Moist - Banana Loaf Bread

Ingredients: ( for one 8" x 3.5" x 3" & one 9" x 4" x 3")
250g salted butter
1 1/2 cups castor sugar (I will reduce the sugar depending on what type of banana that I used and how ripe the bananas are, normally 180g to 200g)
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
4 tbsp milk
1 1/2 cups mashed banana (about 3 del monte bananas, sometimes I put more)
2 cups plain flour (220g sift together with 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda and 1 tsp baking powder)
Walnut for decor

Method:
1. Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl.
2. Add in eggs, vanilla essence and milk and mix well.
3. Add mashed banana into the mixture and mix well.
4. Finally add in sifted flour and mix well and pour into a cake tin. Sprinkle walnut on top.
5. Bake in preheated oven at 160 deg C for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. If the top layer turns brown after 15 minutes, cover it with a piece of aluminium foil.
6. Cool cakes in the pan then remove. Use a sharp knife to slice and serve

Source: rasamalaysia.com & bakericious.blogspot

Easy Crepes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Filling

Ingredients
4 eggs
2 c. milk
1 1/3 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. vegetable oil

FILLING:
2 c. strawberries, chopped
1/2 c. sugar
8 oz. cream cheese
½ c. powdered sugar
½ tsp. vanilla

Instructions
In a blender or food processor combine all ingredients (if you don't want them to be sweet, take out the sugar and vanilla). Blend until smooth and all ingredients are mixed together. Cover and refrigerate about an hour (don't skip this step.. it is very important). Heat a skillet* over medium-high heat and spray with cooking spray or oil. Pour 1/4 cup of the batter into pan, tilting to completely coat the surface of the pan (kind of like how you would if you were trying to coat the pan with oil). Cook 3-4 minutes, flipping over once, until golden. The thinner the crepe, the better!
*If you have a crepe maker... use that. They will turn out perfect every time. ;)
For the filling: Combine strawberries and sugar and set aside. In a mixing bowl, mix cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Fold in strawberry mixture until well combined. Put about 1-2 Tbsp. of mixture in each crepe. Roll up and serve with sliced strawberries and whipped cream.


Here are some more filling ideas:
Sausage, scrambled eggs, & cheese (top with sour cream, cheese, and salsa):
Cream cheese, whipped cream, & strawberries (topped with strawberry jam, whipped cream & sprinkled with powdered sugar)
Cottage cheese & strawberries or peaches
Cottage cheese, parmesan cheese, & tomatoes
Butter, cinnamon, & sugar
PB&J
Boiled eggs (sliced) & cooked asparagus (topped with hollandaise sauce)
Custard & fruit
Vanilla ice cream with caramel & chocolate sauce
Banana & whipped cream
Mousse & fruit or chocolate
Ham & cheese
Nutella
Sauteed mushrooms & cheese
Eggs, Cheese & Bacon (or whatever you would put in an omelet)
Crab & cream cheese

Source: favfamilyrecipes.com

Pizza Dough Cinnamon Rolls

Serves 9 | Prep Time: 25 Mins | Cook Time: 40 Mins

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons (120 g) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (30 g) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons (30 mL) ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla extract, separated
2 pounds (908 g) fresh pizza dough
1 egg
1 tablespoon (5 mL) water
1 cup (100 g) powdered sugar
3 tablespoons (15 mL) milk

Method:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, and coat a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.

In a bowl, mix together the butter, granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Lightly flour work surface and roll out the pizza dough into a 12- by 15-inch rectangle. Evenly spread the butter mixture over the dough, making sure to reach the edges. Roll the dough, starting from the long side, and cut into 9 pieces. Place in the pan, leaving space for the dough to expand while baking.Combine the egg and water, and brush the wash over the rolls.

Bake for 40 minutes.

While the cinnamon rolls cool (at least 15 minutes), make the icing by mixing the powdered sugar, milk and remaining vanilla extract. Drizzle over the rolls and serve.
Cook’s Note:

For a thicker icing, use less milk.

