The blog is simply to keep track of the recipes I have tried and how I feel about them. Welcome:)
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♥ February 2013
♥ March 2013
♥ April 2013
♥ May 2013
♥ June 2013
♥ January 2014
♥ June 2014
♥ July 2014
♥ October 2014
♥ December 2014
♥ March 2015
Sam's Famous Carrot Cake
3 eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tso baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 ts. salt
2 cups shredded carrot (I used 3 cups to make up for the lack of coconut)
1 cup flaked coconut (I omitted)
1 cup almond, choppeD
1 cup can crushed pineapple without juice (or strawberries)
1 cup raisins
Cream Cheese Frosting
425 g cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons unsalted butter softeneD
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 1/2 tbsp buttermilk
1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions:
1. To make cake: Preheat the over to 350 degrees F (I baked at 160C for flat layers), grease 9" pan.
2. Sift all dry ingredients, set aside.
3. Combine carrot, coconut, pineapple, walnut and raisin. Set aside.
4. Whisk egg, buttermilk, oil, sugar and vanilla in a large bowl.
5. Whisk in dry ingredients, then carrot mixture. Pour into a prepared pan, bake for 40-50 minutes. Check with toothpick.
6. To make frosting: Beat the softened cream cheese and 3 tbsp butter with an electric mixer on low speed until homogenous, about 3 to 5 minutes.
7. Add the confectioners' sugar, buttermilk, 1/2 tbsp butter and beat until well blended, up to 3 minutes longer.
Adapted from: allrecipes.com (for the cake), The Dessert Bible(for the frosting)
Tuesday, January 29, 2013 | 9:17 AM
Ingredients
makes about 5 cups granola
3 and 3/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup sliced walnut (or any nut) 1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup mashed banana 2 bananas)
1/4 cup Nutella
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup banana chips
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together oats, flax, almonds, and cinnamon. Set aside.
In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, melt the mashed banana, Nutella, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and salt together. Allow to bubble for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and pour over the dry ingredients. Stir it all together until all of the oats are moistened.
Spread the oats on the baking sheet in a thin even layer. Bake for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and stir. Bake for another 15-20 minutes until lightly browned. Top the granola with chocolate chips and banana chips. Gently stir. The chocolate will melt, creating larger chunks of granola.
Allow granola to cool completely; it will harden and crunch up as it is exposed to air.
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
Adapted from: Sally's Baking Addiction
Monday, January 28, 2013 | 9:46 AM
Original recipe called for jam instead of nutella, but I found out I was out of jam a little too late. So here goes, PB+nutella baked oats!
Ingredients
2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
3 Tbsp unsalted, unsweetened peanut butter
4 Tbsp nutella
2 cups boiling water
½ cup milk of choice
To Make:
1. Heat a tea kettle and bring water to a boil.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3. Add all ingredients except milk to a mixing bowl and stir until there are no chunks of peanut butter.
4. Add the milk and stir.
5. Divvy up the oatmeal between two or three ramekins and bake in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes.
Adapted from : Honest Cooking
Saturday, January 26, 2013 | 7:39 AM
Ingredients
Crust
200g plain flour
60g caster sugar
120g butter
1 egg yolk
Filling
100g butter (softened)
60g caster sugar
2 eggs
60g plain flour
60g ground almond
3 peaches (sliced)
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
Instructions:
1. To make crust, combine flour and sugar. Rub in butter, add in egg tool to firm dough.
2. Press dough into moulds.
3. To make filling, combine soft butter with sugar. Add in eggs, then add in flour and ground almond, mix until blended.
4. Pipe the batter into moulds, decorate with peach slices.Sprinkle with chopped walnuts. Bake in preheated oven at 180 degC for 20-25 minutes or until cooked.
Credits: Baking with Fruits
Thursday, January 24, 2013 | 5:07 PM
I really enjoyed the crust of this recipe.
Ingredients
Crust
2.5 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/4 cups granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1 cup plus 1 tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
4 large egg yolks, plus 1 large whole egg, lightly beaten, for egg wash
3 tbsp ice water
fine sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Filling
6 Tbsp unsalted butter
3 pounds green apples
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
1.5 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Topping
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
Vanilla ice cream, for serving.
