Sunday 25 April 2010

Blanquette of Lamb in French traditional Style - Blanquette d'agneau à L'ancienne


Blanquette of lamb in French traditional Style
Ingredients for 4 servings 



  • 500g lamb
  • 4 cups vegetable stock
  • half onion
  • 1 carrot
  • 20~40 pearl onions
  • 300g button mushroom
  • 2 bouquet garni containing few pieces of leeks and bay leaves, and few stalk of celery and thyme
  • few cloves
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 3 tablespoon crème fraiche
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 egg yolk
  • salts for seasoning
  • Kitchen string
Preparation


  • Rinse the lamb and cut into chunks
  • Peel the carrot and cut into chunks
  • Sprinkle the lemon juice over the mushrooms and set aside
  • Stud the cloves into the onion and prepare bouquet garni
  • Place the lamb in a stew pot and cover with cold water, simmer for 15 mins, Pour the water and lamb into a strainer and rinse off the scums.
  • Return the lamb into a cleaned stew pot, pour in vegetable stock and cook in medium heat, skim all the remaining scums. Once all the scums are removed and form a clear soup, add carrots, onions and 1 bouquet garni. Cover the pot and simmer for 1~1.5 hours.
  • While the lamb is cooking, peel and remove the roots of the pearl onions. In another small pot, place onions with 1 tablespoon butter, 1 bouquet garni and ¼ cup of the stock from the cooking lamb. Cover the pot and simmer for half hour.
  • After the lamb become tender, remove the bouquet garni and onion, and pour the stock into a bowl.
  • Melt the butter in a frying pan and whisk in the flour. Turn off the heat and pour in the lamb stock and the remaining stock from pearl onions. Return to heat and whisk frequently to avoid the lumps.
  • Bring the stock to boil, add mushroom and simmer for 10 minutes, seasoning if desired.
  • Pour the mushrooms and stock into the lamb, add 1 tablespoon crème fraiche and mix well. Hmm... the Veal Blanquette is nearly done.
  • Before serving- In a small bowl, whisk the egg york with 2 tablespoons crème fraiche and ¼ lamb stock, then pour the mixture back into the pot. Reheat the Blanquette of Lamb in medium heat but do not bring to boil. Serve with pearl onions, white rice, noodles or potatoes and sprinkle with parsley. Oh! My "Blanquette d'agneau à L'ancienne" is done! Bon Appetit!!


Nouvelle Vague - Dance with me
Ingredient checklist: lamb, vegetable stock, onion, carrot, pearl onions, mushrooms, herbs, cloves, butter, flour, Crème fraiche, lemon juice, egg yolk 
Utensils checklist: kitchen string, a whisk, a stew pot, a small soup pot, a frying pan

Stud the cloves into the onion and prepare bouquet garni

Remove all the scums

When it become a clear soup, then place the vegetables into the stock.... Sorry, my Emile Henry is too small

Cook the pearl onions in another soup pot

Then prepare the mushroom

Before serving, prepare the egg yolk sauce

Mini Tips:
Bouquet Garni is very common in French cuisine, usually found in making soup, stock and stews. During cooking the herbs will not fall off into the soup, and it will be removed after the cooking is complete. Apart from using string, the herbs can be enclosed by cheesecloth or teabags. There is no fixed recipe for the selection of herbs, the following Bouquet Garni is one of the common combinations.

First, remove the parsley leaves and cut the leek into small pieces. Place the parsley stems and thyme in the middle, then warp with the bay leaves and leek. And use a string to tie them together.

My dear Ingrid, many thanks for the German Name!

