it (and not achieving it lalala) but I have ONE this year!

I determine to cook more in order to save more so that I can have more savings and use the money, hmmm for a lot of leisure thing! Yeayy! Can't wait to do this, semangat ni hehehe

Oh ya, other than material thing, I want to be a better person, spiritually but that one goes without saying I guess.

So what's urs?


Wishing you guys a great year ahead and enjoy ur life to bits ok! Mwahhhhhhhhhh

Simple menu on gloomy day

I think dah banyak kali kut I write here I rarely cook. Rarely means, sangat JARANG mcm jaring ikan tu ok hahaha. If I'm not mistaken, I only cook 3-4 times during my pregnancy. That will be 3-4 times spread into 8 months!

Actually, I have the urge to cook but during the weekdays, MIL cook for everyone, so thanks mommy! And the weekend pulak we are out most of the time, looking for baby stuff and all, takkan gigih nak balik masak kan. And last weekend, weather has been gloomy and all, and I am so tired of outside food. So I decided to cook something simple.

It's very easy that I am itchy to post it here. I know semua orang tahu nak buat this dish but just in case you don't know what to have for tonite, so after looking at the pictures, terus ada idea :P

It's already late when we finally decide to cook, 6.30 PM baru rush out to Giant to find the stuff. Oh ya, we had grilled salmon with roast vegetables that night, yummy!

Bought the frozen one from Giant as all the fresh salmon look...not fresh? Very pale orange and lembikkk! So I rather have the frozen one. This one packed by First Choice and I will say it's quite good.

MrComot marinate the fillet with seasoned salt, pepper and a bit more rock salt.

My roast vegetables - onions, tomatoes, carrots on a bed of brown mushroom. Stash a handful of olive oil, 2 table spoon apple cider vinegar, rock salt, and coarse black pepper and roast in in the oven at 180 degrees for about 25mins. Boil the carrot first ok, kalau tak keras la. You can replace the vegetable with any kind that you like (broccoli, zucchini, capsicum, brinjal, etc)

The outcome - sedappppp! That I can finish it all just like that.

My salmon and vege. Honestly we thought this meal won't satisfy our stomach and we need to eat other food after that, but we are full to the max! Very filling and satisfying.

Just look at the big chunk. Nyum nyum!

It's not only easy to prepare, but also super easy to clean after. No extra pot, no messy kitchen. All you need is an oven and casserole.

Oh ya, it's not really recommended for pregnant ladies to take salmon because of the mercury thingy but I read that the mercury level in salmon is very low (won't harm you) compared to the benefit you will gain (Omega3), so I guess it's fine then. It's not everyday dish right ;)

Homemade Soya Bean Milk

We made soya bean milk 2 days ago. It was our first attempt and I was so surprised to find out that it is EASY PEASY!

We've been wanting to do this since our last 'balik kampung' (during fasting month I think) when my father made this milk. My father has this hobby to blend his own fruit juices especially during Ramadhan. Another reason is I 'feel' it is cleaner and safer to consume anything homemade, no extra sugar, no preservatives, and the most important thing, using clean utensils! (Just imagine the seller out there making soy bean in bulk everyday! Mesti cincai-cincai. Hahaha pandai2 je claim like that)

Since it is so easy, I want to share with you guys how we made it.

We bought ORGANIC soy bean (organic laaaa kononnya extra sihat :P) and it is priced at about RM7 per 500g. Trust me it's worth it! We only use about 100g that night and the outcome = 3 liter!

Soak the beans overnight. We soaked it during the morning because we want to process it at night. However according to my mom, you can even soak it for 2 hours. It may work for normal beans only (I think so) as this organic one mcm susah nak tanggal the skin from the beans, so I think better overnight.

Wash the beans throughly after that until no weird smell and while doing it, try to remove the skin from the beans as much as you can.

Add few cups of water and blend it. I didn't really measure, just adjusting according to the beans.

Then strain it in a big pot. That's the biggest pot we have, courtesy of my mom *nanges*. Oh ya, please use 'kain kasa' as a strainer as it is very fine and suitable to remove the micro pulp.

