We have a winner (recipe updated)

After 6 different vanilla cupcake recipes, I've found the one. Perfectly moist n crumbly. A tad sweet but that's easily fixed. Recipe coming up shortly.

Okay let me qualify. I think this recipe will be a great base for further flavoring. Can add 1-2 tablespoons of match powder, or fill it with cream etc because it's more moist. I think in terms of texture and appearance, the magnolia bakery vanilla cupcake rivals this and probably taste better on it's own (i.e. without additional flavoring). 

Perfect Vanilla Cupcakes

Recipe by Glorious Treats

Yields- 15-16 cupcakes

1 1/4 cups cake flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup oil (vegetable, canola or extra light olive oil)

1/2 cup buttermilk

(or 1/2 cup milk plus 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar or lemon juice- add acid to the milk then set aside for 5 minutes before using)

Directions-

* Preheat oven to 350*F.

* In a medium bowl, add cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Stir together with whisk, and set aside.

* In the bowl of an electric mixer, add eggs and beat 10-20 seconds.  Add sugar and continue to beat on medium speed about 30 seconds.  Add vanilla and oil, beat.

* Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add about half of the flour mixture.  Add half of the milk, then the rest of the flour and the rest of the milk.  Beat until just combined.  Scrap down the side of the bowl.

* The batter will be thin.   Pour batter into a muffin pan prepared with paper liners.  Fill liners about 2/3 full.

* Bake cupcakes in pre-heated oven for 12-14 minutes.

* Cool in pan 1-2 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan (carefully) and finish cooling on a wire rack.

* Frost as desired when fully cool. 

* Feel free to use this recipe for a cake as well.  The recipe above will work for a 6″ cake.  Double the recipe for an 8″ or 9″ cake.

* A note about Cake Flour-  Cake Flour has a lower protein content than traditional all-purpose flour, which results in a more tender, delicate crumb in the finished product.  If you can not find or access cake flour, feel free to substitute as necessary, but your results will vary from the original recipe.

Mocha cupcakes with mocha buttercream frosting

Recipe from Brown Eyed Baker. 

Mocha Cupcakes

Yield: 12 cupcakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes Baking Time: 17-20 minutes

1-1/3 all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup whole milk
½ cup strong brewed coffee
1½ teaspoons espresso powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
1 egg, at room temperature

1. Mix the espresso powder into the brewed coffee until dissolved; set aside to cool to room temperature.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard-size muffin tin with paper liners.

3. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

4. Beat the butter and both sugars together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. In a measuring cup, combine the milk, brewed coffee mixture and vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixture, alternating with the coffee mixture, ending with the flour mixture.

5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 liners. Baking for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting cupcakes.

(Cupcake recipe adapted from My Baking Addiction)

Espresso Buttercream Frosting

Makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups powdered sugar
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons espresso powder

1. Mix the espresso powder into the vanilla until dissolved; set aside.

2. Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, stopping once to scrape the sides of the bowl. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the powdered sugar a little at a time, waiting until it is mostly incorporated before adding more. Once all of the powdered sugar has been added, scrape the sides of the bowl and increase the speed to medium-high and whip until fluffy, about a minute or two. Add the espresso and vanilla mixture and continue to mix at medium-high until it is completely incorporated, scraping the sides as necessary.

Decorating tips: I used round tips and kept dotting!

I am in awe of these beautifully delish coconut cream cupcakes from carrot top mom. Omg omg omg... Are the mini cupcakes cute or what! The mini ones are best for those who don't want to commit to the whole cupcake. But then again aren't cupcakes for those who don't want to commit to an entire cake? Commitment problems apparently make adorable cupcakes. I'm obviously going coconuts over these cupcakes.

Coconut Cream Cupcakes

Yields 18 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

• Cupcakes:
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup reduced coconut milk (NOT Reduced Fat. See below), room temperature (TOTAL, begin with 2 14oz cans of coconut milk)

• Frosting:
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 8 cups powdered sugar
• 2/3 cup reduced coconut milk (see above), room temperature
• 2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened flaked coconut, (optional, for garnish)

DIRECTIONS

1. For reduced coconut milk: Bring 2 cans (14 ounces each) coconut milk to boil in large deep saucepan over medium heat (coconut milk will boil up high in pan). Boil until reduced to 1 2/3 cups, stirring occasionally, 30-45 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. Cover; chill (coconut milk will settle slightly and thicken as it cools). DO THIS AHEAD, allowing to chill overnight: Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled, allowing to come to room temperature when ready for use.
2. For cupcakes: Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line eighteen muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add sugar; beat on medium-high speed until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating and scraping sides well after each addition. Add half of flour mixture; mix on low speed just until blended. Do not overblend. Add 1 cup reduced coconut milk; mix just until blended. Add remaining flour mixture; mix on low speed just until blended. Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake cupcakes until tops spring back when gently touched, about 20 minutes. Transfer cupcakes in pans to rack; cool 10 minutes. Carefully remove cupcakes from pans and cool completely on rack.
3. For Frosting: Cream butter on high for 2 minutes. Add powdered sugar, reduced coconut milk, and vanilla extract. Beat gradually at first, until combined. Beat on high for an additional 2-3 minutes, or until smooth and creamy.
4. Frost cooled cupcakes. Sprinkle with coconut if desired, for garnish. (They will have plenty of coconut flavor without the garnish!)
5. Do not refrigerate. As with all my cupcake recipes, the flavors are best at room temperature! 

