Carrot Cake ...not this, but the American version.For the Cake:4 eggs2 cups grated carrots1/2 cup roughly blended carrot1/2 cup crushed pineapple1/4 cup desiccated coconut1 cup chopped walnuts1 1/2 cup salad oil1+ cup sugar2 cups flour1 tsp salt1 tsp baking soda1/2 tsp baking powder1 tsp vanilla extract1 tsp cinnamon powderMix ingredients until well blended. Pour into greased pan (traditionally a tube pan). Bake at 350°F (i.e., about 180°C) for 1 hour 30 min. Cool before applying frosting.The Cream Cheese Frosting6 oz (170g) cream cheese (about 2/3 of the standard 250g pack), softened.2 tbsp butter (unsalted), softened1 tsp vanilla extract1+ cup icing sugarBeat ingredients together until smooth. Apply liberally over the cake. Fish-Fragrant Eggplants with Chicken A favorite dish in one of my favorite Chinese Restaurants in Toronto (Asian Legend) is the archtypically Sichuanese "Fish-Fragrant Eggplants" (yuxiang qiezi). Ever since getting my hands on Fuchsia Dunlop's, Land of Plenty, I've meant to give it a try. The "Fish-Fragrant" refers to a standard style of sauces traditionally used for cooking fish that has long been adapted to other ingredients (e.g., Chicken, Pork, Beancurd). Just as I was gathering the materials to do the dish, wifey asked if I wanted some meat for dinner as well (some chicken was, at that time, defrosting in the fridge), and if so, how would I like it done? I decided that rather than do two dishes, I would simply incorporate the chicken into the eggplant dish, modifying some of the proportions of the ingredients, and changing a bit of the method to suit my own style (and convenience). The results were, to say the least, decent. Wifey and I polished the whole dish off with rice for dinner. The only drawback is the deep-frying, which is a real chore. But I guess it's no pain (from the oil splattering about), no gain.(Recipe modified from Fuchsia Dunlop)Ingredients and basic preparation:- 1+ lb Eggplant, halved lengthwise, then crosswish, then into strips about 1/2" thick (for the non-Asian variety, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt and leave for 30min to draw out some of the moisture); if using Brinjal, just half lengthwise and cut into 3" sections (no need to salt).- Oil for deepfrying (e.g., peanut oil)- 1/2 lb Chicken, cut into small pieces, marinate with 1/2 tsp light soy sauce, 1 tsp water, 1 tsp cornstarch- 2 tbsp Sichuanese chili bean paste (the real stuff: Pixian Douban; unfortunately, I don't have that, so using a Taiwanese brand...)- 1 tsp Pickled chili paste (according to Dunlop, Sambal Oelek does just fine; since I have neither, I am using a Korean chili paste for now instead)- 1 tbsp finely chopped Ginger- 1 tbsp finely chopped Garlic- 2/3 cup Chicken stock- 2 tsp Sugar- 1 tsp Light Soy Sauce- 2 tsp Cornstarch mixed with 1+ tbsp Cold water- 2 tsp Black Vinegar (Chinkiang brand where available)- 4 Scallions, green parts only, sliced into fine rings- 1 tsp Sesame oilMethod:1. Deep-fry the eggplants for about 3-4 min (at 350-400°F / 175-200°C), until slightly golden on the outside; remove and drain on paper towels.2. Heat 2-3 tbsp of oil in wok/pan; fry ginger and garlic for 30 seconds; add the bean paste and chili paste and fry for another 30 seconds; be careful not to burn the sauce (remove from heat if necessary); add the chicken and fry for a minute or two.3. Add stock, sugar, soysauce and mix well.4. Add eggplants and simmer for a few minutes; add the cornstarch mixture and stir to thicken the sauce; stir in the vinegar and scallions and leave for a few seconds; remove from heat; stir in sesame oil, serve. Fresh San Franciscan Sourdough at Home After several unsuccessful attempts at making my own sourdough starter, I decided upon the recommendation of Cooks Illustrated to use the Goldrush Sourdough Starter pack. During our trip to the SF Bay Area last Christmas, I bought two packs, in case one failed to react as hoped. After enduring several days of pungent, yeasty, soury smells in the air of our little basement apartment (good thing our neighbours didn't complain!), and 3 tolerably successful batches, I baked my first wonderfully looking, smelling, and tasting sourdough bread loaves! Loy and I love olives and herbs in our bread and so I added a generous amount of each into the dough, which, to my relief, proofed without problem. And, by the way, the best olive baguette we've tasted is sold at The Phoenix Pastificio, a restaurant and bakery at Berkeley. Below, Loy and Baby Penny pose with their friendly baker Eric during our last trip back. Great bread tips I picked up:1. In cold temperature areas (such as Canada in winter), place starter and dough in the oven with only the light on.2. Watch your dough as it proofs (rises). As soon as it doubles in size and a dent remains where your finger has pressed, it's ready for baking. Slash with razor or tip of knife the surface of the dough to ensure that bread bakes evenly. Overproofing will cause the dough to deflate when slashed.3. Covering your dough with aluminium foil (with space for dough to rise a little) will prevent the top from getting burnt. Remove the foil when bread is almost done to achieve a nice light brown. Fuchsia Dunlop, Land of Plenty Just arrived in the mail from Amazon.com. After successfully adapting her recipe for Ding Gong Bao Chicken, found online (see this earlier post), I decided to look for a copy of the book itself. The author works for the BBC, lived in Sichuan for several years, was the first ever foreign student to enroll at the Sichuan Institute of Higher Cuisine in Chengdu, and has tested all of the recipes in her London kitchen. Excellent... Easy Meat Loaf Found this nifty little recipe from Pork Perfect Pork by the Canadian