~ Carrot Oatmeal

Adapted from:
Eatmedelicious

Description:
Carrot-cake oatmeal minus the fat and sugar.

Ingredients:
1/2 C milk
1/4 C carrots
1/4 C instant oatmeal

Directions:
1. Cook all ingredients together and stir till desired consistency. Serve warm.

Remarks:

Why does most of the food I make turn out to look like baby food? Or I'm just so attracted to recipes that churn out soft mushy food (too lazy to chew my food right?). Anyway, the carrots add an interesting texture to the oatmeal, with a slight tinge of sweetness and carroty goodness - a perfect way to sneak some veggies into breakfast! However, I omitted many ingredients from the original carrot cake oatmeal recipe to cut down on the calories and also due to the fact that I do not possess the necessary ingredients. Do try the original recipe, unless you don't mind a simple fare for simple tastebuds :)

~ Prawn and Fruit Salad

Adapted from:
Swenson's

Description:
A feast for both the eyes and gut~

Ingredients:
9 prawns, deshelled and deveined
1 C strawberry yoghurt
3/4 C mixed fruits (I used fruit cocktail: cherries, grapes, peaches, pears, pineapples)
2 lettuce leaves, shredded

Directions:
1. Cook prawns in salted water, and place them into cold water once done.
2. Arrange lettuce on serving plate, and top with mixed fruits and prawns.
3. Toss with yoghurt to serve.

Remarks:

This was an attempt to recreate the prawn and fruit salad from Swenson's, and well.. it's somewhere there but not yet there =x This deviation could be due to several reasons: I couldn't get hold of a mango yoghurt, and had to replace it with a strawberry one. The absence of cherry tomatoes and raisins accounted for something too.

Nevertheless, it still makes a good, quick and healthy lunch!

~ Broiled Tomato Toast

Taken from:
Tiff's

Description:
Quick and cheesy open-faced tomato toast

Ingredients:
1 tomato, sliced into 4
1 wholemeal bread
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 slice of cheese
Herbs (to taste)

Directions:
1. Spread peanut butter thinly on the bread slice and arrange tomato slices on top, followed by the cheese.
2. Broil for 5-10 min in the oven at 200 deg. Sprinkle with herbs.

Remarks:

Usually such a combination turns me on, but somehow the peanut butter didn't really feel right in this case. It could be due to the herbs; butter seems to be a better choice as a spread in my opinion. The cheese sticks really well to the mouth palate, do beware.

~ Sweet Potato Glutinous Balls

Modified from:
Dad's

Description:
Spongy sweet potato balls swimming in Dad's signature sweet spicy ginger broth~

Ingredients:
1/2 C boiled and mashed sweet potato
1/2 C glutinous rice flour
Ginger broth or any other sweet dessert broth

Directions:
1. Stir mashed sweet potato and rice flour together till a smooth pliable dough is formed. Add in one tbsp of rice flour or more to adjust to suitable consistency. Roll into balls.
2. Cook the balls in broth till the balls float. Serve with broth.

Remarks:

Dad made sweet potato and green bean soup and I just hitched a ride to make these balls since I had cravings for tang yuan :) They somehow remind me of the gnocchi that I've been thinking of making.

~ Benne Wafers

Modified from:
Allrecipes

Description:
Crispy black sesame wafers from South Carolina~

Ingredients:
1 1/2 C sesame seeds
1/2 C butter, melted
1/2 C brown sugar
1/2 C white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 C flour
1/4 tsp baking powder

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 190 deg.
2. Place the benne (sesame) seeds on an ungreased baking sheet and toast for 10 to 12 minutes, until light brown. Watch closely to avoid burning.
3. In a large bowl mix the brown sugar, melted butter, egg, vanilla extract, flour, salt, baking powder and toasted sesame seeds together until combined.
4. Drop dough by 1/2 tsp 1 1/2 inches apart onto a lightly greased baking sheet and flatten with a spoon.
5. Bake at 190 deg for 6 minutes, until light brown. Let cookies cool for about 2 minutes before removing from baking sheets to a wire rack to cool completely. Store cooled cookies in an airtight container.

