Perkedel Daging (Meat & Potato Patties)

This entry is dedicated to my Indonesian roommates back in college, Mei and Nency. They were the ones who introduced me to this yummy Indonesian potato and meat patties called Perkedel. It might have been 5-6 years since I had some, I think….well at least homemade ones.

I think there are many versions of the Perkedel, based on personal preferences. Most commonly, ground beef is the meat used in the potato patties. When Mei made it for me, she used Luncheon Meat (Spam), and I just love it (she loves it too!). Luncheon meats are probably not the healthiest thing, but hey it’s yummy and plus I don’t eat it all the time! Luncheon meat reminds me of sausages…….in a square tin!

So, here’s my version of the Indonesian Perkedel Daging, inspired by my friend Mei. =)

MEAT & POTATO PATTIES (PERKEDEL DAGING) RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 2 Lbs Potatoes (I use Yukon Gold)
• 1 Can Luncheon Meat, Diced
• 1 Cup Finely Chopped Onion
• 3 Cloves Finely Chopped Garlic
• 2 Large Eggs, Separated
• 2-3 Stalk Scallions, Finely Chopped
• 1/2 Tsp Black Pepper
• 1/4 Tsp Salt
• Oil

Method:

Peel and boil potatoes until fork tender. Drain potatoes and smash it. Heat about 1 tbsp of oil in a pan over medium heat. Add luncheon meat, onion and garlic. Cook until the luncheon meat is slightly golden brown. Stir mixture occasionally so that the luncheon meat will not stick to the pan. Then transfer the cooked meat into the pot of smashed potatoes. Smash the luncheon meat mixture and potatoes together. Add in chopped scallions and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add egg yolks to bind mixture together.

Shape the mixture into a ball, slightly large than a golf ball. Press the “ball” down to form a patty, about 3/4“ thick and about 2-1/4” across.Heat oil (about 1/2” deep) in a pan over medium heat. Coat each patty in egg white before frying them. Fry the first side till golden brown, and continue for the second side. Once that’s done, remove and drain off the excess oil on some paper towels before serving. Serve warm or room temperature with some chili or tomato sauce if you like!

June’s comments: To get an even size, I used a medium ice cream scoop to help me portion the patties. I ended up with about 20 potato patties. Don’t worry, hubby and I did not finish those patties up in one night. It’s part of dinner for about 3 nights (plus lunches for hubby). We ate it with rice, but feel free to serve it as an appetizer!

Sightseeing Florence : Oct 6, 2009

We only got into Florence (Firenze) at about 4pm. And after hunting down our apartment and settling down there weren’t much daylight left. Most museums were already close, so we decided just to walk around Florence, to get ourselves familiarized with the city for the next day!

The Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore or more commonly known as the Duomo (Bottom Left) is within minutes walk from the apartment. We passed by the Duomo everyday, during our 3 days stay in Florence. The Duomo is certainly the most impressive architecture I’ve seen in Florence. The exterior of the Duomo looks like a candy cane of green, white and red marbles. Construction of this Duomo began in 1296 and was completed structurally in 1436. The facade of the building was only completed in the 19th century. 

Details on the facade of the Duomo was certainly intricate (Bottom Right). That picture is the detailed carvings on the entrance to the Duomo.

 

Lorenzo Ghiberti's Gates Of Paradise (Bottom Left) @ Battistero San Giovani which was located across from the Duomo.This is just the replica, the real thing is being exhibited in Museo dell' Opera del' Duomo.

Wandering around Florence…we came across perhaps what used to be a fountain (Bottom Right) placed in some square.

We saw a couple Italian guards dressed almost like the Swiss guards (Bottom) at an entrance of a building, with nicely dressed men going into it. We did not know what was going on there and then, and found out that it was some Florence government function of some sorts on TV later that night. I couldn’t resist those cute outfits!! Haha!

Another Birthday Cake!

I think I’ve self appoint myself to be the birthday cake baker! I’ve been volunteering to bring/bake birthday cake for my friends whenever I attend their birthday celebration….provided I have the time to do so of course!

I enjoy making cakes look pretty and I do try to make them look as delectable as possible during special occasions like birthdays or holidays. I probably could make them pretty every time I bake a cake…but then those special occasion cakes won’t be that special anymore, right?

Last week, we celebrated Chris’ XXth Birthday……. Lets not review his age here and lets just say he doesn’t look his age! I made my green tea chiffon cake (now my favorite cake!) to celebrate his birthday at Fugakyu Restaurant. I baked the chiffon cake in a regular round pan (my second time) and it turned out great again!

I sliced the cake into half and filled the middle with some freshly whipped cream and sliced fresh strawberries. I frosted the outside with more freshly whipped cream and lined the outside with some chocolate pieces. Initially, I wanted to do the lazy and quick way by getting fresh lady fingers from the store to line the outside of the cake. I couldn’t find any at the store. So, I decided to put a little more effort, melted some bittersweet chocolate, spread them onto a baking sheet lined with foil, let them harden and arranged them along the sides of the cake.

