No Butter Cookies

Not getting much done in the kitchen (or around the house!) this week as Mr B is working hard on getting the new bathroom finished.

Here's a great store cupboard recipe for spice cookies though - good for keeping hungry tradies happy at morning tea time AND dairy free.

1/2 cup oil (I use rice bran oil, but any vegetable oil is fine)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups plain flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground ginger

pinch salt

Preheat oven to 200 C and line a couple of baking trays.

Mix ingredients in the order listed.  Roll into walnut sized balls and press lightly with your thumb to flatten if you like.

Bake for 8 - 10 minutes.  Cool on tray for a few minutes before removing to a wire rack.

Makes around 30 cookies.

Japanese Ginger Pork

I caught up with a couple of fellow tai-tai girlfriends for coffee this morning and we got to talking about what "staple" meals we like to cook. I discovered that most of mine involve ginger! Possibly to do with the pregnancy thing - ginger supposedly being a cure for the nausea and morning sickness - but I have to confess this has been a favourite since the good old days of Yoshinoya hangovers in Tokyo.

Ginger Pork
Buta no Shoga Yaki

Serves 4 (ie pregnant Mrs B, Mr B and enough left over for lunch the next day)

3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin
1/2 - 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (to taste)
2/3 lb sliced pork (I used "suki yaki" sliced pork today, sometimes buy "shabu shabu" pork)
sunflower or vegetable oil for frying the pork

Mix together the soy sauce, mirin and ginger and dip the pork into this marinade briefly just before cooking.

Heat a little oil in the frying pan over a medium heat. Remove the pork from the marinade and add to the pan, making sure it doesn't stick together or curl up (I can fit in about 4 slices at a time). Turn over after a minute or so and cook until both sides are browned. Don't leave it too long (it's v thin and will cook quickly) but make sure it's cooked through.

Serve on steamed rice. The book I got the recipe from suggests serving with lightly stir-fried beansprouts (trim off the ends) - stir fry them in a little oil and about a tablespoon of garlic. Mike and I prefer very very thinly shredded cabbage, but the sprouts are nice, I've tried them before :)