Ipoh Famous Meat Floss Biscuit

Ipoh Famous Meat Floss Biscuit

This is yet another copycat recipe

using the traditional Chinese Pastry recipe

The bean paste that I cook is slightly brown

whereas those sold in the shop is green (pandan flavour)

As for the floss

you can either use pork or chicken or even salmon floss!

Salted egg yolk can be left out if you do not fancy.

Enjoy...

Ipoh Famous Meat Floss Biscuit

makes 12

Filling:

       100g mung beans, soaked overnight

       40g sugar

       1/2 tsp salt 

       22g oil

Pastry:

 (A) 100g all purpose flour

        25g oil

        15g sugar

        50g water

         1/4 tsp vinegar

(B) 90g all purpose flour

      50g shortening

Other ingredients:

3 salted egg yolk, steamed & cut each into 1/4 

75g meat floss

Egg wash: 1 egg yolk+ 1 tsp water

Method:

Filling:

1. Steam the mung beans until soft (about 30min)

2. While the beans are still warm, blend with some oil

3. Heat the sugar and the remaining oil in a non stick pan, to caramel 

4. Add the blended beans and fry until the mixture comes together,

5. Remove and let cool.

6. When cooled divide into 16g each ball

Pastry:

1. Separately blend ingredients in A and B

2. Divide A into 18g each

3. Divide B into 8g each

4. Wrap B into A, leave aside and continue doing for all the 12

5. Take 1 ball, press down & roll lengthwise into a strip

6. Roll the strip up, like a Swiss roll, leave aside & do the same for the remaining balls

7. Take 1 cylindrical dough, press down and roll lengthwise & roll up like a Swiss roll again.

To assemble:

1. Wrap egg yolk in a ball of bean paste

2. Drop into the meat floss, until required

3. Take 1 pc dough, press down and roll flat into a round

4. Put the ball of bean paste in the centre of the dough, add 1-2 tsp of floss 

5. Gather the sides to wrap the filling securely

6. Place the ball, smooth side up, on the parchment lined pan

7. Egg wash before sending into the oven

8. Bake 25min in 180’C 

                            

TAMAGO BORO or LITTLE MANTOU

TAMAGO BORO 

Or 

LITTLE MANTOU 

Is good as a snack for the little ones

Can ask the little ones to join in the fun of making these little balls 

Sharing the recipe by Kenneth Goh

Ingredients:

120g potato starch

10 g corn starch

55g milk powder

25g icing sugar

1 egg

1/2 tsp baking powder

1. Beat egg together with icing sugar until sugar dissolved

2. Sift in the dry ingredients in 3 additions

3. Mix well with a spatula, the dough should be pliable

4. Form Into little balls and place on parchment lined baking tray

5. Bake in preheated oven 170’C for 15min

6. Let cool, and store in air tight containers.

Notes:

1. If the dough gets dry after awhile, sprinkle a little milk to bind

2. Wet your fingers if the dough starts to stick to your fingers

3. Perhaps the best size is a little bigger than soya beans if you want it crispy 

WHITE ALMOND BISCUITS

White Almond Biscuits

is so fragrant and nice that you cannot stop at one!

It is sold very expensive too.

How about rolling up your sleeves and make a tray for yourself?

It is not that difficult afterall:

White Almond Biscuits

(A) 100g plain flour

      100g corn flour

      45g icing sugar

       

(B) 90g almond flakes, baked in preheated oven 150'C for 10min, turn once

      90g-100g corn oil (add just enough to combine)

Method:

1) sift ingredients in (A) together

2) mix in almond flakes

3) slowly add corn oil to combine the ingredients to form a dough

4) roll dough between 2 plastic sheets 

5) cut into shapes and arrange on a parchment lined baking sheet

6) bake in preheated oven 175'C for 30min

EGGLESS SCONES

Scones

are single serving biscuits or quick bread.

Guai Shu Shu introduced his Scones as

"Basic but presentable, 

Basic but irresistible raisin scones."

I like to call the scones he shared,

"Eggless Scones"

No 2 scones look the same, not to mention being beautifully shaped!

