Steam Pumpkin Mantou - 金瓜馒头

Mantou(馒头) often referred to as "humbao" or Chinese steamed bun which is originating in China. It is made with wheat flour, water and leavening agents, they are similar in nutrition and eating qualities to the white bread of the West.

Recently, my mum has being into Mantou making with one of my son's kiddy's friend mummy. They will gather together at least once in a week to experiment with their Mantou making. So after tasting their delicious homemade Mantou, I am also interested in joining the fun of making it. For mine, I added some extra wolfberries to enhance the taste as well as a the texture.

Ingredients: (makes about 10)
250g Plain Flour
1 Teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
40ml Lukewarm Water
1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
5 Tablespoons Caster Sugar
200g Pumpkin, skin removed
2 Tablespoon Wolfberries, cut into halves
1/2 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Method:
1. Sift the plain flour and baking powder together in a big bowl, then stir in the caster sugar till combined.
2. Remove the outer skin of the pumpkin, cut into small cubes then rinse it with water and place in a microwave safe bowl and cook on High heat together with a cup of water for about 5 minutes. (Stop 2 minutes in between and give it a stir so that it will cook evenly)
3. Use a fork or food masher to mash the pumpkin cubes into paste form then set aside for later use.
4. Add the dry yeast into the lukewarm water and give it a quick stir then set aside for about 5 minutes till bubbles appeared(refer to the picutre above).
5. Next slowly add in the yeast water into the flour mixture and sitr using a pair of chopstick, then follow by the mashed pumpkin and stir till they form a soft dough.
6. Rub some oil on your hand then give the dough a quick knead till well combine.
7. Set the dough aside in a lightly flour/oil bowl and let it proof for about 20 - 30 minutes until it double in size.
8. Divide the dough into 2 or 3 portions then on a lightly floured work surface, flatten each portion into a rectangular shape shown like that picture below, sprinkle some chopped wolfberries then roll it up lengthwise into an oblong shape then cut them into equal portion.
9. Place each shaped portion on a piece of greaseproof paper, top with some extra wolfberries, then arrange on the steamer rack and steam over medium heat for about 8 - 10 minutes depend on the size.
10. Repeat for the rest of the portion of dough and steam accordingly. ( I made about 10 Mantou with the size of about 3" before steaming)

Note:
a) Lukewarm is about 40 degree Celsius
b) The pumpkin dough will be very stick when handling, so do not worry. You can wet your hand some oil before handling the dough for easy kneading.
c) You might need to cook the pumpkin for about 3 - 5 minutes more before it will be soften depend on the power of your microwave.

This is my homemade Steam Pumpkin & Wolfberries Mantou which is freshly out from the steamer. It really taste great and different for a chance in the usual Pandan or Plain Mantou that is sold in the supermarket.

Confirmation Party Foods

People often wonder what to serve at celebrations following the reception of sacraments. "Are there foods that are traditional for the various sacraments?" and "What kinds of foods might be symbolic for the sacrament?" are questions I have heard. Last spring we highlighted First Communion Celebrations in Catholic Cuisine's first From Thy Bounty Fair, but there have been only a few post related to foods which would be fitting for a Confirmation celebration.

Our family recently celebrated a confirmation and I wanted to share some of the ideas we had for the party that followed. Since we are still in the Confirmation season, hopefully some of these ideas will be helpful to you or spark other ideas. And of course any ideas that would work well for a Confirmation party could also be incorporated into a Pentecost celebration as well.

Our party included some typical buffet-fare (deli sandwiches, potato salad, and chips) which we accented with several special Confirmation themed foods we though would be symbolic of the day. Our buffet included:

• "Fruits of the Spirit" Salad (Though we used only 7 fruits - more like the gifts - rather than the 12 fruits. And no dressing was used, just the fruits.)


