Hakka Yam Abacus Beads 客家算盘子 by Angela Seah Thulin

Hakka Yam Abacus Beads 客家算盘子is a traditional Hakka dish that is usually eaten during festivals.

For the yam abacus -

Ingredients:

350g yam

110g tapioca flour

Steps: 

1. Peel, cut the yam into slices and steam till cooked. Est. 20minutes...

2. While yam is hot, mash it and mix in the tapioca flour using a ladle. Do this while it is still hot. Then knead to form a pliable dough. Add bit of water if needed. I did not add water as i want to retain the strong yam taste, so this action of mixing and kneading it together must be fast. 
3. Roll it into a thin long log and cut. Then shape into a ball. Using my thumb, i give a gentle press down at the center. 

4. Prepare a cold icy water in a big bowl. 
5. To cook - in a pot with hot boiling water, add all these in. Let it cook till float and then continue cooking for another 2 minutes. 

6. Transfer them to the cold water immediately.
7. Drain them and coat with 2 tbsp of oil (to prevent them from sticking).

For stir frying -

Ingredients: 
Garlic, minced
Shallots
Carrots
Dried shrimps
Scallions
Chilli
Chinese mushrooms
Light soya sauce
White pepper
Bit of sugar

Steps:
1. In a heated wok with oil, cook the minced garlics, shallots and dried shrimps till fragrant.
2. Then add the carrots and mushrooms in till almost cooked.
3. Add the abacus beads and all the seasoning, stir fry to well mixed and add scallions/chilli in. Taste and adjust accordingly.
4. Dish up and garnish with more scallions and deep fried shallots.

Ee Fu Noodles by Angela Seah Thulin

Braised Ee fu noodles is one of my favourite noodle dishes! It is commonly found in Chinese restaurant menus, and especially served during Chinese weddings in Singapore. I'm always drooling for this dish when group Plate & Palate members share it. A cooking friend of mine (Flora) was very nice to courier two such noodle packets to me. Normally you will use straw mushrooms for this dish but since I couldn't find good ones in Sweden, I've replaced it with Chinese mushrooms. For the same reason, I also had to replace yellow chives with scallions. 

Ingredients - 

250g Yee fu noodles

1 tsp sesame oil 

1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 gloves garlic, minced

4 Chinese mushrooms, soaked and sliced (keep the water) 

3/4 tbsp hua diao jiu 

3 stalks of scallion, separate the white and green

Half carrot, cut into stripes 

Marinate meat (30mins)  - 

120g chicken breast meat, sliced

Light soya sauce

Pepper

Corn starch

Sauce - 

350ml mushroom water

1/2 chicken knorr cube

2 tbsp oyster sauce 

1/2 tbsp light soya sauce

Dash of pepper

Steps -

1. In a wok with vegetable oil, cook the garlic then add white part of the scallions, carrots, chinese mushrooms and chicken breast meat in. Cook till the meat turn opaque.

2. Add the sauce in, noodles and sesame oil. Give a stir and cover with lid. 

3. Stir upon opening. Noodles should have soften, gravy will be very little. Drizzle the hua tiao jiu at the sides. Add the green part scallions. Stir to well mixed and done.

5-Eggs Pandan Chiffon Cake

Seeing the members in Plate & Palate group baking Pandan chiffon cake the last few days, i decided to do it again using my freshly extracted pandan juice. I have not eaten this for months! The recipe is simple but the result is yummilicious. My family loves the softness and the pandan / coconut fragrance .. 

Pandan Chiffon Cake

Ingredients A -
5 egg yolks
20g granulated sugar
100g cake flour, sifted + 1 tsp baking powder (combine them)
100ml coconut milk
2 tbsp fresh pandan juice or 1 tsp pandan extract 
3 tbsp organic coconut oil

Ingredients B -
5 egg whites
60g granulated sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Steps for ingredients A -
1. With a mixer, beat the egg yolks and sugar till light and frothy. 
2. Then add the coconut milk and pandan juice in and beat for few seconds.
3. Add the cake flour and baking powder in two batches and beat for few seconds just to combine. Follow by adding coconut oil in and beat for few seconds to combine.
4. Set aside.

Steps for ingredients B - 
1. In a clean metal bowl, using mixer, beat the egg whites till bubbles forming then add cream of tartar in. Continue beating then add sugar in slowly. Beat till stiff peak formed.

