Mum's Apple Crumble

I thought Jamie Oliver's recipe was golden, so i had a bake-off with my mom. Jamie... you made me eat humble pie. :p Mum's enhanced recipe (from a friend) was so so goooood. Crumbly texture with chopped almonds hidden inside, hit the right 'crunchy' spot! Thanks Mom for making a dozen of these!

Apple Filling:

• 12 pieces of granny smith apples
• 1 tbsp water
• 80g caster sugar
• 45g brown sugar
• 1 & 1/4 tsp cinnamon or nutmeg powder
• 120g (unsalted) SCS butter

Crumble:

• 150g (unsalted) SCS butter (best to use the butter when cold)
• 310g plain flour
• 45g brown sugar
• 10g caster sugar
• 120g chopped almonds

      (Makes 8 servings)
      Preheat oven 190 C

     Cooking the Filling:

1. Peel and core all the apples. While soaking them in a bowl of salted water, sliced the apples thinly.
2. In a big sauce pan, (drain the apples from the bowl) put in all the apples, add 1 tbsp of water and bring the heat to medium-low.
3. Add in all the sugar & butter, stirring occasionally for 10-15 minutes. (Do not add anymore water as the apples will release moisture after awhile). 
4. When the apples are nice and soft (i like my apples very soft to the point of mush), add in the cinnamon/nutmeg powder. Take the pan off the heat and let it to cool down slightly, while you make the crumble.

     Making the Crumble:

1. Cut the butter into cubes and put them in a mixing bowl with the flour. Using your fingers (must use fingers!), lightly rub the butter into the flour until you have a crumbly texture.
2. Pour in the all the sugar and almonds, mix them with your fingers.

     Assembling:

1. Scoop the filling into a large baking dish or aluminum foil cases, filling about 2/3 of the dish.
2. Pour over the crumbles using a fork and lightly pat them down. (I sprinkle a little cinnamon sugar over the top)
3. Place the dish/cases in the oven and bake them for 15-18 minutes until lightly golden brown.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chewy is so much better than crispy...  like eating out of a mixing bowl!

• 110g unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup caster sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tbsp vanilla essence
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup flour + 2 tbsp more
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven at 190 C. Line a large tray with baking sheet.
2. Sift the flour and baking soda together. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, blend the butter with the caster sugar & brown sugar with a whisk.
4. Add in the egg, salt and vanilla essence. Whisk until combined.
5. Add in the flour mixture and blend until it's smooth. 
6. Pour in the chocolate chips and roughly mix with a spatula.
7. Using 2 teaspoons, scoop out a heaped teaspoon of batter and drop them on the cookie sheet with the other teaspoon. Keep them about 2 inches apart, as the batter will expand when cooking. 
8. Bake them for 6-8 minutes until the edges are brown and it looks slightly chewy still. 
9. Take the tray out and let it stand for awhile, lift each cookie out to cool on a wired rack.

Onion & Rosemary Home-made Bread

What I love about this, is the taste of salt in the bread & hidden onions at the bottom. I sprinkled some cinnamon sugar over the top, for that mystery taste! By the way, it's a NO YEAST bread. Kind of reminds me of the bread served at Italiannies.

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 medium size onion, sliced thinly
• Some olive oil
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp dried rosemary / your preferred herbs
• Sprinkling of cinnamon sugar
• 2x baking loaf tin / 1x 9-inch round pan
• 1x skillet

      Dry ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt (i used natural Himalayan salt)
• 1 tsp sugar

      Wet ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup corn oil (not olive oil)

1. In a skillet, heat the butter and fry the onions until it's soft and brown. Dish it out and keep aside.
2. Grease the loaf tins/pan with some olive oil. Sprinkle brown sugar on the bottom of the tin/pan, spread the onions in. (Spread the onions out quite thinly so they won't be soggy while the bread cooks)
3. In a bowl, sift and mix all the (dry ingredients) together.
4. In another bowl, beat all the (wet ingredients) together.
5. Add the wet ingredients into the dry, and quickly stir them to combine.
6. Spread the batter into the loaf tins/pan. (I used 2 loaf tins instead of 1, so the batter would not be too high and they will cooked evenly).
7. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar and rosemary herbs over the top.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Let it stand for 5 mins and invert it. Cut them in wedges and serve warm.

Lasagna Al Forno

Well this pic could have looked better. I couldn't scoop out the lasagna from the dish properly, so had to break off the ends. But it tasted the same deliciousness!