Pork Council, pub. 1983. This book is filled with advice on pork cuts, storage, and lots of recipes, by the way, was picked up for a mere Can$1.00 at a hardware store near where we live. I tried the pork loaf recipe and my husband and I liked it well enough. Here's the recipe, with some minor improvisations. Highly recommended for those of you who would like to enjoy a simple, microwaved pork loaf that can be prepared beforehand and cooks in 10 minutes, and which is also highly flexible--it will do well in a Western or Chinese meal.You may use the following recipe simply as a guide. I tried it another time, without using the proportions as given. I only had 200g minced turkey, and so used only one egg, added a little water, and added an extra 2 slices of bread broken into little bits. The result wasn't too bad (see picture above); it had a more spongy, or jelly-like texture due to the extra bread crumbs. Carry out your own culinary experiments: as long as the mixture looks fine to you, you should get some kind of edible loaf at least! Meat Loaf(2 ½ - 3 sufficient main servings, accompanied by soup and salad; or or as an accompanying dish to rice and other simple homecooked fare)Ingredients:400g ground pork1 cup bread crumbs1 packet onion soup mix2-3 stalks finely diced celerydash of peppersprinkling of corn starch½ cup milk2 eggs, slightly beaten(no extra salt needed!)Cheese to taste (optional—omit if you’d like this as an accompanying dish to a nice Chinese home-cooked meal of rice and other dishes: believe me, it tastes a little like steamed pork cooked in a Chinese way! You could even add some diced cooked Chinese mushrooms if you like)Method:Mix together ground pork, bread crumbs, onion soup mix, celery and pepper. Add milk, eggs, and cheese (optional); combine lightly but thoroughly. Spoon into a 1L (9 x 1 ¼ inch) glass pie plate (or close equivalent). Microwave for 5 minutes and slice loaf into six portions (optional: I do it to better ensure the interior is well cooked), and continue microwaving for another 5 minutes. Cover loaf and let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.Bon appetit! Sweet and Sour Fish It's one of those fairly ubiquitous dishes that you can almost always order in a North American Chinese restaurant, though as usual, the quality varies from place to place. Below is my own attempt at doing this from scratch after trying a so-so ready mix (Maggi brand, no less). The recipe is modified from stuff I found using google, with the chilli thrown in "for effect" (I'm Singaporean after all). Works fairly well, but I'm still open to further modifications.Now where's my green bell pepper...Fish and Vegetables:1 pound fish fillets (e.g., cod, haddock, sea bass; I used (frozen) basa, which is not only inexpensive, but worked very well), rinse, pat dry and cut into bite-size pieces1 bell pepper, cut into wedges (I prefer a green one, for color)2 tomatoes (small/medium), each cut into 8 pieces1 onion (small/medium), cut into 12 piecesPineapple cubes (from a can is fine)1 stalk green onion, chopped into half inch pieces1 red chilli, seeds removed, cut into small strips1 tablespoon ginger, finely choppedMarinade:1 tsp salt1 egg white1 tsp cornstarchSauce:3/4 cup chicken broth (Knorr plus water would do)1 tbsp light soy sauce1 tbsp Chinese rice wine3-4 tbsp ketcup3 tbsp rice vinegar3 tbsp sugar1 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 2 tbsp water (this should be separate from the rest)Also:Enough oil for deep-fryingMethod:1. Marinade the fish for about 15 min (mix well; best using fingers). Deep-fry until golden brown, then drain (e.g., on paper towels or rack).2. Mix together the ingredients for the sauce, except for the last item, which should be in a separate bowl.3. Stir-fry ginger in about 2 tbsp of oil for about 30 seconds. Add the onion, green onion, pineapplec and chilli and fry for a few minutes. Add the tomatoes for a quick fry. Add the sauce and bring it to a boil. Add cornstarch-water mixture, stirring to thicken. Turn off heat. Add the fish and mix everything with the thickened sauce. Serve.Preparations (what am I going to do with that left-over egg yolk?)'Deep'-frying the fishMental note to self: add the tomatoes later next time so that they don't disintegrate... Mom's Crunchy Rolled Oat Cookies Got this recipe from my mom. That my largely cookie-indifferent dad likes these says much about them. They're very easy to make and to my mind an absolutely delicious and wholesome snack. And, as you can see in the pictures, I also made some smaller cookies using the same dough but without the coating of oats, and had each cookie dotted with a pecan for some variety. Ingredients(A) 200g margarine, 100g icing sugar, 1 egg & half tsp vanilla essence (B) 300g wholemeal flour, 75g rolled oats (C) 90g rolled oatsMethodBeat (A) till creamy, stir in (B) to form a dough. Make dough into small balls, coat on (C) and flatten them in a tray. Put in oven and bake at 180 degrees C for 10-15 minutes. Cool cookies and store in an airtight container to keep them fresh and crunchy for days. Our Favourite Chicken Pie The following is a somewhat rough guide to baking our favourite chicken pie. I say "rough" because I do not have precise proportions for the ingredients for the filling. The pie pastry recipe is, happily, more precise. I started baking this pie about 4 years ago and have baked, at times with the help of my dad and my husband, approximately more than 35 of them! They are usually well-received, and what follows is a recipe I typed out, on request, for our friends at Hamilton Square Baptist Church after we served them these pies as a farewell thanksgiving treat. Ingredients (amount of each tailored to your own liking):Chicken meat (I like to use thigh meat)Cornflour (to keep the meat tender while cooking)Oyster-flavored sauce (available at most major supermarkets such as Safeway and Albertson’s)Pepper(Garlic) saltParsley flakes (optional)PotatoesPeeled baby carrots (for greater convenience)Onions (I used lots of this)Canned clam chowderCanned mushroom slicesEggsButter, or margarine, or "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" (I used this)1-2 cheese slicesMethod:1. Dice chicken meat, and marinate well with some oyster-flavored sauce (approx. 