Cookie Dough Puff With Calamansi Cream Cheese Fillings (酸柑奶酪曲奇泡芙）

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INTRODUCTION

This will be a short post on cookies dough puff. The post had been with me for more than two months. While I am cleaning my computer‘s images library, I noted that it was stuck in my images list and I have decided to issue the post today.

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I have to be frank that this is supposing to be a gluten free puff, somehow, I can’t locate the hand written recipe that I was using, therefore, I have decided to share with all the common puff pastry recipe but with cookie dough and calamansi cream cheese fillings.

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The gluten puff pastry is my own creation using tapioca flour and rice flour. I promised that should I locate the recipe, I will update the post for gluten free puff pastry that hope that will benefit those readers on gluten free diets.

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Frankly speaking, I love this dough especially the cookie crusting. The tanginess of the cream cheese fillings definitely goes well with the sweet cookie topping and puff pastry.

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This is the same puff pastry that I have used for Éclairs and durian puff. If you are interested to read, you can refer to : Durians Are In Season, Let’s Make Good Use Of It!..–Durian Cream Puff (榴莲泡芙）

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and My Chocolate Éclairs Are Ugly But Possess Awesome Internal Beauty.. Chocolate Éclairs

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

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Choux Pastry

  • 2 eggs (lightly beaten)
  • 65 grams of unsalted butter
  • 65 grams of plain flour
  • 125 grams of water

(please disregard one of the flour bowl above- only one type of flour required)

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Cookies dough

  • 100 grams of plain flour
  • 75 grams of melted unsalted butter
  • 3 tablespoons of icing sugar

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Calamansi Cream Cheese Frosting

  • 100 grams of cream cheese frosting
  • 50 grams of condensed milk (you can add gradually to taste)
  • 2 tablespoons of calamansi or lime juice

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

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  • Put the plain flour, melted butter and icing sugar in a mixing bowl, use a spoon to stir until well combined.

  • Pre-heat the oven to 200 degree Celsius.

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  • In a sauce pan, place water and butter. Bring to boil. Take away the sauce pan and sift in flour. Stir until well mix. Put it back to the stove and continue stirring until the dough leaves the side of the pan and forms a ball.

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  • Transfer to the whisking bowl of a stand mixer. Beat the dough for about 30 seconds to release the heat. Add in one egg at a time and continue to whisk until the egg are well mixed. Repeat the same for the other egg.  Do not add the eggs too quickly, otherwise, your dough will be very runny. If it is too runny, beat for several minutes or until thickened again. The end result of the dough should be glossy but not runny。

  • Transfer the dough to a large piping bag fitted with 1.5 cm plain nozzle. Pipe the dough in a 1.5 cm diameter balls leaving rooms for expansions.

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  • Put the cookies dough on a piece of baking paper, put another piece of baking paper on top of the dough, roll until it is a thin piece with about 2-3 mm thickness. Use some cutter (with about 2 cm diameter) to cut the cookie dough into a circle. Place the round dough on top of the choux pastry and bake in the pre-heated oven of 200 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Leave the puff pastry in the oven will the door ajar for 5 minutes (off the heat) before transferring out for cooling in a wire rack. Cool completely before piping of calamansi cream cheese fillings.

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Preparing and piping the calamansi cream cheese fillings

  • Put the lime juice, softened cream cheese and condensed milk in a whisking bowl. Use a hand whisk to whisk until well combined. In this stage, you can add the condensed milk gradually until your desired sweetness. However, the tanginess of the lime or calamansi juice do negate the sweetness of the condensed milk.

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  • Pipe the cream cheese filling to the cooled cookie dough puff by slicing the puff into half and by using a nozzle of your choice. Best served cold as a dessert after the main meal.

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CONCLUSION

This is a cream puff that I liked especially the cookie dough. I will update the recipe when I found my hand written gluten free  recipe. I deeply apologize for that.

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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(updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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Yam Paste With Gingko Nuts (Orh Nee 银杏芋泥）

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INTRODUCTION

I prepared some Hakka Abacus Seeds yesterday and I have some left over yam paste. I therefore decided to use these yam pastes to prepare the Teochew famous dessert – Or Nee.

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I don’t actually intended to issue this recipe as it was captured in my Facebook Page already. However, when I posted the pictures in Facebook Groups, members of the Group are requesting for the recipe. I have therefore decided to transfer the previous recipe to this main blog. Because the recipe was written earlier in a different format, therefore, the method of writing in this post will be slightly different from the recent post.

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Or Nee is an authentic traditional Teochew desserts  using yam or taro as the main ingredient. Almost all Teochew restaurants will have this dessert.

