Homemade Char Siu Buns (BBQ Pork Buns)

I'm not sure if most of you felt the same, but I often feel "lazier" after a long weekend. @_@ I managed to travel up to a bigger city nearby for a weekend getaway and got some of my food cravings fixed. There were bubble tea, Korean BBQ and Dim Sum which quite replicate the authentic taste. And speaking of Dim Sum, it reminded me that I've this recipe that I need to share with everyone. ^_^ 

Homemade Char Siu Buns (BBQ Pork Buns)

What could be better than to combine a successful bread dough recipe with a homemade Char Siu recipe? You know you just can't keep anyone's hands off these homemade Char Siu Buns although they may still be very hot from the oven. *_*

I am sharing these Homemade Char Siu Buns (BBQ Pork Buns) with Tea Time Treats (May 2015: Sandwiches, Wraps & Rolls!) hosted by Janie of The Hedgecombers and Karen of Lavender and Lovage.

I am also sharing this recipe with Bake of the Week organised by Helen & gang of Casa Costello; CookBlogShare organised by Lucy of Supergolden Bakes and guest hosted by Angela of Patisserie Makes Perfect; and Family Bakes and Makes hosted by Jenny of Modern Family Baking.

     

Oven-roasted Char Siu (BBQ Pork)

One thing about being miles away from home is the missing of mouth-watering delicacies that we grew up eating, especially when we are in a western country where South-east Asia cuisines become a rare find. But thanks to the internet, some (in fact most) of these food cravings can easily be satisfied from the abundance of homemade recipes shared online by many from all around the world.

One particular food my husband craves is this Char Siu, a type of roasted meat in Cantonese cuisine traditions. My husband is a typical carnivore and he cannot have his meal without a meat dish. The traditional cooking method for this roasted meat is having long strips of seasoned boneless pork skewered with long forks over a fire, slightly charring the outside of the meat. I must say it is the marinate that makes this meat so tasty and unique. 

This Char Siu recipe is definitely a winner because the ingredients required are conveniently found at the oriental food section in most western supermarkets, and if not, at the local oriental supermarket. And it's pretty mess-free and the distinct flavour of the meat can be replicated with just the use of an oven. 

Oven-roasted Char Siu (BBQ Pork)

I'm sharing this amazing and deliciously flavoured Oven-roasted Char Siu (BBQ Pork) with blog event, CookBlogShare hosted by Lucy of Supergolden Bakes;

and monthly link up party, Our Growing Edge (May 2015) hosted by Jordan and Cindy from My Daughter and I, an event that aims to connect food bloggers and inspire us to try new things.

This is also a prelude of my upcoming post as I continue with the fun of bread-making. Be sure to stay tuned! ^_^

Chocolate Banana Cake

What's better use of over-ripe bananas than in baking? Though I'm not quite a "banana" person, I do like the combination of banana and chocolate, especially in cakes. So rather than wasting those over-ripe bananas that were sitting in the kitchen, I decided to look up new recipes on bananas and chocolates. I wanted to try something different though I have my heavenly Awfully Dark Chocolate Banana Cake and delicious Banana Chocolate Chips Muffins recipes ready on hand. And I came across this recipe for a chocolate banana bread. But a look at the ingredients and instructions suggest that it's more like a cake than a bread. And I wonder if it's called a bread because it's baked in a loaf pan? Anyway, I was curious how the recipe would turn out and decided to give it a shot.

Chocolate Banana Cake

I tried out in a square pan instead. And the verdict... it turned out to be everything in-between! The crust is somewhat similar to a soft french bread, and the bite and texture is somewhat similar to a brownie, yet it's not dense and gives a soft "cakey" chewy bite. I know this may sound confusing, but I really like this cake I'd call it, though I must admit I wasn't impressed (by the colour and appearance) when I un-moulded it from the cake pan. And the English idiom that goes, "Don't judge a book by its cover" definitely hit me hard here. After all, how wrong can banana and chocolate pair go, right? ^_^

I am sharing this Chocolate Banana Cake with blog event, We Should Cocoa (May 2015: Vanilla) organised by Choclette of Tin and Thyme and Chele of Chocolate Teapot and guest hosted by Karen of Lavender and Lovage for the month of May 2015;

I am also sharing this recipe with Best Recipes for Everyone (May 2015 Event: My Favourite Desserts) organized by Fion of XuanHom's Mom and co-hosted by Aunty Young. 

