2nd year blog anniversary..........

Hello to all my wonderful friends, I started this blog for fun to share my DIY craft, baking & cooking in February 2011 but eventually it has become one of my hobbies.. Honestly, I didn't expect  much readers when I first started  2 years ago. While this blog has not brought me the riches and fame, it has brought me closer to a group of people that I can now call friends.

The emails and words of encouragement I received made my day and really cheered me up. In a way it give me more inspiration and motivation. All the supports I received gave me the courage to try something new which I always enjoy doing it. Some of my posting may be a little cheeky and naughty with added humor,  but it's all for fun and laughter just to pull some of my friends legs.

Looking back, my first achievement which put me in cloud nine. April Fool Challenge organized by very good recipes   in 2012. April fool burger and french fries made out of bread and cupcakes. You can check out the recipe here.

Thank you for all your lovely comments, emails, jokes and support. I hope the next 12 months I can continue to deliver more luscious recipes and DIY craft. Or maybe a surprise Oppsss..... LOL
Looking forward to have you drop by. Thank you for always supporting to my little humble blog.

Fruit cocktail compliments from an oversea friend. I'm sharing it here with all of you. Cheers!

Let me share with you a very simple dessert and snack,  it's very popular in Malaysia, Singapore and some parts of South East Asia. Tau suan with youtiao aka mung bean sweet dessert with fried cruller.

Split and hulled mung bean are small and yellow. Mung beans  are also a treasure house of minerals including calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and copper.

Mung beans originate from India and were cultivated through out Asia. The ancient Chinese used mung beans for culinary and medicinal purposes such as dispelling heat and  detoxifying the body.  Mung beans has high nutritional content and value. It helps in lowering high blood pressure, cholesterol, breast cancer, post menopause and diabetic.

Mung bean sweet dessert serve with fried cruller.

Mung Bean Sweet Dessert aka Tau Suan

300gm mung bean
1500 mls water
3/4 bowl sweet potato flour / corn flour
1/4 bowl water
Pandan leaves
Sugar to taste

1/  Wash and soak the mung bean for 1 hour. Drain off  the water.
2/  Steam till soft approximate 30 mins but not too mushy. Keep aside.
3/  Bring the 1500mls water to boil together with pandan leaves. Add sugar to taste.
4/  Mix the sweet potato or corn flour with 1/4 bowl of water, mix well.

5/  Pour flour mixture into the sugar mixture and keep stirring at the same time. Test the starchy consistency to your liking. If not starchy add more potato or corn flour mixture. 
6/  Remove from heat, add in the cooked mung bean and mixed well.
7/  Serve warm with fried cruller and lick the bowl clean.
8/  If you like cold version chilled in the fridge. 

Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.

Fried Cruller aka Youtiao

Youtiao is origin  from China,  (simplified Chinese: 油条 / traditional Chinese: 油條 /  pinyin: yóutiáo / literally "oil strip"  also known as yu char kway in Hokkien or  yau ja gwai in Cantonese.  In English it's known as Chinese oil stick, Chinese donut, Chinese cruller. Fried bread stick- is a long, golden-brown, deep fried strip of dough in Chinese cuisine and other East and Southeast Asian cuisines. Conventionally, youtiao are lightly salted.

Crispy Youtiao ( fried cruller) are normally eaten as an accompaniment for rice congee, soya milk or mung bean dessert.

My homemade youtiao when ever I crave for it. This not in a family way craving..... but one of my favorite snacks.

Folk etymology of Youtiao aka fried cruller

The Cantonese name yàuh ja gwái literally means "oil-fried devil" and, according to folklore, is an act of protest against Song Dynasty official Qin Hui, who is said to have orchestrated the plot to frame the general Yue Fei, an icon of patriotism in Chinese culture.

Song Dynasty

It is said that the food, originally in the shape of two human-shaped pieces of dough but later evolved into two pieces joined in the middle, represents Qin Hui and his wife, both having a hand in collaborating with the enemy to bring about the great general's demise. Thus the youtiao is deep fried and eaten as if done to the traitorous couple. In keeping with the legend, youtiao are often made as two foot-long rolls of dough joined along the middle, with one roll representing the husband and the other the wife.