Instructions
1. Crust: with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat flour, sugar, salt and butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg yolks, and beat slightly. Drizzle ice water over mixture, and beat until just combined. Form dough into a disc; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour or up to 3 days.
2. Filling: melt butter in large saucepan over medium high heat.Add apples, zests and salt, stirring until coated. Sprinkle sugar over mixture, and cook, stirring, until sugar is dissolved, liquid has thickened, and apples are almost golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet and let cool to room temperature.
3. Topping: In a food processor, pulse flour, sugars, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and buyerr just until mixture resembles coarse meal. Refrigerate until ready to use.
4. Preheat oven to 170 degC. On a lightly floured piece of parchment, roll out dough to a 14 inch round, 1/4 inch thick. Place dough and parchment on a rimmed baking sheet. Pile cooled apple mixture in centre, leaving a 3 inch border. Sprinkle crumb mixture evenly over apples. Fold edges of dough over apples, overlapping and leaving an opening in the centre.
5. Refrigerate or freeze until dough is firm, about 30 minutes. Lightly brush dough with beaten egg, And sprinkle dough with fine sanding sugar. Bake until pastry is golden brown and apples tender, 40 to 50 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, with vanilla ice cream
| 8:17 AM
Rocky Road Tart
Ingredients
Crust
170g digestive biscuits
1 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
Ganache and filling
425 g semisweet chocolate (I used 55%), coarsely chopped
1 3/4 cups heavy cream
2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
2 cups mini marshmallows
1 cup whole toasted salted almonds
Topping
3/4 cup mini marshmallows
1/4 cup whole toasted salted almonds, coarsely chopped
57 g semisweet chocolate (again I used 55%), coarsely chopped
1. Make the crust: Preheat oven to 170 deg C. Pulse digestive biscuits, sugar, salt in a food processor until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl, stir in butter until combined.
2. Press mixture into a 9 inch springfield pan or cake ring set on a parchment lined baking sheet. Press mixture evenly into bottom and up sides of pan. Bake until crust just starts to turn golden brown, about 15 minutes. Let cook completely on sheet on a wire rack.
3. Make ganache: Coarsely chop 283 g semisweet chocolate. In a large heatproof bowl set over (not in) a pan of simmering water, melt chocolate. Keep warm. Meanwhile, bring cream just to a simmer in a medium saucepan; remove from heat. Whisk about 1/4 cup hot cream into beaten yolks, then whisk yolk mixture into remaining cream in saucepan. Whisk mixture into melted chocolate, and remove from heat.
4. Coarsely chop remaining semisweet chocolate, and transfer to a large bowl. Toss in 2 cups mini marshmallows and 1 cup whole toasted almonds. Scatter mixture over bottom of cooled crust. Reserve 1 cup chocolate-egg mixture for topping, and PR the rest everly into crust (do not overfill). Refrigerate tart, uncovered, until firm, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, cover reserved chocolate-egg mixture with plastic wrap, set aside at room temperature.
5. Make the topping: toss together mini marshmallows, chopped almonds and sprinkle over filling. Drizzle reserved 1 cup chocolate-egg mixture over tart, and refrigerate 30 minutes before unmoulding and slicing. Tart can be refrigerated, covered, up to 3 days.
Note: the eggs in this recipe are not fully cooked; it should not be served to pregnant women, babies, young children, the elderly, or anyone whose health is compromised. Alternatively, you may substitute 1/2 cup of silken tofu. Tofu can be eaten raw.
Adapted from: Martha Stewart's Pies and Tarts
Labels: Cakes, Pastries, Recipe
| 7:48 AM
Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Frosting and Ganache
Ingredients:
Chocolate Cake:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp corn starch
2/3 cup natural unsweetened cocoa
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
3/4 cup milk
2/3 cup hot water
Buttercream Frosting:
1 1/2 cups butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
6 cups powdered sugar
4-8 Tablespoons milk
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels, if desired
Chocolate Ganache:
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate morsels
12 kitkat bars
Directions:
For the cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 1. Grease the bottom of two 9-inch cake pans.
2. Sift dry ingredients together and place in a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, oil, milk and vanilla and beat for a couple of minutes until combined.
3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add hot water and mix together.
