Chocolate Nutella Mug cake

Early in the morning, my son wants to have strawberry cheesecake from the videoclip he saw the night before for breakfast. I wasn't going to make one, as it requires at least 3hrs  of sitting in the fridge.

So 'suppression vs substitution' strategy,  I decided on substitution. Substitute with a chocolate mug cake, so I googled and found this recipe. He was thrilled as it is fun and fast. Most importantly, it is yummy chocolate cake!

Adapted from http://www.thenovicechefblog.com/2013/02/chocolate-peanut-butter-mug-cake/

Chocolate Nutella Mug Cake

Yield: 1 mug cake

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon Nutella 

Directions:

1) In a large mug, whisk (with a small whisk or large fork) together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt). 

2) Add the milk, vegetable oil and nutella. Whisk until smooth. 

Optional:add in white chocolate chips into batter, sprinkle thousands n thousands sprinkles on top.

3)Cook in the microwave on high for 1 minute and 10 seconds. This recipe will rise a lot and then deflate. I know it's strange, but trust me it's delicious! 

3)Serve immediately!

Possible variation is to stir in mini marshmallows or some chopped walnuts to add a little something different! Add both and it's like a Rocky Road Mug Cake! 

Pan fried ribbon fish

Ingredients:

1 ribbon fish cut into 1.5inch pieces (approx 500g)

Ginger slices

Salt

Hua diao wine

Oil

Directions 

1. Marinate with ginger and salt for 30 min

2. Sprinkle some hua diao wine to remove fishy smell

3. Heat up the oil

4. Pat dry before frying. Avoid flipping it frequently to ensure the fish remain intact.

5.Fried till golden brown. Serve with porridge or rice. 

Optional

Braised ribbon fish

(Fry without marinating, return the fried fish into wok, add 1/2cup water, 1/2 tbsp hua diao wine, 1 tbsp light soya sauce, 1tbsp dark soya sauce and 1tbsp sugar)

Cranberry scone

Ingredients

2

 

cups

 

Plain Flour

1/2

 

cup

 

Sugar

1/2

 

teaspoon

 

Baking Soda

1/2

 

teaspoon

 

Salt

1/3

 

cup (80g)

 

Unsalted Butter

 

, cold

1

 

cup

 

Milk

1

 

teaspoon

 

Vanilla Essence

1/2

 

cup

 

Cranberries

1/2

 

cup

 

White Chocolate

1

 

tablespoon

 

Lemon Juice

Directions

1) Preheat oven at 200°c 

2) Mix 1 tbsp lemon juice and milk to make a total of 1 cup. Leave aside to set for 10-15 minutes to make buttermilk.

3) Sieve dry ingredients into a bowl.

4) Add in cold butter, cut into smaller pieces.

5) Rub butter with fingertips until all incorporated. Mixture should resemble bread crumbs (shortcut: food processor pulse 10-15 times till bread crumbs texture obtained)

6)Mix in cranberries and white chocolate.

7)Add vanilla essence to buttermilk.

8)Pour buttermilk into dry ingerdients. add just enough to form a dough.

9)Place golf ball sized batter using ice cream scoop on a greased baking tray and bake at 200°c for 8-10 minutes.

10) Remove from oven and cool for 5-10 minutes.

11) Plate and serve.

Moist Brownies with chocolate glaze

Fudgy moist brownie, best top with raspberries. Baked on oven tray, Cut into 3cm squares to serve 50pax.

Adapted from http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/143667/brookes-best-bombshell-brownies?nextItemId=143667&position=0

http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/14976/hard-chocolate-glaze?ast=chocolate%20glaze&asas=Mobile%20Recipe%20Photos&asat=Quick%20Search&ase=event10,event8

Ingredients

• 225 g butter, melted
• 600 g white sugar
• 15 ml vanilla extract
• 4 eggs

• 190 g all-purpose flour
• 85 g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 6 g salt
• 170 g semisweet chocolate chips

• 
  

  Ingredients (glaze)

  • 115 g unsalted butter

  • 280 g semisweet chocolate
  
  
  

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish. Or line healsio oven tray with baking paper
2. Combine the melted butter, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each, until thoroughly blended.
3. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a bowl. Gradually stir flour mixture into the egg mixture until blended. Stir in the chocolate morsels. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish.
4. Bake in preheated oven until an inserted toothpick comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. 
   
