Tofu or bean curd, sometimes called the “The Cheese of Asia”, is a highly nutritious, protein-rich and delicious food. Its high quality protein content makes a good substitute for meat in many vegetarian recipes. Tofu may also be high in calcium and/or magnesium, depending on the coagulant used in manufacturing. If it is made with calcium, the end product will be a valuable source of calcium for those who are lactose-intolerant. Tofu is also low on calories and saturated fat. In view of all these nutritional values and health benefits, it is a good choice to include tofu in the diet of our growing kids.

Besides its nutritious qualities, I adore tofu for its versatility, texture, flavor, inexpensive, wide range of variety etc etc….the list can go on and on. It’s really an amazing food! It gives me plenty of cooking ideas too. Just like this simple home-cooked dish based on my personal concoction with pressed tofu as the star ingredient.

Pressed tofu (or dried tofu) is an extra firm variety of tofu whereby a large amount of water content being pressed out of it. So, I sliced the pressed tofu in rectangular shapes and then pan-fried them to create some chewy bites. Combining with a little minced meat and sweetcorns, and flavoured with sweet and sour sauce, makes this tofu dish more appealing to young children’s tastebuds. It may be welcomed by kids who reject soft tofu. Serve with warm rice* and handful of green peas, this dish will be a wholesome and healthy meal that your family can enjoy too.

* Note: Do you notice that the rice in my photo is a bit yellowish? They are millets, another highly nutritious grain. You can go to this post (millet porridge) to read more about it.

>>> Click on PAGE 2 BELOW for Sweet and Sour Tofu Recipe………..

It’s almost three weeks since my last posting. We went back to my hubby’s hometown to celebrate this Lunar New Year and reunite with our family members and relatives, catch up with old friends and ex-colleagues, as well as to indulge in those “bad for health, hard to resist and once a year not-to-be missed” festival dishes and goodies (feeling guilty now after gaining weight ). Even though we had a shorter holiday break as compared to the previous year, it still took me quite a while to tune back to my “wokking” mode. Anyway, that’s quite usual of me after a holiday break. Sorry to keep you waiting for my update.

During this Lunar New Year, most of the stalls in the wet market were closed for as long as a week. As for the remaining stalls that operated as usual, the vegetables they sold were not fresh at all. Without much choice, I had self-improvised with whatever I could salvage from my fridge to prepare a quick and easy one dish meal for my family. Thus, it led to the creation of this “East meets West” pasta dish. It’s based on my mother-in-law’s signature dish “braised dried oysters and minced meat ” (蚝豉松) which I had posted earlier.

Dried oysters (蚝豉) are commonly found in Cantonese cuisine during Chinese New Year because this ingredient sounds auspicious in Cantonese pronunciation. Dried oyster (蚝豉) means good business (好市). Usually the dried oysters are mainly imported from Japanese and Korea. I personally prefer Japanese dried oysters because the texture is chunkier and tastier as compared to those originating from Korea.

To make this meal more wholesome, I added pressed tofu (tau gua 豆干) and edamame (salted soy beans). You can substitute edamame with green peas. Though I served it with durum wheat spaghetti, you are free to choose any kind of pasta you like. If you are not a fan of pasta, serve it with Chinese noodles, rice or congee are equally delicious as well. As you can see, there are many ways to recreate a dish. So put on your thinking cap and be creative!

There are still two more days left before the Lunar New Year celebration ends. May you and your family have a bountiful of Luck and Joy in this Year of Rabbit!

I am submitting this dish to Presto Pasta Night, founded by Ruth of Once Upon A Feast , and hosted by Pia of Cook with Pia this week.

>>>> Click on PAGE 2 BELOW for pasta with minced meat and dried oysters recipe…………….

My family loves homemade pizza for several reasons. One of them is that I can easily cater to all kind of requests such as:
“More cheeses, please? Wait, why not have a mixture of Mozallera, Parmesan and Cheddar? That will be ideal.”
“Pineapples, more and more! Mummy!”
“Don’t forget to put in Pepperoni, the one without black pepper please”
“Yes, thin crust only. Remember to add semolina flour this time!”
Even though we had never ordered such a custom-made pizza in any restaurant, I am sure it won’t be cheap to do so.

My initial attempts in making pizza dough were done by hands. It was fun but can be quite tiring especially for someone like me who don’t have strong arms. But now, I discover another pizza dough recipe which I can happily assign all the kneading jobs to my reliable helper, aka my standing kitchen mixer (with a dough hook). It saves me lots of time and energy and at the same time allows me to multi-task other chores. I strongly recommend you to invest in a kitchen mixer if you’re serious about baking.

