My Project : Hello Kitty Oreo Japanese B’day Cheesecake

Made this fluffy Japanese Cheesecake for J.C 姐. I make a lil bit twist on it, which using cheese cream instead of usual butter cream :D ( So I need to put them in the fridge all the time, if not…it melts haiz)

My super fluffy Japanese Cheesecake hehe :D lope it :D

Recipe : Chinese Water Dumplings 水餃

As per request, today I post my chinese water dumplings recipe :D

Fried or steamed, soupy or dry, whatever you choose, it is still my fav dish. Since I get this recipe originally from my mom…so I don’t have any measurement on it. So in order to make sure that it tastes good, I just try it directly tho it is still raw hahaha :P

• 1/2 pack of minced pork
• 1/2 pack of minced chicken
• 8 prawns ( either minced or can cut it into half)
• 1 egg
• 1 pack dumpling skin
• spring onion (finely chopped)
• water chestnut (finely chopped)
• sesame oil
• salt and pepper
• fish sauce or soy sauce

1. Lets do the mixing…minced pork + minced chicken + minced prawns + finely chopped spring onion and water chestnut  + seasonings
2. Place a teaspoonful in each skin and wrap it  and stick it with the egg ( can google on how to wrap it as my mom’s method is slight different so the that’s why mine doesn’t look like gyoza hehe)
3. You can either deep fried it or steam it or boil it into salt water. And always garnish it with sesame oil especially for steamed and boiled dumplings.
4. Yummy yummy and enjoy your hot yet juicy dumplings :D

Recipe: Petite Profiteroles / Cream Puff

I have no time for updating my blog…damn it…blame on my new job…hahaha…

I make this profiteroles years back, and tried to make it again last week. A profiterole or cream puff or choux à la crème is a choux pastry balls filled with whipped cream, pastry cream or ice cream. They can be garnished with chocolate sauce, dusting powdered sugar or maybe just left it like that. 

Choux Paste:

• 250 ml water / milk
• 100g butter
• pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 150g plain flour
• 4 eggs

Fillings that you can choose:

1. Chantilly Cream:

• 250 ml milk
• 1.75 tbsp icing sugar
• .25 tbsp vanilla essence

2. Pastry Cream:

• 200 ml milk
• 0.25 tbsp vanilla essence
• 50g sugar
• 20g plain flour

3. Ice cream

1. Preheat the oven to 180C
2. Choux paste :
1. boil the water, butter, salt and sugar then remove from the heat
2. Sift the flour first and add to the wet ingredient all at once ( or else it will form lumps)
3. Mix mix mix with a wooden spoon
4. Return to the heat and stir until it is formed a white layer on the bottom of the pot. Let it cool
5. Add the eggs one a time, and mixing in between until a dropping consistency is achieved. Place into a piping bag.
3. Pipe the choux paste onto tray and dip your finger into water and then tap the tips down
4. Bake in the oven for 15- 20 mins and make sure that it is dry in the centre (Notes: Do not open the oven for the first 10 mins or it will collapse)
5. Chantilly cream:
1. Beat the chilled cream until soft peak and then add in icing sugar and vanilla essence
2. Whip to desired consistency and chill
6. Pastry cream:
1. Heat milk in a pot
2. Beat the egg yolk and the sugar until it lights in colour.
3. Add in flour, vanilla and whish through
4. Add in the hot milk gradually while keep whisking
5. Pour back the mixture to the pot and bring to boil
6. Whisk it continuously until it starts to thicken
7. Cook for another 2-3 mins and strain into a container
8. Cover with cling firm to prevent the forming of skin and refrigerate
7. Pipe in the Chantilly cream/ pastry cream from the bottom of the profiteroles (cut a cross in the bottom of it) . But for ice cream filling, cut a cross from the middle of the puff ( ice cream is too hard to pipe in)
8. Dip the puff into melted chocolate or dust it with icing sugar
9. Enjoy your petite profiteroles :D

Myday : My great great grandpa’s restaurant 品香茶樓 (Rumah Makan Irian)

My  family (from my mom’s family) runs a small antique restaurant since 1920 in a small town in North Sumatra called Binjai. Our family restaurant, 品香茶樓 (Pin Yin: Pin Xiang Cha Lou) or Rumah makan Irian, has now being managed by five generations and now being managed by my cousins (the eldest grandson) and my aunty. Our restaurant has been operating based on Cantonese traditions in-and-out. However, we have infused some of Peranakan touches in our menus.

