Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker Appliance

Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Automatic Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker

This fully automatic appliance makes frozen yogurt, sorbet, and homemade ice cream in 25-35 minutes. The frozen-dessert maker features a heavy-duty motor and a double-insulated freezer bowl that holds up to 2 quarts of frozen dessert at a time. Just add ingredients, turn the machine on, and frozen drinks and desserts are ready in about half an hour.

The appliance comes with

1. Transparent lid. A transparent easy-lock lid with a spout at the top to let you pour the ingredients through.
2. The base. The base which houses a powerful motor for handling frozen desserts. The base comes with nonslip rubber feet to keep the machine stationery during use. The base also comes with a cord storage for excess cord.
3. Mixing arm. Mixes and aerates the ingredients in the freezer bowl to create the frozen dessert.
4. Freezer bowl. The freezer bowl contains cooling liquid within a double insulated wall to create fast and even freezing.
5. Cuisinart Recipe Booklet.

Some tips

• The container or freezer bowl must be placed in the freezer for about 24 hours before each use. Make sure the bowl is completely frozen and do not take it out until you are ready to pour the ingredients in.
• When operating, the machine will be noisy (not as noisy as a blender), and will need to run for about a half hour.
• Though the appliance comes with a free recipe book, Ben andJerry's Homemade Ice Cream & Dessert Book is highly recommended.
• The ice cream, will have a soft serve consistency. For firmer ice cream, transfer the ice cream into an airtight container and store in the freezer for two or more hours.
• Ingredients such as nuts and chocolate chips should be added about 5 minutes before the recipe is complete.

Watch this demo video.

Why Exercise is more important for Women
By Triveni SharmaThroughout their lives, women go through major physical changes like menstruation, pregnancy and menopause, and the effects of those sometimes make a noteworthy indentation to women in terms of their physical health...

Source Code (2011) Review

This movie is about how a man (Capt Colter Stevens) gets into the last 8 minutes' consciousness of a teacher who died in a train explosion... again and again. His mission is to find out who the bomber is and get more info in order to prevent a another catastrophic bomb attack in Chicago. So he goes back into the teacher's last 8 minutes concsiousness several times until he could find the bomber. Sounds like what Marty McFly did in 'Back to the Future'. But in 'Back to the Future', Marty was given one chance to change the past in order to change the future. Here poor Capt Stevens has to go in several times and at the end of the 8 minutes, had to be annihilated again and again, until that one last time...

Okay, so all that change-the-past-in-order-to-change-the-future is pretty run of the mill kind of story. But what sets this movie apart from the rest is the little neat and nifty twist in the plot towards the end (that one last time...)

So is there a happy ending? Well, it depends on which reality you're looking at.

This movie is a great and entertaining introduction to the concept of parallel universe. Enjoy. I did.

If you do get a bit lost on the plot, click here for a very good synopsis.

Moon (2009) Review

This sci-fi movie is about a man named Sam Bell staying on the moon where he is employed by Lunar Industries to harvest and send back to earth some source of energy 'cos we humans were running out of energy on earth.

At the beginning we see Sam's mundane life on moon and how he longs to go back to earth to his wife and kid. As his 3 year long contract on the moon comes to an end, Sam's mental and physical faculties start taking a nosedive and that is when he (and the viewers) comes face to face with the truth.

Due to the slow baby steps pace of the opening, your logical mind ticks, "this is boring..." I mean what juicy story can you churn out about a single human being on the moon, right?

But as the story unfolds the intrigue and mystery glue you to the screen. And pretty soon, you find your jaw dropped open and a pool of half dried saliva on your lap.

The Cons
Throughout the movie, Sam's body was weakening with teeth dropping off, easily getting bruised, etc. After a while I felt like my own teeth were gonna drop off too.

The Pros
Nice and cool deco! The moonbase where Sam lives in, is cool and white and oh so clean. I wonder who does the cleaning. Sam or Gerty, Sam's intelligent computer companion on the moon.

Conclusion
A nice piece of brilliant story telling and directing. I mean how many movies do you come across that make you feel slightly bored and extremely intrigued at the same time? I like.