The rugged look tells you that the scones are well risen.

Notes to successful Scones baking:-

1) all ingredients need to be cold

2) the dough needs the minimum handling

3) if you add raisins or dried fruits, omit the sugar from the recipe

Eggless Scones

500g self raising flour, sifted with
2 tsp baking powder

50g sugar
1/4 tsp salt

100g cold butter, cubed & kept in fridge until required

300-350g cold milk

1) preheat oven to 210C

2) mix together all dry ingredients

3) rub the cold butter into the flour swiftly with your finger tips

4) add milk to combine the flour, do not pour in the milk all at once, but slowly.

5) when mostly combined, place dough on the table top & press to 1/2" height

6) cut into required shape (either smaller circle or a large circle & divide into wedges)

7) place on a lined baking sheet, brush the top with beaten egg or milk

8) bake for 20-min until golden brown

EGG WHITE BISCUIT

Egg White Biscuits

Have you eaten these biscuits before?

During my childhood days

they weren't many types of biscuits to choose from.

We call these little yellowish round biscuits,

"Egg Yolk Biscuits"

because it has the shape and colour of egg yolk.

I was so excited when I saw the photo shared by Jong Shias Chin

and 

was told that Kenneth Goh shared this in his blog.

He discovered that these were made with egg white only!

Thank you Kenneth Goh.

Here it is:

Egg White Biscuits,

 to bring back the sweet memories of childhood days.....

Egg White Biscuits

100g cake flour

80g melted butter

60g icing sugar

2 egg white

1. using a whisk to mix together flour and melted butter, leave aside

2. whip egg white until foamy, gradually add sugar. Beat until stiff peaks

3. fold egg white into the flour carefully, until well combined

4. using a round nozzle, pipe batter onto a parchment lined baking tray,

    leaving some space in between to allow for expansion.

5. before sending into the oven, drop the pan onto the table to let trapped air escape

6. bake in preheated oven 160'C in the middle rack for 15-20min

Note: 

can bake it a bit longer to get a darker shade.

SA KE MA

Sa Ke Ma

is a traditional snack/biscuit love by many.

It is sweet, crunchy and fragrant.

Lucinda Lau 

shares with us this recipe,

with simple ingredients of flour and eggs,

it is transformed into this wonderful snack!

Sa Ke Ma

(A) 150g flour

       2 eggs

       1/2 tsp baking powder

       1/4 tsp salt

(B) 80g sugar

      80g maltose

      40g water

(C) some toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Method:

1. sift flour & baking powder, add salt and mix well

2. beat eggs lightly in a bowl and add to sifted dry ingredients

3. knead together to form a dough, allow to rest for 20min

4. roll dough into a thin rectangle, divide into 1" sections

    and cut into 1/2cm strips, coat with flour if necessary

5. deep fry dough strips until golden, drain & leave aside

6. cook (B) over medium fire until sugar dissolves & thick bubbles formed.
    Continue cooking at LOW heat until-(To test, use chopstick to touch the syrup
    and lift up. If it forms a fine line, it is ready) 

7. Turn off heat, pour fried strips into sugar syrup and toss until well coated

8. add some sesame seeds and transfer to a oiled and lined 6" square pan
    & press while it is hot to compact, using a spoon 

9. leave for an hour before cutting into squares

Note:

Must really press and compact in order to get a nice firm cube!

I did not press mine hard enough!

GUANG SU BING

Guang Su Bing
光酥饼

that I remember was soft and sweet.

Guang Su Bing means clear and crispy biscuits.

I do not know why it has such a nice name

when its texture is hardly crispy!

It has a coat of flour on it,

otherwise with a thin layer of sugar crystal on it.

Special thanks to Guai Shu Shu

for sharing this recipe

Guang Su Bing

(I have adjusted to my taste buds)

100g self raising flour

40g castor sugar

30g milk powder

45g fresh milk

10g condense milk

18g cooking oil

1. sift together self raising flour & milk powder into a mixing bowl

2. add sugar and mix well

3. make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, add milk, condense milk & oil

4. using a spatula, mix to combine the wet & dry ingredients. Do Not overmix!

