YOU TIAO

cruelers or 'You Tiao'

dipped in a cup of hot coffee or soya bean milk
is a favorite breakfast
among the Chinese community in Asia

Other times
these cruelers are sliced & served
with a bowl of porridge
or
either plain or with minced pork, peanuts, oyster and century egg

When they are sliced lengthwise
filled with minced prawn paste
and
 deep fried to get the extra crunch
and 
served as a dish during meal times

A good you tiao should be crispy on the outside
and soft inside
with honeycomb-like texture
shown in the photo above

This recipe has been adapted from mykitch3n

Alum, ammonia and baking soda 
have been omitted 
but instead added baking powder

It is just like stall bought 
except not so salty

YOU TIAO

200ml water

220g bread flour

1/2 tsp instant yeast

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt (add more if you like stall bought taste)

1 Tbsp oil

More flour for dusting

Oil for deep frying

1) all ingredients into the bread machine, dough cycle to knead only

2) once completed kneading, work the sticky dough on a floured surface

3) shape dough into 2 length of 2" broad rod, cover  & let rest 45min

4) lightly flatten the dough to 1cm thick & 5cm wide

5) cut dough into strips of 2 cm & let stand for 10-15min

6) heat oil in a wok

7) wet a skewer & press lengthwise in the middle across a strip of dough

8) put another strip on top & do the same

9) hold both ends of the pair, pull lightly to fit the diameter of oil in your wok

10) carefully put it into the hot oil

11) turn and toss as soon as the dough is surfaced so that the you tiao can expand

12) fry until golden

SIU MAI DUMBLINGS

Siu Mai Dumbling 

is 

my grandson's favourite

It has intense flavour of pork

so 

if you do not like pork

you can very well replace the filling with chicken

Siu Mai comes in different sizes

big or small

and

served in groups of 3 or 4

in Dimsum Restaurants

Recipe for Siu Mai is rather simple

according to Gui Shu Shu

I have adapted the recipe from his

SIU MAI

400g pork belly, minced

100g prawns, chopped

1 Tbsp corn starch

2 tsp light soya sauce

1 tsp Chinese cooking wine

2 tsp sesame seed oil

1/2 tsp pepper

pinch if salt

wrappers: 30 wanton skin cut into rounds

Garnish: either green pea, salted egg yolk or wolfberries

Method:

1) combine all ingredients & stir well with chopsticks

2) marinate for 1 hour in the fridge

3) scoop 2 heaped Tbsp of filling & wrap with a wanton skin

4) bring in the sides & pat into position with some water

5) leave the top exposed, and let it stand on oiled surface

6) decorate with a wolfberry

7) steam for 8-10 min until skewer inserted comes out clean

8) serve hot!

SYRUP FOR MOONCAKE

Syrup

 

can be bought from Bakery Shops

either 

homemade type or the Branded Golden Syrup

I have used both in Mooncake making

If you like to try 

making some yourself

which I usually do if I have the time

This is the easy recipe:

SYRUP

300g sugar

200g water

4-5 slices lemon

Method:

1) all ingredients into a saucepan & simmer until golden colour

2) remove dried lemon slices

3) keep for 2 weeks before using

TRADITIONAL MOONCAKE

The 15th day of the Eigth month

In the Chinese calendar

Is 

 the Lantern Festival
or 
widely known as
Mid-Autumn Festival

In the olden days

when we were young

We liked to parade with colourful lanterns 

Which came In different shapes and combination of Colour
all of them had the shape of

birds, flowers, rabbits etc

The best part was

we could choose animal or shape what we like

because mummy always brought us to the shop to buy 

As time went by

battery operated lanterns had been introduced

It was more convenient

not like those days when the candle light

could easily been blown off with the slightest wind

We preferred candle lit ones

because we could buy new ones every year
while battery operated ones were made to last!

Mid-Autumn Festival

Is 

a time for family reunion

The family would gather after dinner
to

enjoy the different types of mooncakes 

and seeping their favorite Chinese tea

Children would have their own programe
Together with their cousins
they lighted their lanterns
and

paraded up and down the road
singing and playing

Making Mooncake can be a tedious job

Nevertheless,

 I am anxious to make

especially 

during this Festive Season

where the whole town is talking about it.

I learnt to make Mooncake quite sometime ago

in a local Community Centre

The method could be old

but 

I have used the modern appliances

to speed up the job!

TRADITIONAL MOONCAKE

Ingredients for Skin:(12 pices)

215g Plain Flour 

60g peanut or corn oil 

140g syrup 
3/4 tsp alkali water 

Filling:

A) 12 salted egg yolk

B) 12 portion of 100g each of Lotus seed paste or red bean paste

     12 tsp of melon seed, roasted

C) egg wash: 1 egg yolk+1 tsp water, strain before using

Method:

1) mix ingredients for skin & leave aside for 3 hours or more

2) clean salted egg yolk with some chinese wine to remove the smell

3) drain and steam egg yolk for 20min until cooked, let cool

4) add 1 tsp melon seeds to a portion of the lotus seed paste & press in

5) wrap an egg yolk inside, make into a ball & put aside

6) after 3 hours, divide skin into 35g each (12 balls)

7) press a ball on your palm & put one filling ball in the centre

8) wrap round the filling by slowly pushing the pastry up & pressing in the filling

9) when completely covered, sieve some flour on the wooden mould 

10) sieve flour on the ball on your hand too, especially the sides

11) press the ball into the mould firmly

12) knock on the side of mould twice, front once & the mooncake will be out

13) leave on a piece of grease proof paper, on the baking tray

14) when all done, bake in preheated oven 180'C for 5-8min

15) remove & quickly spray water on the cakes, let cool for 10min

16) egg wash cakes & bake for another 20min until brown

17) leave to cool on wire rack

Note:

