Soft Boil Eggs

Getting the perfect soft boil eggs isn't easy on a stove. We can control the time but cannot control the temperature, sometimes getting overboiled eggs, sometimes getting undercooked eggs.. 

With the Thermomix, you can do the perfect soft boil eggs every single time now!

Ingredients:

4 Room Temperature Eggs

Water

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Place eggs into simmering basket and add water till half the level of eggs.	-	-	-	-
2)  Place simmering basket into TM bowl.	Yes	12 min	70	3.5
3)  Remove the simmering basket using spatula and let the eggs cool for 5 mins before cracking open.	-	-	-	-

Notes: You can cook up till a maximum of 7 eggs (in a single layer) in the simmering basket. If your eggs are big (more than 60g) cook eggs for an addition 1 minute.

Nian Gao

Its the Lunar New Year soon! One must have on Lunar New Year is the Nian Gao, or the Glutinous Rice Cake. Nian means 'year or sticky' and Gao means 'high or tall'. The Chinese believe that if you eat the Nian Gao during this time, you will have a better year ahead.

Some believe that this Lunar New Year sweet sticky snack is an offering to the Kitchen God, with the aim that his mouth will be stuck with the sticky cake, so that he cannot bad mouth the human family in front of the Jade Emperor.

So, instead of buying one this year, why not make it and share this goodness with your family and friends and let us all have a great lunar new year ahead!

Ingredients:

500 g Water
500 g Glutinous Rice Flour
100 g Brown Sugar
100 g Raw Sugar
250 g Golden Syrup

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Line a container (I use 8 inch diameter by 2.5 inch depth) with banana leaves.	-	-	-	-
2)  Add water, brown sugar, raw sugar and golden syrup to mix. While machine is mixing, gradually add in the glutinous rice flour from the top of the lid.	-	1 min	-	4
3)  Cook the mixture.	Yes	15 mins	100	3
4)  Pour the mixture into the container with banana leaves. Add 1.2L of water in the Thermomix bowl and steam the mixture on varoma tray.	-	60 mins	Varoma	2

Note: If you are using a container of deeper depth, steam the mixture longer.
You can create a 'cap' using baking paper and put it on top of the nian gao. This is to prevent the steam water from dropping down onto your nian gao. If water touches your nian gao, the part affected will be more pale in colour.

Happy 2017!

Happy 2017 everyone!

It has almost been a week since 2017 has started. I would first like to apologise for the lack of updates in this blog last year end. My goal for this year is to post at least one recipe every fortnight. If you have any recipes that you would like to see here, please leave a comment in the comment box below. Do give me some time to look for a good recipe and test it out before sharing it here.

Chinese New Year is coming right up and everyone will be busy getting new year goodies. I will be posting some CNY goodies very soon too, so do check back regularly!

I wish all my readers good health, lots of happiness and success in this new year. Happy Thermomix-ing!

With lots of love,
Yilin & Mei
+65 91592034

Chocolate Icing (Ganache)

I have posted a chocolate cake previously. What's another option to top a chocolate cake besides ice cream? Even more chocolate! This simple chocolate icing goes well over cakes, biscuits, and even ice cream!

Read till the end of this post to see what you can do with leftover icing.

Ingredients:

100 g chocolate, broken into pieces smaller than measuring cup hole on the lid
80 g cream, min 30% fat

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Place chocolate into mixing bowl	Yes	10 secs	-	8
2)  Scrape chocolate down with using the spatula	-	-	-	-
3)  Add cream	Yes	2 mins	50	3
4)  Serve	-	-	-	-

Note: The icing thickens quickly. 

You can do chocolate truffles with this recipe as well. Freeze the icing in the freezer for a couple of hours. Allow to thaw slightly, scoop a spoon out and roll it into a ball. Coat with cocoa powder or nuts. Store truffles in the fridge.

Chocolate Cake

Chocolate cake has never been easier to do. Don't just leave it till a birthday occasion to bake it. You can do it anytime, even just as a dessert!