Veronica's Fruit Cake

I was looking through a very old exercise book of mine and came across this recipe. It was given by my dear friend, Veronica, who said that whenever she made the cake, people are always asking for the recipe. So for you fruitcake fans out there, here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
8 oz (228g) self-raising flour, sifted
375g mixed fruits
1 tin evaporated milk (not condensed milk!)
3 1/2 to 4 oz (100g to 113g) of soft brown sugar
250g butter

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 170C.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Mix a little of the flour with the mixed fruits to loosen up the mixed fruits. Then add loosened mixed fruits to butter/sugar mixture.
4. Slowly add in evaporated milk while mixing.
5. Lastly, fold in the flour.
6. Put in the oven for 1 hour 20 minutes.

A note on evaporated milk. In Malaysia, when we speak of evaporated milk, we think of the standard 400g can which is widely available. Any cans smaller than that doesn't come to mind because they're not so easily available. So I'm pretty sure Veronica means the 400g can type.

Mantou

I got this excellent steamed chinese buns (mantou) recipe from Simon's Law Journal (http://sfllaw.livejournal.com/49043.html). This recipe works! My daughter says this recipe "rocks", but nah... I don't like the idea of rocky mantous so I'll stick with "works".

Simon Says:

"Here is the recipe that my paternal grandfather taught me.

Ingredients
16 squares parchment paper, each 7cm by 7cm in area
350mL warm water
3 tablespoons white sugar
dash salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1.5 tablespoons oil
600g white bread flour (or High Protein Flour)

Directions
1. In a small bowl, mix the sugar and salt in the water, and then mix in the yeast. Let it rest for a while and it should smell active.
2. Add the oil to the mixture.
3. In a large bowl, add the flour and scoop out a hole in the centre. Add the liquids to the hole and gradually incorporate the flour. (Mamanags says: Don't pour all the water in though. Leave about 50mL out. If the dough is too dry, gradually add in more from the 50mL. I once made a mistake by happily pouring in all the water at once only to work with very, very sticky dough.)
4. Knead the dough until it forms into an elastic and smooth ball, which takes about 15 minutes. The dough should not stick to your hands, and be quite stretchy.
5. Roll out the dough into a tube that's about 5cm in diameter.
6. Slice the tube into 16 loafs. Lay each of the loafs on its cylindrical edge, not the face, on top of a square of parchment paper.
7. Wait 20 minutes for the loaves to rise. They won't rise much, but you just want the surface of the loaves to be puffy.
8. Arrange the loafs in one or more bamboo steamers. They will expand more on their faces, so don't put loafs face-to-face, or they will stick together.
9. Place the bamboo steamers on top of hot boiling water. Cover, and steam over high heat for 15 minutes.
10. Remove the lid and remove the loaves to a plate, before turning off the heat. You do not want water to condense on the buns.

Makes 16 loaves. Serves 4 when eaten by themselves (and you'll want to do that when they come out of the steamer.)"

Mamanags says: I use a metal (not bamboo) steamer. To prevent water from collecting on the parchment paper (thus making the "buns' bottom soggy" - hey, get the pun?), I put a clean face towel on the steamer (the layer with the holes). Then I put the mantous (with the parchment paper) onto the steamer which has been lined with the towel. If you don't have a face towel, you can even use a clean t-shirt.

If you don't have a steamer, then improvise. Basically you need 1) a pot or a wok big enough to hold boiling water, 2) a ceramic or metal bowl to hold up 3) your ceramic or metal plate of mantous, and 4) the cover to your big pot/wok of boiling water. The whole thing with this mantou thing is that you want to STEAM not boil them.

Applesauce Cake

INGREDIENTS
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup margarine
1 1/2 cups applesauce
2 tablespoons molasses
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour tube pan.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream the sugar and shortening until fluffy. Add applesauce and molasses and mix in.
4. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat well to moisten. Fold in the raisins.
5. Pour into a prepared fluted or straight sided tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean. Cake will not rise to top of pan. Cool for 10 minutes and remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Mamanags says: I've modified the recipe a bit. The original called for shortening instead of margarine and 1 tsp ground clove instead of 1/4 tsp.

