Fresh Spinach Frittata

| San

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As I cook more often, the faster and easier it becomes.

The grocery shopping trip has also become more efficient, as I know the quantity and types of food that I can handle well.  I allow myself to buy only one “exotic” or unfamiliar ingredient per trip and cook it before my next shopping trip.  Plus, I always keep in mind that it is the size of the crisper drawer, not the entire fridge, that determines the maximum quantity of purchase.

Back to fast and easy cooking, this 16cm frittata gets done really quick, only 15 minutes, as cooking time is solely for frying the eggs and blanched spinach mixture till set, plus another 2-3 minutes under the broiler to cook the top.  Since eggs get cooked really fast, they make a fulfilling breakfast even on a school day morning rush.

My Tiger wide tray toaster oven is big enough for my skillet, but I fear that it might not be able to handle the cast iron weight, so I left the lever door open, hold the skillet (wearing oven mitt) under the heating element to broil the frittata.  This method takes away the need to preheat the oven, saving time and electricity, as I only need the broiler for less than 5 minutes.

Served these with sauteed button mushrooms, perfect way to start the day!

FRESH SPINACH MUSHROOM FRITTATA
INGREDIENTS

3 eggs
4 stalks spinach, wash and cut away roots
dash of black pepper
1 tablespoon salted butter
2 tablespoons grated cheddar cheese
red chilli flakes, optional

INSTRUCTIONS

01. In a pot of boiling water, blanch spinach till cooked, emerge immediately in a bowl of room temperature water. Remove from water and chop roughly. Set aside.

02. In a bowl, whisk spinach, eggs and black pepper together.

03. Heat up the skillet over medium heat.  Melt butter and pour in egg mixture. Sprinkle chilli flakes on top.

05. Cook till frittata is almost done, around 3-4 minutes, but top remains slightly moist.

06. Place skillet in oven and broil till eggs are fully set, about 3 minutes.

07. Remove from oven, sprinkle grated cheese.  Serve immediately.

DIY Journal Planner Printable – April 2015

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Using the journal template from March, I was able to complete April’s version much faster.

BEFORE PRINTING: While the PDF file is in A4 size, I design it with a A5 booklet in mind.  The planner portion takes up only 5 pages (Page 2 to 6), but with the booklet layout, I inserted a front and back cover page (Pg1, Pg8), plus a random notes page (Pg7) to fill up both sides on 2 sheets of A4 paper.  You can easily choose this under the “Page Sizing and Handling” options in the Printing menu.  Click on “Booklet” and then “Both Sides” under Booklet Subset option.  Preview to make sure that the printing of the 8 pages document will now take up only 4 pages on 2 sheets of A4 paper.

Keeping Tabs On My Coupon/ Voucher Inventory

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coupon inventory list printable

2014 vouchers status : fully redeemed, none left expired.  Hurray.

I have drawn up a fresh A4 template for 2015 -16, the vouchers details are sorted according to their expiry months.  This way, it will be even easier to track down those coupons with expiry dates nearing, and utilize them sooner.

Coupon Inventory Download Title

Homemade Matcha Latte

| San

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A very quick homemade matcha latte (matcha powder + milk + sugar) and bread to start the first morning of a week long school holiday.

I use this recipe and a french press make milk froth at home.  Simply heat up the milk till it start to steam (do not let it boil) , then pour it into the french press and pump the plunger a few times to froth the milk.  The froth with this method is smooth and good enough to even make latte art.

HOMEMADE MATCHA LATTE
SOURCE
INGREDIENTS

1.5 teaspoon matcha powder
1 tablespoon hot water
1 cup of full cream milk
1 teaspoon raw sugar

INSTRUCTIONS

01. In a serving cup, dissolve matcha powder in hot water.

02. Heat up milk and sugar in a saucepan over small fire till it starts to steam.  Do not let the milk boil.

03. Pour the milk into a french press, cover, and press the plunger for about 20 to 30 times to aerate the milk.*

04. Remove the plunger, swirl the french press to mix up the froth a bit, bang the french press on the tabletop 1 to 2 times to remove the bubbles.

05. Once the milk froth is ready, pour it into the serving cup with the dissolved matcha.

06. Serve hot, with a sprinkle of more matcha powder on the top.

NOTES :

* When pressing the plunger, do it gently, Otherwise big bubbles will form instead of smooth creamy froth.

