Chewy Yam Glutinous Rice Balls/Cubes~

Homemade yam glutinous balls, so "Q" so chewy :p~ They can be enjoyed in both hot sweet soup or chilled shaved ice desserts~

Recipe

Ingredients

• 110 g Glutinous rice flour
• 1.5 Tbs Sugar
• 130 g Mashed yam
• 70 ml Water
• A pot of water
• A bowl of ice cold water

Method

1. Add the sugar and glutinous flour in a bowl and mix well. Add in the mashed yam and water and mix well and knead to form a dough. Cover and rest the dough for 20 minutes.


2. Knead the dough a few times, divide the dough into smaller pieces and shape them into little cubes/balls.


3. Add some water into a pot and heat over medium heat till it's simmering hot (be careful not to boil the water).


4. Gently add the yam glutinous cubes/balls into the pot of hot water and allow it to cook. When they float to the surface, immediately remove and transfer them into the bowl of ice cold water (leave it for 2 minutes) before returning them to the pot of hot water. Remove and transfer them into a bowl of cold water to stop the cooking process (this allows the yam glutinous rice balls to be "q"/chewy).


5. Add them to hot sweet ginger soup or chilled desserts. Enjoy~

Do check out the Longan carrot blend with chewy yam glutinous rice ball dessert! :p~

Longan Carrot Blend With Chewy Yam Glutinous Rice Balls~

An experimental dessert, Longan-style carrot smoothie with a personal touch :p~ 100% original, 100% unique!

~*Longan Carrot Smoothie With Chewy Yam Glutinous Balls*~

A sweet and refreshing carrot + fresh milk + longan syrup iceblend with longans and homemade chewy yam glutinous balls!

Recipe

Ingredients

• 50 g Carrots (diced)
• 50 ml Longan syrup
• 100 ml Fresh milk
• 4 ice cubes
• Some canned longan fruits
• Some Yam glutinous rice balls (Click here for recipe)

Method

1. Add the longan syrup, fresh milk, ice cubes and diced carrots into a blender or food processor and blend well.
2. Pour the blend into a bowl and add in the yam glutinous rice balls and longan fruits. Serve immediately (while it's chilled). Enjoy~

Red Bean Paste Recipe~

This is my variation of the red bean paste recipe.

Ingredients

• 250 g Red beans
• 1 L Water
• 70 g Sugar
• 50 g Rice malt sugar (maltose)
• 2 Tbs Rice bran oil (other alternatives: corn oil or olive oil)
• 1 tsp Pandan essence

Method

1. Soak the red beans in 1litre of water, cover it and leave it overnight.

2. Boil the red beans in a pot and allow it to simmer for about an hour till the beans are soft and mashy.

3. Allow the red beans to cool slightly then mash them through a sieve.

4. Add the oil, mashed red beans , sugar and maltose into a non-stick pan and stir over medium heat till well incorporated (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat, add in the pandan essence and stir well to mix.

5. Leave it to cool to room temperature before using. Or store in an air-tight container and keep refrigerated for later use.

Mini Red Bean Bun~

What do you get when you wrap a bread dough around a ball of red bean paste? The answer is... Red bean bun! (Yes, simple as that~ keke... no prize for the correct answer :p)

~*Red Bean Bun*~

A plain and simple sweet bun with pandan flavoured sweet red bean paste filling.

Recipe

Ingredients

Dough:

• 3/4 C Bread flour
• 1/4 C Cake flour
• 1 tps Instant yeast
• 1 1/2 Tbs Sugar
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1 Tbs Skimmed milk powder
• 1/4 C Water
• 1 Tbs Butter

Filling:

• 100 g Sweetened red bean paste (Click here for recipe)

Method

1. Add the bread flour, cake flour, yeast, sugar, salt and milk powder in a large bowl and mix well. Pour in the water, mix well to form a dough and knead for 7 minutes.
2. Add in the butter, knead the dough to incorporate and till it becomes smooth and elastic.
   Rest the dough and allow it to proof for 45 minutes.
3. Divide the red bean paste into 4 portions and roll them into balls.
4. Divide the dough into four portions, wrap each dough around the red bean filling.
5. Place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper, cover and proof for another 30 minutes.
6. Bake the bread dough in a preheated oven at 190 degree celsius for 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Botak Jones @ Clementi~

After reading lots of good reviews about botak jones from several food blogs, i was really anticipating to try their "damn good authentic american food at damn good price"!