Tina's Shortbread Chocolate Chip Cookies

Tina says, "This cookie is incredible. It's so rich and tasty. I cannot tell how many times I get asked for this recipe. Everyone loves it and it's easy to make. These keep very well. You can make dough ahead time and freeze it. Defrost when ready to use and follow baking instructions. Great cookie for the holidays."

And here's the recipe from www.allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup white sugar
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).
1. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt, set aside. In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Gradually stir in the dry ingredients, then stir in the walnuts and chocolate chips.
3. Roll or scoop dough into walnut sized balls. Place them on unprepared cookie sheets 1 1/2 inches apart. Flatten cookies slightly. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until light golden brown. Remove from sheets to cool on racks.

Vinegar Cookies

INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (170 degrees C).
2. Cream butter or margarine and sugar. Add other ingredients. Drop by teaspoon on lightly greased cookie sheet.
3. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

I got this recipe from allrecipes.com. This is what one reviewer had to say about the recipe:

"The best! These taste just like sugar cookies, but without eggs. I skipped the nuts due to an allergy. The dough was easy to make and mix and the measurements given are exactly right. I measured the dough by the teaspoon-full and then rolled the cookies into balls and dipped the tops into raw sugar. They spread beautifully into perfectly round cookies. Fresh out of the oven they are soft and fabulous -- very buttery. Once they have cooled completely they get crispy, though the flavor is still very good. The recipe made about 48 cookies. This is a definite keeper."

Coconut Pudding Triangle

Recipe and picture from http://find.myrecipes.com

Coconut pudding, or haupia, is a traditional Hawaiian sweet usually cut into small squares. It shows up at just about every potluck on the islands.

Prep and Cook Time: about 10 minutes, plus 1 hour to chill.

Ingredients
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
Vegetable oil for oiling baking dish
1 can (14 oz.) coconut milk
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 325°. Spread flaked coconut on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes.
2. Oil an 8-in.-square baking dish. In a small bowl, stir together 1/2 cup coconut milk and cornstarch until smooth.
3. In a medium nonstick saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups coconut milk (if you don't have enough, augment with water) and sugar. Stir over medium heat until sugar has dissolved. Drizzle cornstarch mixture slowly into saucepan, whisking, and whisk in vanilla and salt. Cook, whisking vigorously (do not allow to boil), until mixture is very thick, pulling away from pan, and no longer tastes floury, 4 to 6 minutes. Pour into prepared dish and spread evenly. Let cool briefly, then cover with plastic wrap and chill until set, at least 1 hour.

4. Cut haupia into 22 to 24 triangles and sprinkle each with a pinch of toasted coconut.

Makes 22 to 24 triangles

Bubur Lambuk

Recipe from www.mamafami.blogspot.com

Mamanags: Bubur means porridge in Malay. Lambuk...hmmm...I got to look that one up. Anyway have a look at the picture. This is not a recipe where you need exact measurements. You kind of go with the flow and have in your head the picture when you're making it. For creaminess, I add about 2 tbsp of santan (coconut cream) - don't overdo the coconut cream though. You just want a hint of it. For me sometimes I don't add Kurma powder, and I don't definitely add kerisik (don't know what it is).

Ingredients
Shallots ~ pounded
Garlic ~ pounded
Ginger (just a bit) ~ pounded
Kurma powder
fried grated coconut (kerisik)
Salt to taste
Carrots ~ diced
Potato ~ cleaned and diced
Rice
Enough water

To garnish (optional):
Spring onions ~ chopped
Crispy fried onions

Method :

1. Heat oil and add in the pounded ingredients. Fry till fragrant.
2. Add in the kurma powder and fried grated coconut (kerisik). Stir well.
3. Wash rice and put enough water like how you prepare porridge.
4. Pour (2) into (3) and stir to mix.
5. Let it boil and add in the diced carrot and potato and leave to cook.
6. Before serving, garnish with spring onions and crisp fried onion/shallots.

Note from mamafami:

1. I added green beans cut to small pieces just for the color.
2. Before removing the pot from heat, I heat up a little bit of oil and add in some sliced onion. Fry till fragrant and golden brown, then pour all of them into the porridge and stir to mix. My mom said, this method is called tumis darat.

Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake

Recipe and picture from http://blog.fatfreevegan.com
Doesn't it look lovely? Can somebody try it out and share your comments here. Much appreciated. For non-vegans, try it out with normal cream cheese.

Ingredients
8 ounces Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese
12 ounces light firm silken tofu (or extra-firm)
1/2 cup agave nectar (or sugar)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup pumpkin puree (canned, not pumpkin pie mix)
2 teaspoons rum (optional)
3 tablespoons brown sugar or natural sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg (please!)

1 pre-made 8-inch graham cracker crust

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Put the first set of ingredients (toffuti through vanilla) in a food processor and puree until completely smooth. It should be silky smooth--not chalky or lumpy.
3. Remove a cup of this mixture from the processor and spread it in the bottom of the crust.
4. Add the next set of ingredients (pumpkin through nutmeg) to the ingredients remaining in the food processor and process until well blended. Smooth it carefully over the white layer in the crust, heaping it slightly in the middle. Bake until the center is almost set, about 45-55 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 3 hours

A Not So Crazy Cake

Mamanags: One day I wanted to make Crazy Cake but didn't have enough cocoa powder. What to do? I substituted custard powder for cocoa powder. The result: a very easy to make and moist cake. Goes very well with Betty's Chocolate Fudge Icing.

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
2 cups (400 g) white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup (45 g) custard powder
3/4 cup (180 ml) vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar (this can be your plain ole' white vinegar or the fancy apple cider vinegar)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups (475 ml) cold water (If I got milk, I would use it instead of water)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Sift flour, sugar, salt, soda, and custard powder together into a 9 x 13 inch ungreased cake pan. Make three wells. Pour oil into one well, vinegar into second, and vanilla into third well. Pour cold water over all, and stir well with fork.
2. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 to 40 minutes, or until tooth pick inserted comes out clean. Frost with your favorite icing.

Gelatin - What is it made from?

Here are some descriptions of gelatin.

Gelatin: is made from collagen extracted from the bones and connective tissues of animals such as the domesticated cattle, pigs and horses
(en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gelatin)

Gelatin: a colorless water-soluble glutinous protein obtained from animal tissues such as bone and skin
(wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn)

Gelatin is a setting agent, derived from animals, available as a powder or a sheet.
(thefoody.com/glossary/glossaryg.html)

That's why for vegetarians it is preferable to use agar-agar, a type of seaweed used in the same way as gelatin.

Nuttella Cheesecake

Recipe from www.eggfreebaking.com. Looks easy enough and best part, it's eggless. Try it out.

Base:
70g pkt hazelnuts, toasted
125g chocolate biscuits
100g butter, melted

Process the hazelnuts until resembling fine breadcrumbs. Add the chocolate biscuits and process to crumbs. Add the butter and whiz to mix in.
Tip into a 20cm springform tin and press the crumbs over the base and up the walls for 3 - 4cm. Chill while making the filling.

Filling:
250g cream cheese, softened
250g Nuttella or other hazelnut spread
200g dark milk chocolate, melted
1/4 tsp salt
1 - 2 tsp hazelnut essence (optional)

Process the cream cheese until smooth. Add the Nuttella, salt and hazelnut essence (if using) and process until smooth. Add the melted chocolate, a few spoonfuls at a time, and whiz until smooth, scraping down the walls as necessary. Put into prepared biscuit base and chill until set.
Pipe the top with chocolate (see grid topping below) and leave it to set.
Serves 8 - 10.

Chocolate Grid Topping:
Melt 50g dark chocolate over hot water or in the microwave. Meanwhile tuck a small plastic bag into a drinking glass and fold the surplus down the outside of the glass. Spoon the melted chocolate into the plastic bag and twist the top to seal in the chocolate. Remove the bag from the glass and cut a tiny corner off the base of the bag to form a nozzle (it’s better to cut too little the first time). Place the bag in your hand and gently squeeze fine drizzle lines in one direction over the cheesecake using your other hand to steady your piping hand. Give the cheesecake a quarter turn and drizzle lines in the opposite direction. Chill until serving time.