Ingredients:

120 g butter
2 eggs
100 g Milk
100 g Sugar (120 g Sugar if you have a sweet tooth)
120 g Self Raising Flour
30 g Cocoa Powder
1 tsp Baking Powder

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Prepare a small cake tin and oil with some butter.	-	-	-	-
2)  Place butter into TM bowl.	Yes	2 mins	60	3
3)  Add in all other ingredients	Yes	30 secs	-	5
4)  Pour mixture into cake tin and put it in the oven to bake at 180 degrees.	-	25-35 mins	-	-
5)  Let cake cool for 5 minutes before removing from cake tin. Serve warm, best over ice cream.	-	-	-	-

Mashed Potato

Mashed potato is a simple side dish which needs no introduction. Today, we are going to make it even more simple by using a Thermomix!


Ingredients:

10 g parmesan cheese
130 g milk
500 g russet potatoes, cubed
pinch of salt, or to taste
20 g butter

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Place Parmesan Cheese into TM Bowl.	Yes	10 sec	-	8
2)  Transfer grated cheese into a bowl and set aside.	-	-	-	-
3)  Place butterfly into the TM bowl and add milk, salt and potatoes to cook	Yes	20-25 mins	100	1
4)  Add butter and some Parmesan cheese.	Yes	20-40 secs	-	3.5
5)  Serve hot. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan cheese over mashed potatoes.	-	-	-	-

Notes: 

1)In Step 3, make sure the potatoes are cooked well before mashing. Potatoes are well cooked when they start to fall apart. Uncooked potatoes will mash to a gluey texture. 

2)Timing to mash your potatoes in Step 4 is based on personal preference. If you prefer a more chunky texture, do not mash too long. 40 seconds will mash your potatoes till a smooth texture.

Nasi Lemak

Nasi Lemak is a type of Malay rice steamed with coconut milk and pandan leaves. Nasi means 'rice' and Lemak means 'rich'. Rich here does not refer to wealth rich, but creamy rich. The creaminess comes from the coconut milk.

Nasi Lemak is traditionally served with sambal (chilli paste), ikan bilis (anchovies), egg, and fried fish. People also serve them with rendang, sambal prawns, sambal sotong etc. Today I will share on how to steam nasi lemak, try it with the Beef Rendang, also cooked with Thermomix.

Ingredients:

300 g Basmathi Rice

200 g Coconut Milk

800 g Water

1 tsp Salt

2 pcs Shallot (sliced)

2 pcs Ginger (sliced)

2-3 pcs pandan leaves (washed and knotted)

Optional Room temperature eggs

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp (°C)	Speed
1)  Place simmering basket into TM bowl. Add in rice first, then add in all other ingredients. Optional: You can put your eggs in the Varoma receptacle, and steam it on top of your rice.	Yes	18 mins	V	3.5
2) Serve rice hot	-	-	-	-

Yam Paste Dessert (Orh Nee)

Ahh.. that dessert we all look forward to during chinese wedding dinners. Yam paste dessert, or Orh Nee, is a traditional Teochew dessert with yam as the main ingredient.

Many recipes call for pumpkin as an ingredient in it, but I cook mine with just pure yam. If you prefer to add pumpkin, you can too as well. Preparation of this dessert usually takes very long as one will have to steam the yam till soft and then mash it. Using the Thermomix, you can get your yam paste dessert in just 25 mins!

Ingredients:
400 g yam
200 g water
50 g sugar

50 g coconut milk
1/2 tsp salt
30 g oil

gingko nuts to garnish

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Place yam, water and sugar in TM bowl	Yes	20 mins	100	2
2)  Add coconut milk, salt and oil into TM bowl	Yes	30 secs	-	8
3) Garnish with gingko nuts and serve hot.	-	-	-	-

Vanilla Ice Cream

Hi!

Did you all try the sticky date pudding in my previous post? Wondering how to do up a nice and creamy vanilla ice cream to top it up? Wait no further as today I will be sharing the recipe of vanilla ice cream.