And last but not least, I'm sharing this new exploration from a bread-turned-cake recipe with monthly link up party, Our Growing Edge (May 2015) hosted by Jordan and Cindy from My Daughter and I, an event that aims to connect food bloggers and inspire us to try new things.

Sausage (Hotdog) Buns

Happy (belated) Mother's Day to all mothers out there! ^_^

Being raised in a traditional Asian Chinese family, (my siblings and) I were never used to saying "I love you" to our parents or heartfelt words of gratification to them for their selfless love and care that they have showered upon us. Until I was older, I came to realise that certain things just have to be said out loud although deep down in our hearts, we are truly appreciative of what they have done for us over the years. As a little warm-up exercise, those heartfelt words made their way through text messages on such special occasions. While we ought to show our gratifications everyday and not just on this day, I see it as a day for a grand sum-up of everything a mother has done over the past year since everyone across the globe celebrates the wonder of all mothers on this very day together.

This is the second year I am missing out on mother's day celebration for being away from home. Although it may seem like every other day, the mark of Mother's Day somehow just makes me think of my mother more than any other day. Perhaps this is its significance. And I suppose this is how I decided to share this recipe.

Back in the past when I was still living with my parents, my siblings and I used to have different variety of buns and bread for breakfast before school, and even later when we started working. My mother would make a trip to the nearby bakery to pick up the buns for each of us, and she makes an effort to pick up different flavours and variety on different days. Having said that, sausage bun, or otherwise called hotdog bun is the most common one that she would pick up since there aren't much selections to our liking. This naturally became a staple and I have no problem eating the same up to 4 times a week.

So when my bread-making turned out to be a success, sausage buns or hotdog buns naturally came up to my mind. And for a twist, I am using Chipotle hotdogs instead of the usual hotdogs. Is this one of your favourite buns too?

Sausage (Hotdog) Buns

I am sharing these Sausage (Hotdog) Buns with Tea Time Treats (May 2015: Sandwiches, Wraps & Rolls!) hosted by Janie of The Hedgecombers and Karen of Lavender and Lovage. Buns or rolls, they all belong to the bread family, right? 

I am also sharing this recipe with Bake of the Week organised by Helen & gang of Casa Costello; CookBlogShare hosted by Lucy of Supergolden Bakes; and Family Bakes hosted by Jenny of Modern Family Baking.

          

Chocolate Cream-filled Profiteroles (Chocolate Cream Puffs)

"No, egg yolks are bad and we should only eat the whites". This is what my husband always insist whenever I fry him an egg. All these years, I have long given up proving to him with health articles about the benefits of egg yolks, or at least the harmless of eating egg yolks and "coaxing" him into eating the yolks. I know very well that it's just his plain excuse for not eating the yolks, which he claimed has a funny taste, when he refuses to accept that egg yolk has its beneficial contents. That's also his way of refuting my claim that he behaves just like a big kid picking on his food. And for that reason, we always have leftover egg yolks which I sometimes have to throw away if he is eating eggs too often. >,<

But fortunately or unfortunately, the leftover egg yolks prompted this bake when I decided to turn the yolks into pastry cream. And my immediate association with pastry cream are these delicious cream puffs, a French dessert otherwise known as Profiteroles.

Chocolate Cream-filled Profiteroles (Chocolate Cream Puffs)

This French dessert may be delicate, but they are definitely not difficult to make. I have adopted the same pastry dough recipe that I'd used for my mini Chocolate Eclairs since it was an easy and successful recipe. Looking back at my post archives, I then realised that those were made almost a year ago. *Gosh~ how time flies! Anyway, I find it really interesting how two different desserts could be formed from the same recipe when they just appear in different shapes (and sizes). ^_^