~*Australian Ribeye Steak (200g)-Medium rare @ $15*~

Likes: The way the friendly waitress asked to check for the "doneness" of the steak and the tasty fries.

Dislikes: Unable to select from their variety of side dishes and had to settle for fries and coleslaw. The steak was average, juicy but lacked richness in flavour.

~*Steak Sauce & Coleslaw*~

~*House Salad @ $4*~

Generous serving of fresh iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, some carrot shreds and feta cheese. There's a choice of 2 types of dressing (of which i omitted).

Overall:

Delivery was prompt, the food arrived shortly after we placed our orders. However i wasn't very impress with the much hyped about steak. i may visit other outlet(s)and try their fish and chips in future (we saw several diners eating fish & chips rather than steak), i do have to admit, their fried pacific dory and golden chips looked pretty impressive.

Make a guess~

What do you thing is hidden within this box? Make a guess~

Here's a clue: It's a sort of "cake".... and it's rich and creamy inside ...........................

................................................................................................................

..........................................................................................

Tah dah!

It's.............

Home's Favourite 100% Pure Black (Charcoal) Durian Mooncake!

i got them from the Mid Autumn Festival Promotion @ Takashimaya square basement 2. This event is currently ongoing till the 14th sept 2008. Do hop on down to taka to savour the wide variety of mooncake samplers before purchasing from your favourite counters! :p

Ajisen Ramen @ Takashimaya~

~*Kimchi Octopus Ramen*~

Generous serving of ramen topped with chopped scallions, sweet & spicy chilli paste, kimchi, cabbage, half a boiled egg and boiled octopus.

i miss the kimuchi ramen at Noodle house ken...

Yogurt Raisin Cupcakes~

A quick whisk and mix and off into the oven!

~*Yogurt Raisin Cupcakes*~

A soft and moist cupcake that is best enjoyed with a cup of tea or coffee :p~

Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 Cups Cake flour
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 3 Tbs Butter (melted)
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 2 Eggs
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract
• 200 ml Plain non-fat yogurt
• 3/4 Cup Raisins

Method

1. Preheat oven at 180 degree celsius.
2. Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl and mix well.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the melted butter, sugar together till creamy, add in eggs (one at a time) till well incorporated followed by the vanilla extract and yogurt.
4. Add in the raisins and mix well with a spoon. Then fold in the flour mixture.
5. Pour batter into muffin tray lined with muffin paper cups till 90% full.
6. Bake at 180 degree celsius for 20 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and allow cupcakes to cool in the tray before serving. Enjoy!

Fruit Sundae Platter~

J, H, C, G, I and moi met up at Chomp chomp for a little catch up/"discussion" session this evening. We had barbecue chicken wings (x2), 6 popiahs, sambal sting ray, sambal sotong, satay, cockles and giant sugar cane drink before a nice dessert to round up the makan session. Check this out! Doesn't it look colourful, vibrant, playful and inviting? :p~

~*Fruit Sundae Platter @ $9.80*~

Likes: The wide variety of fruits and the mango ice cream (that tasted like jackfruit/durian/mango).

Dislike: The condensed milk that was drizzled all over the fruits, making it excessively sweet and milky :(

p.s. J, if you reading this, don't forget the super spicy kick-ass chilli ya~ :p

Pandan Mung Bean Tau Sar Piah~

Experiment of the day...

