Italian Kitchen - Homemade Pizza

The proper traditional Italian pizzas usually have a very few toppings and not dripping with cheese like the one we have in the UK. Nonetheless, I must admit I love to overload mine with everything, especially cheese! Being with someone who is lactose-intolerant means I seldom have pizza as dinner, unless it is homemade, of course. Yes, 'His & Hers' pizza is the best way, no arguments over who should have the last slice or how much olives should go on it etc.

This one clearly is a 'Hers' pizza :D 

Making your own pizza is rather therapeutic process: choosing ones favorite toppings and leaving out the capers and pineapple (yuck)! The dough was machine-made by bread maker following its manual. Depending on individual's preference, my base was rolled out as extra-thin. The tomato sauce was made by the ex-pizza chef (the other half) and as for the toppings I opted for: sliced mushrooms, sliced onion, roasted red pepper, sliced black olives, spinach, tinned anchovies and A LOT of grated extra matura cheddar AND parmesan! 

I was in pizza heaven that evening :) 

Courgette Noodles with Avocado Sauce

It depends how you interpret the name of this dish, it can be read as 'courgettes one of the noodles' ingredients', similar to that of spinach pasta; or, 'noodles entirely made out of courgettes'. In this case, it is the latter. Please do not be put of by the greenness of this dish (in colour and in health), it is surprisingly flavorsome, with an in depth creamy nutty taste. 

Our body deserves a little detox now and then!

Serves 4

2 courgettes, chop into matchsticks (I used a mandolin slicer) 

Punnet  of chestnut mushrooms, thinly sliced

Dozen of brazil nuts

3 garlic cloves, crushed

1 lime, juiced

Handful of pumpkin seeds

2 avocados, de-stoned and diced

Bunch of fresh parsley, roughly chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

1. Heat oil in frying pan, add in crushed garlic and mushrooms. 

2. Meanwhile, place the brazil nuts in food processor and blend until smooth-ish. Add in the avocado cubes, olive oil, lime juice and a pinch of salt and blend again. If the sauce is too thick, dilute it with some water to the right consistency. 

3. Add the courgette noodles into the frying pan, cook till half cooked and pour in the source. Season to taste.

6. Sprinkle with parsley and pumpkin seeds. Serve.

Harvey Nichols Risotto Kit with White Truffle Seasoning

Ah it has been a while since I last updated my blog. In most industry quarter 4 is always the busiest of all, winding down before year end and planning for the next financial year.

Of course no matter how busy one gets, food will always be on ones mind. With less time on hands to prepare delicious homemade dinners, I did result to instant alternatives on a number of occasions.

I have this Harvey Nichols Risotto Kit in the kitchen cupboard for a while but can never find the right moment to consume this. It would seems that I have saved it for just the right occasion!

The kit contained a bag of risotto rice, seasoning and white truffle oil. All I had to do was to boil the kettle, cook the risotto rice and seasoning in boiling hot water until soft. I mixed in some baby spinach leafs and blanched some fine beans to boost up my 5-a-day! Seasoned with black pepper, pour over the  white truffle oil and sprinkled some parmesan on top!

It has a very strong truffle flavor which I love. It must have been a physiological barrier in stopping me to enjoying it fully, knowing it pretty much came out from a packet.... wroth a try thou! 

Sesame Minced Pork (麻醬肉蓉)

A simplistic dish with sesame sauce and sesame oil being the key ingredients, it is well worth a try especially as a mid-week dinner, best to accompany by plain noodles or steamed rice.

Serves 4

500g minced pork (I used Blythburgh free range)

1 banana shallot, minced

2 cloves of garlic, crushed

1 courgette, sliced

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tsp cornflour

4 tbsp sesame paste

2 tbsp sesame oil

Pinch of sugar

1. Marinade the pork with light soy sauce, sesame paste and cornflour for 30 minutes.

2.  In a frying pan, fry the shallot and garlic until golden. Note: It might be tempting to use sesame oil at this stage to enhance the flavor. Nonetheless, it has a low smoke point which burn easily, and will develop a bitter taste when burnt.

3. Add in the minced pork and ensure it is cooked properly. Season to taste.

4. Take the meat off the heat and mix in the sugar and sesame oil.

5. In the same frying pan, pan fry the sliced courgette until cooked then mix in with the meat.

Great to serve with rice or plain noodles.

Minestrone Soup

Cold nights, fancy something comforting, quick, tasty and economical for dinner? (Not asking a lot here!) This is just the right recipe to fit the bill. Everybody likes a minestrone soup now and then, it is hearty, filling, packed with goodness and non-pretentious, you know exactly what to expect and not often let down by it.

Depending on your personal taste, most vegetable should goes well together.

