~ Anko Mochi / Daifuku

Taken from:

-

Description:

Soft chewy glutinous rice balls stuffed with red bean paste~

Ingredients:

125 g glutinous rice flour

2 tbsp icing sugar

125 g water

250 g anko

Directions (12 mochi):

1) Split anko into quarters, and subsequently into 3 each to get 12 balls in total.

2) Shape each piece of anko into a ball and freeze for at least half an hour.

3) Dust baking sheet with potato starch.

4) Add glutinous flour and sugar together in a non-stick bowl. Mix in water with a spatula and make sure there are no lumps.

5) Steam the batter for 15min.

6) Stir the mochi until even and put it on the baking sheet. Dust mochi and hands with potato starch. Split the mochi into quarters and then into 3 parts to get 12 mochi balls.

7) Shape each piece of mochi into a flat circle, dust off starch with brush and add in the anko ball. Spread the mochi to cover the anko, dusting with starch if it gets sticky. Work quickly as the mochi will not stretch enough to cover the anko ball once it cools.

8) Store at room temperature, best eaten on the day itself.

Remarks:

I had some difficulty shaping the mochi and covering the honey anko balls as I worked pretty slowly resulting in the mochi losing their elasticity. Apart from that, I didn't freeze my anko enough so it was hard to contain them within the mochi skin. Making mochi is really demanding and requires a lot of skills! Oh, don't make them too immaculately rounded, since imperfection is the hallmark of hand-made goodies =p

However, if they appear as shown below, hide them well and don't let anyone catch sight of them to avoid embarrassment! =p

~ Frozen Yoghurt Popsicle

I love frozen popsicles! They are low-caloried (provided you chose the right ingredients), versatile, yummy and simply melt the sweltering heat away, always leaving one begging for more!

~ Anko II (Imitation with Kidney Beans, Honey)

Taken from:

-

Description:

Imitation japanese red bean paste with honey~

Ingredients:

1 can kidney beans (15.25 ounce), drained and rinsed

3 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp honey

Directions (for 250g anko):

1) Boil kidney beans, sugar and water in saucepan, stirring constantly till water is almost dried up.

2) Mash up the beans till a paste is formed, and store in the fridge until use.

Remarks:

Eeks, why do I always forget to take a picture of my anko before stuffing it into some recipe? Anyway, the honey in this anko recipe adds a unique taste and complemented the saltiness of the beans. However, I found that it seemed too sweet, perhaps one tbsp less of honey will do the trick :)

~ The 3 Cs - Chinese Parsley v.s. Coriander v.s. Cilantro

I've always been stumped by recipes calling for cilantro and coriander... What are those? I only have chinese parsley on hand! And guess what, from this site, I've found out that they are all the same~! *hooray*

But do take note that there may be variations in the size and shape of the leaves. Well they pretty much impart similar taste, and rid some wind:

~ Chocolate-Coated Blueberries

From the title of this blog, I'm sure one would know how this gratifying treat is made - simply by coating blueberries with melted chocolate! I'd use the ginger chocolate that was bought recently, and guess what, I cldn't really taste the berries as the ginger was overpowering! Next time I shall just use dark chocolate :)

Here's a cute looking piece of coated gem that has little eyes and pursed lips, and resembles Patrick the Starfish from SpongeBob SquarePants Show:

~ Roasted Chickpeas

I roasted some leftover chickpeas using my toaster for around 16 min. They turned out crunchy like nuts on the outside and chewy on the inside, but became wholly chewy after a few hours as I didn't roast them long enough in that scorching toaster of mine (think it can go up to 230 deg when roasting only needs around 175 deg). Remember to stir the chickpeas from time to time to avoid burning! These healthy treats can be eaten as they are, or seasoned with condiments.

I had some problems trying to label this post, and I realised that my tags are really bad so I shall amend them as soon as possible :) *make a mental note*

~ Lemon Bars

Adapted from:

Allrecipes

Description:

Tangy bars with gooey lemony interior flanked with crispy egg exterior and crunchy crust~

Ingredients:

95 g flour

40 icing sugar

85 g oil

Zest of 1 lemon

2 eggs

190 g sugar

90 ml lemon juice

1 tbsp flour

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 175 deg.

2) Combine flour, icing sugar, oil and zest together, and pour into a lined 7x7" tin.

3) Bake for 15 min or till crust is slightly browned.

