Style Fish Soup with Cassava

My Grand mother and my mother used to make Gangan (Belitung style fish soup) for our family. We lived near seaside when I was a kid, no wonder I love seafood. Guess, what is the best part I love in this soup?. Cassava!

ingredients:
500 g mackerel, discard inside, wash and cut into pieces
500 g cassava, cut into pieces
1 l water
2 bay leaves/daun salam
1 tablespoon tamarind paste + 100 ml hot water, sifted
1 teaspoon sugar, salt to taste

spices to grind: 3 shallots, 3 candlenuts, 2 cloves garlic, 2 cm ginger, 2 cm galangal, 3 cm turmeric, 4 bird´s eye chillies, 1 tsp shrimp paste/terasi/belacan, 2 cm lemon grass (take the white part only)

directions:
Boil water in a saucepan. Add spices, tamarind juice, bay leaves and cassava. Lower the heat, add mackerel, salt and sugar to taste. Simmer until the fish and cassava quite tender. Be careful not to overcook or they will disintegrate.

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Fermented Cassava Cake

Ingredients:
4 eggs
100 gr caster sugar
1.5 tsp cake emulsifier (optional)
150 gr all purpose flour + ¼ tsp baking powder, shifted
200 gr good quality of Tape (fermented cassava), discard the thin woody core
100 gr margarine, melted
1 tbs vanilla essence
50 gr roasted nuts, chopped (I used kenari or Java Almond or Pili Nuts)
50 gr sultanas or raisins
20x20x4cm baking pan, greased and lined with baking paper

Method:
Put raisins/sultanas in a small bowl, pour boiling water just until covered, let it soaked for 3-4 minutes until puffed, rinse and pat dry in papertowel.
Mix raisins, nuts and flour, set aside.
Beat fermented cassava, margarine and vanilla using electrical mixer at medium speed for one minute. Fold in mixed flour, continue to beat for a half minutes until well blended, set a side.
At another bowl, beat eggs, sugar and cake emulsifier at full speed until thick, fluffy and pale.
Fold into cassava mixture in four batch, stir well using spatula or wooden spoon for each addition until well combined.
Pour into prepared pan, bake until done.
Remove from the pan, let it cool. Cut and serve with your favourite topping (chocolates, cream cheese or simply dust with confectioner sugar and cinnamon powder, or served with 1-2 scoops of ice cream, yummm...)

Note:
You may substitute margarine with vegetable oil or butter, or combination of both, add a pinch of salt for better taste.

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Mandarin Orange Tapioca Jell-O Dessert

This recipe is quite refreshing, and comes in really handy when you have a lot of left-over mandarin oranges from Chinese New Year. You can also buy those canned mandarin oranges, if you are too busy, or if it is not a mandarin oranges season.

Ingredients:

1. 2 packets tapioca pudding mix
2. 1 (3oz.) box of orange jelly mix
3. 2 2/3 cups water
4. 1 tube (8oz.) Cool Whip whipped cream
5. 2 mandarin oranges, peeled and separated

Preparation:

• Place tapioca mix, orange jelly mix and water in a small pot, bring to a boil, and cook till it thickens; stir constantly.
• Remove from heat while continue to stir constantly, let it cool down.
• When it is cool, mix in the whipped cream and mandarin oranges and transfer into dessert bowls.
• Place them in the refrigerator to set.

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Hot Cassava Biscuits Recipe

Flavors of France
Total time: 15 to 30 minutes
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 20 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients
Ingredients for about 2 dozen biscuits
- 450 g (1 lb.) sweet Cassava (Yuca)
- 4 tbsp. soft butter
- 4 tbsp. shortening
- 125 ml (1/2 cup) sugar
- 1 egg
- 750 ml (3 cups) fresh grated Coconut
- 500 ml (2 cups) flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder

Method

• with a sharp knife, peel the brown skin from the cassava; grate it; place in a double layer of cheesecloth and squeeze tightly to extract all the juice;
• in a bowl, cream the butter; add the shortening and sugar; beat well until light; mix in the egg, cassava and coconut;
• combine the baking powder and flour; add 125 ml (1/2 cup) flour to the butter-cassava mixture and mix well; continue until the flour is all added;
• on a floured surface, knead the dough for 3 minutes, pressing well with the palm of your hand and folding the dough over on itself;
• roll out to a thickness of 5 mm (1/4");
• using a cookie cutter or glass 5 cm (2") in diameter, cut out the biscuits;
• place on a non-stick baking sheet; bake in a preheated 200°C (400°F) oven for about 20 minutes or until firm and golden;
• serve immediately.

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Menadonese Sweet Corn, Cassava & Pumpkin Soup

Serves 4 as a one-dish meal or 8 as a soup

• 8 ounces cassava (also called yucca root, see Note), peeled and cut into largish cubes
• 2 ounces white rice, soaked in cold water for 30 minutes, then drained
• 3 fresh corn cobs, shaved, or 6 ounces canned or frozen corn kernels
• 8 to 10 ounces pumpkin or butternut squash, peeled and cut into cubes the same size as the cassava
• 4 ounces bamboo shoots, sliced (optional)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt + more to taste
• To be added just before serving:
• 1 lemongrass stem, outer leaves discarded, finely minced and smashed
• 1 turmeric leaf, finely shredded (optional)
• 8 ounces young spinach, thoroughly washed
• 8 ounces kangkung (water spinach), trimmed and washed (optional, or can substitute more baby spinach)
• 8 ounces hot water from the kettle
• About 20 fresh sweet basil leaves

Instructions: First, put 4 1/2 cups water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. When boiling, add the cassava and rice, and cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Next, add the sweet corn, pumpkin, bamboo shoots (if using), and the 1 teaspoon salt. Continue to simmer for 20-25 minutes. The mixture is now ready to become the basis of the soup, and can be prepared and cooked up to this point well in advance. Refrigerate or keep in a cool place until ready to serve.

Just before serving, reheat the soup. When hot, add the lemongrass, turmeric (if using), spinach, and water spinach or additional spinach (if using). Pour in the hot water from the kettle. Simmer for 5 minutes. Adjust the seasoning with a little extra salt if needed, and add the basil leaves. Simmer for 1 minute, then serve the soup.

Note: Cassava or yucca root can be found at Asian markets.

Per serving: 212 calories, 8 g protein, 46 g carbohydrate, 1 g fat (0 saturated), 0 cholesterol, 770 mg sodium, 6 g fiber.

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