Would You Invite Me To Your Party?

And I’ll  bring over some delicious decadent homemade cake truffles (will share recipe for the cake truffles in another post)? That’s what I made and brought over to my neighborhood (well, not really) block party today. Hubby and I got invited to a neighborhood block party today though we don’t really live on that same street/section. We walked Brady around the neighborhood so often, that we soon make friends with some of the friendly faces on that street and got invited to their street party! How cool and nice is that!

Rain or shine (it rained!!), nothing was stopping the neighbors from coming out, hanging out and mingling / getting to know each other. It was nice to see that everyone was such a sport and participated in this potluck event even with the inclement weather! There were lots of food, neighbors and of course BEER! It was funny how people sort of remembers us by Brady, “the little white dog”.

Everyone else were like “we live across from here” or “that blue house there is ours” or “we live at the end of this street”, etc…. When it was our turn to introduce ourselves and where we live, it truly sounded like we were crashing a party……coz we lived no where near them…at least not in that same section where the party was held! =p

Pig Trotter (Pork Leg) Vinegar

My MIL wanted to eat pig trotter/pork leg vinegar (“Tu Kah Chor” in Hokkien), a dish I made a years back when she was visiting. We managed to score from good looking pig trotter from the Asian market and I decided to make it for her again. For those of you whose familiar with this dish, no I wasn’t in any pre-natal confinement then or now. For those of you whose not familiar with this dish, “Tu Kah Chor” is basically pork legs/ pig trotters cooked in sweetened black vinegar and ginger.

Some (traditional) Asian women who have just given birth are confined at home for one month to recover from the whole ordeal of being pregnant for 9 months and giving birth. During this one month confinement period, some dishes which are believed to be nutritious are served to the new mothers. One of the dish is “Tu Kah Chor”. But hey, you don’t need to be a new mom to try this dish! =P

I remember my mom having it after she gave birth to my brother and the smell of ginger consumed the whole house! Years later, my neighbor would occasionally bring us a bowl of the “Tu Kah Chor”. I hated it. I did not know how to appreciate the dish and I hated the amount of ginger in it then. It was in college (in the US), when I started appreciating “Tu Kah Chor” my friend made which was on a sweeter side. It was also in school when I learnt eating my different stuff I wouldn’t eat back home in Malaysia. Beggars can’t be choosers….especially when you’re so far away from home!! =)

Here’s my version of the “Tu Kah Chor”. I like it on the sweeter side and make the gravy as thick and dark as possible. If you like a more diluted gravy, just go ahead and slowly add and adjust the amount of water and seasoning! Sorry for the not too pleasant looking picture. I was in a hurry to serve dinner!

PORK LEG VINEGAR (“TU KAH CHOR”) RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 Lb Pork Legs/Pig Trotters, Cleaned
• 1/2 Lb Ginger, Smashed
• 4-5 Cloves Garlic, Smashed
• 1/8 Cup Sesame Oil
• 1 Cup “Chin Kiang” Black Vinegar
• 1-2 Tbsp Dark Soy Sauce (**Optional, depends on how dark you want it to be)
• 1 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce
• 1-1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 3-1/2 Cup Water
• 4 Hard Boiled Eggs, Peeled

Method:

Heat sesame oil in a earthenware (i.e. claypot) or glassware over medium high heat. Add ginger and fry it until ginger is fragrant. Then add garlic and pig trotters/pork legs. Continue stir frying for 10 minutes.

Then add vinegar, water, sugar and soy sauce. Simmer the pork for about 1 hour over medium low heat. Add eggs and continue simmering for another 1 hour. Season with more sugar, soy sauce, vinegar and/or water if you like. Serve with warm rice!

June’s Notes: The sauce will turn darker as it cooks longer. I (for some odd reason) like to use unsweetened “Chin Kiang Vinegar” to make my “Tu Kah Chor”. It’s ok to use sweetened black vinegar in this dish, just make sure you adjust the sugar accordingly. =) The eggs will also become hard (and chewy?).

My Ultimate Lasagna: Chicken & Eggplant Lasagna

I almost never eat lasagna in a restaurant as they usually contain beef. It’s not that I dun take beef, I’m just very picky when it comes to beef and only eat beef, when it’s cooked Korean BBQ style. =P. The few times I ate lasagna was when my friends made them. A few years ago, my friend Kristen made a chicken lasagna and a eggplant lasagna and brought them along to our ski trip. They were awesome. I’ve written a bit of her delectable lasagnas HERE. I’ve since been making lasagnas and have attempted making the lasagnas combining both chicken and eggplant into one dish! =) This time, I took the time to write everything down and sharing it here!

It does take up a bit of time to prep the ingredients to built this lasagna. But it’s surely worth the effort! My lasagna is not overly wet as I don’t like my lasagna to be overly soggy or drenched in too much sauce. I like making my own pasta sauce (it’s fairly easy), though you could always use store bought sauces and save yourself some time! =). Don’t let this recipe scare you away from trying it! I use the Barilla’s “No Boiling Required” Lasagna sheets since I don’t want to pre-boil my my pasta or risk ending up with uncooked lasagnas. You should be able to find this pasta at the pasta aisle at your local grocery store!

