Back To The Cold!

I am very much aware of my irresponsibility to this blog, and believe that many of you have been waiting for something new to come out on this blog, my apologies for all the disappointment, I should have manage my time more efficiently.

I am recently back to Malaysia for holidays for about two weeks. This is a fairly short trip which I only able to make time for my family members. I had no chance to meet all my friends and relatives although we had a small gathering before I come back here. During our time in Malaysia, we were overwhelmed by the hot weather, the sun had never been shy away from us. Baby Jun just cry out loud whenever he felt the heat, we ended up bathing him 3 times a day and brought him to swimming pool to cool down. If he were to be brought up in Malaysia, it would take him some time to get use to the weather and environment, in which this could be a challenge!

And now, we are welcomed back by the snow and the cold. What a dramatic change!

Cooling down in the bucket with cousin sister.

Baby Jun loves fish @ Aquaria KLCC

At Aquaria KLCC, baby Jun enjoying seeing the aqua life.

Outside KLCC

First time in the 'sarung', baby Jun thought it is a swing as those in the playground!

Happy 1st Birthday, Baby Jun!

At airport before departing to the UK, time to go back to the cold country which he has to put on more clothes, jacket and shoes all the time when going out.

Cornflakes Cookie

Happy Chap Goh Mei! Today is the last day of Chinese New Year, Chap Goh Mei (or 元宵节). I was thinking to make Nian Gao but it is 6pm in the evening now, do you think I still manage to make one? And I have so many tasks on hand, and only me and baby now, the ironing, the dinner, feeding and bathing my baby, so on.....I am over ambitious, as always, hehe....But I am going to share with you guys the cookie I made before CNY, this is one of the cookie I made for this year-> the cornflakes cookies.

Cornflakes cookie
Recipe adapted from Karen's Kitchen

Ingredients:
60g unsalted butter, melted
50g honey
1 Tbsp sugar
180g cornflakes
a pinch of salt
3 Tbsp white sesame seed, lightly toasted

Steps:
1) Preheat oven to 150 degC.
2) In a mixing bowl, put in melted unsalted butter, honey, sugar and salt. Mix until well combined. (I just melt the butter in microwave for about 1 minute before mixing with the other ingredients)
3) Add in cornflakes and sesame seeds. Mix until cornflakes are evenly coated with the mixture.
4) Line the mini paper cases on the baking tray. Spoon cornflake mixture into mini paper case and bake at 150 degC for about 10-15 minutes.
5) Remove from oven, store in airtight container when it is completely cooled.

Happy Chinese New Year!

I am totally not up to speed with my blog post these day! I am really exhausted for the past weeks, I don't even manage to get online everyday after work. Oh well, just to let you know I returned to work following 10 months maternity leave. And I changed to a new job, new environment and plenty of new stuff to learn. Besides, my wee boy demand more cuddling when coming back from nursery every night, he needs more reassurance and time to understand that mummy needs to go to work and come back to him after finish work. Also he probably need some time to get settle into nursery after staying home with me for about 10 month..This is not an easy start for me, and for baby Jun but I do hope it will get easier.

It is new year's time, Chinese New Year suppose to be happy isn't it? 过年笑哈哈! I am cooking prawn for the new year, we called prawn 'Har' in cantonese, Har Har means laugh happily! After you eat it, you will also laugh happily, hahaha....

Steamed Prawn with Minced Garlic
蒜茸蒸虾 (原食谱来自小小米桶零油烟厨房-书籍）

材料：
鲜虾 12只
蒜末 4 大匙
姜末 1/2 小匙
葱花 适量
米酒 1小匙

调味料：
酱油 1大匙
热开水 1大匙
麻油 1小匙
糖 1/2 小匙

做法：
1) 调味料预先混合为酱汁，备用。鲜虾洗净，剪掉长须，取出泥肠后，用刀在虾背由虾头直剖至虾尾处，再将腹部的筋剪断，备用。
2）将做法1）的鲜虾一只一只 摊开整齐的排於盘中，淋入米酒，再撒上蒜末，姜末，放入水滚的蒸锅中，以大火蒸5分钟至熟后，取出淋入预先调好的酱汁，再撒上葱花，即完成。

Happy New Year to All My Friends and Family, Wish You Have a Wonderful Year Ahead!

Roasted Chicken Wing with Preserved Red Bean Curd

When I first saw this dish in Helena's Kitchen, I told myself I must make this dish one day. I like to use preserved red bean curd in marinating, it make the dish smell good and I simply love the taste. Maybe because I am a hakka (well, maybe still but I forgot how to speak most of the hakka dialect), I was brought up eating hakka fried pork (客家炸肉). Hakka fried pork is made by marinating the pork in preserved red bean curd before frying it, it taste so nice with the aroma. Then now, I learn how to make roasted chicken wing with preserved red bean curd, and I love it too, it is finger licking good! I have slightly tweaked the recipe, for original recipe please hop over to Helena's Kitchen.