• 1 large sized saucepan to blanch the pasta in
• 2 medium-sized saucepans to make the 2 sauces concurrently
• A deep, baking dish (i use pyrex glass type so i can see the layers bubbling)
• 6-8 sheets of pre-made lasagna
• 1.5 cup grated mozarella cheese
• Salt and pepper

Bechamel sauce:

• 2.5 cups milk
• 50g butter
• 1/3 up flour
• 1 bay leaf
• Grated nutmeg

Meat sauce:

• 350g minced beef
• 1/4 cup bacon bits, diced
• 1 onion, diced finely
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 150ml red wine
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 3 tbsp pure cream
• 300g (canned) chopped tomatoes
• 4 tbsp olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 190 C
2. Bring a large saucepan of water to boil. Blanch the pasta sheets a few at a time until they are half cooked. Dish them out and place them in cold water (to keep them separate).
3. (To make the Meat Sauce) Heat a clean medium-sized sauce pan with oil and fry the beef. When the beef is almost cooked, add in the bacon bits and fry for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, cook for 5 minutes. Add in the wine and cook until the sauce is reduced. Stir in the tomato paste & chopped tomatoes. Bring to boil and lower the heat to simmer for 20 minutes. (Proceed to Step 4 while simmering) Once the meat sauce is nice and thick, pour in the cream. Give it a few quick stirs, season to taste and set it aside.
4. (To make the Bechamel Sauce) In another saucepan, pour in the milk & bay leaf, gently heat it until just below boiling point. Remove the pan from the heat to infuse for 10 minutes. Pour the milk into a jug, removing the bay leaf. Melt the butter in the same saucepan and then add in the flour, whisking it continually for about 1 minute (roux). Gradually whisk in the milk and let it come to boil. Once thicken, season and add in the nutmeg. Set it aside.
5. (Making the lasagna) Drain the blanched pasta sheets and pat dry. In the baking dish, spread a little meat sauce onto the base (to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom while cooking). Place 2 or 3 sheets side by side in the dish. Pour over some white sauce and sprinkle some of the cheese. Repeat the pasta layering, pour over some meat sauce. At every layer, try to push the pasta down to compress it. Repeat the layering of the pasta, 2 sauces and cheese. Finish with a layer of the 2 sauces and sprinkle lots of cheese. Bake for 30 minutes until it is golden brown. (Try not to bake it more than 30 minutes as the pasta sheet may harden slightly). Let it stand for 10 minutes and serve it with some side dishes!

Beef Stroganoff w/ Bacon Bits

I was craving pasta but didn't want another bolognese/carbonara/lasagna/aglio-olio. So this my 2nd attempt making Beef Stroganoff. I changed it up with wine, beef stock and best of all... crispy bacon bits! K didn't really fancy sour cream base (his brain keep thinking carbonara!) but he liked the mushroom & meat. His real complaint is not enough bacon bits. Sigh. Tough critic.

      Serves 2 pax

• Bacon bits or 2 bacon strips (never seems to be enough bacon!)
• Some olive oil
• 150g fillet of beef, cut into strips
• Some flour for dredging beef
• 100g white button mushrooms, stems removed & sliced
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic,  sliced (i love garlic)
• 150ml sour cream
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/4 beef stock cube, dissolved in 8 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp butter
• Handful of flat leaf parsley (i prefer this to thyme), roughly chopped
• Cooked linguine
• Salt and pepper to taste
• (Optional: Pinch of nutmeg)

1. Boil a pot of water. Once it comes to a rolling boil, add a lot of salt and linguine. Keep the heat med-low so it would slowly cook while you make the sauce. (Always check that your pasta is not overcooked, in between the steps below)
2. In a saucepan, fry the bacon bits with some olive oil until crispy. Dish out the bacon for garnishing later, and keep the bacon oil for the next step.
3. Dredge the beef strips with some flour and fry them in the bacon oil (dredging with flour absorbs any moisture in the beef so it doesn't splatter oil on you). Once it's cook, dish it out. 
4. In the same sauce pan, saute the onions until soft. Add garlic & saute for 1 minute (before it turns brown).
5. Add in the white wine and let it cook until the mixture thickens, stirring it from time to time.
6. Add in the beef stock and mushroom, give it a few quick stirs to submerge the mushroom in the stock. Once the mushrooms shrinks a little in size, season with salt and pepper.
7. Pour in the sour cream & butter (i read somewhere that adding butter makes the sauce a little bit glossy). Keep stirring until it just begins to simmer. 
8. Return the beef strips into the pan. Season with salt and pepper to taste. (If you find it too sourish to your taste, add some sugar. Or add a little more beef stock & thicken it with cornstarch mixture if too diluted)
9. Add half the parsley in and give it a few quick stirs. Turn off the heat.
10. Plate your pasta first, pour over the mushroom beef sauce. Garnish with the remaining parsley and bacon bits. Serve warm!

