Peanut Cookies

It was the second day of Chinese New Year and I made some peanut cookies - a fail-proof and really quick and easy recipe which even a non-peanut lover me loves it. In fact I first made these cookies last CNY and I guess I wouldn't have tried this recipe and realised how delicious they are if not for my husband, a "nut" lover. He is a non-dairy person and it cracks my head to think of the different CNY goodies that I could make at home for him so that he gets the feel of CNY. And these peanut cookies definitely add to the homely CNY feel which we would have otherwise felt if we were back in our own homeland. But it's not a pity that we can't celebrate CNY back at home anymore with the companion of these homemade CNY goodies (and not forgetting our friends here)... ^_^
I'm sure you will love it too!

Peanut Cookies

I am sharing these delicious melt-in-your-mouth Peanut Cookies with the following blog events:

Cook and Celebrate: CNY 2015 organised by Yen of Eat Your Heart Out, Diana of Domestic Goddess Wannabe and Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids;

Treat Petite (Feb 2015 theme: Love is in the air) hosted by Stuart of Cakeyboi and Kat of The Baking Explorer;

The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (Feb 2015 theme: Loved Ones) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than… and hosted by Alexandra of The Lass in the Apron;

CookBlogShare hosted by Lucy of Supergolden Bakes;

  

Bake of the Week organised by Helen & gang of Casa Costello; and

last but not least, for the first time, I am also sharing this Peanut Cookies recipe with event, My Treasured Recipes #5 (Jan & Feb 2015 theme: Chinese New Year Goodies) hosted by Miss B of Everybody Eats Well in Flanders and co-hosted by Charmaine of Mimi Bakery House.

Pineapple Cookies (Dairy-free)

Gong Xi Fa Cai! (To my non-Chinese/Asian readers, this literally means, "Wishing you a prosperous year!")

Can't help it, but oh my it's yet another year! I was reading the news and came across an article titled, "Is it the Year of Goat or the Year of Sheep"? While it didn't bother me slightly, I wonder if it really mattered since goat or sheep, they both belong to the same family. Haha! Anyway, it's the second year my husband and I are celebrating our Chinese New Year abroad. That meaning, it's time for some home-baked Chinese New Year goodies again. *_*

I have been in search for a pineapple tart/cookie recipe that I could substitute easily with non-dairy ingredients since my husband doesn't take butter, cheese, milk or anything that comes from the cow. Haha! Well, perhaps I should have come to terms after more than 12 years (or maybe I have), but I'm still puzzled with my husband's weird taste bud. All the while, I have been insisting that he is being lactose-intolerant in psychological sense rather than being lactose-intolerant in health, if you know what I mean. It is strange how dark chocolates, peanut M&M's® chocolate candies, Nutella® and all other food that possibly contains dairy which he decides he can eat are in his "lactose-tolerant" list of edible dairy products while milk chocolate, milk, all buttery pastries and etc that he decides he cannot eat by way of "smell" are in his "lactose-intolerant" list of non-edible dairy products. Anyway, I have given up on asking him to try on those he-feels-he-cannot-eat-but-I-feel-he-can-eat food after so many years. Guess this would all the more be better since I can have all the goodies to myself. Hee!

Back to my recipe search, so I've finally found and experimented one pineapple cookie recipe that allowed me to substitute the dairy ingredients and still yield equally crumbly and soft pineapple cookies. Although without that buttery aroma from traditional pineapple cookies, these pineapple cookies are still amazing delicious! I hope with this recipe, more people get to enjoy yummy pineapple tarts/cookies during this festive occasion!

Soft and crumbly Pineapple Cookies

Here's wishing all a Happy & Prosperous Year of Goat/Sheep! May the new zodiac year brings you and your loved ones lots of happiness and good health! Cheers!

White Lover's Cookies (Shiroi Koibito)

Recently, my sister posted a photo of the souvenirs she'd received from a friend's recent Japan trip. It reminded me of my own trip to Tokyo, Japan with my husband last May after we got married in November the year before, which he had always regarded as our "mini" honeymoon. Well, I kind of agree with him since it was a place we haven't been to, but only so reluctantly because I didn't consider honeymoon a honeymoon anywhere within Asia. Haha~ But don't ask me where we went for our "actual" honeymoon because it wasn't really planned to date, although we went on a holiday to New York last fall. @_@

Thinking back about the Japan trip, I miss the snacks and the food there more than anything else. One of the goodies that I couldn't resist from buying was this 白い恋人, also known as "White Lover" in English translation, which is a very popular snack from Hokkaido (no, we didn't travel up to Hokkaido but this snack can be found easily at the airport and many departmental stores in Tokyo). Here's a picture of the packaging I took back then if some of you don't know what I'm referring to. It is also called the "Chocolat Blanc et Langue de Chat" as the name on the packaging suggests. It consists of chocolate sandwiched between two butter cookies.

