Blueberry muffins

I love dessert, but healthy dessert is even better :)
Since I discover that muffin is healthier than cupcake, I make more muffins. My favorite muffins are with oatmeal or yogurt....

This is my favourite combination - oatmeal and blueberries :)

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups uncooked quick oatmeal (I used coarse ones)
1 1/4 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar (original recipe = 1/3 cup)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

1 cup milk
1 egg
1/4 cup oil

3/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Instructions
1. Preheat the oven at 200°c
 In a mixing bowl, mix all dry ingredients

2. Add in milk, egg and oil, mix briefly

3. Fold in blueberries

4. Use an ice-cream scoop, scoop the batter into muffin paper mould
If you use tin or silicon mould, grease the mould before you place the batter

5. Put them in the oven and bake for 20-25mins or until golden color

6. When time is up, take them out of the oven

If you use silicon or tin mould, let them cool down for 10mins. Then remove them from the mould

You can serve with honey for breakfast!

Enjoy!

Intense coffee cake - strong coffee flavor

This is not a sponge cake but a dense cake with strong coffee flavor! If you are fan of coffee, don't miss this cake :)

I will try to make the icing next time...

Ingredients
2 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsp baking powder

226g butter
1 cup boiling water
3 tbsp instant coffee powder

1/2 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

Icing
170g butter
454g icing sugar
2 tbsp instant coffee powder
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbsp heavy cream

Instructions
Cake - 
1. Preheat oven to 175c

2. In a large mixing bowl, mix sugar, flour, salt, baking powder
Set aside

3. In a small pot, melt butter over medium low heat
In a small bowl, add boiling water to coffee powder
When butter starts melting, add in coffee water mixture, let it slightly boiled. Turn off heat

Set aside and let cool down a bit 

4. In another mixing bowl, mix buttermilk, eggs and vanilla extract. Mix till well combined

5. Pour butter coffee mixture into flour mixture, mix gently and briefly
Add in egg mixture and stir till combined

6. Pour the batter into a greased mould or a mould lined baking sheet
Bake for 20-22mins or until cake is set

Note: insert a toothpick in the middle to test if ready => it won't come out completely clean, but at least not come out with a thick batter sticking on the toothpick

Let the cake cool completely before you remove the mould

Icing -
1. Whisk butter until becomes smooth paste

2. Add in icing sugar, coffee powder and salt, mix well

3. Add in cream, whisk until all ingredients blend well

4. Ice the cake
Chill for an hour before serving

Enjoy!

Japanese Tsukemen - cold ramen recipe

Usually when we talk about Japanese ramen, we think of a big bowl of broth with ramen inside, serve hot... but cold ramen exists too! It is served separately from the hot broth.

This recipe is so good, I really love taste - sour & salty taste blends well with pork!

Ingredients
100g pork belly slices
1 small dried red chili pepper

400ml water
1/2 tbsp chicken stock powder
2 tbsp sake
1 long scallion
1 clove garlic, medium size
1 fresh ginger root, 2"

3 tbsp soy sauce

40g Shiitake mushrooms
40g Shimeji mushrooms
1 leek

1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp vinegar

2 bags fresh ramen or Tsukemen noodles


1 soft boiled egg, click here for recipe
1 scallion, thinly sliced

bonito flakes

Instructions
1. Remove pork belly skin if there is any
Divide it into 3" wide portions

Crush garlic and ginger with a wooden spoon, do not chop them at all
Slice red chili pepper into thin rings

Slice the leek diagonally

2. In a cooking pot, without oil, fry pork belly until fat releases
Add in red chili pepper, stir fry until fragrance releases

3. Add in water, chicken stock powder, sake, scallion, garlic and ginger
Bring to boil, when boil turn down the heat to low, let it simmer for 10 mins

4. After 10mins, remove scallion ginger & garlic
Add in soy sauce, mushrooms & leek, let it simmer for 5 mins

5. Add sesame oil and vinegar
Turn off the heat and cover the lid to keep hot

6. In another pot, boil water to cook ramen/noodle for 1-2 mins
Discard water, rinse ramen/noodle under cold water

7. Serve ramen/noodle on a plate, place 1/2 boiled egg at the edge

Serve pork mushroom broth in a bowl, sprinkle bonito and scallion

8. Take some ramen/noodle into the bowl, dip the broth and eat

Enjoy!

Lemon layers dessert

I made some lemon curd, but what to use with it?

Using the concept of tiramisu, I can make some layers of lady's finger and lemon cream cheese :)
That was how I developed this lemon cream cheese

It is free to assemble everything in any size of serving container, it is nicer to serve in individual glass though. Multiply the quantity if you need to.

Ingredients - 8 tiny glasses (5.5cm diameter & 5cm height)
120g cream cheese
120g lemon curd*

24 lady's finger, click here for the recipe
250g lemon curd, click here for the recipe

* you may want to add more lemon curd if you want stronger taste

Instructions
1. Let cream cheese sits at room temperature for 1 hour or until it becomes soft

2. In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese

Add in lemon curd, little by little

3. Taste it before you want to add extra lemon curd


Assemble
- Place lady's finger at the bottom
- Place lemon cream cheese
- Place lady's finger
- Place lemon curd
- Place lady's finger

Enjoy!

Coffee cream

It is easy to find 40% fat cream during Christmas season, so I bought some and try to make this coffee cream for my chocolate cake!

Ingredients
100g whipping cream (40% fat)

10g soluble coffee powder
40g sugar

300g whipping cream (40% fat)

Instructions
1. In a small pot at medium low heat, dissolve coffee and sugar in 100g whipping cream, once it is dissolved, turn off the fire

Leave it cool down, then store in the fridge for 1 hour

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk 300g whipping cream until it forms soft peak
Add in the coffee cream mixture, whisk until the firm peak

Ready - You can now use it to pipe the cake

Enjoy!

Oyakodon - Japanese chicken & egg rice

After making Japanese beef rice (click here for recipe), I want to make chicken rice :) 

Using chicken thigh is the best, since the meat is really tender and smooth, serving with silky egg is wonderful!

Ingredients (2 servings)
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp dashi stock, click here for recipe
1/8 tsp sugar

50g chicken thigh, no skin no bone*
50g onion

2 stalks parsley, cut into 2cm pieces

2 eggs

rice


Toppings:
shredded Nori seaweed
1 fresh egg yolk

*We used 100g chicken thigh since we eat this dish as unique dish

Instructions
1. Prepare the rice, with slightly less water => the broth will soak the rice & make it softer when serving

2. In a medium-small sauce pan, place soy sauce, mirin, dashi stock and sugar, mix well so that sugar dissolved completely in the pan

3. Slice chicken thigh into small pieces, place them into the sauce pan, flip the chicken to another side so both side soak the sauce

4. Slice onion finely and separate between layers
Place them into the pan

5. Turn on the heat to boil the chicken, cover with a lid

Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, eat the eggs briefly

6. When the chicken starts turning its color to become cooked, flip the chicken to the other side

When it's nearly cooked, add in parsley

7. Distribute the beaten egg over the pan, let it cook until 50% done to have silky egg effect when serving

Note: for safety reason, you can cook the egg completely

8. Place rice on a serving bowl

Then place the chicken egg mixture onto the rice

9. If you add an egg yolk, make a little hole in a center of the bowl, place the yolk

You can also add the shredded nori seaweed 

Enjoy!