From the category archives:

cookbook challenge

Roasted coconut mixed nuts

by jeroxie February 1, 2010

I had no idea what this week’s challenge meant. Mixed as in fusion? The only thing that I was adamant was on the cookbook that I would use. I love Thai flavours and find it really hard to find seriously good Thai food in Melbourne. I guess my numerous trips to Thailand did not help the cause. The Thai food here is either too sweet or not spicy enough or just no flavour. Disappointing.

I can’t remember when I bought this cookbook. It’s The cook’s encyclopedia of Thai cooking by Judy Bastyra. The recipes in this book is easy to follow and it starts with an introduction of history of Thai street food, Thai spices, produce, condiments and basic cooking techniques.

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Cool Caipiroska

by jeroxie January 25, 2010

Caipiroska was born in Brazil. There are a few variations and each has a different name. I do get a little confused at times. Caipiroska is vodka base and Caipirinha is rum base cocktail. Both of these are originated from Brazil and do not have mint in the concoction. And there is Mojito which is of Cuban descent. It is a rum base cocktail with the inclusion of mint and sparkling water.

Caipiroska is such an easy drink to make and have with meals. It is refreshing and for me, a perfect summer cocktail that can quench the thirst and heat. And this recipe is taken from Liquid Kitchen by Hayden Wood. It was a book was given to me by ex-colleagues from a previous job and I hardly looked at it. I think it will be a well used book from now on.

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Strawberry granita

by jeroxie January 18, 2010

There are so many ideas and recipes from the cookbooks but I have opted for this simple strawberry granita from River Cafe Cookbook Easy by Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers. It was totally inspired by the heatwave that we were experiencing in Melbourne. After making the candy in 43.5C heat, this was the perfect cool down recipe.

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Old fashioned honey candy

by jeroxie January 12, 2010

The first thing that popped into my mind when I thought about this week’s challenge was ice cream, cakes and cookies. I flipped though my cookbooks and nothing really caught my eye until I found this old fashioned honey candy recipe from Dori Sanders Country Cooking. It was perfect for this challenge.

This cookbook may not interest many people as there are no pretty pictures at all but instead it is filled with delicious country farm recipes and stories. It has many interesting recipes like pickled pig lips and corncob jelly. The methods used are very old fashioned but has very solid cooking foundations. The ingredients used are kept simple but it hits home with big flavours.

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Blood plum and honey soufflé

by jeroxie January 4, 2010

I thought I was prepared this week. I even bookmarked a couple of recipes. But as usual, I always give myself too much to do but this time, I do have a good excuse. It is New Year celebrations and I do have a very good friend in town so cooking has been placed on the back burner. Baking is definitely not one of my fortes. So a little tired from all the New Year celebration, I crazily decided to choose the souffle over the pudding for this week’s challenge. I had most of the ingredients except for the icing sugar required for dusting.

Anyway it was a lovely Sunday morning and there was always time for a sweet soufflé before we headed out for lunch. It had been a long time since I made my last soufflé and I was a little apprehensive. This recipe has few ingredients and I did adapt it a little as usual. I found this cookbook, Women’s Weekly – Old Fashioned Favourites, at the back of the book shelf. So many yummy baking delights and I am so glad I found it.

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Acar

by jeroxie December 29, 2009

I have not cooked for a larger group of people for a very long time. Since it was Mister’s birthday and the kitchen fully functional, I thought it will be a good idea to get people around for some nibbles and drinks. Acar or pickled vegetables is one of the side dishes that I made for Sunday.
Cookbook Challenge Week 6 – Acar
This dish is suitable for the Christmas downunder. It is summery, light and refreshing. The cookbook that I used from this challenge is Step by step cooking Balinese by Heinz von Holzen. This is simple and easy recipe to follow or to tweak. You can change the spices and aromatics and add herbs. Just remember the 1:1:1 ratio of water, sugar and vinegar and the rest is up to you to be creative

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Grilled swordfish with peach mixed salad and feta

by jeroxie December 21, 2009

Our kitchen is almost ready and amongst packing and cleaning, I decided that I will start the Cookbook Challenge this week. And boy did I pick a week and theme that I have very little knowledge about. It did not help when most of my cookbooks are still covered in dust and a little hard to get to. Those that are scattered in our bedroom are mostly Asian cookbooks. And apologies to all, I am just jumping straight into week 5. I wish I had time to complete 1 – 4 but with the house still in disarray and Christmas around the corner, it is a very tough call.

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