Iron statues of Qin Hui & Lady Wang were made to kneel before Yue Fei's tomb in HangZhou's West Lake. Qin Hiu  (1090-1155) was a chancellor of the Song Dynasty.

Crispy fried cruller nice to go with iced coffee too. Once a while indulgent will not cause your waist line to split.

Youtiao aka fried cruller 
( Make 12 pieces )

 (A) 3/4 tsp alum powder
       1/2 tsp ammonia powder         
       1 tsp soda bircarbonate
       1 tsp salt
       1/2 tbsp double action baking powder
       1/2 tsp instant yeast

(B)  270mls water

(C)  375mg superfine flour

Alum powder

Ammonia powder has a very strong pungent smell but it cooks off after frying. It help produces a fabulous crispness. 

1/  Combine A and mix well.
2/  Pour A & B quickly. DO NOT STIR.
3/  Pour A & B into C.
4/  Beat the mixture in mixer for 5 mins to form a sticky dough.

5/  Remove dough from mixer and knead 10 times and form into a dough. Put dough in mixing bowl and cover dough with plastic sheet and rest for 15 mins.
6/  Fold in the dough and rest 15 mins. Repeat this step 3 times.
7/  Fold in the dough, grease some oil on the dough surface. Cover mixing bowl with plastic sheet and let it rest for at least 1 1/2 hours. Maximum up to 2 1/2 hours depending on how well it proof.

Note:  I use my bread machine to knead the dough using dough function and rest 1 1/2 hours, then continue with step 8 to 14.

8/  Divide the dough into 2 part. Dust the dough with flour to prevent sticking on your hand. Shape dough long with 3 inch wide and 1/4 inch thick. Don't dust too much or else your cruller will taste like bread or doughnut.
9/  Brush some water on the first piece of dough then stack two pieces of dough together.
10/ Cut into 1 inch strip and use a chopstick to press the centre of the cut out dough.

The secret of making good youtiao, the dough must be wet and sticky. Even thou the surface is dust with flour, the inside must remain wet and sticky.

11/ Heat up oil in the wok, hold the both end of the dough, stretch the dough a little before deep frying until golden brown and crispy.
12/ Keep the heat medium, when frying move the cruller back and forth in the hot oil. The movement will help hot oil enter the cruller to puff it up.
13/ Fry till golden brown, remove from heat and place on a paper towel to allow grease to drain.
14/ You can eat this fried cruller on it own or serve with mung bean dessert, congee, soya milk.

 Enjoy this  indulgence with iced coffee. This mung bean is a healthy dessert minus the fried cruller/ youtiao.

The only thing I like better than talking about food is eating.

Thank you to all my wonderful friends, you are simply the best.
Have a nice weekend, cheers!
Amelia

Lemongrass Rice With Sotong Kapitan

Lemongrass is an amazing super-herb and has many health benefits. It contains many compounds, oils, minerals, vitamins that is known to have anti-oxidant and disease preventing properties. Lemongrass may also have effects on cancer cells.

Lemongrass is a green and white, grass like plant with razor-like blades and it is grown across the planet in warm tropical countries.

My last week dinner 

Lemongrass rice, sotong kapitan and chocolate cupcakes

Lemongrass rice

Very flavorful  lemongrass rice

Ingredients  A
2 cups rice
2 cups water  ( Estimate )
3 stalk lemongrass
3 pandan leaves (optional)
1 tsp salt

Ingredients B
1 big onion -  chopped finely
1 inch ginger - slice thinly
1 in cinnamon
2 star anise
5 cloves
2 cardamom
2 tbsp oil

Ingredients C for garnishing
Fried shallots
Coriander leaves

Cooking method for rice
1/  Wash and soak rice for one hour. After soaking drain off the water.
2/  Cut the lemongrass into 3 inch length, pound the lemongrass slightly.
3/  Heat up 2 tbsp oil, stir fry all the B ingredients until fragrant.
4/  Add in the rice, lemongrass, pandan leaves, salt and stir fry for 5 minutes.
5/  Pour the rice into the rice cooker, add enough water to cook the rice.
6/  When cook, fluff up the rice, garnished with fried shallots and coriander leaves.

