Savory Tomato and Beetroot Cobbler with Turmeric Curry Leaf Biscuit Topping

Discovery consists of looking at the same thing as everyone else and thinking something different.

~ Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

Our party host Penny of Jeroxie blog had us all 'cobblered' this month and believe me when I say this... it is a rare occasion that I will post something savory up on this blog, least of all a cobbler. When you hear the word 'cobbler', images of the freshest seasonal fruits dotted all over or buried underneath something sweet tend to flash across the mind. Correction, make that my mind.

International Incident Party - Asparagus Fortress Terrine

I may have been waiting my whole life to make a terrine like this. As a matter of fact, I made it the day after Penny (Jeroxie.com) announced the International Incident Party theme for this month, which is Terrine. I had never really understood the hype surrounding this layered dish but couldn't wait any longer to create it and see for myself. It was a very long time ago that I ate my last terrine...was it in France? I am so ancient now, and I really can't remember.

So anyway, I dreamt about my terrine. That was how much it wouldn't leave me alone the first night. When I woke up, I immediately scribbled everything down on a scrap piece of paper. I wanted to hold on to the details and somehow turn it into something tangible, edible even, for this party. Luckily, it wasn't a convoluted series of images I ended up with because that's the way dreams oftentimes occur. Otherwise, my terrine would look some kind of bizarre....although, now that I think about it, my bizarre may be different from yours :-).

French Fridays With Dorie - Mozarella,Tomato and Dragonfruit Salad

To make a good salad is to be a brilliant diplomatist -- the problem is entirely the same in both cases. To know exactly how much oil one must put with one's vinegar.

~ Oscar Wilde

I was so looking forward to this week's French Fridays with Dorie's recipe. That was, until I went looking for the ingredients and realised there was absolutely no fresh strawberries on the shelves anywhere. It was a repeat of the roasted rhubarb episode of last week... the MIA ingredient this time being strawberries due to it being out-of-season over here :-(.

No matter, I got the tomatoes, I got the mozarella and I even managed to get the fresh basil. All that was left was a suitable substitute for strawberries. Now if you were lucky enough to procure strawberries where you're at, then I was equally lucky to be able to get my hands on dragonfruit, of the red-fleshed variety, at that. As an aside, dragonfruit is also sold widely in France mainly due to the influence of the large Asian communities (especially Vietnamese) residing in its cities. So I guess my version of Dorie's summer salad is not totally out of the context of her cookbook, Around My French Table (well, not when you consider that Cola and Jam Spare Ribs have made it in there too!).

Pull-Apart Tomato Bread with Feta, Garlic and Herb Filling

Our Brunei Armed Forces turns 50 years old today. It is older than our independent country, which is only 27. Yes, we are a young country... I was born when we were not yet completely autonomous and free. To celebrate the military's Golden Anniversary as well as honor the selfless men and women who have served to protect and maintain peace for this country, I'm going to bake something special today.

Pull-apart bread...I've been seeing a lot of them around lately - being written about, baked and I presume, eaten. What's going on? Is there a secret that bakers are revelling in which I'm totally clueless about? Those breads that I've seen via my computer screen sure do look good. My blogger friends, Nancy (Spicie Foodie), Gina (SPCookieQueen) and Lora (Cake Duchess) have all recently made their own versions of pull-apart bread. And then there were also several others' take on it that I dare to imagine this style of bread becoming the newest rage in baking. Step aside, macaron. Go on..scoot over, cake-pop. Your time is up. Pull-apart bread's here and it's going to rip our world! Pun intended, of course.

Eggs On a Cloud

My second International Incident Party - the theme this month is *Eggs* and the party's co-hosted by Penny of  Jeroxie and and Trix of Tasty Trix. Wonderful, the culinary intepretation of this theme is greater than our outer galaxy (custards, souffles, cheesecake, French toast, creme brulee, bla, bla, etc), so how do I go about this? Thanks Penny, the egg theme has really made me think... hard.