5. divide dough into 6 portions. Shape each part into a ball.

6. press and shape it like a disc, place onto a lined baking tray

7. bake at the lowest rack, in preheated oven 160'C for 15min. 

LEMON TARTS

Lemon Tarts

Sy Yong from Oladybakes
takes pride in this simple 3 ingredients tart shell which is
crumbly and buttery inside,
and
crusty outside.

The filling is simply perfect,
Fragrant and flavourful.
The way I like it!

Tart Shell 

80g salted butter

130g plain flour

25g condense milk

Lemon Curd

2 large eggs

80g lemon juice

80g sugar

zest from 1 lemon

60g salted butter

Method:

1) cream butter & condense milk until light

2) add flour & mix into a dough, rest dough for 20min

3) press dough into tart pans, poke holes at the base with a fork

4) bake at 180'C for 18-20min, remove & cool on a rack

5) in a ceramic or glass bowl, stir to combine eggs, lemon juice, sugar & zest

6) place the bowl over a pot of water on the stove

7) heat gently over the pot of simmering water, stir constantly with a hand whisk

8) the mixture will become very foamy, and soon thicken like a gel, it is ready.

9) Remove from heat & cool for 5min

10) mix in butter, stir to mix well, 

11) spoon into tart shells & chill before serving

SOURDOUGH CRACKERS

Feeling uneasy to discard the Sourdough down the drain?

You can try this recipe

You can bake it the way you like it...

Thin and crispy

or

 slightly thicker,

with a tint of rosemary

or 

simply plain or salted

or
with added cheese

I tried to press in some black sesame seeds

after brushing with some oil
for added flavour

Here is the recipe taken from King Arthur Flour.com

Sourdough Crackers

(A) 113g King Arthur Whole wheat flour

       1/2 tsp salt

       248g discarded sourdough starter

       57g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

       1-2 Tbsp dried rosemary or herbs of your choice (optional)

(B) oil for brushing

       coarse salt for topping (optional)

1) mix together all ingredients in (A) to make a smooth (not sticky) dough

2) divide dough in 1/2 & shape each half into a rectangle, cover & refrigerate 30min

    or more until dough is firm

3) preheat oven to 200'C

4) very lightly flour a piece of parchment & place the dough on it, 

    work with one piece at a time.

5) roll out to as thin as you want it, or 1/16" thick

6) transfer dough to a baking sheet & cut into squares of 1.25" with pizza wheels

7) prick each square with a fork & brush some oil on top

8) bake in preheated oven for 20min until golden.

9) yield: 100 crackers

SALTED EGG YOLK COOKIES

Salted Egg Yolk Cookies

is

an addictive melt-in-the-mouth cookie.

It is crumbly 

and melts in your mouth before you can bite into it!

Its unique taste,

a combination of both savoury and sweet,

is further enhanced with a hint of the aroma of salted egg

This recipe is adapted from Ann Low's

http://anncoojournal.com

Salted Egg Yolk Cookies

85g butter, softened to room temperature

40g icing sugar

2 cooked salted egg yolk, mashed finely

125g plain flour

10g corn flour

1/8 tsp baking powder

Glazing: 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

Topping: black sesame seed

1. cream butter & sugar till light & fluffy

2. mix in mashed salted egg yolk, mix well

3. fold in sifted flours & baking powder, briefly knead to form a soft dough

4. cover & leave in fridge for 30min for easy handling

5. roll dough between 2 plastic sheets, to 3mm thick

6. use cookie cutter to cut into required shapes & place on lined baking sheet

7. brush with egg wash & decorate with a few sesame seed

8. bake in preheated oven 170'C for 15min until golden brown

9. cool completely before storing

KUIH KAPIT

Kuih Kapit

fondly called Love Letter

is traditionally made and enjoyed 

during Chinese New Year Celebration

Nice to eat

but

not easy to make

as it takes a lot of effort and patience

For so many years,

my mother has been getting us children together

to make these Kuih Kapit

every year without fail

Kuih Kapit making is time consuming

It may take the whole day sitting in front of the hot charcoal stove!