    Tip 1: Place your serving plates in an oven while cooking, so your meal is served warm.
    Tip 2: If you do not like sour cream base, switch it with heavy cream.
    Tip 3: Ensure your white wine has not been kept too long, or it would taste a bit sour.

    Tip 4: Most importantly, ensure your partner like sour cream. ;p

Thai Fried Bee Hoon (Vermicelli)

    
      Makes 3 servings

• Half pack of bee hoon (vermicelli) (the picture above shows 1 serving only)
• 200g minced pork
• Fish cakes / Vegetarian mushroom cakes, sliced
• Half a cabbage, julienne
• 2 tbsp tom yum paste

      Spice Paste (Pounded with a pestle & mortar)

• 4 red chillies, finely chopped (without the seeds, as it cannot be digested)
• 5 shallot pieces, finely chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 3 stalks of lemon grass, with outer layers removed and sliced thinly
• 6 kaffir lime leaves, torn from the spine and chopped finely
• 1 torch bud, with outer layers removed and sliced thinly (if you can't get this, omit it. it will taste quite good with lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves)

      Seasonings:

• 2 tsp light soya sauce
• 1 tsp oyster sauce
• ½ tsp dark (thick) soya sauce
• ½ tsp sugar
• dash of pepper
• sesame oil

1. Firstly, boil a pot of water. Once boiled, switch off the fire & immerse the vermicelli into the water for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat a wok with oil, until it's smoking hot. Fry the (spice paste) with the tom yum paste until the oil separates.
3. Add in the minced pork and fry until half cooked. 
4. Add in the fish cakes and stir-fry briefly. 
5. Add in the vermicelli and stir-fry to spread the paste evenly, about 1 minute. I use a metal spatula and a wooden fork (fork from a salad tosser), to not break up the vermicelli too much.
6. Add in the sauce and cabbage, stir-fry to cover the cabbages with the vermicelli. 
7. Once the cabbage is almost cooked (i like it with a bit crunch), dish up and serve.

Thai Steam Pomfret with Lime

In my recent trip to BKK, we ate nonstop, having 4-5 meals a day. We visited hawker shops, small eateries, floating market, even a 7-11 for ready-made frozen meals. Upon coming home, i realised we didn't try any Steam Fish with Lime & Chili. So below is an improvised version.

• Fresh pomfret / garoupa or tilapia slices (gutted)
• 8 slices of ginger
• 2 tbsp oil

      Spice Paste (Pounded with a pestle & mortar):

• 1 stalk lemon grass, with outer layers removed & sliced thinly
• 4 chili padis (bird's eye chili), deseeded & sliced thinly
• 2 kaffir lime leaves, with spine removed & sliced thinly
• 2 tbsp lime juice
• 1 clove garlic, minced

      Sauce:

• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• Half cup of chicken stock
• (Optional for garnishing: Fried garlic / Chopped flat leaf parsley)

1. Rub the fish & its cavity with salt, and rinse with water. Make 3 diagonal slits on each side, to help it cook faster.
2. Place 2 ginger slices inside the cavity, and the remaining slices at the bottom of a steel dish. Place the fish on top of the ginger slices (to prevent the fish from sticking to the dish when it's cooking).
3. Boil some water in a wok, and place the fish dish inside and cover. Steam the fish for 10-12 minutes, depending on the size of the fish. Discard any excess liquid from the dish after it is steamed.
4. (While steaming the fish) Heat a small saucepan with 2 tbsp oil, and fry the (spice paste) until fragrant about 2 minutes. Pour the (sauce) in and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. 
5. When the fish is cooked, pour the hot soup over the fish and garnish with some fried garlic or parsley. Serve immediately.

     (Tip 1: You can buy a bottle of fried garlic, and garnish any dish in a jiffy)
     (Tip 2: Try not to add too much lime juice in as it would over power the soup.)

Claypot 3 Cups Chicken Rice

• 400g chicken drumsticks and thigh, chopped
• 6 slices of ginger
• 6 cloves garlic, pounded
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• Spring onions/basil leaves, chopped
• Half cup of cooked rice, kept warm.

