It has been quite a while since Kian and I started the Slow Carb Diet, reducing carbs, sugar and dairy. Having lost a significant amount of weight, we have since kept up with the diet loosely and also started experimenting with others as well. We recently introduced intermittent fasting into our routine and have taken interest in the Ketogenic diet. Having read up a little about it, I found so many delicious and interesting recipes out there.

I made a Almond Flour Bread recipe that was very similar to the Flourless Almond Butter Bread that I had shared some time ago. However, this recipe produced a more spongy texture and is less dense. I personally felt it was more bread-like. It is very easy to make and keeps very well wrapped up in foil in the refrigerator. And the bread makes an awesome avocado toast or sandwich while maintaining a low carb count.

Almond Flour Bread
by Miss Crumbs A Lot, adapted from FatForWeightLoss

Recipe
Ingredients
1/2 cup Butter (room temperature)
2 tbsp Coconut Oil
7 Eggs
1 tsp Baking Powder
2 cups Almond Meal / Flour
1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum
1/2 Tsp Salt

Cooking Method
1. Preheat oven to 355 degrees F. Grease and line a bread pan with parchment paper.
2. Melt 1/2 cup butter slowly using the microwave in 30 second intervals. Mix in 2 tbsp coconut oil. 
3. Using an electric mixer, beat 7 eggs until light and fluffy. Add in melted butter and coconut oil. Mix well.
4. Add in 2 cups almond meal, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp xanthan gum and 1/2 tsp salt. Mix well.
5. Pour batter in lined bread pan and smooth out the top.
6. Bake for 45 min in 355 degrees F. Insert a skewer into the middle of the bread and ensure it comes out clean. Cool on a cooling rack.

​Makes 1 loaf

This year's summer holidays came and went by in a flash! I had taken the entire summer off from blogging and had the most wonderful time with my family traveling, boating, swimming and just about any family-fun activity there is. The kids are now settled back in school and I am feeling refreshed & excited to share with you what I have been up to all summer.

Every summer, as a fun family tradition, I try to get my kids involved in the kitchen. Inviting your kids into your kitchen to help with meal preparations or to make a special recipe not only helps them learn and refine some basic skills, it is also a wonderful way to spend quality time together. They get to explore new foods & learn about nutrition and also develop math and reading skills as they help measure and read directions.

So, for the 4th of July, we decided to bake some cookies together. This recipe is so simple & easy to follow and yet, they bake up so tender and delicious! We used red, white and blue M&M's in honor of America's Independence Day but any colors will work just fine. In fact, Bella said that we could make another batch in August with just red and white M&M's for Singapore's National Day. Orange and black would be perfect for Halloween. Orange, yellow and brown for Thanksgiving or any Fall festival party. And not forgetting Christmas with red and green. The possibilities are endless!

For more of my favorite recipes to make with kids, go to:

Gem Biscuits - These adorable "Gem Biscuits" promises fun and color in every bite! Kids will have so much fun icing the biscuits and learning about colors
Homemade Wontons - With the little extra hands helping, this batch recipe will leave you with ready made meals for days to come.
Sweet Potato Balls - A great recipe to include for Thanksgiving as the kids lend a hand and talk about what they are thankful for.

One of the fun things that I often do whenever I bake Pineapple Tarts, especially during Chinese New Year, is to make these super easy Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies with the extra pastry. They are so simple and easy to make on its own too. And it can be a fun family activity for the kids, with them helping you dip the cookies into chocolate and sprinkles.

The shortbread cookie is not too sweet and hence, goes perfectly well with the pineapple jam in the Pineapple Tart recipe, and in this case, the sweet melted chocolate and sprinkles. You may also sprinkle them with colored sugar while they are cooling too.

We made these heart shaped ones with pink and red sprinkles for Valentine's Day last month. But you can pretty much cut the cookies out into any shape and use any color sprinkles to match the occasion. You can have clover leaf shaped with green sprinkles for St. Patrick's Day or egg shaped with pastel pink, blue and yellow for Easter, just to name a few.

