braised chicken

F1 cookies

duck & chutney

traditional chocolate cake

why?
Well... the year is coming to an end, and there are many ingredients in my kitchen cabinet that I hope to use up and not to have to dump them away! I decided that yesterday was a good day to use up half of my cocoa powder and most of my icing sugar. I searched allrecipes.com for a recipe that would use these 2 ingredients A LOT and this came up!

success?
This is the first cake I made that I managed to replicate the "cake-frosting-cake" layers technique and was glad that the cake turned out moist and spongy but not too light as the chiffon cake texture might not hold all that frosting. The taste wasn't overly sweet because I reduced the amount of sugar from the original recipe and added coffee to give the cake a tinge of bitterness.

failure?
There was also too much frosting, I guess I could have not slapped on so much frosting, but I was trying to not waste anything! When LR ate the cake, he had to remove the frosting and he commented it looked like cement! Grrrrr...... and I told him to be grateful he had cake! Haha.... Somehow the taste wasn't as refined as I would like for it to be, perhaps it could be the use of vegetable oil instead of butter in the recipe? If I were to bake this cake again, I might use melted butter instead. The recipe was called Extreme Chocolate Cake, but I didn't think anything extreme about it, to me it was a good and safe cake to make for birthdays and would suit most people's palate. Hence, I would rename this recipe to Traditional Chocolate Cake instead.

Traditional Chocolate Cake (9 inch cake pan x 2)

INGREDIENTS

350 g white sugar
220 g all-purpose flour
65 g unsweetened cocoa powder
1.5 tsp baking soda
1.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
235 ml milk
120 ml vegetable oil
2 tsp ml vanilla extract
235 ml boiling water with 1 sachet of 3 in 1 coffee added


170 g butter
130 g unsweetened cocoa powder
640 g confectioners' sugar
155 ml milk
5 ml vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 175 degrees C. Grease and flour two 9 inch cake pans.
2. Use the first set of ingredients to room temperature.
   
3. In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
   
4. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, mix for 3 minutes with an electric mixer.
   
5. Stir in the boiling water and coffee by hand.
   
6. Pour evenly into the two prepared pans.
7. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
   
8. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely.
9. To make the frosting, use the second set of ingredients.
   
10. Cream butter until light and fluffy. Stir in the cocoa and confectioners' sugar alternately with the milk and vanilla. Beat to a spreading consistency.
11. Split the layers of cooled cake horizontally, cover the top of each layer with frosting, then stack them onto a serving plate. Frost the outside of the cake.

Fried Viet Spring Rolls

dinosaur cookies

just look at that!?!

all things colourful and Brit...

pork & apples (after)

pork & apples (before)

mint peas

penang laksa

dutifully cooking...

a trinity of pizza

before they head into the oven...ouch!

toppings included...

tomatoes and mushrooms

chicken and pineapple

why?

I had some left over cheese and tomato salsa from the mexican dinner I made on Sunday. And pizzas came to mind. However, despite the fact that even when I always wanted to make pizzas from scratch, the concern that I do not have a pizza pan or a granite stone or even a wood fire oven bugged me so much that I never got down to making them. But I guess a foodie like me would hate to let good food go to waste and my 'Just do it' Nike attitude found myself in the kitchen producing such fabulous results and my fears of not getting a crispy thin, wood fire oven base were totally unfounded!

success?

This is so easy, fun and cheap to make!! Totally would make this again and anytime. I do not need a pizza pan, wood-fire oven or a granite stone to achieve that crispy thin base. So what are you waiting for? Get down to Mama mia!!

failure?

I probably got a little too excited with the toppings, that made my pizza look like a hill! But I really do not care, the more the merrier. I say "Pile them on!"

beef stew

burritos

sangria

caramalising

dusting and rolling

downside

upside... pear tartin!

DIY sushi handroll

cold shabu shabu

Mentaiko Onigiri

Mentaiko - Fish Roe

Skills....

Dusted Mochi with Azuki Beans

Rolling & Boiling

Dusting

Okonomiyaki Chef Chisako

In the pan

In the bowl

Peanut Happy Cookies

Milky Fish

M&M Oatmeal cookies

mango mashie cake

why?

I saw this on Do What I Like's blog and thought it was a cheesecake, but upon reading further, I discovered that it is a 'pirated' cheesecake! The white layer is actually made up of mashmallows and whipping cream. I love cheap thrills and making this would be such an opportunity :)

success?

I brought it to class and most of them love it! Especially this girl who abhors anything cheese.

failure?

There were a few areas I would most definitely improve on. Firstly, I might bake the biscuit layer as pouring the second layer did make the biscuit a tad too moist. Secondly, I would also definitely not whisk the second layer because it became a little foamy and light and could not firm up nicely and did not produce a smooth consistency. Thirdly, I will never trust my springfoam cake pan to retain liquid again, it leaked and i had to wrap the aluminium foil and still quite a bit of both the second and third layers were wasted.

Mango Mashie Cake

Ingredients for Base:

200 gm digestive biscuits

80 gm melted butter

2 riped mangoes

Method:

1. Crushed digestive biscuits and mix well with melted butter.

2. Press into a 8” cake pan.
(I would bake this for 10min at 180 degrees in future)

3. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

4. Line the base with sliced mangoes.

Ingredients Marshmallow filling:

300g white marshmallow

150ml milk

300ml whipping cream

2 tsp of gelatine powder

Method:

1. Put all the ingredients into a pot.

2. Doubleboil over small fire until gelatine is dissolved.
(Stir gently and do not whisk!)

3. Cool for 20min, then pour it into cake base.

4. Chill it for at least 2 hours.

Ingredients Jello topping:

1 pkt of Mango pudding

Method:

1. Prepare the pudding as per instructed by the packet/box.

2. Cool for 15min

3. Gently spoon the pudding over the second layer.

4. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

tomato soup

pumpkin soup

strawberry salad

chicken cottage pie

why?

