Kuih Lapis Batavia

I have a carton of 18 large eggs which i know they will not be consumed before i leave for Malaysia. so, baking this cake is the way to go which is so rich with egg yolks that a sign of caution has to be labelled to whoever is having a very high level of cholesterol count is to stay away. This cake will only appear on the table during the festive season as not only is it too rich, it is too tedious to bake. Imagine, grilling one layer at a time. Whatever, have a tiny slice and enjoy..




Ingredients:

325 g : unsalted butter
175 g : fine granulated sugar
120 g : cake flour
1/8 tsp : salt
1 tsp : mixed spices(refer to notes below)
2 tbsp : brandy
5 - : egg whites
18 - : egg yolks

Method:

Sieve the soft flour and mixed spices together.

In a mixer, cream the soft butter, salt and 100grm of sugar until light and fluffy, then slowly beat in1 egg yolk at a time. Gradually add the brandy, flour and spice mixture.

In another bowl, whisk the egg whites and the remaining sugar until a soft peak forms, the egg whites should not be too stiff

Add 1/3 of whisked egg whites and mix thoroughly, then fold in the rest of the egg whites into the mixture GENTLY.

Pre-heat a top grill .

Grease a piece of greaseproof paper and place it at the bottom of the 8 inch square cake pan.

Evenly spread 2 scoops (heaped tablespoon) of the cake mixture on the greaseproof paper.

Grill until golden brown (5-6 minutes). Rotate the pan while baking and use a skewer to prick any air bubbles that form.

Repeat the process until all the cake mixture has been used.

Make sure the cake surface is even before adding additional layers. You could use a flat base glass to press down on cake.

When the last layer is complete, bake the cake in a pre heated oven at 300 f for 15 minutes.

Remove the cake from the pan and allow to cool before serving.

Mixed spices

28 g : cinnamon powder
15 g : clove powder
7 g : star anise powder
15 g : cardamom powder

Serves

Kai Choy Farn

This one pot dish is my favorite. You can substitute kai choy with long beans or taro, then it will be called tau kok(long beans) farn and woo tau(taro/yam) farn. Serve them with the hainanese chicken rice chilly. Most often when i cook dishes like these, i do not have a measurement of ingredients, you could use whatever meat you like, just cube into small pieces, the only thing to be aware of is not to add too much salt or soya sauce if using more dried shrimps. One could be a peasant and have more rice or be affluent and add in abalone. So, when i want to post, it is a very difficult task. So, search the net and if i find a recipe that suited me, will copy and paste and then change the method to suit my way of cooking or sometimes there is no change at all, if the taste is good, why change. This recipe is copied from kuali.com.



Ingredients:

300g (2 rice measuring cups) rice, washed and drained
200g long mustard cabbage (kai choy), rinsed and coarsely chopped
2 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked to soften and diced
110g deboned chicken, cubed
1 tbsp dried shrimps, soaked and drained
2 tbsp oil
2 shallots, sliced
1 tsp chopped garlic
500ml fresh chicken stock or water

Seasoning (A)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp pepper
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp light soy sauce
3/4 tsp corn flour

Seasoning (B)
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp pepper


Method: I

Marinate chicken with seasoning (A) and set aside.

Heat oil in wok until hot and lightly brown shallots, garlic and dried shrimps until fragrant.

Add chicken and mushrooms and stir-fry until meat changes colour.

Put in rice, long mustard cabbage/kai choy and seasoning (B).

Toss for 1–2 minutes then remove all the ingredients to a rice cooker.

Pour in chicken stock or water.

Let the rice cook until done.

Allow the rice to stand for 10–15 minutes before dishing out to serve.

Method: II

Cook the rice with chicken stock/water in the rice cooker until rice is done.

Marinate chicken with seasoning (A) and set aside.

Heat oil in wok until hot and lightly brown shallots, garlic and dried shrimps until fragrant.

Add chicken and mushrooms and stir-fry until meat changes colour.

Put chopped kai choy and seasoning (B) and saute until kai choy is cooked.

Pour over cooked rice and cover for 10 minutes .

Add sesame oil before stiring rice to mix.





Serves

Lamb Chop Dinner

Lamb or mutton is not my choice of meat for cooking because somehow they come out too strong for me no matter how fresh they are. We were given 4 pieces of lamb chop blade from Sandra's friend in Ohio who owns an organic farm and he graciously posted them for us to try. Thank you and so thoughtful of you too for including a sprig of fresh rosemary.
There is no need to cook laboriously, just panfry and make a sauce with garlic and rosemary. I had baked potatoes and spagetti squash with garlic on the side.