Sotong Kari Kapitan aka Spicy Squid
Recipe with compliments from a friend in Canada. Thank you so much my dear friend, this is one of the best recipe I ever tested.

Nothing is as flavorful and as delicious as sotong kapitan and perfect to go with lemongrass rice.

Ingredients
1 kg small-medium squids (sotong)
3 tbsp oil
2 onions, diced
3 stalks lemon grass, smashed
1 grated coconut; squeeze out 150ml thick coconut milk, then add one cups water and squeeze out thin coconut milk.
3 kaffir lime leaves
Juice of 1 lime

Grind together:-
12 fresh red chillies (remove seeds)
12 shallots
3 cloves garlic
2 cm turmeric root
5 candlenuts
1 tsp belacan granules ( Shrimp paste, you can omit this if it's not available in your country)

Seasoning:-
1  tsp salt, or to taste
2 tsp sugar, or to taste

Squid help the body absorb and utilize iron,  boost immune system and maintain healthy skin, muscles, hair & nails.

1/  Wash squids, remove entrails and black ink pouch.
2/  Cut into 1/2 inch ring.
3/  Boil 1/2  pot of water with 1 tsp salt and blanch the squid for 5 minutes. Drain the squid in a strainer.
4/  Heat 3 tbsp oil in a wok, then fry ground ingredients and lemon grass till fragrant. Add onions and saute well.
5/  Add a little of the thick coconut milk to prevent ingredients from sticking to the wok.
6/  Add squids and fry for a few minutes.
7/  Pour in thin coconut milk and cook over low heat until squids are tender.
8/  Add remaining thick coconut milk and bring to a low boil.
9/  Add lime juice, seasoning and kaffir lime leaves.
10/ Dish out and serve immediately.

Sweet Indulgence

Pulut Tai Tai aka steamed glutinous rice with egg custard

Steamed Glutinous Rice
1 1/2 cups glutinous  rice
320mls coconut milk
2 tsp salt
Blue pea flowers to dye the rice

1/  Wash and soak the rice for 1 hour.
2/  Greased an 8 in tray, place the rice in the tray. Add the natural blue dye randomly into the rice and steam for 20 mins or until cooked.
3/  Fluff up the rice and press the rice with bottom of glass to compact the rice.
4/  If you want to make flower shape rice, greased a cookies tray and pour the cooked glutinous rice onto the tray and compressed it with bottom of the glass.
5/  Cut with a flower shape cookie cutter.  Make a dent in the middle of the flower shape rice.
6/  Scoop 1/2 tbsp of kaya aka egg custard in the centre disk before serving.

This blue pea flowers is the natural dye for making steamed glutinous  rice. This creeper plant is from my old house.

Kaya aka Eggs Custard
6 eggs
2 cups santan ( thick coconut milk )
2 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cups sugar for caramel
4 to 5 pcs Pandan leave

1. Prepare double boiler.
2. Mix egg and sugar in a stainless steel pot and stir until well blend.
3. Add coconut milk and stir until well blend, add pandan leaves.
4. Double boil the custard in simmering boil water, stir non stop for 1/2 hour.
5. Cook the 1/2 cup sugar until melt and golden brown, pour the caramel into the custard immediately and keep stirring until the caramel blend with the custard.
6. Make sure the double boiler water level must cover at least 3/4 of the pot.
7. Continue to cook for another 1 1/2 hour, stirring every 5 mins.
8. When cook remover from double boiler to cool before storing in clean container.
9. keep in fridge.
10. Note: Another way to eat this egg custard is spread on toast bread. 

Egg custard aka kaya

 Decorate the flower shape glutinous rice with pandan leaves as flower stems

Chocolate Moist Cupcakes

A) 200gm butter
170gm ( 1 cup) castor sugar

(B) 180gm (2 cups) cake flour or superfine flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp double action baking powder

(C) 1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup hot water
2 tsp nescafe or cappuccino powder
2 tsp vanilla extract

(D) 3 eggs

1/  Preheat oven to 180 deg c
2/  Sift (B) together, keep aside.
3/  Mix (C) until well blended and keep aside to cool
4/  Cream butter and sugar until light & creamy. Add egg one at at time.
5/  Beat until well blend but do not over beat.
6/  Add the flour alternate with the cocoa mixture, mix well.
7/  Scoop into muffin cup and bake at 180 deg c for 20 mins or until cook.
8/  Cool on wire rack and top with chocolate fudge and decorate as desire.

