Hot Cross Buns With Chocolate Filling (No Knead Dough)

Happy Easter for those celebrating!

I baked these little cute hot cross buns and instead of mixing the dough with spices and raisins like the usual hot cross buns, I only used plain dough and added chocolate filling using semi sweet chocolate chips

With good reviews I read from others tried this recipe, I decided to give it a try too
This recipe is originally from The Pioneer Woman and modified the quantity by Pig Pig's Corner
Very easy, indeed and I can't complain on the result! Soft and fluffy til the next day!

Instead of cinnamon rolls, I baked hot cross buns using this dough, and I did refrigerate overnight for easier handling
My kids do not fancy spiced buns, so instead of adding spices and raisins into the dough, I left the dough plain and added chocolate filling into each bun

Please view HERE for ingredients and method to make the dough
Weighed 30g for each dough, flatten it, place some semi sweet chocolate chips filling in it and wrap it up then seal
Place on lined baking tray, leaving a little space in between, proof for another 30 minutes and pipe cross on it just before baking
I mixed 50g of self raising flour and 60ml water for the piping
Bake for 10 minutes in preheated oven of 200degC, reduce the temperature to 180degC and bake for another 15 minutes til golden brown
While hot, brush the top with butter

I made half of the dough into these buns and the other half plaited bread with apple cinnamon filling, very nice too, will share soon :)


My kids' Easter project, ended up Daddy did the work LOL

I'm submitting this post to BYOB (Bake Your Own Bread) - March 2013, hosted by Roxana

Grilled Fish In Mango Sambal Sauce & Bittergourd Tomato Soup

Delicious dishes I had to remind myself about how much rice I took LOL

Grilled milk fish in mango sambal sauce

 

 

Recipe is my mum's, which she got from her mum.. simple yet so yummy :)

What you need:

1 large milk fish - washed and cleaned
5 large red chillis, cut
2 red bird's eye chillis (or more)
a thumb size of fried belachan (shrimp paste)
salt, sugar
dark sweet soya sauce
juice of a large lime
green mango, grated

Method:

1. Preferably to cook the fish in the pressure cooker 2 cycles first to soften the bones (milk fish is notorious in having a lot of little tiny bones besides the big ones too)
2. In a lightly oiled pan, grill fish in the oven using top fire til cooked for both sides
3. Put chillis, fried belachan, salt and sugar in food processor til quite smooth
4. Add dark sweet soya sauce and lime juice into chilli mixture and mix well
5. Spread chilli mixture over the grilled fish and eat with grated green mango

Bitter gourd tomato soup

 

 

Recipe is from Peng's Kitchen, a very tasty soup with minimum artificial flavourings, very healthy kind of soup, we all love it!

What you need:

1 large bitter gourd
4 tomatoes
2 large carrots
2 slices ginger
300g lean pork, pounded
salt to taste

Method:

1. Blanch lean pork in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain away water
2. Remove seeds of bitter gourd and slice in small chunks. Cut tomatoes in quarters
3. Slice carrots into small chunks
4. Place all ingredients in a pot with about 3L water, except salt
5. Bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer for 2 hours. Season with salt

I'm submitting this post to:

* Grilled milk fish in mango sambal sauce: Aspiring Bakers #29：Heirloom and Local Dialect Recipes 家传菜/ 籍贯菜 (March 2013 ) hosted by FHL of Faith Hope Love

 

* Bitter gourd tomato soup: Little Thumbs up with theme of the month of March: "Tomato", organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Doreen from my little favourite DIY

Sun-Dried Tomato Bread (Bread maker)

This bread is such a great pair with the fresh tomato soup I made the other day
I made it from the scratch using bread maker from the kneading part all the way to baking
I couldn't be more satisfied with the result, tasty and soft too with crisp crust
Unfortunately, I didn't have the chance to take a snap of the whole loaf, as I baked this loaf in the evening and waited for the next day to get morning sun, and by that time, I only saw two slices left! :)

What you need:
(500g loaf)

