Friday, March 27, 2009

Pancakes with Strawberry Sauce


I'm head over heels for pancakes especially when granny make them for me. I still remember how she'd add some fresh desiccated coconut in the batter and she'd make it real thin like a crepe.

Instead of reinventing her version of pancake, i made my very own version. I'm not exactly sure what should be in the batter so i just followed my gut feelings on this. Usually i'd jst get the pancake premix and jst add milk n eggs there you have it , ur pancake batter.

Ingredients

PANCAKES
* flour
* salt
* sugar
* eggs
* milk
* baking powder
* baking soda
* extra virgin olive oil

Method:
1) Whisk all the ingredients together and let it stand for 30mins - 1 hour
2) Give the non-stick a quick rub with olive oil or butter on a paper towel before you start flippin your pancakes
3) Pour the batter on the non-stick and when tiny holes formed on the surface its time to flip your pancake over
Note :
The usage of oil/butter after each pancake, the surface of your pancakes would turn crispy so to avoid tht only rub your pan with oil/butter once before you start making your pancakes.

Those that fancy a sweeter pancakes, add more sugar/soft brown sugar.

STRAWBERRY SAUCE
* fresh strawberries
* orange juice
* honey

Method:
1) Wash and cut out the stems and leaves of the strawberries and roughly chopped it or cubed it
2) Add freshly squeeze orange juice together with the freshly diced strawberries and bring it to a slow heat , constantly stirring
3) If the orange juice is already sweet, you can omit the honey, otherwise add honey/soft brown sugar until you reach the taste you favour.

Note:
You can add a lil corn flour into the sauce to thicken it. For a great homemade sauce, it would be good to get some really sweet and juicy strawberries. As for me , i made it with strawberries imported from Korea; its really sweet and fragrant.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Spiced Panko Prawns with Wasabi Mayo

This particular dish is inspired by my dearest friend. I had this when i was having lunch with her and i love her version! It was really yummy! Today i was craving for some of it so i decided i should reinvent the dish with a twist.

My bro was the happiest when he saw this dish, he's a big fan of finger food or fried stuff. Even my granny enjoyed it as well.


Ingredients

PRAWNS
* salt
* pepper
* corn oil
* water
* Panko
* Crispy Fry flour
* cayenne pepper powder
* prawns ( deveined and shelled)

Method:
1) Season the prawns with salt and pepper.
2) Mix the Crispy Fry flour with water and corn oil and mix until it form a thick batter.
3) Add in cayenne pepper powder and salt to the batter.
4) Coat prawns with the batter and coat it with a layer of panko.
5) Pour enough oil for shallow frying and fry the prawns in batches.
6) Placed the cooked prawns on a paper towel to absorb excessive oil.

DIP
* wasabi paste
* mayonaise

Method:
1) Mix both together and there you have it , its ready to go with your prawns.

Note:
For those that love wasabi, you can add more wasabi until you reach the exact consistency you like for your dip. You can add some finely chopped onions as well to give the dip more texture.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Eggless Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting

Chocolate and strawberries are two of my very close friend's favourite and i thought this is the perfect timing to blend both ingredients together for i was invited over for lunch at her place and i thought a sweet dessert might be good. Since she doesnt consume eggs, its another good chance for me to try out another eggless cake with different ingredients used as compared to my previous Eggless Chocolate Muffins. I didnt wanna make the usual rectangular or round cake so i thought why not turn it into cupcakes! Easy to consume and cute looking at the same time!


At first i was skeptical on whether to frost the cupcakes or not then i thought why not give it a try and see if she likes it. We both not a big fan of frosting or whipped cream or anythin creamy for that matter so to have frosting on it its a 50-50 thing , where you either like it or hate it. For someone that doesnt like creamy stuff i actually like the taste of the frosting when i was done whipping it. Food definitely taste different when nothing but the best and fresh ingredients used.

Ingredients:

CUPCAKES
1 packet of eggless premix
400gm condensed milk
100ml full cream milk
200ml UHT milk
185gm melted butter
1 tsp chocolate paste/compound

Method:
1) Beat the sugar (came together with the eggless premix) with the condensed milk, full cream milk and UHT milk until sugar dissolved.
2) Add the melted butter and chocolate paste
3) Fold the premix
4) Scoop the batter into the lined muffin tray and bake in the preheated oven of 180 degrees C for 30mins or when the cake tester comes out clean.

