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

I  have not baked this Ogura cake for quite a while.  There was so much buzz about this cake amongst the fellow bloggers at one time but looks like the craze has sobered somewhat.  Nonetheless I like the texture of this cake and it's not oily and wholesome.  The texture is more or less like the chiffon  cake but it's more moist.  My cake is a bit short because I used an 8 inch pan as opposed to an 7 inch pan which I do not have. O range Ogura Cake ~  香橙相思蛋糕 (adapted from 'here' ) Ingredients 4 egg yolks + 1 whole egg 70 ml orange juice 40 ml vegetable oil 1/4 tsp salt 55 gm plain flour zest from 2 oranges 4 egg whites 1/4 tsp cream of tartar 60 gm caster sugar Method Line the bottom of an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper, set aside.  Do not grease the sides. With a hand whisk, whisk the egg yolks and oil till  frothy, add in the orange juice and mix well. Add in sifted flour and zest,...

Steaming is a very popular method of cooking in Chinese households.  It's fuss free and no oily pots or wok to clean up.   Adding cornstarch to the marinade before steaming helps to give the chicken a smooth texture and the brothy sauce goes very well with white rice. Ginger bean paste steamed chicken ~  姜豆酱蒸鸡 Ingredients 500 gm kampong/free range chicken, cut into bite size 50 gm ginger, chopped 3 shallots chopped 2 tsp preserved bean paste 2 tsp light soya sauce 1/2 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp dark soya sauce 3 tsp cornflour 1/4 cup water  Spring onions and chillies to garnish Method Blend the chopped ginger, shallots with 1/4 cup water Pour out and mix in the bean paste, sugar, light & dark soya sauces Mix in the cornflour Season the chicken with the above marinade for a few hours,  preferably overnight Arrange on a plate and steam till chicken is cooked and tender Garnish with spring onions and chopped ...

What's for tea?  A soft, light and non-greasy Marble Zebra Castella ~  Kasutera cake.  I didn't line the pan with foil this time, only with parchment paper and was very pleased that the bottom of the cake didn't stick onto the paper and yielded a perfect brown base.  Indeed a delicious cake to be enjoyed at any time of the day.   Marble Castella Cake  ~    长崎蛋糕 Ingredients 120 gm high protein flour, sift twice 5 egg whites 5 egg yolks 100 gm caster sugar 20 ml honey 4 tsp Cointreau 1/2 Tbsp cocoa powder + 1/2 Tbsp hot water Method Line an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper, set aside. Mix honey with Cointreau, set aside. Beat egg whites till foamy, add in sugar gradually and beat till firm but not dry. Add in egg yolks one @ a time, on low speed and combine till creamy. Add in sifted high protein flour in 3 batches, mix on low speed till no traces of flour are visible. Add in honey Cointreau mixture on ...

This pumpkin pancake is soft and delicate and not too sweet as the sweetness is only from the red bean paste filling.   For a crispy pancake you can deep-fry them but I chose to just shallow pan-fry them in a non-stick pan.   This is great to serve as a tea-time snack over a cup of brimming hot Chinese tea. Chinese Pumpkin Pancake ~ 金瓜饼 (adapted from  'here' ) Ingredients 150 gm pumpkin, steamed (should get around 350 gm raw pumpkin)) 100 gm glutinous rice flour 100 gm red bean paste Sesame seeds (optional) Method Peel the pumpkin, remove the seeds and steam the pumpkin.  Once soft, drain off water and mash it up.  Weigh out 150 gm. Add in half glutinous rice flour and mix well.  Continue to mix in the glutinous rice flour and lightly knead till the dough does not stick to your hands. Wrap the pumpkin dough with some red bean paste, roll and shape it into a round ball.  Gently flatten it to a round disc o...

I've never tried this dish before until I went to China.  This is a home-style Chinese comfort food, inexpensive, tasty and quick to prepare.   It's like scrambled eggs with tomatoes and highlighted with a trickling of spring onions.  This dish is a perfect partner with steamed rice. Chinese stir-fried Tomatoes and Eggs  ~  蕃茄炒蛋 Ingredients 2 large eggs 2 tomatoes, cut into cubes or sliced 1/2 tsp chicken granules 1/4 tsp cornstarch + 1/2 Tbsp water Sesame oil chopped spring onions Tomato ketchup (optional) Sea Salt and sugar to taste Method Whisk the eggs, add in some sea salt. Heat up a pan with some oil, pour in the eggs, stir-fry, dish up. In the same pan, stir-fry the tomatoes, add some sea salt and half cup water, simmer.  Add in the chicken granules and cornstarch thickening. Mix in the eggs, test for taste. Drizzle on some sesame oil, add in the chopped spring onions. Dish out and serve.

This moist Chia Seed Banana bread makes a great snack or a quick breakfast.  Loaded with chia seeds and lots of banana flavour, one can enjoy it with a cup of steaming hot coffee or tea. Chia Seed Banana Bread ~   香蕉种子蛋糕 Ingredients  150 gm plain flour 90 gm wholemeal flour 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda 2 'L' eggs 3 Tbsp Chia seeds 1/8 tsp salt 55 gm caster sugar 55 gm brown sugar (I used Muscovado sugar) 300 gm over ripe bananas, mashed. (about 3 bananas) 1/2 cup canola oil 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/3 cup Buttermilk (1/3 cup milk + 1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice) 1 banana, slit into half Method Line a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan with parchment paper, set aside. Mix the  buttermilk and let it sit for about 10 mins. or more. Whisk the plain flour, wholemeal flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda thoroughly. Add in the chia seeds and cinnamon.  Mix well. In another bowl, beat the eggs, caster sugar, muscovado su...

These steamed cakes are delicious, aromatic and full of coconut flavour.   They are refreshing and can be enjoyed at any time of the day. Gula melaka/Palm sugar steamed cake ~   椰糖蒸蛋糕 Ingredients 150 gm plain flour 100 ml coconut milk 60 gm palm sugar 2 Tbsp canola oil 2 tsp baking powder 1 egg pinch of salt Method Sift plain flour, baking powder and salt into a mixing bowl. Roughly crumble the palm sugar and mix into the flour mixture. Blend coconut milk and oil, then pour into the flour mixture. Lightly mix till free of lumps. Let batter rest for 10 mins. Divide batter into paper lined cups. Steam on medium heat for 20 mins. Test with a skewer till it comes out clean. Yield : 4 steamed cakes

Today, I'm going to share with you a soup, suitable for confinement ( 坐月 ) mothers.  Postpartum confinement is practised by the Chinese and other East Asians for mothers to recover their health after giving birth.  Lemon grass is beneficial to new mothers who are breastfeeding as it helps to increase milk production.  I'm no expert in this field but I had the opportunity to pick up a few recipes of confinement food and I will post them up from time to time. Lemon grass and onion soup  柠檬草和洋葱汤 Ingredients 5 stalks of lemon grass, crushed 5 whole onions, smashed 2.5 lt water 900 gm pork shoulder and bones 1/2 tap peppercorns, smashed seasalt to taste Method Blanch the pork bones in hot water, drain and rinse with tap water, set aside. Bring to the boil, 2.5 lt of water and once boiling, add in the lemon grass, onions, peppercorns and pork bones. Let it simmer till the meat is tender and add seasalt to taste. Serve hot.