Birds Nest Soup- Good for your skin

A lot of people think that birds nest soup is very difficult to prepare. As such, most of us ladies rely on our mothers to brew this special tonic for us. I am going to show you step by step here how to prepare this tonic that is nourishing and also good for the skin. If you want porcelain skinned complexion, this soup is a must. All the people I know who have the best translucent skin will tell your their secret is this soup.

Ingredients (Serves 2)

1 piece of Birds Nest

3-4 pieces of Rock Sugar

2 cups Water

American Ginseng (2 slices-Optional)

Directions:

1) Soak the birds nest for at least 2 hours or up to overnight until soften. Depending on the grade of birds nest, you may have to use a pair to tweezers to pull out the tiny feathers sometimes embedded in the nest. Very good quality birds nest will have less of this feathers. Change the soaking water twice during the entire soaking process.

2) Drain the water.

3) Put birds nest in a double boiler pot, add 2 cups of water. Add rock sugar and ginseng (optional). Cover the double boiler and put this in a stock pot.

4) Fill the stock pot with water until the level covers the double broiler half way.

5) Cover the stock pot and bring the water to a boil, and lower heat to a simmer. Simmer for 1.5 hours up to 2 hours.

6) Remove the birds nest soup from the double boiler pot and serve hot.

Wasn't that simple? I hope you enjoy this recipe. Try it! It is good for your skin and health and will keep you looking young.

Have a good week ahead.

Sincerely,

Julie

Singapore Fried Carrot Cake

Fried carrot cake is a traditional Singaporean breakfast food, although it is now eaten as a snack at all hours of the day. I remember going through teenage angst, and in the morning, nothing would get me out of bed faster than mom coming home from the market, knowing that she bought a packet of Chai Tao Kway- Fried Carrot Cake, wrapped in laminated brown paper like a pretty present, with the oil starting to soak through the semi water proof packaging. Once I remove the rubber band holding this package together, the smell of garlic, salted radish
(chye poh) and chili would wake me up and make me so happy. To this date, I will always remember the types of chai tao kway my mommy had lovingly brought back from the market over the years: The black kind- no chili sauce (For when I was a child), The "white" kind (teenage years- my taste platelet started to change), any of the two above in a"less oily" version (when I was a young adult and started to watch my figure), this dish is always the comfort food that I grew up with.

I had a little time this last weekend and decided that I needed my fix. Here is the recipe I used to make my breakfast snack and I hope you will like it. I certainly enjoyed eating my creation.

Carrot Cake (From scratch) - This portion size serves 4

125 g radish (Shred using a vegetable shredder)

300 g rice flour

750 ml + 3/4 cup of room temperature water

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1.5 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp white pepper

1) Measure the water in a large bowl.

2) Add the rice flour to the water. Mix with a whisk to remove all lumps.

3) Heat the vegetable oil in a wok or a deep pan. Stir fry the radish until the edges are starting to turn brown.

4) Slowly add the flour-water mixture. Add the salt, sugar and pepper.

5) Continue to stir the flour rice mixture until it starts to thicken. (See picture).

6) Scoop out the mixture and pat into a greased 8 inch baking pan. Smooth the top with a metal spoon and pat the mixture down firmly.

7) Place in a steamer and steam on high for 45 mins or until the radish cake has set.

(Let this cake sit overnight before stir frying).

Frying the Carrot Cake (White, Spicy Version)

Preserved, salted radish (Available at Asian specialty food stores)- 2 tablespoon. (If buying radishes in whole, please chop until minced garlic size before using).

Sesame oil- 1 tsp

Salt and white pepper to taste

Soy sauce - 1 tbsp (or to your taste)

Fish sauce- 1/2 tsp (or to your taste)

Chili sauce -1/2 tbsp (or to your taste) - I used store bought chilli sauce from Asian specialty stores.
Garlic- 2 cloves- minced

3 eggs

Green onions (Separate white and green portions) - 2 sprigs

Oil for frying or lard- 4 tbsp

1) Cut up the radish cake into 1/4 inch cubes.

2) Mise en place - garlic, green onions (green and white portions) and eggs (beaten).

3) Heat oil in a wok or frying pan.

4) Add in garlic, preserved radish and white portion of the green onion. Stir fry until the garlic looks like it is about to brown.

5) Toss in the radish cake and with the spatula, break it down in a slight mashing/slicing motion. (This step is important because it exposes more surface area on the radish cake, allow more flavors to be absorbed).

