This was my contribution for my children’s play date during the school hols – Sesame Prawn Toast.
I made these because I had a hunch there would be too many ‘kiddy’ dishes for the children and not enough ‘grown-up’ food for the adults. And I was right! The other mommies brought doughnuts, cocktail sausages, chicken nuggets and cookies. Sigh. Mommies … always putting our children before ourselves 😉
And kids being kids, they made a beeline for the doughnuts and cookies at the word, “Go!” Afterward, they attacked the sausages and nuggets as soon as they polished off the sugary stuff.
So it was just as well my dish didn’t interest them – “Eeeks!” they said … when I told them it was sesame and prawn on the toast – else we adults would be left with nothing to eat! I was really happy to see that my friends liked what I made. The original recipe called for the bread to be fried in oil. I made a few of them this way, but at the same time, sent another batch straight to the oven. Verdict? We all preferred the healthier, fuss-free, oven-toasted version!
It was about 4 in the afternoon when we had them and it made for a wonderful, light hors d’oevre. We washed it down with freshly brewed coffee and a good dose of adult conversation. How I love play dates! For 2 hours, the kids have fun (turning the house upside down) while the mommies take a breather. And the world is at peace.
Recipe
(adapted from Sallie Morris’ Easy Thai Cookbook)
For the prawn paste
– 6 medium sized cooked prawns (shelled, deveined and boiled briefly)
– 6 water chestnuts, peeled and chopped very roughly
– 1 garlic clove, smashed
– 3 coriander stems
– 1 tbsp fish sauce
– 1 tbsp corn flour
– 1 tsp sugar
– 1 egg white, lightly beaten
– salt and pepper
– 2 tsp light oil (or if you really want flavour, lard in place of oil)
– small dash of sesame oil
You’ll also need
– 6 slices of bread (a day old, crusts removed, cut into triangles)
– 2 tsp white sesame seeds
1. In a food processor, blend all the ingredients for the paste.
2. Spread the paste on the bread triangles and scatter sesame seeds all over. Press the seeds down lightly so that they adhere to the paste.
3. Place the bread into the oven toaster and toast for about 10mins, or until the bread turns a light golden brown.
4. As I was taking them to the play date, I only toasted very lightly the first time. Then, when it was time to eat, I re-toasted them again to a deeper brown. Best eaten warm and toasty … for lack of a better word!
