HOME - COOKING . . .

DINNER.
No, it is not in Provence.
It is at home with the family.

Peach Tarte Tatin

Baked Zucchini and Cheese

Sliced zucchini and cheese
with a leafy salad, Tarte Tatin

Tarte Tatin with Cream

Baked Zucchini with Egg and Cheese, ( a backyard harvest).

-Sliced zucchini
-Zucchini flowers
-Feta cheese (add ricotta cheese as you wish)
-Eggs
-Fresh herbs
-Olive oil
PeachTarte Tatin
(make the best fruits of the fruit bowl)
peaches, sugar, butter and puff pastry
Leafy Salad
Endive, Radicchio, French Sorrel
Tomato and Basil, olive oil, mustard for the dressing.
It's Simply Home Cooking at it's best.



SOUP

The clear soup is light to serve at any time.

No, it is not, a consomme.

Clear soup for everyday meals- a rich white stock meat
Bakso, meatballs soup is the childhood favourite.

Bakso Bomb.

You need approx-95g of minced meat.  It is massive.

BAKING

Savoury Scones

Scones with the difference, it is soft and nutty.

A tip: standard savoury scone mixture but add an egg.

SOURDOUGH BREAD

Nothing like home-baked bread.

Eat it freshly baked on the day, or enjoy the defrosted bread.

Freshly Baked

Sourdough Bread with Walnut 
with an open crumb

Beautiful Crumb of White Sourdough Bread

White sourdough bread, and sourdough bread with walnuts

It was awesome to have freshly baked bread with an effort and neatly organisation the long process of baking was worth it.

This year maybe back to baking, the sourdough starter has to be made a life again.  Must remember how to, the best way is to refer to the literature.

Defrosted Sourdough bread is as good, after all, it is home baking. The sourdough bread with walnuts is deliciously toasted.  Bitter salad goes well with the sourdough bread, complemented with a cheese.

Sourdough bread baking is a challenge, not anyone can easily do it; however, we can always try.
I must say an enormous satisfaction, and the filling of triumphant is in me every time pulling out the hot bread from the oven which successfully baked.




SWEETS

Pancakes and Peaches

The best pancakes for breakfast, a home cooking at the finest.

Ingredients: Almost a cup of plain flour, a teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda. A cup of milk, 35 g melted butter, one egg and 1 level tablespoon of castor sugar.

Mix these ingredients together to make a thick batter. Mix gently and quickly and not to worry if you tiny lump in the mixture.  Rest for 12-22 minutes.  Peel and slice the peaches, keep aside.
The Pancake
Use a non-stick pan, cook the pancakes one at a time until all the batter is used up.

Stack the pancake to keep warm.

Serving the Pancakes
Serve the pancakes: drizzle with honey, or Marple syrup or simply dust with icing sugar.

Thinking of you girls and family, I remember the grandchildren very fond of pancakes, and they loved to have them for breakfast while they were with us. 

Easy recipe for you, Enjoy! 😋    Love you all!

Hot Fruit Sponge
Fresh Fruits of A Friend

Blood Plums

We are blessed to have generous friends, every fruit season we have a load of friend's orchard or garden.  This year we had nectarines, pears, and plums.  To celebrate, I bake plum sponge with crumble topping.  It was a treat, thanks to all dear friends.

We do not eat lots of jam, eating fresh fruits is more preferable. Indeed we enjoyed eating the fresh plums.

We are blessed to have generous friends, always get fresh fruits of their garden during the season.
This year we had nectarines, pears, and plums.  To celebrate, I bake plum sponge with crumble topping.  It was a treat, thanks to all dear friends.




MOROCCAN FLAVOUR
Beestya Susy Style. We like Moroccan cooking, and often I cook the dishes from, such as Tajin (the braising North African cooking) and their delicate and flavoursome pies (beestya).
The Pie with chicken filling is one of my favourites.  Here is my cooking of the pie.

I cook the Beestya using Susy water pastry instead of Warka (the tradition pastry in Morocco).  It is as good, or you could use ready-made spring roll pastry.  Brush with oil or butter in between the pastry for the crispy result.
The filling:
500g chicken thigh fillet and chop into small piece.
Oil to sautee
1 cup diced onion and a pinch of saffron (soak in hot water)
2 cups stock or hot water
2 tablespoons of raw rice
salt and pepper to taste.
Two eggs savoury custard
In a cooking-pan sautee the chicken in oil until looks golden, add in the salt and pepper
Add in onion mix to cook, stir in the stock and the saffron + liquid, continue cooking for five minutes
The chicken should be tender, and the liquid/broth is reduced, now it is the time to add in the rice.
Cook further until the rice is cooked and absorbed the broth.  Take it off the stove, keep aside. Make savoury custard to bind with the chicken mixture The custard is made out of two cups white sauce mix with two eggs.
The Pie
Place layers of the pastry which is buttered in between on the bottom of the baking dish.
Put the chicken mixture filling and spread evenly over the pastry.
Place other layers pastry on top to cover the filling, tuck in the excess pastry under.
Snip the top to make holes before baking, and bake until golden brown.

RICE
Javanese Cooking
Daily dishes to Ode Rice
Rice rolls-Arem Arem a delicious meal based on Javanese cooking and steamed yellow rice with garnishes.  Turmeric is good for our health, and it is easy to be obtained in supermarkets all yellow colour of cooking use turmeric instead of saffron.  Saffron is not used in any Javanese dishes.