2 tablespoons per pie?), pepper and cornflour (about 1 tablespoon per pie?); cover and set aside in refrigerator to keep fresh as you prepare other ingredients2. Dice potatoes and carrots, and begin boiling them in some water3. Dice onions and sauté them in some ‘butter’ until they are rather soft4. Add sautéed onions, chicken pieces, clam chowder and mushrooms to what feels like ¾ cooked potatoes and carrots (drained of excess water), and let them cook at medium-medium high for about 10 minutes more until chicken pieces are just cooked [I prefer to use fully cooked pie fillings to make sure that refrigerated, unbaked pies stay fresh for at least a day or two]5. Taste, and add salt and pepper accordingly, if needed6. Hardboil the eggs, dice them and mix, together with cheese, into the rest of the pie fillingNon-flaky Pie Pastry (for one 9 inch pie pan; still, just an estimate)Ingredients:Slightly more than 1½ cups plain flourAbout 2/5 tsp salt95g / about 3.4 oz combination of soft margarine and butter, just margarine, or "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter"Maximum 2/5 cup cold waterMethod:1. Sift flour (unless using flour that does not need to be sifted) and salt into a bowl2. Rub in 'butter' until mixture resembles coarse crumbs3. Stir in enough water to bind, gather the dough into a ball and wrap in clear film4. Chill for 20-30 mins. before rolling out thinly (or as preferred) on slightly flour-dusted surface, and covering slightly buttered pie pan [Spoon pie filling on to the bottom crust]5. Poke some steam vents on top crust, and brush on some egg yolk, being careful not to clog up the vents.Bake pie at 425 F for 10-15 mins., followed by another 25-40 mins. until golden at a reduced temperature of 350 F. Cheesecake II Tried a different cheesecake recipe, this time, from cooksillustrated.com. It is definitely much more professional than my earlier one. I liked the taste of my earlier recipe, but the texture to this one is much better. So I've adapted the newer recipe in an attempt to get both the taste and texture I like.Fresh out of the ovenIngredientsCrust4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted1+ cup Oreo baking crumbs (basically crushed Oreos without the icing)Batter4 sticks of cream cheese (8oz/250g each)1 cup sugar 4 large eggs, separated1 tsp lemon zest from 1 small lemon1 tsp cinnamon powder (not in the original recipe, which calls for 2 tsp vanilla extract)1/4 cup whipping cream (or heavy cream)1/4+ cup sour creamEssential equipment9 inch springform cake pan (or even better: a "Cheesecake Pan with Removable Bottom"--but alas! I left mine in Singapore...)Large roasting pan (big enough for the cake pan to fit in it)Foil (larger version: 25 inch wide)Electric mixer, etc.Method1. Heat oven to 375 degrees (Fahrenheit) with the oven rack in the middle position. Wrap springform pan bottom with foil, tuck foil underneath pan bottom, assemble pan, then pull foil around side of pan. Prepare a kettle of boiling water.2. For the crust: melt butter, mix it well with the Oreo crumbs. Spread and push the resulting mixture onto the bottom of the pan evenly. Make sure that it covers the entire bottom. Bake for about 10-15 minutes. Remove and allow to cool down. Bring the oven down to 325 degrees.3. Beat cream cheese with electric mixer until smooth (I usually allow the cream cheese to warm up by it leaving out of the 'fridge before using). Mix in sugar, about 3 min allowing it to dissolve. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating until just incorporated and scraping down after each addition, ensuring ingredients stuck at bottom of bowl are fully incorporated so as to avoid lumps. Add zest and vanilla and beat until just incorporated. Manually stir in cream and sour cream. Beat egg whites to soft peaks (separately) and manually fold into batter.4. By now, the cake pan should be cool enough to handle. Grease the sides with butter. Cover pan underneath and along sides with sheet of heavy-duty foil and set it in the roasting pan. Bring kettle of water to boil. Pour batter into prepared pan. Cover the top of the pan with foil (just put a sheet over lightly over the pan, don't bother wrapping it around the pan). Set roasting pan on oven rack and pour enough boiling water to come about halfway up side of springform pan.5. Bake at 325 degress until perimeter of cake is set, but center jiggles like Jell-O when pan is tapped, 45 to 50 minutes. Turn off heat and leave oven door ajar (using a long-handled kitchen fork or spoon to hold it open) for 1 hour longer. Remove springform pan from water bath and set on wire rack; cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours. (Can be refrigerated up to 4 days.) If done right, the cake should shrink slightly, detaching itself from the sides of the pan.Successfully made night of Wednesday, Oct 19. To add blueberry topping when serving (desert on Friday evening for guests). Homemade Gongbao Chicken I've been on the lookout for Chinese restaurants that do good Gongbao Jiding ever since I came to North America--with mixed results most of the time. While the better (i.e., more expensive) restaurants can usually do a good job with it, the