Nian Gao (Kuih Bakul)

A traditional steamed cake which is also known as Kuih Bakul or Glutinous Rice Cake or New Year Cake.  It is believed that by eating a piece of it, your luck will improve during the new year.  What about making your own Nian Gao and give it away as a gift?  You only need 3 main ingredients, namely brown sugar, glutinous rice flour and water.  Some recipes use coconut milk but I prefer to use only water.  The steaming time depends on the capacity of your containers.  Use small containers if you prefer less steaming time.  It is advisable to keep the Nian Gao for about 3 days before consuming.

This is my last CNY goodie post and I would like to take the opportunity to wish all my blog readers a prosperous Year of the Goat!  Gong Xi Fa Cai!!!

Ingredients:
255 g brown sugar
350 ml water
300 g glutinous rice flour
a small pinch of salt

Method:
Lightly oil the containers of your choice.  Instead of oiling them, you may line them with banana leaves.  I chose not to line them with the latter because I would like to use my pretty glass containers (250 ml capacity) from Weck.

Sift glutinous rice flour into a bowl and add a small pinch of salt.  Mix well and set aside.

In a clean pot, add brown sugar and water.  Cook over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Remove pot from heat and leave to cool down completely.

Add sifted glutinous rice flour a little at a time into brown sugar/water mixture and whisk until well mixed. Then, strain mixture through a sieve into a bowl twice in order that all lumps are removed.

Pour mixture into your preferred containers.  Do NOT fill to the brim but just 3/4 full or just below the brim.

Cover containers with a piece of cloth in order that they are free from water drops during steaming. Steam over medium heat for about 5 to 6 hours.  I used my Miele electric steamer which did a great job and I steamed them for exactly 5 hours.

Once done, remove from steamer and leave aside to cool down completely.

Bon Appetit!

Kek Lapis Legit

Another popular cake which is served during Chinese New Year and Eid Mubarak celebrations.  I used to be crazy of Bengawan Solo's Kek Lapis and always carried one cake on our return flight home, but I have stopped doing so since 3 years ago.

Kek Lapis is known to be one of the most leceh (troublesome) cake because of its multiple layers. I took slightly more than 2 hours to bake all 18 layers and I enjoyed every minute or I should say, every layer of it.  This cake is rich in taste, just look at the number of eggs which I added!  If you decide to bake this cake, please read the recipe carefully, especially the preparation method.

Ingredients:
500 g butter
100 g condensed milk (thick)

30 egg yolks
220 g fine sugar
1 tbsp ovalette (optional)

100 g cake flour
30 g milk powder
1 tsp rempah kuih or spekkeok powder (mixed spices)

extra condensed milk
150 g melted butter

an 8"x8" baking pan

Method:
Sift cake flour, milk powder and rempah kuih into a bowl and mix well.  Set aside. Grease the bottom of baking pan with butter and line with baking paper.  Make sure that the baking paper fits the pan exactly!  There is no need to grease the sides of baking pan.

In a small bowl, mix a little condensed milk with 2 tbsp of melted butter.  You need to prepare this mixture again whenever needed.  This mixture is used to grease between the layers of batter.

In a mixing bowl, whisk butter and condensed milk until light and pale in colour.

In another mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks, fine sugar and ovalette together at high speed until thick and creamy.  Important note:  Ensure that bowl and whisk are CLEAN and FREE of butter or oil!!! Or else, your egg yolks mixture would not triple in volume!

Add butter mixture to egg yolks mixture and whisk at low speed until well mixed.  Do NOT overmix! Your batter should not curdle.  If it starts to curdle, add a tablespoon of the flour mixture.

Lastly, fold in flour mixture carefully, a tablespoon at a time, until well mixed.  Take about 80 g of batter and transfer to a small bowl.

Preheat conventional oven (with top & bottom heat) to a temperature of 170° C with the empty baking pan inside the oven.  Do NOT use convectional (fan) oven!  Once required temperature is achieved, remove baking pan from oven.  Immediately change your oven setting to TOP HEAT ONLY (small grill) and adjust the temperature by taking the lowest possible temperature available. My Miele oven has a lowest temperature of 200° C for grilling.  Place your oven grate on the second rack from bottom. 

Add 80 g of batter in baking pan and by using the back of a tablespoon, spread batter evenly to cover the base.

