Thursday, September 30, 2010

=)

♥♥ Perfect =)


Just a snap from the Malaysian Ball, which was a little lame. Don't hate me, I am entitled to my opinion =P Hey, at least the food was all right!

Vanilla Yoghurt Cake

So this evening, I had some extra yogurt left over from my previous culinary adventure, and I decided to look for a cake recipe with yogurt in it. I failed to find a suitable one, either I didn't have lemons, or strawberries or some other thing, so I decided to make up things as I went along and tweak an easy recipe I found on All Recipes. I turned it into a Vanilla Yogurt Cake =D After I put it in the oven, I decided it might be a bit plain to eat vanilla cake, and I was too lazy to make icing, so I sprinkled tonnes of chocolate chips on top. The cake came out delicious and moist and the chocolate chips really complemented the cake. Noms!


Here is the recipe that I made up lol:

  • 3/4 cups butter
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 1/4 flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 8 ounces yogurt (I used plain unsweetened yogurt. I guess you can cut down on the sugar if you're using a sweetened one?)
  1. Preheat oven to 165 degrees celcius. Grease your cake tin!
  2. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda in a medium sized bowl.
  3. In a larger mixing bowl, cream the margerine and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs in one at a time, then the vanilla extract, then the flour mixture and lastly the yoghurt. Don't over-mix.
  4. Ouuuuu sprinkle chocolate chips on top or mix it into the batter!! I recommend the latter =D
  5. Pour the batter into the pan. Bake for 55-60 mins.

Easy! =D


If I had to change anything about what I did, I would add chocolate chips into the batter instead of sprinkled on top! Or put it in a bread tin so that I can spread nutella on it. Nomnom! Yes, this is why I'm not thin.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Tinie Tempah- Pass Out (HD)



I crank this to max volume and dance in my room XD

Penne with Mushrooms and Mustard Sauce

I've been a bit busy lately with school so haven't had time to blog. Not like many people read this anyway =X Will be back with more food porn and maybe the Ball pics soon! =)

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

I haz nothing to wear!!

So apparently I am going for the Malaysian Ball this weekend with John and the theme is Hollywood. I told John "Hey! I can wear heels and we can be Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes!" and that was greeted with a loud "HMMPH~!" Wuahahahaha! *evil laugh*

Sunday, September 19, 2010

Salmon Fishcakes

This was our weekend brunch! =) I found the recipe on Nigella's website . I left the kitchen in a horrible mess, and it did not turn out as well as I had expected. They were a bit too crumbly when I was making the patties. They were still delicious though! For some reason I just can't quite pull off her recipes, as I have tried a few times. Apparently, to make it stick together I should only use egg yolks (Some cooking wisdom from John). I will definitely do that the next time I make Salmon fishcakes. If it still fails, I will try another recipe =P Below is the recipe from her website.


INGREDIENTS


  • 350-500g cold mashed potato
  • 418g tinned salmon, preferably organic
  • 15g unsalted butter, melted (if the mashed potato hasn't got any butter in it)
  • Fat pinch cayenne pepper grated
  • Zest of 1/2 lemon
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 egg

FOR COATING AND FRYING

  • 2 eggs
  • 100g matzo meal, preferably medium
  • 50g unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

    METHOD
  • In a large bowl, and preferably with your hands, mix together all the fishcake ingredients.
  • Cover a baking sheet with clingfilm, plunge your hands back into the mixture and form fat, palm-sized patties. Place these on the baking sheet and stand in the fridge to firm up for about 20 minutes to an hour - or considerably longer if that helps.
  • Beat the eggs in a shallow soup bowl and sprinkle the matzo meal onto a dinner plate.
  • One by one, dip the fishcakes into the beaten egg and then into the matzo meal, sprinkling and dredging over as you go to help coat them.
  • When you're all done, put the butter and oil in a large frying pan, heat till it begins to fizzle and then fry the fishcakes on each side until the crusts are golden, and speckled brown in parts, and the soothing centres are warmed through.
    Recipe posted by Nigella

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Sloppy Joe

I remember when I was a kid, I watched this American movie where these kids were at camp and they had Sloppy Joe. Although I cannot remember what movie it was, the thought of Sloppy Joes just stuck in my mind. (See? This is why I have never been and will never be thin =P) When I came across a recipe for it, I knew I had to try it.

Oh man, this is the ultimate guy's burger. It's easy to make, delicious and messy and gets better and better with every bite. However I felt it had a little bit too much tomato sauce which made it a bit vinegary-y. Maybe it's because I used a different tomato sauce. If I made this again, I would definitely cut down a little bit. So what are you waiting for? Give it a try! =)*Recipe*

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Chicken with Lee Kum Kee Plum Sauce

So for dinner I tried out this recipe on Angie's Recipes(Awesome site, you should check out all her lovely recipes!) I bought some Lee Kum Kee Plum Sauce at a closing down sale of an Asian Grocery a few weeks ago, even though I had no use for it. Yes, if I see the word sale, I will buy anything =P When I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it!

