Braised Bee Hoon With Pumpkin & Prawns

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With Chinese New Year(CNY) celebration still going on until next Monday, 06 February 2012(the fifteen day of Chinese New Year). Most households are still in the festive mood on preparing auspicious CNY dishes with ingredients such as Abalone, Mushrooms, Black Moss, Sea Cucumber and etc.

In this post I am using simple ingredients such as rice vermicelli, pumpkin(金瓜 - 金玉满堂), prawns(嘻哈大笑) and mushrooms to prepare a very colourful and auspicious New Year noodle dish for the family.

Cuisine Paradise Turns 7!

Today, 30 April 2012 marks my 2,555 days (7th years) in blogging where Cuisine Paradise turns seven(7). Indeed time flies and it had being 7 years since I started with my 1st recipe post on "Steam Mini Pandan Kueh" with an aim just to share my tried and tested recipes and homecook dishes with friends.

Along the years, I have learn to cook and bake different kind of cuisines, food styling as well as into food photographing.  Despite of the ups and downs during my blogging days, I have get to know many new friends who share the same interest either from cooking, baking or photographing.

And to all readers of Cuisine Paradise, I hope I am enable to enlighten you with more improvements from my post and style of preparing the food(cooking/baking) through different stages of my project themes. Here I would like to sincerely voice out my appreciations and thoughts for those who has supported Cuisine Paradise during all these years. Thanks for all your feedback, comments and thoughts which enable Cuisine Paradise to achieve what it has today. Without all your supports and spread of words, Cuisine Paradise would not able to achieve up to 1.8 million page view (since June 2011 till date) and currently having about 150,000+ visitors per month.

Below are some of the flashbacks from Cuisine Paradise over the years:-

MOST POPULAR RECIPE

Avocado Chicken Parmigiana

With over 110,000 pins via from "Pinterest" and a total of 150,000+ Pageviews till date, this is one of the most popular recipe among readers of Cuisine Paradise. It is so easy to prepare that you only need an oven toaster instead of an oven to handle this recipe. And moreover this dish can be pair with either salad or pasta to end with a complete hearty meal.

If you want to prepare something simple and yet flavorsome to impress your loved ones, here is the recipe.

MOST POPULAR KITCHEN GADGET

Happy Call Double-sided Pressure Pan

It's only a few months back that this "Happy Call Double-Sided Pressure Pan" has finally makes it way into many kitchens in Singapore and Malaysia after a year or so in Singapore. This happens from a Happy Call group known as Munch Ministry which set up by 2 ladies who share their interests and recipes on cooking quick and simply healthy food using  HCP.

Even though I have one of this Happy Call Pan (HCP) for more than a year plus, I did not really fully utilize it until I was influence by this HCP group in facebook. After which I have develop interest in trying different recipes using HCP from dishes to bake. Below are some example of my HCP cooking/baking project. For the full HCP recipes menu, please refer HERE.

Baked Sweet Potato	Sizzling Tofu	Claypot Rice
Pineapple Upside-down Cake	Muah Chee	Pandan Chiffon Cake

OUR FAVOURITE BENTO

Making Bento is one of our weekly or at least twice a month mother and kid bonding activities whereby my boy and I will agreed on a theme to work together to assemble his bento.  Up till date I have about 30 quick and easy kid's bento featured in Cuisine Paradise and inSing.com, below are some of our favourite among the rest.

Easter Chicky Bento	Penguins Bento	Red Angry Birds Bento

PRODUCT REVIEWS

As a homemake and someone who loves to explore new kitchen products, I love to try new food or kitchen products whenever I spot something interesting during our weekly marketing trip. And from time to time I would also received product samples from media to be featured in Cuisine Paradise. Below are some of the product review posts and you could also read up more on this link HERE.

VOGEL's mueslis	Easy Thai Cooking(cookbook)	Zespri Kiwifruit Recipes

CURRENT PROJECT

Korean Cooking

It has never come across my mind to learn how to prepare Korean cuisines at home. And it's only due to my recent interest in Korea drama that I am starting to love how to appreciate Korea dishes in another view. Before starting on this cooking project, friendly speaking I am not a fan of even their well-known appetizer; Kimchi(김치) nor Korean Rice Cake (Tteok - 떡) which can be used to cook soup, stewed or noodles. But now with their easy to prepare and delicious dishes I am keen in exploring more Korean cuisines with the help of my new Korean friend. Thanks Daphne!

Below are some samples of my Korean Cooking Project post. If you are keen to read up more on this project you can click on the link HERE.

