Dog-Gone-Good Lamb Shanks

The 1st time I ate lamb shanks is when my brother brought it home and roasted it. I have since thought it was the best part of lamb aside from lamb chops. When I saw this recipe by Bob, I was esctatic! Give it a woof woof!

By Bob Blumer - Surreal Gourmet

Ingredients
· 4 x lamb shanks
· salt and pepper
· 1 cup flour
· 5 tbsp canola oil, divided
· 1 x onion, diced
· 2 x carrots, peeled and sliced
· 2 x ribs celery, sliced
· 6 sprig fresh rosemary
· 6 sprig fresh thyme
· 3 cups dry white wine
· 3 cups chicken stock

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300°F
2. Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper. Roll in flour.
3. In a large sauté pan, over medium high heat, add 3 tablespoons oil. Add lamb shanks and sear all 4 sides (about 2 minutes/side). Reserve.
4. In another sauté pan over medium high heat, add remaining oil and sauté onion, carrot and celery for approximately 6 minutes, or until they just begin to brown. Add chicken stock, stir up the brown bits off the bottom of the pan and bring stock to a boil.
5. Transfer lamb shanks to a roasting pan, pour wine over top. Pour entire contents of second sauté pan over top of that, spread herbs overtop of all that and tightly seal the whole lot with aluminum foil.
6. Braise (fancy for roast in wine) the shanks for 3 1/2 hours, then remove foil and continue cooking for 30 more minutes. At this point lamb should be browned and fall-off-the-bone-tender. Serve over polenta with a few spoonfuls of the reduced pan juices.

Nigella Lawson - Domestic Goddess

"I am not a chef. I am not even a trained or professional cook. My qualification is as an eater."
- Nigella Lawson

Why askmen.com loves her?

Cup O’ Tiramisu

The first time I saw Bob Blumer on Surreal Gourmet, I thought he was this weird guy, driving around his toaster mobile hanging around with weird people who he happens to cook for. He has this spiky hair that just does not seem to suit him. He wears pajamas while cooking! Definitely not your ordinary chef! Hell no! And to top it off he looks more like a clown who's trying to be serious when it comes to cooking. How ironic!

Nevertheless, I continued to watch his shows and finally submitted to acknowledging his creativity. He is the Master of Creativity when it comes to cooking and that's why he calls it Surreal Gourmet. Every week he would have a concept and he would disguise his food as something else relating to his concept. I dont exactly know how to explain this but I'll show you what I mean.

This recipe below is one that I really like. It was one of his shows with the concept of a pyjamas party with a huge big bed in the middle of some park and his guest all in pjs being served with his food. This is what I mean, it's a tiramisu cake that looks like a cappucino! Ain't that just the coolest!

Give it a try. I think it's cool! I'll show you more next time. Thanks for making food fun Bob!

Cup O’ Tiramisu By Bob Blumer.

Ingredients:
· 3/4 cups espresso
· 1/4 cup Kahlua
· 16 x ladyfingers
· 3 x egg yolks
· 4 tbsp sugar
· 1 tsp vanilla extract
· 1 cup mascarpone cheese
· 1/4 lb. dark chocolate, chopped into tiny bits

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, mix espresso and Kahlua. Dip ladyfingers in the liquid, hold for 5 seconds, then reserve on a plate
2. In a mixmaster, or with a whisk, beat egg yolks, sugar and vanilla until ribbons form. Fold in mascarpone. Reserve.
3. In each of 4 coffee cups place 2 soaked ladyfingers in the bottom. Then add 2 tablespoons of mascarpone mixture. Add 2 more ladyfingers and another layer of mascarpone. The last layer should be approximately 1/2 inch below the rim of the cup. Smooth the top layer with the back of a spoon. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
4. In a bowl over simmering water, melt chocolate. Pour a 1/8-inch layer of chocolate over the top layer of the mascarpone mixture and return to refrigerator for another hour so that the chocolate hardens.

Pop-Up Hotdog Cooker

This is the ultimate Dumb Can Cook Machine!

Pop-Up Hotdog Cooker operating much like a pop-up toaster, this unique kitchen appliance lets you easily prepare two hot dogs (complete with toasted buns) in minutes. To use, simply drop two wieners in the center basket and the buns in the two toasting baskets on either side. Its 660-watt electronic heating coil has four controllable heat settings so that you can cook the wieners and toast both buns to your taste preference. Crumb basket removes for cleaning.

