Savory Char Hor Fun

Ingredients
White Chinese Noodles
1 Chicken Breasts - sliced into strips
2 SquidsSquids
- cut into slices
20 Medium sized PrawnsPrawns

1 Fish CakeFish Cake
- cut into slices
1 cup Chicken Stock
2 Garlic ClovesGarlic Cloves
- chopped
2 cups Water
1 EggsEggs
- beaten
2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Oil
1 ScallionScallion
- chopped
Spinach or your preferred green vegetable
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Sliced pickled Green ChiliGreen Chili
- to serve on side


Directions
1] Put 1 tbsp of oil into wok and stir fry 1/2 of the chopped garlic.
2] Add noddles and coat with light soy sauce.
3] Remove from wok and unto serving dish.
4] Place the rest of the oil into wok and stir fry the rest of the garlic.
5] Add 1 cup of chicken broth, then 2 cups water. (add more water if you prefer a watery mixture)
6] Add slices of chicken breasts.
7] Add prawns, slices of fish cakes and squid.
8] Boil till everything is cooked.
9] Add in spinach.
10] Bring everything to a boil again then turn off heat.
11] Stir in egg.
12] Add in salt and pepper for taste.
13] Pour soup over noodles.
14] Garnish with green onions.
15] Serve immediately with pickled green chilies.

Note:
- If its possible, use chinese cabbagechinese cabbage
instead of spinach.
- You can substitute the green chilies with Jalepeno peppers.

Crème Brûlée (serves eight)

The ingredients needed are (clockwise from top) 2 cups heavy cream, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, 8 large egg yolks, and 1/2 cup sugar.


First pour the sugar into the egg yolks.


Beat the yolks until smooth.


Heat the heavy cream until almost simmering (you can bring to a simmer and let cool a minute). Add heavy cream to the egg yolks on tablespoon at a time while stirring vigorously. This will temper the eggs so as to not curdle them (or make scrambled eggs) when exposed to the heat of the heavy cream.


When about 1/4 cup of heavy cream has been integrated into the yolks, pour the yolks into the heavy cream and mix until smooth.


Now, use a fine mesh sieve and strain the custard mixture to remove and small clumps that may remain the mixture. This step will help ensure a silky texture to the custard. Blend in the vanilla extract after the mixture has been strained.


Pour the mixture into six to eight ramekins depending on size. (Makes a little more than eight four ounce creme brulees.) In the picture below, I filled six four ounce ramekins and two six ounce ramekins (the six ouncers were not full).


Place the ramekins in a baking pan. Pour boiling water into the pan (be careful not to get water into the ramekins), so that the water level is halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cooking the custards in a water bath will provide a low even temperature for the custards to cook evenly and set properly. Place in an oven preheated to 250?F for about one hour.


After an hour, check to see if the custards are done. We want them to be set on the outside edge, but jiggly (like jello) at the center. The easiest way to do this is to take a pair of tongs with food grade rubber bands wrapped around the ends to help grip the ramekins. Pick up a ramekin and shake to see if the centers jiggle. If the only the center jiggles a little, it's done. If the whole thing is set, remove immediately - it'll be a little over done, but still delicious. If it's not done, just put it back in the water bath and check again in ten minutes. Once the custards are done, let them cool on a cooling rack to room temperature. This will let the custards finish cooking the centers on their own.


Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least eight hours before serving.

About an hour before serving, remove the plastic wrap from each ramekin and use a paper towel to gently soak up any moisture that may be extruded from the custard tops. Pour about a teaspoon of turbinado (sugar in the raw) sugar in the middle of each custard. Gently tilt the ramekin and let gravity and gently shaking move the sugar around until the top surface of the custard is covered evenly with turbinado sugar. Using a kitchen butane torch, propane blow torch, or welding torch (whatever strong open flame you've got lying around), heat the sugar until it bubbles and changes color. With a small butane torch, I take my time and don't move from one side of the creme brulee to the other until the spot I've been working on has achieved the brown color that I want. This takes a little over a minute for each creme brulee. (The process is faster with a larger torch.) Don't worry about heating up the custard underneath, we'll refrigerate the creme brulee for a bit before serving. Do worry about lighting your kitchen counter on fire. I usually place the ramekin on a piece of aluminum foil placed over a cooling rack.

Once you're done scorching your cream, place the ramekins back in the refrigerator for about 45 minutes. The caramel will still be hard, but if you wait too much longer, the sugar will start to soften and dissolve into the custard.

Hot milk cake

is a traditional two-layer cake, possibly from the Mid-Atlantic States. It can be frosted with mocha icing.

Hot milk cake can be fabulous, but the recipe is not for the timid. Expect a couple attempts that fail to rise before getting it right. Beating the eggs very well is important.

