Rice Krispies Easter Eggs 米香复活蛋

I happened to chance upon this really cute recipe and I thought I'll try it with my daughter since Easter is just around the corner.

Honestly, I find it harder than it looks and a lot messier. My daughter gave up doing it half way doing it and left me to finish it. I only did 5 eggs and use the rest to do something easier and less messy. :P

I didn't have plastic egg that is required for this so I use Kinder Surprise Egg instead. It works fine too. Take note that the mixture will hardens when it's cooled, so you got to work fast!

If you want to do this over the weekend, here's the recipe, which I've copied over for easy reference.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons Butter or margarine
• 10 oz (about 40) Regular Marshmallows
• 1 box (130g) Kellogg's® Rice Krispies® cereal
• M&M's® Chocolate Candies, Chocolate Bits, etc for decorations

How to do it:

1. Clean, then coat inside of plastic eggs with cooking spray or just spread regular cooking oil on it. Set aside.
2. In large saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. 
3. Remove from heat.
4. Add Kellogg's® Rice Krispies® cereal. Stir until well coated.
5. Using greased hands, firmly press some Rice Krispies® mixture into both halves of each plastic egg. 
6. Use fingers to make hollow center in each half. Remove from molds. Place on wax paper. Cool slightly.
7. Place about 6 M&M'S® in one half of each egg. Gently press two halves of each egg together until they stick. Cool completely.
8. Decorate if desired. Best if served the same day.

Recipe adapted from Hidden Surprise Easter Egg Treats

Cream Crackers Meatballs 苏打饼肉圆

Not too long ago, I shared how I used Rice Krispies to coat meatballs instead of the usual breadcrumbs.  Using the same ingredients, I used a pack of cream crackers instead, which came with a goodie bag I received.

I used to eat cream crackers with milo when I was young but the kids now, with a wide range of crackers, won't even take a second look at the plain old cream crackers. However, the humble cream cracker can have other uses too.

I crashed a few pieces of the crackers in a zic-loc bag using a rolling pin and rolled the meatballs on it before deep frying them till they turned golden brown.

The meatballs coated with crushed cream crackers were not as crispy as the ones with rice krispies but I love the smell of the cream crackers meatballs and it's much cheaper too. ;)

Corn & Radish Soup 白萝卜玉米汤

This soup is especially good for those wants to try radish but dislike the smell and the slight bitter taste (like my husband :P). Adding a cob of corn help sweeten the soup and the smell of radish will not be as strong at the same time.

Ingredients:

• 1 Corn, cut into sections
• 2 Carrot, cut into chunks
• 1 Radish, cut into chunks
• 8 Red Dates
• a handful of Wolfberries
• 300g Pork Ribs
• 1.8 litre Wter
• Salt to taste

How to do it:

1. Blanched pork ribs.
2. Add all ingredients except wolfberries in pot.
3. Bring it to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
4. Continue to simmer for 2 hours.
5. Add wolfberries during last 1/2 hour of cooking.
6. Add salt to taste.
7. Serve.

Pork Fillet with Salted Egg Yolk 咸蛋黄炒腰肉

One of our all time favourites which I will cooked when we are not so bothered by the cholesterol level contributed by the salted egg yolks.

In fact, sometimes, I'll use 3 yolks instead of 2, like in this case. Hence, I leave the egg yolks in bigger pieces so we are able to nibble on it. However, 2 egg yolks are sufficient.

You'll notice that I'm using pork loin, which is really tender, instead of the usual prawns for this dish. It's as good!

Ingredients:

• 250g Pork Loin
• 2-3 Salted Egg Yolk
• 1 stem Curry Leaves, discard stem
• 1 Red Chilli, cut
• 1 tablespoon Butter
• 2 tablespoon Evaporated Milk
• 1/3 teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Sugar

Marinade:

• 1/2 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon Sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon Sesame Seed Oil
• 4 tablespoon Corn Flour
• 1 Egg
• a dash of pepper

How to do it:

1. Cut meat into bite size.
2. Marinate the meat for 30 minutes.
3. Deep fry till just done. 
4. Drain well and set aside .
5. Meanwhile, steam the salted egg yolks for 10 minutes or till just done.
6. Smash cooked yolks.
7. Melt butter and add in curry leaves and fry till fragrant.
8. Add in cut chilli, salted yolks, evaporated milk and pre-cooked meat.
9. Toss well quickly.
10. Add salt and sugar to taste.
11. Stir till well combined.
12. Dish and serve immediately.