Remarks:

These are really crispy, fragrant and addictive after being cooled down. Now I have a sorethroat because of them. I found that the oil and sugar were too much though. Should have tried the benne wafer recipe from Gourmet instead as it seems healthier compared this one. Try not to burn the cookies in the oven as burnt sesame seeds are bitter.

~ Cauliflower Carrot Soup

Modified from:
Allrecipes

Description:
Low carbo nutritious soup for weight-watchers

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, diced

1/2 head cauliflower, chopped into small florets

2 carrots, chopped

1 C water
1/4 C milk
1/2 tsp soysauce

1 tsp potato starch

Directions:
1. Bring onion, cauliflower and carrots to boil. Simmer for 15 min till water is almost dry.
2. Mix starch and soysauce with milk. Stir into veggies and simmer till desired consistency.

3. Serve warm.

Remarks:
This soup smelt really horrid while cooking, most probably due to the distinct cauliflower smell (is there a term for this?!) coupled with the onions~ Wow, their smells blended well together to tease your sensory neurons the wrong way. Anyway, the taste wasn't as bad though, and carrots were very sweet, thus masking any "awful" taste present. I threw in some leftover lettuce too, which turned out ok. The potato starch (or some flour) is a must to thicken the soup, unless you like a runny soup. In order to make the soup seem more soup-like, I tried mashing it up and it turned out like baby food:

Anyway, I've tried the following peanut butter and raisins combination for my sandwich, and it's good!

~ Lettuce and Potato Soup

Modified from:
Frances

Description:
Simply heart-warming potato soup~

Ingredients:
I large russet potato, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 small head of lettuce
1 C water
1/4 C milk
1/2 tsp soysauce
Chilli flakes (taste and garnish)

Directions:
1. Boil potato and onions in water till soft, around 10 min.
2. Add in lettuce and simmer till lettuce has wilted.
3. Stir in milk and soysauce, and bring to boil.
4. Garnish with chilli flakes and serve warm with bread.

Remarks:

I didn't know that lettuce can be made into such a yummy treat! Oh so potatoey and creamy! I didn't blend the soup up as indicated in the original recipe though. Maybe I should have added some carrots and ham (this soup lacks protein!) to make it more nutritious. Would make this again!

~ Tomato Barley Soup

Modified from:
Allrecipes

Description:
Versatile barley and vegetable soup for the soul~

Ingredients:
1 carrot, cut into chunks
1/2 green pepper, sliced
1 clove garlic
2 small tomatoes, diced
2.5 g bonito flakes
1/4 C pearl barley
1 C water
1/2 tsp oil

Directions:
1. Sauteed garlic, carrot and green pepper in oil.
2. Add in the rest of the ingredients and bring to boil.
3. Simmer for 20 min till barley is soft. Serve warm on a rainy day.

Remarks:

Somehow it's a soup with a very distinct aroma (fishy, sourish) and I guess it would take an acquired taste to like it. Ran out of celery and onions, and I threw in bonito flakes to act as soup stock, so most probably resulting in the overwhelming aroma. I particularly like the barley bits added- chewy and bursting with taste.

Personally I think that the oil was uncalled for - just throw everything like a one-pot stew and walah~ a simple and hearty mix of tomato soup.

This aside, I've been rather busy lately, with a test every week till the study week, which is then followed by my semester-end exams~ Kinda stressed, but I shall be optimistic and have D-E-S-S-E-R-T-S (stressed spelt backwards) instead =)
Oh ya, I shall keep a lookout for the recipe (can't find online nor in books T.T) for egg boros too, I simply adore these little cute sugary treats:

I want to make them after my exams!!

~ Honey Agar

Modified from:
Swallow Globe Brand Agar Agar

Description:
Golden treasures, sweet and yummy~

Ingredients:
1 packet of agar (12g)
1000 ml water
200 g honey

Directions:
1. Bring water and agar to boil, till everything is dissolved.
2. Pour into moulds, let the agar cool till lukewarm but not solidified.
3. Stir in honey evenly, and cool completely before storing in fridge

Remarks:

I love these adorable chilled treasures! The honey I used to substitute the sugar away is Chiangmai's Thepprasit Honey, which boasts of many health benefits (and cost a bomb too). This "special pure honey collected from the herbal flowers in Golden Triangle Mountains" is worlds apart from those found in the supermarket - sweet, subtle and addictive! Now it has being incorporated into agar, it makes consumption a much more enjoyable and less messy process for a lazy person like me!