Sweets made out of glutinous rice:  WAJIK
The sweets made out of rice is heavy, it is not easily likeable for new tasters.  In fact, I do not cook very often, as my family is not very keen.  But occasionally I cook to give myself a treat.  You may try to do it the recipe is in an older post.

Cooking at home may be the best way now, especially we are all in social distancing to be saved for the Coronavirus Pandemic.  A time to be creative, or try new recipes from cooking books.
My home cooking is merely using what is available on the pantry but must try to deliver delicious food. So simple, pamper your family with goodness.
Sharing ideas not strictly sharing recipes see above. My homemade pancakes and Moroccan pie are simple cooking. I am sure they are doable to anyone.


Right now, with what is happening in our world is sad and creating anxiety. We can be positive and constructive to coupe for every day, and support one another.  Offering delicious and wholesome home cooking is one of many ways.



Staying at home as we must, we can do gardening, reading and cooking.  These activities are an excellent remedy for me and hopefully for you all!  Take Care!

Susy

A LOVELY AFTERNOON.

In the Backyard.
On a sunny day, spending time in the garden, planting the new roses was good fun for the gardener, and indeed it's on her element. A rather hard going digging and cleaning up around the space, even though the soil preparation was done a while ago, and to make thing worst was that the apprentice took a day off, he had to do another chore tidy up and clearing up old stuff in the garage.  Anyway, as turned out, I got the benefit from his absence, all my baking tins, electrical goods and storage boxes were organised, things are in order.  Lucky Me.

The New Look in the Backyard
Here they are the roses sitting beautifully in the ground.

1. Summer Romance

2 Fairy Tale Magic


3 Orangerie

4 Purple Rain

A proper planting, a very satisfying work, watered well afterwards.  From now on, I can see and care about growth better.


Other Chores in the Garden Today
Fertilising and watering other roses and flowering plants.

Checking the Native Orchid - Dendobrium Speciousum, there is new growth, I think Autumn is warm enough for it, but winter time it has to be inside the house, to keep away from the frost.

Light pruning roses in summertime went well, I did it myself until Rayner (the apprentice gardener) decided to help, he said I will finish off what you did (he told me while I was having the afternoon rest).  Instead of cleaning up the mass the cutting, the leaves of the roses, he continued pruning drastically, as I found out.  OMG, I was shocked, I suppose they can live and grow, but do not expect to have flowers at Easter time. Came to my surprise, the plants now springing, they have millions of new leaves.  At least they are not dying.

I gave an excellent feed these roses, to help them to be healthy and living well.  You can see the pictures of the two patios standard Iceberg Roses with lots of new growth, new leaves.

The tall standard Pierre de Ronsard Roses are flowering and flourishing beautifully in the pots

Planting and Caring for the roses have been done. Move to attend and to check to other plants.

Abutilon, or the red emperor, has a delicate problem, I would say.  It gets tired and thirsty quickly, and the leaves turn to yellowish colour.
What could you do?  Yesterday and today were warm and dry, the plant was desperate for a drink.  Luckily we stay home and seldom to be a way for long that way we could attend to the garden regularly.

On the other hands, the three perennial plants (right) are happy together and flowering beautifully.

A lovely afternoon it was, and last, but not least I have to show off my new rose that I adore the Lady Gardener has been growing well, and it is so pretty with delicate a peach pinky colour.

More colours and greens in the garden.  Looking forward to more lovely afternoons.
I shall check what the job has been done by the apprentice.

In the Garage
Now I can see things are looking good in the garage, he had been busy, and he did a good job.

The True Colour of
The Lady Gardener Rose

To have clean spaces is a good feeling.  Can we beat the Coronavirus by having a clean house and a clean space? No, but it is a start, one can only try.  However, it is good to have a decent place, to be cleaned for hygienic reason.

Cut Flowers for Outdoor

Having things in order is practical,  we could quickly get what we looking for.  Are they filed in a specific way for easy access, no, unfortunately not?  I could see all my baking tins are at the same rack and the plastic boxes are inside the cupboard. Well, it is ok by us though, it is merely a sensible filing system which works for us both.

We stopped working just at the right time, to make sure we did not get overtired.  Cut beautiful Gallipoli Heath for the outdoor flower arrangement, that makes the outside dressed better and colourful.
The lovely afternoon continues by enjoying the snack and sweets.

Reminisce my childhood, around three or four o'clock in the afternoon, I used to have a hot snack in the form of soup, meatball soup which can be obtained of the eat street, and it was so yum.

Here we were in 2020, resting after a busy day, looking at the garden, enjoying the dish-delicious meatball soup out from our frozen food, home cooking of course. Followed readily prepared fresh fruit and mini cake, the afternoon was completed.  It was lovely!

 Beautiful Day, Fun and the Time were Well Spent, Enjoyable!
A Lovely and a Very Pleasant Afternoon.




The Garden Shed needs to be organised, it may take the whole week to do, but with the madness that has been happening around us right now isolation from others is needed, we will definitely have the time for.  It could be a challenge, but how good it is going to be seeing the new look of the place.  His and Hers neatly set up in the Garden Shed.
I would say, what a week had been, but proudly we did it.😌
A lovely week, to look forward to.

Fun Time.

Susy