Chocolate Dipped Shortbread Cookies
by Miss Crumbs A Lot

Recipe
Ingredients
​5 cups All Purpose Flour
4 tbsp Cornstarch
1/2 tsp Salt
​8 tbsp Powdered Sugar
2 cups Butter (4 sticks)
4 egg Yolks
Dark Melting Wafers (I used Ghirardelli Chocolate)
Colored Sugar or Sprinkles.

Cooking Method
1. Sieve flour and cornstarch into a large mixing bowl. Cut cold butter sticks into small cubes and place them into the flour.
2. Using your finger tips only, rub the cold butter cubes into the flour, until it resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Add in salt, powdered sugar, egg yolks and mix until a soft dough is formed. The dough should not stick to your hands. More butter may be added if it is too dry.
4. Roll out the dough till it is about 1/2 inch thick and use your choice of cookie cutter to cut out the dough and place onto a baking tray.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 to 25 min.
6. Place wafers in a top pan of a double boiler over low heat. Stir constantly until smooth and melted. Do not allow water to boil.
7. Once cookies are baked and cooled, dip them into the melted chocolate and sprinkles. Place on parchment line tray to allow them to set.

Makes approx. 100 pieces (depending on size of cookie cutter)

In a blink of an eye, here we are with a week of the New Year gone already. 1 week down and 51 more weeks to go. It may seem like a long time to go but time always seem to just fly by when you're not paying attention.

I have kept myself busy by spending time with family who is visiting from Singapore, hosting parties and keeping up with our annual family traditions. And before I knew it, we were sprinting toward Christmas, Bella's birthday (which falls on December 27) and the New Year. While I took a month off from my blog, I never took a break from the kitchen. I was constantly making dinners for a household of 8 people or preparing dishes for a party.

On the topic of parties, for Bella's 9th birthday party, she wanted it to be "Harry Potter" themed. I had so much fun preparing and cooking for it. And I was so glad that my family is visiting. They helped out so much! We created letters from Hogwarts as invitations, hung battery operated candles with fishing line over my kitchen island to recreate the Great Hall, made Polyjuice Potion Slime and even made a Dementor pinata. The house was decorated with "wanted" posters of Sirius Black and Moaning Myrtle made a couple of appearances in some of our mirrors.

The refreshments had to be in theme too. I found non-alcoholic Butter Beer from my local grocery store and served it with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. A little too sweet for my liking but I think the kids had a blast! We even printed paper wings and stuck them onto Ferraro Rocher chocolates to make them look like "Golden Snitches". But the highlight had to be the Curry Puff Pastries that we named "House Elf Curry Puff Pastries" for the party. Inspired by Harry Potter's Pumpkin Pasties, I tweaked my traditional Singapore Curry Puffs recipe and made them with store bought frozen puff pastries instead. In fact, some bakeries in Singapore make them this way too. These flaky and crispy curry puff pastries were absolutely delightful and were flying off the platter at the party. A perfect finger food for any occasion really.

Curry Puff Pastries
by Miss Crumbs A Lot

Recipe
Ingredients
5 tbsp Cooking Oil
1 Medium Red Onion (diced finely)
3 tsp Garam Marsala Powder
4 tsp Curry Powder
1 tsp Chilli Powder
1 tsp Turmeric Powder
1 cup Chicken Breast Meat (diced 3/8")
2 large Potatoes (skinned, boiled and diced 3/8")
1 1/2 tsp Sugar
1/2 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Salt
3 boxes Pepperidge Farms Puff Pastry Sheets (6 sheets)
1 egg (beaten)

Cooking Method
1. Prepare the filling first. Heat oil and stir fry onions on medium heat until golden brown.
2. Add in 3 tsp garam marsala powder, 4 tsp curry powder, 1 tsp chilli powder, 1 tsp turmeric powder and continue to stir fry gently.
3. Add in 1 cup diced chicken and stir fry until chicken is cooked. Add in potatoes, 1 1/2 tsp sugar, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp salt and mix well. Set aside to cool.
4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
5. Remove pastry sheets from the box & packages and allow them to thaw for up to 40 minutes, until it is soft and does not crack or break when unfolding. The pastry sheet should still be cold.
6. Cut each pastry sheet into 4 squares. Place 2 to 3 tbsp of curry filling in the middle of the pastry and fold it over into triangles, sealing the edges with water. Use a fork to create a crimping pattern on the edges and brush the beaten egg over the top.
7. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown at 400 degrees F.