230ml water
2 tsp oil from sun-dried tomatoes
350g bread flour
25g finely grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp dried yeast
50g well drained sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

Method:

1. Pour water and oil into the bread maker pan, followed by bread flour, cheese, salt, sugar and yeast
2. Choose programme for basic bread, choose the level for your preferred crust and weight of the loaf
3. Let the machine starts. After 5 minutes kneading, pour in sun-dried tomatoes
4. (those with bread maker with auto dispenser can place the sun-dried tomatoes in it before the machine starts)
5. Let the machine does the rest of the process (about 3 hours)

I'm submitting this post to Little Thumbs up with theme of the month of March: "Tomato", organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Doreen from my little favourite DIY

Johor Style Pork Kway Teow Soup

My first dish for Malaysian Food Fest - Johor
A hearty delicious and tasty soup I first saw at Sonia's site - Nasi Lemak Lover
This is a kind of dish my family loves

 

What you need:

For the stock:
500g spare ribs, briefly blanched in hot water (I used 300g)
1 jicama, peeled and cut big pieces
¼ round cabbage, tear big pieces
1 small bowl of ikan bilis (anchovies)
1 large onion, halved
water, salt

Method:

Once water boiled, add in all ingredients and boil over low heat for 2hrs. Season with salt

Toppings:

100g pork slices (marinate with salt, pepper, tapioca flour)
200g minced pork (marinate with salt, light soy sauce, pepper, rice wine and tapioca flour)
a small piece of pork liver, slices, optional (I didn't use)
green leafy veggies ( I used endives)
spring onion and corianders, chopped
dried seaweed (I didn't use)
preserved salty veggie or Tong Choy
pork lard with oil (fry pork fat cubes in a wok till oil released) (I threw away the oil)
fried garlic oil (use pork lard oil to fry garlic) (I used store bought bottled garlic oil)

500 kway teow or flat noodles

To serve:

1. Blanch kway teow in hot water for few seconds (to get rid of oil)
2. Add some stock in a saucepan. Once stock boiled, add in pork slices and minced pork  boil for a minute or so
3. Add in kway teow, tong choy, veggies, cook for few seconds. Pour into a serving bowl
4. Garnish with chopped spring onion, coriander, pork lard and garlic oil, serve hot with bird's eye chillis and soy sauce dipping sauce

I'm submitting this post to Malaysia Food Fest - Johor hosted by Annie from Annielicious Food

Fresh Tomato Soup with Basil (Delia Smith)

I love this soup
Really tasty and goes well with chopped fresh basil
And it's extremely delicious eaten with toasted bread, in my case - sundried tomato bread

First time saw this soup at Yen from Eat Your Heart Out, drooled over it and decided to give it a go. So glad I did! :)

What you need:

600g ripe tomatoes, quartered with skin on
1 medium onion, chopped small
1 medium potato, chopped small
1 1/2 tbsp cooking oil
275ml chicken or vegetable stock
1 clove of garlic, crushed
2 tsp chopped fresh sweet basil, to garnish
some cream
salt, black pepper

Method:

1. Heat oil over medium fire, add onion and potato, cook for about 2 minutes
2. Lower to low heat and soften slowly without browning, stir every few minutes, about 10 minutes
3. Add in tomatoes, cook for 1 minute. Pour stock and stir
4. Season with salt, pepper and garlic
5. Cover and allow to simmer for about 30 minutes
6. Blend briefly to puree the soup
7. Garnish with fresh basil, and swirl 1 tbsp of cream on each bowl before serving

I'm submitting this post to:

* Little Thumbs up with theme of the month of March: "Tomato", organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Doreen from my little favourite DIY

 

 *Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake

 

 

 

 

Bake Along #41 - Apple Turnover with Quick & Easy Flaky Pastry (Delia Smith)