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Though in Singapore and Malaysia, it was related to be a Teochew dessert, however as per Chinese Wikipedia alike Baike, it was written that in People’s Republic of China, this dessert was common in the Fujian province especially in the Fuzhou city. (Note that Chaozhou (or Teochew) is situated in the Guangdong province near the boarder with Fujian)

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“芋泥是闽菜中的传统甜食之一，其中又尤以福鼎的八宝芋泥最为地道。用芋头烹制的芋泥，以独特的味道而脍炙人口。原料可选：竹芋、红芋、猴头芋等，但以槟榔芋最佳。将芋头蒸熟，去皮碾压为泥，拌上猪油、白糖、香料、芝麻等在旺火热锅上翻搅均匀后装入盆中，并用红枣、山揸熟莲子、冬瓜糖等在芋泥面上装饰太极图案，淋上一层熟猪油，上笼用旺火蒸熟透即可上席。芋泥中的上品称为“太极芋泥”和“八宝芋泥”。由于猪油蒙盖，制成后貌似冷食，实则热食。在酒宴上常在收席前做为甜点推出。福建东部沿海地区皆有做芋泥的习俗。其中尤以福州芋泥最为有名，是福州地区典型的甜食。此菜香郁甜润，细腻可后，是闽菜的传统甜食之一。每当宴席接近尾声时，上的最后一道“压轴”菜，通常都是芋泥。” (Source: http://www.baike.com/wiki/%E8%8A%8B%E6%B3%A5)

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This is not a difficult dessert to make except a bit laborious. Chinese have a saying: “做芋泥没功夫，糖油做师傅” and literally translated as “No kungfu is needed in the preparation of yam paste, but oil and sugar are the shifus”.. It means that the preparation of yam paste is very simple, but what constituted a good bowl of yam paste is the quality of sugar and oils used. Traditionally, yam paste was prepared using lard and in this illustration, lards were used as well. Of course, besides oil and sugar, the quality of yam is also very important.

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Generally, in Singapore’s and Malaysia’s restaurant, Orh Nee was served either in a thick paste form or creamy form. They are essentially the same except for the creamy form, some coconut milk or fresh milk were added to thin the thick paste.

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Servings: About 8 adult servings

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  • 500 grams of taro or yam (weight after de-skinned)
  • 100 grams of pumpkin (weight after de-skinned)

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  • Few sprigs of spring onion (the white part)
  • 3-4 tablespoons of lard or other cooking oil
  • 100 grams of castor sugar
  • Some gingko nuts
  • 100 grams of coconut milk or fresh milk (if creamy yam paste is preferred)

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STEPS OF PREPARATON

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  • Slice the yam and pumpkin into small pieces and place in a steamer. Steam the taros and pumpkins until soft. It will take about 20-25 minutes (depending on the heat). Pumpkins will be cooked much faster. You can use a fork to scratch the yam. As long as you can scratch it easily, it is considered as cooked.

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Mashing the yam – Method 1 (using the fork)

  • Use the fork to mash the hot yam until fine. You can also use the potatoes masher to mash the yam. All these need to be done when the yam is hot. Depending on the type of yam used, some may not be easy to mash until smooth. As an added measure, you may want to sieve the mashed yam such that the yam paste will be smooth. If the yam is too difficult to mash or sieve, you can add a few tablespoons of water.

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Mashing the yam – Method 2 (using the rolling pin)

  • When the yam is hot, transfer to a plastic bag. Seal the opening and use a rolling pin to roll or “hit” until fine. For this method, sieving may also be needed if the mashed yam are too coarse.

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Mashing the yam – Method 3 (using the food processor)

  • When the yam is hot, transfer the yam to the food processor and blend until as fine as possible. Generally, you will be able to get a higher recovery rates from this method (meaning most yam can be used) and the mashed yam is more finer too.

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  • In a frying pan, have some lard  or cooking oil and put in the chopped spring onions. Stir fry until it is slightly brownish and aroma start to spread to the house. Add in the yam paste and sugar. Stir fry until well mixed. If it is overly sticky to stir fry, add a few tablespoon of water.

  • Transfer the stir fried yam paste to a greased bowl, level it and add additional 1 tablespoon of lard or shallot oil on top of the yam paste. Steam under high heat for about 10 minutes. Off the heat, place on top of the yam paste some gingko nuts and steamed pumpkins before serving.

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  • Preparing creamy yam paste – If you prefer your yam paste to be creamy, put the cooled yam paste, add some milk or coconut milk in a blender and blend until smooth. As for the amount of liquid to be added, it will be about 20% of the weight of your yam paste. Depending on the consistency that you are looking for, you are advised to add the milk gradually. As the milk will dilute the sweetness, additional sugar may be needed.

Note:

  • The stir frying stage is a rather traditional method and is optional.. I personally prefer this step because as a result of stir frying the paste with fragrant shallot oil, the fragrance of yam paste will be much more aromatic.   If you don’t prefer the stir frying, you can just add in castor sugar and proceed to the steaming step)

  • For this illustration, the net yam paste is 500 g and I have added 100 g of sugar. It is just right for me but you can gradually add the sugar until it suits your taste buds.

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CONCLUSION

This is an old recipe and rewriting the recipe is actually tougher. Remember that a good yam paste depends very much on the type of yam that you can get hold of and the oils used to cook the yam paste. If you are health conscious, after blending the yam paste, add sugar and proceed to steam for 10 minutes… Drizzle with coconut milk before serving. Is it not the preparation was easy?

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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(updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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An Auspicious Hakka Dish–Hakka Abacus Seeds/Beads (客家算盘子）

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INTRODUCTION

I am not a Hakka but I do have my fair share of abacus seeds as my wife is a Hakka and two of my sister in laws are Hakka. Obviously, this is an auspicious dish for the Tai pu (大浦） Hakka clan usually served during happy occasions such as weddings and Chinese New Year reunion dinner.