same cannot be said for the run-of-mill lunch-special-for-3.99 outfits (usually too watery). Today, I decided to give the dish a go myself--after finding a respectable looking recipe online (adapted below), and reminding myself that I should be looking for ways to use my small stash of Szechwan Peppercorn and Dried Chilli. But as usual, I had to take some liberties with the recipe, the most scandalous being the substitution of Extra Virgin Olive Oil for Peanut Oil (I've switched to Olive for practially all of my cooking--including stir fry--for a while by now), and Balsamic Vinegar for Black Chinese Vinegar (since my last bottle was used up and I wasn't intending to buy a new one just for this). The overall results--I am happy to report--exceeded expectations:Recipe (as I prepared the dish)"+" means "and a bit more"Main Ingredients- 1 1/2 boneless chicken thigh (supposed to be breast) without skin (about 2/3 lb)- 2 garlic cloves and an equivalent amount of fresh ginger- 4 scallions (a.k.a. spring onion), white parts only- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (supposed to be peanut oil)- Small handful dried red chillies (preferably Sichuanese, but I only have generic)- 1 tsp whole Sichuan peppercorn (I love this stuff)- 1/2 cup cashew Nuts (bits; traditionally roasted unsalted peanuts; but cashew is supposed to give a grander version of the dish--and in any case, that's what I have today)Marinade- 1/2 tsp salt- 2 tsp light soy sauce- 1 tsp Shaoxing rice wine (medium-dry sherry is supposed to do as well)- 2+ tsp cornstarch (or 1 1/2 tsp potato flour)- 1 tbs water Sauce- 3 tsp sugar- 1+ tsp cornstarch (or 3/4 tsp potato flour)- 1 tsp dark soy sauce- 1 tsp light soy sauce- 3 tsp Balsamic Vinegar (supposed to be Chinkiang black Chinese vinegar)- 1 tsp sesame oil (product of Singapore "Chee Seng" brand, no less)- 1 tsp chicken stock (i.e., water + pinch of Knorr chicken broth mix)Preparation (As it turns out, most of the work is in the preparation (cutting, measuring, etc.). The cooking itself does not take all that long. Hopefully, as I get more experienced with the dish, I will be able to guesstimate the quantities without having to resort to the measuring spoons all the time. I've rearranged the original instructions to reflect the actual sequence I took more closely.)1. Cut the chicken as into 1/2-inch cubes (no need to be too exact lah). Place in a small bowl and mix in the marinade ingredients. Let sit..2. Peel and thinly slice the garlic and ginger. Chop scallions into chunks as long as their diameter. Snip the chillies in half or into 2-inch sections, discard as many seeds as possible. Set aside.3. Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl. Set aside.(left: the ingredients all ready for the pan; right: a bevy of seasoning)Cooking1. Heat Olive Oil over high heat (another scandalous substitution: I use a non-stick pan rather than a wok). Leave one small slice of garlic for testing the temperature--when it begins to sizzle, it's time. Add the chillies and Sichuan pepper and stir-fry briefly until they are crisp and the oil is spicy and fragrant (opening the windows is advised). Take care not to burn the spices. Add the ginger and garlic (they are added later in the original recipe but Wifey prefers her garlic well cooked). Stir.2. Add chicken and fry over high heat, stirring constantly. As soon as the chicken cubes have separated, add the scallions and continue to stir-fry for a few minutes until the meat is cooked through (test one of the larger pieces to make sure).3. Give the sauce a stir and add it to the wok, continuing to stir and toss. As soon as the sauce has become thick and shiny, add the cashew, stir them in, and serve.(Variations: The same dish can be made with cubes of pork, shrimp, or prawns.)Next stop: Mapo Tofu, Iron Chef Chen Kenichi Style. Savoury Raisin Almond Cookies Had some extra dough from making pineapple tarts, and so decided to knead in some raisins and almond slices, form little dough balls and press them flat. Easy cookies, I thought. And waddya know? These are now favourite cookies of my husband and I. Chawanmushi Improvised - Eggs x 3 (Large US-size; if small, use 4)- Chicken stock 1/2 cup (supposed to be dashi stock)- Salt 1/4-1/3 tsp- Sugar 1 tsp- Soysauce 1 tbsp- Sake 1 tsp- Chicken thigh x 1, cut the meat into small pieces- Shiitake mushrooms x 4-5, sliced thinly- Crap flavored pollock 2 oz (i.e., imitation crab; supposed to be kamaboko), sliced thinly- Spring Onions, chopped (supposed to be mitzuba and yuzu)Divide the chicken, crab flavored pollock and shitake mushroom between 3-4 bowls (first picture). Beat eggs--carefully, without making bubbles. Mix in stock, soysauce, salt, sake and sugar. Strain the egg mixture (second picture; note: here will be some thick egg white left, don't use it). Divide the egg mixture between the bowls (third picture). Place some spring onion on top of each bowl. Cover them (e.g., with foil). Steam on high heat (place it in the steamer after the water starts boiling; fourth picture) for about 5 min, then continue on reduced heat for another 15-20 min (depends, have to experiment). Serve (last picture; I used parsley for that round; not really a great idea).First attempt: June 4, for supper Recent Photos (captions to come later) Swedish-ish Meatballs (dinner Apr 29)Solyanka (dinner Apr 30) Honey Almond Rice Pudding of Pleyn Delit Got the following recipe from the book shown above. To read more about how I acquired this little gem of a cookbook and to gain a few small morsels of knowledge about medieval cookery, click here.Click on picture to see it up closeNote: what I used for a pleasant variation is in square bracketsIngredients:1/2 cup short grain rice [brown