[edit] Ingredients

• 1 c (240 ml) whole milk
• ½ cup (120 ml) butter
• 1 t (5 ml) vanilla extract
• 2 cups (480 ml) cake flour [or, 4 T (60 ml) cornstarch + enough all-purpose flour to equal 2 cups]
• 2 tsp (10 ml) baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cups (480 ml) sugar

[edit] Procedure

1. An hour before baking, take eggs and butter out of the refrigerator to reach room temperature.
2. Heat together milk and butter until butter melts. Cool to just warm.
3. Add vanilla.
4. If you sift the flour, do so after measuring. Mix dry ingredients.
5. In a large bowl beat the the eggs until lemon-colored — this could take 5-10 minutes.
6. Add sugar slowly, beating well.
7. Add the dry ingredients.
8. Add milk mixture very slowly, folding it in by hand toward the end.
9. Divide the batter into 2 greased and floured 9 inch (230 mm) round cake pans.
10. Bake about 30 minutes at 350 °F (175 °C).
11. Cool on racks for 10 minutes (you may need to run a knife around the edge first) then turn out to cool.
12. Frost with mocha icing, other icing, or with strawberries.

vietnamese roll

The beauty of these spring rolls is that you can you just about any ingredients you like. Substitute the shrimp with fried tofu for a vegetarian version; use snow peas and crisp bean sprouts instead of the carrots and cucumbers.

ingredients
12 rice paper rounds (banh trang)
3 oz. rice vermicelli, soaked in hot water for 10 minutes, till soft
24 medium shrimp, unpeeled
1/2 small head green leaf, red leaf or romaine lettuce (about 10-12 leaves)
2 carrots
1 large cucumber
1/4 cup of any or all of the following fresh herbs: thai basil, mint, cilantro (I like to use mostly basil, with a smattering of mint in the mix, but use whatever suits your taste)
3 stalks scallions

serves 4 as light main dish, 12 as appetizer

1 Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the unshelled shrimp till pink and opaque, around two to three minutes or so. Fish out the shrimp but keep the water boiling; add the rice noodles and cook for a minute or so. Drain and rinse in cool water.

2 Peel and slice the shrimp in half lengthwise.

3 Peel apart the lettuce leaves and slice into thin strips. Peel and julienne the carrots and cucumber; mince up the herbs and scallions.

4 You’ll need a large bowl or pan, big enough to accommodate the rice paper round. Fill with warm water, and soak one wrapper for around a minute or so, until it’s soft and pliable.

5 Lay the wrapper on a plate or other flat surface. You’ll be placing your ingredients in the bottom half of the wrapper – if this is your first time making spring rolls, it’s a good idea to start with smaller quantities.

Begin with a small handful of lettuce in the bottom third of the wrapper, and add an approximately equal amount of rice noodle. Top with a neat row of cucumbers and another neat row of carrots. Lay a row of shrimp close to the middle of the wrapper, pink side down. Sprinkle with some of the herb mixture.

6 Fold up the bottom, then the two sides; continue rolling up, keeping the wrapper firmly around the ingredients to get a good roll, but being careful not to tug too tightly so as to avoid tearing the wrapper. Place the roll seam side down. 7 Continue making the rolls. Unfortunately, the rolls don’t keep well, so serve them straight away*, with plenty of dipping sauce. If you’re serving them as an appetizer, you can cut the rolls in half using a sharp knife. *If you absolutely must make them ahead of time, place them in an airtight container lined with damp towel and store at cool room temperature, not in the fridge. These will keep for an hour or two.

hoisin-chili dipping sauce
Like any salad, Vietnamese spring rolls need a dressing to bring out the fresh flavors of the ingredients. This spicy-sweet sauce makes the perfect dipping sauce to accompany fresh spring rolls.

1 shallot or 1-2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
1/4 cup water
2 tsps. Asian red chili paste (I use sambal oelek, but any chili paste will do)
2 Tbsp. chopped peanuts for garnish

Stir-fry the minced garlic or shallot for a minute or two, until the garlic is softened. Add the hoisin sauce, rice vinegar and water, and bring to a boil. Add chili paste to taste (about 2 tsps. generally does it for me). Remove from heat, pour in dipping bowl(s), and garnish with chopped peanut.

HOT AND SOUR PRAWN SOUP (Tom Yum Goong)

		Ingredients : 500 g medium raw prawns 1 tablespoon oil 2 litres water 2 tablesoons Red Curry Paste or commercial paste 2 tablespoons tamarind pure'e 2 teaspoons turmeric 1 teaspoon chopped red chillies, optional 4 kaffir lime leaves, shredded 2 tablespoons fish sauce 2 tablespoons lime juice 2 teaspoons soft brown sugar 1/4 cup fresh coriander leaves Remove the prawn heads. Peel the prawns, leaving the tails intact. Using a sharp knife,slit each prawn down the back and devein. Set the prawns aside. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the prawn shells and heads to the pan and cook for 10 minutes over medium-high heat, tossing frequently, until shells and heads are deep orange. Add 1 cup of the water and the curry paste to pan. Boil for 5 minutes, until reduced slightly.Add remaining water and simmer for 20 minutes. Drain, reserving the stock. Discard heads and shells. Return stock to pan.Add the tamarind, turmeric, chillies and lime leaves to pan; bring to the boil and cook for 2 minutes. Add the prawns to the pan and cook for 5 minute or until prawns turn pink.Add the fish sauce, lime juice and brown sugar to the pan; toss. Serve immediately, sprinkled with coriander leaves.

Rocket pesto

Pulse 2 cloves garlic, 2 tbsp pine nuts(toasted), 30g parmesan (grated) in food processor. add 80g baby rocket leaves, salt and pepper and pulse until smooth. add 125ml virgin olive oil in a steady stream until smooth.