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Abacus seeds are made from yam paste and some type of starches – can be tapioca or wheat starch. It is a savoury dish that can be served as a main meal or as a snack. I have decided to prepare this for dinner tonight.

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It was called abacus seeds because it looked like the seeds in an abacus. Today, the abacus seeds that I prepared are rather flat for the sake of my children and I do not like the type that are too round since it can be rather chewy and more difficulty to cook. Some used a chopstick to make the cavity in the yam ball but I have decided to use a finger to make the cavity and that saves lot of time… For shaping, I will leave it to readers to decide whether you like the round ball with small cavity  or a rather flat shallow cavity like what you saw in this illustration.

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As per Wikipedia under its article “Hakka Cuisine”, it was written that abacus beads are: :

“Made of dough formed of tapioca and yam, cut into abacus-bead shapes, which when cooked, are soft on the outside and chewy on the inside. The dish may be cooked with minced chicken or pork, dried shrimps, mushrooms and various other vegetables. The dish is stir-fried, seasoned with light soy sauce, salt, sugar and sometimes rice wine or vinegar.” (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakka_cuisine)

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I am very pleased with the recipe that I used for the abacus seeds. The dough is very easy to handle and I can shape it rather fast about 1/2 hour for 500 grams of yam..

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The outcome is strong yam fragrance, soft abacus seeds and that definitely is more suitable for kids since it is easier to chew and digest. If you like more chewy abacus seeds, you will have to add more tapioca flour.

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Servings: About 4-5 adult servings as a main dish

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Abacus seeds

  • 500 grams of mashed yam (芋蓉）
  • 250 grams of tapioca flour （木薯粉）
  • 150-160 grams or ml of hot boiling water （热水）

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  • 100 grams of minced pork (肉碎）
  • 50 grams of soaked winter mushrooms – slice into thin pieces (发好香菇）
  • 30 grams of firm bean curd – cut into small pieces (豆干）
  • 20 grams of dried squid – soaked and cut into small slices (鱿鱼丝）
  • 20 grams of black fungus – cut into small slices (黑木耳）
  • 10 grams of dried prawns – soaked （虾米）
  • 2 tablespoons of minced garlics and shallots （蒜蓉）
  • Few sprigs of Chinese celery and spring onion (芹菜和葱）
  • 3 tablespoons of cooking oil (食用油）

Seasonings (not in picture)

  • Pinches of salt (盐巴）
  • 2 tablespoons of light soya sauce （酱清）
  • 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce （耗油）
  • Dashes of white pepper （胡椒粉）
  • 2 tablespoon of cooking wine （烹饪酒）

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

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  • Steam the yam until soft. Use  a fork to lightly scratch the yam and if it can be easily scratch, the yam is cooked. Transfer the cooked yam to a food processor, blend until as fine as possible. If you do not have a food processor, use a fork to mash the yam until fine.

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  • In a bowl, mix the mashed yam and tapioca flour, gradually add in hot water. Use a spatula or spoon to stir until crumbs are formed. When your hand is able to handle the warm dough, knead the dough until it become a pliable dough, smooth and do not stick to your hands. The water should be gradually added as some yam is drier and some can be very wet.  You may or may not need to use all the water. If it become too wet, add tapioca flour tablespoon by tablespoon. If too dry, add water teaspoon by teaspoon.

  • Take some dough, shape long and cut into sizes of about 5 grams each (or your desired size). Take one portion, shape round and use the finger to press onto the centre such that a cavity is formed. If your prefer smaller cavity, you can use the chopstick to make the cavity.

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  • In a pot with hot boiling water and 1-2 tablespoons of cooking oil, put the abacus seeds. It will drop to the bottom and once it floats to the surface of the water, the abacus seeds are cooked. Drained and drizzled with additional cooking oil on the abacus seeds to avoid the seeds sticking to each other.

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  • In a frying pan, put 3 tablespoons of cooking oil, sauté the minced garlics and mushrooms until garlics are golden brown. Add the sliced dried squids and dry shrimps, stir fry for one minute. Add the minced meat and stir fry until the meat are about 70% cooked, add the firm bean curd and black fungus, stir fry until well mixed. Add the abacus seeds, stir fry for 2-3 minutes and followed by chopped Chinese celery and spring onion. Finally add Chinese cooking wine and seasoning to taste (suggested: light soya sauce, salt, oyster sauce and white pepper). Dish up and garnish with additional deep fried shallots. Can be served as a snack or a main meal.

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CONCLUSION

As mentioned earlier, I am pleased with this recipe and possibly you want to give it a try also. Do not discount this recipe based on the shape of which I have my reasons because of my kids. Do shape it into your preferred shape and taste will not be compromised..

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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(updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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Koci, Goci, Kochi, Mendut, Lapek Bugis? I Am Confused–Pandan Kuih Koci (锥形香兰椰丝糯米滋）

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INTRODUCTION

I have the habit of checking Wikipedia for a definition of a cuisine because from the definition, one would know what is expected from the recipe and whether a recipe stated is acceptable or not. It may not be 100% correct but my experience shows that most of the time, it is a good reference point for recipes that I am going to blog.

