Mulled Wine

I've always wanted to try mulled wine but was never in a place cold enough to warrant warm alcohol. So this year I decided that even if I have to switch on the AC to enjoy it, I will.

Merry Christmas!

This is what goes into it:
1 bottle red wine (Merlot)
100 gms caster sugar (or 1/2 cup honey)
1tsp dry ginger
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1 stick whole cinnamon
3 whole cloves
2 bay leaves
1 vanilla pod, halved
2 whole star anise
Zest of 1 orange
Zest of 1 lime
Juice of 1 orange
1/4 cup brandy (optional)

Put a 2 cups of wine in a saucepan over low heat and mix in all the ingredients. You may alter the amount of sugar/honey and even the spices as per your taste. Do not bring to a boil. Once the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is syrupy, add the rest of the wine and brandy (if using), and continue to heat on low for another 10 minutes. Filter and serve warm. It's like Christmas in a glass!

Aubergine and Cheese Toast

A great healthy snack or even a main.

You'll need:
1 Large aubergine sliced thinly
1 loaf of bread, sliced in half vertically
2 tomatoes, sliced
Cheddar or Parmesan cheese to sprinkle
5-6 fresh basil leaves
Salt/pepper to taste
4-5 tbsp olive oil to grill

Grill the sliced aubergine on a pan with some oil and season it with salt and pepper.

Layer the aubergines and tomatoes on the bread. Add the basil and cheese on top. Sprinkle lightly with some more salt and pepper. Bake in oven at 180 deg Celsius for 20 minutes and serve!

Tom Yum Goong

I've loved Tom Yum soup even before I ever went to Thailand. I never realised it was so easy to make - as long as you can procure all the ingredients.

You need:
3 cups chicken stock/water
5-6 mushrooms, cut in quarters
8-10 shrimps
3 tbsp fish oil
1 inch galangal, thinly sliced
3-4 green/red chillies, crushed
5-6 Kaffir lime leaves
1 stalk lemongrass, sliced
2 tbsp lime juice
A few sprigs of coriander

Bring the water/stock to boil. Add all the ingredients (except coriander), then cover and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the chopped coriander and remove from heat. Serve immediately.

Apple Pie

I love apple pie! But I've never had the patience to turn out a good crust till I saw the video on Joy of Baking. It is a nice simple recipe with some tips and tricks to make the process simpler.

For the pie crust:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
225 gms butter - chilled and cut into small cubes
1/4 cup ice water (not all of it might be used)

I envy those with a food processor. I have to do this by hand which doesn't come out as good unless you practice a lot.

Start with putting the flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Then add the butter cubes and incorporate it well with the dough till it is crumbly. The trick is to not overwork the butter dough so do it in quick motions within a minute. Then add a few tablespoons of the chilled water and knead. keep adding some water till the dough just about binds. Make sure there's no excess water.

Divide this dough into 2 parts. Flatten out each one into a 6 inch circle, wrap in clear wrap and put it in the fridge for at least an hour. Take out one of the circles after an hour. You may let it sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes if it is too hard to roll out. Make sure to dust the work space with some flour and roll out the dough as per the shape of your pan. the dough should be large enough to cover the base and sides of the pan. Gently pick up the dough and place it in the pan. If it breaks then just stick it together in the pan. Poke the crust with a fork to make some tiny holes in the base. Put it back in the fridge for an hour.

For the filling:

• 4-5 apples - peeled, cored and cut into thin slices
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (I substitued bothe the sugars with 1tbsp honey and maple syrup)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground nutmeg
• Pinch of salt
• 2 tbsp butter, room temperature
• 1 tbsp cornflour

Place the apples in a bowl and coat them with the lemon juice to prevent browning. Add the salt, sugars and spices. Cover and let it rest on the counter for 30 minutes.

Once the juices start to separate, place the apples in a strainer and collect the juices in a bowl below. Let it rest for another 30 minutes. Then take the juices (approximately half a cup) and place it in a microwaveable container. Add the butter and heat in the microwave for 5-6 minutes. Make sure the container is large enough because the mixture will boil and overflow. After 6 minutes, the juices would have thickened and turned like caramel.

Transfer the apples back into the bowl and add the heated caramel. Mix in the cornflour to soak up the excess liquid.

