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This is a healthier version of One-bowl brownies. I came up with this when I was trying to use up the last super-ripe banana languishing on the counter. Believe it or not, the single banana enabled the amount of sugar in the original recipe to be cut by half!
makes 24 small squares
- 1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (e.g. canola)
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup flour
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2/3 cup sifted cocoa powder
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 mashed banana
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 2 tbs dark rum (optional)
- 9 X 13 inch baking pan or equivalent, greased
- Preheat oven to 180 °C or 350 °F.
- In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, adding the baking powder last.
- Stir until just moisten.
- Pour into the baking pan and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until a satay stick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
This brownie will taste cake-like when freshly baked but becomes denser and more brownie-like on the second day!
Acknowledgment: This is a recipe adapted from Penzeys Spices Thanksgiving 2010 newsletter – “One-Bowl Brownies”.
These are called one-bowl brownies probably because all the ingredients are mixed in one bowl. No “mix the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients”
makes 24 small squares
- 1 cup melted unsalted butter
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup flour
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2/3 cup sifted cocoa powder
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 9 X 13 inch baking pan or equivalent, greased
- Preheat oven to 180 °C.
- In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, adding the baking powder last.
- Stir until just moisten.
- Pour into the baking pan and bake for 30 minutes or until a satay stick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Acknowledgment: This is a recipe adapted from Penzeys Spices Thanksgiving 2010 newsletter – “One-Bowl Brownies”.
This is similar to the Fisherman’s pie, but much simpler and faster. The mashed potato has also been replaced by a rosti-like topping for a different texture. Note: I have not seen Chris consume so much fish in a long time.
6 servings
- 600 g potatoes, peeled and quartered
- 500 g salmon steak/salmon belly
- 90 ml milk
- 200 ml vegetable or fish stock
- 40 g salted butter
- 40 g plain flour
- 1 small leek, sliced
- 1 tsp english mustard
- 1 tsp dried or fresh parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
- Add the potatoes to a pot of salted water and bring to boil. Remove the pot from heat but leave the potatoes in the water for another 5-10 minutes before draining the water. The water can be used to make the vegetable stock if desired.
- Put the salmon, stock and milk in another saucepan and bring to boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the salmon and flake it, taking care to remove any bones. Leave the liquid to cool.
- Melt the butter in a frying pan, fry the leeks till soft and stir in the flour. Stir in the liquid slowly to incorporate the flour mixture. More stock can be added to achieve a pouring consistency. The final mixture should be a very thick liquid, but not a solid lump.
- Add the mustard, parsley and fish flakes, stir well. Add pepper and salt to taste.
- Preheat the oven to 200 °C. Place the fish mixture in a baking dish and grate the potato coarsely over the mixture. Bake for 20 minutes or till the tips of the potatoes are brown.
For a non-dairy version, the butter and milk can be replaced by soy margarine and soy milk respectively as in The SOY for Health cookbook. I, however, am a big fan of butter.
The potatoes should be cooked and drained early to ensure that they are dry before grating.
Salmon bellies are cheaper but oilier than salmon fillet steaks. Some people love the smoother texture and stronger taste of the bellies, some prefer the drier and flakier texture of the fillets. Experiment!
This flourless dessert is similar to our Chocolate Pudding, but firmer and creamier. The taste and texture improves drastically if left in the refrigerator for more than 24 hours.
8 servings
- 20-24 lady fingers, halved crosswise
- 2 cups whole milk
- 6 egg yolks (Singapore eggs sized)
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp gelatin powder
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 175 g bitter sweet chocolate, finely chopped
- chocolate curls for decoration
- 1 cake pan greased with butter
- Line the bottom of the pan with baking paper and grease the baking paper with butter lightly.
- Arrange the lady fingers around the side of the pan, sugar side out and flat side down.
- Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a heat resistant bowl till the mixture is almost white.
- Bring the milk to a simmer over low heat, then whisk the milk into the egg and sugar mixture.
- Return the mixture to the sauce pan and stir in the chocolate. Heat over medium heat, stiring frequently, till the chocolate melts and the custard is thickened enought to coat the spoon. This should take about 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, soak the gelatin in about 5 tbsp of water for at least 5 minutes, then place the bowl in very hot water and stir till the gelatin dissolves.
- Pass the custard through a wire sieve into a clean bowl.
- Stir the gelatin into the hot custard and place the bowl of custard in ice cold water. Stir often.
- Beat the cream with an electric beater till soft peaks form, then fold the cream into the custard gently when the custard is almost set.
- Spoon the mixture into the cake pan and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
- Decorate with the chocolate curls before serving.