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I was very shocked to see a short definition of Kuih Koci in Wikipedia, English version. It was written:

“Kochi (also known as Passover cake in English) is a Malaysian dumpling (kuih) made from ground unpolished glutinous rice. For the Eurasians in Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore, this snack is often sold at funerals. The black colour of the unpolished rice symbolises death, while the sweet filling represents resurrection.” (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kochi_(kuih))

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I never knew that this cake have such an implicit meaning.. and I don’t recall ever read it elsewhere. But in the Wikipedia, Bahasa Malaysia version, it was written in details that :

Kuih koci merupakan sejenis kuih tradisional yang popular di Malaysia, Indonesia, dan Singapura. Kuih ini diperbuat dari tepung pulut dan mempunyai inti kelapa manis bercampur gula nisan (Gula Melaka) di dalamnya. Di Malaysia ia popular terutama di kawasan Pantai Timur iaitu di Kelantan dan Terengganu. Ia kemudiannya disalut dengan santan sebelum dibalut dengan daun pisang dan dihidangkan. Kuih koci ini agak lembut dan dibuat nyanyian “Ada sejenis kuih tiga segi…. Di luar tepung di dalamnya inti… Makanan orang tiada bergigi…” (Source: http://ms.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuih_koci)

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Literally translated as:

“Kuih Koci is a type of traditional kuih which is popular in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. This kuih is made from glutinous rice flour and have sweet coconut fillings mixed with palm sugar. In Malaysia, it is especially popular in East Cost of Malaysia in the States of Kelantan and Trengganu. It is then coated with coconut milk wrapped in banana leaves before being served. This kuih is very soft and there is a song that talked about the kuih ; “There is a kind of triangular shaped kuih…. Outside is flour inside have fillings … A type of food for people whom have lose their teeth “

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When I posted the pictures of kuih koci in an Indonesia food group asking the name of this particular kuih in Indonesia, the response was overwhelming, more than 100 comments at least.. The names that was used in this kuih was: koci, koci koci, goci, lapek bugis, mendut and if it was served with coconut milk, it was called  Puteri Mandi. Some claimed that it is their traditional cuisine uniquely in Indonesia…

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Hmmm, I was confused… Is it not all regional cuisines are interrelated ?… If readers studied the ingredients of this cake carefully, you will note that there are very similar with red tortoise cake or angku kuih, Japanese mochi, Hainanese Yi bua…It is just some sweet fillings wrapped by some glutinous rice dough and prepared in different shape or with different colour and served differently. Such variations is logical due to localization of regional ingredients and I presumed that Thai, Philippines and Vietnamese will also have similar type of cakes since glutinous rice flour is commonly found in these countries.. Even the name koci, mochi or Chinese called glutionous rice cake 糯米滋 （nuomichi) are all end with the syllable “ci” or “chi”… Are they related??

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Not a difficult kuih to prepare. For the shape, you can either use the shape in this illustration and a search of the internet will show you numerous other shapes available..

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Recipe adapted from: Kuih Koci Recipe, Penang Nyonya Kuih 

Servings: About 10 Medium sized Kuih Koci

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Fillings

  • 250 grams of grated coconut
  • 200 grams of palm sugar
  • 60 grams or ml of thick coconut milk
  • 1 teaspoon of corn starch (with one tablespoon of water)
  • Pinches of salt
  • Some knotted pandan leaves (not in picture)

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Dough

  • 150g glutinous rice flour
  • 50g tapioca flour
  • 180 grams or ml thin coconut milk (santan)
  • Pinches of salt
  • Drops of pandan paste (optional)

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

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  • In a pan, melt the palm sugar with the coconut milk and pandan leaves, add salt and bring to boil. Once boiled, add the grated coconut milk, stir until well mixed. Add the corn starch and stir until the fillings start to dry up.  Set aside for cooling before wrapping.

Note:

This is a rather moist filling. If you prefer drier filling, omit the coconut milk, squeeze dry the grated coconut, melt the palm sugar and add the squeezed grated coconut.  You will get a rather dry coconut filling for the kuih. The colour of the filling will also be darker but it will also depends on the grade of gula Melaka used. Some are darker and some are lighter.

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  • Scald the banana leaves in some hot water.. Cut the banana leaves into a rectangle of about 3” x 4” or sizes that you are comfortable with the wrapping. Grease the banana leaves with some cooking oil. Set aside.

  • Heat the thin coconut milk and a pandan paste in the microwave for one minute until it is hot. If you do not have a microwave, you can do so over the stove. The main aim is to have some warm to hot coconut milk.

  • Put the glutinous rice flour, tapioca flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Use a pair of the chopstick to stir the flour until well mixed. Gradually add the hot coconut milk .

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  • Initially, use the chopstick to continue to stir until some crumbs. Once your hand can handle the hot to warm dough, use hand to knead until a pliable dough. Take a dough (in this illustration, I used about 35 grams), shape round, use hand to flatten it and put a spoonful of coconut filling on top of the dough. If the dough are too wet, add glutinous rice flour tablespoon by tablespoon and if too dry, add water teaspoon by teaspoon.

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  • Seal the edges of the dough and slightly shape into a cone shape. Take a banana leave, shape into a cone, put the dough inside the banana leaves. Seal the bottom of the cone but pressing the banana leaves towards the dough. Put in the steamer tray and steam under high heat for about 10-15 minutes. Best served as a snack  with or without thick coconut milk.