Note:
If eggless premix is unavailable you can use the eggless cake/cupcakes recipe available in cookbooks or internet. If you're in a creative mood, feel free to experiment on the standard ingredients used for the eggless cake and add a touch of your creativity in it.

FROSTING

250gm butter
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp strawberry extract
3 tbsps fresh strawberry puree

Method:
1) Cream the butter until its light and fluffy before adding the sugar.
2) Once it has combined, add vanilla and strawberry extract.
3) Lastly, add the freshly crushed or pureed strawberry.

Note:
Crushed strawberries are good if you like to feel some texture in your frosting when you eat it. You can crush it with your fork.

But if you want a smooth and fluffy frosting then pureed strawberry is good. Put bout 4-5 strawberries in the food processor to produce about 3 tbsps of strawberry puree.

If your fresh strawberries are one the sour note, then sprinkle some soft brown sugar on it and set it aside until later use.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Mini Chocolate Stout Muffins

Its been a while since i heard or read blogs bout fusing alcohol with food items and i'm really intrigued by it. I've bookmarked a few but never really got down to try it out until this rainy afternoon. I got this recipe over Epicurious. As usual, instead of the whole tray of cake, i made it into mini muffin cups so that its easy to serve and also i dont haveta cut the whole tray of cake my way! :)

The recipe i followed yield 12 servings and by looking at the measurement, it sure was alot for my family so i halved the ingredients used. Since i adopted this recipe, i'll not repeat the ingredients and the methods here.

This particular recipe comes with an icing recipe but i omitted it since i wasn't in much mood for too sweet stuff. No doubt i love to look at beautiful decorated muffins/cupcakes but when it comes to eating all those frosting, i'm really thinking twice. I tried once a big "rose frosting" and i gotta say it was (frosting) too much for me, perhaps i'm gettin real old over here and i'm loosin the craving for sweet, soft and fluffy stuff.

For those that loves chocolate and stout at the same time, this is definitely the recipe to go for. It was really moist and the flavour was superb! I actually find that the mini muffins actually tasted better the next day! I suppose all the flavour settled down!

Spicy Broad Noodles

As usual i went to shop for grocery and i ended up at the noodles section. So i was just checking out the types of noodles available and this particular Non-fried broad noodles caught my attention. At first i thought of cookin some home made Wantan noodles with the broad noodles but without a good Char Siew in hand, it wouldn't be a complete plate of meal.

Since that was the case, i decided to stir fry it instead.

INGREDIENTS

* broad noodles
* minced garlic
* sliced onions
* prawns
* chilli paste
* shredded carrots
* chopped romaine lettuce
* pounded dried shrimps
* sesame oil & oil
* dark soy sauce
* sweet soy sauce
* oyster sauce
* salt and pepper to taste
* sugar

Method:
1) Cook the broad noodles until they are half cooked, remove and place it in a bowl of filtered water.
2) Marinate the prawns (deveined and shelled, leavin tail intact) with salt, pepper and onion powder. Heat a non-stick with a lil oil n sesame oil and fry the prawns until they turned pink and set aside.
3) Break eggs into a bowl and add a few dashes of fish sauce and pepper. Heat the non-stick pan and scramble the egg. Set aside.
4) Heat oil and sesame oil together and saute the minced garlic until fragrant and add in the pounded dried shrimps.
5) Next add in the chilli paste and stir fry further. Add onions and the shredded carrot.
6) Drain the noodles and add it in. Season with dark soy sauce, sweet soy sauce and oyster sauce.
7) Add in the prawns and eggs and stir fry further. Season with salt, sugar and pepper to taste.
8) Before serving, add in the chopped romaine lettuce and give it a last stir.

Note:
The chilli paste i used is a ready made chilli paste with tamarind juice and salt added into it. You can stir fry the chilli paste with a lil belachan stock granules /shrimp paste before hand and store it for later use in stir fry dishes or serve as a condiment with some freshly squeezed lime/calamansi juice.

You can cook the eggs and prawns together with the noodles. I chose to cook it separately to get a good results cuz i was stir fryin the noodles for 4 persons so its kinda a lot of noodles in a wok.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Eggless Chocolate Muffins

Having friend(s) that doesn't consume eggs/on vegetarian/vegan diet or egg allergy somewhat make you more alert bout the ingredients you infused into your cooking, especially if you're preparing for them.

