Showing posts with label Homemade Dessert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Homemade Dessert. Show all posts

Wednesday 30 January 2013

{5 New Recipes} Pre Chinese New Year Dinner Gathering

Last Saturday evening, a few of us get together to have an early Chinese New Year dinner over at my place. Although this was not the first time I prepared food for such as big group of friends other than my family,  I am still very nervous and a bit stress up with planning the dishes as well as preparations.

Thanks to Jacob and Shiting who initiate to help up with the Yusheng as well as preparing the ingredients for the dishes in order to put this dinner together. I hope everyone enjoys the meal and I apologize if the dishes are not up to expectations due to my clumsy hands and mind in the kitchen :)

Monday 17 December 2012

Orange Marmalade Bread Pudding

There are so many festive bakes to make during Christmas season like Gingerbread Man, Classic Chocolate Brownie, Yule Chocolate Log and etc. Here is another quick festive dessert follow by the Pancakemisu which I have shared two weeks back.

I am sure most of you have tried Bread and Butter Pudding which is one of those classic English recipes that everyone loves. With the addition of marmalade with the egg custard, it gives the bread pudding a zingy orangey taste which makes the whole thing superb.


ORANGE MARMALADE BREAD PUDDING
(using Frezfruta Orange Marmalade)


This dessert is so yummy with layers of soft custard insides that contrasts with the crispiness of the buttery danish bread and nutty almond flakes on top. And it is also very easy to prepare just by whisking together the custard ingredients, pour it over on the bread, bake till custard is set and top is golden brown in colour. 



(Serves: 4  | Preparation: 10 minutes  |   Cooking: 30 minutes)

Ingredients:
  • 5 Slices Of Danish Bread
  • 1/4 Cup Frezfruta Orange Marmalade
  • 3 Egg (55g each)
  • 200ml Milk
  • 100ml Thicken Cream
  • Zest of 1/2 Orange
  • 1 Tablespoon Caster Sugar, optional
  • Some Julienned Orange Zest, optional


Method:-
1. Preheat oven to 180°C (degree Celsius). Lightly grease the base of two 12 x 12 x 8cm square baking dish and set aside.

2. Spread each pieces of Danish bread with Frezfruta Orange Marmalade, cut it into 8 small pieces and layer them into the two prepared baking dish.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together egg, milk, cream and orange zest for 1 minute till smooth. Carefully pour the egg mixture over the bread and leave it to soak for 5 minutes.

4. Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes, remove the foil and continue to bake for another 5 minutes or until top is golden and the custard is set.

5. Remove the pudding from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Dust with icing sugar and serve immediately with a cup of Gold Kili Instant Double White Milk Tea.

Tip:
~ For extra flavour, you could sprinkler some castor sugar and julienned orange zest on the bread before baking..


During baking the bread pudding will puff quite a lot which resemble soufflé but it will deflate once it is out of the oven so remember to use a deep baking dish instead of shallow one for this recipe. And with this easy recipe you could prepare a quick festive dessert to impress your guests together with  some Floral or Milk Tea which is perfect beverage to go with bread pudding.

Tuesday 27 November 2012

Black Sesame Paste With Almonds Using Cuisinart Hot And Cold Blender

Black Sesame Paste is one of the common dessert found in dessert chain outlets such as Ah Chew Desserts, Dessert Hut, Er Gu Dessert (二姑糖水) and etc. And some believe that by consuming black sesame paste it also helps to nourish the blood, lubricate the intestines and clear "wind" in the stomach too.

On the down side, for those suffer from spleen troubles, diarrhoea or loose stools should avoid over-consumption of these small seeds.


BLACK SESAME PASTE WITH ALMONDS


After the previous recipes on Broccoli And Spinach Soup, Pumpkin And Meat Porridge; this post I would be sharing another quick Asian dessert which I am sure most of you would love it. The consistency of this Black Sesame Paste could be adjust with additional 100 - 150ml more of water during cooking if you prefer a more dilute and watery paste.

