Pumpkin Sago Dessert

I was on holiday back to my hometown Kampar and Ipoh Perak two weeks ago meeting few of my secondary friends whom I have not met for over 30 years!  Time flies.... but it was really good to see them again.

We were all on food hunting trip in Kampar and Ipoh, patronizing restaurant and cafe right one after another;  in a way like taste testing the food instead of having a hearty meal at each restaurant.  Kind of fun too.

Of course every savoury meal we have tried out, we can't miss out to go for sweet dessert too.  We were at this 100% Natural Cafe in Ipoh to try out their dessert ("tong sui").  So we order each bowl of different dessert from the menu;  one dessert caught my friend's eye and she ordered this Pumpkin Sago dessert.  I never had anything like this before.  Just one mouthful of this dessert, I immediately fell in love with it.  It was so delicious and yummy.

Pumpkin Sago Dessert

Recipe sourced from My Humble Kitchen  with changes

Ingredients

1 Pumpkin about 1.3kg

  (after skin removed and cut into dice is about 760g)

2 cups water

1 cup sago pearls

3-4 pandan leaves (tie into knot)

140g rock sugar (adjust according to your sweetness)

1 can (350ml) evaporated milk

Method

Bring a medium pot of water to boil.  Once the water comes to a bubbling boiling, pour all the sago pearls in.  Cook the sago in high heat for about 10 minutes or translucent.  (do not worry if the sago still has white spot in the middle).

Cover the pot with lid and let it stand for 5-8 minutes for the sago to cook further in the pot.

Using a sieve, run the cooked sago thru running water to remove access starch.  Pour into a bowl and set aside.

Steam the dice pumpkin until soft.

Put the pumpkin with the 2 cups water into the blender and blend till into smooth paste.

Pour the pumpkin puree into a big pot and using medium heat, heat up the puree to 10 minutes stirring it continuously to avoid sticking to the bottom.

Once boiled, add in the pandan leaves and the rock sugar.  Stirring it occasionally till the sugar dissolves.  (You may remove the pandan leaves at this point). Pour in the evaporated milk and bring to a boil.  Off the heat and pour in the sago pearls and mix till all combined. 
(at this stage the dessert may look a bit watery but once cool it will thickens up).

Serve the pumpkin sago dessert either warm or cold from fridge.

(it taste good when it is warm).

Wasn't prepare myself to update any post here but one of my girlfriend wanted to have this recipe so I have to write up the recipe for her and moreover..... I don't have a camera to take good pictures... so have to use my Samsung handphone instead.

Give this dessert a try..... pumpkin is healthy!!

Someone's trash is someone else's treasure

Hi everyone!

I couldn't believe it ..... May is about to come to an end and this is my first post of 2015!  I know I have been missing in action and have not been updating my blog.  Well, I'm on long holiday right now.  If you do wonder whether have I been cooking while I'm on holiday, I do. Most of the posting is posted at my sister's blog, My Happy Apron.  Please feel free to hop over there.

Whenever I'm back here in Auckland, there are few places I love to go.  And 2nd hand stores are one of my favourites place to go.

The 2nd stores here are those people donated out their unwanted items stuff like old clothing, bedsheets, books, kitchen & cooking wares, electrical items and etc etc.  And they will sort out these things to sell it out with very affordable and economical price.   The collections will to go the charity needs.

The other day I help out my sister to clear up her unwanted items (loadful of toys, books and clothings) to donate out to this Eastgate 2nd Hand shop.

Rattan basket and wood bowls and trays available here.

Pots & pans 

Every time I come here, I usually will look at this rack whether I can still find more of this rustic type brass fork & spoon.   Other than crazily looking for enamelwares, brass forks & spoons are my kind of thing now!

Am I crazy to buy these brass forks & spoons?  Well anyway, it is just $1 each and I think it is cheap as you won't be able to get this brass type utensils nowadays.   After giving a good scrups, it looks so shiny; its a gem to me now.  

If you're lucky enough, you can get nice looking saucers and plates.

Cookbooks

That blue saucer plate cost $2.00 each. It was those Churchill England type of plates.  

Bedsheets, linen, table cloths.........

Women & Men Clothings

Furnitures too ..... and they do delivery with a minimum cost of NZ$25.00 per trip.

