es dawet...da what?

so on a recent trip to Yogyajakarta in Central Java, i simply had to try a local traditional drink...and here it is...it's called es dawet. it was absolutely delicious...a mixture of coconut milk (santen), palm sugar syrup (gula melaka or gula jawa) and rice flour. when it arrived it was all in it's layers...so you could see the dark brown of the palm sugar syrup, the white, creaminess of the coconut milk and the little bits of rice flour floating around...you give it a good stir and with a good serving of ice, this must be one of the most refreshing drinks i have had in a long time...slurp! very easy to make but with those delicious asian flavours...yummy!

home-made vanilla extract

what to do, when you live in a country, where the only vanilla extract you can buy in the supermarket is red and smells like banana? (really it does!) well, you go to Google, do a bit of research and find out how to make your own...and the best part? it's easy-peasy!

recipe

take one small glass bottle with a cork. wash thoroughly. leave to dry.
take 3 vanilla pods and cut lengthways leaving a little bit still intact at the bottom.

take one cup of any alcohol you like...vodka, rum, grappa, or in my case the local brew, arak and pour into little glass bottle.

stuff in the 3 vanilla pods.
cork.
store in a cool, dark place for 2 months to allow flavour to infuse.

use generously in baking...when levels deplete, top up and re-store.

could anything be simpler? who needs rocket science after all!

thai pineapple curry banana bread...devilishly divine!

so what do you do when you read on another blog, in this case the fabulous Not Quite Nigella, about a recipe that seems sure to tantalise the taste buds in a variety of ways? why you get out your mixing bowl and start making it, that's what! i mean how could i resist this recipe...curry pineapple banana bread??? the name itself conjures up a mixture of reactions ranging from the thoughts in your head...how can there be curry in a cake? to the impending taste on your tongue...hmmm, curry and banana...ok, ok...there's a possibility it could work...so i jsut had to find out for myself. the recipe originally came from an entry by Catherine from Clever Monkey Studio in a competition that was held on the blog...a banana bread bake-off, where everyone submitted entries based on their favourite banana breads. i entered it but don't remember seeing this recipe until it popped up last week on Not Quite Nigella's blog and my curiosity was piqued...i knew i had to give it a go.

and what a treat...i mean really, this has to be one of the nicest banana breads i have tasted in a long time. from the moment i started making it, there was surprise after surprise. i mean, the way you mix the ingredients for starters seems to be all back-to-front...start with the wet ingredients, end with the dry? but i have faith so i followed and the final batter was lovely and thick, with that beautiful orange tinge that can only come from the addition of the curry powder. and then 3 tablespoons of curry powder, i mean it seemed so excessive? could it really need that much? but in it went...as per instructions...

well, the smell of it baking in the oven was really enough to produce enough saliva to...umm, not sure where i can go with that...but you know what i mean. it was heavenly. rich and spicy and aromatic. and then when it came out...all golden and cracking open...oh, did i really have to wait for it to cool. i mean where was my brother when i needed him?...the one who always demands instant cutting of cakes...

and once i had a peek inside...oh it was better than opening the cover of a brand new book...those pieces of pineapple had become little blobs of soft, jammy, gooey stuff and the bread was rich and dark, and the smell...the bananas came through so wonderfully but then there was that faint hint of the curry. and that first mouthful...oh, divine upon divine...i loved it. not too sweet, but oh-so-flavourful...this is definitely to be made again...and if you know what's good for you...you'll get those mixing bowls out and be inspired to make one too!