(Serves: 4 | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 20 minutes)

Ingredients:
150g Black Sesame Seeds
50g Uncooked Rice
4 Cups (1000ml) Water
150g Caster Sugar/Rock Sugar
1 Stalk Pandan Leave, knotted
50g Roasted Almonds, roughly chopped

Method:-
1. Pre-soaked the rice for at least 30 minutes, drain well and set aside.

2. Rinse the black sesame seeds, drain well and pan-fry till completely dry and fragrant.

3. Place sesame seeds and rice into Cuisinart Hot And Cold Blender glass jug together with water. Set the timer to 20 minutes, blend the mixture for 30 seconds using SPEED 1.

4. Next add in pandan leave and sugar, bring the mixture to boil on HIGH for 5 minutes before switching it to SIMMER and continue to cook until end of the cycle.

5. When everything is cooked, remove the "pandan leave" and PULSE the mixture twice or more to achieve your desire texture.

6. Ladle Black Sesame Paste between serving bowls, garnish with roasted almonds and serve immediately.


To serve you could top it with some roasted almond to enhance the taste or even with a scoop of Vanilla Ice-cream if you are open to some adventure new combination. Till then I would update more recipes such as "Watermelon Granita", "Porridge", "Bolognese Sauce" using Cuisinart Hot And Cold Blender soon.



STAND A CHANCE TO WIN CUISINART SILICONE WARE


Just for your information, I saw from ToTT's Facebook page that they already round-up the 8 Finalists for Cuisinart Soup Making Competition (Singapore region) which will take place on 01 December 2012. After which the winning team will represent Singapore in the regional competition in Hong Kong for the championship! So why not "VOTE" and support your favourite soup shown above at ToTT Facbook Page (link here) and be one of the 4 Lucky Voters to win a set of Cuisinart Silicone Ware worth S$80.00!

I have "voted" the Healthy Prawn Broccoli Soup (2nd row, 2nd soup), what about you?

Wednesday 15 August 2012

Lemongrass And Zespri Kiwifruit Konnyaku Jelly


When you do a goggle search on "lemongrass jelly recipe" you will see a long list of choice to pick and experience on. Through the list, my favourite pick comes from Shirley's site at @Køkken (recipe), she shares a very easy recipe using "gelatine powder" instead of the Konnyaku Premix that I used which is not common in some countries. So for those who cannot get hold of the premix like what I used, perhaps you would like to try using Shirley's recipe if you are interested to make some.


LEMONGRASS AND KIWIFRUIT JELLY



I am sure you remember this cute Pooh shaped Lemongrass Jelly which I have shared from my previous post on Kiwi-licious Feast. I purposely made some using my boy's favourite "Winne The Pooh" shaped mould in order to make the jelly appealing to him in sight in order for him to try. So for mum who finds it difficult to get your picky eater into trying new food, perhaps make something with interesting characters they like will help. (for more kids meal ideas, read HERE)

Here I have simplify the steps and ingredients by using Konnyaku Premix Jelly Powder to make this refreshing jelly and you can add in some fruits such as kiwifruits, aloe vera, mini grapes and etc to enhance the flavour.


(Serves: 4-6 |   Preparation: 20 minutes   |  Chilling: 1 hour)

Ingredients:
1 Each of Zespri® Gold and Green Kiwifruits, cut into small cubes
6 - 8 Stalks of Lemongrass, halved and bruised
2 Knots of Pandan Leaves
1.5 Litres Water
1 Packet of Konnyaku Premix Jelly Powder


Method:-
1. Bring 1.5 litres of water to boil, add in lemongrass and pandan leaves, simmer the mixture for about 15 minutes on low heat. 

2.When done, switch off the heat, measure 1250ml of the lemongrass water (you can leave a few stalks of the lemongrass in it) and set aside to cool to room temperature.

