Macha-Coffee Sponge cake

This is such an interesting mixed. There has been many recipe on macha or green tea flavour, and even more cakes with coffee, but its the first time I came a cross a combination of green tea and coffee sponge cake.

Now the taste of this combination is a flavour on its own. it is hard to describe the flavour a part from just wanting to eat a piece after another.

Here are the ingredients:                            

4 large egg(70g)
100g sugar
50 ml vegetable oil
115g cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon nescafe espresso
1 teaspoon macha
1 tablespoon hot water
1 teaspoon black sesame

* sift baking powder and cake flour 3 times, set a side
* mixed espresso and macha into 1 tablespoon of hot water

Beat eggs for a few minutes, then add in sugar, beat until white and creamy, takes about 15-20 minutes.
Gently fold in flour, follow by vegetable oil.
pour batter into lined rectangle tin
sprinkle with black sesame seeds
bake in pre heated oven at 160 degree for 10 minutes
to test if cake is done by inserting bamboo skewer. if bamboo comes out dry,. the cake is done.

Bon apetit...

Home made pizza

This is really a gourmet pizza. It beats any pizza you could buy and it has never been easier to make.

Ingredient:

3 cups plain flour
1 cup warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 sachet yeast (2 3/4 teaspoon)
1 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable oil
pinch of salt.

You could put yeast and sugar into warm water and wait for it to bubble up before mixing it with flour. But I normally just put all ingredient into bowl, work in to a soft dough, leave it to raise until double in size.

knead raised dough for 5 minutes, divide in 2 portion to make 2 pizza.
Spread tomato paste evenly on base, sprinkle with fresh oregano, and then put on your favourite topping. with onion and cheese on top to get the best flavour.

Super supreme topping: Bacon/ham, dried tomatoes, salami, olives, onion and mozerella cheese.

Ham, cheese and pineapple: slices of ham with tin pineapple drained of the juice, onion and cheese.


Chicken and bbq sauce: pieces of poach chicken or left over bbq chicken, de-boned and cut in to pieces. bbq sauce should be put at the base after tomato paste to stop sauce from burning. top with chicken, onion and cheese.

Char Chai Tau Kueh ~ stir fried radish cake

I always love chai tau kueh, and recently tasting it in fried dish version in Vietnam and Malaysia, I must say it is so delicious. You could cook this for afternoon snack if serve in small portion or it can be for lunch or dinner. 

Char Kueh

Here I have use a ready made Banh Cuon flour, which is normally use for making rice roll to make this radish cake, and it really have a very springy texture.

here is the recipe:

ingredient for radish cake
1 pack of Banh cuon powder( 400g)
1 radish (500g)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon of dried prawn
400 ml cold water
400 ml boiling water
1 baking/glass dish size 12x 21 cm
makes approximately 10 slices

ingredient for stir frying 2 slices of radish cake(snack for 2)
1 tablespoon garlic oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon sweet soy sauce(kecap manis)
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon chopped shallot
2 pieces of salted sweet radish
2 eggs
pepper to taste

To make radish cake,

• mixed all of the 400g flour with 400ml water, stir it thorougly until there is no lumps in this mixture.
• place half of this mixture into separate bowl,. pour 400 ml of boiling water into it and stir quickly, you should ended up with thick mixture. Pour the rest of flour mixture in and mix.
• place coarsely chopped radish in blender, and spinned until you have fine crumb of radish, squessed out most of the water.
•  lightly toast dried prawn, and grind it until fine.
• put radish, dried prawn, sugar, and salt in this flour mixture, and mix thoroughly.
• put in to rectangle dish, cover with cling wrap plastic, and steam for 40 minutes.
• allow to cool before attempted to cut and stir fry.

To Stir fry 2 slices of radish cake.

• heat non stick frying pan with sesame oil and garlic oil
• place strips of radish cake into it ( 2 slices, cut in to strips)
• 2 pieces of sweet salted radish, cut into small slices
• when they are crispy, turned and cook other sides
• put sweet soy sauce and soy sauce into it.
• crack 2 eggs and stir..
• put some chopped shallot for garnishing, and pepper to taste.

so there you have it,. this radish cake freezes well, so if you like afternoon snacks for 2, you could just freeze 2 pieces in plastic bags, stir fried this snack when friends visit or just becouse you feel like it.

Alternately, you could deep fried all ten slices of this radish cake, have some now, and freeze the rest for later.

Have a go,. if this is your favourite food......

Chewy Blonde

Someone has come up with a very Interesting name, chewy blonde, and these slices or some called it brownie has to be the easiest treat to make as all you have to do is to mix all ingredient together and bake it. It is low in fat as a part from milk, there is only one tablespoon of butter used in the recipe. Make this for afternoon tea with friends and family, its simply delicious over a cup of tea or coffee.

Ingredient:
1 cup flour
1 cup almond meal
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/4 cup choc chips
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
2 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Start with combine all dry ingredient together, except for sultana and choc chips

mixed all wet ingredient together, you could use food processor or just whisk it with baloon whisk.

combined dry and wet ingredient, until it resemble a thick batter, then put in sultana and choc chips, stir gently.

lined square tin with baking paper, pour batter in it, and bake at pre heated oven for 25-30 minutes at 180 degree.

let it cool down before slicing to get a nice square slices.

Nastar ~ Pineapple tart

This is the first nastar I ever made, and after tasting it I must say it melt into your mouth and the tangy pineapple jam is really exquisite. If a clove is added to each piece of biscuit as decoration to make it look like stalk, it gave the biscuit such a nice additional aroma.

This biscuit is traditionally made for new year celebration, be that for muslim rahmadan or chinese newyear, where it is tradition to visit each other and be spoilt rotten with all sorts of cakes and biscuit, this is one of them that is almost always included.

This biscuit is easy to make, if you could make the pineapple jam, put it a side and make the biscuit near your party occasion.

Recipe:

For pineapple jam:

1 pineapple
200g sugar
5 cloves

- 1 pineapple, cut of the skin, remove the hardpart in the middle, cut into chunky pieces, and put in food processer, pulse for a few minutes.

- place this pineapple in sauce pan and cook until half of the liquid is gone.

- put in all of the sugar , cloves and cook until it is nice and thick, and none of the liquid left. discard the cloves.

let this jam be cooled down or leave in fridge, it will be more solid and easier to be filled into the biscuit dough.

Ingredient for biscuit dough:

250g cake flour/low protein flour
30g corn flour
250g of butter cut into cubes
50g of caster sugar
3 egg yolk
egg wash ( 1egg yolk, 1 tbsp milk, pinch of salt)

place flour, corn flour and sugar in food processor, pulse a few times so ingredient are mixed properly. then add butter cubes, and pulse a few times, then add egg yolks, pulse again,you get mixture resemble coarse sand, gather this dough gently until dough come together. It is important not to over process dough, as biscuit will be hard, and not crumbly texture.

If it is a very hot day, you may need to keep part of dough in cool place or place in fridge, as it will be tricky to shape biscuit when the dough has turned too soft.

shape little ball with dough, use satay bamboo stick to make hole to fill pineapple jam in, then re-seal the ball and decorate with clove if you wish.

brush with egg wash to get a nice glossy finish.

bake in oven at 150 degree for 15 to 20 minutes.

Biscuit should keep for 1 month without refrigeration, but somehow it never lasted that long.