Like most of the elderly

my mother does not have a recipe for Kuih kapit.

It is based on her memory, 

the look and the feel of the consistency of the batter.

The beauty of it 

is it works every time!

With my new toy

the electric Kuih kapit Toaster,

I have consulted her

and

through several trials and error

I have finally come out with this recipe

A word of caution:

This recipe works with the electric toaster

but may not work with the traditional tong method.

Kuih Kapit

50g rice flour

20g plain flour

10g tapioca flour

200g thick coconut milk, adjust consistency

1 AA egg

50g sugar

180g water, to adjust consistency of batter if necessary

1. beat egg & sugar

2. add coconut milk & mix well

3. stir in sifted flours, mix well & strain batter, allow to sit for an hour

4. heat up the electric toaster, oil the surface

5. pour 1.5 -2 teaspoon batter onto the centre of each mould, cover & toast

6. when colour turns brown, fold the biscuits into 1/2, then 1/4 while it is hot

7. leave to cool before storing

8. continue with the rest of the batter until finished

Note:
Electric toaster does not work as the traditional tongs,
so the following precautions need to be taken:
1. control the amount of batter pouring onto the mould 
    so that it does not overflow
2. not possible to make sure that it is a perfect round, 
    so need to use your artistic mind to fold it to look like one!
3. edges may not be smooth as you can see from the photo,
    if you are particular about it, trim it while it is still hot.

PUMPKIN CRACKERS

Crackers are always welcomed

They are basically made with Tapioca flour

One drawback is that

it needs to be deep fried!

This is made with simple ingredients 

 kneaded together

steamed

sun-dried

and deep fried!

Long procedure but easy to manage, right?

Pumpkin Crackers

500g steamed & blended pumpkin

400g tapioca flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp white pepper

1. knead together in bread machine for 15min

2. shape into logs as shown, and place on oiled tray

3. steam for 1 hour 10min  until well cooked, leave to cool

4. de-hydrate in the fridge overnight

5. slice thinly across & put in hot sun to dry (3-4 days)

6. keep in air-tight container until required

7. put in hot sun for an hour or so before deep frying to create the extra crisp

BISCOTTI PECAN AND DATES

Biscotti

are easy to bake

and has no fats in it

Nice to dip in coffee or tea

and
can be baked in your choice of nuts and dried fruits 

to suit individual taste buds

I have chosen

dates

and pecan

following this recipe

Biscotti Pecan and Dates
100g cater sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
230g plain flour
60g pecan, halved
75g dates, cut

1) beat sugar and eggs until thick and fluffy

2) in a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt

3) add in egg mixture and beat until well combined

4) fold in buts and dried fruits

5) transfer dough to a floured surface and form into a log

6) place log on parchment lined tray 

7) bake in preheated oven @ 180'C for 25min until slightly golden

8) remove and leave to cool for 15min

9) slice into 1/2" thick and lie cut side up on baking tray

10) bake in preheated oven 165'C for 10min both sides

CHEESY CRANBERRY SCONES

Scones are easy to make

and 

it varies according to the ingredients 

and dried fruits added

350g plain flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

140g butter

100g cream cheese

30g fine sugar

3 Tbsp dried cranberries

3 Tbsp whipping cream

2 Tbsp milk

2 eggs, beaten

1) sift flour & baking powder, mix in salt

2) blend in butter & cream cheese, until mixture is crumbly

3) stir in sugar & dried cranberries

4) combine the rest of the wet ingredients & mix into the dry 

5) roll out dough to 2-3cm thickness, cut into circles

6) arrange on greased tray & bake in preheated oven 220'C for 15-20min

7) serve warm

TAIWAN TAI YANG BING

太陽餅

Flaky Tai Yang Bing

cut in half

Freshly baked Tai Yang Bing

waiting to be cooled

Tai Yang Bing 

looks like 

Lao Po Bing

but 

these are pale looking

These are sweet 

stuffed pan cakes

in traditional flaky outer shell

It is famous in Taiwan

If your friends come back from Taiwan

they will surely give you a box or 2

The following recipe is adapted from

Alex Goh's Tai Yang Bing

Flaky Crust

A) Water Dough

      1/4 tsp maltose

      50g hot water (added to maltose to dissolve it)