Do not worry if the lady fingers do not stand up right on the cake pan before the custard is poured in. As long as the incline from the base of the pan is more than 45 degrees, the custard will push the lady fingers outwards, towards the side of the pan.
This incredibly sinful thing is just great stuff. We have a recommended baking time, but depending on your oven and size of the ramekins, some experimentation might be required to achieve the perfect balance between gooey and firmness.
8 servings
- 3 tbsp butter,softened
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 250 g unsweetened chocolate
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 large egg
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 8 ramekins sprayed with vegetable cooking spray or thinly coated with oil/butter
- Set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 390°F (200°C).
- Melt the chocolate in a double boiler
- Beat the sugar and butter together at high speed with an electric beater for at least 5 minutes.
- Beat in the eggs one by one. make sure that each egg is well mixed in after each addition.
- Also whisk in the vanilla using the electric beater.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold in the shifted flour and salt, followed by the melted chocolate.
- Divide the batter evenly among the ramekins.
- Bake for 12 minutes.
- Dig in while warm!
The batter can be left at room temperature for up to 2 hours before baking. Do not refrigerate as the batter solidifies easily.
The first time we made this moist, strongly-rummy chocolate cake was as a base for a black forest cake. The supposedly healthy (we are speaking in comparative sense of course) tastes great, but we found that it tastes even better after refrigerating for one or two days. It goes great alone and with sweet creamy sauce (wait up for our “fusion” creation that involves creamy banana-flavored sauce).
Make 1 10″ tube or Bundt cake (16 servings)
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 vanilla extract
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup cocoa powder
- 4 large egg whites
- 1¾ cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2/3 cup corn syrup
- 2/3 cup rum
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 10″ tube or Bundt pan, sprayed with vegetable cooking spray or thinly coated with oil/butter
- Set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350°F (175°C).
- Stir flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt together thoroughly. Sift once.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk egg whites and buttermilk just to mix. Whisk in the brown sugar, applesauce, cornsyrup, vanilla and rum, one at a time.
- Using a rubber spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake the cake for about an hour, or until it is well risen and firm, and a satay stick inserted halfway at the centre of the pan comes out clean.
- Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then unmold it to a rack to cool completely.
For advance preparation, double-wrap the cake in plastic and freeze for up to a month. Bring to room temperature before serving.
We have no idea what is a Bundt pan too. We used a disposable aluminium tray and it works too!
To make the apple sauce, cut two large apples into small pieces and place in a saucepan with just enough water to cover. Bring to boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. If the apples get very dry before that, add some water. Use a potato masher or fork to break any large pieces.
Acknowledgment: This is a slightly simplified recipe from Perfect Light Desserts by Nick Malgieri & David Joachim. 
The only reason why this is considered modern, is because our healthier version is titled “Old fashioned carrot cake”. We refuse to call this the unhealthy carrot cake, or the Pichet Ong’s carrot cake. Once again, our cake came out rather kueh like, much much less so than the old fashioned one!
Make 1 10″ tube or Bundt cake (16 servings)
- 290 g all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp freshly-grated nutmeg
- ¼ tsp salt
- 4 large eggs
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 200 g brown sugar
- 4 cups peeled, grated carrots
- 220 g unsalted butter
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 10″ tube or Bundt pan, sprayed with vegetable cooking spray or thinly coated with oil/butter, line the bottom with baking paper and coat with butter again.
- Set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350°F (175°C).
- Stir flour, baking powder, baking soda together thoroughly. Sift once.
- Put the paddle attachment onto the mixer and mix the butter and sugar, spices and salt till light and fluffy at a medium-high speed.
- Fold in the carrots with a rubber spatula, then beat the eggs in at a lower speed.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
- Bake the cake for about an hour, or until it is well risen and firm, and a toothpick inserted halfway at the centre of the pan comes out clean.
- Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then unmold it to a rack to cool completely.
- Refer to Limey cream cheese frosting for the frosting and assembly.
For advance preparation, double-wrap the cake in plastic and freeze for up to a month. Bring to room temperature before serving.
For obvious reasons, the frosting is best prepared fresh, while the cake should be left overnight too cool before the slicing.
Acknowledgment: This is a recipe from a Pichet Ong book The Sweet Spot. 
This is like a shepherd’s pie, but made with seafood instead of mutton, and the cream sauce is made without cream. There are various steps to this pie which can be done concurrently, so its perfect for a cooking date! Dedicated to Lejia, Sheryl and Adeline.