Okay, so this is it. I decided to depict the humble egg in as narrow an intepretation as I could muster - it still looked very much like an egg. Have you ever tried the breakfast dish, Eggs On A Cloud? Not the French version of oeufs à la neige (snow eggs or floating islands on crème anglaise), no, that's way too hard/early for breakfast. Mine is an easy, breakfast eggs-on-toast version and it looks... interesting.  And more than a little pretty. I mean, can you just imagine cutting through a runny, half-baked egg yolk sitting amidst an airy, cloud of egg-white? Mmmmm.... I definitely can.

Eggs on a Cloud with Tomato-Pear Stack topped with Buttered Mashed Potatoes

I started with the bread, and reckoned that since the egg was going to be light, the base has got to be quite sturdy and filling. Multigrain wholemeal bread seemed to fit the bill, so I went ahead and baked a lovely loaf. What can I say? I had time to kill.

I lurrrve my bread fresh!

Tomatoes usually feature in this type of breakfast dish, so I sliced some, coated them in white rice crumbs (gluten-and-everything-free; it's my recent great find!) and toasted them under a grill. There was this pretty Forelle pear sitting forlornly in the fridge and so like a fairy Godmother-wannabe, I decided it should join the Eggs party. Skin on, cored and sliced, I stacked the pear up alternately with the tomatoes and topped it all with some (very runny) mashed potato. Not even an oil drop in sight, and if that's not a healthy breakfast, I don't know what is.

If you're wondering what Eggs on a Cloud tastes like, well, it tastes very much like egg. LOL, well what did you expect? Saying that, texturally the airy egg cloud feels much like cotton candy does in your mouth! That's the best description I can think of. Thanks again to Penny and Trix for being the perfect hosts of this eggstraordinary party. Now go and check out what the other participants did with their eggs (scroll right down to the bottom for the links).

Tomato slices encrusted with white rice crumbs

Tomato-Pear Stack

 

Before and after

Eggs On a Cloud

Serves: 4
Ingredients:
Eggs
4 slices bread
4 large eggs, separated
salt and pepper, to taste

Stack:
4 tomatoes, sliced thickly
2 large pears, cored and sliced across
2 large potatoes, sliced, boiled and drained
2 tablespoons butter

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F.

2. Prepare the stack first. Dip the cut sides of the tomatoes in white rice crumbs and toast under a hot grill for about 10 minutes until the crumbs turn golden. Remove from the oven and stack the pears in between the crusted tomatoes.

3. Blend the hot, boiled potatoes with the butter and spoon on top of the stack. If it is still hot, it will be runny. Cool slightly if you want it to stay on top of the stack.

4. Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites in a mixing bowl until fluffy and stiff peaks have formed. Spoon egg whites and shape into pretty "clouds" on each slice of bread, forming a dent in the center. Slide an egg yolk into the center of each egg white well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to season or if you want, some grated Parmesan or chilli powder for a bit of spiciness!

5. Place bread and egg slices on a baking tray and bake for 10-15 minutes until the egg whites are lightly golden and egg yolks are just set. Remove tray from oven and using a large, sturdy spatula, plate Eggs on a Cloud immediately. Serve warm with the tomato-pear-potato stacks.

Indonesia Eats Cook-Up: Dadar Jagung (Corn Fritters)

In my household, fritters reign supreme. No one would think twice about eating something that's been coated in batter and fried up to puffy perfection, be it bananas, shrimp, potatoes, chicken, even ice-cream! Oh, I know it's not enormously healthy, all that deep fried stuff. But if drained properly of excess oil and eaten in moderation, homemade fritters containing all the goodness of fresh, raw produce and herbs are healthier than say, repeatedly undergoing colonic irrigation while 'detoxing' at a rather expensive yoga retreat. Figuratively speaking, of course.

This post is therefore my ode to fritters - corn fritters, to be exact. Ever since Pepy of  The Art and Science of Food gifted us with her recent Indonesian Corn Fritters or Dadar Jagung post, my hands have been itching to replicate these tasty little babies. And my mind has been dreaming constantly of eating them, while my stomach has been waiting forever for them to arrive. Yes, I was that obsessed.