Thai Pineapple Curry Banana Bread

3 ripe bananas
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp coconut milk powder (or unsweetened coconut)
1 tbsp lime juice
3 tbsp curry powder
1/2 cup chopped pineapple
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 325F. Spray Mix with spoon in a large bowl, melted butter, mashed bananas and coconut milk powder. Mix in sugars, egg, lime juice and curry powder. Add pineapple and mix. Mix in baking soda. Add the flour and mix. Pour into greased 4x8 loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour. Cool on rack before removing from pan.

a very Happy (un)Birthday to Me!

yes...it's my birthday...and for my party i just HAD to make my own cupcakes...cos let's face it...i'm such a freaking cake snob that i am so fussy about eating something i haven't made myself. i mean it has to be really good...so to avoid disappointment...i D-I-Y it! Being such an Alice in Winderland fan, i decided to throw a MadHatter's Tea Party and what better cupcakes than these...colourful vanilla cupcakes...decorated with those all important words 'eat me'. the very words that get Alice into all that trouble in the first place!

Happy Birthday to Me!

tutu cakes...the singapore answer to cupcakes??

so, i spent a lot of my childhood growing up in Singapore and one of my most favourite things to eat as a child, were tutu cakes or kueh tutu. i guess whilst most other children were growing up having cupcakes or fairy cakes (depending on what part of the world they were in) i grew up eating these. tutu cakes are basically little steamed cakes made from rice flour and with a filling of either sweetened coconut or chopped peanuts. often it's the simplicity of things that most appeals to me and these little cakes couldn't get much simpler. they are prepared on the spot and steamed in a couple of minutes and can be eaten while they're soft and warm straight from the steamer. so today while i was out, i found a counter selling them and just couldn't resist a trip down memory lane and a chance to experience a childhood favourite snack. i think generally it was being able to watch the whole process that fascinated me most and of course the fact that they could be eaten straight away. see for yourself...

the process of making the cakes - rice flour put first into the mold, the coconut is put on top

the cake is then covered up with more rice flour - you can see the chopped peanuts and the sweetened coconut...i've always been a coconut kinda gal!

the cakes are popped in the steamer

steamed for mere minutes in the very serious looking steamer...

then taken out and placed on a small square of banana leaf to stop them sticking together

you get 5 for $2.00 - in a plastic bag, no less!

and most importantly they must be instantly enjoyed, while still warm...a perfect little light fluffy cake...soft and delicate just like a tutu!

and inside...moist, sweet coconut...5 of these little guys are never enough!

you can find these little cakes in most food courts and hawker centres in Singapore...a local delight...made on the spot and not to be missed!

the cheesecake cafe, singapore

so, i went for coffee with a friend and we ended up at the cheesecake cafe at Siglap. and wow, what a surprise when i walked in the door. the decor of the inside was very baroque...but kinda overdone for me. i love concept cafes...don't get me wrong but this was a little too much. all that gold, all those statues...more like a renaissance brothel, perhaps, than a cheesecake cafe. anyway, then to my surprise we were handed a menu...which was a DVD cover! it was like huh? you decide on a concept cafe...but then you don't follow through...you make the menu a DVD cover which just doesn't blend with your theme...have a scroll, have something velvet-y...

ok so, after peering in the glass case i decided on a peanut butter cheesecake and my friend on a strawberry oreo cheesecake. the selection was a tad disappointing - i was expecting more...more cakes, more experimental flavours, more temptation. you're a cheesecake cafe, pretty much only selling cheesecake, so surprise me! tempt me! shake things up a bit!

the cheesecakes came and presentation was simple...the cake on the plate with not too much decoration on top, nothing additional on the plate...but then i shouldn't complain...i mean it's a cheesecake cafe so you serve it straight up because it's all about the cheesecake, right.

the strawberry oreo cheesecake was good - very light and i liked the oreo in the middle of it. the strawberry wasn't too overpowering and was more like a mousse and the plain cheesecake below was just nice, also light...the flavours blended together well and it was a good combination, even though personally i'm not a big fan of strawberry-flavoured things. i liked also that there was an oreo biscuit base...i've made one of those before and they're yummy!


then i had the peanut butter cheesecake...oh dear...it was a little too much. i thought the combination would be interesting but it the peanut butter combined with the cheesecake which seemed very thick and heavy, left a very pasty sensation in your mouth...so that you kinda felt like your mouth was sticking together and you needed to follow each mouthful with a gulp of water. for me, cheesecake needs to be light and even more so when you pair it with peanut butter - which is ntaurally quite heavy and gooey. i was obviously a little disappointed with this. i think i might have swirled the peanut butter through the cheesecake...rather than a layer on top and definitely lightened up the cheesecake itself.
finally, i must add, that as i attempted to take photos of both the cakes and the decor, i was swiftly informed by a staff member that photography of the cafe was only allowed if a member of the party were in it! huh? but by then i'd taken the shots i'd needed...but that's a first time for me to receive a warning like that...interesting...

the cheesecake cafe
685 East Coast Road Singapore 459054 (Near Siglap Centre)

lovely bubbly...pink champagne cupcakes for New Year's Eve!

so what is the perfect kind of cupcake for New Year's Eve? obviously something with sparkly bubbly in it...because that is the festive drink of the evening. everyone raises their glasses full of fabulous champagne and wishes for a year ahead full of health, wealth, happiness and prosperity. so how about taking said fabulous champagne and using it to make some cupcakes...i mean it has to be possible, right? people put all kinds of alcohol into cakes so why not champagne...surely all those bubbles would make any batter light, airy and ever-so-fairy!

so i set to searching the internet for recipes and found a few that interested me...so i did a bit of a mish-mash by combining a couple of recipes into one...it was so fun working with pink champagne...i just loved the way it bubbled up as it was poured into the batter. and the result...absolute fascination by all when they heard my reply as to what i had baked for the evenings festivities...'pink champagne cupcakes...really?' 'can you put champagne in cupcakes?' the answer is most definitely a resounding Y-E-S to both questions. the champagne seemed to add this whole other-worldliness element to the cupcakes. they were so light and fluffy but with this delicate aroma and taste of the rosy champagne...so perfect! i topped them with cream cheese champagne icing and some delightful chocolate squares that had those ever so important words printed on them. everyone was very taken with them and most, i noticed, had two all to themselves. and that for me is truly the sign that they taste good. i mean it's polite to eat one...but two...that's pure enjoyment! i just love when things go exactly according to plan...when you have an idea...you see it through to fruition and it is shamelessly devoured down to the last crumb...
may i take a moment to wish all my fantastic readers and fans a very very Happy New Year. may all your dreams come true in 2009 and may i continue to bake, create and please...don't break those resolutions now with too many cupcakes...unless they're mine, of course!

peanut butter-y goodness in a cup!

so a friend of mine is a mad, crazy peanut butter fan...so when we were invited over to his place for a hot dog extravaganza...how could i not make something with peanut butter in it. so a lot of the time when i think peanut butter...i think Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, i don't know why, but they are just the epitomy of peanut butter-ness in a little cup. and it just so happened that a certain candy store here in Singapore in Vivocity were having a one for one deal on aforementioned product...so how could i possibly pass up a bargain like that! 12 peanut butter cups for the price of 6! i'm a sucker for bargains and especially the sweet variety...
so anyway...i thought i'd try and drop the Reese's cup into the bottom of the cupcake and hope for the best that it would bake in. i used my brownie cupcake recipe - which is always a hit and dropped the peanut butter cup in first then topped with the batter. baked as usual...and the result...well, once they had actually been allowed to cool off properly (a few suspects couldn't wait and ate them while still cooling and the result was that the peanut butter cup dropped straight off the bottom...duh!) the Reese's cup held quite nicely and the cupcake was this yummy chocolate-y delight with a lovely layer of peanut butter at the bottom. very very more-ish! all you peanut butter fans out there...this is NOT to be missed!

mulberry spelt tart...a pie full of goodness!

what better way to get this super food than in a tart-full of them! this was made as a special request for a dear friend, and again, who am i to disappoint? so this is the result. i think i left the tart in for a little longer than i would have liked so would keep that in mind for next time...30 mins is definitely sufficient to ensure the crust is not too hard. but the taste with the mulberries and the earthy texture of the spelt was delicious. this is definitely a keeper!

toffee bread and butter pudding...get sticky all over!

bread and butter pudding is such comfort food...i love it...and what better way to enjoy it than with the bread spread thickly with toffee rather than butter...oh so good! and then to make sure you cover with a huge scoop of vanilla bean ice-cream and really there is never going to be a need to leave home again...! the best part of bread and butter pudding is that it is so easy to make and uses up all that few day old bread that no-one ever wants to eat any more...so what do you do? take about 8 slices of any old bread (no, really!) spread thickly with homemade toffee (the recipes on here somewhere), place in a pie dish, sprinkle lovingly with raisins and then add your custard mix consisting of 4 eggs, 3 cups of milk and 2 tblsp of honey on top...make sure bread is pressed into custard mix...pop in the oven in a bain marie...ya know the one where you have to put the dish in a tray of water...bake until golden brown on top and set...about 40 minutes...and then bob's your uncle, fanny's your aunt (well, not really!) it's done!

enjoy shamelessly...especially after all that intense hard preparation work!

charming chocolate mulberry cupcakes!

'here we go round the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush, the mulberry bush..' except today we're going round the mulberry cupcake - the chocolate mulberry cupcake! i was given some mulberries to play around with and felt the tartness of the berries would work well in the smooth, richness of chocolate.

mulberries are considered a kind of 'super food' because they are full of anthocyanins which are edible pigments which hold potential use as dietary antioxidants providing potential health benefits against a variety of diseases. i found a list of 10 health benefits of mulberries according to traditional medicine and although not scientifically verified, it makes for an interesting read...

Cancer Prevention

Mulberries are a good source of resveratrol, a potent phytonutrient also found in grapes that researchers believe can prevent cancer and aid in the fight of existing cancers.

Life Extension

Because of their resveratrol content, mulberries may be a tool in one's life extension arsenal, as resveratrol has shown in several studies to extend the life of mice.

Blood Tonic

In Chinese medicine, mulberries are considered a blood tonic, meaning that they cleanse the blood and increase its production, strengthening the entire system.

Kidney Strengthener

In Chinese medicine, mulberries are believed to strengthen the kidneys.

Liver Cleanser

In Chinese medicine, mulberries are believed to be effective in cleansing the liver.

Better Hearing and Vision

In China, tea made with mulberry paste is believed to strengthen one's hearing and vision.

Constipation Cure

In Turkey, a treatment for constipation is to eat white mulberries on an empty stomach with a glass of water.

Anemia Treatment

Because they are quite high in iron, mulberries are a great food to use in the treatment of anemia.

Cold and Flu Treatment

In Turkey, mulberry molasses is used as a treatment for colds and flu. Their effectiveness in this way may be due to their high vitamin C content.

Premature Gray Hair Remedy

In several countries, mulberries are considered an effective remedy for prematurely gray hair.

so what did i do...i used a previous recipe...one for black forest cupcakes and just swapped the mulberries for the black cherries. then i topped them off with some melted chocolate and a pecan! they were delicious. the mulberries provided these little bursts of tartness amidst the sweetness of the chocolate. and with all those anti-oxidants in there...what a perfect excuse to eat more!

coconut spelt and wholewheat loaf cake

ok, this was a serious venture into the unknown. an experiment into true healthiness. i have had next to no experience with spelt flour and pretty limited experience with wholewheat flour so this really was a journey into virgin territory. my friend who's kitchen i have been commandeering requested a healthy alternative to my loaf cake and who am i to refuse, i mean after all i am using their oven, mixer, sieve and spatula!

so i stuck to the usual loaf cake recipe with some alterations - instead of self-raising and plain flour, i worked with spelt and wholewheat. added some baking powder. then replaced sugar with agave syrup and added freshly grated coconut and vanilla powder (i never even knew there was such a thing!) and the end result...a lovely looking loaf cake! taste-wise this was very interesting. the texture was slightly crumbly and i think next time i would add more agave syrup because it could also have been a little sweeter. it was still moist and had a slight chewy consistency with the presence of the coconut. the spelt flour adds a very particular taste but it all comes together and when you know that it is a healthier alternative, you enjoy it even more. it certainly encourages me to experiment more with healthier flours and sugar alternatives and make some of those ever-so-fattening cupcakes a tad more gentle on the waistline!

the recipe...