Note: If you’re out of chocolate biscuits substitute plain biscuits and add 1-2 Tbsp cocoa powder.
2-3 tablespoons of hazelnut coffee flavouring can be substitutes for the hazelnut essence.

Eggless Cherry Cheesecake

Hah! Finally a cheesecake recipe without eggs, gelatine and whipped cream topping. In Malaysia, whipped cream is VERY expensive. Gelatine is non-vegetarian. I found this on Allrecipes.com. I've not tried this recipe but read the reviews which heaped praises on it. However, there were some problems with the firmness of the cheesecake. Well anyway, any takers? If you do try it out, I'd appreciate your comments!

INGREDIENTS
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (21 ounce) can cherry pie filling

DIRECTIONS
Place softened cream cheese in a mixing bowl; add condensed milk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Beat until well blended. Pour mixture into the pie crust. Chill for 5 hours. DO NOT FREEZE!!!
Pour cherry pie filling on top of pie. Serve.

What is Tempeh Anyway?

It’s whole soybeans that have gone through a fermentation process with the final result being chunks of soybeans stuck together by the white cottony mycelium. Mycelium is the ‘vegetative part’ of fungus.

What does it look like?
A cross section tempeh wrapped in banana leaf.

What does it taste like?
Creamy, very slightly salty. Ever tasted your sweat? Well, it’s that kind of saltiness, but less salty. The texture is chewy and firm. The chewiness come from the soybeans that have been soaked overnight to ferment. Please don’t get the wrong idea. Tempeh doesn’t have any offending odor; it’s not like socks being left to ferment in the owner’s sweat (Yucks!!!). Just like yoghurt, a product of fermented milk, tempeh doesn’t have any offending odor.

What does it smell like?
Your hand on a humid day.
The upper part of your lip (you’d need to pucker up to do this and no moustaches please)

Where can you buy it?
In Malaysia, widely available at the wet markets especially from the Malay stalls

What size is it?
Tempeh wrapped in banana leaf pictured above is usually about 3x6 inches (15x7cm) and ¾ inch (1.5cm) thick. Some come in bigger pieces and some in smaller pieces. Prices also vary accordingly. For the size mentioned here, you can buy it for RM1.00 or about US$0.30. Sorry, I never bothered to weigh it.

How long can it be stored?
Tempeh is best eaten on the day it’s bought, just like other fresh produce. Fresh tempeh feels warm. If you’re going to use it on the same day, you don’t need to put it in the fridge. Beyond the first day however, you’d need to. After that it can last about 2 to 3 days. Then it turns rancid. The beans turn a yellowish colour and some parts of the mycelium turn black. Imagine a week old loaf of bread and you get what I mean.

Nutritional value
Because of the fermentation process, the whole bean in tempeh gives it a higher content of protein, dietary fiber and vitamins compared to tofu. In fact a good 40% of it is soy protein, with the rest being carbohydrate and fats.

Can we eat it raw?
I sometimes eat it raw and well, I still alive and well. So go ahead take my word for it, uncooked tempeh can be eaten. Just cut up a piece of raw tempeh into small bitesized pieces and dip it into ketchup or soy sauce. You want to eat the tempeh for its probiotics. Probotics can be found only in uncooked fermented foods like yoghurt or tempeh. As such, fried tempeh is useless. But, in my opinion, lightly sautéed or stir fried tempeh is also more than acceptable.

Baked Tempeh

This can be eaten with Easy Satay Sauce.

INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons tomato sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced finely
1 pinch ground black pepper (optional)
1 pinch ground cumin (optional)

1 packet of tempeh cut into bite-sized pieces, let's say 1x1 inch

DIRECTIONS
In a bowl, mix all ingredients together. Place tempeh pieces into the mixture, and stir to coat.

Spread tempeh pieces together with remaining sauce on a baking pan. Let stand for 15 minutes. Bake in preheated oven at 175C (or 350F) for 15 minutes.

Easy Satay Sauce

Enjoy this versatile sauce with cucumber slices, raw onion slices, and Baked Tempeh. Use your imagination and you'll agree that this sauce goes well with even rice and noodles.

INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup minced onion
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 cup water
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice

DIRECTIONS
Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until fragrant (or until lightly browned). Mix in water, peanut butter, soy sauce, and sugar. Cook and stir until well blended. Remove from heat, mix in lemon juice, and set aside.

For added oomph add 1/2 tsp of chilli powder to the mixture when cooking.

Easy Cream Cheese Frosting

Mamanags says: "Try out this recipe on My Eggless Carrot Cake or Evamyth's Eggless, Milkless, Butterless Spice Cake. I got this excellent recipe from Pabbydog, a member of http://www.allrecipes.com/. This frosting is enough for a 9x13 inch cake."

INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup butter, softened (ie at room temperature)
8 ounces cream cheese, softened (ie at room temperature)
2 cups confectioners' sugar (aka icing or powdered sugar), sifted
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
1. Beat softened butter and cream cheese until well blended.
2. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Beat until creamy.
3. Cake must be entirely cool before you put on this frosting.

Evamyth's Eggless, Milkless, Butterless Spice Cake

Evamyth says: "I found this recipe in the newspaper twenty years ago. I was impressed by the author's stories about life in the homefront during WWII so I decided to try this recipe. It was very good even without the allspice."

Mamanags says: "I only found Evamyth's recipe at http://www.recipezaar.com/ yesterday and alas, not twenty years ago. Boy, this is one recipe that consistently got great reviews. Haven't tried it myself but just put it here if anybody wants to have a go at it. The name is a mouthful though, can be a tongue twister. If you like, top the cake with Easy Cream Cheese Frosting.

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cups flour
3 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup oil
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup water (approximately)

DIRECTIONS
1. Stir together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, spices and salt.
2. Cream sugar, oil, lemon juice and vanilla.
3. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture, a little at a time, alternating with up to 1 cup of water.
4. Mix briskly with fork until thoroughly blended.
5. Pour into lightly greased and floured 8 or 9 inch square pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until cake tests done.
6. Let cool in pan.

Eggless Pancakes

After watching my Sims (a computer game) eat pancakes, I wanted some too. So I tried out some recipes and found this one to be a winner. The original recipe called for 2 cups milk and 1 egg. I took out the egg and substituted it with 2 tbsp more milk. If the batter is too thick, just add more water or milk. Give it a try!

INGREDIENTS

2 ½ cups flour
3 tbsp sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

2 cups milk
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp lemon juice (or vinegar)
4 tbsp oil
1 tsp vanilla

DIRECTIONS
1. Stir the dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. Mix the lemon juice into the milk. Let it sit for a few minutes. The milk will curdle.
3. Stir in the liquid ingredients into dry ingredients together until the batter is fairly smooth.
4. Heat a lightly greased griddle. The pan is hot enough when a drop of water breaks into several smaller balls which 'dance' around the pan.
5. Pour about ¼ cup batter onto griddle.
6. Cook until bubbles form on the surface. Carefully flip pancakes with spatula and cook until golden brown.

My Eggless Carrot Cake

This is a quick and easy recipe for carrot cake. Mix in the ingredients with a wooden spoon, or fork; there is no need to take out the electric mixer for this recipe. The result: a tasty and moist cake.

The pic above shows the cake topped with Tracy's Creamy Chocolate Frosting. But the cake is equally yummy plain or with Easy Cream Cheese Frosting. Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp salt

1 cup finely grated carrots (about 2 to 3 carrots)

3/4 cup water
1/2 cup melted butter
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp vinegar

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees C (175 degrees F)
2. Mix dry ingredients and spices until well blended.
3. Add grated carrots. Stir until thoroughly blended.
4. Add wet ingredients. Mix thoroughly.
5. Bake in preheated oven for about 30 to 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Eggless Sugee Cashew Nut Cookies

I got this recipe from the newspapers way back in February 2000. It's now 2007 as I write this and I have always made them for Chinese New Year. They're easy to make BUT since I'm the impatient kind, I always rope in my kids to help me in step 3. Warning: Kids = missing cookies.