Drunk on Hainanese Chicken Rice

Over the past year or so, i've kind of learnt how to make a pretty mean Hainanese Chicken Rice. I never shared the recipe because I tell myself that I'll first need to take a picture of the full meal in its glory before I post the recipe, it never happens. We always just dig right in when the rice is steaming hot.

Anyway, i'm not going to wait any longer. Here's the recipe. I promise you it's good.

Ingredients:
1 whole Chicken (三黄鸡 or Sakura Chicken in Singapore is more suitable for poaching)
Cloves of Garlic
Spring Onion
Ginger
4 cups of rice
Pandan leaves
Cucumber (sliced)
Salt
Soy Sauce
Sesame Oil
Some whisky or brandy

For Chili sauce:
Ginger
Garlic
Red Chili
Small chili paid
Sugar
Salt
Lime

Chili sauce:

1. Blanch 2 portions of red chili, 1 portion of garlic, 1 portion of ginger, and some small chili paid.
2. Blend everything together and add sugar, salt and lime to taste. 
3. If you think there is no kick, throw in a couple more RAW garlic in the blender. 
4. You can make the chili in advance and freeze them for future meals.

Chicken:

1. Rub the chicken skin with a lot of salt, don't worry about using too much because we are just exfoliating the skin. Wash chicken down and you'll get nice smooth skin.
2. Stuff the chicken with peeled garlic, chopped spring onions and slices of ginger.
3. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, water level just enough to submerge the whole chicken. 
4. Put the chicken breast down into the boiling pot of water, turn to medium-low heat. Leave the pot open and boil for 3-4mins. Then cover, and turn off the fire. Wait for 20 minutes. 
5. Repeat step 4, but flip the chicken first. In the meantime, prepare an ice water bath. 
6. Once step 5 is done, test if the chicken is cooked. Stick it with a chopstick, if it pokes through easily chicken is cooked. 
7. Take out chicken and plunge into ice bath. 
8. DO NOT THROW THE chicken stock. Add some salt to taste.
9. Prepare a bed of cucumber slices.
10. Slice the chicken and place on cucumber slices. (youtube if you do not know how to debone the chicken)
11. Prepare a mixture of 1 part soy sauce, 1 part sesame oil, and a dash of brandy or whisky. 

Rice:

1. Prepare about 1/4 cup ginger juice. Chop up a clove of garlic.
2. In a wok, add a bit of cooking oil and some butter. Stirfry garlic, ginger juice and pandan leave. 
3. Add rice (wash it first!).
4. Fry until fragrant, if too dry add a few spatulas of chicken stock. 
5. Put rice into rice cooker, fill the rice cooker with more chicken stock. Use more of the chicken fat floating on top of the soup so the rice will be tastier. You should use a little less water than when cooking normal rice because you've already fried the rice before and added some water then.

Before serving:

1. Add a spatula of hot chicken stock into the chili sauce and mix. It's supposed to be a bit watery.
2. Also add a few spatulas of hot chicken stock into the soy sauce mixture on step 11. And pour over chicken. 
3. Serve with chicken rice. 

Optional ginger sauce:

1. Ground ginger
2. Ground garlic
3. Ground spring onions
4. Sesame oil
5. Pour hot soup before serving. 

Anyway here's a funny pic of us 3 after a delish chicken rice meal. I went a little crazy on the whiskey and Mountain Boy was a little tipsy after so we all end up giggling and doing silly things. 

Maple syrup carrot cupcakes

Another score from carrottopmom. The recipe is easy as it boasts, and the carrot cake is moist which is the way i like my carrot cake. I would however revert to her cream cheese frosting from the red velvet cupcake recipe. That one seems to have a tang, this one is a little too sweet for me.

Cupcake Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil (or 1/2 cup half applesauce, 1/2 cup oil)
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 3 cups grated carrots

1. In a small bowl, combine the first six ingredients. In a large bowl, beat eggs, oil and syrup. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in carrots. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.
2. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

Frosting Ingredients

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon maple extract or flavoring
• 2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
• 1 (16 ounce) box confectioners’ sugar

1. Beat cream cheese, and softened butter until light and fluffy. Add syrup and extracts.
2. Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar until smooth.
3. Spread frosting on completely cooled cupcakes.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Bitten by the baking bug again. This time i'm onto Red Velvet Cupcakes. It's supposed to taste a bit chocolatey-sour and this recipe i found is just heavenly. I made a previous batch from Paula Deen and it's very yucky and not as beautiful looking.

