Sweet Crumbs

Soya Sauce Chicken

2011-12-02T14:58:00.002+08:00

When time doesn't permit or I'm short of ingredients for a simple meal, I will have myself a plate of dark soya sauce chicken with plain rice. It is a relatively simple dish to prepare, which I must say only takes 20min of my time. I enjoy home cooked food, so this is a dish that I will occassionally prepare.

All I need are:

A
Few slices of ginger
4-6 chicken wings
4 tbsp dark soya sauce
1 1/2 cup of water
a clove of garlic

B

1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp corn starch
dash of salt and pepper
2 tsp sesame oil
1 1/2 tsp Hua Tiao wine

Pour A into pot and boil over small fire
Stir occassionally
Pour in B and mix well
Stir thoroughly to ensure chicken is well cooked
Cook for about 20min for all seasoning to reach the meat and dish is ready to serve

Tomato Sauce Pork Chop

2011-11-02T15:07:00.002+08:00

Pork chop is one of my favourite dish since young. Especially those with the tomato sauce pork chop. My version here doesn't have fried potato slices. However, you may wish to add in fried sliced potato slices or strips together with the tomato gravy.

Here are the few simple steps to follow.
Have aside the following:

Meat
2 slices of pork chop, deboned
salt and pepper
2 tsp of sesame oil
2 tsp of Hua Tiao wine
1 egg
6 pieces of cream crackers/plain biscuits - crushed into fine crumbs

Sauce
5 tbsp of tomato sauce, mixed with 3 tbsp of sweet chili sauce and 3 tbsp water
1 tsp corn starch
2 small onions, cut
1 slice of canned pineapple, keeping 2 tbsp of syrup

Some oil for frying

After adding seasoning to meat, dip the meat into egg
After dipping into egg, place meat onto biscuit crumbs and ensure all parts of meat is covered

Heat oil in wok and start frying meat when oil is hot
Once meat is cooked, remove and drain away oil.
Cut into strips.
Prepare for sauce.

SAUCE PREPARATION
Mix the sauce together including pineapple syrup (except pineapple pieces)
Fry onion till lightly browned
Pour in the sauce and cook over heat
Add in pineapple pieces
After stirring for a few min, remove and pour over the meat
Dish is ready to serve

Pineapple pieces/cubes

Frying both sides to make sure meat is thoroughly cooked.

My version of pork chop is good to be eaten on its own too!

Enjoy the dish.

You may wish to add in lychee, cucumber or potato if desired.

One of my favourite cake

2011-10-10T22:17:00.005+08:00

What's brown, yellow with swirls in it? No prize for guessing. It's Marble Cake.

Marble cake is one of my favourite cake. I've done a marble cake post before but this is an improved version with chocolate coating and strawberry decor.

We had a gathering over the National Day holiday to celebrate 4 of our friends' birthday. The folks came over to our place for a potluck session, so I thought why buy a birthday cake when I can bake one? I may not bake the most fantastic cake in the world (or Singapore), but I can attempt to do one :) Marble cake came to my mind because it is relatively simple and I guess palatable to most people.

I like the swirls inside :)

Top it with a strawberry to make it more appetising. Chocolate + strawberry = pleasure!

Here's the recipe I got from Baking: A Commonsense Guide with slight modification.

1 tsp vanilla extract

185g unsalted butter, chopped

230g caster sugar (I had 210g)

3 eggs

280g self raising flour, sifted

185ml milk

2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder mixed with 1.5 tbsp warm milk

1 Preheat oven to 200 deg C and lightly grease and line a round pan

2 Add vanilla extract to a bowl of butter and sugar, and use electric beaters to cream the mixture till light and fluffy.

3 Add the eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition

4 Fold the flour into the mixture alternatively with the milk until combined

5 Divide the mixture into 2/3 and 1/3 (original from book is 1/2) into separate bowls

6 Combine the cocoa mixture into the smaller 1/3 portion and combine well

7 Spoon the 2 portions alternatively using a spoon into the pan

8 Use a metal skewer and cut through the mixture to create a marble effect (do not overdo it)

9 Bake for 50-60min and leave in the tin for 5 min before removing

To make the chocolate coating, double boil 125g of dark chocolate with 20g of butter

Stir well then cream the chocolate coating onto the cake when cake has cooled

Refrigerate it and it will be ready to serve after the coating has set in

Ngoh Hiang

2011-09-01T22:26:00.001+08:00

This is one of my favourite dish but it's alot of hard work. You should dedicate your time to making this dish as there are several steps to follow. This version is from my mom who puts in alot of effort and I'm learning the ropes because it tastes so good that I have to try. I always tell myself there is no short cut to anything. I believe that if you want to truly enjoy good food, you have to be patient, and work towards perfecting it :D

Sorry folks, it's a sought after item in the house that I didn't manage to take close up and cross sectional shots :D

Ngoh Hiang is one of the Hokkein dish that is made up of mainly minced pork and water chestnut then wrapped in beancurd skin. Frying the skin gives the salty crispy texture.

Here is a guestimation of what I did for my family lunch for 6 today.

Some minced pork - roughly about 400g
Beancurd sheet - need to be wiped thoroughly as it contains alot of sodium
About 3-5 prawns - deshelled and deveined - chopped
3 Water chestnuts - washed, peeled and chopped
1/2 egg - beaten
Seasoning - sesame oil, pepper, salt, 5 spice powder
Oil for frying

1. Mix minced pork with chopped water chestnut and prawn

2. Add half an egg mixture to the meat (so the content becomes smooth and not crumbly). Mix.

3. Add seasoning and mix well

4. Cut the beancurd sheet into rectangle shapes and fill a tbsp of minced pork into the sheet

5. Line them in a row then row the sheet

6. Line the end of each roll with some egg so it sticks together well

7. Steam all the ngoh hiang till meat is cooked, and colour of beancurd sheet turns lighter

8. Dap dry before frying them in hot oil

9. Turn the sides to ensure they are thoroughly cooked

10. Serve when hot.

This goes well with sweet sauce or Thai sweet chilli sauce.

Our lunch on Sunday

2011-07-30T15:35:00.002+08:00

The master of the house doesn't like messy and oily kitchen. He has spotted some ants around in the kitchen ever since we started cooking a month or two ago.. Ive always kept the kitchen really clean, at least to my standard and I'm quite a clean freak actually. But if you start cooking in the house, you can expect your friendly pests coming for a visit very soon.

Anyway here's our Sunday lunch with Broccoli and Mushrooms.

It is a relatively easy task to do and the result is quite satisfying for me

Stir Fry Broccoli with Mushrooms
Broccoli (one floret - to cut, wash and boiled in water for a short while)
1/2 tsp of minced garlic
Sliced Chinese dried mushroom (about 4-5)
(Chinese mushrooms must be washed and soaked for at least an hour to soften it. When soft, cut away stem and keep the water)
1-2 tbsp of oyster sauce mixed with 1 tsp of cornstarch and some water to dilute
Light soya sauce
Some cooking oil

1. Heat wok with a little oil
2. Fry garlic till semi brown
3. Fry mushroom for a while then add in boiled broccoli
4. Throw in the mushroom water then oyster sauce mix
5. Cover wok and let the dish simmer for a few min
6. Add salt and pepper and some soya sauce if required. (I add some sesame oil as well)
7. Serve.

About Broccoli

Broccoli is one of the healthiest vegetable. I used to hate broccoli alot because of its shape, texture and colour. It took me some 30 years to get over it and finally eat it because of its numerous health benefits. For a start, broccoli has numerous anti cancer, anti viral and anti bacterial properties, and is high Vitamin C and dietary fibre. It also contains beta carotene like carrots (seen from its rich colour) and reduces the risk of prostate cancer. However boiling it for too long reduces the benefits significantly. If possible, do not cook it for too long.

Enjoy!

My other pictures - totally unrelated :)

2011-06-30T15:56:00.000+08:00

Hi folks.. here are some of my other pre wedding and wedding shots :)

Totally not related to my blog, but just want to share before I start on my culinary posts.

Avalanche of events

2011-06-19T18:44:00.003+08:00

Sorry folks, I have been lagging in my posts and neglecting my blog. This is not usual cos I just got married in May! Here's a sneak preview of my pre wedding shoot to those who still log into my blog :)

The shoot was taken in Perth in Sept last year, which explains for my very delayed telecast of my bakes. Lots of planning and effort went to choosing the studio and preparing the necessary logistics for the Perth shoot. We had to coordinate with our parents who went along with us as well. It was fun but tiring. The weather was cool and sometimes very chilly depending on where we went. It was a fun experience I must say. It was all worth it and I love most of the photos.

Then after that, with actual day wedding and a house to tackle, it is no joke that I dont even have time to have a decent sleep. Let alone my blog. The house reno was a massive job, even more massive than the wedding prep. The actual day wedding activities went quite smoothly and the dinner was the smoothest and fastest I've ever seen!

And right after the wedding was our honeymoon. It was like a avanlanche of events that took place. I can't keep the sense of balance.. I hardly had the time to breathe and before I knew it, I was back at work and plouging through my 3 weeks' due of work.

In my new matrimonial home, I have myself a built-in TECNO oven which I've not fully explored, a microwave oven an a refrigerator that has an ice water dispenser. I love my kitchen - it's the best part of my house, at least to me. Alot of effort and time were spent again on kitchen and home appliances. Doing research is no joke esp when you have a wedding in place. Every weekend was spend in Harvey Norman, furniture shops and Mustafa. We had to suss for the best deals, and realised sometimes they were not the best. We had to coordinate with our ID guys very closely and it was a nightmare to do a major house reno when we were having a wedding soon and we both hold full time jobs. Anyway my kitchen is themed in white, with orange glass panel which I can scribble on for my last min grocery shopping. As it is mainly white, it takes abit more effort to do the cleaning esp with my strands of hair all over the place. It can get quite frustrating at times, when the winds so strong in the East.

I will try to snap more photos, along with my new bakes and recipes in my next update.
Stay tuned!

Thai Olive Fried Rice

2011-05-21T13:02:00.000+08:00

I had attempted a Thai Olive Fried Rice before but this one is cooked using organic brown rice. I dont usually include brown rice in my diet but since I had a packet of organic brown rice sitting in the kitchen, I took it one day to try...

Here's the stuff required for a simple and good yummy meal. I have not indicated the quantity as it was only for one person's serving. However it can be largey based on guesstimation:

Dried shrimps - chopped (around 2 tbsp)
Mince chicken
Olive (Chinese olives from the supermarkets)
Egg (1)
Shrimps - about 4-5 small to medium size
Organic brown rice (about 1 cup for 1-2 persons to share) - cooked and set aside
Chopped garlic
Fish sauce and pepper

Boil shrimps till they turn red. Drain when cooked and put in cold water, then drain again
Fry the garlic and dried shrimps in olive oil
Add in the mince chicken and fry till thoroughly cooked. Set aside in the wok
Fry egg till thoroughly broken/cooked
Fry the dried shrimps, rice and boiled shrimps. Add in the bottled olive (pitted)
Add in (about 1 - 1.5 tbsp) fish sauce and pepper. Mix and fry thoroughly
Drizzle with pork floss if desired

enjoy.

2011-04-21T20:59:00.000+08:00

I like Aglio Olio spaghetti but my version is somewhat quite substandard :)

One fine Saturday morning, I had the craving for Aglio Olio. I made a trip to the supermarket and got myself Dory Fish, chicken sausages and some mushrooms. To me, cooking spaghetti is relatively easy (in my own standards of course).

Boil the spaghetti first, with a pinch of salt in the pot. Boil it for more than 5min to get the real al dente texture, from my experience. Leave it a little longer to get it a bit softer, but not too overcooked. Once boiled and cooked, drain it out with a sieve and leave aside with olive oil so they do not clump together.

Then I simply season the fish with salt and some herbs and seasoning before frying. Then, I fried the sausages till thoroughly cooked/brown with olive oil.

Set aside these and start frying the garlic and mushrooms. Add in the sausages and pasta and toss it with olive oil. Turn off the fire and toss in the dory fish with some chilli flakes and shredded parsley.

Not well taken but the taste was surprisingly good!

Beancurd Barley with Ginko Nut Dessert

2011-03-02T22:45:00.000+08:00

I have always liked to take Chinese dessert as they are often easier to prepare compared to Western ones. They require lesser ingredients and the ingredients used are often easier to find. It only takes about 30 min to an hr to prepare one simple yet delicious dessert.

This Beancurd Barley with Ginko Nut dessert is sweet and healthy!

All you need:

5-6 cups of water
1/2 cup barley seeds (approximate)
1 beancurd sheet (soaked in water till soft - about A4 size)
3 1/2 tbsp rock sugar (depending on how sweet you want)
1 egg white

1. Boil barley in water till soft.
2. Add in gingko nuts and boil for another 20min.
3. Add in beancurd sheet and let it break while cooking. Continue stirring.
4. Add in sugar. Stir well.
5. Heat over slow fire for about 20-30min.
6. Add egg white and stir evenly.
7. Ready to serve.

Coffee Cake

2011-01-23T21:47:00.003+08:00

This is one of my favourite cake. It is easy to bake and the aroma of the coffee just brings you to a totally different realm! I am a non-coffee drinker, but this coffee cake is simply too delicious to be missed. It has a rich butter flavour but the coffee aroma is of the right amount that is not too overpowering nor bland. You should try it. Good with a cup of tea in the afternoon....

195g softened butter
125g soft brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp coffee (I use 3 in 1 instant coffee powder)
155g self raising flour, sifted
100ml milk

Optional
To Make Coffee Topping: 125g icing sugar

Steps
Pre heat oven to 150deg C
Beat 185g of butter and brown sugar with electric beater till light and creamy
Add eggs a little at a time and mix well
Add in 4 tsp of coffee
Fold in flour and salt, alternating with milk into creamed mixture
Spoon evenly into trays and bake for 30min

Optional:

To make coffee topping, combine the remaining butter and coffee, with the icing sugar and 1 1.5 tbsp boiling water in a small bowl
Spread a little icing over until evenly covered

As you can see, I opted for sprinkling of cocoa powder and a little icing sugar instead :)

Adapted from Cakes & Slices

Light Fruit Cake

2010-12-12T21:34:00.001+08:00

Fruit Cakes, unlike any other typical cakes, require abit more time, effort and patience. With the careful attention, you can be assured of the special feeling of fulfilment when lifting a freshly baked fruit cake out of the oven. Especially when Christmas is round the corner.

In preparing a fruit cake, make sure you do the extra step of lining the tin in double layers as well as wrapping layers of newspaper around the outside of the tin due to the long cooking time. Lastly sit the tin on layers of newspaper in the oven.

