Almond Sugee Cookies

Saw this Sugee Cookies recipe from QBB website, but since I have a pack of grould almond still untouched, I decided to add in some to the cookies
After adding grond almond, the cookies is still soft and crumbly - such a pleasant to eat them :)

Look at these cutie little balls - I like to see the cracks - the recipe said that's from the baking soda used

After bitten by me hehe...

What you need:
( I made half of the recipe)

125g ghee
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
250g plain flour
1 tsp baking soda
85g icing sugar
1/3 tsp fine salt
75g ground almond

Melt ghee in the microwave, low heat for approx 20 seconds - let cool
Add vanilla essence to the cooled ghee
Sift plain flour, baking soda, icing sugar, salt - add in ground almond
Pour ghee onto the flour mixture, knead well til form firm dough
Make balls and arrange on baking tray (each ball is 1 tsp)
Bake in preheated oven of 180degC for 15mins (til cooked but not brown)
Cookies should be white in color and crumbly

Angel Hair Pasta with Artichokes, Olives, Tomatoes, and Capers

I was craving a light pasta for dinner so I looked in the cupboard to see what I had on hand. I found artichoke hearts, black olives, grape tomatoes, capers, garlic, and basil so I tossed them together with angel hair pasta, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese. This dish was light, flavorful, and a huge hit with all of us. My son especially loved it and had two servings. It took only minutes to make and paired nicely with the Crusty French Bread I recently made.

Angel Hair Pasta with Artichokes, Olives, Tomatoes, and Capers:

Recipe and photos by For the Love of Cooking.net

• 1/2 lb angel hair pasta, cooked per instructions
• 1-2 tbsp olive oil
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 cup of frozen artichoke hearts, thawed
• 1 cup of grape tomatoes, diced
• 1/2 cup black olives, sliced
• 1 tbsp capers, rinsed
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
• 2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
• Parmesan cheese, shaved

Cook the pasta in water per instructions. Make sure you season the water with sea salt before cooking the pasta.

While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Add the artichoke hearts, tomatoes, olives, and capers. Cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Add the cooked/drained pasta to the skillet, season well with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, add the basil and some Parmesan cheese then toss to coat evenly. Taste and re-season if needed. Serve immediately. Enjoy.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe - For the Love of Cooking.net

Stir Fry Chicken With Green Chillis (Ayam Cabe Ijo)

Simple dish for the whole family (I separated some portion and omit the green chillis for the kids)

What you need:

1 chicken breast, diced
To marinate chicken with: salt, pepper and cornflour

3 cloves of garlic - crushed
1/2 medium onion - julienned
3 green chillis - cut approx 1cm
some cauliflowers (optional)
oil, oyster sauce, light soya sauce, fish sauce, salt, pepper, sugar, water, cornflour mixed with water as thickener

Heat oil, stir fry onion followed by garlic til fragrant
Add in chicken, cook til color changed
Add in water, oyster sauce, light soya sauce, fish sauce, salt, pepper, sugar - adjust the taste accordingly
Add in green chillis - bring to boil
Once boiled, add in cornflour, stir continuously til well mixed and the desired thickness achieved
Add in cauliflower - off heat

Cashew Nut Cookies

I don't really fancy nuts but I love cashew nuts!!!
There were so many times I've eaten these cookies during Chinese New Year in the previous years, but really, this is the first time I tried to bake them myself :)

Recipe is from Small Small Baker, perfect choice!

Perfect taste but I'm still pretty disappointed in the presentation - my hands still need a lot of practice!

The crescent shape is initial plan til Abby came to me and asked me to make smiling heart shape :)

So here they are...