Bake in oven for about 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown.  Kindly note that your baking time might differ from mine.  So, please stay by the oven and observe!  Once ready, remove from oven. By using the kek lapis presser, press evenly all over.  If there are bubbles on the surface, poke them with a toothpick before pressing it with the presser.

Then, brush evenly with the condensed milk/butter mixture by using a pastry brush.

Once done, add 80 g of batter and spread evenly on the baked layer.  The hot baking pan will melt your batter and spread it evenly.

Repeat procedure until all batter is used up.  Once the last layer is baked, brush evenly with condensed milk/butter mixture.  From my baking experience, I will get either 17 or 18 layers from this recipe.  Invert baking pan over a wire rack and remove pan. Leave kek lapis to cool down completely.

Remove baking paper and place kek lapis on a cake tray.

Happy Baking!

Kuih Kapit (Love Letters)

Another popular and must-bake wafer for Chinese New Year.  Also known as Love Letters, they are very crispy and delicious.

Traditionally, this wafer is "baked" in a special mould over charcoal fire.  This mould comprises of two round iron plates which are held together by thongs. These iron plates have designs on them which are transferred to the wafer. Before using, this mould is heated up over charcoal fire.  Then, it is opened and held over a bowl of batter.  Batter is poured onto one of the iron plates and at the same time, allowing excess batter to drip back into the bowl. The mould is then closed and returned to the charcoal fire.  After one minute, excess batter is removed from the circumference of mould by using a knife. Then, the mould is returned to charcoal fire for further baking until the kuih is golden brown in colour.

Hence, the name "kapit" (a Malay verb which means "to compress or press").  The next time I am in Singapore, I will buy my own traditional kuih kapit mould.  For this recipe, I used my electric kuih kapit mould which functions just as good.

Ingredients:
4 eggs (medium-size)
200 g fine sugar
200 ml coconut milk

100 g rice flour
20 g tapioca starch

Method:
In a bowl, whisk eggs and sugar until sugar is dissolved.  Add coconut milk and whisk well.  Then, add rice flour and tapioca starch a little at a time.  Whisk thoroughly and then, pour through a sieve into another bowl.

If using an electric mould, heat it up according to its instructions.  I am using an Iona electric mould as shown below.  One thing for sure, I will buy the traditional kuih kapit mould the next time I am back in Singapore.

Dab a little cooking oil onto the plates.  You need to do this only once.  There is no need to oil the mould each time you pour the batter.  By using a small sauce ladle, add a little batter to ONLY ONE of the moulds.  Move the mould maker around to evenly distribute the batter.  Don't worry, you will get the hang of it after a while. Close the mould for one minute before adding batter to the second mould. Once done, close mould and leave to bake for about 1 or 2 minutes.  Open up the lid and cut off the excess dough on the circumference, if any. Cover mould and bake until golden brown.  The baking process will take another 2 minutes.

Once golden brown, remove one kuih from mould by using a wooden chopstick, leaving the other kuih in the mould to keep warm.  Quickly fold the kuih into half and then, into quarter.  By using a meat stamper (shown below), press the kuih flat.  You have to be quick because the kuih gets hard pretty fast.

Another option is to roll the kuih into a cylindrical shape.  Be careful while rolling because the kuih is very hot to handle.  Repeat procedure until the batter is used up.

Note:  I made two portions of this recipe to fill up a medium-size plastic bottle to the brim.

Happy Baking!

Mini Spring Rolls (CNY)

Another very, very, very addictive Chinese New Year savoury snack.  The preparation is very time-consuming!  All I can say is that it is worth the effort because they taste delicious!  These mini popiahs are filled with Chicken Meat Floss which I prepared a few days ago and deep-fried until golden.  A complete guide on how to roll the popiah skins are included below.

Ingredients (yields 200 pcs):
1 packet frozen popiah skins (250 g)
chicken meat floss (click for recipe) or pork meat floss
2 tbsp flour, to be mixed with water to form an edible glue or you may use egg whites
oil for deep-frying

Method:
Thaw packet of frozen popiah skins at room temperature.

After about an hour, remove popiahs from packaging and by using a sharp knife, cut the whole stack into 4 portions as shown below.

Remove to a large plate and cover with a damp teacloth.

Prepare edible glue mixture and filling mixture in separate bowls.

Peel a layer of popiah skin and position it like a diamond on a board or plate.  Place 1 tsp of filling in the middle as shown.

By using a small pastry brush, dab a bit of edible glue on the top corner and bring the bottom corner to meet the top corner. It is much easier to use a pastry brush instead of your finger.