Chocolate Fudge

Irresistible chocolatey cuppies.

50gm cocoa powder
125mls water
1 cup evaporated milk
200gm castor sugar
1/2 tsp fine salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 egg yolk
60gm corn flour
60 gm butter

1/  Mix all ingredients except butter. Put in double boiler and keep on stirring with a whisk until the mixture thicken. Lastly add in butter.
2/  Use immediately, spread on cupcake.
3/  Chill cupcake in fridge. Decorate with butter cream.

Butter cream

250gm butter
450gm icing sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/  Sift icing sugar 3 times
2/  Beat butter until creamy, add in icing sugar in batches and beat until smooth.
3/  Add in vanilla extract and mix well.
4/  Decorate as desire.

With all the indulgence......

Have a fabulous weekend, Cheers!
Amelia

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR

13th February
Love is special, love is rare
Love is made for two share
Love is gentle and love is blind
And it begin with two heart combine
Happy Valentine's Day to all my friends.

To all my friends wishing you a very Happy Chinese New Year. May the New Year bring you happiness, prosperity, good luck, good health. Gong Xi Fa Cai and happy holiday.

Let enjoy some of my goodies that I'd prepared.

Pineapple Shape Tarts. For recipe please check out my guest post at Love2Cook Malaysia   on the 9th & 10th of February 2013.  Love is my first few blog friends since I start blogging in 2011. She is a great friend who can cook and bakes very well. Her photography skilled is excellent.

Pineapple shape tarts

• 250 gm Anchor butter ( chilled)
• 4 cups flour to 4 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tbsp custard powder
• 1 small egg yolk ( lightly beaten )
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg yolk for glaze

Pineapple tarts refer to small bite size pastries filled with or topped with pineapple jam. This is one of the top favorite cookies during Chinese New Year.

1. Sift the flour and custard power.
2. Cut the butter into cubes, add in to the flour.
3. Rub butter lightly  into flour with tips of fingers till mixture resembles bread crumbs.
4. Add in the egg yolk and vanilla mix to form a pastry dough.
5. Do not knead, just use your fingers to mix lightly as the butter melt pretty fast. 
6. If dough too mushy add a little flour. This dough is suppose to be fairly soft but not sticky.
7. Divide dough into 55 pieces, roll into round balls and flatten slightly.
8. Wrap with pineapple jam and press the  edges together using finger and thumb. Roll tart so that one end is tapered. 
9. Using a small pair of scissor, snip tiny V shapes on the front half of the tart. Snip in rows.
10. Insert  a cloves to resemble a pineapple stalk. Brush with egg yolk.
11. Place tarts on greased tray and bake at 180 deg c for 20 mins or till light brown.
12. Cool completely before store in cookies jar.

Pineapple open tarts.

• 250 gm anchor butter ( chilled )
• 14 oz  flour
• 1 egg - lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp custard powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp fine sugar
• 1 egg yolk for glaze

1. Sift flour and custard powder together.
2. Cut butter into small cubes.
3. Rub butter lightly  into flour with tips of fingers till mixture resembles bread crumbs.
4. Add egg and vanilla to form a pastry dough. If dough too soft chill for 1/2 an hour. If too dry add a little ice water.
5. Roll out the dough to 1/4 in thick in between plastic sheet.
6. Dust with flour lightly and cut with tart cutter. ( coat the tart cutter with flour and shake off the excess flour. )
7. Fill tart with pineapple jam. Decorate the top as desire with extra dough.
8. Brush with egg yolk and bake at 180 deg c for 15 to 20 mins or till golden brown.
9. Cool completely and store in cookies jars.

This pineapple jam is usually made by slowly reducing and caramelizing grated fresh pineapples that has mixed with sugar and spices. This is also guest post in  Love2Cook Malaysia. Do check out both my pineapple tarts and pineapple jam recipes.

