Fu Chuk Barley Dessert with Ginkgo

Sea coconut is on the low.  Had to resort to barley now.  I guess you all can have this a try.  It's all knocking, peeling, washing, soaking, boiling, and lastly eating :P

Fu Chuk Barley Dessert with Gingko

Ingredients:

• 300gm Barley (depends on you)
• 2 packets of preserved Winter Melon or Rock Sugar (depends on how sweet you want it)
• 300gm Ginkgo Seeds (depends on you)
• 5-6 pieces of Dry Fu Chuk (Dried Soya Pieces....i think)

Steps:

1. Prepare your Ginkgo Seeds.  If you bought those still in their shells, just follow the steps.  If you had yours without the shells, proceed to Step 4.
2. Knock the nuts with a hammer or a nutcracker until there's a small crack.  Peel the shell off.  Put the seeds aside.

3. Boil the seeds in hot water for approx. 15 minutes.  Under a running tap, peel off its skin and it should be golden yellow.  Put it aside.

4. Choose a big pot.  Wash your barley in it.  Wash off the starch and weevils.

5. Put in the Gingko Seeds and Preserved Winter Melon  into the pot.  Fill it with water until its 3/4 of the pot.  Put the pot over a low heat and cover the pot.

6. While waiting for it to boil, wash your 'Fu Chuk' and soak it in water till it becomes beige in color.

7. When the pot is already boiling (approx. 30-45 mins), put in the soaked 'Fu Chuk'.  Only the 'Fu Chuk' and not the water.  Boil for another 15mins until the 'Fu Chuk' is in small tiny pieces.
8. Leave it to cool and you may serve.

Enjoy :)

Baked Cheesecake Attempt!

Ever had cooking/baking blues?  I'm havin' one right now or some benevolent power is telling me that I should stick to 'Chilled Cheesecake'...  or I should just master the use of the newly installed oven :P

Anyway, it still taste good after removing the burnt sides.  You may have better luck than me with the oven.

Baked Cheesecake

Ingredients:

• 1kg Cream Cheese
• 1 1/2 cups Sugar
• 1 tbsp Corn Starch
• 3 tbsp Flour
• 3 pc Lemons
• 1 tsp Vanilla Essence
• 5 Whole Eggs
• 2 Egg Yolks
• 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
• 450g Digestive Biscuits
• 125g Butter

Steps:

1. Butter the spring form tray.
2. Crush the Digestive Biscuits and mix in Butter.

3. Press the mix unto the tray and put aside. Refrigerate 1 hour.

4. Preheat the oven at 350°C.
5. Mix the Sugar, Flour and Corn Starch.
6. Grate the Lemon skin (Zest), and squeeze the lemon.
7. Beat in Cream Cheese, Lemon Zest and 3 tbsp Lemon Juice, and Vanilla Essence until smooth.
8. Mix in the Heavy Cream.
9. Pour mixture into the trays.
10. Lower the heat to 180°C and bake for 1 Hour.

11. Put aside to cool, then refrigerate for at least an hour.

Enjoy :)

Chocolate Oreo Truffles

Have some cravings for chocolate? and you are also an Oreo fan. You can try out this simple and easy recipe.

Chocolate Oreo Truffles

Ingredients:

• 4 tubes of plain Oreo biscuit packs (approx 400g total).
• 250g Cream Cheese
• 250 - 300g Semi-Sweet Cooking Chocolate

Steps:

1. Take the Oreos out of its packaging.  If you bought the ones with cream, just scrap them off.
2. Crush the biscuits finely.  Keep a little aside.

3. Mix the Cream Cheese into the crushed biscuits.

4. Place your Chocolate into a steel bowl.
5. Heat up a pot of boiling water and place your bowl on the boiling water.  Wait till the chocolate completely melts.

6. Pinch a little from the Cream Cheese Oreo and shape them into balls.  You may use a teaspoon as a guide.
7. Dip the balls into the melted chocolate a little at a time and use forks to pick them up and place it on a tray.
8. Sprinkle a little of the crushed biscuits on top of it.
9. Refrigerate the balls for 4 hours.  Best served cold.

Ideas:

• Try chopped almonds to mix in or use it to sprinkle on the top.  Roast it a little first.
• Try using white chocolate / chocolate rice to decorate the balls instead of using Oreos.
• The ball size depends on your choice.

Enjoy ;)

Luo Han Guo Sea Coconut

With this hot weather, its bound to be unhealthy for a lot of us.  I did this simple Traditional Chinese herbal dessert / drink.  Some say this would cool the body and help with coughs.

Luo Han Guo Sea Coconut

Ingredient:

• Fresh Sea Coconut
• 1 pc Luo Han Guo
• 1 small pkt Dried Longan
• 1 small pkt Dried Red Dates
• 1 pc Honey Rock Sugar
• 1 -2 Pandan Leaves

Steps:

1. Skin the Fresh Sea Coconut.  Slice the Sea Coconut horizontally.

2. Fill in 1/2 pot of water.  Crack the Luo Han Guo.  Place the Dried Longan, Dried Red Dates, Honey Rock Sugar, Pandan Leaves, and Cracked Luo Han Guo into the pot.  Boil over low heat.

3. Put in the sliced Fresh Sea Coconut into the pot.

4. Boil it for an hour or so.  Leave it to cool.
5. You can served it chilled.

Have fun :)

Mango Ice Cream

With the crazy weather today, a cool dessert might do the trick to cool down the soul.  This week, I did Mango Ice Cream.  Making ice cream is not as easy as it looks.  I remember when I was a kid, I would try to do my own popsicle, by making a cordial drink and deep freeze it with a stick in it.

