No Bake Oatmeal Peanut Balls

This is a treat for children when school's out. Not that my school's out, its just study break but I guess its about the same. Seeing that this recipe looks really easy (no bake!) and that I have all the ingredients at home, I decided to try for myself.


credits to crepesofwrath.

Ingredients:

2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 tablespoons peanut butter
3/4 cup confectioners' (icing/powdered) sugar

Your ingredients

Everything that's needed is inside. (oat at the bottom followed by white sugar, cocoa powder at the bottom right, peanut butter center left, butter top left, water and vanilla essence seeped into the mix)

Use your hands to mix into a dough. (I initially wanted to practice hygiene and used a spoon, but to no avail)

Using your hand is so much easier and more effective.

your brown lump

Doesnt this look like meatballs? Haha.

This looks like ondeh-ondeh now

Even when consumed at room temp, it taste great! Best of all, I did everything within 1 hour!

Steps:

1. In a large bowl, combine the oats, sugar and cocoa. With clean hands, mix in the water, vanilla, butter and peanut butter to form a dough.

2. Wash your hands, then roll the dough into balls 1 to 2 inches in diameter.(The size is dependent of personal preference).Sift the powdered sugar before rolling the balls in it until thickly coated. Spam the remaining icing sugar all over the balls.

3. Chill on a baking sheet in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving. Makes around 25-30 balls. (I had about 40 balls cause I made mine smaller)

SCHOOL'S OUT AT: taste and tell

summertime tagliarini

115g/4oz pinenuts
juice and zest of 2 lemons
 a large bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves picked, half finely chopped and half left whole
215ml/7½fl oz extra virgin olive oil
150g/5½oz Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, plus extra for shaving
50g/1¾oz pecorino cheese, freshly grated
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
500g/1lb 2oz good-quality tagliarini or tagliatelle

1) Smash up half of the pinenuts to a paste, then put it into a big heatproof bowl with the rest of the whole pinenuts, the lemon juice and zest, the finely chopped parsley and the extra virgin olive oil.

2) Stir and add the Parmesan and pecorino. What you should have now is a reasonably thick sauce, which you should think of more as a dressing, so taste it and think about how the different flavours are coming through. I want you to balance the flavours so you end up with something quite zingy because, as the sauce heats up and the cheese melts, the flavour of the lemon will calm down a lot. Season with some freshly ground black pepper. Taste it and if you think you haven’t got the balance right, simply add a little more oil and Parmesan.

3) Put a large pot of salted water on to boil for your pasta. Sit the sauce bowl on top of the pan while the water’s heating up – this will take the chill out of the sauce and warm it through slightly. When the water starts to boil, remove the bowl and add your pasta to the water. Cook it according to the packet instructions then drain in a colander, reserving a little of the cooking water.

4) Toss the pasta with the sauce and a little of the reserved cooking water to help loosen it up a bit. The heat from the pasta will melt the cheese, allowing all the lovely sauce to coat it. If you find the sauce is too thick then add a little more water. It’s not supposed to be claggy, thick and miserable, but incredibly silky, fresh and fragrant. Have one last taste to balance the flavours, and serve with a little extra Parmesan shaved over the top and a sprinkle of parsley leaves. Eat immediately.

for more, visit jamie oliver

Chilled Mango Cheesecake

For the woman who deserves nothing lesser than second best :)


Chilled Mango Cheesecake


Ingredients:

Base:
50gm digestive biscuit crumbs
50gm oreo biscuit crumbs (I used digestive biscuit crumbs for everything)
40gm melted butter

Filling:
200gm cream cheese
1 tbsp rum (or almond essence)
1 tbsp lemon juice
55gm sugar
200g mango puree
1 tbsp gelatin
3 tbsp boiling water
200ml whipping cream (whipped)
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 mango (cubed)

Mango puree topping:
100gm mango puree
2 tsp gelatin
3 tbsp boiling water

Method:

1. Toss cake base ingredients into melted butter and press firmly on to base of cake pan. Chill in the fridge for use later.

2. Whip whipping cream with 2 tbsp icing sugar till about 70% stiff or mousse state, keep chilled.

3. Dissolve gelatine powder in 3 tbsp boiling water. Keep warm but not hot for use later.

4. Cream cheese, sugar, lemon juice and rum together till smooth and creamy.

5. Add the warm gelatin solution to mango puree and blend well.

6. Stir mango mixture into cheese mixture and combine till well mixed. Blend in the whipped cream. Stir in the cube mango pieces (optional).

7. Pour cheese mixture onto cake base and chill for at least an hour.

8. Dissolve gelatin powder with 2 tbsp boiling water and stir this into mango puree. Pour topping gently onto chilled cheesecake.

Chill for at least 3 hours before serving.

happy birthday mum :)

credits to do what i like :)

Broccoli Drizzled with Indian-Spiced Yogurt

10 oz broccoli crowns (about 2 small), broken into florets
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 tsp each: cumin seeds, fennel seeds
Seeds from 2 cardamom pods
1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
Zest and juice of 1/3 lemon
Kosher salt and black pepper


1) In large pot of boiling, salted water, add broccoli. Cook 4 minutes. Drain well.