Saw and witnessed different ages of Indonesia and become the oldest restaurant in Binjai makes Rm.Irian have lots of histories and memories inside and most importantly legacies of culinary and traditions.

 

One of its unique is that we are still using manual lifter (as seen on the pic beside). The kitchen is on ground level and dining place is one second stories so in order to save time, they use this cute manual lifter.

Some of Rm.Irian best signatures ( always and forever) and all review done by my cousin, Hari Quang, who manages the restaurant now. 

Irian Mie Cin

Mie Cin or you might have heard it as ‘I Fu Mie Goreng’. Well, let me tell you this: there is no such thing! I understand that some other restaurant and food vendors that try to imitate our I Fu Mie have certain difficulties in cooking their hard-as-rock noodles. Unlike our hand-made noodles, the noodles they use are usually factory-made. These noodles have different texture and taste.

I don’t know if the name ‘I Fu Mie Goreng’ came from the lack of creativity or in fact that the noodles are actually stir-fried like the general fried noodle. One thing for sure is, we honors tradition and we are using the name given by our ancestors. So let’s call Mie Cin as Mie Cin, not ‘I Fu Mie Goreng’.

Irian I Fu Mie

It is one of our specialties. I Fu Mie is a Cantonese cuisine, traditionally handmade in our restaurant. It is deep-fried crispy noodles with chicken and vegetable dressing.

Once heard a customer said,” to visit Binjai without eating I Fu Mie is like climbing a mountain and go back down without seeing the sunrise”. It’s a little hyperbolic, I guess, but I totally understand him. Where-else in this town or even in this province can you find the original I Fu Mie?

My Grandmother once told me that long time ago, the first generation chef in our restaurant made the noodle with the help of two pieces of big, fat bamboo. In order to use them properly, he would move in a certain way that made the chef looked as if he was dancing the Kuda Lumping. She said,” the noodles are so special that even seeing the making process can entertain one’s eyes.”

Irian Ang tho Mie

It looks like the shark’s fin soup. It is a creamy noodle-soup enriched with egg and crab’s meat.

Several years ago, a customer asked me why the noodle is called Ang Tho Mie. Where did the name come from? Ang Tho Mie means Red Plum Noodle. The noodle is cooked with chicken eggs nowadays, it used to be duck eggs. The yolk of the duck egg became a natural colorant, giving a reddish glow to the creamy liquid. When the noodle is served in a round bowl, it looks like a giant red plum.

Due to customers’ demand, we use chicken eggs now. They are said to possess less fat, calories and cholesterol compared to duck eggs. However, we are more than willing to serve it in original style when a customer order it.

Nasi goreng Irian (fried rice)

Looks like ordinary fried rice, but try it first and I am quite sure you will ask for more. Usually it cooks with lots lots of toppings, you can find crab meat inside, fish balls, eggs, chickens and chilli padi (but it doesn’t spicy at all).

Irian Cim kong

 

and still have more menus ( all the pics are in my other hdd and I forgot to bring it along with me right now…so more to come….)
PS. must try Irian fried chicken (super duper crispy), chicken wings cold plate en much more…

I grow up by its food lol…cause every CNY, our sa cap meh (Chinese new year reunion dinner), foods are all bought from here (and it never change and it become a habit to our family which I think it is a good thing and always craving for it ).

It makes me hungry now…and can someone da bao for me and delivery them to Singapore please….:P

Recipe : Indonesian sweet pancake (martabak manis terang bulan)

Living outside our hometown, for sure we will miss our hometown foods especially its snacking such as martabak (pancakes/ crepes) manis (sweet). In Medan, you can choose either thin or thick pancakes. I love thin one better than thick, cause crispier n crunchy.