Serves 6

2 onion, chopped
2 carrot, chopped
2 courgettes, chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed
200g garden peas (fresh or frozen)
1 tin of white kidney beans
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 bay leaves
1 tsp dried thyme
Tomato puree, 50g
1.5l boiling organic vegetable stock
100g minute pasta such as orzo, puntine

To garnish:

3 garlic cloves
1 bunch of basil leaves
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp chili oil
Pinch of sea salt

1. In a large stockpot, heat the oil and cook the garlic and onion until soften.

2. Mix in the bay leaves, dried thyme and cook for 5 minutes.

3. Add in the onion, carrot, courgettes and the tomato puree, cook for further 15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft but not cook through.

4. Add in the white kidney beans and stock, turn the heat down and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, in a small food processor/ choper, add in the garlic cloves, basil leaves, salt and both the oil. Blitz the content until fine like a paste. Season to taste.

6. 10 minutes before serving, add in the peas and minute pasta. Once they are cooked then the soup is ready to serve, with a dollop of the basil garnish.

Shopping Frenzy 2

Another day of money well spent I thought. Whilst waiting for a friend to finish work then head out for dinner, there is no better way to kill time but to browse at some shops. Yes, I had no intention in making any purchase at all but thought 'I would just windowshop', and little did I know my wallet would bleed in the space of 45 minutes...

Mix and match with high end and high street is often the formula I go by: a nice handbag and a smart pair of shoes are the essentials to a chic outfit and can often jazz up high street clothes nicely, and not being misunderstood as a 'Label Queen'. I am quite a sentimental person and have been very loyal to a number of handbags for a while. Or, to put it in another way, I haven't seen one that made me fell 'Wow! This is a MUST have!', until yesterday, this Ralph Lauren bag caught my eyes.

Most would associate Ralph Lauren with its famous and iconic polo shirt of course. The brand has actually updated its image in recent years through its successful marketing campaign, which emphasis the brand's expensive lines more. Their collections are rather comparable to the more established luxury brands, in style and in quality. This Lauren Ralph Lauren horseshoe satchel bag really stands out to me. Simple but yet elegant, and tan is very on trend at the minute and does not usually look out of date anyhow. The strap is adjustable in length, so depending on occasion it can be worn as cross-shoulder if needed, perfect for the smart-casual look I always aim for (and absolutely justify the spending too....)

As mentioned, Ralph Lauren does more than just polo shirts and its homeware is also pretty damn nice. 100% cotton and the sheet is 200 thread count cotton, which would be nice and silky soft! Since we spend 1/3 of our lives in bed, it is important to have the finest and niciest bedding one can afford. Afterall it is often skin-to-skin contact so definitely not cutting corner there! Cannot wait to wash, iron, snuggle up and enjoy them, bliss!

Think I have done pretty well this week!

Beef Tendon & Beef Shin Curry (咖哩牛筋牛腱)

Beef tendon, an uncommon ingredient in the West but praised in the East, is what connects muscle to bone. It is very tough and chewy and therefore requires slow cooking, proper slow cooking! Once it is cooked (properly!) it becomes soft and gelatinous, melt-in-your-mouth like. Low in fat and packed with collagen (yes ladies, if eat regularly, this stuff is more effective and economical than Creme de la Mer!) I am definitely not a chicken-breast and white meat only eater but more of a 'Nose to Tail', make-use-of-most-parts-of-animal type. Offal, tail, trotters, feet, cheeks etc you named it I have probably tried it. Is there a bottom line? Well, it depends. If it is nicely cooked then I would probably give it a whirl.

Tendon is not widely available in UK supermarkets, perhaps butcher will have them if you asked in advance. I got mine from the frozen compartment of an Asian supermarket and it does clearly labelled the origin as UK, which gives it a bit of reassurance that it was not horse tendon (I hope!). To enhance the overall texture and flavour, I also bought some shin of beef from the butcher. Brasing steak will do just fine as well.

Serves 4

300g beef tendon, diced into big chunks

300g shin of beef, ditto

60g plain flour, seasoned with salt & pepper

3 medium potatoes, diced into medium chunks

2 large onions, cut into wedges

2 tbsp curry powder

2 tbsp Garam Marsala

1 tbsp ground cumin

2 tsp chilli powder

5 cardamom pods

3 cloves

1 star anise

1 bark of cinnamon stick

Dash of dark soy sauce

500ml boiling water

1. Coat the tendon and shin with seasoned flour.

2. In a casserole dish, heat some oil and brown the tendon and beef all around on a fairly high heat. Leave them to cool on a plate.

3. In the same dish, toast the cardamon pods, cloves & star anise lightly until their aroma fills the air but not burnt.

4. Add in the onion wedges, tendon, shin and rest of the spices. Cook in medium heat for 15 minutes. Make sure everything is evenly coated with the spices.

5. Pour in the boiling water so it just covers everything and place the cinnamon stick on top. Cover and bring it to boil then turn the heat down and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.

6. Turn it down to the lowest heat and leave to cook for 5 hours or until the tendon is jelly like. Alternatively, transfer the content into a slow cooker and leave to cook for 5 hours.

7. Serve with steamed rice and seasonal vegetable.