4) Whisk eggs with sugar, lemon juice and flour, and pour over the hot crust.

5) Bake for another 20 min or till the crust is golden brown.

6) Cut into bars when cool.

Remarks:

These bars tasted like jellied lemonade sandwiched with an eggy top and crunchy cookie base! However, these babies are really sour - not suited for those who can't take tartness! Add more sugar or use less lemon for those who like saccharine stuff, and always taste the crust batter before baking!

Jellied lemonade:

It's best to use butter in this case, though I didn't use that as butter ran out. I think that butter would definitely serve its purpose well, since the corn oil smell lingered long after the bars were baked. Additionally, I found that the bars were rather greasy, so maybe I'll decrease the oil by a bit next time around and add in milk instead. I'll probably throw in some chopped nuts as well!

Do wait for the "cake" to cool before cutting into bars with a plastic knife. It will be very gooey and hard to cut up when it's warm. Feel free to lick the knife after which =)

After storing the bars in the fridge, the top was no longer crispy. Instead, I had a cookie like bar with lemon jam spread on top - still delish!

~ Mövenpick Ginger Chocolate

Spotted this chocolate from Candy Empire and was tempted to get it.. and I did (under K's generous aegis)!

$4.80 for 100g pack

The luscious dark chocolate (55%) simply blended well with the exotic candied ginger, and sent me to 7th heaven~! You've just gotta try it! ^ ^

Update (22-8-09): Many people seem to not like it, now I'm wondering if my tastebuds are malfunctioning or not.. =(

~ Anko Oatmeal

Adapted from:

-

Description:

Warm oatmeal flavoured with red bean paste

Ingredients:

1/2 C milk

1/4 C oatmeal

100 g anko

Directions:

1) Cook milk and oatmeal till desired consistency.

2) Top with anko and serve.

Remarks:

What a way to use up that leftover anko from making daifuku! The oatmeal was saturated with the yummy taste of beans and it didn't leave me as guilty as having a whole bowl of anko! It's like having a anko porridge - delish!

~ Random Dinner

Dinner for the day - chickpea patties, sauteed baby spinach, and spicy orange chicken:

~ Spicy Orange Chicken

Adapted from:

RecipeTips.com

Description:

Stir-fried chicken with a tasty sweet sauce~

Ingredients:

2 tbsp oil

450g diced chicken meat

1 clove garlic, minced

2 tbsp soy sauce

2 carrots, sliced

1 celery sticks, chopped

1 green bell pepper, chunked

Juice and zest of 1 orange | (total of 1/2 C liquid with honey)

2 tbsp honey

1 tbsp oil

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tsp white vinegar

1 tsp minced ginger

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp potato starch

Description:

1) Heat oil in large skillet over medium high heat.

2) Add cut up chicken tenders. Sauté until lightly browned (3-5 minutes), stirring occasionally.

3) Add minced garlic and 2 tablespoons soy sauce. Cook another 3-4 minutes.

4) Add frozen vegetables or fresh cut up vegetables. Cook 5-10 min or until vegetables are crisp tender. Set the chicken and vegetables aside.

5) In small saucepan, combine honey, orange juice, zest, oil, soy sauce, vinegar, minced ginger, and pepper. Heat through and pour sauce over the chicken and vegetables to serve.

Remarks:

~ Sauteed Baby Spinach

Adapted from:

Allrecipes

Description:

Fast and simple baby spinach sauteed in onions~

Ingredients:

1 tbsp oil

1 onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

400 g baby spinach leaves

1 tbsp soy sauce

Salt and ground pepper

Directions:

1) In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Stir in onions and garlic and cook until transparent, about 5 min.

2) Add spinach, sprinkle with soysauce, salt and pepper; cook and stir 3 to 5 min until leaves are wilted and reduced. If a lot of spinach is cooked, don't add it to the pan all at once. Add more spinach to the pan as each addition wilts, which will occur rapidly.

Remarks:

~ Chickpea Patties

Adapted from:

Eatmakeread Kelly

Description:

Spiced chickpea patties~

Ingredients:

1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1/4 C diced fresh parsley

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 tsp ground cumin

Salt and black pepper

2 tbsp plain flour

2 tbsp oil

Directions:

1) Mash chickpeas, and add in parsley, garlic, cumin, and 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper.

2) Gently squeeze the mixture and form form into eight 1/2-inch-thick patties.