rice, with longer cooking time]2 1/2 cups milk, water, or a combination [2 cups milk and 1/2 cup sweet soy milk]1/2 cup ground almonds blanched [1/2 cup almond slices and a handful of currants]1/2 cup sugar [slightly less]2 Tbsp honey [rounded tablespoons]1 cup boiling water [slightly less]Method:Cover the rice with milk (or whatever combination you wish here) and bring to a simmer; cook over very low heat, very gently, for at least 30 minutes or until rice is cooked, stirring occasionally and adding more water if it shows signs of drying out. Remove from heat and set aside to cool so that any remaining liquid is absorbed. Meanwhile, place almonds, sugar and honey in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Stir and allow almond mixture to steep. When rice has cooled, stir this mixture into it and allow rice pudding mixture to simmer on medium low for 10 minutes or as long as it takes for the pudding to become as thick as you like it. Remove from heat and pour into serving dish or individual pudding cups or bowls. Cool and chill. Sprinkle a little cinnamon powder before serving if desired. Chicken Bao, Singapore-style Makes 8 medium sized baos (or buns, if you will)For those of you in the know, this bao is not exactly "Toh Kee" (famous bao shop that was at People's Park Food Centre until a little while ago; now at Upper Cross Street) standard. It is, however, good enough for us. Make it bigger or smaller. It's all up to you. I once tried making small baos, and another time big ones, and it does not seem to me that the steaming time of 10 minutes needs to be adjusted much. Some photos of the latest attemptFor the bao filling: sorry--all your own estimation here!1. chicken thigh meat, cut into bite-sized chunks and seasoned for about 10 minutes at least, with cornstarch (for tenderness and a slightly starchy consistency), pepper, light soy sauce, a little oyster sauce, a dash of sesame oil, sprinkling of sugar, and finely chopped spring onions. 2. hard-boiled eggs (cook, shell and cut into bite-sized chunks)3. (optional: we used only chicken and egg) sliced bamboo shoots (canned ones) or thinly sliced water chestnuts - just fry with the chickenMethod: Quickly stir fry the seasoned chicken chunks in some oil, adding a little bit of water for just a little gravy, and cook on medium high until chicken is just cooked. Mix in hard-boiled egg chunks, and, if necessary, add a little more light soy sauce and sesame oil until the filling tastes great. For the bao skin:4 Tbsp warm water (not too hot--you'll kill the yeast!)1 Tbsp quick-rise yeast1 Tbsp sugar1/2 slightly rounded tsp salt11 Tbsp milk1 Tbsp oil3 cups flourMethod:1. Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water and let stand for 5 minutes.2. Add to this yeast mixture salt, milk and oil, and stir to combine.3. Stir in flour.4. Knead 5-10 minutes or until dough is smooth. You can add just a little bit of water if dough looks too dry and does not hold together well. 5. Divide dough into 8 more or less evenly sized balls6. Press balls into rounds as thinly as you like it, though not so thin that it breaks when wrapping the filling7. Place suitable amount of filling onto the centre of the round, pick up the sides of the dough and secure with a few kneads at the top so that filling is all covered up.8. Place each bao on a piece of suitably sized paper (we used ordinary white printing paper), and let them rise (covered, in a steamer basket) for about 1 1/2 hours or until almost doubled in size.9. Bring the water under the steamer to a boil, and let baos steam for 10 minutes.10. Enjoy them hot! Food blogs international Link. Potstickers, also known as Jiaozi Guotie* *An alert reader spotted my mistake. Potstickers are guotie--literally too. Dumplings are jiaozi.Makes 12 pieces (Image taken from tastingmenu.com; ours look similar) Ingredients:150g plain flourpinch of salt½ Tbsp oil½ cup warm water225g minced pork1 Tbsp diced spring oniona little shredded cabbage or spinacha little bit of finely diced fresh water chestnut (for some crunch)Seasoning for pork filling – ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp sugar, 3 tsp tapioca starch, 2 tsp light soy sauce, ½ tsp Chinese wine, a little pepper and sesame oilMethod:1. Sieve plain flour, add salt and oil.2. Mix in sufficient warm water to form soft dough. Set aside 30 minutes.3. Season minced pork, add spring onion, and stir until sticky. Chill in fridge 30 minutes to an hour.4. Knead and divide dough into 12 equal portions on a floured surface.5. Roll each piece of dough to a thin round, and wrap in each a good lump of filling. Fold, seal and pleat (press tightly) to the shape of potstickers. Place potstickers on a floured surface (e.g. plate, or container), making sure that there is ample flour between potstickers so they don't stick together.6. Bring a pot of water (or soup stock) to a boil, add potstickers, allow it to boil again, and let potstickers cook on medium for about 5 minutes or until the centre of the filling is cooked.7. If you like, you can then add 1 Tbsp of oil to a non-stick pan and shallow fry the bottom of the potstickers until golden brown.8. Serve hot, with sauce (optional: try a mix of light soy sauce, a few drops of white vinegar, a little bit of ground ginger or fresh ginger slivers, and a dash of sesame oil).These potstickers are great by themselves as a side dish or appetizer, in soup as a main course, or with noodles (lightly seasoned with a little light soy sauce, sesame oil, pepper and a dash of vinegar).Note: Uncooked potstickers keep well in the freezer. Make sure they are kept separated by flour in an air-tight container or ziploc before freezing. Do not defrost before cooking--simply take them out from