• Seven-layer bean dip (7 again to represent the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit)


• "Tongues of Fire" Salad (A green tossed salad with strips of red, yellow and orange bell pepper on top)
  

A fun and sweet treat for after the meal was Dove chocolate - calling to mind the dove imagery of the Holy Spirit.

And the main centerpiece of the celebration was the cake which we decorated with the dove and tongues of fire representing the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

We first traced and cut out a paper dove the size and shape we wanted for the cake top. We placed that on the frosted cake (chocolate was used so that the white dove would stand out) and traced around the outline with a toothpick.

When the pattern was lifted we had an outline of a dove to fill in with the white frosting. We used a star tip to fill in the body and one the tips with the elongated hole (either the leaf or rose tip) to form the feathers. We pulled a toothpick through the frosting to give the feathers a more "feathery" appearance. The tongues of fire, the beak and the rays from the doves head were piped on with yellow-orange tinted frosting.

If you have ideas for foods to celebrate a Confirmation, please share then with us. If you have a link to a blog post that would be great. Either leave your link or idea in the comments section or send it to me at mary.cathcuisine at gmail dot com. I'd love to do a follow-up post, a mini From Thy Bounty Fair, if there is enough response.

Flames of Pentecost Cupcakes

With Pentecost coming quickly upon us, it's a good time to revisit some past posts with ideas for bringing the spirit of Pentecost alive in our meal and dessert preparations. In addition to the awesome birthday cake idea (Happy Birthday Church!) just shared by Robina there is A Cake for Pentecost from last year as well. Don't forget the Portuguese Holy Ghost Sopas shared by Amy or Evelyn Birge Vitz 's Twelve Fruit Salad from A Continual Feast. More ideas can be found in Jessica's Menu ideas for Pentecost Sunday and Pentecost suggestions are also mentioned in Jenn's two part series "Staples of Our Feastday Celebrations" - Wine and Bread.

I always like to have a simple option on hand if time is tight on feast days. For us cupcakes are an easy dessert to pull together. Here is a simple Pentecost cupcake decorating idea with two variations for "flames."

Using white frosted cupcakes add thin sliced strawberry "flames" to represent the tongues of fire.

Or add some red and yellow food coloring to small amounts of extra frosting and dab on swirl frosting "flames."

And check out Meredith's Sweetness and Light blog for her lovely strawberry topped cupcake variation from a few years ago.

Happy Birthday Church!

Pentecost celebrates the descent of the Holy Spirit onto the twelve apostles. Pentecost is celebrated seven weeks after Easter, this year on May 31st. This event marks the BIRTHday of the Church as with this power of the Holy Spirit the apostles went out to be Jesus' witnesses to the world, able to speak all language and perform great acts.

"But you will receive power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Acts 1:8

What better way to celebrate a birthday than to have a birthday cake. Since red is the liturgical color for Pentecost, I think a red velvet cake with cream cheese icing sounds perfect. Place twelve candles on the cake representing the twelve apostles, and the lighting of the candles represents the flame of the Holy Spirit descending upon them.

"Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,

which parted and came to rest on each one of them.

And they were all filled with the holy Spirit"

Acts 2:3-4

There are so many variations of red and white cake and decorations possible, so make whatever cake combination you fancy. I am doing this for the first time this year so I don't have a picture of a red velvet cake with twelve candles on it yet. This picture is meant to sweeten your appetite to want to make this scrumptious treat to celebrate the Holy Spirit and the beginning of our Holy Mother Church.

This post was written by Robina, at Motherly Loving, and submitted for publication here at Catholic Cuisine. Thank you Robina!

For more ideas for celebrating Pentecost, be sure to check the archives! 