      Seasonings:

• 1 ½ tbsp light soya sauce
• 1 ½ tbsp chinese cooking wine
• 1 ½ tbsp dark (thick) soya sauce

1. Heat claypot on high heat, add sesame oil in. Add garlic and ginger, stir-fry until fragrant.
2. Add chicken and stir-fry for 3 minutes.
3. Add in the seasonings, and stir-fry briskly. Cover and lower the heat. Simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add spring onions/basil leaves, give a few quick stirs and dish out on top of warm rice. (I serve the rice and chicken in a claypot, for an authentic feel)

Herbal Steamed Kampung Chicken

• Quarter of a whole kampung chicken, cut into pieces
• 4 slices of dong kwai (dong gui)
• 1 tbsp kei chi (qi zi)
• 3 tbsp ginger, shredded to strips (i love having more ginger)

      Seasonings:

• 2 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• ½ tbsp sugar

1. Mix all the ingredients with the seasonings. Chill in the fridge to marinate for 30 mins.
2. Bring a wok of water to boil, to steam the chicken.
3. Place the chicken in a steel dish (with the marinade). Place the dish in the wok, cover with the lid and steam for 25 minutes on medium-low heat.
4. Serve immediately.

Braised Vegetables with Tofu & Mushrooms in Claypot

• 1 block of soft tofu (or firm tofu which would need to be deep fried), cut into squares
• 100g minced pork
• 3 shiitake mushrooms, cut into quarters
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Broccoli florets, blanched
• 1 block of Lotus roots, sliced half an inch thick
• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 tbsp water mixed with 1 tsp cornstarch
• (Garnishing: 1 stalk of spring onion, cut into inch length)

      Seasonings:

• 1 tbsp dark (thick) soya sauce
• ½ tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tsp light soya sauce
• 1/8 tsp sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• Dash of white pepper

1. Deep fry the firm tofu pieces (if not using soft tofu) until golden brown. Dish up and place on paper towels.
2. Heat the claypot with some oil. Stir fry the garlic until fragrant.
3. Add minced pork in and stir fry till almost cooked.
4. Add in the mushrooms and lotus roots, stir-fry till the lotus roots are almost cooked through.
5. Add in the broccoli florets and tofu. Pour over the seasoning and cover the claypot. Braise for 12-15 minutes over low heat. 
6. Before serving, add in the cornstarch mix to thicken the sauce. 
7. Garnish with spring onions and serve.

Savoury Steamed Teochew Fish

• 1 fresh, medium sized white pomfret (gutted. Important that it must be fresh)
• 8 slices of ginger (to be placed under the fish)
• 2 tbsp ginger strips
• 1 medium size tomato (sliced into wedges)
• 1 shiitake mushroom (soaked, sliced thinly)
• 1-2 chili padi (bird's eye chili, chopped)
• 80g salted vegetable (sliced thinly)
• 2 salted plums
• 1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
• 1 tbsp light soya sauce
• 5 tbsp water
• (Optional: half block of soft tofu)

1. Clean the fish by rubbing salt over it and inside the cavity. Rinse off with water. Make 3 diagonal slits on each side of the fish (this makes the fish cook faster).
2. Place 2 ginger slices inside the fish cavity and line the remaining 6 slices on a steel dish with curved edges (to contain the soup later). 
3. Line half the mushrooms and half the salted vegetable on the plate as well. Place the fish on top. (this will ensure the fish do not stick to the bottom of the plate when cooking).
4. Drizzle the fish with soya sauce and wine. Let it marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.
5. When ready to steam, in a bowl, mix the water, salted plums and salted vegetable. Microwave the bowl for 15-20 seconds to bring out the saltiness. Pour over the fish.
6. Cut up the tofu, place them with the tomatoes around the fish.
7. Place the remaining mushroom, ginger strips and chili on top of the fish.
8. Steam on high heat in a wok for 15 minutes. (If the fish is slightly smaller than medium size, steam for 10 minutes). 
9. Taste the soup, if its not sour enough, a tip is to add 1 tbsp of vinegar (this is a cheat). Serve immediately.