Makes 24 pieces.

Snow Skin Mooncakes with Red Bean Paste is another one of the many variations of mooncakes that we eat during Mid Autumn Festival. It falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month, which is October 4 2017 this year and that happens to be tomorrow.

I had previously shared a variation of this recipe, Snow Skin Mooncakes with Mung Bean Paste and shared a little about this unique traditional dessert snack from Singapore. Click on the link above to find out more. This time, I made a red bean paste for the filling  instead and played around with the food coloring a little. I did not use yellow the last time so I included it this time. And I also mixed pink and blue to achieve a lavender color.

This recipe is similar to the one with mung bean paste but because red beans take a longer time to cook, the time required for this recipe would be a little longer. And I doubled the amount of snow skin wraps as I was not sure if the previous recipe would have enough for the amount of red bean paste that I would have. I had a little bit of snow skin wraps left and I saved it in the freezer for my next batch.

Bella and Jamie loved it and when I asked them if they have a preference for either the mung bean paste or red bean paste, they could not pick. They liked them both. So on a festive note, I wish you and your family a Happy Mid Autumn Festival! May you have a long life to share the graceful moonlight!

Snow Skin Mooncakes with Red Bean Paste
by Miss Crumbs A Lot, adapted from FOOD52 & Christine's Recipes

Recipe
Snow Skin Wrap Ingredients
90g (3.2oz) Glutinous  Rice Flour
70g (2.4oz) Rice Flour (water milled)
40g (1.6oz) Wheat Starch
80g (3oz) Sugar
360ml (12 fl oz) Unsweetened Coconut Milk
36ml (1.2 fl oz) Vegetable Oil
1/2 cup Glutinous Rice Flour (for dusting)

Red Bean Paste Filling Ingredients
1 cup Dry Red Beans or Azuki Beans (soaked in water overnight)
2/3 cups Sugar
6 tbsp Shortening

Equipment
1 50g size Mooncake Mold

Snow Skin Wrap Cooking Method
1. In a bowl, mix 90g (3.2oz) of glutinous rice flour with 70g (2.4oz) rice flour and 40g (1.6oz) wheat starch together.
2. In another bowl, dissolve 80g (3oz) sugar in 360ml (12 fl oz) unsweetened coconut milk. Then mix in 36ml (1.2 fl oz) of vegetable oil.
3. Slowly pour the coconut milk mixture into the flour mixture while whisking it gently. Mix well. Strain it once and set it aside, allowing it to rest for 30 minutes.
4. Cover the mixture with plastic wrap and steam cook it over high heat for 30 minutes.
5. Once ready, remove from heat and use a pair of chopsticks or fork to stir the mixture until a soft and smooth dough is formed.
6. Once cooled, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and knead it with your hands for a few minutes. It is imperative to knead it to ensure that the wrap will be soft and smooth.
7. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours before assembling the mooncake.

Red Bean Paste Filling Cooking Method
1. Drain the soaked red beans and place them in a pot. Add in 3 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to medium/low and simmer for 1 hour 15 minutes. As the water boils down, right around 30 minutes onwards, you will need to add just enough water to keep the beans submerged in water.
2. After about an hour, to ensure that the beans are ready, pinch a bean between your fingers. It should mash very easily between your fingers.
3. Once done, turn off heat, drain the beans and allow it to cool slightly. Blend the beans in a food processor until a smooth paste is formed (hummus like)
4. Pour the red bean paste into a non-stick wok or pan, add in 2/3 cup sugar and 6 tbsp of shortening. Over medium heat, mix all the ingredients together. As the sugar dissolves and shortening gets mixed it, the paste will be watery. Continue cooking, stirring constantly until the moisture has evaporated and a soft dough is formed. Once the paste can hold its shape, it is ready.
5. Remove from heat and refrigerate until ready to use.

