Post by oldmike on May 24, 2007 18:32:09 GMT 7
Upcoming Weekend Cooking Classes. For weekday cooking classes, please check
my website.
Cooking Class in a Kampong House on Pulau Ubin (26 May 2007, Saturday,
8.30am - 2pm)
We will go harvest the jungle herbs for the cooking. This is a hands on
cooking class. You will also be served Lontong upon arrival.
Menu
1. Nasi Kerabu
2. Sambal Blachan
3. Butter Pepper Fresh Prawns
4. Ice Kachang.
Cost: S$88 per person (Cost includes ferry and taxi ride on the island)
Chocolate Overkill 4 (27 May 2007, Sunday, 2-6pm)
1. Financiers
2. Apricot and Ginger Chocolate Cake
3. Chocolate Marble Cheesecake
4. Light Chocolate Mousse
Cost: S$65 per person
Swiss Chocolate (Felchin) and French Chocolate (Valrhona) avaliable for
sale.
Italian I (31 May 2007, Thursday- Vesak Day Holiday, 2-6pm)
1. Homemade Pasta
2. Pasta with Butter and Black Pepper
3. Pasta with Tomato Sauce
4. Pasta with Fresh Herbs
5. Pizza Margharita
Cost: S$60 per person
Funky and Tasty Cupcakes I (2 June 2007, Saturday, 2-6pm)
1. Old Fashion Orange Cupcakes
2. Chocolate Chip Cupcakes
3. Kaffir Lime, Lemongrass and Coconut Cupcakes
4. Vanilla and Lavender Cupcakes
5. Royal Icing
Hands On Decorating
Cost: S$75 per person
Regional Indian Cuisine -Gujarati Food (Vegetarian) ( 3 June 2007, Sunday,
2-6pm)
1. Dhokla (Savoury Steamed Spongy Cake) - very popular Gujarati tea snack
2. Spicy Potatoes with Tomatoes
3. Cabbage and Peas
4. Hot and Sour Ladies Fingers
5. Mango and Chilli Pickle
Cost: S$60 per person
Sensational Desserts I (9 June 2006, Saturday, 2-6pm)
1. Black and White Chocolate Mousse Towers with Raspberry Sauce
2. Steamed Mexican Chocolate Pudding with Apricot Sauce
3. Chocolate Mouse with Hazelnuts
4. Angel Cake with Strawberries and Caramel Pineapple Sauce and Chocolate
Sauce
Cost: S$65 per person
Quick, Easy & Healthy Meals II (10 June 2007, Sunday, 2-6pm)
1. Bananaa Wraped Lemongrass and Kaffir Lime Scented Fish (Fusion -
Chinese/Thai/Indian)
2. Lousiana Crusted Chicken with Green Rice (Fusion -USA/Indian)
3. Fettuccine Caprese(Italian)
4. Freah Tuna Burgers with Mango Salsa (Fusion - Asian)
5. Teriyaki Chicken with Udon Noodles (Japanese)
Cost: S$60 per person
London Indian Restaurant Favourites (16 June 2007, Saturday, 2-6pm)
1. Chicken Tikka Masala
2. Rogan Josh
4. Beef Vindaloo ( for those who do not take beef, this can be replaced with
chicken)
5. Samosas
Cost: S$60 per person
Cupcakes Art (17 June 2007, Sunday, 2-6pm)
1. Chocolate Cupcakes
2. Vanilla Cupcakes
3. Royal Icing
4. Buttercream icing
This is a hands-on class for decorating the cupcakes using royal icing,
buttercream and ready made fondant.
This class will be jointly conducted by Ruqxana and ultra talented Dr Galen
Hogan. Psychologist, Food Technologist, Chef, ex-TV Cooking Show Host,
Artist (Painter/Sculptor/Glass Art/Textile Art/Sugar Art/ Chocolate Art),
Jewelry Maker and 7 times ASEAN Cake Decorating Champion.
Cost: S$100 per person
Private Dining at Tembusu
This is home dining without the hassle of doing it in your own home. Let me
take you into my world of home dining in my cosy pre war colonial town house
in Katong which has a well kept secret! Fantastic home cooked food amidst a
beautiful and enchanting tropical garden.
$60 per person for 3 course meal
$70 per person for 4 course meal
$80 per person for 5 course meal
Menus on my website or it can be arranged according to your request.
