Lemon Tart

Adapted from:
http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/27824/baked+lemon+tart

Pastry
1 3/4 cups plain flour
1/2 cup almond meal (ground almonds)
1/3 cup icing sugar mixture
175g butter, chilled, chopped
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons chilled water
Whipped cream and strawberries, to serve
 
Filling


5 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup caster sugar
300ml double thick cream
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind

Method:

1. Step 1
   Place flour, almond meal, icing sugar mixture and butter in a food processor. Process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add egg yolks and water. Process until dough comes together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until just smooth. Shape into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Step 2
   Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced. Grease a 4cm-deep, 23.5cm (base) round, loose-based fluted flan tin. Roll out pastry between 2 sheets of baking paper until 3mm-thick. Line tin with pastry. Trim excess. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
3. Step 3
   Place prepared tin on a baking tray. Line pastry case with baking paper. Fill with ceramic pie weights or uncooked rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove weights or rice and baking paper. Bake for 10 minutes or until light golden. Cool pastry case. Reduce oven temperature to 180°C/160°C fan-forced.
4. Step 4
   Make lemon filling Whisk eggs, sugar, cream, lemon rind and lemon juice in a bowl. Stand 5 minutes. Pour mixture into pastry case. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until filling has just set. Cool for 15 minutes. Refrigerate overnight or until chilled. Serve with whipped cream and strawberries.

Stir Fry Udon Noodles

Adapted from :
http://en.christinesrecipes.com/2013/02/shanghai-fried-noodles.html

I love her website but some of the recipes are hit or miss for our family's taste buds.

This one is a hit for the eldest boy. No pics as dinner was served very late to very hungry peeps in the household.

I have tweaked the recipe according to the amount i am serving up.

Ingredients:

• 500 gm pork, shredded
• 1 TBsp garlic, minced
• 2 packets of Trident Udon Noodles. 400gms each
• Half a wombok sliced

Marinade:

• 1 TBSP light soy sauce
• 1 tsp cornflour / corn starch
• 1 tbsp sugar
• white pepper, to taste
• sesame oil, to taste

Sauce:

• 2 Tbsp light soy sauce
• 3 Tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tsp oyster sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 4 Tbsp water
• sesame oil, to taste

Method:

1. Mix pork with marinade and leave it for about 20 minutes.
2. In the meantime, cook the noodles in boiling water according to the instructions on the packaging, until tender, but still firm. Drain thoroughly. Rinse with cold water, drain well again. Set aside.
3. Heat oil in a frying pan. Add marinated pork and cook over medium heat until cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside.
4. Add some oil if necessary, sauté garlic. Toss in the cabbages, add a little of water if you find it’s too dry. Add the noodles, then pour the sauce and stir to coat the noodles. Add the pork stir to combine well. Serve immediately.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Ingredients

• 600g chicken thigh fillets, cut into 2cm diced, coat with flour and salt, set aside
• 4tbsp of vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, cut into thin wedges
• 1 green capsicum, sliced
• 1 can of pineapple , drained with juice reserved
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tbsp of tomato paste
• 1 tbsp of sugar 
• 3 tbsp white vinegar
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 tbsp cornflour combined with 1 tbsp water

Method:
1. Shallow fry the chicken strips in batches. Set aside on a paper towel
2. Whisk the pineapple juice, tomato paste, sugar, white vinegar, soy sauce and Worcestershire Sauce in a bowl
3. Heat 2 tbsp of oil and stir fry the garlic and onions till fragrant.
4. Add in the chicken, capsicum, pineapples.
5. Stir in the sauce and cook until capsicum are done
6. stir in the cornflour and water as the final step and cook till sauce thicken. My family likes lots of sauce so i lessen the cornflour to make a runny sauce.

 I think it is a decent meal for the family. I served this with a nice pot of cabbage soup.

Banana bread Recipe

 Adapted from http://www.karencheng.com.au/2014/05/21/my-yummy-banana-bread/

I made a mistake by adding too much flour. So will definitely take note of the measurement next time. I also used toasted almond slices in the bread and also for the topping.

Banana Bread
75g of butter
2 medium eggs, at room temperature
450g ripe banana, weighed with skin on
2 tablespoons of maple syrup or honey (Or you can just omit the sugar altogether).
¼ teaspoon of bicarb soda
pinch of salt
100g chopped walnuts
Handful of sunflower seeds and pepitas
100g of self raising white flour
125g of almond meal.
1. Heat oven to 180ºC. Lightly grease a 11cm x 22cm loaf pan. Line the base and 2 long sides with baking paper.
2. Melt the butter and let it cool. Mix in maple syrup or sugar (if you’re using it).
3. Add eggs and combine well.
4. Mash the bananas and add it to the mixture.
5. Add the chopped walnuts. Give it all a good stir!
6. Sift in flour, bicarb soda and pinch of salt. Stir slowly until *just* combined.
7. Pour into the loaf tin. Sprinkle with seeds and pepitas. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and an inserted skewer comes out clean. Leave to stand for a few minutes then cool on wire rack.

Slow Cooker Beef and Barley

 Super nice slow cooker dish. Minimal effort and left to cook on its own. Will definitely cook this again.

 

Ingredients

• 4 teaspoons olive oil
• ¾ pound beef stew meat cut into ½ inch pieces
• ¼ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced (about 1½ cups)
• 8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
• 2 medium carrots, diced (about 1 cup)
• 2 stalks celery, diced (about ½ cup)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced, or 2 teaspoons minced garlic in a jar
• 6 cups low-sodium beef broth
• One 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, with their juices
• ½ cup pearled barley
• 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried
• ¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

1. In a large skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil over medium-high heat.
2. Dry off the meat with paper towels and then sprinkle with the salt and pepper.
3. Add the meat to the pan and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes total.
4. Transfer to a 5 or 6 quart slow cooker.
5. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil to the skillet. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until the onion begins to soften about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook another minute.
6. Scrape the mixture from the skillet into the slow cooker. (If there are any browned bits still remaining in the skillet, add a little of the beef broth to de-glaze the pan and then add to the slow cooker.)
7. Add the carrots, celery, mushrooms, broth, tomatoes, barley, and thyme to the slow cooker and stir to blend.
8. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 to 8 hours.
9. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into soup bowls and garnish each serving with a sprinkling of parsley, if desired.