Nowadays, with the advancement of international trade and shipping services, one may easily get it from a local store or purchase it online even if one don't get to travel. But ever since I got into baking, my natural chain of thoughts wasn't to look up an online store that sells and delivers the snack to where I am, but instead, the possibility of making them myself at home. ^_^ I hope everyone will enjoy these home-baked Shiroi Koibito as much as I do.

White Lover's Cookies (Shiroi Koibito)

Lemon Cranberry Scones

The summer weather has been unbearably hot and I've been so reluctant to step out of the house lately. Since I've barely made any trips out, I was searching through my pantry cupboard to see what's left when I found a packet of dried cranberries which has been sitting in there for some time. I recalled buying these dried cranberries with the intentions to try out a cranberry chiffon cake recipe which I've been putting off. Yet, I just couldn't find any good timing for that since the hot weather has literally drained my energy for what I considered a "tedious" bake. Considering I wasn't in the mood for any outing and reckoning that I would be staying home during most of the days in the coming week, I thought I should bake something for my stay-home afternoon tea for the next couple of days.

Though I don't really remember having tried scones, let alone really tasty ones, I thought I would have a go at it after recalling the simple steps involved in the making process from an episode on the food channel. As usual, I did some online research and comparison before settling on this recipe. And the results of my experiment? Double thumbs up! ^_^ Feeling so happy with the discovery of another simple and easy recipe to share with all, especially beginner bakers. After the sampling session, one of my "taste judges" even remarked that I can forget about trying store-bought scones as I'll just be lowering my standards. *_*

Lemon Cranberry Scones

So what are you waiting for? Nothing beats experimenting and experiencing it yourself. Not a fan of cranberries? No worries, simply substitute with any other dried fruits, nuts or even chocolate chips!

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (June 2014: Butter) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Jozelyn of Spice Up My Kitchen.

I would also like to share this post with The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (June 2014: Summer) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than… because these lemon cranberry scones will be one of my good companions for my stay-home afternoon tea this summer.

I would also like to share this post with the summer event of Four Seasons Food (June 2014: The Colour Red) organised by Louisa of Eat Your Veg and Anneli of Delicieux hosted by Tina of The Spicy Pear.

Cinnamon Rolls

After pushing back this recipe for sometime, I finally attempted my first trial in making these Cinnamon Rolls. My sister pretty much loves cinnamon rolls and she was the one who gave me the idea of making them. Oh wait, did I mention before I have two sisters? Since my previous baking post on Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pound Cupcakes was inspired by the elder of my two younger sisters, I shall dedicate these Cinnamon Rolls to my youngest sister. *_*

Cinnamon Rolls

Many of the recipes online involves double-proofing of the dough. Thankfully my diligent research paid off and I found this easy recipe that required only one time proofing. Though I have not tried one made from a double-proofing method, the cinnamon rolls made from this one rise method were just as tasty and definitely a must-try recipe, especially suitable for first-time bakers. While these rolls were slightly over-baked by me, I consider my first attempt an above average pass with rooms for improvement in terms of the fluffy texture (keep in mind not to roll out the dough too thinly). Meanwhile, I have also discovered an interesting guide about kneading which is worth reading. Now, wait no longer and get your hands dirty by trying out these yummy cinnamon rolls at home today. ^_^

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also sharing this post with The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (May 2014: Favourites) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than… because this is my youngest sister's favourite!

Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pound Cupcakes

I was going through the photos stored in my mobile phone when I recalled a snapshot of this recipe which my sister had sent me months ago that she had kept from a Chinese magazine cut-out (unfortunately we could not track back the original source of this recipe and the Chinese magazine since it was many years ago). Back to the time when I was still staying at my parents' place before I got married, my sister used to be the one baking at home. Then, I didn't have much time (and interests) for baking since I was seldom at home during my non-working weekends. *Oops!

Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pound Cupcakes

I remember there was once when I tried to help her with the preparation of the cupcake batter and made a mess since I wasn't quite good at handling the electric mixer. Back then, she would nag at my ears repeatedly to caution me not to over-mix the batter since I was having much fun with the electric mixer after having a grasp of it. It was not until I started my own baking experiments that I realised the importance of each and every steps in baking (and the reasons for her anxious screams at me). Haha~ Those were the days…

In conjunction with the World Baking Day (and instead of baking a whole cake), I have made these vanilla pound cupcakes with my own twist as a reminiscence of the good "young" memories. My sister is a fan of most lemon-flavoured products and the "marriage" of the vanilla pound cupcakes and lemon glaze definitely makes a great combination to commemorate our sisterhood. This vanilla pound cupcake batter itself is a very good cake base. Instead of this lemon glaze, mix in some chocolate chips, cranberries, raisins or nuts and you will be surprised how yummy they still taste.

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also submitting this post to Treat Petite May 2014 theme, World Baking Day hosted by Kat of The Baking Explorer and Stuart of Cakeyboi because this is a bake for my sister as a commemoration of our sisterhood. *_*

Lastly, I am also sharing this post with The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (May 2014: Favourites) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than… because this is my sister's all-time favourite!