Granny Shu's Heirloom Recipes II - 30 August 2014

I'll be teaching a new demo class - Part II of the Granny Shu series - at Shermay's Cooking School on 30 August 2014 (Saturday). For all inquiries, please call the school at +65 6479 8442 or 6479 8414, or email info@shermay.com 

"Scotch Egg"

An old school classic given a Nonya makeover thanks to its punchily flavoured jacket of Sambal Babi-inspired sausage meat. Plus, divine the secrets to a scotch egg with a tender white and an unctuous yolk!

Pork Belly Buns/Gua Bao

From Momofuku and Baohaus in New York to Bao Bar and Flesh & Buns in London, this super delicious Asian snack of Hokkien origins has become the hip sandwich sensation as of late. Of course, it's nothing new to us in Singapore (where we know it as Kong Bak Bao) and Taiwan (where it's known as Gua Bao)...What's not to love about juicy braised pork belly stuffed into a soft and fluffy homemade steamed bun and topped with fixings like pickled mustard greens, sugared peanuts and herbs?

Scallion Pancakes (Cong You Bing)

Flaky and fragrant, made traditionally with lard but here given a luxurious twist with duck fat.

XO Sauce

OK, so this is not technically a snack per se, but it's such an awesome condiment (which works with all the rest of the lineup), Joycelyn just had to sneak it into the menu! It's a recipe she has been working on and evolving for some years now, and this current incarnation is one she has been particularly pleased with. Packed with luxurious Asian dried seafood ingredients like scallops, shrimp and prawn roe, this superstar sauce gives a powerful boost to anything you choose to anoint it with.

BONUS SECTION: Extra Recipes (For you to try at home; not demo-ed)

Nuoc Cham

Vietnamese-style dipping sauce.

Umami Ketchup

Homemade tomato ketchup given a savoury Asian twist.

Carrot, Daikon & Cucumber Pickle

A very useful quick pickle that’s great in any sandwich with an Asian inflection.

Granny Shu's Heirloom Recipes I - 17 August 2014

I'll be teaching a new demo class at Shermay's Cooking School on 17 August 2014 (Sunday). For all inquiries, please call the school at +65 6479 8442 or 6479 8414, or email info@shermay.com 

My grandmother was and is my biggest inspiration in the kitchen. In this menu (as well as Menu II on 30 August 2014), I've revisited a selection of her treasured recipes and given them a modern spin. Versatile and scrumptious, they can work served at tea time, as appetizers when you entertain, or as small plates in your next dinner party menu.  

Hae Bee Hiam Butter Shortbread

Very short and buttery with a fabulous melt-in-the-mouth texture, this savoury shortbread boasts the unmistakable umami oomph of homemade hae bee hiam. Be warned – it’s impossible to stop at one…

Chicken Curry Puffs

Crafted the Karipap Pusing (aka Spiral Curry Puffs) manner with handmade Chinese-style flaky pastry (Su Bing Pi). The chicken filling – made exclusively with thigh meat, the most tender part of the chicken – is redolent of exotic spices and enriched with coconut cream.

Retro Chic Prawn Toasts

Natty, not naff, this luxurious rendition - made with market fresh prawns and minced pork belly, and spiked with a special seasoning blend and water chestnuts – is light years away from the Chinese takeaway staple.

Chilli Bak Kwa made with Kurobuta pork

Piquant, nuanced thanks to a secret cocktail of seasonings, and exceedingly moreish, this extravagant take on bak kwa uses premium kurobuta pork belly painstakingly ground at home for the ideal texture – succulent yet slightly springy.

BONUS SECTION: Extra Recipes (For you to try at home; not demo-ed)

Hae Bee Hiam

A decadent recipe for this Southeast Asian classic.

Hae Bee Hiam Rolls

When filled with homemade hae bee hiam, this everyday snack is elevated to new heights.

Epok epok Sardine

Tart yet sweet, piscine yet rich, this yummy variation on curry puffs is much beloved for good reason.

Su Bing Pi Tipsheet

Learn how to manipulate Chinese-style flaky pastry to create a variety of beautiful effects.

Fabulous Holiday Treats - 3 November 2013

I'll be teaching a new holiday demo class at Shermay's Cooking School on 3 November 2013 (Sunday). For all inquiries, please call the school at +65 6479 8442 or 6479 8414, or email info@shermay.com 

To date, I understand that class is full. To everyone attending - especially the dearly familiar faces (you know who you are) - a huge thank you, and apologies for the radio silence.

It's been quite a while since my last class (or my last post on this completely neglected blog, for that matter), so I daresay I'm really looking forward.