3. Next stir in Konnyaku premix jelly powder into the cool lemongrass water, bring it to boil again on medium heat.

4. Remove from heat, stir till bubbles dissipate.


5. Half filled the jelly mould, topped with some chopped kiwifruits and filled it to the rim of the mould.

6. Cool to room temperature and keep refrigerate.

Personally I love the taste and fragrant of this lemongrass jelly because of it's light and refreshing taste. And for more creative way of making your jelly, you can add in canned fruits such as longan, fruit cocktails and served with ice cubes, or just served it as in it with more fresh cut fruits or etc. I am sure this will make a great party dessert too!



KIWIFRUIT CHIFFON CAKE
(Upcoming Post)


Time flies, tomorrow is the last day of the "Zespri® 14 days Daily Scoop of Amazing Challenge (#14daysofZespri)" and to mark off the finale of this challenge I would be sharing my last experiment using Zespri® Kiwifruit to bake a "Kiwifruit Chiffon Cake". For a challenge I have used fresh Kiwifruit Puree instead of the usual kiwifruit jam recipe shown online. So if you are interested, stay tune for the recipe tomorrow!

Monday 13 August 2012

{Zespri Kiwifruits Feast} Apple, Kiwifruit Mint Smoothie, Baked Drumlets With Kiwifruit, Spicy Penne with Salmon and Kiwifruit plus Lemongrass Jelly with Kiwifruits


I am sure those of you who has being following my threads on the various social media platforms (such as facebook, twitter and instagram) would have been seeing me updating a lot of "kiwifruits" related posts for the past one week. (so sorry if I have "spam" some of your timelines :p ) As you have read from my previous post(s), this year I am taking up the "Zespri® 14 days Daily Scoop of Amazing Challenge (#14daysofZespri)" to test out how creative I can work with these "fuzzy brown fruits" to incorporate them into our daily diet.

So over the past weekend, I have come out with a 4 Course Kiwi-licious Menu starting with:- Apple, Kiwifruit And Mint Smoothie, Baked Drumlets With Kiwifruit And Mint, Spicy Penne With Salmon And Kiwifruit follow by a refreshing Lemongrass Kiwifruits Konnyaku Jelly for dessert. In this post, I would be sharing the first 3 recipes whereas for the Lemongrass Jelly it would be featured in another post.

Sunday 12 August 2012

Zespri Kiwifruit Yoghurt Parfait

Today is 7th day of my "Zespri® 14 days Daily Scoop of Amazing Challenge (#14daysofZespri)" and it feels really wonderful and amazing on how these "brown fuzzy fruits" could actually benefit our health and improve our daily intake of Vitamin C and etc.

And as you probably will know Yoghurt is nutritionally rich in protein, calcium and etc so by making a dessert using yoghurt and kiwifruit is definitely a awesome choice as it has all the goodness in a cup. So rather than using "cream cheese" plus yoghurt to make the parfait, I have omitted the cream cheese and used only yoghurt and kiwifruit for a lighter and healthier dessert.


KIWIFRUIT YOGHURT PARFAIT


This quick and simple recipe can also be prepared a few hours ahead and served after meal. And you don't have any "kiwifruit jam" (recipe HERE) you can replaced it with some honey or store bought blueberry jam which taste equally good too.


(Makes : 3 | Preparation: 10 minutes)

Ingredients:
6 Pieces Digestive Biscuits
1 Zesperi® Gold/Green Kiwifruit
250ml Vanilla/Plain Yoghurt
Some Kiwifruit Jam/Compote

Method:-
1. Place the digestive biscuits in a ziplock bag and crashed it coarsely with a rolling pin or glass bottle.

2. Peeled the skin of the kiwifruit and sliced it to  about 0.5cm thick (6 - 8 slices).  

3.To assemble the yoghurt parfait, place some crushed digestive biscuits on the bottom of the serving cups.

