Stuffed Christmas Chicken

This is another backlog post!  I bake this Chicken for Christmas Eve last year.  This is not the first time I cook this dish, and with my table top Convention Oven, I prefer to use chicken instead of turkey.  This recipe is a keeper!

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken (cleaned and wiped dry)
25g butter (melted for basting)

Seasoning for chicken: (Mix together in a small bowl)
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1 tsp Chinese five spice powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Lea & Perrins sauce

Filling:
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp chopped big onion
5 fresh chestnuts, shelled and diced
50g carrot, diced
1 small potato, peeled and diced
5 pieces button mushrooms, diced
1 slice day-old white bread, crust removed and diced
1 egg, beaten

Seasoning for filling:
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1 tsp sugar
Dash of ground black pepper

Glaze for chicken: (combine)
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp maltose

Methods:

1. Rub chicken inside and out with combined seasoning ingredients.  Place the chicken standing on a bottle over a round container and place in the fridge to dry overnight.
2. Parboil potatoes and chestnuts until tender.  Simmer carrots in boiling water until soft.  Drain and set aside for later use.
3. Saute garlic and onions in melted butter and cooking oil until fragrant.  Add button mushrooms, cooked chestnuts, potatoes and carrots.  Mix in seasoning and stir-fry well.  Dish out to cool slightly.
4. Add bread and beaten egg, Mix well.
5. Stuff filling into cavity of chicken. (Do not over pack the chicken with filling or the skin will burst during cooking).  Secure the openings with wooden skewers or satay sticks.
6. Bring the combined glaze ingredients to a low boil for 5 to 10 minutes.  Leave aside to cool completely.  Brush chicken evenly with cooled glaze mixture.
7. Place chicken on a baking tray, breast side down, brush lightly with melted butter and  bake in a preheated oven of 190 degree Celsius for 30 to 35 minutes.
8. Turn the chicken breast side up.  Brush with glaze and bake for 10 minutes.  Brush chicken with melted butter and glaze, then continue to bake for a further 50 to 60 minutes or until cooked through.
9. To test if the chicken is cooked, pierce a skewer at the thickest part of the chicken, the juice will run clear and not pink.
10. Cut open the chicken and let's enjoy this 'Stuffed Christmas Chicken'....

This recipe is adapted from Amy Beh with slight amendments to suit my cooking.

Chocolate Almond Marbled Cake

Ingredients:
180g unsalted butter (softened)
100g caster sugar
2 tsp baking powder
180g plain flour (sifted)
75g ground almond
3 large eggs
2 tbsp milk
3 tbsp cocoa powder (sifted) and mix with 3 tbsp hot water to make a paste
50g dark chocolate chips

Methods:

1. In a bowl add in flour, baking powder, ground almond and stir to combine.
2. Cream butter and caster sugar together until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in one egg at a time, adding a tablespoon of the flour mixture in between.  Repeat until all three eggs have been added, then fold in the remaining flour mixture with a rubber spatula and stir in the milk.
4. Spoon half of the cake mixture into a separate bowl and mix in the cocoa paste.  Add the chocolate chips to the other half of the mixture.
5. In a lined  6 x 6-inch cake pan, add spoonfuls of each of the batter alternately to the pan and use a chopstick to create a marbled effect through the mixture.
6. Bake in a preheated oven of 180 degree Celsius for 40  to 45 minutes or a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.
7. Let the cake cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out and removing the parchment paper onto a cooling rack.

This recipe is adapted from Ann Low of 'Anncoojournal.com' with slight amendments.

Winter melon Chicken Soup

Opting for a soothing and nutritious soup with cooling properties during this hot season of the year in Malaysia is what most home-cooks will put that in mind when they prepare their daily meals.   

Cooked with chicken, the light sweetness of the winter melon makes the soup so refreshing, and the call for a second bowl of soup is inevitable.

Few simple steps to cook this soup:

1. Clean and cut the chicken into pieces, slightly larger than the chicken for stir-frying. Place the chicken in a large bowl.
2. Boil a pot of water using high heat, once the water boils off the heat and  pour some hot water over the chicken to blanch.  
3. Wash the winter melon, remove the skin, seeds and pulp and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Set aside for later use.
4. Reheat the pot with the remaining hot water, add in the drained chicken pieces and let it boil using medium heat.
5. Put a tablespoon of wolfberry in a bowl, wash, drain and set aside for later use.
6. When the chicken is almost cooked add in the winter melon and the wolfberry and continue to let it simmer until the winter melon is soft.  
7. Season the soup with salt and chicken stock granules.
8. Dish out and serve on individual soup bowls.

