Thursday, July 30, 2009

Baked Cassava Cake/Kuih Bingka Ubi Kayu

This must be one of the easiest Nonya kuih to make. All you have to do is put all the ingredients together and bake. This cake is a lighter version than the usual one as I cut down on the sugar and coconut milk. This kuih is especially good for breakfast or afternoon tea.

Ingredients :

2 lbs of grated cassava – thawed and drain the juice well
2 tbsp of melted butter
2 eggs
240 grm of palm sugar (gula melaka)or brown sugar
2 pandan (screwpine) leaves
3/4 cup of water
1/2 cup coconut milk
2 tbsp of custard power or cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt

1. Cut the palm sugar into small pieces, bring the 3/4 water to boil and add in the palm sugar and pandan leaves. Simmer until the sugar melted. Strain and let it cool
2. Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Line an 8" x 8" pan with foil, grease the foil.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine cassave (ubi kayu), sugar syrup, eggs, custard powder,melted butter and salt. Miix everything really well.
4. Pour mixture into greased pan. Bake for 50 minutes to an hour. If the top is still not browned after an hour switch your oven to broil and broil for 1 minute until the top is brown. Check constantly to make sure it's not burnt.
5. Cool completely before cutting into it.

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Tri-color Marble Cake

I just love making marble cake. I always experimenting the marbling effect and I think this design is what I like the most. This cake is soft, moist, and most importantly, fun to make. This pretty cake is suitable for an afternoon tea with families and friends.

Ingredients :

226 grm soft butter (2 sticks)
220 grm sugar
6 eggs
260 grm flour
4 tbsp of milk
1 tsp of baking powder
¼ tsp salt
Food coloring – pink and green
Flavoring – mint/pandan, strawberry and Vanilla

1. Prepared a round 6
8" baking pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and greased with some butter. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time and beat until well combined.
2. Sift flour with baking powder and salt. Slow down the speed of the mixer and slowly add in the flour. Lastly add in the milk.
3. Divide batter into 3 portions. Add one portion with mint or pandan flavor and add a few drop of green coloring. In another portion add a few drop of strawberry flavor and some pink coloring. The last portion just leave it plain and add a few drop of vanilla to it. Stir well.
4. The most important part is assembling the batter in the baking pan. Drop about 3 tbsp of the better to the middle of the baking pan. Follow by the other color batter on top of each other. Proceed to do the same to the rest of the batter. Do not stir, swirl or shake the pan. The batter will spread on it own.
5. Bake the cake in a pre-heated 350 degree F oven for an hour or until golden brown. Stand cake 10 mins. in pan then tun onto wire rack to cool.

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Vegetable Steamed Buns/Vegetable Bao

My family and I just love this type of steamed buns. I made these for our breakfast when my sisters were here. It was pretty simple as I used the ready mix steamed buns flour which you can get easily from the Asian grocery store. The steamed buns turn out to be real soft and the flavor of the fillings is just right, with a hint of pepper, a not too pungent smell of the dried shrimp and the right sweetness from the jicama.

For the dough:

1 packet of the steamed buns mix

Fillings Ingredients:

1 large jicama / sengkuang - julienned
1 carrot - julienned
8 dried Chinese mushroom - soaked and julienned
3 tbsp of dry shrimp – soaked and give a rough chopped (optional)
2 spring onions – finely diced
3 cloves garlic - chopped finely
1 cup of water

Seasoning:

2 tbsp of oyster sauce
1 tbsp of chicken bouillon (optional)
1 tsp of white pepper
2 tbsp of soy sauce
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp of dark soy sauce

Thickening:

1 tsp of cornstarch
2 tbsp of water

1. Mix the dough according to the instruction on the packet. Set it aside to rest.
2. Heat up the frying pan; add about 2 tbsp of oil and sauté the garlic until fragrant and lightly brown. Add in the dried shrimp, stir fry for a few second and add in the jicama, carrots and mushrooms. Stir-fry for a minute and add in about 1 cup of water and all the seasoning.
3. Lower down the heat and let it simmered until the jicama and carrot are tender. Add in the thickening and stir well until it’s thickened.
4. Dish out and set it aside to cool before using it.
5. Divide dough into 12-14 pieces and roll into a ball. Flatten it and put a tablespoon of filling and seal the edges. Put the bun on top of the greaseproof paper and set aside to proof for 15 minutes.
6) Prepare a steamer with rapid boiling water, add a few drop of white vinegar to the water and steam the buns for 20 minutes. Serve warm