Place the apples in the tray with the pie crust. I didn't want too much of crust on my pie so I didn't make the top crust. If you do plan to make one for your pie then roll out the other half of the dough to cover the pie. If you want to seal the edges, then make a slit at the center of the top crust to let the steam out. Joy of Baking has a great video to show you how to do this.

Bake at 220 degrees Celsius for about 30-40 minutes. Make sure the edges of the pie crust don't burn. The crust should just be golden brown. Take it out from the heat and cool on a wire rack for an hour before digging in.

Spinach and Zucchini Pasta

I rarely ever order pasta at a restaurant because I like my dish full of fresh vegetables and some sauce - not just sauce or cream poured over plain pasta. This spinach sauce is simple, quick, and yum!

Boil pasta as per instructions, drain, and keep aside.

For the sauce:
1 bunch of spinach leaves blanched and pureed
1 zucchini, finely sliced
1 small onion, diced
5-6 pieces of chopped Mushroom or Asparagus
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
2-3 pieces sun-dried tomatoes
5-6 olives thinly sliced
Zest of 1 lemon
1 tbsp chilli flakes
1/2 cup cheese cheese (I use Cheddar)
3 tbsps milk
Salt/pepper to taste

Heat oil in a pan on medium to high heat and put in the garlic, then the onion after 30 seconds. Don't let it brown. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and stir for another 30 seconds.

Throw in the zucchini, and the mushroom or asparagus and salt and pepper. Turn the heat to medium and mix well till cooked. You may want to turn up the heat so that the excess water dries up. Then add the spinach puree and coat the vegetables all over. Once cooked, stir in the cheese. After that add the milk and while it heats up add the lemon zest. Before you take it off the heat, add the olives and chilli flakes. Pour over the pasta and serve hot.

Lemon Cake

The original recipe was for cupcakes, but I decided to go for a full cake.

For the cake:

In a bowl, whisk
1/2 cup butter (room temp) and
2/3 cup caster sugar

Add 3 eggs, one at a time, whisking it well.

Then add 1 tsp Vanilla and zest of 1 large lemon

In a separate bowl, sift:
1 1/2 cups of flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt

Keep 1/4 cup milk on the side.

Starting with the flour, mix 1/3rd part of flour then milk alternatively into the batter, mixing well after each addition.

Pour this mixture into a lined tin and bake at 180 deg C for about 30 minutes. You need to check the cake after 20-25 minutes if it's done, else the extra time in the oven will make it dry.
(Mine turned out a little dry, so I sliced the cake in half horizontally and poured 1/3 cup fruit juice on it and let it soak. It helped some.)

Lemon Curd:

In a steel bowl, placed over a pan of hot (not boiling) water, whisk
3 eggs
1/3 cup lemon juice
3/4 cup caster sugar

Keep whisking it to avoid formation of lumps and curdling of eggs. It takes about 7-8 minutes for it to cook. Keep a bowl and sieve handy. Right after you take the bowl out from the heat, sieve the mixture into the waiting bowl. This ensures that the curd doesn't continue to cook in the hot bowl.

After a few minutes, add
4 tbsp butter (at room temperature)
1 tbsp lemon zest

Cover and set aside to cool, then refrigerate. Covering the bowl is important else it will form a layer on top.

I assembled the cake by layering the lemon curd between the two slices of cake, and topping it with the cream cheese icing. 

Healthy Cup Noodles with Tofu

I like to have some brands of instant noodles. I know they are not the healthiest of options, but they taste good and are great comfort food.

One of the ways to make it a tad healthier is to add vegetables. Just stir fry them separately with garlic and add salt. Them mix it in with the noodles.

I had a packet of Pepper Chicken noodles, so Tofu was a great addition.

I made the noodles as directed on the packet.
For the Tofu topping:

100 gms tofu cut in cubes
1 small capsicum cut in cubes
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsps oil
1 tsp chopped garlic
salt/pepper to taste

You can also add:
Boiled chicken or prawns
Mushrooms
Baby corn

Heat the oil in a pan. Add the garlic once oil is hot and stir on high flame for 30 seconds. Add the vegetables and tofu and keep stirring for another minute. Then add the soy sauce and chilli flakes. Normally, you shouldn't need more salt after you've used soy, but check to see if you need to add some. Add some ground pepper and remove from heat.

Mix it in with the noodles and serve hot.