Brownies with macadamia nuts and peanut butter chips

These brownies are crusty on the top m soft inside n I added whole macadamia nuts for crunch. 

Thanks to recipe from Panlasang Pinoy.

http://panlasangpinoy.com/2014/08/14/how-to-make-brownies/

I used a Phoon Huat - Redman brownie tray to make the brownie and unlined. 

Ingredients

1 cup of unsalted butter - 150gm

2 cups castor sugar 

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup Hershey's cocoa powder

4 whole eggs beaten

1/2 cup plain flour

1/2 tsp baking powder 

1/8 tsp salt

Method

Cream the sugar n butter.

Add in cocoa powder n beat in gradually.

Add in vanilla n beaten eggs n cream.

Mix the flours n salt together. 

Add in the macadamia nuts n chips n mix well.

Preheat oven to 190 deg celcius.

Mix in the flour mixture to the egg mixture.

Pour into brownie pan.

Bake for about 30-40 minutes. 

Adding the eggs

Before baking

Yummy brownies!

Happy baking!

Tuna Ham Pasta Salad

This salad was made for a gathering for my friends tonight. 

The original recipe is from All Recipes

http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/14335/cold-tuna-macaroni-salad#%23reviews

I have changed macaroni to spiral pasta and added ham as well.

Ingredients included 

1 packet San Remo spirals boiled according to instructions

2 stalks celery - remove the fibrous outer skin and cut into small sections

3 pcs leg ham julienned

3 tomatoes blanched skin n seed removed n diced 

2 cans of chunky tuna

Sauce ingredients

1 cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon Italian dressing

1 tablespoon fine sugar 

Some fresh dill leaves 

Mix together.

Method

Cook pasta n drain.

Add a little olive oil into the pasta n mix.

Add in the celery, tomato n tuna n cream n mix together.

Decorate with the ham.

Chill for 1 hr before serving.

Ingredients 

Cut criss cross on tomatoes top n bottom before blanching in boiling water about 20 seconds

Skin peels away 

Put inside ice bath n remove skin after cooling about 5 minutes later

Dicing the tomatoes 

Happy cooking!

Begedil or Potato Patties Malay style

I must thank my friend Isliza for sharing her Begedil recipe with me.

These are so tasty and doesn't need much ingredients to make.

Ingredients 

A few potatoes 

Minced beef

Some chopped onion

Salt 

White Pepper 

Chinese parsley

Egg beaten

Oil for frying

First marinate some minced beef with a little salt

Panfry with chopped onions n keep aside

Prepare some diced finely Chinese parsley leaves

Boil some peeled potatoes - cut to similar size for even cooking

When potatoes still warm mash them n add in pepper salt chopped parsley n minced beef.

Form into patties n keep in fridge. Use a clingwrap to cover them n keep chilled for at least 30 mins.

Beat an egg into a plate.

Heat some oil in wok. 

Dip the potato patties in egg evenly n fry them over low heat.

Serve with your favourite chilli dip.

Happy cooking!

Minced beef

Boiling potatoes till fork can poke it easily

Mash the potato and add in seasoning n minced beef

Mixed

Form into patties n chill

Frying the begedils

Yummy n ready to serve 

Inside the begedil 

Brown sugar cake cookies

These cookies are rounded not flat and although the exterior feels hard the inside is soft.

I obtained the recipe from the link below 

http://www.cooksrecipes.com/international/japanese-peanut-cookies-recipe.html

Instead of crushing the peanuts and stirring into batter, I merely placed them on each cookie dough.

I made a variety of cookies by replacing peanuts with chocolate rice and even sliced cheese.

Ingredients used

2 eggs room temperature 

1/2 cup Lurpak unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 & 3/4 cup cake flour

1 cup fine brown sugar

Peanuts for decoration or

Chocolate rice or 

Sliced cheese

Method

Cream the softened butter with brown sugar till fluffy

Add the eggs n vanilla essence n beat well.

Add in half flour n mix in slow speed.

Add the rest of the flour. The dough will get thicker.