What you need:

110g butter
70g castor sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 egg (mine is 30g)
40g grounded baked cashew nuts
180g plain flour
20g cornflour
1/2 tsp baking powder

Topping:
1 egg, separated
halved cashew nuts

Cream butter and sugar till pale and creamy
Add in pure vanilla extract
Add in egg slowly, beat until well-mixed
Fold in grounded cashew nuts. Fold in sifted flours and baking powder gradually. Knead to form dough
Roll the dough into 3/4 cm thickness. Cut the dough into crescent shapes (or any shape you like) and place them on the lined baking tray. Brush a layer of egg white on the cookies and top each cookie with one halved cashew nut. (Brushing egg white helps the cashew nut to stick to the cookie well)
Brush a layer of egg yolk on top of the cashew nuts
Bake at preheated oven at 180C for about 15 minutes till light golden brown

So happy I can give my homemade cashew nut cookies to my family this year :)
I'm submitting these cookies to Aspiring Bakers #3: My Favorite CNY Cookie (Jan 2011), hosted by J3ss kitch3n

Baked Potato with Egg, Extra Sharp Cheddar, and Canadian Bacon

When I saw this recipe on Cathy's site, Wives with Knives, I knew instantly that I would be making it. While my kids enjoyed the Baked Cinnamon Mini Donuts with Maple Glaze, my husband and I gobbled up these amazing baked potatoes stuffed with extra sharp cheddar, Canadian bacon, an over easy egg, topped with green onions. They were so simple to make and they tasted fantastic! We both loved them and I will definitely be making them again and again. Thanks for the delicious recipe Cathy!! Head over to Cathy's site to see all of her amazing recipes.

Baked Potato with Egg, Extra Sharp Cheddar, and Canadian Bacon:

Adapted recipe and photos by For the Love of Cooking.net

Original recipe by Wives with Knives

• 2 baked potatoes, top third removed, and the filling scooped out
• Extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• Canadian bacon, sliced
• 2 eggs
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
• Green onions, sliced

Bake your potatoes in a 400 degree oven for 1 hour. Remove the top third of the potato and scoop out most of the filling. Make sure to leave some of the filling in so the potato will not collapse.

Sprinkle the inside with some cheese and Canadian bacon then crack an egg and pour it inside. Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste.

Place the potatoes in a baking dish and place in the oven preheated to 400 degrees. Cook until the egg is set but the yolk is still soft, about 15 minutes, or until the egg is cooked to your liking.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle with sliced green onions. Serve immediately. Enjoy.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe - For the Love of Cooking.net

Mun Tofu (Mun Tahu)

A dish I haven't been eating for ages... Used to eat this back in Indonesia
So delighted when I found the recipe at Bianca's and Jordan's Mom :)

What you need:

3 blocks firm tofu, cut into small cubes
250g chicken breast
200g prawns, cut
1 packet shitake mushroom, sliced
6 cloves of garlic, chopped
4cm of ginger, cracked with pestle
light soya sauce, oyster sauce, corn flour diluted with a little water
salt, pepper, sugar, sesame oil, water

Heat sesame oil, stir fry garlic and ginger til fragrant. Add in chicken, stir til color changed
Add in prawns, stir for 1minute, and add tofu, soya sauce, oyster sauce, water (approx. 150ml), salt, pepper, sugar to taste. Bring to boil.
Add in corn flour to thicken the broth, keep on stirring
Serve with warm rice

Cheezy Cheese Cookies (Kaastengel)

Beware! Only for cheese addict!
This cookies is extremely cheesy to make those cheese addicts keep wanting more - like me
Yes, not only chocolate, but I am a cheese addict as well *grin*

Here's the picture..I still have to learn to make these cookies more presentable - gotta train my hands to be more consistent :)

Soft and quite melty texture in the inside and crunchy outside



This is my mum's recipe with a little modification I made

What you need:

240g butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 tsp salt
120g old cheddar cheese - grated
120g old edam cheese - grated
50g corn flour
260g plain flour

egg yolks for egg washing
approx 100g grated cheddar cheese for topping

Beat butter til pale and light in medium speed
Add in egg, mix well, followed by vanilla essence and salt, mix well
Add in grated cheese, mix well, off beater
Fold in sifted corn and plain flour
Shape dough to 5g balls and roll each ball to cylinder shape
Put on the baking pan, lightly press to make the shape slightly flatten
Brush the top with egg yolk and sprinkle some grated cheese
Bake in preheated oven of 150degC for approx 18-20mins