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CONCLUSION

This is a nice, tasty aromatic kuih and I am still confused about the origin of the kuih..I will leave it to the readers to decide.. Is it Eurasian? Nonya? Malay? or influenced by Chinese Yee Bua or Japanese Mochi? In my humble opinion, all regional cuisines are all intertwined and that is how food history evolved…

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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(updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

 

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The Beauty Of Ruggedness And Irregularities–Rock Cakes aka Rock Buns (石头蛋糕）

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INTRODUCTION

I believed most female readers will not be unfamiliar with rock cakes aka rock buns … It is one of the very basic recipe taught in Secondary School’s Home Economics or Home Science or Domestic Science classes introducing students to the baking fundamentals.

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In my humble opinion, it was taught because success rate was high, simple method of preparation and no complicated equipment were required.  However, it produces a tasty and aromatic cake like structure bake…

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Having said that, though simple, to prepare a good rock buns need some simple pointers to remember. Improper handling of rock bun preparation will produce a hard and chewy cake as gluten have developed.

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I have decide to blog this humble recipe so as to share with those readers who do not have a chance to learn this recipe from the secondary school like me…In addition, most may have forgotten such simple recipe that was taught 20-30 years ago..

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Per Wikipedia:

A rock cake, also called a rock bun, is a small, hard fruit cake with a rough surface resembling a rock.

“Rock cakes originated in Great Britain, where they are a traditional teatime treat, but are now popular in many parts of the world. They were promoted by the Ministry of Food during the Second World War since they require fewer eggs and less sugar than ordinary cakes, an important savings in a time of strict rationing. Traditional recipes bulked them with oatmeal, which was more readily available than white flour.

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A typical modern recipe for 12 cakes requires about 200 g of flour, 100 g of butter or margarine, 50 g of sugar, 1 beaten egg, 1teaspoon of baking powder, 2 tablespoons of milk, 150 g of dried fruit such as currants, raisins, candied orange peel, etc., and a pinch of nutmeg and mixed spices. Usually, flour and butter are first mixed until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs; then the other ingredients are added to create a stiff dough, which is dropped from a spoon to a baking tray or roughly formed with two forks. The cakes (optionally sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon) are baked for about 15 minutes at 200 °C,[1][2] retaining an uneven form and contour.” (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_cake)

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Most recipes for rock cakes are rather standard and for this illustration, i have prepared purely based on Wikipedia’s definition above. Outcome is more than satisfactory as  both kids and wife like this pastry very much.. It took me less than 45 minutes (including baking) to get everything done…Is it not fast?

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Servings: Prepared 10- 12 rock cakes

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  • 200 grams of plain flour
  • 100 grams of butter
  • 50 grams of castor sugar
  • 150 grams of dried mixed fruits
  • 1 egg (not in picture)
  • 2 tablespoons of milk
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon of mixed spice (optional)

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

  • Pre-heat the oven to 200 degree Celsius

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  • In a bowl, add the soften butter and flour. Use FINGER TIPS  to rub the butter and flour such that it resembles bread crumbs. Add in the mixed fruits and sugar. Use a fork or a tablespoon to stir such that it is well mixed. Make a well in the centre and crack the egg follow by the milk.

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  • Use the tablespoon or fork to lightly and swiftly mixed it until it form a sticky dough. Take a spoonful and drop the batter on the baking tray leaving some space for expansion.  Bake in the pre-heated oven of 200 degree Celsius for about 15-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted to the cakes comes out clean. Best served warm.

Notes:

  • The handling shall be light and fast and no pressing of the dough. Shaping should not be done too. Both steps are to ensure that adequate air are introduced to the cakes so that they can be fluffy.  Light handling will ensure no formation of gluten that causes the cake to be chewy and hard.

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CONCLUSION

I am not a teacher in Home Economic or Domestic Science… But I do hope that what I have illustrated here do make sense and do not contradict with what your teacher have taught and give you a rock cake that you like. New bakers, this is one of the recipes that you should try and it will boost your confidence of baking as chances of success are great… and the syllabus will not include this recipe as the first very recipe for no reason..

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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  • For more recipes, you can refer to my RECIPE INDEX (updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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Egg White Crispy Biscuit (蛋白脆饼）

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INTRODUCTION

I can vividly remember these small, flat, egg flavoured biscuits that I used to buy when I visited shopping centre years ago. But I can’t recall when it was popular.. I still saw them being sold when I passed by traditional bakeries and I loved the taste as it was like kuih kapit or love letters, simple taste with rich egg aroma..

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While I was surfing in the internet, I stumbled across this recipe of  finger shaped egg white crispy biscuit (指形蛋白脆饼), I looked at the simple  ingredients and I have decided to slightly modified the recipe and give it a try.

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The outcome of the bake do meet my expectation, in fact, much crispier that what I thought.. However, the egg aroma are less aromatic than traditionally sold. That make me wonder if this is the same recipe as the one that the shop are selling…

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If it is a traditional biscuit, it is most likely that the biscuit is made from whole eggs rather than egg white alone…In my humble opinion, traditional recipes would not called for the use of egg whites alone unless bakeries wanted to get rid of excess egg whites in the process of bakes that required a lot of egg yolks.

