LP 8: Puto

The current theme of the eighth Lasang Pinoy, hosted by the lovely Iska of Edible Experiments, is centered on food for/by children. I wanted to create my husband's favourite childhood snack of bibingkang malagkit but my recipe fell short of expectations. The bottom - soggy, the top - too sweet. Maybe I'll blog it some other time. So off I went recruiting my kids in making a very simple Filipino steamed cake - puto. Mind you this is not your regular traditional puto which is made of malagkit (sticky rice) flour. This is of recent provenance, probably as early as the 80s when the popular Filipino bakeshop, Goldilocks, came up with this rich cake-like puto. There are very few ingredients to have and it's just a matter of mixing them all up in a bowl which a kid can easily do. My eldest daughter remarked that the batter is very much like that of a pancake. Well what do you know, she was right of course. More like a very sweet pancake version which is steamed instead of panfried. My kids are usually enthusiastic with 'helping' out in cooking and baking especially ones where they are actively involved in as opposed to just watching. I hope this would encourage them to be more adventurous in eating as well as in kitchen activities.


You don't know how much frustrations this seemingly innocuous snack has given me for the last ... oh ... 15 years. It's not a problem in the batter, more on the process of making these cakes rise in the steaming. The biggest Darth Vader-like enemy of steaming puto is water or condensation dripping/forming on top while it's cooking. Once water dripped on top then your puto is doomed to be earthbound. Never to rise in all its peaked glory. I've had this problem over and over again in the years that I was trying to make it. Often times I have to disguise my failure from our guests by saying it's actually my new version of kutchinta. LOL! I changed steamers, used rice cookers, metal steamers, and now just about having moderate success using a cheap and simple bamboo steamer. Really, sometimes you don't need high-tech gadgets to achieve good results.


The recipe is something I got from my sister-in-law, Ate Eva, in Toronto which in turn she got from a friend of hers. I have to tone down the recipe considerably because it was cloyingly rich (nakaka-uta). The original measure of 2 tablespoons baking powder is I think too much. It actually have an slight aftertaste which I don't like so I proceeded to halve the baking powder. Same with the milk and eggs. I also added salt since I noticed that it doesn't rise as much as I want to and as you know, salt reacts with the baking powder that causes cakes to swell. As for my dreaded steaming, normally I would cover the baking pan to prevent condensation to drip on it. But since I'm using small (different sized at that) moulds, it would be truly troublesome to cover them all individually. Life is too short for me to get that tedious. So I covered the top of the steaming basket itself with a cloth. That didn't work since the water vapours came in unimpeded thru the slats at the bottom. So I moved the cloth onto the bottom of the first level basket. Finally, I had my well-risen puto (well most of the time).




Rich Puto

2 cups plain flour
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1 egg - slightly beaten
1 Tbsp baking powder
scant 1/2 tsp fine salt
1 1/3 cup sugar

1. Mix all ingredients well.
2. Pour into small cake moulds. (Any small ramekins or tiny bowls/plates may be used). Cover with aluminium foil, tea towels or cloth (or you may cover the steamer itself with cloth).
3. Steam in medium heat for about 20-25 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and pry off the puto from the moulds with a butter knife. Serve warm or cold.

*Variation: Mix grated or slivers of cheese just before steaming.

Chicken Soy Sauce

"Chicken again?!" is my kids' gripe whenever they see a winged creature on my chopping board. I was afraid they might picket outside the kitchen to demand other food. Well, what can I do? Barring bird flu or salmonella, chicken is probably the cheapest meat you can have. We really prefer fish and other seafood but my gulay! The prices of fish here in London! No way we can afford them everyday. Unlike back in the Phils. where fish is so commonplace that people turn up their noses on galunggong (fish similar to mackerel). Getting back to my cooking, I came face to face with some chicken and this laziness to go to the supermarket for additional ingredients. Solution -> find a recipe which uses the usual cupboard ingredients or ones that I already have and voila mwala! Here comes the Chinese Cooking for Beginners by Huang Su-Huei to the rescue.


Chicken Soy Sauce

500 g  - 600 g  chicken legs or wings - cut into bite-size pieces
1 Tbsp soy sauce
oil for deep-frying
1 potato (about 250 g) - cut into bite-size pieces
1 medium carrot - cut into bite-size pieces
1 green onion - cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 1/2 Tbsp cooking wine

*Sauce:
1 cup water
1/2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp soy sauce

*Thickener:
1 Tbsp water
2 tsp cornstarch

1. Marinate the chicken in the 1 Tbsp soy sauce for about 20 minutes.
2. Mix the sauce and thickener in separate containers. Set aside.
3. Heat the oil in the wok and deep-fry the marinated chicken for about 4 minutes or until golden. Remove and drain briefly in paper towels. Set aside.
4. Deep-fry the potatoes and carrots until golden (about 3 minutes). Drain and set aside.
5. Remove the oil from the wok and then add 1 Tbsp oil.
6. Stir fry the green onions until aromatic.
7. Add the chicken, wine and sauce. Cover, bring to boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
8. Add in the potatoes and carrots. Cook for a further 10 minutes.
9. The sauce should reduce to about 1/2 cup. Stir in the thickener and bring gently to boil. Dish up and serve.

Ginataang Halo-Halo

This is one of my all-time favourite hot Filipino snack. Although there was a time when just the mention of the name makes me turn green - not with envy - but as in almost sick. See, there was a period (a long one) when my father insisted on having this *every* Sunday without fail. We, of course, loved it what with my father asking for gabi (taro) and ube (purple yam) to be required in the mix. The ube makes the sweet soup turn rather bluish as if somebody tipped in some tina (blue laundry tint). But no matter how much you love a certain food, if you have it every week for more than a year, your infatuation soon wanes. Nowadays I cook it only several times a year usually in winter time when having something hot and soupy is almost de rigeur for our family.

The ingredients I used here is based on what I can source in my area. So fresh coconut milk is out as with saba banana. That's one thing I miss from Pinas. The plantain, in my opinion, still can't compete with the taste and texture of the saba. But I can't find it anywhere here so to the plantain I must stick. One thing about plantain, when it's very ripe it will literally turn almost black. I was wondering before why grocers continue to display 'rotten' pieces of these. Until a Filipina friend kindly informed me that it still edible in that state. In fact, most prefer it black-ripe for a softer and sweeter banana.

