FOOCHOW ANG CHOW CHICKEN SOUP

Foochow people love this soup dish

It is usually prepared for ocassions like:

1) Birthdays

2) Festivals like Chinese New Year &

3) Celebration of a new born

In Sitiawan, 

during the olden days, at least @ my mother's time,

the new mother ate this for 30 days!!!

This is prepared every morning

in one big pot

both for the new mother &

guests when they come bearing gifts

It is a way of saying

'thank you'

 and 

'peace be with you'

to the guests

Of course,

mian sian and hard boiled eggs

are often added 

to complete the meal!

1/2 chicken, chopped into bite size

1 large piece ginger, shredded thinly or chopped

few pieces black fungus, soaked & cut

1 Tbsp rice wine residue

3 Tbsp rice wine

2 Tbsp sesame seed oil

2 large bowls of water

salt (optional)

1) heat up sesame seed oil & fry ginger until fragrant

2) add chicken pieces & fry until chicken meat shrink

3) add rice wine residue & fry quickly before adding water

    take care not to burn the rice wine residue

4) add black fungus pieces

5) when the soup boils & the chicken is tender, add rice wine & dish out 

6) serve hot

CHICKEN ESSENCE

Chicken Essence 

is usually prepared for the weak and sickly

It is also prepared for those in Confinement Month

because

1) it is nutriceous

2) can be prepared using the unpaletable parts  e.g. breast meat

& 3) it is easy to prepare 

As this is steamed for long hours,

about 4 hours,

the broth or essence is usually clear and tasty 

A dash of pepper

or ginger powder will give a different taste

but

on its own

I simply love it!

To prepare:

1) get some pieces of chicken meat, can be any part that we dislike 

2) slice thinly or simply chop it with the back of the chopper

3) over-turn a bowl & put it at the base of the steamer or small pot

4) arrange the chicken pieces around as shown

5) add some water (about 1/4 bowl)

6) steam for 4 hours

7) let it cool down for the essence to subside to the bottom

8) remove the chicken pieces which are hard & dry

9) remove the bowl & pour out the essence

10) reheat to serve hot

ONE BOWL BUTTER CAKE

An Old Fashion 

One Bowl Butter Cake

which I learned from my father's friend

Tan Kim Yew, whom we fondly called 大人

He would come on a motorbike
 with his wife riding behind

balancing a big clay tub on her lap

inside which held a 'baseball bat'

He creamed the butter and sugar together 

with the baseball bat in the clay tub, 

until light and fluffy

Vanilla Essence was added at this stage
(Sometimes forgot & not added)

Eggs were added one by one 
with each one well mixed into the butter cream

Flour was first sifted
& 
added to the mixture alternating with the eggs

Milk was only added
if the batter was too thick
and could not drop at the count of 3

Just these few simple steps 

and the cake would be ready after baking 

in preheated oven of 160'C-170'C for about an hour!

Simple
Not many things to wash
so

I made this butter cake, again and again

This is his recipe :

Ingredients:

250g butter, at room temperature
180g caster sugar
250g self raising flour, sifted (or plain flour+2 tsp baking powder)
1 tsp vanilla essence
4 AA eggs
1/4 cup milk, to adjust batter to dropping consistency

Sometimes

he would impress us with 

chocolate flavor as follows:

He would take out some of the plain batter

sifted in some cocoa powder
mix well
adding more if necessary
until the required chocolate colour is reached

And 
all of us would be so happy

 to have a chocolate marble cake!

Method:

1) cream butter & sugar until light & fluffy

2) while creaming the butter, beat eggs with a hand beater until foamy

3) add vanilla essence to creamed butter

4) add 1/3 egg to creamed butter, mix well, fold in 1/3 flour

5) alternate with 1/3 eggs & flour, mix well after each addition

6) when all ingredients have been added, check consistency

7) scoop & drop batter at the count of 3

8) if batter does not drop down at the count of 3, add milk by the Tbsps

9) bake @ bottom rack in preheated oven 170'C for 40-60min

Note:

1) Batter is enough for 2 small bread tin

2) If batter is over mixed, the cake will have a doomed top

3) do not use black baking pan, over browning of cake at sides & bottom

4) for a moist cake, have a small tray of water @ bottom of oven

NO BAKE MANDARIN ORANGE CHEESECAKE

Any left over mandarin oranges?

If you love cheesecake and mandarin

why not bring them together?

Base:

260g oreo biscuits, remove cream & crush

100g butter, melted

1) combine biscuits & melted butter & press firmly to the base of an 8" pan

2) leave in fridge

Filling:

227g mandarin orange juice

2 Tbsp gelatine

227g hot water

500g cream cheese

180g sugar

227g whipping cream

Topping:

2 mandarin, remove seeds & cut into cubes

1) sprinkle gelatine over hot water, heat to dissolve all gelatine

2) cream cheese and sugar until smooth

3) in another bowl. whip cream until soft peak

4) into cream cheese mixture, add dissolved gelatine, orange juice

& mix well

5) add whipped cream & mix until smooth

6) pour onto biscuits, shake to level

7) arrange cut slices of mandarin on the filling

8) refrigerate at lease 4 hurs before serving

CONDENSED MILK LOAF

This is a very soft loaf

with milk fragrant

I followed the recipe shared by Mandy Ng 

 I replaced 50g bread flour with oat bran

and 

it is still soft and fragrant!

