Coconut Chicken Curry

Having grown up surrounded by coconut trees in our little island, called Marinduque, in the Philippines I love anything with coconut flavors. And we do use coconuts (tree and fruit) for everything that you can imagine. I don't know how our country will survive without this towering plant from the Palm family. We use its logs to build houses, leaves for roofing, oil for cooking and making our hair shiny, coconut husks for charcoal and of course it's meat for snacking, baking and plain eating. In the midst of a heatwave in the Philippines, nothing can be more refreshing than fresh coconut juice from a freshly opened young coconut! The possibilities are truly endless and I haven't even mentioned coconut milk!

Cheesy Baked Spaghetti Bolognese

When company's coming and I want an easy but delicious comfort food, I always rely on Baked Bolognese. I didn't think it would work the first time I tried it but people who had them seemed to like them and I always had good feedback. So I thought, it's about time I share this delicious baked pasta to all of you. For the Bolognese Sauce, here's the recipe. It is absolutely indispensable for this dish. So if you don't want the same old recipe for Baked Pasta - try this!

Ok I must add that this is not very diet-friendly so serve this only occasionally, like when company's coming. It makes a huge batch (9x13 casserole dish) so you can still manage with some portion control! It's so good though that every calorie is worth it! :-)

Ingredients

1 recipe for Bolognese sauce*  
1 block of Cream cheese, softened at room temp
1 (8 oz) tub of  Sour cream
12oz - 1 lb Spaghetti, cooked al dente
2 cups, shredded sharp cheddar cheese (or your favorite Cheese)*

*To ensure that your Baked Bolognese won't be greasy, try to drain the extra drippings from the sauce, if you're bothered by it anyway.

*I use Parmesan cheese, too. You can adjust the amount to taste.

Procedure 

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Combine the softened cream cheese and sour cream.

Using a 9 x 13 baking dish, layer the ingredients in this order - place half of the spaghetti on the bottom, spread evenly on the pasta half of the cream cheese mixture and then on top spread out the bolognese. 

Repeat the layer.

For the final touch, sprinkle the shredded cheddar cheese on top.

Bake in a preheated oven for about 30 mins or until the cheese is melted and the pasta layer is heated through. Enjoy with some Salad and Garlic Bread!

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No Bake Chocolate Marquise

If there is one chocolate dessert that my husband truly loves it is Chocolate Marquise - a classic French chocolate dessert that requires no baking (just chilling) but the result is sublime and is the ultimate chocolate lover's dream! I honestly cannot think of any dessert that's more chocolate-y than this - bittersweet chocolate, egg yolks, butter and sugar are beaten together then lightened with some egg whites. To give it even more intensity - a little coffee is added to the mix! Wow! This is seriously only for the ultimate chocolate lovers and admittedly, my hubby and I are huge chocolate fans, especially of the dark and bittersweet variety so this is right up our alley.

Though chocolate marquise is fairly simple in its ingredients, it can be turned into a very elegant dessert as it can be molded into various shapes (depending on what pan you use) and served with fresh fruits and for me the best pairing would be some sugar-dusted sweet-tart raspberries!
This recipe came from my mother-in-law and she often makes this when we visit England and because fares for a family of 4 are always sky-high we don't get to see them that often. I think my hubby misses this great dessert so much that For Valentine's Day he requested me to make this for him. I was naturally scared because I know that his mom makes the best Choco Marquise and I don't know if I can duplicate it but since it's a special day I thought I ought to at least give it a try. It was amazing!!! Even though my mixer did not cooperate well (it broke down) so I wasn't able to totally reach the stiff peak for the egg whites, the chocolate still came out great. If you don't want a very strong coffee taste - use mild coffee granules - I used the Starbucks ready brew and that was intense.  However, I discovered that after the cake has rested for 1 day - the coffee taste actually mellowed and the taste was even better - that is if you can wait for another day! Also, make sure that you use the best chocolate you can buy - a serious chocolate dessert like this demands a seriously excellent chocolate too!

This recipe can easily be doubled too if you want to make it for guests but since we are not a huge family I only made half a batch. If you are doing this for company do a double batch (just double the ingredients) so that when you place it in the loaf pan, it's much taller in height and not flat. Below is what it looks like when you just do a half-batch, like I did. It will look more like a big chocolate slab rather than a chocolate loaf. I think I used a big loaf pan too that's why it wasn't very tall. The good thing about this is that you can cut them into small squares and serve them in individual cups. As I mentioned this is an intense chocolate dessert so you don't need a huge piece to serve it, unless that's what you want. It's quite more-ish though so be aware that you've been warned! :-)

You can serve this dessert in small individual squares as shown below. Enjoy!

  

Note: This recipe uses raw eggs, so beware that raw eggs may not be safe for the very young, pregnant women, the elderly, the ill, and those with immune-system disorders. For more details on egg safety, check out this link.

Ingredients 

American and Metric

225 gm (8 oz) Bittersweet Chocolate

100 gm (4 oz) Unsalted Butter (softened or room temp)

175 gm (6 oz - 3/4 cup) Icing or confectioner's Sugar

3 Eggs (separate the yolks from the whites)

1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 teaspoon of water

For the Chocolate sauce

100 gm (4 oz / 1/2 cup) caster or super-fine baking sugar

50 gm (2oz  / 1/4 cup) Cocoa Powder

Procedure 
Line an (8 x 4 x 2 in) loaf tin with clear film (saran wrap), allowing it to overlap the sides and ends. Break the chocolate into a small heat-proof bowl and place over a saucepan of simmering water (not boiling) until melted. Make sure the bowl does not touch the water. Stir until smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and allow to cool slightly.