To assemble - 
1. Scoop half of the ingredients B into ingredients A and fold them in gently. Follow by the other half.
2. Pour onto 21cm (i'm using a 23cm mould) pan and bake in preheated oven 160 degree celsius for 45-60 minutes or until its baked.
3. Invert cake immediately onto cooling rack until completely cooled.


Here's a guide on choosing the right chiffon pan size -

1 egg recipe - 14cm mould
2 eggs recipe - 17cm mould
4 or 5 eggs recipe - 21cm mould
6 eggs recipe - 23cm mould
8 eggs recipe - 25cm mould

I got the pan from Ikea and some say this is non-stick pan, might not be suitable for Chiffon cake But i think its alright.

One of my Orange Chiffon cake baked last year using the same Ikea pan

This is how i flip my chiffon cake :)

Recipe Origin from Christine's Recipes

Prawn noodles with pork ribs by Angela Seah Thulin

Living in a cold country such as Sweden, having hot soup is something i really wish for. Prawn is one of my favorite types of seafood. So - soup + prawn = Prawn noodle soup! 

I have a hard time accumulating my prawn shells and it usually takes me months to have enough for just one meal (there was even once that i had to accumulate for 9 months!). 

Why add pork ribs, you might ask? It enhances the flavour and makes for a heartier meal.

Prawn noodles with pork ribs by Angela Seah Thulin

Ingredients - 

600g pork ribs

3 tbsp oil

3 cloves garlic, cut

3 red shallots, cut

1 kg prawn shells or more

1 star anise

1/2 chicken knorr cube

2 tbsp brown sugar

7-8 cups water

1/2 tsp white pepper

2 tbsp crystal sugar

1 tbsp fish sauce

3/4 tbsp dark soya sauce

Steps -

1. Blanch the ribs in boiling hot water. Drain and set aside.
2. In a big pot, add oil to it, stir fry the garlic and shallots. Then add prawn shells in. Cook till fragrant is out and shells turn red.
3. Add star anise, chicken knorr cube, brown sugar in, Stir and mix well. Then add water in. Let it come to a boil.
4. Add the ribs in and white pepper, follow by crystal sugar, fish sauce and dark soya sauce.
5. Stir and mix well. Taste and adjust accordingly. Let it come to a boil and then switch to low heat and simmer for 2hrs.

Chess cookies by Angela Seah Thulin

I remember the first time i had such cookies. They were offered by my mother in law. My husband was sharing to me how much he loves these cookies and he had them very often when he was a kid. Well well, i was hesitating even to try as i don't really fancy butter cookies. They were amazingly fragrant and i couldn't taste the butter so much .. I'm falling for them.

Chess cookies by Angela Seah Thulin

It looks complicated and you probably have to use a ruler to measure if you like an even design.. But hehe, i don't. All done free hand so i don't really have a detailed explanation to that. And yes this is another easy recipe.

Ingredients - 

325g All purpose flour

220g room temperature butter

140g granulated sugar

20g cocoa powder, sifted

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp lemon zest

1 large egg

1/4 tsp salt

Steps - 

Preheat oven - 175 degree celsius

1. In a baking bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fuffy (about 2 minutes).

2. Add the eggs, vanilla extract and lemon zest in till well mixed. 

3. Then add the flour in and beat till they are well combined.

4. Divide the dough into half and place one half of the dough back into the bowl. Add the cocoa  powder and beat until fully incorporated.

5. Place the two doughs on 2 parchment papers. Roll and shape them accordingly. For this part, you really have to use your imagination to ponder .. :) 

Brush in between layers with water. Press down gently and then wrap and freeze for 15 minutes or until they are firm.

6. When firm, remove from freezer and cut them. Into preheated oven and bake them for about 6 -9 minutes or until you see the browning at the cookies edges. Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool completely. 

Watermelon Jelly by Angela Seah Thulin

My husband bought me the WORLD smallest watermelon yesterday... (ok, I exaggerate abit too much. Anyway, it's the smallest watermelon I ever own). Eating the fresh and with the leftover skin, i used it to make into jelly. 

Bought the packet in Singapore and behind the packet, there are clear simple instructions of how to do it.