Ingredients:

2 garlic cloves - chopped
4 lamb shoulder chops (each about 3/4 inch thick)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoon oil
A sprig of rosemary - chopped fine
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon butter

Method:

Pat lamb dry and season with salt and pepper.

Heat oil over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking and sear lamb 3 minutes. Turn lamb over and sear 2 minutes more for medium-rare.

Transfer lamb to 4 plates.

Remove oil from pan.

Return pan to fire and add in 1 tbsp oil.

Add garlic, rosemary, lemon juice, and stock to skillet and deglaze over high heat, stirring and scraping up brown bits, 1 minute.

Whisk in butter.

Pour sauce over lamb.

Serves

Tiramisu Cheesecake

March is the month for birthdays and with birthdays come cakes. Grandpa Jerry and Grandma Coleen never fail to attend Renee's birthday parties and since Grandpa's birthday is only 4 days away from Renee's, I will always make an extra cake for him and this is what i made this year.

Ingredients:

1 box (12 oz.) vanilla wafers (about 88 wafers), divided
5 tsp. Instant Coffee, divided
3 Tbsp. hot water, divided
4 pkg. (8 oz. each) Cream Cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup Sour Cream
4 eggs
1 cup Whipped Topping
2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

Method:

PREHEAT oven to 325°F.

Line 13x9-inch baking pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan.

Layer half of the wafers (about 44) on bottom of prepared pan.

Dissolve 2 tsp. of the coffee granules in 2 Tbsp. of the hot water.

Brush wafers with half of the dissolved coffee mixture; set remaining aside.

BEAT cream cheese and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended.

Add sour cream; mix well.

Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each addition just until blended.

Dissolve remaining 3 tsp. coffee granules in remaining 1 Tbsp. hot water.

Remove 3-1/2 cups of the batter; place in medium bowl.

Stir in dissolved coffee.

Pour coffee flavored batter over wafers in baking pan.

Layer remaining wafers over batter.

Brush wafers with reserved dissolved coffee.

Pour remaining plain batter over wafers.

BAKE 45 min. or until center is almost set.

Cool.

Refrigerate 3 hours or overnight.

Lift cheesecake from pan, using foil handles.

Spread with whipped topping; sprinkle with cocoa.

Cut into 16 pieces to serve.

Store leftover cheesecake in refrigerator.



Serves

Kuih Talam

I have never made Kuih Talam here before because the bottom layer of this kuih depends on the juice of pandan leaves for its flavor. Since i have made so many other types of kuih using pandan paste for flavor and it is a success, decided to give kuih talam a try. Viola, it is better than the juice. This recipe is from kuali.com and i found that for a better height kuih, i would prefer a 7 inch round cake pan and i reduced the rice flour to the top layer. I increased the water in (A) by 20 ml to replace the pandan juice.



Ingredients:

For bottom green layer:

(A):
70g rice flour
30g green bean flour
300ml water

(B):
250g sugar
250ml water
1 tsp pandan paste
A few drops of green colouring
3/4 tsp potassium carbonate & sodium bi-carbonate solution.

For top white layer:

(C):
40g rice flour
1 1/2 tbsp green bean flour
1/2 tsp salt
300ml coconut milk

Method:

Mix (A) and leave aside to soak for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Cook sugar and water until sugar dissolves. Mix in the pandan paste,green coloring and potassium carbonate & sodium bi-carbonate solution(kan sui).

Pour syrup into (A). Cook in microwave for 1 minute on high , stir continuously with a whick, keep cooking for 1 minute at a time on high until batter becomes fairly thick and translucent but still runny.

Pour the hot batter into a greased 7 inch cake tin. If batter has turned too thick, you would have to smooth and level the surface with a plastic spatula.

Steam over rapidly boiling water for 15 to 20 minutes.

To prepare the white layer

Mix ingredients (C) together and soak for 10 minutes.

Cook in the microwave for 1 minute on high, stir and then another more minute. Batter must be runny.

Scratch the surface of the green layer before pouring in the top layer.

Pour the topping layer over the cooked green layer. Steam for about 10 minutes.

Cool the kuih well.

Slice into small diamond-shaped pieces.

Serves