Few other recipes using the Steam Buns Mix :
Steamed Flower Buns
Steamed BBQ Buns II

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Pan Fried Egg Noodles with Beef

This is a classic hearty dish served at the Chinatown restaurant. The egg noodles are cooked with beef together with other veggies in thick eggs gravy. If you can’t find the fresh egg noodles feel free to use the dried version or ramen noodles.

Ingredients :

400 grm Egg noodles (I used Hong Kong Style noodles)
1/2 pound of beef (I used sirloin) - sliced thinly
2 cloves of garlic
1 small carrot – peel and slice thinly
8 stalk of mustard green - clean and cut (you can use other type of greens)
10 button mushroom
2 egg - beaten

Marinate for beef

1 tsp of cornstarch
2 tsp of soy sauce
dash of white pepper

Ingredients for the gravy/sauce :

2 tbsp of oyster sauce
2 tbsp of soy sauce
2 1/2 cups of low sodium chicken stock (more if you like lots of gravy)
1 tsp of sugar
1 tsp of cooking wine (optional)
1 tbsp of cornstarch
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Marinate the beef and set it aside. Mix all the ingredients for the gravy/sauce in a bowl and set it aside. Give a quick wash to the noodles in cold water (to remove the flour) Drain dry.
2. Heat up about 2 tbsp of oil in a non-stick frying pan. Pan fried the noodles until slightly brown and crispy on both side. Dish it out and set it aside.
3. In the same pan, heat up 2 tbsp of oil. Sauté the garlic till fragrant. Add in marinated beef. Cook the beef on both sides until the beef looks slightly charred. Add in carrot and mushroom. Give a quick stir fry for a few seconds.
4. Add the gravy and bring it up to a boil. Add in the green vegetables. Check seasoning. Once the vegetable is cooked add in the beaten eggs. Give a quick stir and turn off the heat.
5. Put the noodles in a serving plate and pour the gravy over the noodles. Serve immediately.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Crispy BBQ Buns/Siew Bao

It has been a long time since I had Crispy BBQ Buns or know as Siew Bao. I remember when I was living in Malaysia I will have these at least once or twice a month. I decided to make some last week using Elin’s recipe for the pastries. The pastries turn out to be very crispy and flaky. The only problem I encounter is pleating the buns. It split opens during baking and the juice of the filling oozing out during baking.

Ingredients for oil dough

240 gm flour
120 gm shortening

Ingredients for Water dough

240 gm all purpose flour
60 gm icing sugar
60 shortening
120 ml water

Egg wash

1 egg - beaten
some sesame seeds (optional)

1. Mix all the ingredients of oil dough together and knead till you get a soft dough. Set it aside to rest for 30 minutes.
2. Mix all the ingredients of water dough together and knead till you get a soft dough. Set it aside to rest for 30 minutes.
3. Divide both dough into 20-22 equal pieces. Wrap the oil dough into the water dough and flatten it (pix 1)
4. Roll the dough out into a longish flat piece (refer to pix 2 ). Roll it up like a swiss roll (pix 3)
5. Turn 90deg (pix 4), and roll out again and roll it up like a swiss roll (pix 5 & 6).
6. Press dough with palm and lightly roll out into a circle (pix 7)
7. Place filling in the center (do not put too much filling in), wrap and pleat into a pau shape (pix 8) Place on a greaseproof paper.
8. Brush pie with egg wash, sprinkle with some sesame seeds and bake at 375 degree F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

(Pix 1)

(Pix 2)

(Pix 3)

(Pix 4)

(Pix 5)

(Pix 6)

(Pix 7)

(Pix 8)

Ingredients for Fillings.

