The Best Choc Chip Ever! (At least That's What I Think)

When the children were small, a friend of mine called them cookie monsters (like in Sesame Street). & they truly adored chocolate chip cookies.

All their lives I've been making these cookies, throwing out recipes one after another once I found a recipe that tastes better than the previous I have tried. And I've tried many, believe me. These days I dont try them as much - the children are so blasé about choc chips anyway (except for Amos' or those great ones by Peppridge Farm if I am not mistaken..)

So if you love choc chip cookies, try this recipe:

250g butter, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
2/3c (130g) firmly packed brown sugar
2/3c (150g) castor sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2c (375g) plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda
1/2c (60g) chopped walnuts, toasted (if you like)
2 cups chocolate chip cookies

1. Beat butter, essence, sugars & eggs until smooth.
2. Stir in dry ingredients and mix.
3. Stir in nuts and choc chips and mix well.
4. Drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet.
5. Bake about 10 - 12 mins in a preheated oven (180degrees C)

Enjoy!!

*****

A Tinge Of Humor

I went to pasar malam yesterday to get some - yum-yum - fresh popiah at the mamak stall. While there I looked for some lettuce for my caesar salad, which coincidently is very popular at home, even with Eirfan although he'll just take the croutons. (Check out the recipe that I have here.. http://a-passion-for-food.blogspot.com/2008/01/caesar-salad-and-anchovies.html)

As I understand it (what do I know about these things anyway..?) if it is caesar salad, only romaine lettuce is used - not iceberg or butterhead or coral or anything else.. please correct me if I am wrong, anyone..

I thought I saw romaine in one stall but they looked small (and a bit wimpy maybe that's why they looked a bit different). I asked the girl manning the vege - ni sayur apa? She said oay-mak-tom or something that sounds something like that. I cant help myself and laugh. Defensively, the girl said betul, oay-mak-tom. I said ok, then left to laugh elsewhere.

I laughed because I only knew that the lettuce is called romaine (you know, like so foreign - even that rhymes - romaine, foreign..) and I'm going to make caesar salad with it (like so glam..) and even my daughter cant quite catch the names (let alone spell 'em) - but here is a girl who told me it is called oay-mak-tom! ha-ha. Padan muka makcik yang tak sedar diri tu..!

Nevertheless I went back to the stall and bought the lettuce - and they cost me only RM1! I can only get it for about 5 bucks in Carrefour or ColdStorage.

Must ask again if it is really oay-mak-tom.. and the vege in the pic above was the culprit..

*****

My Baked Chicken

Long ago I cant survive baking / barbequing without my fave barbeque sauce ie Kraft's or Hunt's. I mean, how would I marinate my chicken?

Then one day we had a bbq get-together with some friends. I learnt that instead of spending big bucks on the sauce I can make it myself. You simply mix your oyster sauce, soy sauce, tomato ketchup, ground black pepper and some dried oregano. You can add some steak sauce if you have it - or even your black pepper sauce - if not, no worries.

If you like you can also add some honey for a bit of sweetness. Or add chilli flakes if you prefer it spicy. I like to add grated lemon rind and even some lemon juice to have that extra tangy taste. Rosemary and thyme are great choices for the sauce too.

.

Basically you can let your imagination rule the day..

.

I baked these chicken when the boys were home last CNY break. And a couple of days after that we bbq-ed (more) chicken, meat, shrimps, cockles and clams. We had that with baked potatoes and coleslaw. What can I say but yumm..?

.

ps - previously I baked the chicken on my baking sheet; but the other day I went to Ikea (my fave store) and saw this baking pan with the wire rack (pic). No kidding, the chicken is nicer with the new pan. I think heat circulates better..

*****

More Herb

I used to buy this dried by McCormick's. These days I plant it. It's called dill and I dont know what it is called locally. Will ask my mum one of these days. It smells like fresh tumeric aka kunyit in a way. Or even mustard.

I use it on my boiled potatoes and in my baked chicken. Unfortunately my boiled potatoes looked limp here although it tastes not bad.

*****

Caesar Salad And Anchovies

I love the taste of Caesar salad with chicken. The fresh lettuce, grilled chicken strips and the cheesy taste.

I looked around for its recipe and found a few on Martha Stewart's website. I took one and tried it and found that it is quite easy to make. It tastes nice and I've made it a few times since; this is how:

Croutons:
6 slices bread; cut into 3/4inch cubes
3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic (I grate my garlic. I think that's easier..)
1 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, minced (you can omit this if you dont have it)
Salt to taste

2 cloves garlic (finely grated)
2 large egg yolks (you can subsitute with 1 tablespoon mayonnaise if you'd prefer)
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
4 - 5 anchovies (ie 1 small flat can) - mash to a paste
2 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Salt & pepper to taste
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 heads romaine lettuce, washed and dried thoroughly and torn into 2inch pieces
Grated Pamesan cheese (to taste)

Croutons : Toss bread cubes with all other ingredients in a bowl. Toast in 350 degrees oven till lightly brown.