To top off the cake……. more strawberries! Luscious strawberries and dark chocolate along with a red ribbon (to hold the chocolate) around the cake surely made the cake look deliciously tempting! Yums! The birthday boy and girl (we ended up celebrating 2 birthdays that night!) enjoyed the birthday cake! Yay! It was plenty to feed 15 guests! =)

 

Simple Vegetable Soup

I had friends over for dinner the past weekend and hubby was in charge of making the main course!  Yes, he cooks (whenever he’s given the chance!)!! I decided to make a soup as a precursor to hubby’s main course of Chicken Chop! '

It has been raining the whole day and soup was definitely great pick-me-up during such a gloomy day. I’ve always made cream based soup but this time, I decided to make a clear and healthier soup! Vegetable Soup! Hearty Vegetable Soup! It was easy to make (despite the many cutting/chopping!) and my guests commented that it was yummy! Yay! =)

SIMPLE VEGETABLE SOUP RECIPE

Ingredients:

• 3 Cloves Minced Garlic
• 2 Bay Leaves
• 1 Cup Chopped Onions
• 1 Cup Diced Potatoes
• 1 Cup Sliced,Celery (1/2” thick)
• 1 Cup Sliced Carrots (Halved and cut 1/2” thick)
• 1-1/2 Cups Sliced Zucchini (Halved and cut 1/2” Thick)
• 2 Cups Sliced Squashed (Halved and cut 1/2” thick)
• 3/4 Cup Diced Tomatoes
• 1/4 Cup Diced Red Pepper
• 2 Tbsp Chopped Parsley
• 4 Cups Vegetable Broth (or Chicken Broth)
• 4 Cups Water
• 2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
• 1/4 Tsp Black Pepper
• Salt, To Taste

Method:

In a large pot, heat 2 tbsp oil over medium heat. Once oil is hot, add garlic, onion, bay leaves, a pinch of salt, black pepper and cook until onion has soften. Then add potatoes, celery, carrots, zucchini, squash, and red pepper. Stir vegetables occasionally and cook for about 10 minutes.

Add vegetable broth and water and let soup boil. Then add 1 tbsp parsley and diced tomatoes and let soup simmer over medium low heat for about 1-1/2 hour. Season soup with more salt if needed and sprinkle in remaining chopped parsley before serving. This should serve about 4 people.

June’s notes: I had some leftovers and the soup taste so much flavorful the next day! =). If you want to make this soup more filling, feel free to boil some short pasta (i.e. macaroni elbow) in the soup.

Finale Desserterie & Bakery @ Cambridge, MA

 

 

Finale was once my all time favorite dessert place! Whenever we pass by Finale, we will definitely get a piece of their tiramisu and another of their yummy desserts. I’m not sure if I’ve been there to have lunch before but I remember sitting down for some coffee and desserts at Finale’s locations in Cambridge and Natick (unfortunately, closed now). Service was impeccable. Desserts were to die for.

My recent visit to Finale in Cambridge was a little disappointing. I brought my out of town guests to my favorite dessert place for lunch. Having not been there for a sit down lunch on a weekday, I wasn’t sure how their system worked. Instead of sitting down in the dining room, and have the wait staff take your order, etc…… patrons were asked to order (and pay) lunch from their dessert takeout counter. You will then be given a number to be taken to the dining area and placed at the edge of your table for the wait staff to see. Once your food is ready, the wait staff will bring the food over.

Apparently, you would also have to request and take your own drink from the bar (just a few steps from the cashier (where you ordered lunch) and bring it to your table! Our drinks weren’t topped up, so we had to bring our empty glasses to have the bar tender fill it up for us!

Oh yea, upon finishing my lunch… I waited..and waited..and waited (since the wait staff did not remove the “number” from me) for someone to bring out my dessert which I had ordered and paid for earlier. My dessert never came even though the empty plates were cleared. I asked the wait staff only to be told that I would have to get it myself from the dessert takeout counter…….. I definitely wasn’t too pleased with the dining experience and the service. Perhaps they minimize their service during weekday lunch hours?

Now that I’ve shared with you my dining experience……..let me share with you what we had for lunch. Derrick ordered a Roast Beef Sandwich (Bottom left) @ $6.99. The roast beef sandwich is served with horseradish mayonnaise, cheddar cheese, arugula and roasted red peppers on foccacia bread.  I think Audrey went for a Turkey Club Sandwich and Salad Combo (Bottom Right) $8.19. Smoked Turkey served with Gruyere Cheese, Tomato, Lettuce, Bacon and Mustard Mayo on Foccacia bread. I forgot if they liked what they ordered.

 

I ordered a Chicken Salad Sandwich (Bottom Left) @ $6.19. Poached chicken mixed with pecans, grapes, onion, celery and mayo served with lettuce on multigrain bread. This was good. In fact I enjoyed it very much that I replicated it at home the next day!!

And of course, following my regular tradition…I just had to order their Tiramisu (Bottom Right) @ $5.99, I think. The tiramisu wasn’t great. It did not taste like the yummy tiramisu I’ve had in the past. The outer decorative layer was tough and chewy (perhaps stale?). Coffee flavors were hardly noticeable. It tasted like vanilla cream with cocoa powder on the top. And I don’t think they put liquor in their tiramisu. My friends who tasted the tiramisu also agreed it definitely did not taste like one. What was supposed to be the highlight of my lunch was surely a disappointment! Boo!

I would probably drag the husband out for a date night and perhaps share a tiramisu @ Finale’s one weekend. It would be nice to be able to see how their service would be and if the tiramisu would taste better than my last visit!

Check out Finale’s locations HERE and their menu HERE.