3) Coat with the flour, tapping off excess.

2) Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the patties, turning carefully, until golden brown, 3 to 5 min per side.

Remarks:

The chickpea patties were bland and dry, perhaps due to my poor cooking skills. The patties crumbled slightly when cooking, do take note to flip them gently.

~ Strawberry Daifuku

Taken from:

Cooking with Dog

Description:

Traditional Japanese sweet chewy cake with strawberry-filled centre~

Ingredients:

100g glutinous rice flour

2 tbsp icing sugar

100ml water

Potato starch

150g anko

6 strawberries (15g each)

Directions

1) Cut off stems of strawberries.

2) Split anko into half, and then into 3 to get 6 in total.

3) Shape a piece of anko so its flat and round.

4) Put strawberry in anko and spread the anko up to the stem. Make sure to cover all sides. Place the anko balls in a covered container to make sure they are moist, and store in the refrigerator.

5) Dust baking sheet with potato starch.

6) Add glutinous flour and sugar together in a non-stick bowl. Mix in water with a spatula and make sure there are no lumps.

7) Steam the batter for 15min.

8) Stir the mochi until even and put it on the baking sheet. Dust mochi and hands with potato starch. Split the mochi into half and then into 3 parts to get 6 mochi balls.

9) Shape each piece of mochi into a flat circle, dust off starch with brush and add in the anko ball. Spread the mochi to cover the anko, dusting with starch if it gets sticky. Work quickly as the mochi will not stretch enough to cover the anko ball once it cools.

10) Store at room temperature, best eaten on the day itself.

Remarks:

I like anko mochi a lot, but with a strawberry in the middle seemed a tad bit weird and that the mochi shape looked rather awful due to my poor skills. However, it's still a nice treat :)

The mochi had sparkles on the exterior surface possibly due to the icing sugar in the dough, but I don't think the camera captured it well:

~ Anko (Imitation with Kidney Beans)

Taken from:

-

Description:

Imitation japanese red bean paste~

Ingredients:

1/4 C water

1 can kidney beans (15.25 ounce), drained and rinsed

1/4 C + 1 tbsp sugar

Directions (for 250g anko):

1) Boil kidney beans, sugar and water in saucepan, stirring constantly till water is almost dried up.

2) Mash up the beans till a paste is formed, and store in the fridge until use.

Remarks:

Usually salt is added to anko, but since the kidney beans are naturally slightly salty and they are preserved in a solution containing salt, I've omitted the salt. Actually there is no need to add water, but I'm just afraid that I'll burn my kidney beans =p Canned kidney beans are a good substitution for boiling your own adzuki beans.

~ Cheese Roll-Ups

Adapted from:

-

Description:

Simple twist to the original fluffy bread slice!

Ingredients:

1 slice processed cheese

1 small lettuce leaf

1 whole wheat bread slice

Directions:

1) Flatten bread slice with a mug or rolling pin.

2) Place cheese and lettuce leaf on top before rolling up tightly in a plastic wrap. Unwrap only when serving.

Remarks:

I wanted to play with some variation in my sandwiches and tah-dah, cheese roll-ups! Well, it's not exactly a novel idea but still.. it's a creative innovation :) Speaking of which, I'm reminded of the new term "analogs" in drug design that I've learnt today! Drug companies use the structure of previously known drugs to come up with structurally and/or functionally similar "new" drugs..

Ok enough of medicinal chemistry, back to the roll-ups. Eating my bread this way seemed to enhance the taste of the cheese as the fluffy bread is no longer in the way to overwhelm the thin slice of cheese. Additionally, the cheese seemed to be concentrated (rolled up) in one single bite which offered a texture variation from that of eating from a sandwich. I've used NTUC's house brand high-calcium cheese which boosts of possessing calcium equivalent to that of one cup of milk per slice, and it's those types which soften and melt pretty quickly, resulting in a dense cheesy taste. The lettuce added moisture and crisp which create a nice sensory alteration from the soft roll.

This roll will definitely send the pig scrambling out of its warm cosy sty early in the morning!

~ Tomato Egg Pasta

Adapted from:

-

Description:

Quick and filling pasta cloaked in chunky tomato-based sauce lined with shreds of egg white

Ingredients:

3 tomatoes, diced

1 tsp oil

1 tsp dark soy sauce

1 tbsp ketchup

1 egg, yolk and white separated

75 g pasta

Directions:

1) Cook pasta in salted water till al dente. Reserve half a cup of liquid, and set pasta aside on a plate.