2) Heat oil in large skillet over medium high. Add broccoli. Cook, stirring, 5 minutes or until lightly charred. Transfer to platter.

3) Meanwhile, in small skillet over medium high, toast cumin, fennel and cardamom until browned and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Grind in spice/coffee grinder or in mortar using pestle.

4) Stir 3/4 of cumin mixture into yogurt along with lemon juice and zest. Season with salt and pepper.

5) Drizzle broccoli with spiced yogurt. Sprinkle with remaining cumin mixture.

Alternatively, visit: cheap healthy good

Olive vegetable with lime fried rice

Another one of jo's inventions :)

Olive vegetable with lime fried rice (Serves 6)

(This was obviously not the picture of the rice I had but is rather more for visual purposes.)

Ingredients:

chopped garlic
chopped onion
3 cups rice
pepper
180g olive vegetable (available at any groceries)
300g minced meat
raisins
pine nuts (I omitted this but was told that this could have given an added flavour to the rice)
chopped spring onion
lettuce (in small streaks) (optional)
lime (optional but highly recommended)

Steps:

1) Prepare the white rice. When it has been cooked, cool the rice and add in some pepper to bring flavours to the rice.

2) In a frying pan, pour out a small dose of the olive oil from the canned vegetable and add more vegetable oil if its not enough. Fry the garlic til it turns golden brown before adding in the onion into the pan. Be sure that it is on low fire.

3) Add the meat into the mixture till its fully cooked, add in the cooked rice and the olives. Add in the raisins, pine nuts and stir until the rice is properly mixed.

(No salt or soy sauce should be needed since the olive would give be salty enough :) )

4) Next, stir in the spring onion. You would be able to smell the fragrance almost immediately, on top of the nice visuals.

5) Before serving, garnish with as much lettuce as you want and squeeze lime juice onto each small portions of rice. It is sure to whet your appetite. Serve hot.

Orange Date Muffins & Chocolate Muffins

There's been a muffin craze recently! What better ways to destress than to bake? Looking at the ingredients I had at home, it was an impromptu decision one evening to bake them. Unfortunately, my mum warned me that it's not easy baking quality muffins(moist and soft). I had several friends who tried the muffins said they were a little hard and dry.

Orange Date Muffins:

1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour
1 cup (130 grams) whole wheat flour
2/3 cup (140 grams) light brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1/3 cup (80 ml) fresh orange juice
2/3 cup (160 ml) buttermilk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 tablespoons (57 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2/3 cup (90 grams) chopped dates
2/3 cup (60 grams) walnuts, coarsely chopped

(I substituted almond grains for the nuts though)
Garnish: (optional)
Granulated white sugar

Steps:

1) Preheat oven to 205 deg C. Place rack in the middle of the oven. Butter well or spray, with a non stick vegetable spray, 12 muffin tins (or line with paper liners).

2) In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon, and orange zest.

3) In a separate bowl, mix together the orange juice, buttermilk, egg, vanilla extract, and melted and cooled butter.

4) Add the milk and egg mixture to the flour mixture. Stir just until combined. Fold in the dates and walnuts. Do not over mix the batter or the muffins will be tough when baked.

5) Evenly divide the mixture among the 12 muffins cups and sprinkle each muffin with a little sugar, if desired. Place in the oven and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until very lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool.

Makes 12 regular-sized muffins.




Chocolate Muffins:

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups (230 grams) all-purpose flour
2/3 cup (60 grams) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups (265 grams) light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (170 grams) milk or semisweet chocolate chips (I used dark chocolates since I myself am a fan of dark chocolate)
Chocolate Fudge Frosting: (optional)
4 ounces (12 grams) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup (150 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/3 cups (1600 grams) confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Steps:

1) Preheat oven to 190 deg C. Position rack in center of oven. Butter, or line with paper liners, 12 muffin tins (or line with paper liners).

2) In a large measuring cup or bowl whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.

3) In another large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the chocolate chips. With a rubber spatula fold the wet ingredients, along with the melted butter, into the dry ingredients and stir only until the ingredients are combined. Do not over mix the batter or tough muffins will result.

4) Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter (the muffin cups will be full), using two spoons or an ice cream scoop. Place in the oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for about 5 minutes before removing from pan.

5) Chocolate Frosting: Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

6) In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy (about 1 minute). Add the sugar and beat until it is light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the chocolate and beat on low speed until incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until frosting is smooth and glossy (about 2 -3 minutes). Spread a little frosting on each muffin with a knife or offset spatula.

Makes 12 regular sized muffins.

I didn't actually have buttermilk so I googled on how to prepare it from scratch. It's relatively easy actually. Place a tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup, add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line. I added 2 drops of buttermilk essence to the mixture as well but I guess this is optional.

Japanese Cotton Soft Cheesecake

So i got introduced to this website by jo and it was suggested that we bake this cake for Eva :) Frankly, risky for bday cake for a first attempt since i wont be able to know the taste until the birthday girl tries it herself.

