Shrimp, tomato and spinach pasta

I've made some changes to the recipe from the original source. I couldn't find any fresh basil from the supermarket, and so, I used baby spinach as substitue. I also used 3 more extra cloves of garlic coz the husband likes a stronger garlic flavour in his pasta dishes. And I think the overall flavour was just nice for us.

Shrimp, tomato and spinach pasta (recipe adapted from : here)

Ingredients:

- 1 1/2 pound(s) medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (tails removed)
- Coarse salt
- Ground pepper
- 6 teaspoon(s) olive oil
- 2 clove(s) garlic, minced 
- 1 can(s) (14 1/2-ounce) diced tomatoes in juice
- 1 pint(s) cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 pound(s) linguine
- 1 1/2 cup(s) lightly packed fresh basil leaves (I substituted with baby spinach leaves)

Directions:

1) Season shrimp with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, heat 4 teaspoons oil over high. Add shrimp; cook until opaque throughout, turning occasionally, 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.

2) Make sauce: To the same skillet, add remaining 2 teaspoons oil and garlic; cook over medium heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add canned tomatoes and their juice, along with 2 cups water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes have softened and are saucy, about 15 minutes. Remove sauce from heat; stir in cherry tomatoes.

3) Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain; return pasta to pot. Add tomato sauce, shrimp, and basil; season with salt and pepper, and toss. Serve immediately, garnished with basil leaves, if desired. 

Orange Shortbread

I have a strange relationship with oranges. I like the colour orange, and almost anything with oranges in them. Orange chocolate, orange cake, orange cookies, orange ice cream, etc. But I don't really like eating orange as a fruit or drink it as a juice. 

So with 5 large oranges left in my fridge after making these shortbread, be prepared that my favourite "fruit" will make its appearance in the next few blog entries. ;p


Orange Shortbread (recipe from : here)

Ingredients :

• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• zest of  2 large oranges
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup sugar mixed with the zest of one additional orange for rolling

Directions :

1) In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla and zest of 2 oranges. 

2) In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together (it will be very crumbly.  

3) Dump onto a surface dusted lightly with flour and roll the dough into two logs, about 2 inches in diameter. 

4) On a large plate, combine the 1/2 cup of sugar with the additional orange zest.  Roll each log in the sugar mixture and then wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

5) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Slice each log into 1/4 inch slices.  

6) Bake on parchment lined baking pans for 12-15 minutes, until the edges just start to brown.  Cool on wire racks.  Store, tightly covered, at room temperature.

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits

I had never thought to try making biscuits. But my youngest sister had so enthusiastically showed me a blueberry biscuits recipe she found online and was determined to give it a try. Though the instructions were quite long but didn't look too difficult after reading it a few times.

Sad to say, that didn't work out. At all. 

Though the outside was cooked to golden brown, the insides were all mushy and not cooked at all. We didn't know what was wrong as we followed the recipe very thoroughly.

Anyway, since we were already on making biscuits, I decided to find another simpler biscuits recipe to try again to see if we could find out what went wrong. And the second attempt was slightly (just slightly) better coz they were edible and cooked on the inside. Though these were quite tasteless, on the bright side, they went quite well with strawberry jam. :)

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits (recipe from : here)
makes 8 large biscuits

Ingredients :

2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
3/4 cup buttermilk, chilled, plus additional for brushing

Directions :

1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2) In a medium bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix in the butter with a pastry cutter or a fork until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the buttermilk and stir until the dough comes together in a ball.

3) On a lightly floured surface, gather the dough into a bowl and knead gently 6 times. Pat dough into a 10 inch circle about 1/2 inch thick. Cut dough into three inch rounds with a lightly floured cutter. Place on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Brush with buttermilk.