I made a few tweaks to the sugar because i find most ang-moh recipes to be too sweet. (my comments in RED).

Makes 24 large, or 30 medium cupcakes

• 2 1/4 cups flour (I use all-purpose)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 1/4 cups sugar (REDUCED TO 2 cups)
• 4 eggs (I find Singapore and China eggs small compared to ang-moh eggs so add 1 more to the recipe)
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (or milk with 2 teaspoons lemon juice) (I put 1 table spoon of vinegar in 1 cup, and then top it up with milk to 1 cup exactly and let stand for 5 mins)
• 1 ounce red food coloring** (okay, that is a lot of red food coloring!) It doesn’t change the taste, so I only use 1 teaspoon unless the red color is really important to me. (I used Wilton's NO TASTE Red and it's good!)
• 4 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Cream Cheese Frosting (This has been revised to show the cream cheese and butter cold, resulting in a less runny frosting.) If you want the piled high frosting, like the picture, make 1 1/2 the recipe of frosting and pipe it on with a piping bag or ziploc bag (do not try to spread it with a knife).

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, cold
• 1/4 cup butter, cold
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
• 16 ounces confectioners’ sugar (I only used 1 cup++, 16 ounces will be ridiculously sweet IMO)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
2. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat. Spoon batter into 24 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.
3. Bake 18 to 22 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Gently remove from oven (these are super-moist, and will collapse if you aren’t careful). Cool in pans on wire rack at least 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting. (Do not frost until totally cooled, or the frosting will slide off!)
4. Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting: With a high powered mixer (stand up mixer if you have one) beat cold cream cheese, butter, sour cream and Pure Vanilla Extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Scrape bowl, and beat again. Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Once smooth, turn beaters to high (I use my Kitchenaid) and whip on high for 5 minutes, until very fluffy. I am frequently asked how I get the piled high frosting. I do this with a piping bag, or a Ziploc bag with a 1 inch hole cut out of the corner will work perfectly. I always pipe the frosting on, instead of spreading it with a knife. That is how I get the tall pile of frosting. IF you do want the tall pile, I recommend doing 1 1/2 the recipe for frosting, to make sure you have enough.
5. Frost the cupcakes generously, and serve at room temperature! If you make these, I hope you will drop me a comment and let me know how they turned out!
6. In response to the comments who have had trouble with the frosting…These are the exact proportions I use. I do not add more sugar, or it will be very sweet, but it is important that the cream cheese and sour cream are cold. If the frosting is too runny, I recommend putting the frosting in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before piping it on. Also, your cupcakes MUST be totally cooled. The frosting may seem a little too moist at first, but if you can get it to form a pile, and leave the cupcake uncovered for 1 hour or so, it will form a slightly dry crust (not a bad crust, I promise), so it won’t seem so gooey. (I don't have a kitchen aid, my mixer is $30 from 5 years ago. It's gonna be hard and all the cheese will get stuck to the mixer but persevere!)

The fate of bananas

3 food entries in a row. I'm on fire!

I hate having to buy a big bunch of bananas from the supermarket because we can never finish all before they turn mushy and horrible. It's also a big waste to dump them. So the best way to deal with over-ripened bananas is really to turn them into nutritious and wholesome breakfast banana breads.

I haven't found THE recipe yet... The one i baked above was ngeh... okay only. It didn't make anyone feel like 2nd helpings. If you have a good one to share please do!

Complete the sentence: The best recipes come from....

... the back of ingredients packaging. I swear on it.

I've tried alot of internet recipes and if i compare them with the ones behind the packaging, i have to say the latter wins hands down.

I recently made a batch of soft oatmeal cookies using the Gold Medal Unbleached Flour Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe and it came out just heavenly crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. I made only one slight change to the recipe. Added 1plus a bit of egg instead of 1 egg because i feel that china eggs are very small.

Separated the dough into 2 batches.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip with walnuts.

Oatmeal with cranberry and white chocolate.

Mountain Man and boy prefers the cranberry/white chocolate combination. =)

Project Fatten Mountain Boy commences!

I am sick and tired of people telling me that my boy is skinny. I get questions like...does he eat well? He doesn't drink enough milk? He doesn't sleep? Some parents even automatically assume that i cook unappetizing meals so my son doesn't like to eat. Well, thanks for the advice and accusations, but no thanks.

