中秋節快樂 之Thousand Layers Spiral Mooncakes

Yes, I know that I've not been blogging recently but can't help it cause terribly busy with work as the workload is getting heavier and heavier and customers are getting more aggressive :(

Baby Kwok was also down with stomach flu and recurring fever 1.5 weeks ago and I was really really worried about it. The stomach flu was really bad! It made Baby Kwok lost 0.5kg! It wasn't easy to make him pile on weight and just when we are finally happy with his weight, stupid stomach flu came. Sigh.. I guess I finally came to realized that Health is more important than Weight!! Yes, I need to constantly remind me of that!

Now that Baby Kwok has fully recovered, Prince Charming and I are both down. We both suffering from throat infection and flu! Baby Kwok is also having slight flu and cough but he is still eating well and being very active so I'm not too worried. I just hope all the viruses will just keep far away from us after we have fully recovered!

Okay, to cut my post short back to the real topic! Mooncake Festival will be coming on Monday and thus, I've decided to bake my own mooncakes this year. Even though I was really weak, I wanted to do it so badly for many years so I insisted on baking! My efforts were paid off :) Very happy with my end results comparing to the one I did 2 weeks ago with my cousins (Those on my FB will be able to tell the differences!)

Okie dokie, here I present to you my Thousand Layers Spiral Mooncakes. Pardon the pictures cause it was taken by me with the EPL-1 that Prince Charming got for me. The photographer was sleeping like a pig when I wanted to take these shots so I had to do them myself. Still a novice at photo-shooting!!!
Last not but least, 中秋節快樂!




To make these, you'll need:

• Water Dough
  - 300g Plain flour
  - 90g Crisco shortening
  - 40g Icing sugar
  - 140g Water
  - 1.5 tsp Lemon juice/vinegar

• Oil Dough
  -  260g Plain flour
  - 160g Crisco shortening
  
  
• Fillings - Ready made Red bean paste/Lotus paste
  
  
• Salted yolks - 4 big ones and quarter them up
  

1. For Water Dough: Mix flour and Crisco shortening using the rub-in method till it resembles breadcrumbs. Mix in the icing sugar and then pour in the liquid ingredients and knead into a soft dough. The dough should be soft and not sticky. If the dough is sticky, sprinkle some flour to get into the right texture. My guts will say it resembles a bread dough but less elastic.
   
   
2. For Oil Dough: Mix flour and Crisco shortening into a soft dough. If the dough is sticky, you can sprinkle little amount of flour to get into the right texture.
   
   
3. Knead both Water and Oil dough into little dough balls of about 40g each.
   
   
4. Flatten the Water dough and wrap the Oil dough into it. (Imagine that oil dough is the meat filling while water dough is the bun dough and you are going to wrap the filling into the bun dough)
   
   
5. On a flat surface, roll the bundled dough with a roller pin then swirl them up like a Swiss roll.
   
   
6. Rotate the Swiss rolled dough 90 degree and rolled the it flat and swirl them up like a Swiss roll again.
   
   
7. Cut the swiss rolled dough into 2 with the the swirl side facing down. Flattern the dough and wrap the filling into it.
   
   
8. Bring to bake at 180 Degree Celsius for about 25 mins or when they turn golden brown. Alternatively, you may deep fry them in hot oil.
   

Hello... I'm still here!

Not that I've stopped cooking/baking but rather I'm been pretty lazy to update my blog *Hides in the wardrobe*. As you know, my little darling, yes my mini version Prince Charming aka Baby Kwok has started to walk since 13.5 months old (He's now 15 months old btw). Way before he mastered the art of walking, I was anticipating for that moment where I get to hold his hands and bring him out on a stroll in the park. I was wrong, totally wrong. This little terrorist of mine has never wanted to hold my hands or rather our hands (including daddy's)!! He only want to venture out himself!

The first time we let him walk on his own was in Kiddy Palace and it was like as though we were playing "Polices and Thief". The Daddy (yes, Prince Charming) was panting up and down cause he could not even stop for a break before our darling starts running around the whole place. It was scary, yes very scary! We were so afraid that he might just trip and knock into any corners/shelves etc. Finally we managed to caught hold of him (yes, he struggled like as if we were the kidnappers) and never let him walk on his own in the mall. Lesson learn! (But forgotten very quickly before the police and thief game starts again).

Okay back to topic, so yes been pretty tired from all the picking up of toys and running after my Baby Kwok that even when I have 30 mins of free time to update my blog, I would rather couch on the sofa and watch the TV.  I guess that's Parenthood, when you have time you just wanna rest! Anyway, am starting to time my cooking recently cause Baby Kwok will be going to school (ahem.. childcare I mean) in Nov and that means I have to make sure dinner is served within 30 mins once we reach home. Been practicing really hard but couldn't reach my goal of 30mins. More practice I guess...

Anyway, here's my little darling in his room, playing with his toys.(as usual)

I love you darling!! :D

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Tonkatsu 豬排蓋飯

Shall be a short post cause my back's breaking from cleaning the house yesterday! The pictures will sum up what we had for dinner last night, including my Baby Kwok! We have been very adventurous to explore him to our food recently. I wonder if that's a good thing. Hmmmm.....


Yup! We had Tonkatsu for dinnner :) I played a litle trick on this - No, not about using frozen pork chop but instead of using my Don-pan (which I usually do for donburi), I merely fried the pork chop, cut and shove it on to the rice then pour the pre-prepared sauce over.





Alright, need to rest my aching back! Age's catching up I suppose!
To make this, you'll need:

• Pork Loin, 180g - Pounded flat with a meat hammer (is that how you call that tool?)
• 1 big Onion, sliced
• Panko, 1 packet (Japanese Bread crumbs)
• Plain flour 
• 3 tbsp of Soy sauce
• 50ml of water
• 2 tbsp of sugar
• Spring onions, sliced (for garnishing)
• 1 beaten egg (for coating)
• 1 lightly beaten egg (for the sauce)
• 1 bowl of cooked Japanese rice

1. Dust the Pork Loin with plain flour, followed by a layer of egg mixture and then covered well with panko. Set aside.
   
2. Heat up a frying pot filled with oil (enough to cover the surface of the pork loin),  once temp is ready, fry the prepared pork loin till golden brown.
   
3. Fill a bowl with rice. In a saucepan, pour soy sauce, sugar and water and bring it to boil. Add in the sliced onions and cooked till soft
   
4. Stir in the lightly beaten egg and shut off the heat. Cut up the deep-fried pork loin and place it on top of the rice.
   
5. Pour the sauce over and garnish with spring onions.

Singapore Black Pepper Crabs

Well well well, not that I've been MIA but was really busy. My house seems to be like a junk site every now and then. My little terroist a.k.a Baby Kwok has learnt to open up the drawers and "tidying" up the stuffs in it. Not only that, he has learnt to "hide" my stuffs so that I won't find them till Christmas arrive. The most mischievous act from him - Making the whole house upside down 5 mintues after I've cleaned up the house! Hmmmm... genetics inheritance?

Was telling Prince Charming that we should just hang everything up on the wall so that nothing get losts and thrown everywhere but still I'm sure my litle terroist will find his way up to grab them. He's not learning to walk yet but is already climbing up the window grilles. Though my little terroist gets on my nerves at times, he is still the one who brights up my life, nono our life (+ Prince Charming). The hefty amount of weight that I've piled on during pregnancy, the uncountable stretchmarks and the numbers of sleep that I've lost were worth it! Motherhood is such a bliss that comes with a tint of complaint :)

Anyway, we went to Sheng Siong for crab hunting on Vesak Day! As usual, we arrived late and many of the female crabs were gone and most of the leftover mud crabs were those with smaller pinchers (gongs) but still we managed to grabbed two of them who looks more muscular than the rest. Damages? $24.90!!! CHEAP and good!

This time round, I decided to try my hands on Black Pepper crabs after savouring those from Peach Garden. Wasn't that hard as I imagined! Yummilicious too but a little too spicy cause I've added slightly more black pepper. Greedy me!






It was so shiosk to have this crabs with Bulmer's Cider! Wohoooo!

To make this, you'll need:

• 3-half tbsp Ground Black pepper
• 4 tbsp Oyster Sauce
• 2 tsp Sugar
• 1 medium Shallots, sliced
• 1 medium Onion, sliced
• A handful of garlics, diced
• 5 tbsp Water/stock
• 6 tbsp of oil, for frying
• 1kg of Mud crabs

1. Wash the mud crabs and chopped them into pieces. 
2. Heat oil in wok and fry crabs till they turn red.
3. Back to the same wok, throw in the shallots, onions and garlic and fry till fragnant.
4. Stir in oyster sauce, ground black pepper, sugar and water.
5. Throw in the crabs, fry evenly and ready to serve.