6) Add the seasonings (soy sauce, salt, pepper, chili sauce, fish oil and sesame oil).

7) Fry until the radish cake looks browned on the edges and heated through.

8) Make a well in the center of the wok and add eggs.

9) Toss the egg mixture over the radish cake as if to coat the surface.

10) Serve hot garnished with the green portion of the green onion.

I hope you wake up happy everyday with this dish.

Have a good week ahead!

Sincerely,

Julie

Paula Deen's Gooey Butter Cake

Paula Deen's Gooey Butter Cake

Recently my travels bought me to Savannah, GA. I took the opportunity to visit Paula's Deen's Lady and Sons restaurant.

I was so excited to eat at Paula Deen's because I love butter and wouldn't normally cook with it..AND at the same time, I love how Southern cooking and its flavors reminded me of my youth as a student in Virginia. I was so carefree and innocent.

Anyhow, after I secured a seat at the restaurant, I ordered ice tea and chowed down on fried chicken, collard greens, black eye peas, Lima beans, sweet potatoes, ribs.... everything all soaked in peanut oil or butter of course. Yummy! When it was time for dessert, the waitress asked me if I wanted peach cobbler or "gooey butter cake". Ooooohhhh... of course I didn't have much room left in my tummy.. but gooey butter cake sounded irresistible, so I ordered it. When the cake came and I tasted it, I knew it was a winner. I also knew Eric would love this cake.

So, for his birthday yesterday, I baked his cake for him. The result? He loved it!

Here is the link to the recipe:

http://www.pauladeen.com/recipe_view/795

I have also typed it out here. Try it, you will be comforted.

Ingredients & Directions:

Cake: 1 18 1/4-ounce package yellow cake mix 1 egg 8 tablespoons butter, melted.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan. Prepare filling.

Filling: 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 8 tablespoons butter, melted 1 16-ounce box powdered sugar.

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter and beat together.Next, add the powdered sugar and mix well.

Spread over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes.

Make sure not to over bake as the center should be a little gooey.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Ease of preparation: easy

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen and Random House Publishing

Happy Birthday!!

Have a good week ahead.

Julie

New Puppy and Ang Ku Kueh

Ang Ku Kueh is a delicious Chinese/Nonya snack. It is often eaten during special celebratory events such as baby's first month, weddings and birthdays. The red color of the kueh is believed to be good luck.

There are two types of Ang Ku Kueh fillings: Green bean (Mung beans) and peanut. I prefer the mung bean version so it is the version I made. The mushy, velvet texture of the mung bean, wrapped in a chewy, elastic glutinous dough... one bite and you'll be hooked too.

So... what was the special occasion? Haha....well, I got a puppy. He is a beautiful West Highland Terrier. I love him to bits. So here's the Kueh to help celebrate and welcome him to our family.

Ingredients:

Glutinous rice 300 g

Sweet Potato 50 g skinned

Banana leaf (Shaped oval -12 pieces)

Water 220 ml

Ang Ku Kueh Mould

Coloring (Red-Optional)

Fillings

Green Bean 150 g (Steamed)

Sugar 100 g

Cooking oil 2 tbsp

*Soak green beans overnight and steam for 20 mins on high heat or until soft. Remove from heat and mash up. Blend in food processor with sugar and cooking oil until smooth. (I used organic green/mung beans, the specks of black are from the bean shell). If you do not have a food processor, you can mash the bean up and then pass it through the wire sifter a few times.

Directions:

1) Boil sweet potato in a pot, drain water and set aside. Mash the sweet potato. Let cool.

2) Mix the sweet potato with glutinous rice flour, coloring, water and knead until smooth. Divide the dough into 12 portions.

3) Flatten dough and place filling into the center. Gather edge to form a ball.

4) Grease the moulds with some cooking oil. Place dough on mould and lightly press into mould.

5) Remove dough from mould and place it on the banana leaf.

6) Place the Kueh in the steamer and steam for 15 mins over boiling water. And enjoy!

I hope everybody had a great weekend. Sometimes the little things in life really recharges the soul and make you feel like you have been re-born. Here is Ang Ku Kueh to celebrate the joyous moments in your life.

Walnut Chocolate Cookies

This is a beautiful cookie to serve for high tea when you invite your friends and family over to your home. Plated on a three tiered serving tray, the display is so elegant and looks like you have fussed over the cookie for a long time. When you take the time to put in a little extra effort for that extra touch, it makes the person visiting feel so special because you have taken the time to make something special for them.