I noticed as well that the sweet potatoes (kamote) here is softer or rather cooks more easily than the ones back home. And lastly, I think I prefer to use the glutinous rice flour rather than soaking the malagkit overnight then grinding it then straining it in a cheese cloth. *sigh* The ready-made flour just makes ife so much easier. By the way, there's a lot of coconut soup in this one since I love it soupy rather than chock-full of halo with hardly any soup.





Ginataang Halo-Halo
(Mixed Fruits In Sweet Coconut Milk)

*For the bilo-bilo (glutinous rice balls):
1 cup malagkit (glutinous) rice flour
scant 1/2 cup water

3 x 400 ml cans of coconut milk
3 x 400 ml cans of water (use the can of the coconut milk)
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup tiny sago (tapioca) pearls
500 g  kamote (sweet potato) - peeled and cut into serving size pieces
350 g  gabi (taro/eddo) - peeled and cut into serving size pieces
2 pcs ripe plantain bananas - peeled and cut into serving size pieces
250 g  fresh or canned langka (jackfruit) - drained and cut into 1/2-inch thick pieces
coconut cream (optional)

1. Mix the malagkit rice flour and water. Add in more water or flour to make into a dough-like consistency.
2. Get a small piece off it and, with your hands, roll into a ball about 1/2-inch in diameter. Repeat until you have used up all of the dough. Set aside.
3. In a big pot, tip in all the coconut milk and water. Bring to boil - watch out this mixture usually boils over.
4. Add the sago pearls. Turn down heat and continue to simmer uncovered until there are no more opaque white bit in the middle of the sago pearls (about 20 minutes).
5. Add in the sugar and stir to dissolve. Taste to see if the sweetness is to your liking. If not, add more sugar.
6. Tip in the bilo-bilo (glutinous rice balls) in the pot. Bring to boil again until all the bilo-bilo has floated on the surface.
7. Add the gabi, simmer for 3 minutes.
8. Add the kamote and banana and simmer for another 4 minutes or until the gabi and kamote are almost cooked.
9. Add the langka and cook for another 3-4 minutes.
10. Serve hot in a bowl with 1-2 Tbsp of coconut cream on top.

Borough Market

   

Underneath the railway arches of London Bridge station, beside the Southwark Cathedral lies this small open air food shopping area called Borough Market. On this approach you can access the market through the small alley of Green Dragon Court. [Click on the pictures for a bigger view.]


I have heard a lot about it, mostly along the lines of excited chatter on great foodie finds or fresh organic produce. One fine Saturday in October I was able to verify that and I had a great time with my son foraging through the numerous stalls with loads of wonderful produce usually from small artisanal producers.

Its got a great atmosphere with lots of people mingling and craning their necks on the goods laid out on the tables. A favourite of my son is the hot apple juice laced with cinnamon. Lovely when drank in cold cold weather.

If you look closely, the place might seem familiar because it's always been a popular movie location - Harry Potter 3, Bridget Jones, Lock Stock and 2 Smoking Barrels, etc.)

   

In the early mornings (as in pre-dawn) the market caters more for the food/restaurant trade and wholesales. I have it from a reliable source (thanks Hanna) that it's open for retail trade on weekdays as well as on Saturdays. Fridays and Saturdays are its busiest.

   

Among the few things you can find there are saucisson sec (dry French sausages) of different flavours. The truffle saucisson is particularly delish. There is a stall for bratwurst and other types of German sausages, pickles, etc.

   

You can also find all manner of sweets, chocolates, fudges, toffees, etc. Baked goods also abound - numerous breads, cakes, pies, tarts, cookies.

   

I love rummaging through the stalls with fruits and vegetables where they have both organic and regular ones. You can often see unusual and hard to find vegetables that you don't normally get from your local supermarkets.

There are also a number of stalls selling food on the go - juicy hamburgers, raclette sandwiches, roast pork sandwiches, pizza (crust remained crispy!), oysters, yoghurt and others. You will never go hungry there definitely.


Anything food related can be found there. Just take a look at these lovely hand painted plates for sale. The same stall also sells coasters, placemats, and aprons.


Besides the temporary stalls, there are food shops, pubs, and restaurants which are open everyday since they are in permanent spaces. The restaurant (and overpriced) Fish! can be found there with a new one right above the market whose name I couldn't recall.


Among the favourite shops that I love returning to again and again are Brindisa for anything Spanish (chorizos, wines, paprika, etc.; they also have a separate tapas bar), Neil's Yard for robust breads and cheese and a branch of Konditor & Cook's for delectable cakes, cookies, and other sweet stuff.

   

Lumpiang Togue

This is actually a lumpiang gulay (vegetable spring roll) but since the dominant veggie is the togue (beansprouts) so I've decided to call it same as that snack you get from roadside shacks or in markets in the Phils. I've been trying to adapt this recipe from Huang Su-Huei's Chinese Cooking For Beginners for years. But always my problem is the lumpia wrappers getting soggy hence getting holes or breaking up during frying. I've tried so many different tacks from draining for a whole day to actually laying on paper towels just to get it drier but to no avail. The problem stems from the fact that the procedure calls for blanching the vegetables with boiling water for a few seconds and that's where all the water comes from. So this time I decided to stir fry it for a few seconds in oil then drained it well (for a few hours actually). That's when I had a breakthough of having fully fried lumpias with no holes. What I like about this recipe is the flavouring of sugar and sesame oil at the end. It gives it a nice sweet-savoury finish. To make this fully vegetarian, substitute the meat with mushrooms. The combination vegetables here can be varied as well according to your taste. If you're not too excited by togue then by all means replace it with shredded cabbage and/or throw in some woodears or shiitake mushrooms, etc. The variation is limitless.