Summer Herbal Drinks with Mint and Lemon Balm

Spearmint (Mentha viridis or Mentha spicata) was particularly dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and its common names include Our Lady’s Mint, Mary’s Mint, Mary’s Leaf, Lady’s Leaf. These names are very similar in other languages illustrating the universality of naming specific plants for Our Lady. In the various names for spearmint in other languages we can see an example of this universality - in French, Menthe Notre Dame and Herba Santa Maria in Spanish. Also, according to information I read on Ann Ball' s website, mint was one of the favorite strewing herbs in the Middle Ages; it was strewn on the floors of churches and banquet halls to furnish a pleasant odor. It was used by the monks in cooking and medicinally.

Another Marian herb also in the mint family is lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) which was known in medieval Mary garden’s as Sweet Mary. Its lovely fragrance fills the air and could be a reminder to help us be aware of Mary's presence in our life. Lemon balm has a strong history in Catholic religious settings. It is the principal ingredient in Carmelite Water or “Eau de Melisse de Carmes” which was invented by Carmelite nuns and used both medicinally, and externally as a perfume or Eau de Toilette. Lemon balm is also an ingredient in the liquor, Benedictine, which was first made by Dom Bernardo Vincelli, a monk at the Benedictine Abbey of Fecamp in Normandy in the 16th century.

As we enter the season of summer in the northern hemisphere, cool beverages are a great way to beat the heat and find refreshment. A couple sample iced drinks which use these herbs of Our Lady are shared here.


Strawberry Mint Lemonade

Ingredients
4 cups water
1 cup sugar
4 cups fresh mint leaves, lightly packed
1 quart strawberry hulled, halved
1 cup lemon juice, fresh squeezed

Directions
Place 2 cups water, sugar and mint in a small saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Strain and discard mint. Thinly slice about 1 cup of strawberries and set aside. Add 1/2 of the remaining strawberries to a blender and blend until smooth; pour into 2 quarter pitcher. Stir in sliced strawberries and remaining water. Cover and chill until serving.


Lemon Balm Iced Tea

Ingredients
approx. 2 ounces fresh lemon balm leaves
6 cups water
1 small lemon, thinly sliced
4 tea bags (black tea)
3 T honey

Directions
Combine lemon balm, the lemon slices, and tea bags in a teapot or bowl. Pour in 2 cups boiling water to cover. Cover and let steep for 5 minutes. Remove and discard the tea bags. Stir the honey and set aside to cool. Strain the tea into a large pitcher and discard the solids. Add 4 cups cold water and stir well. Refrigerate the tea until ready to serve. Pour the chilled tea over ice in glasses and garnish with lemon balm sprigs.

Sugared Flowers for Mary's Month of May

Flowers are symbolically linked to Mary in many ways - through their Marian names and the various legends. Edible flowers are a delightful garnish or adornment for cakes, desserts, salads to celebrate Our Lady during her Month of May, or at any feast day or tea time in her honor during the year. The life of a fresh flower is fleeting so their preservation by crystallizing with sugar will make them last much longer. As a decoration for an iced cake or a garnish for a dessert fresh, crystallized edible flowers bring color, fragrance and flavor to any recipe. Meredith, at Sweetness and Light, has posted about making candied violets for a Marian tea cake.

You can make your own candied flowers for your Marian treats. Use edible flowers for this project – and make sure they are ones that haven’t been treated with pesticides. The flowers in the Violas family (pansies, johnny jump ups and violets) are perfect for crystallizing. Other edible flowers that could be used include daisies, lavender, roses, calendulas, cornflowers, and blossoms from fruit trees--apple, peach, plum, orange and lemon.

Supplies/Ingredients
Edible flowers
Egg white or meringue mixture
Baker’s sugar (super-fine sugar)
Smallpaintbrush
Spoon or sifter


Choose fresh flowers. Cut flower, leaving approx. 1-2 inch stem to hold while sugaring. Gently wash the flowers under a gentle stream of water or in a small bowl with cool water. Place on paper towels and let dry completely before continuing. Remove pistils and stamens from flowers before sugaring. The egg white or meringue mixture is used to coat the petals and to adhere the sugar. We used a meringue mixture of 1 tablespoon water to 1 teaspoon meringue powder. Sprinkle powder on water and let sit for awhile before stirring to avoid the powder clumping. If using an egg white, whip until frothy before using.

