TAPAS AVACADO

One of the many delights of visiting Spain is the rich tradition of tapas. The origin of tapas is unclear, but one legend has it that tapas was fist cooked for King Alonso X, the ruler of Castile in the thirteenth century. The king, suffering from an illness, was required to eat small quantities of food and wine between meals. On his recovery, he advocated that wine was not to be served in inns without something more solid to accompany it.


In contemparary Spain, tapas remains an essential and integral part of Spanish lifestyle, usually served between lunch and dinner in cafes and bars with an aperatif, such as wine, sherry and cider. This provides an ideal stopping point for people returning home in the evening, and also offers friends and colleagues the chance to unwind at the end of the day.

This “tapa”, a word which means a “cover”or “lid”. Tapa is no longer the preserve of Spain, with numerous tapas bars and restaurants springing up in cosmopolitian cities throughout the world. It is also becoming increasingly popular to make and enjoy at home.

Book: Greatest Ever Tapas

AVOCADO TAPAS

Ingredients:

• 2 pieces avocado
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small onion- chopped finely
• 2 garlic clove- mashed
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• Salt and pepper
• Fresh dill and chilipowder for garnish

Preparing:

1. Halve the avocados lengthwise and remove and discard the pits. Using a teaspoon, carefully scoop out the flesh without piercing the shells. Reserve the shells and cut the flesh and put in a bowl with the lemon juice.
2. Add olive oil, onion, garlic, salt and pepper and mix gently.
3. Spoon the mixture into the avocado shells and place them on serving plate. Spread chili powder and dill on avocados and serve.

FRUİT BASKET 2

Star fruit
It is a pleasure both to the taste and to the eyes. Its subtle fragrance and sweet zesty flavor complements many commercial drinks and this thirst-quenching fruit is also often eaten fresh out of hand. When cut crossways, slices of the fruit have a star shape and often attractively adorn salads, cakes and desserts.

Mangosteen
The apple-shaped fruit has a deep purple leathery skin. Its interior has 5-7 segments of juicy white flesh, some contaning a large seed. The segments are enclosed in dark pink pith, which should be removed before eating. The flesh is sweety refreshing, highly fragrant and slightly tart. Eat it fresh or add to fruit salad.

Jackfruit
An extremely popular local dessert fruit, it is the largest tree borne fruit in the world and can weight over 15kg. Average sized fruits are 30-60cm long and 23-30 cm wide. The skin is yelloish green with small spiny knobs and its custardy juicy flesh has a delightfully sweer flavour. Each fruit contains a white seed which seed is edible if boiled or roasted.

ÇÖREK..

Çörek means salted pastry in Turkish. They are very popular that can be found everywhere, at supermarkets, cafes, restaurants and pastry shops. Of course, the most delicious ones always prepared at home. Below is my mother's recipe that she prepares spontaneously when she doesn’t have anything to offer her uninformed guests and doesn’t have time for preparing, she run into the kitchen, choice ingredients, put them in a mix-bowl without measuring but always correct amount, mix them and place them in the oven in 3 minutes.
I haven’t discovered original recipe but I think this recipe is very close one.

INGREDIENTS:

• 150 gr. Butter or margarine- room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ cup yogurt
• ½ cup cheese- grated
• 1 tablespoon caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon mahaleb
• 1 teaspoon dried mint
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon black cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon sesame
• Dill – handful, chopped
• Parsley- handful, chopped
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 ½ -3 cups white flour

PREPARING

1. Preheat oven 180˚C, place baking sheet on oven tray.
2. Put butter, eggs, olive oil, yogurt and chesee in a mix-bowl and stir well.
3. Add other ingredients except baking powder and flour, stir well.
4. Mix baking powder and flour in another bowl and add the mixture and stir well.
5. Form the dough round shape and baked 20 minutes or until they are golden.
   Served with tea.
   

COLORFUL...

DANCE IN MALAYSIA

COLORFUL

FRUIT BASKET

Rambutan
It can either have a deep red or bright yellow leathery skin with numerous prominent green tipped curly hairs extending from the surface. Its flesh is translucent, delicately fragranced with an excellently sweet sharp flavor. Eaten fresh of the hand, rambutans are a particularly welcomed snack in hot weather. They are also used in a variety of drinks and desserts.