Source: rasamalaysia.com

Crepes (Thin Pancakes)

Ingredients:
About 1 quart of milk (can be more or less depends of the flour you use)
4 tbsp of sugar
1-2 eggs
3-4 cups of all purpose flour
0.5 tbsp of salt
Sunflower oil
0.5 tbs of baking soda
Butter

Mix eggs, sugar and salt in a big bowl till sugar is dissolved:

Add 1 cup of flour, 0.5 tbs of baking soda and mix:

Add 1 tbsp of sunflower oil and 1 cup of milk and mix well. Add the rest of prepared flour and mix again till batter become homogeneous, then start mixing in rest of the milk in small portions. You need to get thin batter, so stop adding milk when you get thickness like the following:

Live batter to rest for 10-15 minutes.

Warm 10” (or less) diameter frying pan on medium-high heat and oil it with sunflower oil. The actions you need to do next will require some kind of agility. Tilt frying pan with one hand, ladle batter with other and pour it on the pan from the top to the side. You need to tilt pan in circle motion to help batter to spread. You can add more batter if you see you ladled too less:

Put frying pan back to the burner when batter spread evenly and fry crepe till there is no more liquid batter on its edges:

Now you need to flip crepe to fry it from other side. Separate crepe’s edge from the frying pan (you can use knife or spatula, or any other tool), pick it up using your hands (or spatula again) and flip it to the other side:

Fry crepe from other side for same time
Move crepe to the big flat plate and spread butter on top of it:

Tips & Advices:
Thickness of the batter can be corrected later on by adding more flour if you need more stiff batter, or mixing in a bit of milk if you need to make it thiner.
If crepe tears apart when you are trying to flip it to fry from other side you can try to add 1 more egg or/and a bit of flour to the batter.
It is good if you use cast-iron frying pan to make crepes, however if you don’t have cast-iron pan in your kitchen “arsenal” you can use pretty much any other frying pan. Also good if your pan has low sides, it is much easier to flip crepes if so. Well, how you can see on photos I was “lucky” enough to not have both, but it worked for me even without. However having not cast-iron frying pan with tall sides could require more agility while making crepes.

Source: enjoyyourcooking

Yeast Pancakes (Russian Oladi)

Ingredients:
2 cups of milk
2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon of dry active yeast
1/4 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of oil for batter and more for frying

1. Prepare ingredients: amount of flour the recipe calls for it approximate, depending on the qualities of the flour you may need to use a bit more or less.
2. Warm up all milk so it is warm enough for yeast to activate, but not too hot to kill them, pour it to the mixing bowl.
3. Add quarter of teaspoon of salt and all sugar.
4. 2 tablespoons of oil.
5. Mix until salt and sugar dissolves completely and add active yeast.
6. Let them soak for 5-8 mins, don’t stir mixture during this time.
7. Mix in 1 cup of flour until homogeneous, cover with clean cloth and leave in warm place to initiate the fermentation process, for 15 mins approximately.
8. When batter began bubbling, mix in both eggs.
9. And gradually mix remaining of the flour, make sure batter doesn’t have any knots.
10. Cover bowl with a clean cloth again and leave it in warm place for 40mins to one hour.
11. By the end of the hour you will get fermented batter.
12. Warm up a skillet with a bit of oil over moderate heat; scoop batter with a ladle or a big spoon and form pancakes on the skillet (avoid stirring of batter).
13. Serve yeast pancakes with sour cream, jam, honey or plain dusted with confectioners sugar; tastes great with a cup milk.

Source: enjoyyourcooking.com

Yeast Pancakes

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1¾ cups milk
¼ cup water
¼ cup shortening
3 eggs

Instructions

1. In large mixer bowl, combine flour, yeast, sugar, salt, ginger and nutmeg; mix well. 
2. In saucepan heat milk, water and shortening to 120-130F (shortening does not need to melt); add to flour mixture. Add eggs. Blend at low speed until moistened; beat 2 minutes at medium speed until smooth. 
3. Cover; let rise in warm place until bubbly and doubled, about 1 hour. Stir down batter.
4. Bake on greased griddle over medium heat until golden brown. 
5. Serve hot topped with syrup, warm applesauce or your favorite fruit sauce. 
6. For dessert pancakes, fill warm cakes with your favorite jam or preserves and roll, topping with whipped cream or powdered sugar.