Kimchi Tofu Soup	Korean Rice Cakes with Ramen Noodles	Sangyetang (recipe coming soon)

Lastly I hope my passion for "food" on this blog would be able to commit for another 7 years or more but till then I really needs all your supports and feedback in order to maintain this blog and continue to strike for better improvements. And if you are new to cooking/baking, I would like to welcome you on board and sincerely hope that my recipes collection would be able to help you cookout some quick and easy dishes for your loved ones.

Stir-fry Fu Gui Cai and Stuffed Mushrooms with Black Moss, Glutinous Rice Wine Chicken

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Time flies, today is the 3rd day of Chinese Lunar New Year and I am sure most of you have being busying with the house to house visiting plus feasting on the delicious New Year goodies and food. Even though nowadays we could easily ordered or enjoy a hassle free reunion dinner in restaurants but I believe there are still many housewives, mothers, grandparents and etc busying with the preparation of their signature dishes for reunion dinner.

I remember when I was a kid, I always look forward to Chinese New Year to feast on those "special" dishes that my dad would only cook during New Year. And although I am not a very good cook like my dad, every Chinese New Year I would still try to cook up one or two of my self concoct dishes for my family.

STIR-FRY FU GUI CAI AND STUFFED MUSHROOM WITH BLACK MOSS
富贵花开

For this year reunion dinner, I have prepared this quick and easy stuffed mushrooms with minced meat and black moss dish to serve together the auspicious greens known as Fu Gui Cai(富贵菜). To make it more colourful and appetising, I have also added gingko nuts and wolfberries to enhance the presentation.

I would be submitting this Stir-fry Fu Gui Cai and Stuffed Mushrooms with Black Moss dish to this month Aspiring Baker #15 - Auspicious Dishes for CNY (January 2012) that is hosted by Wen of Wen's Delight.

(serves: 3-4 | Preparation: 15 minutes | Cooking: 10 minutes)

Ingredients:
6 - 8 Dried Medium Chinese Mushrooms, soaked in hot water till soften
150g Minced Meat
10g Black Moss(发菜), pre-soaked in water
10 Gingko Nuts
1 Floret of Fu Gui Cai(富贵菜)
Some Wolfberries
1 Red Chilli, sliced
3 Slices Ginger
3 Cloves Garlic
1 Teaspoon Cooking Wine
1 Teaspoon Cornflour + 1 Tablespoon Water, mixed well

Seasoning:
1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1 Teaspoon Cornflour
1/2 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
1/2 Cooking Wine
Dash of Pepper

Sauce:
100ml Water
3 tablespoons Oyster Sauce
1 Teaspoon Sugar

Method:-

1. Mix minced meat, black moss and seasonings together and set aside to marinate for at least 10 minutes if time permit.

2. Stuff about 1 tablespoon of the minced meat mixture into the pre-soaked mushrooms.

3. Preheat Happy Call pan with about 1 tablespoon of oil and fry the stuffed mushrooms for about 1 minutes each side or until cooked. (HCP close but don't lock) Remove and set aside.

4. Add in another 1 tablespoon of oil to saute ginger and garlic till fragrant before adding in the Fu Gui Cai (remove the leaves from the floret, reserved 1/4 of the last portion to act as flower), chilli and gingko nuts. Close the pan and let it cook for another 1 minute before giving it a quick stir and close the pan for another 30 seconds.

5. Next add in the cooked stuffed mushrooms together with the sauce mixture and give the mixture a quick sit-fry and simmer on low heat for another 30 seconds before removing the vegetables.(arrange the vegetables in the middle of the plate)

6. Lastly with the mushrooms and gingko nuts still remains in the pan, add in corn star mixture and cooking wine and wolfberries, mix well with all the ingredients.

7. Remove and arrange mushrooms on serving plate around the fu gui cai. You can also decorate the mushroom with the wolfberries shown above.

Note:-

~ If you prefer you could replaced the dried mushroom with fresh shiitake mushrooms.

~ Pick up other greens such as broccoli, xiao ba cai or etc according to your preference if fu gui cai is not available.

~ For more varieties you could also add in fish or prawn paste to the minced meat mixture.

GLUTINOUS RICE WINE CHICKEN
黄酒鸡

This Glutinous Rice Wine Chicken(黄酒鸡) is one of the traditional Hakka dish eaten during confinement or Chinese New Year. To cook this dish usually they would buy kampong chicken instead of the normal chicken and simmer it together with their homemade Glutinous Rice Wine. According to the Hakka this dish is good to replenish lack of blood due to fatigue, malnutrition, cold chills, irregular menstruation, anemia, postpartum weakness and etc.