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Possibly in my next attempt, I will try to use whole eggs for the bake.. If it is successful, it will definitely much more economical and fragrant. I will update the readers when I finished eating this batch of the cookies.

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In fact you can make it in very neat size like macaroons and have some fillings in between.  One recipe on a Japanese website is preparing this using macaroon baking sheet and having some chocolate fillings sandwiched between them .. It look very much like the presentation of macaroons and readers can also consider preparing the biscuits in this manner.

 

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Recipe adapted from: 指形蛋白脆饼

Servings: About 50 egg white biscuits of 2 cm diameter

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  • 100 grams of cake flour or top flour
  • 80 grams of melted butter
  • 60 grams of icing sugar
  • 2 egg whites

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

  • Pre-heat the oven to 160 degree Celsius

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  • In a bowl, put the cake flour and melted butter. Use a hand whisk and stir until well mixed.

  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, put the egg white, beat at medium speed until foamy. Add in sugar tablespoon by tablespoon.

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  • Beat the egg white until firm peak and transfer the egg white to the batter. Fold the egg white and the batter until well combined. Spoon the mixture into a piping bag, cut a small hole of about 5 mm diameter. Pipe some batter on the baking tray leaving some space for expansion. Before sending the batter to the oven, hit the baking tray against the table top 2-3 times to let any trapped air escape. Bake in the pre-heated oven of 160 degree Celsius for about 15 minutes or until it turns golden brown. Browning can be rather fast and place the tray in the middle to lower rack to prevent over browning.

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CONCLUSION

This is  a nice biscuit and it is not sweet to my standard.. Do give it a try. As promised, I will use the whole egg for the next attempt and I will update the recipe once it is successful..

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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  • For more recipes, you can refer to my RECIPE INDEX (updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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How About A Plate Of Humble Rice Vermicelli For Your Breakfast? –Economical Fried Beehoon （经济炒米粉）

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INTRODUCTION

Have you ever wondered why a plate of economically priced beehoon or rice vermicelli (about S$1.00) can be so tasty and moist?

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Yes, stall owners are selling at this price and business are good and you can spot such stalls in most of the coffee shops or wet markets eatery outlets… It is a breakfast item for the commoner like me … Parents packed back for kids as breakfast or lunch at home, workers packed to office as their breakfast..and I do crave for this item if I am eating out..

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The secret for such economically priced beehoon is the pre-marinating of the beehoon. I have a few practical recipes with me and most called for marinating the beehoon in advance. I tried a few times and taste and texture were pretty closed to what is sold in the stores. Pre-marinating the beehoon will ensure tasty and softer beehoon and cut down the cooking time tremendously.

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Though termed as economy beehoon, the price can be rather steep depending on the type of side items you ordered. If one is budget conscious, one can just ordered the beehoon itself with another side dish such as vegetables that may cost 30 cents more..

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The side items are rather standard and are mostly deep fried items such as: chicken wings – S$1.00, sausages – S$0.50, medium sized fish cake – S$1.00, Chicken drumsticks – S$1.50, eggs – S$0.50, vegetables – S$0.50, otak otak – S$1.00, luncheon meat – S$1.00 and many more..

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Therefore a packet of this combination will cost about S$(1.00+1.00+0.50+ 0.30+0.50) = S$3.30

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And this package will cost about S$(1.50+1.00+0.50+0.30) = S$3.30 also.

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So, if you packed 2 packages, you will have to pay S$6.60… Rather expensive but the choice is yours… There are many items that you can choose from, you can always choose one that is affordable to you as the most economical package will cost you  just only S$1.00 and it is equally fulfilling…but with beehoon and nothing else…

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What I am sharing today is the basic fried beehoon recipe and you can always served with your preferred side items. For this illustration, i have deep some fried fish cakes, eggs, sauces, chicken drumsticks and stir fried some cabbages to go with the beehoon. For chilli sauce, I have used the chilli sauce from my Ayam Penyet recipe.

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Servings: About 4-5 adult servings

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  • 300 grams of rice vermicelli
  • 3 tablespoons of dark soya sauce
  • 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce
  • 2 tablespoons of light soya sauce
  • 1 tablespoon of sesame oil
  • 100 grams of beansprout (not in the picture)
  • 3 shallots – sliced thinly (not in picture)
  • 2 tablespoons of cooking oil

Seasonings during stir frying

  • Additional oyster sauce to taste
  • Salt to taste
  • Dashes of white pepper corn

* Not that the seasoning will very much depend on your taste bud. The quantity listed here are rather conservative and you can always adjust upwards to suit your family’s taste bud.

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

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  • In a bowl with water just adequate to cover the uncooked rice vermicelli, add in the oyster sauce, light soya sauce, dark soya sauce and sesame oil. Marinate the rice vermicelli for at least half an hour until the rice vermicelli are soft. If you are rushing for time, you can use lukewarm water for the marinating. 

  • When the rice vermicelli is soft, sauté the sliced shallot with the cooking oil until fragrant, add in the soaked rice vermicelli (keep the seasoning water for the rice vermicelli) and stir fry for 3-4 minutes until the flavour are well incorporated .