Source: fakeginger.com

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes

Serves 2-3 | Prep Time: 10 Minutes | Cook Time: 60 Minutes
Adapted from: rasamalaysia.com


Ingredients:1 1/2 pounds baby or new potatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons melted butter
3 heads garlic, top trimmed
1/2 tablespoon chopped parsley leaves
1/2 lemon, cut into wedges
2-3 sprigs thyme
Scant 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese


Method:
Preheat oven to 350F. Cut slits on the potatoes, do not cut through. Place the potatoes in a roasting pan and brush with the olive oil and melted butter. Add the garlic, parsley, lemon and thyme in the pan, in between the potatoes. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper.

Chicken Fried Noodles

Yields 2
Prep Time 10 min
Cook Time 10 min

Ingredients
Chicken
185 grams chicken thighs - boneless skinless (~1 large thigh) cut into bite-size pieces
2 teaspoons oyster sauce
1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon potato starch
1/8 teaspoon five spice powder
Chow mein sauce
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
2 teaspoons soy sauce
Chow mein
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 grams garlic (~ 1 small clove) minced
40 grams carrots (~1/4 carrot) peeled and julienned
100 grams bok choy (~1 head) chopped
325 grams noodles
20 grams scallions (~2 scallions) sliced

Instructions

1. Put the chicken thighs, 2 teaspoons oyster sauce, Shaoxing, black pepper, potato starch and five spice powder in a small bowl and mix well to combine. Let the chicken marinate while you prepare the other ingredients.
2. To make the chow mein sauce, put the water, oyster sauce and soy sauce in a small bowl and stir to combine.
3. Heat a wok or frying pan over medium-high heat until hot and then add the vegetable oil, marinated chicken and garlic. Spread the chicken into a single layer. Let the chicken brown and then flip.
4. As soon as you flip the chicken, add the carrots. Stir-fry until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender.
5. Add the bok choy, noodles and sauce. If your noodles are stuck together, add a little extra water with the sauce, cover the pan with a lid and steam the noodles until they come apart. Otherwise stir-fry, until the bok choy is cooked through and the noodles are evenly coated with sauce.
6. Add the scallions, toss to distribute evenly and then serve immediately.

Source: norecipes.com

Fluffy Pancakes

Yields 10
Prep Time 10 min
Cook Time 10 min

Ingredients
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
2 tablespoons butter, melted
cooking spray

Instructions
Combine milk with vinegar in a medium bowl and set aside for 5 minutes.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
Whisk egg and butter into the milk. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk until lumps are gone.
Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto the skillet, and cook until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side. Serve.

Notes
You can pair it with banana, strawberries, blueberries or cream.

Source: misstamchiak.com

Shanghai Fried Noodles

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 2-4 servings


Ingredients
For the pork & marinade (omit if you want the dish to be vegetarian):
6 oz. lean pork, sliced into ¼” strips
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
½ teaspoon light soy sauce
1/8 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon shaoxing wine
Pinch of sugar

For the rest of the dish:
3 tablespoons oil, divided
8 shiitake mushrooms (fresh or dry – you have to soak them first if they’re dried), thinly sliced
1 lb. Japanese-style Udon noodles
2 1/2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
2 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
¼ teaspoon sugar
1 small bunch choy sum or baby bok choy, washed and trimmed


Mix together the pork and marinade ingredients and set aside for 5-10 minutes while you prepare the other ingredients.