A note: Sugee or semolina is ground from hard wheat into granules. So the cookies will have a crunchy or grainy texture.You can grind the sugee granules by using an electric coffee grinder if you prefer smoother texture cookies.

INGREDIENTS

200g cold butter, diced
100g caster sugar
1 tsp grated orange rind

200g plain flour sifted together with
1 tsp baking powder
150g ground sugee

Small to medium-sized cashew nuts

DIRECTIONS
1. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in orange rind.
2. Stir in sifted dry ingredients and the ground sugee until well mixed.
3. Roll mixture into cherry sized balls and shape into ovals. Split the cashew nut into two. Press only one side of the cashew nut into the centre of the oval shaped dough. Shape the dough in a half-moon, or cashew-nut shape.
4. Arrange on lightly greased baking trays.
5. Bake in preheated moderate oven 175 degrees C for 20-25 minutes or until golden.
6. Transfer onto wire racks to cool before storing in airtight container.

My Eggless Kaya

Kaya is a jam made from coconut milk, eggs which are flavored by pandan leaf and sweetened with sugar. Kaya is sweet,creamy, delicious and GOT EGGS! That's why it's named Kaya. Kaya means rich in Malay and the richness comes about from the eggs. Okay, so how do we make kaya without the eggs? Voila the recipe...

INGREDIENTS
400 ml thick coconut milk from about 2 grated coconuts
400 ml evaporated milk
175 g sugar

6 pandan leaves cut into 1 cm pieces and blended with about 4 to 6 tbsp water

1 1/2 tsp custard powder
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch/cornflour
2 tbsp water

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine thick coconut milk, evaporated milk and sugar in a non-stick saucepan. Heat milk mixture over a very low heat for about 4–5 minutes, stirring well with a wooden spoon.
2. Add in custard powder and corn flour mixture. Next, add in pandan juice.
3. Keep stirring continuously for about 30–40 minutes over a very low heat until mixture thickens.

Mandira's Eggless Chocolate & Nuts Muffin

Mandira says: "This is no ordinary muffin. It is a muffin that reminds you of sunny days and weekends when you can sleep late. You wake up to coffee brewing in the kitchen and you get muffins fresh out of the oven for a scrumptious breakfast. Filled with chocolate and nuts, but not too sweet, this muffin is a treat. I bought a muffin pan this summer I have been wanting to try it out ever since. And it did not disappoint me."

MamaNags says: "I got this recipe from Mandira's blog at http://ahaar.blogspot.com/2006/11/eggless-chocolate-nuts-muffins.html. Mmmm... don't the muffins look good? Thanks Mandira for the recipe!"

INGREDIENTS

1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup chocolate - Mandira used bittersweet cocoa
1/2 cup almonds, walnuts & raisins (chopped)
1 1/2 tspoon baking soda
1 tspoon vanilla extract
2 tbspoon butter
1 tbspoon heavy cream
1/2 cup milk

DIRECTIONS
1. Mix the flour, sugar, baking soda (update) nuts, raisins and chocolate. Add the butter and heavy cream.
2. Mix the vanilla extract in the milk (update), then add the milk and whisk till it all mixes together.
3. Heat the oven to 350F.
4. Put the batter in the muffin pan covering about 1/2 of the cup.
5. Bake for 18-20 min till they turn golden brown and the toothpick comes out clean.

My Eggless French Toast

My own concoction. I would have to say, "Not bad!" The following recipe is enough for about 6 slices of bread.

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup milk
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp cornflour / cornstarch
1 tbsp custard powder
generous pinch of cinnamon powder
1 tsp of oil
1/2 tsp of vanilla essence

DIRECTIONS
1. Mix all ingredients together with a fork.
2. Cover both sides of bread with mixture by dipping one side at a time into the mixture.
3. Let it 'rest' on a plate for about 1 minute before placing on a lightly greased pan/griddle (moderate heat). By 'resting' it will be less sticky to the griddle.
4. Serve immediately plain or with topping of your choice.

Deva's Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies

My sons once had a 'sales day' at school where students sell food brought from home. I made these cookies for my sons to sell. Their friends bought one packet to try only to come back to buy some more. Alas, they were too late. The teachers beat them to it. The cookies kind of 'flew off the shelves'. My sons were disappointed sales were too good; it meant no extras for them.