Pandan flavour and mashed mung beans simply complement one another!

~*Pandan Mung Bean Tau Sar Piah*~

How was it? Light and flaky pastry with sweet and salty pandan flavoured mung bean filling... YUM! Tea, anyone?

Recipe (Makes about 14 pieces)

Ingredients

Water dough:

• 65 g Bread flour (Non-sifted)
• 30 g Cake flour (Non-sifted)
• 15 g Icing/powdered sugar
• 30 g Cold margarine
• 45 ml Water

Oil dough:

• 75 g Bread flour (Non-sifted)
• 40 g Rice bran oil (or any other vegetable oil)

Filling: Adapted with some modifications from Precious Moments - Tau Sar Piah recipe.

• 90 g Oil
• 10 Shallots (thinly sliced)
• 80 g Sugar
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Grounded white pepper
• 200 g Mung beans (soaked for 2 hours, steamed and mashed)
• 1 tsp Pandan paste
• Egg wash: 1 Egg yolk lightly beaten with 1 tsp water
• 1 Tbs Black sesame seeds

Method

Water dough:

1. Sieve all the flours and icing sugar into a mixing bowl and mix well before incorporating the cold margarine with a fork. Gradually add in the water (bit by bit) and mix till a dough is formed and knead the dought for 2 minutes.
2. Set aside and rest it for 20 minutes.
3. Divide dough into 1 4 pieces of 14 g each.

Oil dough:

1. Sieve the flour into a mixing bowl. Add in the oil and mix well till well incorporated.
2. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
3. Divide dough into 14 pieces of 8 g each.

Filling:

1. Add sugar, salt and white pepper to the mashed beans.
2. Heat oil, fry the sliced shallots till brown and fragrant.
3. Pour in the bean mixture and add in the pandan paste, stir to mix well.
4. Fry till mixture become dry and able to form into a ball. Leave aside to cool.
5. Divide filling to 12 g ball size.

Wrapping:

1. On a lightly floured surface, roll out a water dough, wrap an oil dough with this water dough and form a ball.
2. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough. Roll it up like a swiss-roll. Turn the dough 90 degrees and roll out the dough length wise again. Roll it up as swiss-roll.
3. Flatten the dough out and wrap it around the filling and form a ball shape.
4. Repeat the same procedure for the remaining water and oil doughs as well as the fillings.
5. Place pastry doughs on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Apply the egg wash and sprinkle some black sesame seeds onto each of them.
6. Bake at 180 degree celsius for 20 minutes.
7. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving or allow them to cool completely before storing in an airtight container. Enjoy!

Pandan Mung Bean With Salted Egg Mini Mooncake~

This is the first time i baked mini mooncakes after my previous attempt on Mini Snow Skin Moonies. It may lack aesthetics but thankfully the taste was better than its appearance.

~*Pandan Mung Bean With Salted Egg Mini Mooncake*~

The print of the mooncake pastry "disappeared" during the baking process. (Any idea why?). The sweetness of the pandan mung bean filling was complimented by the salted egg yolk. i reduced the amount of oil in the mung bean paste, hence the drier texture of the mung bean filling instead of the usual paste-like consistency.

Recipe

Ingredients

Fillings:

• 150 g Mung bean paste (Sweetened)
• 2 Salted egg yoks
• 1 tsp Pandan paste

Pastry:

• 100 g Plain flour (Sifted)
• 45 g Rice bran oil
• 65 g Golden syrup or Rice malt sugar (maltose)
• 1/2 tsp alkaline water
• Egg glace: 1 Egg yolk

Method

Fillings:

1. Add 1 tsp of pandan paste to the sweetened mung bean paste.
2. Divide the salted eggs into 4 quarters each.

Pastry:

1. Place a small bowl in a large bowl of hot water. Mix the rice bran oil, maltose and alkaline water together in the small bowl, and stir till the mixture is well combined (A).
2. Add plain flour into a mixing bowl and pour in the warm syrup (A). Mix to form a dough.
3. Divide dough and filling into smaller balls accordingly to the size of your moon cake mould.
4. Flatten out the dough, wrap the mung bean paste followed by the salt egg filling and mould it into ball. Coat it with some flour.
5. Press the ball into the mooncake mould and flatten it firmly with your.
6. Bang the mould on a hard surface with equal force in all four directions to dislodge the mooncake.
7. Place mooncakes on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake at 180 degree celsius for 10 minutes. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool for 8 to 10 minutes before applying the egg wash.
8. Bake at 180 degree celsius for another 15 minutes or till golden brown.
9. Allow the mooncakes to cool before storing in an airtight container. Serve the mini mooncakes only after 2 days. Enjoy!

Garden Salad @ Fish & Co~

A simple garden salad at Fish & Co. @ Novena Square...

~*Garden Salad*~

i had expected the garden salad to look vibrantly green and refreshing (lively)! But... this looks alittle dull :(

A serving of lettuce, baby cucumber slices, cherry tomatoes, crispy anchovies and dressed with balsamic vinegar and mayonnaise sauce. Hmmm... i could do without the mayo the next time around...

Xin Wang Hong Kong Cafe @ Heartland Mall~

Craving for a HK style breakfast, late night snack, a simple meal or some sweet desserts? Xin Wang Hong Kong Cafe at the heartland mall is conveniently located near the kovan nel and opens till 2am.

~*Chilled Green Vegetables with Japanese Wasabi Sauce*~

This is a healthier alternative compared to stir-fried vegetables. Boiled greens served on ice and japanese wasabi sauce served separately.

~*Xin Wang Curry Chicken Ramen*~

A generous serving of ramen, fried potato and chicken covered with rich curry gravy. The ramen noodles were soggy and the chicken were alittle blend (not cooked long enough in the curry).

~*Century Egg*~

It tasted like any other century egg...

~*Iced Glass Jelly*~

i like the way it was served.

~*Glutinous Rice Balls with Ginger Soup*~

The glutinous rice balls were "Q" and filled with sweet and fragrant ground peanuts. A perfect combination with the hot and sweet ginger soup.

Mini Pandan Egg Tarts~

Experiment number 2 for the day~ A variation of the mini egg tarts.

~*Mini Pandan Egg Tarts*~

A slightly buttery pastry base filled with pandan flavoured egg custard, creating an overall savoury and moderately sweet mouthfill.

Recipe

Ingredients

Pastry:

• 100 g Butter/Margarine
• 30 g Icing sugar (sifted)
• 110 g Plain flour (sifted)
• 1/2 Egg (lightly beaten)
• 1/4 tsp Vanilla essence
  

Filling:

• 1 1/2 Eggs (lightly beaten)
• 2 Tbs Malt sugar (or 50 g Sugar)
• 20 ml Boiling water
• 100ml Water
• 40ml Evaporated milk
• 1 tsp Pandan paste

Method

To prepare pastry:

1. Sift the plain flour, cake flour and icing sugar into a mixing bowl and mix well.
2. Cut the cold butter into little cubes and rub into the flour till they resemble bread crumbs (A).
3. Briefly beat the egg and vanilla essence together and pour it into (A), mix well till a non-sticky dough is formed.
4. Mould them into mini aluminium tart cups (~17 mini tarts) and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

To prepare filling:

1. Dissolve malt sugar in boiling water. Set aside to cool.
2. When the malt syrup has cool, add in beaten eggs, evaporated milk, pandan paste and mix well.
   

To prepare egg tarts:

1. Preheat oven at 180 degree celsius.
2. Remove the mini tart cups from the refrigerator and bake them at 180 degree celsius for 7 minutes.
3. Fill the mini tart cups with the egg mixture filling till 90% full.
4. Bake them at 180 degree celsius for 18 to 22 minutes or till cooked.
5. Remove from oven and allow them to cool on a wire rack before serving. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cornflake Cookies~

A little variation to the previous cornflake cookie blog entry...

