ENGLISH SCONES

English Scones

is crumbly 

and 

has a strong buttery taste if you use a good brand butter.

I love its crumbly texture

I love it even more if it is warmed

and have a good spread butter

Love it?

This recipe is shared by my sister-in-law, Pauline Cheng.

I have made some modification to suit my taste.

English Scones

400g self raising flour (or all purpose flour+3.5 tsp baking powder)

125g cold butter

1/4 tsp salt

4 Tbsp sugar

2 eggs, beaten

100-120g milk

Raisin or cranberry (optional)

1. combine salt, sugar and flour in a mixing bowl

2. rub the fat into the flour mixture

3. add raisins if used

4. mix in beaten egg

5. gradually add the milk, GENTLY mix  to form a soft dough

6. divide dough, and form into 2 disc of 1/2" to 3/4" thick

7. cut to required size and put onto a lined baking tray

8. bake in preheated oven 200-220'C for 10-15min until brown

APPLE COBBLER

Apple Cobbler

made from fresh apples.

I have added some cranberries both for colour and taste.

This is a simple recipe.

It does not require many ingredients 

only those available in the pantry.

Apple Cobbler 

served with a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream

If you are interested:

Apple cobbler

Filling:

5 cups apples, peeled & chopped

80g castor sugar

1 tsp cinnamon powder

1/2 tsp nutmeg powder

 2 Tablespoon plain flour

Topping:

60g castor sugar

60g cold butter, cut into flour

60g plain flour (I added 30g more)

Method:

1) combine all ingredients in the Filling and leave aside 

2) preheat oven to 180’C

3) combine sugar and flour in a small basin

4) cut the butter into flour mixture

5) crumbs with lumps is fine
6) pour the fruits into a baking tray, spread evenly
7) add the toppings to cover the fruits
8) bake for 40min until brown
9) serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream

JEMPUT PISANG

CRANBERRY SQUARES

Cranberry Squares
can be whipped up easily if you run out of something for tea.
It is done in One Bowl!

Cranberry Squares

100g salted butter, melted

100g sugar

2 eggs 

1 tsp vanilla essence

115g self raising flour or plain flour +3/4 tsp baking powder

60g dried cranberry

1. beat together sugar & melted butter 

2. add vanilla essence & eggs, one at a time

3. beat until well combined & light

4. fold in flour making sure do not overbeat!

5. add dried cranberries& pour into a line baking tray

6. bake in preheated oven 170'C for 25-30min until done.
7. best served warm!

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

ZUCCHINI FRITTERS

Zucchini Fritters

I have never tasted Zucchini.
By its appearance, I thought it is another species of cucumber.

The vegetable seller told me it is nice to eat,
simply fry it will do.
So I bought one piece, yellow colour one.

Many of my Facebook friends gave suggestions of how to cook this.
My niece Linda Su suggested Fritters.
And here it is: Zucchini Fritters!

After I googled, I realized that it has 10 health benefits!

Here is an extract from Pinterest:

This recipe is found in www.justataste.com

Zucchini Fritters

1 zucchini 7" length, shredded

3 Tbsp all-purpose flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3 sprigs scallions, cut into small pieces

1 Tbsp oil

salt & pepper to taste

1. mix some salt to the shredded zucchini, and allow it to stand for 15min

2. squeeze out as much liquid from the zucchini as possible

3. transfer the zucchini to a large bowl, mix in flour, egg and cut scallions

4. add seasoning to taste

5. heat up oil in a pan

6. once the oil is hot, scoop 2 Tbsp mounds of batter into the pan, press lightly

7. cook for 2-3min, then flip over and cook another 2 min until brown and cooked through.

8. serve warm when it is crispy.

2 INGREDIENTS PANCAKE

Pancakes are easy to prepare

and loved by many,

adults & children alike.

2 Ingredients Pancake

is easy to prepare, healthy and nutricious.

The little ones will love it because it is sweet and soft,

If you are interested:

2 Ingredients Pancake

1 egg

80-100g banana, mashed

1. combine both ingredients & fry as normal pancakes
2. enjoy

BLUE BERRY MUFFIN

When you do not have any fresh blue berries in the fridge.

but the little ones like to have a blue berry muffin,

what can you do?

No worries!

I always soak some dried berries e.g. blue berry or cranberry,

and freeze it until required!

Not in season?