1) The skin will not break easily if you rest the dough at least 3 hours or more

2) mooncake needs to be cooled down immediately after 1st bake

3) how the mooncake look depends on your egg wash. Do not brush too much

4) mooncake taste best when eaten after 1 to 2 days

LOTUS SEED PASTE

Traditional Moobcake

are

usually stuffed with either

Lotus Seed Paste

or 

Red Bean Paste

Salted egg inside the cake represents the moon

so

you can either have it plain

or 

with salted egg yolk, 1, 2, 3, or even 4

It involves long hours of work

in order to get this paste ready

so many choose to buy from the baking store

moreover

you can choose sweet or less sweet

This is a recipe that I learnt long time ago

but 

have not posted

Finally I have the time 

to practice

and 

pen down to share with you if you are interested

Lotus Seed Paste

600g dried lotus seed, no skin type

400g corn oil

450g sugar

1) wash lotus seeds & pour boiling water to soak for 20min 

2) open the seeds & remove shoots

3) add enough water & boil in pressure cooker (bean function)

4) when cooled, blend or pulse until fine, add water if necessary

5) with medium heat, heat up 100g oil & 100g sugar in a kuali, until brown

6) add blended lotus seed & fry, make sure it does not stick to the bottom of the kuali

7) add oil & sugar alternately (about 100g each time) until all absorbed 

8) when paste leaves side of the kuali & form a lump, it is time to remove & let cool

9) the frying takes about an hour or more 

Note:

1) leave the filling to cool down for a day before using

2) do not put in the fridge if you want it to remain smooth for mooncake

3) can pour a layer of oil on top if you want to keep it longer up to 2 weeks

BLACK SESAME CHIFFON CAKE

So many people have tried baking 

Black Sesame Chifon Cake 

and

I decided to try 

when 

I was attracted to the photo in 

Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover's blog

I do not have a tube pan

so

I tried her recipe below using 2 bread pan instead

Ingredients:(for 8" tube pan)
A) 4 egg yolk (A size)
    15g caster sugar
    60g corn oil
    60g milk
    70g cake flour
    20g pure black sesame powder

B) 4 egg white (A size)
     70g sugar
    1/4 tsp cream of tarter or
    1/2 tsp lemon juice

1) beat egg yolk with sugar & add in the rest of the A ingredients
2) stir to combine & leave aside
3) beat egg white with cream of tarter
4) add sugar in 3 additions & beat until stiff peak
5) bring 1/3 of the meringue to mix with egg yolk
6) after mixing, fold into the meringue. Do not overmix
7) pour cake into pan 80% full
8) bake in preheated oven 170'C for 35-40min
9) over-turn on cooling rack to cool
10) unmould when cooled

CHEETAHS

My grandson 

Ethan

loves to write stories 

This is the first book

"Cheetahs"

written and illustrated all by himself

at the tender age of six

He gathers information that he has learnt

and 

put it down in his own words

This is his first work

and

I am sure you agree with me that

it is a good attempt

Realizing that he is

talented

and 

he has the patience

we encourage him to continue writing

MY PRAYERS

No one is stronger than You, O God

Your right hand, O Lord, smashes the enemy. 

In the greatness of your Majesty,

You overthrow those who rise against You

Let all that I am praise the Lord. 

O Lord my God, how great You are 

You place the world on its foundation,

In wisdom you created everything on the earth.

I will exalt You my God and King, 

And praise your name forever and ever. 

You are worthy of all praise and honor. 

I will sing with joy about your righteousness

You made the heavens and the earth. 

O Sovereign Lord Nothing is too difficult for You. 

You are great and powerful. 

You perform miraculous signs and wonders,

You are  the same yesterday today and forever

Trust God, commit our ways to Him, 

Rest in Him, the struggles and trials may still be there

but He will give us peace in the midst of them, amen

HOW GOD WANTS US TO LIVE OUR LIVES

As human we have our selfish ideas
Thinking that God is just like one of us
Everything belongs to Him
And that we are under His control!

God is fair! He always gives us a choice
He is not a tyrant Nor an un-reachable God
He provided for us even before we were born
He has every right to take control over us.

He sacrificed His one and only Son
The sinless one, hung on the tree
Just to reconcile us back to Him
So that we can call Him Abba Father

The Father's abundant love for us
Is clearly shown in the cross
And by His stripes we have been healed
Body, soul and spirit!

By this, we know that God wants us to live
An abundant life, free of pain & sufferings
Then, why does God still allow sufferings?
Know you not it is our choice?

Turn back to God and He will make all things right
He will comfort you and heal your brokenness
His heart aches even more when we are in pain
Seeing us not accepting His provision in the cross

Remember our God is a good And faithful God
He forgets your sins and accepts you as you are
Gives you the privilege of a son
And let you come face to face with Him

This is our God, ever so forgiving
So, do not go on a detour anymore
Come back to Him
His wide open arms are waiting for you.

GOD OF HOPE

How many of us Are willing to let go
And ask God to take control of our lives?
Especially we think that God is so far away
And that He is too busy to hear our cries?

Have you ever ponder on His Words and His promises?
Is God really out of sight and out of mind?
If you dare to try God, you will surely see God's hand
For if we call out His name, He will surely hear us!

He is not far from us. He is right here with us.
We believe that our body is the temple of God
And that He never leaves us Nor forsake us
He is more than willing to stretch out His helping hands!

Many of us tend to forget what God has done for us, and
Not giving Glory to God for what He has done in our lives
Instead, murmuring about our prayers not answered
And also being blinded by the circumstances around us!

Since the beginning of time, God has plans for His children
He is a good God, undoubtly His plans are good
Trust Him and He will guide us to embark on His plan
We will see Hope if we will let Him take control of our lives!