tuna muffins

Savoury muffins?  Yes, I baked savoury muffins.

We had opened a can of tuna with mayonnaise for Junior Master Chef to bake pizza.  With half a can of tuna left, I wanted to use up the tuna quickly before it spoiled.

So while Da brought the girls downstairs for an evening stroll, I quickly got down to business.  The best part about this recipe is that it uses empty yoghurt pots and you do not need to use any measuring tools (other than a teaspoon - for the baking powder).  Less tools = easier clean-up.

The lovely aroma of the tuna waffled throughout the kitchen during the baking process.  The end result was moist and yummy.  Do give this a try! 

INGREDIENTS

3 pots self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 pot Greek yoghurt
1 pot oil
1 pot castor sugar
3 eggs
1/2 can tuna with mayonnaise

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Sift the self-raising flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl.  Set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, add the yoghurt and oil.  Whisk using a hand whisk until evenly mixed.

4. Add the castor sugar and mix well.

5. Add the tuna and mix.

6. Fold in the flour using a wooden spatula and stir until the flour disappears.  Do not over-mix.

7. Fill the paper muffin cases with the batter and bake for 18 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean.

8. Cool the muffins on a wire rack.

TIPS

1. I use a blend of sunflower and canola oil.

2. You can add the entire can of tuna with mayonnaise (instead of only 1/2).

steamed egg cake

When a friend saw the above photograph, the first comment he made was "Why is your steamed egg cake not "smiling"?".  You see, the traditional steamed egg cake that is sold in the commercial stores are typically those where the top is spread open (hence the description "smiling").  Actually, this is the same thing.  The only difference is how much of the liner you fill with the batter.

If you were to google "steamed egg cake" (or "ji dan gao" in Chinese), you will see a myriad of recipes. Depending on the ingredients used, the texture of the end product can vary. 

The secret to cotton-soft steamed egg cake is in the beating.  If you were to use a recipe that does not require a raising agent (such as baking powder), then it is all the more important that you need to beat the eggs long enough so that you get a cake that is light and soft. Ideally, therefore, you should use an electric mixer to whisk the eggs.

When I baked this steamed egg cake, I was in a hurry.  Da had just brought the Chickadees downstairs for a short pre-dinner stroll.  As such, I used a hand whisk instead of an electric whisk.  Although I was happy with the texture of the final product, I intend to try this recipe again using an electric whisk to achieve an even softer texture.

INGREDIENTS

275g cake flour
3 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
200g castor sugar
150ml low fat milk

METHOD

1. Sift the cake flour and baking powder in a bow.  Set aside.

2. Whisk the eggs till frothy.  Add the sugar a little by little, to ensure that it is well-incorporated.  Continue beating until the batter becomes pale, thick and creamy.

3. Add the milk and beat well.

4. Heat up the steamer until the water is boiling.

5. Fold in the sifted flour.  When you no longer see streaks of flour, stop.

6. Fill cupcake/muffin liners with the batter.

7. Steam at high heat for 10 to 15 minutes.

8. Remove and cool on the rack before serving.

TIPS

1. If you would like the steamed egg cake to "smile", then you should fill the liners until almost full.

2. Do not open the lid of the steamer when steaming.

bread casserole

I love to bake bread and I love to eat bread.  The problem is that I sometimes go overboard with the baking of bread and I end up with leftovers that the family cannot finish.

What do I do with the leftover bread?

This is a perfect recipe to use when you have leftover bread and a bit of this and a bit of that in terms of ingredients.  Toss everything together and you get a wonderful bread casserole!

Note: This recipe yields a substantial casserole, so do cut down the recipe if you wish to bake a smaller casserole.