I wanted to prepare a dish that I could make the day before to serve at the luncheon to save me slogging over the kitchen and leaving me utterly exhausted on the day when my friends arrive. This dish also tastes better the next day after the chicken fillings are allowed to soak in the gravy at least over a day. I have made this dish so many times and it is something that my mom taught me that never fails to WOW my guests. Thanks mom!

failure?

I forgot that the gravy would be lessen with baking and being soaked up by the chicken and potato topping. So personally, I would have preferred the filling to have a wetter consistency.

success?

Never fails and I this dish is a keeper. Here's the recipe:

Chicken Cottage Pie (serves 10)

Ingredients

• 1 kg chicken breast, diced in bite size
  
• 2 cups of frozen vegetables
  
• 1 can of mushroom soup
  
• 1 can of button mushroom, sliced
  
• 3 tbs of mixed herbs
  
• 2 medium white onions, finely sliced
  
• 20 cloves of garlic, chopped
  
• salt and pepper to taste
  
• 10 US potatoes, peeled and cut into half
  
• 300g of butter
  
• 1 cup of full cream milk
  

Method

1. Fry the onions and garlic in some butter till fragrant.
2. Add in some pepper and mixed herbs.
3. Add in the chicken and fry till slightly browned.
4. Add in the mushrooms and frozen vegetables.
5. Mix the canned mushroom soup with 1 can full of water and 1/2 can full of milk, and pour in.
6. Bring to a boil then simmer for 15 min.
7. Spoon the fillings into the baking pan for your pie.
8. In a pot of boiling water, add a pinch of salt and the potatoes.
9. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain off the water.
10. Mash the potatoes with a fork and add the butter.
11. Add in milk 1 tablespoon at a time till smooth consistency is achieved.

apple crumble

peach and cheese salad

yam rice

why?

Just last week, I was hit with this unexplainable push of wanting to be more intentional in juggling work and home responsibilities has somehow inspired me to want to start preparing cheap, quick and of course delicious meals at home. I don't know, perhaps this could be a sign of my biological clock ticking? Somehow I always liken mothers to being SUPERwomen. How they need to juggle work, family and kitchen still boggles me. Can I ever be a SUPERwomen? Everyday when I get home from work, I simply can't see myself doing any housework or cooking after a long tiring day even though I really enjoy being in the kitchen! So perhaps this concern has prompted me to start with small? I don't have kids right now... so maybe I need to start with managing work and kitchen and somehow slowly I can see myself progressing to managing children as well. Sounds so tough! No wonder in Singapore, it's so easy for families to succumb to employing help. Wow... What a rant! Haha... ok, so back to yam rice. Totally fits the criteria of cheap, quick and delicious!

success?

This took about half an hour to prepare and cook, although I had to soak some of the ingredients in the morning before I left the house. So quick it is! Cheap? I probably spent about $8 to prepare a 4 person portion. So yeah it's cheap too! Delicious? Good enough for me and LR!

failure?

Nothing to complain about! So here's the recipe...

Yam Rice (serves 4 person)

Ingredients

500g yam, diced in 2 inch cubes

100g dried shrimp, soaked in warm water and drained

100g dried scallops, soaked in warm water and drained

8 dried mushrooms, soaked in warm water, sliced and drained

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

2 small shallots, finely sliced

2 tsp pepper

2 tsp sesame oil

2 cups of rice, washed and drained

4 cups of chicken stock

2 tbsp dark soya sauce

Serve with

small bunch of corriander

sweet dark sauce

Method

1. Heat up 2 tbsp of vegetable oil

2. Fry the garlic and shallots till fragrant

3. Add the yam and fry till slightly browned

4. Add in the shrimps, scallops and mushroom and fry till fragrant

5. Add sesame oil and pepper

6. Add in the rice and fry for 10min

7. Dish everything into a rice cooker

8. Add in 4 cups of chicken stock and cook accordingly to the rice cooker

9. When cooked, season with dark soy sauce and serve with corriander and sweet dark sauce

lady marmalade biscuits

why?

I was flipping through my Bake It recipe book and came across this recipe for thumbprint biscuits and I couldn't resist making these cute little jam filled cookies :)

success?

They tasted really light and almost had a texture of a macaroon, coupled with the marmalade filled centre to give the buttery biscuits a nice tang of citrus flavour with the right amount of bitterness. I would definately try this recipe again with other jams and possibly even chocolate!

failure?

They really didn't had the crunch of being a biscuit and they expanded so much! In future, I would reduce the pre-baked size of biscuits and maybe try the recipe with less baking powder and soda.

Lady Marmalade Biscuits (Makes about 45)

Ingredients

250g unsalted butter, softened

140g icing sugar, sifted

1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

90g cream cheese, softened

1.5 tsp of vanilla essence

zest of 1 whole orange

350g plain flour, sifted

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

6 tablespoons of marmalade

Directions

1.Preheat the oven to 180 degree celcius

2.Grease baking sheets

3.Cream the butter, icing sugar and egg yolk till pale and fluffy

4.Beat in the cream cheese, vanilla and orange zest till smooth

5.Combine the flour, baking powder and soda and salt with a wooden spoon

6.Until a soft dough firms up, set aside for 10min

7.Break off small pieces of dough to shape into balls

8.Flatten slightly and make a small indent in the centre of each with your thumb

9. Spoon in the marmalade into the small indent

10.Bake for 10-12mins

11.Cool for a few minutes on the tray then transfer to a wire rack