Cup Julienne (Pie Tee)

Traditionally, this recipe is to make Pie Tee (top hats). The ingredients usually calls for Yam bean but I have altered the recipe with ingredients that are easily available in the supermarket here. So yam bean has been substituted with swede. Of course, you can use the original ingredient of Yam bean if you can get it at your nearest supermarket.

Photo via Hanamemories

The traditional case can be easily bought in Malaysia but there isn't any available here so instead of making the traditional cups from scratch which I deem tedious, I have created an alternative way of making a cup / top hat to stuff the fillings. Wonton skin was used and it only takes a couple of minutes to make it so nothing as complicated as making mixture and deep frying each and every case.

Cup Julienne / Pie Tee Recipe

serves 6

Ingredients:

• Vegetable oil
• 20 wonton skin / wrapper
• 3 cloves garlic (minced)
• 300g yam bean / jicamma (julienne) *I used swede
• 2 large carrots (julienne)
• 1/2 caup water
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce to taste
• ground white pepper to taste

• spring onion (thinly sliced)
• fried shallots

Methods:

1.  Preheat oven at 180^oC. Brush some oil on a mini cupcake tray. Place a square piece of wonton skin. wrapper in each cupcake mould. Brush with more oil over the wanton skin so it takes the shape of the cup. Place the tray in the preheated oven and bake for a few minutes until golden brown. Repeat. Be careful not to bake for too long as it turns golden really quickly. When the cups are ready, remove the wonton skin cups and place on a wire rack to cool.

2.  Heat some oil on the wok and sauté garlic, then add yam bean and carrots, and fry for 1 minute. Add water and cook until water is reduced and absorbed. Then add soy sauce to taste. Cook until moisture is reduced so it will not make the casing soggy when assembled.

3.  Scoop a spoonful of cooked yam bean and carrots into the baked wonton skin cup. Make sure to squeeze out any moisture if any. Serve with some sprinkling of spring onions and fried shallots.

Tips:

• Yam bean / jicama is a little difficult to get in London so if you are unable to get it near you, substitute with swede. It tastes as good.
• Wonton skin can also be substituted with filo pastry. 

    

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Salad with tomatoes from the garden

Just as we left P's home in France, his parents gave us a whole box of fruits and vegetables from their garden. Fresh prunes, apricots, nectarines, courgettes, lavender and tomatoes. They gave us too much that we had to freeze some of those fruits up for when we make smoothies. 

So here we are, back in London with overload of fruits and tomatoes. I love it that I know who grew these babies. As these are such good tomatoes, they are best eaten just as, or slightly enhanced with a little sprinkle of sea salt and extra virgin olive oil. With some black pepper if you like. It's really up to you but keep them as close to its original state as possible.

Tomato salad

You won't believe how tomatoes organically grown on the garden differs from those mass produced for supermarkets. It is meaty in flesh and is packed with all its original flavour and juiciness. This is when you realise that supermarket tomatoes won't cut it. 

Maybe it is time to be living in a space with garden. Do you grown your own tomatoes? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
  

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Steamed Cabbage and Carrots

The last recipe I posted was the ‘Tau Eu Bak’ (Soy SauceBraised Pork) recipe. Along with it, I also made this steamed cabbage to make the meal complete with some vegetables. So if you are also making the soy sauce braised pork, this can be made a few minutes before the braised pork is ready. As cabbage and carrots are naturally sweet vegetables, only minimal seasoning was needed to enhance it so its natural flavour could shine on its own. 

Steamed Cabbage and Carrots

Ingredients:

• ½ head of cabbage
• 2 small carrots (sliced)
• 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
• 3 tbs water (or more)
• Dash of soy sauce and sesame oil to taste

Method:

1.  Wash and roughly cut the cabbage into big chunks.

2.  On a hot pan of medium heat, pour a little oil and sauté the garlic until fragrant.

3.  Place the carrots and cabbage into the pan then add about 3 tbs of water, cover and let them steam until  vegetables are slightly softened.

6.  Add a small dash of soy sauce and sesame oil to taste and stir to combine. 

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Watermelon & Goats Cheese

Whoever combined watermelon and goats cheese together is a genius!! Who would have thought the two would be match made in heaven. I vaguely remember seeing watermelon and goats cheese somewhere on the web and thought what crazy person would put those two together in their mouth?! I am now one of those crazy person.