Good thing that Pepy is organising an Indonesian Eats Cook-Up Contest throughout the whole month of September, when she invites her readers to use any of the recipes featured on her blog from January 2009 to August 2010. Not that I needed much encouragement, of course, to make any one of her wonderfully authentic Indonesian dishes. But it was the Corn Fritters that kept whispering my name.

Before I go on further, let me clarify that I actually do not qualify to be in the running to win the prize for this Cook-Up. Not because Pepy dislikes my propensity to gatecrash, but simply because I do not reside in the US or Canada (something to do with shipping restrictions or the like). I'd really wanted to make those corn fritters, though...*wistful*... so I asked Pepy if I could send in my post for her round-up anyway, and she kindly said yes!

So here it is, my representation of Indonesian Corn Fritters. Although, they might not be strictly accurate replicas of Pepy's fritters since I've adapted the recipe slightly to suit the ingredients I currently have available. In addition, I've made a snazzy, sweet-sour-spicy tomato dip to go with the fritters. Hey, I'm allowed a bit of creative freedom as I'm not going for the prize anyway, right?

All these fresh produce, for under US$3 :-)

Some beautiful red and purple chillies I'd nicked from my friend's garden. They were irresistable!

Yeay, I get to play with my corn cutter gadget thingy. So much fun.

 

Spicy Tomato Dip sprinkled with those mysterious purple chillies

 

  

Dadar Jagung/ 'Indonesian' Corn Fritters with Spicy Tomato Dip

Ingredients:
4 fresh sweet corns, shaved off the cob with a knife
1 eggplant, diced
1/2 cup dried shrimps (can use fresh shrimps)
2 shallots, sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1/4 cup basil leaves, chopped
1/4 cup coriander leaves, chopped
1 1/2 cup self-raising flour
1 cup water
1 egg, lightly beaten
sea salt and pepper, to taste
oil, for frying

Spicy Tomato Dip
4 medium tomatoes, steamed until the skin splits
1 tablespoon chilli paste (or use about 3 fresh chillies, sliced)
2 shallots, sliced
3 cloves garlic, sliced
Juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon honey
sea salt and pepper, to taste

Method:

1. Soak the dried shrimps in water for a few minutes, drain, then pound with a pestle and mortar to grind them (or just chop them finely). If using fresh shrimps, just clean, de-shell and slice into smaller pieces.

2. Place the sweetcorn, eggplant, shrimps, shallots, garlic, basil and coriander in a large bowl. Add flour, water and egg slowly, stir gently until batter becomes smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Heat oil in a frying pan and drop a tablespoonful of batter into the hot oil and fry on medium high heat for a few minutes on both sides. When the fritters turn golden brown, scoop them up with a spatula and place on paper towels on a plate to drain excess oil. Serve together with the spicy tomato dip while still warm.

4. To make the dip, peel the skin off the steamed tomatoes and slice them. Place tomatoes, chillies (or paste), shallots, garlic, lime juice, and honey in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

Diet-Buster Chocolate Oats Bar

If you're on a diet, or under the illusion that you are (what the heck are you doing here then?), then look away. Click on one of my other healthier posts, because this one is going to ruin your regimented eating, or you - whichever comes first.

However, if you're a balanced eater, or an A-list superstar with a personal trainer as lenient as Jillian Michaels, then stay. Enjoy the pictures, at least, even if you don't ever get to make (or eat) these decadent bars. Now, let me warn you that aside from the oats and um, tomatoes, every ingredient in this recipe spells D-A-N-G-E-R. That reads as "happiness", by the way. *grins*

OMG-icious!

Wouldn't you be happy if you had peanut butter, chocolate, condensed milk and yes, healthy oats pass through your lips in one go? Don't rub your nose when you answer, because I'd be happy. Of course, I'd only have one slice of these bars, or perhaps two, then I'd be running my ass off on the treadmill/roads before I lose myself completely. And then I'd have a slice more. LOL. Come on, you only live once!