Anyway, here's the recipe.

Makes about 20

INGREDIENTS
125 g butter
120 g soft brown sugar
1 tablespoon golden syrup (I use honey coz I don't have golden syrup)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
200 g chocolate chips (this is mighty plenty, so I use about half the amount)
50 g chopped walnuts
140 g self-raising flour

DIRECTIONS
1. Cream butter, sugar, syrup and vanilla until light and fluffy.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well to form a soft dough. Roll into cherry-sized balls and place on prepared baking trays. Flatten slightly.
3. Bake in preheated 160°C oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack before storing.

Betty's Chocolate Fudge Icing

This icing goes very well with Amy's Crazy Cake. Kind of like a marriage made in Heaven. Here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS
100 g butter, at room temperature
6 tbsp milk
170 g icing sugar (aka confectioner's or powdered sugar) sifted with
30 g cocoa powder

DIRECTION
1. Put the butter and milk in a saucepan and stir over moderate heat. Let it simmer for about 3 minutes. Pour into the sifted icing sugar and cocoa mixture. Mix well until mixture is smooth and glossy.
2. Immediately pour over your cooled cake. Spread icing over the sides and let it run down the sides. Leave to set for about 30 to 50 minutes.

Amy's Crazy Cake

Amy says: "This cake was popular during the depression, and does not have eggs in it."

MamaNags says: "Amy's being modest; she makes the cake sound plain. This cake is TERRIFIC! No wonder it was popular during the depression. So if you're depressed, this chocolate cake will sure lift your spirits like crazy. By the way, it's also easy to make. Don't worry about the vinegar, it's there to make the cake rise and believe me, you won't taste it. Some tips for this cake: 1) it tastes better the next day and 2) it tastes especially good topped with Betty's Chocolate Fudge Icing (see picture). Enjoy!"

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
2 cups (400 g) white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup (45 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup (180 ml) vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar (this can be your plain ole' white vinegar or the fancy apple cider vinegar)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups (475 ml) cold water (If I got milk, I would use it instead of water)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Sift flour, sugar, salt, soda, and cocoa together into a 9 x 13 inch ungreased cake pan. Make three wells. Pour oil into one well, vinegar into second, and vanilla into third well. Pour cold water over all, and stir well with fork.
2. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 to 40 minutes, or until tooth pick inserted comes out clean. Frost with your favorite icing.

Tracy’s Creamy Chocolate Frosting

Tracy says: "I've been using this chocolate frosting recipe forever, and several friends now use it as their 'favorite frosting!' It's smooth, creamy and not-too-dark. I just wanted to share it with chocolate lovers everywhere! It will frost, but not fill, an 8 or 9 inch layer cake."

INGREDIENTS:
2 3/4 cups (345 g) confectioners' sugar (aka icing or powdered sugar)
6 tablespoons (30 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
6 tablespoons (85 g) butter
5 tablespoons (75 ml) evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a medium bowl, sift together the confectioners' sugar and cocoa, and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter until smooth, then gradually beat in sugar mixture alternately with evaporated milk. Blend in vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. If necessary, adjust consistency with more milk or sugar

MamaNags: I got this from http://www.allrecipes.com/. The recipe got lots of good reviews. For me, I like it because it's easy to make and it's not too sweet.

Margaret's Plain Eggless Cake

Here's a great recipe for PLAIN EGGLESS cake. Even though there's orange juice in it, it's not an orange cake. The cake turns out moist and for me a thin layer of frosting will do (try Tracy's Creamy Chocolate Frosting). It's easy to make and best of all, you wouldn't think it's eggless.

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups (310 g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup (117 ml) orange juice
1/2 cup (117 ml) milk (or orange juice if you want a stronger 'orangey' taste)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (225 g) melted butter

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. I use a 10 inch square (26 cm square) pan. Basically use a big pan.

2. Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda into a large bowl. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda. Make a well in the center and pour in the sweetened condensed milk, orange juice, vanilla and melted butter. Mix well and pour into prepared pan.

3. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool completely if you want to put on frosting or icing.