I share with you this beautiful and easy to make walnut cookie. The dough is a medium-density dough, but the texture is still crispy and will melt in your mouth. Because the dough is medium, it makes it much easier to mould.

The flavor of this cookie is out of this world because of the perfect combination of ginger and cinnamon. The cookies are perfect to serve plain or sandwiched with a little chocolate butter. Making this yourself beats buying fancy cookies at Whole Foods or Famous Amos anyday. Also, shaping the dough and knocking it out makes a wonderful stress reliever. POW! A perfect release, a perfectly shaped cookie. It is surprisingly statisfying.

Walnut Cookies Recipe

Ingredients

(For the cookie)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar

1 large egg yolk

Confectioners' sugar, for dusting moulds

Ingredients

(For the Chocolate-Walnut Filling-Optional for sandwiching)

3 ounces (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) walnuts, toasted and finely chopped

Pinch of salt

5 sounces semisweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled

Directions for cookies:

1) Whisk flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger in a bowl.

2) Beat butter, cream cheese, and sugars with a mixer on medium speed until fluffy. (I use my handy Kitchenaid Stand Mixer. This takes about 2 mins).

3) Beat in egg yolk and then add flour mixture, beating just until combined.

4) Form dough into a 1-inch-thick disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least for 1 hour or overnight.

5) Using a hand held sifter (use a small sifter if you have one), lightly dust the springerle cookie mould with icing sugar by tapping lightly. You have to ensure that the moulds are thinly and evenly dusted with sugar.

6) Press about 5 grams of dough into the mould with fingers, working from the center. Trim off overflowing dough and clean up the edges using a knife.

7) Give the mould a firm tap at a 45 degree angle (I tapped it on a cutting board because I have a wooden island countertop and did not want to ding it). The cookies will release easily.

8) Repeat the shaping with the rest of the dough, spacing the cookies 1 inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

9) Freeze the cookies for 1 hour before baking.

10) Preheat the oven to 325 degrees (Remember ALWAYS use an oven thermometer to get the temperature correct and best baking results).

11) Bake cookies until 25 to 30 mins and let cool on a wire rack*.

Directions for Chocolate Butter/Filling:

1) Cream butter with sugar on medium speed. I used a hand held mixer for this because it is a small quantity, I get better control of the texture.

2) Beat in walnuts and salt until combined. Beat in chocolate and use immediately.

*After the cookies has cooled, spread or pipe 1/2 teaspoon of chocolate walnut filling on the flat side of 1 cooke. Press the other flat side of another cookie onto filling to form a sandwich.

The moulds I used for the cookies are available here:

http://biodiversityherbs.com/products/cookiecutters/seashellmould.html

http://biodiversityherbs.com/products/cookiecutters/almondmould.html

I hope you will enjoy this recipe!

Sincerely,

Julie

Biodiversity Baking's first photoshoot

We are updating Biodiversity Herbs and Baking Supplies's Website http://www.biodiversityherbs.com/ to give all of our customers a better shopping experience. We have teamed up with a talented Seattle photographer, Grace at I-Candi Studios http://www.candistudios.com/ for the photoshoot.

The new pictures are coming soon, and we can't wait to share them with you.

In the meantime, here is a sneak peak from the photoshoot from this past weekend.

Welcome! It is now 11:30 am on Saturday, and this is BioDiversity Herbs and Baking Supplies first product and food photoshoot! I am so excited.

Location: I-Candi Studios in Seattle, WA. What a hip and beautiful studio. I love it!

All of our products and the beautiful foods I made with them lined up on the counter, waiting for their turns to be photographed.

Hey, the photographer is at work. Let's take a look...

Our talented photographer, Grace, hard at work.

Photography 101- Lights! Then camera! It is really amazing how much your eyes compensate for what you see and what is actually there. The fundamental ingredient of good photography is good lighting. Grace uses a light meter to get the lighting just right.

Me, assisting the photographer and giving my two cents opinion on "artistic direction". I left most of that work to the photographer. She is the professional. I am the baker.

Sneaking a peak..... (To be revealed later this week, I love professional photography!)

And, that's a wrap! Biodiversity has officially completed our first product shoot. I have learned a lot from the experience and welcome you to enjoy them as well soon.