Quotes from Reese Witherspoon

Somebody asked me the other day,

'Do you have a chef?' and I said, 'Yes, her name is Reese.' "

– Reese Witherspoon, mom to Ava, 6, and Deacon, 2.

Halloumi With Chilli

I've tried so many cheese but has only been introduced to Halloumi by Nigella. It taste close to melted butter with a touch of salt. Try it! It will change how you view cheese. The taste good be a combination of mozerella and melted butter. Heavenly! I like to eat it with bruscgetta or just toasted french bread. I tend to change the menu a bit. I mix the chilli below with with finely chopped shrimp. Nice! Or springle tiny bits of lemon zest. Use coloured roasted pepper with sesame seed. Give it a try and change it a bit. The original Nigella's version is below.

By Nigella Lawson

I love grilled or fried halloumi, that squeaky, salty, polystyrene-textured cheese. Not a very seductive way of describing it maybe, but that, indeed, is what it’s like. You should have no difficulty finding it, and this is a doddle to make and utterly addictive.

Ingredients
Tablespoons chopped, de-seeded fresh red chilli (about 2 medium chillies)

60ml (4 tablespoons)

extra-virgin olive oil

2 x 250g packets of halloumi,
sliced medium-thin (i.e., just under half a centrimetre)
Juice of quarter lemon

Method
Mix the chopped chilli and olive oil in a small bowl or cup and leave the flavours to deepen while you cook the cheese. I use a non-stick frying pan for this, without any oil, and just give the cheese slices about 2 minutes a side until they're golden-brown in parts. When all the slices of halloumi are cooked, transfer them to a couple of small plates. Give the chilli oil a stir, spoon it over the cheese, then give a spritz of lemon. That's all there is to it.Makes about 30.

My Cook Mentor 1: Jamie Oliver

Ain't he just cute and adorable. Jamie 'Funky' Oliver from the Naked Chef and Oliver Twist.


Background:
Born May 27, 1975 in Clavering, Essex, England, UK. Grew up in Cambridge. Parents own and operate a successful pub/restaurant, The Cricketers. At age 8, began working at his parent's restaurant. Nicknamed "Ollie", "Ol" or "Jum".

Resume:
At 16, attended Westminister Catering College. Worked as head pastry chef for Antonio Carluccio at The Neal Street Restaurant. Cooked at the critically acclaimed River Café in London for three years. Received big break from appearing on television as part of a documentary on the River Café. Worked with Optomen Television (who created Two Fat Ladies) to produce the enormously successful Naked Chef. Wrote the book, The Naked Chef which was number one on the bestseller list for more than 10 weeks. Currently is the food editor for British GQ magazine.
Has a regular column with the Saturday Times Magazine. In 1999 was invited to prepare a lunch for the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair.

In 2001 took his live cookery show on the road: His Happy Days Tour packed theatres in Cambridge, Bournemouth and London as well as in seven cities in Australia and New Zealand.
Now 28, he is consultant chef at Monte's, an advisor for top British supermarket chain Sainsbury's, and design consultant for quality cook and tableware for Royal Worcester.
Recently opened a not-for-profit restaurant, Fifteen, with the goal of training young unemployeds to work in the kitchen and on the floor. The London restaurant has become a hit.
June 2003 was awarded an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List.

Passions and interests:
Passions are pasta and bread-making.
Plays drums with his high school mates in a band called Scarlet Division, a mixture of "Catatonia and Texas with a harder edge". Travels around London by motorbike. Enjoys listening to Turin Brakes, Jamiroquai and Cold Play. Admires chefs Rick Stein for his passion and Gordon Ramsey for his perfection.

Fave books include Nigel Slater, Donna Hay, Elizabeth David and the River Café books.
Favorite ingredients are Extra virgin olive oil, big fat Sicilian lemons and Maldon sea salt.

Personal:
Jamie married his childhood sweetheart, Jools, in 2000. They live in London with their daughters Poppy Honey and Daisy Boo.

Churros! Brazilian Donut!

You have no idea how difficult it is for me to find the recipe. My first tasting of this churros was whilst walking down Bayswater Road London. A kiosk strategically situated by HSBC's Atm machine. But i knew it as the Brazillian Donut! First time was a hit for me. You have a choice of eating it with chocolate, caramel or strawberry jam pumped in the middle of the donut.

I finally managed to find this brazillian donut, not as brazillian donut but rather CHURROS which is cooler! I actually found several versions which makes it more interesting. Some mexican and spanish version. Ironically not Brazillian. Hahaha now you know why I find it difficult to find.