the freezer and throw them straight into boiling water. Increase cooking time by a little as meat filling is frozen. Unused portions of dough also keep well in an airtight container in the fridge--mine survived for a week. Low-Fat White Cake with Strawberries and Cream (Taken largely from Sarah White)Found this recipe while searching for a recipe for a healthier, low-fat cake that would go well with the fresh strawberries and vanilla ice-cream in the fridge. The white cake turned out great, with a very slightly browned and crispy exterior and a light spongy interior. An angel food cake pan (like that shown above) is great for ensuring a more even baking throughout the cakeIngredients:2 cups cake flour, not self-rising (spoon into measuring cup and level top)2 teaspoons baking powder1/8 teaspoon salt4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature2/3 to 1 cup sugar (we're happy with 4/5 cup)1 cup milk1 large egg2 tablespoons instant nonfat dry milk powder (do not reconstitute)1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)Method:1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 300/350 degrees F. Lightly spray an 8-inch round nonstick cake pan with oil. 2. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt until well combined. Set aside.3. In a medium bowl, using a hand-held electric mixer (stand mixer is too big) set at high speed, beat the butter and sugar until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, about 1-1/2 minutes. (Note: The mixture will be coarse and sandy; not light and fluffy because you are using very little butter.)4. In a small bowl, beat the milk, egg, instant dry milk powder, vanilla and almond extract, if using it, to combine. Pour into the butter / sugar mixture. Starting on low speed and increasing to high, beat until the mixture is frothy, about 1 minute.5. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk mixture. Using a wooden spoon (do not use a mixer), stir until the flour disappears. Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat just for 3 seconds. Do not overmix. Using a gentle touch, spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.6. Bake until the top of the cake springs back when pressed gently in the center and the sides are pulling away from the pan, about 30 minutes (do not open the oven until the cake has baked for at least 20 minutes). Do not overbake. Cool in the pan on a wire cake rack for 10 minutes. Unmold onto the rack, turn right side up, and cool completely.Enjoy this low-fat angelfood cake-like dessert! Otah that's good enough for me! Click on picture to see it up close. Otah goes great with bread as a snack, or with a meal that can include onion omelettes, sliced fresh cucumbers, and nasi lemak. This is my dad's otah recipe that first turned out a surprisingly savoury and spicy smackeral* several years ago when he experimented with it in our convection microwave oven. This recipe makes about 10-12 pieces of otah. Preparation time is short (once you have the ground sambal ingredients) and so is the cooking time. For those of us in North America, staying outside of Singapore or Malaysia, despair not. Sambal ingredients should be available in most North American Chinatowns (San Francisco and Toronto certainly) and, if you're willing to pay a little more for the convenience, you can always order the nonya sambal online. I'm assuming for now, as a young housewife with very limited experience and knowledge, that what's commonly referred to as "sambal chilli" called for in this recipe is the same as what Prima calls "nonya sambal". (If you know more about this, please leave a comment. Thanks!)A few simple steps:Mince 200g mackerel (or some other oily fish) until very fine. Add 3 tablespoons corn flour, 3 rounded tablespoons sambal ingredients** (ground), 1 teaspoon oyster sauce, lime leaves [optional but some like it; and if you have access to it. I skipped this one], and some oil. Mix well and bake--wrapped in banana leaves (if available), or in aluminium foil. How thick or long you want the otah to be is up to you. I pressed the otah paste on greased aluminium foil until about 1 cm thick, threw it in the oven (230 deg C / 450F), and baked it for about 10 minutes. You really need to experiment a little to see what works for you. Remove otah at about 8 minutes, and every other 2 minutes or so, and when it looks firm and brown with a nice texture, you can use the taste test.Loy says that the otah (or 'otah') I made tasted authentic enough, and plausibly sufficient to satisfy a craving for the real thing. Well, that's good enough for me!*loose usage of the Milne word "smackeral", that can be defined as the amount of honey that Winnie the Pooh enjoys each time he puts his hand in the honey pot. Example: "Mmm delicious, just a smackeral of honey." (Taken from the urbandictionary.com)**In my dad's words: "The sambal is the one we make with chilli, onion, garlangal (blue ginger), tumeric (yellow ginger), belachan, a few cloves of garlic, some lemon grass, candle nuts (blakalak buah keras) and ground together - same one we use to cook curry or assam fish or sambal prawns." Hmm... doesn't he make it sound easy... Easy Chilli Kidney Beans Serves 4-6, and wonderful as a side dish to a Western main course. You can add minced meat to make this dish more substantial and a meal in itself taken together with corn bread, or any other suitable bread variety. Chilli beans keep well in the fridge (days) or freezer (weeks), and corn bread can keep in a dry container for a week (from my experience). Reheat in microwave when ready to enjoy beans, corn bread, or both together. Click on the picture below to see enlarged version of our dinner of lamb chops accompanied by mashed potato