Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Recipes for December ~ Month Dedicated to the Divine Infancy




The Month of December is dedicated to the Divine Infancy.

"Mary wraps up a small bundle of clothes for the use of her little Son, and then, going to the crib, she says with tears in her eyes to her sleeping Child, 'O my Son, and my God! Thou hast come from heaven to save men; but hardly art Thou born when they seek to take Thy life.'" ~ 2010 Catholic Calendar


December 3rd, St. Francis Xavier (New, Trad.):


December 6th, St. Nicholas of Myra (New, Trad.):


December 7th, St. Ambrose (New, Trad.):



December 8, The Immaculate Conception (New, Trad.):

December 9th, St. Juan Diego (New):


December 12th, Our Lady of Guadalupe (New, Trad.):


December 27th, St. John the Apostle (New, Trad.):


December 28th, The Holy Innocents (New, Trad.):

December 31st, New Year's Eve :

MORE RECIPES FOR ADVENT:

Throughout Advent :


First Sunday of Advent ~ Stir-Up Sunday :
Second Sunday of Advent :
Third Sunday of Advent :

St. Andrew's Christmas Novena

Hail, and blessed be the hour and moment at which the Son of God was born of a most pure Virgin at a stable at midnight in Bethlehem in the piercing cold. At that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, to hear my prayers and grant my desires. (Mention your intentions here) Through Jesus Christ and His most Blessed Mother. Amen.

Say 15 times a day from St. Andrew's Day (30 November),
ending on Christmas Eve

Posted by at 0 comments
Labels:

The Goodness of YIFON Bottled Mushrooms

Mushrooms have always been a popular add-on ingredients for many homecooked dishes because they are delicious and full of rich nutritional values that can be used in various way of cooking. For busy working adults and parents like myself, cooking can sometime be a hassle that we would like to avoid especially after a long day at work. So I guess what most of us looking for are those quick and easy dishes or some instant products  that helps us to whip up hearty meals within a minimum cooking time.

These Yifon mushrooms are uniquely packed in clear glass bottles that comes in 6 different exotic varieties such as:- Pickled Bailing Mushrooms, Spicy Nameko Mushroom, Spicy Bailing Mushrooms, Assorted Mushrooms, Spicy Golden Mushrooms and Teatree Mushrooms. All these are finest quality of mushrooms that contain no preservatives, artificial colourings and trans-fast which you could easily enjoy straight from the bottle or complement them with either porridge or noodles. In this post I would like to share with you 3 different recipes which I have used some of these delicious instant Yifon Bottled Mushrooms as part of the main ingredients to concoct some lovely dishes for my family.


Note:-
~ These bottled mushrooms are halal-certified and it is also suitable for Vegetarian consumers too.



Have you tried or heard about Teatree Mushroom(茶树菇)? These mushrooms are high in protein, low in fat and sugar content and it also contains plenty of minerals and anti-cancer properties that most mushrooms would claim of. Some of the Chinese physician also recommend these mushrooms which are neutral food that nourishes the Qi (energy) of our body and at the same time boost up our immunity if consumed regularly. So for the first mushroom dish I  would use this YIFON Teatree Mushroom to prepared a tofu dish which you could serve it as starter during gathering or as a main course itself.

This is a very simple dish that requires only two main ingredients such as the unique taste of these teatree mushrooms that pairs well with the bland silken tofu.

Silken Tofu With Yifon Teatree Mushrooms
Preparation Time: 10 Minutes
Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Ingredients: (serves 2 - 4)
1 Bottle of YIFON Teatree Mushrooms
1 Packet of Silken Tofu for Steaming, cut into 6 portions
1 Teaspoon of Minced Garlic
1/2 Tablespoon of Cooking Oil
1 Teaspoon of Sesame Oil
1 Chili, deseed and sliced
Some Chopped Spring Onion

You could easily prepare this dish by using either microwave or steam it using a pot/wok over the stove. Personally I would preferred microwave method which is hassle free and it would also minimize the water content of this dish compared to the normal steaming method.

Method:
1. Remove the tofu from the packaging and place it on the serving plate. Cut it into 6 or 8 equal portions according to your preference.
2. Top each piece of the tofu with your desire amount of YIFON teatree mushrooms together with some extra mushrooms on the surrounding of the tofu.
3. Next heat up a small pan with the mixture of cooking and sesame oil, sauté the minced garlic and chili till fragrant, stir in the chopped spring onion and give it a quick stir before removing the pan from heat.
4. Drizzle the garlic mixture evenly on top of the tofu and cook it in the microwave for about 1 - 1.5 minutes on medium heat powder.
5. Remove the dish and garnish with extra chopped spring onion and serve it warm.


Note:-
~ In order to maintain the taste and texture of the dish, microwave it for 1 minute and check whether the tofu and mushroom have being warm up before continue with the next 30 seconds as different microwaves would varies from its voltage power.