Apply a thin layer of egg white or meringue mixture on each side of each petal with a small paintbrush in a thin, even layer.


Hold the flower over a bowl, sprinkle or shake super-fine sugar over the entire flower. Tap to remove excess sugar and repeat on reverse side.



When coated, place on waxed or parchment paper to dry. Allow approximately 24 hours to dry and harden completely. Carefully place flowers on cake or other dessert to garnish.

Flowers and their Marian names:
Pansy (Viola tricolor) -Our Lady's Delight

Johnny-Jump-up (Viola tricolor) -Trinity Flower

Violet (Viola odorata) -Our Lady's Modesty
Cornflower (Centauria cyanis) -Mary's Crown

Rose (Rosa) -Mystical Rose

English daisy (Bellis perennis) -Mary-love

Lavendar (Lavendula) -Flight into Egypt

Calendula (Calendula officinalis) -Mary’s Bud

Scramble Egg With Tomato

Are you one of those tomato lover who eats any kind of tomato that is on the shelf of the supermarket? Or you will just pick your choice of those that you love like cherry tomatoes or vineyard tomatoes or ?

Tomato fruit is classified as a berry. As a true fruit, it develops from the ovary of the plant after fertilization, its flesh comprising the pericarp walls. Tomato is also an excellent source of Vitamin C and a good source of Vitamin A. So if you are trying to get one of your kids or love one to incorporate some tomato into their dish. You can try one of this Scramble Egg With Tomato serve in tomato cup as party food breakfast side dish.

Ingredients: (serve 2)
2 Medium Size Red Tomato
1 Medium Egg, lightly beaten
1 Tablespoon Milk/Water
1/2 Tablespoon of Chopped Tomato
1 Tablespoon of Chopped Spring Onion
1/2 Tablespoon of Thai Sweet Chili Sauce

Method:
1. Cut the tomatoes, horizontal into halve and carefully scoop out the seeds in it. Pat the inside dry with kitchen paper towel and set them aside.
2. Take 1 of the tomato cup and chopped them into cubes.
3. Whisk the egg with either water or milk until well combined.
4. Drizzle some Olive oil onto a small preheat non-stick pan and add in the chopped tomatoes, give it a few stir until fragrant then scatter in the chopped spring onion.
5. Next pour in the egg mixture and cook the scramble egg accordingly, using a spoon to stir the mixture occasionally.
6. Lastly stir in the Thai chili sauce mixture and give it a quick stir until it combined, fill the egg mixture into the prepared tomato cups and serve as together with some cut fruits as side dish.

Note:
a) You can replace the Thai Sweet Chili Sauce with Tomato Sauce for kid's version.
b) You can also scatter some extra shredded cheese onto the egg tomato cups and put it into the toaster oven of about 3 minutes or so until the cheese started to melt.

St. Anthony of Padua Basil Pots

And since we are talking about herbs, let's look at another herb, one associated with a June saint, St. Anthony of Padua. We have just under a month to grow some pots of basil to help celebrate his feast day in a unique way. According to the Saint Anthony of Padua website, it is customary to decorate with pots of sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) on that day and to give some away to friends with prayers invoking this Saint. Hopefully posting now gives you plenty of time to get some ready and embrace this tradition.

We purchased some small terra cotta pots at the craft store and painted them to remind us of St. Anthony. His symbols include the lily, bread, Christ Child, book, fish. We used acrylic paints and Sharpie markers to decorate the basil pots. To help keep paints from fading or wearing away (especially if pots will be used outside), use 2 coats of a clear acrylic indoor/outdoor sealant such as Krylon spray to coat after painting.