5. To prepare glaze:Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Combine chocolate with butter in the top of a double boiler, over simmering water. Stir frequently until melted and smooth. Remove from heat.
6. Pour on the brownie while hot and dress it with walnut or raspberries. Chill in fridge, cut into 3cm squares to serve with ice cream or in its own.

• 1 cup butter, melted
• 3 cups white sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 4 eggs

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Steam Brinjal (茄子凉拌）

A simple healthy brinjal dish. 

Adapted from a Neighbour's recipe. 

Great as a dish or appetizer. 

Ingredients:

2 long brinjals

Sauce:

2 tsp minced Garlic

2 tsp ginger shreds

2 Tbsp dark vinegar

2 Tbsp light soya sauce

1 Tbsp hua tiao ju

1 tsp sesame oil

3 tsp sugar

2 stalks coriander (diced)

2 stalks spring onion (diced)

4 chilli padi  (diced)

Directions:

1) cut brinjals in strips of 5cm 

2) steam 10-15 min

3) pour the sauce on top

4) serve hot as a dish or serve cold as appetizer 

Light cheesecake for diabetic

I needed a sugar free birthday cake for my diabetic dad. A cake that everyone can eat without compromising waistline.

So I substituted the sugar from this light cheesecake to make it really lite(low calorie).  It is not as fluffy as its sugar version but it is a nice not-so-dense type of cheesecake. Those who are watching blood glucose  now can eat in peace and indulge in an extra slice.

Adapted from http://m.xiachufang.com/recipe/116152/

Ingredients (6" cake): 

100g cream cheese

3 egg yolks

50g milk

1 tsp vanilla essence

30g unsalted butter

15g cake flour

10g cornstarch 

3 egg whites

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

4 Tablespoons Equal sweetener

Directions

• 1
  Separate the egg yolks and egg white into clean and dry bowls.       
• 2
  Sift the cake flour and cornstarch. 
• 3
  Blend cream cheese, milk, butter and vanilla essence over 65degree Celsius water, until creamy mixture is obtained.   
• 4
  Blend in egg yolk quickly using a blender till mixture increase volume a little.
• 5
  Fold In the sifted cake flour and cornstarch.  
• 6
  Preheat the oven to 160 degree celsius. 
• 7
  Beat the egg white till foamy, add in the cream of tartar and half the amount of Equal sweetener twice continue to beat until soft peak is obtained.    
• 8
  Fold in one third of the egg white into the creamy mixture. Then fold in the rest of the egg white into the mixture gently.
• 9
  Pour into the greased mold and shake-tap to remove air bubbles. Put it in the upper rack tray and fill the lower rack tray with water. Bake for 1hr or till the test stick comes out clean.
• 10
  After 2 min of cooling, cake will shrink from the sides. Remove from mold. (No need to cool inverted) Accessorize with fruits, chilled before serving.  

  
  

  
  

Molten Chocolate lava cake

 

Adapted from:http://m.allrecipes.com/recipe/219964/chef-johns-chocolate-lava-cake/?src=VD_Summary

Ingredients

• butter as needed
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 eggs
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 100g chopped dark chocolate

 

• 5 tablespoons butter
• 8g unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3 tablespoons flour (25g)
• 1 pinch salt
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. 1) Generously butter the inside of 4 (5 1/2 ounce) ramekins. Place them in a casserole dish.
2. 2) Whisk together egg yolks, eggs, and sugar in a bowl until light, foamy, and lemon colored.
3. 
   
   
4. 3) Melt chocolate and butter in a microwave-safe bowl in 30-second intervals, stirring after each melting, 1 to 3 minutes.
5. 
   
   
6. 4) Stir melted chocolate mixture into egg and sugar mixture until combined.
7. 5) Sift cocoa powder into the mixture; stir to combine.
8. 6) Sift flour and salt into the mixture; stir to combine into a batter.
9. 7) Stir vanilla extract into the batter.
10. 8) Transfer batter to a resealable plastic bag. Snip one corner of the bag with scissors to create a tip.
11. 9) Divide batter evenly between the prepared ramekins; tap gently on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
12. Optional: push in a ball of garanche 
13. 10) Refrigerate 30 minutes.
14. 11) Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
15. 12) Arrange the ramekins in a casserole dish. Pour enough hot tap water into the casserole dish to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
16. 13) Bake in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes. Set aside to cool for 15 minutes.
17. 14) Loosen the edges from the ramekin with a knife. Invert each cake onto a plate and dust with powdered sugar.