Lumpiang Togue
(Beansprouts Spring Rolls)

1/2 cup minced pork or chicken or beef (optional)*
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp cooking wine
1/4 tsp salt
4 cups togue (beansprouts) [about 400 g]
1 stalk celery - shredded
1 medium carrot - finely julienned
8 big egg roll wrappers (about 9 inch x 9 inch)
2 Tbsp oil

*Seasoning:
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp sesame oil

*Flour Paste:
1 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp water

*Dip:
2 Tbsp vinegar
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 garlic clove - smashed

1. Mix all seasoning, flour paste and dip ingredients separately. Set aside.
2. In a bowl, mix the cooking wine, salt, and cornstarch. Stir until salt is dissolved. Add the meat into it and mix to combine.
3. In a wok, heat the oil. Tip in the meat mixture and cook until meat changes color - about 3 minutes. Making sure to mash it from time to time to separate the meat.
4. Turn heat to high and add in all the vegetables. Stir fry for 2 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and transfer to a colander.
6. Mix in the seasoning. Leave to drain in the colander for several hours or until completely cool and fully drained.
7. Place the egg roll wrappers on a clean working surface. Put about 3 Tablespoonful of the vegetable mixture on the wrapper. Fold and roll like an envelope.
8. Seal with the flour paste.
9. Deep fry for a few minutes or until golden brown. Drain vertically on a small colander or sieve or on paper towels. Serve warm with the dip.

Note: You may replace the meat with shredded mushrooms or omit it altogether. The vegetables can be varied as well according to your taste as long as you keep the volume/amount the same.

Low-fat Banana & Blueberry Muffins

I wanted to make something to take to a family friend who recently had a spell in the hospital after an operation. He's been recovering well at his home for several weeks and I just wanted to give him a treat while at the same time not increasing his sugar and cholesterol level. Thank goodness the March 2006 BBC Good Food Magazine just went thru our letter box and contained this recipe which I think is quite wholesome. It is certainly not sweet and quite moist inside because of the fresh bananas and blueberries.


Low-fat Banana & Blueberry Muffins

300 g  self-raising flour
50 g  porridge oats plus 1 Tbsp for topping
100 g  [2/3 cup] light muscovado sugar
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
2 medium bananas - mashed (about 1 cup)
284 ml  buttermilk
5 Tbsp olive oil
2 egg whites - slightly beaten
150 g  fresh blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Line a 12-hole muffin pan with paper muffin cases.
2. Reserve 1 Tbsp of the muscovado sugar. Mix the rest of it with the flour and 50 gm oats.
3. In another bowl, mix the egg whites, oil, and mashed bananas until well combined.
4. Pour the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and quickly stir and fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
5. Add the blueberries and give it a few stirs.
6. Divide the batter into the prepared muffin pans. Sprinkle the 1 Tbsp oats and 1 Tbsp muscovado sugar on top.
7. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown.
8. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan then remove and cool completely.

LP7: Pan de Sal

Gising na! Wake up! Breakfast time ... that's the current theme of the 7th Lasang Pinoy ably hosted by the early-morning-food blogger Joey of 80 Breakfasts.

The traditional breakfast of Filipinos has been rice or garlic fried rice with either fried/grilled fish, tocino, or longganisa. But in our family, a lot of our mornings are filled with that ubiquitous crusty roll endemic to Filipinos called Pan de Sal (also spelled without the spaces - pandesal) which means literally bread with salt. I could imagine the original pan de sal must have been more on the salty side rather than the sweet one that is common now which is how I have always known what a pandesal should taste. There was a long time in my youth that I could not imagine a morning without a warm pandesal to satiate my hunger. It's very versatile you see, you can spread a variety of things between its fluffy insides such as butter, liver spread (pate), jams, preserves, matamis na bao, peanut butter, pancit, ice cream - you name it. Or you simply dunk it in coffee or tea.

Sometimes even in the evenings when someone in the household comes home late, passes by a bakery then buys fresh-off-the-oven pandesal. You can bet that anyone among us kids will awaken with the fragrant waft of the hot pandesal. Down the stairs we came to partake in the midnight snack. I love it smeared with liver spread. Yum!

This is my very first time to bake pandesal and I had to call my aunt in Cavite to get her recipe which she got from her Home Economics subject when she was studying in Teacher's College about 35 years ago. Yeah that long ago. Now I don't know if I misheard the measurement of the liquids because the dough turned out very sticky and really hard to handle. I don't know if it's supposed to be like this. I think I'll be calling my aunt again in the weekend. Despite the intense stickiness, I managed to knead it (with a lot of help from sprinkled flour) and let it rise. She said it will double in bulk after 2 hours, I think mine tripled that's one reason why I suspect there's too much yeast. Maybe the yeast that I use here is more potent/concentrated. I'll certainly have to play around with the proportions in this recipe later. It was also hard for me to cut it to uniform-sized individual rolls since it's very soft. Thank goodness it came out alright from the oven - fragrant and crusty though somewhat moist inside. I don't know if it's supposed to be like this but it certainly was good enough for my family. :)




Pan de Sal

8 cups plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup cooking oil
2 1/2 cups cold water
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 Tbsp yeast

1. In a small bowl, combine the lukewarm water, 1 tsp of the sugar and yeast. Let stand for about 15 minutes in a warm area. By this time it will be foamy; whisk well.
2. In a big bowl, mix cold water with oil, salt and the rest of the sugar. Stir until sugar and salt are dissolved.
3. Add the yeast mixture and 1 cup of the flour. Stir to combine.
4. Add the rest of the flour a little at a time. Mix with a wooden spoon until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
5. Knead the dough on a floured surface until smooth. If needed sprinkle some more flour to keep the dough from sticking too much.
6. Put in a greased bowl and turn to coat the dough all over with oil.
7. Cover and let rise in warm place for 2 hours.
8. Punch dough and turn out on a floured surface.
9. Divide into 4 and roll each into logs. Cut the logs into individual rolls.
10. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on the rolls and arrange in greased baking sheets.
11. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for 30 minutes.
12. Bake in a preheated oven of 200°C/fan 180°C/400°F for 13-15 minutes.
13. Remove from baking sheet. Serve hot or cold.

IMBB 23: Quiche Lorraine

The 23rd monthly edition (hosted by Cucina Testa Rossa) of the premier food blogging event Is My Blog Burning? requires us to create something staunchly French. I was planning on taking on the formidable task of cooking bouillabaisse or cassoulet but the sheer scale of the mammoth undertaking made me chicken out. Just the number of ingredients plus the length of time it will take to cook it completely intimidated me. I could easily have opted for the more easy or shorter versions of it but for me that would be cheating. So in came this idea of doing my son's request of a Quiche Lorraine.

