waffles

Homemade Waffles
serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup cornstarch

2 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 cups buttermilk

1/2 cup coconut oil

2 eggs, slightly beaten

2 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD:

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.

2. Add in remaining ingredients and mix until just combined. The batter will appear lumpy, do not overmix. Let batter rest for 10-15 minutes before using.

3. Preheat your waffle iron. Pour in batter into the waffle iron grids, careful to not overfill. Close the lid and cook for 2 to 2.5 minutes. Flip waffle iron over and cook for another 2 to 2.5 minutes.

4. Turn waffle iron right side up, open the lid and carefully transfer your waffle with a spatula to a wire rack. Continue making waffles with remaining batter. Serve hot with your favourite toppings.

VARIATION - Taiyaki

1. If you have the fish shaped molds for your waffle iron, you can use this recipe to make Taiyaki.

2. Just fill the molds halfway with batter, then place 1-2 tbsp of your desired filling (eg. custard, chocolate, nutella, red bean paste) in the centre. Cover the filling with batter and gently add more batter to fill in the side of the fish molds.

3. Close the waffle iron lid and cook each side for 2.25 to 2.5 minutes. Serve hot.

favourite holiday

Our favourite holiday is here! We love everything about Thanksgiving from the chilly weather and all the cooking, to the smell of pumpkin pie and overeating. It's just simply about being with your loved ones, being thankful for one another and of course, being together to share a great meal.

This year we're doing some Mary's Heritage and Free Range Turkeys.

Roasted - 4 hours.

Deep Fried - 30 minutes.

A large fat separator makes the best pan gravy.

Check out this giant can of pumpkin. It makes 8 pies!

Homemade Pumpkin Pie

makes one 9 inch pie

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp all spice
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs

1 can 15 oz 100% pure pumpkin puree
1 can 12 fl oz evaporated milk (1½ cups)

1  unbaked 9-10” pie crust (Martha Stewart's Pate Brisee)

METHOD:

1. Place oven rack to lower third and preheat to 425F (220C).

2. Mix sugar and spices and beat in eggs.

3. Stir in pumpkin and then gradually evaporated milk. Don’t vigorously beat or over mix. This will create air bubbles which will cause the filling to rise like a soufflé in the oven.

4. Let mixture rest 20 minutes or overnight in the fridge.

5. Take pie shell out of freezer and brush the bottom with egg white (to prevent a soggy crust). Brush the edges with egg wash (yolk + cream).

6. Pour the rested pumpkin mixture into pie shell and cover edge of crust with pie shield. Place pie plate on a baking sheet.

7. Bake at 425F for 15 minutes. Reduce to 350F (180C) and bake for 40 minutes. Remove pie when the centre is still a little wobbly to prevent the filling from over baking and cracking.

8. Garnish with pie cutouts. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours and then refrigerate.

9. Serve cold with freshly whipped cream.

Thanksgiving is not complete without all the sides.

 And the feast (and overeating) begins!

2014 and the year of the horse

It's a new year and also the year of the horse! We're back with some seasonal fruit from down under:

Australian lychees - sweet, juicy, and a smaller pit than their grown in China counterparts.

 Tasmanian cherries.

 Big, ripe and sweet Australian mangoes.

Is there anything better than waking up to the smell of freshly baked bread? We love love love our new breadmaker! And we love experimenting with different flours and ingredients...

...of course sometimes those experiments don't turn out so well. This was suppose to be pumpkin coconut bread.

Attempt number 2 yielded much better results.

This Honey Oat and Cranberry one is fast becoming a favourite in our household. The recipe makes a 1 lbs loaf. Set your breadmaker to the regular setting with a light crust. Ingredients must be added in the following order:
3/4 cup + 2 tbsp water
1 1/4 cups bread flour
1/2 cup whole meal bread flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oatmeal
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dry milk
1/4 tsp salt
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup cranberries
1/2 cup pecan pieces

US Barron Point oysters are at the peak of their season now. Have these giant oysters raw or lightly steamed and topped with minced garlic, green onions, cilantro, sizzling vegetable oil and light sodium soya sauce.

Our langoustines were featured in the January 23rd issue of SCMP's 48 hours magazine.

New comer on the restaurant scene Fish & Meat, serves them grilled and lightly dressed to bring out their natural sweetness and flavour.

donut peaches

June ushers in Summer and what's seasonal now are donut peaches. We also got some lovely coral green lettuce too, great for salads, but back to the peaches...

Unbruised, blemish-free, and oh so sweet. It would be a shame to not eat them simply in their natural state.

And we're posting this because it looked like a really neat and handy kitchen gadget to have around.