Yuzu Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS:-

(A)
130g butter
80g castor sugar
2 eggs

(B), Sieved
160g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

(C)
2 tbsp yuzu honey paste/jam


INSTRUCTIONS:-

1) Beat butter and sugar till smooth then slowly add in eggs.
2) Add in ingredients from (B) and mix till smooth.
3) Fold in Yuzu jam lightly.
4) Spoon batter into cupcake cases till about 2/3 full and top it with a little jam on top.
5) Bake at 160C for about 25 mins or till skewer comes out clean.


[recipe from Sandy Hum]

Potato Croquettes

INGREDIENTS:-

500g U.S Potatoes, peeled
50g Frozen mixed vegetables, defrosted

200g Minced pork
1tbs Soy sauce
2tbs Sugar
1tbs Sake / Mirin

Butter

Plain flour
2 Eggs, beaten with 1tbs of vegetable oil, mixed very well
Japanese bread crumbs / Panko
Oil for deep frying


INSTRUCTIONS:-

1) To make croquettes. Cooked peeled potatoes in a pot of water till soft. Drained and mashed finely. Set aside.
2) Season mince pork with all the seasoning and set aside.
3) Melt a little butter in a pan and add vegetables. Give the vegetables a quick stir and simmer till it absorbs all the butter.
4) Add seasoned minced pork. Break up the pieces as much as possible while cooking. Cook until all liquids are dried up.
5) Add cooked meat to mashed potatoes and mix well.
6) Prepare a square / rectangle tray, lined with cling wrap. Placed mashed potato mix in and mould according to thickness you prefer or tray per size.
7) Using a butter knife to cut in the equal rectangle shapes. Cover up with remaining portion of the cling wrap or just use another piece so it does not get dry. Put it in the fridge for 15-20 mins or until it is completely cooled down.
8) Once it is cooled down, cover each piece in flour, then dip it into the egg mixture and lastly, coat it with bread crumbs.
9) Heat up a pot of oil at medium heat and when oil is hot enough, add in croquettes one at a time. Serve it with mayonnaise or tomato ketchup or just eat it on its own.


NOTE:-

1) If too much to finish, can freeze unused portion at point no. 8. I used cling wrap to wrap the croquettes up in pairs before putting them in a freezer bag to be placed in the freezer. You can pack the croquettes according to your meal size.

2) To make DOMO monster using the croquette.
- Stain a piece of cheese with red food coloring, put it back in the fridge to dry.
- Take another piece of cheese, using a decoration knife or straw to cut out teeth.
- Cut the red cheese into squares to form the mouth and place teeth on it to form DOMO's mouth.
- Using a hold puncher, punch eyes out using seaweeds.
- Assemble parts on croquettes after croquettes are cooled down.


[adapted recipe from Anna The Red's Bento Factory]

Mushroom Bruschetta

INGREDIENTS:-

Mushrooms of your choice (my preference would be Swiss brown or portabella mushrooms)
Mix shredded cheese (cheddar and mozzarella)
Baguette

Butter
A dash of salt
A dash of pepper
A dash of Italian seasoning
Truffle Oil (optional)


INSTURCTIONS:-

1) Slice mushroom into bite size and set aside.
2) Melt butter in a pan. Add in mushroom when butter is melted and heated up. Give mushroom a quick stir and let it simmer for 1 - 2 mins.
3) Add in salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Simmer mushroom again till all the juice dries up. Lastly add in a dash of truffle oil.
4) Slice baguette and top it with mushrooms. Sprinkle cheese on top and bake in oven at 230C till cheese melt and browned. Serve hot.

Rice Cubes

Ingredients:-

3/4 cup short grain rice (Japanese rice)

70 - 80g chicken breast meat
1 - 2 tbsp mirin
A dash of salt
A dash of sugar

Assorted vegetables (amount to your liking)
Cooking oil
Chicken stock / Water


Method:-

1) Wash and soak rice for about 20 minutes. Drained and set aside.
2) Minced chicked and season with seasoning.
3) Minced up your choice of vegetables.
4) Heat up cooking oil in a pan then add in vegetables. Add chicken stock (or water) and simmer vegetables till soft.
5) Add in mince chicken and give it a quick fry till chicken is browned. Set aside.
6) Cook rice with recommended amount of water. Add in chicken vegetable mix in to the rice just before it is cooked. Mix well and continue to let rice cook till it is ready.
7) Use moulds to shape up rice while it is still warm.


Notes:-

1) Moulds to shape up the rice are readily available at Daiso. Other bento decoration items are also available. Let your imagination run wild.

2) Made 2 different batch of rice cubes.

1st batch - Chicken + Carrot + Cabbage + Tamago.
2nd batch - Chicken + Cabbage + Brown Mushrooms + Tamago.

For the 2nd batch, since mushrooms are used, I've used butter to cook the ingredients. End result, the rice have a buttery taste.

3) What to add into the rice with chicken is entirely up to you.