Japanese Cotton Soft Cheesecake!

Ingredients:
140gm icing sugar
6 egg whites
6 egg yolks
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (I substituted it with vanilla extract)
50gm butter
250gm cream cheese
100ml fresh milk
1 tbsp lemon juice (I also added in 1/2 lemon rind )
60gm cake flour
20gm cornflour
1/4 tsp. salt (I'm not too sure where this came in under the steps! )


Method :
1. Melt cream cheese, butter and milk over a double boiler. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, cornflour, egg yolks, lemon juice, lemon rind and mix well.

2. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk until soft peaks form.

3. Add the cream cheese mixture to the egg white mixture and mix well. Pour into a 9-inch round springform pan (Lightly grease and line the bottom and sides of the pan with greaseproof baking paper or parchment paper).

4. Bake cheesecake in a water bath for 1 hours 10 minutes or until set and golden brown at 160 DC.

credits: Momster's Cuppie Corner

Crepes-turned-waffle

well, not only can good food win one's soul but the process of making food can also allow one's soul to feel happier. after a nasty incident at home, I decided to make some crepes.


but due to our laziness, analyn and i decided to use the waffle machine so here's our crepes-turned-waffle invention :)


For the crepes batter:
6 tablespoons butter
3 cups milk
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
7 tbsp. sugar
Pinch salt, vegetable oil


1. The day before serving the cake, make the crepe batter and the pastry cream.

2. For the batter, cook the butter in a small pan until brown like hazelnuts. Set aside.

3. In another small pan, heat the milk until steaming; allow to cool for 10 minutes.

4. In a mixer on medium-low speed, beat together the eggs, flour, sugar and salt.

5. Slowly add the hot milk and browned butter. Pour into a container with a spout (I just used a tupperware container), cover and refrigerate overnight.



The next morning:
1. To make the crepes, bring the batter to room temperature.

2. Place a nonstick or seasoned 9-inch crepe pan over medium heat. Swab the surface with the oil, then add about 3 tablespoons batter and swirl to cover the surface.

3. Cook until the bottom just begins to brown, about 1 minute, then carefully lift an edge and flip the crepe with your fingers. Cook on the other side for no longer than 5 seconds.

4. Flip the crepe onto a baking sheet lined with parchment. Repeat until you have 20 perfect crepes.


For the vanilla pastry cream:
2 cups milk
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch, sifted
3 1/2 tbsp. butter


1. Bring the milk to a boil.

2. Turn off the heat and stir in the vanilla extract then set aside for 10 minutes.

3. Fill a large bowl with ice and set aside a small bowl that can hold the finished pastry cream and be placed in this ice bath.

4. In a medium heavy-bottomed pan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch.

5. Gradually whisk in the hot milk, then place pan over high heat and bring to a boil, whisking vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes.

6. Press the pastry cream through a fine-meshed sieve into the small bowl. Set the bowl in the ice bath and stir until the temperature reaches 140 degrees on an instant-read thermometer.

7. Stir in the butter. When completely cool, cover and refrigerate.



To assemble the cake:
2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoons Kirsch (optional)
icing sugar (optional)
Nutella


1. Whip the heavy cream with the tablespoon sugar and the Kirsch (optional). It won’t hold stiff peaks but that’s okay. Fold it into the pastry cream.

2. Lay 1 crepe on a cake plate. Using an icing spatula, completely cover with a thin layer of pastry cream (about 1/4 cup). Cover with a crepe, repeat, but on the third layer, add Nutella. Continue layering two layers of pastry cream and one layer of nutella to make a stack of 20 or more, with the best-looking crepe on top. Chill for at least 2 hours. Set out for 30 minutes before serving.

3. Dust with confectioners’ sugar. Slice like a cake.

this should have been what the crepes would look like.

the only precautions is, this was really oily.

for more, visit Cream Puffs In Venice.

Butterscotch pudding

Ingredients (serves 6)

• 3/4 cup (55g) brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cups (190g) self-raising flour
• 100g butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup (125ml) milk
• 4 tbs golden syrup
• 1 tbs cornflour
• 1 1/2 cups (375ml) boiling water
• Double cream or ice cream, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 1.5 litre (6 cup) ovenproof dish. Combine 1/4 cup of the brown sugar and all of the flour in a bowl. Add the melted butter, egg, milk and 2 tbs of the golden syrup and stir until combined. Spoon into greased dish.
2. Combine the remaining 1/2 cup of brown sugar and cornflour. Sprinkle over the pudding mixture.
3. Combine boiling water with the remaining 2 tbs of golden syrup. Pour over the top of the pudding mixture and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Serve with double cream or ice cream.

When there was brown sugar and golden syrup lying there for a while, I bumped into this! (:

taste.com.au

Martha Stewart’s Creamy Mac and Cheese

In view of the good responses from the pasta salad and cherry cheesecake, i've been making them several times rather than trying new dishes. In fact, I've been honoured to whip up the pasta salad for a small group of mums for service this saturday. I havent really got the chance to experiment and come up with alterations towards the dish, yet.


