Sesame Chickpea Candy 芝麻鷹咀豆糖

Chickpeas have a taste between neutral and sweet.  It has a great potential to take an important role in dessert or snacks, other than just hummus or salads.  In this recipe, the candies actually don't quite taste like chickpeas, but the favourable dates.  You can say they are another version of the date balls.  To store, simply keep them in an air-tight container in the fridge and keep up to a week.

Ingredients:

2/3 cup Canned Chickpeas (Garbanzo beans), drained

1/4 cup Roasted Walnuts

8 Dates, pitted

2 tablespoons Almond Butter

1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

1/3 cup White Sesame Seeds (for coating)

材料：

2/3 杯   煮鷹咀豆

1/4 杯   焗合桃

8 粒   蜜棗

2 湯匙   杏仁牛油

1/2 茶匙   肉桂粉

1/3 杯   白芝麻

Instruction:

How to make cute eggs in egg moulds

I ordered these two cute egg moulds from amazon a month ago for Ethan's valentine gift.  I didn't use them until today.  Ethan was amazed by the special shape the egg could turn into, and his broad smiles made my day.

Ingredients:

2 Eggs

材料：

2 隻   雞蛋

Instruction:

A wonderful appetizer - Bacon Wrapped Bananas 煙肉焗香蕉

Bacon with banana? Yup.  It may sound weird to many people, it did to me too the first time I heard of it from my housemate, who was from Malaysia.  She told me that it was a popular food people would grill on a barbecue or bake in the oven.  Lady finger banana is the perfect kind of banana you should use in this dish because it has a relatively firmer body that can go under a high heat of baking without breaking down to mush.  Also, this banana is much sweeter than the big ones.  My husband and my son certainly like this exotic flavour and they both are looking forward to the next time when I make it.  

Ingredients:

6 Lady finger bananas

6 pieces of Bacon

1 extra Lady finger banana (for garnish)

材料：

6 條 皇帝蕉

6 片   煙肉

1 條   皇帝蕉 (裝飾用)

Instruction:

(Vegan Recipe) Baked Polenta Fries + Vegan Mayo 香焗玉米糕條 ＋素食美乃滋

This vegan mayo is absolutely healthy and simple enough to make at home often.  The silken tofu does a good job to provide lots of protein while forming a substantial texture.  It is the mayo I don't worry about my son having so much of.  The polenta fries have a slightly chewy texture and are as good as the traditional fries.  If you are looking for the substitute for the yam fries, polenta fries will not disappoint you.

Ingredients:

Polenta Fries: (yield about 1 portion)

100 gram Polenta

1/2 teaspoon Paprika

2 tablespoon Olive Oil

Sea Salt

Ground Black Pepper

Mayonnaise Ingredients: (yield about 2 cups)

250 gram Silken Tofu

3/4 cup Canola Oil

1/4 cup Olive Oil

2 tablespoons Fresh Lemon Juice

2 tablespoons Dijon Mustard

Sea Salt to taste

材料：

焗玉米糕條: (1人份)

100 克   玉米糕

1/2 茶匙   甜紅椒粉

2 湯匙   橄欖油

海鹽

黑胡椒碎

素食美乃滋: (約2杯)

250 克   滑豆腐

3/4 杯   芥花籽油

1/4 杯   初榨橄欖油

2 湯匙   鮮榨檸檬汁

2 湯匙   芥辣醬

少許   海鹽

Instruction:

Chia Seeds Scrambled Egg + Flaxseed Nutella Sandwich (5 minutes recipe) 藜麥雞蛋 ＋ 榛子三文治亞麻籽

It seems that I make lots of different food all the time, but behind the camera, I actually make this recipe the most often.  It is almost everyday.  Ethan really loves the smooth and cheesy scrambled egg and the soft and sweet nutella sandwich.  For me, using only five minutes to make some nutritious lunch for my boy is amazing.  It's a win-win dish.

Ingredients:

Chia Seeds Scramble Egg:

2 tablespoons Chia Seeds, soaked

15 gram Mozzarella Cheese

1 Egg

Flaxseed Nutella Sandwich:

1 piece  Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

1 teaspoon Nutella

1/2 teaspoon Flaxseed Meal

材料：

蘭香籽雞蛋：

2 湯匙   亞麻籽，浸過晚

15 克   白乾酪

1 隻   雞蛋

亞麻籽榛子醬三文治：

1 片   全麥麵包

1 茶匙   榛子醬

1/2 茶匙   亞麻籽粉

Instruction:

Roasted Garlic Tomatoes Mostaccioli (Vegan recipe) 香蒜蕃茄通心粉

 Our family practices a vegan diet three times a week, and this savoury dish is on our favourite list.  You can add any kinds of favourite herbs or seasoning in this recipe.