I once experimented on an eggless dark chocolate cake but it was rather dry and with a different set of ingredients, needless to say i was rather dissapointed but i read that its not easy to bake without eggs for eggs give more flavour and help with the cake texture. So since its already written that it wouldn't be an easy task, therefore i brace myself for another eggless adventure.

So this time around instead of the usual muffins, i decided to experiment on eggless muffins so that i can work on perfecting it in small batches. The ingredients listed belows are just nice for 9 muffins in my 12' muffin tray.


INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups of cake flour
3 tbsps cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
5 tbsps corn oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 cup cold water

Method:
1) Preheat oven to 190 degrees C.
2) Line muffin cups in the muffin tray.
3) Sift the cake flour and cocoa powder together and add in sugar, baking soda and salt.
4) In another bowl, add corn oil, vanilla extract and cold water.
5) Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined.
6) Add the vinegar quickly and stir in - immediately pour into the lined muffin cups and put it in the oven and bake for 25-30.
7) Cool thoroughly and remove from the tray.

Note:
Instead of using all-purpose flour, i replaced it with cake flour and sprinkled some chocolate rice on top before placing it in the preheated oven.

I have no idea how a great delicious- tasting eggless muffins should taste like but i noticed there's a strong taste of baking soda. Perhaps i can experiment further and replace it with baking powder instead. i wonder if the effect would be the same. I've read somewhere that some even use coke in their eggless cake. That coke in cake sure sounds intriguing. I'm definitely tryin that out the next time around

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Queen of Spices

Today the spices ruled my kitchen. I had one of the most exciting kitchen experience today. Not only was it an opportunity for me to try out new ingredients but also new spices. Talking bout spices, how i wish i've got a spice rack! I remember i came across a blog whereby the owner of the blog mentioned somethin bout a spice rack she bought, that was love at first sight for me! Before i day dream bout that rack, i better get back on track :)

I whipped up 3 spice-rich dishes today. Nasi Briyani, Bombay Curry and Vegan Curry's the menu for lunch.

My version of Nasi Briyani is a rather simple one. Perhaps i was thinking of the accompaniment dishes that will be eaten with the rice and at the same time i was also preparing it for a friend. The measurement given below can serve up to 10; depending on if they are small or big eaters.

INGREDIENTS
* 1 kg Basmati rice
* 1 tbsp ghee
* 1 tbsp oil

* 1 star anise
* 3 cardamons
* 5 cloves
* 2 stalks lemon grass
* 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
* 5cm piece cinnamon stick

* 1300ml water
* 1/4 cup natural/plain yogurt
* 2 tsp salt

Method:
1) Wash and drain rice and put it into an electric rice cooker.
2) Put both oil and ghee in a non-stick and fry the spices until fragrant.
3) Add water, yogurt and salt and bring to boil.
4) Pour the mixture into the rice cooker.
5) Turn on the rice cooker and cook the rice automatically.

Note:
This version of briyani would be good if you're gonna add in some meat dishes into the electric rice cooker once the rice is cooked thoroughly.

When the rice is done, remove all spices leaving only the plain rice. Add in the cooked meat dish and mix well to combine. Let the rice stand in the pot for about 20mins or so before serving. By doin this, you'll get a different version of Nasi Briyani from what i've prepared.


For this dish, i'm not sure bout its authenticity of the ingredients used for i've no knowledge of the actual spices used for this Bombay Curry. I did some research and it seems like they've got a few version of this dish.

INGREDIENTS
* 1 kg beef/lamb
* 1 tbsp ghee/oil
* 2 chopped onions
* 2 crushed garlic
* 3 green chillies
* 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
* 1 tsp turmeric powder
* 1 tsp cumin powder
* 1 tbsp coriander powder
* 2 tsp chilli powder
* 1 tsp salt
* 400g plum tomatoes
* 1 cup coconut milk
Method:
1) Cut the beef or lamb into bite size
2) Heat ghee and add in the onions, stir until just soft.
3) Add garlic, chillies, ginger, turmeric, cumin, coriander and chilli powder. Stir until just heated through.
4) Add the meat and cook over high heat until meat are well coated and browned all over.
5) Stir in the salt and undrained plum tomatoes. Crush the plum tomatoes with your laddle or fork and let it simmer for bout 1-11/2 hours or until meat is tender.
6) Add the coconut milk and let it simmer until the gravy has thickened slightly.