One day on our way to market for having our brunch, he suddenly said he was craving for martabak manis (Oooou…wat happen to u hunny?). So I made him one hahaha…although it was not made by expert martabak-man but at least I tried my best to fulfil his craving hehe…

• 250 gr all purpose flour (can substitute it with 230 gr flour + 20 gr tapioca flour to make the skin smoother)
• 1 tsp instant yeast
• 150 gr sugar
• 375 cc warm coconut milk or milk
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 eggs
• Fillings : sweet condensed milk, chocolate rice sprinkle, cheedar cheese, sugar, coarse ground peanuts, margarine ( n all of them are optional…put watever u love cause u are the boss :D heheh)

1. Warm the coconut milk (or milk) in microwave for couples mins and mix it with the yeast, stir  well and set a side for 5 mins
2. Mix all the dry ingredients and gradually pour the wet ingredients (milk +yeast) into the flour mixture, stir until well combine.
3. Add in eggs one by one and keep stirring…stir stir stir…
4. It is better to sit the mixture for 15 to 20 mins and cover it with warm damp cloth so the yeast can work to its best hehe
5. Heat up the non stick pan and smear it with butter or margarine. Pour the mixture (stir it first before use) to the pan and cook for about 10 mins or until the the top full of holes. Put lil bit margarine/ butter and grease it on the top then sprinkle some sugar on it.
6. Take out from the pan and feel free to put watever fillings you want on it. Fold into half and spread the outside skin with margarine again to make it shinny and make it looks more mouth watering :D
7. Serve it warm en njoy fellas…

Recipe : Sweet tooth Oat cookies

Celebrating Easter long weekend…and having lots of oats sit in my kitchen wardrobe so here I make this sweet tooth oat cookies.

 

• 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1  cups quick cooking oats / rolled oats
• 3/4 cup raisins or/and walnuts (optional)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 eggs
• 1/2 sugar
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

1. Preheat oven to 190 C
2. Mix shortening with sugar until smooth. Gradually stir in the egg and vanilla.
3. Combine all dry ingredients and mix it well
4. Spread the mixture in the pan which cover with cookie sheet
5. Bake for 12 mins or until lightly browned.
6. Remove cookies to wire racks and allow to cool.
7. Snip the cookies into small pieces and ready to enjoy with warm tea :D
8. Enjoy feelas :D

Notes: let it totally cool down first before store it

 

 

 

 

 

Recipe :Homemade carrot soup puff pastry + croutons

Using whatever ingredients I have on that Sunday morning and voila…end up I made homemade carrot soup puff pasty plus croutons. Usually people will make mushroom soup which goes very well with the puff pasty, but I did a little twist on it.

--- Our Sunday brunch @ 10 Apr 2011 ♥

 

 

• Two carrots, chopped
• 1/2 Chicken stock
• Salt and pepper for seasoning
• 1 1/2 cup water/ milk
• 1 tbs butter
• frozen puff pastry , thaw it at room temperature for about 1/2 to 1 hour
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 slice white/whole bread for croutons  

1. Preheat oven to 175C
2. Melt the butter on the small pot, combine the carrot, chicken stock (stir it  on hot water to melt it first), salt and pepper and water /milk until the carrots are soft.
3. In a blender, puree the soup, and return it back to the pot and simmer it for another 20 minutes
4. Sprinkle the roller and surface where you work with the pastry with flour. Roll the dough as think as you can (I used the thin puff pastry so I don’t need to roll it anymore) and  cut the puff pastry accordingly to the oven-safe soup bowl or ramekins
5. Fill the oven-safe soup bowl/ ramekins with carrot soup and cover it with the cut puff pastry. Secure the edges with water
6. Brush the puff pastry surface with egg to have a nice sheen after baking.
7. Ready for baking….bake it for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the puff pastry turn golden brown and looks puffy :D
8. Croutons: Brush the bread with melted butter and sprinkle a lil bit salt on it…cut them into chunks and bake it together with the puff pastry soup.
9. Enjoyyyyy…… :D