(serves: 2-3 | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
1/2 Chicken(about 600g), cut into bite sizes
1 Tablespoons of Sesame Oil
6 Slices of Ginger, cut into thin strips
200ml - 250ml of Glutinous Rice Wine
6 Red Dates, cut into thick slices
1/4 Teaspoon Salt

Marinade:
1 Teaspoon Cornflour
1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon Light Soy sauce
1 Teaspoon Cooking Wine

Method:-

1. Marinate the chicken with cornflour, sesame oil, light soya sauce and cooking wine for at least 10 minutes.

2. Preheat Happy Call Pan on low heat with sesame oil and saute gingers till fragrance(close but don't lock).

3. Add in marinated chicken and cook on low heat for 1 minute (closed and locked), flip the pan over and cook for another 1 minute.

4. Next flip the pan back, add in rice wine and red dates, locked the pan and simmer over low heat for about 8 - 10 minutes till the chicken is tender and cooked through.

5. Lastly add in salt to taste and serve hot.

Emmm perhaps you could also share with us which is your favourite Chinese New Year dish too :)

Mixed Fruit Cake

Follow from the previous Double Chocolate Banana Cake post, here is the related post on a simple Mixed Fruit Cake which I made especially for Uncle James as he is a big fan of mixed fruit cake. And since I am baking two cakes on the same day using Happy Call Double-sided Pressure Pan (HCP) for demonstration to my aunties; who are all keen in learning how to bake using this new gadget, I have modify the usual traditional fruit cakes recipes to a simplify one.

Compared to the traditional Christmas Mixed Fruit Cake, this one is much easier in term of ingredients preparation and shorter baking time.You can prepared ahead by soaking the mixed fruit with RUM and orange juice the night before to achieve a better flavour or if you are running out of time like me, just make sure you have soaked them at least 10 - 15 minutes.

MIXED FRUIT CAKE

Here I have adapted a similar recipe from the previous Banana Chocolate Cake with Cranberry which I have shared. And instead of using caster sugar, I have replaced it with brown sugar for its natural brown and taste that enhance the appearance and taste of the mixed fruit cake. As for the type of dried fruit you can either purchase those ready-mixed packed available from baking section or you can DIY your own by mixing a few of your favourite fruits such as tangerine peel, apricot, raisin, cherry, ginger and etc together.

(Serves: 30 x 25cm | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 30 minutes)

Ingredients:
225g All-Purpose Flour(plain flour)
170g Brown Sugar
170g Unsalted Butter, room temperature
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Pinch of Salt
3 Eggs(55g each)
60ml Orange Juice
Rind of 1 Orange
200g Dried Mixed Fruit
2 Tablespoons of RUM/Grand Marnier

Method:-

1. Soak dried mixed fruit with RUM, Orange Juice and Rind for about 10 minutes. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a bowl and set aside.

2. Cream soft butter and brown sugar using a electric beater or hand whisk till pale and creamy.

3. Add one egg at a time, beat till combined before adding in the flour mixture.

4. Using a spatula, fold in sifted flours in 3 batches alternatively with the mixed fruit mixture(add in the liquid as well) till well combined.

5. Slowly scrap mixture into the lightly greased Happy Call Pan(grease 1 teaspoon of oil on both side of the pan using hand or paper towel).

6. Bake on low heat for 12 minutes, slowly shift the pan towards right side so that left side (1/2 of the HCP) of the pan is on the heat, bake for another 6 minutes. Next shift the pan back towards the left side so that right side(1/2 of the HCP) of the pan is on the heat. (the purpose of doing this is to even out the baking as well as give the cake a nice brown colour on the surface when flip over)

7. Lastly, flip the HCP over and bake for another 6 minutes(3 minutes left, 3 minutes right) to have a nice brown top.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FOR OVEN METHOD:-

1. Follow steps 1 - 4, pour cake batter into a greased 7" square or round tin.

2. Bake in preheated 180° Celsius oven for about 40 - 50 minutes or when a skewer inserted in the center and comes out clean.

BLUEBERRY LEMON BUTTER CAKE

(Preview)

This is another snack preview of my HCP bake cake; Blueberry Lemon Butter Cake made using fresh blueberry. Simply love this light and fluffy lemon taste cake with my favourite blueberry in it. Will update more on the related recipe soon. Stay tune.

Grilled Chicken With Lemongrass and Basil Leaves

Here is another quick and easy Happy Call Pan (HCP) dish which is inspired by one of my friend, Jaiyi through her instagram photo(HERE). We all loved this "Grilled Chicken with Lemongrass And Basil Leave" where the chicken meat is so tender and infused with the unique aroma of the lemongrass and Thai basil. But if you can't get hold of Thai Basil, free feel to replace it with Parsley which is originally used in Jaiyi's recipe.