4) Bake until golden brown, about 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Braised chicken with carrots and mushrooms

This is the first time I used rock sugar in my cooking. Not sure if it was because of the rock sugar but the sauce seemed to decrease rapidly after I added about 4 small pieces, and in the end, there was not much sauce left to go together with the plain rice. But taste wise, it was good. :)

Braised chicken with carrots and mushrooms (recipe from here)Serves 2

Ingredients :
- 500g chicken thigh, chopped to smaller pieces (you can also use half chicken)
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 carrot, peeled and cut to bite-sized chunks
- 1 stalk of negi (Japanese scallion) or 2 stalks of spring onions, sliced
- 200g fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced
- 150ml water (adjust accordingly to how much gravy you want)
- 1 tbsp dark soy sauce 
- 1 tbsp oyster sauce 
- 1/2 tsp 5-spice powder 
- 2 to 4 small rock sugar cubes
- 3 ginger slices
- 5 garlic cloves, bruised

Directions :
1. Heat sesame oil in wok, then add chicken pieces. Stir fry until the chicken is no longer pink.

2. Add water, carrots, mushrooms, scallions, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, 5 spice powder, ginger and garlic. Stir well. Cover with lid and let it simmer for about 5 minutes.

3. Using kitchen tongs or spatula, flip the chicken pieces over so that they can absorb the braising liquid. Add rock sugar for sweetness and a beautiful glazed finish. Simmer with lid closed for another 5 minutes or until the chicken is cooked.

Lemon thyme water

Lemon thyme water (recipe adapted from here)

Ingredients :
2 lemons

• 10 sprigs thyme
• water
• ice
• 
  
• Directions :
• 
  
• Slice lemons into thin wheels and distribute between 2 pitchers along with thyme sprigs. Fill pitchers with ice and cover with water.

Pasta with chicken and mushrooms

There is a slight difference in one of the main ingredients in this recipe, that is the Italian pork and fennel sausage. I really didn't know if it was sold anywhere in Singapore, much less in any supermarket near my place. Therefore, I substituted it with just plain normal minced chicken, which I seasoned with a little salt and black pepper and set it aside for a while before cooking.

However, if there is any chance that I could get the Italian sausage, I would certainly try this again. :)

Pasta with pork and fennel sausages (adapted from "Quick and Easy workday dinners")
Serves 4

Ingredients :

6 Italian pork and fennel sausages (I substituted with minced chicken)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small red onion, finely chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
300g field or button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme
500g penne rigate
grated Parmesan, to serve


Directions :

1) Split the sausage open, remove and crumble the filling, then discard the skins.

2) Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat and cook the onion for 3-4 minutes, or until fragrant and transparent. Add the garlic, chilli flakes, mushrooms and crumbled sausage meat. Cook over high heat, stirring gently to mash the sausage meat, for 4-5 minutes, or until the meat is evenly browned.

If necessary, use a tablespoon to remove any excess fat from the pan, leaving about a tablespoon of oil. Continue to cook, stirring once or twice, for 10 minutes.

3) Stir in the tomato and thyme, then bring the sauce to the boil. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the sauce doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

4) Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large saucepan of rapidly boiling salted water according to the packet instructions until al dente. Drain well, then add to the sauce, stirring gently to combine. Garnish with Parmesan, then serve immediately.

Spaghetti with onion and zucchini

Yes, I hear you... "Zucchini again?"

As I've mentioned before, I would usually cook dishes with repeated ingredients one after another coz I bought too many, or because they were cheaper when bought in sets of 2 or more. But this round, it was not as 'stressful' since I was only cooking for the husband and myself. ;)

Linguine with zucchini and onions (adapted from "Thirty Minute Pasta by Giuliano Hazan")

Serves 4

Ingredients :

1 medium to large sweet yellow onion

4 tablespoons butter

Salt

1 ¼ pounds zucchini

Freshly ground black pepper

1 pound linguine

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions :

1.     Fill a pot for the pasta with about 6 quarts of water, place over high heat and bring to a boil.

2.     Peel the onions and very thinly slice them crosswise. Put the butter in a 12-inch skillet, add the sliced onions, and place over medium-high heat. Season lightly with salt and saute until the onions begin to turn a rich, golden colour, 6 to 8 minutes.