I'm always intrigued with recipes using words 'easy' or 'quick', better still, using both words LOL
When I saw Mich from Piece of Cake and Angeline from Angeline's Side of Story made this pastry from Delia Smith, I wanted to try too, very much
At the same time, Bake Along latest theme is Turnover, I decided to give this a try with apple filling
I used the recipe for the apple filling from Ina Garten after seeing Angeline did so too a while back

With such an easy method of making the pastry skin, I must say I'm very satisfied with the result, tasty, buttery and crisp. It's not flaky enough, but it's easily forgiven :)
The filling is no different, very addictive :)

What you need:

For the pastry:
110g butter
175g plain flour
a pinch of salt
2 tbsp. cold water (I added to 3 tbsp to make it more moist)

Method:

1. Keep butter wrapped in a plastic, and freeze for at least 45 minutes
2. Sift flour and salt in a large bowl, grate frozen butter on top of the flour
3. Use butter knife to mix (do not use hands) evenly
4. Sprinkle water with hands all over and mix again with butter knife for a few seconds, then you may finish off with hands
5. Dough should be moist, combine altogether, and leave the bowl fairly clean, no need to knead the dough
6. Wrap it up and rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes

For the filling:
1 tbsp grated orange zest
3tbsp fresh orange juice
600g tart apples (granny smith)
3 tbsp sugar, plus extra to sprinkle on top
1 1/2 tbsp plain flour
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
pinch of salt

Egg wash:
1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water

Method:

1. Combine orange zest & juice. Dice apples and immediately toss with the juice mixture to prevent browning
2. Add sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt (sugar depends on the sweetness of the apples)

To assemble:

1. Preheat oven to 200degC
2. Bring the dough out from the fridge and leave it for about 15 minutes
3. Flatten the dough using rolling pin on a floured surface, shape according to preference (I made rectangle shape), keep chilled until ready to use
4. Brush the edges with egg wash
5. Place the filling on half side and fold up over the filling, then seal the edges with fork
6. Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar, poke some holes and transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper
7. Bake for about 20 minutes (depending on the size) until browned and puffed
8. Serve warm or at room temperature

I'm submitting this post to:

* Bake Along hosted by Joyce from Kitchen Flavours, Lena from Frozen Wings and Zoe from Bake For Happy Kids

 

* Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake

Chocolate Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcake with Cream Cheese Filling

I've been delaying my intention of trying out this popular little cakes
This month's LBT challenge is happened to be Hokkaido chiffon cupcakes, no more excuse for delay :)

 

 

Recipe is from Sonia from Nasi Lemak Lover, with some modification

 

What you need:

 

Chiffon Cake

3 egg yolks

20g sugar

35g corn oil

60g milk

65g cake flour (original: 70g)

5g cocoa powder (I added)

1tsp chocolate emulco (I added)

3 egg whites

25g sugar

 

Filling

125g cream cheese

50g butter

about 7tbsp icing sugar, sifted

200ml whipping cream, chilled

 

Icing sugar, for dusting

 

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 170C
2. Arrange paper liners on baking tray
3. Hand whisk egg yolk and sugar till pale in colour
4. Add in corn oil and milk, mix well
5. Sift in cake flour, stir to combine
6. Beat egg white until foamy, gradually add sugar, and continue beat till soft peak form
7. Take 1/3 of egg white and use a hand whisk to mix into egg yolk batter
8. Fold in the balance egg white with a spatula till well combine
9. Scoop batter into pre-arranged paper liners to about ¾ full
10. Bake for 20-25 mins at middle rack 

For the filling:
 

1. Beat cream cheese and butter til smooth. In another bowl (chilled), beat whipping cream with sugar till firm and stiff (over a bowl of iced water)
2. Add in cream cheese mixture into whipping cream mixture, mix well with rubber spatula 
3. Pipe filling into cupcake and dust with icing sugar. Refrigerated before consume

I love the texture of this cake, pillowy soft, with cream bursting in every bite, it's so rich and luscious, yum!

