What's for dinner?

If you have several hours to burn (about 2 hours). I seriously recommend making these for dinner:

Short Ribs


Recipe: PW Short Ribs
Modi: Used bacon instead of pancetta (but I think it didn't change the flavor much), and simmer it on stove top instead of bake it.
This is seriously good. It's like the ones that's served in restaurant. And it took only about 30 mins of preparation, after that simmer it for 2 hours, no need to check it etc. I served it with creamy mashed potatoes and salad.

Pig ear and tongue


It's really easy. This is more or less the recipe (I didn't measure anything, just eye ball and taste check it)

Procedure:

1. Bring a pot of water to boil. Place the pig's ear and tongue in the water and par-boil for a few minutes to remove any scum and impurities.

2. Remove the pig's ears and tongue from the water, throw the water away. Place the ear into a small pot. Add enough water to cover the ear. Add the Shaoxing Rice Wine, or sake, soy sauce, sugar, star anise, salt/pepper, five spice and bring the pot to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer and cook for 1 hour, occasionally checking to see that the ear is immersed in the water. Add tongue, and simmer for another 30 min. When done, the ear will be very soft and very dark brown in color. A chopstick should easily pierce through the skin. At the end of the braising, reduce if not already the soy sauce mixture into a syrupy mass, put it in a small bowl for dipping.

3. Let the ear and tongue sit at room-temperature

4. Place them onto a cutting board and slice lengthwise into slivers. Serve cold.

Shaun Pullover

Kai desperately needs sweater now, so I knitted her a simple pullover. I knitted 9 mo size using bulky yarn hoping to achieve a 12 mo size. But I think it came out size 18-24 months.



Pattern: Basic baby sweater by Amy Bahrt for the pullover and Shaun the Sheep chart from Simple Knitting mag
Yarn: Gedifra Fashion Trend (green), Brown Sheep Bulky (onyx), and LB Polarspun (white)
Needle: US 8 and US 9
Modi: Knitted size 9 mo using bulky yarn to achieve 12 mo size, added shaun the sheep chart, make body and sleeves longer by 0.5". Used Jeny's stretchy BO for the neck.
Ravelled here

Craft hope

I'm sure you have been talking about it. And I am sure, like me, looking at those faces makes you feel helpless. I am also sure you have heard of Craft Hope for Haiti, but just in case you haven't, take a look here. 100% of the proceeds from the shop go to Doctors without Borders.

Do you want to try?

Kai loves to pretend eating. Just give her a spoon/fork and a bowl, and she pretends eating from it.

Aaaammmm....yum yum

mmmm.....it's goood

Do you want to try some too?

It's good right?

Breakfast Strata

An awesome solution to bread leftovers (mostly bread butts, that nobody wants eat). Plus it can be prepared in advance, except the baking part.



I didn't use a specific recipe for this, and didn't measure the ingredients that I used :P
This is the basic idea:

Leftover bread cut or break into pieces (about 3/4") enough to fill the pan 3/4 full.
Whatever filling you want (I used ham, and a can of mushroom)
1-2 cups of grated cheese
4 eggs
1-2 1/4 c milk
salt and pepper to taste

1. Generously butter the baking dish
2. Fill the dish with bread and fillings (ham, cheese and mushroom). Mix it.
3. Whisk eggs
4. Blend milk, salt and pepper into eggs.
5. Pour over bread
6. Wrap it with cling wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning,
Unwrap the baking dish, put it into oven. Bake at 200 C for about 20-30 min or until the egg part set (not jiggly anymore).
Enjoy!