To be frank, it was just a coincidence that I made this appetizer. One day after my third Bokwa class on my way to the tube station, I passed by Sainsbury's and thought I will buy some food back. And out of the ordinary, I bought goats cheese for the second time. The first time I had it, I did not like it at all but after so many years, I thought it is about time for me try it again to make sure I really hate it so I will never go near that thing again. Of course I was being quite a coward by getting the milder version, ranked number 2 on its maturity level.

When I got home to stock my refrigerator with food, I saw that quarter of a watermelon and thought this is the perfect time to try the food I never thought tastes good on its own and together. I meant goats cheese and, combination of goats cheese and watermelon. I love watermelon!! I had one bite with the two together and man, they are really meant for each other. I think they are the perfect couple.



I have shared the version I made in the recipe below. Hope you like it too. And if you have not tried this before, open up and try this at least once.

This is such a simple and healthy food.

WATERMELON & GOATS CHEESE RECIPE

• Watermelon


• Goats cheese
  
  
  
  • for vegetarians, please use a substitute cheese
  
  
  
  


• Alfalfa sprouts


• Mint

Method:

1. For the more casual style, cut the watermelon in cubes. De-seed them if needed. Crumble the goats cheese on to the bowl of cubed watermelons. Add some chopped mint and alfalfa sprouts. Mix them all together and eat to your hearts content.


2. If you are making this for a dinner party or just want to make pretty appetizer, cut the watermelon with a circle food ring so it looks neat round. Top it up with a bunch of alfalfa sprouts stacked neatly on top of the watermelon. Scoop the goats cheese on top and add a few leaves of mint.

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Salmon and Mango Salsa Stack

There was a fat juicy mango sitting in the fridge for the past days, waiting to be eaten. I was just going to criss-cross cut each half, push the cubes out by flipping the skin inside out and devour the juicy sweet meaty flesh, cube by cube off the skin when I sit home and relax, not think about anything but chill on a Friday night.





Instead of just simply enjoying my beloved fruit on its own, she was very carefully prepared to be married with smoked salmon. I came across the 'scallop with gingered mango-tomato salsa' post on DorieGreenspan’s blog and thought I could spread this idea over to salmon. When I surfed further, I found Health Burst’s site on Salmon stack and  thought it looks stunning and delicious.  So I made my version of salmon stack and initiate my attempt to carefully stack the ingredients in the food ring. It looks really impressive. And it looks like it came straight out of a restaurant kitchen!

So easy and no cooking involved! Brilliantly simple.

My similar version of Healthy Burst's Salmon stack.

SALMON AND MANGO SALSA STACK RECIPE
adapted from the Healthy Burst
Makes 1 stack

Ingredients:

• 60g smoked salmon
• ½ avocado (sliced)

Mango Salsa

• 1 mango (1cm cube)
• 1 tomato (chopped)
• ¼ cucumber (cubed)
• ¼ red onion (finely chopped)
• ½ chilli; deseeded (finely chopped)
• ½ lime
• Small bunch of mint (chopped)
• Salt and pepper (to taste)

Lime Chilli Mayonnaise

• ½ lime
• ¼ chilli
• 1 tbs japanese mayonnaise

Method:

1.  Prepare the lime chilli mayonnaise first. 
2.  Stir the mayonnaise with juice of half a lime and finely chopped chilli. Put aside for later.
3.  Prepare the mango salsa by mixing the ingredients together. Sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.
4.  Place a the cylindrical food ring on the plate you are serving with.
5.  Layer it with the salmon then avocado. Push them down slightly to make sure they are compact.
6.00Top it up with the mango salsa and make sure they are well packed so they keep in shape and will not fall off when the ring is lifted out.
7.  Lift the ring when ready to serve and spoon some of the mayonnaise mix on to the salmon stack.

All ingredients well packed and supported by the ring

Tips:

• I would try make the mayonnaise with a pinch of chilli powder or curry powder the next time.

You may also like:

Halloumi Fig & Pomegranate Salad

Salmon Ceviche

Watermelon & Goat’s Cheese

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