 

Basic Pancake With Sugar & Lemon (Delia Smith)

Another dish caught my eyes when I saw this at Lian from Whatever You Do
A great dish from Delia Smith for breakfast, I am always intrigued by breakfast recipe, as I often clueless on what to prepare for my family in the morning :)

This is a simple kind of pancake, yet yummy and refreshing with lemon drizzle and sugar sprinkle, love it :)
My kids like it drizzled with chocolate sauce, I find it delicious too :)

 

What you need:

110g plain flour
pinch of salt
2 large eggs
200ml milk mixed with 75ml water
50g butter

To serve: caster sugar, lemon juice and wedges

Method:

1. Sift flour and salt, hold the sifter high above the bowl so the flour gets an airing
2. Make a well in the centre of the flour and break eggs into it, whisk til combined
3. Add milk mixture gradually with whisk, use rubber spatula to scrape bits of flour all around the edge to the centrem whisk once more til batteris smooth, with the consistency of thin cream
4. Melt butter in a pan, take 2 tbsp and mix into the batter. Whisk and pour the rest into a small bowl to grease pan, using a wodge of kitchen paper to smear it around
5. On medium heat, spoon batter with a ladle, everything at one go
6. As soon as the batter hits the hot pan, tip the pan from side to side so the base will be evenly coated. After a few minutes lift the edges up to see if it's tinged gold
7. Flip the pancake over and cook the other side for a few seconds
8. Side it out of the pand onto the plate
9. Serve immediately with sprinkle of sugar and lemon juice drizzle

I'm submitting this post to  Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake

 

 

Below are blogging friends cooking and baking using recipes from Delia Smith :)

Avocado Tomato Salsa (Delia Smith)

Allright, I'm not a trend setter, I'm a trend follower instead
Everytime Cook Like A Star launches the star chef of the month, I always start with browsing through their website, or their cookbook if I own one
And then I'll look through what others make, and almost 100%, I'll end up listing down what I shall make from them
And this month is no exception either LOL

Another mouthwatering dish from Delia Smith I saw at Mich from Piece of Cake I coudn't resist :)

What you need:

1 ripe firm avocado
2  firm tomatoes
1 shallot (I used 3)
1 tbsp fresh lime juice (I used large lime)
1 heaped tbsp chopped fresh coriander (I used 2 tbsp)
a few drops of tabasco sauce
salt, black pepper
sugar (I added)

Method:

1. Skin the tomatoes b y pouring boiling water over them, leave it for a few minutes, drain and slip skin off when cool to handle
2. Cut in half, hold each half over a saucer (cut side down), squeeze gently to extract seeds
3. Chop tomato finely
4. Halve avocado, remove stone and cut each half into quarters and peel off the skin
5. Chop into small dice, while slice the onion thinly
6. Combine everything in a bowl, add in seasoning, lime juice, coriander and tabasco
7. Civer with clingwrap and leave in the fridge for at least an hour before serving

I had this refreshing salsa with my homemade chicken burger, delish!
I will make this again with grilled salmon, just like what Mich did
Thinking about it makes me drooling already, yum! :)

I'm submitting this post to:

 

* Little Thumbs up with theme of the month of March: "Tomato", organised by Doreen from my little favourite DIY and Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, hosted by Doreen from my little favourite DIY

 

 

 

*  Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake
 

Below are blogging friends cooking and baking using recipes from Delia Smith :)

Slimmers' Scrambled Eggs (Delia Smith)

This month Cook Like A Star guest chef is Delia Smith
Confession: I never heard about her before LOL
Thanks Zoe for introducing her, I found many great recipes from her I guess one month won't be enough! :)

Let me start with a simple recipe to start my day - yummy breakfast
I love eggs, be it breakfast, lunch or dinner
But for a good breakfast, egg is a must for me
Sunny side up, hard boiled, soft boiled, poached, scrambled, omelette... name it, I love all, hence my interest in eggs recipes :)

Saw this in Joyce's site and I knew I had to try too
This omelette is easy to make and yes it's delicious!
I ate it this morning with a slice of toasted wholemeal bread

What you need:

2 large eggs, lightly beaten with a pinch of salt and a dash of pepper
1 tbsp fresh milk
1 heaped tbsp grated cheddar cheese
1 tbsp snipped chives
milled black pepper

Method:

1. Over low heat in a pan pour milk, whirl around the edges
2. Add in eggs and with wooden spoon stir backwards and forwards through the liquid egg
3. Keep scrambling til 3/4 of the egg is creamy and solid mass formed, and 1/4 is still liquid
4. Add in cheese and chives, continue to scramble
5. Remove from heat, continue to scramble til no liquid egg
6. Seve immediately with milled egg and a toast or any other breakfast companion you prefer

 

I'm submitting this post to Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake

Below are blogging friends cooking and baking for this event :)

Terengganu Papaya Salad (Gohnyok)

I was planning to make this last October during Malaysian Food Fest Terengganu, but somehow I didn't find the time. Glad I finally did :)

 

 

Very refreshing and addictive!

And it goes well with the fish crackers!

 

Recipe is from Phong Hong Bakes

 

What you need:

 

unripe papaya, grated

cucumbers, sliced

pineapple, sliced

For dressing :

1 can tuna flakes (mash finely) (Ididn't use)
150 ml water
50 ml vinegar
1 tbsp asam jawa paste (tamarind paste) (I mixed with a little water, soaked for a few minutes and discarded the seeds)
15g gula melaka (palm sugar)
2 tbsp sambal belacan
sugar to taste
fish sauce to taste

To make dressing :

1. In a pot mixed water, vinegar, asam jawa paste and gula melaka
2. Bring to a boil and simmer until gula melaka dissolved. Remove from heat
3. Add sambal belacan and sugar and fish sauce to taste

To assemble:

1. Put the salad ingredients in a bowl and add dressing
2. Toss and serve with keropok (fish crackers)

Healthy and yummy, great for this currently hot hot hot weather
I surely will make this again :)

Bake Along #40 - Banana Chocolate Cheese Bread

I love banana bread, even though I seldom, almost never bake it, I wonder why LOL
I am not sure why it's called bread when it doesn't use yeast, but to me quick bread is cake, generally with more dense texture :)

This recipe is from "The Williams-Sonoma Baking Book", a recipe chosen for Bake Along, hosted by Joyce from Kitchen Flavours, Lena from Frozen Wings and Zoe from Bake For Happy Kids

I thought of some ways to make it not so dense, since I don't really fancy any bakes with a dense texture
I didn't want to alter the ingredients used, so I decided to try to change the making process

I separated the egg yolks from the whites, and beat separately, a common process which believed can turn a cake to be more fluffy
And true enough, it turned out so great my whole family loved it to the bits
Of course it's not as soft as sponge cake, but it's slightly softer than butter cake!
It's so moist and soft, full of banana fragrance and it's really tasty with chocolate and cheese in it
As you know, my kids do not eat cake or bread with nuts, so I used chocolate and cheese instead, and no regret at all :)
Oh I also omitted ground nutmeg used, something that my kids (again) doesn't fancy, added cream of tartar, replaced buttermilk with plain yoghurt and halved the sugar used :)

What you need:

90g unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup and it's just nice for me)

280g very ripe bananas, mashed (I used 4 medium bananas)

3 large eggs, lightly beaten (I separated the yolks from the whites)

1/4 tsp cream of tartar (I added)

1/2 cup buttermilk (I used plain yoghurt)

2 cups plain flour (I weighed and it's 290g)

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground nutmeg (I didn't use)

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup chopped walnuts / pecans / hazelnuts (I skipped)
1/2 cup chocolate chips (I added)
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, cubed (I added)

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and lightly flour two 20x10cm loaf pans
2. Beat together the butter and sugar on medium speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add egg yolks and followed by banana, beat until smooth. Add yoghurt, beat just until combined
3. In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt.  Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and beat just until combined. Set aside
4. In another bowl, beat egg whites with cream of tartar til medium peak
5. Fold in egg white mixture into the egg yolk mixture and add in chocolate chips and cheese cubes
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake until the top is dark golden brown and dry to the touch and the edges pull away from the pan sides, about 55-60 minutes (mine is 50 minutes). A cake tester inserted into the center should come out clean
7. Let the bread cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack and let cool completely. Cut into thick slices to serve