Heat a tablespoon of oil in a wok over high heat. Add the pork stir-fry until browned. Turn down the heat, remove the pork from the wok and set aside. Add a couple more tablespoons of oil to the wok and sautee the mushrooms for about 2 minutes using medium heat. Break up the noodles gently with your hands and add them to the wok.

Add the soy sauces and sugar. Stir-fry everything together until the noodles get an even, deep brown color. If you’re not seeing the color you want, add a little more dark soy sauce.

Add the leafy greens now and mix in with the noodles until wilted. Serve hot! Some people like to add a few drops of dark vinegar right before eating—totally up to you.

Cantonese Soy Sauce Pan-Fried Noodles

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: Serves 2

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups bean sprouts

2 scallions

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon dark soy sauce

½ teaspoon sesame oil

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon sugar

½ tablespoon shaoxing wine

¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

8 ozs fresh thin Hong Kong Style Egg Noodles

(for pan-frying, not to be mistaken for “wonton noodles”) 

or 3 small bundles of dried Hong Kong Style Egg Noodles for pan-frying

3 tablespoons oil

Bring 2 quarts of water to a boil. Rinse the bean sprouts in cold water and drain. Julienne the scallions. Mix the soy sauces, sesame oil, salt, sugar, wine and white pepper into a small bowl and set aside.

Boil the noodles. Fresh noodles should be boiled for about 1 minute. For dried noodles, boil for 2-3 minutes. Rinse in cold water and drain very well.

Heat the wok to high and add a tablespoon of oil to coat the wok. Spread the noodles in a thin, even layer on the wok and tilt the wok in a circular motion to distribute the oil and crisp the bottom layer of the noodles evenly. It should take about 3-5 minutes for the first side.

Flip the noodles over and add another tablespoon of oil around the perimeter of the wok and let the other side crisp up. Don’t stress if you can’t turn the noodles over in one shot, The goal here is just to get an even, light crispiness and to dry out the noodles during this cooking stage. In our pictures for this post, we used a large non-stick pan, which also works nicely. Set aside these noodles on a plate.

Heat the wok over high heat. Add a tablespoon of oil and all of the white parts of the scallion to the pan and cook for about 15 seconds. Next, add the noodles to the wok and toss them well, breaking up the noodles so they’re not all in one big clump. Add the soy sauce mixture and toss continuously (don’t stop!) for a couple minutes using a pair of chopsticks or a set of tongs. Keep the heat on high.

After the noodles are uniformly golden brown, add the bean sprouts and toss. Add the rest of the scallions and toss the mixture again for another 1 to 2 minutes until you see the bean sprouts just starting to turn transparent. You want the sprouts to be cooked but still crunchy. Be careful not to overcook them or they will become limp and soggy. High heat is a key requirement for this dish.

Plate and serve!

Source: thewoksoflife.com

Potato Prawn Cutlets

Ingredients

500 gms of prawns (deshelled)

1 boiled potato

1 onion (finely chopped)

A pinch of red chilli powder

A pinch of turmeric powder

Salt and pepper

2 green chillies (finely chopped)

4 Tbsp of coconut oil

Fresh coriander, chopped

1 egg

Method

Mix the prawns with turmeric powder, salt and red chilli powder.

Heat them till they turn milky white.

Chop the prawns and add mashed potato, onion, green chilli, red chilli powder and coriander. Season to taste.

Mix them well and add the egg.

Make patties of the mixture and fry in coconut oil till golden brown on both sides.

• Source: food.ndtv.com

Pork and Shiitake Gyoza

From rasamalaysia.com

Makes 24 dumplings | Prep Time: 30 Minutes | Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Ingredients:

10 oz (300g) ground pork (80% lean, 20% fat preferred)
1/2 cup cabbage, finely chopped
1 stalk scallion, finely chopped
3-4 dried shiitake mushrooms or fresh shiitake mushrooms
1 pack gyoza wrapper
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup water, for steaming
1/4 cup water, for sealing

Seasonings:

1 tablespoon cooking sake
1 teaspoon mirin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
3 dashes white pepper powder

Dipping Sauce:

4 tablespoons ponzu
1 teaspoon chili oil (optional)
1/2 teaspoon white sesame seeds

Method:

In a small bowl, soak the dried shiitake mushrooms with warm water until they turn soft. Squeeze the water dry, discard the stems and cut the mushrooms into very tiny pieces. If you use fresh shiitake, just discard the stems and diced finely.

