Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot

One year back, when I was shopping for my new home, I walked into Daiso (A shop in Singapore that sells every item at $2) and saw this mini porcelain pot. I fall in love with it as it is so cute. It stands at a height of approx 12cm and with a diameter of 8cm, with a cover. Not knowing what to do with it, I still bought 2 sets as it is too cheap and cute to resist.

It is until today when I am cracking my brain what to cook for the night and I happened to see these 2 cutie pots in my kitchen cabinet. I decided that I should use them today!

I used the mini pots to steam herbal chicken. One pot to serve a person. And the recipe that I have shared below is meant for a person.

Do not hestitate to try this recipe, even if you do not have the same mini pot. You can simply use an Aluminium foil and wrapping it up for the same effect. Remember to multiple the quantity of the ingredients according to the number of person you are cooking for.

Ingredients (Serve 1 pax)

1. 3 Medium Pieces of Chicken/ 1/6 of a Medium Chicken Cut into smaller pieces
2. 1 tablespoon of Water
3. 2 teaspoon of Hua Diao Jiu/ Chinese Rice Wine
4. 2 Medium Red Dates (Washed)
5. 2 pieces of Dan Gui (Washed)
6. 1/2 piece of Dang Shen(Codonopsis Root) - (Washed)
7. 2 pieces of Yu Zhu(Solomon's Seal Rhizome) - (Washed)
8. 1/2 tablespoon of Gou Qi Zi(Wolfberry) - (Washed)
9. 1 tablespoon of Light Soya Sauce (eg. Brand Tai Hua)

Preparation

1. Add Ingredient No. 4 to No. 8 into a mini porcelain pot, then add chicken, add Hua Diao Jiu, Light Soya Sauce. Leave it for minimum 15 minutes.

Steps

1. Add 1 tablespoon of Water into the preparation. And place the mini pot into a steamer or rice cooker and steam for approx 15 minutes/ until the chicken is cooked.

[Guest Post] Homemade Biscotti by Dina-Marie

If you are like me and love your coffee, be it morning, afternoon or night, you also enjoy biscotti. But also like me, you might not enjoy it as often as you would like because of the price. Besides that, most recipes are too involved and do not turn out quite right. Here is a wonderfully easy and good recipe. I will first give the basic recipe and then some variations.

Pecan Biscotti

1/4 c. butter                             1 whole egg white

3/4 c. sugar                              2 c. flour

1/2 tsp salt                                1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla                               3/4 c. chopped pecans

1 whole egg                               1 egg white beaten (to brush on top)

Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix butter, sugar, salt and vanilla.

Add egg and egg white - mix well.

Add flour, baking powder and nuts. Stir well adding a bit more flour if needed to make a sticky but workable dough.

Form dough into a long log about 3/4 inches high and 2 1/2 - 3 inches wide and 15 inches long. Brush top with beaten egg white.

Bake in preheated oven 350F for 30-35 min.

Remove from oven and after a couple of minutes, lift log off pan to cutting board. Cut into bars about 1/2 inch thick.

Place bars cut side up on cookie sheet and return to oven. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes longer.

Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Variations: I have used all white flour and also used half whole wheat and half white flour.

Substitute maple flavoring for vanilla.

Add 1/2 c. dry fruit such as dried apricots to batter.

Any nut may be used such as hazelnuts or almonds.

Bio: Dina-Marie has 10 children and blogs at Dimes2Vines.com. She lives in west Texas and enjoys working with her family in the vineyard, blogging about their life experiences and their lifestyle change from the corporate world to farm life.

Aglio Olio Linguine with Roasted Bell Pepper, Bacon and Portobello Mushroom

Aglio Olio Linguine with Bell Pepper, Bacon, Portobello Mushrooms

Ingredients (Serve 2 pax)

1. Linguine
2. 2 Big Portobello Mushrooms cut into thin slices
3. 1 Yellow Pepper
4. 1 Red Pepper
5. 5 Strips of Streaky Bacon
6. 200 ml of White Wine
7. 50 ml of Olive Oil
8. 4 tablespoon of Chopped Yellow Onions
9. 2 tablespoon of Slices Garlic (approx 6 cloves)
10. 1 teaspoon of dried Parsley (eg. Brand Masterfood)
11. 1 teaspoon of Salt

Preparations

1. Cut Red and Yellow Pepper into 2, Remove the seeds
2. Put Bell Pepper into preheat oven, 200 degree celius, approx 15 minutes
3. Peel off Bell Pepper skin once Bell Pepper is roasted
4. Cut Bell Pepper into thin slices.
5. Put Pasta into boiling water (follow the pasta package instruction)
6. Once cooked, drain and rinse with cold water to stop heating process
7. Leave pasta aside.
8. Fry Bacon on hot pan for approx 30 seconds on each side
9. Once done, cut it into small slices and leave it aside.

