.EAT // Gula Melaka Syrup

The local paper has mentioned palm sugar / gula melaka for 2 consecutive Sundays.  The earlier week featured it as an ingredient for a cupcake recipe. (Good riddance white sugar!  Definitely trying this out.)  The next week, a brand of granulated version of gula melaka was introduced by the same writer, which I think is more friendly to bake with.  I have been adding granulated gula melaka to my morning coffee, adding a nicely “burnt” aroma as well as a richer taste.  It’s a bonus to know that gula melaka has a lower GI than white sugar, and thus is a healthier sweetener than sugar.

Gula melaka syrup is a pantry basic good to have around if you like your breakfasts sweet, it makes a perfect drizzle for waffles, pancakes and french toasts.  It is cheaper to make gula melaka syrup than to buy maple syrup (Note: NOT MAPLE FLAVORED SYRUP).

And of course, it is also wonderful for cold desserts like sago pudding, shave ice(cendol/ice kachang), and even as a sweetener in an avocado smoothie!  I have written about a popsicle recipe using gula melaka recently.

On a side note: I got a shock when I saw the ingredients “sugar, coconut, water” on a pack of gula melaka that I randomly grabbed from the market.  It wasn’t a familiar brand, and packaging design looked generic, the kind that could be used by any dried goods distributor for their red beans, barley etc.  Isn’t gula melaka simply sap from coconut flower reduced to a solid block through a boil?

“Gula melaka is made by making several slits into the bud of a coconut tree and collecting the sap. Then, the sap is boiled until it thickens after which, in the traditional way, it is poured into bamboo tubes between 3-5 inches in length, and left to solidify to form cylindrical cake blocks.” – {via}

Anyway, I put that aside and bought another pack of my usual 马六甲正椰塘 to make my gula melaka syrup.  Just to make sure.

GULA MELAKA SYRUP
// From : Cuisine Paradise

INGREDIENTS

• 200g Gula Melaka
• 2 Pandan leaves, knotted
• 80ml water

1. Place all 3 ingredients in a small pot and bring to boil.
2. Lower heat and simmer till mixture slightly thickens.
3. Remove pan from heat and allow syrup to cool to room temperature.
4. Remove pandan leaves and pour syrup into a clean container.  Use immediately, or keep stored in fridge up to 3 months.

.EAT // Creamy Creamless Cauliflower Soup

4 ingredients : onion, cauliflower, olive oil and water.  No fattening cream used, same rich flavor created, thanks to the onion.  Wouldn’t you be tempted to try?

Without worrying on excessive MSG, fats or sodium level, I am adopting this creamy soup recipe to make healthier versions of other creamy soups like cream of mushroom (adding brown mushrooms, sautéed separately, and blend with cauliflower soup) or cream of corn (add fresh corn kernel to be cooked with cauliflower and onions, then blend).

You may follow the recipe below from The Amateur Gourmet, which yields 6 servings according to the site.  I prefer it thicker and add just enough hot boiling water to cover the cauliflower and onions, lesser than the 5 and 1/2 cups required.  I also cut the cooking time shorter by simply adding chopped cauliflower and hot water at the same time, right after the onions have turned translucent and soft.  The recipe originally called for the cauliflower to be cooked with the onions without water first.  I also do not like to work with very hot liquid in my blender, so I let it cool to lukewarm temperature before blending it, then reheat it again before serving.

CREAMY CREAMLESS CAULIFLOWER SOUP
// Adapted from : The Amateur Gourmet

INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, sliced thin
1 head cauliflower, chopped
Salt, to taste
Hot boiling water

1. Heat the olive oil in a pot on medium heat. Add the onions, cook them over low fire until they turn soft and translucent.  Ensure that they don’t turn brown, stir occasionally.
2. Add the chopped cauliflower and just enough hot water to cover the ingredients.  Increase the heat slightly, add salt and allow soup to boil.  Once the soup starts to boil, turn heat lower and simmer for about 15 -20 minutes, till cauliflower is cooked and turn soft.  Let soup cool aside till lukewarm.
3. Pour the mixture in batches into a blender and blend.  When the soup is fully blended, pour it back to the pot and reheat it.
4. Season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately.

DIY Popsicle #004 : Gula Melaka Coconut Milk Popsicles

Gosh, it has been drizzling pretty often recently, hasn’t it? But the temperature hasn’t really come down after the rain, neither am I enjoying any cool breeze from my kitchen window. So the DIY popsicle project continues….

Sticking to the preference for creamy popsicle, I turned to ingredients commonly found our local dessert for inspiration : Gula Melaka Sago / Cendol. I removed the sago and cendol bits as I don’t think they taste good frozen, but I kept the red beans (think: potong ice-cream).

You may end up with extra Gula Melaka Syrup, depending on how sweet you want your popsicles. Keep them in clean glass jars, and consumed within a few weeks.

