Monkeying around in the kitchen

Here are some recent explorations from my kitchen (with occasional help from Mom):

Chicken Pesto pizza, a relatively simple pizza made from store-bought pesto, grilled chicken, mozzarella and Provolone cheeses.

New Haven White Clam pizza,  a new favorite of my son and I.  I can't believe how simple it is to make this pizza, much easier than a traditional pizza.  The pizza dough recipe that I used in making these pizzas was from Frank Stitt's book,  Bottega Favorita:  A Southern Chef's Love Affair with Italian Food.  A great book!

These kue talam ubi were made of mashed ground sweet potato with tapioca flour, sugar, and salt. Steamed in a little Chinese wine cups, and top with a mixture of tapioca flour, coconut milk, and salt. They are just heavenly.

Kue putu mayang is next.  Ground rice flour, sugar and salt are the basic components in making this traditional Indonesian snack. Mine is far from perfect; the recipe definitely needs tweaking. But the sauce is perfect; coconut milk, salt, palm sugar, and durian paste!

Last one will be the monkey bread that I just made today. Unfortunately it is not made from scratch but rather from a mix. For a slight variation, I used a mixture of raisins, dried cranberries, and walnut for the topping. Oh, the soft texture of the bread is so irresistible!