Tomatoes, mozzarella and toast!

I've been seeing a lot of pictures of tomatoes on burrata on Instagram and Pinterest lately, and I'm not sure if it's just having a revival at the moment or the interwebz is reading me again. But after days and days of seeing variations of these flavours every time I check my social media, I had to have it.

Only problem is, I couldn't find burrata anywhere! Dagnabbit! This wasn't going to deter me, though, so mozzarella it is!

Here's a recipe I love to make for my husband and I when we can't decide what to have for dinner, or for a weekend lunch.

Braised tomatoes on mozzarella with toast 
(serves 2)

• A healthy glug of olive oil
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes
• A fistful of roughly chopped basil
• 4-5 smashed cloves of garlic
• A pinch of sea salt
• 2 balls of mozzarella
• Crusty toast 

1. Heat the olive oil in a braiser or pan, doesn't have to be fancy, add the tomatoes, basil, garlic and sea salt, cover and simmer on low-medium heat for 20 minutes. 
2. Uncover, pop in the oven under the broiler on medium heat for about 5 minutes
3. Remove from the oven, and pour over the mozzarella (or even better if you have burrata!) in a bowl and serve warm with toast 

Easy peasy, and super satisfying!

Moroccan meatballs with lemony couscous

I was down with a really bad fever over the weekend, caused by a raw and inflamed throat. I traced it back to having had extremely hot soup, at which point I had scalded my throat and caused this stupid thing. My throat's still quite raw, but not as bad as it was on Friday. So since I was feeling slightly more human today, I thought to make dinner for R and myself as a thank you of sorts for taking care of me over the past few days.

I need to start planning my photography better... especially with a hungry husband around, rushing me to eat and thus taking away my styling time. That's not entirely fair, I've also just really fallen out of practice and have gotten lazy. I assure you though, the recipe may be simple, the photos may be crap, but the food is good!

Moroccan Meatballs with Lemony Couscous
Serves: 2
Meatballs

• 500g minced lamb (or beef)
• 1/2 red onion, chopped 
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1cm root ginger, grated
• Pinch of dried chilli flakes
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• Olive oil
• 1 tin (400g) diced tomatoes
• 100ml chicken stock
• 1/2 bunch coriander, chopped

Couscous

• 100g couscous
• 25g butter
• 175ml chicken stock, boiling
• 1/2 bunch coriander, chopped
• Juice of half a lemon
• Crumbled feta (optional)

1. Combine the minced lamb, onion, half of the garlic, half of the ginger and half of the spices in a medium sized bowl, season lightly and mix with your hands (clean, of course), then form the mix into small meatballs
2. Heat the olive oil in a large, nonstick pan, add the meatballs and cook in batches until they're all nice and browned all around. Remove from the pan and add the remaining crushed garlic, ginger and spices and cook in the oil and meat juices for a while. 
3. Add the tinned tomato (with the liquid) and chicken stock to the pan and allow to simmer for 10 minutes, then add the meatballs back in and cook for 20 minutes. Season well. 
4. Place the couscous and butter in a small-medium heatproof bowl, pour the boiling chicken stock and lemon juice then cover the bowl with clingwrap and leave for 10 minutes. Fluff the couscous with a fork, stir the coriander and feta through and serve with the mealtballs.

Brown Butter Sage Gnocchi with Beef Salami

I went back to work last week, and it's not quite so busy yet but still calls for the usual later evenings. So on Friday night, after a week of craving (quite inexplicably) gnocchi, I decided to cook up this super simple, super easy, super tasty dish for the hubs and myself.

Also, since I've done less and less baking and more and more quick weeknight cooking, I thought I'd start sharing more of those recipes (assuming I figure out my lighting issues for photography at night). So for all you working people out there who want to whip up quick, no fuss dinners for yourself or to impress your significant other with your culinary skills, here's one of many weeknight dinner recipes I aim to share.

Brown Butter Sage Gnocchi with Beef Salami

• 500g gnocchi 
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2-3 tbsp chopped sage (dried or fresh)
• 3-4 tbsp grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Salami, rough chopped (optional)
• Flat leaf parsley to garnish (optional, basically I had some in the fridge I didn't want to go bad)

1. Cook the gnocchi according to the packet's instructions (pop in a pot of boiling, salted water and strain as soon as they come to the top). 
2. Melt the butter in a skillet, add the sage and let it cook til it begins to brown and the sweet, nutty aroma of browned butter starts to fill your senses (can you tell that I love brown butter?). Toss the cooked gnocchi into the butter, along with two tbsp of the grated parmesan. Season to taste
3. Optional: Add the salami to the skillet and stir to mix and coat everything in delicious buttery goodness. 
4. Serve immediately with another generous sprinkling of parmesan, and if you, like me, have leftover parsley you don't want to waste, toss that on too. Why not? 

Sundried Tomato & Herbed Garlic Spaghetti Aglio e Olio

Moving into a new house for the first time is daunting. In my first two months, I have lost my keys, gotten locked inside my own bedroom (faulty lock), had 3 power trips, locked my car and house keys in my car, watched scary movies I probably shouldn't have... but the one thing I've had so much fun doing is cooking my own meals! Granted, I've also had a very busy period at work, which means I haven't really had time for home cooked meals but when I have had the chance, I've been trying out quite a few different recipes. 

