Checkered Cake Recipe

I love basics - a sponge cake when done well is utterly delicious. Which is also why I am always on a search for the perfect sponge cake recipe. There are many recipes out there but the key is finding what works best for you both in terms of methodology and taste.

Gnocchi Recipe

Gnocchi (pronouced as "no-kee") are thick, soft dumplings made from potato, flour and egg. Its a versatile Italian dish which you can customise to your liking. Think of them as pasta and coat them in your favourite sauces - tomato, pesto, etc. However, my all time fav has to be still good old cream and cheese.

Chocolate Mousse Recipe

There are times where we just want fuss-free desserts which are easy and delicious. This means desserts which require ingredients you can get readily in supermarkets or use whatever is available in your pantry. This is one such recipe - (almost instant) Chocolate Mousse.

Ignore the typo in the pic - I can't spell for my life

Red Bean Mochi Recipe

With some leftover glutinous rice flour from my previous Muah Chee (chewy rice dough with roasted peanuts) attempt, I decided to go for a dessert which I enjoy loads, Red Bean Mochi.

This is one dessert which goes by many names; to the Japanese, it is known as Daifuku whereas the Koreans call it Chapssalddeok. Either ways, it is a dessert confection of mochi/chewy rice cake stuffed with a sweet filling, usually sweetened red bean paste made from red/azkui beans.

1st attempt - A little rough looking...

2nd attempt - Success!

Matcha/Green Tea Cheese Tart Recipe

Green Tea Mochi Cakes with Red Bean, Chilled Green Tea Beancurd (tau huey), Soft Centered Green Tea Cupcakes, Green Tea Chiffon Cake (to be shared soon...) I love the taste of green tea and here's another recipe to add on to my growing list, Matcha/Green Tea Cheese Tart!

My recipe is shared by Chef Tomoko Higashiguchi of Patisserie Glace from herworldplus. It seemed pretty easy, with steps similar to my previous Cheese Tart recipe but flavoured with Matcha/green tea and addition of gelatine and yogurt. Usually, in no-bake cheesecakes, either yogurt or whipping cream is used but this time around, both are used. Interesting to see how those two will gel together!

Basic Tart Crust Recipe

Having bought a tart pan recently, I have been somewhat in a tart-making craze. Tart crusts are very easy and quick to make, either by a food processor or by hand and you can freeze them up to two weeks in the freezer. They are quick-fix desserts, just bake the tart for 20-25 minutes and you can make anything with them, fruit tarts, chocolate tarts, apple pies, etc. The list is endless.

The recipe I am sharing is fuss-free; no baking weights are needed, don't need to roll out the dough (which necessitates more washing). Oh and get a non-stick pan; it saves you the hassle of greasing the pan. Quick, easy, simple.

Lemon Curd Recipe

Lemons are nutritious fruits, packed with Vitamin C and are juicy, tangy and flavourful. They are cheap, readily available all year round and you can use them in your baking, cooking, drinks and even cleaning!

Lemon curd is a dessert spread made with lemon juice, eggs and sugar. You can pair lemon curd with scones, tarts, bread muffins, etc. - the choice is endless. Try to avoid store-bought lemon curd as they are very easy to make. 30 minutes is all you need, including preparatory time.

Ingredients
80ml freshly squeezed lemon juice (I used about 1.5 lemons)
150g white sugar
3 eggs
Some freshly grated lemon zest (I used 1 lemon worth, you can omit if you do not have a grater)
60g unsalted butter (I finally got to try President brand!)

Method
1. In a metal bowl, whisk together eggs, lemon juice and sugar. Using the double broiler method, heat the mixture. The water in the broiler should be simmering.

2. Whisk for 8-10 minutes till mixture thickens. Whisking constantly helps to prevent clumps from forming. The curd is done when the mixture is thick, or reaches a mayonnaise-like texture. In the enlarged picture below, you can see that whisking leaves visible traces behind.

3. Remove bowl from heat. Add in lemon zest and butter. Mix well till butter dissolves. There should be a glossy tint to your lemon curd.

Tips

When using a grater to remove zest from lemon, avoid scrapping at the white portions as those are bitter. You only want the yellow portion, which is the outermost layer.

If you get clumps in your mixture, sieve your mixture before adding in the butter.

You can prepare and chill the lemon curd a few days before use. When leaving in fridge, use a cling wrap to cover bowl. The cling wrap should touch and cover the surface of curd to prevent an extra layer from forming.

Molten Chocolate (Lava) Cake Recipe

Contrary to popular belief, molten chocolate cakes or lava cakes are easy desserts which can be put together quickly. The key towards making this dessert is using good quality chocolate and sticking to the baking time. The idea is to underbake the chocolate cake such that the middle of the cakes still remain liquid and soft. However, even if you did overbake your cakes, you will still get a delicious moist chocolate cake. It really is a dessert which you can't go wrong.

Soba noodles recipe

With intentions to bring soba noodles for lunch, I cooked and cooled a bunch of my favourite buckwheat noodles only to realise that I had ran out of store bought dipping sauce! Sigh. What should I do with my noodles...

A quick search on google and I landed on this promising recipe by Nigella Lawson. It did not disappoint!

Quick and easy meal - Salad (pasta salad) recipe

I am always thinking of ways to bring packed lunch from home because one can avoid the lunch crowds and have a simple, yet healthy satisfying meal. After seeing the long queues at the different salad bars around town, I decided to make my own version so that I can include what I love.

Simple meal anytime, anyday

This basic salad uses Romaine lettuce, both green and red/purple which can be bought from a box or bags in hypermarts. I usually peel/shred them and soak them in water whilst I prepare the other ingredients. Wash them thoroughly at least twice to get rid of any residual dirt and squeeze them dry. It is important for the vegetables to be as dry as possible as you would not want the vegetables to turn soggy or mushy when left overnight. Besides Romaine lettuce, you can use organic vegetables or add in some Wild rocket or Mesclun mix depending on your budget.

The greens form the base of the salad and I top them off with some cherry tomatoes and imitation crabsticks to give it some taste. Take some frozen crabsticks and soak them in water until bendable and tear into bits. I also throw in some shredded ham, cheese and roasted almonds. A hard boiled egg can be added to give this meal a little more protein. Other times, I make egg mayo but the highlight of today's salad is pasta salad!