I had a request for a fruit cake from a colleague of mine for her mother as her mother loves fruit cake. I promised her I will do it one day for tasting when I have abit more time and when the baking mood is back. I managed to get it done one day and here's the recipe I wish to share that differs from the one I used to make. However the appearance of my cake differs greatly from the picture in my cook book (Baking: A commonsense Guide). I wish I could reach that standard one day : ( My cake turned out very crumbly.. and broke into pieces once I cut it.

Preparation time: 40 min
Total cooking time: 3 hrs

185g unsalted butter, softened
115g caster sugar
3 eggs
160g sultanas
100g currants
60g chopped glace apricots
45g chopped glace figs
250g chopped glace cherries
80g macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
185g plain flour
60g self raising flour
125ml milk
1tbsp sweet sherry

For all the dried fruits, I simply bought a packet of mixed fruits from the supermarket to ease the hassle of buying individual packs and weighing them all.
That comes to about 605g in total. And as I couldn't find sherry nor rum, I replaced it with orange juice and I also replaced macadamia nuts to walnuts and almonds both chopped.

1. Preheat oven to 160 deg C and grease and line a deep 20cm round or 18cm square cake tin.

2. Cream butter and sugar together until well combined. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition.

3. Stir in the fruits and nuts.

4. Sift in half the flours and half the milk, stir to combine then continue with the rest of the flour and milk followed by sherry (my juice)

5. Spoon the mixture onto the tin and tap the tin to remove any air bubbles.

6. Wrap the outside of the tin and layer the rack with newspapers. Bake for 1 3/4 hours. Remove from oven and wrap tin in a tea towel until cool. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

(note: top of the tin may need to be covered during baking if it colours too much)

Pls spread the word for the festive season and visit my fellow blogger's blog :)

www.passionbaker.blogspot.com/2010/11/aspiring-bakers-2-christmas-dec-2010.html

MERRY XMAS EVERYONE!

Hakka Abacus

2010-11-07T13:01:00.003+08:00

Also known as yam coins, abacus is typically a Hakka dish (a dialect in Singapore for those foreign friends reading this blog). It is a dish of yam fried with minced pork, Chinese mushrooms and dried shrimps. The yam is boiled till soft and mashed before rolled into small round shapes that look like coins. The Hakkas believe that eating abacus siginifies more wealth and prosperity.

A plate of delicious Abacus

My mom is a Hakka and she grew up with this dish since young. As I like the abacus she cooks at home, I want to try to master this cuisine so it doesn't get lost in my next generation.

After much nudging and chasing, I finally managed to get hands on with it today. My domestic helper has mastered this dish so well that I'm now learning from her, not my mom! I stood by her in the kitchen for an hour or so and finally managed to get my hands on it. As recipes at home are mostly trial and errors, the quantity and weight of items are purely based on guestimations. But I try to be accurate as far as possible. However, individual taste buds and preferences vary so feel free to add or alter any portions.

Abacus is a dish that is savoury and rich in flavour due to the dried shrimps and mushrooms. It takes time and much dedication to get the texture, taste and colours right. And the proportion of yam to tapioca starch is important so it doesn't taste like it has too much flour. That's the difference of home made abacus.

Total time of preparation: about 45min

Total cooking time: about 30-45min in total

(A) Yam

150g yam (cut into small cubes)

Tapioca starch 50g

Water approx 1 1/2 cup
Dash of salt

Pepper

1 pot of water

1 bowl of tap water

1. Pour water (1 1/2 cup) and yam into a pot and bring it to boil till all water is dried (water must be enough to just cover all the cubes but not too much water that it gets too soggy)

2. Stir yam while boiling to ensure water is thoroughly absorbed.

3. When all the water is absorbed, mash the yam and add some salt and dash of pepper.

4. Add in tapioca starch to bind the yam together.

5. Using hands, knead the dough finely to ensure all mixture is incorporated together nicely.

6. Prepare dough in long thin strips then pinch off the end to roll into a small ball.

7. Roll each ball then indent the centre with your thumb to resemble an abacus.

8. Bring the pot of water to boil. When boiling, put all the yam inside and cover.

9. When the yam balls are cooked, they float. Transfer the yam balls to the bowl of tap water so they do not stick.

10. After couple of minutes, sieve them out to prepare for next stage.

Top: Mashed yam

Below: Well kneaded yam with tapioca starch

Neatly rolled yam balls

(B) Minced Pork
Dried shrimps approx 1 tbsp (washed and soaked in water)
Small onions (chopped)
Chinese mushrooms about 10-15 pcs, approx 15g (washed and soaked in water till soft. Cut into strips and keep the water aside)
Some carrots also cut into strips
Minced pork 50g

Top: Soaking dried shrimps in water
Below: Soaking Chinese mushrooms in water

Top: Carrots and mushrooms in strips
Below: Chopped onions

Seasoning

Corn starch 1/2 tbsp

Pepper

Oyster sauce 1/2 tbsp

Sesame oil 1/2 tbsp

Some oil for frying

1. Mix minced pork with the above seasoning.
2. Fry onions till brown and fragrant.
3. Add in shrimps and continue frying for few minutes.
4. Add in minced pork and stir followed by carrots and mushrooms.
5. Add in the water used to soak the mushrooms to give extra flavour.
6. Add in another 1/2 tbsp of oyster sauce.
7. Cover pan and let it simmer.
8. Finally add in the cooled and drained abacus and continue frying for another few minutes till well mixed. Add pepper if desired.

Serve and garnish with some coriander.

caution: you can't stop at one

Orange Cake - to chase away your blues..

2010-10-15T22:05:00.001+08:00

My entries are usually fuss free and express. I don't have the luxury of time to bake cakes that require hours in the kitchen and spending every minute to decorate and dress it nicely anymore. As I hold a full time job my weekends are very precious to me along with other commitments, I can only afford to do fuss free cakes. Here's another one from me.

A cake that you can bake on a weekday night and it takes only 20min to prepare. Baking time is about 30min and before you know it, you have freshly baked orange sponge cake right in your kitchen.. Something sweet to help you chase away your Monday blues...

Plain Flour - 110g (sifted)
Melted butter - 70g
Eggs - 4
Vanilla Essence - 1 tsp
Caster sugar - 100g
Some orange zest
Orange juice - 1/2 tsp

1. Whisk eggs, sugar and vanilla essence till pale and creamy (approx 4 min on medium speed)
2. Pour in orange zest and juice and mix
3. Fold in flour and incorporate well
4. Pour in melted butter and mix well
5. Bake in a 20cm pan at 180deg C for 30 min

Can you smell it?

Specialty Prawns

2010-09-18T08:30:00.005+08:00

I have no name thought for this dish of mine so it's simply called Specialty Prawns. I created this, with an easy mix of Sea Salt with Rosemary & Lemon, Smoked Chilli and Garlic Mill, some salt and basil. These were the herbs and seasonings bought from Marks & Spencer, London.

After shelling the prawns and rinsing them, I made a small slit on top to remove the veins and created a nice small 'opening'. I rubbed a little salt in the prawns and added a dash of pepper to it. Add the seasoning and mix well.

Heat a pan of olive oil and get throw in some chopped garlic. Stir fry till slightly brown then throw in the prawns. Fry till thoroughly cooked. The aroma of the seasoning will fill your kitchen instantly. Sprinkle some chopped parsley before serving.

Enjoy. :)

Tuna Sandwich

2010-09-01T22:04:00.000+08:00

I know this is a no brainer and a cheater's recipe.. but sometimes a simple tuna sandwich is all I want for lunch.

All I gathered were just gardenia foccacia bread, some lettuce, sliced tomatoes and a can of tuna! For the tuna mix, I add some pepper and low fat mayonnaise (which I know is totally lost in this picture here..) I added a bit of broccoli that is cut into small pieces and mixed into the tuna. You can add some olive oil as an alternative to mayonnaise.

If you wish you can toast the bread lightly for the crispiness.
The end product is wholesome and yummy! and I love sandwiches :)

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

2010-08-19T16:58:00.000+08:00

Thanks everyone for continuing to view my blog and I will continue to have new exciting bakes! (though much slower now)

I recently tried my hand on pineapple upside down cake. It was surprisingly easy and I'm sure everyone can do it in no time.

Here's how to do it.

A
20g unsalted butter, melted
Some soft brown sugar
6 slices of pineapples (canned)

B
90g unsalted butter, softened
125g caster sugar

C
2 eggs lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla essence/extract

D
125g self raising flour, sifted

1. Preheat oven to 180 deg C
2. Pour melted butter into a 20cm pan (brush both the base and sides of pan with butter) and sprinkle with brown sugar evenly
3. Cut pineapples into half and place them nicely on the base of the tin
4. Beat the extra butter and sugar with electric beaters till light and creamy then add eggs gradually, beating well after each addition
5. Add the vanilla extract and beat until well combined
6. Fold in the flour alternatively with 70g of pineapple juice
7. Spoon the mixture evenly over the pineapple and bake for 40 min
8. Leave cake in tin for 10 min before turning out to a wire rack to cool

Enjoy.

Other priorities

2010-08-14T22:36:00.002+08:00

I have been rather inactive in my food blog, to the disappointment of my followers.

Apologies as I have many other priorities and commitments now. However I will still endeavour to keep my blog going. Slow but surely more stuff coming up..

Little fingers doing the walking

2010-07-17T22:38:00.000+08:00

This is a totally irrelevant post to my usual cooking and baking regime.

I was reading my Food & Travel magazine one Sat when my little 3 year old nephew came into my room. He hopped onto my bed and plonked himself comfortably, trying to read the magazine. It was a very cute and endearing sight that I couldn't resist grabbing my camera and fired away.

Repeat Telecast

2010-07-01T16:35:00.001+08:00

I had set my mind to do a Blueberry Cake that day. To my disappointment, my trip to Phoon Huat was quite wasted. They didn't carry wholemeal flour which was required in the recipe. And the nearby Shop & Save didn't carry blueberries. How bad can that get?

Already in the mood to bake, I decided on a Pandan Chiffon Cake. It is a 'repeated telecast' as I had previously baked this before. This time, instead of using trim coconut milk in the Ayam brand UHT pack, I used the original coconut milk with full fat instead. The outcome was quite pleasant with a stronger aroma and richer taste. The recipe can be found here in my previous Pandan Chiffon Cake entry.

I didn't save the cake in time and my cutting method distorted the beauty of the cake. Anyhow here's the outcome..

can you smell it??

Lovely Escargot

2010-06-11T22:14:00.000+08:00

Escargot:

Escargot is a dish of cooked edible land snails, usually served as an appetizer
it is one of the most famous dishes in French cuisine
The most common preparation for escargot is boiling or steaming
The snails are often served in the shell on a special escargot plate, which has small depressions for each shell
Diners use tongs to extract the flesh from the shell, along with small two-tined snail forks, and then dip the snail into the sauce provided
A garlic and butter sauce is the most common, but wine sauces and others are not unusual.

(Source: Wikipedia and wisegeek.com)

No I don't eat escargot and I am not a fan of escargot. Though a food lover, I like to stick to my usual common, safe type of cuisine and I'm not adventurous. Many of my friends love escargot and go for super exotic food. I can't appreciate foie gras, escargot and I don't like abalone!

For many who like escargot here is a picture I helped a friend take for his cafe. I reckon you can either steam or boil them, and prepare a butter sauce with garlic and pesto to go with it.

Visit Britain!

2010-05-28T20:17:00.000+08:00

With favourable pound rates now, I packed my bag and off i flew to Britain. This was a very last minute trip that only took about 2 months to plan from scratch. Not an easy feat but a simple and memorable one.

As always with the squeezy economy class seats (I can't afford first class) I feel very uncomfortable and claustrophic all the time. Hence my loss in appetite on flights. With the constant nibbles of food and fruits here and there on Emirates (I must say they have good in flight service and reasonably good food), my hunger pangs striked every 2 hours on the plane. The first food I reached for when I touched down in London was cup noodles! Yes. Instant piping hot to satisfy my hunger.

We did some shopping in the afternoon and before I knew it, it was dark and night was soon approaching. Being new and unfamiliar in London, we prowled streets after streets in the cold rainy weather at 7pm in the evening for dinner. We settled for Garfunkels at Oxford Street - a British restaurant founded in London’s West End in 1979. They serve everything like Thai Green Curry to the Giant Enchilada, Fish & Chips and Cottage Pies. I finally had a nice filling decent meal of the day!

The next morning started with a hearty breakfast at Georgian House Hotel at St Georges Drive, London, a mere 8 min walk from London Victoria Station. Included in the accomodation package, we were welcomed with toasts, coffee/tea and cereals. Not too bad but can get quite boring after repeatedly consuming this. The weather was cold and dry, and too much toasts didn't help. If you want additional sumptious meal like eggs, bacon and mushroom, you have to top it up with 8 pounds.

Lunch at MacDonalds was alright, only a tad too expensive for me. Imagine a meal that costs 6 pounds (about SGD $12.6 where our average here is SGD $5 for a meal) A bit difficult to swallow... their range slightly differs from ours as they had quarter pounder and sandwiches. And now in Singapore we have quarter pounder! But MacDonald's fries is still the best!

A bit of walking, sightseeing and photo taking for the day like London Eye, Big Ben and so on. After Madame Tussauds, we had dinner at Chinatown, Leicester Square. It was okay. My plate of hor fun cost me about 8 pounds. I rounded up my evening with a polo bun from the bakery somewhere down the street. Sweet! :)

While in Covent Garden the following day, we searched around for a nice decent restaurant to have our lunch the next day. We landed ourselves at Pinti (if I dont rem the name wrongly), an Italian Restaurant there. I was almost frozen from the cold weather outside and I was so relieved when they served us to the basement of the place, which was much warmer and gentle to our body. I was delighted and contented with my Chicken pizza (Pollo). We asked the waitress if the pizza size available was big enough for 2 of us to share. She said yeah but if we are really hungry, one isnt sufficient cos it's thin crust pizza. And that's what I want. Only thin crust pizza. She might have thought we are big eaters and a thin crust pizza ain't enuff for us 2! See how tempting this pizza was! And the service was excellent and quick. Something I liked about this restaurant.

This 3rd day was our last day in London before we head to York and then Scotland. I badly wanted to try their Fish & Chips in England Hence we settled for The Shakespears near the London Victoria station. It was not bad, but they gave LOTSA green peas which I detest! I forced myself to eat them. But still had lots more left. Look at the heap of peas!! And I heard it's quite common in European countries that they serve peas so generously like that.