2) Heat oil and tomatoes in a saucepan, and cook till tomatoes are soft, around 5-10 min.

3) On low heat, add in dark soysauce, ketchup and adjust the consistency with the pasta liquid if you like the sauce to be thinner.

4) Stir in the egg white till its cooked and pour the sauce over the pasta.

5) Top the pasta with egg yolk and serve.

Remarks:

I was up earlier than expected, what else can I do then to whip myself a nutritious breakfast? But what? Peanut butter sandwich was on my lunch list so no way I'm going to have that for breakfast as well. Had no cravings for oatmeal for a long long time so its out of the question. Let's open the fridge for some inspiration and hey, there were many tomatoes lying around! And so I've decided to make a quick meal out of my favourite lycopene duffels!

Being lazy and dreadful of having bad breath (was going to school and for driving after that), I've omitted the onions and garlic that I adore so much. An egg was throw in to add protein, taste and for aesthetic purposes =p Don't you just like the yellow yolk perched on the bed of red with white streaks?

As I'd used wholewheat pasta which had a distinct nutty taste to it, I couldn't really tell the exact taste of the sauce if I had it together with the pasta. However, a sample of merely the sauce yielded a rather ketchup-like taste, and the egg yolk lended a creamy texture. On the whole, it was a rather good gustatory experience in the morning.

~ Strawberry & Grape Smoothie

Adapted from:

-

Description:

A saccharine smoothie packed with antioxidants to cool off the hot day~

Ingredients:

1/2 C frozen grapes
3 big frozen strawberries
1 C milk
1 tbsp sugar-free berry jam

Directions:

1) Blend all together and serve immediately.

Remarks:

Felt like drinking a smoothie, so just whipped up a casual one with anything on hand.

~ Durian Puffs

Adapted from:

My Kitchen

Description:

Satisfying chilled durian-stuffed treasures~

Ingredients:
900 gm durian with seeds
60 g butter
120 ml water
1/8 tsp salt
60 g flour
2 eggs

Directions:

1) Deseed the durians to get the flesh and place in a covered bowl to chill in the fridge.
2)In a medium pot, bring water and butter to boil. Stir in flour and salt until the mixture forms a soft ball.
3) Transfer the dough to a large mixing bowl. Beat in eggs one at a time, mix well between adding.
4) Pipe the batter into a small 3" circle onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
5) Bake for 10 min with 200 deg in a preheated oven then bake with 180 deg for another 15-20 min.
6) Prick each case with a toothpick and then cool them on rack completely.
7) Split and fill the cases with the durian flesh before chilling them.

Remarks:

A remarkable pastry! The burst of durian from each bite certainly threw me off my chair! Each puff case was soft and chewy with the right amount of saltiness that blended well with the creamy pungent filling. Yummy!

It's quite interesting to see the progress of baking..

... from small flat lumps of batter:

... to plump puffs:

~ Pear Salad

Adapted from:

-

Description:

Cheesy fruit and veggie salad with a tinge of carroty sweetness~

Ingredients:

100 cream cheese, softened
1 carrot, boiled and mashed
1 pear, skinned and diced
2 tbsp diced red and green peppers
1 tbsp diced celery
2 tbsp corn kernels
2 lettuce leaves, shredded

Directions:

1) Mix mashed carrots and cream cheese together.
2) Toss all except for the lettuce with the cream cheese mixture together.
3) Chill for half an hour before serving on a bed of lettuce.

Remarks:

A casual salad made in a haste to make breakfast more nutritious :)

~ Thin and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from:

Cookie Madness

Description:

A crispy cookie affair with chocolate chips~

Ingredients:

100 g butter, softened

180 g granulated sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla

1 egg

140 g flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 C chocolate chips

Directions:

1) Cream butter, sugar and vanilla till fluffy.

2) Beat in egg till well-mixed.

3) Whisk flour and baking soda together in a bowl, and stir into the butter mixture till blended.

4) Add in chocolate chips.

5) Drop by rounded teaspoons onto a lined baking tray and bake in preheated oven at 175 deg for 12 min, or till cookie edges are brown.

6) Let the cookies cool on the rack for 3 min before lifting them off the tray. Cool completely and store in airtight container.