Anyway, this is how the big boys do ice cream.

Mango Ice Cream

Ingredients:

Ice Cream:

• 4 egg yolks
• 2/3 cup Icing Sugar
• 2 cups Mango Puree*
• 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 1/2 cup Coconut Cream
• 1/2 cup Whipped Cream / Heavy Cream

Mango Puree: *If you can't buy it off the shelf

• 3 Mangoes, seeded, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 1 tablespoon Icing Sugar

Steps:
Mango Puree:

1. Once you have seeded, peeled, and sliced the Mangoes, blend the Lemon Juice and Icing Sugar with it until smooth.
2. Taste the mixture.  If it is not as sweet as you prefer, you may add a little more Icing Sugar.
3. Add water a tablespoon at a time until mixture puree smoothly. 

Note:

1. If you chose Indian Mangoes or any Mangoes that are known to be sweet naturally, you may cut down on the Icing Sugar.
2. Puree are supposed to be thick.

Ice Cream:

1. Boil the water in your pan under low heat.  Place the Egg Yolks and Icing Sugar into a bowl.  Place that bowl into the pan.
2. Beat the eggs until thick and creamy.  Remove from heat and continue beating for another minute longer or until cool.

3. Place the Mango Puree, Lemon Juice, Coconut Cream, and Whipped / Heavy Cream into a large bowl.  Mix it well.
4. Gently fold in the eggs into the mixture.

5. Pour the mixture into a steel plate or tin with Aluminum Foil.  Place it into the freezer for approx. 3 hours or the mixture is almost frozen.
6. Transfer into a mixing bowl and beat it under fast speed until smooth.
7. Place the mixture into a container to store for overnight.
8. You may scoop and serve.

Good luck and Enjoy :)
Enjo

Onde-onde

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I had this liking for 'onde-onde' (on-day on-day) or glutinous rice balls in desiccated coconut. This is a traditional Malaysian dessert or kuih as we would categorize it.

Here's the recipe for you all to try but it is in estimation.

Ingredients:

• 10 stalks/palm-sized bundles Pandan Leaves
• 1 Coconut Sugar Block / Gula Melaka
• Salt
• Desiccated Coconut
• 500g Glutinous Rice Flour

Steps:

1. Wash the Pandan Leaves. Cut them into small pieces. Blend it with a Blender, while blending add in a little water. Sift it and throw away the crushed leaves. Purpose is to extract the juice. It should amount to 1/2 cup diluted.
2. Use a mortar to break the Gula Melaka into small pieces.

3. Sprinkle a little salt. Mix the Pandan Juice into the Glutinous Rice Flour gradually while kneading. Ensure you don't overdo the juice pouring. Knead it into a dough.

4. Boil a pot of hot water over a low heat.
5. Pinch a little dough, enough to make a small ball. Put a piece or 2 of the Gula Melaka into the ball and roll it back into shape.

6. Drop the ball into the boiling water. It will sink but after a minute, it will float. Wait until it floats.

7. Use a strainer to pick the ball up and roll it around in a tray of dessicated coconut.

8. Repeat Step 5 - 7 until you finish the dough.
9. Let it cool and then you may serve.

Remember to keep it in the refrigerator. It cannot be kept for long.
Good luck and enjoy!

Cream Puffs

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Took up this endeavour this weekend to create Cream Puffs! It has been my fav for quite awhile and only the plain vanilla cream fillings entices me.

My dad has been try to make it for quite a long time. Sadly, it ended in disaster as the Cream Puff became Cream Biscuit. It was hard as a Jawbreaker candy.

Anyway, you all don't worry! My attempt was a success! So this recipe works :)

Ingredients:

For the Puff (Choux Paste):

• 50g Butter
• 60g Plain Flour
• 2 Whole Eggs
• 1/2 cup Water

For the Filling:

• 225g Butter
• 110g Caster Sugar
• 1 Egg Yolk
• 1 Whole Egg
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
• 1 teaspoon Rose Essence
• 1 teaspoon Brandy / Rum (optional)

Steps for the Puff:

1. Place your butter and water in a pot. Stir over a low heat until boiling.
2. Remove the pot, and mix it in the flour. Quickly stir it with a wooden spoon until it is pasty, and not sticky. Let it cool.
3. While waiting for it to cool, preheat your oven at 230°C.
4. Mix in the eggs into the pot until it is a paste again.

5. Fill the paste into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe into a baking tray. The size is up to you. **
6. Bake it at 180°C for 25 minutes or until it is puffed up and golden brown.
**If you don't have a piping bag, you may use a plastic bag with an end snipped. I suggest the small puffs as it is easy to eat. Get a mini cupcake tray.

Steps for the Filling:

1. Mix the butter and sugar together until it is like whitish cream.
2. Mix in the eggs until it is creamy.
3. Add in the vanilla and rose essence, and the alcohol is optional.
4. Use a piping bag, and pipe in the filling into the puff from the bottom. **
** You may use those tomato/chilli sauce dispensers to pipe in your filling.

Notes:

1. You may keep it for a week.
2. Reheat them for 5 mins in the oven at 180°C.
3. Please keep the puffs in an airtight container.
4. Pipe in the cream only if you are going to serve.

Good luck and enjoy! ;)