The next day, we headed to Cambridge University. To my surprise the campus is not only a campus! It has got its own shopping street like any other street in London! You can find brands like Crabtree & Evelyn, next, Starbucks, Cafe Nero, Souvenir shops, Monsoon apparel stores, JD sports store, quaint little tea rooms, grocers, bakeries and more coffee joints! I got myself a hot pastry from one of the shop there and they come in different sizes - S M or giant :) Being so ignorant I ordered a M but it was too big for me. The traditional pasty was made up of potatoes, minced beef and onions. It's something like our 'curry puffs'.

Along the way up north, we had a quick lunch at the cafes. I had a 4.99 pound pasta with a 2.49 pound juice. I was too hungry so it tasted great! And several other quick stops we had to settle for cold sandwiches and a cup of coffee. Initially I was ok but after it got too often I was abit tired of sandwiches again. Being a typical Asian, I still yearn for my bowl of hot noodles, or a plate of chicken rice!

After venturing York, we settled for the night at Darlington. Dinner was provided by INSIGHT tours. Chicken or fish as the dinner option and I had a fruit salad. Not very fantastic but I can't complain..

On the way back from Scotland we had a nice leisure lunch near Lake District. The tea rooms and cafes were quaint, most of which are along the rivers. The place, or London at this time, boasts of many rich coloured flowers that makes your dining there (even a sandwich) very pleasant. I had a tuna with sweet corn sandwich and a bowl of tomato and basil soup. The weather was fantastic to dine alfresco, by the river with lots of beautiful flowers by the banks.

Along the way I managed to get a little muffin recipe book for only 1.99 pounds. What a steal!

Moving along on our 4th and last day of INSIGHT tour, it was again sandwich for lunch. How scary can that get? Nice enough I had a nice Chinese meal at night at Gold Mine (near Queensway tube station in London) Though abit pricey, I truly enjoyed my wanton soup and my Yangzhou fried rice!!! Delicious. Another good choice is Four Seasons, similar to Gold Mine. Words have it that chefs from Gold Mine are FROM Four Seasons.. you be the judge. And one of our Directors in my company who is Brit strongly recommended Four Seasons before I left. I googled for it and found it surprisingly near my apartment in London that I couldn't miss it. So after trying the 2 for the last 2 nights in London, I found Gold Mine to be better.

On my final day at London, it was a chopchop lunch and a last minute shopping at various places, which included Marks & Spencer. Their M&S store is way much bigger than ours here in Singapore. They have a dept store and a huge supermarket with stationery, apparel, fresh food, frozen food, bakery and many many more that you wouldn't know where to begin. Shopping in the supermarket alone drove me crazy. I crazily purchased some spices there and brought them home :)

I was even tempted to buy their frozen and fresh food back! As lunch was chopchop, I had a tuna panini with tomato soup. The chicken burger was abit dry, and the fries too cold. The tuna panini had very little tuna, and mostly were the bread yeast. Not an enjoyable meal. Total damage? 11.65 pounds. (about SGD $24)

Overall, I enjoyed my trip. I walked alot, and I managed to exercise and burn off my calories with many flights of stairs at the various tube stations and sightseeing! I think I lost weight during the trip....

Wholesome Spaghetti Aglio Olio

2010-05-10T22:04:00.005+08:00

The little bit of spare time I can cook for myself is the weekends. And I enjoy every bit of it.

When I don't feel like having mom's cooking, I will take charge and cook what I feel like eating. And partly because I love to cook and bake, although not an expert :) It was like that during one of my recent weekend. Having bought spaghetti from Marks & Spencer a month or two back during a sale, I managed to quickly whip up a wonderful and healthy Aglio Olio in a matter of 30 min, with some help of course.

All it required was only asparagus and mushrooms, some picnic ham and prawns. And all I added was some salt, olive oil and herbs. Toss till everything is well mixed.

A simple, wholesome and healthy dish like this can be done in a jiffy!

This photo isn't so well taken as I was hungry!

Non bake Cheesecake

2010-04-29T22:22:00.002+08:00

This is a recipe that is non bake and tastes superb. Adapted from my colleague Celest, here is my version of it with lotsa fruits on top :) Easy to bake and no frills.

All you need

150g digestive biscuits, crushed
8 tbsp butter, melted
250g Philadelphia cream cheese
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp gelatine, dissolved in 4 tbsp warm water
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup thickened cream
Some cut fruits

Crust

1. Mix biscuit and butter
2. Line base and sides of cake tin (about 8") with cling wrap and press the mixture into the base
3. Freeze for an hour

Cheesecake

1. Blend cream cheese, lemon juice and gelatine and sugar with a mixer
2. Whip cream until soft peaks form then stir into mixture
3. Remove cake tin from freezer then pour mixture in
4. Spread evenly and chill for about an hour till harden
5. Top with fruits and serve

Verdict: Everyone loves the crusty base :)

Chocolate Sponge Cake (Back to the Basics)

2010-04-12T14:19:00.001+08:00

Sponge cakes are very basic cakes. And that's what i like about it!... It doesn't take alot of time, nor require alot of ingredients to bake this, yet you are still able to yield a perfect nice decent product!

I ran out of many ingredients at home that I can't bake something new, creative and different. So back to the basics, I succeeded in baking a Chocolate Sponge Cake!

The only things I had were eggs, flour, oil etc. Sometimes when things in life get too complicated, it's always good to think about back to the basics. Think simplicity, and life would be much much easier!

Sponge cakes have always been my favourite as it is light, easy to prepare and not too sweet for my liking. I chanced upon Amanda's blog for this recipe. It is relatively easy and the outcome is awesome!

All you need:

(A) Egg Yolk Mixture

3 Egg Yolks
50g Sugar
50g Olive oil
1 tsp Vanilla Essence

1. Mix all items together well

120g Self Raising flour
½ tsp Baking powder
½ tsp Baking Soda

2. Sift and mix all flour together then combine with egg yolk mixture.

(B) Cocoa Mixture

30g cocoa powder
120g Warm water

3. MIx items together then add into the first mixture.

(C) Egg White Mixture

3 Egg Whites
¼ tsp Cream of Tartar
60g Sugar

4. Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar till foamy
5. Add sugar then continue whisking at high speed till stiff
6. Finally, fold this meringue into the cocoa mixture gently till well incorporated
7. Bake at 175deg C for 45min.
8. Ready to serve

From Down Under

2010-04-02T10:17:00.000+08:00

An old friend of mine who has been living in the Oz came back to town for the CNY holidays. He surprised me with some gifts from Oz - Self Raising Flour and Plain Flour! This is something I would have never expected! Knowing that I bake alot and he was soon running out of ideas while walking along the aisles in the supermarket, he figured this was the most apt for me :)

I remember I once bought a galfriend of mine an instant muffin mix and a muffin baking tray for her birthday. She got all excited! I figured that buying baking stuff for galfriends are the most fun and appropriate things! I'm sure they will love it! (as long as they have an oven) Otherwise a good easy to follow recipe book on chocolate cake would do the job!

Thanks J!

Rich Dark Chocolate Cake

2010-03-14T11:50:00.001+08:00

Nobody can resist the temptation of a deliciously baked rich chocolate cake. If you love chocolates, this is a recipe you shouldn't miss. It is rich, moist, chocolatey and not too sweet to my liking.

Here are the easy steps off from the book of Cakes & Slices.

A
185g butter, chopped
250g dark chocolate chips

B
215g self raising flour (I use top flour)
40g unsweetened cocoa powder (sifted together with flour)

C
375g caster sugar (I use 350g)

D
3 eggs at room temperature, beaten

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 160deg C and lightly grease a 22cm cake tin.
2. Melt A in a bowl, over simmering water till butter and chocolate chips have melted
3. Combine A with C and D.
4. Add 250ml of water and mix well. Add the flour and cocoa mixture and stir till well combined.
5. Bake for 1 hr 30min (but i halved the portion in a smaller tin, so I baked for about an hour)

Chocolate Topping
20g butter, chopped
125g dark chocolate, chopped

1. Melt butter and chcolate chips in a bowl, over simmering water. Spread topping over cooled cake and decorate as you wish.

Eggy Business

2010-03-09T18:18:00.000+08:00

This is my 2nd attempt in baking egg tarts. My tarts always look so out of shape and irregular! Anyhow different people have different preferences towards egg tarts. Some like it eggy, some like it pastry-like, some like it crumbly. This version that I tried from Prime website, is not too bad but a tad too crusty - crumbly and broken the min you bite it. Remove from the mould with care.

Tart
340 g PrimaFlour SuperLite Flour (i couldnt find this, so I substituted it with Plain flour)
115 g Butter (soft)
115 g Soft Margarine
70 g Icing Sugar
½ Egg

1. Add margarine, butter and icing sugar into a mixing bowl. Mix for 5-7 mins at low speed.
2. Add the egg into mixture and mix for another 2 mins at low speed.
3. Fold in the flour and blend well. (Here it is wet and oily but make sure flour is well incorporated into the dough) Cover the dough with a piece of cloth and keep in the fridge till firm. (approx 10-15min)
4. Remove the dough and roll it out to 3mm thick. Cut and line the pastry into the egg tart mould. (This is the toughest part!)

Egg Custard
115 g Water
40 g Sugar
35 ml Milk
1 ½ Eggs
I added 10g of custard powder

1. Using a hand whisk, dissolve the sugar into the water. (I use hot water so the sugar can dissolve)

2. Blend in milk, egg and mix well. (This is where I add 10g of custard powder to make it more firm and 'curd-like')
3. Pour the custard into the egg tart mould.
4. Preheat the oven to 220deg C, bake for 20 mins till the custard has set and the crust golden brown. (I use 200 deg C)

Note: the egg custard recipe here only makes about 8. I had to repeat the recipe about 2 more times for the extra crust left.

Verdict: some love this, but I still think my skills can be improved much further

Pandan Chiffon Cake

2010-02-22T16:35:00.002+08:00

I've always wanted to bake this cake because of its nice pandan aroma with the soft fluffy texture but never quite start it. Recently a friend of mine asked me something about baking this cake one day, which got me very intrigued and motivated to want to start work on it rightaway!

The original recipe from Prima website is suitable for 18cm pan but because I got myself a 23cm pan, I multiplied the ingredients by 1.5 for the ideal size and height. (listed in red) I frequently follow recipes from the Prima website as I find them very easy to follow and tend to have a 90% success rate even when baking it for the first time. The remaining 10% is well.... based on a recipe of good luck and skill :S

Squeezing out the pandan juice

The uneven cracked top

Final piece of cake :)

(150g) 100 g Top Flour (couldn't get it in Fairprice near my place, so I got it from Cold Storage) (1.5 tsp) 1 tsp Baking Powder
(1.5 tbsp) 1 tbsp Pandan Juice (I added more juice to 'enhance' the flavour)
(150 ml) 100 ml Coconut Milk (I use trim coconut milk for less the fat than origninal pack)
(6) 4 Egg Yolks
(75) 50 ml Corn Oil
¼ tsp Green Colouring (I only add a small drop)
(7) 5 Egg Whites
¼ tsp Cream of Tartar
(150g) 100 g Castor Sugar
Pinch of Salt

1 Preheat oven to 170°.
2 Extract pandan juice from finely pounded pandan leaves mixed with water, and add to coconut milk. Stir well.
3 Add egg yolk, 50 g sugar, oil, colouring and salt to the coconut mixture. Mix well using hand whisk.
4 Sift top flour and baking powder and fold into mixture. Mix until smooth. Set aside.
5 Beat egg whites and tartar at high speed until formy. Add remaining 50 g sugar and beat until stiff. (it gets abit noisy here at high speed :S)
6 Add 1/3 beaten egg white to the yolk mixture and mix using a hand whisk.
7 Slowly fold in this mixture to the remaining 2/3 of beaten egg whites.
8 Pour mixture into an ungreased 23cm chiffon tin and bake for about 50mins.
9 Turn tin over on a cake rack to cool before loosening cake.

(adapted from Prima website)

Guilty as Charged

2010-02-13T17:55:00.008+08:00

Yes Pineapple Tarts!

We are all guilty of over-eating during the festive period. Ba kwa, love letters, almond cookies, pineapple tarts, you name it we eat it. February is the time to forget about losing weight and loading on more calories.

Orders for my pineapple tarts meant that the number of pineapple tarts at home grew as well. I baked several rounds of pineapple tarts this year that I have forgotten the number of times I've baked it at home. I'm getting a little tired of pineapple tarts. And I was beginning to have a hard time cherry picking them for sale. Only the good ones go, the bad ones with cracks and incomplete-looking stayed at home. It was like choosing the best looking chick for the contest. The first batch was a test bit for me as I was getting the hang of kneading and rolling the dough. The subsequent batches were better as the texture, taste, colour and level of sweetness was optimum! Then came the last few batches which is the time nearer to CNY that the tarts were either too ugly looking, burnt, duller looking, sweeter or harder. It's like the economics of production and manufacturing. Products get manufactured better after the machine slowly warms up and done its round of test cutting and moulding. Then after the machine has overworked and heated, the end products are somewhat 'overdone' and machine breaks down as a result of over functioning. Same logic.

Nevermind. Here are a few shots of the tarts I baked today and I swear this is going to be the last batch I'm baking this year! Or at least, this time now. I'm beginning to dislike pineapple tarts. Along with other yummy cookies which I have a weakness for, how can I shed my 5kg? I've got tubs and tubs of chocolate chip cookies from Cedele, cereal cookies, Pandan kueh lapis, Ba Kwa and tons and tons of pineapple tarts at home. The list is endless.

For Valentine's Day tomorrow, which is also first day of CNY, I am going to attempt a no-bake cheesecake, recipe with courtesy from Celest. After sharing it with everyone in office one day, we all fell in love with it. Even Will Bright, her British boss, surprised everyone in the office with his blueberry cheesecake the following week, and a raspberry one after that. For a non cheesecake lover, I must say this cheesecake is to die for!

Photo of Blueberry Cheesecake made by Will Bright

(blissfulnibble.blogspot.com)

And speaking of which I'm supposed to be jogging at this time :)

..till then...Happy new year everyone!

Non stop feasting

2010-02-06T00:01:00.014+08:00

It was non stop feasting that began from Xmas 2009 right through to the coming CNY. It began with turkey, chocolates, fruit cakes, Xmas dinners in 2009. Come 2010, there was my nephew's 3 year old birthday gathering, my thirty something birthday on 1 February, the coming V Day, 2 days of CNY, my 2nd nephew 1 month baby shower celebrations and ** birthday at the end of Feb! The feasting never stops and my body has to work extra hard to burn off all the excess calories and fats!

With so many festivities and exciting activities happening lately let me pen them down one by one and keep everyone updated. Pictures are not very well taken from my iphone. But it sure captures the essence of the subject sufficient to be described as point of reference here.

