Chinese Pork Meatballs (Char Siew Style)

Ingredients:
250g minced pork
1/2 tbsp cornflour
1/2 tsp minced ginger
2 garlic cloves (minced)
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp five-spice powder
Dashes of grounded white pepper
Cooking oil (for frying)

Dipping Sauce:
1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp boiled water (room temperature)
1 1/2 tbsp. honey

Methods:

1. In a  bowl combine minced pork, cornflour, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, light soy sauce, five-spice powder and pepper, and mix well.  Cover with cling wrap and let it sit in the fridge until time for cooking.
2. Roll 1/2 heaping tablespoon or more (depending on your preference) of pork mixture into a ball and continue until all the pork mixture is used up.  Place them in a flat plate.
3. In a wok heat enough cooking oil (for medium fry). When the oil reach medium heat, lower the meatball into the oil in batches.  
4. Cook without moving for about 2 minutes, or until the bottom are cooked through.  Use the spatula to carefully rotate the meatballs to cook on the other sides.
5. When the meatballs are cooked through, dish and place on kitchen paper to remove the excess oil.  Continue until all is done.
6. Combine all the dipping sauce ingredients together and mix well.
7. Serve with dipping sauce.

Notes:  I am using the normal light soy sauce instead of the low-sodium soy sauce, thus I am adding a tablespoon of water to reduce the saltiness.  I serve this meatballs as a meat dish for dinner, accompanied with rice.

I adapted this recipe from Charmaine Ferrara of WEST via MIDWEST with slight amendments.

Jam Doughnut Muffins

Ingredients:
1/2 cup fresh milk
5 tbsp corn/vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 1/3 cup self-raising flour (sifted)
1/3 cup caster sugar
Strawberry Jam
50g melted unsalted butter
1/2 cup caster sugar

Methods:

1. Grease the mini muffin pan with oil/butter and set aside.
2. In a bowl add milk, oil and eggs and beat using a hand whisk.
3. Add in self-raising flour and 1/3 cup caster sugar and roughly fold the mixture until just combined.  The lumps doesn't matter as this will make the muffin soft.
4. Spoon the mixture into each pan hole to half full. Then add about 1/8 teaspoon strawberry jam, then top with more muffin mix until just about full.
5. Place them in a preheated oven and bake for about 18 to 20 minutes until the tops have puffed up into little toadstools.  Meanwhile, melt the 50g unsalted butter and place it in a small bowl.  Lay the 1/2 cup caster sugar in a shallow plate.
6. As soon as the muffins are out from the oven, remove them from the pan.  Dip the top in butter and then in the sugar.
7. Serve immediately.

Notes:

1.  I did not dip the whole muffin in butter as I am not coating the whole muffin in the caster sugar.  I prefer it less sweet.
2. These little muffins taste equally tasty when served warm or after cooling down at room temperature.  I place the leftover muffins in a container and keep them in the fridge. To consume, I warm them in an oven toaster for a quick 1 to 2 minutes and it's as fresh and yummy as the "just cooked" ones.
3. This recipe makes 24 mini muffins and for the leftover mixture I use the normal muffin pan.  It makes 2. Ta...da...

Another great and easy recipe adapted from Anncoo Journal by Ann Low with slight amendment to suit my family's taste buds.

Chia Seeds Almond Butter Cake

Ingredients:
250g unsalted butter (room temperature)
130g caster sugar
4 large eggs (lightly beaten)
200g plain flour 
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
4 tbsp ground almond
4 tbsp natural yoghurt
2 tbsp black chia seeds

Methods:

1. Line a 8 inch round cake tin at the bottom and grease sides. Set aside.
2. Sift plain flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl, then mix in ground almond and set aside.
3. Beat butter and caster sugar with an electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy.
4. Reduce speed to low and slowly add in beaten eggs until mixture incorporated.
5. Add in flour mixture in 3 batches and fold well with a rubber spatula.
6. Add in yoghurt, fold well and lastly add chia seeds and mix well.
7. Pour batter into prepared cake tin and bake in a preheated oven of 180 degree Celsius for about 45 to 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
8. Remove the cake from the oven, let it stay in cake tin for 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to let it cool completely.
9. Slice and serve!