Regards
Ruqxana
Cookery Magic
ruqxana@cookerymagic.com
www.cookerymagic.com
Tel: 63489667
____________________________
Palm Sugar
It is also known by many other names in Asia such as Gula Melaka, Coconut
Sugar, Gula Merah, Gula Jawa and many more.
Many people have tried palm sugar but not many know where it comes from or
how it is made. It is usually sold as small cylindrical blocks and the
colour can range from light to dark and its texture can be hard or soft.
During my cooking classes, I let my students taste a little bit gula melaka
and the comments I get is that it taste like coconut, toffee, molasses or
treacle and everyone loves it. When I ask them where they think it comes
from, most people are at a lost.
It can come from the coconut palm, sugar palm, date palm or sago palm tree.
Hence the name palm sugar. All are produced from the sap of the palm that
drips from cut flower buds. The sap is collected each morning and boiled in
huge pots until it caramelises. It is then poured into bamboo trunks and
set aside until it hardens. Because this is a cottage industry product, the
flavour, colour and sweetness vary from batch to batch, even within the
same plantation. Its taste can range from coconut flavoured to sweet bitter
to smoky. You do not have to store it in the refrigerator as it stays well
even in our hot and humid weather.
Palm sugar is used in both in savoury and sweet dishes. Since it is not
processed like cane sugar, it is healthier than refined sugar. This is a
great ingredient to use instead of refine or brown sugar. When making your
western desserts, try experimenting and substitute the sugar with palm
sugar. You will be amazed with the results but remember that due to the
variation in taste and sweetness that comes with different batch
production, your end result will vary too and you will have to adjust the
amount that you use accordingly. In the simplest experiment, try it in your
coffee!
In Singapore, you can buy it in supermarkets, wet markets and provision
shops. My personal preference would be for the palm sugar to be soft with a
wonderful smoky toffee flavour and I buy it from a supplier that gets it
directly from a village in Indonesia but the flavour always varies with the
different batches.
__________________________________________________________________
Recipes
Sago Puding with Gula Melaka and Fresh Fruits
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
4-5 cups water
2 pandan leaves
1 cup sago
1 cup water
1/2 - 3/4 cup gula melaka (palm sugar), chopped roughly
4 cups coconut milk
pinch of salt
Mango, Honey Melon, Honeydew
Method
1.. Boil the water and 1 pandan leaf in a pot. Once it is boiling, add
the sago and stir. Reduce the heat to medium and keep stirring. Cook
stirring until the sago grains turn transparent, about 10 mins. Drain and
add cold water to the sago to wash off some of the starch and discard the
pandan leaf. Cool it and chill it in a refrigerator.
2.. In another saucepan, add the 1 cup water, 1 pandan leaf and gula
melaka and heat gently heat it until the sugar dissolves. Discard the pandan
leaf and cool the syrup.
3.. In individual serving bowls, place 4 tbsp of sago, add 1-3 tbsp of
gula melaka syrup. Add the coconut milk, mixed with the salt and serve with
fresh fruits.
Lemongrass Kalamansi Lime Brulee
Serves 6
Ingredients:
6 egg yolks
30-60 g Palm sugar, grated
250g heavy cream
2 lemongrass, smashed
grate rind of 1 kaffir lime
60g condensed milk
100g-120g of kalamansi lime juice
6 tbsp sugar
2 mangoes, sliced
Method:
1. In a double boiler on medium heat, whisk 3 egg yolks and palm sugar
until it is thick and double in volume and leaves a ribbon trail with your
whisk.
2. In another pot, combine the heavy cream, lemon grass and kaffir lime
rind and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and remove the lemongrass and
discard it. Add a little of the cream mixture into the egg and palm sugar
mixture while constantly whisking it, then whisk this mixture back into the
hot cream. Return to the heat and, while whisking continually, finish
cooking to a custard stage, approximately 1 or 2 minutes.
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk the remaining 3 egg yolks for 1 minute. Add the
condensed milk and whisk for another minute. Add the lime juice gradually
and whisk for 1 minute. Then mix in the hot cream and egg yolk mixture.
4. Pour into 4 small serving bowls and chill in the refrigerator until
needed.
5. Before serving, sprinkle the a layer of sugar and place it under a hot
grill until it melts. Serve it immediately with sliced mangoes.
Ruqxana Vasanwala
Cookery Magic
Tel: 63489667
Mobile: 96656831
Email: ruqxana@cookerymagic.com
Website: www.cookerymagic.com