3.     While the onions are sauteing, wash the zucchini, cut off the ends, and slice into half moons about ¼ inch thick.

4.     When the onions are ready, add the zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini are quite tender and have started lightly browning, 12 to 15 minutes.

5.     After the zucchini have cooked about 10 minutes, add about 2 tablespoons salt to the boiling pasta water, add the linguine, and stir until all the strands are submerged. Cook until al dente.

6.     When the pasta is done, drain well, toss with the sauce and the Parmigiano-Reggiano, and serve at once.

Spaghetti with sausage and zucchini

After dunno-how-many months, the cooking finally started again. Actually the husband was the one who "pushed" me to start cooking coz he had been harping on how long it has been since he last had home-cooked pasta. *Thanks for the 'vote' of confidence, dear!* ;p

Since it would be a meal for 6, I chose something simple and easy to cook.

Spaghetti with sausage and zucchini (adapted from "Thirty Minute Pasta by Giuliano Hazan)
Serves 4

Ingredients :

½ medium yellow onion

3 tablespoons butter

8 ounces plain pork sausages

12 ounces zucchini

Salt

1 pound fresh tomatoes

1 pound fusilli (shells are also good)

1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions :

1.     Fill a pot for the pasta with about 6 quarts of water, place over high heat and bring to a boil.

2.     Peel and finely chop the onion. Put the butter in a 12-inch skillet, add the chopped onion, and place over medium-high heat. Saute until the onion just begins to turn a rich, golden colour, about 5 minutes.

3.     While the onion is sauteing, remove the casing from the sausage and break it up into pieces. When the onion is ready, add the sausage to the pan. Break the sausage up into small pieces with a wooden spoon and cook, stirring often, until the sausage is slightly browned, about 2 to 3 minutes.

4.     While the sausage is cooking, wash the zucchini. Remove the ends, cut into quarters lengthwise, and then cut across into ½-inch chunks. When the sausage has lightly browned, add the zucchini. Season lightly with salt and cook until the zucchini begins to brown and is mostly tender, 6 to 8 minutes.

5.     While the zucchini is cooking, peel the tomatoes and coarsely chop them. When the zucchini is ready, add the tomatoes and season lightly with salt, and cook until most of the liquid the tomatoes release has evaporated, 8 to 10 minutes.

6.     When the tomatoes are halfway done, add about 2 tablespoons salt to the boiling pasta water, add the fusilli, and stir well. Cook until al dente.

7.     When the pasta is done, drain well, toss with the sauce and the grated cheese, and serve at once.

Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta

This has been one long overdue post. And I apologise for that shadow at the corner of the photo. I think that I was too hungry at that time to care to re-take another proper photo. I could still remember that it was delicious, despite looking a bit sad in this picture.

Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta (recipe from here)

Ingredients :

- 1 lb raw shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
- 3 cloves garlic, minced – divided
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon basil, chopped fine (I substituted with dried parsley)
- 4 oz dry linguine
- Grated parmesan

Directions :

1) Place the shrimp in a bowl and add one teaspoon of garlic, the lemon zest and the vegetable oil.  Stir and let marinate while the pasta cooks.

2) Cook the pasta according to the package instructions, but cook for one minute less than instructed.

3) During the last three minutes of the pasta cooking time heat the butter in  a large skillet until it foams.  Add the remaining garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add the shrimp with the marinade and cook for 30 seconds, or until the shrimp are just turning pink.  Add the basil and stir to combine.

4) Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid, then drain the pasta and add it directly to the pan – work quickly or your shrimp will over cook.  Stir to combine, allowing the shrimp and past to cook the rest of the way, about one minute more.  If the sauce does not coat the pasta completely add a bit of the cooking liquid to thin it out.

5) Top with grated parmesan and a spritz of lemon juice.  Enjoy.

