RECIPE: MR G'S FEATHERLITE SCONES (RECIPE STOLEN FROM HIS NANA G)

Mr G is famous for his scones and between his sister’s sylvan berry jam and the scones, they are to die for. Even his mum and sister reckon that his scones are better than theirs (please don’t make a liar of me Aunty L!). What he uses for his scones is cream instead of milk. His only complaint about his scones (but I don’t know any better so I can't vouch for it) is that it would taste even better if it was cooked on a wood stove. Sorry, but I grew up with electric or gas stoves so I don’t really know what he is talking about. But I have eaten wood fired pizzas (at Australian Pizza Kitchen in Woden, ACT) and they are tastier than ordinary pizza so I guess I can see his point here.

This is how he makes his plain scones. I will put his recipe for fruit scones when he makes it next. Happy trying!

2 cups SR Flour
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp butter
1 cup cream (or 1 cup milk)
Extra milk for glazing

Method
Preheat oven to 210°c.

Sift flour and salt into a bowl. Add sugar and distribute well in the flour.

Rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add in cream to form a soft dough.

Knead lightly on a floured surface and form into a square 3 cm thick. Cut into 16 equal squares and placed on floured or baking paper lined (ungreased) baking tray.

Brush tops of scones with some milk and bake for 12 to 15 mins (you may want to check them at the 10 min mark because of oven differences).

Serve hot with butter or with jam and whipped cream.

Tip: we always have some long life cream in the pantry. During summer, I suggest you store it in the fridge.

DVD REVIEW: PRINCESS MONONOKE (JAPANESE ANIME) AND THE HOME SONG STORIES (ENGLISH)

I blame SBS for getting me hooked on anime. A few months ago, SBS was having an anime month featuring movies by Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli. The anime that caught my attention was “Howl’s Moving Castle” (see HERE). I could not believe the detail and effort that was used to make the movie. I have to admit that Japanese stories are a bit ‘out there’ but I have to say that they are quite entertaining to say the least. To reinforce how good Miyazaki’s and Studio Ghibli’s anime are, they have won academy awards. His last win was for “Spirited Away” (see HERE).

If you want to give anime a go, I’d recommend you watch “Grave of the fire flies” (see HERE) by Isao Takahata of Studio Ghibli. See if that does not bring a tear to your eye and make you a fan! This was made in the late 80’s. Studio Ghibli only gets better.

Anyway, yesterday we watched “Princess Mononoke”, another of Hayao’s offerings. Once again, the quality was superb and this time the theme was something much more comprehendible – nature and man’s intent of destroying it and how hate can consume people’s mind and thoughts and make them irrational. I don’t want to give too much away….I’d recommend Princess Mononoke. I am definitely buying it to add to my collection! Check out the cast and the synopsis HERE.

Another movie that I will be buying for my collection (I currently have nearly 400 DVDs) is the Australian movie “Home Song Stories”. My daughter and I cried when we watched this. Mr G declined to watch this because it was too sentimental!

It tells the TRUE story of Rose, a Chinese cabaret singer in Hong Kong (played by Joan Chen) and a mother of two, as narrated by her son who wrote and directed this movie (Tony Ayres). Rose and her kids migrate to Australia in the 60’s after she marries an Australian navy sailor. You are shown the ‘demons’ that are haunting Rose and how they impact her and her children’s lives. It well acted and Joan does a great job in her role. You can check this movie out HERE.

RECIPE: SWEET AND SOUR (WITH A HINT OF CHILLI) PORK IN BATTER

Today’s dinner rendition is an all time Chinese favourite. There are many variations of this meal, in terms of whether the medium is battered first before cooking or not; and the type of meat or seafood that is used to cook this meal. You can use chicken, prawns, fish or pork (funny but I have not come across sweet and sour beef! Correct me if I am wrong) to make this dish. This is how I made mine.

500 g pork leg – boned
1 large (green, red or a mixture of both colours) capsicum – cubed
1 large onion – sliced thickly
1 large or 2 small carrots – halved lengthways and sliced
1-2 eggs – beaten lightly
Around 1 cup corn flour
3 cloves garlic – minced
Canned pineapple pieces – optional (I had none today so I did not put any in)
2 tbsp chinese wine
Sauce (mixed together in a bowl):
· 1/3 cup vinegar
· 1 tbsp chinese light soy sauce
· 2 tbsp sugar
· 3 tbsp tomato sauce
· 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
· 1 to 2 tsp ‘Galiko’ or ‘John West’ crushed chilli – optional
1 cup veg oil
1 tsp corn flour dissolved in 1 tbsp water – use to thicken sauce if necessary

Method
Cut pork into 1 cm thick, beat lightly to flatten and tenderise the meat, and cut into bite sized pieces.

Dip pork pieces into egg, then coat with corn flour and deep fry in batches until pork and batter is cooked through. Lift and set aside.

Remove oil bar 2 tbsp and fry garlic. When the garlic is fragrant, add in the capsicum and fry for 1 min.

Add in the pork, mix well and moisten with some rice wine. Add in the sauce mixture and pineapple (if using). Mix well. Thicken with cornflour if required. Lift and serve hot with rice.

RECIPE: CHAR KUEY

This is a classic breakfast food in Malaysia. It would be quite healthy if it wasn’t fried in oil. To ensure that minimal oil is absorbed, make sure that the oil is hot enough and to discard excess oil, place the char kuey on paper towels and heat in a medium oven for 10 to 15 mins. To make this, you need:

250 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ cup warm water
½ tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp veg oil
Veg oil to deep fry

Method
Sift flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add in salt and mix well. To the warm water, add in the egg and whisk well. Add in the veg oil.

Add the liquid gradually to the flour, mixing well during each addition, to form a dough. Let to rest for 10 mins.

On an oiled surface and with oiled hands, shape the dough, by pulling it, into long pieces. Then fold it into 2 to 3 pieces. Repeat the process. This makes the dough soft and pliable. Repeat a few times. Cover with a damp towel and rest the dough for 6 to 8 eight hours.

Next, place the dough on a greased surface again and roll out to 1 cm thick and 12 cm long strip.

Cut the strip into 4 cm wide sections. Place two pieces together side by side, pressing them gently together. Heat oil in a wok. Gently lift the strips by the ends and lower them into the hot oil. Fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

FYI: Malaysians like to eat this dunked in local, very sweet coffee or sliced into 2 cm pieces and eaten with rice congee/porridge. You could say that it is the Malaysian equivalent to the crouton. In fact, it taste better than the crouton and can be used in soups such as French Onion.

You can find this goodie in Asian shops throughout Canberra such as the "Hub" and "Saigon Asian Groceries" in Dickson.