Tomato-based Baked Pasta with Ham and Mushroom

Serves 2 - 3

Ingredients
300g spaghetti (or any other pasta of your choice)
3-4 slices of ham (cut into smaller pieces)
1 red onion (diced)
50g chestnut mushrooms (diced)
1 canned tomatoes
80g tomato paste
350ml chicken stock
Olive oil
Mozzarella shredded cheese
Salt & pepper

Method
- Preheat oven to 180 degree C.
- In a big boiling pot, cook the pasta according to package instructions. Do not overcook.
- Remove spaghetti from the pot, add 2 tbsp of olive oil and 1 tsp of salt and mix well.
- Fry ham with a dash of olive oil until fragrant. Remove from pan.
- Sauteed the onions in olive oil. Then add the mushrooms and fry until fragrant.
- Add the canned tomatoes, tomato paste and stock. Put to a boil, add the spaghetti and mix well.
- Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the spaghetti into a baking dish, spread the ham pieces on the top and lastly, sparingly sprinkle mozzarella cheese till the surface is covered.
- Bake for 10 minutes till the cheese turns golden brown.

Blueberry Muffins

Makes about 6 - 8. 

Ingredients
1 1/2 cup plain flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup blueberries (washed and pat dry with a kitchen towel)

Method
- Preheat over to 200 degree C. Grease muffin tray / line with muffin liners.
- Combine the dry ingredients, flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl.
- Pour the vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup.
- Mix the wet with the dry ingredients.
- Fold in the blueberries and take note not to over mix.
- Fill the muffin cups to almost full and  bake for 20 - 25 minutes in the oven. The muffin is cooked when a toothpick inserted in the centre of the muffin comes out clean. 

Banana Walnut Muffins

Makes about 9.

Ingredients
3 large, very ripe bananas (I use the del monte ones)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 slightly beaten egg (room temperature)
1/3 cup melted butter
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup walnuts (chopped into smaller pieces)

Method
Preheat the oven to 175 degree C. Mix the mashed bananas, sugar, egg and butter together. Set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the walnuts to the dry mixture. Mix wet and dry ingredients together till just combined, do not over mix. Grease muffin tray / line with muffin liners and fill it up to about 3/4 full. Bake for about 30 minutes. The muffin is cooked when a toothpick inserted in the centre of the muffin comes out clean. 

Oven-roasted Potatoes with Rosemary

Serves 2 

Ingredients
2 large potatoes
Salt
Olive oil
1 sprig of fresh rosemary leaves

Method
- Preheat oven to 220 degree C.
- Thoroughly wash the potatoes and cut into smaller pieces. Do not remove skin.
- Lay the potatoes on a baking dish, drizzle oil, salt and rosemary leaves.
- Give the dish a few quick tosses, so the salt and oil seasoning gets onto the potatoes.
- Bake for about 40mins.
- Serve while hot.

Mango Salsa

Serves 2 - 3


The mango salsa recipes that I have seen so far will use ingredients like cilantro and lime. I couldn't get the former in the supermarket and I already have quite a few lemons and a mint plant at home, so I came up with my own version of mango salsa. This goes well with meat or fish dishes.

Ingredients
1 mid size mango (peeled, cored and cut into smaller pieces)
2-3 red tomatoes (cut into smaller pieces)
1/2 red onion (diced)
8 fresh mint leaves (diced)
Half a lemon

Optional
Cucumber

Method
- In a salad bowl, gently combine and mix all the ingredients.
- Squeeze half a lemon into it. You can add more lemon juice if you like it more sour.
- Chill for about 1-2 hours before serving.
- If stored in fridge (covered), it can keep for about 3 - 4 days. 

Roast Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary

Serves 2

Ingredients
4 x chicken thighs (with skin)
2 tsp of garlic
2 tsp of red onion
1 tsp of ginger
1 lemon
1 sprig of fresh rosemary leaves
Salt
Black pepper
Olive oil

Method
- Rinsed the chicken thighs and pat dry.
- Chop up the garlic, onion and ginger and mix with 2 tbsp of olive oil. Rub the mixture onto the chicken flesh and skin, add salt and black pepper.
- Add rosemary leaves and transfer into a covered bowl, keep in fridge to leave the chicken to soak in the marinade for about 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 220 degree C.
- In your baking dish, lay 4 thin slices of lemon at the base. Put the chicken thigh on top of each lemon slice, with its skin facing up.
- Roast for about 35 - 40 mins until cooked. 

Apple & Cinnamon Crumble-Top Cake

This is the first proper (and successful!) cake I baked using my oven and I have since baked it many times and even shared the recipe with some of my friends.
This is a moist and heavy cake and a small slice per person is usually enough.

Cuts into 10 slices

Ingredients

For the crumble topping:
350g granny smith apples (peeled, cored and cut into 2cm pieces)
125g self raising flour
75g unsalted butter (cold, cut into smaller pieces)
60g Demerara sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp milk

For the cake base:
125g butter (softened, room temperature)
90g caster sugar
2 eggs (room temperature, lightly beaten)
150g self raising flour

Method
- Preheat the oven to 180 degree C. Greaseproof a 20 - 22 cm springform pan.
- Mix the apples with the lemon juice. Set aside.
- For the crumble topping, sift the flour and cinnamon into a mixing bowl.
- Using only your finger tips, rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
- Add in the demerara sugar, mix well and set aside.
- For the cake base, cream the butter and sugar using an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs a little at a time until all the egg has been added.
- Sift in the flour and gently fold in with a spatula.
- Transfer the mixture into the base of the baking pan. Spread evenly and lay the apple pieces on top. Leave a 0.5 cm gap between the apples and the edge of the pan (so that the apples won't turn black after baking).
- Lightly drizzle the milk into the crumble mixture and scatter the crumble bits over the apples, making sure the apples are covered up.
- Bake for about 1.5 hours.
- Serve warm / cold with your favourite ice cream!

Tips
- I like some bite for my apple crumble, so I din cut the apples too small.
- If you can't get granny smith apples, you can use any other apples.
- If you want a crunchier topping, stir in 50g of chopped nuts to the crumble mixture.
- It is a lot easier to do rubbing in method using cold butter from the fridge.