Storage tip : Wrap the bread tightly in plastic wrap

 

 

I am very satisfied with the result and definitely this is a recipe that I will consider baking again :)

 

 

 

 

Please view others baking using the same recipe below :)

 

 

February Weekends Breakfast

 

These are the breakfast I made during weekends in the month of February...

 

 

Toast white bread, hashbrown, crisp fried bacon and poached egg

 

Yes, I finally managed to make a not too bad looking poached egg LOL

Remember my too many times trial and error in mastering poached egg? :P 

Through my many times of experiments, what seems important is to pour the egg real gently into the swirling water, the pot is to be on medium low fire where the water simmers, and not to swirl the water too vigorously

 

  

 

 

Cheese omelette

Sprinkle grated cheddar in the centre of the omelette when half cooked, fold the left and right side towards the centre, cooked using Happy Call pan

Fried ham, toasted bun with cheese and scrambled egg

 



Banana cinnamon french toast

 

Too lazy to caramelize the banana, which I quite regretted :)

 

 

 

 

ABC March 2013 - No Knead Mixed Fruits Bread

Pardon the change in the name of the bread
Originally it's called no knead cherry pecan bread, but since I did not use any nuts, I omitted the chocolate chips, and instead of only dried cherries, I also added dried prunes, apricots and golden raisins
I had all those in the fridge and I couldn't decide which one to use, in the end I used up all LOL

This one easy to make and delicious bread is the third bake for Avid Baker's Challenge this year
I have been absent for the past three months and Hanaa, the host for this event, was so kind to allow me to continue baking together :)

I like this bread, very crusty top and soft, moist and chewy inside
When I saw other members' bakes, the top looks more brown than mine, I guess I should have altered the baking time to achieve that

Recipe is from King Arthur Flour's site, the recipe source for this year's ABC bakes

I made only half recipe, cos I knew this bread is not fancied by my kids :)

I replaced the flour with bread flour (since I read that all purpose flour by King Arthur has higher level of gluten compared to others)
I ommited chocolate chips and nuts. I used a mixture of golden raisins, dried apricots, dried prunes and dried cherries. Here I used 1 1/2 cups (for half recipe), I found it way too much and made the mixing with the bread dough a little challenging. The next time I make this bread again, I'll use 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup nuts (for half recipe) :)
I didn't use rye flour, instead I replace it with whole wheat flour, in all I used 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour (for half recipe)
Added the water a little to 225ml from 200ml  (for half recipe)
Oh, and I soaked the dried fruits in dark rhum for about an hour
I also reduced the salt to 3/4 tsp (for half recipe)

Following the majority opinion of the reviewers I read, I didn't mix in the dried fruits before the initial overnight rise, I did so the next day before the second rise
What I did was, I flattened the risen dough, made it into rectangle shape, sprinkled the dried fruits inside, and rolled it starting from the shorter end.
I shaped it into a ball, and placed it in a lined 6 inch round pan (for half recipe) (important to line it for easy removal)
Be sure that the dried fruits are all hidden inside the dough, to prevent it from getting burnt during baking
Then I left to rise for 3 hours

I baked in a preheated oven of 240degC for 20 minutes covered (I used Vision pot cover) (I think 25 minutes should do better) and then further bake for another 30 minutes uncovered

Leave to cool before cutting this bread, to avoid having a gummy texture bread :)


In overall, I enjoyed this bread, I enjoyed it toasted too, just plain or with a spread of cream cheese... yummy choice for breakfast :)
The best part of this bread is, no kneading at all! I like :)

Please view HERE for other members baked this bread :)