 

Diet-Buster Chocolate Oats Bar

Yields: 3kgs or 10lbs on the hips

Ingredients:

½ cup butter

2 cups graham cracker biscuits or Digestives, crumbed

2 cups organic rolled oats

1 can (400g) sweetened condensed milk

1 cup chopped chocolate
¾ cup peanut butter

1/3 cup dried, candied tomatoes, chopped

Sea salt, to sprinkle

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F.

2. Place the biscuits in a food processor to crumb them, then put in a bowl. Melt butter in the microwave and add to the biscuit crumbs. Mix with a spoon until combined.

3. Sprinkle biscuit crumbs into the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch pan and pat down firmly with the back of a spoon to create an even surface.

4. Add oats on top of the biscuit layer, and pat down evenly as well.

5. Pour condensed milk carefully over the oats layer, and by tilting the pan gently towards the four corners of the pan, you will be able to spread the condensed milk fairly evenly.

6. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes until golden brown.

7. Before you take out the baking tin, melt the chocolate and peanut butter in a pan over low heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Pour this mixture over the hot base, and tilt pan as before to ensure complete coverage by the chocolate. Sprinkle chopped dried fruits (I used candied tomatoes) and a pinch of sea salt on the chocolate layer.

8. Cool completely before chilling in the fridge for easy slicing.

9. Consume with a tall, cold glass of milk, and at your own peril!

Tomato Muffins... Are You Kidding?

Someone somewhere was saying that tomatoes are now in season. I hadn't realised they are seasonal in some regions because here, I see them all year round at the market! Well, you live and learn.

Tomatoes have always been to me a savoury ingredient, however at the same time, I was fascinated by its many uses including, quite rarely, in a dessert. I decided to tweak my existing muffin recipe to make sweet tomato muffins. I omitted the egg and butter and replaced those with silken tofu, raspberries and banana, which worked just as well to hold the batter together. Sitting surrepticiously on the shelves, I discovered these delightful dried, candied tomatoes and threw them in the mix for a bit of flavour and excitement. No discernable taste of tomato in there yet, but hey, there's always the frosting. Yes, tomato paste mixed into the buttercream - the sweet-savoury flavour totally worked!

Walnuts, silken tofu, sea salt, candied tomatoes

Of course, when you're serving these, refrain from telling your guests about the secret ingredient (tomato). Listen to them oohing and aahing about the muffins first and when they've finished the whole lot, drop the bombshell. I always enjoy watching people's reactions (surprised, disgusted, appalled, never happy they ate tomatoes as a dessert!). It just shows me how brainwashed we are sometimes about where food should and should not belong - also, it's great party entertainment. *grins*

Candied Tomato Muffins with Tomato Frosting
Makes: 30 standard-sized muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup (250g) silken tofu
1/3 cup Maple Syrup or Golden Syrup
¼ cup corn/vegetable oil
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 small, ripe banana
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
2 cups plain flour
¼ cup wholewheat flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup candied tomatoes, chopped
1/3 cup roasted walnuts, chopped

Tomato Frosting:
2 ¼ cups icing sugar, sifted
½ cup butter, softened
1 tablespoon tomato paste

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line muffin cups with muffin paper.

2. Mix the flours, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder and sea salt in a bowl and set aside.

3. In a blender or food processor, pulse together the tofu, syrup, oil, vanilla, banana and raspberries until smooth.

4. Pour tofu mixture into the flour mixture and gently until combined. Gently fold in the tomatoes and walnuts. Fill each muffin cup with about 2/3 full with batter.

5. Bake for 15-20 minutes until a skewer inserted into the muffin comes out clean.

6. When completely cool, pipe tomato frosting on the cupcakes.

Tomato Frosting:
1. Beat the butter until creamy. Add the icing sugar gradually, beating first at low speed and then fast once all the sugar has been added, Beat frosting until stiff.
2. Add the tomato paste and beat until smooth and creamy. It is now ready to pipe.