2013 has been a challenging year on the family front, primarily due to sickness and bereavement. As a consequence, I found myself seeking out and making the kind of things that I want to eat, that comfort me most. This menu reflects that. 

Plainly perfect and perfectly plain. Simply elegant, elegantly simple. Un-gussied, no-frills, nude and gloriously so. It's honest goodness and the gustatory equivalent of a bear hug. I think baking does not get more therapeutic, cathartic and soulful than basking in the glory of joys as elemental as, say, that of great salted butter. Or the superlativeness of toasted hazelnuts. When spice bread mellows into a thing of wonder with patience/time. How the culinary miracle known as caramelization wreaks its magic and transforms the holy triumvirate of fat, sugar and flour.

The menu is as follows, and I sincerely hope you enjoy the lineup as much as I did coming up with it:

Baci di Nocciole e Cioccolato al Latte (Hazelnut & Milk Chocolate Kisses)

Hazelnuts and milk chocolate are a match made in heaven, as these luxurious treats amply illustrate. Pairs of friable and wonderfully fragrant hazelnut cookies sandwich a plush ganache made with Amedei 35% milk chocolate – they’re so more-ish your lucky recipients will be queuing up to kiss you!

Gâteau Breton

In Brittany, local salted butter is used for absolutely everything including patisserie. Just savvy shopping for the best salted butter you can find – the resulting flavour depends on it and is well worth the extra expense and effort – is all that’s required for making the hands-down, will-make-you-weep, most butter-rich, splendidly short, shortbread. Ever. 

Kouign Amann

The literal meaning of the name in Breton is “butter cake” (kouign is “cake” and amann is “butter”). When made properly, the kouign amann’s seemingly simple and humble appearance belies sensational flavour and texture. Deeply caramelized and buttery, crisp without and tenderly flaky within, it is utterly addictive. 

Pain d’Épices (Alsace style)

There are as many styles and recipes for pain d’épices, a traditional honey and spice bread, as there are cooks. This particular style – a cross between a cookie and a bread in texture – is also known as leckerli, and hails from the Alsace region.

BONUS SECTION: 

Pain d’Épices (Burgundy style)

Beautifully flavoured with floral honey and Christmas spices, this gingerbread is outstanding thinly sliced, toasted, and served with butter and jam, such as the Orange Pomander Conserves.

Orange Pomander Conserves

Inspired by festive pomanders, this extraordinary marmalade is perfumed with cloves. 

Crème de Marron Ice Cream

A luscious custard-based ice cream that’s flavoured with crème de marron, this is lovely served with a simple butter cookie such as the Gâteau Breton.

Chestnut Chocolate Pots de Crème 

If you have great dark chocolate (Amedei 65% dark chocolate is used here) and crème de marron lying around, this velvety dessert is an absolute cinch to pull together. Fabulous accompanied by the Baci di Nocciole.

Fabulous Holiday Desserts - 27 & 28 October 2012

I'll be teaching a new holiday demo class at Shermay's Cooking School on 27 October 2012 (Saturday) and 28 October 2012 (Sunday). For all inquiries, please call the school at +65 6479 8442 or 6479 8414, or email info@shermay.com

The menu is as follows:

Luxury Holiday Fruit Cake This is the indulgence without which the holidays would be incomplete. Boasting an extravagance of plump fruit, it is best made at least a month – ideally two – before serving to mature, mellow and be at its very best. So please do consider starting now!

Stollen Dresden style stolen – the festive bread bursting with buttery flavour, spice, nuts, marzipan and candied fruits – is the perfect delicious alternative to offer non-fruitcake-eaters during the holiday season

Chocolate Hazelnut Torte A decadent celebratory torte featuring Amedei Crema Toscana, the ultimate chocolate hazelnut spread

Amaretti These sublime almond cookies are wonderful with post-dinner digestifs, coffee or tea. Or make for a lovely home-baked gift

BONUS SECTION I: Fabulous Holiday Cake Decorating Ideas & Essential Techniques

• How to cover the cake with marzipan & fondant
• Royal Icing Snowscape
• Holly
• Gilded Holly
• Snowflakes
• Candied fruit and nuts with glaze
• Fruit Cake Pops

BONUS SECTION II: Extra Recipes

Classic Mince Pies Scrumptious whether served warm from the oven with a dollop of
brandy butter, or at room temperature, no holiday dessert table is complete without a
plate of these festive little pies

Brandy Butter/Hard Sauce Brandy butter is the penultimate accompaniment to all the classics in the Christmas dessert repertoire.

Eggnog Ice Cream Spiked with brandy, rum and nutmeg, the flavour of this ice cream is irresistible