I had been using this pizza dough recipe to make pizzas for my family for some time as it worked very well with my kitchen mixer. More importantly, the result had been up to expectation so far. Given my family’s preference for thin crust pizza, I modified the flour combination slightly to achieve the required texture. The recipe can yield two 11” thin crust pizzas which is perfect for serving two to three persons. I added a small amount of finely grounded semolina flour to enhance the flavour and give it a bit of golden coloured crust. The crispy crust, when balanced off with a handful of toppings and melted cheeses, was so delicious and addictive when it’s served warm!! We couldn’t resist the temptation of gulping down one after another and my son broke his eating speed record. Guess what’s the rating given by my son to my pizza? 10 little fingers plus 10 little toes!! I was so touched with his generous rating even though it’s a bit over-exaggerating. This is also his usual way of hinting to his mommy that he likes to have another pizza treat soon.

The pizza sauce recipe should only be used as a reference as I didn’t measure every single ingredient. It was just my “guestimation”. However, you can still adjust the seasonings to your liking towards the end of the cooking process.

Why not mark down a date on your calendar to make pizza during this school holiday with your kids? Kids always love playing with dough. Get your dough ready and let them have fun decorating it with their favourite toppings. It’s definitely a great fun-filled dayfor the family!!

>>> Click on PAGE 2 BELOW for thin-crust pizza recipe (dough, tomato sauce and toppings) with step by step photos …..

Ever tried cooking a particular vegetable that your kid showed little or no interest in eating? If you did, would you give up after a few attempts? Then I urge you not to be discouraged as there is always a good chance of changing your little ones’ mind. You just have to be a bit creative in playing around with your cooking method and food presentation. That’s my little secret in tackling my son’s fussiness over certain vegetable that he dislikes initially.

By learning to cook a variety of non-Chinese cuisines, it opens up more cooking options to me. Take the example of eggplant (aubergine). When I first started cooking it using the common Chinese stir-fry method, my son only took a few bites. Then I discovered another method using Japanese seasoning. This time, he ate slightly more but didn’t give me that enthusiastic “Mommy, I want more!” look.

When I saw this Greek-inspired casserole dish (Moussaka) from Mitong’s blog (小小米桶的写食厨房), I felt confident that it was going to get my son’s taste buds excited as he never seem to ever get bored with bolognese sauce and cheese. The recipe shared a similarity to lasagna. The difference is layers of eggplants is used instead of layers of lasagna sheets. The dish is totally delicious and paired so well with pasta. You should see the speed in which my hubby and son walloped up the dish and pasta. By the time I finished my shooting, they had already cleaned up their plates. Yeah, we loved it very much. It was really a very satifying meal for my family. It looks like from hereon I will have no trouble clearing the eggplants in my fridge.

At first glance, the recipe looks complicated with its long list of steps. But, it’s a very versatile recipe. So, don’t be taken a back by it. It is actually very simple and involves only 3 basic steps: prepare ingredients (eggplants, sauce and cheese), assembly them in a casserole and bake. Get your little ones to help in the assembly process as it’s really fun and enjoyable!

This recipe guarantees zero leftover. The bolognese sauce is great for pasta dish. You can freeze any excess for later use. As for the eggplant and shredded cheese, you can turn them into a super easy side dish which is another hit in my family.

So next time if you have a little picky eater for eggplants at home, try this “never-fail” eggplant recipe. The result is definitely very rewarding. I bet your family will love it too.

>>>> Click on page 2 for recipe and step by step photo for baked eggplants with bolognese sauce….

>>>> Click on page 3 for recipe and step by step photo on how to make bolognese sauce…………..

I am a big fan of Jamie Oliver, the famous English chef, not only for his unpretentious cooking style, but also his campaigns in promoting proper eating habits for kids as well as adults.

In 2005, he signed up as a dinner lady in the School Dinner TV series to challenge the junk food culture in schools by showing them that they too can serve fresh nutritious food that kids can enjoy eating as well. He actively campaigned for radical changes to have quality school dinners served in the UK.

He later wrote a new book in 2008 – Jamie’s Ministry of Food, backed by a TV show (also called Ministry of Food) to expand his food revolution. The idea is to inspire people to get back to the kitchen and start making simple, delicious food from scratch again.