My sister couldn't resist these items today. That beautiful bowl only cost $0.70 whereas the plate is just $0.20! 

Espresso Almond Butter Cake

When you see someone posting their recipe post and indicated "Highly Recommended", would it motivate you to try it out?  Well, I do.   

 Victoria Bakes has somewhat been so diligently baking her cakes away and it seem that most of her posting she has this "Highly Recommended" recipe post ~ oh dear ... I can't seem to catch up trying out her "HR" recipes if she keeps going with her "HR" post! And if you have been following her post.... all her cakes seems to be so captivating with the print on the cakes...so lovely and cute.

Back to my post today, I have bookmarked this Espresso Almond Butter Cake when Gert of Kitchen Snippets posted hers, I thought I could bake it at my soonest, so went seaching for sour cream but can't seem to find any at the supermarket shelves.  Wanted to substitute for yogurt instead but.....aigh....  And so, until Victoria Bakes posted hers last month that really get me going to make mine yesterday.

ESPRESSO ALMOND BUTTER CAKE
Recipe adapted from My Kitchen Snippets

Ingredients
227 gram butter (at room temperature)
3 tbsp sour cream
250g caster sugar
240g plain  flour
1/4 tsp salt
120g ground almond
1 tsp baking powder
4 medium eggs
120ml warm milk
2 tbsp instant espresso coffee powder 

Method 
Line and greased an 8” x 8” square baking pan or round baking pan.

Dissolve the espresso powder to the warm milk.  Set  aside to cool down.

Preheat the oven to 180C.  Sift the plain flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. 
Add in the ground almond and give it a good mix together. Set aside.

In your mixer with medium speed,  cream the butter, caster sugar and sour cream till  light and creamy, about 5 minutes. Scrapping the side of the bowl occasionally.   Add in the eggs, one at a time until well combined.

Reduce the speed of the mixer to low. Add in the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk espresso mixture in two additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until well combined.

Pour batter into the baking pan, smooth out the top and bake until the top of the cake springs back when gently pressed with your fingers and a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. It will take about 50-60 minutes.

Cool the cake on the wire rack for 10 minutes, invert and unmold the cake and let it cool completely before cutting into it.

If you love butter cake, and if you love coffee, and....if you love having ground almonds in your bakes..... this is the cake for you.  And yes, I highly recommend you to try this out too.

I'm linking this post to :

     Cook & Celebrate Christmas 2014 hosted by Bake For Happy Kids, Eat Your Heart Out  

and Domestic Goddess Wannabe.

Mini Christmas Pudding

In less than two weeks from now we will be celebrating Christmas.  Have you done your shopping and plan your Christmas menu or baking any goodies to be given as gifts?

As usual, though I don't really celebrate Christmas, to get into the Christmas mood, I be baking my favourite Christmas Cake or you can called it mixed dry fruit cake or Christmas pudding, or even steam fruit cake.  They are all the same to me.

This year, I have made few batches earlier and all were distributed out to families and friends.

I have also try making it some into small mini moulds which was supposed to be given away for my reunion friends get together but unfortunately I have been unwell so I have to cancel my trip back to my hometown.

                    I think this mini ones looks nicer and presentable in serving too.


If you intend to make this, you can follow the recipe here (Christmas Pudding) or here (Steamed Fruit Cake).  But, instead of going into the steamer for 4 hours, you can choose the bain marie method (steamed bake) to cut short the cooking time.

Oh, please note that I usually will macerate my mixed dry fruits in brandy (you can use Rum) overnight.

Once the cake is cooked, and, let the cake aged for at least a day or two before consumin as to let the flavour mature.  As I have read in the internet, it is more better to make this Christmas Pudding two months before the big day or at least one month ahead.....or the earlier the better! 

Well, for me....once my cake been done and matured for two days ....it will be gone in just a few days!  Don't think I am able to let it mature more than a week.....LOL.  It is just toooo delicious.  Unless someone help me to hide the cake where I don't know where of..... 

                             If only I have some custard to go with it.......and that would 
                             be so perfect!!

Almond Biscotti (Delia Smith)

Have you tried baking Biscotti before?  I love biscotti especially with lots of almonds inside.  
Biscotti is used to describe as a long, dry, hard,  twice-baked cookie with a curved top and flat bottom meant for dunking into coffee or wine.  The traditional biscotti recipe uses no form of yeast or fat (butter, oil, milk) as I have read. 