So this was the pasta salad in preparation for the mums' dinner :)

In any case, I was in charged of refreshments this week and thought of making another new dish.


Martha Stewart's Macaroni and Cheese!


Ingredients required:


8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
6 slices white bread, torn into 1/4- to 1/2-inch pieces
8 slices of bacon, chopped and cooked until crisp
5 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for water
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg/garlic bread powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 cups (about 18 ounces) grated white cheddar cheese (or any kinds of cheddar you prefer)
2 cups grated Pecorino Romano cheese (or whatever other cheese you’d like)
1 pound elbow macaroni (in my case, I used fusilli)






1. Preheat oven to 190 deg cel. Spray a 9×13 inch casserole dish with Pam and set aside.

2. Place the bread in a medium bowl. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a covered, microwave safe bowl. Pour the melted butter into the bowl with the bread, and toss. Set the breadcrumbs aside.

Tear the bread into bite size.


Tossed with butter

3. Chop your bacon into bite sized pieces and cook til crispy.


4. Warm the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat (it doesn’t need to be super hot). Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a high-sided skillet or pot over medium heat. When the butter bubbles, add the flour. Cook, stirring, 1 minute (be quick!).

5. While whisking, slowly pour in the hot milk a little at a time to keep mixture smooth. Continue cooking, whisking constantly, until the mixture bubbles and becomes thick, 8 to 12 minutes.




6. Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in bacon, salt, nutmeg (i used garlic poweder in my case), black pepper, cayenne pepper, 3 cups cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 cups Pecorino Romano and set the cheese sauce aside.


7. Cover a large pot of salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook the macaroni (or whatever pasta u use) until the outside of pasta is cooked and the inside is underdone, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the macaroni to a colander, rinse under cold running water, and drain well.

8. Stir the macaroni into the reserved cheese sauce. (THIS WAS THE BEST PART)



This must be the bible theory of what it's like to live a life of abundance.


There was so much I had to transfer to a larger bowl. Overflowing goodness, I say!

9. Pour the mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle the remaining 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano, and the breadcrumbs over the top.

10. Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes Transfer the dish to a wire rack for 5 minutes to set.

Serves 10

life's simple pleasure :)
credits to Martha stewart

Cherry Cheesecake

Since it has always looked too appetitizing on pictures and I needed a farewell gift for hueyluin, I decided to bake this cake and it received good response :)

INGREDIENTS

125g digestive biscuits
75g soft butter
300g cream cheese
60g icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
250ml double cream
1 x 284g jar St Dalfour Rhapsodie de Fruit Black Cherry Spread
Serving Size : Serves 6–8

1) Blitz the biscuits in a food processor until beginning to turn to crumbs, then add the butter and whiz again to make the mixture clump.

2) Press this mixture into a 20cm springform tin; press a little up the sides to form a slight ridge.
3) Beat together the cream cheese, icing sugar, vanilla extract and lemon juice in a bowl until smooth.

4) Lightly whip the double cream, and then fold it into the cream cheese mixture.

5) Spoon the cheesecake filling on top of the biscuit base and smooth with a spatula. Put it in the fridge for 3 hours or overnight.

6) When you are ready to serve the cheesecake, unmould it and spread the black cherry over the top.


thats my end product. not very appetizing looking cause it was still in the baking tin but i assure u, the taste did alot of justice to the look it carried :)

This cake is simply effortless(no baking needed!) and delicious. I'm prepared to try it again :)

credits to sara for introducing the cake to me and courtesy of nigella.

Important factor to note would be to NOT SUBSTITUTE YOGHURT FOR DOUBLE CREAM. the second round i tried this cake, that was what I did and the cake turned out really soft.

Parsnip and pancetta fettuccine with parmesan and butter

So what better way to reward myself from the agonies of studying than to cook! Today, I decided on this dish from Jamie Oliver's website, Parsnip and pancetta tagliatelle with parmesan and butter. The name is so long it could almost be a tongue twister. In any case, I revised the dish by using fettuccine because I couldn't find tagliatte in Cold storage.


Ingredients (Notice anything weird?)

(Can anyone tell the difference?!)

HAHA. One's for Rusky the dog and one's for human consumption!

Now, this is the correct set of ingredients.

First, i chopped the bacon into small pieces.

I also added in cheese sausage

Cook the pasta according to the instructions and drain in a colander, reserving a little of the water.

Next, fry the bacon and the herb(rosemary) in half of the butter stipulated for 2 minutes.

Next, add the garlic and parsnips (and sausage in my case) in. Cook under medium heat for another 3 minutes till the parsnips softened reasonably. Make sure the bacon looks golden brown! (I didn't fry mine enough so it didnt look as colourful in the end)

Mix the pasta with the parsnips and pancetta and stir in the rest of your butter and the Parmesan, adding a little of the cooking water to loosen the mixture and make it creamy and shiny. (I kind of mixed the pasta and parsnips mixture only after turning off the fire so i think they cogulated together)

That's the end product. (Maybe not too appetizing looking haha.)

This is the supposed end product, from jamie oliver.