~ Tuna Tofu Patty

Taken from:
Nacchan's

Description:

Ingredients:
1 pkt (300 g) tofu, well-drained
1 can flaked tuna, drained
1 egg
1/4 C grated carrot
1 tbsp soysauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:
1. Wrap tofu with paper towel and microwave for 2 minutes. This gets rid of extra moisture. Mash tofu well.
2. Combine all the ingredients except for oil.
3. Heat oil in a non-stick pan over medium high heat.
4. Form small patties and sear them (squeeze them to get rid of any extra moisture). Flip the patty when it's nice and brown so that it does not crumble. Lower the heat to medium low. Put a lid on and keep searing for 2-3 minutes. Drizzle soy sauce over it to serve.

Remarks:

Bland, and the patties weren't up to standard. The tofu needed to be drained more and the frying process could have been well done. If I had sufficient time (not rushing for school every weekday) and some other ingredients (like spring onions, mushroom), they *may* have turned out better.

~ Passionfruit Yoghurt Salad

Taken from:
Kat's and Tiff's

Description:

Ingredients: (serves 4)
2 passion fruit flesh

1 kiwi, diced

1 apple, diced

1 orange, diced

8 small strawberries, diced

1 C (150 g) mango and peach yoghurt

Directions:
1. Toss all together and serve cold.

Remarks:

It's quite a sour dish for me, but still surprising good considering the fact that it was just a random mix of fruits that we can get our hands on at that point of time.

~ Mango and Peach Yoghurt Cheesecake

Modified from:
Allrecipes

Description:
Light and fruity cheesecake to pleasure your senses~

Ingredients:
2 slices of wholemeal bread
1 tbsp butter, softened
190 g cream cheese, softened
1/4 C white sugar
2 1/4 tsp flour, sifted
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
150 g mango and peach yogurt

1/4 C fruits, diced

Directions:
1. Chop the bread into crumbs. If the bread is too soft, leave it on the counter for 30 min to harden.
2. Stir 3/4 of the butter into the crumbs and press onto the bottom of a 4.5" springform tin. Lightly coat the sides of the tin with the remaining butter.
3. Preheat oven to 175 deg.
4. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese till creamy. Beat in sugar, vanilla and flour until smooth. Beat in the egg, and stir in yogurt with fruits. Pour filling into crust.
4. Place the tin in a water bath (filling up to 3/4 of the tin), and bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 40 min, or until filling is set. Cheesecake should be done when the 1" of the centre of the cake is still jiggly. Leave in the oven to cool for 1 hour and refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.

Remarks:
As I was walking home, I suddenly recalling having 3/4 block of cream cheese (~190 g) that's going to expire soon. And since I haven't been baking for some time, I decided to make a yoghurt cheesecake and just searched my favourite recipe source for the ingredient proportions.

Because of this cake I had to specially make a trip down to NTUC to get the desired yoghurt (only had blueberry yoghurt which I didn't feel like adding it to the cheesecake), but ops I'd forgotten to get the biscuits for the crust. Thus, this explains for the bread crumb crust instead of the usual biscuit crumb crust. It's really tough to chop the 2-day-old bread into crumbs; the bread these days really do stay soft for quite some time! Anyway, try to use minimal butter just to hold the bread together and press down really hard to get the bread crumbs to stick together. Well every small step counts in the quest for healthy eating right? (further note: possible to reduce sugar to 2 to 3 tbsp as yoghurt is already quite sweet; use low fat creamcheese and non-fat yoghurt; omit flour for a denser texture)

I've tried the batter and it was rather yoghurty, not too much of the creamcheese taste. But during baking, the aroma produced was divine~ so sweet and enticing till I wanted to sink my teeth into the warm custardy cake though it's still cooking in the oven! It's a really painful wait to let it cool down for so long..