Simple Steamed Minced Pork

• 250g minced pork
• 30g shiitake mushroom (soaked till soft, chopped)
• ½ egg
• 4 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
• ½ tbsp cornstarch
• ½ tbsp chopped garlic
• 1 tsp chopped shallots
• (Optional: Add some Choy Poh (Chinese pickled radish if you like it saltier)
• (Garnishing: Shredded ginger strips and spring onions)

     Seasonings:

• ½ tsp oyster sauce
• ½ tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp light soya sauce
• ½ tsp dark (thick) soya sauce
• ½ tsp ajinomoto white pepper

1. Mix the pork and mushrooms in a bowl.
2. Blend in the egg, garlic, shallots, all the (seasonings) and cornstarch. Mix well, it should be a sticky paste.
3. Place the pork mixture into a casserole dish/stainless steel plate with curved edges (there will be some liquid from the pork, so better not to use a flat plate). Press the pork flat on the plate, and cover with cling film. Chill in the fridge to marinate, until ready to steam.
4. Remove the cling film, add the 4 tbsp chinese wine on top of the pork.
5. Place the plate in a pre-heated steamer (i use a wok to ensure its hot enough) over high heat for 5-8 minutes.
6. Take out the plate, and garnish with ginger strips and spring onions. Serve immediately.

Super Rich Chocolate Banana Cake

• 2½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 5 pieces of slightly over-ripe bananas (mashed well)
• 1 tsp banana/vanilla essence
• 5 tbsp milk
• 227g unsalted butter (i use SCS brand), softened
• 200g caster sugar
• 4 large eggs (broken into a bowl)
• Chocolate chips (250g packet)
• (Optional) Cinnamon sugar to sprinkle
• (Dusting) Icing sugar

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Postion a rack in the centre of the oven.
2. Grease a cake tin or loaf tin. Dust it with flour. (I use cute cake liners from Daiso, however they have sold out recently)
3. (Flour mixture) Sift the flour, baking soda & powder, and salt in a bowl. Mix and set aside.
4. (Banana mixture) In a separate bowl, mix the mashed bananas, essence & milk. Set aside. (the batter may look a bit unappealing due to the over-ripe bananas, but it'd taste good!)
5. With an electric mixer (i use hand-held mixer), pulse the butter at medium speed till creamy.
6. Gradually add in the sugar. Beat until light, about 3-4 minutes.
7. Reduce the speed to low and add in the eggs one at a time. (Mom's advice is always to break each egg into a clean bowl to ensure it has not gone bad, before adding it to the batter)
8. Now prepare to add the (flour mixture in 3 additions) and (banana mixture in 2 additions) to the batter, alternating the mixtures. This ensures the batter does not get too wet/dry when we mix.
9. Finally, add in as much chocolate chips as you want. I use about two thirds of a 250g packet. (Note: my MIL does not like it this sweet but the rest of the clan loves it!)
10. Pour the batter into the cake liner/tin. (Any excess batter can be filled into cupcake liners, baked for 30 minutes). 
11. Optional: Pour some cinnamon sugar over the batter if you like, for that secret taste.
12. Bake the cake for 60 minutes. Always use a cake tester / long toothpick, to check the doneness. (Because we used so much chocolate chips, the cake would be very very slightly moist. That's when it should be done)
13. Place the cake tin on a wire rack, let it cool slightly before taking it out. Once not too warm, sprinkle some icing sugar over and serve.

Sinful Chocolate Mousse (with Raspberries)

• 200g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
• 120ml warm water
• 3 large eggs, yolks and whites separated
• 40g caster sugar
• Fresh raspberries (you can use blueberries or any fruits you like)
• (Optional) Dusting of icing sugar

      6 serving glasses (anything easy to cover with cling film and refrigerate. 

      I find transparent cups more appealing!)

1. Place the chocolate pieces and water into a heat proof bowl. Sit the bowl over a pot of barely simmering water with the heat to the lowest. The chocolate will melt completely within 6 minutes.
2. (Chocolate mixture) Remove the bowl from the heat and stir the glossy chocolate. Let it cool for 2-3 minutes. Immediately stir in the egg yolks and mix well.
3. (Egg white mixture) In a separate bigger bowl, whisk the egg whites with a handheld mixer/ballon whisk till it is light (soft peaks!). Add the sugar in one third at a time. Whisk again until glossy.
4. Using a spatula, gently fold a tablespoon of the (egg white mixture) into the (chocolate mixture). Carefully fold in the rest of the egg white mixture by batches. (Careful not to over fold, we want to keep as much air bubbles/foam of the egg whites in the mousse.)
5. In your serving glasses, put a few pieces of raspberries in. Gently scoop the mousse into the glasses. Cover with cling film to seal, and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours until set. 
6. When ready to serve, remove the cling film. Plop on a piece of raspberry and dust icing sugar over.