Spinach Chiffon Cake

Ingredients:

5 egg whites
20 g sugar
1/4 tsp cream of tartar (optional)

40 mL spinach juice (blend handfuls spinach with enough water, filtered off the residue)
40 g sugar
40 mL vegetable oil
4 egg yolks
Pinch of salt

50 g cake flour
10 g corn flour

Method:

Preheat oven to 160 °C.

In a bowl, combine together flours, set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk egg whites and cream of tartar till frothy; gradually add-in sugar and continue whisking till stiff peaks form (I always whisk egg whites first because I use the same whisk for egg yolks mixture later without washing); set aside.

In another large bowl, whisk egg yolk till pale and glossy.

Pour-in oil and spinach juice , quickly whisk till batter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in flours mixtures, few whisk to form homogeneous batter.

Gradually and gently, fold the egg whites mixture into the egg yolks batter.

Pour batter into an non-grease chiffon pan (8 inches) and bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven and immediately invert the chiffon pan to cool on a lifted wire rack.

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose cake from pan and transfer it from pan onto wire rack; let cool completely before cut into serving size.

Purple Kaya Kuih (Kuih Pulut Tartar)

Ingredients:

100 g glutinous rice
25-40 ml coconut milk
2/3 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp purple sweet potatoes cubes
1 tbsp water

Kaya for serving

Method:

Rinse rice with water and soak overnight in fridge, drained.

Steam purple sweet potato cubes with a spoonful water for 20 min, reserve the purple water.

Pour 2/3 rice into one steaming tray and 1/3 rice wetted with few drops of purple water into another tray, steam at low flame for at least 20min or until the rice is softened, stirred twice in between.

Dissolve salt and sugar into coconut milk and mix 2/3 part into white portion and 1/3 into the purple portion, steam for another 10 min or until rice is cooked throughly.

Remove rices from steamer and mix two portions into a baking paper lined tray, give a few stirs with chopsticks.

Press the rices strongly with palm to a smooth texture, press with a heavy container on top and set aside to cool until set.

Cut into bite size with wetted knive and serve with kaya （pandan coconut jam）

Yields 6 pieces kaya kuih

Pandan/Yam Jelly Mooncakes (燕菜月饼)

Ingredients:

Yolks:

100 mL steamed mung bean + water, blended

60 mL coconut milk

40 g sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp agar-agar powder

Red Bean Filling:

200 mL boiled red bean soup + some cooked red bean

100 mL coconut milk

50 g sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1½ tsp agar-agar powder

Pandan Skin:

150 mL water

150 mL coconut milk

50 g sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1½ tsp agar-agar powder

1/2 tsp green pandan flavor 

Purple Yam Skin:

150 mL water

150 mL coconut milk

50 g sugar

1/8 tsp salt

1½ tsp agar-agar powder

1/2 tsp purple yam flavor  

Method:

To prepare the Yolks:

Mix all the yolk ingredients in a pot and bring it to boil for about 5 - 10 min till agar-agar powder is dissolved.

Pour into small diameter round jelly mould (I filled quarter of two rose mould to make one yolk).

Keep in refrigerator for at least 1 hour or till set.

To prepare the filling:

Unmould the yolks, set aside.

Mix all the filling ingredients in a pot and bring it to boil to dissolve the agar-agar powder.

First pour a thin layer of filling into cupcake mould to set.

Place yolk in the center and pour the rest of filling just enough to cover the yolk.

Keep in refrigerator till set.

To prepare the skin & mooncakes:

Unmould the fillings, set aside.

Mix all the skin ingredients in pot and bring it to boil to dissolve the agar-agar powder.

Reserve some of white-coconut solution from the pot into a bowl, set aside.

Add-in pandan or yam flavor into the pot, stir well and remove from heat.

Pour a layer of skin mixture into jelly mould, wait for short while to set a little.

Pour-in a layer of the reserved coconut mixture, wait for short while.

Arrange filling jelly onto the middle of the prepared moulds.

Pour the rest of skin solution still to cover the filling.

Keep in refrigerator overnight to set.

Unmould and serve it at room temperature or best serve cold.

Made 8 pieces Jelly Mooncakes.