Stir-fried snow peas with prawns

As a homecook, at times I too run out of ideas or too lazy to think of what to cook; or nearing to the end of the week and my kitchen is running out of food; or too busy to go marketing, etc...

When I am in such a situation I will normally take a peek in my fridge, grab whatever items I can find, mix and match the ingredients, and there it goes...  a plate of stir-fried green peas with prawns.

Few simple steps:

1. Wash the snow pea and pull off the tough string that runs along the side of the pod.  Set aside.
2. For the prawns, remove shell, devein and set aside.
3. 1 shallot, peel and thinly sliced.
4. 2 garlic cloves, peel and chopped.  (sometimes I will use sliced garlic)
5. In a medium heated wok, add 1 1/2 tbsp of cooking oil, saute the shallots and garlic until fragrant.
6. Add in the snow peas and give it a few quick stir, then move the peas to the side of the wok, add in the prawns, stir-fry and mix in the peas.
7. Add some water, stir to mix.
8. Season with dashes of chicken stock granules, stir well to mix, taste for correct seasoning and once the peas is cooked, off the heat and dish onto a serving plate.  The doneness of the snow peas depends on individuals.  Some prefers it soft, while others prefers it crunchy.  So, cook it according to your family's liking.  

Stir-fried pork belly with salted fish

This pork belly and salted fish dish is one dish which many people will 'die for', so to speak!  I prefer to cook this dish with more sauce to go with the freshly cooked white rice, and if we have this dish on the dining table, always remember to cook more rice!

Ingredients:
300g pork belly (without skin and sliced)
2-3 sprigs of spring onion, cut into 1" length (I omit)
Some oil for cooking

Marinade:
1 tsp tapioca flour
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp shaoxing wine

Condiments:
30g salted fish (diced)
3 dried chilies (remove seeds, soaked and drain)
1 onion (peel and cut into chunks)
5 cloves garlic (peel and leave whole)
7 slices ginger

Sauce ingredients: (mix all in a bowl)
1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp granulated sugar
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp shaoxing wine
1 1/2 tsp dark soya sauce
100ml water (add more if needed)

1/2 tsp cornflour + 1/2 tbsp water (for thicken the sauce)

Methods:

1. Add the marinade ingredients into the pork belly, mix well, cover with cling wrap and marinate for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
2. Add 1 tbsp of cooking oil in a wok, turn on medium heat, add in salted fish and fry until fragrant.
3. Add in the remaining condiments and stir fry until fragrant.
4. Add in the marinated pork belly and stir fry until half cooked.
5. Stir in the sauce ingredients and mix well.
6. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until pork is fully cooked.  Add more water if needed.
7. Stir in the cornflour mixture and stir well.
8. When the sauce thickens and looks glossy, add spring onions (if using) and stir to mix.
9. Off the heat and dish onto a serving plate.
10. Time to serve dinner!!

I adapted this recipe from 'Miki's Food Archives' with very slight amendments.

Red Rice Chicken Soup

This easy-to-cook soup, though is very simple, but is nutritious and yummylicious.  With only 3 main ingredients and quick cooking time, it can be easily serve on the dinner table even on weekday nights. The chicken meat can be cut into bite-sized chunks to further ease the cooking time or in big pieces such as thighs or drumsticks.  The chicken meat can be prepared earlier, during your weekend marketing, clean and keep in the freezer.  The morning before you leave home, take the frozen chicken and place in the fridge and by the time you reach home after work the meat is thawed.

With these few simple steps this yummylicious soup can be serve with no hustle and bustle.

1. Place a pot of water to boil, amount depending on how much soup you are cooking.  I normally put extra water for blanching the chicken meat.
2. Place the chicken into a large bowl and pour some boiling water to blanch the meat.
3. Place the pot with the remaining boiling water back on the stove with medium heat.
4. Peel 1" ginger, smash with the back of a cleaver and add into the pot of water.
5. Dish out the blanched chicken meat and place them into the pot.
6. Take about 1/2 tablespoon of red rice and grind into powder using a mortar and pestle.  Use a spoon to add bit by bit into the boiling water.  How much is needed depends on the color of the soup and taste.  Don't put all at one time as too much of the grounded red rice will makes the soup taste slightly bitter.
7. Continue to boil using medium heat until the chicken meat is tender.
8. For seasonings you can use salt and some chicken stock granules.
9. Off the heat and serve in individual soup bowls... Yum! Yum!