Fruit Yogurt Popsicles

After lying around in my kitchen cabinet for months, the 8 popsicle moulds were finally being put to work for the very first time. I wasn't really thinking of making this until I saw the boxes of blueberries and strawberries on sale in the supermarket. And it wasn't everyday that we have blueberries here on this sunny island of Singapore. So, I decided to buy 2 packs of them to give this recipe a try, and to freeze the remainders for some other recipes.

One tiny change I made was to just chop up the fruits to tiny bits instead of blending them, so that I can still munch on the frozen bits of fruits while enjoying the smoothness of the yogurt.

Fruit Yogurt Popsicles (recipe from here)

Ingredients : 

- 1 cup plain yogurt 

- 1 cup fresh fruit or frozen fruit, your choice of blueberries, strawberries, cherries, etc

- 2 tablespoons honey 

- 4 wooden popsicle sticks or plastic spoons 

- 4 paper cups, 5 ounce size 

- aluminum foil  

Directions :

1) Place the yogurt, fruit (slightly thawed if using frozen) and honey in a blender. Blend to desired consistency (some kids like the fruit chunky and others like it smooth).

2) Pour into paper cups, filling them 3/4 full.

3)Cover the cups with foil. Make slits in the center of the foil covers and insert the popsicle sticks.

4) Put in the freezer for about 5 hours or until frozen solid.

5) When ready, peel off the paper cup and eat. 

Note : I doubled the recipe and managed to fill about a little less than 7 popsicle moulds.

Chocolate Ganache Ice Cream

I didn't know what came over me to want to give this ice-cream recipe a try. I do not have an ice-cream maker to begin with. But sometimes, there are certain recipes that just caught my attention and I can't stop thinking about them until I gave them a try. And no, I didn't rush out to get an ice-cream maker either. Refer to the note at the end of the post to learn how to make ice-cream without a machine. 

To be honest, I didn't think there would be much success on this first attempt. There was a floating layer of fats (I think) after I had melted the chocolate and the cream together. And the final product turned out a bit too hard compared to store-bought. I didn't know if there is any relation to that layer of fats that I decided to omit when doing the final mix. But I was glad that the overall taste was good. So much richer and more chocolate-ty than store-bought.

Chocolate Ganache Ice Cream (recipe from here)

Ingredients :

- 6 ounces of bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream
- 1 cup of whole milk
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup of sugar

Directions :

1) Put the chocolate in a 2-quart liquid measuring cup or a large heatproof bowl. Bring 3/4 of the cream to a boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let it sit a minute, then, using a rubber spatula, and starting in the center of the mixture, slowly stir the cream into the chocolate in ever-widening concentric circles. When the ganache is smooth, set it aside.

2) Bring the milk and the remaining 3/4 cream to a boil in a medium heavy bottomed saucepan.

3) Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk the yolks and sugar together until well blended and just slightly thickened. Still whisking, drizzle in about one third of the hot liquid-this will temper, or warm, the yolks so they won't curdle, Whisking all the while, slowly pour in the remaining liquid. Pour the custard back into the pan and cook over medium heat, stirring without stopping, until the custard thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon: if you run your finger down the bowl of the spoon, the custard should not run into the track. The custard should reach at least 170 degrees F, but no more than 180 degrees F, on an instant-read thermometer (this took about 8-10 minutes on my stove.) Immediately remove the pan from the heat and slowly and gently stir the custard into the ganache. 

Note : If you do not have an ice-cream maker, refer to this article by David Lebovitz. Thanks to him, everyone can enjoy home-made ice-cream even though you don't have the machine.  :)

Yam (Taro) Rice

To be honest, I didn't have much confidence when starting out on this recipe. Yam (or taro, as known in other parts of the world) is a completely new ingredient for me. But luckily, NTUC is selling vacuumed packs of yam that had already been skinned. So it saves some time and effort on my part to have to deal with the unfamiliar yam. 

After cooking this dish, I realised that it was not as complicated as it looks. But I would advise to use a larger rice-cooker if you are planning to cook the amount as stated in the recipe. For me, the cooked rice almost filled the brim of our tiny rice-cooker, and so the top layer was slightly uncooked. So, we stirred around a bit to bring the top layer down to the middle and let it steamed for a few more minutes.

