Chicken Tagine

Ayam masak di tajine

I just came back from holiday to Netherlands and germany and didn't have time to update my blog back then but my first dinner served with tagine in Grandcafe Tramhalte,Maastricht inspire me so much to do my own home cooking with tajine and the only excuse to update my blog. I heard from my husband that couscous in this cafe is the best his ever ate and specially homemade by the owner's it is not a ready one. the owner has been living in Marocco for years before moved back to Netherlands.
So we went there for dinner and to met a friend. Peter suggested me to try lamb but I ordered tagine with beef and couscous instead cos I don't like lamb smells and he ordered lamb sausage to company the tagine veggies..hmm delicious..I regret it why didn't order the same as he had...really good didn't smell at all and the couscous is really nice exactly how it suppose to be. it's worth to try !

I am amateur for tagine cooking but found that it's more like slow cooking methods in a terracotta pot. Marocco cuisine famous with tagine and other country like Tunisia, North Africa and Algeria also use the same pot.
Source for my Maroccan chicken tagine recipe from Keith Floyd is so delicious, the exact amount of ingredients was not mention so I must use my intuition and taste.

Category : Main dishes
Serves : 4 portions

Ingredients :
600 gr chicken portion ( I used chicken fillet)
half of onion ( I use red onion)
1 cloves garlic, bruised and finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp ginger powder ( I use 1 cm fresh ginger, finely ground)
¼ tsp turmeric
6 slices pickle lemon
10-15 threads of saffron
1 tbsp apricot jam
200 ml water
1 tsp tomato puree (mount tsp)
a dash of pepper
6-8 prunes
2- 3 tbsp blanched almond, toasted
1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
2 tbsp chopped coriander
1 tbsp chopped parsley

methods :

Glazed the onion in a hot tagine, add garlic and chicken. If using skinless chicken fillet need more olive oil. Brown the chicken, add cinnamon and all ingredients, stir and close with the tagine lid. Cooks until oily. Serves with couscous.

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Ontbijtkoek

KBB#11 Round Up

A spice bread or more close to cake if I may say is a traditional Dutch breakfast "Ontbijt" and also became Indonesian favourite traditional cake since this two countries had history relation. The different is in Indonesia we tend to serves ontbijtkoek in tea time instead of breakfast.

The lightweight low fat cake really nice with spread butter for breakfast or tea time. Simple ingredients with spices you can ground as strength level as you like contains cinnamon, cloves, dried ginger, mace even nutmeg or just buy ready mix Spekoek/ speculaas kruiden.
Recipe below is Indonesian style.

Sources : Kue-kue Indonesia, Yasa Boga-PT. Gramedia Jakarta, 2007.

125 gr palm sugar
5 egg yolks
3 egg whites

Mix and sifted :
125 gr flour 1 tsp cinnamon powder ½ tsp nutmeg ¼ sdt cloves 50 gr canarium nut, finely sliced( subtituted with almond slice, I used walnut)

Put eggs and palm sugar in a bowl and beat until fluffy. Sifted the dry ingredients and fold into the bowl. Pour over a greased and layered tin loaf with parchment paper. Oven for 25 to 30 minutes with temperature 180°C.

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Caramel Pots with Minted Shortbread Sticks

KBB challenge #10

Host by Dita and Lina. The making process was fine until the cookies slipped from my hand, broken in pieces only 4 cookies survive. I made shortbread half the recipe with 1 sprig mint..loves mint. I do like caramel so i made 1 recipe.



Source:Chef Fred Wiesehutter, Heritage Christchurch, posted at Foodtown Magazine.

Minted Shortbread Sticks

250g unsalted butter, softened

1 vanilla pod, seeds removed and reserved

1 sprig mint, chopped

Preheat the oven to 150C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

Combine the icing sugar, flours, butter, vanilla seeds and mint in a bowl and mix well. Roll out to about 1cm thick. Cut into 2 x 8cm fingers. Place on the prepared tray and bake for 20-25 minutes, until lightly golden. Cool and store in an airtight container until required. Makes about 30.

Caramel Pots

125g caster sugar

2 Tbs water

125ml milk

250ml cream

3 egg yolks

Whisk the sugar into the water in a saucepan. Heat carefully and cook to a golden caramel. Combine milk and cream in a separate saucepan and warm-do not boil. Whisk the milk into the caramel. Cool slightly.

Pour into four ramekins. Bake in a water bath at 160C for 30 minutes or until set. Remove the ramekin, cool then chill. Serves 4.

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Lobster Thermidor

Category : First course
Serves : 2 persons
Lovely taste, simple and defenately cook it again.


Ingredient:
1 lobster, cook and cut lengthways
parmesan cheese, grated

Sauce :
1 tbsp butter
1 shallot, finely chopped
100 ml cream
1 tsp english mustard
1 tsp fresh chopped basil leaves
1 tbsp lemon juice
a pinch salt and pepper to taste

Methods :
remove any meat from lobster, claws and cut in pieces.
Put the butter in a pan, add shallot until soften. Add double cream, bring to simmer. Reduce the heat and add mustard, basil leaves, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Mix lobster meat with this sauce.
Preheat the grill, spoon the lobster into shell, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and place under preheat grill until golden brown, serves with salads.