4. Spoon in 1 tablespoon of yoghurt, top with a slice of kiwiwfruit, another spoonful of youghurt follow by a teaspoon of kiwifruit jam on it.

5. Lastly top with some youghurt and another slices of kiwifruit on top as garnish and serve.

After sharing this quick and healthy dessert over the Social media platform such as Instargam and Facebook, it did received quiet a number of "Likes" and "Comments" too.

Other than using Kiwifruits to make the "Yoghurt Parfait" shown above, you can also cut it into cubes and mix with some canned fruits such as Longan, Lychee or Fruit cocktails and served it as a refreshing after meal dessert. My this version was inspired by Keropokman's "Longan Dessert", I added some mixture of cubed Zesperi® Gold/Green Kiwifruit which gives it twist to contrast the sweet and sour flavour kiwifruits and Longan in syrup (Instagram photo HERE).

For more interesting recipes using Kiwifruit, you can visit their website @ http://www.zespri.com.sg/

Tuesday 10 July 2012

Blueberry Vs Raspberry Compote


Although in Singapore we do not have our own seasonal fruits like berries, stone fruits and etc. But we can easily get fresh seasonal fruits from the supermarkets and every year during summer which is the best time to buy "cheap" berries such as "Blueberry" and "Cherries" that are imported from overseas. So during this season, grab more "berries" and freeze it for later use in your bakes or dishes.

Thursday 29 March 2012

Soy Milk Beancurd Pudding


Lately there is a soy milk beancurd craze in Munch Ministry facebook page where some of the members shared and upload their homemade beancurd pudding. I really admired those ladies with innovative ideas in creating different types of flavour from the original recipes. And you just can't imagine how easy it is to make your own soy milk pudding with just 3 ingredients.

This type of Soy Milk Beancurd Pudding is different from the traditional soy milk beancurd that we used to purchase from the hawker center, foodcourt or Mr Bean. The recipe below is quite close to the popular "Lao Ban (老伴豆花)" beancurd pudding which has branches located at Old Airport Road and Maxwell Market.


SOY MILK BEANCURD PUDDING


Although there are quite a few version of this beancurd pudding recipes when you do a Google search. But if you want to read up for some information and try out different methods to suit your taste buds, you can read up more details over at Anncoo's "Soya Bean Beancurd Pudding" and  Misstamchiak's "Best Chilled Beancurd Pudding Recipe" where they used instant jelly powder instead of gelatine stated in the recipe shown below.

I have tried a a few combination on this recipe by either omitting the creamer or reduce the amount of gelatine used in order to find a perfect texture that suits our liking. So after a few experiment, we preferred those that is without creamer as we find the taste is already good enough even without the additional creamer. Whereas I also reduce the amount of gelatine from the original 2.5 teaspoons to 2 teaspoons as we prefer a wobbly and melt in mouth texture type of beancurd pudding. So it's all up to individual to twist and swap with the ingredients to make something that suits their preference.


Recipe adapted from Munch Ministry, Soft and Tender Chilled Beancurd, HERE.

(Serves: 2 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Chilling Time: 3 - 4 Hours)

Ingredients:
500ml Vitasoy/Soy Bean Milk
2 Teaspoons of Gelatine Powder
15g of Creamer, optional

Method:-
1. Heat up Vitasoy/Soy bean milk in a saucepan over low heat(do not let it boil).

2. Put gelatine powder in a small bowl, ladle about 50ml of the warm soy milk in it and stir till gelatine powder melt and well mixed.

3. Next pour the gelatine mixture into the remaining warm soy milk, stir stir in creamer if using and let it simmer for another 30 seconds(careful not to let it boil).

4. Off the heat. Let mixture cool off slightly before sieving it into prepared containers to cool completely.

5. Chilled mixture for at least 3 - 4 hours in the fridge before serving.

For other flavour such as:-

Almond ~ Use 15g of Almond Powder - 杏仁粉 (those instant almond powder that used to make almond drink) instead of creamer



BLACK SOY MILK BEANCURD PUDDING
(using YEO's Black Soy Milk)


When compared the above Vitasoy version with this Black Soy Milk Pudding, I personally prefer the taste and texture of the latest as I felt 2 teaspoons of gelatine work well with 500ml of soy milk to give that wobbly and smooth texture that I am looking for.


