Ginger lime jam

Ingredients (makes 2 medium jars):
10 large limes
3 bulbs ginger, skinned and sliced
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups castor sugar

Method:
1. Sterilise the glass jars by submerging in water and bringing to the boil for 2 minutes.
2. Skin 7 limes with a vegetable peeler.
3. Chop skinned limes into chunks. Extract the juice from the remaining 3 limes.
4. Place ginger slices into a presser to extract the juice. Alternatively, pound with a pestle and mortar, and squeeze out the juice.
5. Place lime chunks, lime juice, ginger juice, brown sugar and sugar in a pot and cook over very low heat for 10 minutes until the sugar dissolves.
6. Keep stirring for 20 minutes until the mixture caramelises and thickens. Remove from heat, and cool completely before spooning into glass jars.

Tips:
For more bite, shred the leftover ginger and throw it into the jam mixture.

Recipe source: Simply Her magazine (Jan 2008)

Mini egg tarts

Egg - Part 3.

Smaller in size, but tastes as good as ever.

Ingredients (makes about 20):
For the pastry:
2 cups plain flour
155g butter
2 tbsp castor sugar
2 tsp ice water

For the custard:
2 eggs, at room temperature
340ml milk
120g castor sugar

Method:
1. To make the pastry, combine flour and butter and rub them together with your fingertips until they resemble breadcrumbs.
2. Add castor sugar and ice water and stir to form a smooth dough. Knead it a little, roll it into a ball, wrap with cling film and chill for 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, stir the custard ingredients together, making sure there are no bubbles in the mixture.
4. Roll out the dough into 1/2cm thickness and cut about 20 circles, each around 10cm in diameter.
5. Fill mini muffin pans with the pastry dough, pour in the custard until almost full and bake at 180 deg C for 25-30 minutes.
6. Remove from oven, let them cool briefly, then remove.

Tips:
Make the pastry in advance - you can store it in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Recipe source: Simply Her magazine (Apr 2007)

Eggs poached with tomato and capsicum

Egg - Part 2.

Yummy and healthy, this stew is easy to make.

Ingredients (serves 4):
1 tbsp oil
1 clove garlic, sliced
1 shallot, sliced
1 carrot, cut into big pieces
1 red capsicum, cut into big pieces
1 zucchini or cucumber, cut into chunks
1 can tomatoes, diced or whole
Mixed dried Italian herbs
2 tsp soya sauce
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 eggs

Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan and saute garlic and shallots until shallots are soft.
2. Add carrots, capsicum and zucchini (if you use cucumber, add it later, along with the eggs) and fry briefly, then add the can of tomatoes (include the juice), and the herbs, soya sauce, salt and pepper.
3. Boil for a while until vegetables are half cooked - about 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Make a well in the vegetable stew. Crack an egg in a clean bowl and slide it gently into the well, making sure the yolk doesn't break.
5. Repeat the process with the other 3 eggs, making a well in the stew for each egg.
6. Turn the heat to low and let it poach gently until the eggs are cooked, for about 10 minutes.

Tips:
If you like the stew spicy, add a dash of paprika.

Recipe source: Simply Her magazine (Apr 2007)

Puffy eggs on toast

To whisk eggs to greater volumes, beat room temperature eggs in copper bowls.

To get fluffier scrambled eggs, add 2 tsp of liquid (cream, milk or water) per egg.

Refrigerated eggs are easier to separate than eggs at room temperature.

A hard-boiled egg is easier to peel when hot.


Egg - Part 1.

The breakfast staple is given an interesting twist.

Ingredients (serves 2):
2 eggs
2 slices of bread
A bit of butter
Salt and pepper, to taste

Method:
1. Separate the egg whites and the yolks.
2. Put egg whites in a clean bowl, add a pinch of salt and pepper and whisk with an egg-beater until they form stiff peaks.
3. Divide the puffed whites on the bread slices, leaving a hollow in the middle.
4. Then, put an egg yolk in each hollow and place the bread in a toaster oven.
5. Toast for about 3 minutes (longer if you like your yolk firmer) and serve hot.

Tips:
Sprinkle some grated cheese halfway through the toasting process.

Recipe source: Simply Her magazine (Apr 2007)

Corn and prawn fritters

Ingredients (serves 4):
150g medium-sized prawns, shelled, deveined and chopped
2 ears of Pasar sweet corn, peeled
2 shallots, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp chopped spring onions
1 red chilli, sliced or chopped
300g flour
1 tsp baking powder
375ml water
Oil for deep-frying
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste

Method:
1.Sift flour and baking powder into a bowl. Add salt and pepper. Slowly stir in water to obtain a thick batter (the batter should slowly drip off the spoon).
2. Add prawns, shallots, sweet corn, spring onions and chilli to the batter, and stir until well mixed.
3. Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Drop 1 tablespoon of batter into the oil and fry in batches for about 4 to 5 minutes until golden brown. Remove fritters from heat and drain on paper towel. Serve with chilli sauce or tomato ketchup.

Tips:
To remove the kernels from the cob - hold it upright and cut the kernels straight down with a sharp knife.

Recipe source: Today newspaper (6 Jul 2006)

Steamed dumplings

Ingredients (serves 2):
10 FairPrice dumplings
1 litre chicken stock (use stock cube or canned chicken stock)
1 tbsp wolfberries, soaked
2 small carrots, peeled and sliced
4 pieces Chinese cabbage, cut into squares
1 cup shimeji mushrooms (or button mushrooms)
Spring onions, chopped

Method:
1. Steam dumplings for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add wolfberries and boil for 5 more minutes.
2. Add carrots, boil for 5 minutes, then add cabbage and mushrooms. Lower heat and simmer for 2 minutes.
3. Add dumplings into the soup and simmer for 1 minute. Garnish dumpling soup with spring onions and serve hot.

Tips:
Other ways to prepare these dumplings.

You can steam them for 5 to 8 minutes, and serve them with vinegar and shredded ginger or finely chopped garlic.

Alternatively, pan-fry the dumplings for 3 to 4 minutes, and pour 2 tbsp of water around them, cover the pan and cook for another minute.

For a tasty party snack, deep fry the dumplings until golden brown, drain and serve hot.

Recipe source: Today newspaper (23 Nov 2006)

Jam cookies

Ingredients (makes 30 to 36 pieces):
175g butter
1/2 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1/2 cup FairPrice cornflour
1/2 cup ground almonds
1/2 cup FairPrice Gold Jam

Method:
1. Use an electric mixer to cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy for 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla extract.
2. Sift flour and cornflour into a bowl. Then, in batches, beat flour into the batter until just combined.
3. Fold in ground almonds until well combined. Chill dough for 3 to 4 hours.
4. Shape into small balls and flatten slightly. Place balls about 2cm apart on baking tray lined with baking paper.
5. Bake cookies at 180 deg C for 15 minutes.
6. Remove from oven and allow the cookies to cool on wire racks. To assemble, spoon jam onto a cookie and sandwich it with another.

Tips:
Alternatively, just before putting the cookie dough in the oven, press a finger in the centre of each ball to make an indent. When the cookies are baked, spoon some jam into the hollows.

You may prefer to use other types of ground nuts such as hazelnuts and walnuts as a substitute.

Recipe source: Today newspaper (16 Nov 2006)