Crusty Avocado Treasure Balls

I cook exactly the same way I work – literally, by throwing my whole being into the task at hand. Nothing is too difficult or complicated or even impossible if you break it down into small steps. Oh, having a strategy, being well-informed and organised helps too, as does good delegation. Well, perhaps there is one difference in that when cooking, I NEVER delegate. I am the female Gordon Ramsay of my own kitchen, trusting only my own tastebuds, my own heart and no-one else’s. Having other people around when I'm cooking just makes me agitated – never a good thing when one is yielding a sharp knife! *grrrrrrh* *grins*

Anyway, I’ve been meaning to write about this dish for ages but haven’t yet been able to find any decent avocadoes in the market. Either they’re rock-hard or mushy-like - why do people sell these sub-standard produce? - and nothing much can be done with them except play hand-ball (with the hard ones) or make guacamole/facemask (mushy ones). But today, today I found perfect ones for my Treasures recipe! Well, almost perfect because they’re a tad on the small side. Still, good enough to throw my whole being into making this eye-candy of a dish.

Why the impossible title? Well, I had wanted it to be longer to include the description of the filling, but my sensible side stopped me from embarrassing myself (further). Here’s the title reasoning:

Crusty - The de-skinned avocadoes were coated in white rice crumbs (breadcrumbs will also do).

Avocado – Well, it’s the main player in this show, of course!

Treasure – Describes the filling, made up of tabbouleh – bulgur wheat, tomatoes, olives, shallots, pesto. Fresh coriander and mint would have made it more authentic and brilliant, but I had neither, so there.
Balls – The split avocado was put back together into a ‘ball’ shape before being encrusted.

At centrestage: Avocado, tomato, lemon, white rice crumbs, black olives, bulgur wheat, basil pesto, shallots

              Cooked bulgur wheat

 

 The Bald and the Crustyful.

Okayyyy…. Let’s move on from this nonsense and get on with the recipe.

Crusty Avocado Treasure Balls

Ingredients:

8 small or 4 large avocadoes

White rice crumb or breadcrumbs, enough for coating avocadoes

1 egg, lightly beaten

For the filling:

125g bulgur wheat

600ml water

10 black olives, chopped

1 large tomato, diced

2 shallots, finely diced

1 tablespoon pesto sauce

½ lemon, squeeze for juice

Method:

1. For tabbouleh filling, add bulgur wheat to water and bring to the boil. Let it simmer for 15 minutes until most of the water is absorbed. Drain and set aside.

2. In a large bowl combine chopped olives, tomato, shallots and pesto sauce. Add the cooked bulgur wheat to the bowl and then add lemon juice. Mix tabbouleh gently, season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Prepare the avocado ‘shells’. Slice each fruit into two and carefully peel the skin by hand, remove seeds. Scoop out a portion of the core of each avocado half, still leaving a thick layer to hold in the filling. Add the scooped-out avocado to the tabbouleh.

4. Spoon the filling into each shell and after that’s done, press the two halves together to form what looks like a ‘whole’ avocado.

5. Carefully dip the avocado in the beaten egg and then roll it in the crumbs.

6. Place avocado in a broiler for about 3-5 minutes to just brown the crumbs. Roll over once and do not let the avocado cook or split! Serve immediately.

Even if you’d stopped at Step No. 4, this dish would still be the “Wow, Homaygad!” talk of the table. Eat it as an appetizer, mains or just to curb that hunger whenever it hits. I have a big smile every time I make this (not very often) because I know the effort, no, the LOVE, is just so worth it!

Just some post Posting notes:

White rice crumbs are my new discovery. They look like dessicated coconut except they have a rather neutral taste. Wonderfully crispy, I didn't even wait till they were properly browned before chowing these down! Can't find these? Just use regular breadcrumbs or even toasted nuts, chopped very finely. If your imagination is as wild and uncontrollable as mine, the possibilities for the coating and the filling are endless! 

Tabbouleh is just the best combination with avocado. Just in case, in case you didn't know, this is a Middle-Eastern salad - more about it on Wiki. Okay, I'll stop insulting your intelligence now.