Savour Din Tai Fungs Delicious yet Healthy Classics Plus Complimentary Famous Amos Christmas Cookies Gift Set While Stocks Last

As year-end festive season approaching, Din Tai Fung is also one of the favourite dining place for family gathering or celebratory meal. And from 01 November to 31 December 2012, Din Tai Fung diners will receive an exclusive complimentary box of Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookies (150g) with a minimum spending of S$98.00, or S$88.00 for Citibank Cardmembers.

This redeemable Famous Amos Cookies come in two different festive packaging such as the "Red Pyramid Gift Box" (shown on the 1st photo) which secured with a golden ribbon (worth S$10.00, while stocks last). Alternatively there is also another endearing square "Bear Tin"(above, worth S$11.50) which would be available only after the red pyramid gift box is fully redeemed.

Beside the cookies promotion, there are about 30% of Din Tai Fung dishes being certified as ‘Healthier Choices’ by the Health Promotion Board. So below are some of the dishes that I would like to share with you from their Healthy Signature Classics which our family love.

First on the list is definitely they well-known Steamed Pork Dumplings which is also known as Xiao Long Bao - 小笼包  (S$6.80 for 6 pieces / S$9.50 for 10 pieces). As we all know their Xiao long Bao is made with flavoursome minced pork which wrapped in delicate dough skin with at least 18 exquisite folds. I love the bites with each mouthful of juicy meat filling and melt-in-your-mouth skin.

Next as a soup lover, their new Truffle Chicken Soup (S$19.80 per serving) taste awesome with aroma of the truffles which is strong but not overpowering making it a bonus point to enhance the taste of the chicken broth. This new dish is available in a limited quantity per day at Din Tai Fung outlets such as Marina Bay Sands, Paragon, 112 Katong and Resorts World Sentosa.

Lastly, if you love the combination of beef and noodles I am assure you would like this Special Braised Beef Noodle Soup With Beef Brisket (S$11.00 per serving). The meat used is of the less fatty portion of the beef and it is also prepared by steaming to retain the flavours of the dish which makes it a healthier choice. I also love the broth which is prepared using fresh tomatoes instead of canned tomato puree which makes it taste better in both flavour and taste.

* All related photos in this post credited to Touch Communications and Din Tai Fung but review of the dishes are on my own preference and thoughts.

Read More..

NOYA Traditional Chinese New Year Cookies

Every year about a moth before Chinese New Year you would be able to see a lot of these so-called Chinese New Year cookies at bakeries, supermarkets and etc. This year we are delighted to receive some early New Year goodies from NOYA (Tai Sun (Lim Kee) Food Industries) which we could try out some of their products that are on sales at major local supermarkets such as Cold Storage, FairPrice, Giant and etc. 

Traditional Pineapple Tarts (380g | S$10.80/jar) with good balance of base and golden pineapple jam on top. We love the taste of the pineapple jam which is not too sweet and without those commercial artificial taste.

Rolled Pineapple Tarts (380g | S$10.80/jar) with good proportion of pastry to fillings and each is coated with golden glazed layer to enhance the buttery taste of the tarts. If to make a choice between the two types of Pineapple Tarts, my vote would goes to the one with pineapple jam on top of the pastry as I felt it taste much better compared to the rolled type.

Personally I love those round Almond cookies from Hong Kong or certain pastry shop whereby the cookie will melt in your mouth when eaten. But this Almond Delights (300g, | S$10.80/jar) from NOYA was rather special with a after taste of sweet and salty mixture that makes you crave for more. And for your information this is also one of NOYA bestselling signature cookies which made from Tai Suns premium USA Almond.

This Macadamia Delights (300g | S$11.80/jar) has a slight crunch on the outside and a lovely creamy texture inside which made from top-quality of macadamias nuts from Australia. Furthermore the few of us who had tried all comes to a conclusion that this cookie has a very special taste which is quite similar to Horlicks .

The Kueh Bangkek (250g | S$6.50/jar) on the other hand was rather a bit disappointed for my taste as I was expecting something more fragrance with those melt-in-mouth texture. Although it has a light pandan fragrant but I think the taste could be better in order to bring out that traditional taste.

Traditional Jade Delights (300g | S$8.90/jar)  are actually green peas cookies in pale green colour which resembles Jade. I love the nutty and buttery flavour which comes with hint of salty taste lingering in your mouth.

Ah-Ma Love Letters (400g | S$11.80/tin) comes in those old school tin can and each piece of the Love Letters are made with traditional recipe using cane sugar. Although they are light and flake but to us we think it still lack of some coconut fragrance.

Lastly I would like to thank Esther from Tai Sun who sent us these lovely NOYA traditional Chinese New Year Cookies.

Read More..