Note : I followed the selected recipe very closely, except for the seasoning part. The recipe below will be my version. If you want to see the original recipe. Click here.

Yam Rice

Ingredients :

- 500g yam/taro (cut into cubes) (Remember to wear disposable gloves when handling yam)
- 3 1/2 cup rice
- 2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
- 2 shallots (finely chopped)
- 2 1/2 tablespoons dried shrimp (soaked in warm water, drained and roughly chopped)
- 250g ground pork or chicken meat (minced)
- 3 3/4 cups water (to be used separately) (use the same cup as the one to measure the rice)
- 5 dried shiitake mushrooms (soaked in warm water, drained and cut into thin slices)
- 4 tablespoons cooking oil
- Fried shallot crisps (for garnishing)
- 1 scallion (cut into small rounds, for garnishing)

Seasonings :

- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 3 dashes white pepper powder
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions :

1) Wash and rinse the rice. Set aside to drain.

2) Heat up a wok and add a little oil. Stir-fry the yam pieces for about 3 minutes. Dish out and set aside.

3) In the same wok, add some more cooking oil. Stir-fry the shallots and garlic until aromatic. Add pork (or chicken), mushrooms and dried shrimp and stir-fry until the meat changes color. Use the spatula to break the ground pork or chicken so they form into small lumps. Add 2 cups of water into the wok and follow by the yam pieces. Add all seasonings and bring it to boil. Add rice into the wok and do a few quick stirs. 

4) Transfer everything into the rice cooker, adding the remaining 1 3/4 cups of water, and then cook it like you are cooking steamed rice.

5) When the rice is cooked, use the rice scoop to stir the yam rice and loosen it up. Serve immediately with some fried shallot crisps and chopped scallions.

Earl Grey Tea Sorbet

I can't remember when was the last time I made desserts. So when my mother sms-ed me to say that we will be celebrating Mother's Day at my grandma's place, and asked me to either make or buy some desserts, I knew it was time. And since the weather had been scorching these days, I thought sorbet would be the perfect thing to make. And not to mention, simple too. :)

I got the recipe from a video here.

Earl Grey Tea Sorbet

Ingredients :

- 3 3/4 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 6 Earl Grey teabags
- juice of 1 lemon

Directions :

1) Put the water and sugar together in a pot and bring it to a rolling boil. (Try to maintain a low and consistent heat, and ensure all sugar has melted but at the same time not burnt)

2) Add the 6 teabags into the syrup and take it off the heat.

3) Let the teabags rest in the syrup for about 30 minutes before removing them.

4) If the mixture is not completely cooled at this time, stick the pot into the fridge and let it cool.

5) Once it has cooled down, add in the juice of 1 lemon. If you have an ice-cream maker, just pour the mixture in it and leave it to do the rest of the work. 

If you do not have an ice-cream maker  :

- Put a glass dish into your freezer to cool it. When you are done with the final mixture, take out the glass dish from the freezer and put the mixture into it. Cover it with cling wrap and pop it back into the freezer. 

- After 30 minutes or so, check the mixture. If the sides of the dish is starting to freeze, use a fork to break down the pieces and put it back into the freezer again.

- Do this after every 30 minutes until you get the consistency you want. I've read that the best is to do it for 8 hours or so, if you really want a smooth professional-like consistency.

Note : I've got feedback about the final product being too sweet. So if you do not have a very sweet tooth, you might consider reducing the amount of sugar a little.

Braised Chicken with Shallots

Finally, we were rid of the flu and cough bug. So, it was back to cooking chicken for our meals. Looking back at previous meals, I thought it would be good to cook a Chinese dish this weekend. And of course, a simple and quick one at that.

