Kuih Cara Manis

A change from the usual german cakes during the weekend, I prepared this traditional malay kuih for our tea-time today. I have been wanting to make this kuih for such a long time but had to shelf my plans due to the absence of the proper mould.  During our last trip home in August, I bought a few types of moulds and of course, other baking stuff as well - all carefully packed to be sent off.  The seafreight journey took almost six weeks and I am very happy that all my barangs arrived safely without any damage.

This particular mould is made of aluminium and in order that your kuih do not get stuck in the mould, one have to "season" it first.  Please do NOT wash the mould with water and soap!  What I did was to fill the mould with cooking oil and "bake" it in a preheated fan oven at a temperature of 180° C for about 20 to 30 minutes.  Once done, pour out the oil into another metal container (oil to be thrown away) before pouring the batter.  Kindly note that the following recipe yields about 50 "doubled" kuihs, each measuring about 5.5 cm in length.  Just cut the recipe in half to adjust to your requirements.

Ingredients:

8 pandan leaves, to be washed, dried and cut into pieces

2 cups water

440 g plain flour

4 medium-size eggs

80 g castor sugar or to taste

a pinch of salt

1 cup coconut milk

a few drops of yellow colouring
1 tbsp ghee, for greasing mould

Method:

In a blender, blend both pandan leaves and 2 cups water until smooth.  Pass through a fine sieve into a small bowl.

In a mixing bowl, add plain flour and salt.  Pour pandan leaves juice a little at a time while keep stirring.  Then, add coconut milk, castor sugar and eggs (one at a time). Mix thoroughly and then, add a few drops of yellow colouring (optional).  Pass mixture through a fine sieve into another bowl to get rid of any lumps.

After "seasoning" the mould and removing the oil, heat mould over an electric stove. Grease mould with ghee by using a small brush.

Add batter to mould as shown below.

Put on the lid and cook over high heat for about 5 minutes or until cooked.

Once done, remove the kuihs by using a toothpick and a tablespoon.  Leave to cool down on a tray before putting two halves together.  Serve either warm or cold!

Happy Baking!