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Cranberries and Pecans

I have a bad habit not being able to follow a recipe word for word, not even my own! I always have to adjust, substitute, omit, or change something. It’s pretty ironic I keep a recipe journal (I hope I didn’t lose too much credibility there). Oatmeal craisin chocolate chip pecan cookies are my default cookie of choice. I love how there’s so much good stuff in these, there’s barely enough dough to bind everything together. It’s like trail mix in cookie form. And I have yet to meet someone who doesnt like these. The name is a mouthful but I cant come up with anything better. OCCCPC? POCCC? POC^3? Eh, med school is full of enough acronyms and mnemonic as it is. I’ve been making these cookies for years now, but the urge to change a perfectly good recipe struck again. Combined with post finals laziness, I couldn’t be bothered to measure out the 1 1/4 cup here and there so I changed everything to one cup. I was going to delete the original recipe but I’m guessing people who use the original version wouldn’t be too happy if I just overwrote it. So now there are two versions, the original and the shamelessly lazy one. Hm I’ll need to do something about that 2 tsp of vanilla, since it requires measuring twice. Next time...

Okay in all seriousness, don’t let my silly laziness deter you, these are as good as the original. It involves just a tiny bit less work and there’s a higher chocolate to everything else ratio in these but I don’t think anyone would mind that.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Cranberries and Pecans

1 C all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 C old fashioned rolled oats
1 C toasted pecans, chopped
1 C dried cranberries
1 C semi sweet chocolate chips or 4 oz. bar of semisweet or dark chocolate, chopped
4 oz./ 1 stick butter, at room temperature
1 C packed brown sugar, preferably dark
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a heatproof bowl, pour about one cup of hot water on the dried cranberries and let them soak for 5 minutes. The cranberries will absorb some of the moisture and retain their chew after baking and won’t dry out. While the cranberries are soaking, chop the toasted pecans. After the cranberries have soaked, drain in a sieve, rinse them off under cold running water, and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined. In another bowl, toss the chopped pecans, chocolate chips, and oats together.

Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until fluffy, add the brown sugar and beat again. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, like frosting. Add the flour mixture and mix the dough is beginning to come together. Then add the oats, nuts, and chocolate mixture and cranberries and continue to beat until the dough is evenly mixed

I like to line my cookie sheets with parchment instead of a silicone baking mat, I find that cookies dont spread and brown as nicely on a baking mat. Scoop 1/4 C of the dough and space the dough 3 inches apart. Its easiest to use a trigger release cookie/ice cream scoop. Use your hands and flatten them slightly until they are about 3/4 inch thick and look like a hockey puck. My cookie sheet can hold 8 or 9 cookies and I like to bake only one sheet at a time.

Bake for 10 minutes then rotate the sheet, and continue to bake for another 5 to 8 minutes. The cookie edges should golden brown but the center will look a little underdone and still gooey and doughy in the middle. Remove the tray and let the cookies set for 1 minute on the sheet tray then using a spatula, slide them onto a cooling rack.

Makes 16 cookies.

Read More..

Green Tea Spritz Cookies

Exams are over and I can finally start my holiday baking. I planned to do the 12 days of cookies again this year but Im running out of days before Christmas! I hope no one objects to two recipes today so I can catch up.

My original idea was to make green tea Christmas tree spritz cookies. Instead of using green food coloring, I was hoping matcha powder would give the cookies a natural green shade. Sadly, my Christmas tree cookie press disc was nowhere to be found so I used the wreath/flower disc instead (its probably a flower but lets pretend its a wreath). My green tea powder is technically not real matcha, instead its a weaksauce green tea beverage powder so I had to use 3x (3 tablespoons!) what I normally would if I had matcha. Even with extra powder, the cookies only tasted faintly of green tea and instead of the lovely emerald colored cookies I envisioned, my cookies looked seasick with a sickly green tinge. Not exactly what I was hoping for but theyre terribly addicting, with each cookie being bite sized, I easily ate half a dozen in one sitting.

Ive written the recipe to call for a healthy dose of matcha but feel free to scale down if you want a more subtle green tea taste. The key to working with a cookie press is to use cool, ungreased cookie sheets. Do not use nonstick cookie sheets, parchment paper, or silicone baking mats because the dough wont stick. After baking, use a spatula and run it under all of the cookies before they cool, otherwise the cookie will stick to the cookie sheet when they cool and it will be nearly impossible to get them off. If you dont have a cookie press, you can use a pastry bag with a large star tip and pipe the dough into various designs.

Green Tea Spritz Cookies
makes nearly 5 dozen cookies with a cookie press

1 Tbsp matcha (green tea) powder
1 Tbsp hot water
1 1/3 - 1 1/2 C all purpose
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 C unsalted butter at room temperature (1 stick/4 oz.)
1/2 C granulated sugar
1 large egg yolk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Dissolve the matcha powder in hot water and set aside to cool.

