Precious Gems from the 'Mall'

Can you imagine going to a mall, an outlet,
or a supermarket (since this is a food blog),
carrying a card that allows you to bring whatever
you desire & however many (up to 50) back home with you,
without having to pay a single penny?

Wow, that's crazy, isn't it? CRAZY GOOD, i'd say!

Obviously, that kind of heaven exists in my world,
& it's called... the LIBRARY!

While frequenting the library for the 365 Project,
[Plug: see 365booksayear.blogspot.com
for reading recommendations : ) ]
of course i gotta pick up some culinary good reads as well!








I'll let you know how it goes : )
[Plug again: see 365booksayear.blogspot.com
for reading recommendations ]
& you'll read about some experiments
derived from the above in the near future ; )

Rice Pot Wonder #1

This has to be the fastest REAL dinner e-v-e-r.
No, cooking instant noodles or nuking leftover doesn't count.

Thanks to Hippo Grande's Chef Fafa,
I've grown accustomed to the fabulous
Microwavable Rice Cooker years ago.
















A lot of people have doubted,
but if you've come over and tasted our RICE,
your doubt shall cease.

Now, to take that to another level,
I decided to mess around with cooking a 1-pot dinner,
Chinese style with a hei twist ; )

Marinate the beef with sugar, cornstarch, yada yada...
You know, the usual suspects.

Then i bought a pack of spicy pickled veggie,
we call it 柞菜 (zha choy) --
It's got a crisp texture, with a slight spicy/salty taste.

Marinated with sugar & sesame oil as pictured.














Cooked some rice till the water is bubbling,
but the rice not quite done.
Stir and mix both ingredients in,
put it back to the microwave to cook some more : )

Taa Daaaaaa!
There's no going back after trying this : )

I'm now contemplating a future cookbook, written by H-E-i...
Freshly titled: Rice Pot Wonders : b

Well, until then, I gotta explore & experiment more!

Raspberry Goodness!

This was the most tempting baked goods i've made thus far --
tempting as in... i don't wanna give it to anyone,
but keep it all for myself! : D














MmMMMmmmm... all that fruity rasp. goodness!

The recipe i got online was actually for apricot crumbles,
but i combined it with another recipe for raspberry bars,
and created this instead ; )

Hei just can't make anything straight from a recipe!!
& the only time that i did...
was with the peanut brittle -- which failed : /














Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup jam or preserves














Instructions:
1. Heat oven to 375° F.
2. Coat an 8-inch square baking dish with 1 tbsp of butter.
3. Combine the flour, granulated and light brown sugars,
baking powder, and salt.
4. Add the remaining butter and mix until crumbly.
5. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and mix
until the mixture just comes together but is still crumbly.














6. Transfer 1/2 cup of the dough to a small bowl
or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
7. Use your fingertips to press the remaining dough
evenly into the baking dish,
pushing the dough up about 1/4 inch around the edge.















8. Spread the jam evenly over the crust.
9. Crumble the remaining refrigerated dough over the top.
Bake until golden, about 35 minutes.
10. Cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes before cutting.
** Tip: If you're time-pressed, just stick the pan
in the freezer for 5 minutes instead of waiting
for the bars to cool on the counter.

I sure hope those who get this for Christmas
would appreciate it ; )
It was hard to part with them... '_'

Mini-Cheesecake cups

MMmmmMMmm...
Who doesn't like mini-cheesecakes? : )














The best part is... it's No-bake!
Super easy & fast ; )
Oh, did i mention YUMMY?! : D













Ingredients:
- 12 Vanilla Cookies
- 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temp.
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (i cheated & used bottled ones)
- Fresh fruits of your choice
(Recommend: Strawberry / Blueberry / Cherry...)
I used Peach & Raspberry : )














Steps:
1) Pulse the cookies in a food processor until you have crumbs.
(I haven't gotten my hands on one yet back then,
so i smashed it with my fist, with the cookies sealed in a ziploc bag.)
2) Line the cups of mini-muffin pans with paper liners;
spoon a layer of cookie crumbs into the bottom of each.
3) Beat the cream cheese & sugar at medium speed until smooth.
4) On low speed, beat in the sour cream & lemon juice till well combined.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl.













5) Spoon the filling into the cups.
6) Refrigerate for 2-4 hours, until set, or overnight.
7) Before serving, top each cheesecake with the fresh fruits of your choice.













Happy birthday, mom : D

Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies... x3!

All desserts make great gifts,
but not all of them are good when you have to mail them '_'

Therefore, when i had to decide what to make for Princess in HK,
i found the recipe for this : )

Taaa daaaa! Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies!



























* Princess got these : )

After the taste test, i decided that it tasted so good...
that i needed to master how to make it : D
So i made it again... and again!
Three times in a week...
& they all tasted moist, rich & delightful!




