I have baked biscotti years ago (here ~ Almond Biscotti), and in fact that recipe I have tried for a few times just because I wanted to achieve in cutting the biscotti in thin slices.  Believe me, it is no easy task cutting into that thinly slices. 

I wanted to bake that recipe again for giving it as a gifts but on second thought, I should try out other recipe too.  There are tons of recipes to choose from the internet .... some uses whole egg, some with butter, some with vegetable oil, and some with egg whites. 


And while searching for a simple recipe, this recipe from Delia Smith caught my attention as ground almond was part of the ingredient.  So I have no hesitation to try this out and what is great about this is, it makes for a small portion to try out first.  

ALMOND BISCOTTI

Ingredients 
110g plain flour
3/4 tsp level baking powder
pinch of salt
25g ground almond
50g whole almonds, skin on (I added 80g)
75g golden caster sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Few drops of almond extract

Method
Preheat your oven to 170°C.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl, then add in the ground and whole almonds and sugar. Give it a good mix, then add the egg and the almond extract, and mix it together with a wooden spoon and then using your hands to bring the mixture together to form a smooth dough.

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and, using your hands, roll it into a log about 28cm long. Put it on the lined baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. Transfer to a cooling tray and leave till completely cold.

Reduce the oven temperature to 150°C.
Using a serrated knife or a very sharp knife,  cut the biscotti into slightly diagonal slices about 1cm wide. Then place them back on the lined baking tray and bake for another 15 minutes on each side until pale gold and crisp. 

Transfer them to the cooling tray and when cold, store in an airtight container.

Yields about 15 pieces

Original recipe from Delia Online

                      

  I am linking this post to the Bake Along event # 72 created by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours,  Lena of Frozen Wings and Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids

 

I'm linking this post to :
Cook & Celebrate Christmas 2014 hosted by Bake For Happy Kids, Eat Your Heart Out and Domestic Goddess Wannabe.

An InLinkz Link-up

Jam Doughnut Muffins

Yesterday I was up early in the morning and was gearing up to make a steamed nyonya kuih.  I spend in front of the stove for more than an hour steaming the kuih layer by layer....and in the end...the kuih was a disaster!!  Thought I could have a beautiful kuih lapis to share with you.  So tired in the end....

Anyway, I made something more easier today.  This muffin can be ready in just less than an hour.

Jam-Doughnut Muffins

(adapted from "How To Be A Domestic Goddess", Nigella Lawson)

Ingredients

125ml milk

85ml corn oil or vegetable oil, plus more for greasing

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

200gm self-raising flour

60gm caster sugar

12 teaspoons strawberry jam (or any of your favourite jam)

Coating

scant 1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C and grease a 6-hole muffin pan.

With a fork or hand whisk, beat together the milk, oil, egg and vanilla extract. Stir this into the flour and 60gm sugar to just combine. (It doesn’t matter there are lumps as if you overbeat the batter, the muffins will be hard and tough.)

Spoon the mixture into each muffin mould so that its just under a third full. Then with a teaspoon add a dollop of strawberry jam - about the size of a fat lima bean- then top with more muffin mix so that the cases are just about full.

Put them in a preheated oven and cook for about 20 minutes or until the tops feel springy and resistant and the muffins have puffed up into little toadstools.

For the coating :  Melt the butter. Combine the extra sugar and the cinnamon in a large bowl. When the muffins are cool enough to handle, brush each muffin with the melted butter, then roll in the cinnamon sugar. Serve while still a little warm.

                            I did not make the melted butter and coat with the sugar to my muffins 

                            instead I just lightly dust with icing sugar.  It is as good eating it as it is.

                            

 

                             This jam doughnut muffin is best eaten when it is still warm.

                             You can always warm up the muffin in your microwave if you have

                              left over.

  I am linking this post to the Bake Along event created by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours,  Lena of Frozen Wings and Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids

  

                             

An InLinkz Link-up

Kuih Kodok (Mashed Banana Fritters)

Made this easy Banana Fritters for my tea break today as I have some left over banana.  Instead of making banana cake, this is super quick and super easy too.