Fold the left and right corners inwards.

Dab the top corner with edible glue and roll over the filling upwards to form a mini spring roll.

Repeat procedure until all popiah skins are used up.  You should get around 200 pieces and the chicken meat floss quantity from my other recipe is more than sufficient.  It is enough to fill up a half-size plastic cookie container.  If you want to make more, just double or triple both recipes.

In a wok, heat enough oil for deep-frying over medium heat.  Deep-fry small portions of mini spring rolls until golden brown.  Remove to a colander which is lined with kitchen paper in order that excess oil is absorbed.  Leave aside to cool down completely before storing in an airtight container.

Psssstttt ..... I added more filling as per hubby's request!

Bon Appetit!

Kuih Baulu (CNY)

One of my favourite kuihs which is a must-bake during Chinese New Year and Eid Mubarak celebrations.  This kuih is similar to madeleines in taste and texture.  I can still recall our kampong days where I helped my mum to bake this kuih in a copper mould over charcoal fire.  Nowadays, the aluminium mould is readily available everywhere and can be used in the home oven.  The following recipe can be halved to suit your requirement.

Ingredients (yields about 100 pcs):

10 egg whites (medium-size)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp vanilla powder

400 g sugar

10 egg yolks (medium-size)

400 g plain flour, to be sifted

some butter for greasing

Method:

In a clean mixing bowl, whisk egg whites with baking powder until creamy (not stiff). Add vanilla powder and sugar a little at a time.  Continue whisking until thick and creamy.  Then, add egg yolks one at a time and whisk until thick and cream.

Preheat oven (do not use the fan) to a temperature of 200° C.  Grease the baulu mould with butter and "bake" for about 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, scoop 1/4 of egg mixture into a separate bowl.  Fold in 1/4 of flour a little at a time, into the egg mixture. Please fold in one direction only in order that the batter is not over-mixed.

Note:  If you are using the baulu mould for the first time, please do not wash it with soap and water. Just add cooking oil to the brim and "bake" it in a hot oven at a temperature of 180° C for about 30 minutes.  Discard the oil.  The mould is now ready for use.

Remove mould from oven.  Add one tablespoon of batter just enough to fill about 3/4 of each baulu design.  Return mould to oven and bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.  Do not overbake!

By using a satay stick, remove the kuih baulus from mould while they are still hot. Grease mould with butter again and heat it up in the oven for about 5 minutes before filling with batter.  Repeat procedure until batter is used up.

If you wish for a slightly crispy finish, arrange them on a baking tray which is lined with baking paper. Reduce oven temperature to 180° C and bake for 5 minutes. Once done, remove from oven and leave kuih baulus to cool down completely before storing them in a bottle.

Happy Baking!

Chicken Meat Floss (CNY)

What is Chinese New Year without meat floss?  I prepared this snack or filling beforehand because I intend to use it in my Mini Spring Rolls which I will prepare later.  So, I better hide it in a safe place now before it gets eaten up behind my back! Anyway, there are various methods to prepare this snack but I did it my own simple way, as long as the end result is satisfactory and the taste is good.

Ingredients:
4 chicken legs (with thighs) or 500 g chicken breast
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce (thick)
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
80 fine sugar or rock sugar
1 tsp salt
3 cloves, to be grounded

Important Note:  If you are using the chicken meat floss as a filling for your Mini Spring Rolls, add salt according to this recipe.  Otherwise, your Mini Spring Rolls will be very salty after frying.

For eating with porridge, add a little more salt to your taste.

Method:
In a large pot, add chicken meat and enough water to cover meat.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and let it simmer with the lid on for about 30 minutes.  Once done, remove chicken meat to a colander and leave aside to allow them to cool down completely.  Shred the cooked meat (skin to be discarded) into a bowl.  If you do this the day before, cover bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate.

Add the rest of ingredients to shredded meat and marinate for at least an hour.

Transfer meat mixture to a clean wok and cook (without oil) over low heat until mixture is almost dry.  Remove wok from heat.  The cooking process took me about an hour and a half.

By using a blender on medium speed, blend about 4 tbsp of meat mixture at a time. This is to achieve the floss texture.

Remove to a large bowl and repeat procedure until all meat mixture is blended. Return mixture to wok and cook over low heat until completely dry.

Once dry, transfer to a baking tray and leave to cool down completely.  Store in a container.  If storing it for a longer time, it is advisable to store container in the fridge.

Bon Appetit!