~ As for those using steaming method over the stove, place the tofu dish into the steaming rack only after the water comes to boil, steam it over medium heat for 2 - 3 minutes.



So within less than 10 minutes you could enjoy a plate of delicious steamed silken tofu with teatree mushrooms that is healthy and full of goodness as tofu is also low in calories too.


For busy mum like many others and myself we tend to look for dishes that are hearty and easy to prepare so that we could have some nutritious meals even on busy weekday nights. So for the second recipe I would like to share with you on how I normally prepared my “Braised Brown Rice with Mushrooms” by using one of this instant bottled mushrooms.

For your information Nameko Mushrooms (滑子蘑) is a small and amber brown colour mushroom with a jelly-like coating that is used as an ingredient in most miso soup. From google search this is also one of Japan’s most popular cultivated mushrooms that has a slightly nutty taste too. Here I am using some of these "YIFON Spicy Nameko Mushrooms" to cook a one pot dish together with brown rice and some simple ingredients shown below.

Braised Brown Rice with Spicy Nameko Mushrooms
Preparation Time: 10 Minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes

Ingredients: (serves 2)
1/2 Bottle of YIFON Spicy Nameko Mushrooms
125g (1 Cup) Brown Rice
350ml Hot Water/Chicken Stock
40g Corn Kernels
40g Green Peas
2 Rashes of Bacon, cut into strips
Cut Chili and Spring Onion for garnishing


Note:-
~ You can replace brown rice with normal white rice according to your preference.
~ Frozen mixed vegetables of similar quantity can be used to replace the corn kernel and green peas too.

Brown rice is known to have higher nutritional values as compared to white rice. And when cooked they gives off an aromatic jasmine fragrant with its chewy texture and sweet nutty flavour. But if you are not comfortable with the taste of brown rice, you could always start off with a mixture of brown and white rice and slowly increase the amount of brown rice intakes in your daily diet.

Method:
1. Rinse brown rice a few times and soak it in water for at least 30 minutes if time permits.
2. Heat up a small saucepan using 1 teaspoon of cooking oil, sauté the bacon till golden brown and slightly crispy, remove and set aside.
3. Using the same saucepan throw in corn kernels and green peas then give it a quick stir before adding in the soaked brown rice that has been drained well.
4. Continue to sauté the rice mixture for about 1 minute then pour in either Hot Water or Chicken Stock.
5. When the mixture comes to boil again, lower the heat and simmer the rice for about 20 minutes or so till the rice is soft and the water/stock has almost absorbed.
6. At this stage, toss in the Spicy Nameko Mushrooms and cooked bacon evenly and continue to simmer the rice for another 3 - 5 minutes.
7. Serve hot with extra garnish of chopped chili and spring onion.



Tips:-
~ Soak the brown rice in water for at least 30 minutes prior cooking time to soften the rice for easy cooking but if you are running out of time you could add in extra 50ml more of water to cook the rice.

~ For those using water to cook the rice you can season it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt or chicken stock powder at step 4.



Brown Rice does take a little longer to cook than white rice but the time isn't much longer if you pre-soak the rice for a while and cook using the absorption method. If you do not have any brown rice at home you could still try out this recipe by replacing it with white rice and the end results would still taste as good as brown rice. And for those who has child whom is a picky eater that dislikes most of the vegetables, I am sure they would be delighted to see this colourful dish that is filled with wonderful aroma from the fried bacon and crunchy texture of the Nameko mushrooms.


If you prefer something more westernize with a distinguish flavour compared to those two dishes above perhaps you could try this “Spaghetti Aglio e Olio with Trio Mushrooms”. Aglio e Olio or also known as garlic and oil is a traditional Italian pasta dish that is made without adding any store-bought ingredients. The dish is usually prepared using lightly sautéd minced garlic in olive oil together with some dried chili flakes and garnish with chopped parsley.

For my 3rd recipes I am using YIFON Assorted Mushrooms where you could find 3 different types of mushrooms in the bottle such as "Po-ku(整香菇)", "Golden Mushrooms(金針菇)" and "Button Mushrooms(蘑菇)" which is great for any stir-fried dishes together with either meat or noodles.