In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and the confectioner's sugar until soft and smooth. Separate the eggs, beating the yolks into the creamed butter one at a time. Beat in the dissolved coffee granules, add the chocolate and mix well. Beat the egg whites until stiff. Fold one third of the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in the remainder.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf tin and spread evenly. Chill until firm for at least 4 hours.

Meanwhile, measure 1/4 pint water (about half a cup) and the caster sugar for the chocolate sauce. Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved and the syrup is boiling. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth. Cool and refrigerate. (I used only about 1/4 cup water and the chocolate sauce was thick).

Lift the Chocolate Marquise and invert onto a plate. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes in room temp after you've taken it out of the fridge to soften it a little (so it won't crumble when you cut it). For easier cutting, use a non-serrated knife that's been dipped in warm water. Drizzle with the chocolate sauce and top with some sugar-dusted raspberries. Glazed apricots, fresh strawberries can also be served with this sweet and chocolatey dessert for sharpness of flavour and colour contrast.

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This recipe is featured at Slow Roasted Italian Ladies' Night - Linky Party.

Cinnamon and Orange Pork Tenderloin with Balsamic Glaze

It's Valentine's Day and instead of offering another sweet treat I thought for a change I'll offer you dear readers something savory and simple yet elegant enough for a Valentine's Dinner - Cinnamon and Orange Pork Tenderloin with Balsamic Glaze. This is really a simple recipe and yet the meat comes out so flavorful and looks so pretty too! The sweet tangy flavors of the Balsamic Glaze add extra flavor dimension that works really well too. The bonus - while you are baking this your whole house will smell so nice - my little boy sad - "That's a lovely cinnamon smell mom, are you baking a cake?" He was surprised to find out it was actually pork! My whole family loved this and hope yours too!

If you wish to make two tenderloins - just double the recipe. I have a small family so even a small pork tenderloin is more than enough for us.

Without further ado - here's Cinnamon and Orange Pork Tenderloin with Balsamic Glaze. It's as tasty as it looks lovely!

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Ingredients

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 teaspoon mild Chili powder
1 teaspoon ground Coriander
1 teaspoon dried Orange Peel
1/2 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 - 1 1/2 lbs Pork tenderloin
1/3 cup orange juice
1/3 cup Balsamic Vinegar
1 teaspoon brown sugar

Procedure

Preheat the oven to 350F. Mix together the olive oil, chili powder, coriander, cinnamon, salt and orange peel in a small bowl. Rub this paste all the over the tenderloin.

Bake the tenderloin in a preheated oven until the internal temperature reaches about 150F-155F (roughly 40-45 minutes) or to your desired doneness. I go for 155F 'cause am a medium-well done kind of person! It still comes out tender and easy to slice as you can see below so don't worry! :-) Remove the pork from the pan and let it rest for about 10 minutes. Transfer the pan juices into a small sauce pan. Or if you have an oven and stove-top safe pan, you can use that for baking and then for making the glaze too, for convenience.

Make your Balsamic Glaze while the meat is resting. In the sauce pan where the pan juices have been transferred - pour in the Balsamic Vinegar. Use medium to high heat and stir the mixture continually. Once the vinegar begins to bubble, add the orange juice and the sugar and continue to stir until the mixture has thickened and has a syrupy consistency - roughly - 6-8 minutes.

Slice the pork diagonally into medallions. Arrange in a serving platter and then drizzle with the Balsamic Glaze. Enjoy immediately! 

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Spaghetti All'amatriciana (Spaghetti with Bacon and Onion)

When it's wintry and cold nothing sounds more comforting than a big plateful of pasta! I specially love it when the pasta sauce has some extra kick in it with the addition of some chili peppers...sure to keep you fired up and warmed up. Here's an easy Italian style pasta dish - Spaghetti All'amatriciana (Spaghetti with Bacon and Onion) that's great for these chilly days!

Ingredients

1 Tbsp. olive oil
4 ounces / ½ cup pancetta or guanciale (or bacon), chopped
1 onion, chopped finely
1 lb. tomatoes, fresh or canned, diced
4 fl. oz. / ½ cup white or red wine
½ teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper, to taste
½ tsp. red chili flakes (or your desired heat level)
½ lb. / 8 oz. spaghetti or any desired pasta
Grated parmesan cheese, to pass around

Procedure

Heat the oil in a deep frying pan. Add the chopped onion and bacon and cook in medium heat until onion is tender and the bacon gives up its fat about 10 minutes. In the meantime, boil the water in a big pan for the spaghetti to cook in.

Add the wine to the bacon and onion and raise the heat and cook until the liquid boils off. Place the rest of the ingredients in the pan except the chili flakes, pasta and cheese and simmer for about 15-20 minutes or just until slightly thickened. Stir in the red chili flakes during the last 5 minutes of cooking. You can add the chili flakes earlier with the other ingredients - I add it towards the end 'cause I don't want a very spicy sauce since I have kiddies to feed. If you don't want a spicy sauce at all, then you can omit this.

Cook the spaghetti until al dente. Drain and toss with the sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Enjoy!