Assembly Method
1. Toast 1/2 cup of glutinous rice flour in a non-stick wok or pan over medium heat until it turns light yellow. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
2. Measure each snow skin wrap and red bean paste to around 20g and 30g respectively. Shape them into balls and set aside.
3. Dust your hands, counter top and mooncake mold with toasted glutinous rice flour.
4. Wrap each mung bean paste ball with snow skin wrap and seal completely. Shape it into a ball first then gently mold it into an oval.
5. Place the oval into the mooncake mold, place it on the counter top and gently push the shaping tool to shape the mooncake into the mold. Remove from mold gently.

Makes 16 50g Mooncakes
​

Gem Biscuits are one of the "old school" snacks that is possibly every Singaporean's favorite childhood sweet treat. The small round biscuits are topped with bright colored icing, typically pink, yellow, white and green (as a kid, the white gem biscuit was my least favorite so I omitted white and added blue instead). And they have been a hit with children in Singapore for several generations now. 
​
Bella has tried them before when I bought some back to Houston from Singapore years ago. But Jamie has never tried them. So, I decided to make some and surprise them when they came home from school. I made the biscuit portion a little different from the original - mine tastes more like butter shortbread which I personally liked better. They were not quite ready yet when the kids got home so I promised them that they could have some for desserts if they finished their dinner. Dinner has never gone as smoothly as that night! 

Gem Biscuits
by Miss Crumbs A Lot

Recipe
Ingredients
1 stick Salted Butter (4 oz) (cold)
2 oz Sugar
5 1/2 oz Flour (sifted)
4 cups Powdered Sugar
2 Egg Whites
1 tsp Water
Gel Food Coloring

Cooking Method
1. Mix 2 oz sugar with 5 1/2 oz of sifted flour in a large bowl.
2. Cut 1 stick of cold butter into small cubes into the flour and sugar mixture. Using your finger tips, rub in the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. Using your hands, pack and knead it until a soft dough is form (do not overwork it as the warmth from your hands will melt the butter).
3. Place the dough in between some plastic wrap and roll it with a rolling pin till about 1/4 inch thick. Using a small cookie cutter, cut out the biscuits and place them on a parchment paper lined baking tray. Refrigerate them for 30 minutes.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before icing them.
5. Mix 2 egg whites and 1 tsp of water together. Whisk it on low speed until it is frothy. Add in 4 cups of powdered sugar in small batches and whisk in on medium speed. Once all sugar has been added, whisk on high speed until a firm peak is form.
6. Divide the icing into portions and add gel food coloring. Pipe the icing on top of the cooled biscuits with a piping bag and tip.

Makes 100 pieces

Basic Donuts is a recipe that is made from scratch and so simple to make, you can have them ready in under 20 minutes. With basic ingredients that you would probably already have in your pantry, the flavor is anything but basic. With this classic donut recipe, you can let your creativity take over by creating different shapes and seasoning them in various ways.
​
Bella and Jamie are always starving after they come home from school. So, I decided to make some homemade donuts for them. I kept it simple by dusting the donuts with powdered sugar. Other seasoning suggestions include cinnamon sugar, glazing, topping with icing and sprinkles etc.

Basic Donuts
by Miss Crumbs A Lot, adapted from allrecipes.com

Recipe
Ingredients
2 tbsp White Vinegar
6 tbsp Milk
2 tbsp Shortening (butter flavor)
1/2 cup Sugar
1 Egg
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 1/4 cups All Purpose Flour (sifted and divided)
1/2 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp Salt
1 quart Vegetable Oil (for frying)
1/2 cup Powdered Sugar (for dusting)

