Pasta Salad with Eggs

Here's a healthy dinner Idea. Easy to make and low on carbs. I made this for dinner tonight and loved it.

Ingredients: Serve 1

1 egg ( use golden yolk eggs)

1/4 cup spiral pasta

1 small carrot

5 green beans

1/2 cup cauliflower florets

3 fresh spinach leaves

1 tbsp mayonnaise

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

Peel the carrots and cut in to quarters. Break the edges and de-vein the green beans.

Boil pasta and egg in salted water and put a steamer on top and steam the vegs till bite tender but not mashy. Put the spinach at last for steaming. 

Keep the vegs and spinach aside to cool. Peel the shell off the egg and cut in half.

Make sure the pasta is boiled perfectly and soft. Drain the water and keep aside to cool.

Cut the vegs to desired pieces. Add in the pasta. Season with salt and pepper and add mayonnaise. Refrigerate to cool if desired. Place the halved egg on top and serve.

Puddina (Maltese Bread Pudding)

I found out about this pudding on a TV show called Food Safari and wanted to try it my own. I made several changes with dry fruit ingredients as I used things I had at home. The original recipes needs cherries and almonds and sultanas. 

Ingredients:

1 loaf day-old bread
375g sugar
2 tbsp custard powder
2 tbsp cornflour
4 tbsp cocoa
2 eggs, beaten
200g mixed dried fruit (sulatanas, cashew, raisins, cherries, pea nuts etc)
Vanilla 2tsp
4 tbsp whiskey, brandy or sherry (optional)

Method:

Break bread into small pieces and soak in cold water for 15 minutes until soft.
Place the soaked bread in a colander and mash, draining liquid. Or you can do it by hand by pressing against a strainer to remove the water. Transfer the bread to a mixing bowl and add sugar, cocoa, corn flour and custard powder. Mix well. Add in the beaten eggs and mix well.

Add in the dry fruits and, vanilla and finally brandy (if preferred).

Butter an oven proof dish well and pour the bread mixture into this.

Bake in a moderate to low oven (180C) for some 40 to 50 minutes. You will know your puddina is ready when you can stick a skewer into the middle and it comes out clean.

Serve warm or cold.

Trifle

Trifle is one of my favorite Desserts. Its easy is to make and would make perfect dinner party desert. There is no strict method to follow and the amounts of ingredients will differ according to the size of the bowl you are using.

Ingredients: 7'' diameter bowl

Sponge cake to line the base of the bowl

Strawberry jelly 1-2 packets

1 apple peeled cored and sliced to small pieces

Custard about 1 and 1/2 cups made according to the packet instructions

Whipped cream  or Cream Topping 

Shaves of Semi Sweet Chocolate

Method:

Line the base of the cake with Sponge cake.

Dissolve the Jelly packets in boiling water and pour over the sponge cake.

Lay the cut apples in a layer on top of it and refrigerate till set.

Make custards according to the packets instructions and allow to cool. Pour over the apple layer. and allow to set.

Whip the whipping cream to form stiff peaks with little icing sugar or Whip the cream topping to form stiff peaks according it the packets instructions.

Spread over the custard layer and top with Chocolate shavings. Chill covered in plastic wrap and serve Chilled.

Sri Lankan Chicken Curry (Hot)

This is not a traditional dish but rather how i make simple chicken curry in Sri Lankan Style with simple ingredients at home. Its quite a hot curry and goes well with side dishes like pol sambal and dhal curry.

Ingredients:

750g chicken cut in to pieces

1 medium onion chopped fine

2 clove garlic minced

1'' lemon grass cut in to 3 pieces

spring of fresh curry leaves 

2 green chilies roughly chopped

2 tsp roasted red chili powder

1 tsp roasted curry powder

2 cardamons

2 cloves

1 tsp of pepper

1tsp salt or to taste

2 tsp white vinegar

1tsp tamarind paste

1 cup coconut milk

2tbsp coconut oil

1/2 tsp brown sugar

Method:

Marinate the chicken with pepper, salt, vinegar and tamarind paste dissolved in 1/4 cup of hot water.Keep for 30 minutes.

Heat a pan with oil, add the onions, garlic, lemon grass, green chilies, cardamons, cloves, curry leaves and fry till the aroma goes off for a minute or two. 

Add in the chicken pieces (with out the marinade) and stir fry for a minute. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add the left over marinade and 1/2 cup water( depend on how much gravy is preferred) and cover and cook stirring occasionally till chicken is tender. Simmer for 40 minutes.

 Adjust seasoning and add coconut milk and cook uncovered for 10 minutes.

Take off heat and sprinkle sugar and mix well. 

Serve with plain rice.