GRILLED CHICKEN WITH LEMONGRASS AND BASIL LEAVES

As for those who don't have a HCP, you can always bake this dish using an Oven which you might perhaps need to roast it for a longer timing in order to get it cook. Or if you prefer easy cooking, you can also replace whole chicken with parts such as mid-joint, drumsticks or etc depending on your preference too.

(Serves: 4   | Preparation: 10 minutes   |  Marinate: 2 hours  |  Cooking: 30 - 35 minutes)

Ingredients:
1 Chicken (1.2kg), portion into halved without cutting through
2 Stalks Of Lemongrass, lightly pound and sliced
1/2 Tablespoon of Black Peppercorns, crashed
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
3/4 Tablespoon Dark Soy Sauce
3 Tablespoon Cooking Wine (Hua Diao Jiu)
Handful of Thai Bail, roughly chopped
3 Stalks Lemongrass, cut into sections

Method:-

1. Clean and rinse the chicken, pat dry with kitchen paper towel and rub the salt all over the chicken together with the mixture of oyster sauce, dark soy sauce and cooking wine.

2. Next stuff 3/4 of the lemongrass and basil mixture in the chicken cavity(refer to the photo above) and tie it up using a baking string(you can find it in daiso or baking shop).

3. Sprinkler some crashed black peppercorns on the chicken and top with remaining lemongrass mixture. Marinate the chicken in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight to get the flavour through the meat.

4. Place extra lemongrass and chicken (remove the string and lay it flat, skin side up) in the Happy Call Pan (HCP), cook over medium heat (LOCK) for about 15 minutes, flip the pan over and cook for another 10 - 12 minutes.

5. Flip the pan back. Unlock and cook for another 8 - 10 minutes to get a nice golden crispy outer skin. (total cooking time might varies depending on the size of the chicken)

So if you or your family loves chicken dishes, this might be something quick and easy which you would like to consider whipping up over the weekend and share some family time by having simple homecook dishes together.

Pandan Chiffon Cake

This is rather my "first post" on making a proper Pandan Chiffon Cake using tube pan (similar to an angel food cake pan) method rather than the previous two (recipes) I made using Happy Call Pan (HCP). Although the recipe is quiet similar but for this round I replaced the usual pandan paste /pandan juice with pandan flavour coconut milk (obtain by blending some fresh pandan leave and coconut milk together) which I have some leftover while making Pandan Kaya (recipe).

Caramel Popcorn

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Popcorn or popping corn is corn (maize) which expands from the kernel and puffs up when heated. There are many techniques for popping corn from either normal kitchen pan/pot, microwave to large scale popcorn machines. Usually Popcorn is eaten in movie theatres that served in choices such as salted or sweetened. But now instead of having it only in the cinema, we could also easily make them at home or purchase in major supermarkets.

About a year ago "Garrett Popcorn" which is a chain of popcorn outlets open it's first outlet in Resort World Sentosa and now they have many other outlets located in Singapore too. (detail HERE). I love their Caramel Flavour with Macadamia Nuts where I could enjoy my favourite nuts and popcorn coated with delicious caramel.

CARAMEL POPCORN

My boy prefers popcorn which is sweeten like those sold in the "cinema" compared to those available in the commercial shops (either nuts, chocolate,  cheese, colouring and etc). And since it is pretty easier to make "popcorn" at home using minimum ingredients and a cooking pot (or home type popcorn machine), we always "pop" some whenever we crave for them.

(serves: 4 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 10 minutes)

Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1/2 Cup Corn Kernel

Caramel Sauce:
1/4 Cup Honey
1/4 Cup Golden Syrup
3/4 Cup Caster Sugar
100g Butter Chopped

Method:-

1. Line a big baking tray with baking papers, allowing 2cm overhang at long ends.

2. Heat oil in HCP(or any cooking pan) over medium heat. Add 2 - 3 corn kernels to test the heat. (Oil is hot enough when corn turns slowly in a circle)

3. Add remaining corn, cover and lock the pan(if using HCP). Shake pan gently when corn starts popping.

4. Remove from heat when corn stops popping. Transfer to a bowl and discard un-popped corn.

5. To make Caramel Sauce:- Clean the pan using kitchen paper towel after removing the popcorn. Place honey, golden syrup, sugar and butter in the pan. Stir and cook over very low heat for about 6 minutes or until sugar dissolved.

6. Next bring the mixture to boil without stirring for another 5 minutes or until light golden.

7. Work quickly, pour mixture over popcorn and stir to combine. Rest caramel popcorn in prepared lined baking tray to cool completely.

8. Break into pieces and served or stored in air-tight containers.

Although this recipe is done using Happy Call Pan (HCP) but you still can apply the same method using any heavy duty pan/pot to achieve the similar results. Have a lovely weekend everyone!!! Cheers!