Brownie

(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

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)

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

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

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

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

Food Paradise @ Malacca

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......