Notes: I place the leftover cakes (after 2 days) in a container and placed in the fridge.  It still taste great!

This recipe is adapted from Anncoo Journal by Ann Low.

Pumpkin Jelly

Ingredients:
450g pumpkin
1/3 cup water
1 tbsp chia seeds
500ml water
2 1/2 tsp agar-agar powder
7 tbsp honey
2 tbsp lemon juice

Methods:

1. Clean, peel and deseed pumpkin, cut into slices and steam until soft.
2. Hand puree pumpkin with 1/3 cup water until smooth, or use a blender to blend.
3. Add 500ml water into a pot with agar-agar powder.  Boil at medium heat and stir with a hand whisk.  Add honey, lemon juice and chia seeds and continue to stir for about 1 minute.
4. Pour pumpkin puree into agar-agar mixture in (3) and keep stirring for another 2 minutes, and off the heat.
5. Pour pumpkin mixture into desired mould and chill for at least 2 hours or until the jelly sets before serving.

This recipe is adapted from Ann Low with slight adjustment.

Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

Once a while I will opt for a nutritious glass of healthy-filling Smoothie for lunch rather than a heavy meal of rice and other dishes.  I am sharing this yummy recipe with everyone out there who are interested to join me to go 'healthy'...

Ingredients:
2 medium bananas (peeled, sliced and frozen)
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 cup fresh milk (cold)
1/2 tbsp raisins
1/3 cup rolled oats
1 tsp chia seeds
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

Methods:

1. Add all the ingredients into a blender bowl and blend into a smooth consistency.
2. Serve immediately.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

"Pumpkin lovers" are sure to fall in love with this "Simple yet yummylicious" easy-to-make Muffins.  With the cream cheese toppings it is indeed a muffin worth craving for and to bake in our home kitchen.

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups plain flour

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

15 oz pumpkin puree (fresh)

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Cream Cheese topping:

8 oz cream cheese

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 egg yolk

Methods:

1. In a medium bowl, sift in plain flour, cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, baking soda and salt.  Using a hand whisk, mix until well combined and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin, sugar and brown sugar.
3. Add eggs and continue to whisk and follow by vegetable oil.  Slowly whisk in flour mixture until there are no lumps.  
4. Place paper baking cups into muffin pan.  Fill with the pumpkin mixture 3/4 full.
5. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth.  Add in sugar and egg yolk and beat until well combined and creamy.
6. Top each muffin with about 1 tablespoon of cream cheese mixture and use a toothpick to swirl it into the batter.  
7. Bake muffins in a preheated oven of 190 degree Celsius for 20 - 25 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Cool muffins on a wire rack.  Consume at room temperature or slightly chilled.  Any leftover can be place in an airtight container in the fridge.

Notes:  My table top oven can only bake 12 muffins at a time, which is two, six muffin pan.  Thus for my second batch of muffin I did not swirl the cream cheese mixtures into the pumpkin, instead, I just topped the cream cheese over the pumpkin mixtures.  This is the outcome of the last batch...

This recipe is adapted from "The No Rice Chef" with some amendments.

Lion's Head Meatball

Ingredients:
(A)
300g minced pork
1/2 egg white
2 pcs dried mushrooms (soaked and chopped)
1 tsp ginger juice
1 tsp Shaoxing Wine
Dash of sesame oil
2 tbsp cornflour
Salt and pepper (to taste)

(B)
3 leaves Chinese cabbage
3 pcs button mushrooms (halved)
2 pcs dried mushrooms (soaked till soft and halved)
Few slices of carrot
2  cups water (add more if needed during cooking)
1 tsp cornflour
1/3 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp chicken stock granules 

Methods:

1. In a large bowl add all ingredients (A) and mix until well combined.  Shape into larger balls.
2. Heat up 3 tbsp cooking oil and fry meatballs till golden brown on both sides. Discard excess oil while leaving the meatballs in the wok.
3. Add in ingredients (B), stir well and taste for correct seasoning. Simmer until sauce is reduced. Off the heat.
4. To serve, in a deep plate lay the cabbage on the bottom and dish the rest of the ingredients over the cabbage.

I adapted this recipe from Recipe Book "Meatballs and Dumplings" by Evon Kow.