Deviled eggs

Tips :
Use eggs that are a week or two old for easier peeling.
Rest eggs sideways on the egg tray for atleast one day so that the egg yolks will be centered.
Take eggs out from the fridge atleast half an hour before cooking them.

Place eggs in a large pot. Fill with water. Sprinkle with some salt. Cover pot with tight-fitting lid. Boil.
As soon as you get big bubbles and steam, take the pot off of the stove.
Wait 30 minutes to let the eggs cook.

Then, remove eggs using tongs into a bucket of ice water. Leave eggs to cool for about 15-20 minutes.
Slowly crack the egg surface until the shell is cracked all over.
Place the eggs back into the cold water for another 10 minutes to aid peeling.

Then, peel the shell off.
Place freshly peeled eggs into the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Slice eggs into half.
Squeeze yolks into a separate bowl.
Mash the yolks with a fork.

Mix in ingredients : (for a dozen eggs)
1/2 cup light mayo
2 tsp honey mustard
2 tsp chives (optional)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

Cut the tip of the ziploc bag. (or use a pastry bag) Place egg yolk mixture inside.
Squeeze bag and fill the egg white shells.
Sprinkle with paprika (or garnish of your choice)

Coconut Almond bars

Ingredients :
1 pack Oreo cookies (approximately 24 pieces)
5 tbsp unsalted butter (melted)
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz)
4 large egg whites
1 bag (14 oz) coconut flakes (about 5 1/3 cups)
1 cup sliced almonds (can substitute with chopped walnuts)
1 cup chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350F.
Line a 13x9 in baking pan with nonstick foil.

Pulse cookies in food processor until fine and crumbly. Add in melted butter.
Press crumbs into foil-lined pan. (I use a mug to press and flattened the crumbs)
Bake for 8 minutes.

Combine coconut, milk and egg whites in large bowl. Fold in almonds. (leave some aside for later)

Remove pan from oven. Sprinkle with chocolate chips.
Spoon in coconut mixture on top. Spread evenly.
Sprinkle top with remaining almonds.

Bake 30-35 minutes until top is set and golden.
Cool completely.
Let it set in the fridge for an hour. Remove foil and cut into bars or triangles.

Lemon cake

Ingredients :

One packet Betty Crocker White moist cake mix
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon peel
A few slices of lemon
Powdered sugar

Follow instructions on Betty Crocker's cake mix.
Add lemon juice and grated lemon peel
Bake according to instructions

Let cool.
Sprinkle powdered sugar
Decorate with lemon slices

Lemon Pudding Cake

Ingredients :

3 eggs separated
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tsp grated lemon peel
3 tbsp butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cups sugar
1/4 cups flour
1/8 tsp salt

Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside
Beat egg yolks and blend in lemon peel and lemon juice, add butter and milk.
Combine sugar, flour and salt. Add to egg mixture, beating until smooth.
Fold into beaten egg whites.
Spoon into crockpot.
Cover and cook on high for 3 hours.

Garnish with lemon (optional)

~From Mable Hoffmans Crockery cooking~

Claypot Chicken Rice

Instead of using a claypot, I made this in the rice cooker, and modified the real recipe and made this using whatever I had in the kitchen and it turned out pretty good.

Ingredients :

1 cup of rice (uncooked)
1 cup of chicken broth
4 drumsticks ( chop up 2 drumsticks into small pieces)
3 slices of ginger

Garnish :
Fried onions
Spring onions (chopped)

Marinate :
1 tbsp black soy sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp kicap manis
3/4 tbsp mirin sweet cooking sauce
3/4 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp ginger powder
Dash of pepper and salt

Mix all the ingredients for the marinate together.
Marinate the chicken for about 45 minutes.

Place the two drumsticks on a pyrex baking dish, drizzle with some oil and brush some marinate over.
Bake in oven 400 F for about 40 - 50 minutes or until chicken is cooked. (turn chicken over half way during cooking)

Put uncooked rice, chicken broth, ginger and marinated chicken slices in the rice cooker. Add a few spoonfuls of the marinate and stir.
Cook rice. (If your rice cooker is not an automatic one, cook for about 20 minutes or until rice is cooked)

Sprinkle spring onions and fried onions on top of rice and serve.

Note : To make it more authentic, you should add some chinese sausage, shitake/chinese mushrooms and salted fish into the rice. The two drumsticks I made in the oven is just an add-on to the meal and is optional.

Easter Pecan cupcakes

Ingredients :

1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup pecans (chopped)
Hersheys chocolate frosting
Oreo cookies (crumbs)
Starburst fruit chews candy

Sift all dry ingredients together into large mixing bowl.
Combine egg, oil and milk. Blend until smooth.
Pour egg mixture into dry ingredients. Stir well with a wooden spoon.
Add in pecans.
Spoon batter into muffin-pan cups (2/3 full).
Bake in 400F for 20 minutes or until muffins are cooked.

Topping:
Spread chocolate topping over muffins.
Sprinkle oreo crumbs.
Melt starburst fruit chews in microwave. Shape it into a small carrot. (One starburst candy makes two carrots). Score sides of carrots with a knife and rub some cinnamon on it to make it look "dirty". Make a small hole on top of carrot with a toothpick. Shape green fruit chews into thin strips to look like carrot tops and insert into hole on top of each carrot.
Arrange carrots on top of the cupcakes.