If you visit the Ministry of Food’s website, you can find plenty of easy–to-follow recipes with detailed step-by-step instructions, photos and online cooking shows demonstrated by Jamie. I highly recommend this site to novices who want to learn the basic cooking skills especially for those who have never cooked western food before.

Amongst Jamie’s featured recipes, I decided to try out his meatball and pasta recipe and like to share it with you. The results turned out to be very satisfactory. Remember to watch the 9-mins video clip as it is a great help for you to understand the whole cooking procedure. The meatballs are easy-to-prepare and very flavourful as well with the usage of fresh rosemary and dried oregano. My son was so fascinated with the round-shape meatballs, he even claimed they resemble chocolate balls. However, the pasta sauce turned out to be a bit bland as I had omitted the chilli and balsamic vinegar as required by the recipe. Thus, I improvised using my own concoction of sugar, salt, tomato paste and chicken stock, adjusting the taste to my liking (note 1).

This is certainly a great recipe for people to kick start their cooking. If you have tried and like this recipe, remember to PASS IT ON to your friends so that more people will learn to cook.

“What we eat affects everything, our mood, behaviour, health, growth, even our ability to concentrate.” – Jamie Oliver.

I am submitting this dish to Presto Pasta Night, founded by Ruth of Once Upon A Feast, and hosted by Amy of Very Culinary this week.

>> Click on page 2 below for Meatballs and Pasta recipe……………

Do you know that childen’s song can be used as an effective and influential tool in promoting a healthy diet to toddlers? It may sound weird to some people, but it really worked for my son.

“An apple a day keeps the doctor (x4), A-P-P-L-E” - is a song my son learnt from his playgroup that had successfully changed him from one who rejected apple into one who is now an avid apple lover. So calling all parents, try this useful trick if you have kids who refuse to eat healthy food, be it apple or something else.

Ever since he could proudly sing the song, this apple soup has become my son’s favourite soup. I had found this recipe from a Chinese cookbook (方太食谱). Among its ingredients are figs and sweet & bitter almonds that are capable of  treating cough according to Chinese traditional medicine. It is a very nourishing yet tasty soup, and is recommended for the entire family (not just toddlers) in this hot season.

This recipe is also available in Chinese. Please go to Kwong Wah Yit Poh e-newspaper for further reading.

Serve: 4-5

Ingredients:
Red apples (2 large or 3 small) (红萍果）
250g lean pork (瘦肉）
10g sweet almonds (南杏) – also known as sweet apricot kernels or seeds (refer to note 1)
5g bitter almonds（北杏）- also known as bitter apricot kernels or seeds (refer to note 2)
4 candied dates (蜜枣）- I used large candied dates (金丝蜜枣)
3 fig fruits (无花果）
1100 ml water (清水）

Seasoning:
Salt (optional)

Methods:

1. Peel and core the apples, then rinse and chop them into 4 wedges for each one. Set aside
2. Rinse lean pork. Cut it into chunk. Blanch it over boiling water. Dish up and set aside.
3. Rinse candied dates, figs and sweet and bitter almonds. Set aside.
4. Put water in a cooking pot and bring it to a boil. Add in all ingredients in the pot. Use medium heat to bring the water to reboil. Switch to low fire and simmer for another 2 hours.
5. Turn off heat. Add salt to taste. Serve.

Notes: 

1. It is better to peel off the skins as the skins may contain pesticide if the washing is not done properly.
2. You can substitute lean pork with pork ribs.
3. You can use a combination of apples and pears (yellow) to make this soup.
4. If you prefer less sweetness for this soup, you can use 3 candied dates. Remember to rinse and wash thoroughly those sugars coated on the candied dates.

Functions for each ingredient used: (Source: The World of Nourishing and Fine Soups by Kenny Chen)

1. Sweet almonds/sweet apricot kernels or seeds (南杏)- It tastes sweet and is neutral in nature. It is non-toxic and relieves cough.
2. Bitter almonds/ bitter apricot kernels or seeds (北杏)- It heals cough and expels phlegm. [WARNING: As bitter almond carries a slight trace of toxins (cyanide), please use it with extreme caution. There is a concern about the potential health effects associated with large numbers of bitter apricot kernels being consumed on a regular basis, particularly by young children (as mentioned in this link). It is also not advisable for pregnant ladies. If you're not comfortable eating it, then exclude it from the recipe. Other reading reference: Is it safe to eat bitter apricot kernels by David Lebovitz.]
3. Fig fruits (无花果）- It clears heat and phlegm, nourishes the lungs and aids digestion with its high fibre content.
4. Candied dates (蜜枣) – It enhances human immunity and inhibits cancer cells. It is also help to against allergic and enhance appetite.