Ingredients: (yield about 3 portions)

4 cup Cherry Tomatoes

1 head Garlic, minced

2 sprigs Basil Leaves

1/3 cup Olive Oil

Sea Salt

Ground Black Pepper

2.5 cups Whole Wheat Mostaccioli

材料：(約3人份)

4 杯   車厘茄

1 頭   蒜頭

2 束   九層塔

1/3 杯   橄欖油

海鹽

黑胡椒碎

2.5 杯   意大利通心粉

Instruction:

Onion Soup my way 自家洋蔥湯

It is not the fancy style onion soup that's typically served in a restaurant.  It is Mei's onion soup, that calls for only a few basic ingredients (well, at least in my pantry) and is substantial enough to be the main meal.  The essential flavour of this soup is from the wine, so please don't omit it, or it will totally taste like something else. 

Ingredients:

3 Big White Onions, sliced

4 cups Beef Stock

1 cup White Wine

90 gram Butter

2 teaspoons   Brown Sugar

Sea Salt to taste

2-4 pieces Bread Crusts

Shredded Cheese (Mozzarella and Cheddar)

材料：

3 個   白洋蔥，切幼條

4 杯   牛肉湯

1 杯   白酒

90 克   牛油

2 茶匙   黑糖

少許   海鹽

2-4 片   麵包邊

白乾酪芝士碎

車打芝士碎

Instruction:

Chia Seeds Drink 蘭香籽牛奶

Knowing chia seeds are high in omega 3, protein, and fibre, I love to add them into the morning beverage as a part of the regular diet.  Here is one of the effortless methods to enjoy this superfood.

For the milk, you can use soy milk or almond milk if you are a vegetarian or a vegan.

Ingredients:

4 teaspoons Chia Seeds

1 cup Warm Whole Milk

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Paste (you can use vanilla extract instead)

材料：

4 茶匙   蘭香籽

1 杯   暖全脂奶

1/2 茶匙   雲呢拿籽醬 (可用雲呢拿香油代替)

Instruction:

Simple Sesame Sweet Soup (popular dessert in Hong Kong) 簡易芝麻糊

    My parents made sweet sesame soup only once in my memory.  It was because making a living wasn't easy back then and they wouldn't have time to make anything other than the core meals.  Also, there was nothing called pre-packed ground sesame available in the market.  To make your own in a large batch (so that you would feel it's worth the effort) and then grind them into a fine powder was absolutely time consuming.  It was a warm moment in the kitchen, helping my parents put the sesame in a blender and enjoying the privilege of controlling the on/off button.

    Let's come back to the dessert.  Adding white rice in the soup not only can thicken the consistency but also gives it a smoother texture while coordinating the bitter flavour of the sesame.  You may see that I added a few other types of mixed grains in my rice, but it's totally personal preference.  The fact was, I ran out of white rice (Lol). 

    In this recipe, I skipped the process of straining, which is supposed to give a silky texture for your palate.  Since this original texture doesn't bother me, I was happy to keep all the remains and to save the work.  If you do like the smoother version, after blending the rice and the sesame, you can strain the mixture through a cheese cloth or a fine-mesh sieve to filter the residue.

Hope you enjoy our traditional dessert.

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Simple Sesame Sweet Soup (popular dessert in Hong Kong)

簡易芝麻糊

Ingredients: (yield about 2 portions)

85 gram Ground Black Sesame

20 gram Rice, rinsed, soaked for about an hour

60 gram Rock Sugar or White Sugar

2 cups Water

* Ground black sesame is always available in big Asian markets.  If you have only black sesame seeds, just simply toast them in a pan over a low heat until they are fragrant and start to pop.  Then, blend the seeds with the soaked rice together until smooth.

材料： (約2人份)

85 克   黑芝麻粉

20 克   白米，洗淨，浸約一小時

60 克   冰糖 或 白砂糖

2 杯   水

＊黑芝麻粉通常在大型華人超市找到。如真的只有完粒黑芝麻，你可用慢火把其炒香，再與浸好的白米一起磨成粉未。

Instruction:

How to make Vegan Sesame Pudding 黑芝麻布甸

This is a dessert that suddenly popped into my head just as I laid in the bed last night.  I remembered there was a bag of ground sesame in the pantry, and I knew it would go perfectly for this rich and smooth goodie.  However, it was absolutely crazy to sneak into the kitchen to make this at 2 AM.  So, I waited until this morning.