Stir egg yolks, Dijon mustard, anchovies and garlic together in a bowl. Add lemon juice, salt & pepper. Slowly stir in olive oil till dressing is creamy.

Add lettuce to the bowl and toss thoroughly. Stir in grated parmesan cheese. Sprinkle croutons on top of salad. Serve topped with Parmesan shavings.

That's it. I like my salad with chicken - so what I do is I grill / bake a couple of chicken breasts, slice them thinly and add to the salad with the lettuce.

While making the salad I discovered what anchovies tastes like - it tastes quite strong but not that bad actually.

Fresh anchovies are gutted (the Italians pulled the head off together with the stomach etc etc - I watched that on David Rocco's Dolce Vita) - and then preserved in layers of sea salt for three months. They are then packed with olive oil.

Although they are actually our bilis, they dont taste anything like bilis that we know and the price - mama mia, I cant believe bilis could be that expensive. I'm thinking of omitting the anchovies in my salad the next time..

Nevertheless, you must try this.

(ps - the gambar is from Martha Stewart although how I wish it were from my own camera err..handphone)

*****

Somewhere To Eat

I was at Mali's corner when I saw I girl from the office. Since she seemed engrossed with her friend (of the opposite sex, of course) I pretended I didnt notice her.

Now Mali's corner is a gerai that sells nasi lemak with hot-from-the-kuali ayam goreng and the best-of-the best kuay teow. Everything is self-served and the queue could be intolerable at times. Maybe because it is located just outside Kolej TAR and there are lots of hungry students around..

But the clientele varies actually, from parents with children and people after work and also teenagers. Seem like it is also popular with students from UIA and other colleges within the vicinity too.

I asked the girl from the office, the next day, where she stays expecting her to say Gombak / Keramat / Wangsa Maju / kawasan yang sama waktu dengannya. But she said, PJ. Oh, I said, ada hal dekat area tu ke smalam? She said no, we were just there to eat.

Oh, okay.. I didnt know Mali's that popular.. So maybe if you are in the area next time you can stop at Mali's and have a nasi lemak / kuay teow or two.. They are open from late afternoon to maybe about 3 in the morning.

*****

Delicious Scones

We girls went for tea last Fri - the best scones I had so far are at Delicious, located in Bangsar Village (new wing). Dont go to the outlet at the old wing - the scones are harder and you have to self serve there.

You should try these scones - with creme fraiche (as Jamie would say) and preserves, they are yummm..

*****

My Mum's Acar Limau

There are things that I dont fancy except when cooked by my mum especially dodol, wajik and acar limau. Who else cooks better than mum, right? Considering that my mum doesnt cook much anymore, I suppose I will not be eating these food anymore..

Anyway, I was at my niece's Mas engagement do last weekend when my sis-in-law asked me how to make mum's acar limau. I said I havent tried it although I do have the instructions. Apparently she had asked my mum about it and mum said, tanya Azah - dia dah pernah buat. Now, when mum said something like that, it means dia dah cerita habis dah lah resipi tu and she is not going to repeat the same thing to anyone else..

Uh-oh, that put me into a panic mode. Once I got home I searched for the recipe I had written which was narrated by my mum (she has it memorised so I cant copy it from anywhere..) I cant remember where I put it (cant remember when I asked mum about it either!) I said a long prayer when I found it..

So last weekend I tried to make the acar limau and my cheerleaders at home told me they like the acar. I suppose I need more impartial tasters and put the acar under more stringent tests. I should send samples to my sisters.

.

So maybe my mum's acar limau tradition will continue on after all.

These are the basic ingredients..

.. and the ready made mum's acar limau .. personally I thought it was yummy too.

*****

A New Pie!

I was lazy (or was I adventurous?) the other day - I made an apple pie using some ready-to-use pastry.

Maybe I used the wrong apples - but locally we can only ever find one type of green apples, right? So I used that and the fillings turned out a little soggy - so I put it a bit longer in the oven than was recommended. & the pie pastry turned out dry.. (sigh..)

The children didnt favor it much - maybe I should try it again and follow the instruction strictly this time.. the pie looked nice though, dont you think?

*****

No Idea Whatsoever!

I am truly and definitely going through a plateau here - it's the time where you just cant crank your head for anything to cook. Dont even think about asking your spouse for any ideas at time like this - nothing will seem attractive..

Lunch was a quick / simple and an indolent sup gear box! he-he.. well, the children did enjoy it.

I dont have anything prepared for dinner - I already flipped both Jamie's cookbooks this afternoon and then declared to anyone who'd listen that "there's nothing to cook in here!" Maybe we'll just go for teh tarik / roti canai session later..

*****