Chocolate Macarons

This is my 2nd try of macaron...Did a batch last year, it was a total disaster, sadly tuck my recipe under my bed, trying to sleep over it...Then Shan pose me a challenge just last week, should I do it, but the fear of failure keeps ringing my mind...is the time & effort worth the try? But then, I "zhuo bo" at home, & thank God I try & still quite ok. It was sweet & it taste better after a day old. Chill the leftovers.

Macaron Batter

100g of icing sugar
50g of powdered almond
25g of unsweeten coco powder
2 egg whites at room temperature
65g of sugar

Cream Cheese Filling

50g of cream cheese
2 tbsp of icing sugar


Method

• Preheat oven to 170 or 180 degrees C ( Depends on each individual oven )
• Line 2 baking trays with silicone mat ( you can use greaseproof or parchment paper if you do not own silicone mat, but beware, the macarons tend to stick to the paper, have to remove it slowly & gently )
• Prepare a piping/ pastry bag with a plain tip of 2cm
• Grind the icing sugar, almond powder and coco powder so that there is no lumps, sieve the mixed powder
• Use the electric mixer and beat egg whites till they begin to rise and hold shape, add in sugar while whipping until the egg whites are stiff and firm, around 2 mins
• Fold in dry ingredient at one go into the egg whites with a rubber spatula, when mixture is fully incorporated with no streaks of egg whites
• Scrape the batter into the pastry bag
• Pipe the batter onto the silicone mat in 3cm circles, evenly spaced 3 cm apart
• Let them sit in the room temperature, they will develop a "skin", touch the piped batter with your fingers to make sure they are not tacky
• Bake them for 15 mins. Let them cool completely then remove from silicone mat
• Pair the matching shells together, pipe the whipped cream cheese in the middle of the shell, sandwich 2 shells together. Done:)) Enjoy!

Note: The above photo is bake at 180 degrees C for 15 mins. If you want a lighter shade of brown, perhaps can bake at 170 degrees C for 15 mins.


To make cream cheese

• Whip cream cheese and icing with a whisk till soft

Double Chocolate Cookie

Make 2 batches of Double Chocolate Cookies. 52 cookies. Taste chewy in the center and crunchy around the sides. Yummy... Hubby loves it cos its chocolate, and we just have cookies for dinner...he ate 10 I think, ya I lost count liao...and he even "ta-bao" for his colleagues...haha...O, Hubby is very touched by my cookies and he sang me a song "我深深地爱着你"... lol:))))

So for those who wants their boyfriends or husband to love you more...make this la:)

I brought 1 bottle full of cookies to office, guess what happens, it was all gone in split seconds lor...my manager's son Elden love it so much, he ate one after another...lol...my sweet tester:)))


Ingredients: ( makes about 26 cookies )

1 cup + 2 tbsp of All purpose flour
1/2 tsp of Baking Soda
1/2 tsp of Salt
113g of butter, very soft
1/4 cup of brown sugar ( I bought natural cane sugar in NTUC )
1/2 cup of caster sugar
1/2 tsp of vanilla essence
1 Egg
2/3 of semi sweet chocolate chip


Method

• Preheat oven to 190 degrees C
• In a mixing bowl, add white sugar & brown sugar to butter, use spatuala and mix it together around 2 -3 mins
• Add egg & vanilla essence, use a whisk & whisk it about 20 - 30 seconds
• In another bowl, add flour, baking soda & salt, whisk it with a whisk to air it ( this accomplish the same thing as sieving)
• Add dry mix into the wet mixture, mix evenly with spatuala until evenly combine
• Add chocolate chip into the mixture, mix till the chips are fully integrated
• Scope the mixture with a teaspoon onto the silicone mat/ greaseproof paper ( can use a 2nd teaspoon to assist to push the mixture onto the S -mat )
• Take note to leave enough space for the cookie to spread on the mat while baking.
• Bake in oven for about 9 to 10 mins. ( for my oven 9 mins is just nice, 10 min the colour of cookie is slightly darker, I like mine lighter tone )
• After remove tray from the oven, let cookies cool down for about 10 mins ( Do not transfer to a rack yet, as the hot babe...i mean the cookie is still soft )
• After 10 mins, transfer cookie onto a rack to continue cooling.
• Done & enjoy:))
  
  

Ichigo Daifuku - Strawberry Mochi

Daifuku is a kind of Japanese soft mochi cakes. Can serve with hot tea.

I love mochi, soft and sweet from redbean, sour from strawberry, the mix is just right. I am so crazy about mochi that I even bought a mochi machine, but then, I have yet to grasp the technic of handling the softness of glutinous rice, anyway, once I master the machine technics will intro to you all. So meantime, I will do steaming on stove method.