Method:

1) everything goes into the bread machine, bread dough cycle 1:30hr

2) divide into 2 loaves & let rise 60min

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

Note: 

Colour of loaf can be quite dark because of the sugar content,

Tent the loaf if necessary

SIMPLE CHILLI PASTE

A simple chilli sauce

can complement noodles, rice

and  

as dipping sauce for fish or meat

1.5 cup dried chilli. soaked & seeds partially removed
2 cups shallots
1 Tbsp garlic
2 Tomato, chopped
1.25 cup cooking oil
salt & sugar to taste

1) blend together chilli, shallots & garlic
2) heat up 1 cup of oil in a kuali
3) pour in blended chilli, shallots & garlic & fry at low to medium heat
4) fry until fragrant & ingredients come together & red oil can be seen at the sides
5) add tomato & continue cooking until well cooked
6) add salt & sugar to taste
7) turn off heat & leave to cool before keeping in bottles

CHAI TEH

Left over from Festive Dinner

Best to bring them together

in ONE big pot

In Foochow, it is called " Chai Teh"

in Hockien, "Chai Booi"

However it is called

all mean Left Over Food

If you know the secret ingredients

I promise you a delicious chai teh

Basic ingredients you see as you stir the pot are

1) green vegetable, Kai choy

2) dried chillies &

3) assam slices

but

behind the scene are

1) tomato ketchap & or

2) sardine in tomato 

In fact

 the last 2 ingredients contribute 

to the rich taste 

and colour

of the dish

without them the taste can be quite flat

However

some like it hot & spicy

some like it sour

more like it sweet

It is your choice

and you can adjust according to your taste buds

A note of advice

always remember to boil the Kai Choy 1st

& pour away the bitter water (1st round of boiling)

before adding the left over food

It does not really matter

whether you buy the long Kai Choy or the short round ones

I prefer short ones

because these are more tender

Happy trying out!

NO BAKED PINEAPPLE CHEESE CAKE

This Cold Refreshing Creamy Cheese Cake

is for you

if you like No baked Cheese Cakes

The ingredients are simple

The biscuits can be prepared days ahead

and 

easily put together

Base:
260g digestive biscuits, crushed
100g butter, melted

Filling:
1 tin pineapple, slice some pineapple strips for topping
2 Tbsp gelatine
8 oz hot water
500g cream cheese
180g sugar
8 oz syrup from canned pineapple
8 oz whipping cream

Method:
1) combine crushed biscuits with melted butter
2) press onto base of 8" greased tray
3) dissolve gelatine in hot water, boil until clear and let cool
4) whip cream
5) cream cheese with sugar until smooth, add dissolved gelatine
6) add whipped cream and continue beating
7) add syrup
8) pour mixture onto biscuits crumbs, sprinkle sliced pineapple pieces on top
9) chill before serving

WHITE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

White Chocolate Brownies

a white version of Brownies

These are soft and fudgy

You will love it if you have a sweet tooth

The recipe is from Broma Bakery

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 large egg

1 can sweetened condensed milk (14oz)

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

1 tsp salt

1.5 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

Topping (optional)

powdered sugar

Method:

1) preheat oven to 170'C & line 8" square tin with parchment

2) double boil to melt butter & white chocolate chips in a bowl

3) when completely melted, add condensed milk, vanilla extract and salt

4) add in beaten egg, combine well

5) fold in flour (sifted with 1 tsp baking powder)

6) spread in the baking tin & bake for 30min

7) allow to cool in pan for 10min when done (soft to handle)

8) cool completely on wire rack before cutting & sift powdered sugar as topping

SUPER MOIST LOW FAT BUTTER CAKE

If you love Butter Cake
and not comfortable with the high content of fats
try baking this low-fat version which I adapted from 
Bakingtaitai's recipe 

Ingredients:
6 eggs separated

A) 1) 170g plain flour sifted with
         1 tsp baking powder and mix in
         1/4 tsp salt
    2)  95g caster sugar creamed with
         125g butter until fluffy
    3)  add 1 tsp vanilla essence
    4)  add egg yolk one at a time, switch off machine when the last yolk goes in
    5)  fold in sifted flour, alternate with 2-4 Tbsp of fresh milk
    6)  leave aside & preheat oven to 150'C

B) 7) whip egg white until bubbles appear
     8) add 35g caster sugar & continue beating until stiff peaks
     9) fold 1/3 of the meringue into egg yolk mixture, mix well
    10) transfer the mixture back to the meringue and mix well
    11) Do not over mix than necessary
    12) pour mixture to 8" cake pan and bake for 40-50min until cooked