It is a simple recipe that I call "toss 'n stir".  Keep in mind that after you toss everything in a saucepan, you need to give the gluey mixture a good stir to make sure there is no lumps of ground sesame remaining.  Enjoy!

Ingredients: (yield about 3-4 portions)

2.5 tablespoons Ground Black Sesame (find it in Asian market)

1 cup Almond Milk

2 gram Agar Agar Powder

3 tablespoons Brown Sugar

1/4 cup Almond Milk + 2 tablespoons Corn Starch

White Sesame for garnish (optional)

材料： (約四人份)

2.5 湯匙   黑芝麻粉 (在華人超市可買到)

1 杯   杏仁奶

2 克   瓊脂

3 湯匙   黑糖

1/4 杯   杏仁奶 + 2 湯匙   粟粉

白芝麻 (裝飾用)

Instruction:

Baked Chocolate Banana - Cook with toddler recipe 香焗朱古力香蕉

Chocolate, banana, and butter, can never go wrong together.  They are the essentials for many delicious goodies worldwide.  I basically just put them together.  This dessert is so easy to make that you prepare it in no time.  Serve it just as it, or accompany it with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream is always ideal.  Enjoy!

Ingredients: (yield for 2 persons)

1 Banana

10-15 Chocolate Chips

1 teaspoon Unsalted Butter

材料：(二人份)

1 條   香蕉

10-15 粒   朱古力粒

1 茶匙   無鹽牛油

Instruction:

Stir fried Pineapple Beef 菠蘿炒牛肉

Whether you are an adult or a kid you will love this dish.  My son ate almost all the pineapples and my husband wanted to swallow down the plate if he could.  I remembered my brother and I often fought over the last piece of beef and made sure we cleaned off the sauce on the bottom with our rice.  It is a very memorable dish for me.  You can use fresh pineapple here.  If so, cut off the hard skin and the needles, core the middle part, and then soak the pineapple in salted water for twenty minutes before use.  That can lessen the irritating enzyme in pineapple to your mouth and skin.

Ingredients:

450 gram Angus Beef, sliced

1 Canned Pineapple, drained

1 tablespoon Oyster Sauce

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

Marinade:

2 tablespoons Soy Sauce

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

1 tablespoon Sugar

1/4 cup Rice Wine

1 tablespoon Corn Starch

1/4 teaspoon Ground White Pepper

材料：
450 克   安格斯牛肉
1罐   菠蘿粒，濾去糖水
1 湯匙   蠔油
2 湯匙   菜油

醃料：
2 湯匙   豉油
2湯匙   菜油
1 湯匙   糖
1/4 杯   米酒
1 湯匙   粟粉
1/4 茶匙   白胡椒粉

Instruction:

Noodle Fish in Egg + Strawberry Rice Ball (白飯魚炒蛋 ＋ 草莓飯團)

Noodle fish contains a good amount of calcium.  If you want to take a break from fillet and also want to absorb more bioavailable calcium, noodle fish will be a pretty good choice.  The whole fish including the soft bone (where the calcium comes from) is totally edible, so you don't have to worry about the hard work of removing the bones from the small fish.

Ingredients:

Noodle Fish in Eggs:

4 Eggs

200 gram Noodle Fish

1/3 cup Green Onion, sliced

1 teaspoon Corn Starch

1/3 teaspoon White Pepper

1/3 teaspoon Salt

Strawberry Rice Balls:

2 cups Japanese Rice

1/2 cup Beet Root, chopped

材料：

白飯魚炒蛋：

4 隻   雞蛋

200 克   白飯魚

1/3 杯   蔥粒

1 茶匙   粟粉

1/3 茶匙   白胡椒粉

1/3 茶匙   鹽

草莓飯糰：

2 杯   日本白米，洗淨

1/2 杯   紅菜頭，切幼粒

Instruction:

Sweet Coconut Quinoa with Mango 椰奶香芒藜麥

It is kind of another version of coconut mango sago, the dessert I grew up with.  Instead of the starchy sago, I used quinoa.  I would say the flavour, the texture, and the nutrition are all enhanced by adding the nutty flavoured quinoa.  You can serve it either warm or cold and both ways are tasty.

