Banana Loaf

I found myself with a bunch of really ripe bananas this weekend... What to do to minimise waste? Banana loaf comes to mind, specifically the ones sold in the market or pasar malam by the Malay vendors. I love the fragrant banana loaf they sell, to call it a loaf I think does not do it any justice, it's a really long loaf, enough to feed a family of 12 or more I would say, I would not be exaggerating! Anyway, a quick rummage in the larder to hunt for the banana essence I was sure I had and with a little help from a pair of little hands to measure the ingredients, the loaf was baked and smelling lovely! The owner of the pair of little hands thought it was good and ate an entire adult size piece...so it must really be good!

 

Stollen buns

Stollen is a traditional German breadlike cake and this recipe is yet another version in which the loaf is made to look like buns hence the name Stollen buns. My version is filled with mixed fruit, white chocolate chunks (in place of marzipan, which I don't like) then iced with lemon flavoured icing and chopped pistachio nuts. This time too, I kneaded the dough by hand rather than using my electric mixer, just cause I couldn't face washing the beast! The bread turned out nice and fluffy but I think it could have used a few minutes in the oven and less sweetness!

Cross section of the bread

 

 

Kuih Lapis

Kuih lapis or as it is known in Chinese as nine layer kuih is basically what it is called that is a kuih which is made up of nine layers. It is normally made with alternate layers of pink and white batter with the last layer a bright red but as I was looking for a recipe to try, I came across one that was made using the bunga telang or blue pea flower, this means that the kuih can be made without using artificial colouring and looks lovely and unique too. And since I was due to go back to Malaysia for my annual holiday, it was timely for me to get some dried ones to bring back. So after a trial run in Penang, I made another tray of the lovely fragrant kuih when I came back....one last thing, this kuih must be eaten by peeling each layer off, don't ask why it's tradition!

 

 

Inchi Cabin

It's been years since I had inchi cabin, the crunchy fragrant nonya style fried chicken. So for a simple lunch with a friend, I decided to fry up some chicken wings, and the recipe for inchi cabin caught my attention. It uses a simple marinade of curry powder and coconut milk, the secret is in the frying, it's fried twice over very high heat to achieve the crunch!

 

Kuih Talam Gula Melaka

It's been one of my aspirations to make kuih talam, finally I decided to take the plunge and go for it. Unfortunately, it happened to be on a day when I've cleared my freezer and didn't have any pandan leaves! So on to plan B, which is to use pandan extract and cheat with some green food colouring. Alas, it was looking like it was not to be as the supermarket was out of green food colouring, all the colours of the rainbow except for green...sigh! But I really wanted to make this kuih, so on to plan C, palm sugar kuih talam....now palm sugar is something I had in plenty, yay! After much stirring over the hot pot, recipe said to stir till thicken but didn't specify that it took a long time! And then steaming, I think I had to steam 3 times the specified time, my kuih talam was done! Taste test = yummy! But something still wasn't satisfied, I think In my mind I was still thinking of the green pandan kuih talam....we shall prevail and try again, soon I think!

 

Cheat beef rendang

A fb friend recommended M&S Malaysian rendang paste, I didn't even realised that they stock such a thing and of course I have to test it out. It turned out to be not bad with a few adjustments that is, it definitely needed a bit more punch so extra chilli powder was added. And next time , I think I will add some kerisik for texture as the paste is ground very fine, other than that it is a good paste. Served with tomato rice and cucumber without the fuss of peeling shallots, chillies, garlic and pounding spices, nothing to complain about!

 

Pistachio, cranberry and white chocolate cookies

Another moreish cookie to add to my repertoire! American style cookies like this one always taste fabulous, unfortunately they are also not very healthy hence only to be eaten occasionally! So this batch is to go to the office to be shared with others else it will all end up in my tummy!

 

Sweet and sour pork ribs

Finally, I managed to find the time to make this dish. Chopping the ribs into bite size and frying them in batter does take some time but once that is done, the sauce just takes moments. While cooking, I had my kitchen door open to dispel the greasy smell you get when deep frying as a result the smell of the finished dish floated out of my kitchen to a group of my neighbours who happen to standing outside chatting and I heard comments about what a lovely smell, just reminds me of my neighbours when I was a child commenting on lovely smells from my grandmother's cooking.