Mango Jam

Swiss Roll

Swiss rolls use sponge cake as the base. There are many variations for the sponge cake. e.g. plain, chocolate, marble... and there are even more variations for the fillings. I like rolls versus layer cake because I can use less cream between the layers and enjoy more the flavour of the sponge. And I like to use fresh fruit for the filling. The top choice fruit is mango. Mangoes go extremely well with cream. When the special kind of fruit is out of season, I use fruit jam instead. It goes well with a cup of English tea in the afternoon. For even more fun, special flavour can be added to the cream too.

Blueberry Muffins

Blueberry muffin is a good snack food. There are many kinds of muffins, but blueberry muffins, like chocolate chip cookies, are the all time favourite. The colour combination for the eyes , the exquisite flavour of blueberries for the taste, make it a winner. They are easy to make and are good for breakfast, afternoon tea, in between meals snacks...And blueberries are nutritious too!

Mango, sago and pamelo dessert

Many of my friends like this mango sago pamelo dessert. It seems like a strange combination but the ingredients complement each other surprisingly well. The mango gives the main flavour , the sago gives a pleasant texture (something to chew) and the pamelo gives occasionally 'out of the blue' sweet sour bites. The secret of this dessert lies in the balance of the ingredients. The amount of milk and cream can vary with personal preference.

Opal's tip: try different kinds of sugar to get delightful surprises, e.g. rock sugar gives a lighter, refreshing taste, palm sugar gives a buttery flavour, honey suggests yet another sweetness on your tongue...

Quiche Lorraine

Quiche is also one of our family's favourtie food, especially the kids. They like it not only because it is delicious but also easy to eat. I usually put ham and spinach and mushrooms in it so it comes like a complete meal with meat and vegetable. And it's loaded with the goodness of cheese and egg. In summer it goes well with a salad on the side and in winter with a bowl of soup. There are unlimited ideas to put in the pastry shell, sometimes even leftovers can magically turn out to be a wholesome surprise!

Clam Chowder

I like to make soups and clam chowder is one of my favourites. It takes quite some work to make but it's worth it. Clams are filled with the sea's natural flavour and the soup combines that sea flavour with potatoes and cream. A bowl of hot clam chowder in a cold winter evening warms not only the stomach but also the soul. I like to make the soup at home so we can have the soup our way, i.e. less butter and cream but still retains the full flavour of the clams and is a lot healthier.

Roast Rack of Lamb

When I have guests, often I make lamb because it seldom fails to please my guests. I usually bake a rack of lamb with rosemary and make a garlic butter sauce. (based on Look and cook with Annie by Annie Leong) It is a delightful deviation from the regular mint sauce. The sweetness of the sauce brings out the delicate flavour of lamb. A very satisfying meat dish in winter!

Jam

I've been making jam for more than 20 years and I only make uncooked jam.

Why only uncooked jam? It retains most of the flavour and colour of the fruit. Mango and strawberry are best for uncooked jam.

Best way to serve it? Jam on hot buttered English muffin, (or thick toast) of course! A bite of toast with melted butter and a mouthful of fresh fruit flavour is simply heaven - any time of the day!

Opal's tip: Japanese strawberries are best for flavour. Use small to medium size berries. 

Welcome

Welcome to my kitchen!

It is the heart of the house. I hope to share my cooking experience and get some good recipes in return! The recipes may be the same, but with a small twist, the food prepared will end up different. And that is what makes cooking so fascinating.