~*Chocolate Cornflake Cookies*~

Crunchy, mildly chocolaty and can be addictive :p~

Recipe

Ingredients

• 55 g Butter/Margarine (room temperature)
• 30 g Sugar
• 1/8 tsp Salt
• 1/2 Egg yolk
• 1 tsp Coffee emulco
• 75 g Plain flour (Sifted)
• 8 to 10 g Cocoa powder (unsweetened)
• 1/8 tsp Baking powder
• 1/4 tsp Bicarbonate soda
• 25 g Cornflakes

Method

1. Cream butter with sugar and salt till creamy. Add in the egg yolk and coffee emulco and cream till well combined.
2. Add flour, baking powder and bicarbonate soda and mix well.
3. Stir in the raisins and cornflakes. Mix well to form a soft dough.
4. Preheat oven at 170 degree celsius.
5. Form dough into desired shapes and arrange them on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
6. Bake at 170 degree celsius for 15 to 18 minutes. Allow cookies to cool for 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Marble Cake~

A second special for the 4 division meeting tea session, just fresh from the oven this morning. Do you know what this is? Make a guess! And the answer is...

~*Marble Cake*~

Butter cake with chocolate swirls~

(Thank goodness, most of them liked it... phew~)

Recipe (Adapted from All recipes - Marble Cake 1)

Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup Butter (room temperature)
• 3/4 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Lemon essence/extract
• 2 medium Eggs
• 2 Cup Plain flour
• 3/4 tsp Baking powder
• 1/2 tsp Bicarbonate soda
• 2 Tbs Cocoa powder (unsweetened)

Method

1. Preheat oven at 170 degree celsius.
2. Cream the butter, sugar and salt with a hand mixer till creamy. Add in the eggs and lemon extract and whisk for another 2 minutes at medium speed.
3. Sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate soda and mix well with a hand whisk.
4. Set aside 3/4 cup of the batter and pour the rest into a 9 inch baking tin lined with baking paper.
5. Sift in the cocoa powder into the batter and mix well with a spoon.
6. Drop spoonfuls of the cocoa batter into plain batter and swirl the batter with a knife to create the chocolate marble effect.
7. Bake at 170 degree celsius for 30 minutes.
8. Allow cake to cool before serving. Enjoy!

Cornflake Cookies~

A preview of the cornflake cookies for tomorrow's 4 division meeting's tea session! :)

Adapted from Florence of Do What I Like - Cornflake Cookies recipe.

~*Cornflake Cookies*~

Perfect for tea break! Best enjoyed with a cup of hot tea or coffee :p~

Sakae Sushi @ Toa Payoh Entertainment Centre~

A late dinner at Sakae...

~*Miso Soup*~

~*Salmon Sashimi*~

~*Kinoko Salad*~

Fresh salad topped with a variety of mushrooms. i liked it just as it is, without the sesame dressing.

~*Ika Teriyaki*~

The teriyaki sauce was tasty and not too salty or sweet.

~*Sakura Ebi Kakiage*~

There was just too much flour, i could barely taste the shrimps, :x

~*Cha Soba*~

Shokudo V~

Food, food and more food!

A dinner feast at Shokudo with I, C and G~

~*Assorted Sashimi*~

Fresh slices of Maguro, Swordfish, Salmon, Octopus

~*Vongole Bonito Soup Spaghetti*~

~*Assorted Mixed Grill*~

Scallop stick, Quail egg roll with bacon stick, Prawn roll with bacon stick and Pork asparagus

~*Grilled Squid*~

A must try!

