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.

Chinese Meat Balls (貢丸)

Ingredients:

500 g pork + 5 tbsp water

100 g Chinese mushroom

Seasoning A

2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine

2 tbsp fish sauce

1½ tsp salt

1/4 tsp sugar

1 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tbsp oil

1 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp cornflour (last)

Seasoning B

1/2 tsp white pepper

2 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp ginger powder

1 whisked stiff egg white

Method:

With food processor/blender, process pork and mushroom with water to form paste.

Add-in all the seasoning A and stir well until sticky texture.

Leave in refrigerator for 30 min.

Add-in seasoning B and stir-generously.

Bring a pot of water to boil then remove from heat.

Pick desired amount of paste and form into ball with wet hands.

Drop them into the warm water.

Reheat the water that contain a layer of meat balls over low heat to just enough to simmer without boiling.

Once meat balls are floated, allow to simmer for another few more seconds before transfer them into ice-cold water.

Drain-well and store in fridge with air-tight container till next use.

Custard Cream

Ingredients:

1 tsp plain flour
1 tbsp corn flour

4 tbsp sugar

1 egg

200 mL milk

1 tbsp butter, soften

Chocolate Sponge (scaled up)

Method:

In a small pot, mix together flours, sugar and 2 tbsp milk till smooth.

Whisk-in egg till homogeneous.

Pour-in milk and stir over low-heat to thicken.

Once reach a spreadable consistency, remove from heat.

Stir-in butter to a smooth cream.

Keep in refrigerator till use.

Chocolate Paste I (Vanilla Swiss Roll)

Ingredients:

Chocolate Paste

2⅓ tbsp plain flour

40 mL sugar

1 egg white

80 mL milk, warmed

1½ tbsp cocoa power

10 g butter soften

2 tbsp Nutella/grounded nut (optional)

Vanilla Sponge

3 eggs, room temperature

65 g caster sugar

80 g flour

20 g butter, melted

3 drops vanilla extract

Method:

To Prepare the Chocolate Paste

In a small pot, mix together flour, sugar and egg white till smooth.

Mix-in milk and cocoa powder.

Over low-heat, stir the mixture to thicken.

Once reach a spreadable consistency, remove from heat.

Stir-in butter and Nutella to yield a smooth paste.

Keep in refrigerator till use.

To Prepare the Vanilla Sponge

Line a 23 x 30 cm baking tray with parchment paper, set aside.

Sift flour, set aside.

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs and sugar on high speed till thick, pale and glossy then whisk at low speed for another 1 min.

Fold-in butter and vanilla.

Gradually, fold-in flour to yield homogeneous batter.

Spread batter onto the prepared tray.

Bake for 15 min or until the surface is golden brown and skewer inserted into the sponge and come out clean.

Remove tray from oven and cool sponge/paper on wire rack covered.

Dust a bigger sheet of parchment paper with icing sugar, inverse-on the sponge with brown side down and remove the attached former parchment paper.

Spread-on the prepared chocolate paste and roll-up sponge by lifting up the large parchment paper pressurized outward.

Transfer the Swiss roll with seam side down into fridge and chill for 30 min or more before serving.

Banana - Chocolate Zebra Cake

Ingredients:

Banana Batter

2 eggs
110 g sugar
25 g milk
85 g banana (1 banana), pureed
110 g oil
150 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Chocolate Batter

2 eggs
110 g sugar
110 g milk
110 g oil
2 tbsp coco powder
150 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

To prepare the banana batter:

In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar till creamy, pale and glossy.

Pour-in banana puree, milk and oil, whisk for a short while to form homogeneous batter.

Fold-in flours mixture and stir to incorporate well, set aside.

To prepare the chocolate batter:

In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar till creamy, pale and glossy.

Pour-in milk and oil, whisk for a short while to form homogeneous batter.

Stir-in coco powder, whisk for a short while to mix thoroughly.

Fold-in flours mixture and stir to incorporate well, set aside.

Preheat oven to 170 °C.

To assemble:

Gradually, scoop a ladle of banana batter into the center of the lined 22cm pan, follow by another ladle of cocoa batter onto the middle of plain batter.

Alternate the two batters topping and layering till finish.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove cake from oven, let cake cool in pan for 10 minutes.

Run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the pan to loosen the cake, transfer cake onto a plate for serving.

Banana Chiffon Cake II

Ingredients:

4 egg whites
70 g sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

4 egg yolks
30 g sugar
1/4 tsp salt
40 mL (37-40g) oil

150 g banana (from 2 banana), mashed
75 g plain flour (added 2 tbsp corn flour to make up 75g flour)
1/4 tsp baking soda

Method:

Preheat oven to 170 °C.

In a bowl, combine together flours and baking soda; 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 yolks, sugar and salt till pale, thick and glossy.

Add-in mashed banana and oil, continue whisking till butter is fully incorporated.

Fold-in flours mixtures, stir-well to form homogeneous batter.

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

Pour batter into ungreased chiffon pan (22cm) and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

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

Leave to stand until the cake is cool (I left about 2 hours).

With a flexible thin knife or spatula, loose cake from pan and transfer it onto a serving plate.