Parsnip and pancetta fettuccine with parmesan and butter Serves 4

Ingredients:

12 slices of streaky bacon

1 handful of fresh rosemary

4 good knobs of butter

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely sliced

2 australian parsnips, peeled, halved and finely sliced lengthways

455g dried fettuccine (or any kinds of pasta)

3 handfuls of grated Parmesan cheese

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

Steps:

1) In a large, non-stick frying pan, fry your pancetta and herbs in half the butter for 2 minutes, then add the garlic and parsnips. Cook for a further 3 minutes on a medium heat, until the pancetta is slightly golden and the parsnips have softened nicely.

2) Cook your tagliatelle in salted boiling water according to packet instructions, then drain, reserving a little of the cooking water.

3) Mix the pasta with the parsnips and pancetta and stir in the rest of your butter and the Parmesan, adding a little of the cooking water to loosen the mixture and make it creamy and shiny.

4) Season to taste.

Lemon Roasted Chicken

Lemon Roasted Chicken (Serves 4)

1 whole 3-5 pound chicken, cleaned
3-4 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons pepper
1 lemon, zested and juiced (keep your lemon halves!)
8(ish) sprigs of Rosemary (you can certainly use more if you like)
4 cloves of garlic

1. Clean your chicken very well. Preheat your oven to 190 deg c.

2. Rub your olive oil onto the chicken skin


3. Get the zest of the lemon, then equal amounts of salt and pepper and apply onto the chicken.

4. Extract the juice of the lemon, coat some onto the skin and the cavity of the chicken.

5. Stuff your lemon halves, garlic cloves and some rosemary into the cavity of the chicken.

6. Rub some rosemary onto the skin as well. (You may also apply an additional honey coat to the chicken skin)

7. Allow the chicken to sit for about 30 minutes for marination to sink in.

7. Cook your chicken for about 90 minutes or till it looks cooked enough. Take the chicken out every 30 minutes or so to baste it with lemon juice.

8. Allow to sit for a few minutes before cutting/serving. Serves 4.courtesy of crepes of wrath

Raisin & Potato Chicken Macaroni Salad

Recently, I got to taste chef alwin from garden asia's pasta and egg salad and man, it was awesome! I know him on a more personal level and I must say, he is really one of the few persons I know around with such high standards for the quality of his food. Anyhow, I tried his organic fusilli pasta and it really inspired me to adapt from his pasta. What I like about pasta salads is that they are really flexible; you can add any kinds of fruits/ vegetables you like to your pasta.


tiny resemblance to his pasta

Ingredients required:


1 packet of macaroni (I think I would personally prefer using fusilli)
4 potatoes
2-3 eggs
2 apples, diced (of course, you can add other fruits or vegetables you like)
4 slices of chicken breast, skinless and shredded
4-5 cloves of fresh onion, finely chopped
100g raisins
fresh lettuce
500g salad dressing
optional: prawns
optional: lemon

1) Boil the macaroni according to the instructions on the packaging. Drain pasta with a colander, leaving some of the water to prevent pasta from drying up.


2) Meanwhile, peel the skin of the potatoes (you can leave it on if you want) and boil them. Boil the eggs in a separate pot.

3) Diced the apple and put it in salt to prevent oxidization. Simmer the chicken in hot water for about 3 minutes.


4) Chop the onions finely and add it into the pasta mixture. (Do not saute the onions so the freshness of its taste can be kept.) (Of course, the onions can be omitted if you are not a huge fan of theirs.) Add the raisins and diced apple in. Shred the chicken breast and add into the mixture.





5) Cut the boiled eggs into cubes and add into pasta mixture.

6) Finally, add the salad dressing and stir well together.


7) Refrigerate the pasta and serve cold. Alternatively, it could be served hot as well :)








And so, I came up with my own Macaroni salad :)

Easy Quiche

Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 4eggs
• 1 and 1/2 cups milk
• 3 tablespoons of melted butter
• 1/2 cup of self raising flour
• 1 and 1/2 cups of grated cheese (i used tasty cheese)
• 2 cups of fillings (i used bacon, onions and mushrooms (fry them separately first))

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 deg
2. Whisk together in a bowl, egg milk butter and flour
3. Fold in cheese and fillings
4. pour into a 24cm quiche dish or muffin tin
5. Bake till 40min (i had to bake it longer... check for yrselves when its set)
6. Serve hot with vegetables or cold with salad.


Really yummy :D

Durian Cake

so hols are coming to an end and i've been wanting to bake, so here we go


durian cake! (disclaimer though, this is not the pic of my cake. haha. mine looks plain as a jane, without the icing on top and golden brown in colour)

Ingredients
170g self raising flour
170g butter
140g sugar
115g mashed durian (of course, feel free to put more)
4 eggs, separated

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 180C.
2) Cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
3) Add in the egg yolks one at a time.
4) Beat well before adding the next yolk.
5) Add durian meat and beat well.
6) Next, add in the beaten egg whites.
7) Last but not least, add in the flour.
8) Put in a 8 x 8 greased pan and bake for an hour (for mine, 40 minutes produced a nice tone of golden brown)

ok. i think we should put alot more durian flesh. i couldnt really taste it in my cake. haha. perhaps this is not the best recipe i can find, yet.

still, courtesy of recipezaar :)

Chocolate swirled baked cheesecake

Ingredients (serves 8)

• 250g pkt Arnott's choc ripple biscuits
• 100g butter, melted
• 500g cream cheese
• 300g sour cream
• 3/4 cup (175g) caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 100g dark chocolate, melted

Method

Preheat oven to 160°C. Process 250g pkt Arnott's choc ripple biscuits until crumbs form. Add 100g butter, melted. Process until combined. Press crumbs two-thirds of the way up side and over base of a 22cm springform pan. Refrigerate.