I find these yummy cookies is a perfect choice amongst many other sweet cookies during CNY season, therefore I am submitting this recipe to Aspiring Bakers #3: My Favorite CNY Cookie (Jan 2011)

Homemade Baked Cinnamon Mini Donuts with Maple Glaze

My kids love donuts and usually talk my husband into buying them for breakfast a couple Saturdays a month. My daughter and I recently found this cute little mini donut maker in the kitchen department in a major department store for $20 and I couldn't resist buying it. I love that these donuts are baked instead of fried and that my kids can help make their own breakfast treats with me. They were super simple to make and the kids LOVED them.

Cinnamon Donuts:

Adapted recipe and photos by For the Love of Cooking.net

Original recipe by Bella Cucina Artful Food (donut maker cookbook)

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 4 tbsp canola oil

Stir the dry ingredients together. Add the egg, vanilla, and milk then whisk together for 1 minute. Add the oil and continue to whisk until well combined.

Heat the donut maker then coat it with cooking spray. Pour a bit of the batter into the center each donut mold, making sure not to overfill. Close the lid and cook for 2 minutes. Carefully remove the donuts and place on a baking rack.

Maple Glaze:

• 2 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 3-4 tbsp water

Combine all ingredients together and whisk until smooth and creamy. Dip each donut top into the glaze and place back on the rack. Sprinkle the top with nonpareils if desired then serve immediately. Enjoy.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe - For the Love of Cooking.net

Chocolate Chip & Strawberry Jam Bread Pudding

So tired of eating bread for breakfast, but so many leftover bread..what to do?
Ok, let's try this recipe, a cut out I found in my recipes box, I can't remember exactly where I got this, I think it's from Straits Times, quite sometime ago

Yummy, fluffy, moist, tasty, not overly sweet and the best is it's easy to make - yes!!!
I put too much chocolate chips (yes, me - the chocolate addict keke...) til can't really taste the jam
Next time I will put lesser chocolate chips and more jam

The original recipe uses marmalade and dried cranberry - worth trying next time!
Also thinking of another combo: nutella spread and golden raisins :P

What you need:

12 slices of bread (I use white bread, wholemeal bread will give more dense texture)
strawberry / raspberry jam
semi sweet chocolate chips
750ml fresh milk
3 eggs
1/2 tbsp vanilla essence
3 tbsp sugar

Prepare 2 bread loaves, lightly buttered
Spread bread with jam, cut into 2 and layer neatly or tear into chunks
Sprinkle chocolate chips in between layers

Beat milk, sugar, eggs and vanilla essence til well mixed
Pour over the bread and let stand for 30mins
Bake at preheated oven at 180degC for 30-45mins

Crusty French Bread

If you read my blog you know that making homemade bread is very intimidating to me. I saw this recipe for crusty French bread on a blog called Lynda's Recipe Box that looked so delicious and fairly simple to make so I decided to give it a try. My son helped gather all the ingredients together and put them in the bread machine and we let the machine do all the work on the dough cycle. The bread turned out to be really, really easy to make and it was absolutely delicious. It had a nice crust on the outside and it was light and fluffy on the inside - it was a huge hit with all of us. I can't wait to make this bread again and again. Thanks Lynda!

Note: If you don't have a bread machine - head over to Lynda's site where she gives instructions to do it by hand.

Crusty French Bread:

Adapted recipe by For the Love of Cooking.net

Original recipe by Lynda's Recipe Box

• 2 cups of warm water
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 6 cups of all purpose flour
• 1 envelope active dry yeast
• Cornmeal
• 1 egg white
• 1 tbsp water

Place all dough ingredients (through yeast) in the bread machine in the order listed. Select the dough cycle and press start.