Ingredients:

1 cup of glutinous rice flour
3/4 to 1 cup of water
2 tbsp of sugar
7 strawberries, rinsed and hulled
1 pack of Tsubuan or redbean paste ( I bought it from Daiso $2 per pack )
Potatoe starch for coating the glutinous rice sticky paste


Method:

• Wrap the strawberry in the tsubuan. Set aside.
• Combine glutinous rice flour, sugar and water, mix well and smooth.
• Pour into a glass bowl suitable for steaming. Cover the bowl with a aluminium foil to prevent droplets of water forming on the paste during steaming.
• Steam over a boiling pan for 10 mins. Take the glutinous rice flour mixture out of the pan after steaming for 5 mins. Give the mixture a good stir. Put it back into the steamer to steam for another 5 mins.
• Dust your counter top or silicone mat with potatoe starch.
• Remove the glutinous rice dough from the steamer, roll on the potatoe starch.
• Sprinkle potatoe starch all over the hot dough, coat your hands with potatoe starch to prevent the dough sticking onto your hands.
• Pinch out a portion of paste, about size of a pingpong ball.
• Flatten it with your fingers, take the strawberry and put in the center of the flatten dough. Pinch it to close so that you will have a nice strawberry ball.
• Should you find it too sticky to handle, put more potatoe starch on your hands.
• Done! Enjoy:))

Thai Pumpkin Custard ( Sangkaya Fak Thong )

I made 3 types of dessert in one weekend...this is a Thai dessert - Pumpkin Custard.
Pumpkin is steam till soft and custard's sweetness is just right. Very good review from friends who visited us for dinner.

Ingredients

1 small Japanese Pumpkin ( kabocha )
3/4 to 1 cup of coconut milk
4-5 eggs
1/3 cup of palm sugar ( i use Kula Melaka )
A pinch of salt
4 pandan leaves

Method

• Cut the top of the pumpkin and use the spoon to remove seeds inside
• Beat eggs in a large mixing bowl
• Add coconut milk and stir well
• Add palm sugar, salt and pandan leaves
• Squeeze the pandan leaves until the palm sugar dissolves and all ingredients mix well
• Sieve custard mixture into the pumpkin and steam for 45 mins or well done
• Cut pumpkin custard into pieces and serve.

Note: I put the cooled pumpkin into the fridge and serve cold next day. But if you want to eat it while its warm, should be ok too:) enjoy!

Tuna Kim Chi Soup

It was a hot day afternoon, without Hubby around...sianzzz..what to eat for lunch alone:((

This is a quick dish, cooking time is super fast. Go well with rice. Should you be pondering between instant noodles & Kimchi soup, I would choose the latter.


Ingredients

1 cup of kimchi
1 1/2 - 2 cups of water
4 gloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp of korean chilli flakes
2 tsp of soysauce
1 tsp of fish sauce
1 can of tuna chunks in olive oil ( I use ayam brand )


Method

• Heat pot with olive oil ( I use the olive oil from the can of tuna )
• Add garlic and chilli flakes, fry for a while
• Add Kimchi, soy sauce, fish sauce, stir fry 1 min
• Add water and tuna, bring soup to a boil. ( the added water should cover slightly above the kimchi )
• Taste soup to see if you need to add more soy sauce.
• Done! Serve with rice.

Japanese Cabbage Rolls

This is a popular Japan Home Cook Dish. Simple yet can have 3 in 1 effect. Veg + Meat + Soup. Have this dish accompany with rice will be superb:)

Ingredients:

8 Big Cabbage Leaves
300g of Minced Beef
1/2 Onion, minced
1/2 radish, minced
5 mushrooms, diced
1/2 can of diced tomatoes
2 cups of water
1 Bullion cube
Japan Rice Wine, a dash


Method:

• Slice off the hard core in the middle of the cabbage with a knife
• Soak Cabbage in water and peel off 8 pieces
• Add Cabbage leaves into boiling salted water till soft, cool in cold water & set aside
• Mix minced beef, onion, radish & mushrooms with salt & pepper, knead with hands
• Divide minced beef into 8 portions
• Place the ball size beef in the center of the cabbage leaf, fold the sides and roll up the leaf
• Put the rolls into the saucepan
• Add 2 cups of water, bullion cube, diced tomatoes, bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat for 25 mins.
• Add a dash of rice wine, cook for another 5 mins.
• Serve and Enjoy:))

Meringue with Whipped Cream & Strawberries ( Meringa )

Ingredients:

250g of Sugar

4 Egg Whites ( Room Temperature )

Cream ( Filling ):

1/2 litre of fresh cream

100g of Sugar

Garnish:

Bitter Coco Powder

Some Strawberries

Method:

• Put sugar in a bowl of your electric mixer


• Add egg white, slightly toss with a whisk


• Beat the meringue with the electric whisk on high speed for 15 mins until it reaches the right consistency ( it should be silken, smooth, soft, glossy, it doesn't fall out when scope up with the rubber scraper )


• Transfer the meringue to the pastry bag


• Pipe the meringue onto grease paper or silicone baking mat, making meringue circles of 6cm in diameter.


• Place baking tray in a preheated oven to 90 degree C to 100 degree C.


• Bake for 1 1/2 hr.


• Remove from oven after 1 1/2 hrs, the colour of the meringue will look white & glossy.

Cream ( Filling ):

• Pour fresh cream into the electric mixer, add 100g of sugar, slightly toss with a whisk, whip until foamy


• To decorate the plate, dust the plate with bitter coco powder


• Arrange the meringue on the plate, pipe the whip cream on the meringue, add sliced strawberries on the whip cream, top with another meringue


• Garnish some strawberries on the plate


• Meringue is done! Ready to serve. Enjoy:))

Note:

• Meringue cooking time depends on its dimension. A bigger meringue needs longer cooking time.


• Maintaining the cooking temperature under 100 degree C, the meringue will be white & dry.