Cooking Method
1. Mix 2 tbsp of white vinegar with 6 tbsp of milk together. Set aside as it thickens slightly.
2. Cream 2 tbsp of shortening with 1/2 cup sugar until smooth.
3. Add in 1 eggs and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
4. Mix in 1 cup sifted all purpose flour, 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp salt until well combined.
5. Add in vinegar and milk mixture. Mix until well combined.
6. Add in 1 more cup of sifted all purpose flour. Mix until well combined and a soft dough is formed.
7. Heat 1 quart vegetable oil in a pot over medium heat.
8. At this point, the dough will be very soft and sticky. Dust counter top and hands with the remaining 1/4 cup of sifted all purpose flour.
9. Pinch off about 3 tbsp of dough, roll into a ball with hands then press it flat on the counter top till about 1/4 inch thick. Using a bottle cap, cut out a hole in the middle and immediately place dough into oil to fry. You may fry the cut out holes and make donut holes or combine them to make a whole donut.
10. Fry until they are golden brown, turning over once. You may have to lower the heat to prevent the donuts from browning too quickly. Drain the donuts on paper towels then dust them with powdered sugar or any other seasoning of choice.

Makes 10 3" wide pieces

Pandan Cake is a light and fluffy sponge cake that is infused with the aromatic flavors from pandan leaves (screwpine leaves). Also known as Pandan Chiffon, this popular Southeast Asian cake has been recently named one of the world's 17 best cakes and the National Cake of Singapore by the travel website of US's news outlet CNN, an accolade that we share with our neighbor, Malaysia. The CNN article dated April 2, 2017 said, " The radioactive hue of this cake belies its natural woodsy flavor. When married to fluffy-yet-moist chiffon cake, it's a revelation." 
​
Pandan cake is particularly loved in Singapore & Malaysia, and of course in my home! Due to its rich flavor but light texture, my kids love to have it for breakfast or as an afternoon snack. And because it is my birthday today (yes, I was born on the 4th of July and as a child, I believed the fireworks were for me too), I thought it would be great to share a cake recipe. A traditional Singaporean cake that brings back intense childhood memories for me. Happy 4th of July and Happy Birthday to Me!

Pandan Cake
by Miss Crumbs A Lot, adapted from Diana's Desserts

Recipe
Ingredients
8 Eggs (yolks and whites separated)
1 1/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Vegetable Oil
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
3/4 cup Coconut Milk
1/4 tsp Pandan Extract
1/4 tsp Green Food Coloring
1 cup Self-Raising Flour (sifted)
1/2 tsp Cream of Tar Tar
Confectioner's Sugar (for dusting)

Cooking Method
1. Combine coconut milk, pandan extract, green food coloring in a bowl and set aside.
2. In another bowl, beat yolks with sugar, vegetable oil and vanilla extract.
3. Add in flour and mix well.
4. Add in coconut milk mixture in 2 to 3 batches and mix well.
5. In another bowl, beat egg whites until they are frothy. Add in cream of tar tar and continue beating till a firm peak is formed.
6. Fold beaten egg whites gently into the flour & egg mixture in 3 batches.
7. Pour batter gently into a 10 inch ungreased angel food cake pan and give it a light tap on the counter top to smoothen the surface.
8. Bake at 320 degrees F for 55 to 60 minutes.
9. Remove cake from the oven and carefully invert the cake upside down on a cooling rack.
10. Once it is completely cooled, remove the cake from the pan. Dust it with sifted confectioner's sugar.
11. Slice the cake in a "sawing action" with bread knife or any knife that has a scalloped edge.

Kueh Bangkit (Tapioca Cookies), may look plain and bland to some of you but I assure you, this airy and flavorful cookie is so fragrant and light that it literally melts in your mouth! 

Chinese New Year is by far my favorite holiday when we were living in Singapore. After being away for over 7 years now, it is always around this time of the year that I get a little homesick.

I remember as kids, one of my favorite Chinese New Year activity is sampling all the yummy cookies and snacks at every relative's house that we visit on the first day of the Lunar New Year. We will be dressed in brand new outfits and children & unmarried young adults look forward to collecting "ang pows" (red packets filled with small amounts of money as a symbol of good luck).

The variety of snacks and cookies is so vast, it is hard to just pick one favorite. Kueh Bangkit is definitely on the top of my favorite list.
​
Traditionally, the tapioca flour is pan fried with pandan leaves (screw pine leaves) to infuse its flavor in but I found a simpler way that would also generate less mess. And because I do not have the traditional Kueh Bangkit wooden cookie molds, I use regular cookie cutters instead.
This is my first attempt making them and it was a great success. The kids have been snacking on them ever since I made them!