A quiche is also known as a flan or tart. This version, as you might have guessed, originated in a north-eastern region of France called Lorraine. A once independent and properous region, it was only assimilated to what we know now as France as late as 300 hundred years ago. Due to its position by the German border, it saw its owners changing hands several times during World War I and II. More of its history can be seen here.

The first time I made this is via a BBC Good Food magazines 'ultimate' recipe. In there, it instructed to add Gruyere cheese. I did, but my son would not even touch it. He objected to the smell of the cheese. So I researched on what constitute a traditional quiche Lorraine. According to Elizabeth David in her book, French Provincial Cooking, the Quiche Lorraine that the natives of that region regard as such is simply a savoury custard pie with eggs, cream, smoked bacon and *no* cheese. That was a revelation to me, since everywhere I went whether here in UK or in Paris, these tarts almost always have some cheese in them. But I have to agree with Ms. David because when we passed by the area of Nancy in Lorraine last year, all the Quiche Lorraines we ate had no smidgen of cheese.

That settled it, I have to do this first without the cheese then with it (just to make the comparison). I have to admit I liked it regardless if it has cheese or not. Surprisingly, my son favoured the one with cheese. Could it be because I used the less smelly mature cheddar? The dominant flavour of the smoked bacon in the custard was simply divine whether served hot or cold. Although I have to remember next time to make the crust thicker. I like it thick as a foil to the richness of the filling. This is best served with a big salad and a chilled Sauvignon Blanc. (sorry no pictures of the wine) Recipe was adapted from the September 2005 issue of the BBC Good Food Magazine.




Quiche Lorraine

*Pastry
175 g  [1 1/3 cups] plain flour
100 g  chilled butter
1 egg yolk
3-4 Tbsp cold water

*Filling:
400 ml  [1 2/3 cups] double cream (or half creme fraiche, half double cream)
50 g  Gruyere or mature cheddar (optional)
150 g  smoked/unsmoked bacon lardons or streaky bacon slices
3 eggs - beaten
pinch ground nutmeg

• Take 2/3 of the cheese and cut it into small dice. Grate the remaining 1/3 of the cheese.
• Dice the bacon finely.


• For the pastry:
  1. Put all the ingredients in a food processor and process until it forms into a ball.
  2. Or if you don't have a food processor: cut the butter into the flour in a bowl until it has the consistency of coarse crumbs.
  3. Add in the egg yolks and toss with fork.
  4. Sprinkle the water little by little until you can gather the mixture into a ball.
  5. Press and knead between your hands until it just about holds together.
  6. Roll out with a rolling pin into a circle 11 inches (28 cm) wide.
  7. Carefully put on a fluted tart pan.
  8. Trim the pastry edges about 1/4 inch higher than the pan edge.
  9. Press the pastry into the flutes and prick the base with a fork.
  10. Chill for 10 minutes in the fridge.
  11. Preheat oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/400°F.
  12. Bake blind: put a piece of aluminum foil (shiny side down) on the pastry-lined pan. Fill it up with dry or ceramic beans and place on a baking sheet before putting in the oven. Bake for 15 minutes.
  13. Remove foil and beans. Bake for another 4-5 minutes.


• For the filling:
  1. Reduce oven temperature to 190°C/fan 170°C/375°F.
  2. Fry the bacon (without oil) in a small frying pan.
     Remove any liquid that comes out and cook until bacon changes color. Drain on paper towels.
  3. Mix the double cream, eggs, and nutmeg in a container.
  4. Scatter the fried bacon and diced cheese on the bottom of the pastry case.
  5. Pull out half of the oven shelf and place the pastry case/tart pan on the baking sheet.
  6. Pour the double cream mixture in the pastry case. Scatter the grated cheese on top.
  7. Carefully push the oven shelf back in. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
  8. Remove from oven and cool for about 5 minutes. Serve hot or cold.

Tagged with: IMBB23 + French

Banana Date Cake

This is one moist and scrumptious cake perfect for teas. I was skeptical at first since I've done a lot of these banana cakes that usually turn out a bit hard and more bread-like rather than cakey. But this one was a revelation so a definite keeper. I think the dates provided the needed moistness while the muscovado sugar imparted a delicious treacly taste in its personality. You can see in the picture that the edges of the top was definitely burned. Hehehe. I was too smug in my baking abilities and assumed that the baking temperature is the usual 180C/350F. Forty minutes after putting in the pan in the oven, I sneaked a peek in the recipe book and it said there - 160°C *not* 180°C. Yikes! That's a 20-degree difference! I lowered the temperature immediately good thing it did not singed to ashes the rest of it. :)

The nifty BBC books cookbook 101 Cakes & Bakes, provided the recipe I adapted.


Banana Date Cake

175 g  butter - softened
100 g  [1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp firmly packed] light muscovado sugar
3 Tbsp honey
2 eggs - beaten
225 g  [scant 2 cups] self-raising flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 medium, ripe bananas - mashed (about 1 cup)
100 g  stoned dates - chopped
50 g  walnuts - chopped

1. Grease and line the bottom and long side of a 1 kg/2 lb loaf pan. Preheat oven to 160°C/fan 140°C/325°F.
2. In a small bowl, mix the flour and cinnamon until well combined. Set aside.
3. In a big bowl, beat the butter with the muscovado sugar.
4. Add in 2 Tbsp of the honey and the eggs. Beat and mix well.
5. Add the flour mixture and mix with a wooden spoon.
6. Tip in the mashed banana and dates, mix until well blended.
7. Pour into the prepared loaf pan.
8. Scatter the chopped walnuts evenly on top.
9. Bake for about 1 hour. Press the top lightly, it should be firm. If not, bake for another 10 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
11. Lift out of the pan and drizzle the remaining 1 Tbsp honey on top. Cool completely.

New Blog Skin

For the longest time, I was trying to change my blog template and finally I found the time to do it. Originally I scouted a lot among the free templates floating around in the web. Then decided on getting this from Caz. Thanks Caz!