400 grm BBQ meat (can be pork or chicken)- cut into small cubes
½ cup of green peas
1 tbsp thick black soy sauce
1 big onion- diced small
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp of sugar - more if you want it sweeter
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup of water

For thickening :

1 tsp cornstarch + 3 tbsp of water

1. Heat about 1 tbsp of oil. Saute onions for 1-2 minutes. Add in BBQ meat and the rest of the filling ingredients. Stir fry for 1 - 2 mins. Add in the thickening and simmer till the gravy has thickened. Dish out and let it cool. Set aside for use later.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Sweet Potato Donuts

When my sisters were here, they kept asking me to make them some donuts but I just can’t find the time to do it. We were so busy going out visiting places or shopping and before we knew it, it was time for them to go home. 3 weeks just flew by so fast when we are having fun. I felt kind of bad that they left without eating the donuts. I finally made these sweet morsels but they were not here to enjoy it. I guess it is ok they get to see some pictures of it. I made the traditional Malaysian sweet potato donuts or kuih keria before and you can find the recipe here .This time I did something different. Still using sweet potatoes but I used some yeast for the dough. It turn out really light just like the yeast donuts but it has the nice fragrant of sweet potatoes to it.


Ingredients :

320 grams flour (a bit more if the dough is too sticky)
2 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp salt
150 grms mashed sweet potatoes
2 tbsp sugar
30 grms butter
100 ml water

For coating

Some sugar or cinnamon sugar

1. In a large mixing bowl mix all the ingredients together and knead for about 6-7 minutes until you get nice smooth dough. Add some extra flour if it’s so sticky. Cover the bowl with a dry kitchen towel and let it rise for an hour or double it size at a warm place.
2. Punch down the dough and remove onto a floured work tabletop. Roll out the dough to about 1/4" thick and cut the dough out into rounds with a donuts cutter. Gather the snaps and re-roll, then cut out more donuts.
3. Place donuts on parchment paper,cover and let rise for 20 minutes or until they feel light and spongy.
4. Heat oil for deep-frying in a frying pan over medium heat. Slip a few donuts into the oil at a time, leaving enough room for them to expand. Make sure that the oil is not too hot otherwise the donuts will not be cooked.
5. When the donuts are golden brown, turn them over and cook the other side. It takes about 2–3 minutes to cook through. When donuts are done, remove from oil and drain the oil on paper towels before rolling them in sugar.

Note: You can use any type of glaze for the donuts.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Tangy Sweet And Spicy Drumsticks

I love using the grill during summer especially preparing our dinner. I will just marinate the meat during the day and put it on the grill when Carlos is back from work. Chicken has always been my favorite and I love trying out different kind of flavor each time. For last week I grill these tangy sweet and spicy drumsticks for our dinner. It’s quick and easy and I served it with some green salad.

Ingredients :

6 - 8 drumsticks
1 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp chopped fresh garlic
3 tbsp of brown sugar
4 tbsp of balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp paprika
Salt to taste
1. Clean the drumsticks,remove the skin, fat and give a few slit to the meat. Pat it dry with a paper towel.
2. In a mixing bowl, combined chili powder, garlic, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, paprika and salt. Mix well and marinate the drumsticks for at least 2 – 3 hours.
3. Grill drumsticks over medium heat, with the grill covered. Grill for 30 to 40 minutes, turning occasionally until juices run clear and meat is cooked. Serve with some green salad.

Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Tamarind Shrimps

Tamarind is an ingredients we Malaysian like to use in our dishes like sambal and asam fish. Tamarind paste can be easily available from the Asian store here. This dish requires minimal ingredients to cook but the flavor turns out great with sweet and tangy taste from the tamarind paste.

Ingredients:

½ pound shrimps
2 tbsp of tamarind paste
3 tbsp water
1 tsp of sambal oelek
1 tbsp sugar
Salt to taste

1. Remove heads and devein by slitting the back (I leave the shell on). Rinse and pat it dry with paper towels.
2. In a mixing bowl mix the tamarind paste with 3 tbsp of water. Add in the chili paste, salt, and sugar. Marinate the shrimps for 15 minutes.
3. Heat up about 3 tbsp of oil in a frying pan. Pan fried the shrimps until cooked and brown on both side. This will take about 7-10 minutes. Dish out and serve.