Sweet Surprise
First I'm glad my follower list on my humble little blog grew from a single digit to a 14 number hit today. Sometimes I really wonder who these people are as they don't leave behind any comments. Whoever you are, thank you! And for those who leave comments, nothing makes me happier than seeing a positive lovely comment posted for my product, which sometimes look like a failure! And still having many more followers each time I check my blog.

Sweet Bird Day
I had a wonderful and splendid birthday with many of my close friends and family. For a start, I had Chinese food at The Majestic. The waiting time at Da Hua is terribly long. The food is great, but comes with a high price tag. The wasabi prawn is to die for! yum yum. And the tofu is not bad either. It's soft and 'melt in your mouth'

(wasabi prawn)

For my birthday family dinner, my mom did a cold dish platter like what you get at Chinese restaurants at weddings. It's not too bad, but just a tad too oily.

(spring rolls, fried egg with crab meat, ngoh hiang, roast pork, mayo prawn)

At a gathering with some close friends, I had dessert at 1 Caramel. They have a wide assortment of tea, some of which are rather refreshing. Their range of cakes is awesome! The cakes are displayed on the tall glass display shelves and you will be standing at the shelves for a good 5-8 min thinking and choosing on what cake to eat. I tried the green tea red bean cake and lychee kiss. I prefer the lychee kiss for its sweet lychee flavour and light cake texture. :)

(Verdict: too many cakes to choose from and try from just one visit!)

On the actual day of my birthday, I had a nice dinner at Ember at Hotel 1929. It's fine dining. I had the seabass which was yummy. It is not too heavy on my stomach but a little salty on the seasoning. The veal wasn't too bad either, but the colour just looked so raw. On my birthday I received a pleasant surprise with a cake delivered to my office from one of my vendors. I gladly shared with all my colleagues, on top of a coffee cake I baked and shared with them earlier in the day! A greater surprise came when ** baked a brownie for me with a candle on it. (99 marks for first attempt and effort but 49 marks for edibility)

Sweet Wang (Prosperous in Chinese)
This is my 2nd year of pineapple tart baking for CNY. Chinese eat Pineapple Tarts during CNY for prosperity reasons. This time, I managed to convince a galfriend of mine to place some orders from me. I charged a little friendship price :) This is how it looks for the 2 different shapes made, with some effort from my 2 colleagues who happened to come over, my maid and mother!

Not very pro and perfect, but each piece comes baked with love and tenderness.

Verdict: priceless

That's all and Happy New Year folks! Happy feasting.

My SPAM sandwich

2010-01-23T18:04:00.005+08:00

After a tiring kickboxing, I was cautious on what I eat. I went to my kb class on an empty stomach and came back on an even emptier stomach. With some leftover SPAM turkey ham, I bought myself a loaf of focaccia bread, along with some sliced button mushroom and iceberg lettuce. I resisted buying the Narcissus brand of ham produced in China after all the bad publicity and reviews on made-in-china products. Canned ham/luncheon meat remains one of my weakness :) Hence, SPAM, made in USA, is my next best alternative. Though my sandwich is not exactly very healthy, it beats eating rice or noodles right after a gruelling kickboxing session.

It only took me 8 min to prepare - slicing some lettuce, pan fry the SPAM turkey ham, and pan fry the button mushroom with some herbs and salt, and sandwich them together. It was a simple but delightful meal! For better taste and texture, you may add some pepper and toast the bread lightly.

Verdict: Simply yummy and delicious!

2010-01-07T15:06:00.002+08:00

I had another attempt of carrot walnut cake as it was a request from my aunt during Christmas lunch. With this version, I added more cream cheese topping - at the sides and on top, with added chocolate curls. But each of my attempt varies. The inside doesnt look as dark and moist like the previous. Nevertheless the taste is the same and yumilicious as ever! I love carrot cake!

To make the chocolate curls, simply use a peeler and scrape the sides of a chocolate at room temperature. The colder it is the shorter and stiffer the curls. I used a mix of both milk and dark chocolates. And this time, I used 2 pans to bake 2 layers of cake, sandwiching a layer of cream cheese in the centre.

there you go :)

Old Fashion Marble Cake

2010-01-02T20:23:00.000+08:00

This is something I love to eat since young and this is my 2nd attempt at trying this. First attempt, I ran out of cocoa powder right at the min when I needed it after preparing the first few steps. It was frustrating so I used milo instead, which wasnt so ideal. So 2nd attempt with cocoa powder was good :)

A
1 tsp natural vanilla extract
185g unsalted butter, chopped
230g caster sugar
Mix well using electric beaters till pale and fluffy

B
3 eggs
Add in eggs, one at a time and beat well

C
280g self raising flour (sifted)
185ml milk
Add in C alternating between each item and fold the mixture in between

D
2 tbsp cocoa
1 1/2 tbsp warm milk
Stir until smooth and add into one half of the mixture till well combined.

Spoon the 2 mixtures into the loaf tin in alternate spoonfuls. Bake at 200deg C for 40 min.

Enjoy and happy new year!

(Adapted from: Baking, a commonsense guide)

Nutty Fruit Cake

2009-12-26T19:50:00.000+08:00

Here's another recipe to add that extra pounds to your weight and waist but I only eat this once a year... Nutty Fruit Cake. As I was sharing this cake with my friends over lunch, we reminisced the times where we received fruit cakes as wedding favours years ago. Now we get chocolates, little knick knacks and cutesy stuff. But I have always loved fruit cakes at weddings, but just a tad too sweet. In my version here it is healthier with nuts and less sugar. Hope you enjoy this.

The Outside

The inside

A 200g butter, 140g brown sugar
Cream till light

B 3 eggs
Add B and cream till smooth

C 180g plain flour, 1/2 tsp baking powder
Sieve in C and mix till well blended

D 100g almonds, 100g chopped walnuts
Add in D and mix well

E 300g mixed fruits, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 4 tbsp orange juice in replacement of brandy
Throw in E and mix well

Pour it onto a greased pan and bake at 170deg C for 1 hr.
Sprinkle with some icing sugar when cooled.

Adapted from: Alex Goh Fruity Cakes

Vegetarian Pasta Salad

2009-12-20T13:54:00.002+08:00

Merry Christmas everyone! Thanks for tuning in to my blog and leave with me so many wonderful comments.

As the year comes to an end, I would like to present the next few Christmas recipes to come, which I will use to whip up lovely dishes for my guests and relatives this Christmas. As you can see, I'm a very lazy person and I like no fuss recipes. They are mostly made up of a few recipes or only a few easy steps.

I'm not a Christian, but I like the idea of giving and sharing, gathering with some friends over honey baked ham, roast chicken and many more! The past few weeks have been torturous with many many rounds of log cakes, sweets, chocolates and stuff people give. I need to give my stomach a break! With the start of my year end feast and non-stop sweet delicacies, I will specially prepare a healthy vegetarian pasta salad that only consists of yes, Vegetables! I was shopping in Marks & Spencer one day and I came across their shelves of kitchen products like canned mushroom soup, minestrone soup, salad dressing etc. Game for something different, I picked up the French Salad Dressing for my pasta. Here's the 20min recipe to go, in the theme of red and green:

Pasta on Day 1

For one serving
Pinch of chopped garlic
about 4-5 button mushrooms, destemmed and sliced
1 tsp chopped red pepper
2-3 florets of broccoli
some olive oil for frying
About 1-2 cups of fusilli
Seasoning (some salt, oregano, chopped parsley and rosemary)

Pasta on Day 2

Bring pasta to boil then drain off excess water. Use water to boil broccoli for a while
Heat oil in a pan and saute garlic with mushrooms and red paper till almost ready
Add seasoning and throw in broccoli (drained)
Remove and add into pasta
Add French dressing and toss well. Sprinkle some chopped parsely.

Enjoy folks. :)

Victoria Sponge Cake (without the buttercream)

2009-12-15T20:57:00.002+08:00

This classic cake is named after Queen Victoria as it was usually enjoyed as an afternoon tea snack. It is easy to prepare and tasty to enjoy.

For the sponge

4 medium eggs
225g softened butter
225g caster sugar
225g self raising flour

For the filling (I only opt for jam without the butter cream)

100g unsalted butter, softened
225g icing sugar
1 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
4 tbsp raspberry or strawberry jam

1. Heat oven to 180deg C
2. Break eggs in a bowl and beat with a fork
3. Pour butter and sugar in a bowl and beat them till pale and fluffy. Add eggs a little at a time and beating well after each addition
4.Sift the flour over the mixture and gently fold in with a spoon.
5. Divide equally into 2 round tins
6. Bake for 25min and let it cool
7. Put jam on one cake
8. Make buttercream by beating butter in a bowl until soft and creamy, followed by icing sugar gradually and milk with vanilla essence. Then beat mixture till pale and fluffy
9. Spread over the flat of other cake then gently press the cakes together
10. You can sprinkle icing sugar or caster sugar on top if desired

(Adapted from the Usborne Kids Baking Book)

Where passion for food comes alive

2009-12-01T22:08:00.002+08:00

I become very envious when someone's passion for food comes alive by opening sandwich chain after sandwich chain, and eventually a food cafe.

I've always wanted to open a cafe of my own, but I'm a risk averse person. I always stick to my own comfort zone and do what I think I'm comfortable with although my dream of opening my own cafe has been in the air for over 10 years since my polytechnic days. My idea is simple and executable, but I have low ambition and determination to make it really happen.

One fine day my very entrepreneurial friend decides to open a cafe of his own, along with a few others. I was invited to help take pictures of their food for the cafe. I wasn't sure if I was up to the job with my humble little camera, but the end product turned out positive, which made everyone very happy. I was happy too with the result as I upgraded my lens specially for this food photography.

Top: Seafood spaghetti and salmon scramble

Here are some snapshots of what I took, which they are selling at a tertiary institution in the north.

3 types of pies

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Salad

Beef Bolognaise Linguine

Nachos

Breakfast Set

Salad

Italian Soda

Lychee Freeze

Hope you have enjoyed the visual treat :) and do pop by if you wish to try the food

Orange Cupcakes

2009-11-20T21:10:00.002+08:00

I baked these wonderful Orange Cupcakes for my colleagues on my last day of work. Everyone has been so sweet to me and many of them bought me lunch, which some I never really expected. So, in appreciation of their kind gestures, I ordered my FAVOURITE yummy Chocolate Raspberry Early Grey Cake from Marriott Hotel and baked my own muffins. Nothing beats sharing freshly home baked muffins. I liked them myself!

And what I like about this muffin is it is light, sweet with the fragrance of orange, it is fruity, zesty and delicious. It's a simple recipe that only took me 20min to prepare/bake with the help of my dutiful Yani, my domestic helper.

All you need are :

120g softened unsalted butter
135g caster sugar
185g self raising flour (I always sift them)
125ml orange juice
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs

3 tbsp grated orange zest
shredded orange zest to decorate

Preheat oven to 180deg C
Put all ingredients except orange zest in a bowl with electric mxier on low speed for 2 min.
Then increaase speed for another 2 min until smooth and pale.
Add orange zest. Stir briefly.
Divide mixture into muffin cups and bake for 20 min or till golden brown.
Transfer to wire rack and cool completely.

To make icing, simply beat 60g of softened butter using electric beater till pale. Then add in 60g of icing sugar and 1 tbsp orange juice.

Spread over the muffin when muffins are cooled, and decorate with more zest on top if desired.

I reduced the sugar intake from the original recipe as it was a bit too sweet for me.

(Adapted from Baking: a commonsense guide)

Wonderful Memories of Thailand (27 Oct) 09

2009-11-03T17:45:00.003+08:00

Since this is my dedicated blog on food and only food (including drinks) I shall reserve my earnest desire to input any other things from my recent trip to Thailand here. All other comments on my trip can be found here. Ko Samet is a small island off Rayong province, 3 hrs from BKK. It has 14 beaches on the island and the sand is real fine and powdery. If you like the sun sand and sea, this is the place. But be prepared to travel a bit and get dirty on the roads as this island is still relatively undeveloped.

This is my 2nd trip to Thailand this year, in the same month! I'm embarking on a new career and hope to go for a short getaway before I start. I was off to Ko Samet Island in Thailand under a friend's recommendation, followed by a short BKK trip for 2 days and here's a preview of all the good food I enjoyed.

Day 1 on Samet Island: Dinner comprising Chicken with Basil leaves, pineapple fried rice, vegetables with pork

From top: Chicken with basil, pineapple rice and fried veg with pork and rice

It wasn't very fantastic but decent enough as there were many other patrons at this place. Other restaurants were either empty, or small and dark. They looked very dodgy so it was a no no for me.

From left: Mojito & Tequila Sunrise

Day 2: Breakfast was good at Samed Club. They have scrambled eggs, fried eggs, french toast, salad, fruits, cereals, juices, congee/fried noodles, ham, bacon, sausage, and different kinds of breads with a toaster. I didn't expect this good variety so I truly enjoyed it, esp dining by the beach front.

Dinner was good! Dining by the beach at night, on tatamis on the beach with mats. This is something I've never done before and it was a refreshing experience. To my surprise, this place is filled with Caucasian tourists and some Korean tourists as well. It looked quiet outside but once you step into this place, you see everyone packed at the beach house/restaurants smoking Shisha pipe, eating, drinking and dancing. Seafood was good and fresh, reasonably priced. One meal for 2 would hover around 600 baht (about 25 bucks). I particularly enjoyed the dinner on sand with Fireman show and live band with the waves hitting the shoreline and a cool breeze at night.

Above: Wide variety of seafood with shell fish, fish, tiger prawns, pork ribs, chicken and fish & chips

I got a good tan at Ao Wong Duen the next day with a nice orange shake by the beach. I had fried noodles for lunch. It was yummy. A typical shake would only cost you 50 baht. When you are melting under the sun bathed in suntan lotion, all you need is a can of ice cold coke or an orange shake.

Above: fried noodles with chicken at Sai Kaew Beach

From above: watermelon shake, pad thai and chicken cheeseburger with fries at a cafe near the pier

After we arrived in BKK, we headed to Chinatown for some good local 'zi char'. We ordered prawns. steam fish, crab meat omelette, crabmeat fried rice and a coconut drink. That only only cost $31 for 2. Next was dessert. Who could possibly miss the bird nest at Chinatown/Thailand? Although it can't be the real birds nest, it's still a nice dessert to have after a heavy meal.

From above: steam fish, fried rice, omelette and prawns in Chinatown

Above: Bird's Nest among other desserts in Chinatown

Above: spicy chicken noodle in Nam Tok style

From above: Pad Thai in Khao San

Of course there was shopping and more massages in BKK :)

Sweet Potato and Longan Soup

2009-10-26T10:57:00.004+08:00

This is one of my favourite Chinese dessert that's so easy to prepare within minutes. Whenever I crave for something sweet, light, guilt-free and hassle-free, this is it. It is simply a concoction of sweet potatoes and dried longans, sweetened with rock sugar and red dates. I add some sliced ginger to give the zing, which helps 'spice' up the dessert.

