I have cans of crushed pineapple in my pantry waiting to be used. I bought them to make pineapple jam for my CNY pineapple tarts, but my lazy bones kicked in and I didn't make any pineapple tarts this year. So, I went online to search for a quick and easy recipe for me to use up the crushed pineapple. I found this recipe very interesting, very easy to do and no butter and oil required. It really got me curious and hence I had to try this recipe.
Hmmm...this cake is very interesting indeed. The texture is spongy, moist and kind of sticky. A bit like eating "kuih" instead of cake. The sweetness is just nice but sure make a big cake. I gave half away because we couldn't finish the whole cake. Because I added coconut flakes and dried fruits, you can taste that in the cake too. I think the dried fruits gave this cake an extra sweetness.
I adapted the recipe from Beverly. Added a couple of things and change the baking time.
Ingredient:
(A)
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 tsp. baking soda
(B)
2 large eggs
1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, with juice
2 tsp. vanilla extract
(C)
1/2 cup sweeten coconut flakes
1/3 cup cut dried apricots
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup raisins
Before in the oven for baking.
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 350'F (175'C). Line a 10 X 15 inch glass baking pan with wax paper, with more wax paper hanging up for easy removal.
2. In a large Pyrex glass bowl, add in (A). Whisk with a hand whisk until combined. In the middle, add in (B). Whisk the middle mixture until blended then blend it together with the flour mixture until combined. Add in (C). Stir to moisten.
3. Bake for 55 minutes. At 25 minutes, remove and cover the top with aluminum foil. Test with a toothpick to make sure it is cooked completely. Cool completely before storage. I keep it in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. It is nice eaten cold too.Lastly, I want to wish all the mothers a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!! :) And Happy Mommy Day, Mom! :*
This Chinese ginger brown sugar drink is said to be very beneficial. Not only it can fight cold but can fix the problem some women encounter when having their periods such as headache, stomachache, heavy flow, etc. Ginger had been used in ancient Chinese medicine to treat illnesses so this is a no surprise. Chinese women consumed lots of ginger after given birth for the full whole month to prevent the "wind" to get into the body, because we believed if the "wind" gets into the body, it will create problem later in life. It is also said that for people who live in the tropical country, if you do travel to another country during the cold weather, boil this tea and drink, it will prevent your body from getting sick. I know for a fact that ginger is anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory. So, if you see a cold is coming, make this tea and drink it hot. Then, cover yourself with a blanket and let your body sweat. You should be recovered naturally. Call me old-fashion but I believed in ancient natural remedy. Now, I make this tea occasionally just to strengthen the body. It is best to use the age old ginger and drink it hot.
I made a tea pot and this is my approximate recipe.
Ingredients:
20 oz water
6 slices of ginger (old ginger preferred)
4 Tbsp. Chinese brown sugar (黑糖) or to taste (available at Asian store)
Method:
In a saucepan, add in water and let it boil. When boiled, add in the ginger and sugar. Let it boil for 10-15 minutes. Serve hot. I pour in a tea pot and share among us.
Note: I would recommend you to get the Chinese brown sugar (黑糖) at the Asian supermarket for this tea as the flavor is different ( less sweet too) from the normal brown sugar we buy at the baking section. Showing you a picture above.
I loved this Crab Classic, chunk style imitation crab meat! It came in Lobster Classic too but the only difference I can see is more red coloring added (since it's redder in color), other than that, everything looks identical to me (I forgot to look at the back of the ingredients list, might have a little lobster meat added instead of king crab?). I always buy more and freeze it in my freezer when it is on sales for buy one gets one free (it can freeze up to 9 months). Crab Classic is made with a mixture of seafood, mainly Alaska Pollock. So this is an excellent source of protein and omega 3 fatty acids. Not only that, the shape holds well so it's great in stir-fry, in soup and in spaghetti. A great food to substitute for meat/poultry and for the vegetarians who don't eat meat/poultry but do take seafood.
Ingredients:
1 packet soft tofu, sliced like above picture
1/2 packet of imitation crab meat, separated (Crab Classic, chunk style)
1/2 cup of frozen corns
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 stalk green onion/scallion, thinly sliced
Chopped onion (I added this just to finish the little bit of onion that I have in the fridge but not required)
Sauce:
1 Tbsp. salted yellow bean, smashed
1 Tbsp. oyster sauce
1 tsp. dark soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1/4 cup water
Oil for cooking
Method:
1. Cut the tofu and lay it nicely on a plate. You can have it cold or you can heat it in the microwave for 2 minutes to warm it up before pouring in the sauce.
2. In a heated wok, pour in a little oil. Add in garlic, stir-fry until golden but be careful not to burn it. Add in imitation crab meat and corns, stir-fry well. Add in salted yellow bean and fry for a while then add in the rest of the sauce ingredients. Fry well, add the water and let the sauce thicken a little and pour it on top of the nicely arranged soft tofu.