Ingredients:

1 cup Quinoa, rinsed

400 ml Coconut Milk

1 cup Water

50 gram Palm Sugar

1-2 Mango

材料：

1 杯   藜麥，洗淨

400 毫升   椰奶

1 杯   水

50 克   椰糖

1-2 個   芒果

Instruction:

Mini Elmo Rice Balls

I made these cute rice balls simply because I wanted my son to have more rice along with other dishes.  It worked really well.  The key is that the rice balls have to be bite size and they have to be cute.  It sounds like he's spoiled, doesn't it?  Well, if spending a little effort to make it cuter so he will happily enjoy a more nutritious dinner, I don't mind.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups Japanese Rice, rinsed

1 Carrot

1 Mozzarella Cheese String

7-10 Black Olives

Instruction:

Black Bean Chocolate Cookies

Valentine's Day is just right around the corner.  To be honest, I don't think my hubby's blood glucose will be able to take those sugary cookies or chocolate truffles, no matter how adorable and delicious they are.  I love my husband, so I decide to make some goodies that are good for his body and he will also be happy with.  You can use almond milk or soy milk to replace the whole milk in this recipe.  I find whole milk is convenient just because we always have a few bags in the fridge for my young son.

Ingredients:

1 cup Canned Black Beans

2 tablespoons Almond butter

2 tablespoons Cocoa Powder

2 tablespoons Whole Milk

1/3 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

材料：

1 杯   黑豆

2 湯匙   杏仁牛油

2 湯匙   可可粉(無糖)

2 湯匙   全脂奶

1/3 杯   黑糖

1/2 茶匙   肉桂粉

1 茶匙   泡打粉

Instruction:

Enoki (mushroom) Beef Rolls 金菇肥牛卷

Enoki beef rolls are always a hit in Hong Kong.  You will find many Japanese or Taiwanese restaurants serve them and list them as a popular item on the menus.  It is the crunchy and juicy enoki, plus the tender and savoury beef, attract many of us.  You can serve the rolls with cold beer as snacks or appetizer, or serve with a bowl of white rice as a side dish.

Ingredients:

600 gram Enoki

600 gram Fatty Beef

Barbecue Sauce

材料：

600 克   金茹

600 克   肥牛

燒汁

Instruction:

Yogurt Banana Muffins 乳酪香蕉蛋糕

It doesn't require an electric mixer, and it helps use up the horribly leopard-like bananas in the kitchen.  It is literally as simple as toss and mix all the ingredients together.  Then, you will get a batch of fresh, soft and delicious muffins as the breakfast or snacks, or to share.  These are the reasons why I fell in love with these muffins.

Ingredients:

Dry Ingredients:

2 cup All Purpose Flour/ Plain Flour

3/4 cup Brown Sugar

1 tablespoon Baking Powder

1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt

Wet Ingredients:

2 Ripe Bananas

1 cup Plain Greek Yogurt

2 Eggs

1/3 cup Coconut Oil

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instruction:

Stir fried Chinese Kale with Ginger Juice 芥薑汁炒蘭

A staple dish that often goes with white rice in Hong Kong.  Chinese Kale has loads of calcium, and also has a favourably bitter taste and a hard texture that's built of fibre, just like the Kale in the west.  Adding little amount of sugar is the trick to eliminate the bitterness, and cutting it into small pieces is the best way to cook it softer.  If you can't find Chinese Kale in a western market, try to find it in an Asian market.  It is usually available in piles. 

Ingredients:

16 ounce Chinese Kale

2-3 tablespoon Ground Ginger

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

3/4 teaspoon teaspoon Salt

材料：

16 安士   芥蘭

203 湯匙   薑蓉

2 湯匙   菜油

3/4 茶匙   鹽

Instruction:

Simple Steamed Eggplant 清蒸矮瓜

I thought twice before writing this recipe.  This dish is way too simple, but I told myself that is also the reason I like it very much.  As long as you find a fresh eggplant and manage to set up a steamer on the stove, you own the dish.  It is a rustic flavour my mom brings to Hong Kong from her memory of childhood.  She cooked it all the time for the family.  With the variation of new ingredients in the market, our family has changed the dish over time.  Mom uses Japanese eggplant instead of the Chinese eggplant, because the former one has a firmer texture and it won't be too easy to become mushy even if you overcook it.  I replace the traditional peanut oil with the healthier olive oil.  I admit it does change the original taste a lot, but both versions are tasty.

Ingredients:

1 Japanese Eggplant

Olive Oil

Soy Sauce

材料：

1 條   日本矮瓜

檻欖油

豉油

Instruction: