we are born to eat, drink and lala

everyone's favorite - choc chip cookies!

2010-03-22T18:57:00.000-07:00

it's been a while since a new recipe came up on this blog. i suddenly felt like baking recently, so decided to make everyone's all-time favorite : choc chip cookies!

ingredients
125g unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1 cup self-raising flour
3/4 cup plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
125g of choc chips (this one i just added as much as i wanted!)
optional : 60g slivered almonds (or walnuts)

1. Preheat oven at 180deg Celcius.
2. Cream butter, sugars and vanilla.
3. Add the egg and beat well.
4. Mix in sifted flour and salt.
5. Add choc chips (and nuts), mix well. Steps 2-4 were done with my trusty kitchenaid mixer.. after which i took a spatula and mixed in the choc chips by hand. I didn't want the mixer to crush the chocolate chips!

5. Shape teaspoonfuls of batter into small balls. I was greedy this time round. I wanted subway sized cookies, hence I just plopped large balls of dough onto the tray. The cookies are HUGE! Should've followed the instructions, coz once the cookies were done, they definitely would be more enjoyable if you'd pop them into your mouth, one by one.

6. Bake for 10-12 mins.

Ta da!

Green Tea Macaron

2008-09-06T14:36:00.000-07:00

After being obsessed with macarons since visiting Wittamer in Belgium. Months have passed and in my time of imprisonment, I have decided to attempt to make macarons. Trawling the net for recipes and making do with what I can find in the local supermarket, I present my first macarons!

Green Tea Batter (improvised with help from David Lebovitz's Chocolate Macaron Recipe)
1 cup (100 gr) powdered sugar/icing sugar (make sure no starch involved)
½ cup powdered almonds (about 2 ounces , 50 gr, sliced almonds, pulverized)
3 tablespoons (25 gr) matcha powder instead of cocoa
2 large egg whites, at room temperature
5 tablespoons (65 gr) granulated sugar

As David Lebovitz puts it;

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (180 degrees C).Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and have a pastry bag with a plain tip (about 1/2-inch, 2 cm) ready.

Grind together the powdered sugar with the almond powder and cocoa so there are no lumps; use a blender or food processor since almond meal that you buy isn't quite fine enough.

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, beat the egg whites until they begin to rise and hold their shape. While whipping, beat in the granulated sugar until very stiff and firm, about 2 minutes.

Carefully fold the dry ingredients, in two batches, into the beaten egg whites with a flexible rubber spatula. When the mixture is just smooth and there are no streaks of egg white, stop folding and scrape the batter into the pastry bag (standing the bag in a tall glass helps if you're alone).

Pipe the batter on the parchment-lined baking sheets in 1-inch (3 cm) circles (about 1 tablespoon each of batter), evenly spaced one-inch (3 cm) apart.

Rap the baking sheet a few times firmly on the countertop to flatten the macarons, then bake them for 15-18 minutes. Let cool completely then remove from baking sheet.

Follow this man's instruction to the T, I became tired and didn't tap the last batch, they came out all cracked...

testing my piping skills (non existent)
so happy when they all came out with 'feet' (the ruffle-y bottoms)

Filing (white chocolate ganache-ish thing)
1/2 cup heavy cream
7 ounces white chocolate

melt chocolate in bain marie (complicated for glass bowl over boiling water)
mix in cream
whisk and let sit in fridge
take out and beat it to death with an electric whisk
re-refrigerate

Spoon the filling onto the macaron halves. There are some guesswork involved to find the right halves for each other. Pretend you are matchmaking.

stick together and eat!

They were much too sweet for my taste, I would halve the sugar.
Luckily we had fresh blueberries at home, i placed some in between and they are a good contrast to the sweetness.

Enjoy!

Kopi Cafe

2008-08-20T21:17:00.000-07:00

My second latte art attempt. Why can't I frothe my milk as creamy and smooth as the latte at The Adore??? Check out this lovely Japanese French Cafe that I just discovered at Union Square, on 13th and University Place. Yums!

Copy Kopi

2008-06-21T13:08:00.000-07:00

wohooho.. failed.. i am to be better...

KOPI-KOPI

2008-06-14T22:42:00.000-07:00

steam fish

2008-03-21T17:26:00.000-07:00

+ cod fish for its fat content(or grouper or fish of similar texture)
+ red dates
+ "gei-chi"- the red small thingy that is good for your eyes
+ mushrooms of any kind, fresh or dried
+ lotsa ginger
+ oyster sauce
+ a bit of soy sauce, sesame oil and salt

1. sprinkle salt on the fish
2. in a deep plate, arrange the rest of the ingredients nicely around/on top/under(ginger)the fish
3. boil water in a pot big enough to contain the plate, steam fish over boiling waterfor abt 15-20 mins

gyoza!

2008-03-19T13:40:00.001-07:00

+ minced meat
+ cabbage or chinese chives or whatever veg you can find in your fridge.
+ garlic
+ onion
+ soya sauce
+ sesame oil
+ pepper
+ gyoza skin [ it was a bit of a failure the last time when m and i made the skin from scratch. we had rather deformed gyozas... buy the premade ones. easier to handle! less hassle too!]
+ ginger
+ vinegar

1) chop up cabbage and onion. mince the garlic as well.
2) add to minced meat.
3) add soya sauce, sesame oil, salt and pepper.
4) wrap gyoza.
it is a little hard to explain how to wrap. but basically:
4a) lay the gyoza skin on the palm of your hand.
4b) place a tablespoon of meat mixture.
4c) moisten the edges of the gyoza skin.
4d') fold into half and squeeze if you dun want to bother with the pleats.
4d'') if you want to challenge the dexterity of your hands, then erm. it is a slightly cheem folding process if you have never done it before. i learnt how to do it from a youtube video so go look it up! pleat only one side and press down as you go along. so basically you are folding the skin onto itself then pressing it down onto the other side of the gyoza hence by each fold, you are sealing the little gyoza parcel. the ridge will then form a slight crescent shape. so this means the pleats only appear on one side the other side of the gyoza is flat. if you pleat when you have already stuck the edges together thus causing both sides to have pleats, it kindof looks more like a curry puff.
erps. not very clear and not the best instructions... argh..i think watch on youtube and learn from there... will be 7834x more useful. hahaha...
5) repeat repeat repeat like a broken record until you either finish all your meat mixture or your gyoza skins. whenever one of the ingredients run out. after that's done, place in fridge for it to harden slightly otherwise a bit tough to handle it in nuah form.
6a) either place in steamer and steam, duh or
6b) pan fry it first with some oil then when bottoms are brown, add water and cover pan for a few minutes for the gyoza to cook.
7) serve with ginger sliced into thin strips and vinegar, or with ra-yu, the japanese chilli oil, or soya sauce... up to you....

oh yes. you can boil it too.. such versatility leh! heh.

charsiu options

2008-03-09T16:52:00.001-07:00

option 1: bbq charsiu

+ pork
+ honey
+ 5 spice powder
+ sugar, lots
+ soy sauce, both light and dark
+ oyster sauce
+ sesame oil
+ ketchup [ weird i know ]
+ a stick of cinnamon
+ a few peppercorns
+ a few smashed up cloves of garlic
+ a few smashed up bits of ginger

1) mix marinate and throw the pork into the mixture and leave it alone for a day in the fridge or at least 4 hours.
2) get a baking tray and cover with aluminum foil [ this is so that you dun spend rest of the day scrubbing your tray when the sugary mixture starts to cake and bond itself to the tray. ]
3) place a rack over the aluminum foil covered tray and pour a good amount of water into it.
4) place marinated pork over the rack [ the pork is not supposed to be swimming in the water ok...just suspended above it,] then proceed to pop it into the oven. the pork gets kindof steamed roasted.
5) CAUTION: when opening the oven door, allow the steam to disperse before you attempt to touch the charsiu. flip it occasionally. and pour some of the marinate over the charsiu when you flip it.
6) when charsiu looks done... which can be easily half an hour or more.. remove and drain the baking tray of the water and wad nots that it contains now.. and glaze the roasted charsiu with some honey mixed with marinate. pop it back into the oven and then allow for it to char slightly so that the edges become crisp.
7) when done. be careful not to set the smoke alarm off as there will be ALOT of smoke.
8) slice and serve over veg and rice / noodles with remaining marinate sans cloves, ginger, cinnamon stick..which should be heated up / boiled somehow cooked since it contained raw pork before.