      110g superfine flour

      15g caster sugar

      45g shortening

B) Oil Dough 

      75g superfine flour

      45g shortening

Filling:

20g maltose

1/2 Tbsp hot water (added to maltose to dissolve it)

80g icing sugar (can be reduced if do not like sweet)

25g superfine flour

20g butter

Method:

1) combine ingredients in 

      water dough, 

      oil dough & 

      filling SEPARATELY

2) divide each dough into 8 portions & roll into balls as follows:

3) flatten water dough & wrap oil dough inside
4) flatten ball lengthwise with palm of hand
5) roll out dough flat into rectangle
6) roll up as in swiss roll

8) press to flatten swiss roll, & roll out into rectangle again

9) roll up as in swiss roll one more time

10) fold swiss roll in half & press with palm

11) roll flat into round to wrap filling

12) seal the edge & place on parchment paper

13) bake in preheated oven 200'C for 12-15min

Notes:

1) Tai yang Bing in Taiwan is pale looking

     If you prefer the light colour you need to tent the biscuits

     5 min after baking i.e. before it turns brown!

2) If you like the golden colour:

    glaze with egg yolk + 1 tsp water before going into the oven

CRISPY KUIH BAHULU

Have been wanting to bake some crispy kuih bahulu

but many of the recipes I tried were

soft little zi dang kao

Gathering the informations from various bakers
I have finally arrived at this:

Crispy Kuih Bahulu

160g plain flour (replaced 1 Tbsp with rice flour)
1/4 tsp baking soda
3 eggs, chilled

150g sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence
1/4 tsp salt

oil for brushing moulds

1) heat flours in the oven 150'C for 10min, turning half way, let cool

2) beat eggs, add sugar & salt, and beat until thick, pale & sticky

3) add vanilla

4) fold in sifted flours & baking soda (sifted together)

5) grease moulds generouly & heat up the moulds, must be very hot!

6) fill the kuih bahulu moulds until almost full

7) bake in preheated oven 180'C for 10-15 until golden brown

8) lift up kuih bahulu from moulds with a toothpick

9) clean moulds before the next batch, repeat No.5

10) store in airtight containers, can last for 2 weeks

Notes:
1) to make sure the moulds are well heated up before pouring
    in the batter. If not, the batter will stick to the moulds when baked.
2) When the mould get stuck with crumbs, clean the moulds!

GROUNDNUT BISCUITS

Do you like these traditional Groundnut Cookies?

They are delicate to handle

and

they melt in the mouth in no time!

 Groundnut Biscuits

decorated with roasted peanuts

If you like it plain

Groundnuts are well loved

by my family

This biscuit

is a must when it comes to 

Chinese New Year baking

Without fail, every Chinese New Year

our eldest daughter, Chin

will ask for a tin of this

crumbly biscuits

It is easy to make

and 
fool proof too

Making small balls and pressing down lightly

on the baking sheet may sound easy

but I find using a cookie cutter

is faster and consistent in size too

400g groundnuts, toasted & ground till fine
330g plain flour
200g icing sugar
1 tsp salt
200ml oil (adjust consistency)
egg for glazing

1) mix all ingredients (should be lumpy) may not use up the oil
2) shape & bake @ 170'C for 12-15min

ARROW HEAD CHIPS

This Arrow Head Chips

is found in almost every home

during Chinese New Year

Arrow Head are easily obtainable 

as this is the season

Moreover

it is very easy to prepare too

Let's have a look

1 kg arrow heads (choose evenly sized, no breakage at base)

salt 

oil for frying

1) peel arrow heads leaving the stem to hold, soak in salt water

2) holding on to the stem, thinly slice the root and place on muslin cloth

3) heat oil & deep fry until golden, remove

4) store in air tight container when cooled