Ingredients:
2 eggs
450 g cream
250 g milk
150 g sugar
2 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Place all ingredients in TM bowl	Yes	7 mins	80	4
2)  Pour mixture out and freeze until firm, but not frozen	-	At least 3 hours	-	-
3)  Cut up mixture into pieces smaller than hole on the lid and blend, using the spatula to assist	Yes	20 secs	-	10
4)  Continue blending until a twirl forms	Yes	10 secs	-	6
5) Place mixture back into fridge to freeze. Enjoy your delicious ice cream once mixture hardens! Optional: You can continue and repeat from step 3 onwards after ice cream hardens. See note 2.	-	At least 3 hours	-	-

Notes:
1. You can add a little alcohol in step 2 to your mixture so that it will not completely be frozen and it will be easier to cut up into pieces.

2. If you prefer creamier ice cream, freeze and blend your ice cream mixture at least 3 times.

Sticky Date Pudding

DESSERT TIME! That is my all time favourite phrase. You can be very full, but come on, there's always space for dessert right? I have been testing this out in my kitchen for awhile now, and they were all so yummy, I just had to share it here. 

Sticky Date Pudding is a very popular dessert, commonly found in western restaurants. Ingredients are not hard to find, except dates, which you can find easily find them in Mustafa here in Singapore.

Pair it with a scoop of tasty vanilla ice cream and all's good to go! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

210 g dates, seeded
260 g boiling water
1 teaspoon bi-carb soda
100 g brown sugar
60 g butter
2 eggs
140 g self raising flour

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees.	-	-	-	-
2)  Place water in TM bowl to boil. Once water reaches 100 degrees, stop the TM and place dates and bi-carb soda in TM bowl and let it stand for 5 minutes.	Yes	5 mins, or until the water reaches 100 degrees.	100	2
3)  Add in sugar and butter to mixture to blend until dates are all chopped up.	Yes	10 secs	-	7
4)  Scrape down, add flour first then eggs and blend. If mixture is not combined properly, mix for another 5 seconds.	Yes	5 seconds	-	5
5) Pour mixture into greased tin/muffin tray and bake for 15-17 mins for muffins and 20-25 mins for larger tin. Stand for 5 minutes before turning out.	-	-	-	-

Kaya Spread (Improved Ver.)

I have posted a kaya recipe before back in 2012, and after testing and improving it, I have modified the recipe to make it more delicious and smooth. The improved version is so good that I find my myself opening the fridge to steal a small teaspoon of it every time I walk by the kitchen! Some tips to read before starting out on your home made kaya:

Tip 1: The thickness of the coconut milk determines how long your kaya takes to cook. Coconut milk that is more watery takes longer to cook [about 60-70 mins]. Whilst, coconut milk of thicker consistency will take a shorter time to cook [about 45 -50 mins].

Tip 2: After cooking the mixture for 45 minutes, open the lid and wipe the moisture on the lid. Make sure that the moisture does not drop back into the bowl. The mixture will take longer to cook if moisture drops back in.

Tip 3: The kaya will further thicken after cooling and putting it in the fridge. Kaya must be stored in the refrigerator.

Tip 4: The colour of your kaya will depend on the amount of pandan juice added in. Lesser pandan juice will cause the kaya to be of a lighter colour and more pandan juice will cause the kaya to be of a darker colour.


Enjoy and leave me a comment on how you like it!

Ingredients:

12 -15 pcs pandan leaves (It should squeeze out to be about 1 tablespoon of juice)
5 eggs (about 260g after removing egg shell)

100 g sugar

150 g coconut milk

Method:

	Cover	Time	Temp°C	Speed
1)  Turn speed dial to 10, then put pandan leaves(hands holding the stalk side) through the hole on the lid to grind till all cut.  Squeeze out the juice from the powdered leaves and set aside. Wash and dry the TM bowl.	-	-	-	10
2) Place eggs, coconut milk and sugar into TM bowl to mix.  After mixing, sieve mixture out and pour it back into TM bowl.	Yes	30 seconds	-	4
3)  Add in pandan juice. Place butterfly into TM bowl to cook the mixture.	No	45 minutes	90	2
4)  Use a spatula to scrape bottom of the pot so that the kaya does not stick.  Check if kaya is thick enough by putting a spoon in. If the kaya coats the back of the spoon thickly, your kaya is done. If not, continue cooking and repeat step 4 until kaya coats the spoon well.	No	5 - 20 minutes (Depending on how watery your kaya is at the end of 45 minutes.)	90	2
5) Cool it and its ready to be spread on your homemade bread