But I did have to change *a lot* in the html and css codes to tailor it to my needs and style. Now the problem is changing almost all of my posts because the recipe font is too big. Never mind I'll do it one step at a time. For now, I shall enjoy this one until that is, my fingers get itchy and I'll change it again. :)

Welsh Rarebit

First time I heard the name, I thought it was stewed rabbit or maybe lamb. My son (J1) thought it was frogs. :) We had no idea that it will be something very tasty and delicious and very easy to make. That's one thing I like about Brits they affix witty, oftentimes funny, names to their food. This my friends, is essentially grilled cheese on toast, as simple as that. But made several degrees more delicious with the small addition of flavourings. Sharp tasting cheddar would be best so the extra mature ones would be great and in the US, the Kraft Crackle Barrel brand comes to mind. The Canadian extra mature cheddar would be excellent as well. So far, this is the best version I've tried which is adapted from Brian Turner's Favourite British Recipes.

J1 was very wary when he saw me making it. Just when I was adding in the English mustard he declared he's not going anywhere near it. Fine I thought. Come early morning he saw me grilling these babies. He asked if the ones in the oven are plain cheese and not the welsh rarebits. I said yes (I lied). So down he scoffed one. All I heard were - hmmm ... mmm ... and something along the lines of "it's delicious". That's when I broke the news that it was actually Welsh Rarebit. He was grinning from ear to ear. See, mums have to do a lot of underhanded tactics to make their kids eat something different and I'm glad my lie did not go to waste. LOL!


Welsh Rarebit

250 g  mature cheddar - grated (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup double cream (heavy cream)
1 Tbsp beer or ale or water
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp English mustard or Dijon mustard
2 egg yolks
thick slices of wholemeal bread (or any type of bread)

1. Heat the double cream until gently boiling.
2. Add the beer and bring back to boil.
3. Turn off heat; add the Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and grated cheese. Blend well.
4. Add the egg yolks and stir well until the cheese has slightly melted and mixture is soft and liquidy. You may have to return the saucepan to the cooker at very low heat.
5. Put in a container and cool. (It is best to use this the next day to let the flavours develop).
6. Arrange the bread slices under the grill to toast one side. Remove.
7. Spread a generous amount of the cheese mixture on the *untoasted* side of the bread.
8. Put back under the grill until golden and bubbling. Serve warm.

Char Siu (Barbecued Pork)

Sorry the picture isn't so pretty. Me and my husband were already quite famished when I took out of the oven. There was no time to arrange and make it pretty coz we were ready to devour it! I have several recipes of Char Siu or Cha Siu - known in English as Barbecued Pork. I intend to try them all but first I did Renee's (of the now defunct Shiokadelicious blog) recipe. Shame her formerly very popular and award-winning food blog is not online anymore. She probably is busy with some other things. Thanks very much Renee for sharing the recipe!

This is the reddish lightly charred roasted pieces of boneless pork meat hanging off a hook that you see in lots of Chinese restaurants. Very nice teamed with hot steamed rice poured with some soy sauce based sauce. Used in so many other Chinese dishes such as noodle soups, stir fried noodles, char siu pao (siopao), etc. It's quite universal and basic in Chinese cuisine or at least in the Cantonese style of cooking.

For this, I followed Renee's suggestion of using maltose. Which a type of sugar that is formed from malt usually from the production of beer. The one I got from the Chinese grocery is a very thick liquid. By the time I used it, it got cold a bit and was so very thick hence, very hard to take out of its plastic tub. I had to put it out for a time somewhere warm to soften it. Additionally, it's only mildly sweet (I tasted of course). So the resulting char siu was more on the salty side. Next time I think I'll replace some or all of it with honey just to see how the flavour will develop. But the one thing good about maltose is that it gives the char siu this nice glossy sheen that makes it look so attractive. No wonder restaurant chefs use them a lot. So maybe next time I'll keep the maltose for glazing and just increase the sugar or use honey in the marinade? Also, I did not use any red food colouring. I don't think it needs one since the Hoisin sauce already gives out the rouge it needs. Besides, I'm not too fond of artificial colouring what with all the chemicals you can find in there. I'll have to experiment on that soy sauce-based thin sauce that they pour over this on rice. My hunch is it's made from the drippings of the barbecued pork itself. If any of you have a recipe for that sauce please give me a tip. Thanks. :)


Char Siu
(Barbecued Pork)

1 kg  pork (fillet, liempo, shoulder steaks, etc.)
5 Tbsp light soy sauce
3 Tbsp dark soy sauce
5 Tbsp maltose (or honey or combination of honey & maltose)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup rice wine (or sherry)
1/4 cup Hoisin sauce
3 pcs 1/4-inch thick slices of ginger - smashed
4 garlic cloves - kept whole and smashed
red food colour (optional)

*Glaze
2-3 Tbsp maltose (or honey) - warmed

1. Mix all ingredients (except pork) in a saucepan. Heat for about 1 minute just enough to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and cool.
2. Marinate pork in this mixture for at least overnight.
3. Preheat oven to 210°C/fan 190°C/410°F.
4. Remove pork from the marinade and arrange on a rack set on a roasting pan with about 1/2 inch of hot water in the pan. (This is to keep the meat moist during roasting). Bake for 15 minutes.
5. Lower heat to 180°C/fan 160°C/350°F, baste the meat with its marinade and turn them over. Cook for a further 15 minutes.
6. Baste again with marinade and cook for another 10 minutes. Check if meat is done.
7. Remove from oven, brush with the warmed maltose (glaze) and grill for about 2-4 minutes until it's nicely browned or charred - whichever degree of finish you like.
8. Serve hot or cold sliced on hot steamed rice, noodles, etc.

Fried Savoury Beancurds

I found another beancurd recipe to use up a box that was soon to expire. This one has a very tasty and slightly spicy batter. And I suspect this is very similar to the fried beancurd we used to have in a Chinese restaurant in the basement of the old Makati Cinema Square in Pasong Tamo Ave. down in Makati. That one had a very nice sauce which complements it well. I guess I'll have to concoct that next to complete the similarity. The book The Food of China yielded this nice dish.