4. Pour into prepared pans and bake for about 28-30 minutes. Batter will be very liquid. Cool for about 5 minutes in the pan. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Frosting:
1. Beat the butter in a mixer until smooth. Add vanilla and mix until combined. Add the powdered sugar in several additions, scraping down the sides after each addition.
2. Add milk a tablespoon at a time and mix together until you achieve a smooth consistency. Note: If you want your frosting whiter without using shortening, add a little white icing color to tint.
For the ganache:
1. Heat cream and butter in a saucepan until melted and remove before it starts to boil.
2. Place chocolate morsels in a small bowl and pour cream on top. Let sit for a few seconds and whisk by hand until completely incorporated and smooth.
3. Let cool until thick and pourable. The ganache can take a bit to thicken, about 20 mins. You can make it before the buttercream, to save time. Just use a wire whisk to stir it every few minutes and keep it smooth
To assemble:
trim tops off of cake layers with a long serrated knife so they have a nice, flat top.
Place one layer bottom side up on cake stand.
Spread frosting on top of bottom layer. Place second layer on top. It helps to have a crumb coat on the outside of your cake first. Simply apply a thin coat of frosting to the entire cake to catch andy excess crumbs.
Then place cake in freezer for a few minutes to firm up frosting and cover the entire cake again with a thick layer of buttercream.
This will help you keep all those crumbs from getting caught in your pretty work.
Stick the kitkats around the cake evenly.
Slowly, pour ganache over center of cake. Pour just enough to start dripping down the sides. Using a flat surface, create the twirls. :)
Adapted from: bakerella
Thursday, January 10, 2013 | 11:26 PM
Ingredients:
Crust
190g plain flour
40g caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt
120g butter
1 egg yolk
Filling
7 green apples (peeled, diced, adjust to own preference)
2 tbsp butter
100g caster sugar
40g raisins
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
2 tbsp plain flour
Crumble
150g plain flour
40g caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt
75g butter
Directions:
1. To make crust, combine flour sugar, salt. Rub in butter, add in egg yolk to form dough. Refrigerate.
2. To make filling, heat up frying pan to melt butter and sugar. Add in apple dices and raisins. stir fry until apples are tender. Add in cinnamon powder and flour, stir well and dish up. Leave to cool.
3. Roll out dough and press into pie mould. Trim off edge. Spoon in filing.
4. To make crumble combine flour, sugar, and salt. Rub in butter until resembles bread crumbs. Sprinkle on top of pie.
5. Bake in preheated oven at 180 deg C for 25-30 mins or until cooked.
Adapted from: Baking with Fruits
| 11:11 PM
Ingredients:
4 1/2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced
1 tomato, chopped
1 small head of green cabbage, cored and thinly sliced (about 10 cups)
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt, plus more for serving
Directions:
1. Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat, and then add the oil and onion. Saute to soften the onion slightly, about 2 minutes. Stir in the tomato. Cook for an additional 2 minutes.
2. Add the cabbage and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Stir to combine. Cover, and reduce the heat to medium low. Cook, stirring occasionally as the cabbage begins to collapse. Add a little water, 2 tablespoons at a time, as needed if the cabbage becomes too dry. (This depends on the moisture level of the cabbage. You don't want it too wet.) Cook for approximately 13 minutes, or until the cabbage is just tender. Salt to taste and serve.
P.s I kind of added too much water. :x
| 4:49 PM
Ingredients:
1/4 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons dry white wine, or water
2 pounds salmon fillet
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. with a rack in the center. Make the glaze: In a small bowl, stir brown sugar, olive oil, soy sauce, lemon juice, and white wine until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Cut salmon fillet into 4 equal-size pieces; arrange, skin side down, in a single layer in a baking dish. Pour glaze over the fish, and turn to coat evenly.
3. Bake until fish is opaque but still bright pink inside, basting every few minutes with glaze from baking dish, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.
| 4:45 PM
Cooked dinner for my loved ones on one pleasant evening. the next few posts is a series of recipes consisting of Black pepper pork, sauteed cabbage, and soy glazed salmon.:)
Ingredients:
6 small garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 1/4 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 teaspoons ginger, freshly grated
1 pound pork tenderloin, very thinly sliced crosswise
1 large onion, cut into 12 wedges
1 tablespoon olive oil
Directions:
1. In a medium bowl, combine garlic cloves, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, crushed red pepper, ginger, and ground pepper.