Cookie dough

Line the trays with baking paper 

Scoop a teaspoon of dough n place on baking sheet. Space apart.

Decorate as wish.

Put tray into fridge for 20 minutes to chill.

Bake at 160 degree celcius for 16 minutes.

Remove and cool on rack. Cookies will harden after cooling. 

Chocolate rice cookies

Cheese cookies

You can make about 40 pcs of cookies.

Happy baking!

Pork Soup with lotus seeds

Pork soup with lotus seeds

This is soup main ingredient is the soup bones and I paired it up with some Chinese soup ingredients

Recipe

Ingredients

About 300gms soup pork bones 

About 20 pcs of lotus seeds

4 pcs of wai shan (Cantonese)(huai shan in Chinese)

7 pcs of large red dates

A fistful of gouqizi (fructus lycil)

1-2 teaspoon salt

Kikkoman soy sauce

2.5 liters of water 

Method

Soak the lotus seeds for about 30 minutes . Cut n remove a black stem inside.

Use hot water to soak the dates n gouqizi for about 10 minutes. Drain away water.

Boil about 1/3 pot of water n parboil the soup bones n drain water away. 

Boil a fresh pot of water about 2.5 liters.

When boiling add in the pork, dates, waishan, gouqizi. 

Add in 1 teaspoon of salt n drizzle in soy sauce.

When water boils again, turn to low and boil for another 40 minutes.

Off the fire when pork meat tender and the waishan turns soft. 

Adjust seasoning if needed.

This soup should taste sweet not salty.

Dry ingredients - you can buy from dry goods store, or go Giant supermarket or go Chinese medicinal store to buy.

Huai shan is believed to have medicinal properties to help lower blood sugar n lower blood pressure n promotes appetite etc

The lotus seeds after cooking is soft n delicious to eat .

Hope you will enjoy this easy n nutritious soup with your family.

 

Minced Chicken Spiral Pasta

I am the part time chef again. 

For easy lunch I decided to do a pasta dish with minced chicken meat.

Ingredients

Some minced chicken about a fist sized marinate with salt n white pepper

1/2 bottle of San Remo pasta sauce

Mixed frozen vegetables

7 pcs button mushroom cut into thirds

1/4 large onion diced

San Remo spiral pasta 2-3 cups

Olive oil

Method

Pasta sauce

Panfry onion till slightly brown add in minced chicken n fry till whitish colour.

Add in mushrooms n mixed vegetables and stir fry.

Add in pasta sauce and fry till bubbly. 

Pasta

Boil water n add in pasta with 2 teaspoon salt

Boil as per package instruction 

Drain water n rinses with tap water.

Drain water from pasta.

Add a drizzle of olive oil n toss the pasta.

Serve with the prepared pasta sauce.

Happy Cooking!

Frying ingredients

With pasta sauce

Tasty sauce

Pasta cooked

Mix pasta with olive oil 

Yummy lunch!

Peanut Butter Cookies with Pretzels

These cookies are really simple to make and a delight to eat.

I saw this recipe on Pin Interest and the original recipe from the link below 

http://www.fussfreecooking.com/recipe-categories/sugary-treats/easy-baking-recipe-4-ingredients-peanut-butter-pretzel-cookies/

I tried her recipe but my dough seems to be soft and my cookies did not harden. So I made a second batch n added 12 gm of plain flour. This worked for me.

Ingredients

1 cup of Skippy creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup of caster sugar

1 egg

12 gm plain flour

About 25 pcs of mini pretzels as topping

Method

Mix the peanut butter, egg, flour and sugar together using a spoon. 

Line your baking tray with baking paper.

Oil your palms slightly.

Use a teaspoon to scoop and form a ball.

Place the balls about 2-3 cm apart.

Place a pretzel on each ball n press down slightly.

Preheat oven to 170/175 degree celcius.

I baked for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven n let the cookies harden n cool. 

I bought the pretzels from Candy Empire

The dough 

Before baking

Top n bottom of cookie after baking

Note :

After the first batch of cookies the oven is already hot. So you may have to cut down the cooking time for the next batch.

Happy Baking!