Fried Savoury Beancurds

500 g  beancurds
100 g  minced pork (optional)
1 cup plain flour
1 egg - beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tsp chicken stock powder
1 Tbsp chilli sauce
water to mix
oil for deep frying
freshly ground black pepper
shredded green onions or chopped herbs (for garnish)

1. Combine flour, egg, salt, sugar, chicken powder, chilli sauce, pork and enough water to make a batter with the consistency of double (heavy) cream.
2. Cut the beancurd into pieces of 1/2 inch thick, about 2 inches long, and 1 inch wide.
3. Heat oil in a wok or saucepan until slightly smoking.
4. Dip the beancurds in the batter then slip them one by one and in batches in the oil. Deep fry for about 3-4 minutes or until golden brown.
5. Garnish with black pepper and herbs.

Meme: Three tips to losing weight

Now I need these tips badly. I am supposed to be on a diet but as often I find myself slipping into snack attacks - of the most yummy and weight-busting kind! Help! Mel of Hecticium tagged me for this almost a month ago. It's always at the back of my mind ever since but I couldn't find the time to sit down and type away things I found useful in my perpetual quest for the perfect body weight. Here they are and I hope you find them benficial to you:

1. Drink lots of water. Even when not on a diet, we don't often take the recommended amount of water everyday. We need it much more when we're demanding a change in our body during diets. The recommended daily amount is between 6-8 glasses. Believe me when we drink it that much and that often you'll feel so much refreshed and our skin will look nicer afterall it washes away toxins from our body and gives us a very necessary ingredient to our bodily functions. Drink up!


2. Exercise regularly. I should tell this to myself. *sigh* It's becoming a habit now of me forgetting to exercise to help in the shedding of the pounds. As you well know, just dieting will not make your weight loss stick. With a regular regime of exercise, not only will your weight loss accelerate but it will most likely help keep it off. Besides exercise makes your body secrete endorphines which makes us happy bunnies.


3. Right frame of mind. For me this is one of the most crucial thing before I set off to do something. I have to visualise it and create it in my mind first before physically acting on it. Otherwise the venture would be just half-hearted and many times won't work. So it's important for me to start a diet with a firm resolve and will power to carry it through.

Well I hope I can follow my own advise. ;) I actually don't know who to tag next so if you're interested please tag yourself. Now, I think I was tagged for another meme ... what was that one? Hmmm ... thimk think thimk.

Chicken Curry

I can still smell the pungent rich aroma of this nice curry. Lots of spicy tang from the tanglad (lemon grass), belachan (shrimp paste), lots of ginger, and of course the curry powder. Then enriched with the addition of coconut milk. Yum! This is more of a Southeast Asian type of curry rather than the Indian type which is noticeable with the lemon grass and belachan.

I've been hankering for a nice hot curry probably prodded on by the cold weather permeating Southern England right now. Instead of buying or borrowing another cookbook, I rummaged through all of mine scattered throughout the house where I found this gem of a recipe from one of my oldest cookbooks that hails all the way from Hong Kong (circa 1991), Cecilia Au-Yeung's Chopsticks Recipes: Introduction. And I just love love love the resulting aroma in this fabulous keeper of a dish. The only thing I had a problem with was the ginger juice. I didn't have enough of the root crop to squeeze that much besides I thought it's too much work for moi. So I just julienned about 2-square inch of it for the marinade and removed them before adding in the chicken. Other than that, it would help if you have an electric chopper so you could just whiz all the spices and wouldn't have to pound away with a heavy mortar and pestle. So if you find yourself in an Oriental store one time, pick up a few of the more exotic ingredients (the rest are common in kitchens everywhere) then do try this one - I highly recommend it!


Chicken Curry

1 1/2 kg  chicken - cut into serving pieces
2 onions - mashed or pureed
3 Tbsp curry powder
1 tsp turmeric
2 Tbsp ginger juice*
2 Tbsp cooking wine
2 slices ginger
1 lemon grass
5 Tbsp oil
3 garlic cloves
2-3 chillies - seeded and chopped
2 tsp belachan (shrimp paste)
500 g  waxy potatoes - peeled and quartered
1/2 cup water
2 cups coconut milk
2 tsp sea salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp chicken powder

1. Mix the ginger juice, 1 Tbsp of the curry powder, and wine with the chicken. Marinate for at least 1 hour. Set aside.
2. Remove outer skin of the lemon grass. Lightly mash then chop into smallish pieces.
3. Using a mortar and pestle (or an electric blender/chopper) mash the lemon grass, garlic, ginger, belachan, and chillies into a smooth paste. Set aside.
4. Combine 1 Tbsp of the oil with the turmeric powder and 2 Tbsp of the curry powder to make a thick paste.
5. Heat a pan with 1 Tbsp oil and saute the pureed onions until aromatic.
6. Add in the curry mixture and fry for about 30 seconds. Remove from heat.
7. Mix in the lemon grass mixture and stir to combine well.
8. In a medium sized pot, heat 3 Tbsp oil and saute the curry-lemon grass mixture over low heat until pungent.
9. Stir in the chicken with the marinade and cook for about 2-3 minutes.
10. Add in the water, salt, sugar and chicken powder. Simmer for 20 minutes.
11. Tip in the potatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes or until potatoes are cooked.
12. Stir in the coconut milk and bring to boil again.
13. Remove from heat and dish up.

*Note: If you don't have the equipment nor the inclination to make ginger juice, peel and julienne a 2-inch square piece of ginger and use this instead.

Almond Apricot Torte

If you recall a month ago, I made leche flan several times. After that, I was like a woman possessed and obsessed with trying to use up all the resulting left-over egg whites. Thus all this flurry of recipes of meringue-based desserts that makes use of the egg whites so effectively. I think I should make another recipe category here - 'Egg Whites Repository' or something like that.

This cake was described by a friend as having a very delicate lovely flavour. What I like most about it is the contrast of the softness of the cake with the crunch of the almonds and chocolate chunks then topped with the sublime cloud of apricot-flavoured whipped cream. This is definitely a keeper. Adapted from my favourite 101 Cakes and Bakes of the BBC GoodFood Magazine.