and chilli beans.Ingredients:Olive oil1 onion, chopped1 can red kidney beans, drained1/2 can chopped tomatoes1/4 cup tomato pastedash or more of chilli powder (how spicy do you want it?)a little water and salt (only if deemed necessary--use the look and taste test) Method:1. Heat oil in sauce pot/pan and saute the chopped onions on medium heat until they are soft.2. Add all the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil, and let simmer for 15-30 minutes, depending on how soft you like the beans. Stir occasionally to prevent charring at the bottom. The Correct Recipe for Pineapple Tarts Oops. That's right. The title implies that the earlier one was ... wrong!! Well, maybe that's a rather strong word to use considering that I baked my first relatively successful batch of pineapple tarts using it. It had, however, been the source of much agony one evening when I must have tried it several times, each successive attempt resulting in increasingly brittle--and totally unusable pastry. Add to that the irritation of having to use inferior quality off-the-shelf pineapple jam which I thought to try in hopes of discovering a short cut. Well, lesson learnt! Home-made is often better, and, true to a truism, the right recipe makes all the difference...I was all but ready to give up on pineapple tarts for a while, and then my husband and I met up with a fellow Singaporean who had sons who missed greatly Chinese New Year goodies like the tarts. This gave me a new boost of determination and zeal to make some good tarts for the boys. I managed to get a recipe for the pastry from my aunty (who has been baking for decades) and tried it out this afternoon. An adjustment to the baking time and temperature was needed; thankfully I found the optimal time and temperature after a little experimentation. The following worked for me, for my oven, but I'd suggest that you do some experimentation as well on single pineapple tarts before you bake a whole tray of them. Click on picture below to see the tarts up close.Pineapple TartsMakes about 45 tartsPineapple Jam:Bring 500g crushed/grated pineapple (I use canned ones), 300g of sugar, and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to a boil and let it simmer for as long as it takes for jam to thicken. (I usually need more than half an hour--maybe more--of simmer time; make sure you stir occasionally to ensure that bottom does not get charred) When most of the liquid has evaporated, sieve in about 1 tsp of corn flour, stir well, and set jam aside to cool.Pastry/Base:1. Sift 450g plain/all-purpose flour and 20g milk powder together. Make sure they are well mixed.2. Put 250g butter, 120g icing sugar and 1 egg (beaten together with about 1/2 tsp salt) in mixer and beat until sugar is just dissolved.3. Add flour and milk powder and mix until dough holds together. (It may look crumbly but that's okay. Pressing it well during rolling will do the trick)4. Preheat oven to 150 degrees C.5. Beat 1 egg in bowl for glazing.6. Roll out dough to about 0.5cm thickness. Press out dough with tart or cookie cutter cutter and put generous mound of pineapple filling in centre.7. Bake for about 3-4 minutes; remove from oven and glaze pastry with beaten egg. Bake for another 4-5 minutes. (My aunty's recipe called for a baking time of about 15 minutes at 180 degrees C, but I found that that burnt the bottom of the pastry)Have fun, and enjoy this traditional Singaporean Chinese New Year delicacy! There's nothing quite like it... Simple and Delicious Cornbread This cornbread has a soft, moist centre and a fairly crunchy crust, is delicious and relatively easy to make... Well, I was successful in my first attempt. All the best with yours!Ingredients:8 Tbsp butter (or margarine), melted4 eggs3 cups buttermilk3 cups yellow cornmeal1 cup all-purpose flour1 rounded Tbsp baking powder1 tsp baking soda1 Tbsp sugar (or a little more more if you prefer a slightly sweeter cornbread)2 tsp salt (or a little more for a saltier cornbread)Method:Preheat oven to 375F. Grease 9x13 inch baking dish/pan with some butter or margarine. Combine eggs, buttermilk, melted butter and whisk. To a bowl add cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, baking soda and whisk.Add wet to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Bake until top is nicely browned, about 30-40 minutes or less*, and confirm that bread is thoroughly baked through by inserting a knife into the centre of the loaf. Bread is ready when knife comes out clean. Cool for about 5 minutes before cutting into portions.*Vary time according to size of baking pans you're using. For example, I used one square aluminium cake pan (approx. 7.5 x 7.5 x 1.75") and two small aluminium loaf pans (approx. 3.5 x 5.5 x 1.75") for this recipe, filling each pan to about 3/4 capacity (leaving a little space for bread to rise), and baked them only for about 25 minutes.My acquaintance with cornbread is as yet fairly minimal, but my guess is that this would go great with chowders, and savoury salads such as chicken avocado salad. Any Southerner (US) would probably be able to tell you lots more including stories that feature cornbread. Rosario's "C" Pork Chops We've named this food Rosario's "C" Pork Chops after our dear friend who taught this to us. "C" stands both for "convenient" and "Costco"--yes, the American supermarket chain. Rosario insists that the Costco (bone-in) pork chops are the Best. We've tried with pork chops from various other stores and honestly speaking, this recipe is not precise enough for us to guarantee tender chops every time. Much depends on the thickness of the cut. What we do guarantee is that this is a lifesaver for busy people--as convenient as it gets, and quite tasty most of the time. Experiment with it, and you might even turn up a recipe for pork chops fit for the gourmet. What you need:pork chops (straight from the pack--no need to trim fats, as no extra oil is used)garlic saltpepper (optional)a non-stick pan with a coverMethod:1. Sprinkle surface of the pan with garlic salt (and pepper). 