What I Cooked During CNY

Singapore weather is getting crazy for the past week! It's so hot and humid in the morning til afternoon, and suddenly dark clouds hanging in the air before it pours, for awhile, which doesn't help much in clearing the heat and humidity

As a result, Ian had his slight flu last week, and I had the "priviledge" to get the virus from him *sigh*
Started with sore throat and turned to slight cough, and then gave me a good feeling of recovery yesterday morning
However, as the cough almost disappeared, yesterday afternoon I started to have stuffy nose and headache :(
At the same time, Ian's runny nose was also back yesterday, and this time with quite bad phlegmy cough and slight fever :(
This morning after back from running errands, I still felt unwell, and as I'm writing this post, I drink my hot ginger tea to clear my blocked nose :S
Still have my bodyache and headache, after this I will take my medication and crawl to my bed to have my beauty sleep :)

Just want to share what I cooked during Chinese New Year last month
Not many, as most of the time we're outside
And the menu also wasn't really much different from the previous years
I just cooked what I felt like eating at that point of time, and usually it's always back to the same thing
Nevertheless, we enjoyed them so much :)

Chinese New Year's eve, always the same menu, just like the previous years :)
Chicken hotpot soup with all our favorite ingredients, fried taukee and fried cuttlefish balls

This hot chilli padi dipping sauce is really good and addictive, first time I made this, recipe is from Noobcook

What you need:

10 chilli padi (bird’s eyes chilli), sliced (I used 5 red)
3 large red chillis (I added)

4 cloves of garlic, cut

2 tbsp light soy sauce

juice of 2 limes

1 tsp sesame oil

some sugar (I added)

Method:

1. Using a food blender, blend chilli padi and garlic cloves together. Transfer to a small bowl.
2. Add light soy sauce, sesame oil and lime juice and sugar to taste

Below is stir fry scallops, shitake mushrooms and brocolli in oyster sauce, I made this last year, you may view the recipe HERE , accompanied by crispy fried fish

 

Recipe for this delicious, crisp on the outside while juicy in the inside as follows...

What you need:

300g tilapis fillet, cut into chunks
1 clove of garlic, grated
1 tbsp juice of large lime
1 tsp salt
a dash of pepper

To coat:
2 tbsp plain flour
1 egg white, lightly beaten
150g breadcrumbs

Sauce:
Mix together:
100ml mayonnaise
1 tbsp juice of lemon
1 tsp dijon mustard
a dash of pepper

Method:

1. Mix evenly fish with garlic, lime juice, pepper and salt
2. Coat fish with plain flour, dip in egg white and coat with breadcrumbs
3. Set aside til it's a little dry
4. Heat oil and deep fry til crisp
5. Serve immediately with the sauce

Below is stir fry Chinese leeks and fishmaw with beancurd, recipe is from Peng's Kitchen
Yum yum yum... all my favorite things inside :)

 

What you need:

20gm fish maw, softened

3 stalks spring onion, sliced

a thumb size ginger, sliced

about 2 cups water
20g beancurd sticks, softened (I added)
5 stalks chinese leek, sliced diagonally
1 tbsp sliced ginger
3 cloves of garlic, chopped

6 tbsp chicken stock

1 tbsp osyter sauce
1 tbsp chinese wine
1 tsp sesame oil
salt to taste

Method:

1. Place ginger & spring onion with water in a pot, bring to boil. Add fish maw and bring to boil. Lower heat and cook for 15mins. Drain away water. Slice fish maw into 3 cm length. Set aside
2. Heat 1 tbsp oil wok, add garlic & ginger. Stir fry for 1 min. Add leek and fry for 2mins.
3. Add beancurd, fish maw, chicken stock and seasoning. Simmer for 2mins. Remove from heat
    

Yes, that's all! The rest, we ate out LOL
Hopefully I will be able to cook more variety next year :)

Okay, it's late now... my bed is calling me, bye :)
Wish Ian and also me a speedy recovery okie.... DH is around during weekend so I at least can really rest, but this mummy need to get back to her superwoman duties on Monday LOL