I tried a really great pasta dish in the past few weeks, as part of a meal I cooked for Le Boyfriend's 30th birthday dinner. It's so easy, so delicious, and I've been craving it ever since! It's one of those dishes you can whip up for a weeknight dinner, without having to stop at the grocery shop for ingredients (if you don't want to). Without further ado... 

Sun-dried Tomato Spaghettini

Serves 2

• 2 servings worth of spaghettini (made fresh or from instant), cooked al dente
• 4-5 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
• 1/4 cup sliced sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/4 cup sliced streaky beef strips (or bacon for those who can)
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp chili flakes
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• Salt and pepper to season
• A handful (or more if you want a salad) of fresh rocket leaves
• Grated parmesan 

1. Boil the pasta as per instructions, remove from heat, strain and pour some cold water over it to keep it from cooking any further; set aside
2. In a medium/large saute pan, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil. When hot, lower the flame and toss in the garlic, sundried tomatoes, streaky beef strips, paprika, chili flakes and thyme. Allow the flavours to infuse into the oil until the garlic reaches a beautiful shade of brown without getting burnt and crispy. 
3. Add the pasta to the pan and toss to coat in the oil and goodness in the pan. Season to taste and remove to a large bowl to stir in the fresh rocket and grated parmesan
4. Serve hot and enjoy :) 

This can be a meal on it's own (large portion), or a smaller meal (around 60-70g per serving) to accompany a protein and some veg (for R's birthday dinner, I served it with garlic roasted asparagus and thyme grilled lamb cutlets). I'll share the recipes for those dishes soon (wait til I try them again and get some pictures before they go). 

Eurasian Recipes: Tomato Ketchup Chicken

Last year, one of my parents' friends published a Sarawakian Eurasians recipe book, and have asked our family to contribute some of our recipes for the next edition. HMMPH. What are we, chopped liver?! LOL I'm just joking, of course I'd love to send it a few recipes... but it also gave me an idea of my own: I'll publish our family recipes on here and one day, hopefully, will get the chance to publish my own recipe book! 

The first recipe I'm going to share is a personal favourite, everyone loves it except my teenage brother. Who doesn't like flavours. WEIRDO. It's also hella easy, which is the case with most Eurasian recipes, I'm starting to find... 

Mum thinks this is a great idea too, as our housekeeper/cook is leaving next month (her contract's up, and after 14 years, I think she's had enough of the family) so I can start cataloguing our favourite recipes to whip up whenever.

First up is the tomato ketchup chicken! It's so easy, and I chose this one for ease of adaptation by my friends in other countries (some recipes use more local ingredients). This is great for weekday dinners, or lazy weekends, as it will literally take you about 20 minutes or less to put together.

Tomato Ketchup Chicken 

• 1 whole chicken, chopped into 16 pieces (or 12, as preferred)
• 5 medium sized potatoes, peeled and chopped into wedges
• 1 large yellow/red onion
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 1/2 inches fresh ginger root
• 4 cloves
• 1/2 cinnamon stick
• 2 cardamoms
• 250g ketchup
• 1 tbsp chilli sauce (optional*)
• 100-150 ml water

First peel and cut your potatoes, prep and clean your chicken pieces, and set aside.

Peel the onions (I used 2 medium-small yellow onions instead of a large one), garlic and ginger root, then blend until smooth.

What I like to do is take a tbsp or two of the onion mixture and rub it into my chicken pieces before popping them in the oil.

First deep-fry (omigosh so unhealthy, whatever!) the potatoes (as pictured in the POH-TAY-TOE collage above), then the chicken (do it in two batches, so it cooks faster), until they achieve a mouthwatering golden brown.

Next, empty your wok of oil, leaving roughly 2 tbsp with which you will stir-fry the onion mixture and the spices (cloves, cinnamon, cardamom). Check out the picture above, eh? Set your stove on medium to high heat, and constantly stir (it is called a stir-fry, after all) the mixture until it turns soft and brown and the fragrance of cooked onions rises.

Once the onions are done, pour in the ketchup and chilli sauce*, swirl the water in the empty ketchup bottle/container/vessel that you used to keep it before pouring, then add that as well. Stir the mixture until just combined, then add the chicken. Cover the chicken in the gravy. Cover the wok, and lower the heat to a small flame. Allow this to simmer for 15 minutes.

Around the 15 minute mark, add the potatoes (am I the only one who always says potatoes in the Sam Gamgee voice?) and combine with the rest of the ingredients. Leave the wok for another 5 minutes or so.

And you're done!

Serve with white rice and some greens of your choice (pictured here is a mixed vegetable stir-fry with oyster sauce and chopped garlic), be sure to pour the gravy on your rice. I didn't for the purpose of taking this picture.

Notice how there was no salt needed in this recipe? That's because the ketchup already contains enough to allow the taste to seep into the chicken. However, I recommend that you taste once the chicken and potatoes are in, if you feel that salt is needed, then go for it.

Hope this was easy to follow, I apologize for the image heavy post, got a little bit too excited at my first stir-fry recipe!

Cheers,
Nabs