Kueh Bangkit (Tapioca Cookies)
adapted from "Malaysian Chinese Kitchen"

Recipe
Ingredients
​1 lb Tapioca Flour
6 to 8 Pandan Leaves (screw pine leaves)
2 Egg Yolks
3/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Thick Coconut Milk or Coconut Cream
Red Food Coloring

Cooking Method
1. Rinse and dry pandan leaves.
2. Place tapioca flour in a baking tray. Cut pandan leaves into 3 inch lengths and place them in the flour, burying them in.
3. Bake the flour at 200 degrees F for 1 hour.
4. Remove from oven and let tapioca flour cool. Discard the pandan leaves.
5. Sieve the flour and reserve 1/4 cup for dusting.
6. Beat egg yolks and sugar until it is light and fluffy.
7. Add 1/3 portion of flour and 1/3 portion of coconut milk/cream. Mix well. Continue doing so until all the flour and coconut milk/cream is used up.
8. Gently knead the mixture to form a soft dough. It should be soft and does not stick to your hands. If it appears to be too dry, you may add 1 to 2 tbsp of additional coconut milk/cream.
9. Gently roll the dough till it is about 1/4 inch thick. Use approximately 1 inch sized cookie cutters, dip them into flour and cut them into shape.
10. Bake at 325 degrees F for 20 to 25 min, depending on the size of your cookies. The bottom of the cookies should lightly browned when ready.
11. Dot cookies with red food coloring, if desired.

Makes 60 to 65 (1 inch sized) pieces

Chinese Egg Tarts - a simple tart with a silky egg yolk custard in crisp pastry shells that are found in bakeries, kopitiams and on dim sum carts.

Last night, it was all quiet at home with Bella off to a sleepover at a friend's home and Jamie tucked in bed already. I decided to make some egg tarts while Kian hangs out with me in the kitchen over a glass of wine. Ok, maybe we had 2 glasses each. Or 3? Never mind, I digressed.

Egg tarts (baked pastries crusts filled with egg custard) are most recognizable in Singapore's dim sum restaurants and bakeries. Often consumed as a dessert or snack, egg tarts are made from a few basic ingredients - eggs, flour, sugar, butter and milk; all of which could already in your pantry and refrigerator. Other variations of eggs tarts that is popular is the Portuguese style ones - an adaptation of pastel de nata and the ones with flaky pastries.
​
The ones I made is the Chinese traditional ones that have a buttery pastry crust and a soft & extremely smooth, melt-in-your mouth custard. And like so many Singaporean dishes, you can have them at any time of the day. They go really well with coffee or tea. And perhaps wine. 

Chinese Egg Tarts
inspired by "Snapguide"

Recipe
Pastry Ingredients
5 oz Chilled Salted Butter (cut into cubes)
1 3/4 cup Flour (sieved)
2 tbsp Sugar
1 egg

Egg Custard Ingredients
3 eggs (whole)
1 egg white
2/3 cup Sugar
1 cup Milk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2/3 cup Hot Water

Cooking Method
1. Prepare pastry first. Using finger tips only, rub chilled butter into flour in a large bowl until it resembles bread crumbs.
2. Add sugar and egg into the mixture and knead until a soft dough is formed.
3. Wrap dough with clear plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 20 to 30 min.
4. Prepare the egg custard mixture. Beat all eggs together and set aside.
5. Mix sugar, milk, vanilla extract and hot water in a large bowl until well mixed and sugar has dissolved.
6. Add egg mixture in to the milk mixture and mix well.
7. Pour mixture through  sieve to remove egg chunks. The mixture will be runny. Set aside.
8. Roll dough with a rolling pin till it is about 1/8 inch thick. Cut into 3 inch diameter circles and place them into muffin tray cups. Press them in gently, ensuring that there is no air trapped in-between the dough and tray to form a pastry cup.
9. Gently pour in egg mixture into the pastry cups.
10. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 to 30 min. Watch the tarts closely, ensuring that they don't over bake.

Makes 12 tarts.