(Serves: 2 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Chilling Time: 3 - 4 Hours)

Ingredients:
500ml YEO's Black Soy Milk
2 Teaspoons of Gelatine Powder
15g of Creamer

Method:-
~ Refer to the steps above on the "Soy Milk Beancurd Pudding".

So if you are a fan that likes smooth and silky beancurd pudding such as those from "Lao Ban (老伴豆花)" or 51 Soya Bean then perhaps you could gather these easy ingredients to make your own beancurd puddings at home. Cheers!

Monday 19 March 2012

The Goodness Of Homemade Yoghurt

Pin It
From a glance at the supermarket dairy section you would see many different varieties of Yoghurt from either plain to those with fruit flavour and toppings such as jam, nuts and etc. Yoghurt is so wholesome and yet easy to make without any secret in the recipe. So with a foolproof recipe anyone can start making their own yoghurt at home.

Just for a note, the bacteria used to make yogurt are known as "yogurt cultures" and from fermentation of lactose, these bacteria produces lactic acid which acts on milk protein to give yogurt its creamy texture and characteristic.


HOMEMADE YOGHURT


I used to make yoghurt years back when my boy was around 8 months old during the period when he started mashed food and puree. And I still remember his favourite choice are "Yogurt with Peach and Banana" and "Yogurt with Mashed Avocado".

A few months back after a brunch treat over at Sherie's (maameemoomoo a 1/2 food blog) house where she prepared  her yummy Banana Pancakes and irresistible homemade yoghurt(stay tune for her recipe too) for us, I can't held thinking about it till I started making homemade Yoghurt again.


(Serves: 2-3 | Preparation: 15 minutes | Fermentation: 8 - 10 hours)

Ingredients:
500ml Fresh Full Cream Milk
1 Tablespoon Plain Yoghurt with Live Culture


Method:-
1. Heat the milk over low heat, stirring gently until bubbles and steam begin to appear on the surface (82°C), remove from heat.

2. Cool the milk to lukewarm or until your finger can comfortable dip in the milk for a few seconds. (preferably around 42°C)

3. Scoop about 1 tablespoon of the yoghurt cultures in a bowl, add in about 50ml of the lukewarm milk and mix well. Next pour the mixture back into the remaining milk and stir well.

4. Next pour the cultured milk into a clean sterilized glass jar or any non-reactive container and cover the lid on.

5. Lastly set the jar on the counter top in your kitchen and wait for the culture to convert the natural sugar in milk to lactic acid before it turns into yoghurt. The whole process takes about 8 - 10 hours depends on the weather. (I usually make the yoghurt at night and let is set at the counter top overnight and it would be ready in the morning around 7am)


6. Put the jar in the refrigerator immediately to slow down fermentation and as well as firm the texture of the yoghurt. It will last for about 1 - 2 weeks in the fridge.

Note:-

These are some of the plain yoghurts that are available in major supermarkets.



There are so many ways you can enjoy the wholesome goodness of homemade yoghurt such as eating it plain on it's own or drizzle with of Honey or Gula Melaka Syrup to sweeten its taste. If you want something more cafe style or with bits of crunch, you could also add in cut fruits or Muesli like what I did from the photos shown above.

Important Note(s):-
~ Do not add in the live yoghurt cultures if the warm milk is above 42°C or else the heat will killed the live cultures and effect the texture and overall result of the homemade yoghurt.

~ Different brands of plain yoghurt might produce different results so you have to take note and check the labels to ensure they contain yoghurt making bacteria such as Lactobacillus aci-dophilus, Streptococcus thermophilus.