Once the bread machine stops (it was one and a half hours on my machine). Remove the pan from the bread machine and punch the dough down (deflate it), then cover and let it rise a second time, until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

Remove the dough and place it on a floured surface and knead for 1 minute. Use a sharp knife and cut the dough into two equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rectangle. Roll up jelly roll fashion and pinch the seam together. Tuck the ends underneath. Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place the bread on the prepared baking sheet; cover and let rise until it doubles in size, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Carefully make several evenly placed diagonal cuts (with a sharp knife) on top of each loaf. Beat together the egg white and 1 tablespoon of water then brush over each loaf with a pastry brush.

Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 23-25 minutes, or until the loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped. Remove from baking sheet and cool on wire racks. Enjoy.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe - For the Love of Cooking.net

Rolled Meat Soup (Baso Gulung) & Stir Fry Tempeh and Petai

Not so simple (not so difficult either) to make but yummy - recipe from my mummy

What you need:

A

250g minced pork

2 egg whites

2 shallots

1 clove of garlic

(blend shallots and garlic til quite smooth)

salt, pepper

4 eggs, sprinkle with a little salt, lightly beaten

2 egg whites

corn flour mixed with water

For the soup:

3 cloves of garlic - crushed

chicken stock powder

approx. 3L water

a little oil, salt, pepper

carrots, thinly cut

cauliflower, cut

spring onion

Mix A - set aside

Make 4 omelettes from the beaten eggs - set aside

Take 1 omelette, spread over egg whites and cornflour mixture then top with meat mixture, spread evenly

Roll the omelette with meat on top, wrap with clingwrap

Do the same for the rest of the omelettes

Steam the rolls for 30mins

Let cool and then put in the fridge

This is what it looks like after steaming:

(actually after I took out from the fridge hence the wrinkles here and there *grin*

While steaming, prepare the soup:

Bring water and chicken stock powder to boil

Heat oil, stir fry garlic til fragrant - add in the soup

Add salt and pepper to taste - let it simmer

Cut the rolled meat approx 2cm thickness - add in the soup

Add in carrots and cauliflower

Adjust the taste accordingly, off heat and sprinkle spring onion

Eat with rice and chilli sauce

And this below is the perfect partner to eat with the soup:

What you need:

3 blocks of tempeh, cut small

1/2 block of palm sugar - mix with a little sugar til forms smal rocks)

4 shallots - cut thinly

1 big red chilli - cut thinly

50g petai - halved

sweet soya sauce (kecap manis), salt, a little sugar, water, a little oil

Heat oil in the pan, stir fry shallots and red chilli til fragrant and soft

Add in tempeh, followed by palm sugar, kecap manis, water, salt, sugar - mix thouroughly til palm sugar totally dissolved

Bring to boil, add in petai

Simmer til petai soften ( I like it a little crunchy) and water lessen (around 5 minutes)

Mushroom and Turkey Italian Sausage Stuffed Shells

I had some leftover mushroom marinara I needed to use up so I decided to make some stuffed shells with mushrooms, spinach, and turkey Italian sausage. It was a super simple recipe to make and tasted fantastic. If you don't have time to make your own marinara, just use your favorite sauce from a jar. I served the stuffed shells with homemade French bread for a delicious and hearty meal.

Stuffed Shells:

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 5 links of turkey Italian sausage, removed from casings
• 8 oz white button mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced finely
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 15 oz low fat ricotta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded (plus extra for garnish)
• 1/2 cup of fresh spinach, chopped
• 5-6 fresh basil leaves, chopped (plus extra for garnish)
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
• 3 cups of mushroom marinara (or store bought sauce)
• 12 jumbo pasta shells, cooked per instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the turkey Italian sausage (removed from casing), and cook until crumbled. Add the mushrooms and onions then sauté until golden brown, about 5-6 minutes. Add the minced garlic and continue to cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a large bowl combine the ricotta, the mozzarella, Parmesan, the egg, the spinach, fresh basil, the nutmeg, sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste. Mix thoroughly then add the turkey, Italian sausage, mushroom, and onion sauté then combine. Taste mixture and re-season if needed.

Pour 1 1/2 cups of marinara in the bottom of a baking dish that has been coated with cooking spray. Place the 12 cooked shells in the pan. Stuff each shell with the ricotta mixture. Pour the remaining sauce over the stuffed shells.