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Bitter Chocolate Pepermint Biscuits

KBB #8

I am the host this time along with Rosmi but she couldn't make it so Arfie will help me. I hope can manage my busy time due to nursing my baby boy.

I made the biscuits last week and finishing today, kind a tricky during my baby take a nap...its not easy but i made it.

Bitter Chocolate Peppermint Biscuits

Source: Donna Hay for Canvas, NZ Herald.

185g butter, softened / 185g mentega, lunakkan (di suhu ruang)

1 cup caster sugar / 1 cup gula kaster

1 egg / 1 btr telur

2 cups plain flour / 2 cups tepung terigu

½ tsp baking powder / ½ sdt baking powder

1 cup icing sugar / 1 cup gula tepung

1 tsp peppermint flavouring / 1 sdt peppermint flavouring

2 Tbs water / 2 Tbs air

200g dark chocolate (70 per cent cocoa) / 200g dark chocolate (70 per cent cocoa)

1 cup cream / 1 cup krim

Preheat the oven to 180C. Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until light and creamy, add the egg and beat well. Sift the flour and baking powder over the egg mixture and fold through.

Gently knead the dough to bring together. Roll the dough between two sheets of baking paper to 2mm thick. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Cut out 36 x 7 x 5cm rectangles. Place on baking trays lined with baking paper and bake for 56 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on trays.

Combine icing sugar, peppermint flavouring and water, and mix until smooth. Set aside. Combine the chocolate and cream in a saucepan over low heat and stir until chocolate is melted and smooth. Set aside.

Sandwich three biscuits biscuits together with peppermint icing. Repeat with the remaining ingredients. Lightly grease a wire rack and place over a baking tray. Place the layered biscuits on a fork, dip each one into the chocolate mixture, place on the rack and refrigerate for 2 hours or until set.

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Aardbeien Vlaai

Strawberry Vlaai
Category : Dessert/ Cake - fruit
Serves : Ø 20cm

Vlaai is a pastry made with combination flour and yeast, originally created in limburg Netherland. first time eat when I visited my sister in law Gee who lives there and already loves kersen vlaai, cherry pie in english.
I still waiting for the nice vlaai from Gee the nice vlaai recipe she ever ate, but didn't email her yet. I was so excited with the cherry trees along the way when we drove to her horse Lucas( I feel sorry that she will sell Lucas to a lil girl because of Lucas condition).
For now try my vlaai recipe.

Limburgse Vlaai Ingredients :
250 gr flour
80 gr butter
2 tbsp sugar
7 gr instant yeast ( 1 sachet)
100 ml warm milk
a pinch of salt

Strawberry filling:
400-500 gr fresh strawberries
80 - 90 gr sugar
2 spoonful corn flour/ maize flour

Topping :
icing sugar
whipped cream

Methods:

Knead all ingredients and rest for 1 hour, punch the dough knead for 5 minutes and roll out. Place the pie dough in a round greased baking tin. Add the filling and bake for 30 minutes with temperature 200°C or oven fan assist 180°C.

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Cheese Biscuits

KBB#6 : Cheese Biscuits

Hosts for this challenge are regina and Swi.
I almost didn't make it, was very busy these month and rush to hospital for blood check. Thanks God nothing to worry about and the most important thing I don't need to stay overnight...still waiting one blood check which has to repeat this friday. Hopefully normal.

Oh about this biscuits, very simple no need egg just matured cheese, I used old matured cheese "parmesan reggiano."

Source: Vogue Australia: Wine and Food Cookbook.


225g grated mature cheese
125g butter
125g flour
cayenne pepper to taste
sesame seeds


With finger tips, mix together cheese, butter, flour and cayenne pepper until mixture forms a mass. Butter a biscuit tray. Make small balls of the dough. Roll some in sesame seeds and press on tray, placing them fairly far apart as they will spread while cooking. (We have pressed walnuts on some of the biscuits and, for a colour contrast, some chopped pistachio nuts). Bake biscuits in pre-heated oven 180°C for 15 minutes. Store in an airtight container.

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Donat Otomatis

QUICK DONUT
Category : Dessert/Snack
Serves : approx. 20 donuts

Very old recipe that I believe almost everybody in Indonesia at that time had tried once. A non yeast donut if I may say it is not exactly donut but more less mixture fritter shaped into donut mould. The taste was nice though. I just can't stand to fry them one by one.

Ingredients :
250 gr baking flour
150 gr sugar
2 eggs
50 gr butter/ margarine, melted
200 ml warm milk(I use warm evaporated milk instead)

Tool :
Donut fritter mould

Methods:
Whisk the eggs and sugar until fluffy, add milk, flour and melted butter. Deep fry by pour the mixture into the donut fritter mould one by one. Non stick mould would be better otherwise deep the mould first before pour the mixture until formed and release from the form, don't forget to turn the other side.

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