Gingery Trout with Caramelized Sugar and Vinegar (糖醋鱼)

Ingredients:

1 large trout or 2-3 fillets, cut to three sections each

Marinate: 

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp Chinese black rice vinegar

1 tsp dark soy sauce

1 tsp cornflour

2 tbsp oil

Gravy Seasoning:

6 tbsp sugar

9 slices ginger

9 tbsp Chinese black rice vinegar

6 tbsp light soy sauce

1 cup water

1 stalk spring onion, segmented

Method:

To prepare the fish:

Marinate fish with all the marinating ingredients for at least 30 min; set aside.

In a sauce pan, heat oil over medium high heat and brown both side of fish until fragrant and cook.

Transfer to serving plate and sprinkle-on spring onion, set aside.

To prepare the gravy:

In the same sauce pan or wok, discard excess oil and melt sugar over low heat till golden and caramelized.

Add-in ginger and stir until fragrant and golden.

Pour-in vinegar, soy sauce and water.

Leave simmer over medium high heat and stir occasionally until gravy is thicken and bubbly.

Remove from heat and pour immediately onto the prepared fish.

Best serve warm with steamed rice.

Kuih Talam

Ingredients:

Pandan Layer (Green bottom):

80 g rice flour

40 g tapioca flour

30 g green bean flour

230 g sugar

700 mL pandan juice (or 700 mL + 1/2 tsp pandan essence) 

1 tsp alkaline water (air lye)

Coconut Layer (White top):

60 g rice flour

75 g tapioca flour

300 g coconut milk

300 mL water

1½ tsp salt

Method:

To prepare the pandan layer:

In a heat resistance mixing bowl, mix all ingredients of bottom layer together, except lye water.

Stir over double boiler to thicken the batter (about 15-20 mins).

Remove from double boiler and stir-in lye water to incorporate well.

Pour onto a 20 cm baking pan or deep plate and steam covered over boiling water with high heat for about 20 mins or until almost firm to touch.

To prepare the coconut layer:

In another bowl, mix well all the ingredients of top layer together.

Pour onto the top of the almost set pandan layer.

Continue to steam covered for another 10 mins or until both layers are cooked and firm to touch.

Remove from heat and leave to cool in pan.

With wet knife, cut the dessert to serving bites

Serve it hot, cold or at room temperature.

Mexican Flan

Ingredients:

4 egg

1 (410 g) evaporated milk

220 mL sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Caramel:

240 mL sugar

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

To prepare the caramel:

In a saucepan, cook sugar over medium heat until sugar melted and turn golden brown.

Pour the golden brown syrup into ramekin/cupcake cups, set aside to cool slightly.

To prepare the flan:

In a large bowl, whisk eggs into a homogeneous batter by using hand-whisk.

Add-in evaporated milk, sugar and vanilla, continue whisk until smooth.

Pour evenly into the prepared ramekin cups.

Bake in the preheat oven for 1 hour or toothpick insert into center of flan and come out clean on a water bath filled with water level up to 3/4 of the cups wall.

Keep chilled in refrigerator with mold for several hours or till serve.

To unmold flan:

Transfer the flan cups onto a tray filled with shallow warm water for several minutes.

Gently run a thin flexible knife around the flan wall to loosen the flan then invert it onto serving plate.

Braised Pork Spareribs with Sugar and Vinegar (糖醋排骨)

Ingredients:

400 g pork spareribs, cut into bite size

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp Chinese black rice vinegar

1 stalk spring onion, segmented

2 cup water

9 tbsp Chinese black rice vinegar

6 tbsp light soy sauce

9 slices ginger

6 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp oil

Method:

Marinate ribs with salt, pepper, sugar and vinegar for at least 30 min; set aside.

In a sauce pan or wok, melt sugar with oil over low heat till golden brown and caramelized.

Add-in ginger and stir-fry over high heat until fragrant and golden brown.

Add-in ribs and stir-fry for 3-5 min or until shrink and golden.

Add-in soy sauce, vinegar and water (add enough water to cover ribs fully).

Leave simmer covered until gravy reduced to half.

Reduce heat and continue simmer to thicken the gravy and tender the ribs (Stir occasionally for even cooking.Note: to accelerate the cooking time, the marinated ribs can be pre-deep fried until golden brown before use).

Once sticky gravy form with lot of entrapped air bubbles, sprinkle-on spring onion and dish-up.

Best serve warm with steamed rice.