Cover with tin foil and bake for 35 minutes. Top with fresh chopped basil. Enjoy.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe - For the Love of Cooking.net

Hard Boiled Eggs With Garlic Sambal

This is one of my super easy peasy recipe when lazy bug hit me - many Indonesians like this dish - simple and yummy

What you need:

eggs - hardboiled

For the sambal:
large red chilli - cut small (you may add 2 or 3 red chilli padi for extra kick)
belachan (shrimp paste) - fry with a little cooking oil
salt, sugar

Pulse 2 to 3 times all the ingredients for the sambal (not too smooth so still can taste the texture)

Pour the sambal over the hardboiled eggs, press the eggs with mortar
Sprinkle with kicap manis (optional)

Eat with hot rice hhhmmm... I won't need anything else :P

Butter Cookies

Butter cookies is one of my favorite cookies of all time - and this coming Chinese New Year is no exceptional :)
This is so far the best recipe I found - really suits my taste, melt in the mouth and buttery kind
I have to hide this cookies container from my kids, otherwise they'll eat nonstop! :P

Adapted from Nasi Lemak Lover, the recipe is very easy to make...

200g butter
50g icing sugar
150g all purpose flour
50g corn flour
chocolate chips (for decoration)

Beat butter and icing sugar till creamy
Sift in flour and corn flour, mix well to a soft dough
Scoop dough into piping bag and pipe dough evenly on baking tray
Bake at preheated oven at 180C for 13-15 minutes or golden brown

I am submitting this cookies to Aspiring Bakers #3: My Favorite CNY Cookies (Jan 2011), hosted by j3ss kitch3n

Charred Vegetable Salsa

This is one of the Mary Sue Milliken recipes my kids made at the Kids' (good-for-you) Cooking Academy that we all really loved. Charring the vegetables gives the salsa a deep rich flavor and the tomatillos give it a nice tang. Sue's recipe calls for 3 Roma tomatoes but I used what I had on hand and it turned out great. It's super simple to make and tastes so much better than store bought salsa.

Charred Vegetable Salsa:

Adapted recipe and photos by For the Love of Cooking.net

Original recipe by Mary Sue Milliken from Border Grill

• 1 vine ripened tomato
• 11 small campari tomatoes
• 3 small tomatillos
• 1 jalapeño
• 1/2 red onion, sliced
• 1 large clove of garlic, peeled
• 1/2 punch of cilantro, roughly chopped
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Preheat the oven to broil. Place the tomatoes, tomatillos, jalapeños, and onion slices on a baking sheet lined with tin foil (easier clean up).

Place under the broiler, turning occasionally for 5-6 minutes. Add the garlic clove to the baking sheet and broil with the rest of the vegetables for another 5-6 minutes or until nicely charred.

Remove from the oven and when cool enough to touch, remove the stems and seeds from the jalapeño.

Combine the charred vegetables (and the juices from the baking sheet) with cilantro, lime juice, sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, in a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth. Taste and re-season if necessary. Serve with chips or on with any of your favorite Mexican foods. Enjoy.

Click here for a printable version of this recipe - For the Love of Cooking.net

Brotzeit @Raffles City

Have been craving for German food for quite sometime, my sis and I went to Brotzeit
Bad bad decision to visit German eateries with less than 3 companions tagged along
We ended up ordering only 1 (huge) dish - German oh so famous pork knuckle - thumbs up!!!
Crispy on the outside with soft and tasty meat inside

The pork knuckle upclose

Sauerkraut

Potato salad



The only appetizer we can afford as an add on - ever popular soft pretzel - simply yum!!!

All are so satisfying to the fullest ( I mean our tummy hehe...) but for me, this is the star of the night - Paulaner lager...wow! crisp, fruity and light with class - my type of beer! Simply addictive!

Wait! Where's the sausages? You can't go to German restaurant without eating sausages, can you?

Well, please excuse us this time - there's really nomore room in our not so little tummies for sausages, thanks to their portion

No worries, will definitely be back for the sausage platter and of course, the lager! :P