Curried Cauliflower 咖哩花椰菜

This is a variation of my roasted cauliflower.

I used the same ingredients but added 1/5 teaspoon of curry powder for the spiciness and the lovely colour. I left out the Parmesan cheese here.

Just toss the cauliflower with curry powder, olive oil and salt before you roast it in the oven. The rest of the instructions are basically the same as roasted cauliflower.

If you are bored with the usual cauliflower dish, try this out for a change.

Roasted Cauliflower 烤花椰菜

It's one of the days that I do not wish to cook but have to. Hence, all cooking is done using the oven, less work, less washing and cleaning. This is  a super easy to 'cook' dish and I simply love the aroma of baked cauliflower.

Ingredients:

• 220g Cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1/2 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt or to taste
• Sprinkle of Parmesan Cheese (optional)

How to do it:

1. Toss florets in oil and salt.
2. Place in an oven proof dish and cover with foil.
3. Bake at 220C for 15 minutes.
4. Remove foil and give the florets a toss.
5. Sprinkle some Parmesan cheese and return to bake uncovered for another 5 to 7 minutes till you get the little brown bits on the top.
6. Serve.

PS. Check out the curried version.

Coriander & Ham Soup 芫荽火腿汤

This is the results of a chat with a friend over how we can replace the usual pork ribs with ham. :P

I love the coriander stem for the crunch and fragrance but sometimes I have so much of the leaves left that I didn't know what to do with it. So that's definitely going it to the soup.:P  My friend suggested adding onions to make it sweet.

It's a trial and error soup that turned out alright for me and the best part of it is, it only takes 20 minutes to prepare and cook! You'll enjoy this if you like coriander.

Ingredients:
(1 serving)

• 1/3 tablespoon Butter
• 1 small Onion, diced
• 2 clove Garlic, chopped
• 4-5 slices or 100g Ham, chopped
• 1 big handful of Coriander Leaves, chopped
• 250ml Chicken Broth

How to do it:

1. Melt butter in pot.
2. Add in onion, garlic and ham.
3. Saute till garlic is fragrant and onion is softened.
4. Add in the coriander leaves and chicken broth.
5. Bring to a boil.
6. Pour mixture into a blender to blend to your desired consistency (mine still have bits of ham and onion).
7. Return to heat up and season with salt if necessary.

Radish and Ribs Stew 萝卜焖排骨

I really love radish though there isn't anyone at home sharing the same sentiments. The only thing they will take with radish in it is probably soup.

I just need a bowl of rice, maybe two to goes with this stew. I love how the radish in the stew here absorbed all the flavours. It's soft and flavourful and the bone from the ribs just slip off from the meat. And don't forget the sauce! Drizzle it over piping hot rice! Yum!

Ingredients:

• 300g Pork Ribs
• 1 Carrot, skinned and cut into chunks (about 150g)
• 1 Radish, skinned and cut into chunks (about 220g)
• 1 small Onion, cut into chunks
• 3 clove Garlic, smashed and chopped
• 300ml Water
• Salt to taste

Seasonings:

• 2 tablespoon Chinese Cooking Wine
• 2 tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
• 1 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
• 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar or regular Sugar

How to do it:

1. Blanch ribs and set aside.
2. Heat a tablespoon of oil.
3. Stir fry garlic till fragrant.
4. Add in the vegetables and rib.
5. Stir fry for a minute before adding the seasoning.
6. Add in water and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce to a simmer and continue to cooking for 2 hours or till the ribs and radish are tender.
8. Add more hot water if the sauce are drying but ribs & radish are not tender enough.
9. Add salt to taste if necessary
10. Serve with a bowl of rice.

Note:

• Cooking time maybe varies depending on the size of the vegetable chunks and the pork ribs.
• To make the radish less bitter, precook the chopped radish by boiling it in water for 1 to 2 minutes.