Roasted Chicken Wing with Preserved Red Bean Curd
Recipe adapted from (Helena's Kitchen)

Ingredients:
12 chicken wings

Marinate:
2 preserved red bean curd
2tbsp preserved red bean curd juice
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp honey
1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce

Steps:
1) Mash up the preserved red bean curd with the juice and mix all the ingredients for marinate in a bowl.
2) Clean and pat dry the chicken wings, put it into the mixing bowl with marinate, make sure each chicken wing is coated with the marinate. Put it into fridge and marinate for at least an hour. (I marinate for about 2 hour)
3) Preheat oven to 200 degC. Line the chicken wings on a baking tray and roast it for about 20 minutes, turn  the chicken wing to the other side and baste with the reserved sauce, roast for another 15-20 minutes or until it is cooked.
4) Remove from oven and serve warm.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

I seldom make muffins as I always can't bake a good muffins. After reading through the mini cookbooks that Mui sent me few weeks ago, I decided to give it a try again. The mini cookbooks contains many easy to follow cupcakes and muffins recipes, with easily available ingredients. I have marked up some of them and going to try them out very soon (hopefully), hehe... As I have some left over chocolate chips sitting in my pantry, I decided to bake chocolate chip muffins as my first attempt from the cookbooks. I have used a mixture of white and dark chocolate chips since I have not enough dark chocolate chips, the result turned out as good. It is yummy and with the chocolatey flavour. 

Chocolate Chip Muffins (Recipe adapted from Cupcakes and Muffins Mini Cookbooks)
Ingredients
300g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
120g brown sugar
100g chocolate chips
2 eggs, beaten
180 ml milk
110g butter, melted

Steps:
1) Preheat oven to 180 degC. Line muffin tin with paper liners.
2) Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Add brown sugar and chocolate chips and mix well. Set aside.
3) In a mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk and melted butter. Add flour mixture and mix quickly until well blended.
4) Spoon batter into prepared muffin tin, fill each cup to about three quarters full. Bake for about 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of cakes comes out clean.
5) Leave to cool on a wire rack before serving.

By replacing the choc chips with dried cranberries, I got the cranberies muffins! They are equally good.

Lovely Gift by a Lovely Friend

Happy New Year to all! Wish you have a wonderful year ahead!

Time flew by so quickly and I am just realised I haven't been updating my blog since Winter Solstice! Baby Jun went to nursery settling in time the week before Christmas and brought home some winter bug virus. He was sicked, then me, then the dad.. we all got infected. We spent our Christmas having diarrhea and vomiting. And now, the dad and him are having chicken pox! Sigh, what a great way to welcome the new year! I had chicken pox before so I am survive this time otherwise I will be exhausted. Baby Jun has been feeling uncomfortable since the chicken pox appear on his body, the ear, the eye lid, the tongue.. he does not able to sleep through the night and keep waking up due to the discomfort. The only way to make him happy is to bring him to bath with chamomile water.

See the above photo, that was a parcel I received last week, sent all the way from Malaysia by Mui's My Little Favourite DIY. There are cupcake/muffin cases, cutters and a mini cookbooks. Thank you very much Mui, you are very thoughtful! Some weeks before Christmas, Mui sent an email to me and told me she will be sending me a small Christmas gift and hopefully it will be arrived in time. Somehow the parcel got delayed due to the festive holidays season, but it was still in time for my birthday! The parcel arrive 2 days before my birthday. Thanks Mui, you are too good to me! Mui is a real kind and helpful person, we only know each other few months ago through blogging and she makes me feel like we already knew each other for long! As a thank you, I have baked some chocolate chip muffins for you, hope you like it! I will share the recipe on another post, please stay tune!

Chocolate Chip Muffins (recipe adapted from the mini cookbooks gifted by Mui)

Winter Solstice! 冬至。汤圆

Happy Winter Solstice! I am a bit late in posting this tang yuan (glutinous rice ball), reason being I was hesitating on what type of tang yuan should I made. Idea one, a traditional version-hmm...I have nothing to make the tang yuan become red. Idea two- the angry bird version, erm..not a bad idea since angry bird is also in round shape, but...tang yuan is so small and I have no tool to make the eyes, peak, etc..Idea three, a basketball or a football version? Isn't it cute when you see so many tiny basket ball or football in a bowl? But, how should I make it? Where should I start? I do not have a petite hand to make this small little cute thing, I will ruin the whole project...Then this idea four came across my mind, the marble effect tang yuan by using pumpkin. Yes, I made it!

I didn't measure the ingredients properly and therefore no recipe for this post. Please refer to the following blog if you are looking for a tang yuan recipe. These are some fabulous blogs.
~ my little favourite DIY
~Cass @ 揾到食
~Vivian Pang Kitchen
~Eat Your Heart Out
~ and many many more...