No-Frills Recipes ... cooking, baking & excerpts on travel

After my post on Black Sesame Ice Cream, here comes my Black Sesame Chia Seed Snowskin Mooncakes.  This is my first attempt using the KCT premix snowskin mooncake flour and the mooncakes turned out soft.  The dough being not oily was easy to handle as well.  These snowskin mooncakes stayed soft even after storing in the fridge for 4 days. Made some multicoloured ones as well.  They do look cute and petite. Recipe for Chia Seed Black Sesame Snowskin Mooncake  (adapted from 'here' ) Ingredients                                                                    25 gm kao fun (cooked glutinous rice flour) 115 gm KCT pinpe Premix Powder 25 gm icing sugar 23 gm shortening 150 ml water boiled with pandan/screwpine leaves 1.1/2 tsp Chia seeds (more if preferred) 400 gm black sesame paste (store bought) extra kao fun for dusting Method Combine kao fun and KCT premix in a medium bowl, mix well. In a pot, add 150 ml pandan water, icing sugar

This is the cool gritty luscious dessert that I've always wanted to try.  I surfed the internet for an 'easy to follow' recipe and chanced upon this delectable dessert from 'justonecookbook'.   Mine didn't turn out as smooth as hers, maybe because I didn't grind the roasted black sesame seeds till very, very fine. Nonetheless, it was enjoyed by members of my family and they nodded with approval when I asked them whether it was good or otherwise. Recipe for Black Sesame Ice Cream  (adapted from 'here' ) Ingredients 2 Tbsp roasted black sesame seeds, roasted       400 ml milk 70 gm sugar 3 egg yolks 2 Tbsp honey 3 Tbsp black sesame paste (homemade) 200 ml heavy cream 1 tsp vanilla a pinch of salt Method To make the black sesame paste.  Mix 3 Tbsp of  roasted and grounded black sesame seeds with 3 Tbsp of honey to form a paste.  Set aside. Pan fry the black sesame seeds over

When I was a kid, I'd look forward to the Mid-Autumn Lantern festival, not so much for mooncakes but the little piglets encased in red baskets which were given free with any purchase of mooncakes.  I remember them to be just plain dough with no fillings but I enjoyed them.  I was glad that Joceline shared her recipe in her blog and subsequently many fellow bloggers have tried her recipe.  I only made half her recipe and my mould being quite big but shallow, I managed to get 10 Angel fish koong chai paeng. Recipe for Angel Fish Koong Chai Paeng  ( adapted from 'here' ) Ingredients 175 gm plain flour 115 ml golden syrup 50 ml peanut oil 2.1/2 ml alkaline water 75 gm lotus paste 1 egg + 1 tsp water, lightly beaten and strained Some red beans as eyes for the fish Method Sift the flour, set aside. Mix golden syrup, oil, alkaline water and lotus paste with a ball whisk till well combined. Add in sifted flour, mix to form a dough. Cover and le

These raisin filled Chelsea Buns are a perfect accompaniment to a cup of hot coffee or tea.  They're not very sweet as I've omitted the glaze for the topping, instead I just sprinkled some brown sugar on top just prior to baking.  If you prefer a richer Chelsea Bun, you can add on a smear of butter for a more creamy taste :) Recipe for Chelsea Buns ( adapted from 'here' ) Ingredients 500 gm high protein/bread flour 1 tsp salt 2 tsp dried yeast 300 ml milk 40 gm unsalted butter 1 egg brown sugar for sprinkling (optional) Can dust with icing sugar before serving. Filling 25 gm butter, melted 1 orange zest 75 gm Demarara sugar 2 tsp cinnamon 100 gm raisins 100 gm craisins Glaze  (I omitted) 1.1/2 Tbsp honey 1 Tbsp water      Method Melt butter in a small saucepan, add in milk, stir.  Heat till lukewarm. Sift flour, salt into a large mixing bowl, mix well.  Make a well in the centre

These little piggies ......... don't you find these little piggies cute?   The pig is considered as a symbol of wealth and prosperity and I'm sure that children will be thrilled to receive these cute little piggies during the coming Mooncake or Mid-Autumn lantern festival.  I didn't have the heart to 'slaughter' these piggies for a picture to expose the 'innards'..... cashew nuts which I had added to give an extra crunch. The inquisitive one ..... Recipe for Heong Fah Piggy Mooncakes Ingredients 200 gm superfine flour  180 gm lotus paste (softened at room temperature) 130 ml golden syrup 50 ml vegetable oil 1 tsp alkaline water 15 gm melon seeds lightly toasted (I used lightly toasted cashew nuts) Black beans for eyes (rinse and pat dry) Egg wash - 1 egg + 1 tsp water, mix and strain Method Mix golden syurp, oil and alkaline water thoroughly.  Leave to rest for 2 hours. Sift in flour, mix well. Add in lotus p

It is this time of the year again that we're beginning to see a lot of stalls being set up in the shopping malls selling a great variety of Mooncakes for the Mid-Autum Mooncake Festival which will fall on Monday, 8th of September.  I notice that the varieties of mooncakes seem to increase from year to year and some flavours can be very extraordinary. I'm quite conservative and prefer to stick to the traditional flavours but may venture to add or substitute some of the ingredients to create a new twist to the flavour..... hence, my Mixed Nuts and Meat Floss Mooncakes. The meat floss is hardly visible in the pictures but it does enhance the flavour of these nutty Mooncakes. Recipe for Mixed Nuts and Meat Floss Mooncakes Ingredients 60 gm walnuts, toasted and chopped 60 gm almonds, toasted and chopped 20 gm pumpkin kernels, toasted 10 gm melon seeds, toasted 75 gm kat paeng, chopped 140 gm tong toong kua (candied m

These muffins are light and refreshing, thanks to the bold orange flavour and a sweet topping.  I topped the muffins with two pieces of  Mandarin orange and added a sprinkling of sugar to give them a crusty top.  The pears added a fruity flavour and provided a moist texture to the muffins as well. Recipe for Pear and Mandarin Orange Muffins Ingredients    9 oz plain flour 4 oz caster sugar  2 eggs 1/2 cup melted butter or Canola oil (I used melted butter) 125 to 150 ml plain yoghurt 1 tsp vanilla 3/4 cup chopped pears 1 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda a pinch of salt Mandarin orange Sugar for sprinkling Method Sift flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a mixing bowl.  Add in the sugar and mix well. Lightly whisk the eggs, oil, yoghurt and vanilla and mix thoroughly. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture, toss in the chopped pears, mix till just combined. Scoop the batter into the muffin pan.  Arrange