2. Add pork tenderloin and onion wedges; marinate at least 10 minutes.
3. In a non-stick frying pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. In three batches, brown pork and onion, 3 to 5 minutes per batch. Discard marinade.
4. Return all pork and onion to skillet; cook until warm.
| 4:42 PM
Ingredients
180 grams spaghetti
7 tablespoon olive oil
3 huge garlic cloves, diced finely
1 chili padi, seeds removed and sliced thinly (optional)
10 large prawns (if the prawns are small, use more prawns),
de-shelled and de-veined
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Freshly chopped parsley to serve
Fill a pot with water (about 1 litre). Add in 1 tablespoon of table salt to season the water. When the water is boiling, add in the spaghetti. Stir the spaghetti occasionally to prevent them from sticking to each other.
When the spaghetti is cooking, heat the olive oil in a frying pan over low heat. Add in the diced garlic and let them cook gently, stirring frequently. When the garlic is turning a light golden brown, push the garlic aside (away from the heat source) and add in the chili padi (if using) and prawns. Cook gently until the prawns are pink in colour on one side. Flip the prawns and continue cooking till pink throughout and thoroughly cooked. Take care not to let the garlic burn! Remove the frying pan from the heat.
By now, the spaghetti should be al dente – do a taste test and see if it’s the consistency you like. Scoop out some pasta water and drain the pasta. Immediately add the pasta in to the frying pan with the garlic, prawns and chili padi. Add in the chopped parsley and freshly ground black pepper. Toss the pasta and the other ingredients together, adding a little pasta water if necessary to moisten the dish (you wouldn’t want to flood the pasta!) and taste to see if it needs additional seasoning. Scoop the pasta and the prawns into serving plates and serve immediately.
Adapted from: Food Is My Life
Monday, January 7, 2013 | 11:48 AM
Bacon egg cups, for 6
6 eggs
6-8 strips of streaky bacon
oil for greasing the baking tin
Directions
1. Preheat the oven.
2. Grease and line a muffin baking tin with bacon.
3. Crack eggs into each tin, carefully.
4.. Bake at 180 deg c for 15 minutes until egg is set.
5. Sprinkle on some pepper before serving.
Sunday, January 6, 2013 | 11:49 PM
I'm a big fan of Amanda at Crumbs and Cookies and I secretly wish I can try all her recipes. Here's one.
Japanese Tofu Cheesecake makes 6 glasses
If you like your cheesecake more tangy, up the amount of yogurt but be sure to subtract the equivalent from the cream cheese and/or tofu. Similarly, feel free to increase the amount of cream cheese if you like your cheesecake cheesier, but be sure to decrease the equal weight of from the other two ingredients.
135g digestive biscuits, crushed finely 62g melted butter 150g silken tofu 100g cream cheese 50g yogurt (I used sour cream- yogurt was MIA at the moment) 50g whipping cream 50g sugar 1 tbsp lemon juice 5g powdered gelatin 50ml hot water
Mix the crushed digestives and melted butter together in a bowl. Divide the mixture equally amongst the 6 glasses.
Pour the hot water into a small bowl and sprinkle over the powdered gelatin evenly.
In a blender, combine the tofu, cream cheese, yogurt, whipping cream, sugar and lemon juice and blend until completely smooth and combined. When the gelatin has softened, pour it into the blender and blend until combined. Pour the cheesecake batter in equal amounts into the glasses. Refrigerate until set, at least 3 hours.
Credit: Crumbs and Cookies
Thursday, January 3, 2013 | 10:53 AM
First homemade meal of the school year for my sis.:)
Ingredients:
4 snapper fillets (I wanted halibut but couldn't find it)
1/3 cup of buttermilk
1/4 cup cornmeal for bread like coating, or 1/4 cup flour just to fry.
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp Chinese five spice
1. Dip fillets in buttermilk
2. In a separate bowl, combine cornmeal, salt, pepper, five spice.
3. Coat fillets in the mixture in (2)
4. Using a non stick skillet, fry each fish one by one until crust is formed, about 1 minute each.
5. In a 200 deg C oven, bake the fillets until they flake, about 8 minutes.
I really should have used cornmeal!
Wednesday, January 2, 2013 | 10:49 PM