Check my freezer, it is ever ready!

Blue Berry Muffin

A. 100g dried blue berry, soaked in orange juice, drained

B. 50g butter, melted

    10g oil

    70g sugar

    1/4 tsp salt

    1 egg

    110g yoghurt

C. 170g self raising flour

Method:

1. whip together B, add drained blue berries

2. sift in flour & mix to combine, lumpy is ok, do not over mix

3. scoop into muffin cups

4. bake in preheated oven 180'C for 30min until brown.

BANANA SWEET CORN MUFFIN

My 2 little grand-daughters Hannah and Joyanne
love sweet corn.

This Banana Sweet Corn Muffin
is good for them.
It is packed with the goodness of bananas,
less sugar and high fibre!

Banana Sweet Corn Muffin

makes 4 muffins

Ingredients A

100g banana, mashed

1 egg, lightly beaten

35g milk

60g butter, melted

5g corn oil

30g brown sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla essence

1/4 tsp salt

35g sweet corn kernels

Ingredients B 

110g self-raising flour

3/4 tsp baking powder

1) preheat oven to 180'C 

2) combine A and mix well

3) sift & fold B into the mixture (Do not overmix!) lumps is ok

4) scoop into muffin cups about 80% full

5) bake for 30min

IRISH SCONES

Scones 
are usually served during tea time.

I love it warmed,
and with a good spread of butter and jam.

It is a quick bread, baked mildly sweet.
Some like it plain,
but I like it with raisins or cranberry.

I have adapted this recipe from Gemma Stafford.

Irish Scones

340g self-raising flour

80g cold butter

1.5 tsp baking powder

50g sugar

50g raisins/cranberries/sultanas

150g milk

1 egg, beaten

1. sift together self-raising flour & baking powder. 

2. cut cold butter, and rub into the sifted flour, until resembles course breadcrumbs

3. stir in dried fruits

4. in another bowl, whisk egg and milk until thoroughly combined

5. pour enough egg mixture into the flour and stir until a soft dough is formed.

    You may not use up all the milk. Keep the remaining for brushing 

6. transfer the dough to a floured surface and pat to 1.5" thick

7. cut scones out & place on a parchment lined baking tray

8. brush top with the remaining milk

9. bake in preheated oven, 210'C for 25-30min until golden brown.

Note:

The scones will be lighter and softer if

1) the butter is cold, make sure it does not melt

2) you handle the dough lightly and gently

PANCAKES

Pancakes

How about some hot Pancakes for breakfast?

I would love to have it with butter and maple syrup.

Tea time is just as good

if I can have it with some freshly cut fruits and ice creams.

Pancakes

100g self raising flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 egg

2.5 Tbsp sugar

100g milk

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp melted butter

1. sift together flour and baking soda
2. add salt & mix well. Leave aside
3. whisk together egg and sugar 

2. add milk and whisk until sugar dissolves

3. sift in flour and mix to form a smooth batter

4. add melted butter & mix well

5. leave aside while preparing the frying pan

6. heat up a frying pan, coat pan will a little oil 

7. pour 1/3 cup of batter onto the hot pan, allow to cook until top bubbling

8. carefully turn over and cook the other side until brown.

9. serve before it gets cold

CHWEE KUEH

CHWEE KUEH

is a popular breakfast treat in Singapore.

It is easily available in markets and food courts.

It was there that I first tasted it...

Chwee Kueh
40g rice flour
1/2 Tbsp corn flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cooking oil
60g water
60g boiling water

1) oil 6 pieces tart moulds, and steam in a hot steamer
2) combine rice flour, corn flour & salt with water
3) add boiling water & oil, mix well
4) pour into heated moulds & steam for 20min
5) allow to cool before removing from moulds

Chwee Kueh is served with a preserved radish topping.
It can be easily prepared as follows:

Filling:
1/2 pkt preserved radish, chopped
2 garlic, minced
1/2 Tbsp dried shrimps, soaked & chopped
1/2 Tbsp cooking oil
soya sauce, sugar and pepper to taste
some dark soya sauce, optional

1. heat oil in wok, fry garlic & dried shrimp until fragrant
2. add preserved radish & fry until quite dry
3. add a little water and allow to simmer
4. add seasoning, and a pinch of wheat flour
5. dish up & scoop onto chwee kueh and serve.

