Thursday, November 1, 2012

Oreo Brownies (01Nov-12)

I get the urge to bake at least once a week, or rather, the urge to pop something into the oven :P.. and this week happen to be "brownie week" for me ^^
 
I am not exactly a fan of Oreos. Find them tad too sweet. But the kiddos love them.
I baked them some oreo cupcakes last month but I was not happy with how it turned out *sighz :(
Wanted to try another oreo cupcake recipe but since I had a tub of ice cream in the fridge, thought some brownies will be nice.
Googled and found a few brownie recipes. There was one with really nice photos but rather skeptical recipe. And I happen to have all the ingredients in the kitchen, so.. why not give it a shot? :)
 
I didn't have the patience to let it cool entirely and I just had to pinch a little to try. It was still slightly warm (which is how brownie should be eaten, eh?) when I popped that morsel into my mouth.. my eyes widened. It was soooo goooooooood. It was fudgy, warm, with bits of crunchy oreo and a crispy crust.
The taste was really unique that I can't find the right words to describe them ^^


These brownies taste just as good on its own without the ice cream. I tried a piece just right out of fridge, the firmer texture was nice. But I think I still prefer my brownies warmed up with a cup of coffee at the side... drool. And the next batch, I shall opt out the oreos & maybe add in some walnuts.

I have tweaked the recipe: adding grounded coffee, using Hershey's mini choc chips, lesser sugar and an extra egg (since the egg I used was local size and smaller I guess).

OREO BROWNIES
(recipe adapted from sugarandsnapshots)

Yield: 16 brownies in a 8x8x3-inch (20cm) square pan
Cooking time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients

    165g unsalted butter1 tsp of grounded coffee or expresso (coffee is supposed to enhance the flavor of chocolate but I can't comment since I have not baked another without coffee powder.)
    200g Hershey's semi-sweet mini choc chip
    5 eggs
    145g light brown sugar (U may use a little more if u are just baking brownies without the oreos)
    3 tbsp all-purpose flour
    1 tbsp cocoa powder
    A pinch of salt
    16 Oreo cookies, broken into pieces

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to about 350°F (180°C). Line an 8x8x3-inch (20cm) baking pan with baking paper with the paper overlapping the sides (this will make them easier to lift out of the pan after baking.
  2. Melt your butter in a pan over medium heat. Remove from heat and add the chocolate chips & grounded coffee, stir until smooth and well combined.
  3. Whisk the eggs in a large mixing bowl until they triple in volume. Add half the brown sugar around the outer edge of the eggs in the bowl (so you don’t knock the air out of the mix) and whisk until incorporated. Add the remaining sugar again around the edge, and whisk again for a few minutes until the mix is smooth and you can’t feel any sugar crystals in between your fingers. Whisk the melted chocolate into the eggs quickly to incorporate it.
  4. Add the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, salt and a third of the broken up Oreos) around the edge of the bowl and fold in until combined, taking care not to knock the air out. Pour the mix into the paper-lined baking pan. Scatter the remaining chunks of Oreo cookies over the top of the mixture, pressing some into the batter. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the middle is only slightly gooey.
  5. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely. When cooled, lift the baking paper and brownies out of the pan and set on a cutting board. Cut into 2×2-inch squares (in half and then half again, both ways). Makes 16 Oreo brownies.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Granola Bars (22Oct-12)

I love granola bars, so do the kids :)
I never knew it was that easy to make them nor has it crossed my mind I could home-make some, till someone told me about it 2 years back :P

So there I went, googling for recipe and found a non-bake version which I made tweaks to. I could not get any granola at the supermart near my place but found muesli instead. Actually, I don't know whether to call these granola bars or muesli bars, since the former is usually coated with sugar and the latter is unsweetened. But since I am coating the muesli with honey, I shall stick to calling them granola bars ^^

My first batch didn't turn out too pretty, as I pressed down the choc chips a little too hard and they all melted and the bars look messy.
Tried another batch and it looked prettier =)


When I was taking pictures of the granola bars today, I realised the bars were a little too soft and didn't hold together very well when left too long in room temperature :( Is it due to the oven temperature in SG? They tasted just right when it's just out of the fridge.
 
But the kids love this texture, chewy and soft. I would prefer a slightly harder texture. I shall try baking them for 10-15mins the next time round. Hopefully it holds better?
 

 
While googling for granola bars, I was surprised that these so called health-snacks ain't as healthy as it is marketed. Those off-the-shelf granola bars, though it boast of high fibre content, usually has a pretty high sugar content too (and most uses corn syrup instead of honey).
 