After filling them with potting soil we planted some Sweet Basil. Now we will tend the pots for the next several weeks and hopefully by June 13 have some decent basil plants to decorate our table and to give away to friends for their kitchens or patios. Keep a pot of basil nearby and you'll always have some of this fresh herb to add to your cooking.

Some basil growing tips:

*Basil is sentivite to cold and is best grown in hot, dry conditions.

*Basil will grow best outdoors, but can be grown inside placed in window with lots of sun.

*Pinch off the growing tips to make the plants bushier.

*Remove flower spikes to prolong your harvest.

*Add a small amount of fertilizer every month or so.

*Water at the base of the plant avoiding showering the leaves and stems.
*Basil can also be propagated very reliably from cuttings.

Baked Pasta With Bolognese Sauce & Cheese

Baked Pasta is always one of my favourite Quick and Easy dish in the list. Sometime I also baked this in in small foil tin shown above and packed it as lunch to work. It's very simple dish and yet full of vibrant texture and taste.

For this baked pasta, I prepared it with some seasoned mince meat, pre-cooked elbow macaroni, chopped brown onion and parsley, sliced assorted mushrooms and some shredded mozzarella cheese. In this recipe I use a few tablespoons of LEGGO'S PASTA SAUCE - BOLOGNESE (click on the LINK to see the sample and range of available sauce) to act as the sauce based for the pasta. If you don't prefer tomato base sauce, you can always swap it with white sauce like Carbonara.

Since I am sharing this baked pasta with my colleagues for lunch. I decided to fill the cooked pasta into individual small foil tin and top it with some extra chopped parsley and a generous amount of shredded cheese. (so sorry I won't be sharing the details of this recipe because it will be feature in the recipe column of Parents World which I am contributing the recipes on)

Pop them into a toaster oven for about 5 minutes or less to melt the cheese and you can served them hot or warm with some extra chili flake or parmesan cheese.......

Thyme - The Virgin's Humility

Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) is a delicate green, perennial herb with a faint clove aftertaste. It is often used herb in French cuisine. Leaves and sprigs are used in salads as garnishes, in clam chowder, and French, Creole, and Cajun cuisines. Thyme works well with veal, lamb, beef, poultry, fish, poultry stuffing, pâtés, sausages, stews, soups, stocks, bread, herbed butters, herbed mayonnaise, flavored vinegars, mustard, and bean and lentil casseroles and its flavor blends well with those of lemon, garlic, and basil.

Thyme is indigenous to the Mediterranean area. It came to America with the first settlers. Recognizing the antiseptic properties of thyme, the Egyptians used it in the embalming process and the Ancient Greeks found it to be a good fumigant.

There are many plants and herbs associated with the nativity. One legend has it that thyme was included among the hay used to make a bed for the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child, so it is often considered one of “Mary’s bedstraws” of which there are several.

The thyme was on Sweet Mary’s Bed,

To bring her courage rare,

While shepherds lifted up their hearts,
In silent joyful prayer.
~From Herbs and Herb Lore of Colonial America by the Colonial Dames of America.

In Marian Garden literature, thyme is commonly referred to as The Virgin’s Humility. It is one of those cases where an attribute of the plant seemed to symbolize a virtue of the Blessed Mother. Am still looking for the specific explanations of connections of thyme to this virtue of Mary’s humility. Most likely is seems that as a plant that is a delicate creeping plant that lies low to the ground it would be symbolic of the lowly nature of humility.

St. Alphonse Ligouri writes beautifully and in depth of the humility of Mary in The Glories of Mary. Speaking of a revelation to St. Bridget, he says, “God was pleased to make known to us that the humility of His Blessed Mother was such that she was humility itself.”

Mary’s Magnificat reflects most profoundly her deep humility of heart, open to divine grace.

Because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid; for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
~Douay-Rheims translation

So as you use this herb in your kitchen's it can be a time to meditate on the Our Lady's humility, for as St. Bernard says, "Humility is the foundation and guardian of all virtues."