 

DIY Journal Planner Printable – March 2015

| San

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I just set up my new laser printer after the old one broke down late last year.  The first few things I have printed out are some family photos taken during CNY period and a March Journal template to kickstart a diary habit for my daughters. which works great as a planner too.

IMPORTANT: While the PDF file is in A4 size, I design it with a booklet in mind.  The March calendar planner takes up 5 pages (Page 2 to 6), but with the booklet layout, I inserted a front and back cover page (Pg1, Pg8), plus a random notes page (Pg7) to fill up both sides on 2 sheets of A4 paper.  You can easily choose this under the “Page Sizing and Handling” options in the Printing menu.

March Journal Printable Download

Finish Up The Pineapple Jam, Make Cookies

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After making enough pineapple tarts before the new year, I used up the remaining pineapple jam to make cookies instead of storing them at the back of the fridge and forget all about it.  The crunchy butter cookie recipe comes from here, released at the right timing for me.  Instead of the fig and pumpkin seeds, I cut my  pineapple jams (easier to handled when chilled) into raisin size pellets and mixed in them into the cookie dough.  I also switch the type of flour used to self raising flour instead of mixing 125g cake flour with 1/2 teaspoon baking powder and 1/8 teaspoon baking soda.  Lastly, I added a tablespoon of almond grounds to add a hint of nutty flavor.

I like the end result of a crunchy cookie with sticky sweet and sour pineapple jam in every bite.

PINEAPPLE COOKIES
INGREDIENTS

80g salted butter, softened
40g icing sugar
1 egg yolk
125g self raising flour, sifted
1 tablespoon ground almond
40g chilled pineapple jam

METHOD

01. Cream softened butter and icing sugar at medium high speed for about 3 minutes till light and fluffy.

02. Add egg yolk and continue to mix till fully incorporated

03. Add self raising flour and mix into a soft dough.  Mix in almond grounds.

04. Prep chilled pineapple jams into small pellets, resembling raisins or smaller. Set aside.

05. Mix about 3 to 4 jam pellets with 8g of dough, flatten and arrange on lined baking tray.*

06. Bake in a preheated oven at 170C for 15 to 20 minutes till golden brown.

07. Allow cookies to cool completely before storing in airtight container.

NOTES

* Flatter and thinner dough will bake into crunchier cookies.  I prefer irregular shape cookies and create dents with fingers to make them look handmade.  If you prefer uniform shaped ones, you can roll the dough into balls and flatten them into cookies of same diameter.

Mandarin Orange Chicken

| San

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Mandarin oranges are in abundance at home after the Chinese New Year holiday, so if you have 2 medium ones to spare, they make great base for a sweet and sour sauce.  Team it with fried pork, chicken, fish fillet, or even firm tofu.  I had some leftover fried chicken fillet that I diced up to make Mandarin Orange Chicken.

To make mandarin orange sauce, let’s make the jam in a quick and easy way first.  This jam will replace the tomato ketchup used in a sweet and sour sauce.

I only use the orange pulp removed from the membrane for this recipe and discard the pith, seeds and peel, which are otherwise important if making mandarin orange marmalade, a different process altogether.

First remove the peel, pith and seeds from two mandarin oranges, and place the roughly chopped orange pulp in a small pot.

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Stir and cook over medium fire, for about 5 minutes to let most of the liquid evaporates, at the same time pressing juices out from the pulp with the back of the spoon.
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After most of the liquid has evaporated, turn off the fire and let the jam cools slightly, ready to be used.

MANDARIN ORANGE CHICKEN
INGREDIENTS

4-6 strips of fried chicken fillet, diced
1 tablespoon oil
1 clove garlic, minced
Mandarin orange jam made from 2 oranges
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoon of water
2 teaspoon sugar
Dash of pepper
Garnish : chopped scallions, sesame seeds

METHOD

01. Mix together orange jam, oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, worcestershire sauce and water in a bowl and set aside.

02. In a heated wok, fry garlic in oil till fragrant.

03. Pour in the sauce from step 1, and cook till it boils.

04. Add sugar and a dash of pepper to the boiling sauce.

05. Add diced cooked chicken, and stir around to coat with sauce.

06. Transfer to place, garnish with scallions and sesame seeds, serve immediately