If you are unsure what 'red rice' is, here is the picture of it.  It can be easily purchased in grocery shops, Chinese Medicinal Shops and even the grocery section of some Supermarkets.

This soup recipe is a favorite of my mum and it brings fond memories of my childhood days.  Enjoy cooking!!

Banana Crumb Muffins

Who could resist muffins that are topped with buttery-spiced crumb??  Not me  ~ smile ~ 

Let me share with you this recipe which I've baked in my home kitchen, tasted and nailed!

Ingredients:
(A)  For the Muffins
250g plain flour (sifted)
125g caster sugar
2 tsp baking powder (sifted)
1/2 tsp baking soda (sifted)
1/4 tsp salt (sifted)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 large egg
2 large bananas (mashed)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup Greek Yogurt

(B) For the crumb topping
1/2 cup plain flour (sifted)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp unsalted butter (cold and cubed)

Methods:

(A)  For the Muffins

1. In a bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ground cinnamon.  Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together egg, banana, vegetable oil and yogurt.  Add the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined.  Do not over mix.

(B)  For the crumb topping

1. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar and ground cinnamon.  
2. Work in the butter using a pastry cutter, fork, or fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Set aside.

(C)  To assemble the muffins and crumbs for baking

1. Spoon the batter into baking paper cups 3/4 full and top with the crumb mixture.
2. Bake in a preheated oven of 200 degree Celsius for 15-20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
3. Allow the muffins to cool completely on a wire rack.
4. Let's have tea!

This recipe is adapted from 'Marsha's Baking Addiction' with slight amendment.

Chocolate Brownies

If you are a big fan of Brownies and prefers it 'chocolaty, light, slight crisp on the edges and soft on the inside',  then this is the right recipe for you.  During my first attempt it just disappear in no time, thus have to bake another batch to satisfy our cravings...

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unsalted butter (melted)
1/2 cup plain flour (sifted)
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt (sifted)
1/4 cup cocoa powder (sifted)
1/2 tsp baking powder (sifted)
1 large egg
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Methods:

1. Combine sifted flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder in a mixing bowl.
2. In another bowl whisk together butter, sugar and egg.
3. Add egg mixture to the dry ingredients and mix using a rubber spatula.  Fold in dark chocolate chips and stir until just combined.
4. Pour mixture onto a lined 8" x 8" pan.
5. Bake in a preheated oven of 175 degree Celsius for 25-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
6. When completely cool, remove parchment paper and cut into slices.

This recipe is adapted from 'Treat and Trick" with slight amendment.

Coconut Fruitcake

Fruitcakes have been my family's favorite cakes which I made all year round.  However, we prefer the 'not-so-rich' types of fruitcakes which is not too sweet.  Anything that is not too sweet suits my family's taste buds very well.  Considering that I haven't update my blog for quite a while, thus, whatever I am posting now are mostly 'backlog' posts.  Hopefully I'll catch up soonest.  Cheers to all....

Ingredients:

1/2 cup or 225g unsalted butter (softened)

1 cup caster sugar

3 large eggs

2 cups plain flour (sifted)

1 tsp baking powder (sifted)

1 tsp salt (sifted)

1/2 cup freshly squeeze orange juice

1 cup mixed fruits (raisins, green and red cherries and orange peel)

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Methods:

1. Cream butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
2. Combine the sifted flour, baking powder and salt.  Gradually add to the creamed mixture alternately with orange juice and mix with a rubber spatula until well combined.  Stir in fruits and shredded coconut.
3. Press the cake mixture into a lined 8" round cake tin.
4. Bake in a preheated oven of 150 degree Celsius for about 80 minutes or until a wooden skewer comes out clean and the cake is golden in colour.
5. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Remove  the parchment paper and the cake is ready to be served...

This recipe is adapted from Taste Of Home by Lorraine Groh of Ferryville, Wisconsin with amendments to suit my family's taste buds and cooking.