No regrets there because it was delicious! If you are up for sticky sweet caramelised goodness, you should make this dish! =D Okay. I just realised my last 239232 sentences had exclamation marks in them. Yes, it makes me this excited =X
It tastes just like something you would have at an authentic Chinese restaurant. Oh it was so good that I wish I had cooked more =X Here is the recipe from her website:


Ingredients:
  • 200 g Chicken breast
  • 1/3 tsp Salt
  • 1/5 tsp Chicken bouillon
  • 60 g Cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp Baking soda
  • 1/2 Egg
  • Some water
  • 1 tsp Minced garlic
  • 1 tsp Sesame seeds
Sauce
  • 2 tbsp Sweet plum sauce
  • 30 ml Water
  • 1 tbsp Sugar
  • 1/2 tsp White vinegar
  • 1/5 tsp Salt
  • 1 tsp Cornstarch
1.Cut the chicken breast into 2cm dices, marinate with the salt and chicken bouillon and set aside for 15 minutes. Combine the cornstarch and baking soda, add in egg and some water to make a thick batter.
2.Heat up a wok with enough oil until hot. Dip the diced chicken into the batter. Shake off the extra batter and deep-dry the chicken for 2 minutes. Scoop out and drain. Return the chicken to the wok and deep-fry until very crispy.
3.Fill another skillet with a little of oil, add in garlic and stir until fragrant. Combine all the sauce ingredients and add into the skillet. Return the fried chicken to the skillet and stir until the chicken are completely coated with the sauce. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle some sesame seeds over.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Teenage Dream & Just the way you are - Acapella Cover - Katy Perry - Bru...



I love this! It makes me bob my head up and down without realising it lol. Seriously, watching this makes me so happy I want to burst wtf.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Gin - These Roses

Pain

I just had my first modern ballet class yesterday and I have to say, it was... motherfuckingly painful! My toes felt like they were run over by a car, I have bruises on my knees and my ass hurts from rolling my fat ass all over the dance floor. Who knew it could be that painful? But I'm going to stick to it because we're dancing to a beautiful song! =) Ballet is something that you have to start doing when you're young though, so I don't think I will continue after this =X Damn.. I might have sprained my neck..

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Spinach and Feta Pasta

This is what I made for brunch today. I got the recipe off Sreekari, but I have to say this is just an adaptation because I didn't have some of the ingredients. I added some ham because I know John will grumble if there is no meat (I can just imagine.. "What?? No meat!!")


Nevertheless, it was still so good that John and i finished like 4 servings at one go! =X Thanks Sreekari!

I also made a Cherry Pudding over the weekend for a potluck, and it was a success! Everyone said they loved the texture. I cut down on the sugar that was called for in the recipe, which made it sour yet sweet at the same time.

I also used less cherry juice than the recipe simply because my baking tin was too small. I reckon if you ate it warm with ice cream it would be... heaven... *_* Below is the recipe I found on AllRecipes. =)


Ingredients
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 cup white sugar (Less less less!)
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 cups pitted sour cherries
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups cherry juice

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 10x10-inch baking dish.
  • In large bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder and 1 cup sugar; stir. Add butter, milk and vanilla; beat with electric mixer for 2 minutes, or until smooth. Pour mixture into pan and cover evenly with cherries.
  • Heat cherry juice in microwave or in small saucepan, until just simmering. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of sugar over cherries, and pour hot cherry juice on top.
  • Bake 40 to 45 minutes, or until pick inserted in center comes out clean.

I really should rename my blog "This Is Why I Am Not Thin" =X

Sunday, September 5, 2010

Chocolate Avocado Cupcakes!

Okay, I have to be honest, I picked this recipe because the icing was so pretty! =D Plus, I was out of eggs and butter and this is a vegan recipe. These are delicious, moist and heavenly.. The icing reminds me of "kaya", which is a Malaysian coconut spread that you put on toast. I might just make the icing and use it for other things some time. I made this for the potluck at Sreekari's place today. Sreekari was a bit scared to try it at first because of the bright green colour but in the end it was approved by her as well as John and all my flatmates, so it is honestly really good =) I would like to pimp this recipe, so give it a try if you get a chance!

Vegan Chocolate Cake with Avocado

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour

  • 6 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 2 teaspoons baking powder

  • 2 teaspoons baking soda

  • 2 cups granulated sugar

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used almond oil)

  • 1/2 cup soft avocado, well mashed, about 1 medium avocado

  • 2 cups water

  • 2 Tablespoons white vinegar

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch rounds. Set aside.

  2. Sift together all of the dry ingredients except the sugar. Set that aside too.

  3. Mix all the wet ingredients together in a bowl, including the super mashed avocado.

  4. Add sugar into the wet mix and stir.

  5. Mix the wet with the dry all at once, and beat with a whisk (by hand) until smooth.

  6. Pour batter into a greased cake tins. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

  7. Let cakes cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto cooling racks to cool completely before frosting with avocado buttercream.

Avocado Buttercream Frosting

  • 8 ounces of avocado meat, about 2 small to medium, very ripe avocados

  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice

  • 1 pound powdered sugar, sifted

  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

  1. Peel and pit the soft avocados. It’s important to use the ripest avocados you can get your hands on. If the avocados have brown spots in the meat, avoid those spots when you scoop the meat into the bowl.

  2. Place the avocado meat into the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the whisk attachment. Add lemon juice and whisk the avocado on medium speed, until slightly lightened in color and smooth, about 2-3 minutes.

  3. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time and beat. Add vanilla extract until combined. If not using right away, store in the refrigerator. Don’t worry. It won’t turn brown!


(Oh if you are making muffins instead of the cake like I did, take them out in 10-12 mins rather than half an hour okay!)


Cherlyn made a delicious Pumpkin Loaf and Sreekari a mouth-watering vegetarian pasta. Everything went so well together and it was a lovely afternoon of good food and good friends! =)

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Cream Cheese French Toast with Smoked Salmon

This is what I made for brunch over the weekend. Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese, two of (many of) my favourite things! (Okay, this is why I'm not thin =P ) After making it though, I don't think I will eat it again for a long long time. Just thinking of eggs and milk used to dip the bread in before frying it in butter and oil as well as the thick layer of cream cheese spread in the middle makes my fat cells expand. But.. SO... GOOOOODDDDD... *drool*