Remarks:

On one hand, I kept advocating on the necessity to eat healthily, and now on the other hand, I baked a batch of 68 sinful cookies that can send a diabetic to a hypergycemic state and a heart-compromised person to the stroke clinic! Such irony in Mankind! *in deep thought*

Anyway, the cookies were really crisp and thin, but not as thin as those wafer-like discs you can see from the original recipe source. This was attributed to the fact that I've added less sugar than what the original recipe called for. I didn't have enough butter on hand and my egg's a teeny winny smaller than a large one. Salt was omitted as salted butter was used, and brown sugar was replaced with granulated sugar instead.

The batter was split into 1/4 and 3/4 parts so that I can do some experimenting with flavours. I've added 1/2 tsp of cinnamon to the 1/4 batter to produce 12 humongous cinnamon cookies which were crisp on the outside and caramel-like on the inside! The remaining batter had chocolate chips added to them, and they turned out crispy throughout as I had baked them smaller compared to that of the cinnamon ones. Overall, I find that the cookies can make do with more vanilla as they weren't as fragrant as I'd expected them to be and that they are a tad bit greasy, but boy, they are sweet and crispy!

Do make it a point to leave enough space for the cookies to spread; if not, consequence is as follows:

I had fun peering through the oven door to see heaped towers melting down, fanning out into puddles of sugary batter, and eventually hardening into a golden, delicate cookies:

~ Curried Avocado Tuna Sandwich

Adapted from:
Channel News Asia

Description:

Toasted bread sandwiched with tuna salad in curried avocado base~

Ingredients:

1/2 avocado, mashed

1/2 can tuna (~90g), drained and flaked

1 tbsp diced celery

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tsp curry powder

Salt and pepper to taste

2 slices of bread, toasted

Directions:

1) Combine lemon juice, curry powder and avocado.

2) Add in the tuna, celery and adjust taste with pepper and salt.

3) Spoon a generous amount onto toasted bread and serve.

Remarks:

Yet another simple dish to use up the avocado half from Tuna-Stuffed Avocado Tapas! This recipe seems akin to a tuna mayo salad, just that the mayo fat is being replaced by healthy avocado fat without compromising the taste. A wise move indeed for the health-conscious!

However, the avocado taste seemed to be overwhelmed by the curry flavour and the salad was too tangy for my taste. Bring in less spices please! Anyway, I had left over lemon juice from both recipes so I added some honey to it to make a honey lemonade:

After stripping the avocado bare of flesh, what do you do with the seed? Plant it of course! But first you would have to let it germinate in water or soil first. Spot the cute little stub of root at the bottom end of the seed:

~ Tuna-Stuffed Avocado Tapas

Adapted from:
Allrecipes.com

Description:

Tasty heart-healthy appetiser!

Ingredients:

1/2 ripe avocado

1/2 can tuna (~90g), drained and flaked

25 g cream cheese, softened

1 tbsp diced bell peppers

1/2 tbsp lemon juice

Black pepper and salt to taste

Directions:

1) Mix cream cheese, bell peppers and lemon juice together before adding the tuna.

2) Season with black pepper and salt and spoon the tuna mixture into the avocado to serve.

Remarks:

Interesting and easy combination of ingredients for surprising and elegant dish. Feel free to add in more cream cheese or mayo if the mixture is too dry, and never hesitate to add in whatever you deem fit - you might get a surprise.

This dish is truly an eye-pleaser:

~ Poached Pears in Rum

Adapted from:
Epicurious.com

Description:

Poached sweet pears in buttery rum sauce~

Ingredients:
1/3 C rum

1 tbsp rum

3 pears, skinned and sliced into wedges

1 apple, skinned and sliced into wedges

1/2 C + 1 tbsp water

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tbsp butter

Directions:

1) Combine 1/3 cup rum with the rest of the ingredients in a heavy skillet and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.

2) Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until pears are just tender, about 10 min.

3) Remove the lid and set aside the apple slices. Boil mixture, stirring occasionally until the liquid is reduced to a syrup, around 10 min.

4) Stir in the remaining rum and serve.

Remarks:

A change from the usual raw fruit (which is better in terms of nutrition of course). The aroma of the sauce when it was boiling was heavenly-oh so rummy and buttery! However, the taste of it wasn't really that amazing. In fact, I found it rather bland, and it could do with some more rum or spices. The sauce didn't really thicken as I used honey in replacement for the sugar.