Almond Apricot Torte

5 egg whites
200 g  [1 cup] caster sugar
100 g  [1 cup] ground almonds
50 g  [1/2 cup] flaked almonds - toasted
50 g  dark chocolate - chopped

*For the apricot cream:
300 g  apricot compote or preserve
425 ml [scant 1 1/3 cup] double cream

*For the decoration:
3 Tbsp flaked almonds - toasted
25 g  dark chocolate - shaved
icing sugar for dusting (confectioner's sugar)

• For the torte:
  1. Preheat oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Butter and line the base of a 25 cm (10-inch) springform pan.
  2. Beat the egg whites until stiff. Then gradually whisk in the caster sugar, a tablespoon at a time.
  3. Using a metal spoon, lightly fold in the ground almonds, toasted flaked almonds, and the chopped chocolates.
  4. Pour the mixture into the pan and bake for 40-45 minutes until crisp at the top and light golden.
  5. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes. Turn out and leave to cool on a wire rack.
  
  
• For the apricot cream:
  1. Beat the cream until soft peaks.
  2. Fold in the apricot compote gently to give you swirls of apricot. Spread this mixture over the torte.
  
  
• For the decoration:
  1. Scatter the shaved chocolate and toasted flaked almonds on top of the apricot cream.
  2. Dust lightly with icing sugar.

LP 6: Bagis

This month's edition of Lasang Pinoy is hosted by the lovely Ting of Worldclass Cuiscene with a theme of 'pulutan'. When you hear 'pulutan' you should think along the same vein as the Spanish tapas. It's usually a dish that is specifically eaten with alcoholic drinks. Because of the close similarity, the concept might have come from the Spanish. (Please don't hold me hostage with that last statement, I'm just speculating from the obvious.) Due to the nature of its purpose, it's usually very spicy or at least very tasty to encourage you to drink more.

When the theme was announced it stupefied me since I haven't cooked pulutan to anyone. The one dish I wanted to try was sisig but pork cheek and/or ears are not normally what you see lying around the supermarket shelves here. The only other one I know is spicy adobong mani (garlic fried peanuts) which I think is so simplistic. Well Lasang Pinoy, in my opinion, deserves better than that. So what other recourse I had than call for help from the mga manginginom (drunken masters) I know. Good thing they came up trumps with this Kapampangan (Ilokano?) dish of bagis which was sooo tasty and so easy to do even a half-inebriated guy can whip this up in no time at all. A big thanks is in order to my BIL Derek and his friend Al Dayao (who gave the original recipe) for sharing this with us. Tagay na !



Bagis

500 g  minced beef
2-3 Tbsp lemon juice (from about 1 whole lemon)
1 1/2 cups chopped onions (about 2 medium)
1 tsp Tabasco sauce (or to taste)*
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
freshly milled black pepper

1. Marinate the minced beef in lemon juice for 24 hours or overnight.
2. Combine the marinated beef (including the marinade) and the rest of the ingredients in a pan and cook in medium heat. As it cooks, the beef will render its juice and fat so you do not need to put any water or oil.
3. Once the mixture starts bubbling away, turn down heat and simmer until all the liquid has evaporated and the beef starts sizzling from its own fat. Dish up and serve with some stiff drinks. :p

*Note: You may use fresh chopped chillis or dried chilli flakes in place of the Tabasco.

Chorizo and Pork Belly with Haricot Beans

I found this in the October 2005 issue of Olive magazine. With a lot of leftover chorizo that was going to expire soon, this fitted perfectly well with what I required. Besides using up all my chorizos, this stew is quite appropriate in the current near-freezing weather sending in comfort with its rich, slightly spicy, if somewhat salty taste. You know what, this has shades of Fabada except instead of morcilla you have the chorizo. I bet this would be great as well if indeed you use morcilla. It's easy enough to cook which after you've banged up all the ingredients you just stick it in the oven and wait. Make sure to hold the seasonings first until you've tasted it since the amalgam of bacon and chorizo can be salty at times.


Chorizo and Pork Belly with Haricot Beans

750 g  pork belly - skin removed, cut into large chunks
130 g  pancetta or streaky bacon - diced
1 large onion - chopped
1/2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp hot smoked paprika
200 g  chorizo - chopped
1 x 400 g  can of chopped tomatoes
2/3 cup red wine
1 x 400 g  can of haricot or cannellini beans - drained and rinsed
about 1/3 cup chopped fresh coriander
olive oil
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 160°C/fan 140°C/300°F/gas mark 3.
2. Heat about 1 Tbsp olive oil in an oven proof casserole pot. Brown the pork in it at high heat. Do this in batches. Set aside.
3. Reduce the heat to medium and add 1 Tbsp more olive oil in the pot and then add the pancetta. Cook for about 2-3 minutes until golden brown.
4. Add in the onion and garlic and cook until softened.
5. Stir in the chorizo and paprika. Cook for a minute or so.
6. Put back the pork in the pot and tip in the chopped tomatoes.
7. Pour in the red wine and enough water just to cover it.
8. Season with pepper and cook in the oven for 2 hours.
9. Remove the cover and stir in the haricot beans and return to the oven. Cook uncovered for 20-30 minutes.
10. Remove from the oven and taste the sauce. If need be, season with salt.
11. Stir in the coriander and serve with crusty breads or hot plain rice.

SHF 15: Squidgy Chocolate Cakes with Prunes

What a great idea to have a 'Sugar Low Friday' for the 15th edition of SHF. This time it's hosted by that lovely food blogger Sam in SFO whom I met a few months ago. As she said, after all the excesses most of us had during the Christmas holidays it's about time to balance off some of these rich food with something low in fat, low in sugar.

Actually my first attempt in this genre was with some cinnamon apple sauce mixed with yoghurt and whipped egg whites. It was really very low fat with no sugar and so healthy but ... bleccchh! It was so sour and had that strong taste of the egg whites that I didn't bother to let my other family members taste it. Down it went to the rubbish bin.

As the deadline came looming, I turned to my trusty Delia Smith cookbook (How To Cook Book 3) to give me one dessert that I know will surely work. For me, she is that reliable ... and she sure was! A bonus in this recipe is that it doesn't have any flour, perfect for people with wheat allergies. I used Fruisana in place of the 'granulated sweetener'. It's actualy fructose which is an all-natural fruit sugar extracted sweetener that's at least 30% sweeter than ordinary sugar. So it doesn't have that unpleasant aftertaste like that in artificial sweeteners.