Mix the Dipping Sauce ingredients in a small sauce dish and set aside.

Add the chopped cabbage, scallion, and mushrooms into the pork, stir to combine. Add all the ingredients in Seasonings and blend well.

Place a gyoza wrapper onto your palm and place 1 teaspoon of the filling in the middle of the wrapper.Lightly dab your index finger into the 1/4 cup of water and circle your finger all around the outer edge of the wrapper. Pleat and fold the wrapper (starting from one end to the other end). Make sure the gyoza is sealed tight. Repeat the same until the filling is used up.

Use a flat bottom pan to pan fry the gyoza on medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of oil into the pan and place all gyoza in the pan and cover it with the lid. Pan-fry the gyoza for 5 minutes or until the bottoms turn brown. Add 1/2 cup of water into the pan and turn the heat to high immediately. Cover the lid to steam and cook the gyoza for another 3-4 minutes, or until the water dries out. Turn the heat to low and pan fry the gyoza for another 1 minute to crisp up the bottom. Transfer the gyoza out onto a plate and serve immediately with the dipping sauce.

Cook’s Note:

Depending on the size of your pan, you might have to pan-fry the gyoza in 2 to 3 batches.

Scallion Pancake (Green Onion Pancake)

This recipe is from rasamalaysia.com 
Serves 4 | Prep Time: 30 Minutes | Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Adapted from Easy Chinese Recipes by Bee Yinn Low

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups (200g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder (Knorr brand non-MSG)
1/2 cup (125ml) water
3 – 4 green onions (scallions), green parts only, trimmed and cut into small rounds, to yield about a tightly packed 1/3 cup or more
2 tablespoons oil, for brushing
Some additional all-purpose flour, for dusting and rolling
Oil, for frying

Method:

1. Sift the all-purpose flour into a big bowl and then add the salt and chicken bouillon powder into the flour. Combine well and set aside.
2. Heat the water to a boil. Slowly add the water to the flour and knead the dough until it becomes soft, no longer sticky and the surface becomes smooth and shiny, about 15 minutes. If the dough is too dry, add 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of water to the dough. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.

3. Add the green onion into the dough and combine well.
4. Make the Green Onion Pancake by following the picture guide below.
5. Add about 1/4 inch (6 mm) of oil into a stir-fry pan or skillet over moderately high heat. Transfer a piece of the pancake onto the pan or skillet. Shallow fry each side of the pancake to a light golden brown, about 1 minute. Flip the pancake over and shallow fry the other side. Add more oil, repeat the same for the remaining pancakes and serve immediately. They are best eaten with warm and homemade soy milk.

How to Make Green Onion (Scallion) Pancake:

1. On a flat and floured surface, divide the dough into 8 equal-sized pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a ball using your palm.

2. Working with one dough ball at a time, roll the dough to a thin disc using a rolling pin. Dust the rolling pin with some all-purpose flour as you go. Brush the surface of the pancake with the oil.

3. Roll the dough into a cylinder.

4. Coil it up like a snail.

5. Dust the rolling pin with the flour and roll the dough until flat, measuring about 6 inches (15cm) in diameter. Set the dough aside on a baking sheet. Repeat Step 2-6 for the rest of the dough.

Cook’s Notes:

If you don’t use the chicken bouillon powder, then use a total 1 1/2 teaspoons salt for the dough instead of 1 teaspoon salt as stated in the recipe.

To jazz up the aroma of the pancake, you add a little sesame oil to the oil and brush onto the surface before rolling up into a cylinder.

You can also pan-fry the pancakes…just oil your pan and pan-fry both sides until they turn lightly brown with dark brown spots.