Pineapple
With a spiky green plume of leaves, a whole pineapple is probably one of the most spectacular exotic fruits. Its warm and distinctive aroma is very pleasing. A very versatile fruit, its ripe juicy tangy flesh is delicious on its own for a good pineapple need no enhancement. It is also gorgeous in drinks, chutneys, curries, desserts and garnishes.

Papaya
Malaysia is blessed with a variety of this extremely luscious and sweet fruit. Some remain green when ripe but turn deep yellow or orange. Papaya has a beatiful, delicately fragrant, salmon pink flesh with an abundance of grey-black seeds in its central cavity. Serve papaya slices solo, as a tantalising dessert, or cubed and add to fruit salads, curries, salsas or yogurts.

Mango
It may be the world’s most popular and most luxurious fruit. They come in a variety of shapes, sizes, textures, aromas and tastes. Its meltingly soft luscious yellow flesh sometimes has a zesty overtone. Often eaten fresh, its pulp is also used in drinks, preserves, desserts and as flavoring to many foods.

CONFESSION ABOUT BEANS....

Ok..Don’t panic.. everything is ok.. It is easy.. I can do this... I mean, how difficult it can be, they are such small vegetables. I know, my last attempt was a disaster and the previous one tragic, but today it will be different. I got a new recipe from a real Turkish chef.. If I can follow his recipe.. Don’t panic..Don’t...



BARBUNYA WITH OLIVE OIL (Borlotti/Roman Beans)

Ingredients:

• 250 gr. preferably "fresh" Barbunya beans (Borlotti/Roman beans)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped finely
• 1 green pepper, chopped finely
• 3 piece garlics, chopped finely
• 2 celery sticks, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 tomatoes, grated
• Half tablespoon tomato paste
• Salt
• Parsley, chopped
  

Preparation:

1. Wash beans and drain.place in a large saucepan with water and bring to boil. When they get softer, remove pan from heat and change their water.
2. In a frying pan, heat oil. Add onion and garlic, cook gently until transparent. Add carrot, pepper and celery, and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and tomato paste, and stir for 2 minutes.
3. Drain beans and mix the others. Add salt and water, and bring to boil for 15 minutes.
   Transfer to a deep dish for serving and sprinkle with parsley. Serve be warm.

REDANG ISLAND..

...

Pulau Redang, located 50 km. off the coast of Kuala Terengganu is the largest of a group of islands dotting the South China sea off the Terengganu coast. Pulau Redang is the largest island in the area, and the others are pulau ekor, pulau tebu, pulau ling, pulau pinang, pulau bidong, pulau lang tengah, pulau lima. The islands offers crystal clear waters and numerous dive sites for the enthusiast. Sheltered within the Pulau Redang Marine Park, the waters here abound with marine life. At mid-day, when the rays of the sun penetrate the sea, corals, anemones and clams may be seen.
This island is perfect for snorkelling, scuba diving, jungle trekking and boating. No fishing is allowed within a 3.2 km. radius of the island as Pulau Redang is gazetted as a marine park. The collection of corals and other aquatic life is also prohibited.
Open season starts from March to October.

If you want to go to island by air, you have to take paddle-wheel plane which is look like 007 James Bond films’ plane because this is only airline to fly to island. When you arrive the island, first you can thanks to God as you still alive then can start your amazing holiday. There are lots of attraction that can pleased you. To take island tour and discover under the sea, sprawl out on white sand beaches while sipping your coconut juice, visit traditional Malay villages and chat with locals or do jungle trekking...

The island is also an important conservation site for sea turtles. Previously, the indiscriminate economic exploitation of turtle eggs had caused fewer turtles returning to nest on the island. This has led the Terengganu state government to set up the Koperasi Setiajaya Pulau Redang in 1989, a cooperative aiming to develop and manage socio-economic programmes that could improve the livelihood of Pulau Redang locals without endangering its natural resources.