Sweet potato is a wonderfully versatile root vegetable fruit that can be prepared and consumed in many ways. It can be eaten steamed, baked as a cake, eaten french fried, a dessert in either Chinese or Western styles. It is a good source Vitamin C, potassium, beta carotene and folic acid among others.

Longan, (Dragon Eyeball known for its resemblance to the eye), is another common fruit in Asia grown in temperatures no less than 4.5 deg C. Driged longan is used in making Chinese desserts. They are dried and dark brown and expands when boiled in water. It is sweet and is known to have an effect on relaxation.

For a simple dose of Sweet Potato and Longan Soup, all you need to prepare are:

A:
1 to 1.5 l water
1/2 cup red dates

B:
Sliced ginger
2/3 cup dried longans (washed and soaked)
1 cup diced sweet potato
Some cut fungus (washed, soaked and expanded)

C:
1-2 tbs rock sugar

1. Bring 1 to boil.
2. Add in B and let it boil over small fire for 20min.
3. Add in C and stir thoroughly for another 20min.
4. Serve hot.

Optional: You may wish to add in 1/2 tbs of apricot seeds to the soup in Step 1 if desired.

Curry Cauliflower with Garlic Crumbs

2009-10-19T22:06:00.001+08:00

This is an interesting and relatively easy recipe I came across in this book Three & Four Ingredients. Every recipe in this book aims to only use 3-4 ingredients, which makes cooking easy and hassle free! This 400 over recipe book is big and heavy. After flipping over the book the entire morning, I came across this recipe which I think I might succeed. A little adaptation was done with the addition of curry powder to spice things up and add some interesting twist to the flavour! Now this can be a good way to get your kids to eat their greens.

This dish makes a great accompaniment to any meat or fish dish.

All you need:

1 large cauliflower, cut into bitesize florets
130g breadcrumbs (crushed biscuits)
1 tbsp chopped garlic (or cloves)
90-120ml olive or vegetable oil
Salt and ground black pepper (I use normal white pepper)
2 - 3 tbsp curry powder (optional)

1. Steam or boil the cauliflower till soft. Drain and leave to cool
2. Heat 60-75ml of oil in a pan and add breadcrumbs and cook over medium heat. Toss and stir constantly till browned. Add garlic and curry powder (if desired) and continue frying. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Heat remaining oil in pan and fry the cauliflower till lightly browned
4. Add garlic breadcrumbs to the pan and stir till well combined with the cauliflower.
5. Season with some salt and pepper and serve.

Alternative: if you wish you may also fry with chopped chili padi to really spice it up!

Flourless Chocolate Souffles

2009-09-30T22:21:00.005+08:00

Light as air, melt-in-the-mouth souffles are always impressive and sought after. And they never fail to tempt chocolate and non chocolate lovers. They are often based on the simplest store-cupboard ingredients for every baker and this recipe doesn't call for flour. For extra indulgence, serve with an ice cream or whipped cream with dark rum and grated orange rind. You can also top it up with a strawberry.

All you need: (for 6)

50g unsweetened cocoa powder
65g caster sugar
30ml dark rum
6 egg whites

1 Preheat oven to 190deg C. Place baking sheet in the oven to heat it up.
2 Mix 15ml of cocoa with 15ml of sugar in a bowl. Grease ramekins. Pour cocoa and sugar mixture into each dish in turn, rotating them so that they are evenly coated.

3 Mix the remaining cocoa powder with the dark rum.
4 Whisk egg whites in a clean, grease-free bowl until they form stiff peaks. Whisk in the remaining sugar. Stir a generous spoonful of the whites into the cocoa mixture to lighten it, then fold in the remaining whites.
5 Divide the mixture among the dishes. Place on the hot baking sheet and bake for 13-15 mins or until well risen
6 Dust with icing sugar when cooled.

In my version I didn't have rum so I replaced it with orange juice. I'm not sure if that's the cause of the bitterness in my souffle, or that I have folded in the egg whites too much. Anyhow that was my first attempt and it was something sweet and enjoyable :)

Adapted from: Three & Four Ingredients

Penang, Malaysia 9-11 Aug 09

2009-09-21T23:15:00.001+08:00

I was on a trip to Malaysia yet again for the 2nd time this year. For my air ticket to Penang, it was merely $85 per pax incl of taxes! It's too good to be missed. I was gone over the National Day weekend.

Preparing for another gastronomical journey, I prepped myself with an empty stomach ready to conquer the streets of Gurney Drive and Georgetown loadful of famous Penang Fried Kuay Teow, Penang Laksa and Wan Tan Mee.

Not to be missed is the Teochew Chendol that's filled with lotsa coconut milk and gula melaka. I prefer the one at Malacca though.

In Penang, it's mainly food hunting and some night market shopping along Batu Ferringhi. On our way to Batu Ferringhi, we stopped by Gurney Drive where it has a HUGE open air market full of hawker stalls. They have Wan Tan Mee, Penang Laksa, Rojak, BBQ cuttelfish, Penang Fried Kuay Teow and lots more! You can't stomach everything in one night. Needless to say, everything is so cheap and affordable - at least when compared to Singapore. And it's very delicious. You probably won't be able to resist the whiff of the freshly fried foods as you walk along those stalls..

From above: Fried Oyster, Assam Laksa, Penang Fried Kuay Teow and Rojak

A must visit is the Kheng Pin coffeeshop along Penang Avenue in Georgetown. It is usually packed! I must say the Wan Tan Mee is ....SUPERB! It only cost me about 3RM (less than $1.50 in Singapore dollars) and it came with chicken, wan tans, char siew and mushrooms! How amazing. I'm very sure you don't get these in Singapore. The portion was considered small compared to Sg's serving, but good enough for me to have the capacity to try other stuff. The Prawn Mee wasn't too bad, just a tad too oily. They have other yummy stuff like Fried Wu Xiang where you can choose what you wanna eat. Like Sotong, Ngoh Hiang or Spring roll etc and fried on the spot. Forget what oil and fats are.

I also got myself Penang white coffee nearby though it was a little steep: $10 for a pack of 15 sachets.

Tip for travelling to Penang: go in a group and share as much variety of food as you can! It's eat eat and eat. Till you drop.

Chinese Pear with White Fungus Dessert

2009-09-13T12:46:00.000+08:00

People around me have been sniffing, coughing and sneezing. With the crazy weather and climate going on, it's good to have Chinese dessert once in a while to 'cool' your body heat. I have never understood the terms 'heaty' or 'cooling' in Chinese medicine but I think the symtoms really show when you are feeling 'heaty'. You'll get ulcers, constipation, sore throat, fever etc. So things that are really heaty are longans, mango, durians and fried foods..

I came across this interesting recipe in the Sunday Lifestyle food section. I never miss a day of this as it contains full of food reviews on places to pig out, what to cook, how to cook and tips on cooking disasters. The original recipe calls for Osmanthus flower (gui hua) but I couldn't get it at 2 of the medical shops in my area. I proceeded with what I could find and got myself a pot of cooling and refreshing Chinese Pear with White Fungus dessert. I'm a bit lazy to follow the recipe provided, so here's my very own version. It can be served hot, whilst some might like it chilled.

Ingredients (for 4-6 servings)

800ml water
20g apricot seeds
60g red dates
75g yellow rock sugar
1 Chinese pear. cut into wedges with core removed
Half of a fungus, soaked in hot water and cut into pieces when expanded

1. Boil the water with apricot seeds and red dates
2. When water has boiled, add in fungus and pear and leave to boil
3. Add in rock sugar and stir
4. Leave to simmer for about 1 -1.5 hr till pear has softned and the soup has a sweet taste
5. Add more water if desired

Ready to serve!

Chinese Huat Kuay

2009-09-05T19:40:00.002+08:00

Huat Kuay (Fa Gao) is not a common favourite among the youngsters these days. It is actually a cake made to rise by steaming it and usually enjoyed by the elderly folks, or at certain times, offered with prayers to the Chinese Gods. (but it can still be eaten after prayers)

This is a recipe originated in traditional Chinese and my mom is attempting to steam it for Sunday. So I'm trying my very best to have it translated as accurately as possible. Nevertheless, it is a simple cake that can be prepared within minutes.

All you need:

250g self raising flour (sifted)
175g orange sugar
300g water
2 pandan leaves

1 Bring water and pandan leaves to boil. Add in sugar and stir.
2 After cooled, remove pandan leaves
3 Pour in self raising flour into mixture and stir will well combined
4 Add water if desired till mixture is smooth
5 Pour batter into cups and steam for 20 min (do not attempt to remove the cover or it will not rise)

I tweaked the recipe a little today as the previous recipe was quite a guestimation with hands-on based on a Chinese recipe. I tried again today and here is the revised one. Hope it helps

(as of 2 Nov)

Kids Baking Class

2009-09-03T11:22:00.002+08:00

I conducted a kids muffin baking workshop on Sat. Though it seemed easy with simple mix of ingredients like milk, eggs, flour and some mixed fruits, the preparation and printing of certs and recipe started as early as 2-3 weeks ago.

It was fun and enjoyable but the oven at the school didn't quite work to my expectations :( It left some parents pretty unhappy due to the long waiting time and I guess this could have been better handled. And since it was my maiden kids baking workshop, I couldn't quite manage 10 kids and 10 parents in one setting. Well I guess we always learn from mistakes and past experiences.

Nevertheless I saw some happy faces as the children and parents walked out with boxes of freshly baked muffins and chocolate chip cookies :)

I tried to allow ample opportunities for hands on learning.

Huff and Puff

2009-08-21T16:22:00.001+08:00

I was prepping myself for a puffy day gathering again. Instead of nice sweet custard puff with mixed fruits, my puff ended very wrongly with yoghurt instead. It wasn't an easy task making custard. I tried twice boiling it with milk but it failed. It got all burnt and solid. With the mixed fruits already prepared, I then had to mix it with yoghurt and down it into the puffs with a slit on top. This is how it looks:

fresh from the oven

For those who wish to try a fruit puff, you have a make a good custard to create a 'base' so the fruits can stand in it. Top it with sliced kiwifruit and strawberries, or raspberries. Dust the top with icing sugar and it's good to go. Well, if you don't have prawns, have shrimps instead and make the best out of it :)

Who says desserts can't be healthy?

Vegetarian Pasta

2009-08-15T12:26:00.000+08:00

I had too much meat and heavy stuff over the week. It's time to take something light and detox a little. Now I've begun to abstain from meat (and I mean poultry and seafood) completely for about 1 or 2 days a week for health reasons. That includes breakfast, which means no tuna nor sardines nor steam pork buns. I also try to cut down on my carbo intake to maintain a healthy diet. Not sure how this would work in the long run, but I guess reduction of fat in meat is a good way to start, coupled with some exercises along the way.

Urged by the desperate need to lose some weight, I bought the Borges Extra Light Olive Oil and cooked myself a Vegetarian Pasta dish on Saturday. I got together some:

Swiss Brown mushrooms (sliced)

Asparagus (cut into smaller lengths)

Small sweet corn (cut)

Carrots (sliced)

I cooked the mushrooms and the vegetables separately as I took longer time to cook the asparagus, corn and carrots completely. Fry the vegetables with garlic and olive oil and let it simmer for a while then add in the cooked mushrooms. Add a pinch of salt.

Cook a portion of Penne (for one serving) then stir fry a little while together with the vegetables. Add more olive oil if desired. Add a dash of salt and pepper and I seasoned it with some Oregano powder.

Voila! A healthy and tasty Vegetarian Pasta dish that takes only takes <30min.

Kreativ Award

2009-07-29T20:08:00.007+08:00

I was surprised to receive an award from Aimei of Baking Cottage. Of course it was a sweet surprise and thanks alot Aimei! Here's the logo for the Award:

The Kreativ Blogger Award comes with some rules:

1. You must thank the person who has given you the award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who has nominated you for the award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 other Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on which of the blogs to let them know they have been nominated.

Emm let me think of what I can share...

1. I sometimes prepare all my ingredients nicely on the table and follow the receipe step by step, but often miss out one bowl of sugar, or one cup of milk and end up mixing my steps all over again

2. I have burnt my fingers/hand a couple of times while baking/cooking

3. I always like to go straight into the recipe without weighing and preparing all the ingredients first, so I often end up back and forth and back and forth

4. My family gets to eat my burnt and hard cakes all the time

5. I always eat a slice of cake and feel guilty for the next 24 hrs

6. I always like to smell my cookies and cakes after removing from the oven and before placing on the table

7. I always substitute butter with margarine and lessen the quantity of butter and sugar thinking it could help in weight management :P

So now, my 7 Kreativ Awards go out to:

1. Happy Home Baking for her wonderful, colourful and splended recipes and pictures
2. Junglefrog who is always so supportive of my blog and amazes me with her inspiring food pictures
3. Small Small Baker is very inspiring in her cake recipes
4. Kitchen Corner for her detailed step by step recipe
5. Passionate About Baking for her step by step and mouth watering food pictures
6. Cook.Bake.Love for being so supportive and visiting my blog regularly
7. Bitter Sweet Flavours for her inspiring food blog with lovely colourful pictures

Thanks everyone and happy blogging! This is non obligatory but just to spread the spirit and love of food blogging and may all our blogs thrive with better and exciting recipes!

Sweet Potato Cake

2009-07-26T15:08:00.000+08:00

This is an interesting bake from Alex Goh Fruity Cakes. His recipes are always very user friendly, easy and very attainable. No frills with his step by step guide.

This is a light and sweet tasting sweet potato cake. It's rich in beta carotene and makes a good healthy afternoon tea snack!

200g butter

50g sugar

4 egg yolks

100g sweet potato, peeled steamed and mashed

4 egg whites

100g sugar

180g plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

60g raw sweet potato, peeled and diced

1 Grease baking pan and preheat oven to 170 deg C

2 Cream A until light and fluffy

3 Add B and continue whipping till light and smooth then add C and cream till well blended

4 Whip the egg whits in D until foamy then add sugar and continue whipping till stiff

5 Mix the meringue with the batter from step 3 till well incorporated

6 Pour 1/3 of the batter in the pan and drop some diced sweet potato and place remaining batter over it

7 Bake for 40 min till golden brown

Preparing for Durian Puff

2009-07-23T00:36:00.005+08:00

Some say in Singapore there isn't such a thing as Durian Season as durians are available ALL YEAR ROUND. Well I guess it's a matter of the quality if durians you get at the market at different times of the year. Since this is the season for durians I think I should make some durian puffs.. if anyone could tell me how to make delicious durian filling without too much whipped cream, I would grab my ingredients and equipment right away! The thought of whipped cream and the extra fat and calories always put me off....

