Peanut butter cup blondies

If you still have a bottle of peanut butter lurking inside your fridge , better try this easy and delicious treats !

Peanut butter cups are optional . I've made this last year using peanut butter chips as substitute  and if you don't have any of those , just add more chocolate chips .

This is the easiest cookie recipe I've made so far , no need to use your trusty electric mixer , only a whisk to mix everything and it takes only 19 minutes to actually bake it , okay , I baked mine a minute more  ^__^

Fudgy , nutty and a bit crunchy along the edges , these delightful bars will surely please both young and young at heart alike lol

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light magazine September 2011

5.6 oz / about 1 1/4 cups / 160 grams all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar I used scant 3/4 cup
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt about 1/8 teaspoon 
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter crunchy peanut butter
1/4 cup / 57 grams butter , melted and cooled slightly
2 tablespoon 2 % reduced-fat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs , lightly beaten
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips milk chocolate chips 
4 ( 0.75 oz ) peanut butter cups , coarsely chopped 12 ( 10 grams ) Reese's peanut butter cups , divided

 * Preheat oven to 350°F / 180°C . Lightly grease a 9-inch square baking pan , set aside .

* Weigh or lightly spoon flour into a measuring cup . Combine the first 4 ingredients ( through salt ) in a large mixing bowl  , stirring well with the whisk .

*  In a small bowl , combine peanut butter and the next 4 ingredients ( through eggs ) , stir until well incorporated .

* Add the peanut butter mixture to the flour mixture , stir until combined . Stir in the chocolate chips and half of the Reese's . 

* Scrape batter into into the prepared pan and scatter the  remaining chopped peanut butter cups over the top .

* Bake for 19 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs clinging .

* Cool in pan on wire rack .

This post is linked to the bloghop event Cook your Books hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours

Red Thai meatball curry

It's one of those days again .

Staring at the blank screen , thinking what to write  -___-

It is always easy to take loads of photos than actually writing a blog post *sigh*

Take 2 !

So , I went to Ikea last week to check whether the store has some wood planks on bargain .

Okay , actually , that was my excuse , I went there to eat some meatballs lol 

But when I arrived there , the queue was mile long and every table was full of hungry hoard !

The way those people were ingesting loads of meatballs , you would have think that the Zombie Apocalypse is coming hee hee 

I bet some of you haven't tried using meatballs when cooking curry .

For me , meatballs and pasta is a match made in heaven . Or sandwich between crusty bread or on its own and with ice -cold Coke , you're good to go .

This meatball curry - with the delicious flavor and aroma from red Thai curry paste , coconut milk , basil and lime ....

Just imagine all those flavor blending in together , the gravy alone made me swoon lol 

If you're wondering that I used that much curry paste , don't worry , the Pantai red curry paste was not that spicy , just enough to make your taste buds zing er sing .

Will add more veggies next time .

Please check original recipe @  BBC GoodFood

Serves 2

For the meatballs : 

150 grams ground lean beef
100 grams ground pork
generous 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves
1 tsp chili sauce
1 tsp finely chopped ginger
30 grams or half of an egg
salt and pepper to taste

* In a small mixing bowl , combine together all ingredients ,  mix until well incorporated , adjust taste . Shape into small balls ( 20 grams each ) and chill for at least 30 minutes or overnight . Makes 14 meatballs

For the curry :

generous 2 tablespoons , about 50 grams red Thai curry paste ( I used Pantai brand )
200 ml coconut milk
100 ml water
75 grams green beans , sliced
50 grams baby corn , sliced
juice of half a lime
about 10 grams Thai basil leaves plus extra for garnish
1/2 tsp fish sauce
1 red chili . sliced for garnish

* In a large nonstick pan , over medium heat , add some oil and fry meatballs until evenly browned , transfer to a plate . Pour off excess oil from the pan . Add in the curry paste , stir fry for few seconds ( the paste will splatter madly ) , pour in the coconut milk and water , let boil and cook until you have a smooth sauce . Add in the meatballs and the green beans , cook for 3 minutes before adding the baby corn ; cook for another 3 minutes . Season with lime juice , fish sauce and tear in the basil leaves , stir well to combine , cook for a minute and adjust taste . Dish up and garnish with some basil leaves and sliced chili . Serve with rice or noodles

No-churn rocky road ice cream

My last homemade ice cream this year er hopefully , not !

The weather's a-changing here , the 30° yesterday was tolerable and a bit cooler compare to the same temperature we had few days ago  .

I really need to use the cream least it'll go stale again ( I chucked more than 500 ml of whipping cream few days ago *sigh* ) , so making this ice cream is a no-brainer .

Since I hop from blog to blog while typing this post , I stumbled upon this post from David Lebovitz's site that you can freeze cream ! Darn it , why I didn't Google it before ?! Don't really know though if the UHT whipping cream that I'm using will freeze well .....

This is a spin from the no-churn vanilla ice cream that I've seen from Yen's blog last week and planning to add melted chocolate but changed my mind , so I made this rocky road version instead .

The original rocky road ice cream , according to Wiki , is traditionally composed of chocolate ice cream , nuts and marshmallows - no chocolate chips is added before . Now , some recipes are based from vanilla ice cream with chocolate chips , almonds and marshmallows .

Rocky road is quiet popular in the Philippines when I was young but never even tried it since I love strawberry ice cream and no ice cream flavor will do except that lol 

Don't like rocky road flavor ? Use any berries that you like , lemon or lime curd , melted chocolate or any flavor combo that you can think of .