Monday, July 06, 2009

Crepes With Sweet Filling

Crepes can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner and as dessert. Whatever it is the process is simple; the result is delicious. This recipe is for the basic crepe and you can use any type of sweet fillings you fancy or even savory ones.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup whole milk
1 cup flour
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2 tablespoons of melted butter, plus a bit more for the pan

1. Blend all the ingredients together in a blender until smooth. Rest the batter for an hour.
2. Heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat and brush the pan with butter. Stir the batter if it is separated.
3. Put about ¼ cup of batter into the pan, swirl the pan so that the pan is cover with a thin layer of batter. Return the pan to the heat, cooking the first side for 40-50 seconds, until the crepe is lightly brown. Gently lift one edge and flip the crepe. Cook the second side for about 30 seconds more.
4. Transfer the crepe to a plate and fill it up with some filling of your choice. You can either fold the crepe into quarters or roll it up.

Note: I filled up the crepe with some cooked apple and cinnamon fillings. For the stripe design, I just mixed a few tablespoon of the batter with some cocoa powder and drizzle it over one side of the crepe.

Friday, July 03, 2009

5 Spice Meat Rolls (Ngor Hiang)

I’ve been away from Malaysia for over 10 years now and my family missed my cooking and baking a lot. So when I am home visiting or when they are visiting me here I always try to cook all their favorite dishes. This is one of them. There are many versions of Ngor Hiang (Fried 5 spice meat rolls) recipes. You just need to modify the recipe to suit your taste. As long as your recipe has the basic ingredients like five spice powder and meat, you will not go wrong. I normally add some carrots to it as it gives the dish a sweeter taste.

Ingredients :

11/2 pound of ground pork
1/2 pound shrimp - chopped
2 small carrots - grated
8 water chestnuts – cut into small cubes
2 spring onions – cut small
2 cloves of garlic – finely chopped
Some bead curd skin – cut into 8” x 5” (for this recipe you need about 8-9 pieces)

Seasoning:

2 tsp Chinese five spice powder
1 tsp pepper
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 egg
Salt, to taste

1. Mix all the ingredients together except for the bean curd skin. Let it marinate for an hours.
2. Lay the bean curd skin on a flat surface. Put about 4 tbsp of meat mixture on the skin and roll it up like a spring roll. Seal the edge with some beaten egg.
3. Heat up some oil and fry the meat rolls in medium heat until cooked and golden brown.
4. Slice the meat rolls and garnish with some cut cucumber or tomatoes.

Note : For those who don't eat pork you can always replace the meat with chicken, turkey or beef. Happy 4th of July everyone! I am off to the Big Apple.

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

Cinnamon Streusel Cake

I baked this cake for my sister’s birthday last week. In our family we prefer our cake plain without any type of frosting and this cake is just great for us. Just a light drizzle of lemony glaze really brightens up the flavor of this cake.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick) of butter
1 cup of sugar
2 1/2 cup of flour
2 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup plain yogurt
5 eggs
1 tsp of vanilla

Streusel

1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 cup of chopped walnuts
3 tbsp of butter
½ cup of flour
½ tsp salt
1 tsp of cinnamon powder

Glaze

1 cup of powder sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a tube pan. Mix all the streusel ingredients together and set it aside.
2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into medium bowl and set it aside. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until fluffy and creamy.
3. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Until well combined. Mix in vanilla. Mix dry ingredients and yogurt alternately into butter mixture in 3 additions. Mix well.
4. Pour 1/2 of batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of streusel mixture. Pour the balance batter on top of the streusel. Sprinkle the balance of the streusel on top of the cake.
5. Bake the cake until golden brown or tester inserted at the center comes out clean. It will take about an 1 hour. Cool cake in pan. To remove the cake from pan.
6. Whisk powdered sugar and lemon juice together until smooth. Drizzle over the cake.