Fillet of Salmon with Vegies

Pumpk'n is finally taken to liking her fish! I bought some wild salmon for her recently. I made this recipe with a slight adaptation from Annabel Karmel's version. She has a very hearty appetite now and I have to keep up with feeding her very quickly!

Salmon with Vegies
1 medium sweet potato, diced
1/2 cup broccoli florets
2 tbsp homemade tomato sauce
1/3 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
120g fillet of salmon (boned and skinned)

Method:
1. In hot boiling water, steam the salmon with orange juice and broccoli for 5 minutes.
2. In another pot, boil the sweet potatoes with 1/3 cup water, on low heat. Cook till softened.
3. Assemble the salmon, broccoli and sweet potatoes together, blend till smooth.
4. Add tomato sauce into the mixture and let it cool before serving.
5. Store the rest in freezer for future use.

First time Osso Bucco!

I was at the meat wholesaler last week when I came across some nice frozen lamb shanks (yes, in Singapore, frozen is as fresh as you can get for lamb!). I've always wanted to attempt making Osso Bucco so I thought 1kg of these shanks would do perfectly!


The pot of lamb stew was simmered for nearly 3 hours, till every piece of morsel was falling off the bone. Next time I'll keep it to 2 hours instead. Here's my version of Osso Bucco, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as we did!

Steffle's Osso Bucco
(serves 5-6 persons)

1kg of lamb shanks or 5-6 pieces
1 leek, sliced thinly
2 whole carrots, diced
6 celery stalks, diced
8 garlic cloves, smashed whole
1 red onion, chopped
1.5 cans stewed tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup red wine

Herb Rub:
Fresh Rosemary & Thyme
Zest of 1 Orange
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper

Method:
1. Marinate the lamb shanks first with the herb rub. Cut thick slits into the shank. Then mix all the marinate together and smear them generously on the shanks. Stuff the herbs into the slits. Leave for at least 4 hours in the fridge or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 150C.
3. In a hot pan with oil, sear the shanks. Remove and let it rest. Glaze the pan with some red wine, keep the juice aside.
4. In a hot casserole or dutch oven, heat up some oil.
5. Add the onions, leeks and garlic and fry till all has browned and softened.\
6. Add diced carrots, celery and tomatoes. Fry for at least 5 minutes.
7. Add shanks on top and pour in glazed juice, remaining portion of red wine and the stock. Add more rosemary/thyme and freshly cracked pepper to taste.
8. When casserole comes to boil, cover and move it to a pre-heated oven. Let it simmer for at least 2 hours.
9. Serve with crusty bread and salad.

Baby food gets exciting!

I started Pumpk'n on fish last week and recently chicken, when she turned 6 months old.

Her expressions when she ate her first fish and chicken were priceless. But my little tot definitely had her mummy's gastronomic genes. And mummy enjoyed making her these delicious meals, slowly and deliberately. Best satisfaction is when she emptied her bowl clean!

Pumpk'n 1st Organic Fish Puree

A tasty white fish fillet (we used "Kurau"/Threadfin), skinned and boneless
Carrots, cubed
Pumpkin, cubed
Tomato puree
Grated cheese

Method:
1. Prepare the tomato puree. Make a cross under each tomato. Blanched it in hot boiling water for 3 mins until skin starts to peel. Peel skin off, cut it into half and remove seeds. Puree it to a smooth consistency resembling tomato sauce.

2. Steam the carrots and pumpkins till soft.

3. Steam the fish for 5 mins. When done, topped it with grated cheese allowing it to melt on the fish.

4. Blend the fish, cheese, carrots and pumpkin till smooth. Add tomato puree, mix thoroughly. Serve it warm.

Jester's Angel Hair

You know the warm fuzzy feeling you get when your friend smsed you excitedly to say that he would like to cook you a delicious dish he ate recently? And that was exactly what he did and he gave me permission to blog about his version of cold Angel Hair Pasta with truffle oil and sauteed asparagus tips and caviar, a take on a dish he ate at Gunther's a few weeks ago.

Jester, as he would like to be known bought fresh angel hair pasta, asparagus, chives, caviar and truffle oil to my place a few days ago and started assembling his dish.

First, he sauteed the asparagus tips in butter. Set aside.

Then, he cooked the pasta in boiling water till al dente.

Afterwards, he proceed to mix the asparagus into the pasta and drizzled it with generous amount of truffle oil. Then the pasta goes into the fridge to be chilled as this dish is best had cold.

Just before serving, he topped it chives and a dollop of caviar.

The taste was sublime. The burst of sea in every bite accompanied by a heady truffle aroma. The asparagus tips added crunch and texture. It was simple yet textured, marrying the sense of smell and taste perfectly.


When a dish is cooked with love and enthusiasm, you only have full praise for it. This is definitely a recipe I would remember for life. For his effort, I made him his favorite hot lava chocolate cake to complete an evening of friendship and food.