This is one of the dishes I loved to cook since I started cooking for my family two years ago. It is because the method is so simple and doesn’t require any special cooking skill or experience. You can prepare everything in advance and easily impress everyone with your hot and steamy meat patties on the dining table. It is most suitable for both newbies and people looking for a simple yet nutritious dish. Both my hubby and son enjoyed it very much. They will definitely double their rice portion whenever I cook this dish. It made me feel very happy looking at these two satisfying customers.

The combination of ingredients used in this recipe is just merely a guideline. Feel free to adjust according to your personal preference as mentioned in the notes below.

You can also turn it into a one-dish meal by adding some green peas in the mixture. Another option will be to steam it with some Japanese egg beancurds. Just be creative and you will be surprised to find out just how many new versions you can create from this simple recipe.

This delicious and wholesome dish is highly recommended for toddlers. The selection of colourful ingredients will also make it  more appealing to them, which in turn help to improve their appetite.

This recipe has been featured in Kwong Wah Yit Poh on last Saturday (11 Jul 2009). If you can read Chinese, then go to this e-newspaper for the Chinese version.

Serve: 2-3 persons

Ingredients:
70g minced pork
50g shrimps (net weight) – de-vein and rinse under a running tap water. Pat dry with kitchen towel. Cut into small cubes.
2 pieces water chestnuts – wash, scrub and rinse. Remove skins and soak in the water to avoid discoloration. Use the side of a chopper to slightly pat the water chestnuts, then chop coarsely.
30g carrots – chopped finely
2 pieces dried shitake mushrooms – wash and soak in water. When the mushrooms turn soft, drain and squeeze dry. Chop finely.
2 tbsp chopped spring onions (only use the green parts)

Seasonings:
1½ tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp light soya sauce
½ tsp sugar (optional)
1 tsp cooked oil
Dash of sesame oil, pepper and cornstarch

Methods:

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and seasonings. Use a pair of chopsticks to stir in one direction until well combined.
2. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate for at least half an hour.
3. After chilling, steam under high heat for about 15-20 minutes until cooked.

Notes:

1. You can use fresh mushrooms instead. Just blanch over hot water, drain and squeeze dry.
2. You can use semi-lean pork for better texture. If not, just add some cooked oil to make the mixture tenderer.
3. Shrimps can be substituted by pork.
4. If you are not a pork-eater, you can replace it with chicken.
5. If the mixture is too dry or you prefer to have more gravy, add a little bit of water in step 1.
6. You can use either a stainless steel or ceramic plate for steaming. Make sure the patties only cover 80% of the steaming tray to avoid over-spilling of gravy during the steaming process.
7. Do not over-chop the water chestnuts to maintain its crunchy texture.

Colours don’t just make our food look more appealing but also play a vital role in a healthy diet. Thus, the more colours in our diet, the healthier we will be.

Eating fruits and vegetables of different colours provide important vitamins, minerals, fibre and natural plant compounds known as, phytochemicals, that may help protect us from major diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Dr. David Heber, author of “What Color is Your Diet?” and director of the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition, recommends a diet with fruits and vegetables across the spectrum of color. (Source: CBS News)

You may sometimes have difficulty in getting the right balance but you definitely can’t go wrong if you eat a combination of different coloured fruits and vegetables every day – they can be fresh, frozen, canned or dried. This is the approach I always follow since I started to plan my family’s meals.

Other reading reference: fruit and vegetable benefits

Eggplant (also known as brinjals / aubergine) falls into the purple colour group. Even though purple is my son’s favourite colour, he had not shown much interest in eggplant dishes. Recently I found an eggplant recipe which I used to successfully convince my son to enjoy eggplants, without having to camouflage the eggplants in my cooking. This method gave the cooked eggplants a crunchier texture and more tasty with the coating of a thickened sweet and sauce sauce. I had modified the recipe by adding minced meat, onion and spring onion, thus giving this dish a more enhanced flavour and wholesome value. If your child doesn’t like to eat soggy eggplants, this is another highly recommended recipe you can opt for.

Recipe adapted and modified from The Sugar Bar.