It's a no-churn ice cream , guys ! Try it , maybe you'll like it ^___^ 

Recipe first seen @ Yen of Eat your Heart Out , please check original recipe @ BBCGoodFood

Makes about 1 quart

400 grams whipping cream
85 grams condensed milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder , add more if prefer
50 grams milk chocolate chips
50 mini marshmallows
40 grams dry roasted almonds , coarsely chopped

* Pour the cream and the condensed milk in a large mixing bowl and put it in the fridge to chill , put  the beater in the fridge as well ( sans the machine ! ) especially if it is hot in your side of the world .

* Using a handheld electric mixer , starting on low speed , beat until the cocoa has dissolved then turn up speed to medium and beat until thick and stiff , add in  about 2/3 of  the chocolate chips, almonds and marshmallows , use a spatula and stir to combine . Transfer into a freezer container , top with the remaining chips , marshmallows and almonds and cover with cling wrap . Freeze until solid , at least hours or overnight , if you can wait that long .

* Before scooping , let it set at room temperature for about 5 minutes to soften a bit .

Chicken chow mein

When you look at the photo above , do you see a dark and/or moody shot ?

To me , it kinda look perky , maybe too much color ? Too bright ?

Need to practice ! Or get Lightroom ! 

Ha ! Who needs it when Picmonkey is free ?

Now , now , no smirking - I'll say it again , beggars can't be choosers lol

Anyway , aside from my love-hate relationship with rice , noodles is another favorite of mine . This week alone , I've cooked 3 noodle dish !

Carbs overload ahead ! 

Tired of buying take-out ?  Try this easy and cheap dish , a budget-friendly meal for all you noodle fiend out there . You can easily whip this up in no time . Sky is the limit when it comes to stir-ins in this dish , you can dressed it up or down ( with only sliced carrots , onion ,  soy sauce and sesame oil , it'll be good as well ) and as long as there are veggies , it's healthy , right ?! lol 

I found out last time when I cooked this noodles that it tastes so much better the day after . I've got some leftover of this and the next day , I steamed it for lunch , don't use microwave , please ?! , and I like it more compare when it was freshly-cooked , maybe because all those flavors had time to blend together  .

Serves 4

300 grams chicken tenders , cut into strips
350 grams fresh egg noodles
50 grams green beans , trim , slice diagonally then blanch
1/2 red bell pepper , cut into strips
1/2 onion , sliced
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped ginger
1 clove garlic , minced
2 stalk spring onions , cut into sections
a handful of beansprouts
juice of 1 small lime plus 1 lime for garnish

Marinate chicken with 1/2 tsp chicken powder , 1/2 soy sauce , 1 tsp five-spice powder , few drops of sesame oil . Add 1 tsp tapioca starch or cornstarch before frying .

For the sauce : In a small bowl , combine together 1/3 cup water , 1 teaspoon light soy sauce , 1/2 tsp dark soy sauce , 1 tsp oyster sauce , 1 tsp brown sugar and 1 tsp chili sauce .

* Boil noodles for 3 minutes , drain then sprinkle few drops of sesame oil to prevent noodles from sticking .

* Meanwhile , heat a wok or a large pan , pour in 1 tablespoon of oil , add in the garlic and ginger , stir fry until fragrant then add in the chicken pieces , cook for 3 minutes or until golden brown . Transfer to a plate , keep warm . In the same pan , add in onion , stir fry until softens , add in the beans and the bell pepper , cook for  1 minute . Add the chicken , noodles and beansprouts , stir well to combine , pour in the sauce , mix well and adjust taste . Add in spring onion and drizzle the lime juice , give it another good stir and serve warm .

Steamed tofu with saucy minced pork

Except for the fried rice , I've  mostly ( erratically ) posted about desserts for quiet sometime .

Well , I've been planning to post another baked goodies but I think this savory offering will do .

Except if your'e living from the outer space ,  you know by now what tofu is .

If not , go Google it !

This is one of my favorite way to cook tofu , steamed and top with some hearty minced pork sauce . You'll get a homey , cheap and very appetizing dish .

If you're bored with pork , substitute with any meat you prefer . You can even go vegetarian , use any vegetable you fancy as topping or just drizzle it with some soy sauce and you'll good to go .

Since , we Asian , okay , some for that matter , love our  carbs er steamed rice , no tofu dish is complete without it . Hey , this dish is really good on its own !

The recipe can be easily doubled

Serves 1 very hungry tummy 

1 block silken tofu
50 grams ground / minced pork
1/4 of a small yellow bell pepper , diced
2 water chestnuts , diced ( optional ) or use jicama , if available
1 small shallot , finely minced
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp ginger , finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped spring onion plus more for garnish
brown sugar and salt to taste

For the sauce : In a small bowl , combine together 5 tablespoons water , 1/2 tsp tapioca starch ( add more if using cornstarch ) , 1/2 tsp light soy sauce , 1/2 tsp brown sugar , 1/4 tsp chili sauce , few drops of sesame oil and a dash of white pepper .

* Wash and pat dry tofu with kitchen towel and steam for 8 minutes . Meanwhile , add some oil into the pan , add in the shallot and cook until transparent , add in the ginger and garlic , cook until lightly browned . Add in the ground pork , stir fry until it changes color then add in some salt and sugar . Cook until mixture is golden brown then add in the water chestnuts and bell pepper , about a minute . Pour in the sauce , let boil ( it will thicken immediately if using tapioca starch ) , adjust taste , add in chopped spring onion and stir well to combine . Turn off heat and transfer mixture to a small bowl . You'll get about 3/4 cup saucy minced pork .

* Take out the cooked tofu and drain . Top with minced pork sauce , garnish with some spring onion and serve immediately . Best serve with steamed rice .

This post is linked to the bloghop event Little Thumbs Up , jointly organized by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY . This month's theme is SOYA and is being hosted by Mich of Eat a Piece of Cake .