Braised Chicken with Shallots (recipe from here)

Ingredients :

- 4 chicken thighs & drumsticks, chopped
- 10 shallots, washed & peeled
- 2 nos garlic, sliced
- 5 nos ginger, sliced
- 1 tsp black soy sauce

Marinate:
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp light soya sauce
- 4 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- pepper to taste

Directions :

1. Marinade chicken with the marinate. Set in the fridge for 3 hours or longer.

2. Heat up olive, saute shallots, garlic and ginger till fragrant.

3. Add chicken, stir fry the chicken till tender and fragrant.

4. Add water - the water should cover the chicken.

5. Cover the wok lid. Simmer under low fire for about 10-15mins or till gravy thicken. (Note : The gravy didn't seemed to be thickening at this point, so I added in some cornstarch mixed with water)

6. Add dash of salt.

7. Add black soy sauce, stir well & dish up. Serve hot.

Salmon and Broccoli Spaghetti

I made this about 2 weeks ago, when the husband and I were both attacked by the flu bug. The husband was worse off than I was, he got the cough as well. So, when he mentioned he wanted to eat at home for dinner, I had to think of something that was suitable for the sick. And according to my mother and Chinese physician, it is not good to take chicken when you are having a cough, though there are no real scientific evidence, but I had some experience in that, so I'd rather avoid it till we're ok.

So, off I went to the Internet (what would I do without it??!) to search for a quick and simple dinner. And I came across one with minimal ingredients, and decided to tweak it by adding some broccoli for a more balanced meal.

Salmon and Broccoli Spaghetti (recipe adapted from here)
2 servings

Ingredients :

- 1 steak salmon
- 200ml whipping cream
- spaghetti for 2
- broccoli florets
- 1 teaspoon tomato puree
- a little butter for frying
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (I omitted this)

Directions :

1) Season the salmon with some salt and black pepper. Then put it into the oven at 220 degrees Celsius for about 10-15 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of the salmon.

2)While the salmon is baking, boil the water and cook the spaghetti. When the water boils, what I did was to scoop some out to blanch the broccoli separately. Leave the broccoli in the water for about 3-5 minutes, then drain and set them aside.

3) When the salmon is cooked, it should be light pink and be able to flake apart easily when prodded with a fork. Break the salmon in the desired size and set aside.

4) When the pasta is within a few minutes of being done, heat up a pan and melt the butter over low heat. Add in the whipping cream, cayenne pepper (if using), tomato puree, salmon, broccoli, and salt and pepper to taste.

5) Gently heat this for a few minutes until hot (but NOT boiling), then add in the spaghetti, mixing it well to coat with the sauce. Serve immediately.

Chicken, Leek and Tomato Soup

This was made a few weeks back and I had forgotten about it until I went through the photos in my phone. No, I didn't use a camera for my photos. Nearly all the photos of the dishes that I cooked were taken by my phone's camera, and thus, the non-professional look and poor lighting. But I do try to make them presentable.

Anyway, I was looking for something light for dinner that day and the husband was feeling abit under the weather, so I thought of soup, and some toasted small buns to go along.

Chicken, Leek and Tomato Soup (recipe from : Quick Short Chicken Recipes)
4 servings

Ingredients :

- 60g butter
- 3 leeks, thinly sliced
- 3 chicken breast fillets
- 3 cups (750ml) chicken stock
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 425g can crushed tomatoes
- 1/4 teaspoon soft brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon chopped basil leaves
- chopped basil, extra, to garnish

Directions :

1) Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, add the leek and cook for 2 minutes without browning.

2) Halve the chicken breast fillets lengthways and thinly slice them. Increase the heat, add the chicken to the saucepan and cook for 3 minutes, or until the chicken is browned.

3) Add the stock, garlic, tomato, sugar and basil. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5-6 minutes, or until the chicken is tender. Season and garnish with extra fresh basil. Serve with crusty bread.

Sausage and Pasta

As I've mentioned before, it will be expected to see repeated ingredients from a previous dish as I can't vary the amount to be bought to suit to just the two of us. So, here it is again, the last Polish sausage from dinner previously. I adapted this from a real simple recipe, and the difference is that, the original calls for beer, but mine has chicken stock instead. Coz the husband and I are not beer persons. However, I might still give the beer version a try some time.

