Friday 16 August 2013

[Recipe] Gula Melaka Banana Cake With Walnuts

Our family loves "banana" cake except me. But about two weeks ago, when I saw Maryann (@tubbykat) Gula Melaka Banana Bread's photo on Instagram (here) I know immediately I am sold for this combination because of my favourite "Gula Melaka" which is one of the key ingredients for this recipe. With that added it definitely enhance the taste and aroma of the cake which makes them similar smells rather like caramel popcorn.

Thursday 15 August 2013

[Recipes] Quick Lunch Bentos For Kids

It's past mid-week and I am sure everyone is looking forward to weekend. In this post, I will be sharing 5 different quick lunch bento (with two recipes) ideas which you can prepare for your kids or yourself in a way too. I am always delighted to create my bento with "colourful" items which brighten my day or for the one who eats it. Although I might not be a skillful bento maker like some of those experts who makes really good character (charaben) bento (example, Samantha Lee) but in a way I am happy with what I can do for my boy.

And I am sure you can make simple bento too with a mixture of bread/rice, meat and some sides with fried stuffs, fresh fruits and vegetables I am sure you can create something interesting out from the box.


SANDWICH SUSHI ROLL


Sandwich sushi roll can be a quick breakfast or tea snacks which you can prepare for your kids at anytime of the day. To make it more nutritious, wholemeal or mutli-grain  bread can be use to replace normal white bread together with addition of some lettuce and cucumber in it. And also you can choose fillings like egg, tuna or chicken mayonnaise depending on their preference.

(Serve: 1   | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 10 minutes)

Ingredients:
  • 1 Slice of Wholemeal Bread
  • 1 Slice of Sandwich Cheese
  • 1 Hard-boiled Egg
  • 1/2 - 1 Tablespoon Mayonnaise
  • Cucumber and Salad Green
  • Side Dishes For Bento

  • Bento Tools:
  • Bento Box
  • Side Dishes Food Casing
  • Food Cutters For Decorations
  • Cling Wrap
  • Food Tweezer and Small Scissor
  • Drinking Straw and Dried Spaghetti

Method:-
1. Place all side-dish in food casings and arrange them on one corner of the bento box.

2. Put bread on a sheet of cling wrap, using a rolling pin to flatten bread slightly then spread a tablespoon or more of egg mayonnaise on it leaving 2cm free along the other end of the edge.

3. Top with lettuce and cucumber strip then lift up the bread and place it on top of the "cheese stars" (cut out from sandwich cheese using heartshape food cutter).

4. Roll up to enclose filling then cut the sandwich into 4 rounds.

5. When done, arrange the rounds on the food case and you are ready to serve it with the sides.



PANDA ONIGIRI BENTO


Have you thought of making Onigiri (rice ball) using bread? With sandwich bread that can be easily get in all household, you can use it to  make cute animal onigiri like what shown above. Instead of Panda, you can shape and decorate it to look like dog, cat, pig and etc base on your creativity.

Below is a simple recipe and step-by-step photo guide on how to make the bread onigiri.


(Serve: 1   | Preparation: 15 minutes | Cooking: 10 minutes)

Ingredients:
  • 1 Slice of White Bread
  • 1 Slice of Sandwich Cheese
  • 1 Tablespoon Tuna Mixture
  • Seaweed Sheet
  • 2 Raisin/Blueberry for Panda Ear
  • Side Dishes For Bento

  • Bento Tools:
  • Bento Box
  • Side Dishes Food Casing
  • Food Cutters For Decorations
  • Cling Wrap
  • Food Tweezer and Small Scissor
  • Drinking Straw and Dried Spaghetti

Method:-
1. Place all side-dish in food casings and arrange them on one corner of the bento box.

2. Put bread on a sheet of cling wrap, using a rolling pin flatten the bread then cut a 2cm slit on each corner of the bread (refer to the step-by-step photo above).

3. Spoon 1 tablespoon of drained tuna and place it on the centre of the flatten bread (you can drizzle some mayonnaise on it).

4.Carefully hold the 4 corners of the bread together and with the help of the cling wrap, shape the bread into a panda face (oval).

5. When done, arrange the tuna bread on the food case and you can start to decorate the feature of the panda using cheese and seaweed sheet.

6. Lastly fix the panda ears using either raining or blueberry with the help of dried spaghetti stick.



ASSORTED DESIGNED RICE BENTO


[Rice Bento] Cute Tuna Mayo Onigir
[Rice Bento] Kani and Cucumber Roll
[Rice Bento] Cucumber Roll with Teriyaki Chicken
Making your own bento like the above is  actually not as difficult as you think of. You can be creative to incorporate different side dishes/fruits which you prefer. Pick a meat or veggies to go with your sushi roll and at the same time add on some simple decoration to make it look more presentation. I hope this post can give you some inspiration to make a simple bento for your kid(s) this weekend to encourage and rewards them for coming CA2 exam. Good luck and all the best for the kids who are taking the coming CA2 or PSLE Exam.

Monday 12 August 2013

[Recipe] Lime And Chilli Roasted Snapper

Although I do enjoy both baking and cooking as a hobby as well as a way to express my love for my family through food. But there are also days where I am on my down-side with no inspirations or mood to do anything. Moreover I just don't feel like spending more than an hour to prepare a meal with 2 dishes and a soup with lot of washing to be done, so the easier way is to settle for a quick one dish meal.


LIME AND CHILLI ROASTED SNAPPER


Last two weeks due to long weekend holidays (Hari Raya and Singapore National Day) plus I was busying with some bakes (durian hokkaido chiffon and durian butter cakes),  I decided to make good use of the oven since it had already being warm up after the bakes. So instead of using the usual steaming  method to prepare the fish, what I did was,  place the prepared fish into the oven and baked till it was cooked. Surprisingly the baked fish taste so juicy and yummy just like using steaming method too. 

(Serves: 2   | Preparation: 10 minutes  | Cooking: 20 minutes)

Ingredients:
  • *1 Whole Snapper (800g - 1kg), clean
  • 5g Fresh Ginger, sliced thinly
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, sliced thinly
  • 4 - 6 fresh Kaffir Lime Leaves, shredded
  • 2 Stalks Lemongrass, lightly pound and cut into sections
  • 8 Cherry Tomato, halves
  • *1 Long Red Chilli, sliced thinly
  • 1/2 Cup loosely packed Coriander Leaves
  • Some Peanut / Cooking Oil

  • Lime And Chilli Dressing
  • 2 Tablespoons Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce
  • 1.5 Tablespoons Thai Fish Sauce
  • 2 Tablespoons Lime Juice
  • 1 Teaspoon Peanut Oil
Note:-
* Instead use 2 x 500g Plate Size Snapper
* For spicy version use 2 bird eye chillies instead

Method:-
1. Preheat oven to 220°C (Degrees Celsius) and layer baking tray with foil and baking paper.

2. Rinse the fish thoroughly and pat dry with kitchen paper towel. Stuff a mixture of ginger, garlic, lime leave, lemongrass and chilli in the fish cavity.

3. Rub fish all over with oil and place it in oiled and lined baking tray, scatter reminding ginger, chilli, lemongrass, garlic, lime leaves and cherry tomato over it.

4. Roast, uncovered for 15 - 20 minutes or until cooked through. Meanwhile, prepare lime and chilli dressing by mixing the ingredients together.

5. When the fish is done, drizzle dressing over it, sprinkle with coriander leaves and serve with steamed rice.


Have a great Monday everyone!!!!

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