He drinks milk. He eats a healthy amount. And he sleeps just fine. PDs tell me that kids at his age tend to be very active and weight gain is usually slow (1-1.5kg in one year is normal). You may find it hard to believe, but i was a slim kid too until i was force-fed by my maid when i was 7 because people thought i was "too skinny". Anyhows that's another story altogether.

Make no mistake, I am concerned about his weight gain too. Every parent will want their kids to be a wee bit fatter, a lot taller, healthier etc etc. There is nothing i would not try to make him grow.

So i'm embarking on a new project. Fatten Mountain Boy. I want to feed him all the fattening stuff and see if he can put on more weight. Don't say i didn't try...

First up.

Very fattening 2-cheese pizza with whole-wheat flour base. Made everything from scratch, even the damn dough.

Verdict:

He wolfed down 4 slices of a 10-inch pan at one go for his afternoon snack!

Now where's that weighing scale!

Fabulous warm chocolate cake

I've been bitten by the baking bug. I've been baking for the past few weeks and this is a fabulous and easy recipe. Can make in under 1 hour.

PS: Read other references that suggest putting the batter in the fridge to chill and then pop in the oven for 12-14 minutes (when the top just cracks). I think it's a good suggestion because then the outer layer will be harder and the inner layer more gooey.

Goodbye and Good Night

Deep down, I'm a sentimental person. I always tell Mountain Man about how i miss the times with X and Y friends and how i wish i could go back.

This month, a couple who has been quite pivotal in us settling down in Beijing is leaving for home. Boy am i gonna miss them. The eating, talking cock, drinking (speaking for Mountain Man not I), traveling, house gatherings, more eating... you know, things singaporeans do. Beijing life is definitely less colourful without Gingerblossom and the husband, and I will now have less motivation to explore new eating places. But most of all, I will soo miss the people that they are.

Thanks so much for the friendship you've extended and for being so considerate in accommodating our family countless times... We wish you all the best in rebuilding your lives back home and we hope to join you some day.

Gingerblossom: I'll always read your blog so don't stop writing.

xoxo,

Ngs.

Homecooked farewell dinner: "Acar" (pickled vegetables) and "Nasi tim" (Indonesian Chicken Rice).

Menu for 1

Crossing 1 is a big milestone when it comes to dietary needs. There is this arbitrary line drawn between 11 months 29 days and 12months on the dot- before 1 milk is main, after 1 food is main. And after 1, a child supposedly can indulge in salty/oily/msg laden food, imagine how their little kidneys suddenly grow turbo engines to break down the additional "seasoning".

^^joking. the kidneys don't really grow turbines.

Anyway, i attended yet another nutrition course but for toddlers this time. A few cool things i learnt so i thought i'd share.

1. Swear to not fight about food with your child. Read properly, not fight for food, but fight about food. The bigger the deal you make about your child's lack of appetite the bigger a deal eating becomes. A parent should respect their child when they say enough is enough.
2. No short order cooking. When your child does not want what is being served, don't offer alternatives. Because these smart little alecks will soon learn that if they don't like the food they can always have something else. Tough luck you clever tots!
3. It's not about that last bite. It's very asian to wipe our plates clean, but our plates is not the same size as our stomach. Very often our plate serving is 30% more than what our stomachs can take. So again, listen to the child. Don't do the... "come on, last one..."
4. It's important to build a healthy relationship with food. Food is just food. It's not for comfort.
5. Don't use food as rewards. Often we hear parents say, "you finish your porridge u can have chocolate". This will have 2 side effects- you elevate the importance of chocolate in your child's mind(see point 4), and you open the door for endless negotiation with your child. But rewarding food can be used in rare circumstances like after a vaccination, or finishing passing an exam.
6. Healthy eating habits starts in-utero. So pregnant ladies better eat healthy!
7. Don't feed when they are off the high-chair. Or rather, don't chase them around with a bowl. You'll never get your child to sit on a table for the next 5 yrs!
8. Give them a multivitamin if it puts ur mind at ease. Some parents worry their kids are not eating well enough.

I am definitely guilty of breaking some of the cardinal rules above. I always let Mountain Boy eat a bunch of snacks if he finishes his milk. Whoops it's time to undo those habits. But those points above does make me relax abit about Mountain Boy's diet. I'm always worried if he's eating enough, drinking enough, and i'm always wondering why he doesn't drink as much milk as he used to.

Just going back to adult food. Today i made dinner for the three of us for first time in a long long time. I hardly cook these days, even when i do it goes straight into the mouths of a hungry husband and child so i never get to take pictures anymore.

So here's my creation for today. The mouthwatering Beef Gumbo- a fancy south american name for a very watery stew mixed with rice. I first had it at a New Orleans restaurant called NOLA, and i've been wanting to make it since. I just love a good stew.

Papa and Mama's Dinner. Full of extra seasoning.

Baby's dinner. I blended the stew before adding the rice.