INGREDIENTS

8 eggs

2 cups low fat milk

2 cups grated mozarella cheese

freshly ground black peppercorn (to taste)

freshly ground white peppercorn (to taste)

freshly ground sea salt (to taste)

1 tsp dried mixed Italian herbs

assorted ingredients (I pretty much add whatever is available in the kitchen, eg. sausage, mixed greens, frozen spinch, ham, surimi, fresh Shitake mushrooms, onions, etc)

6 slices thick bread (cut into large cubes)

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Line a 13" x 9" casserole dish (or, in this case, I used a 9" x 9" square baking pan) with aluminium foil. Set aside.

3. Beat the eggs in a large bowl until frothy.

4. Add the milk and cheese and mix well.

5. Add the black peppercorn, white peppercorn, sea salt, mixed dried Italian herbs and ingredients and mix well.

6. Add the bread and carefully stir until all pieces of bread are moistened (do not overmix otherwise the bread may disintegrate).

7. Pour into the prepared casserole dish / baking pan.

8. Bake for 50 minutes to an hour, until the top is browned and the centre springs back when touched.

9. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

TIPS

This casserole goes well with a bit of Dijon mustard or tomato sauce by the side.

easy fish stew

I wish I had clearer photographs of the fish stew that I cooked on 24 May 2014.  Unfortunately, by the time I got home late from a work meeting, there were no leftovers for me.  Da said that the dish was good and he is very easy-going with his palate so if he said it was good, it would have been pretty good, I guess.... haha...

This is a cheater-bug recipe.  It is so easy that I do not even know where to begin insofar as typing the recipe is concerned.

So here goes...

INGREDIENTS

1 can Campbell cream of mushroom

200g salmon fillet (cut into large slices - like in the photograph above)

4 cherry tomatoes

6 baby carrots (halved)

1 bay leaf

2 baby corn (halved)

1 stick celery (cut into large pieces)

1 potato (cut into large cubes)

1 medium red onion (quartered)

METHOD

1. Mix all the ingredients together.

2. Refrigerate for at least an hour (preferably overnight).

3. Cook in a slowcooker.

4. Serve hot with steamed rice.

braised chicken drumsticks

I have good news and bad news.

The good news is that these braised chicken drumsticks were so yummy that there were no leftovers for me when I got home late from a work meeting today.  

The bad news is that I had not had dinner yet when I got home.

I did not get the opportunity to take more photographs other than the above photograph that I took when I was cooking the drumsticks.  Sob, sob....

So this recipe is a keeper.  In fact, I'm toying with the idea of making variations of this.  Let's see how things progress... So far, I am more adventurous in varying baking recipes as compared to cooking recipes but there's always a first time.

INGREDIENTS (marinade)

2 tbsp honey

1/2 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp light soya sauce
4 cloves of garlic (whole)

OTHER INGREDIENTS

6 chicken drumsticks

1 bay leaf

1 carrot (cut into chunks)

1 stick celery (cut into big pieces)

1 carrot (cut into large cubes)

4 dried mushrooms

1 red onion (quartered)

4 cherry tomatoes

METHOD

1. In a large bowl, mix the marinade well.

2. Add the other ingredients and mix with the marinade.

3. Refrigerate for at least an hour (preferably overnight).

4. Cook in a slow cooker or a rice cooker with soup function (select the soup function).

5. Serve piping hot with steamed white rice.

red velvet cupcake

I have heard about "red velvet cake" for some time.  The lovely looking cake has always intrigued me although I have not gotten around to baking it.

The Chickadees' childcare centre is closed today for the school move. Baby Chickadee has gone to her ex-babysitter's home for the day. In fact, my niece will be joining Baby Chickadee at the sitter's home, at least for several hours. What fun the two little munchkins will have today!

As for Princess Chickdee, her classmate's mother has very kindly offered to let Princess Chickadee hang out at her home today for a playdate with Princess Chickadee's classmate.

This is the first time that Princess Chickadee has gone on a playdate without me. Would she shed tears when I leave for work? Well, as it turned out, she was so happy to arrive at her buddy's home that she promptly forgot about me. Instead, it was I who kept lingering on at the doorway, trying to say "bye" yet another time to my beloved girl.

