Apple Crumble Pie

Ahhh the apple pie that was suppose to be part of the feast... Maybe next year....
Normally we would have this delightful dessert since apples are abundant this time of year. My cousins would eat this with vanilla ice cream... Apple ala Mode! Yummm. Traditionally, we would make the 2 crusted apple pie. But with the time constraint and the lack of helping hands, I have been making Apple Crumble for three years now. When I discovered this, it was heaven sent for me. I usually hate rolling the dough and fitting it on to the pie plate. I used to have a difficult time making an even leveled dough. One side would always be lopsided or thinner. But having baked a lot of pies (I can't count them anymore), I have somehow mastered by now. :)

Tips in making pie crusts:

1) Use cold lard or butter instead of soften or melted.
2) Flaky crusts are made when bits of lard or butter is layered between flour then melts when baked.
3) Add 2 tablespoons of cold water at a time and gradually increase until the dough binds well. If added too much liquid, add a little more flour. Too little water would produce a crumbly dry dough.
4) Don't overwork the dough else it may become tough.
5) Use wax paper or plastic wrap when rolling out dough for less mess on the counter.
6) Start from the center when rolling out the chilled dough towards the end for a more even distribution.
7) Chill the pie crust prior to baking. This will help retaining the shape of the fluted pie border.
8) Peirce the bottom with a few holes using a fork.
9) Brush the bottom with egg white or bake for a few minutes to prevent a soggy bottom.
10) Cut vents to avoid the lower crust from being soggy and it will allow the steam to excape.

Oriental Steamed Fish

We went to the market to buy seafood a day before the big day. We bought prawns, crabs and lapu-lapu (grouper). I would have enjoyed taking photographs because of the wide variety of fresh foods but I would need both of my hands to carry everything else. So I decided not to bring my camera or cellphone. Maybe in the future, I will get my chance to showcase the abundant treasures the wet market has to offer.

As part of the Christmas feast, we added this dish. Everyone loves how I make it and I decided to share the recipe with you. It is simple and easy to do. The important tip can share with you is that the fish should be at its most freshest state. If you could get live ones, the dish would taste alot better. The meat would be tender and succulent. This is making me hungry for another bite... :)

The Ingredients:

800 grams - 1 kilo whole fish, cleaned, slit both sides with 2 diagonal slits, patted dry
1/4 teaspoon rock salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 inch ginger, peeled and sliced into disks
1/2 - 3/4 inch ginger, peeled and sliced into very thin strips
5-8 stalks of green onions, sliced to 2 inch strips
1 small red onion, peeled and sliced thinly
1/4 cup corn or canola oil
2 tablespoon sesame oil
2-3 tablespoon soy sauce

Cooking Procedure:

Place water in a steamer and bring to a boil. Insert ginger disks into the cavity and slits of the fish; let the ginger marinate into the fish to remove the "fishy" smell and taste. Lay the fish on top of the oiled steamer rack. The oiled layer helps the fish from sticking.

If there is no steamer available, take a large wide pan with a lid, add water and place a heat resistant bowl on the center with a heat resistant oiled platter on top. Make sure that when you place the fish, it will fit onto the platter and the pan can be covered well so that the steam would not escape. If the fish happens to be to large, you may slice it into too.

Once the water starts to boil, place the steam rack on top and allow the fish to cook for 25-30 minutes. To know if the fish is done, the juices should run clear and when pierced, the meat is flaky. Try not to overcook else the meat becomes dry.

Once the fish is done, transfer onto the serving dish. Remove the excess liquid from the serving dish; discard the ginger disks then sprinkle with salt and sugar. Heat the corn or canola oil. Arrange the remaining sliced ginger, onions and green onions on the fish. Pour over the soy sauce over the fish. When you see wisps of smoke, add the sesame oil then pour over the fish. This gives a shiny finished look and emits an aromatic scent as the oil cooks the ginger and onions. Just be careful that you do not splatter the oil onto your skin. Serve hot.

Buttered Garlic Shrimps

Everytime there is a special occasion at home, mom would prepare this simple, easy and yummy crustaceans (next to crabs of course). Each member of the family to grab their own share trying to look for the biggest and juiciest. Mom would pile them really high, placing the medium and small sized on top. When everyone have taken their first share of shrimps, Mom would then dig into the bottom center and grab the most biggest and juiciest prawn ever. A sure clever trick.

After peeling away each shrimp, we would dip it back to the butter garlic sauce that was cooked in. Dad prefers to dip his in vinegar will lots of crushed garlic and a pinch of salt. Anyway eaten, they taste really great and one would always go back for more.

The Ingredients:
1-2 lbs. (1 kilo) of fresh shrimps, whiskers trimmed
1 tbsp. rock salt
1 12oz Sprite or 7-up
1 1/2 heads of garlic, peeled and crushed
1/3 cup butter

Cooking Procedure:
Place the shrimp in a frying pan or wok and season with salt. Pour in the soda. Cover the pan and heat for 8 minutes or until the shrimps are bright in color. Do not over cook because the shrimps will become tough. Set aside.

Melt butter. Saute in the garlic until they become tender and light brown in color but not burnt. Toss in the cooked shrimp in the butter garlic mixture. Add a few tablespoons of the liquid used in boiling the shrimp. Simmer for a minute or two then transfer into a serving plate.