I can't wait... Suggestions are welcome!

Thai Olive Fried Rice

2009-07-20T12:39:00.001+08:00

I never miss the Olive Fried Rice when I visit a Thai restuarant. It is a simple mix of rice, olive vegetables and minced pork or chicken with egg. For my version, I kept it simple with only egg and olive vegetables and I have my minced chicken as my side dish.

To begin, I chopped about 1-20g of dried shrimps into small pieces. Fry it with garlic in hot oil. This is the part where it becomes very fragrant and I enjoy this part. Fry for about 2 min before adding in an egg. Stir everything together till egg is semi cooked. Put some olive vegetables into the mixture and continue stirring till well distributed. You can easily get olive vegetable at the supermarket and it comes in the section where you can find bottled pickles and other chinese food stuff. Remove the leaves from the seed and drip in some of the olive oil as well. The amount you add in is entirely up to the individual's preference. I base this on guestimation and my own preference. Then, throw in some over night rice (I use about 1-1.5 cups of cooked rice) and stir thoroughly. Fry till evenly mixed and pour in fish sauce. I pour about 3-4 tbsp to make it more fragrant. Add some pepper and you are ready to go!

PS: do not attempt to add salt or soy sauce as the olive vegetables is preserved in salt and water which already makes it quite salty. If you wish to add meat, fry the minced chicken or pork before adding in the rice.

You can also try Fried Olive Brown Rice. It tastes just as good, and definitely much healthier.

Brownie

2009-07-10T14:28:00.002+08:00

(this picture wasnt very well taken but pls bear with me)

This recipe was given to me by my friend who had successfully achieved the brownie. I cut down the original amt of sugar as I couldn't bear seeing myself pouring so much sugar into a mixture and eventually our stomach. With the chocolate chips added in, it definitely will not be unsweet. The recipe given to me was just simply mix everything together and bake! As easy as that. Nothing like step 1, xx step 2 xx... I was puzzled but that was how the recipe was. And it didn't turn out too bad..

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 1/4 cup caster sugar

1 1/3 cup plain flour

4 eggs

250g melted butter (I use 200g)

1/4 tsp baking powder

Some chocolate chips

(1/3 block white chocolate but I replaced this with white marshmallow)

Mix all ingredients together and bake at 170 deg C for 50 min. My marshmallow didn't turn out as I expected. I expected some white chewy stuff in the brownie but it came out all black

:( Nevermind. Try again next time..

Peanut Butter Cookies

2009-06-28T13:33:00.000+08:00

What could be more delightful than eating your own freshly baked cookies? Combining peanut butter and peanuts into your cookie mixture couldn't be more tempting as nothing beats the aroma of cookies coming from your kitchen oven.

Baking: A Commonsense Guide refers to this as Peanut Biscuits. But I prefer to call it Peanut Butter Cookies. Here is my slightly adapted version.

All you need are:

185g unsalted butter, softened

370g soft brown sugar (You can reduce this as the outcome is really sweet cookies)

140g smooth peanut butter (mine was crunchy peanut butter so I halved the peanut portion)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg

185g plain flour (sifted)

1/2 tsp baking powder

125g rolled oats

120g chopped peanuts

1. Preheat oven to 180 deg C and line baking trays with greaseproof paper

2. Beat the butter, sugar. vanilla extract and peanut butter in a bowl using electric beater till smooth

3. Add the egg and beat

4. Mix in the flour and baking powwder

5. Fold in the oats and peanuts and mix till smooth

6. Chill until firm

7. Roll heaped tbsp of mixture into balls onto the tray and press it gently with a fork

8. Bake for 15-20min and let them cool on a wire rack

Beautiful Taiwan (21-25 May)

2009-06-18T20:34:00.000+08:00

People say Taiwan is a food haven. How true is this? I've never been to Taiwan in my xx years of life.. and guess it's time I take a look.

The past weeks of tormentous dieting and exercising had all gone to waste.. Taiwan is known famously for its night street market. The Ye (4) Shi (4) is tons better than ours and ours pale in comparison! Streets and rows of food stalls lure your senses and tickle your taste buds endlessly... My first stop was the Shi Lin Market at Jian (4) Tan (2) MRT station. Not to be missed in Taiwan is their deliciously deep fried Ji (1) Pa (2) - fried chicken cutlet. It was huge in size but good enough for one person (or maybe not enough for one!) 2nd not to be missed iitem is definitely the infamous Smelly Tou Fu. It is a type of fermented beancurd which has a stale smell to it. However it tastes quite alright, when taken with the ginger at the side. I personally don't like it actually. It takes lotsa guts to really eat this beancurd as the smell is really really strong. 10 over the richter scale.

Ji Pa

Smelly Beancurd

Their bubble tea range is so huge that sometimes you can't really decide on which to get. They have the ice blended ones, red tea, green tea, pearls or without pearls etc etc. They are also good for their papaya milkshake. Good to chill you down in the swelting hot weather of 35 deg C!

Street stalls are aplenty in Taiwan. The fruit stall look so vibrant with different types of fruits that look so healthy and yummy! Doctors always say fruits are good for you!

We had a simple breakfast at one coffee stall near Taipei Main Station. It was a simple spread of soya bean milk with fried gyoza, sandwich and turnip cake. It wasn't too bad but you shouldn't really mind the hygiene level... eat with your eyes closed :S

From Taipei Main Station, we bought a HSR ticket (bullet train) to Khao Xiong. Look out for discounted fare on Fri between 10am-12pm. It could mean signficant savings to those travelling on a shoestring budget. It took about 1.5 hrs to reach Khao Xiong. From Zuo (2) Ying (3) Station we took the MRT to the south, where we hopped on the ferry to a small island (like our Sentosa from Harbourfront) This place is a paradise for seafood lovers. Seafood is cheap and aplenty in this little island. They are fresh and just simply order what you fancy from what is displayed outside and they will prepare for you with unlimited bowls of rice for you.

After much walking in the little island called Qi (2) Jin (1), we were feeling very hot and tired. A good mango dessert would do much justice!

There are many dessert stalls around Taipei. I visited another one near Shi Lin MRT Station called Xian (1) Yu (4) Xian (1). It was the beancurd with red beans.. how heavenly!! My only gripe was the red beans aint enough.. I want more!

We have our prata in Singapore. Taiwan has their Onion Pancake which tastes just as good. It's more savoury and tasty.. a definitely must try item :)

Hope you have enjoyed the visual feasting as I enjoyed my physical feasting! After my 4 day pig out trip, it was time to head back to Singapore for a serious crash diet again.

Cheese French Toast

2009-06-05T12:53:00.001+08:00

French toast is one of my favourite. It is a simple concoction of bread and egg but it tastes so yummy! It is also one of the easy-to-prepare breakfast and snack. Having tried Ya Kun's Cheesy French Toast, I decided to attempt this myself as it looked really too easy for anyone to master.

Simply sandwich a slice of cheese in 2 slices of white bread. Dip in a bowl of 2 beaten eggs with some pepper and sugar. Heat up pan with margarine and fry the bread over low heat. Remove when cheese inside has slightly melted and egg has browned.

Serve with some Ya Kun kaya or honey if you wish.

Enjoy!

Fruit Muffin

2009-05-28T15:21:00.001+08:00

Who doesn't love muffin? Small, cute bite sizes cakes. Simple to prepare, easy to bake and deliciously satisfying. From my Baking: A Commonsense Guide, I would like to share a basic muffin recipe which can be very versatile and usable in all situations. In this instance, I've added mixed fruits (those you would use for fruit cakes) in this muffin recipe. You may also wish to add coffee mixture or mashed bananas for different flavour combinations which you can enjoy for breakfast, snack or lunch.

310g self raising flour

125g caster sugar

375ml milk

2 lightly beaten eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

150g melted and cooled unsalted butter

70g mixed fruits

Preheat oven to 200deg C.

Sift flour into bowl and add sugar. Stir through the flour.

In a jug, mix well the milk, eggs and vanilla extract. Pour the liquid into the flour mixture and mix well.

Add butter. Stir thoroughly.

Add in mixed fruits and mix well.

Pour batter into 12 muffin cups. Bake for 20-25 min.

A glass of milk to meet yor daily calcuim needs :) (Meiji low fat milk was used in the baking of muffins)

Corn and Cheese Muffin

2009-05-16T15:12:00.003+08:00

Fancy some home made Kenny Roger Corn Muffin? Made with some cheddar for that extra flavour :) hope you'll like it.

Food Paradise @ Malacca

2009-05-03T20:36:00.001+08:00

What comes to mind when you hear Malacca?

FOOD!!

Be prepared for a gastronomical feast when visiting Malacca.

Malacca's rich Peranakan culture has given birth to a variety of delicious food that is spicy and sweet, referred to as 'Nyonya' food. The Nyonya style of cooking is the result of a fusion between Chinese and Malay ingredients and recipes, the result of Chinese traders in the past settling in Malacca and adopting the Malay way of living.

A group of us had a lovely short weekend getaway, taking advantage of the Good Friday holiday. We departed Singapore at 7.30am and were caught in a massive jam at the custom. We only managed to reach Malacca Hotel Equatorial at approximately 1pm! We were tired and hungry and it poured when we reached. We settled for a mediocre lunch that was'nt very impressive at all for a Malaysia food paradise standard. After lunch, we took a stroll to Jonker Walk where the famous Chicken Rice Ball stalls thrive. Tender chicken pieces with garlic and soy sauce are eaten along with glutinous rice, rolled in balls. Each person takes about 8 balls (equivalent to about one normal serving of rice) and boy they look like fishballs!

If you have the chance, try the Nyonya pineapple tarts. They are freshly baked and sweet tasting. 2 versions are available - butter or margarine made. Try the LW brand as they promise better pineapple tarts with better fragrance and taste!

Not to be missed are other yummy food like Assam Laksa (I took the Nyonya Laksa) and Chendol! Assam Laksa is sourish in nature, unlike our Singapore version of laksa. My Nyonya laksa is somewhat like our laksa, but it has a slightly different concoction of ingredients. Wasn't too bad. The laksa only cost us RM 3.50 each bowl.

Top: Nyonya Laksa

Bottom: Assam Laksa

Gula Melaka (palm sugar) originated from Malacca and Malacca is famous for their gula melaka desserts - dessert with sweet brown syrup. It only cost RM 1.70 for a normal serving of chendol and RM 2.70 for durian chendol. You can never get enough of this brown sweet syrup. We finshed every drop of our chendol and it was so delicious that we ate 3 bowls of chendols in our 1.5 day stay in Malacca. Mind your cholesterol level!

Our first stop - chendol at San Shu Gong - very commercialised and overpriced. Not recommended.

Chendol @ Jonker Dessert stall - it was always crowded when we visited on Fri and Sat despite the huge shop area

We walked along the Jonker Street again at night as it became more bustling and crowded. The roads were closed for shoppers and stall holders. More savoury items can be sampled along the crowded street. We couldn't resist the temptation and we got ourselves a grilled stingray, muah chee and Min Jiang Kueh, all after our hearty meal of laksa and chendols.

Crispy min jiang kueh with fillings like sweet corn, red bean or peanut

Now I know what I can do with my packets of Gula Melaka stocked up in the kitchen......

Nutella Swiss Roll

2009-04-18T13:47:00.000+08:00

I have attempted this before and it isn't as easy as it seems! This is my 2nd attempt. It is not very good but somewhat better than my first round where I couldn't even roll my cake!

90g self raising flour (sifted)

3 eggs lightly beaten

115g caster sugar

160g jam (I use nutella)

icing sugar to sprinkle

1. Preheat oven to 190deg C

2. Lightly grease a shallow 2 x 25cm x 30cm tray and line with baking paper extending over the 2 long sides

3. Sift flour three times onto baking paper

4. Beat eggs using electric beater till pale. Add 115g sugar gradually beating constantly till mixture is pale and glossy. Transfer into large bowl and use metal spoon to fold in the flour quickly and lightly

5. Spread onto the tin and smooth the surface. Bake for 10-12 min till golden brown

6. Place a clean tea towel on a work surface and lay another sheet of baking paper over

7. using tea towel as a guide, carefully roll cake up from the short side rolling the paper inside the roll. Put rolled cake onto a wire rack for 5min then unroll and allow cake to cool

8. Spread with nutella and re-roll. Trim sides with knife and sprinkle icing sugar on top

9. Cut and serve

(Adapted from: Baking - A Commonsense Guide)

Orange Stars

2009-04-09T13:34:00.003+08:00

I got myself a baking book cos I can't bake the proper way. This book explains with very clear instructions on why cakes turn out this way and hints and tips to prevent a disastrous cake in the making. It also provides very precise instructions on what can go wrong and how to make things right. It is very useful for people like me who always have failed in cakes and cookies. This 374 page bible "Baking - A Commonsense Guide" showcases all kinds of baked goods like cakes, muffins, friands (pronounced as free ons), biscuits, slices, pastry, baked desserts and breads & scones. Alot of ingredients seem very foreign to me and I don't think I'm able to get them here. Anyhow here's something I could attempt and lay my fingers on (and taste buds).

Original Recipe for Lemon Stars but I have since adapted to Orange Stars. This is the original quantity but I have halved it for convenience and practical reasons.

125g unsalted butter, cubed and softened

125g caster sugar

2 egg yolks

2 tsp finely grated lemon zest (I replace with orange with 1 tsp of the juice extracted from it)

155g plain flour

110g cornmeal

1. Preheat oven to 160deg c

2. Line a baking tray with baking paper

3. Beat butter and sugar till creamy

4. Mix in egg yolk, orange zest, flour and cornmeal until a soft dough forms (I couldn't reach this so I used my fingers to start rolling and kneading)

5. Roll out on a lightly floured surface of 1cm

6. Cut out stars from biscuit cutter and bake for 15-20min

7. Let cool on wire rack. Dust with icing sugar if desired

9 Layer Cake

2009-03-31T13:22:00.004+08:00

I guess this is an all-time favourite of many Singaporeans. And we defintely enjoy eating it layer by layer, peeling it with much enthusiasm. It is one of my favourite local kueh - the best from Bengawan Solo so far. But of course I can't reach that standard, so I have to make do with my version that is not so nicely presented and cut.