It is customary in our culture that when you go to another person's home, you do not turn up empty-handed. However, I worked late yesterday and as such, I did not have time to buy anything for Princess Chickadee to bring to her friend's home. As such, after I got home from work, I decided to bake some cupcakes. Princess Chickadee just had a playdate with some of her schoolmates at Gardens By The Bay on 13 May 2014 and as such, I did not want to bake butter cupcakes again. At this juncture, red velvet cupcakes came to mind. It was time to give this a try!

The verdict? I am pleased with this first attempt at red velvet cupcakes. As you can see from the photograph above, the cupcake turned out lovely.

This is an easy recipe, so do give it a try!

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp cocoa powder
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice)
2 tbsp liquid red colouring
125g butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups castor sugar
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Line the cupcake pans with paper cases.  Set aside.

3. Sift the cake flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder in a bowl.  Set aside.

4. Mix the eggs, vanilla extract, buttermilk and liquid red colouring in a bowl.  Set aside.

5. Cream the butter with the sugar in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy.

6. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet ingredients into the butter/sugar mixture, mixing well with each addition.

7. Mix the vinegar with bicarbonate of soda in a small bowl before quickly mixing it into the cake mixture.

8. Scoop into the prepared cupcake pans.

9. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cupcake comes out clean.

moist apple cupcake

Have you ever heard of a recipe so easy that you enjoy baking the item again and again and again?

Well, on 17 May 2014 (Saturday), my baking hands were "itchy" and I rummaged through my refrigerator to see what ingredients I had available.  I chanced upon 2 red apples in the refrigerator.  Now... what can I bake with 2 red apples.

As I tell the juniors in my office that I mentor (jokingly, of course!), "let's ask Mr Google".  And so out came my ipad and I googled "apple cake".  Many links came up and I browsed through them, mindful of the fact that Baby Chickadee would wake up from her nap soon and I wanted a recipe that was "chop chop".

After browsing several links, I came across a recipe for an apple cake that claimed to be the easiest apple cake recipe in the world. Intrigued, I looked at the recipe and the steps were tremendously easy.  Although the recipe called for green apples, well... I only had red apples in the refrigerator and they would have to do.

And so I gave the recipe a try.  It was super duper easy.  PIL came over for dinner that day and MIL (who has discerning tastebuds when it comes to my bakes) gave it the thumbs up.

I had lunch with a colleague on 19 May 2014 (Monday) and I raved about the recipe to her.  We talked about baking a cupcake version of the apple cake.  It just so happened that in the morning of 19 May 2014, I bought green apples, red apples, pears and bananas from a fruit shop near my office.  And throughout the work meeting that I had that night, as I was furiously taking down meeting notes, my mind was concurrently wandering and thinking about baking green apple cupcakes, so much so that when I got home (late!), I packed the Chickadees' schoolbags as quickly as I could, did a bit of housework and then I determinedly took out my baking tools.  Da entered into the kitchen and asked me what I was doing.  I replied that I was going to bake green apple cupcakes.  He gave me one of those "at this hour?  sigh..." look and left me alone.

And I got down to business.

The recipe that you see in this post is modified from the apple cake recipe that I used on 17 May 2014.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

dash of ground cinnamon

1/2 cup castor sugar

1 egg

125 butter (melted)

2 green apples (diced)

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Line the cupcake pans with the paper cases.

3. Mix all the ingredients together.

4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cupcake comes out clean.

TIPS

1. The original recipe called for double the amount of sugar that you see in the recipe above.  I cut down the sugar by half and it was sweet enough for my tastebuds.

2. You can also add a dash of ground nutmeg.

3. The apples need not be peeled but if you prefer not to eat the skin of the apple, by all means, do peel them.

4. You can substitute the green apples with red apples.

NOTES

This recipe yields a very moist cupcake.  Be forewarned that you may find yourself reaching for a second cupcake!