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  • Add adequate seasoning water to cover the rice vermicelli, let it simmer until your desired texture. (Note: If you are unsure of the quantity of the seasoning water to add, add gradually. The rice vermicelli will take some time to absorb the seasoning water. You may or may not used up all the seasoning water and this will depend on how moist you want your rice vermicelli to be.)

  • Once you are satisfied with the texture of the rice vermicelli, take a spoon and taste the rice vermicelli. If there is a need, add additional seasoning (oyster sauce, salt, white pepper and sesame oil) to taste, follow by beansprout. Stir until well mix and let it simmer for another one minute before off the heat and serve with your preferred side items.

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CONCLUSION

This is a rather unconventional method of cooking rice vermicelli but the soaking do help to soften and flavoured the rice vermicelli. In addition, it cut short the time tremendously. I hope this recipe will benefit many overseas readers who craved for this simple fried rice vermicelli .. It is definitely not difficult, it is just to get the ingredients and method right…

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This recipe was included in Page 50-51 of the “One Pot Noodle E-book”. For more One Pot Noodle Dishes, you can have a copy of “Easy One Pot Noodles  – A step by step guide” that was packed with 30 recipes, 60 pages at a reasonable convenience fee of USD5.00. The recipes covered various recipes from curry laksa, prawn noodles to fish head beehoon and etc. Of course not forgetting the well like Economy Bee hoon and Mee Rebus . You can purchase by clicking the link above.You can either pay using Pay Pal or Credit card account. Please ensure that you have an PDF reader like Acrobat or iBooks in your mobile phone or iPad if you intended to read it in your ipad or mobile phone. Should there be any problems of purchasing, feel free to contact me at kengls@singnet.com.sg and separate arrangement can be made.

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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  • For more recipes, you can refer to my RECIPE INDEX (updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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Simple And Humble But Aromatic And Tasty–Almond Butter Cake (杏仁牛油蛋糕）

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INTRODUCTION

This is a humble, no fuss and simple recipe for an almond flavoured cake… It is simple, no fuss and humble because it utilized the very basic creaming method of cake baking…

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In order to avoid any potential cake cracking, I have resorted to the use of a rather traditional method of wrapping the baking tin with wet towels such that the cake rose uniformly..Not that I can’t accept cakes that are cracked, it is the current trend that cracked cakes are deemed not acceptable….

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In order to produce flat top cake, most recipe uses egg separation method to achieve that effect. However, the old wives tales of insulating  the sides of the baking tin also ensures that the sides and the centre of the cake are cooked and rose more uniformly.

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Yes, my cake did not crack terribly but with very fine lines of cracking that are not noticeable. It surprise me that while the centre of the cake is cooked, the side of the cake is rather pale and looked uncooked. I have to detach the towel towards 3/4 of the baking time and to ensure that the sides of the cake more uniformly baked.

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It is my very own recipe without referring to any recipe… It is a moist cake and it taste very much like the semolina cake or sugee cake – moist and fragrant.. If you are interested to know the recipe of the Eurasian famous festival sugee cake, you can refer to : Sugee Almond Cake

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My wife is a butter cake critic but surprisingly, she said the cake suits her taste bud, buttery and moist… But if you are looking for a soft fine texture cake like ogura, this cake is not for you. Almond meals like semolina, produce cakes with its unique  chewy texture..

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Serving: Prepare one 7” diameter cake

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  • 200 grams of butter
  • 100 grams of plain or all purpose flour
  • 100 grams of almond meal
  • 100 grams of castor sugar
  • 50 grams of fresh milk
  • 50 grams of condensed milk
  • 1.5 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 2 eggs

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

  • Pre-heat the oven to 165 degree Celsius.

  • Lightly greased a 7” baking tin and wrap the side of the baking tin one round with wet towels. Secured the wet towels by using some safety pins.

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  • Cream the butter and sugar using a mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually, add in the condensed milk, followed by egg one by one. Beat until well combined. Add the almond meal.

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  • Sift in 1/3 of the plain flour plus baking powder. Use a spatula to fold the flour and  follow by 1/3 of the milk. Once well mixed, sift the remaining plain flour and baking powder, add the remaining milk and fold until well mixed. Transfer the batter to the baking tin, level and bake in the pre-heated oven of 165 degree Celsius for about 45 minutes or when a skewer inserted to the centre of the cake comes out clean. After 30 minutes of baking, detach the towel and continue to bake until cooked. Cool completely before slicing for serving.

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CONCLUSION

This cake is very moist and aromatic.. The use of towel in my humble opinion do prevent the cracking.. If you like semolina cake, you will sure to love this almond butter cake.

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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  • For more recipes, you can refer to my RECIPE INDEX (updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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Coconut Sago Puddings (椰香西米布丁）

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INTRODUCTION

I was rather surprised to see this recipe in my favourite dessert cook book .“The Essential Dessert Cookbook Page” – a cookbook that have been with me for years and is full of Western desserts.

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When I read the recipe, I was shocked to see that the ingredients are all tropical ingredients using sago, lemon grass, palm sugar etc.…I have therefore decided to try this tropical desserts and slightly tailored to be more localized.

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I was surprised that the taste of lemon grass blends well with coconut milk and overall the taste is very much like our Gula Melaka Sago Puddings and it is definitely a presentable dessert to serve our guests.