By making these as on-the-go snacks for my kids, I will have the choice of what goes into the tum-tums of my children, and I can be assured it's definitely healthier than buying them off the shelf. 
 

I cut the bars into bitesize and wrapped them with brown greaseproof paper. Stick them down with washi paper tape.. looks really cute ^^

Anyway, this is still not THE recipe, but it's a start for those who wanna try some home-made granola bars. I will keep on trying and tweaking till I get the "right" granola bars ^^


Ingredients
  • 56g unsalted butter
  • 53g (1/4 cup) packed light brown sugar
  • 85g (1/4 cup) honey
  • 2 cups muesli (or plain granola)
  • 1 cup rice cereal (Rice Krispies, etc.)
  • Some semisweet chocolate chips to sprinkle on
 
Process
  1. Line a 8x8 baking pan with parchment. Set aside.
  2. Combine butter, honey and brown sugar in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the butter is melted.
  3. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer until the sugar is dissolved, about 2 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat.
  4. Add the granola and rice cereal into the saucepan and fold them into the sauce until evenly coated.
  5. Spread the mixture into the prepared pans and press firmly with a clingwrap/spatula to evenly fill. Sprinkle the chocolate chips onto the top of the granola and gently press them down with the spatula.
  6. Let sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes or until mostly cooled and set; lift out of the pan and cut into bars.
  7. Fridge it till bars hardened.
Note: Do NOT press the chips down too hard. I used Hershey's semisweet choc chips and they melt really easily if I just used a little more strength.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Nöm #174- Halloween Alien (12Oct-12)

Argh. Overslept. Wanted to do a full body Alien with other decor but oinked too long today :(
 I was left with only 30mins to pack 2 lunchboxes and prep kids for school. That leaves me with only a "head"..*sob*.

Halloween-themed can be anything, no? Not necessarily gory monsters or eye-socket skulls, hor?
Today's nom ♥ wheat noodles, kyūri, breaded scallop & honey murcotts.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Nöm #173- Halloween Mummy (11Oct-12)

Remember my "finger & eyeball" pizza cup last year? Haiz.. it has freaked my boy out so much that he insists he will not have any Halloween bento this year.

The girl is fine with it. Here is my first Halloween bento for this year, nothing grotesque, will work along the cute version :P

Girl loves the tuna breadcup, and requested for it again.
 Today's Nom ♥ Tuna cheese breadcup, honey murcotts + happy hippo.
The boy gets undecorated bento, of course =)

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Nöm #172- Beary yummy Bento (10Oct-12)

I wanted to mould a bear initially but got lazy and decided to use this shaped-lunchbox instead :) Saves me so much time :P

Today's Nom ♥ We have rice with a layer of salmon floss in between, topped with bonito flakes + buttered broccoli, chicken nuggets and some gummies packed in as treats ^^
I ran out of fruits. And the boy commented it's not exactly a complete meal today without the fruits :S

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Nöm #170- Bread Pudding (03Oct-12)

What better way to use up those Purple black glutinous rice bread, Green spinach bread and all the bread cut-outs from yesterday?
Bread Pudding with cinnamon, raisins and apples :D

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Nöm #169- Cut The Rope (02Oct-12)

The spinach bread I bought is not as green as the actual chap from Cut The Rope, oh well.. will do I guess =)

Today's nom ♥ Black Glutinous Rice bread with beef pastrami, cheese and butterhead lettuce.

No fruits today as this bread is pretty thick and filling so the kids shall have their daily dosage of fruits when they are back from school.

Monday, October 1, 2012

Nöm #168- Kutusita Nyanko (01Oct-12)

I always see this little fellow around in shops but never quite know the name. Just found out it's called Kutusita Nyanko, a cat wearing socks on its every paw. It's real name is Bon-Chan =^^=

Friday, September 28, 2012

Nöm #167- Bunny loves Candy (28Sep-12)

The last bento to end my "rabbit" theme for the week =)

Today's nom ♥ Purple noodles, vege fingers, grapes and cherry tomatoes.