250 g soft unsalted butter

5 Tbsp agave syrup

3 large eggs

200 g wholewheat flour

100g spelt flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp vanilla powder

150g fresh grated coconut

4 tablespoons milk

loaf tin

cream the butter, adding the syrup when it’s really soft, and creaming both together till pale and smooth and light.

sift together the flours and baking powder.
beat in the eggs one at a time, folding in a spoonful of the flour after each addition, then add the vanilla.
fold in the rest of the flour and finally add the coconut.
thin the batter with the milk - you’re after a soft, dropping consistency - and pour into the waiting greased tin.
pop it in the oven, and cook for 45 mins, or until a cake-tester comes out clean.

leave to cool on a wire rack in its tin, unmould and devour shamelessly - this time you can because it is more healthy!

i'm entering this for the culinarty original recipe round-up so check out the event if you have a favourite original recipe!

at long last...back in the kitchen with lemon chamomile cupcakes!

lucky me, lucky me...i was invited to a close friend's place over a long weekend we had here and guess what? he has an oven. it was like christmas, easter, birthday and all the other yearly celebrations coming in one great thigh-slapping whammo of an extravaganza. i was ecstatic! and so i was given free-reign in the kitchen to create, bake, explore and just enjoy the feel of the soft flour, cold butter and grainy sugar between my fingers again! ahhh, i have missed it so much. i contemplated just chaining myself to the oven and never leaving but alas, the call of duty forced my return back to my ovenless abode.

so my first creation...lemon camomile cupcakes. i adore the relaxing effect camomile has and i have often squeezed a bit of lemon into a cup of the tea to enhance the flavour. so i figured that a combo of lemon and camomile has got to go well together! and these were...light and fluffy with the tangy lemon icing...these are similar to the previous camomile cupcakes i made the only difference was the icing which was simply icing sugar and lemon juice mixed together until the desired consistency was reached. simply spoon it on...enough so that you get that mouth-watering drip effect as the icing hardens on it's way south. perfection in every bite!

a caramel-icious surprise!

i love surprises...and never more than when they come in the shape of something delightfully edible like these caramel cinnamon cookies! they were left at the gate of my house yesterday all wrapped up in tin foil by Toby, one of the staff children residing on the campus and his one request was that i might put them on my blog...so how could i possibly disappoint and even more so after i tasted them! they were delicious! buttery and moist, with just enough of a hint of cinnamon but then that sticky caramel on top that was just something i could have eaten on its own (my teeth might not have enjoyed that though!)

so thank you, Toby for ending my day with such a lovely wrapped up surprise and i look forward to sampling many more of your yummy creations!

oreo cheesecake...still 'no baked'... but still good!

a variation on a theme for you...this is similar to the previous post in that the basic cheesecake recipe is the same. the only difference - substitute the digestive biscuits for the oreos...and add a little more butter as the oreos are very dry and need more butter to keep them together and stop them from crumbling. make the cheesecake itself the same with the cream cheese, ricotta and honey and add chopped oreos to this. spread on top and bob's your uncle (well he probably isn't) and fanny's your aunt (most definitely not) but you get the idea, right?

i sprinkled some cocoa on top and i must say that this was a very rich cheesecake. it was good that i cut it up into bars because a moderate square was ample enough for dessert. the cheesecake seemed to set better this time and i wonder whether the addition of the oreos helped this. it was yummy and really hit the spot...filling a huge chocolate craving. the best part - i invited several teachers over after lunch and shared it all with them...when you're living in the jungle, it's all about the treats...and with the nearest cake shop about 30 minutes away, well you can imagine it went down pretty well!