Creamy Baked Fettuccine with Asiago and Thyme
1/2 pound fettuccine pasta
1 cup grated Asiago cheese, plus 1/4 cup
1 (8-ounce) containers creme fraiche
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Reserve 1/3 cup of the pasta cooking water

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Add fettuccine to boiling water and cook until tender but still firm, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta. Reserve 1/3 cup of the pasta cooking water.

Combine the 1 cups Asiago cheese, creme fraiche, Parmesan, thyme, salt, pepper, cooked pasta, and pasta cooking liquid. Toss gently until all the ingredients are combined and the pasta is coated. Place in a buttered baking dish. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup Asiago cheese. Bake about 25 minutes, until golden brown on top. Let sit for a few minutes before serving. Makes approx. 4 servings (recipe easily doubled).

Edited to add:

I meant to add some information about creme fraiche as I had never cooked with this before and know that it might be challening to find. Creme faraiche is a traditional soured cream commonly used in Europe. It's more diffiuclt to find in US except in specialty stores and is quite expensive, I guess. On-line I found many "recipes" for making a suitable variation to use in recipes which call for it. Basically you take a cup of heavy cream, heat on low until it is tepid, add a tablespoon of cultured buttermilk. Stir together and pour into a glass jar or bowl. Partially cover and let stand at room temperature for 8 to 24 hours, or until thickened. It keeps for about 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Dancing Sun Cupcakes

for the feast of Our Lady of Fatima!

In Meredith's new book, Mondays With Mary (which is wonderful by the way!!), she shares a "Dancing Sun Craft" for the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. This reminded me of the Sun Cupcakes we recently made for one of our Garden of the Good Shepherd activities. I thought they would be perfect to celebrate this feast as well. So while my children watch The Day the Sun Danced: The True Story Of Fatimathis afternoon, and color this picture, I think I might just whip up another batch!

What You Need:

• Cupcakes (baked and cooled)
• White or Lemon frosting
• Yellow Paste or Liquid Food Coloring
• Yellow Sugar Sprinkles (optional)
  
• Candy Corn
• 2 Chocolate Chips per cupcake
  
• Red Licorice or Red Writing Icing (I didn't have either, so I used a few more chocolate chips.)

Directions:

• Tint icing yellow and frost cupcake
• Sprinkle with yellow sugar
  
• Arrange candy corn, pointy end out, around edge of cupcake for sun’s rays
• Place 2 chocolate chips for eyes and add a licorice smile

Happy Feast of Our Lady of Fatima!

Avocado ~ Egg ~ Tomato

This is my combination of appetiser meal, Avocado Vs Egg Vs Tomato. I simply just love the taste of Avocado, when this is in season I'll always have it in my fruit basket. I love to eat it with plain yogurt, or blend it with some fresh milk and honey and serve it as a health afternoon snack or after meal refreshment with a few ice cubes.

There are so many ways and ideas that you can eat your avocado with. And also high avocado intake has been shown to have an effect on blood serum cholesterol levels and it is also rich in B vitamins, as well as vitamin E.

In this appetiser, I used 1 avocado, 1 hard boiled egg and 2 ripe medium size tomato to come out with 3 different taste and texture of the combination.

Mashed Avocado & Egg Salad
~ Mashed half of the hard-boiled egg with about 2 to 3 slices of avocado and serve it in a tomato cup.

Avocado Slices With Plain Yogurt
~ Arrange some avocado slices on plate and top with a dollar of plain Greek yogurt(or you can choose yogurt of your favour).

This is great to serve as a an presentable appetiser when you have guest around the house. You can top with with other fresh fruits of your choice or you can use tomato or cucumber or any combination that you prefer.

~ Cut the avocado into half, carefully scoop out the fruit and leave the shell in shape.
~ Place half of the hard-boiled egg in the middle and filled the space of the shelf with avocado & tomato cubes.
~ Drizzle with some BBQ or Thai Chilli sauce before serving.