Tomato bread stick

Okay, okay... this is my rare few attempts at baking bread without using a breadmaker to prepare the dough. I have to admit that I need to do a better job at kneading the dough and shaping the bread sticks!

I thought about these tomato bread sticks (after I made them for the first time last night) and I am so tempted to use a breadmaker the next time I make these, simply so that I can get the breadmaker to prepare the dough. haha!  However, looking at how easy this recipe is, I really have to remind myself that every now and then, it is nice to "go back to basics" and omit the use of modern kitchen tools.

I adapted this recipe from a recipe that I obtained from a facebook group that I am in. The person who shared the recipe had made tomato bread sticks for her young toddler, hence it is expected that the bread stick is not very rich in taste. Having said this, though, when I baked these bread sticks, despite the less-than-presentable shape and the not-so-perfect texture (because I made them in a hurry after dinner yesterday), the bread sticks were a hit with Baby Chickadee. She had 3 helpings!

INGREDIENTS

100g to 110g tomatoes

100g bread flour 

50g cake flour 

1 tbsp milk powder 

1 tsp instant yeast 

Pinch of salt 

½ tbsp brown sugar

METHOD

1. Blend the fresh tomatoes in a blender. Set aside.

2. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl.

3. Add the blended tomatoes and mix into a dough. If the dough is sticky, add a bit more bread flour.

4. Separate the dough into smaller portions and mould each portion into desired shape.

5. Place the moulded dough on a baking tray (lined with baking paper) and cover the tray with a dry cloth. Leave aside for about an hour to proof.

6. Bake the bread sticks in an oven preheated to 200 degrees celsius for about 10 minutes.

TIPS

1. The riper the tomato, the juicier and sweeter.

2. I did not remove the skin nor seeds of the tomato.

sore throat and cough remedy

I hate to label anyone (myself) as prone to this or that. The Bible says that we shall have whatever we say. That is why I always remind myself to speak words that edify and lift up the Chickadees. I tell them that by His stripes, they are healed. I tell them that they have Favour and Grace because of His finished work.

I have also reached the point where I am trying to look into natural remedies as an alternative or a supplement to medicine. I must admit that I do not have the level of faith yet to throw away all medicine and rely solely on natural remedies. However, I have been seeing results with natural remedies.

One natural remedy that I would like to share in this post is that of a sore throat and cough remedy. Now, I do need to let you know that this recipe requires the addition of essential oil. I am a new user to essential oils, having started in earnest only at the beginning of 2014. It is only as I get more and more familiar with essential oils that I have come to realise that many of the remedies that we have been resorting to all these years actually contain essential oils.

Sounds amazing? Let me give you a few more examples of natural remedies:-

(a) Ru Yee oil - this is an all-time favourite with Asian mothers who rub the oil on their loved ones' tummies or under the soles of their feet to keep their bodies warm, to ease constipation, to make their tummies feel better (in the event of flu, diarrhoea, etc). If you read the ingredient list on the bottle of this oil, you will recognise, among other ingredients, peppermint oil (which is known to be very good for pain, discomfort, to keep the body warm, etc).

(b) Minyk Telon oil - some people call this "nonya oil". Some mothers use this in place of Ru Yee oil. This contains cajuput oil, fennel oil and coconut oil.

(c) fever patch - read the ingredient list and you will recognise eucalyptus, etc.

I recently had a very bad oven burn on my right arm. In the past, I would reach for a burn cream bought from a pharmacy. This time, the first thing that I reached for was my lavender essential oil. After two or three applications, the nasty burn mark was almost as faint as another oven burn mark on my left arm that I sustained about 4 years ago. At that time, I used a store-bought burn cream. After a month or so, I can barely see the burn mark on my right arm. I shared this testimony with my dermatologist the other day and he said, "It is a good result.".