All you need:

7 inch sq baking tin

50g sifted rice flour

120g sifted green bean flour

220g sifted tapioca flour

300ml thick coconut milk (I use trim coconut milk)

150ml water

few drops of food colouring (5)

Seasoning:
420g sifted icing sugar
300ml thick coconut milk (trim)
150ml water

1. Mix seasoning together and bring to boil. When bubbles form, remove and set aside.
2. Combine all ingredients except colouring in a bowl. Stir till mixture is smooth.
3. Stir in seasing from 1 and divide into 5 separate bowls.
4. Add in a few drops of each colouring in each bowl.
5. Grease and line tin with greaseproof paper and steam for 5 min.
6. Pour in half batter of one colour into tin and steam for 5 min.
7. Repeat the process till all colours are layered in the tin.
8. Finally steam for 15min when all colours are in.
9. Remove and let cool. Cut (with clingwrap) and serve.

(Source: Local Kueh)

New look

2009-03-29T13:04:00.003+08:00

I have changed my blog name to Sweet Crumbs instead of the old fashion sounding Food Haven for the Obasans. Nevertheless I will continue to post new and exciting yummy recipes for everyone. Thanks for your words of encouragement given to me so far! Keep tuning to my blog :)

Ondeh Ondeh

2009-03-27T22:19:00.006+08:00

Ondeh-ondeh is a tiny ball-like item (one of the Nyonya kuehs in Asia) coated with white grated coconut. It is made with mashed sweet potato and pandan juice with a few drops of green food colouring. Chopped gula melaka (brown palm sugar) are wrapped inside each potato ball before they are boiled and rolled on a bed of steamed grated coconut. When you bite into these little balls, you can feel the juice of the sweet gula melaka oozing out. It is so sweet and tantalising you won’t stop at one.

Yoghurt Cake

2009-03-16T14:21:00.001+08:00

I came across this wonderful website of SH Garden. I tried and adapted the recipe a little, hope everyone succeeds with this!

110g plain yoghurt

3 eggs

150g brown sugar

200g plain flour sifted

1 tsp baking powder

50g melted butter

1. Mix eggs and sugar in a bowl until sugar melt

2. Incorporate flour and baking powder in the mixture and whisk till well combined

3. Add in yoghurt and butter and stir well

4. Pour the batter into a greased pan and bake at 200deg C for 30 min

(Source Adapted from http://carnet-souvenirs.over-blog.com/article-28363485.html

My recipe books

2009-03-15T00:11:00.003+08:00

I bought more recipe books over the past few weeks again... my room is running out of storage space! However the pictures of the baked cookies, cakes and savoury yummy food couldn't stop me from buying them. They were luring me to buy buy buy.. My collection of books has increased but I haven't quite tried every single recipe in each book yet. I guess everyone (I assume everyone's like me) would only bake, cook or successfully try about 60% of the recipes in a book. And you will get tempted at the bookstore again and you will find yourself heading straight to the cashier thinking you could try at least one recipe over the immediate weekend. And the cycle continues..

Here's my collection since late 08.. still counting....

Mushroom Pasta

2009-03-09T11:21:00.000+08:00

Serving for 1 pax

40 g sliced Swiss Brown mushroom
20g sliced carrots
70 g spiral pasta
1 tsp garlic
3 tbsp creamy mushroom and herb sauce
Some oil (pref Olive oil)

Some pepper to taste

1. Boil pasta and place on plate.
2. Fry garlic in oil till slightly brown
3. Throw in mushrooms and carrots and stir for 3-4 min
4. Add mushroom sauce and continue stirring before adding in pasta
5. Add a dash of pepper, basil leaves or some mixed herbs. Toss for a while and remove from stove

Serve when hot.

Walk at Little India

2009-03-08T22:23:00.000+08:00

My girlfriend and I wanted to take a little walk along Little India for our photoshoot. I had been to Little India for shoot before so I wasn't expecting much. But this time round, surprisingly there were many things to shoot. From colourful vegetables to beans in gunny sacks and flowers etc, it was definitely worth the trip.

Weighing your beans by the kg

and dried chilli....

wow so healthy! lotsa beta carotene

and more!

fresh lovely tomatoes.

and a cup of Ice Teh Tarik to cool you down..

Chwee Kueh (aka Steamed Rice Pudding)

2009-02-21T13:11:00.000+08:00

Chwee Kueh is one of my top local favourite snacks and it is actually steamed rice pudding eaten with chopped turnips. I came across this recipe in a local kueh recipe book. It looked easy so I decided to try it but it wasn't so easy after all. My chwee kueh turned out to be hard, sticky and spongy. Maybe I suggest adding a little more water, using wheat starch and a little less rice flour. Or not to exceed 10 min of steaming. Maybe some veteran who sees my blog can give me a tip or two.

Rice pudding:

350g rice flour sifted

40g tapioca flour sifted

20g wheat starch (I didnt have wheat starch so I used corn starch)

600ml water

750ml boiling water

1tsp salt

Filling:

150g chopped salted turnip (chai por)

1 tbsp minced garlic

Seasoning:

3 tsp light soy sauce

1 tsp pepper

2 tsp sugar

Blend rice flour, tapioca flour, wheat starch and salt with water and mix well till smooth.

Pour boiling water into it and mix well.

Grease small baking cups with oil thoroughly.

Pour mixture into cups and steam at high heat for 10min.

Remove and let cool.

Fry garlic with 2 tbsp of hot oil.

Stir till fragrant. Add chopped turnip and add seasoning. Fry till fragrant. Keep warm on low heat.

Serve chwee kueh with turnip topping.

Mini Mocha Cakes

2009-02-12T16:49:00.002+08:00

More sweet stuff coming your way. Forget about the weighing scale. Eat and be merry! It's all about indulgence and feeling happy! V Day follows after CNY, so there you have it! Sweet desserts to feel sweet and loved.

The combination of chocolate and coffee is known as mocha. These mini mocha cakes are dusted with icing sugar... that makes it so beautiful and yummy..

All you need are:

100g butter (softened)
80g light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp coffee mixed with 1 tsp warm water
75g self raising flour
20g cocoa powder

Steps:
1. Cream butter + sugar till light and fluffy
2. Beat egg and add in diluted coffee powder
3. Add egg mixture into butter mixture
4. Fold in sifted flour and cocoa powder
5. Pour into about 7 cups and bake at 180deg C for 20 min.
6. Sprinkle some icing sugar, or add buttercream and add a piece of the cake cut on top.

Time taken: <45min

(Source adapted: The Usborne Children's Book of Baking)

Ice Cream Puff

2009-02-03T21:36:00.004+08:00

You see, I can't get enough of cream puffs : ) More yesterday..but a different way of placing the melted chocolate.

It was the 2nd day of Chinese New Year and we had lots to eat. Lo Hei, our lunch, and many different desserts. I baked a carrot cake and a sponge cake. On top of that. we also had Cheng Teng, all after our heavy lunch. But I had to give this Ice Cream Puff a shot, or I dont know when I would have the time again.

It was an improved version from my earlier cream puff. This time, I greased the baking paper on the tray with butter and let tap water run over it for a few seconds before placing the batter on the paper. It allowed the puff to stay intact as a whole rather than stick to the paper and cause a hole at the bottom and I can't fill anything in the puff. This time, it turned out perfectly alright, with a complete puff on top and bottom. The water also helps the puff to rise.

I stuffed a tbsp of Ben & Jerry's organic strawberry ice cream into the puff when it was cooled. I drizzled some Lindt dark chocolate over it then followed by some chopped nuts. It was awesome! You should try it too. Altogether it took me only <50 mins

Pan Fried Nian Gao

2009-01-26T07:45:00.003+08:00

This is the time of the year to enjoy snacks like Bak Kwa, Fried Nian Gao, Pineapple Tarts and many many other festive goodies. It is a yearly routine that we fry nian gao at home. It is a cake made from glutinous rice and consumed in Chinese cuisine. It is considered good luck to eat nian gao during this time because "nian gao" is a homonym for "every year higher and higher." 年糕 - 年高 (Source: WIkipedia)

All you need:

300g Nian Gao (brown colour looking cake)
3 eggs
3/4 cup plain flour (sifted)
Some water

Dip cut pieces of nian gao in the egg batter (not too thick nor watery) and fry in hot oil. Serve with Chinese tea. If anyone has a better alternative recipe to what I have, pls feel free to share as mine may not be the best :)

Pineapple Tarts

2009-01-24T10:29:00.008+08:00

Everyone around me was making pineapple tarts. My online blogger contacts, my friends and my relatives. I've only recently attempted baking but I thought, why not give it a shot? I first tried it at my friend's place. It was pretty easy and fun! So I decided to do it my own, my way. So here's the recipe for everyone.

The equipment needed...

Pineapple Filling (150 tarts)
3 pineapples (grated and sieved to drain off pineapple juice)
300 g sugar (I reduce this by 20% to make it less sweet. Can use partial brown partial castor sugar)

Cook and stir for about 20min. Add sugar and continue stirring till it becomes sticky and dark yellow. Whole process would take about 30-45 mins. When cooled, roll them into small balls.

Pastry

300g butter

130g margarine

100g icing sugar

80g milk powder

1 egg

800g cake flour/plain flour

Preheat oven to 180deg C. Cream butter/margarine in a large mixing bowl until light and creamy. Add egg and beat well. Sift sugar, powder and flour into the mixture. Fold to incorporate all ingredients into a smooth pastry. Let it set for 30min. Mixture should be a bit crumbly. Roll on a flat surface with a rolling pin and use the cutter to cut into tart shapes. Glaze with an egg. Place balls onto each tart and bake for 10-12 min.

Glazing with the egg

Viola! Finish it with a Fu sticker on top, with compliments from my friend Jaime :)

Matcha Cake

2009-01-18T16:55:00.002+08:00

I was in one of my 'baking mood' again. So with some leftover green tea powder bought a while back, I whipped up a chiffon cake with green tea, with referecnce from Alex Goh's Fruity Cake book. I added some dark chocolate for the extra added flavour. You can't really go wrong with chocolates in anything. :)

Mix 70g milk, 1 1/2 tsp green tea powder together till well blended, then and add 70g (I use margarine as my butter was hard as a rock) and cook till butter melts. Sieve in 90g of plain flour till well combined. Add in 4 egg yolks and mix well. Separately, whip 4 egg whites until foamy, then add 100g sugar and 1/8 tsp cream of tartar till soft peaks form. Add a third of this meringue into the green tea mixture and mix well, then add remaining meringue into it. You can add 120g of chestnuts if required (but I didn't). Bake at 170 deg for 35mins. I added additional 2 squares of dark chocolate (melted) and swirl it on top.

Remove cake when cool from the mould. Optional: cover cake in whipped topping cream if desired and dust with some green tea powder.

Food haven in Japan

2009-01-05T20:41:00.016+08:00

Had just come back from my 6 day trip to Kyushu, Japan. Lovely sights and onsen - hot spring.

Singapore > Fukuoka > Nagasaki > Kumamoto > Kagoshima > Mt Aso > Beppu > Fukuoka

Of course you can't miss their delectable Japanese food!

There were lotsa stalls along the streets selling Adzuki pancake (red bean pancakes) and rice crackers. I couldn't decide what to eat so I tried almost everything I saw. They tasted yummy, but food is expensive in Japan.

Mochi

Japanese have a low mortality rate. Reason? They eat lotsa fish and seafood. They drink green tea which helps fight cancer. I enjoy eating Japanese food (only cooked ones) but they are rather salty... even for snacks

You won't miss the vending machines in Japan. Even in Kyushu, there are vending machines everywhere. It's an interesting vending machine culture.. They sell coffee, tea, juices (hot and cold), hot soup and even cigarettes. it's said to provide convenience to residents and it actually has an added feature of forewarning natural calamities and provides weather reports. In case of emergency one can also get drinks and food out of convenience. Crime rate is actually low in Japan hence the proliferation of vending machines.

Piping hot sweet potato (weather was about 5 deg)

"Black pork slices" ready to be pan fried

Do you believe that these are fake?

Thats all folks for the food pics from Japan.. keep tuning to my blog :)

I have a photo gallery website at flickr.com/missyjoan. Enjoy!

Chocolate chip almond cookies coated with dark chocolate

2008-12-30T01:00:00.000+08:00

More almond cookies from the kitchen of Food Haven...
Original recipe can be found here

Happy holidays everyone!

Peanut Pancake - Min Jiang Kueh

2008-12-25T15:29:00.000+08:00

This is a local favourite snack which is savoury yet sweet at the same time. It has been my favourite since young. Got this recipe from Baking Cottage and almost every step and ingredient was followed. But the outcome didn't seem as good as hers.

Ingredients for pancake:
150 g plain flour (sifted)
1 tsp instant dry yeast
30 g caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt
200 ml tepid water (lukewarm water)
2 eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten
60 ml canola oil (I used 50 ml of olive oil)
1/2 tsp alkaline water (can be found at Phoon Huat)
extra tepid water if neccessary

Ingredients for peanut mix: (I didn't want sesame so I omitted that)
100 g peanuts
50 g caster sugar, or to taste

Mix together flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl.
Add in 200 ml tepid water and stir to mix well. Put in a warm place, cover loosely with cling wrap, and let proof until bubbly and double in size. (it took me about 45min for it to double in size)

Once the batter double in size, add lightly beaten eggs, oil and alkaline water.
Beat to mix in well.
Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before cooking. (the batter at should be runny).
The batter should immediately flow into a circle as soon as you pour into the pan.
If it is too viscous and takes a little while to flow into a circle, mix another tbsp or so of tepid water into the batter.
Heat a non-stick crepe pan (top about 20 cm diameter) until hot.

Pour a little canola oil, then wipe over the surface with a paper towel.
Pour about 125 ml (or more to make it thicker) of the batter.
Cover the pan with a lid and cook over medium to low heat for about 3 to 4 minutes, or until the top is bubbly and just set.
Spoon sesame peanut mix onto half of the pancake, lift the other side and fold over.
Best serve hot or warm.

I had a little trouble with a thick pancake. The inside was mushy and it didn't taste good. So I made a flat pancake instead of thick ones which you find outside.

Nutella Sandwich

2008-12-18T22:32:00.001+08:00

Without even mastering the basics of baking, I was ambitious to attempt a swiss roll. Happy Home Baking's blog got me very interested. Being a little too ambitious, my swiss roll failed but I managed to do a 'sandwich' instead.

3 eggs, bring to room temperature

65g sugar

80g cake flour (sifted)

20g unsalted butter, melted (I use margarine)

2~3 drops vanilla extract

Part I

Line a 9" x 12" (23 x 30cm) Swiss roll tray with parchment paper, set aside. Pre-heat oven to 180 degC. (I did not have this size so I used a much smaller tray but of a higher depth so my swiss roll became too thick!)
Whisk eggs and sugar on HIGH speed for about 7 mins, until the batter double in volume with electric mixer (it can get quite noisy). You'll see the transformation.

