cupcakes the 1st pic shows some of the sugarless banana walnut cupcakes with vanilla butter cream topping (recipe given in previous post) these were made for marissa's first birthday in may
as they were also meant for adults i added nuts
the 2nd pic shows reduced sugar banana cupcakes with same topping but tinted with food coloring
these were made for lizzie's last day of school party last term in june
for the topping i actually used caster sugar and icing sugar
this gave the topping a little sugary texture!
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truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009sugarless banana muffins
my neighbour who's a good baker lent me this book when i went to her for baking tips cos i'm really bad at baking
moreover, i was hoping to bake sugarless sweets (haha so ironic) for my diabetic mom-in-law and daughter
i tried making sugarless cupcakes and muffins using the banana nut loaf recipe by omitting the sugar
the result was very good
better than any diabetic recipes i've tried
for mini muffins (3×4), bake for only about 10 to 12 mins or until brown on top
for bigger muffins (2×3) bake for about 15 mins or until brown
because lizzie doesn't like nuts, i omit the nuts too during mixing
*one thing to note though, use very ripe bananas
if you are not using big bananas, substitute with 6 small Dole bananas
to make icing for 12 cupcakes (from "cupcakes" by susanna tee):
whisk 85g of butter soften until fluffy
then sift in 175g of icing sugar
beat together till well mixed
then add 1 tbsp of milk and 2 – 3 drops of vanilla essence
just take a knob of unsalted butter, whisk till light and fluffy, add icing sugar and a few drops of vanilla essence
put the icing in a piping bag and decorate the muffins when they are cold
decorate with sugar beads or walnuts or pecan
* i don't follow the recipe strictly. i just take about 50g of butter and add about 2 -3 tbsp of icing sugar and melted dark chocolate
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009
coconut chicken with lemon rice
tried this recipe from olive magazine, may 2009
it's really simple and delicious!
looks impressive too!
lizzie could eat this too as it's not really spicy and she liked it!
great dish to serve when you have a bunch of friends coming over for dinner
you can pre-cook the chicken and heat it up again just before serving
rice can be cooked in rice cooker after frying all the ingredients together
alternatively, you can serve with noodles or bread
i used a whole chicken, chopped, instead of chicken thigh fillets
i also substituted half the required coconut milk with evaporated milk for health reasons!
try it
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009
meat balls, organic apples, grilled seabass and carrots ran out of gas when i just started cooking lunch!!!!!!took out an induction cooker which was meant for boiling tea to cook lunch!!!!!!
father in law bought it from china for just about S$30
we've used it to do shabu shabu!
it was really useful in times like this
unfortunately, my non-stick tefal pan cannot be used on the induction cooker
so i cooked the meatballs from may issue of goodfood magazine in my muffins tray in the oven
the vegetables and sauce in my wmf stainless steal pot on the induction cooker
i couldn't remember the recipe and used the following to make the meatballs:
200g of minced pork
2 small eggs beaten
about half of a large onion, finely chopped
2 slices of white bread soaked in milk and roughly torn up
some black peppercorn
mix the above ingredients with your hands and roll them into desired sizes and shapes
then coat with plain flour before pan frying or baking
i stir fried half of the minced without salt and gave them to marissa my one yr old
the other half, i lightly greased the muffin tray with olive oil and bake six big meatballs in the oven at 200 degrees for about 30mins until golden brown
need to turn the meatballs half way
to make the sauce, melt 1 tbsp of unsalted butter, add some stock if you have and enough plain flour to thicken the sauce
add dill as suggested in the goodfood recipe or any vege of your choice
then stir in the meat balls
serve with rice or mash or pasta
this is not the best meatballs i've tried but they're ok
the best i've tried are a little more complicated with more ingredients
will share some other time
had a deliciously sweet organic apple for snack when kids were napping
for dinner, kaif bought fantastic seabass and carrots from culina
we simply stuffed a few slices of ginger in the fish stomach and rubbed olive oil, sea salt, chopped garlic and black peppercorn on the fish
season the carrots with olive oil, black peppercorn and rosemary herbs
then set oven to grill and cook the fish and carrots (whole) for about 40 mins
need to turn over the fish half way when the top is brown and skin looks crispy
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009
asparagus was reading the goodfood magazine (may issue) last night and learnt some tips on cooking asparagus from this recipethough i later found out online that it does not have good ratings, i gathered 4 useful tips:
1) green asparagus take about 3 – 5 mins to cook depending on the thickness
2) to test if it is cooked, pierce the spear or stem with the point of a knife to see if it slides in easily
3) if you don't wish to shave the woody stems of the asparagus which can be quite tedious, you may hold one asparagus at each end, then bend – it will break where the tough woody stem meets the more tender and edible tip
4) don't throw away trimmings and ends as they make a great stock for soups and risottos
so i tried cooking my other bunch of asparagus in the fridge today
i did not follow the recipe
i did not bend the asparagus till it breaks where the woody stem meets the edible tip
i didn't want to waste it cos i'm not making any stock today
i shaved the stems lightly so that they will not taste woody but tender when cooked
i sauteed them in butter and finely chopped garlic with a pinch of salt
i tested how long i needed to cook them properly
it was good
marissa, my one year old, loved the asparagus!