Process 500g cream cheese, 300g sour cream and 3/4 cup (175g) caster sugar. Beat in 3 eggs. Transfer 1 1/3 cups to a bowl. Add 100g dark chocolate, melted.

Pour half of plain mixture into base. Dollop with half chocolate mixture. Repeat. Use knife to swirl. Place on baking tray. Bake for 1 hour. Cool slightly in oven. Refrigerate.


Source: taste.com.au

This was my very first attempt to making a cheesecake and it was an encouraging start! (:

Chicken Tortilla Wraps

there are many kinds of tortilla/taco wraps. one thing i love about wraps; the ingredients are really flexible.









some days, i make wraps using left over curry chickens, somedays i use onion and eggs. today, i chose one off joyful abode.

Serves 4-6

4 chicken breasts
1 package taco seasoning (or any seasoning suitable for wraps)
1 can (or equal amount of fresh) corn, drained
1 cup salsa
1 onion, sliced
handful of lettuce
1 tablespoon olive oil
4-6 tortillas
1 cup grated mozzarella cheese (or cheese of your choice)
sour cream

1. Preheat the oven to 190 deg c.

2. Place the taco seasoning in a small bowl and coat the chicken breasts in it. Bake them for 15 minutes, flip, and bake for another 10 minutes.

3. In the meantime, combine the corn and the salsa in a medium bowl and set aside.

4. Slice your onion and pepper and saute in olive oil.

5. Remove your chicken breasts from the oven and cover with the corn mixture. Bake for another 5-10 minutes.

6. Slice the chicken breasts and place on a warmed tortilla. Add the corn mixture, sour cream, cheese, the sauteed vegetables, and whatever else you like. Wrap up like a fajita and enjoy!

carrot cake with lime mascarone

so its fathers' day and i decided to make an attempt at the americanized carrot cake, but there were slight hiccups ): i didnt have walnut, which i think is an essential condiment in carrot cakes. also, i didnt notice that the baking time was 1 hr so we kept opening the oven to check and hence the top was slightly burnt.


carrot cake! serves 8-10


1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
2 cups light-brown sugar
5 large eggs, separated
Zest and juice of 1 orange
1 slightly heaped teaspoon baking powder
1 heaped teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup ground almonds
4 ounces shelled walnuts, chopped, plus more for garnish
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour, sifted
10 ounces carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
Sea salt
4 ounces mascarpone cheese
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 scant cup confectioners' sugar, sifted (felt that this could be reduced cause the icing turned out pretty sweet)
Zest and juice of two limes


1) Preheat oven to 180 deg celcius. Butter a 9-by-2-inch square baking pan and line with parchment paper. Set aside.

2) In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together butter and brown sugar until pale and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, pulsing after each addition. Add orange zest and juice; pulse to combine. Add baking powder; pulse to combine. Add cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger; pulse until mixture is well combined.

3) In a large bowl whisk egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Gently fold in almonds, walnuts, flour, and carrots; fold cake mixture into egg white mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cake cool in the pan 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

4) In a medium bowl, mix together mascarpone, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and lime zest and juice. Spread mixture over top of cooled cake and sprinkle with chopped walnuts.


recipe off martha stewart's fathers' day special

Basic Scones

Ingredients (makes 16)

• plain flour, for dusting
• 3 cups self-raising flour
• 80g butter, cubed
• 1 table spoon of casted sugar
  
• 1 to 1 1/4 cups milk
• jam and whipped cream, to serve

Method

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Lightly dust a flat baking tray with plain flour. Sift self-raising flour into a large bowl.
2. Using your fingertips, rub butter into flour until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Make a well in the centre. Add casted sugar and 1 cup of milk. Mix with a flat-bladed knife until mixture forms a soft dough, adding more milk if required. Turn onto a lightly floured surface. Knead gently until smooth (don't knead dough too much or scones will be tough).
4. Pat dough into a 2cm-thick round. Using a 5cm (diameter) round cutter, cut out 12 rounds. Press dough together and cut out remaining 4 rounds. Place scones onto prepared baking tray, 1cm apart. Sprinkle tops with a little plain flour. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and well risen. Transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm with jam and cream.