Speaking of dermatologists, interestingly-enough, when I consulted him regarding my swollen finger (which he said is due to excessive exposure to water, ie. I bake/cook too much! haha...), instead of recommending to me some super-duper medical cream to apply on my hand to moisturise it, he advised me to buy extra virgin coconut oil and moisturise my hand with this!

But I digress from the purpose of this post. The recipe for this home remedy uses Thieves essential oil, which is said to be highly anti-bacterial. I am given to understand that you can concoct your own Thieves essential oil. However, I do not have that level of experience and I would defer to the experts. I buy Young Living Thieves essential oil. According to the writeup on their website, "Thieves® was created based on research about four thieves in France who covered themselves with cloves, rosemary, and other aromatics while robbing plague victims. This proprietary essential oil blend was university tested for its cleansing abilities. It is highly effective in supporting the immune system and good health." (source: https://www.youngliving.com/en_US/products/essential-oils/blends/thieves-essential-oil)

When Princess Chickadee was diagnosed with "throat infection" recently, she was prescribed antibiotics and a throat drop. I decided to ask my friends (who have been using essential oils for longer than me) whether they know of any recipe to make my own sore throat remedy using essential oils. I was given a recipe, which I am sharing with you now. I have made a slight modification to the recipe to suit our taste and preference.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 lemon

10 tsp Manuka honey

7 drops Thieves® essential oil

METHOD

1. Peel the lemon and cut into small pieces.

2. Mix the lemon, honey and Thieves® essential oil in a small glass jar. Store in the refrigerator.

3. When you are ready to consume, add 1 tsp of the mixture to a bit of boiling water to dissolve the honey, then top up with cool boiled water.

TIPS

1. This recipe makes a small batch, so all you need is a small glass jar, such as a small baby food 4oz jar.

2. When I first made this for Princess Chickadee, I topped up the water to 1/2 a small cup.  Princess Chickadee found difficulty finishing the concoction. It may be due to the cinnamon in the Thieves oil blend. As such, when I prepared the concoction a second time for her, I added less water and she was able to finish it at one go.

3. As there are no preservatives added, it is advisable to keep this in the refrigerator for no more than 2 to 3 months. That is also why the recipe only makes a small batch, so that you can always make a fresh batch when needed.

4. I am given to understand that this is not only a sore throat remedy, it is also a cough remedy. However, I have not used this to treat any cough yet as we are all hale and hearty (save for the "throat infection" that Princess Chickadee had recently). We thank the Lord that we have health and wholeness through Him by the perfect work that He did at the Cross. By His stripes, we are healed!

5. What did I do with the remaining 1/2 of the lemon?  hehe... I sliced it and added a slice to my hot green tea. :)

yummy refrigerated oats

I love oats.  However, I tend to get sore throat after eating them frequently.  The Asian thinking is that oats are "heaty".  As such, over the years, I have tried to avoid eating oats too often.

I was therefore tremendously pleased to discover a new way of eating oats.  I have been eating this for the past two weeks and I am happy to say that I have not developed any sore throat yet.

The secret is to refrigerate the oats for a period of time (eg. overnight).  The liquid (in this case, milk and yoghurt) will soften the oats, thereby getting around the "heaty" problem.  Best of all, you can add as many fruits as you like!

INGREDIENTS

5 tbsp organic rolled oats
2 tbsp plain Greek yoghurt
2 tbsp flavoured yoghurt
3/4 cup low fat milk
1 tsp black chia seeds
assorted fresh fruits
handful of dried fruits such as cranberries, apricots and raisins

METHOD

1. Cut the fresh fruits into bite-size pieces.

2. Mix all of the ingredients together in a container.

3. Refrigerate for several hours (preferably overnight) to soften the oats and the chia seeds.

TIPS

1. If you intend to add citrus fruits, do use a glass container instead of a plastic container. I have been wondering about this and it occurred to me that I have not seen jam sold in a plastic container (ie. so far, the jam that I see in the shops are sold in glass containers).