The cakes itself don't taste much really 'coz there's not much sugar in it. But combined with the creaminess of the creme fraiche filling and the natural sweetness of the rum-soaked prunes, it was gorgeous. Very very nice indeed! Definite thumbs up for this one. :)



Squidgy Chocolate Cakes with Prunes

10 g  [2 Tbsp + 1 tsp] cocoa powder
3 large eggs - separated
1 1/2 Tbsp granulated sweetener
oil for greasing

*For the filling:
12 ready-to-eat prunes
3 Tbsp marsala or rum or brandy
3 Tbsp low fat fromage frais or creme fraiche
2 tsp granulated sweetener (or to taste)
1 tsp chocolate or vanilla extract

1. Put the marsala and prunes in a small saucepan. Heat the sauce pan and bring it up just to simmering point. Remove from heat and leave to cool. You may put this in a covered glass or plastic container and leave to soak for a few hours or overnight in the fridge.
2. Preheat oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Lightly grease 4 ramekins - about 1.5 inches deep with a base of 3 inches.
3. Beat the egg yolks in a bowl with the sweetener for about 1 minute.
4. Sift the cocoa on the egg yolk mixture and mix well to blend.
5. Beat the egg whites in another bowl until soft peak stage.
6. Using a metal spoon, mix in about 1 Tbsp of the beaten egg whites to the cocoa batter to lighten it. Then gently fold in the rest of the egg whites.
7. Pour and divide into the 4 ramekins.
8. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until the top is crusty but still wobbly.
9. Remove from oven and leave to cool. As soon as it's cool enough to handle, turn out from the ramekins by running a knife along the edges then prying it loose. Leave it to further cool on a wire rack.
10. While the cake is cooling, mix the creme fraiche, sweetener, chocolate extract, and about 1-2 tsp of the rum marinade of the prunes (careful not to add too much or it will become runny).
11. Reserve 4 of the prunes, chop the rest of it, then mix these to the creme fraiche mixture.
12. Split the 4 cakes horizontally like a bun. Divide the creme fraiche filling among the lower half of the 4 cakes. Cover with the top half and then top with the reserved a prune in each.

Tagged with: SHF # 15 + Low Sugar

Ragu alla Bolognese

For several years now I've been trying to 'perfect' this popular Italian pasta sauce. Also called 'Spag Bol' or Spaghetti Bolognese (when served with that shape of pasta), I read in several books that Italians themselves wouldn't dream of serving this with spaghetti. They apparently use tagliatelle and after tasting this with a fresh version of that pasta, I could say I share their sentiment completely. This sauce can also be found in between lasagne sheets. Well, I've already got the Pinoy version of this plus even my son can come up with a bottled version (just brown some minced beef and pour in the bottled spaghetti sauce). But I fervently wanted to recreate the great taste of the meat sauce that we often get from Italian restaurants. This led me to looking it up in almost all the cookbooks and food magazines I come across. When I chanced upon the great collection of cookbooks in our local library, I was able to research on the authentic versions and derive a lot from it.

The word 'ragu' refers to slow cooked meat with little sauce. As with most traditional dishes there are a lot of variations even in Italy, not just from town to town but even probably from household to household. Some have all beef, have combinations of beef and pork, some use veal. Most use finely minced meat while others have diced ones. Versions also vary on whether or not to put vegetables, tomatoes, and milk or cream. The one thing that's universal in the more authentic recipes I found is the very slow and long cooking time, the use of wine (red or white), and spices. This version, which eventually met with the approval of my family, is one I culled from several cookbooks and the last one in particular from Anthony Worrall-Thompson who suggested Worcestershire sauce and anchovy sauce. It did the trick of adding a certain top note of yumminess to it. For one, my family loves its sauce very tomatoey therefore the chopped tomatoes and tomato puree are in. I also followed Delia Smith's and AWT's suggestion of browning the beef separately - it resulted in a more flavourful meat than if I did the browning right there in the stewing pot. I opted to use veggies in it because it imparts a slight sweetness, while the wine gives it body. Anyway, enough of my ramblings do try this and believe me just the aroma filling your kitchen would entice your housemates in.


Ragu alla Bolognese

1 kg  minced beef (or half beef, half pork)
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp minced garlic
2 medium onions - finely chopped
125 g  pancetta or streaky bacon - finely diced
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1 Tbsp chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried thyme*
1 tsp dried oregano*
1 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh or 1 tsp dried basil*
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp anchovy sauce [optional]
1 bay leaf
1 cup white wine
2 x 400 g  can of chopped tomatoes*
1/4 cup double concentrate tomato puree (tomato paste)
2 tsp sea salt (or to taste)
freshly milled black pepper
1/2 cup beef stock or water
butter or olive oil
125 g  chicken liver - trimmed, washed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces
3 Tbsp single cream (light cream) [optional]

1. In a pan (preferably non-stick), drizzle some olive oil and heat it up. Brown the minced beef in batches. Set aside.
2. Wipe the pan and heat up some more olive oil or butter. Cook the chicken liver until well cooked and crumbly - about 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl, then using a fork mash it up. If need be, finely chop some of the bits of liver that refuse to get mashed.
3. In a big stewing pot, heat the 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil and gently fry the bacon until it changes colour.
4. Turn heat to low and add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute.
5. Stir in the onion and cook gently for about 4-5 minutes or until translucent.
6. Turn up the heat to medium and add the carrots and celery. Cook for about 3 minutes or until soft while stirring occassionally.
7. Add the spices - basil, thyme, oregano. Stir and cook for about 1 minute or until aromatic.
8. Tip in the browned minced beef and wine. Simmer until almost all the liquid has evaporated. Stir occassionally.
9. Add the chopped tomatoes, concentrated tomato puree, bay leaf, nutmeg, Worcestershire sauce, anchovy sauce, chicken liver, salt, pepper, and stock.
10. Bring to boil then bring down heat to lowest setting and simmer for *at least* 2-3 hours.
11. If you have more fresh basil lying around, chop about 2 Tbsp of it and stir in the sauce.
12. Add the cream and stir. Cook for another 1-2 minutes. Serve with freshly cooked al dente pasta such as spaghetti or tagliatelli.

*Notes:

• In place of the basil, thyme, and oregano, you may use 1 Tbsp of Italian mixed herb.
• You may use 500 g  passata in place of the chopped tomatoes and reduce the tomato paste to 1 Tbsp only.