Sincerely,

Julie

Steamed Yam/ Taro Cake (Yu Tou Gao)

When I was growing up, my mom made (and still makes) the best yam cake. For me, it is the ultimate comfort food. I decided to make this today because I have on hand good quality Chinese sausage from Teck Sang in Singapore http://www.tecksang.com/ (My parents bought it for me on their last trip to Seattle). The Chinese sausage lends a sweet and pungent flavor, kind of like a Chardonnay that has been opened for a day. All the ingredients get embedded in the rice flour, the key ingredient- the taro, embarks a light purplish tint that is both beautiful and elegant. When the cake has cooled down, it can also be lightly pan fried. Served with chili sauce, this version beats the ones you order at Dim Sum restaurants any day. It is also healthier and you actually taste the taro.

Here's my mom's recipe. Thanks to my dad for compiling this! Thanks DAD!

Ingredients:

(A) Chinese Sausage 100 g

Dried Shitake Mushroom 5 pieces (Medium)

Dried Shrimp 10 g

(B) Yam/Taro 500 g (diced)

Rice Flour 600 g

(Seasoning)

Salt 2 tsp

Pepper 1/2 tsp

Fine sugar 1 tbsp

Rice Wine (1 tsp, optional)

Black soy sauce 1 tsp

(For Topping)

Red Shallots

Chives/Green Onions

Method:

1) Add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil in a wok and saute the dried shrimp and Chinese sausage first. Add taro and mushrooms and stir fry until fragrant.

2) In a separate bowl, add 1800 ml of cold water to the flour. (This step is the secret to making the cake smooth and creamy). Work out all lumps until the flour is completely dissolved in the water.

3) Add the liquefied flour into ingredients in the wok and stir evenly until it forms a smooth sticky paste.

4) Scoop this content into a steamer, pat down with a spoon and steam for 30 mins.

5) Slice shallot thinly and fry it in hot oil. (Be sure to blot the shallot dry before frying, otherwise the shallots would be crispy).

6) Add the fried shallots to the top of the yam cake and garnish with chives.

7) Slice up the cake and serve hot with a side of chili sauce.

I hope you enjoy this recipe!

Tomato in Sesame Sauce (Gomadare)

Xi Yan is a famous restaurant in Singapore. They are a private dining facility, and it is quite hard to get a reservation. You must have at least a party of six and a minimum of three hours to spare to sample the banquet. Check it out when you are in Singapore: http://www.xiyan.com.sg/

In the meantime, since I am now living in Seattle, I have not had the chance to visit. One of their famous "Zhao Ba Cai" (Signature dish) is Tomatoes dressed in Sesame Sauce. It is delicious, healthy and makes a wonderful presentation when entertaining. Here, I share with you my version of this beautifully simple dish. This dish is also a hit during Chinese New Year because the final presentation of the tomato makes it resembles a beautiful orange, which symbolizes prosperity and wealth for the new year.

Gomadare Sesame Sauce Dressing:

4 tablespoons of sesame seeds

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon ponzu juice

1/2 tablespoon mirin

1 tablespoon of dashi (200 g Bonito Flakes and a 1 x 1 inch of kombu in 2 cups of water. Boil until the bonito flakes sink to the bottom, about 3-5 mins.)

1/2 teaspoon mayonnaise (optional)

1) Toast the sesame seeds in a pan until they turn slightly dark brown.

2) Grind the sesame seeds in a coffee grinder until the seeds are broken down and relatively smooth. (You can use a suribachi (Japanese mortar) for this, but I am taking a short cut here.)

3) Add 2 tablespoon of ground sesame into a suribachi, add dashi, mirin and soy sauce and start grinding into a paste. (This step is a lot easiler because I used the coffee grinder in step 2).

4) Add ponzu juice and mayonnaise to finish off the paste.

5) Feel free to experiment! Adding some more dashi will thin out the sauce, but I prefer my gomadare to be thicker and have more body.

Tomatoes:

3 Organic Tomatoes (Or however many you wish to serve, but the recipe was written for 3 tomatoes, so adjust accordingly)

Mint leaves (for garnish)

1) Drop the tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds. Take them out immediately or they will be overcooked.

2) Dip the tomatoes in a cold, ice water bath immediately. Let them rest for 5 mins.

3) Peel off the outer skin. (The skin should come off easily after the cold water bath).

4) Score the tomatoes on the sides (4 wedges). Do not go too deep, the tomato should still be whole.

Putting it together:

1) Spoon about 1 teaspoon of the Gomadare sauce directly on top of the tomato and let it drizzle down the side.

2) Garnish with a mint leaf.

3) Serve.