Must try snack food. Recipes as follows: Dunk it in chocolate, white chocolate, hot caramel, strawberry jam or any jam or even peanut butter. This is my version. hahaha Yum!

Ingredients: (Makes one platefull)
Vegetable or Olive Oil
1 cup water
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1/4 teaspoon salt1 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

Prepare to fry the churros by heating oil in a pan (1 to 1&1/2 inches) to 360 degrees F.
To make churro dough, heat water, margarine and salt to rolling boil in 3-quart saucepan; stir in flour. Stir vigorously over low heat until mixture forms a ball, about 1 minute; remove from heat. Beat eggs all at once; continue beating until smooth and then add to saucepan while stirring mixture. Spoon mixture into cake decorators' tube with large star tip (like the kind use to decorate cakes). Squeeze 4-inch strips of dough into hot oil. Fry 3 or 4 strips at a time until golden brown, turning once, about 2 minutes on each side. Drain on paper towels. (Mix Sugar and the optional cinnamon); roll churros in sugar or dump the sugar on the pile of churros, like the pros.

Chilli's Salt Squid

I cook this recipe so many times. So so many times. I even added some flavours everytime. Its quick to make quick to fry! You can add tumeric, or chicken stock or soy sauce to change the recipe a bit. A Yummy snack!

By Kylie Kwong
Ingredients
600 g (11/4 lb) small whole squid
1/3 cup plain (all-purpose) flour
1 tablespoon chilli powder
1 tablespoon sea salt
vegetable oil for deep-frying
2 large red chillies, cut in half lengthways and deseeded
2 tablespoons spring onion (scallion) julienne
1/4 cup coriander sprigs
2 lemons, halved

Method
Clean squid by gently pulling head and tentacles away from the body. Pull out the clear backbone (quill) from inside the body and discard entrails. Cut tentacles from the head just below the eyes; discard head. Remove side wings and fine membrane from body. Rinse body, tentacles and wings thoroughly and pat dry with kitchen paper. Cut squid down the centre so that it will open out flat, and slice body and wings into 5 mm (1/4 in) wide strips.In a large bowl, combine flour, chilli powder and salt. Add squid, including tentacles, and toss to coat, shaking off any excess flour.Heat oil in a hot wok until the surface seems to shimmer slightly. Add half the squid and deep-fry for about 1 minute, or until just tender and beginning to colour. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain well on kitchen paper. Repeat process with remaining squid.Add chillies to the same hot oil and fry for about 30 seconds, or until they are a deep bright-red colour; remove with a slotted spoon and drain well.Arrange squid on a platter and garnish with fried chillies, spring onions and coriander. Serve immediately, with lemon halves.

Try This - Cheat's Dessert

By Jamie Oliver

4 ginger biscuits
4 blood oranges or clementines, plus the juice of 2 oranges
4 scoops of vanilla ice cream
optional: 55g/2oz caster sugar

This is a dessert which is absolutely great for getting you out of trouble at the last minute if you have friends descending on you for dinner.


Method
Smash the ginger biscuits up into crumbs using a pestle and mortar, or place them in a clean tea towel and bash with a rolling pin. Put them into a dish. Peel and slice the oranges or clementines, making sure you remove any pips. Now all you have to do to serve is put a scoop of ice cream on each plate and either sprinkle with the ginger biscuit crumbs or serve a pile of the crunchy biscuity crumbs under the ice cream, and top with some blood orange slices.

If you want to take this up a notch, bring 55g/2oz of caster sugar to the boil with 6 tablespoons of water on a medium heat until you have a golden caramel. Remove from the heat, add the juice from the extra 2 oranges and stir it in to loosen the caramel syrup slightly. Pour this over your sliced oranges so they marinate in the caramelized juices. Divide the ginger biscuit crumbs between 4 plates and top with a scoop of ice cream and some slices of caramelized orange.

This is so simple I love it!

Anybody and Who body can cook!

I've always loved food and I have my favourite chefs which includes:

Kylie Cool Kwong

Jamie Funky Oliver

Nigella Sexy Lawson

Anythony Rock Bourdain

They taught me well. Jamie makes cooking so easy! I won a silly cooking competition cause of him. luckily I didnt have to do any cooking or else I'd be caught! hahaha not being able to cook! I took one of my favourite Jamie's recipes and just tweaked it to my own taste!

Yeah! so am gonna do a recipe collection