No-Frills Recipes ... cooking, baking & excerpts on travel

  This dark chocolate chip pound cake is soft and spongy with a tender texture.  As I used 70% cocoa Lindt dark chocolate, the cake is not too sweet and the slight bitterness of the dark chocolate complements well with the sweetness of the cake.  This cake has a combination of butter, oil and buttermilk hence it gives a better crumb and not heavy.  The oil keeps it moist and fluffy.  Enjoy it with a cup of hot coffee or tea. Dark Chocolate Chip Cake  黑巧克力蛋糕 Ingredients 210 gm plain flour 1.1/2 tsp baking powder 55 gm unsalted butter 1/4 cup or 60 ml vegetable oil 130 gm caster sugar 2 'L' eggs 1 tsp vanilla 180 ml buttermilk 100 gm dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate buttons 1/4 Tbsp vinegar to make buttermilk Pinch of salt Method Prepare and line a 8.5 x 4.5 inch loaf pan, set aside. Pour milk and vinegar into a measuring cup to get 180 ml buttermilk, give it a stir and keep refrigerated. Sift the plain flour, baking powder and salt, set aside. Bre...

  I have airfried shrimp paste chicken before but this time I tried steaming it as the weather is so hot and humid, so steaming is another alternative.  The chicken was delicious and tasty and it did go well with white rice or even plain white porridge.  A homey and comfort dish which can be easily prepared, fuss free. Steamed Chicken with Shrimp or Prawn Paste ~  虾酱蒸鸡   Ingredients 300 gm whole leg of chicken cut into bite size 1.1/2 tsp Lee Kum Kee shrimp paste 1 tsp sesame oil 1 tsp Shaoxing wine 1 tsp ginger strips 1/2 tsp oyster sauce 1/2 tsp light soy sauce 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp sugar 1.1/2 tsp cornflour a dash of pepper Chopped bird eye chillies to garnish Method Wash and pat dry the chicken, season with salt. Add in shrimp paste, sesame oil, oyster sauce, light soy sauce, sugar, cornflour and pepper.  Marinate well into the chicken and preferably leave it overnight in the fridge. Remove from the fridge, let rest in room temperature.  Sprin...

  This is the first time that I am using self-raising flour to make muffins.  Normally I would use plain flour with baking powder or baking soda but as I ran out of plain flour and only had self-raising flour at hand, I resorted to use this instead.  The result was just as good.  This muffin is moist and soft  and the chocolate buttons paired well with the green tea flavour.  I dusted them with some icing sugar to give them a more appealing look.    Matcha Choc Chip Muffins ~抹茶巧克力玛芬   Ingredients 280 gm self-raising flour 2 'L'eggs 140 gm caster sugar 140 gm oil 1 cup milk 2 Tbsp Matcha/Green Tea powder 60 gm chocolate buttons  (extra chocolate buttons to sprinkle on top) 1/8 tsp salt Method Sift flour, green tea powder and salt, set aside. In a mixing bowl, break in 2 eggs, add sugar and using a ball whisk, whisk till light and creamy Add in oil, mix well.  Add in milk and whisk till fully incorporated. Stir in the sifted flou...

  This Cordycep flower and shredded chicken porridge is smooth, rich in flavour and comforting.  To me, this is the ultimate one-pot meal which is most welcoming for lunch or dinner especially in this hot and humid weather. The  crunchy Cordycep flowers lend a hand into bringing this porridge up to the next level. Cordycep Flowers and shredded Chicken Porridge ~  虫草花鸡丝粥 Ingredients 360 gm free range chicken (or a quarter chicken) 125 gm Jasmine rice 8 gm dried cordycep flowers 8 dried scallops, rinsed a handful of goji berries 2 tsp Shaoxing wine 1/2 cube of chicken bouillon 8 cups of water or more according to your desired consistency 3 slices of ginger Salt to taste A dash of sesame oil Method To poach the cordycep flowers -  soak the dried cordycep flowers to expand for about 10 mins.  Drain.   Then boil them with just enough water to cover, once cooked, add some salt and 2 tsp Shaoxing wine.  Set aside. Boil the jasmine rice and slices of...

  These Sunflower and Pumpkin Seeds muffins, soft and light are so easy to whip up to enjoy with a hot cup of coffee or tea.  They are very versatile as you can have them as a light breakfast or snack as and when you feel like it.  I topped them with more seeds and with a sprinkling of Rapadura sugar to give the extra crunch and coupled with the frgrance of the latter, they certainly brought the muffin to a new level. Sunflower and Pumpkin Seeds Muffin  ~    向日葵和南瓜籽玛芬  Ingredients  150 gm plain flour 70 gm light brown sugar 130 gm pupkin puree (from fresh pumpkin) 1 'L' egg 1/4 cup milk 60 ml oil 1 tsp baking powder 1/4 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp vanilla 1/4 tsp salt 45 gm lightly roasted sunflower seeds 45 gm lightly roasted pumpkin seeds Rapadura or Turbinado sugar to sprinkle on top (optional) Method Sift the plain flour with the baking powder and baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Set aside In a mixing bowl, whisk sugar, oil, egg ...

A simple stir-fry dish of Fish Bladder (魚鰾) with carrot, celery, shitake mushrooms and not forgetting my favourite soy bean chip/dao bao ( 豆包).  The dao bao tends to be very absorbent and hence I had to add in more water to the dish after I added them in, and I added them in last.  This dish goes very well with white rice and is quite popular during Chinese New Year. Stir-fry Fish Bladder  ~ 翻炒魚鰾 Ingredients 20 gm fish bladder 100 gm celery 50 gm carrot 4 Shitake mushrooms 3 pieces soy bean chip/Dao Bao  2 pips of garlic, sliced 3 slices of ginger Spring onions 2 Tbsp oyster sauce 1 Tbsp light soya sauce 1 Tbsp cornstarch and 1.5  Tbsp water to mix 1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine Salt to taste Method Soak the fish bladder till soft, then blanch in hot boiling water.  Remove, rinse and squeeze dry.  Cut up. Soak the Shitake mushrooms till soft, stem and cut. Shallow fry the dao bao and cut into smaller pieces. Saute the sliced garlic, ginger and mushrooms til...

  These chocolate chip cookies made with melted butter are delightfully dense on the inside and crisp on the edges.  As melted butter is being used, the cookies have a softer inside.  No mixer is required to make these cookies and I only used a ball whisk throughout the whole process.  Can give this a try and add on to your CNY cookies list! Chocolate Chip Cookies  ~  巧克力曲奇饼 Ingredients 115 unsalted butter (melted) 70 gm brown sugar 30 gm caster sugar 1 'L' egg 210 gm plain flour 1/2 tsp baking soda a pinch of salt 1/2 tsp vanilla essence 150 gm chocolate chip Extra chocolate chips to place on top of the cookies (optional) Method Heat up the butter in the microwave until JUST melted, not bubbly.  Stir with a spoon till soft and smooth.  Let cool for about 5 mins. Sift the flour with the baking soda and salt.  Set aside. Pour the melted butter into a mixing bowl.  With a ball whisk, mix in the egg and sugars.  Mix till well inco...