Note:
For those who love a spicier note of curry, you can add it another 1-2 tsp of chilli powder. Serve garnished with freshly chopped coriander if desired.

I cooked this Vegan Curry specially for a friend since she's on a vegan diet. And i gotta say even by cooking such a simple dish, i learnt a lot on what are the varieties of vegie you can have in a bowl of curry! For a non vegetarian like me, i really really like this dish. You can serve this curry with rice or bread if preferred.

INGREDIENTS
* 200g pumpkin
* 100g long beans
* 1 medium brinjal
* 100g cauliflower
* 150g cabbage
* 5 young sweet corns
* 100g carrot
* 2-3 tbsps oil

Spice A
* 2 sprigs curry leaves
* 3 cm piece cinnamon stick
* 1 star anise
* 5 cloves
* 2 cardamons
* 1 stalk lemon grass

Spice B ( Ground & Combine)
* 2 1/2 tbsps chilli paste
* 5 shallots
* 2cm piece galangal
* 1 1/2 tbsp curry powder
* 1/4 turmeric powder
* 2 candletnuts

Spice C
* 2 tbsps tamarind puree
* 800ml think coconut milk
* 2 tbsps thick coconut milk

Seasoning
* 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
* 1/2 tsp sugar or to taste

Method:
1) Heat oil and fry Spice A until fragrant.
2) Add grounded Spice B and continue to fry until oil rises to the top.
3) Add pumpkin wedges and carrot wedges, fry until well blended.
4) Put in tamarind puree and thin coconut milk and bring to a simmering boil
5) Add long beans, brinjals and cauliflower and simmer for a while.
6) Mix in the rest of the vegie and simmer until the vegie turn just tender.
7) Add seasoning and thick coconut milk and let it simmer .
8) Cover the wok for a while until the oil rises to the top.
9) Ready to serve

Note:
For those that wanted more ingredients in this vegan curry, you can add in some deep-fried tofu and fried gluten puffs.

The chilli paste i used its a 3 in 1 , where tamarind juice and salt has been added to the chilli paste.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Wickedly Peanut Butter

Sinfully Peanut buttery! That's all that came into my mind when i had my first bite. Its like falling in love all over again with peanut butter! Being an avid peanut butter fan i can't help but evilly indulge in it.

Peanut Butter Muffins


Ingredients:

* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 tbsp baking powder
* 2 cups full cream evaporated milk
* 1/3 cup low fat milk
* 1/2 cup soft brown sugar
* 1/2 cup + 2 tbsps creamy peanut butter
* 1 tsp salt

Method:
1) Preheat oven to 204 degrees C.
2) Line the muffin tray with muffin cups.
3) Shift flour and baking powder in a bowl.
4) Place milk, eggs, sugar, peanut butter and salt in the blender and blend.
5) Pour the mixture over dry ingredients and fold until just combined.

Note:
I made some changes to the original recipe. The actual recipe only calls for 1 cup of milk but i substituted it with 2 cups of full cream evaporated milk and i added an extra 1/3 of low fat milk and 2 tbsps of peanut butter.

For those who love it to be on a sweeter note and more peanut buttery, feel free to add more creamy peanut butter and soft brown sugar. My version of peanut butter isnt too sweet, in fact i cut down on the sweetness so that the combination of the muffins and the frosting would be just nice and not too overly overwhelming.


Peanut Butter Frosting


Ingredients:

* 2 tbsps + 3/4 tsp milk or as needed
* 1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
* 1/4 cup + 2tbsps butter
* 3/4 creamy peanut butter



Method:
1) Place butter and peanut butter in a bowl and beat it with an electric mixer.
2) Gradually mix in sugar and when it thickens, add in milk a teaspoon at a time until the sugar is mixed and the icing is thick and spreadable.
3) Beat until its fluffy.


Note:
Don't add too much milk for the frosting would be too soft to make a nice frosting on cakes/cookies.

So there you have it, the muffins and the frosting! So what are you waiting for? Get your piping set out and start experimenting with it. This is my first time playing with my new toy and i gotta say i was really excited frosting my own muffins.

Come to think bout it, it looks more like cupcakes now! My frosting skills isnt that great and it didn't turn out very pretty there but i'm jolly happy with the outcome as a first timer on my piping set!

 
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