Steps

1. Add Olive Oil into hot pan
2. Once hot, add Garlic and stir-fry until fragrant, before it turns brown
3. Add Onion and stir-fry until it become translucent
4. Add Mushroom and stir-fry for approx 2 minutes
5. Add Bell Pepper and stir-fry for approx 2 minutes
6. Add Bacon and stir-fry for approx 2 minutes
7. Add White Wine and stir-fry for approx 2 minutes
8. Add Salt slowly, try if taste is right
9. Simmer until Mushroom is soften
10. Add Pasta and stir to mix well
11. Add Parsley and stir to mix well
12. Cover and simmer until sauce is 90% dry

Tips and Comments:

• Garlic is an important factor in Aglio Olio Pasta, hence, it is important that the right amount of garlic is added.
• Adding Onion increase the taste to this dish as I have to say that it is not easy to master a plate of tasty Aglio Olio.
• I prefer Linguine than Spaghetti for Aglio Olio but this is a personal preference!

Serve while Hot!

Baked Garlic Prawns with White Wine and Parsley

Baked Garlic Prawns with White Wine and Parsley

Using White Wine for a light marination to the prawns bring out the sweetness of the prawns. And by baking it with Garlic and a dash of parsley infused a delicious aroma fragrant that after a day, my oven still smell of baked prawns! =)

As I do not have large prawns, hence, I am using a Medium ones. But it is recommended for the best result, large prawns are used instead.

For seafood lovers, I am sure that you will like this dish as much as I do.

This dish can be served as a Chinese dish or a Western dish as a Side. If large prawns are used, it can even be served as a main course. Placing the prawns on a nice plate, this dish will definitely be good to be serve in an intimate event.

Ingredients

1. 12 Medium Prawns (Deveined)
2. 2 tablespoon of Chopped Garlic
3. 3 tablespoon of White Wine
4. 1 tablespoon of Dried or Fresh Chopped Parsley (eg. Brand Masterfood)

Preparations

1. Slice the prawn in the middle without cutting it into 2 to make space for the Garlic
2. Marinate the prawns with White Wine for 30 minutes
3. After Marinating, add Garlic on the slice part of the prawns
4. Sprinkle a little Parsley on the Prawns
5. Place Prawns on a Baking Tray/ Aluminium Foil and use a Aluminium Foil and lightly covered it on top of the prawns

Steps

1. Place Prawns into a preheat oven, 220 Degree Celius for 15 minutes
2. At 12 minutes, check if the prawns are cooked and adjust the timing accordingly

Serve while Hot!

Tips and Comments:

• Large Prawns are recommended to be used for this dish.
• Using a kitchen scissor to cut the prawn's shells starting from it's head to the tails, then use a small knife to devein it.

[Guest Post] Homemade Doughnuts with Chocolate Coating by Dina-Marie

One of our family favorite delicacies is homemade doughnuts. You can not go wrong with them. Whether you glaze them, fill them with creme, use an icing, or eat them plain, they please everyone.

They are:

• fun to mix up
• fun to roll out
• fun to cut out
• fun to cook
• fun to eat

They are just a FUN food! They are a must for everyone to try! The following recipe reportedly makes about 2 dozen doughnuts. I am not sure about that because we triple and sometimes even quadruple it! And now, for the recipe ...

Homemade Doughnuts

1 qt milk warmed

10 Tbs sugar
8 Tbs oil
1 Tbs salt
1/8 tsp nutmeg (opt. more or less to taste)
7 Tbs dry yeast
4 c all purpose flour
4 c whole wheat flour

Preheat deep fryer.

Pour milk into the bowl of your mixer. Add sugar, oil, salt and nutmeg. Add yeast last (the other ingredients help cool the milk so it does not kill your yeast).

Add the whole wheat and all purpose flour and knead until well blended and dough does not stick to the sides of the bowl.

Place on oiled surface and prepare to roll the dough out to 1/2 inch thickness. You do not need much oil, just keep the dough from sticking. We place oil on our stone dining table. This makes easy access for all the little helpers.

Roll dough out to 1/2 inch thickness and cut out. See what I mean about the little helpers!

We use a plastic glass for the large round and a smaller container for the holes. Just use whatever works!

Deep fry in oil at 375F. We use a deep fryer so I don't have to worry about the temperature - the fryer does that for me. The doughnuts will float, so, after a couple of minutes, turn them to cook the other side. You want a nice golden brown.

We use a utensil such as a plastic cooking fork - not the small white plastic ones!

Drain on paper towel. That is what the recipe says anyway, but we use a clean towel on a cookie sheet (emphasis on clean!). Use the icing or glaze desired. We dip the hot doughnuts into a warm chocolate icing allowing it to drip and then place on a platter. Unless of course, a quality control test must be done and then it ends up in a mouth. It is definitely a family affair!

Then again, who needs a doughnut to dip - fingers work great!

Mmmm! There is nothing like a freshly dipped finger!

