Don’t fret if you’ve run out of ideas for the kids’ mid-afternoon snack. Fill their tummies with these delicious treats.
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Don’t fret if you’ve run out of ideas for the kids’ mid-afternoon snack. Fill their tummies with these delicious treats.
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Grilled caprese skewers
Makes 16 skewers
Ingredients
4 tbsp basil pesto (from supermarkets)
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 ball of Galbani cow’s milk mozzarella
350g cherry tomatoes
1 Preheat the oven on grill mode or to its highest temperature setting.
2 In a small bowl, mix pesto and olive oil together.
3 Slice mozzarella into 3cm-thick cubes.
4 Prepare bamboo skewers by soaking them in water for at least 5 minutes. Slide mozzarella cubes and cherry tomatoes onto each skewer in an alternating order.
5 Place skewers on a baking tray and grill for 5 minutes, or until the mozzarella is melting yet golden brown on top. Drizzle pesto sauce over the skewers and serve.
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Sarah Benjamin, cook and host at Asian Food Channel, contributed these recipes.
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Spiced banana and peanut butter turnovers
Makes 12 pieces
Ingredients
1 packet (around 480g) frozen puff pastry sheets
4 bananas, sliced ½ tsp rempah kueh (spice mix, from supermarkets) or cinnamon
Zest of 1 orange
2 tbsp orange juice, freshly squeezed
1 tsp cornflour
6 tbsp peanut butter
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp demerara sugar, for dusting
1 Preheat the oven to 200 deg C. Roll out each pastry sheet to 0.5cm thick and cut out 12 squares measuring 10cm each.
2 In a bowl, mix bananas, rempah kueh, orange zest, orange juice and cornflour.
3 Spread ½ tbsp of peanut butter over the centre of each pastry square, and top with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the banana mixture, making sure to leave the edges of the pastry clean.
4 Brush the edges lightly with egg wash and seal shut. Use a fork to crimp the edges.
5 Prick the top of each turnover lightly with a fork, and brush the top with egg wash. Sprinkle sugar on top for extra crunch. 6 Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
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Curry chicken pops
Makes 24 to 30 pieces
Ingredients
1 litre vegetable oil
1 cup Seah’s Spices Singapore Chicken Curry Spices powder
2 tsp salt 1 cup cornflour
3 eggs
2 cups panko (breadcrumbs)
3 chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized chunks Chilli mayonnaise, for dipping (optional)
1 In a medium-sized saucepan, heat the oil to 180 deg C.
2 Set aside two bowls and a plate. In one bowl, combine the curry powder, salt and cornflour. In the other bowl, crack eggs and beat them. Add panko to the plate.
3 Dust chicken pieces with seasoned cornflour, dip them in egg wash, and finally coat well with breadcrumbs.
4 Deep-fry the chicken pops until golden brown. Serve with chilli mayonnaise.
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Sate ayam with peanut butter dipping sauce
Makes 6 to 8 skewers
Ingredients
For the sate ayam
2 tbsp kecap manis (Indonesian sweetened soya sauce)
1 tsp oyster sauce
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil of your preference
2 chicken breasts, deboned, skinned and cubed
For the sauce
200g unsweetened peanut butter
2 tbsp kecap manis
½ tbsp light soya sauce Juice of 1 lime
1 tbsp peanut or vegetable oil of your preference
Water, to thin out the sauce
½ tsp chilli powder (optional)
1 Soak 6 to 8 bamboo skewers in water for at least 20 minutes.
2 In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients for the sate ayam, except the chicken. Marinate chicken in the mix. Set aside for at least 30 minutes.
3 In another bowl, add all the sauce ingredients and mix until smooth. If the sauce is too thick, add 1 tsp of water at a time to thin it out. The consistency should be slightly runnier than peanut butter. Include chilli powder if you want a little spice.
4 Thread 3 or 4 cubes of the marinated chicken onto each bamboo skewer.
5 In a frying pan, heat oil on medium-high heat. Cook chicken for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until they are lightly charred yet cooked through. Serve with sauce.
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Strawberry vanilla mug cake
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Polo Seah, executive chef of Humpback, contributed these recipes.
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Cheesy orzo with pumpkin
Serves 1
Ingredients
500g squash pumpkin, cubed
1½ tbsp olive oil 60g unsalted butter, softened
2 tsp salt
Water
120g orzo pasta (from www.groxers.com )
50g shallots, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
10ml white wine
50g parmesan cheese
¼ cup Italian parsley, chopped
1 Mix the pumpkin with ½ tbsp olive oil, 50g butter and 1 tsp salt.
2 Wrap the pumpkin in aluminium foil and bake at 180 deg C for 1 hour or until soft.
3 Puree the pumpkin in a blender and set aside.
4 Set water to boil and add the remaining 1 tsp salt. Cook orzo for 3 min. When cooked, drain the water and set pasta aside on a plate.
5 In another pot, heat the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil, and sweat the shallots and garlic until translucent.
6 Add the orzo and stir well, then add white wine.
7 Fold in pumpkin puree and cook for 1½ minutes.
8 Remove from heat and fold in the cheese and remaining 10g of butter. Garnish with parsley and serve.
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Pear and maple bacon bombs
Makes 8 pieces
Ingredients
50g streaky bacon, sliced
1 Packham pear, cut into small wedges
10ml maple syrup
1 tbsp olive oil
A pinch of flaked salt
1 Wrap a strip of bacon over each wedge of pear and brush with maple syrup.
2 Poke a toothpick through each bacon-pear bomb to secure it.
3 Heat oil in a frying pan, and fry bacon-pear bombs on medium heat for 2 minutes on each side. Sprinkle salt and serve.
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Devilled eggs
Serves 2 to 3
Ingredients
2 tbsp salt
5 eggs
150g mayonnaise
50g smoked salmon
20ml lemon juice
50g shallots, finely chopped
1 tsp chives, finely chopped for garnishing
1 Bring water in a pot to the boil, add salt and cook eggs, fully submerged, for 7 minutes. Salted water gives the eggs flavour.
2 Prepare an ice water bath to transfer the eggs to, which stops the cooking process.
3 Once the eggs have cooled, peel and cut them in half. Remove the yolks.
4 In a bowl, add yolks and mayonnaise, smoked salmon, lemon juice and shallots. Mix until they form a paste.
5 Transfer the paste into a piping bag. Pipe it into the egg whites. Garnish with chives.
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Tapioca balls
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Chicken cordon bleu
Serves 2
Ingredients
300g chicken breast
10ml Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp Dijon mustard
A pinch of salt
A pinch of black pepper
60g shredded mozzarella cheese
50g plain flour
1 egg, beaten
120g breadcrumbs
1 Marinate chicken in Worcestershire sauce, mustard, salt and pepper. Set aside for 30 min.
2 Create a pocket in the chicken breast by slicing it without cutting all the way through. Stuff mozzarella inside the pocket, and seal with a toothpick.
3 Coat chicken in flour, dip in egg, then in breadcrumbs.
4 Pan-fry each side for 2½ minutes, or until golden brown.