Wishing everyone a blessed weekend ahead.. and don't forget to drink your tea after gorging on those mooncakes ^^

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Nöm #166- Bunnies in a Basket (26Sep-12)

Sigh. Totally forgot to make the "handle" for the basket.
My bunnies look like they are under a blanket instead :S

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Nöm #165- Bunnies in a bowl (25Sep-12)

Made mooncakes yesterday.
Bunnies bento today. Continuation of my Mid Autumn Festival mood.. =^^=

Today's Nom: Teriyaki Salmon, Stir fry broccoli with baby corn & grapes ♥

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Nöm #164- Frolicking in Fruit Loops (20Sep-12)

Kids will be delighted today, coz they have their fav fruit loops, milk & strawberries. Oooh.. I will have hyper kids high on sugar today ^^

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Nöm #163- Koinobori Unadon (19Sep-12)

<< Koinobori means "carp streamer" in Japanese and are traditionally flown in Japan to celebrate Children's Day, which falls on 5 May >>

Another simple bento, my fridge is kosong.. not much stuff left. Just make do with whatever is left. Time to go marketing ^^

Monday, September 17, 2012

Nöm #161- Kai Kai & Jia Jia (17Sep-12)

The Giant Pandas have been here for more than 1 week and I see so many panda bentos around ^^
Here is mine to welcome Kai Kai and Jia Jia to Singapore ^^

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Nöm #160- Busy as a Bee (13Sep-12)

During our dinner chatter last night:-

Girl: Mom, my friends were asking me whether you have been busy.
 Me: *Guessing*. Oh, is it because you have been bringing undecorated bentos to school?
 Girl: Yup. I said you were lazy.
 Me: -___-

(my dear daughter quoted me word for word, coz that was exactly what I told the kids last few days.. Momma lazy to decorate. But still must give me face, right or not? :P Can at least say I busy mah... aiyoh. Grrrrrrr.....)

So here is a BUSY like a bee bento for today. Actually.. I m still lazy, hehe... ^^

Friday, August 31, 2012

Nöm #159- Tigger (31Aug-12)

What a hectic day yesterday. Sent girl for exam in the morning, head to work, got home evening, supervised girl baked/decorated/frosted cupcakes for her teachers, rushed to airport to send a friend off and got home past midnight. Very nearly didn't wanted to pack bento today but there was a request (and I promised) from the kid for Tigger to round up the Pooh & friends week (though I am still short of many characters).

So here it is, an obviously slipshop bento. No meat, no veg. Just plain purple noodles + fruits ^^

Phew, thank goodness it's Friday =)

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Nöm #158- Classic Piglet (29Aug-12)

Another "classic".

Am sure this will be Ash's all time favorite bento, because we have her bestie here today ^^ (hmm, though asking her to eat up her bestie does not sound quite right)
She literally squealed with delight when I showed her this. She loves her classic piglet <3
Today's nom is simple: Just ham/cheese sandwich, golden kiwi + grapes. Piglet is made of ham, iceberg lettuce & nori.


Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Nöm #157- Classic Pooh (28Aug-12)

Its Pooh among teddie pasta ^^ We have veggie fingers, homemade cheesey meatballs & grapes + cherry tomatoes today.

I adore the Classic Pooh & friends, prefer them to the "regular" version.

Ash has a classic piglet which is 10 years old, been with her since she was born =) She still hugs it to sleep every night, and because she loves that softie so much, I am getting worried coz the piglet is disintergrating as the years go by :(

Here is a rough cutout of Pooh, did the drawing free hand this morning on baking sheet... I should have traced it out for a "chubbier" pooh.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Nöm #155- Kerokeropi (31Jul-12)

Today's Nom ♥ Peanut butter spinach bread sammy, golden kiwi, green grapes, strawberries & their favorite Vitasoy which I froze as icepack ♥

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Nöm #153- LadyBugs(26Jul-12)

"Once-In-A-Blue-Moon" food for the kids today. SPAM!! :P

Today's Nom <3 Spam Sandwich, Golden Kiwi, Green Grapes <3

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Nöm #152- Chickety Chicks (25Jul-12)

Today's Nom ♥ Home-baked CharSiew, Stiry-fry Baby Corn with Asparagus, Tangerines ♥

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Nöm #151- Little Miss. Little Mr. (24Jul-12)

Today's Nom ♥ Ham & Cheese Sandwiched Bun, Golden Kiwi, Green Grapes ♥

Monday, July 23, 2012

Nöm #150- Monster Muffins (23Jul-12)

Kids baked the muffins entirely by themselves yesterday, from getting ingredients to weighing and mixing :)

Homemade choc muffins with white choc chips. Cay chose the marshmallows in dessicated coconu...t as a topping.

& Momma decides to add some googly eyes this morning to create these monsters ^^

Today's nom ♥ homemade muffins, butter toast with condense milk (not in pic) & strawberries ♥


Friday, July 20, 2012

Nöm #149- Mom, there's a Caterpillar on my bun!! (20Jul-12)

Went to bed last night with great "motivation" to do really cute animals with intricate details on the hotdog bun (chey.. say only).