*Christen and Fa/Ma/Ruby got these : )

The first time I put it into 2 loaf pans;
(i must get my hands on a square pan some day!)
The second time i stuff them into a mini-muffin pan;
& the third time i made them in a rectangular pan : )

Each time, I improvised a little more,
and tweeked the recipe here and there.
(well, with some online tips i found also : b)

Recipe

Ingredients:
· Nonstick cooking spray
· 8 chocolate wafer cookies (Optional)
· 1 bar (8 ounces) cream cheese
· 1 cup sour cream (reduced-fat if you're health conscious)
· 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
· 2 tablespoons cornstarch
· 3/4 cup sugar
· 1 large whole egg plus 1 large egg white
· 1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Coat an 8-inch square baking pan with cooking spray.
Line with two crisscrossed pieces of parchment or wax paper,
spraying between sheets.
Spray lined pan; set aside.
(I used butter instead of spray.
Worked just as well.)

2. Process cookies in a food processor until finely ground.
Gently press crumbs into bottom of prepared pan.
Do not rinse processor bowl.
(Skip this step if you don't want a crumb-base.)














3. Blend cream cheese and sour cream in food processor until smooth,
scraping down sides of bowl as needed.
(I didn't have a food processor,
but a wooden spoon/rice spatula worked well too : D)














4. Add cocoa, cornstarch, sugar, egg, and egg white;
process until smooth.
Pour into pan; sprinkle with chocolate chips.














5. Bake until just set, 35 to 40 minutes;
cool completely in pan.
Refrigerate at least 1 hour.

6. Invert onto a tray;
peel off paper, and reinvert crust side down.
Cut into 9 squares.














*The Chins family got this : )

They go so well with ice-cream!!!

After this, i think I can finally claim:
Hey I know how to make brownies! : D

Aloha Chicken and Pineapple

Who can resist pineapples? : )

This recipe is simple to follow & yet finger-licking good!
It goes well with rice, or you can make a sandwich out of this : )















Ingredients:
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
[I tweaked it and used Thighs instead : b]
1 (20 ounce) can sliced pineapple in juice,
pineapple drained and 1 tablespoon juice reserved.

Instructions:
1) Heat oven to 400 degrees F.
2) Combine pineapple juice, oil, honey, vinegar, soy sauce and mustard;
shake marinade well.
3) Toss chicken with 3 tablespoons of marinade to coat,
discarding chicken marinade when done.
4) Brush pineapple rings with other half of marinade,
reserving leftover marinade.
5) Coat 2 large baking dishes with vegetable oil spray.
Arrange chicken and pineapple rings in a single layer.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until chicken's juices run clear.
6) Before serving, brush chicken with leftover marinade.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 4 servings.Per serving: 403 calories;
44g carbohydrates, 42g protein, 6g total fat (1g saturated),
98mg cholesterol, 1g fiber, 342mg sodium.
Calories from fat: 13%
















Try it tonight! : ) You won't be disappointed!

Hot Chocolate Cupcake

Happy Birthday, Kenny!

For our krazy bro, i decided to try making this Hot Chocolate Cupcake : )

Here's the recipe : )

Ingredients:

220g dark chocolate broken into small chunks(minimum 70% cocoa content)
250g butter
3 large eggs
200gms sugar
1 1/4 cup plain flour
1 pinch salt
Marshmallows - for an added touch of melted gooey goodness!

Instructions:
Melt chocolate and butter in a microwavable bowl.
Heat for 90 seconds, stirring every 30 seconds.
Cream eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl till pale and fluffy.
Beat in the smooth chocolate mixture and add in the flour and salt.
Beat for another 1-2 minutes till well combined.
Spoon into cupcake molds/cases and bake for 10-15 minutes in preheated 375 degree oven.
They should still be soft and wobbly in the centers.
If using mini muffin pan; bake for 6-7 minutes.

Now here's the exciting part that turns it to HOT-chocolate-like:
Top with sprinkles of marshmallows of different sizes,
and pop back under the grill for 1-2 minutes to create a full "Hot-chocolate" effect.

YAY~ isn't that easy? : D
& the best part is... it's gooey, warm & the richness is just right! : )

Assorted Boneless Chicken Wings

A lot of people know that i LOVE chicken wings : D
Hence, it's no wonder that this dish has been on my mind for a long time,
and tonight i finally got to try making it!















The main hurdle to leap over for this dish is obviously...
How to take those bones off?!

Now, here's how:
- You need scissors
- You can't be afraid of touching, squishing, twisting... raw meat
- You must remain patient. VERY patient.

Steps:
1) Before you try de-boning them, all the wings must be completely thawed.
(If you bought frozen ones that is)
2) Set aside all drumsticks from the mid-section of the wings.
(i cooked Salt & Pepper Chicken drumsticks while preparing for this dish.
One wing for two dishes ; D)
3) Use scissors/knife to cut open the joints between the two bones.
4) Straighten the wing, use fingers to push the meat down towards the other end.
If the skin is stuck to the bone, use scissors to carefully cut it off.
5) Twist the bones in a spiral fashion a few times, and the bone will fall off.
TAAA DAAAAA! : )















** What's great about this dish is that,
you can stuff pretty much ANYTHING you like into the wings,
then pan-fry it!
Tonight, i tried:
A) Spinach
B) Cheddar Cheese
C) Bacon
















The recipe advised putting a toothpick through the opening,
so the stuffing won't fall out.
There were no toothpicks to be found at home... so i did without, and it was fine : )

Next time, i plan to try stuffing it with mushrooms / potatoes...
MMMmmm... : D