In a bowl, whisk 1 1/4 cups of all purpose flour with the baking powder and salt. Set aside the remaining flour to add as needed to the dough later.

Cream the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer until fluffy. Add the sugar, egg yolk, vanilla extract, almond extract, and dissolved matcha. Beat until evenly mixed and fluffy.

Add the flour, baking powder, and salt mixture to the ingredients in the mixer bowl and mix until the flour is just incorporated. The dough should look shaggy and somewhat fluffy. If it is too wet, add a little more flour.

Load the dough into the cookie press barrel and press the dough onto a cold, ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 8 - 12 minutes or until the cookies are lightly golden brown around the edges. Rotate the cookie sheet 180 degrees halfway through baking. After removing the cookies from the oven, run a spatula under all of the cookies to separate them from the cookie sheet. Cool the cookies on the sheet.

Cool and rinse off the cookie sheet before each batch.

Read More..

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

 

   First and foremost, Id like to say that Im still praying and thinking about everyone who was affected by the Newtown, CT school tragedy. Its been weighing on my mind all weekend, as I know millions others. I wish I could turn back time for all those parents that lost a child that day. I cant even begin to imagine what kind of pain theyre going through. I will continue to pray that they are somehow able to heal from their loss. ♥

   Yesterday, I baked a bazillion cookies. At 9 a.m. I turned on Christmas movies for my kiddos, and started baking away! After I finished, 4 hours later, I sent my Elves to pass out the goods while I cleaned up the mess.

   I received lots of text messages thanking me for the cookies, so Im guessing they were a hit :) Ill be sharing all the recipes this week! First up are the Chocolate Crinkle Cookies. As they bake, they puff up and crack. The flavor reminds me of a brownie. Very delish!


Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 Tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 2 baking sheets with butter.

Place the powdered sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together, on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until creamy. Turn off mixer and scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula. Add 1 egg and beat on medium speed until blended. Add the other egg and vanilla and beat until blended.

Turn off mixer and add the flour mixture. Beat on low speed just until combined.

Using a Tablespoon, scoop up a rounded spoonful of dough. Form dough into a ball using the palm of your hand. Roll ball into the powdered sugar until covered. Place balls on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat, spacing the balls 2 inches apart.

When 1 baking sheet is full, place in the oven and bake until cookies are crackled and puffed, about 10-12 minutes. Using oven mitts, remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 15 minutes. Using a metal spatula transfer cookies to a wire rack to completely cool. Repeat with all cookies. Makes about 24 cookies.


Recipe by: Williams-Sonoma

Read More..

Estonian recipes Condensed Milk Cookies kondenspiimaküpsised

Im continuing with sharing Estonian recipes with you this month, in anticipation of the national holiday later this month. Heres a small baking project for the weekend - small, delicious and crispy-tender condensed milk cookies. The recipe is adapted from a classic Estonian cookbook "Valik toiduretsepte" (the 1974 edition), where theyre called simply "milk cookies". The sweetened condensed milk gives those cookies not only a desired sweetness, but also a slight dulce de leche flavour, which I find very appealing.

Condensed Milk Cookies
(Kondenspiimaküpsised)

250 g all-purpose/plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla sugar or vanilla extract
150 g cold butter, cubed
175 g sweetened condensed milk
2-3 Tbsp water

a small egg whisked with some water, for brushing

Mix the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla sugar) in a bowl, then add the cold cubed butter. Using a knife, cut the butter into the flour mixture, until it resembed wet crumbs. Now add the condensed milk and using your hands, knead into a ball (you may not need the water at all).
Place the dough into the fridge for half an hour, so the gluten can relax a little.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until 3-4 mm thick (1/8th of an inch). Cut into shapes (I cut into diamonds, using a roller cutter).
Transfer the cookies into a lined baking sheet and brush with an egg wash.
Bake in a preheated 200 C / 400 F oven until light golden brown.

Read More..

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

   I cant even tell you all how EXCITED I am for the Fall season! I just love everything about it. The weather is perfect. Not too cold and definitely not hot. I love all the different colors of leaves on the trees. The smell of the outside air. You know, that crisp, cold autumn air. Ohhh, I love it! But one of my most favorite things I love about Fall, are the pumpkin treats! These cookies are one of them. They are absolutely scrumptious and you will be so surprised how easy they are to make.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 box (18 oz) Spice Cake mix

15 oz can of Pumpkin

1 1/2 cups Chocolate Chips (semi-sweet or milk chocolate)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Empty the cake mix into a large bowl. If it looks lumpy then sift. (If its lumpy it will leave big chunks of mix in your cookies, and you definitely dont want that!)  Once sifted, mix in the can of pumpkin. Once well mixed, stir in the chocolate chips.

Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Drop batter by tablespoonfuls onto the cookie sheet. (This can be tricky, because the dough is sticky, and also remember the way they look on the sheet is how they will bake. They dont change shape because there is no egg in the batter) 

Bake for 17-19 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on the cookie sheet. No need to transfer to a cooling rack because their so soft they may fall through.

Linked up at Mandys Recipe Box

Read More..

David Leites Chocolate Chip Cookies slightly modified

Heres what I had for breakfast today - a large cup of coffee, and two gigantic chocolate chip cookies. Following the famous recipe David Leites Chocolate Chip Cookies pretty closely, I made up a batch of cookie dough on Monday night, and baked 6 large cookies this morning. They werent bad - I especially liked the slightly chewy inside and crispy edges, and the sprinkling of Maldon sea salt flakes on top of a chocolate cookie is genious. But if I ever make these again, I drastically reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe. I made the mistake of having two of these with my coffee this morning, and that is not something I recommend. I was very close to opening a can of tinned sprats to reduce the effects of all that sugar.

Other than that, I was pretty pleased with the way these spread out and baked. Some foodbloggers mentioned that the cookies were flat - not in my kitchen - they were about 1 cm /just under half an inch/ in the center. I baked large cookies, ca 75 grams each (thats just under 3 oz), which is way larger than whats considered a socially acceptable cookie size outside the US, Im afraid. Ill share the metric recipe here - if youre cooking and baking in cups and ounces, then please refer to any of the good foodbloggers below.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
(Ameerika šokolaadiküpsised)
Makes a lot, recipe can be halved and the formed unbaked cookies can be frozen



480 g all-purpose flour
1.25 tsp baking soda/bicarbonate of soda
1.5 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
275 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
200 g soft brown sugar (I used fariinsuhkur)
300 g caster sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
500 g dark chocolate, coarsely chopped (at least 60% cacao content)
Maldon sea salt flakes for sprinkling

Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a measuring jug. Put aside.
Using the paddle attachment of a food processor, cream the butter and sugar together for 5 minutes, until its creamy and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and vanilla extract, and beat until well combined.
Add the flour mixture, and stir just to combine. Fold in the chopped chocolate.
Using your hands, press the dough into a large ball and place in a bowl. Cover with a clingfilm and refridgerate for 36 hours (or up to 72 hours).
Line a baking sheet with a Silpat mat or parchment paper. Using a large ice cream scoop or a similar utensil, scoop out balls of cookie dough, each weighing about 75 grams. Place the cookie dough balls on the baking sheet, leaving plenty of space for spreading (I placed 6 cookie dough balls on my large baking sheet). (Return the remaining dough into the fridge!)
Sprinkle lightly with Maldon sea salt flakes.
Bake in the middle of a pre-heated 175°C oven for 16-18 minutes, until the cookie looks golden on the edges, but is still just pale tanned in the middle.
Remove from the oven, gently transfer onto a metal rack to cool slightly and firm up.
Repeat with the remaining dough.

Some other foodbloggers have tried and tested the recipe:
Molly @ Orangette
Deb @ SmittenKitchen
Stephanie @ Bay Area Bites
Clotilde @ Chocolate & Zucchini (who was smart enough to halve the recipe)
Kristin @ Kitchen Sink Recipes
Pim @ Chez Pim

Read More..

Christmas gingerbread sandwich cookies

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Mömmukökur (Mamas Cookies)

My mother only makes these gingerbread cookies before Christmas, but they are excellent at any time of the year. When I was little, I really thought it was my mothers own recipe.

Different people have different ways of making Mömmukökur. My mother makes them very thin and bakes them until they are dark brown and crisp. Others make light brown, thicker cookies that soften quickly once the icing is on. Mother allows them to stand until completely cooled, before putting in tins for storage. This is to ensure that they will stay crisp. Then, just before Christmas - usually on Þorláksmessa (December 23rd) - the four of us (my parents, brother and I) sit down together and make cookie sandwiches, sticking the cookies together two by two with vanilla butter icing.

125 g butter/margarine
250 g golden syrup
125 g sugar
1 egg
500 g flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 portion butter icing

Melt together the butter, sugar and golden syrup and mix well. Cool. Stir in the egg. Mix together flour, baking soda and ginger. Add the syrup mixture and knead until smooth. Store in a refrigerator over night. Flatten out until very thin and cut out shapes with cookie cutters or a glass. Bake at 200°C, until the cookies area a proper gingerbread brown colour. Cool completely before icing.

Note: Dont use this recipe to make gingerbread houses – this gingerbread is too fragile.

Read More..