Photo credit: Vivawoman

Minced meat with tofu by Angela Seah Thulin

I was super happy to receive a big parcel (16kg) at my doorstep just a few days ago. It was from my cooking friends in Singapore. There were so many goodies in it. Curry paste, herbs, noodles, biscuits, sauces and the list goes on looooong... One of them was Taucu (salted soy bean). I have always seen recipes using it but i have never really tasted it. So with the Taucu, i cooked it with minced meat and tofu. Woah, i was so happy with the result that my son and i were almost fighting over it... Just a very simple dish to whip up. 

Marinate (30 mins) -

150g minced meat

3/4 tbsp light soya sauce

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp corn starch

Few dashes of pepper

Other ingredients - 

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp oil

2 tsp Taucu

1/2 tsp dark soya sauce

1/2 cup water

Tofu (egg tofu 1-2 or silken tofu), cut into cubes

Scallions for garnishing

*Opt - bit of cornstarch to thicken the gravy

To cook -

1. In a wok with oil, add the garlic in and cook till fragrant and then add taucu in. Stir fry for a few seconds.

2. Add the marinated meat in and cook till the meat is no longer pink. Stir and separate the meat into smaller pieces.

3. Add the water and dark soya sauce in, let it come to a boil.

4. Follow by adding tofu in and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes. Gently stir to avoid breaking the tofu. Garnish with scallions.

Done! 

Thanks Lily Ooh for the Taucu :)

Pan-fried rice cake with red bean paste by Angela Seah Thulin

For more recipes - https://www.facebook.com/sassyangelakitchen

It was only yesterday that i brewed a big pot of red bean soup. As i have always liked the soup only, i tend to use the leftover beans to make them into red bean popsicles, but this time i made this sticky snack. This rice cake is crispy on the outside with a sticky texture from the glutinous rice flour. You will taste the sweetness of the red bean paste and also smell the fragrance of the sesame seeds...mmmm... 

It's super easy to make this!

1. Red bean paste (or you could use ready-made paste) - 
400g overnight cooked red beans
6tbsp brown sugar

In a pot - stir, mash them and cook till dry. You should have about 250g bean paste when done.

2. The dough - 

150g Glutinous rice flour

estimated 140ml water (start off with 80ml water and add slowly)

In a large bowl, mix the above together till the dough comes together and soft. 

3. To assemble - 

Weigh each dough to be 20g

Weigh each bean paste to be 15 or 16g

Flatten the dough, wrap up the bean paste and shape into a ball. Then gently press it flat and coat with sesame seeds.

4. Heat up non-stick pan with alittle oil over medium heat, pan fried the rice cake for 2-3mins on each side, you will know it's ready when the rice cake has soften.

Done! Hope you like it!

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Sweet Potato Fries by Angela Seah Thulin

Few members in my Facebook - Global Dining group have been sharing the new snack that is going on in Singapore Mac Donald now - The sweet potato fries. So I thought i should make some too .. 

I used the sweet potato that has been in my fridge for some time. And to achieve the crispiness, i tried on 3 types of flour. I think cornstarch lasted and was indeed crispy. 

All i did was >>> 
1. Cut the sweet potatoes (do not wash otherwise please pat dry) into strips.
2. Place them into a ziplock bag, add the cinnamon powder and caster sugar in and shake to combine. 

For every 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder, I used 1 tsp caster sugar.

3. Add the cornstarch in and shake to combine. 

Its important that the strips have a thin layer of cornstarch dusting. 

4. In hot oil, i deep fried them first on low heat and then slightly increase to medium heat..  

Done!

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Tapioca flour jelly by Angela Seah Thulin

I have always love this tapioca flour jelly in my dessert BuBur Chacha (cook with coconut milk, sweet potatoes, yam - a common dessert serve in Singapore(. 

And very often  i have to get up very early just to go to the wet market in Singapore to buy this. Staying in Sweden, i have to make myself from scratch for most of my cravings. 

This is the tapioca flour jelly. Since i love it so much, this time i added them to my Longan/red dates dessert instead. 

Ingredients - 

100g Tapioca flour
est. 80ml boiling hot water (starting from 50ml, add slowly)
*opt - coloring
*opt - caster sugar (abit)

Steps-
- Mix together and knead them into a pliable dough
- In a pot with boiling water, cook these till float, then scoop up after 1-2 mins.
- Transfer them into icy cold water to achieve the chewiness.

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