BLUEBERRY COMPOTE
(Preview)


To make something more impressive for your guests, you could served it with some quick fruit compote on the homemade yoghurt. Here is a quick recipe on 5 minutes Blueberry Compote.

Friday 6 January 2012

Round Up Dishes For Chinese New Year plus SWANSON CNY Recipe Cards

It's almost 2 weeks to Chinese New Year and having Steamed Boat with family and friends is always something most family would prepared during new year get together session. And sometime we even gets to eat steamed boat everyday during Chinese New Year period when hopping around from house to house visit.

This year I am honor to join in the project on developing FOUR quick and easy Chinese New Year dishes using these all-time family favourite chicken broth from Swanson. On the recipe cards we have Scallop with Wolfberries Soup, Steamed Dan Gui Prawn, Meatballs in Crabmeat Egg Sauce and Braised Sea Cucumber with Abalone And Mushroom.

Currently Swanson Chicken Broth is having promotion pack at some of the supermarkets such as FairPrice where you could purchase the 3 packets(1 litre each) bundle at about S$8.50. Each bundle also comes with a recipe card featuring 2 quick and easy New Year dishes for you to impressive your guests.


MEATBALLS IN CRABMEAT EGG SAUCE


Here I would like to share with you this "Meatballs in Crabmeat Egg Sauce" from the FOUR featured dishes in the SWANSON Chicken Broth Chinese New Year recipes card. This is pretty simple to prepare and it is quite similar to the "Braised Lion Head - 红烧狮子头" concept on making meatballs which is cooked in delicious fresh crabmeat sauce.


(serves: 4 | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
150g Imitation Shark’s Fin
300g Minced Meat
4 Water Chestnuts, chopped
50g Carrot, finely chopped
2 Fresh Mushroom, diced

Marinade:
½ Teaspoon each of Light Soy Sauce, Cooking Wine and Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon Cornflour
Dash of Ground Pepper

Sauce:
1 Can Swanson Clear Chicken Broth
100g Fresh/Frozen Crab Meat
½ Teaspoon Oyster Sauce and Sesame Oil
1 Egg White
Dash of Ground Pepper
1 Tablespoon Cornflour + ½ Tablespoon Water

Method:-
1. Season minced meat with marinade together with chopped chestnuts, carrot and mushroom till combined.

2. Using clean hands shaped 1½ tablespoons of minced meat into round balls and coats them with imitation shark’s fins.

3. Arrange on steaming plate, steam over high heat for 10 minutes until cooked. Remove and set aside while preparing the sauce.

4. For crabmeat sauce; bring Swanson Clear Chicken Broth to boil, add in crabmeat, oyster sauce and cook for 2 minutes.

5. Thicken sauce by stirring in cornflour solution, turn off the heat and swirl in lightly beaten egg white.

6. Season sauce with sesame oil and ground pepper, ladle over the meatballs and serve hot.

Below are some of the collections of my Chinese New Year round-up over the past years. Hope these could give you some inspiration while preparing the coming new year menu.


CHINESE NEW YEAR DISHES


Stir-Fry 7 Assorted Veggies

Braised Mushroom With Sea Cucumber

Pan-fried White Spotted Rabbitfish With Leeks

Braised Chicken Wing With Arrowhead and Mushroom

Steam Salmon Fillet With Herbs

Steam Osmanthus Cod Fish


CHINESE NEW YEAR DESSERT


Lotus Seeds, Longan And Persimmon Sweet Soup

Sweet And Savory Nian Gao

Orr Nee With Gingko Nut And Pumpkin

Lotus Seeds Soup - 莲子羹

Glutinous Red Date With Osmanthus Syrup


CHINESE NEW YEAR GOODIES


Pineapple Tarts

Peanut Cookies - 花生酥

Deep-Fried Arrowhead Chips


Till then have fun trying out these recipes and I hope I could be in time to share with you more new recipes on Chinese New Year theme soon.

ShareThis