..............................................................................................................

option 2 : stewed charsiu

+ pork
+ honey
+ sugar, lots
+ soy sauce, both light and dark
+ oyster sauce
+ sesame oil
+ a few peppercorns
+ a few smashed up cloves of garlic
+ a few smashed up bits of ginger
+ i guess if you have mirin, sake, kelp,the usual japanese condiments .. no harm in throwing some in..

1) again mix the marinate and throw in the pork and leave to marinate in your fridge for a day
2) sear the meat first so that juices does not eh leak out of the meat? when you stew it.
2) get a saucepan and dilute the marinate, pop the sear meat in it and cook over hob for 30-45 mins. depending on the size and thickness of your slab of pig.
3) remove from saucepan and slice.
4) serve with ramen! add hard boiled egg, vegetables and some sliced spring onions to noodles with broth made from daishi and miso. [btw, i swear it's pork although it looks a bit like duck in the pics. should use a chunkier cut of meat ]

..................................................................................................

well, there is always the 3rd option of just buying the charsiu from a shao la shop. which makes life alot easier. i have no idea why we were making char siu when i dun even like charsiu and housemate m who doesn't like pork that much. and! the pork in UK is super strong smelling. super porky. we went a bit mad doing grocery shopping over the weekend. cheapness got the better of us when we saw a whole slab of pork belly for less than 2 pounds.

anyway, option 2 served with ramen was carried out by housemate m who refuses to be named. but of course everyone knows who she is. she doesn't think cooking is all that cool' oh well. as long as i get my dinner. wahahha.

Vietnamese Rolls

2008-03-09T05:26:00.000-07:00

Healthy, Simple and most of all, fun to make!
Summer food to have with nice light beer.

You'll need:

+Rice Paper
+Vermicelli
+Chicken
+Prawn (optional)
+Carrot (shredded)
+Tauge
+Coriander & Mint & Basil (LOADS)

Sauce:
+Fresh Garlic (smashed/pressed/chopped)
+Fresh Chilli (or just substitute with sweet chilli sauce)
+2 lemons at least
+fish sauce
+spoon of sugar
+white vinegar

................................................................................

1)Boil chicken, shred and keep aside.
2)Prawns to be deveined, boiled and kept aside to cool down.
3)Use the same water you boiled the meat in, add some stock, then boil the tauge, the vermicelli seperately.
4)Keep stock, don't throw...can use to soften the rice paper when you are about to eat.

5)Arrange everything on the table...think interactive hands only eating.

6)For the sauce, mix all ingredients together then add sugar to taste, feel free to dilute it. You will need to distribute the sauce to each person in their own bowl for dipping of the rolls.

To eat:
7)Soak each rice roll paper individually in the warm stock you have left over.
8)Gently (it breaks when you breathe...) lay the roll on a flat plate.
9)Start with some vermicelli, carrot shreds, tauge, then the meat (whatever you like), then top with LOADS of fresh herbs.
10)Attempt to fold into a nice tight roll as shown.

To serve:
11)Everyone gets a bowl of sauce and a flat plate to attempt this.
12)Make fun of those who end up with mutant rolls....key is to do a little at a time, not stuff a lot at once.
ENJOY!
................................................................................

Eggs Benedict

2008-03-09T05:01:00.001-07:00

I'm going to start my first contribution, aptly, with BREAKFAST yummies.
Eggs Benedict...for lazy weekend mornings when you have more time than to throw cereal into a bowl + milk over the counter and run.

You'll need:

+eggs
+hollandaise sauce (to buy in packet or search net for recipe ..depending on your state of alertness in morning)
+ham (we prefer ham shavings)
+english muffin/a slice of toast
+pepper & salt

................................................................................