CHICKEN & EGGPLANT LASAGNA RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 1 Lb Eggplant
• 1 Lb Chicken Breast (About 2 pcs)
• 4 Cups Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
• 1 Container (15 Oz) Ricotta Cheese
• 1/3 Cup Grated Parmesan (Add up to 1/2 Cup if desired)
• 2 Large Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs
• 1 Cup + 1 Tbsp Oil
• 1/4 Tsp Salt
• 1/4 Tsp Black Pepper
• 1 Tbsp Chopped Parsley
• 1 Package (9oz) Barilla’s (No Boiling Required) Lasagna
• 5-1/2 Cups Red Pasta Sauce (Refer below for recipe)

Method:

Slice eggplant to about 1/2” thick. Spread them on a baking sheet (lined with foil), doused with 1 tbsp of oil and season with salt and pepper. Baked them at 400F for about 15-20 minutes. Set aside.

Heat pan with 1 cup of oil. Slice chicken breast to about 1/2” thick. Coat them in breadcrumbs, and shake off excess. Fry breaded chicken breast for about 2-3 minutes on each side till golden brown. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs then add ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese. Mix cheese mixture well and set aside. Preheat oven at 350F.

In a 9x13 (and about 2-3 inch deep), pour 1-1/4 cup of sauce, then layer with Lasagna sheets (it’s ok to slightly overlap them). Spread about 1/2 of cheese mixture, arrange chicken pieces (making sure each bite will have some chicken), 1-1/4 cup of pasta sauce and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.

Then, layer with lasagna sheets, spread remaining cheese mixture, arrange baked eggplants (again, making sure that each bite will have some eggplant), 1-1/4 cup of pasta sauce and 1 cup of mozzarella cheese.

Lastly, layer with remaining pasta sheets (I ended up with one sheet of unused one). Pour remaining sauce over it and top with remaining mozzarella cheese. Cover with foil and bake in preheated oven for 50-60 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle parsley and continue baking for about 5-10 minutes or until cheese melts and turns slightly brown. Let pasta cool a bit before serving! This should give you enough pasta for 6 people!

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HOMEMADE RED PASTA SAUCE RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp Minced Garlic
• 1-1/2 Cup Chopped Fresh Mushrooms
• 1-1/2 Cup Chopped Onions
• 1/2 Lb Ground Meat
• 1 Large (28 Oz) Can Crushed Tomatoes
• 2 Tbsp Chopped Parsley
• 1 Tsp Black Pepper
• 1 Tsp Salt
• 1/2 Tsp Oregano
• 3 Tbsp Butter
• 1 Tbsp Sugar
• 1-1/2 Cup Water

Method:

In a pot, add garlic, onion and butter. Stir fry till onion is soft and fragrant. Add ground meat, salt, pepper, oregano and stir fry meat while breaking it into pieces. Continue stir fry until meat is cook before adding mushroom. Cook mushrooms until it shrinks, then stir in crushed tomatoes, parsley, sugar and water. Let sauce simmer over medium heat for about 15-20 minutes. Season with more salt and pepper if desired. Set aside sauce to cool. This recipe should yield you about 5-1/2 cup of pasta sauce. You may even use this sauce with spaghetti.

June’s Notes: You can get the canned crushed tomatoes from any of your local grocery store in the US. I usually go for the store brand. =)

Another Year @ The US Open

This was the second year in the row (and my third time overall) going to the US Open in Flushing, NY. Hubby and I took his parents there this time. US Open was one of the main highlight of his parent’s US visit. I was pretty sure my in-laws (especially my FIL) were pretty excited to be able to catch one of the main tennis majors.

I was having high hopes of catching my all time idol; Roger Federer….only to have my hopes dashed when I found out that he’s only playing on Saturday (our tickets were for Friday’s game). =( We still got to watch other good players compete….just not Roger! =p.

We caught David Ferrer (left) and Jose Acasuso (right) playing on one of the side courts. Hubby and the inlaws who went in earlier (coz I had to wait for FIL’s friend to pass him his ticket) also caught the Gael Monfils vs Adreas Beck game. They also managed to see Fernando Gonzalez up close when he walked past them! =)

We bought the night tickets to Arthur Ashe Stadium which cost us about $60++ per person. We got to walked around the tennis grounds once the gate for the evening sessions open at 6pm. No tickets required at this time to enter the tennis grounds in the evening. You only need to present ticket for the Arthur Ash stadium once that gate opens up at 7pm. It’s not a bad idea to hang around the tennis courts and catch the side games for free! =) Hehe!

Here’re some shots of the center court; Arthur Ashe Stadium.

First up was Venus Williams (our second time watching her..**yawn** and yes she won again) against Magdalena Rybarikova. Then it was Rafael Nadal (he won) vs Nicolas Kiefer. Our seats were high up for the price we paid. You could still see the game, just that the players looks like tiny ants on a large field! =p

Here are some shots of Nadal  and a picture of him picking his butt. =P My friends wanted me to count how many times he did that. Lets just say I lost count!! =)

 

This year’s US Open was fun. The weather was much better  and comfortable than last year Well, better luck to see Roger next year! I’m gonna come up with a master plan to make sure I’ll be able to catch Roger!! Hubby better have this wallet ready for the damage I plan to incur in 2010! =p

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall Of Fame

I never knew the existence of this attraction in Massachusetts until I did some googling for "Places of Interests” in Springfield, MA for Kiat who’s visiting us a few weeks back. This attraction was perfect for him as he’s a basketball enthusiast. The place was overall ok if you’re nuts about this sport. Entrance fee into the “hall” was $16.99 per adult. Parking at the property is free and aplenty! The latest inductee to the Basketball Hall of Fame is Michael Jordan. They set up a special exhibition about Michael Jordan and his successes in conjunction with his induction. Visit the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall Of Fame website for more information or to plan out your trip. This place is about 90 miles from Boston, MA and about 150 miles from New York, NY.