Recipe from taste.com.au

blueberry crumb bars

since i happen to have all the ingredients at home, i decided to make it:


blueberry bars (serves 16)

-1 cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup cold butter (250g)
- 1 egg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- Zest and juice of one lemon
- 4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (remember to drain juice off if using frozen or canned berries)
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch


1. Preheat the oven to (190 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan with butter or line with oven-paper to facilitate removing the end product later.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, 3 cups flour, and baking powder. Mix in the salt and lemon zest.

3. Blend in the butter and egg and mix thoroughly. (I used my hands and found it to be much easier). Dough will be crumbly. Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.

4. In another bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the blueberries.

5. Sprinkle the blueberry mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the berry layer.



5. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares (I chilled mine in the fridge for a bit). Makes 16 large bars.




taken off smitten kitchen
pictures credited to crepes of wrath

chicken pot pie soup

Took a day off from my service with the frog farm and made this dish i've been wanting to since forever:


chicken soup! courtesy of crepes of wrath (serves 6-8)

3 cups cooked chicken (preferably breast meat) cubed or shredded
1 onion, diced
*2 carrots, chopped
2 cups potatoes, cubed (more if you are a fan of potatoes)
*1 can green peas, drained
*1 can corn, drained
6 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup flour (all purpose/ plain)
2 chicken/vegetable cubes
2 cups chicken/vegetable broth
4 cups of milk (UHT)
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
Puff pastry dough or whatever else you like (i used delifrance baguette)

*i substituted carrots, peas and corns with 3/2 cups of mixed vegetables instead.


1. Put the potatoes in a pot with 1 cup of the broth and enough water to cover them. (I actually cooked the potatoe first and skinned it before doing this step.) At the same time, put your peeled and chopped carrots in a small pot with enough water to cover them. Cover and cook both vegetables until fork tender, about 15-20 minutes. (otherwise, boil the mix vegetables if you are using them instead.)

2. Meanwhile, saute your onions in a few teaspoons of olive oil until soft and translucent, about 8 minutes.


3. In a large pot, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add in bouillon, pepper, garlic, broth and flour. Stir until smooth.

4. Gradually add milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until it boils, simmer for a minute, stirring constantly.

5. Add chicken and then each vegetable one at time and stir carefully between each addition.

6. Roll out your pastry dough (if you’re using it) about 1/4 inch thick and cut into 3×3 inch squares. Bake in 190 degree in the oven for 7-10 minutes, until puffy and slightly browned on top. Serve on top of soup. (otherwise, i just cut the baguette into small pieces) Serves 6-8.


overall, an awesome dish which tasted like campbel soup! :) it was a pity i didnt share with the intended party cause of a tantrum i threw.

from back to the cutting board; enjoy!

Stove top marcaroni and cheese

what better to do than to experiment simple and new dishes when you've got nothing better to do. whipped a simple, nonetheless fantabuolistic dish for jiaying when she came over on thursday:


marcaroni and cheese!
serves 2-3

- 6 slices bacon cut into chunks (minced meat would do, but bacon would still give the best taste
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 onion clove, minced
- salt
- 250g elbow macaroni
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons plain flour
- 1 1/2 cups UHT fresh milk
- shredded parmesan cheese
- ground black pepper
- optional: lemon juice


1. In a wok, cook bacon until crisp. Set the bacon aside to drain on paper towels and crumble when cooled. Drain most of the fat from the pan and fry the garlic and onion. Lightly season with salt and pepper. Stir the bacon back in to the onion mixture and set aside.

2. Cook the pasta according to the instructions written on the packet. Add salt and olive oil to the water. Drain off water from pasta with colander, leaving just a little to prevent marcaroni from clumping together.

3. Meanwhile, in a large pot add the butter over medium-low heat. When the butter is half melted, add the flour and whisk to combine. When the butter is completely melted, add the milk and cook for 5-10 minutes until the mixture has reached the desired thickness.

4. Add the cheese and a 1-3 dashes of pepper to the butter and flour mixture and stir until it has melted. Add the bacon and onion mixture to the cheese sauce and stir for a good mix.

5. Add the drained pasta to the cheese sauce and stir until the pasta is well coated. Top with black pepper if desired. Sprinkle more parmesan and even lemon juice if preferred.

extracted off dishing up delights

Cranberry almond multi-grain scones, carbonara sauce

this afternoon(20th may to be exact), i decided to try something new for my sister's birthday, which is none other than


scones!
serves 12-14

i've always digged scones ever since those pre-A level days where i would just study at KAP or guthrie and head for the confectionary section in cold storage when i needed a bite. of course this baking was assisted by analyn (the maid)

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar (i used red man caster sugar cause i thought it would be better)
5 tablespoons grape seed or expeller-pressed canola oil (i used olive oil)
optional: 1/2 tsp almond extract
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 cup oatmeal (not instant)
1/4 cup wheat bran (since i didnt have this, i just used more oatmeal and flour)
1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour (all purpose/ self-raising flour would do)
* 2 tablespoons millet
* 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
1 1/2 cup dried cranberries (or any other dried frut) (i actually used raisins and chocolate chips as substitutes)
1 cup almonds (or any other nut, preferably diced or in smaller pieces)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (which can be excluded, to your preference)
1/2 cup milk (UHT fresh milk, HL milk, etc)

*not a fan of those seeds so i actually experimented and excluded millet and poppy seeds, and it turned out fine, but you could still include it in of course =)

ZESTY LEMON TOPPING:
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar (caster sugar as well)

1. Preheat oven to 190 deg cel.

2. Whisk the egg, sugar, almond extract, and oil together in a bowl. Mix the lemon zest and the flour, wheat bran, millet, poppy seeds, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg together in a separate bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until all of them are evenly dispersed throughout.

3. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the egg, almond extract, sugar and oil, and mix to create a thick dough. Add the milk and mix well. Fold in your cranberries and almonds (or any other ingredients you think you would like)

4. Lightly grease a baking pan. Scoop up tablespoonfuls of the dough and drop them one by one in mounds onto the baking sheet (alternatively use a muffin/scones pan), leaving 2 inches of space between. (if you have those cupcake papers, you can actually place it into the pan to facilitate you removing the scones later) You should have about 12-14 scones. Bake for 15-20 minutes, just until the crust is barely golden brown and the dough is dry. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
(Be sure to allow the dough mix to cover the nuts/raisins to prevent them from being overcooked)



5. With a fork or a whisk, mix together the lemon glaze ingredients until the sugar is completely dissolved. Drizzle 1 tablespoon over each scone. (This step is really optional; my family actually prefers the original taste without the lemon, so its really up to your preference)


lemon juice with sugar





and, guess what. i mistook the 1 tsp of almond extract for 1tbsp. even as i was pouring it, i was asking my maid why do we have to put so much. sheesh )): so this batch has a real strong almond smell (almost pungent). and the texture of the scones are kinda in between muffins and the authentic hard ones, just like scoffins! so there :]

adapted off drweil :)


THEN, i also decided to make some carbonara sauce from scratch for her, different from jamie's. This recipe was given by joel's maid and is pretty good, (people who prefer their carbonara more creamy would like this over jamie's) just that i didnt really copy the proportions. its about agaration.

Carbonara sauce:

Steps:
1) Slice bacon into small chunks (or you could just use any meat balls)

2) Fry garlic for 0.5 mins, then add the onion in and fry for another minute.

3) Add the bacon in and fry till golden brown, leaving the onion and garlic to one side of the wok.



4) Stir everything together, adding in about 100ml UHT whipcream (Greenfield preferred, easily available in supermarkets).



5) Add chicken stock (ratio whipcream to stock 1:1) and stir together until mixture starts to boil.


6) Season with black pepper (even lemon juice and zest)

7) sieve in cornflour if you want it more creamy

8) Stir in the eggs (~2) right before it boils (this is an essential step cause you do not want to add the eggs in when the mixture is boiling or what you would get is small lumps of egg whites in the sauce)

8) Meanwhile, prepare pasta according to the instructions written on the packet.


I had to stir the pasta continuously to prevent the bottom from being burnt, together with the salt and oil for more taste and to prevent the noodles from sticking together respectively.

9) When the pasta is ready, take a colander and drain the water away, leaving just a little for the pasta to prevent it from drying up, at least till you serve it.



10) Separate the sauce from the pasta until before serving. this is to prevent the sauce from being absorbed by the pasta.



TA-DAA! maybe sprinkle parsley for garnish or even add some lemon juice to the noodles to whet your appetite.

all the best! =]

Chocolate fridge cake with pecan and meringues

This was my latest attempt for my mum on mother's day:


chocolate fridge cake!
serves 16

INGREDIENTS

200g digestive biscuits
110g whole pecans, roughly chopped (i used almond nuts as substitute)
110g pistachio nuts, peeled (i bought ready-peeled ones from phoon huat)
10 glace cherries (you can use different colour cherries to make it look more colourful, or even put raisins instead.)
2 ready-made meringue nests, smashed up ( i actually used meringue shell instead, available at cold storage)
150g unsalted butter
1 tablespoon golden syrup
200g dark chocolate


1) Break the biscuits into small pieces directly into a large bowl. Add the pecans, pistachio nuts and cherries and mix together. (although the ingredients didnt state to peel the cherries into small bits, i decided to do that so that it would be more evenly spreaded)

2) Put the rest of the ingredients into a separate, heatproof bowl and put on a low heat over a pan of simmering water until the butter and chocolate have melted. (because i used meringue shell, i had to pound the shell into fine bits first before adding to the mixture)

3) Combine the biscuit mix with the chocolate mixture.

4) Line a 30 x 20 cm plastic container with clingfilm, leaving plenty of extra film at the edges to help turn the cake out later. (alternatively, if you have those non-stick oven paper, just place it over your oven dish and pour the mixture over)
5) Whack everything into the container, place in the fridge to firm up then turn out and cut into chunky slices.


this is a very expensive cake (approximately $40) for someone collecting an allowance of mine, simply because of the pistachio and the various nuts. personally, i felt there was an overload of nuts so maybe you could cut down on the nuts if you are not an exact fan of nuts. but i must say, its very easy and no oven is required at all!

courtesy of jamie oliver again :)

till then, everyone :]