berry irresistible

Vous-aimez les baies? alors ceci est absolument irrésistible.
I've seen a lot of great dessert ideas consisting strawberries in it and I don't know which one to choose because they all look good. I followed Cocoa and Cheese's recipe and make a little bit of change with the recipe.

Creamy Berry




Makes 5

a box of blackberry
a box of strawberry
1 250ml liquid whipping cream
3 tsp Kahlua (optional)
philly cream cheese (brick cream cheese and chopped it into medium cubes)
sugar

Beat cream cheese with electric mixer in medium speed and when it's fluffy, add whipping cream, kahlua and sugar.
Place the berries in a glass/bowl and topped it with cream.

I made this 3 hours before serving and keep it in the fridge and the cream melts a little. I suggest to make it an hour before serving.

grilled coconut chicken

This is a must try!

Grilled Coconut Chicken




Serves 4

1 1/2 cups coconut milk
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 small red chilies, seeded and finely chopped
1 tsp grated ginger
1/2 cup fresh cilantro/coriander leaves
juice of 1 lime
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp grated palm sugar or brown sugar
4 chicken breast fillets, with skin
1 tbsp vegetable oil

1. In a food processor or blender, combine coconut cream, garlic, chili, ginger, cilantro, lime juice, soy sauce, fish sauce and sugar. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds,to make marinade.
2.Place chicken fillets onto a cutting board and make 3 slits in skit side of each fillet using a sharp knife. Place chicken into a shallow nonmetallic dish. Pour marinade ingredients over chicken and cover dish with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 2 hours. Drain chicken, reserving marinade.
3.Preheat a grill pan or barbecue, then brush grill lightly with oil. Grill chicken until tender, 4-5 minutes each side. Test chicken by piercing the thickest part with a skewer; chicken is cooked if juices run clear. Remove from grill.
4. Heat the reserved marinade in a skillet and pour it on top of each chicken.
5. Serve with spicy mashed sweet potato and green beans.

Adapted from the complete book of hot & spicy asian cooking by Vicki Liley

sweet and spicy

This probably is a good side dish for steak or anything with meat, just like mashed potato. I bought one huge sweet potato, and it was suppose to be make for some Indonesian dessert that consisting sweet potato but I used it for a change to mashed potato.

Spicy Mashed Sweet Potato



Peeled sweet potato -- freshly baked from the oven.


Makes 2

1 bird's eye chili, sliced
1 garlic, chopped
1 sweet potato
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
pepper

1. Heat the oven to 400°F. Use baking dish and bake unpeeled sweet potato for 1 hour. If for 1 hour the sweet potato is still not soft, bake for another 15-20 minutes.
2. Using a heatproof bowl, pour olive oil and mix with garlic and chili. Heat it up to 5-7 minutes using a conventional oven until the garlic is roasted.
3. Let the sweet potato cool down for a little while before you peel it. Then, mashed it and pour the garlic oil and mix.
4. Put some black pepper on top of the mashed sweet potato and serve.

Adapted from the complete book of hot & spicy asian cooking by Vicki Liley

easter brownie

Instead of having chocolate eggs/bars/bunny for Easter, I will have chocolate brownies. I have been pretty indecisive today, whether should I make cupcakes or brownies. I chose brownies because this is going to be the first time I make it, and it's good for a change from cupcakes! My brownies turn out to be more chocolatey than taste like a strong Kahlua, but I recommend to use less sugar if you like to put more Kahlua because Kahlua itself is sweet enough to make you go hyper! It's not too late to make this for Easter, it only takes 1 hour to prepare and bake and it's totally worth it.
Happy Easter everyone :)

Kahlua Chocolate Brownies


Makes 15

2 sticks (250ml) unsalted butter
1 cup confectioner's sugar
3/4 cup + 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Kahlua (optional or if you like to have a stronger taste of Kahlua, can add it up to 1/2 cup)

1.Preheat oven to 325°F. Line the 9x13 inch baking pan with foil.
2.Using a double boiler, bring water to boil. Melt the butter, and lower the heat to medium.
3.When the butter melts, add sugar and salt. Mix until well blended and add the cocoa powder and Kahlua, mix and let it cool for 5-10 minutes.
4.Stir in vanilla extract and add eggs one at a time. When it's all well blended, add flour. Mix the batter until it's thick. If the batter is a little watery, add another 1-2 tbsp of flour.
5.Pour the batter to baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Lift up the foil from the pan and transfer to cooling rack. When it's cooled down, cut into 15 squares.