I Heart Gelato

Pistachio gelato

Pistachio

A bowl of pistachio after deshelling, blanching and deskinning.

Deshelling and deskinning take a lot of time and patience. A bowl took me almost a couple of hours.

Cashew nuts after blanching

Pistachio and cashew purée.

I added honey, hot water and a pinch of salt into the mixer. Chill the purée after.

Heated gelato base (milk, granulated sugar and cornstarch) before being chilled overnight

After frozen overnight, add the pistachio puree and a few drops of citrus juice (lemon or orange is fine) to the gelato base.

Finally, freeze the gelato in an ice–cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. I don't have an ice–cream maker, so I freeze it in the freezer.

Yes, I do love gelato. I'm not a fan of ice–cream, but gelato is a different story all together. What's the difference, you may ask?

It's common to hear people referring to gelato as Italian ice–cream. There are significant differences between gelato and ice–cream. Gelato contains less fat than ice–cream, has less incorporated air, and is served at a higher temperature. Gelato provides a greater flavour experience because there is less fat coating the tongue, more flavourful per spoonful due to less air, and the taste buds are more 'alive' since the temperature isn't so cold as to dull their sensitivity. Not to mention fewer calories to burn!

Ice–cream is usually made in large industrial batches, uses ingredients designed for lengthy storage, has limited flavours, and is stocked for sale in supermarts. Authentic Italian gelato, on the other hand, is produced fresh practically everyday in relatively small quantities, is sold directly to the public, and is available in large number of flavours – usually based on fresh ingredients that make the gelato creamy and colourful.

It is therefore correct to maintain a clear distinction between the two products, even linguistically. (Sources: www.gelatouniversity.com)

The weird thing is, I don't really like pistachio on its own, but I love pistachio gelato. Living in a state where gelato is an alien word to many of its occupants, I decided to make my own.

Oh boy, you need a lot of time and patience if you'd like to make your own gelato all from scratch. By that, I mean deshelling, blanching and deskinning a substantial amount of pistachio. I've had cuts on my thumbs from deshelling. I don't think I'll make this again in the near future. Too much work.

Although the pistachio gelato didn't taste anything like store–bought ones, I love the smooth homemade pistachio purée.

Kitchen Slave II

Avocado salad with sliced capcicums, tomatoes, olive pomace oil and lemon juice.

My two big trays of bread pudding topped with sliced apples and raisins. Yes, I made these again, this time for a friend.

Up close. Serve it plain, with milk or vanilla custard sauce.

Nasi lemuni (lemuni rice) with ayam masak merah (chicken in red sauce).

Nasi lemuni is a Northern specialty dish. The lemuni leaves lend a fragrant scent to the rice. If it's done right, it tastes better than nasi lemak (coconut rice).

You can serve nasi lemuni with any side dishes. The Northerners usually serve it with nasi lemak's side dishes and condiments such as fried anchovies, sambal sotong (squid sambal), etc.

A refreshing drink of palm sugar syrup with basil seeds

Some dishes I whipped up recently.

Seafood Platter

Sambal sotong (squid sambal)

Cucur udang (prawn fritters)

Tasty nasi goreng kampung (village–style fried rice), one of my sister's culinary specialties.

Steamed mentarang (local clams)

Ikan masak asam pedas (fish in hot and sour broth)

Kari mamak (fish curry with no added milk or coconut milk)

Ikan kembung masak taucu (Indian mackerel or chubbs in black bean sauce)

My sister's laksa utara.

Laksa utara is a fish–based 'curry' noodle cooked with ground shallots & galangal, lemon grass, dried asam/tamarind slices, bunga kantan (torch ginger buds) & salt.

Each state/region in Malaysia has its own version of laksa. Some use fish as the curry base, some use coconut milk (laksa lemak), some add pineapples, etc.

Garnish the laksa utara with sliced cucumber, onions, red chillies, daun kesum (Vietnamese mint leaf) & bunga kantan (torch ginger buds).

Zulhijjah Yummies

Ayam percik (hot and spicy barbecued chicken) on the grill

Imagine biting into these tender barbecued meat coated with thick hot and spicy sauce. Yum!

Fried chicken patties

Malay–style fried chicken

Stir–fry long beans with scrambled eggs

Dodol (traditional toffee–like candy made of glutinous flour, rice flour, coconut milk, palm sugar, granulated sugar and salt)

Mostly homemade dishes in the month of Zulhijjah 1429H.

Sweet Treats IV

Kuih cara, made of wheat flour, screwpine leaf syrup and coconut milk.

Apom (steamed rice cakes)

The popular pau (steamed buns), RM0.50 or 50 sen each. Cheap!

Pau kacang and pau kaya (steamed red bean buns and steamed coconut jam buns)

Cucur badak (sweet potato fritters stuffed with fried coconut and chilli shrimps)

Dangai (steamed glutinous rice and grated coconut snack)

Packed–to–go steamed dhal

Bihun goreng (stir–fry vermicelli noodles)

Laksam (broad rice noodles in sour fish curry)

Remember this? I went to the same stall for some sweet treats recently. Still didn't get to try the laksa (broad rice noodles in fish curry), which is not to be mistaken with laksam, and mee kari (curry noodles). Next time perhaps.