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Recipe adapted from: Coconut Sago Puddings– “The Essential Dessert Cookbook Page 211 Published by Murdoch Books, 2007”

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  • 200 grams or ml of coconut milk
  • 100 grams of grated palm sugar (Gula Melaka or Gula apong)
  • 250 grams of sago balls (either white or green)
  • 1 stem of lemon grass
  • 1 teaspoon of grated lime rind (not in picture)
  • 1 egg white
  • 750 grams of plain water

Palm Sugar syrup

  • 200 grams of palm sugar
  • 3 tablespoons of water

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

  • Lightly greased metal muffin cups or any other container of your choice.

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  • Soak the sago balls in some water for about 5 minutes. The sago balls will expand and absorb the water. Set aside for later use.
  • In a pot, add water, coconut milk, lemon rind, palm sugar and bruised lemon grass. Add the soaked sago balls and cook under low to medium heat under the sago balls are thick and transparent. Remove from heat and throw away the lemon grass. Set aside for cooling.

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  • Beat the egg white into stiff peak and gently fold into the sago.

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  • Spoon the mixture into the greased muffin cups and let it chilled until set which took about 1.5-2 hours.

  • For the palm sugar syrup ,add 3 tablespoons of water to the palm sugar and microwave for 30 seconds to one minute. Stir until the sugar had completely dissolved.  If you do not have a microwave, melt the sugar over the stove under low to medium heat until it dissolves.

  • For assembly, have a serving plate ready, dislodge one pudding on the plate, drizzle the palm sugar syrup on the puddings and decorated with fresh fruits of your choice.

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CONCLUSION

A rather short post and I am please with this recipe. I hope that you can give it a try and it is especially presentable when entertaining guests..

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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  • For more recipes, you can refer to my RECIPE INDEX (updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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My Childhood Butter Cookies–S Shape Butter Cookies (Kuih S)

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INTRODUCTION

Certain recipes that I blogged definitely is not trendy and at times, I doubt if there is any one who would try the recipes..These are usually cuisines that I grew up with.

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I told myself that I have an obligation to blog cuisines that are fast disappearing or unique to the State of Sarawak, Malaysia.. This is one of them..- Kuih S or S shaped cookies.

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I have a hard time to find a recipe in the internet for this cookie that was commonly found in Sarawak in the 1980’s or earlier…  After i posted in my timeline requesting for the recipe, one Facebook friend of mine – Ms. Diana Chiou kindly impart her precious recipe to me.. And the original recipe is in ounces… From here, one would know that this is a very old traditional cookies possibly influenced by the British Colonization.

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I am not unfamiliar with this cookie. It was one of the old school of cookies that was served together with Kuih Bangkit, kuih koya and Kuih kapit during Chinese New Year.

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Possibly because there is no mould then, all the cookies were hand shaped in the letter S…Don’t asked me why S? I do not know and I want to know too.. Can S represent the State of Sarawak? Is it uniquely Sarawak? I think yes as when I posted in Facebook, only Sarawakian seems to know about this cookie and members from other states or Singapore do not seem to recognise this cookie. Those who know made comments such as “have not prepared this for more than 30 years”, “Since my mum passed away, I can’t find this cookies any more”, “I almost forget about this cookie and it was not sold in recent Chinese New Years”…..

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While i was preparing the cookie, my wife specially “cautioned” me that the cookies have to be balanced for both ends. In addition, the cookies have to be buttery and aromatic…. She always witnessed her aunties did these when she was young.. As a man, this type of neat work really test my patience.. I cracked my head trying to simplify the preparation with the availability of modern baking gadgets.. I can’t but possibly readers can think of a way. I almost gave up in the preparation as it is rather time consuming and laborious… That, however, make me respect my elders the time that they spend and the gotong royong (cooperation) spirit of helping out each other when they prepared this delicious cookie.

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Taste wise, looking at the ingredients, you will know that it is a simple melt in the mouth butter cookie. It is addictive and one will definitely not be enough..

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WHAT IS REQUIRED

Recipe adapted from: Ms. Diana Chiou

Servings: About 100 S shaped cookies

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  • 150 grams of top flour or plain flour
  • 75 grams of butter
  • 60 grams of icing or castor sugar
  • 1 egg

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STEPS OF PREPARATION

  • Pre-heat the oven to 150 degree Celsius (You can preheat the oven towards the end of your preparation as the preparation can be rather time consuming).

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  • Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add in the beaten eggs. Sift in the flour and stir until well mixed. Take a dough and shape it long using your hand, roll it into a S shape but pushing both ends at the opposite direction towards the centre. Bake in the pre-heated oven of 150 degree Celsius for 8-10 minutes or when the bottom turn slightly brownish. Cool completely and store in an air tight container.

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CONCLUSION

I am very happy to find this recipe and especially grateful to my Facebook friend – Ms. Diana Chiou for imparting her precious recipe. Thanks.. Ms. Chiou.. I hope readers who give a try to this fast disappearing traditional butter cookies. Trust me, the taste is awesome and if you find it tedious, feel free to cut into your desired shapes but just a small request, name it butter cookies and not Kuih S..

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Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.

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  • For more recipes, you can refer to my RECIPE INDEX (updated as at 15 October 2014)  here and you can follow me at PINTEREST or visit the blog’s FACEBOOK PAGE to keep abreast of my future posts.  

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