1) Poach egg/eggs [Boil water with some stock/bouillon cube/or just plain salt, then break an egg carefully into a cup [DOES NOT WORK IF U BREAK EGG INTO POT/DEEP PAN] and slowly & gently lower into boiling water (minus the cup of course)]
2)Assemble by placing a piece of toast, some ham and then carefully lay poached egg on top.
3)Pour hollandaise sauce generously over/
4)Freshly grind pepper & rough sea salt over.
5)Eat and don't feel guilty that you have condemned your heart to another year less.
................................................................................

porky tonkatsu

2008-03-08T13:52:00.001-08:00

tonkatsu as learnt from sight at mama wendy's house.

+ pork loin
+ salt and pepper
+ soy sauce
+ egg
+ breadcrumbs
+ bulldog sauce for tonkatsu
+ rice
+ miso paste
+ daishi stock
+ salad side or shredded cabbage

1) tenderise by whacking the pork loin with back of knife. [ or rolling pin, as to your preference ]
2) marinate with soy sauce, salt and pepper
3) coat with egg then dust with bread crumbs
4) pop into oven on a rack for about 20 mins or until brown and cooked. flip in between to brown both sides
5) slice up the pork cutlet.
6) place onto plate with salad on the side and whack the bulldog tonkatsu sauce onto the dish.
7) serve with rice and miso soup that is made from daishi stock and miso paste. [ mei's speciality ]

if going all out to clog your arteries. go on, deep fry the pork cutlet instead of baking.

morning cuppa

2008-03-08T06:09:00.000-08:00

+ 1 senseo coffee pod
+ 120 mls of water
+ 10 mls of milk
+ 1 puC machine

1) place senseo coffee pod into puC tray
2) slide tray back into place.
3) pour milk into glass.
4) position glass under dispenser
5) press button to dispense coffee

Yummy multi-layer coffeeeee!

Chicken Lice

2008-03-07T18:14:00.001-08:00

Made according to Boh's recipe...

You need:

+ chicken- in whatever form u like

+ damn a lot of garlic- about 1 clove to 1 drumstick + 1 clove for rice

+ damn a lot of ginger- 1 inch to 1 clove of garlic+ 2 more inches for rice

+ damn a lot of sesame oil

+ soy sauce

+ rice

+ scallion, cucumber (optional)

+ watercrest for soup (optional)

...........................................

1. boil water for chicken

2. add garlic cloves, smashed-up ginger

3. marinate chicken with a bit of salt and sesame oil- DON"T REMOVE THE SKIN!

4. throw chicken into boiling water and add more sesame

5. while chicken is cooking, wash rice, drain all water, throw in 1 clove of garlic and ginger, add sesame oil

5a. chop cucumber and scallions to make pretty pretty the chicken later

6. take out cooked chicken from boiling water, run it through ICE COLD water, put in nicely decorated plate

7. use the soup to cook rice, get all the OIL!!

and wait..... till the rice is almost cooked.....

8. dilute the clear soup left behind, add watercrest---- tralalla soup is ready

9. heat up some soy sauce + sesame oil, shower on chicken---- tralalala chicken is ready

.............................

PS: if u start burping after meal, add more ginger next time.....

me first?

2008-03-07T16:48:00.001-08:00

interesting.... i can kick start this blog with my recipe for red sangria!

just get
- a cheap ass wine (maybe a wine from your company's CNY hamper?)
- 2 oranges
- 2 lemons and/or limes
- a box of strawberries
- 1 bottle of 7up
- sugar to taste

pour out the bottle of wine into a big bowl (gotta be big enough to stir in the fruits)
chop up the strawberries and chuck them in (up to you how many you want)
squeeze out the juice of 1 orange and 1 lemon
pour in the 7up till you think it's fizzy enough, add sugar too if it's still not sweet enuff

mix it altogether and leave it to set in the fridge for a night
the next day, slice up the other orange and lemon - thin round slices to make the sangria prettier

tada! :)

Recipes Wanted for Free

2008-03-06T18:51:00.001-08:00

u are invited to share your
secret, yummy, simple, sinful, complicated,
unsuccessful, adventurous, sexy recipes.

whatever that is edible, drinkable and shitable.