Jam Recipe 

• 5 pineapples
• 22 oz sugar
• 2 star anise 
• 1 cinnamon stick ( 2 in )
• 5 pieces cloves
• 2 limau kasturi  ( lime )

1. Remove skin and eyes of pineapple.
2. Chop into small pieces.
3. Blend in food processor until fine and sieve until quite dry. (Keep the pineapple juice in case the jam too dry, you might need it.) 
4. Put in big cooking pot, add grated pineapple, cinnamon, star anise, cloves and cook in moderate heat for 1 hour. Add sugar and lime juice continue to cook till mixture thick and gluey. Keep stirring all the time to prevent burn.
5. Cool completely and roll into small balls till ready for use.

Note: If  jam too watery add sugar and continue cooking. If jam too dry add pineapple juice and cook till sugar melt and gluey.

 Burger cookies.

Burger Cookies
Ingredients:
250 gm. Butter
150 gm. fine sugar
330 gm. Plain flour
75 gm. corn flour
1/4 tsp. salt
30 gm. Milk powder
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp. vanilla essence
Some sesame seeds for decoration
Some egg glaze
Some Nutella or melted chocolate for sandwiching the cookies

Method:

(1) Beat butter, sugar, salt and vanilla essence until well mixed.
(2) Add in egg yolk.
(3) Add in flour and the rest of the ingredients.
(4) Use a melon scoop and scoop the dough and place onto a tray.
(5) Brush with egg glaze. Sprinkle sesame seeds on half of the ready scooped cookies and the other half , no need to sprinkle sesame seeds.
(6) Bake at 170 deg C for about 15 mins or till golden.
(7) Leave it to cool and then spread some nutella or melted chocolate and sandwich with another piece (one with sesame seeds and another without the sesame seeds).

Peanuts cookies.
Ingredients
300 gm roasted groundnuts
600gm flour
7 oz sugar
2 cups corn oil

1. Grind the peanuts until fine.
2. Mix flour,sugar, groundnuts until well blend.
3. Pour in the oil slowly and mixed till well blend.
4. Roll into small round ball, top with roasted peanuts and brush with egg wash.
5. Bake 170 deg C for 15 to 20 mins until slightly brown.
6. Store in air tight container.

Butter cookies
Ingredients
220gm plain flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
160gm butter
60gm icing sugar
1 egg white
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Almond slice/strips ( optional )

1. Sift flour and baking soda.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add in egg white and blend well.
4. Add vanilla, flour and mix well.
5. Scoop mixture into piping bag fix with star nozzle, pipe a rosette and place almond slice in the middle.
6. Bake at 160 deg c for 8 to 10 mins or until slightly brown.
7. Cool completely and store in air tight container.

Kueh Makmur aka Leaf  Cookies filled with crushed peanuts.

Kueh Makmur
Ingredients
250gm butter
100gm ghee
50 gm sugar
1 egg
460gm plain flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
few drop of green coloring

1/  Sift the flour and baking power together
2/  Beat the butter, ghee and sugar until light and creamy.
3/  Add in the egg, vanilla extract, green coloring and beat till well blend.
4/  Add in the flour and mix till soft dough is form.
5/  Cover with cling wrap and chilled 30 mins.
6/  Divide dough into round balls, wrap with peanuts filling and seal tight.
7/  Shape the round ball into leaf shape and use a pincher to make leaf design.
8/  Place onto greased baking tray, bake for 20 to 25 mins.
9/  Cool completely and store in air tight container.

Filling
250gm roasted groundnuts
110gm sugar
3 tbsp peanut butter

1/  Mix all the ingredients together.

Our dinner
 I will update the recipes in my next posting.

 Sotong Kapitan aka spicy squid.

  Lemon grass rice.

Chocolate moist cupcakes.

Pulut Tai Tai with Kaya aka steamed glutinous rice with egg custard.

Kueh Seri Muka. One of the favorite nyonya kueh in Malaysia & Singapore.

My no name dessert. Green bean with wheat grain cooked with coconut milk and palm sugar.

Happy weekend to all my friends. I'll be back to reply comments and visit you when I settle all my chores.
Enjoy the holiday and cheers.
Amelia