Milk it!

Reuse the pulp as it still contain a lot of milk. I blend the pulp with water 3 more times.

Until it becomes stiff like this. I wonder if we can use this to make something, like foo chok or beancurd?

Cook your milk with slow fire, stirring it occasionally and don't forget to scoop out the excessive foam. I don't know what the effect if you don't throw it away, but that's what my parent do. Oh ya, don't forget to stash some sugar, depending on your liking. I put about 10 table spoons for 3L, just for a hint of sweetness.

After your milk boiled, turn off the fire and keep on stirring it until you think it's ok to stop. We didn't stir sampai sejuk (tak larat makkk), we stirred for about 30mins or so je I think.

Then it's ready, hot or chill!

We keep it in the fridge and it's been 3 days, the soy milk still good like the first day we made it and spelled TAAASSSSTYYYY.

Give it a try as it is very simple and a healthier choice. Oh yaa, just don't do it during working days..because u have to wait up until it is totally cool before shove it in the fridge. MrComot wait up until 2AM for this *isk isk*

Chilis Mushroom Jack Chicken

I was a bit disoriented these few days and that explains the silence in this blog. My life still running as usual, only I don't have passion to write anything about it. I think it's about time for me to break the shell, I need to start writing! Because I know, one day I will read and giggling over my posts :D

I rarely cook since my pregnancy because I don't have the heart to do so. Luckily MrComot is not a fussy eater either, so we eat out almost every weekend.

Last few weeks, we were too lazy to go out for lunch. I remember that I have few shrinking button mushroom in the fridge and thinking of having my fav Chilis's Mushroom Jack, so I decided to google up in case I can make something similar to it instead of eating out, and guess what? There is a TOTAL match!!

http://www.ehow.com/how_2289095_make-chilis-mushroom-jack-chicken.html

I follow exactly what the recipe said except I don't marinate my chicken with cumin because I think cumin is weird (don't you think so?) And of course, I was so lazy to do the condiments for tortillas, so I substitute it with pita bread.

The main ingredient:
fresh button mushroom (I use combination of white and brown), 1 medium capsicum (if you like bell pepper, you can put more), 1 big onion (I think it's better for you to use yellow onion. I use red because it's all I have in hands)

Slice 'em all. Oh ya, while you are at it, marinate your chicken strips

I marinate mine with seasoned sea salt and blackpepper. Normal salt will do.

After finish slicing the vege, fry you chicken with flaring hot fire. This to make the outer meat brown but yet, not to overcook your chicken.

Then throw in the onions and capsicum. It will be prettier if you add green and yellow capsicum as well.

Lastly, throw in the sliced mushroom. I add a pinch of salt by this time, and some coarse blackpepper.

Ok, now I don't know why it turned out so brownnn like you dash in soy sauce. But believe me, I add nothing! Maybe the color comes from the mushroom. The one in Chilis also this color right?

If you are a cheese lover, top it with lotsa cheese and bake it for another 10mins. The original recipe suggest for us to use Jack cheese. I just grabbed what I had in hands, mozarella I think. But believe me, it tastes wonderful even without the cheese.

Since I was so lazy to make the tortilla stuff, I just use pita bread. Pan fry it a bit (without oil) instead of bake it because I think it's faster. And it is! I just left the bread few seconds longer and it burnt!

Our lunch that day. Additional of sweet cherry tomatoes and cold lychee *drool*

The bread is a bit dry, so you can add on mayonnaise or butter. Yum!

And it is double yum to be eaten on its own! See how this dish caramelized? I think it's from the mushroom as I didn't add any water at all.

Btw, I was so surprised to see how well it turned out. I mean, it really tastes like Chilis Mushroom Jack! Ok, minus the sizzling plate. But still, comparing how simple the ingredient and the way to prepare, it is a gem! Oh not to forget that MrComot lovesssss it so much :">

This recipe is a must keep. Maybe I'll do it again properly, with tortilla, cream cheese, tomato salsa, etc etc :D


Happy weekend darlings mwahhhhhhh