KUIH KODOK (MASHED BANANA FRITTERS)


Ingredients
150g (net weight) ripe bananas (pisang emas)
½ tsp salt (or less)
1 tsp sugar
5 tbsp self-raising flour
1 tbsp rice flour
1 tbsp Quaker oats
A pinch of bicarbonate of soda

Method

Mash ripe bananas well with a fork and combine with salt, sugar, self-raising flour, rice flour and oats. Sift in bicarbonate of soda. Mix until well combined into a batter.

Heat wok with enough oil over medium heat. Spoon a tablespoon of batter and drop into the hot oil. Constantly turn the fritters around until they are golden brown. 

Remove with a slotted ladle and drain on several layers of absorbent kitchen paper. Serve immediately.

Recipe sourced from kuali.com

Chocolate Macaron With Salted Caramel

When was the last time I made macarons?  Oh....that was years ago in 2011.  It was my first time trying out to bake macarons.  I can't believe it too....first time trying out and everything was smooth sailing for my macarons.  But.... it wasn't so the next time I try out again.  Never been successful after that. 

Well, for me, I can say is baking macarons can be based on "luck".  Sometimes, the expertise can have their macarons cracked on top, right?

There are many ways to bake macarons; the French, Italian and Swiss.  Which type you are most comfortable with?

If you are keen to try out baking macaron, why not try making it in small amount ingredient.  Here I have used Kim of Macaron-Fetish as the ingredient yield only small amount and if it was not success, you won't have to worry of wastage and you can try out again too.

My sister has made macarons using Kim's recipe.  Do check out her gorgeous Kitty Macarons.

Chocolate Macaron Shells
(Yields 12 filled macarons)

Ingredients
1 room temperatured egg white(39-40g)
50g icing sugar
30g ground almond
30g castor sugar
1/2 tsp cocoa powder

Method:
Put ground almond, icing sugar and cocoa powder in a food processor or a small blender. Blend them finely. 

Sift the blended mixture and set aside. 

With an electric beater, beat the egg white, start from low speed and increase slowly to maximum speed. Beat until frothy (you will see lots of fine bubbles).

Now it's the time to add in the castor sugar, add half of the sugar, continue to beat in maximum speed for around 2 minutes, add in the other half, continue until you get very stiff peak. 

Mix the dry ingredients into the eggwhites. This process is called Macaronage. Start folding with a rubber spatula. When you get a smooth shiny mixture, stop folding, lift the mixture with spatula, if the mixture falls back slowly in the bowl means you're good to go. You could also check if the lines formed from the liften mixture, they should slowly disappear in within 30 seconds. At this stage you're good to go. Do not over fold, it will be too liquid and becoming very hard to pipe. 

Line the baking tray with the parchment paper. 

Fill your piping bag , pipe your macaron (about 2 cm diameter) it should spread a bit as it settles. The point should slowly disappear if the mixture is the right consistency.
If not you could hit the bottom of the tray to smooth the point out).

Let your macaron sits for about 30minutes. This will depand on the humity in your house and the day. Try touching the macaron softly, after 30mins. it should not stick to your hand.

Heat your oven to 150 C on the (heating on the top only). When the oven is ready, put your macaron at the very bottom shelf. Bake for 12 minutes, check them in the mid time of 6 minutes, the feets should already start forming. Turn the baking tray to the opposite direction to allow even baking. When the 6 mins is up, change the heating setting of your oven to Bottom only. This will help cooking the macaron and rise the feet more. Bake for another 6 minutes. You can test if the macaron is cook, touch softly on the shell and when the macaron doesn't slide on the feet, it's cooked. if it's not add another 1 mins each time and check. 
* (I baked my macarons using upper and lower heat.  You need to know your oven temperatures and adjust accordingly).

Let the macaron cool down before removing them. You could wet your working area and slide the baking sheet on it to speed up the cooling process, but do not let it sit there too long, if not the macarons will become soggy. Other wise you can leave them cool at room temperature and remove them.


For the filling for my macarons, I have filled it up with Salted Caramel Sauce.

Check out the Salted Caramel recipe here.

       Here, I used the egg carton box and painted it with food colouring.  How's that?
       I like to keep all those unwanted stuff....but I got complain of keeping 
       of those "rubbish" around...... grrrr......

                        In a glance, the macarons look like eggs sitting in the egg carton, right?

                               

I am linking this post to the Bake Along event created by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours, lena of Frozen Wings and Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids

An InLinkz Link-up