Here's some very special part organic pineapple tarts I baked for Chinese New Year. I didn't have time or a blender to make the pineapple jam from scratch, but I bought a superb quality slightly sweet-sour jam from Bibun Bakery Supplies at Bukit Idaman. Why so special? Because each cookie is shaped like a pineapple and I use a teeny pair of scissors to snip the pineapple pattern on the dough. They take a long time to make (2 hours for 80 cookies). The crumb is very fine, buttery, melt in the mouth. From the pic you can see the ratio of pastry to filling. For me, it is just right :)
Pineapple Cookie Recipe
Pineapple jam 300 g
350 g organic flour
50 g corn starch
30 g icing sugar
250 g butter
1/4 t salt
1 t vanilla essence
4 egg yolks (2 for pastry and 2 for the egg wash)
Cloves (optional)
Roll out little oblong balls the size of your thumb (up to the knuckle). The pineapple jam should be firm enough to hold its shape.
Sift the flour and starch together into a bowl
Sift the icing sugar into another mixing bowl, then add the softened (room temperature) butter, vanilla essence, salt. Beat with mixer till pale yellow and fluffy. Add 2 egg yolks and beat till combined.
Add in flours and gently mix with spatula till just combined. Don't over mix or the pastry will be tough.
Take a small chunk of dough about twice the size of the pineapple ball filling and shape it into a ball, then flatten with thumb in the palm of your hand till quite thin (about 2 mm).
Place the filling in the center of the pastry and fold over the edges, sealing it in. Then snip with scissors the pattern of pineapple 'eyes' onto the pastry. Stick a clove into the top of the 'pineapple' so it looks like the stalk. Brush with egg wash.
I made this as a dessert to end my birthday lunch. Good thing I made extra, because I had them for dessert after dinner too! Makes six 1.5 inch scrumptious organic kalamansi tartlets with creamy tangy filling.
Tart Shell Ingredients:
1/2 C Gluten free all-purpose flour
2 T Coconut oil (or any good oil. Coconut is great in baking)
1/8 t baking powder
1/8 t sea salt
1/2 egg, beaten
Kalamansi Lime Custard Filling:
4 T Kalamansi lime juice (about 4 limes)
1 1/2 Egg
3 T Honey
1/8 t vanilla essence
Pinch salt
What to do:
Mix the flour, baking powder and salt. Drizzle over the coconut oil and kinda rub it into the flour mixture. You'll end up with a sort of fine breadcrumby mixture.
Add the beaten 1/2 egg. It should be enough there to hold everything together, but not sticky. Might have to add more water to get the consistency right - pliable.
Divide dough into six portions and roll each portion into a ball. Use your fingers to press out each ball into a flat disc and fit that into your tartlet mould. Bake blind at 180 deg C for 5 min.
Use a fork to beat the egg and lime mixture (everything goes in) till well mixed. Pour into the tartlet shells. Bake at 150 deg for a further 20 min.
This was a perfect starter to my birthday lunch entree (Honey Glazed Beef Short Ribs). I had crisp kyuri cukes and juicy tomatoes grown in pots on my apartment balcony, and some beautiful red sails lettuce and other organic lettuces. I sliced in a bit of purple cabbage and carrot, tossed in a tangy apple cider vinegar dressing and dug in!
Yesterday I saw some amazing short ribs at Jusco and thought it would make the perfect birthday lunch paired with broccoli spears and a sweet beetroot puree. The broccoli and beetroot in the organic veg section looked super fresh and I knew they would add great flavors on the plate.
I marinated the ribs overnight with all-organic ingredients: 2 T honey, 1/2 t chilli powder, 1/2 t cracked black pepper, 2 T balsamic vinegar, sprinkling sea salt, 1 clove minced garlic, 1 T extra virgin olive oil.
This morning I laid the ribs on a glass pie dish, added 3 T water, covered with aluminium foil and oven-baked for 1.5 hr till nearly falling off the bone. Tender! I basted the ribs with the reduced sauce to keep them moist and juicy. 15 minutes before the ribs were done, I boiled the beetroot till fork tender, and blanched the broccoli spears till just cooked but not mushy. I pureed the beetroot and seasoned with a little salt and pepper.
To serve, I smeared the puree on the plate, laid the broccoli on top, plonked down a rib and spooned over some sauce. Delish!!!
Gosh, I've been wanting to blog about my favorite foods for quite a while now, unfortunately every time I make something I dig into it right away and end up with a happy tummy, but no photos of the dish! It's that instant gratification thing :). Today I delayed that gratification and here's my first food post!
This dish is healthy and delicious, with tender free-range poached chicken on a bed of organic wild rocket (arugula) and deer's tongue lettuce (or similar), and tossed in a sharp apple cider vinegar dressing that will awake your senses and leave you feeling sated but not overloaded.
Ingredients
Whole chicken (I used organic free-range young chicken)
Knob of ginger
Rocket
Lettuce, torn into pieces
Carrot, shredded through mandolin
Purple cabbage, shredded
Dressing
1 C Apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg's raw, unfiltered ACV)*
1/2 C Extra virgin olive oil (first cold pressed is best)*
1 T Raw honey (I use Y.S. Farms Raw Honey, it's so flavorful)*
1 Garlic clove, crushed
1/4 t sea salt*
Dash sesame oil
* I usually buy from Vitacost at Amazon as the prices are cheaper or comparable to what I'd find at stores. Vitacost offers free shipping for purchases above $50. And they sell Nunez de Prado olive oil, which is one of the best I've ever tasted).
Whatcha gonna do:
Poaching the chicken. Bring about 4 C water to boil in a pot with the ginger (or enough water that when you put the chicken in, the water will cover the entire chicken). Smack the ginger once or twice with the flat blade of the cleaver to bruise. Drop the chicken in gently, turn the heat down to simmer, put the lid on and let go for 30 - 40 minutes depending on the size of the bird. When done, lift out the chick, let cool. Then pull out about 1 C of meat and tear into bite size pieces. Sprinkle a bit of sea salt for flavor.
The Dressing. Mix all the dressing ingredients in a bowl and let sit.
Assembling the salad. Put all the salad ingredients into a mixing bowl. Give the dressing a good whisk with a fork and drizzle some over the salad. 2 - 3 T should do it. Toss it with a light hand, pile on a plate, and serve!