Bio: Dina-Marie has 10 children and blogs at Dimes2Vines.com. She lives in west Texas and enjoys working with her family in the vineyard, blogging about their life experiences and their lifestyle change from the corporate world to farm life.

Valentine's Day Recommendation - Pasta Selection

For many couples, having a candlelight dinner in a nice restaurant with splendid ambience during Valentine's day is definitely a good-to-have. However, it is also during that time of year where having a dinner in a restaurant is much more expensive than normal. As such, for couples with a tight budget or couples who like to try out new things, cooking the dinner yourself is the way forward! =)

I have shortlisted two pasta recipe combinations from my list of recipes that are easy to cook, but yet, suitable for a special Valentine's dinner.

Linguine in Red Pesto Sauce with Grilled Salmon

Linguine with Red Pesto Sauce

Grilled Salmon

Aglio Olio Linguine with Bacon and Mushroom and Baked Oysters with Cheese, Herbs and White Wine

Aglio Olio Linguine with Bacon and Mushroom

Baked Oysters with Cheese, Herbs and White Wine

Hope you will like these 2 selections, if not, here are some other Pasta and sides recipes for your consideration on this special day. =)

[Guest Post] Healthy Homemade Recipe – Chicken and Pasta by Kodjo Hounnake

Having a busy schedule can contribute to poor eating habits. After a long day, no one looks forward to coming home and cooking a healthy homemade recipe. It seems so much easier to stop at the local fast food drive-through for dinner. Though this option may be convenient, neither your wallet nor body can afford to sustain such routine on a daily basis. Having a busy schedule that keeps you away from home most of the day should not prevent you from enjoying a healthy homemade recipe. An added benefit of cooking a healthy homemade recipe is that you can have leftovers for lunch the next day.

You can enjoy a healthy homemade recipe by keeping a few tips in mind, such as pre-seasoning your meat ahead of time. Pick meats that have relatively short cooking times, and cut the meats into small pieces. Cutting your meats into pieces helps shorten cooking time. I also favor products made with whole wheat or sprouted flour because they are healthy. For example, bleached flour has less protein than the unbleached alternative. An essential part of a healthy homemade recipe is its grain content. The healthiest types of grains are whole grains. Whole grain does not have its bran and germ removed by milling, and hence, is unrefined and very healthy. Whole grain is a great source of fiber and other important nutrients such as selenium, potassium and magnesium. Brown rice and popcorn are good sources of whole grain. White rice does not provide the nutritional value our body needs, because white rice lacks many important minerals such as niacin, iron, potassium, and magnesium. White rice is also deficient in crucial vitamins such as vitamin B, B3, B6, and E. Brown rice on the other hand, can contribute to weight loss, and it helps slow the aging process.

To make your healthy homemade recipe even more digestible, make enough room for vegetables. Vegetables have relatively short cooking times. Raw vegetable has the most nutritional value. However, if you decide to cook your vegetables, cook them for a very short time. In addition, do not drench them in butter, oil, or salt. Below, I have provided a healthy homemade recipe for chicken and pasta, served with raw baby spinach.

Healthy Homemade Recipe: Chicken and Pasta

Ingredients for the Chicken and Pasta Recipe

• 2 chicken cutlets (pre-seasoned) sliced in pieces
• 5 grains of garlic minced
• ½ large onion chopped fine
• 2 tomatoes diced
• ½ cup flour (or less)
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon of seasoning blend (salt-free)
• ½ tablespoon of salt
• 1 tablespoon of basil
• 1½ cup of tomato sauce
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ cup grated mozzarella cheese (optional)
• 1 baby bell pepper
• Few braches of rosemary
• Whole wheat pasta
• Baby spinach

Instructions for the Chicken and Pasta Recipe

To make this healthy homemade recipe, combine the basil with the seasoning blend and the flour in a small bowl. Add the egg content in a separate bowl. Dip the chicken slices into the egg, and then coat them with the flour mixture. Heat some extra virgin olive oil in a frying pan on medium fire. Cook the chicken slices until they turn golden.

Heat a few drops of extra virgin olive oil in a medium sauce pan. Add onions, garlic, and baby bell pepper to the heated olive oil. Reduce heat after a few moments, add some tomato sauce, and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the chickens and the bay leaf to the sauce. Cover up the sauce pan and let it cook for 7 to 10 minutes on a low fire; make sure to stir occasionally. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on the sauce when the chicken is almost done cooking; Add few rosemary branches as well.

Boil some water, add a tablespoon of olive oil and salt, and add the whole wheat pasta. Cook the whole wheat pasta until it is firm. Remove it from the stove and strain it.

Serve the chicken and sauce with the whole wheat pasta, topped with the remaining grated mozzarella cheese; add some baby spinach as a side dish.

Author Bio: Kodjo is a home fitness enthusiast who believes the average person can get and remain in great shape right at home. You do not need expensive gym equipment to achieve the body of your dreams. Your body weight is sufficient enough. See the hundreds of home workout videos and health tips on my home fitness blog