Sunday 11 April 2010

Easter Bunnies Butter Cookies 復活節兔子牛油曲奇餅

Osterhasen Buttergebäck - Rezept auf Deutsch
復活節兔子牛油曲奇餅 - 中文食譜

Easter Bunnies Butter Cookies
Ingredients for ~ 40 cookies
  • 280g all purpose flour
  • 175g unsalted butter
  • 130g caster sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • Decoration: pink and brown colour chocolate pens

Preparation
  • Dice the butter into small cubes, set in room temperature until soft.
  • In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until the mixture appears like breadcrumbs. Follow by sugar and egg yolk until the mixture start  to form a dough.
  • Put the dough on to a floured surface and knead until smooth and the crumbs go away. Shape into a ball, Wrap the dough in cling film and chill for half hour.
  • Preheat the oven to 180°C (Gas 4). Line two baking papers on the baking tray.
  • Take the firmed dough out from the fridge and roll into 5mm thick, use a cookie cutter to shape your favorite cookies and line on the baking tray. Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes until pale golden.
  • Transfer the freshly baked cookies to a wire rack and leave cool. Melt the chocolate pens in boiling water. Now is the time to create and decorate your favorite cookies : )

Stereolab - Miss Modular

Ingredients checklist: Flour, butter, sugar, egg yolk, chocolate pens
Utensils checklist: Scale, a large bowl, egg whisk, rolling pin, cookie cutter, spatula, wire rack, baking sheets and tray

Beat the flour and sugar into breadcrumb texture

After adding sugar and egg yolk it start forming into a dough

Knead the dough till smooth and no crumbs, then chill in the fridge

Roll the dough into a flat piece, and shape by a cookie cutter

Use a spatula to take out the cookies gently

Leave some spaces in between the cookies

Woo!!! Start drawing my cookies!!!

Mini Tips:

  • If you don't have a rolling pin and cookie cutter, use your hands to shape a tiny piece of dough, or use a knife to cut into different shapes.
  • If you think colouring the cookies is too trouble, try decorate the cookies with chocolate beans.
  • No electric egg whisk? No problem. I also used to whisk by hand, the result was no difference at all.

Monday 5 April 2010

Happy Easter

Frohe Ostern
復活節快樂

Herbal Tea Cookies - Camomile, Lavender and Limeflower

Kräutertee Plätzchen - Kamille, Lavendel und Lindenblüte - Rezept auf Deutsch
香薰花茶曲奇餅 - 洋甘菊,薰衣草,青檸花 - 中文食譜


Herbal Tea Cookies - Camomile, Lavender and Limeflower
Ingredients for 25 cookies
  • 75g unsalted butter
  • 58g light muscovado (brown) sugar
  • 100g all purpose flour
  • ½ egg, beaten
  • 1~2 tablespoon organic Camomile, Lavender and Lime-flower herbal tea mix
Preparation
  • Dice the butter into small cubes, set in room temperature until soft.
  • In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Stir in the tea leaves until well combined. Beat in the egg, then carefully fold in the flour until the mixture form a dough.
  • Sprinkle flour on a table, , roll the dough into a long cylinder. Gently press down the top of the dough to flatten slightly. Wrap the dough in cling film and chill for 1 hour.
  • Preheat the oven to 190°C (Gas 5). Line two baking papers on the baking tray.
  • Take the firmed dough out from the fridge, cut into 5mm slices and place slightly apart on the baking sheets. Then bake for 10~15min until lightly browned. 
  • Transfer the freshly baked cookies to a wire rack to leave cool. This is the best time to make a fresh coffee and serve with the cookies.

Koop & Yukimi Nagano - Summer Sun

Beat the sugar and butter until fluffy

Add tea leaves, egg and flour one after one

Chill the shaped dough in the fridge until firm

Slice the dough into small pieces, and put into the oven

Hmm... freshly baked cookies cooling on the rack, can't wait...







Mini Tips:

This time I selected a herbal tea mix of organic Camomile, Lavender and Lime-flower. Actually you could use other exotic tea leaves. Try Lady Grey or Earl Grey flavored teas.  Or scented teas such as bergamot, jasmine, rose congou and chrysanthemum. Fruit teas like passion fruit and strawberry. You may even use Chinese pouchong for a total different flavor.

Friday 2 April 2010

Liquid Conversions

Flüssigkeit Konvertierungen auf Deutsch
中文液體換算表


Liquid Conversions

Metric Imperial US
50ml 2oz ¼ cup
125ml 4oz ½ cup
175ml 6oz ¾ cup
225ml 8oz 1 cup
300ml_____ 10oz/½ pint 1¼cups
450ml 16oz 2cups / 1pint
600ml 20oz / 1pint 2½ cups
1liter 35oz /1¾pints_____  1quart