Woke up with an entirely different mood :P

Only had to do 1 today (boy has event in school & needs no bento) & I got lazy. Just stamp some nori/cheese and added "tadpoles" to decorate the body.
Yippee.... It's Friday :D

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Nöm #148- Nominbox is ONE! (19Jul-12)

It's been a year since I started bento-ing.

It's been such a wonderful experience and hopefully many more "anniversaries" to come as long as my kids still want their momma to pack ♥ ♥ ♥


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Nöm #147- Robo-Kuehs (18Jul-12)

Too many girly-themed bentos, making something boyish today o^^o

Kids have yet to complain about getting the same type of staple every week; rice, noodles, bread, but momma is getting bored of packing the same type of food :P

So it shall be kuehs (there is Lapis Sagu, Sagu Melaka & Kueh Salat) & belgium waffles today, with longans & grapes + a nice frozen pack of vitasoy to keep those kuehs nicely chilled till recess ♥

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Monday, July 16, 2012

Nöm #145- Run..run..as fast as u can.. (16Jul-12)

Spontaneous bento today.
Was rummaging for my hk cutter when I chance upon my long forgotten gingerbread boy =)

Friday, July 13, 2012

Nöm #144- T.G.I.F (13Jul-12)

Another week passed. Another weekend approaching =)
Have a great weekend ahead, everyone ^^

Today's nom: Soya sauce chicken fillet, asparagus + baby corn, tangerines & grapes. Rabbits are made of egg sheet placed on top of rice with salmon floss fillings.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Nöm #143- Candy Nose? (12Jul-12)

Alarm went off, but I was really tired this morning, so I switched it off, slumped back into bed and decided that kids shall eat from canteen today.

Woke up an hour later (feeling much refreshed), felt kinda of guilty as kids had requested for bread today. Rushed to kitchen with intention of fixing them something simple with no decor.

Still can't resist those "itchy" fingers :P
Today's bento is fast and simple. Bears are made of wholemeal bread (with kaya filling), crusts for the ears, food picks for the nose and nori as facial details.

It's been longer days at work this week, guess not much energy left to do "complex" bentos. And whatever little time I have left in the evening after I got home is spent with the kids.

Another day to Friday. Gambatte, everyone! :D



Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Nöm #142- Japanese Curry Baked Cheese Rice (11Jul-12)

Not much "motivation" these 2 days to do cute characters. And since boy has home-based learning today, and I only need to do 1 bento, decide to do something quick and easy.

Its baked cheese rice today and instead of adding cream sauce, I added Japanese curry into the rice instead. And we have kids' favorite homemade meatballs with grapes at the side.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Nöm #141- Tomato Buddies (10Jul-12)

I will try and give different forms of carbohydrates everyday. Kids had rice yesterday, so it shall be bread today.

Today's bento is actually very simple, just stamp out small circles for eyes/nose + nori.. add on a leave pick, and tadah.

We have corn bread with tuna mayo, cherry tomatoes, grapes and golden kiwi. I usually pack in a packet of frozen milo if I am packing bread for that day. Will give nougats to the kids as treats too =)

Monday, July 9, 2012

Nöm #140- Rocket away.....! (09Jul-12)

Quite a spread today.. black/purple rice, saba fish, stir fry asparagus with garlic & seaweed soup (it's pork/veg soup base).

A totally "warm" meal today, thus no fruits as I can't keep fruits inside the thermos container. The thermos is quite bulky already and I really don't want the kids to carry another separate bag with fruits. They will have their fruits when they are back from school =)

The cheese rocket decor are sitting on ham, and I guess it will melt a little since the container is warm :P Shall ask the kids for feedback tonight.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

Nöm #138- Love Birds (05Jul-12)

disclaimer: Idea from web, remembered it was easy to make as I have the cutter, thus here it is. Not my creativity =)

ps: words on cheese heart are edited on, I not so "厉害" to cut such tiny words out ^^

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Nöm #137- "Candy" Bread RollUps (04Jul-12)

Nutella bread roll ups. Somehow I think I "underpacked" the food today.. seems not enough. Will pack in some granola bars too..

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Nöm #136- Fruit Bats (03Jul-12)

Saw the "watermelons" from a bento book and had always wanted to do it (coz its easy and really cute).
My main subject is actually the watermelons today, but needed something to accompany it. Thus asked my boy for suggestions and he gave bat.

So here we are, Fruit Bats with watermelons today ^^
I thought I should have added fangs for the bats, they look kinda of blur, hee.

Rice balls with fish floss fillings | bacon wrapped carrots/baby french beans | baby corn | cherry tomatoes | golden kiwi