Serve: 2-3

Ingredients:
2-3 Japanese eggplants or 1 local eggplant
60g minced meat
¼ onion (chopped)
Sesame seeds and spring onions for garnishing (optional)

Cooking sauce (mix all the ingredients together):
3 tbsp mirin (Japanese sweet wine)
3 tbsp light soya sauce
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil

Methods:

1. Marinate minced meat with a dash of light soya sauce, sugar and cornflour for at least half an hour.
2. Slice eggplants lengthwise and immediately soak in salted water (about 20 minutes), drain and pat dry with kitchen towel. Set aside.
3. Prepare the cooking sauce.
4. Heat wok with oil. Pan-fry the eggplants until they are lightly brown and cooked but not too soft. Dish up and set aside.
5. Heat wok with oil again. Sauté onion until slightly brown and fragrant. Add in marinated minced meat. Do not stir fry immediately. Let it cook for a while until it is slightly caramelized. Turn it over and break it slightly. Let it cook for a while until caramelized. This will increase the aroma of the minced meat. Reduce the heat to low and start breaking up into small piece. (I learnt the tip here)
6. Return the cooked eggplants into the wok and mix well.
7. Reduce the heat and add in the cooking sauce. If it starts bubbling furiously, lower heat again. Let it simmer until all the cooking sauce is thickened and absorbed into the eggplants.
8. Dish up. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and spring onions. Serve with rice.

Notes:

1. If the eggplants turn soggy before the sauce is properly thickened, dish up the eggplants and minced meat. Leave the remaining sauce in the wok and continue to simmer until it is thickened. Pour the sauce over the dish.
2. Most eggplants can be eaten either with or without their skin. Thus, I personally prefer to retain the skin during cooking because the eggplant skin contains an anthocyanin phytonutrient called nasunin. (note: nasunin is a potent antioxidant and free radical scavenger that helps protect cell membranes from damage). (Source: WHFoods)
3. Soaking eggplants in salted water is to reduce its naturally bitter taste.

In our healthy promoting diet, black bean is an exceptionally great legume with its unique and solid nutritional profile. They are an excellent source of molybdenum, fat-free high quality protein, dietary fiber, flavonoid anti-oxidants (anthocyanins), vitamins (B1) and minerals (folate, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus and iron). It also contains a small amount of omega-3 fatty acids which is about 3 times more than other beans.

A list of health benefits derived from black beans is as follows:
- detoxifying sulfites (note: sulfites are a type of preservative commonly added to prepared foods)
- lowering cholesterol
- good choice for individual with diabetics, insulin resistance or hypoglycemia
- preventing constipation and digestive disorders.
- rich in antioxidants
- acts as a protection against cancer
- stabilizing blood sugar levels
- increasing your energy
(Source: WHFoods)

Now, the question is how to incorporate black beans in your meal plan? If you do a search online, you may find a variety of cooking methods for black beans. But today, I share with you a very simple and easy black beans soup which I used to drink as a child.

The recipe is adapted and modified from here.

Ingredients:
150g black beans
300g pork ribs
15 nos red dates (removed seeds)
2 slices of ginger
1200 ml water

Methods:
1) Put black beans in a frying pan and dry fry over a medium-low heat until the beans’ coat starts to crack slightly. Dish up and rinse. (Note: this method is to remove the smoky smell from the beans.)
2) Blanch pork ribs over boiling water. Rinse, drain and set aside.
3) Bring water to a boil and add in all ingredients.When the water re-boils, reduce the heat and simmer for another 2 hours.
4) After 2 hours, turn off the heat and serve.

My Legume Love Affair is created by Susan of the Well Seasoned Cook. This phenomenal event draws a large volume of entries each month. This month, MMLA 10th helping is hosted by Courtney of Coco Cooks. You can participate by submitting an entry which must be either a starter or dessert before 30 April 2009. Click here for the host line-up.

Two year ago, when I was just starting to cook for my family, a friend of mine made a strong recommendation that I visit Rasa Malaysia’s food blog for its recipes and cooking ideas. When I browsed thru her blog, I was very amazed by her stunning shots and high level of professionalism in food presentation, not to mention her cooking and baking skills. Since then, I had been following her blog closely and even referred it as my “online cookbook”.

Today, I like to thank Bee of Rasa Malaysia for featuring me as her guest writer. I had chosen sui kow (水饺) as my featured recipe because she loves dumplings. Co-incidentally, it is also my childhood favourite. I had never got bored eating it even until now. Hopefully by sharing my hubby’s “self-proclaimed” authentic sui kow recipe, you will love sui kow as much as we do. You can find my write-up and more photos of sui kow at Rasa Malaysia’s blog now. So hop over and see you there!

For my sui kow (水饺) recipe, please click on this LINK.