amazing!
ingredients
1 bunch of asparagus (rinsed, trimmed slightly and the woody part of the stems lightly shaved, then halved)
1 clove of finely chopped garlic
1 level tbsp of unsalted butter
a few drops of light olive oil to prevent the butter from burning
1 tbsp of cooking liquid
1 tsp of fried shallot oil (optional)
method
melt the butter in a non stick pan over medium heat
add the olive oil
add garlic and fry till fragrant but not brown or coloured
add asparagus and coat them with the butter
add cooking liquid and a pinch of salt and stir well (how big a pinch depends on how salty you like your food to be but a very small pinch makes a lot of difference as salt brings out the flavour of food in a very amazing way)
cover with a lid
remove the lid after about 3 – 5 mins (depending on the thickness of the asparagus) and test by piercing the asparagus with the point of a knife -
when cooked it will slide in easily
transfer to serving plate when cooked and spoon over the shallot oil if you have
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009"steamed" bicourti fillet with asparagus
i had some left over bocourti fillet and a bunch of japanese asparagus in the fridge
so i decided to saute the asparagus (uncut) in a table spoon of olive butter
and cook the fish in the oven
ingredients for marinating the fish:
1 bocourti fillet
1/4 tsp of sugar (optional)
1/4 tsp of fine salt (optional)
a pinch of fine white pepper or black peppercorn
1 tsp of finely grated ginger
1 clove of garlic finely chopped
a handful or a small bunch of chinese corriander, roughly torn by hand
2 tsp of light olive oil
ingredients for sauteeing the asparagus:
a knob or 1 tbsp of olive butter or unsalted butter
a few drops of olive oil
1 clove of garlic finely chopped
1 tbsp of water or stock* if you have
a bunch of asparagus with the woody stems trimmed and shaved slightly with a sharp knife (i use the thicker stem ones)
ingredients for a light sauce to spoon over the dish:
2 tbsp of water or stock from the fish
1 tsp or a few drops of light soya sauce
1 tsp of sesame oil
toppings (optional):
crispy sliced onions, chopped garlic and ginger
method:
rub the marinate ingredients on the fish and marinate in the tin foil for at least 30 mins
leave it in the fridge till you need to cook it
preheat the oven at 200 degrees and bake the fish fully wrapped in tin foil for 20 to 25 mins
there will be some liquid produced during the process of cooking the fish, which you can use to make the sauce or gravy
melt the butter in the non-stick pan
add the garlic and fry till fragrant but not brown
add the asparagus and coat them well with the butter
when it seems a bit dry, add the stock and cover with a lid
lift the lid and check constantly for doneness
when the asparagus are cooked, they still have a nice green colour, darker from its uncook look, tender but not soggy
they should be removed from the heat and transferred to serving plate immediately
they will continue to cook a little even after they've come out of the pan!
do not cover greens when they are hot or they'll turn brown!
when the fish is ready, transfer it on top of the asparagus
heat up the sauce and pour over
spoon over some crispy onions, garlic and ginger if you have!
* i cook some ikan bilis (dried anchovies) and soya bean stock sometimes and it can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days
the stock come in really handy for a quick soup with egg and tofu or minced pork balls
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009
i bought a couple of frozen thawed bocourti fillets from ntucbicourti fillets with grapes
lizzie can be very difficult when it comes to meal times
but she likes any dish that has fruits in it!
this is one of the dishes that she enjoys!
my method is an adaptation or simplified version of annabel karmel's fillet of sole with grapes (from her new complete baby and toddler meal planner)
melt a knob of butter in a non-stick pan (add some light olive oil to prevent it from burning)
add a clove of finely chopped garlic to it and fry till fragrant
add the fish fillets (rinsed and dry thoroughly with kitchen towels) and pan fry till a bit golden but not overly cooked so that the fish will still be tender
transfer fish to a plate and garnish with seedless grapes halved
note: i don't add salt to the fish as it's also meant for my one year old. but you may rub salt on the fish before frying it or use salted butter or grind some salt onto the cooked fish after setting aside for toddlers below 1
serve with rice or porridge
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009
bicourti fillets with grapes
lizzie can be very difficult when it comes to meal times
but she likes any dish that has fruits in it!