And with a bottle or two of this instant assorted mushrooms stored in my kitchen pantry, I could easily whip up our favourite spaghetti anytime without worrying about to look for decent qualities of fresh mushrooms that sometime might not be available in the supermarkets. So here is my ingredients on preparing this pasta dish:-

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio With Trio Mushrooms
Preparation Time: 5 Minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients: (serves 2)
1 Bottle of YIFON Assorted Mushrooms
185g Spaghetti
1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Tablespoon Minced Garlic
1/4 Teaspoon Dried Chili Flakes
1 Medium Tomato, deseed and chopped
Handful of Parsley, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste




Method:
1. Cook spaghetti following packet directions, until al dente. Drain well.
2. Heat a frying pan over medium heat with the olive oil. Add minced garlic and dried chili flakes and saute till the garlic is almost golden brown in colour.
3. Stir in the drained Assorted Mushrooms and give it a quick stir for about 10 seconds before tossing in the cooked spaghetti, chopped parsley and tomato cubes.
4. Toss the mixture well with a tong or long chopstick for another 5 seconds before removing it from heat so that the spaghetti would soak up the flavour from the garlic and chili oil.
5. Lastly season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper before serving.


Note:-
~ You can increase the dried chili flakes to 1/2 teaspoon if you prefer more spicier taste.

~ Increase the amount of minced garlic to 3/4 tablespoon to a richer garlic aroma and taste.

~ Carefully not to burn the garlic otherwise it will turn bitter.



When I first read about this product tasting invitation I was still hesitating on whether to give it a try because our family hardly consume those bottled or canned food products. And in Singapore it also very convenience to purchase fresh mushrooms that is easily available in the supermarkets or etc. But after trying a few types of these bottled mushrooms from Yifon it actually changed my mind set on these instant mushrooms which taste just as good as those fresh mushrooms and most importantly they are also carefully packed with rich nutritional values as well. For more information of these products you can refer to their official website at http://www.yithong.com/.

These instant mushrooms can be purchased at any leading supermarkets at a retail price of S$1.95 per bottle from the canned food department. So why not try to look out for these Yifon bottled mushrooms during your next visit to the supermarket and grab a bottle of two for your pantry and use it to cook your favourite mushroom dishes or serve it straight from the bottle as a topping for porridge or noodles.

Lastly I would like to thanks Daen Ng of Vibes Communications Pte Ltd and YIFON on the invitation to try out their delicious instant bottled mushrooms. And I would also love to hear from those who has tried these mushrooms on some of your feedback and methods on consuming them too.


Posted by at 0 comments
Labels: , , , , ,

Monday, November 29, 2010

Scones for St. Andrew's Day

The following recipe was submitted by Lori, from Busy with Blessings, for the upcoming feast of St. Andrew.  


This is a special day in our home. My honey choose Saint Andrew as his Confirmation patron saint. He said he did so because he loved Saint Andrew’s zeal for the Lord. He chose to follow Jesus and was strong in doing so. I pray for God to continue to strengthen my honey through the intercession of Saint Andrew.

Last year, on the feast of St. Andrew, the kids and I had fun making St. Andrew Scones.  Then we had a nice tea party!

St. Andrew Scones

1/3 c. butter
1 3/4 c. flour
3 tbsp. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. currants or raisins, optional
4 to 6 tbsp. half and half or milk
1 egg, beaten
sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut butter into flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in 1 egg, currants and enough half and half so dough leaves the sides of the bowl.

Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead 10 times. Roll 1/2 inch thick; cut with round cookie cutter or glass.


We marked each scone with an X in rememberance of him dying on an X shaped cross.


Place on ungreased cookie sheet; brush with beaten eggs and sprinkle with sugar.


Bake until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes remove immediately. Serves 15. Split scones and serve with butter, jams and jellies.

The children enjoyed playing with the extra dough while the scones baked.


Thank you Lori!!   

Also, don't forget to start the St. Andrew Christmas Novena tomorrow. "It is piously believed that whoever recites the above prayer fifteen times a day from the feast of St. Andrew (30th November) until Christmas will obtain what is asked!"


St. Andrew Christmas Novena

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour, vouchsafe, O my God! to hear my prayer and grant my desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His Blessed Mother. Amen.
Posted by at 0 comments
Labels: ,

Fishers of Men - Celebrating St. Andrew

St. Andrew, a fisherman from Bethsaida, was the first Apostle called by Jesus. Andrew was already a follower of John the Baptist, and he recognized Jesus as the Messiah when John baptized Our Lord in the Jordan River. He introduced his brother Simon to Jesus. The two brothers became apostles of Jesus and "fishers of men."

As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him. ~Matthew 4:19
Enjoy an easy and symbolic treat on St. Andrew's feast day - November 30. Set out a bowl or basket of pretzel "fishing rods" (any stick variety will do, whether thin sticks or rods). Accompany this with a smaller bowl of peanut butter, cheese dip, cream cheese spread (anything that will stick to the pretzel sticks) and a bowl of gold fish crackers. Commence fishing by dipping the pretzel sticks in the peanut butter (or other dip option) and then catch a “fish” from the fish bowl as the crackers will stick to the rod of peanut butter. We have had a lot of fun with this little fishing activity. It’s a great way to reflect on St. Andrew’s roll as fisherman - first of fish, then of men.