Serves 5-6 people
- 450 g potatoes
- 1⅔ cup whole milk
- 1 garlic, chopped
- ½ onion, sliced thinly
- 1 liter dashi or fish stock
- 8 prawns, shelled and cleaned
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 1 carrot, diced
- ½ green capsicum, diced
- 400 g deboned white fish, cut into chunks
- ½ tsp dried basil or 1 tsp fresh basil, chopped
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- White pepper, black pepper, salt—to taste
- 7 tbsp butter
- Person 1: Peel the potatoes and cut into quarters. Add to salted boiling water and cook till tender.
- Reserve the cooking water and mash the potatoes till smooth, beat in 1/3 cup of milk and 3 tbsp of butter. Season with salt and black pepper.
- Person 2: Combine the rest of the milk with the fish, shrimp, onions and capsicum in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Person 3: Melt 4 tbsp of butter in a saucepan over a stove top stir in the flour. Heat for 2 minutes. Preheat the oven to 220 °C.
- Person 2: Add the flour mixture to the pot, stir continuously. Add 1 tbsp of the mashed potato and the potato cooking water if the mixture becomes too thick. Stir in the lemon juice, add salt and pepper to taste.
- Lay the cream mixture into the bottom of a large baking dish and top with the mashed potato. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes or till slightly brown.
The fish can be replaced by leftover fish from the previous day. If doing so, just cook the fish for 5 minutes, straight from the refrigerator.
The mashed potato can be prepared 24 hours ahead.
This is an extremely, extremely quick pancake recipe utilizing self-raising flour for simplicity. I was totally inspired by Yotsubato manga, where the 5-year old Yotsuba was trying her best to cook her pancakes (with many, many spoilage). Well, obviously I didn’t expect mine to turn out as nice as it did the first time around, but it did! Each pancake looks and tastes awesome. (: Oh, and did I mention that I learned when to flip the pancake from Yotsuba?? Oh, and I like the pancake bottom-side up for some reason, I guess the bubbles were looking really pretty. Ying loves it top-side up, like McD’s breakfast pancakes.
Makes 10 pancakes
- 1 cup self-raising flour
- 1 cup fresh milk
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- vegetable oil (for frying)
- Pour flour, milk, egg, and sugar together in a bowl and whisk vigorously. The batter should be pretty smooth (with some granules). Leave the batter sitting for 10 to 15 minutes to let the self-raising flour does its wonder.
- Heat a lightly oiled griddle in medium heat.
- Pour about ¼ cup of the batter in the middle of the griddle. Don’t worry about the shape, just pour at one single point, it will roughly turn out to be circular.
- Watch the pancake bubbles. When the bubbles start bursting (and the side looks drier), flip the pancake. The top side should be nicely browned now.
- Cook for another 20 seconds and lift it off the griddle.
- Repeat the last 3 steps until you run out of batter.
It is normal for the first pancake to cook less evenly (and may turn out too dark or too light). So don’t worry about it.
Some toppings suggestions: a spoonful maple syrup or honey, lightly buttered and sprinkled with sugar, blueberry or other fruity jams, chocolate rice, a dollop of ice cream, and, my favourite, whipping cream.
Read more for photos »
This amazing cream cheese frosting is a perfect compliment for a carrot cake. Slather over the entire cake or spread on individual slices—tastes heavenly. Of course, you can also choose to eat it with anything you want. Bread? Sure! Pretzels? Go ahead! Bacon? Okay, I haven’t tried this one, but you certainly can. d:
WARNING: This recipe is just for the frosting. If you want to eat it with carrot cake, we have a healthy recipe for that here. We are also posting another, less healthy one that we just tried recently very soon. Wait for it.
Makes enough to make 3 layers of 10″ round
- 12 oz. (336 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- ⅔ cup granulated/superfine sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp grated lime zest
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 1⅔ cup sour cream, at room temperature
- Put cream cheese, sugar, and salt in a mixer bowl. Beat at medium-high speed with a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy, approximately 7 minutes.
- Fold in the lime zest, lime juice, and sour cream until incorporated.
- Cover and refrigerate until stiff enough to spread, about 30 minutes.
With a carrot cake, this frosting also tastes heavenly with rum-soaked raisins. Get 1 cup raisins and soak in rum for at least 30 minutes (or overnight). Slice the carrot cake horizontally into 3 layers. Divide the frosting into 3 parts. Frost the first two layers and divide the raisins between the two layers. Stack all three layers and frost the top of the cake.
If you don’t own a paddle attachment, you can use the normal beater as well, though you should beat the mixture for shorter time.
To improve the appearance, you can replace up to half tbsp of grated lime zest with longer (half to 1 cm) zest.
Acknowledgment: The recipe is adapted from carrot cake recipe in The Sweet Spot by Pichet Ong.
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