Turn to LOW speed and whisk for another 1 to 2 mins. According to HHB, whisking at low speed helps to stabilise the air bubbles in the batter.
Add sifted cake flour into the batter in 3 separate addition. With each addition, use a spatula, gently fold in the flour until well blended.
Add the melted butter and vanilla extract, fold with spatula until well blended.
Pour the batter into the tray.

Spread and smooth out the batter evenly. Bake for 10~15 mins*, until the surface turns golden browned or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Part II (the correct method)

Remove tray from oven. Remove sponge layer from tray (with parchment paper still intact), place it in a plastic bag (to retain moisture). Tie the plastic bag and leave it to cool. (I totally omitted this step so my cake cracked!)
Upon cooling, remove the parchment paper, and turn the sponge layer with the 'skin' side down on a sheet of clean parchment paper.

Spread with nutella (you can try whipped crseam and cut strawberries) and roll up the sponge layer by lifting it up with the parchment paper. Place the rolled cake seam side down.

Cut and serve.

Mine cracked so I simply halved the cake and sandwich them together :P

Chocolate Coated Almond Cookies

2008-12-13T16:00:00.000+08:00

This is an interesting recipe and most importantly, it tastes fantastic! Esp the chocolate coating on the cookie.. it's heavenly! But pardon me for my bad photos here as I couldn't resist eating them rightaway so I hurried through the photography process :)

(made some choco chip cookies as well)

60g butter (softened)
50g caster sugar
1/2 egg (estimation)
75g plain flour (sifted)
40g ground almond
60g dark chocolate (Lindt is good!)

Preheat oven to 200deg C. Cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg and almonds. Pour in flour and mix well. Spoon batter (in 20 cent coin size) onto tray with grease proof paper. Bake for 10 min. Double boil the chocolate. After baking, leave cookies to cool in pan for 2 min before transferring to a cooling rack to cool further for 30min. Once cooled, dip it into chocolate and let it set. Ready for consumption!

note: you may choose to refrigerate the cookies to further set the chocolate. I reckon it shouldn't affect the texture of the cookies

Green Tea Chocolate Chip Cake

2008-12-08T09:16:00.002+08:00

I bought green tea powder some time ago but never got to baking green tea cake. Here's my own concoction of green tea cake with my all time favourite of chocolate chips. Hope you can enjoy it as much as I do.

2 egg yolks
10g sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla essence
2 egg whites
50g sugar
55g cake flour (sifted)
35g melted butter
3/4 tbsp green tea powder
30g chocolate chips

Whip egg yolks, sugar and vanilla essence till smooth and creamy. In a separate bowl, whip egg whites till soft peaks form then add sugar and continue whipping. Fold this mixture into the egg yolk mixture. Sieve in flour and mix well with spatula. Add in green tea powder and combine well. Pour in melted butter. Pour into a 18-20cm cake pan and throw in chocolate chips randomly. Bake at 190 deg C for about 20min.

(Sponge cake source adapted from Alex Goh: Fruity Cakes)

Coffee from the Highlands

2008-11-29T21:00:00.001+08:00

Did a photoshoot for My Cafe Adventures. It sells quality coffee beans and powder from Vietnam. More information can be found here. http://www.mycafeadventures.com/

Chocolate Swirl Muffins

2008-11-28T08:26:00.000+08:00

I had about an hour to spare last Sun. I felt very weird not baking anything for the weekend, so I managed to pyscho myself to DO SOMETHING! Otherwise I would not have a 'great weekend'.

It was a simple task as I baked half the portion. So everything was quick, clean and easy! These muffins are small and serve as a good afternoon snack or breakfast. I use margarine so it's lots healthier.

Serves about 7.

A
2 eggs
60g caster sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla essence

B
55g plain flour (sifted)

C
40g melted butter

D
About 20g Lindt chocolate (to double boil)

1. Whisk A at high speed until pale yellow (something very smooth and creamy)
2. Add in B and mix well with a spatula.
3. Add in C and combine thoroughly.
4. Pour batter into 7 muffin cups (3/4 full) and drop melted chocolate over. Swirl with a toothpick.
5. Bake at 180deg C for about 25min.

(ok not very well taken pics as they were taken on my study table and using compact cam)

Alternatives:
You may add orange zest if you want something citrus, or chocolate chips if you want a double chocolate flavour. Or you can add both! It's free play!

Carrot Walnut Cake

2008-11-16T09:35:00.007+08:00

I've been wanting to try this receipe for a long long time. So finally here it is. It tastes great (esp after 1 night). It is light, not too sweet, moist and not very heavy on cinnamon. It's just perfect. I want to share the receipe with everyone!

(A)
3 eggs
150g milk
300g sugar
1/2 tsp salt

(B)
180g vegetable oil (I use canola, but you can also use olive oil)
1 tsp vanilla essence

(C) (all sifted)
280g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

(D)
150g carrots, shredded (original receipe calls for 200g but I was too tired from shredding!)
120g walnuts, chopped

Topping
200g cream cheese (original receipe of 250g was way too much for me)
60g butter
120g icing sugar
1 lemon zest, grated
1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp orange juice (orange juice is optional as I had leftover)

Cake
1. Whip A till well combined, followed by B.
2. Sieve in C and mix well.
3. Add in D and mix well.
4. Pour batter into a 30x23cm moud and bake at 180deg for 40min.

Topping
1. Beat cream cheese until smooth.
2. Add butter and continue beating.
3. Add sugar and baet till well combined.
4. Add lemon zest and juice. Mix well.
5. Spread topping on a cooled cake otherwise it will be very watery on the cake.

(Source adapted: Fruity Cakes by Alex Goh)

Orange Chiffon Cake

2008-11-15T16:10:00.008+08:00

Had alot of oranges in the house.. so I wanted to make use of them for a cake. Therefore I tried this chiffon cake. It was fantastic. Light, healthy and fragrant. It uses vegetable oil and there wasn't any butter. What's more, it's easy to prepare.. within an hr. It's awesome.. here's it! (slightly revised)

I use a small tube pan so I halved the recipe. (this is the half recipe)

(A)

2 egg yolks

10g sugar

1/8 tsp salt

30g vegetable oil (I use canola oil)

35g milk

(B)

1 orange zest

1 - 1 1/2 tbsp squeezed orange juice (more orange juice makes it more fragrant and dense, not so chiffony)

(C)

50g plain flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

(D)

2 egg whites

50g sugar

1. Mix A till well combined, then add C.

2. Whisk egg whites in D till soft peaks form, then add sugar.

3. Continue whisking till stiff.

4. Take 1/4 of the meringue and mix with egg yolk mixture and combine well.

5. Mix the remaining merginue with the egg yolk mixture and mix well.

6. Add in B and mix well.

7. Pour into a tube pan (about 18cm) and bake at 170deg C for 45min. (it will rise quite a lot)

8. When cool, remove from mould.

Optional:

Some choppped walnuts on top to bake.

(reference: Alex Goh Fruity Cakes)

I've been tagged!

2008-11-09T10:14:00.004+08:00

I was surprised to have been tagged by Happy Home Baking on my little humble blog. She has a fantastic blog with awesome recipes and photos of her masterpieces. Well, to continue the tag, here are the rules to observe.

1. Link to my blog (tagger) on your blog.
2. Give seven facts about yourself.
3. Tag another seven blogs by leaving a comment on their blog and letting them know they were tagged and listing them (and their blogs) on your blog.

Me myself

1. I love photography since young but only started getting serious only last year :) (what a procrastinator!)

2. I love baking and cooking but 70% of the time the result is disappointing. (can see cannot eat quality)

3. I love outdoors and lead and active lifestyle. I have an 'itchy and sharp butt' (can never sit still).

4. I love grocery shopping and can never step out of a supermarket empty handed.

5. I do my budget for shopping, but never keep within it.

6. Horror movies are my favourites (but I get spooked too).

7. I emphasise alot of aesthetics (came from advertising background)

Here are the 7 other blog sites which I often visit:

1. Small Small Baker
2. Baking Mum
3. Baking Cottage
4. Kitchen Corner
5. Taste of Time
6. Fresh from the Oven
7. Cuisine Paradise

Enjoy!

Belacan Rice with Green Mango

2008-11-05T12:17:00.001+08:00

A fiery lunch! You can top it up with garnishes like tangy sliced green mango and fresh coriander. Instead of prawns as the main ingredient, you can use minced chicken or pork, or even diced bacon or ham!

Serves 3. Cooking time 10min. Prep time 10min.

120g small grey prawns, shells and heads removed. (Cut a slit on the top part of prawn so it opens up when fried)
3 tbsp oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 shallots, finely chopped
1 tbsp ready prepared sambal belacan (more if you like it to be more spicy)
3 tbsp fish sauce
4 cups cold cooked rice (overnight rice is better as it doesn't stick and not as soggy as freshly cooked rice)
Some sliced fish cake
1 egg, beaten with some pepper
1 small green mango (optional)
A dash of mixed herbs and curry powder (optional)
Pinch of salt
Dash of pepper

Garnishes
Crispy shallots and coriander leaves

Method

1. Rinse prawns and pat dry then set aside.

2. Heat 2 tbsp of oil in wok over high heat. When hot add garlic and shalllots and fry for 30sec until fragrant. Add prawns, fish cakes, sambal belacan and fish sauce and fry vigorously for 1 min or until prawns are cooked.

3. Remove prawns and fish cake. Fry egg and stir well to break the egg. When half cooked, throw in the prawns, fish cake and rice. Toss well to mix. Fry 1-2 min more or until heated through.

4. Add 1 tbsp of oil if mixture becomes too dry. Add a dash of pepper, mixed herbs and curry powder to taste. Add more fish sauce if desired. Add a pinch of salt to taste.

45. Peel green mango. With sharp knife, cut flesh into thin slices then stack slices and cut across into thin shreds.

6. Sprinkle rice with mango, coriander and shallots. Ready to serve.

Tip: never fry the rice together with all the ingredients at the same time. The food will have a very flat taste. Fry the ingredients individually to bring out each unique flavour to the dish.

Halt

2008-11-04T08:35:00.001+08:00

I have just embarked in a new phase of my career. Life's gona be hectic and more busy in view of the 3 hr gruelling travelling time to and fro work. I'll be less spontaneous in my blog entries but will still try to keep it going during the weekends!

Pls do not stop visiting my blog...

:)

Healthy Chicken Macaroni Soup

2008-11-02T13:11:00.001+08:00

I was packing my room - a long overdue task I had to do - and came across old recipes which I thought I had to keep before throwing the bits and pieces of paper away. But instead of 'keeping' it as it was already yellow, I would blog it. I haven't tried this recipe myself though.

3 ltrs of water
1 slice ginger
1 clove garlic
1 small chicken (about 1.2kg)
salt to taste
500g macaroni

Garnishes

Fried shallots
Croutons
Fresh coriander leaves
White pepper

1. Bring half the water to boil in a large pot. Submerge chicken in it. When water returns to a boil, partially cover and simmer steadily for 15min then cover tightly and switch off heat. Stand 30min.

2. Transfer chicken to a plate and let cool slightly. Discard skin ad peel meat from bones. Shred meat finely and set aside.

3. Return bones to the pot with ginger, garlic and remaining water then partially cover and simmer for 30min. Season with salt to taste.

4. Cook macaroni. Divide shredded chicken meat between indivdual bowls and ladle soup over. Serve with garnishes.

To make croutons

1. Trim crusts off slightly stale pieces of white bread and cut into small cubes. Heat 1/2cm of oil in a small frying pan ovr medium heat. When hot, add cubes and fry, stirring constantly until brown. Drain on kitchen paper and store airtight until serving time.

Egg Tarts

2008-10-30T12:00:00.003+08:00

Care for an afternoon snack?

Here's the recipe of my favourite dim sum item :) It's relatively easy to prepare. The challenging part is the crust of the tart, not so much the egg filling. I didn't have any egg tart trays so I used the muffin cups instead. It looks a bit disastrous.. :P But the taste is not too bad for a first timer!

Try this recipe and give me some feedback.

Makes 6-8

175g plain flour (sifted)
20g icing sugar
90g chilled butter
1 egg yolk
2 tsp cold water

Crust

1. Sift flour and sugar together in a large mixing bowl.
2. Cut butter into cubes and add into bowl.
3. Rub butter into flour with fingertips until mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs.
4. Add egg yolk into water and beat lightly.
5. Add egg mixture into bowl and carry on rubbing the pastry into a firm dough.
6. Grease tart trays with butter and roll out dough into the tray, slightly over the edges.

Preheat oven to 220 deg C.

Egg Filling

45 g caster sugar
120 ml water
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
80 ml canned evaporated milk (I use low fat evaporated milk. You can use leftover milk for Steam Chocolate Cake)

1. Boil water with sugar. When bubble forms, off fire.
2. Sieve egg mixture into the sugar water.
3. Whisk together, followed by the vanilla essence and milk.
4. Whisk further and sieve it into the pre lined trays.
5. Bake for about 20min.

Tip: they must be eaten fresh. Keeping them overnight will not taste as good.

(Source adapted: All Receipes and Usborne Children's Book of Baking)

Steam Moist Chocolate Cake

2008-10-29T16:28:00.005+08:00

My colleague gave me this recipe which I thought was very good. It didn't involve any baking - only steaming.

180g butter
1 cup of castor sugar (I cut down to 2/3 cup)
200g evaporated milk (I use low fat)
2 eggs, lightly beaten with a folk
1 cup of plain flour
1/2 cup of cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1. Combine castor sugar, evaporated milk, vanilla extract or essence and butter in a saucepan over low heat.

2. When sugar is dissolved and butter is melted, off fire.

3. Add the beaten eggs into the slightly cold evaporated milk mixture and stir well.

4. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and baking soda into a large mixing bowl then pour the eggs mixture over the flour and stir well.

5. Heat up the steamer and line and grease a 20cm baking pan.

6. Pour the batter into the pan and place the pans into the steamer. Cover the top of the pan loosely with a piece of aluminium foil.

7. Steam over medium heat for 45 mins.

Top layer looks watery due to condensation but the inside is fine.

(Source adapted: lazy chef)

My food photography workshop

2008-10-27T15:16:00.010+08:00

I attended a 2-hr food photography workshop that taught me how to place the food products, some tips and tricks in placing the food and making the food look appetising. Of course, I also learnt about lighting, reflectors and use of various lenses. There were several lenses I could play with. 60mm macro and the L lens series of 24-200mm (if I can remember correctly)

Here are some shots of what I've taken. This was not taken in a studio - it is at the instructor's maisonette @ Bedok.
Here's the raisin walnut cake.

BreadTalk Cheese Bread

If bread could talk, it would say 'Cheese'!