Peanut pancake

This is a Malaysian pancake, commonly found at the night market. Also called "Ban Jian kuih".
I got this recipe from Lily's blog, but I omitted the "lye water" (potassium carbonate & sodium bi-carbonate solution) and substituted it with water and white vinegar, and added brown sugar to the ingredients. The brown sugar is acidic and the alkaline in the baking soda needs this to react and neutralize, hence no honeycomb texture but the taste is right.

Ingredients :
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp vinegar (add to the milk)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup rice flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp granulated sugar

Filling :
1/2 cup Peanuts (chopped)
1/4 cup Castor sugar (mixed together with peanuts)
1 tbsp Butter (cubed)

Mix all the dry ingredients together and slowly add in the milk liquid into the flour mixture and whisk until the batter is smooth. Leave aside for 30 minutes (covered)

Lightly grease a pancake pan or any 10 inch non-stick skillet. Set stove on medium low flame.

Pour in all the batter and using the base of the scoop/ladle , spread the batter evenly around and to the sides of the pan. Cover pan.

When bubbles are seen on the surface of the half cooked batter, sprinkle the peanut and sugar filling over. Spread the cubed butter over the filling.

Cover and cook for another 45 seconds (or until batter is cooked).

Use a spatula to release the sides and bottom of the pancake and fold into half.

Cool before cutting into wedges.

Serve warm.

Yam cake pudding (Wu Tau Koh)

This is a Malaysian delicacy from my Aunt's recipe!

Ingredients :
Purple yam (cut into small cubes)
100 gm all-purpose flour
1 cup water
1 tbsp corn flour
salt
pepper / five spice powder
soy sauce
Fried onions
Green onions (spring onions)

Stir-fry the yam with a little bit of oil
Mix the flour, corn flour, salt, pepper and five spice powder. Add in water slowly.
Combine the yam.

Steam for 45 minutes.

Sprinkle with fried onions and green onions.

Thelma's Chocolate Pie

Caution : This is a super rich chocolate pie !

Ingredients :
2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks
8 tsp cocoa + 3 tsp butter
5 tsp corn starch
dash of salt
2 1/4 cups milk
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix sugar, cocoa, salt, corn starch
Add egg yolks. Mix well.
Add milk and butter. Cook on top of stove until thickened. (about 30 minutes)
Remove from heat. Add vanilla extract.
Place in unbaked crust (Jiffy mix) and bake 30-40 minutes in 350F oven.

For the meringue, I used Martha Stewart's recipe :
2 cups sugar
8 large egg whites (1 cup)
3 drops freshly squeezed lemon juice

Combine sugar, egg whites and lemon juice in a bowl of an electric mixer set over a pan of simmering water. Whisk until sugar is dissolved, about 3 minutes.

Transfer bowl to the mixer stand fitted with the whisk attachment.
Beat on medium speed for 10 minutes.
Increase to high speed and beat until stiff glossy peaks form, 10 - 15 minutes more.

Spread meringue on top of cool pie.
Bake in 350F until slightly brown.

Serve

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

Crust : 2 cups crushed pretzels, 3/4 cup butter (melted), 4 tablespoons sugar.
Mix together and press onto a 13x9" dish
Bake at 400 degrees for 6 minutes
Remove from oven and cool.


Next layer : 8 oz softened cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, 8 oz (1 tub) cool whip
Whip together and fold in cool whip
Spread over cooled pretzel crust
Next layer : 6 oz package strawberry jello, 2 cups boiling water
Mix together until jello dissolves.
Add 20 oz of slightly thawed frozen sliced strawberries and mix until mixture is cooled

Pour evenly over cream cheese mixture.
Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Green juice

My mom found this concoction helps to lower your blood pressure.

1 small bittergourd
1/2 green capsicum (green pepper)
1/2 cucumber (with seeds removed)
2 green apples
1 stalk celery

Blend or juice all the ingredients together and drink immediately.

Oatmeal cookies

The husband likes oatmeal cookies that are big and slightly chewy in the middle.

Ingredients :

3/4 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 3/4 cups rolled oats

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add egg and vanilla extract.
Beat.
In a separate bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
Add flour mixture to butter mixture and beat.
Stir in oats.

Spoon cookie dough onto a greased baking sheet and press dough flat.

Bake 12-15 minutes in a 350F oven.

Cornflakes Butter cookies

One of the traditions during Chinese New Year is baking cookies. My mom and me would usually spend days baking a variety of cookies to distribute to friends and family during the festive season.
I am going to try and preserve this tradition.

Beat butter (2 sticks) and sugar (3/4 cup) till white and fluffy
Add one egg and continue to beat.
Fold in flour (3 3/4 cups).
Add cornflakes (1 cup)
Roll into tiny balls and place onto greased baking sheet.
Bake 15 to 20 minutes in 350F.

Makes about 60 cookies.

Mom's Butter cookies

This is my mom's butter cookies recipe which has a "melt-in-the-mouth" texture.

Ingredients :

6oz butter
2 1/4 oz castor sugar
6oz flour
1 tsp vanilla essence

Beat butter and sugar until white and fluffy.
Add in vanilla essence
Add flour slowly. Beat until combined.

Place spoonfuls onto a greased baking sheet (or use a cookie dough dispenser for prettier cookies).
Bake for about 12 - 15 minutes until lightly golden brown in a 350F oven.