ShanDong ramen (山东拉面) is a Chinese style dried noodle. It came in three different sizes, thin, medium and thick. The one I got here is medium. It is suitable for cold noodle, in soup or stir-fry. I usually used it in stir-fry, I guess it is easier than cook up a flavorful stock to go with the ramen. I think Taiwanese used this kind of dried noodle for their beef noodle soup.
Below are the ingredients and sauce that I used. My usual sauce for stir-frying noodle as I don't know the secret sauce that the restaurant used. Is there a secret sauce? Anyone knows and willing to share? Or you know or use a different sauce mix for your stir fry noodle than me, please share with me ya. I really cut down on my dark soy sauce for this noodle as I like my dishes dark but wanted a change here to mimic the color of the restaurant "lor mian". Of course Chinese dishes are very versatile, you can add or change the ingredients to what you have at home.
Ingredients:
ShanDong ramen, cooked in boiling water according to direction, drain with cold water running.
Bean Sprouts, a bowl
Carrot, thinly sliced
Yellow onion, thinly sliced
Garlic, chopped
Pork marinated in soy sauce, rice wine, white pepper and cornstarch
Sauce: Oyster sauce, Dark soy sauce, sesame oil, salt and sugar to taste.I would love to share this dish with Presto Pasta Night . Presto Pasta Night was created by Ruth from Once Upon a Feast. This week host is Tigerfish at Teczcape-an escape to Food. Please hop over on Friday, May 8th to see the round up. Thanks!
I fell in love with sweet snap peas when I discovered it in the market few years ago. Now, I preferred to buy this versus snow peas. I found this to be sweeter, crunchier or has more bite to it as compared to snow peas. But why is this veggie so expensive huh? It is quite pricey even in the Asian market, I bought a small bag and it costs me almost $4!! Sharing an easy and delicious way to enjoy sweet snap peas. One of my home cook dishes.
Ingredients:Sweet snap peas
Dried shrimps, soaked in hot water until soften, drained
Garlic, chopped
Oyster sauce
Canola oil for stir-fryingMethod:1. In a wok, heat up oil. When heated, add in dried shrimps and garlic. Fry until fragrant and add in the sweet snap peas.
2. Stir-fry until snap peas are cooked. Season with oyster sauce. Add a little water if you like. Serve hot with rice.
We loved panna cotta but it was so fattening. So, I was trying to cut down some of the saturated fat in this delectable dessert by cutting down on the heavy cream and used whole milk. I placed it in a jelly mold which was probably not the best idea as it was stuck to the mold. I had to use the satay stick to scrape it down, thus the broken design. Despite the ugly look, it tasted divine. Still fattening but a reduced fat version.
I modified some of the ingredients from this recipe. Next time I would probably use 55g palm sugar in (A) and skip the whole syrup step.
Ingredients:(A)
1 1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
20g palm sugar
7g powder gelatin + 1/4 cup water
For syrup:
40g palm sugar
1/4 cup water
Method:
1. Add (A) in a pot and bring to boil, stirring to dissolve the palm sugar. Remove from heat.
2. Combine gelatin and water and add into the pot. Stir until gelatin is dissolved.
3. Place the pot into a container that contains ice cube and cold water and stir the mixture until it cool. (I omitted this step)
4. Divide the mixture into cups and place in refrigerator to harden.
5. For the syrup, add palm sugar and water into a pot and bring to boil. Stir to dissolve the palm sugar.
6. Before serving, add some syrup on the panna cotta.
I love to steam my fish in the oven. It is no fuss, no cleaning, super easy and ready in 10 minutes, who wouldn't love this method as compared to the traditional Chinese steaming method using a wok? To steamed fish, you just need to cover the whole fish in the aluminum foil and let it steam in the oven. After you done eating, just fold and toss away the aluminum foil. As easy as that! I was trying a new recipe for my steamed fish and it turned out so good so I would share it here and for my own record. It was a little spicy from the chili oil but not too bad, even my girls had no problem eating it. The saltiness came from the black bean and soy sauce. And I loved lots of ginger and garlic for extra flavor.
Ingredients:Fish fillet(s) of your choice
1-2 Tbsp. Black bean in chili oil
1 Tbsp. White cooking wine
1.5 tsp. Soy sauce
2-inch size of ginger, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
One big piece of aluminum foilMethod:1. Preheat the oven at 450'F. Then go prepare the fish fillet(s).
2. In a baking pan, lay the aluminum foil on top. Place the fish fillet(s) in. Fold the sides up so that the sauce wouldn't run out. Top the fish with chopped ginger and garlic. Then top it with black bean in chili oil, white wine and soy sauce. Fold the sides of aluminum foil together and seal it.
3. Place the baking pan in the preheated oven and bake for 10 minutes. When done, be careful when you open the seals as the steam would come out and it is pretty hot. Serve hot.