2. Place chops on the pan and let it cook on low heat, covered, for about 10 minutes. Flip chops and continue to let it cook covered on low heat for 10-15 more minutes. 3. If chops are too dry and threaten to stick to the pan and get burnt, add just a little sprinkling of water to the pan--too much might result in tough chops.4. Chops are ready when they look and smell great, and do not bleed or look pink when cut in the centre. Serve immediately. For a quick, tasty, and nutritionally balanced meal, serve these chops with tomato wedges or a simple salad. A picture will be provided the next time we make Rosie's "C" Pork Chops on a day neither of us feel like doing much cooking! Hearty Bean, Bacon, and Beef Stone Soup This soup is easy (if you don't mind dicing vegetables or once they're all diced), economical (you see, there's really no beef in there), foolproof (what can go wrong with basic ingredients, bouillon, and "salt and pepper to taste"?), and flexible (make it thick as a stew, or a one-dish meal with some added pasta, store in the freezer for future meals, etc.). The idea for it came from reading that red kidney beans were one good source of copper needed for healthy formation of the baby's heart, skeletal, nervous system and arteries. Other good sources are green/brown lentils and mangoes. As a mum-to-be eager to eat right and having but minimal experience in cooking with beans, I googled for "kidney bean recipes" and found several for soups. After scanning through some of the more promising-looking ones, I decided that something like the following was the basic idea. Why "stone soup"? As in the story from which this phrase comes, you can add just about anything you like in there, as long as you think the tastes will be compatible. The bacon is optional, but I think the kidney beans and beef bouillon cube are absolutely essential for the rich, hearty taste. Bean, Bacon, and Beef Stone SoupIngredients:2 ounces bacon, minced3 carrots, sliced thinly3 stalks celery, chopped small1 cup canned whole tomatoes (or 2 large tomatoes), chopped1 onion, chopped2-3 (19 ounce) cans kidney beans2 potatoes, cubed small1 beef bouillon cube salt and pepper to taste Method:Sauté onions over medium heat in a soup pot till they are almost soft and translucent. Add carrots, celery, potatoes and tomatoes and fry a little more till onions are soft. Fill pot with water to completely cover all vegetables, almost to the top of the pot. Add the beef bouillon cube to the pot. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes until potatoes and carrots are soft.In a frying pan, lightly fry the bacon (stripped off its fat) and set aside. Alternatively, simply pour some oil into a bowl, mix in the bacon and microwave, covered, for about 2-3 minutes. To the soup pot add kidney beans with their liquid, and let it simmer on medium low for 15-20 minutes. It all depends on how soft you want your beans, potatoes and carrots to be. Add the bacon and cook for another 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve hot. The soup may turn very thick the next day, especially if the beans and potatoes are cooked till very soft, so add water (and seasoning, if needed) accordingly. Spinach Dip for Pumpernickel, Tortilla Chips and More! Here's a recipe we decided we just had to get after tasting the product at a friend's place. Apparently, pumpernickel served with spinach dip is a popular Canadian (North American?) appetizer. Hopefully it will be easy to find pumpernickel rye bread or equivalents back in Singapore, for--popular North American food or no--we follow the grand old Singaporean habit of traveling the world to see what would be good for us back home, and adopting it (with variations if necessary). According to Karissa, this dip is best made with full fat mayonnaise and sour cream--"no skimping on the calories--bring it on!"Ingredients:1 cup of sour cream1/2 cup of mayonnaise1 packet of vegetable soup mix (preferably Knorr's)1 bunch of spring onions (or green onions, as it may also be known)1 can of chopped water chestnuts (for added crunch)1 package of frozen chopped spinach1 large pumpernickel rye breadMethod:Microwave or boil spinach according to package directions. Mix the sour cream and mayo together and add to the cooked spinach. Add the vegetable soup mix. Mince the water chestnuts finely and add to the mix. Add the chopped green onions to the dip and refrigerate mix for at least 45 min. Take the bread and hollow out the centre to make a "bowl". Save the hollowed out bread for dipping. Place the dip into the bowl, serve and enjoy! Apple Crumble and Pineapple Tarts Yes, there are two distinct recipes here. Click here for apple crumble, and here for pineapple tarts (please see important note at bottom of post). I had recommended 2 egg yolks instead of 1 for the dough for the tarts, but on a second attempt, the biscuit base turned out too crumbly. I'm guessing that I should have stuck to the recipe, or perhaps just added half a yolk more. Does anyone know the effect of egg yolk on the dough, other than the binding function it serves? (Warning, these are links another blog of ours, which links to the actual recipes. Included here for completeness.)* IMPORTANT: Please refer to "The Correct Recipe for Pineapple Tarts" which overrides the one on Star Kuali we had originally linked to. Sorry Amy Beh, but maybe your pastry recipe just does not work for me...