3 Ingredients One Bowl Egg Cake

I am sure many of us know about this

3 Ingredients Egg Cake

in the ratio of 1 : 1 : 1 cup

It is a Traditional Egg Cake

made in many of the Chinese households

during the olden days.

Simple ingredients readily available in the pantry,

egg, flour and sugar

and 

easily whipped up,

in One bowl!

Those days, this Egg cake was usually steamed

unless you had a made shift

OVEN

The Egg Cake was baked in 

an old but big clay pot, heated over a charcoal stove.

It was then covered with a metal plate 

with the 4 corners tied with a string extended to the top & drawn together

for easy lifting.

This plate was then filled with some burning charcoal

to give heat to the top of the cake.

How do you like baking with such an oven?

Starting from getting the stove lit up

and 

the cake whipped up by hand (muscle training),

the chores was tedious.

My hubby told me that

like every family in the village

they also made this Egg Cake when they were young.

His eldest sister, 

Esther,

the baker of the house,

would usually gather them (the remaining 5 siblings)

to help in the whisking of the eggs with a spring whisk

while she got the 'oven' ready!

The eggs did not seem to rise at all

(they were all very young children)

and 

they had to whisk very long time to get it ready.

Not surprising that half way, few of them would sneak out to play.

In fact, some would quietly fled 

when Esther was getting ready the utensils & ingredients.

To bring back the sweet memories

he actually whisked the eggs for me by hand!

3 Ingredients One Bowl Egg Cake

1 cup egg (5 large eggs)

1 cup plain flour ( 110g - I added 1 tsp baking powder)

1 cup sugar (I reduced to 150g)

1) whisk up eggs in a electric mixer

2) gradually add in sugar

3) when the egg mixture comes to ribbon stage, fold in sifted flour

4) stop mixing when no streaks of flour remain. DO NOT OVERMIX

5) pour mixture into a 8" square pan (line bottom with parchment)

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

7) overturn to cool on wire rack when done

Note:

1. This Egg Cake has a different texture from the sponge cake.

    It is coarse, not so smooth 
2. you can slice it horizontally to put some kaya as filling too

MIN JIANG KUIH

Min Jiang Kuih 
also known as Apam Balik in Malay
is a sweet pancake 

with fillings of roasted groundnuts

It is one of my hubby's favourites

This is a popular hawker food

sold in many of the food courts and markets

either in

small pancakes, folded half

or cut pieces from a big pancake

I followed MiMi Bakery House 's recipe and

made this medium size pancake 

which I cut into 7 pieces

Batter:
130g plain flour
1/4 tsp baking soda 
1 tsp baking powder (if omit, add another 1/4 tsp baking soda)
1/2 tsp yeast
1 egg
25g sugar
160ml water

Filling:
125g peanut, roasted & ground
3 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp butter

1) combine all ingredients in batter to form a smooth batter
2) leave aside for 30-45 min & sieve
3) pour 1-2 laddle of batter into a non stick wok, smooth out 
4) cook on low heat until bubbles appear all over
5) off or reduce heat, sprinkle sugar & peanuts on pancake
6) distribute butter onto peanuts
7) fold pancake over & remove from pan
8) serve hot

WAFFLE

My new toy

A Waffle Stick Maker

and this is the product:

Waffle

105g plain flour
30g corn flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
6 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup milk
1 large egg
1 Tbsp sugar
vanilla extract (optional)

1) sift together dry ingredients & leave aside
2) whisk egg and sugar until pale, beat in cooking oil
3) add milk & vanilla
4) combine wet & dry ingredients
5) pour waffle batter into preheated waffle iron

SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Shortbread Cookies are well recieved 

by those who love the buttery taste cookies.

So, its butter taste depends 

on the choice of the brands

Traditionally, 

these are made in rectangle shape  

but Christine suggests using cookie cutters.