~*Unagi Omelette*~

~*Ebi & Bacon Wasabi Mayo Pizza*~

Thin, light, tasty and crispy pizza

~*Combo 2 Assorted Mushroom*~

Other dishes that were not featured, include the following;

Kimuchi

Cha-siew ramen

Gyu Enoki Maki

Grilled whole teriyaki squid

Salmon

The friendly staffs and prompt service made the mini get-together/makan session extra enjoyable and pleasant :) *burp* :x

Mini Snow Skin Mooncakes~

Adapted from Amanda of Held by Love, Baked from scratch - Snow Skin Lotus Paste Mooncake recipe and Florence of Do What I Like - Chilled Mooncakes 1 recipe for Koh Fen/Pudding flour.

Keke... This is the first time i've made snow skin lotus mooncake from scratch... Hmmm... they're not too pretty but nonetheless it was a good effort...

~*Mini Snow Skin Lotus Paste Mooncakes*~

Han's @ Park Mall~

Han's has been around since 1977, when it was first established as a simple bakery & confectionery shop, has since evolved into a well known cafe & pastry restaurant chain and a household name in the Singapore food industry with 19 outlets, serving a variety of western and asian cuisines and pastries at affordable prices.

A quick dinner at Han's located at basement 1 of Park mall...

~*Garden Combination Salad*~

A generous serving of fresh iceberg lettuce, mixed vegetables, tomato and cucumber slices, onion rings, coleslaw, boiled egg and a pineapple ring. The thousand island sauce dressing is served separately.

~*Olio Bacon*~

Spaghetti cooked in olive oil, seasoned with ground pepper and served with red & green pepper and fleshy bacon.

The dish was alittle too peppery for the tastebuds...

Orange Chiffon Cake~

Adapted from Amanda from Held by Love, Baked from scratch - Orange Chiffon Cake recipe.

YUM! YUM! Soft and fluffy chiffon cake, anyone?

~*Orange Chiffon Cake*~

(Bottom-side up)

A slice of cake for you?

(Right-side up)

i transferred the cake to a larger baking tin after it cooled...

p.s. i used rice bran oil instead of cornoil and baked at 170 degrees for 40 minutes.

Bizarre Dinner-in~

A classic example of an experimental fusion home cook dinner that was received with mixed response...

For starters:

~*Salad*~

Baby buttercups with hard boiled eggs, enoki mushrooms and raisins with special oriental dressing (not shown)

The mini maincourse:

~*Oven-baked Tioman Fish*~

Lightly seasoned with olive oil, chilli powder and white pepper, served with citrus peas & carrot puree (not shown)

Dessert:

~*Custard Pudding with Fresh Mango*~

Custard with oreo cupcake bits topped with fresh mango and chocolate chips

Kimchi Chige Soup @ Koufu~

A quick dinner at Koufu at the Kallang Leisure Park... The entire shopping center was pretty quiet during off peak hours before the dinner crowd started streaming in around 7pm.

~*Kimchi Chige Soup*~

i enjoyed the clear and spicy soup with toufu, kimchi, enoki mushrooms. i added some chilli padi to give the extra spicy kick... Yum!

Charmy Snow Ice @ Kallang Leisure Park~

Shaved ice dessert, anyone?

The one and only Charmy Snow Ice outlet here is located at Kallang Leisure Park offers a variety of sweetened finely shaved ice desserts (e.g. green tea, original, yogurt, peanut, strawberry... etc) with a good selection of toppings (e.g. nuts, red beans, fruits, chocolate rice... etc) to choose from. The snow ice melts instantaneously with each mouthful, creating a cool and refreshing atmosphere that seemingly lifts one spirit momentarily.

~*Green Tea Snow Ice with Red Beans @ $3*~

This is slightly sweeter than Mei Heong Yuen's version of the Green tea snow ice. The snow ice was extremely smooth but could do with more matcha to increase the green tea flavour. The red bean paste was smooth and thick but was alittle too sweet for my taste buds.

Charmy Snow Ice

Kallang Leisure Park, #B1-26