St. Andrew, Pray for us.
Posted by at 0 comments
Labels: , ,

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Almond And Apple Tea - 苹果杏仁茶

There is always a saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away”, and apple itself contains high nutritional value, promotes digestion and help to prevent diseases and other functions too. This common fruit which is suitable for all ages often comes in various sizes and varities from different countries. During recent years studies iit also shows that Apple may prevent or reduce food allergies in human too.

Recently I get to learn how to make this drink from one of my boy's classmates granny who loves to boil soups for her family. She shared with us that this soup is good for health in long run and it also helps to prevent cough and cold due to the ingredients used. Above are some collage photos of the ingredients and steps of preparation.

Sweet & Bitter Almonds(南北杏), Apricot Seed
Warm. Influences the lung and large intestine channels. Stops cough and moistens the intestines. Commonly used to treat dry cough and constipation.

Ingredients: (serves 4)
2 - 3 Big Apples, cut into wedges
1 Tablespoon Sweet & Better Almond
1 Piece of Candidate Tangerine
4 Strips of Candidate Winter Melon, optional
1 Knot of Pandan Leave
1.5 Litres of Water

Method:
1. Rinse, peel and core the apples then cut them into wedges. (about 6 - 8 wedges per apple)
2. Bring 1.5 litre of water to boil and add in all the ingredient except pandan leaves.
3. When the water comes to boil again, lower the heat and simmer on low heat for about 20 - 25 minutes.
4. Add in pandan leaves at the last 5 minutes then continue to let it simmer.
5. When done turn off the heat, remove the sweet & bitter almond pack and pandan leaves from the pot.
6. Serve warm or cold with the cooked apple as drink or dessert.

Note:-
~ Spoon the sweet and bitter almond into stock bag and secure it before adding it to cook with the rest of the ingredients.


This is a very refreshing tea that makes you hook on it due to its sweet and sour taste together with the fragrant of the apples and other pairing ingredients used. You can even boiled this tea and consume it as normal daily fluid by having an option to remove the adding of candidate winter melon to reduce the sweetness. And from some research shown Apples can also reduce high cholesterol, blood pressure and at the same time maintain consistent sugar level in the human body. So this quick and easy tea is sure to be a good keeper in most of our family and it also makes a great drink for kids too.


Posted by at 0 comments
Labels: ,

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Pooh Pancake Bento

It has being more than a year since my last bento post on making the "Macar Garden". Usually for a traditional bento it consists of rice, fish or meat, and one or more pickled or cooked vegetables that are packed in a box-shaped container. But recent years making of kids’ bento also became a trend in Singapore under the influence of those creative Japanese bento makers. For kids’ bento you can packed anything that your kids prefer in those cute and fashion “bento boxes” that comes in various sizes and designs. (Click HERE for sample)

Here I am packing a "Pancake Bento" which I believes everyone loves pancakes despite whether kids or adults so with some quick and easy pre-packed pancake mixture and extra ingredients like milk and egg you can prepared some delicious pancakes in no time.

I bought this set of "Pooh Face" pancake pan about 2 years back during my craze over these cute bento products. So far I have only tried using it once until recently one of my friend bought me another similar set from her trip. So I decided to use it to make some cute "Pooh Face" pancakes for my boy.

These collage photos show the steps on how to cook the pancake and you could also refer to the instructions below:-

Ingredients:-
200g Pre-mixed Pancake Flour
1 Egg
150ml Fresh Milk
Oil or Soft Butter to grease

Method:
1. In a large mixing bowl add in pancake flour, egg and fresh milk then slowly whisk it with a balloon whisk till well combined.
2. Set the mixture aside for about 2 - 3 minutes, lightly grease and preheat the pooh pancake pan or any small pancake pan till hot.
3. Slowly ladle 1 small scoop of batter and swirl it around the mould/pan.
4. Cook it on low heat for about 2 minutes till the mixture almost dried up and bubbled. (refer to the photo above)
5. Carefully loosen the side of the pancake if using the pooh pancake mould, then flip it over to cook the other side for another 1 minute or so.
6. Remove from pan and continue with the rest of the mixture.
7. Keep it warm and serve with extra butter and maple syrup.


You can easily get a pack of this pre-mixed pancake mixture from any leading supermarkets or you can also use any of your reliable pancake recipes.

My Boy loves Winnie the Pooh so I have some collection of the Pooh related bento items range from bento boxes, food cutters, fork and spoon and etc (Click HERE for sample). So with this lovely "Pooh Pancake Bento" it really brings joy and excitement to him when he gets a set of this for his afternoon tea break. To make this more attractive, I also add in pooh shape butters and some maple syrup in pooh container. Mummies with similar interests I am sure everyone of you can prepared something even better than mine to bring a smile on your kids' face.


Posted by at 0 comments
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)