Ingredients:

120g butter, at room tenperature

40g pure icing sugar

150g cake flour

25g rice flour

1/8 tsp salt

Method:

1) sift flours together, add salt & mix well

2) cream butter until smooth

3) add sugar in 3 addition, cream until pale & fluffy

4) fold in flour in 3 batches

5) Do not overmix, use hand to knead into a dough

6) with a rolling pin, roll out into 0.6" rectangle dough

7) cover & refrigerate 1 hour or overnight

8) preheat oven to 150'C

9) remove dough from fridge, leave for 10 min to soften

10) roll out into 0.4" * cut into shapes

11)  bake on lined tray, in preheated oven for 25min

12) leave cookies in oven for another 10min after baking

13) may need to rotate pan while baking for even heating

BAKED CURRY PUFF

Have been contemplating for awhile to make Curry Puffs,

but having them deep fried

just put me off the idea

until I read li-shuan's recipe

www.li-shuan.blogspot.com/2012/07/curry-puff.html

Pastry:

250g all purpose flour

50g rice flour

50g tapioca flour

50g butter

50g oil

130ml icy cold water

pinch of salt

Filling:

350g potato, peeled & diced

1 large onion, diced

160g chicken breast, cut in small pieces

1 Tbsp curry paste (I used A1)

1 Tbsp cooking oil

some curry leaves

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp chicken powder

1 cup water

Method:

Filling:

1) heat up cooking oil in kuali, add onions and fry until fragrant

2) add potato & curry paste

3) add water to cook until potato is soften

4) add breast meat & the rest of the seasoning

5) cook until liquid is reduced

6) dish out to cool before using

Pastry:

1) sift 3 types of flour into a large bowl, set aside

2) in a small sauce pan. melt butter in cooking oil

3) pour hot oil over flours & mix until mixture resembles fine bread crumbs 

4) add in icy cold water, knead to form a soft dough

5) cover dough & leave in fridge for 30min

6) divide into 25g each & wrap filling

7) arrange on baking tray & apply egg wash

8) bake @ 180'C for 10min, turning and bake another 5 min 

Notes:

1) can use toaster oven to bake

2) can freeze the unbaked puffs until required

POUND CAKE

Pound Cake 

is baked with 3 main ingredients in equal weight,
i.e one pound each of  flour, sugar & butter

These days people are more health conscious,
I have reduced the amount of sugar used
in the recipe below:

Pound Cake

125g salted butter

90g caster sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs,AA

125g Self raising flour or (cake flour+1 tsp baking powder)

2-4 Tbsp fresh milk

Method:

1) cream butter and sugar until fluffy

2) add vanilla extract

3) add eggs, one at a time until well mixed

4) fold in flour, adjust batter to dropping consistency with fresh milk

5) pour into a lined bread pan

5) bake in preheated oven 175'C for 40-50min until skewer inserted comes out clean

Variation:

1. Chocolate Pound Cake:

    - replace 18g self raising flour with cocoa powder

2. Chocolate rice can be added to batter

Notes:
1) To avoid cracking & hard crust, do not fill more than 1/2 the height of pan
2) Gluten is produced if batter is over-mix, this cause domed top
3) Do not use black pan as it cause over-browning of side & bottom of cake

PAU

Pau is no big deal?

Not so, when you actually do it hands-on.

The skin tends to wrinkle, and it will not rise as you want it to.

This recipe is printed on the box of Blue Key Pau Flour

I did it!
You can still see some wrinkle?
I think this is my best so far :)

ANGKU KUIH

Just bought a pink angku mould, can't wait to try it out!

I decided to try kimmy's recipe @http://kimmy-cookingpleasure.blogspot.com

Angku ready to steam

Filling rolled into balls

Instead of the red colouring, I used pandan leaf juice

Sweet smell but the colour not nice

The orange colour ones, I used sweet potato

How about trying it with purple colour sweet potato?

Dough with Sweet Potato

150g glutinous rice flour

100g sweet potato, steamed & mashed

100-120g hot water ( boiled with pandan leaves)

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp oil

Method:

1. blend together all ingredients, adjust consistency with water

2. leave aside 1-2 hrs or refrigerate overnight

3. divide filling & dough according to size of mould (25g, 25g my mould)

4. wrap & leave on oiled banana leaves or parchment paper

5. steam in hot steamer 4 min

6. open the cover & wipe dry the cover. Cover & steam another 5min

7. brush top of kuih with oil when cooked to give a glossy top

To conclude:

1) Traditional angku kuih is meant to be red, 

     so cannot avoid red colouring to make it attractive

2) orange or purple sweet potato give nice colour, 
3) with pandan leaf juice, colour may be dull

4) both the recipe give soft angku skin, but the one with sweet potato is softer
5) I have tried replacing the filling with 2 tsp peanut mixture as follows:
    mix 100g peanut, roasted & blended o small pieces
    with  60g sugar