I Scream for Ice Cream!

I've been dreaming about homemade ice-cream lately. I've tried a few recipes but the end product were not as soft and creamy as what we get from the supermarket. And I wasn't quite ready to splurge on fresh cream, which is not cheap where I live.

So I decided to try using the evaporated milk method. And here's the result.
Taa... daa!!



 
I was happy to find that the end product was soft and could be easily scooped out straight after removing from the freezer without having to leave it to thaw.

I had a quick taste after the short photography session. The verdict: texture is lovely but unfortunately it's a little too sweet for me. Perhaps I should reduce the sugar or add some dark chocolate to balance the sweetness. Next time, then. For those who have a sweet tooth however, this should be a lovely treat. Here's the recipe:

 

Ingredients

1 can ( 400g ) evaporated milk
½ cup soft brown sugar
1 sachet of chocolate malt drink powder (3 in 1)

Instructions:

1. Chill the milk in the fridge overnight.

2. Mix a small amount of the milk with the chocolate malt powder.

3. Pour the rest into a large mixing bowl with the sugar and whip until fluffy.

5. Add in the chocolate malt mix and continue beating.

6. Place the bowl in the freezer for an hour.

7. Pull out from the freezer and whip for 1 minute and back to the freezer.

8. Repeat about 4 times.

9. Place in a container with a lid and store in the freezer.

A Breakfast Dessert

Who wants some ice cream for dessert? No, I don't serve ice-cream for dessert, but that's what my daughter calls it. I would say it's more of a breakfast parfait. I got my inspiration from edible perspective.

 

Well, maybe it doesn't look like ice-cream. But presentation is key. I find this a wonderful way of serving oatmeal. That's right, oatmeal it is! Layered with mango, banana and raspberry and topped with homemade full cream yogurt. I think adults would like to have it for breakfast too!

Henna Art Cookies

Henna painting and baking are both my passion. I finally merged the two to produce these artful cookies.

 

My daughter loved them. She admires the designs first before trying to lick the icing off!

 

 

These are basically chocolate sugar cookies and royal icing. Cocoa powder is added to the icing to make the "henna paint". 



Pumpkin Pancake

Pumpkin Pancake, Mickey Mouse Style

Sometimes, on easy Sunday mornings, I make pancakes for my family. If I'm in the mood, I'd add a little twist to the flavour and also the presentation. Well, at least I attempt to.

Pumpkin pancake is quite a common feature in my house. I always add oats the the batter to increase fibre and nutritional value.  I thought I'd style it a little differently for a change. Thought it might interest my toddler.

Anyways, here's the recipe:

Pumpkin Pancake
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp rolled oats
about 200g of pumpkin, steamed
1 cup milk
1 egg

1. Mix together the flour, baking powder, oats and sugar.
2. Mash the pumpkin.
3. Beat the egg together with the milk and mashed pumpkin.
4. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the flour mixture. Beat till smooth.
5. Leave the batter for a few minutes before making the pancakes.

I made one big pancake and two small ones and assembled them to form a cartoon character. And then I painted the face with blackstrap molasses using a spoon.

The results... taa... daa....
Noted, it looks more like Scary Mickey but my daughter didn't complain.

Oh well, Mr. Smudge Eye gets eaten anyway.

Cheers to a healthy home made breakfast, however it may look like!

Drink Your Greens!

Thanks to a friend, I discovered green smoothies and have sort of become addicted to them. I find it much easier to take my vegies and fruits in blended form rather than to chew them in as they are. Not only that, they also taste great!

No one needs a recipe for this I guess. You just blend fresh green vegetables with a mixture of fruits. Something like this ...

A green smoothie with a touch of pink

If you wonder what the pink is, it's red dragonfruit smoothie!

Apple Upside-Down Cake

Tea time!

Some weekends are lovely enough just to be comfy at home, especially when there's cake  for tea.

I modified the original recipe a little, by adding Cointreau and poppy seeds in the cake. Here's the recipe:
 

Ingredients

3 apples , cored and sliced
150g butter , softened
25g light brown muscovado sugar
125g golden caster sugar
2 eggs , beaten
125g self-raising flour
2 tbsp poppy seeds
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
a dash Cointreau

1.       Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Put the apples in a large, non-stick frying pan with 25g butter , muscovado sugar,  1 tsp cinnamon and Cointreau. Cook over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes, until just tender and caramelised, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat.

2.       Butter and line a 20cm round, deep cake tin. Arrange the apples in the base, reserving the syrupy pan juices. Beat the remaining butter and sugar together until fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs, then sift in the flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Fold in gently until combined, then spoon the mixture on top of the apples. Level the surface and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until springy to the touch.

3.       Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn out on to a serving plate.

Growing Your Own Food

Fenugreek Sprouts



My sprouts left to develop greens on my balcony

I've read about growing sprouts at home. It seemed easy enough to do. So I tried it at home and the results were good. For breastfeeding mothers who take fenugreek tea as a galactagogue, this is a nice and different way to consume fenugreek.

The steps are simple: soak, rinse, drain and keep in a dark place. Basically just rinse about twice a day and you’ll get nice sprouts in about a week. I find that the jam jar is convenient to use. Just attach 2 pieces of gauze to the opening with a rubber band. To ensure having a dark place for the jar, I just covered it with old newspaper.

After 6 days I put the jar out in a bright place for a day to develop some chorophyll. Then it’s all good to eat!

Up close: you can see the little green leaves

Fenugreek Sprouts and Anchovies Salad

This isn’t a real recipe, I just sort of made it up:

Fenugreek sprouts and anchovies salad

Fenugreek sprouts, washed and drained

Handful of dried anchovies (ikan bilis)

1 tomato

2 tbsp olive oil

Juice of ½ lemon (or less)

1 tsp poppy seeds

1 tbsp honey

Salt and pepper to taste

1.    Fry the anchovies in oil until brown and crisp

2.    Cut the tomatoes into cubes or wedges

3.    Mix together the lemon juice, honey, olive oil and poppy seed. Add salt and pepper to taste.

4.    Toss everything together.