Buttermilk Prawns

My teenage daughter vowed that after her exams were over, she'll be baking everyday. Because she always preferred baking over cooking dishes, her declaration did not surprise us. We were very surprised though, to be greeted by a really really delicious Buttermilk Prawns for dinner which Izarra made. I am so grateful my daughter likes cooking :-)

Ingredients:~

• 250gms prawns, peeled & cleaned
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
  
• 3 heaped tbsp cornflour
• 1 cup of oil, for frying

Buttermilk Sauce:~

• 4 tbsp butter
• 3 birds' eye chillies, sliced
• 2 stalks of curry leaves
• 1 flat tbsp sugar
  
• 3/4 cup of evaporated milk
  

~Method~

1. Heat oil in a pan
2. Marinade prawns with salt & pepper.
3. Coat the prawns evenly with the cornflour & remove excess flour.
4. Fry the prawns in the hot oil & cook for 1 minute on each side.
5. Place the prawns in the Buttermilk Sauce & serve.

~Method for Buttermilk Sauce~

1. Melt butter in a pan.
2. Sautee the bird's eye chillies & curry leaves till fragrant.
3. Pour in the milk & simmer gently.
4. Flavour with sugar.
5. Cook for a further 3 minutes on very low fire until gravy thickens a little.
6. Place fried prawns into the gravy.
7. Serve with hot rice!
   

Liver in Thick Soya Sauce

I was faced with a large piece of liver from the Hari Raya Haji and spent quite some minutes trying to figure out how to cook it so my kids would appreciate eating it. So, I boiled, sliced, pan-fried and cooked it in soy sauce & some spices for lunch. I'm not sure if my kids will enjoy it, but I must say it tastes surprisingly good and I know Din would! :-)

Ingredients:~

• 250 gms beef liver, boiled for 20 minutes, then sliced and deep fried
• 1/4 cup of cooking oil
• 1 bulb of medium sized onion, blended
• 3 cloves of garlic, blended
• 1/2 inch of ginger, blended
• 1 stick of cinnamon
• 1 star anise
• 4 cloves
• 4 cardamom
• 1/2 cup of thick sweet soya sauce
• 1 tbsp tamarind juice
• 1 tbsp of tomato puree
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp black pepper, ground
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 medium-sized onion cut into thick rings

~Method~

1. Heat the oil in a pan.
2. Put in the cinnamon stick, star anise, cardamom & cloves.
3. Quickly sautee' the blended onion, garlic & ginger until fragrant.
4. Place the liver into the pan & cook it briefly with the sauteed ingredients & spices.
5. Pour in the soya sauce, tomato sauce & tamarind juice.
6. Flavour with salt, pepper & sugar.
7. Simmer all the ingredients for about 8 minutes until the flavours are absorbed & gravy thickens.
8. Sprinkle with whole black peppercorns if desired.
   
9. Serve with hot rice.

Tuna & Celery Sandwich

I have always loved sandwiches, especially when some exotic bread is being used to hold the filling. So, it was really nice to have made this Tuna & Mushroom mayonnaise mix, filled in between two slices of Sunflower Rye bread. Really...really....nice!

Ingredients:~

• 2 slices of Sunflower Rye bread
• 3 pieces of salad
• 4 thin slices of tomatoes
  
• 2 tbsp tuna flakes
• 1 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp of chopped celery
• 1 tsp of chopped onions
• 1/2 tsp of coarsely chopped black pepper
• butter for spreading

~Method~

1. To make the filling, mix together the tuna, mayonnaise, chopped celery, chopped onions & black pepper till well combined in a bowl.
   
2. Spread the butter on one side of the bread.
3. Place salad pieces over the buttered side of the bread.
4. Top with thinly sliced tomatoes.
5. Evenly spread the tuna filling over the top of the tomatoes.
6. Close the filling with the buttered side of the other slice of the bread.
7. Enjoy immediately!

Chocolate Cup Cakes

After a Kids Can Cook class with an enthusiastic group of children, two of the kids & a mum posted these messages on my page.......

Mohd Ikram wrote "Thanks auntie for teaching us how 2 cook lasagne n cup cakes. We enjoyed it. Tq too for kakak Irra n abang. Best....Next time we all join lagi."

Afiqah Anwar wrote "Your class today was awesome!"

and mum Normala Hafiz wrote "Marina, my daughter & niece really enjoyed the class."

Those words of appreciation makes me holding the classes worth every bit the effort.

Ingredients:~

• 3/4 cups flour
• 3/4 cups cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1/2 cup buttermilk

Method:~

1. Sieve all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter & sugar till fluffy.
3. Add eggs one at a time, beating well in between each egg.
4. Add the vanilla essence.
5. Add the dry ingredients alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
6. Pour into the cupcake liners.
7. Bake in a preheated 180ºC oven for 15 minutes.
8. When cool, ice with frosting & decorate as desired.
   

Frosting

Ingredients:~

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 2 tbsp milk

Method:~

1. Sieve the icing sugar & cocoa powder together.
2. Add the icing sugar gradually, alternating with milk until it has a smooth consistency.
3. Spread on top of the cooled cupcakes.