Steam Salted Chicken

This is one of the backdate posts which I have no time to publish it out. We have this dish a few weeks ago on one of the weekend meal together with the Tomato Scramble Egg. The method of this Steam Salted Chicken is sort of similar to the Steam Herbal Chicken. But the main Ingredients here is salt pair with a lot of grated ginger and spring onion to infuse the chicken.

You can use either Chicken Maryland (refers to the thigh and leg)like what I have here or you can substitute it with chicken wings, or cut chicken pieces.

Ingredients:
1 Chicken Maryland, trim
2 Stalks of Spring Onion, cut into sections
1/2 Tablespoon of Grated Ginger
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
1 Teaspoon of Wolfberries
2 Red Date, halves
1 Tablespoon Rice Wine, optional

Method:
1. Clean and trim the chicken fats, pat dry with paper kitchen towel then rub salt and ginger all over it and set aside.
2. Get a ceramic bowl or deep plate, arrange some spring onion at the base (this is to act as a supporting based to let the chicken cook through easily) then place the marinate chicken on top of it.
3. Next put half of the remaining spring onion on top of the chicken together with the red date and set aside in the fridge to marinate for about 30 minute or longer.
4. Remove from the fridge 5 minutes before steaming and steam it over medium heat for about 20 - 25 minutes or till chicken is cook through when you poke it with fork and the juice runs out clear.
5. Remember to add in the wolfberries and rice wine after 15 minutes of steaming time.

Note:
a) You can also cover the bowl or plate with a foil to keep steam chicken moist and as well trap the fragrant of the dish but then you might need a longer steaming time for this. Usually I will cover only when I add herbs to it so as to keep the fragrant of the herbs.

This is a very fragrant dish that you can serve it with hot rice and use the gravy from the steam chicken to serve with your rice. If you want it to be more herbal, you can add 2 to 3 slices of Dang Gui (当归) on top of the chicken and steam it accordingly.

Chocolate Overload

Talk about Chocolate both Reyon and me can't resists it. We have all kind of chocolate stuffs in the kitchen pantry and fridge, ranging from cookies to ice-cream and cakes.....So when I come across this recipe, I told myself that this is a must try list on our baking list. I show Rey the picture of this Chocolate muffin and at once he told me that he wants to make for me, Grandma and Grandaunt on Mother's Day.

So immediately after the washing up from our Salmon Bento lunch. We started our Mother's Day baking project. I help Reyon to measure all the ingredients and put them into separate bowl while he will follow my instructions to make the muffins. This as usual is suitable to be handle by kids as it require only, WHISK, STIR, POUR and BAKE. So do give your kids a chance to whisk up this simple and yet irresistible chocolate muffin.

If you are interested you can take a look at the original recipe at this LINK. But modify it a bit as we are all chocolate lover...... So I really add in a lot more chocolate than the usual recipe... :p

Ingredients A:
170g Self-Raising Flour
70g Cocoa Powder
½ Teaspoon Baking Soda

Ingredients B:
100g White And Dark Chocolate Chips
150g Chopped 70% Dark Chocolate
160g Brown Sugar

Ingredients C:
2 Medium Eggs
240ml Buttermilk
120g Melted Butter
1 Teaspoon Grand Marnier

Method:
1. Preheat oven at 180 degree.
2. Sift (A) into a bowl then stir in brown sugar and mix well.
3. Whisk the egg and Grand Marnier till combine then stir in buttermilk and melted butter using a balloon whisk.
4. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture.
5. Spoon about ¼ mixture into the muffin cup, top with some chopped chocolate then fill the cup to about 2/3 full then sprinkle generously some dual chocolate chips on it.
Baked at preheat 180 degree oven on middle rack for about 18 – 20 minutes when a skewer insert and come out clean.

Note:
If you prefer nutty flavour, you can replaced the chopped chocolate by some nuts of your choice.