Carrot Cake - 1st time making a carrot cake

This carrot cake is not those typical chinese carrot. I told my mum its an ang mo style carrot cake :P

My best fren Eileen was at my place playing with her netbook and transfering pics from her phone to it. I was playing bejeweled on facebook, then i browse the net for a while and found this carrot cake at AllRecipes.com . Read many 5 stars reviews. so i decided to make it. Some time I bake as & when i feel like it. i decide to bake the carrot cake. i think I kinda surprised her with this spontaneous baking at almost 12 midnight.

Reduced 2 cup of white sugar to 1.5 cup of brown sugar -> Result: not sweet enough
The recipe calls for 2 tsp of baking soda & 2 tsp of baking powder which i tink it is way too much for the cake. It resulted in a cake with a strong baking soda/baking powder taste which spoilt the entire cake and made it taste like a chinese Huat Kueh 发糕 instead. The recipe also used 1.25 cup of veg oil which i would replace it with melted butter if i were to make it again. The cake lacks the buttery fragrance which a cake should have. The only good side of the cake that it is moist enough.

Perhaps some days when i have nothing else to bake i will then try making it again.

Rich Dark Chocolate Fruit Cake

Tweak the original recipe :

• to reduce the brown sugar to 180g
• to replace 2 tbsp of treacle to 2 tbsp of dark chocolate ganache

Result: A very moist cake ... pretty good

That day i got help from Alan to transport my pc from Sim Lim back to home. I pack 2 slices of it for him. When i met him again on 11 April he commented that the cake is good ^.^ I am so glad xD

Dim Sum - Siew Mai

An easy to make tim sum

Ingredients:
500g Mince Pork
500g Coarsely diced prawn
250g Diced Water Chestnut or Turnip if water chestnut is not available
1.5 cup of diced chinese chives 韭菜 or green spring onion
1 cup of finely diced carrot
1 cup of black fungus 黑木耳
2 tbsp of hoisin sauce or oyster sauce
2 tbsp of fish sauce
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp of seasoning powder
1 tbsp of corn flour
200g of wanton dumpling skin

Method:

1. Marinate all the ingredient except for water chestnut & spring onion for 1 hr
2. Drain away excess liquid from the water chestnut or turnip
3. Add in water chestnut & chives. Mix well.
4. Wrap a tbsp of fillings in each wanton dumpling skin
5. Oil the steamer tray & steam each for 15-20min

Ayam Masek Merah or Chicken Rendang??

Chicken Rendang & Mixed Curry Vegetables aka Sayur Lodeh

At 16, I fell in love with a dish call Ayam Bawang literally mean Onion Chicken when i ate it at Sanur Indonesian Restaurant where i was working part-time there. Shortly after, they discontinued this dish & i never get to taste it again. Since then i have tried many trial & error to replicate the dish according to the taste in my memory but still not very close to it...:(

Chicken Rendang and Ayam Masek Merah may be a very easy homecook dish for malays. the rempah seems to be a basic for them. i am a chinese and i know nothing abt the them until i read up every recipes i came across for these dishes.

What i have here is a dish that incorporates both Ayam Masek Merah & Chicken Rendang recipe.

Preparing the Chicken for Deep Fry

• 1 whole chicken + 2 thigh meat or 6 boneless chicken thigh meat
• Rub the chicken with 2 tsp heaps of salt leave it for 10 mins before washing the salt away.
• Add 2 tsp tsp of chicken stock powder and let it marinate for 30 mins to 1 hr.
• Add 2 tbsp to lightly coat the chicken pieces
• Deep fry in hot oil till it is 75% cooked or crispy on the outside. Set it aside.

Rempah Ingredients:
2 pack Chicken Rendang Mix from Malay stall in wet market which would usually consist of dried chilli, fresh chilli, chilli poweder, shallots, garlic, ginger,tumeric, galangal etc...
8 big onions (4 minced + 4 cut into quarters)
8 red tomato (5 coarsely chopped & 5 cut into quarters
1 whole clove of crushed garlic
3 stalk of lemon grass (cut into 3 portion & crush the part nearest to the root)

1. Fry mince onion in oil lightly , then add in in garlic and fry till it start turning brown and release fragrance.
2. Add in rendang mix & lemon grass, continue to fry until everything is well mixed.
3. Add in chopped tomato, stir fry the everything in the wok till it become fragrant and well blended.
4. Add in chicken parts & then followed by quarters of onion & tomatos
5. Pour in 3 rice bowl of water and let it boil & then simmer till the gravy become thick. If you prefer to have coconut milk you may minus 1 bowl of water & replace with 1 bowl of coconut milk.
6. Add 1 chicken stock cube or chicken flavoured powder to taste.
7. Garnish with coriander and serve.

If you like your chicken rendang really dry, u can use the excess gravy to make mix curry veg and add some extra water and coconut milk according to your preference.

Gingko Barley with Beancurd Sheet Dessert 腐竹白果薏米甜汤

So easy to make...my sis, Kyky love this very much. I hv heard from many ppl that this is a good for complexion... anyhow, i m cooking this becos our family love this dessert.

Ingredients:

• Barley
• 1 can of Gingko nut
• 1 pack of 腐竹beancurd sheet
• Rock Sugar
• 6 Pandan leaves (i like strong pandan fragrance)
• Soya milk

1. Boil barley, beancurd sheet & pandan leaves in a big pot. According to mum, its better to trim off the tips of the pandan leaves before using it, cos it contains some toxin?! i m not sure at all or any scientific proof to back it up... anyway no harm triming it off. It will be easier if u tie the pandan leaves in a knot before dumping into the pot so it wont be messy when removing it. its always nice to plant some pandan leaves at home...so convenient as some time when u need it, u cant find it in the market.
   
2. Add in rock sugar to taste and let it continue to cook in a slow fire till the barley turn quite soft and beancurd sheets are almost melted.
   
3. Add in a can of gingko nut let it continue to boil for a while.
   
4. Lastly add in a pack of soya milk if u perfer it to have a rich soya fragrance.

there u are u can serve this hot or cold... i always give my parents each a big hot bowl of it first and then chill the rest in the refrigerator. Both ways of eatting it are equally tasty.

Tuna Bread with Mayonaise & Teriyaki Sauce

a very soft yummy bread. will make again with other fillings like sardine or curry chicken :D

Choc Hazelnut Cake with Oreo Base