Lamb Curry

 Ingredients:

• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp minced ginger or 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• pinch of salt 
• dash of ground black pepper
• 1 green apple, sliced thinly
• 1 lb of lamb, cubed
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
• 1/2 cup seedless raisins

Directions:

In a skillet, over medium heat, preheat oil for 2 minutes. Sauté onion and garlic until aromatic. Add ginger, coriander, cardamom, cumin, cinnamon, chili powder, turmeric, salt and pepper. Stir well. 

Add lamb and mix thoroughly with the spices. Remove from heat and cover for 30 minutes to marinate.

Add apple and vegetable stock to the lamb. Cook over medium heat to boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 1 hour. Add raisins and cook for 30 minutes.

English muffins

Ingredients:

One cup water 

2/3 cup skim milk, hot 

2 tsp sugar 

1 package active dry yeast 

4 cups flour, divided 

3 tbsp butter, softened 

half teaspoon salt 

vegetable oil spray

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine water, milk, and sugar. Mixture should feel quite hot, about 105°F, but not too hot to the touch. Stir in yeast. After about 5 minutes, when mixture bubbles, using a wooden spoon, gradually beat 2 cups of flour into milk mixture. 

Cover bowl with cloth. Allow dough to rise in a warm place for one and a half hour or until dough collapses back into the bowl. Beat in butter and salt. Gradually beat in remaining 2 cups flour. Knead in flour as dough becomes harder to work with.

One a lightly floured surface, pat or prest dough to a half-inch thickness. Cut dough into 3-inch rounds until all dough is used. Arrange rounds on a lightly sprayed cookie sheet. 

Spray vegetable oil onto a skillet. Preheat a skillet for 2 minutes over medium heat. Carefully transfer muffins to skillet one at a time, using a pancake spatula. Reduce heat to low and cook muffins uncovered until lightly browned for about 10 minutes. Turn to cook the other side for about 10 minutes. 

Using 2 forks, split muffin horizontally. Toast until lightly browned. Top with favorite spread, if desired. 

The uncooked muffins can be wrapped and freezed to be kept within 2 days

Crab Gumbo

Ingredients:

1 tsp canola oil 

half cup chopped green bell pepper 

half cup sliced green onions 

one clove garlic, minced 

3 cups low-fat low sodium chicken stock 

2 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped 

1/8 teaspoon ground celery seeds 

1/8 tsp dried thyme, crumbled 

1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce 

1 cup sliced okra 

6 oz crab meat 

half cup diced turkey sausage 

2 cups cooked rice

Directions:

In a saucepan, preheat oil for 2 minutes over medium heat. 

Add onions and garlic to saute approximately for 3 minutes – stirring frequently until aromatic. Add green pepper.

Stir in chicken stock, tomatoes, celery powder, thyme, and hot pepper sauce. Bring gumbo to boil over medium heat. 

Stir in okra. Cover pan and cook gumbo for 10 minutes by reducing heat to low or until okra is tender. 

Meanwhile, flake and remove cartilage from crab meat. Increase cooking temperature to medium heat. Stir in crab meat and turkey sausage. Cook meat thoroughly. 

Serve over hot rice in a soup bowl. 

Har Gao (Prawn Dumplings)

From Marion's Kitchen

PREP TIME: 50 minutes

COOK TIME: 10 minutes

SERVES: 18

Ingredients:

200g (7 oz) raw prawn meat, finely chopped

½ tsp finely grated ginger

½ tsp sugar

¼ tsp salt

⅛ tsp ground white pepper

1 tsp pork lard

⅛ tsp sesame oil

Dough:

112g wheat starch*

1 tsp fine salt

6 oz boiled water

30g cornflour (cornstarch)

4g pork lard

soy sauce, to serve

Chinese chilli sauce, to serve

Directions:

Step 1: To prepare the dough, add the wheat starch and salt to a large mixing bowl. Pour in the boiled water. Give the ingredients a mix until well combined. Set aside for 5 minutes.

Step 2: After 5 minutes, the mixture will appear crumbly and will have firmed up somewhat. Turn the dough out onto a clean bench. Flatten it slightly with your hands, then sprinkle over half of the cornflour. Using your hands, mix and knead the dough to incorporate the cornflour until smooth. Flatten the dough again and repeat the process, kneading the dough for 3–5 minutes until smooth.

Step 3: Add the pork lard to the top of the dough, then continue kneading for another 2 minutes until you have a very smooth and soft dough. Roll the dough into 3 logs and place into a slightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 15 minutes to rest.

Step 4: To make the dumpling filling, place the minced prawn, ginger, sugar, salt, pepper, lard and sesame oil into a mixing bowl. Mix until combined. Set aside.

Step 5: Place a steamer basket on a pot of boiling water. Turn off the heat and place the bowl of rolled dough in the steamer basket.

Step 6: Lightly oil your benchtop. Take out one log and cut a 2cm-thick (about ¾ inch) piece of dough from it (you’re aiming for about 6 pieces from each log). Return the log to the steamer. Oil a small rolling pin and the piece of dough you cut, then roll it out into a roughly 5cm (2 inch) round piece of 1mm (less than 1/16 inch) thickness. 

Use a pastry scraper to help lift the wrapper from the benchtop and place it carefully into the palm of your hand. Place a heaped teaspoon of filling in the centre and then gently place the wrapper back onto the benchtop. Start with folding the edge of the wrapper nearest you over the filling. 

Just working with the top layer, make small pleats working from the centre outwards. Repeat on the other side. Once that top layer is pleated, press down to seal it and enclose your filling. 

Use a pair of scissors to cut off the extra top of the dough, then pinch with your fingers to thin out the top of the dumpling edge and add a subtle curve to your har gao. Transfer your cute-as dumpling to a clean tray lined with baking paper. Continue with remaining dough and filling. At this point, you can freeze the dumplings if you like, or carry on cooking. 

Step 7: Steam the dumplings for 5-6 minutes or until just cooked through. 

Serve with the soy sauce and chilli sauce.