Black bean salad

Ingredients (for 2 persons):

140 grams of beans (steamed)
1 cucumber
3 tomatoes
1/2 garlic, chopped finely
salt
pepper
Extravirgin olive oil
glaze of balsamic vinegar
fresh parsley, chopped finely

Preparation:
Drain, wash and pour the black beans in a bowl
Wash and cut cucumber and tomatoes into small pieces.
Mix black beans with cucumber, tomatoes and salt. Let it for 5 minutes.
Then add, extravirgin olive oil, glaze of balsamic vinegar, pepper and fresh parsley, mix all.
And ready to serve.

Risotto with dried mushrooms

Risotto is a classic italian dishes.

Ingredients:
1 ounce dried mushrooms
2 cups  rice
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced garlic
2 cups meat broth
salt
black pepper
Italian parmesan cheese, grated
fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions:
Prepare the dried mushrooms by put them in a bowl with 1 cup boiling water. Weight down the mushrooms with something so they stay submerged for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, squeeze mushrooms (saving all liquid) and chop them finely.

Heat broth and mushroom liquid in a medium saucepan and keep warm over low heat. set aside.

Sauté onion and garlic over medium heat until pale yellow. Add mushroom and continue to mix all for 5 minutes. Then Add rice and mix well.When rice is coated add wine. Cook, stirring constantly, until wine has evaporated.

Stir in 1 or 2 ladles of broth and mushroom liguid to cover rice. Stir over medium heat until broth has been absorbed. Continue cooking and stirring rice, adding broth a little at a time until rice is done, 15 to 20 minutes. Rice should be tender, but firm to the bite.

At the end, stir in butter, salt and pepper.  And put on the top italian parmesan cheese and chopped parsley.

Serve it warm and "Buon appetito!"

Simple Cabbage salad

A Turkey dish, simple and easy to prepare.

Ingredients:

1 cabbage

2 carrots, shredded

olive oil

vinegar or lemon juice

salt

pepper

sugar (optional)

Directions:

Cut the cabbage in half and discard the outer tough leaves and the inner core.

Cut each half into quarters and wash under cold water.

Place each quarter on its side and slice very thin slices with a sharp knife.

Place cabbage and carrots in a bowl and dress it with salt, pepper, sugar, oil and vinegar or lemon.

Taste it well with enough dressing to suit your taste then serve.

Futomaki sushi

I remember the time when I was in the philippines where I lived together in the same house with a Japanesse girl. She was good in cooking. One is the futomaki!
Ingredients:
3 cups rice
3 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup rice vinegar
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cucumber, sliced into 1/2 cm strips
2 eggs
1 tbsp soya sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 carrot, sliced into 1/2 cm strips
1 fresh fish fillets (salmon, tuna or any other you like) also smoked salmon works or little prawns, surimi (edible paste made from processed meat or seafood)
4 sheets of nori (dried seaweed)
sushi mat for rolling

Direction:
Dissolve rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a sauce pan over low heat.
Cool the vinegar mixture.
Steam rice and cool in a large non metalic bowl separating the grains with a rice paddle.
Sprinkle the vinegar mixture over the rice and fold the rice the rice paddle quickly.
Beat eggs and sugar in a small bowl. Add soya sauce.
Cook rolled omelet and cool. Cut it into long strips.
Put a sheet of nori on a bamboo mat.
Spread 1 cup of sushi rice on top of the nori sheet.
Place the cuccumber, carrot, egg and fishcake lengthwise on the rice. Roll up the bamboo mat, pressing forward to shape the sushi into a cylinder.
Press the bamboo mat firmly and remove it from the sushi.
Cut the rolled sushi into bite-size pieces.

Klepon

Ingredients:
1½ cups glutinous rice powder
¾ cup lukewarm water (optionally coconut milk)
2-3 drops green food coloring or pandan paste
8 tsp. grated palm sugar
1 cup fresh-grated coconut, mixed with ½ tsp. salt

Method:
Mix the glutinous rice powder with the lukewarm water and green food coloring into a firm but flexible dough.
Pull off one full teaspoon of the dough and shape it into a ball with approximately 2½ cm (1 inch) in diameter.

Push a finger into the center of the ball to make a hole, and put in approximately ½ tsp. of the grated sugar. Seal, and roll it back into the ball shape with the palms of your hands.
Prepare all the balls and set them aside.
Prepare a pot half filled with water and bring it to a boil.
Drop the balls into the boiling water. Remove the balls with a spoon once they float to the water surface and then roll the balls in the grated coconut.
Serve at room temperature.

Octopus Rendang

This is my familly favourite food

Ingredients
1 kilograms octopus and cut up into small pieces
2 litres/8.5 cups of coconut milk
1 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp toasted coconut
1 tbsp tamarind pulp (soaked in some warm water for the juice and discard the seeds )
salt to taste
sugar to taste


Spice paste:
10 cloves garlic
20 shallots
2 inches ginger
100 grams/ 3.5 ounces ground chilli
1 tablespoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
5 kaffir lime leaves (finely sliced)
6 Salam leaves (Indonesian bay leaves)
3 turmeric leaves (finely slices)
3 lemongrass (white part only)
1 inch galangal
3 star anise

Method

Chop the spice paste ingredients and then blend it in a food processor until fine.
Heat the coconut milk and spice paste to boil and stir occasionally.
Add octopus, tamarind juice, black pepper, toasted coconut, salt and sugar on medium heat, stirring frequently.
Lower the heat to low, cover the lid, and simmer for 2 - 2.5 hours or until most of the liquid has evaporated the meat is really tender.
Season with additional salt and sugar if its needed.
Serve immediately with steamed rice.

Banana Cake

Ingredients:
3 Eggs
150g Sugar
200g Banana, smashed
150g Flour
1/2 tsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp Baking soda
100g vegetable oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 160 °C.

Whisk eggs, and sugar in a bowl. Mix well until they became uniform and fluffier. Than mix the banana and mix well at max. speed around 15 minutes.

 Sieve flour, baking powder and baking soda together into a bowl. And mix together all the ingredients. You can use spatular or hand to mix. Add in oil damp; mix well till batter is shiny damp; flowing.
Bake for 40 - 45mins.