It's a creamy cake, with a fruity taste imparted by the flavoured yoghurt. The addition of diced fruits was right on the spot, as they added texture to the dense cheesy layer. The wholemeal bread base was too overwhelming for most people who had it, but it seemed pretty good for my preference. Kudos to this wonderful recipe (and its creator)!

~ Cinnamon Banana Oatmeal

Taken from:
Tiff's

Description:
All-natural breakfast with banana and oat!

Ingredients:
1 banana, sliced
1/2 C water
3/4 C fresh milk
1/2 C instant oatmeal
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

Directions:
1. Boil water and cook the banana till soft, around 5-10 min. (caution: this step does not produce a good aroma)
2. Add in instant oats and stir till a paste is formed.
3. Stir in the milk, boil and let it simmer till desired consistency.
4. Sprinkle with cinnamon powder before serving. Enjoy!

Remarks:

In my usual oatmeal I would just used sweetened condensed milk, which seems rather unhealthy due to the glucose content and less nutritious as compared to fresh milk. However, fresh milk does not contain enough sweetness to make the oatmeal palatable (for my case). Thus, I just thought of utilising a natural sucrose source: banana! I love banana! I've often heard of pre-mixed oatmeal sachets that come in an assortment of flavours. So why not try it on my own? Here's the outcome - smooth, creamy, bananaey, cinnamony, healthy oatmeal to start one's day right!

~ Potato Salad

Taken from:
-

Description:
Shephard's pie filling without the chicken

Ingredients:
1/2 stick celery, diced
1 tbsp pickled cucumber, diced
1/2 C frozen mixed beans, thawed
2 medium potatoes, boiled and diced
1 hardboiled egg, mashed
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp mixed herbs
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp butter
Pepper & salt to taste

Directions:
1. Toss all ingredients together. Serve warm or cold.

Remarks:

There was no chicken lying around so this became an improvised meatless dish (what was I thinking about when I wrote this?) Anyway, it tasted ok to me but my family didn't appreciate it and no one wanted to finish the half I left for them.

Enough said of the failed recipe, I got other things to rant about. When I feel upset, emo-eating kicks in and I totally hate it! Having 1/2 bowl of red ruby coconut ice dessert and 8 or 9 slices of Marie biscuits slathered with one tbsp of peanut butter each in addition to my potato salad and milk and lunch cheese sandwich and starfruits and dragonfruits (est. 2.6k calories), was such a big booboo! Not only will the empty calories increase my susceptability to ailments (induce heart disease, clog arteries, encourage diabetes development, add on hideous adipose tissues, desensitise tastebuds, promote tooth decay and infection and so on), they made me feel worse now! Furthermore, being constipated for 2-3 days certainly did not alleviate my blues! Can a vehicle just knock me down now?

I need to promise myself to not "indulge" in such an eating frenzy (I don't even enjoy the taste of the additional calories I've put into my mouth), for the sake of my physical and mental health

~ Abacus Seeds (Suan Pan Zi)

Taken from:
Mum's

Description:
Chewy Hakka yam beads tossed with savoury shrimps and fungus!

Ingredients:
-

Directions:
-

Remarks:

I love this traditional Hakka dish! Mum's version of abacus beads was too overwhelming with shrimpy taste and I couldn't taste the yam. Shhh, do not tell Mum i said this =x I told her it was good instead.. Shhh!!!

~ Peanut Butter Banana Toast

Taken from:
-

Description:
-

Ingredients:
-

Directions:
-

Remarks:

Tiff: Mi ke! u wan to try nutella/peanut butter with banana slices sandwich?

Mi ke: Haha.. U making ah? I dun mind.. Thanks my wife! =p

Tiff: Aiya banana very long ma =p u lyk thick slices? Den nutella or peanut butter? And u lyk thicker/thinner spread?

Mi ke: Hmm.. I'm ok with anyting de.. Haha.. Not vv fussy when it comes to bread..

Too late, I already made the toast before Mi Ke's last reply!

Should not have toasted the bread (so crispy when it was fresh out of the toaster!), it turned out hard after 2 1/2 hours later! But the filling was good!