2. Adding rolled oats tastes better than the regular instant/cooking oats.

3. You can use black or white chia seeds. I am given to understand that black chia seeds have more health properties than white chia seeds but either is fine. I only added black chia seeds because they do not come cheap (!) and hence, I decided that I will only buy one type of chia seeds.

4. I prefer Meiji flavoured yoghurt because I find it less sweet than some of the other brands.  They also have a large variety of flavours so I will use a different flavour each day.

5. Personal feedback after consuming this daily for about two weeks - great improvement in bowel movement. Yipee! I am not sure about weight loss though because I have consciously avoided stepping onto a weighing scale over the years. :)

cranberry cupcakes

I love cupcakes baked using butter.  The cupcakes simply melt in your mouth.

This recipe uses the creaming method, which is good for those who do not possess an electric mixer or who would like to let their little ones try their hand at baking cupcakes.

As I took the tray of baked cupakes out of the hot oven, I inhaled the lovely aroma of the butter and I could not wait to savour a bite.  As such, before the cupcakes had cooled down thoroughly, I impatiently sliced a cupcake (hehe... for purposes of taking a photograph, of course!) and took my first bite.  Simply moist!

I added cranberries to the batter but you can substitute this with other dry filling such as chocolate chips, raisins, etc to suit your tastebuds. 

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 cups self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cups dried cranberries

250g butter (softened)

1 cup castor sugar

4 eggs

1 cup low fat milk

1 tsp vanilla essence

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Line the cupcake pan with the paper cases.  Set aside.

3. Sift the self-raising flour, baking powder and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Stir the cranberries into the flour mixture.  Set aside.

4. Cream the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl until well mixed.  Add the eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well with each addition.

5. Combine the milk and vanilla essence and add alternately to the creamed mixture with the flour mixture, ending with the flour mixture.

6. Bake for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cupcake comes out clean.

7. Let the cupcakes cool thoroughly on a wire rack before storing them.

broccoli, sausage and bacon quiche

I ate my first quiche in a Delifrance cafe years ago and I have been hooked since.  I find that quiche is simply yummy.

It was only years later that I started baking my own quiche. When I did so, I realised that it was not all that difficult to make and you have a lot of freedom in terms of the filling that you want to use.

I baked this quiche for a small gathering at a friend's place today. What was the occasion? Well, I guess it was a belated Christmas gift exchange (for the kids) and an opportunity for the adults to catch up over the New Year.

With Baby Chickadee having just started childcare on 2 January 2014, I have not had the time to do grocery shopping lately. Fortunately, one of my colleagues frequently passes around an order list for those of us who wish to order sausages, bacon, ham, etc. The supplier will deliver the items to our office. I always place an order whenever the order list is passed around. I understand that the price is cheaper than if you were to buy the item from the supermarket. More importantly, I appreciate the convenience of having my order delivered "right to my doorstep".

As such, for today's quiche, I made use of whatever I could find in my refrigerator and freezer. I happened to have the broccoli florets because I just used the stem to cook stock for the girls a week ago.

INGREDIENTS

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups low fat milk

3 tbsp butter (softened)

1/2 cup self raising flour

1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese

2 cups ingredients - I used broccoli florets, pork cocktail sausages, crab stick and back bacon (all cut into small pieces)

freshly grated mixed peppercorn (to taste)

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius.

2. Line an 8" round baking pan with baking paper.  Set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, butter and flour using a hand whisk.

4. Add the cheese, filling and freshly grated mixed peppercorn and mix well.

5. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes.

TIPS

1. I used to grease the baking pan before I lined it with baking paper. I no longer do that to cut down on the oil.

2. If you do not have mixed peppercorn, you can use black peppercorn too. I personally prefer to buy the whole peppercorn and grate it when I need to use it, instead of those pre-ground ones.  Fresh is best!

3. If you like, you can sprinkle additional grated mozzarella cheese on top of the mixture before you bake it. I did not do that today because I used up all my cheese in the mixture. It is time to do grocery shopping again!