Sausage and Pasta (adapted from here)

1 serving

Ingredients :

- sphagetti for one

- 1 Polish sausage, sliced

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced

- about 1/3 cup of chicken stock

- pepper to taste

- red pepper flakes (optional)

- dried parsley for garnish

Directions :

1) Heat up some olive oil in a pan. Saute the onion for a few seconds. Then add in the garlic and sausage to saute for about 3-4 minutes.

2) Add pepper and red pepper flakes (if using) to taste.

3) Add the chicken stock, cover, and let the liquid reduce to a little less than half on high heat. You can cook the pasta while the sauce is reducing.

(Note : I didn't add any salt because the chicken stock and the sausage provided enough saltiness for me, however, you can always adjust it according to your taste after you add in the chicken stock)

4) Serve the sausage and onion over the pasta. Make sure you get the sauce over everything. Enjoy!

Sausage and Mushroom Sphagetti

When it comes to cooking, I like to have a bit of time to plan ahead. Time to think of what to cook, time to look through my recipes collection slowly and see which is the one that will catch my attention that day. But once in a while, dinner plans will pop up at the last minute and I just had to come up with something fast. And so, here is my quick and easy sausage and mushroom sphagetti :

Sausage and Mushroom Sphagetti

2 servings

Ingredients :

- sphagetti for two

- 2 Polish sausages, sliced (I bought 3 Polish sausages for $5.50 from Cold Storage)

- 1 pack (~125g) white mushrooms, sliced

- 4 cloves of garlic, minced (coz the husband likes a lot of garlic in his food)

- half a bottle of pasta sauce (from the 397g kind, can adjust according to your preference for the sauciness)

- handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped

- black pepper

- grated Parmesan cheese

Directions :

1) Cook sphagetti according to the package instructions. 

2) Meanwhile, heat up some olive oil in pan and stir-fry the sausages till the oil is released. Dish out the sausages and set aside, leaving the oil in the pan.

3) Add in the mushroom and garlic, and fry till the mushroom is almost cooked. Add in the cooked sausages and fry for a few seconds.

4) Add in the pasta sauce and basil, and stir to combine all the ingredients together, until the sauce has been heated up.

5) Turn off the heat and add in the cooked spaghetti to the sauce, or vice versa. Season with black pepper and your desired amount of Parmesan cheese. Serve.

One Pot

This kind of one pot dish is not only simple to cook, but also allows you the flexibility to add whatever you like into it. There is also less washing up to do, and is one complete meal when served with rice. Do refer to the original recipe for more ideas for ingredients if you are cooking for more than 2 persons.

One Pot (recipe adapted from here)
2 servings

Ingredients :

- 1 tube silken tofu
- 1 pack of Shimeji mushroom
- 1 broccoli
- 1 carrot, sliced
- 4 mini fishcakes, cut into 3 pieces each
- 8 grey prawns, shelled and deviened
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can chicken broth (~240ml)
- fried shallots, as garnish

Directions :

1) Marinate prawns with salt and pepper. Set aside for 10 mins.

2) Cut away the bottom part of the mushrooms and separate them. Blanch in hot water for a few minutes til they turned slightly soft. Drain and set aside.

3) Blanch broccoli and carrot in some oil with hot boiling water. Drain and set aside separately.

4) Heat up some oil in a claypot. Saute garlic til fragrant.

5) Add in carrots and stir-fry for a few minutes. Then add in the fishcakes and stir-fry for a few seconds.

6) Add in the chicken broth, and braise at medium heat for about 5 minutes. After that, give the soup a taste to see if salt needs to be added. (I didn't add any seasonings coz the canned chicken broth is already salty enough.)

7) Add in prawns, and simmer till they just turned pink. Add in the mushrooms, broccoli and tofu. Let it simmer for another 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, garnish with fried shallots and serve hot.