this is one of the dishes that she enjoys!
my method is an adaptation or simplified version of annabel karmel's fillet of sole with grapes (from her new complete baby and toddler meal planner)
i bought a couple of frozen thawed bocourti fillets from ntuc
melt a knob of butter in a non-stick pan (add some light olive oil to prevent it from burning)
add a clove of finely chopped garlic to it and fry till fragrant
add the fish fillets (rinsed and dry thoroughly with kitchen towels) and pan fry till a bit golden but not overly cooked so that the fish will still be tender
transfer fish to a plate and garnish with seedless grapes halved
note: i don't add salt to the fish as it's also meant for my one year old. but you may rub salt on the fish before frying it or use salted butter or grind some salt onto the cooked fish after setting aside for toddlers below 1
serve with rice or porridge
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009chicken rice
my lizzie loves chicken rice
but i'm not keen to give her hawker food all the time as it's loaded with msg and salt
the easiest way to cook this is to buy a packet of the ready mix and cook it with your rice cooker
but i'm skeptical of all these commercial ready mix stuff even though some claim to have no msg added
you never know how much salt and sugar and substitutes are added
hence i thought of a way to cook chicken rice quickly, easily and still as tasty for just 2 adults or 1 adult and 2 children
i do this while the kids nap
takes me about 30 to 45 mins to prepare and cook
if the instructions are not clear below, do let me know because this is the first time i'm writing down a recipe!
ingredients for boiling the chicken and making the stock:
2 chicken thigh with skin on, rinsed
2 slices of ginger peeled
2 stalks of spring onions (just the white part)
2 small shallots peeled
2 small cloves of garlic
ingredients for cooking the rice:
1 cup of white long grains, rinsed
thinly sliced ginger (think enough to pick out cos kids don't like it)
1 clove of garlic
chicken fat from the 2 thighs
chicken stock enough to cook 1 cup of rice as indicated by rice cooker
salt
ingredients for the sauce:
3 tbsp of chicken stock
1 to 2 tbsp of light soya sauce
1 tsp of sesame oil
some fried shallot and it's oil (i bought the commercial ones!)
alternatively, use the cooked garlic and shallot from the stock
for garnishing:
fried shallots
chinese corriander leaves
method:
place all ingredients except chicken in a small pot of water (about 500ml ) and bring it to boil
while waiting for water to boil, place chicken fat in a non-stick pan over small to medium heat, take care not to burn it
add chicken to boiling stock and bring it to boil again (you may add a pinch of salt)
turn down the heat and remove the lid
simmer for about 20 to 30 mins depending on the size of chicken thighs used
if the chicken is not fully covered by stock, cover the pot half way with the lid so that the top part of the exposed chicken can be cooked by the steam
using a ladle, remove any impurities that come to the surface (if the water is boiling, the impurities will be drawn back down to the bottom and the skin of the chicken may tear, so it's important to make sure that the soup is barely moving)
while this is happening, add ginger slices, garlic and sliced shallots to the pan which should be very oily by now and the chicken fat turning golden
fry till fragrant and ginger slices turn golden
then add rice grains to fry till they turn opaque, slightly puffed up and fragrant
remove from pan and transfer into a rice cooker and set aside till the chicken is ready
remove chicken after 20 mins and place on a plate to cool
to check for doneness, prick the middle of the thigh and clear liquid should flow out if it's cooked
add the chicken stock and salt to the rice and cook
cooked rice can be kept warm in the rice cooker till dinner time
just before serving, heat up the sauce and add the crispy shallots or crushed cooked garlic and shallot
blanch some pak choi in the remaining chicken stock just before dinner time and spoon over some sauce and shallot oil
cut the thigh with scissors and spoon sauce over
to make nice chicken soup, season with salt or add chicken stock cube
truffles in the kitchen:
July 19, 2009cupcakes made from the banana walnut loaf recipe
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the 1st pic shows some of the sugarless banana walnut cupcakes with vanilla butter cream topping (recipe given in previous post)
these were made for marissa's first birthday in may
as they were also meant for adults i added nuts
the 2nd pic shows reduced sugar banana cupcakes with same topping but tinted with food coloring
these were made for lizzie's last day of school party last term in june
for the topping i actually used caster sugar and icing sugar
this gave the topping a little sugary texture!