DIY Popsicle Version 004 : Gula Melaka Coconut Milk Popiscle
1. Base : Make Gula Melaka syrup by melting 100g Gula Melaka with a bit of water (50ml) in a small pot over low heat. Add Pandan leaf (1 qty, knotted) and simmer till mixture slightly thickens. Remove pot from heat and let syrup cool down slightly, about 15 minutes. Remove Pandan leaf. Mix 1/8 tsp of salt to 1 cup of coconut milk. Add Gula Melaka syrup to coconut milk slowly till preferred sweetness level.
2. For some bites : Boil and cook 2 tablespoons of red beans till soft. Fill the base of the molds with some red beans first before filling the rest of the molds with Gula Melaka Coconut Milk Mixture.

Credits :
Gula Melaka Syrup via Cuisine Paradise
Gula Melaka Sago via My Kitchen Snippets

Completed // June 2013 School Holiday Activity Planner Printable

Planners Template Link Below:

My Holiday Plan started this week (lucky kids!). Week 1 template posted here.
Week 2 (3 June – 9 June) planner template here.
Week 3 (10 June – 16 June) planner template here.
Week 4 (17 June – 23 June) planner template here.
Week 5 (24 June – 30 June) planner template here.

Mark your dates now! I have a thing for outdoor, closer to nature kind of activities and have been keeping tab on various groups for their activities held (mostly free!) throughout the year. I am listing their June activities below, together with some museum activities that I find interesting, in chronological order for easy reference. Some activities require advance registration. Do click on source link for more details.
My earlier postings on school holiday must-visit museums here and here.

More June 2013 Activities:

25 May – 9 June – National Orchid Garden School Holiday Special (Free entry) @ Singapore Botanic Gardens

Week 2 (3 June – 9 June) :
6 June (Thurs) – Fun for all under the Stars (FREE) @ Singapore Turf Club (5pm – 9pm)
8 June (Sat) – Gardeners’ Day Out (SOME CHARGEABLE ACTIVITIES) @ Hort Park (9am – 6pm)
8 June (Sat) – HeART for nature (FREE) @Dairy Farm Nature Park (9.30am – 10.30am Registration Required)
8 June (Sat) – Rainforest Tour (FREE) @ Singapore Botanic Garden (Various time slots)
8 June (Sat) – Mangrove Walk (FREE/Admission fees apply) @ Sungei Buloh (9.30am)
8 and 9 June (Sat & Sun) – The Young Collecter (FREE) @ Asian Civilisations Museum (1pm – 5pm)
8 June (Sat) – NSS’s Kids Fun with Beautiful Butterflies at Upper Seletar Reservoir ($5/$10 per child) (9.30am, Registration Required)

Week 3 (10 June – 16 June) :
14, 15 June (Fri & Sat) – Movie Nights (FREE) @ Malay Heritage Center (8.30pm)
15 June (Sat) – Horseshoe Crab Rescue and Research by Nature Society (7am – 10am, Registration Required)
15 June (Sat) – Opera in the Park by Singapore Lyric Opera (FREE) @Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage, Singapore Botanic Gardens (6pm – 7pm)
15 June (Sat) – History through Drama (FREE) @Old Ford Factory
15 June (Sat) – In Search of Balestier’s memories (FREE) @ Sun Yet Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall
16 June (Sun) – Love MacRitchie Walk by Cicada Tree Eco Place (FREE) (8.30am – 11.30am, Registration Required)

Week 4 (17 June – 23 June) :
21, 22 June (Fri & Sat) – Under The Banyan Tree, Open Air Cinema (FREE) @ Stamford Green (Fort Canning Park, besides National Museum)
22 June (Sat) – Race Against Time – Science behind a Botanic Garden Tour (FREE) @ Botany Center, Singapore Botanic Center (10am – 11am)
22 June (Sat) – Heritage Tour (FREE) @ Singapore Botanic Center (9am)
22 June (Sat) – Fun Walk Along the Southern Ridges (FREE) (9am – 11am, Registration Required)

Week 5 (24 June – 30 June) :
29 June (Sat) – Mangrove Walk (FREE/Admission fees apply) @Sungei Buloh (9.30am)
29, 30 June (Sat & Sun) Children’s Kite Carnival (FREE) @Grand Lawn, West Coast Park (4pm – 7pm)
30 June (Sun) – Love MacRitchie Walk by Cicada Tree Eco Place (FREE)(8.30am – 11.30am, Registration Required)

.EAT // Veggie Tempeh Sub

The first time I bought “fresh” (those wrapped in banana leaf and newspaper) tempeh from wet market, I thought it had turned moldy and threw it away.  Little did I know that these fermented soy beans are ranked so high on nutritional scale because of these moldy qualities.  Since then, they have become a regular item in my fridge.

Besides deep-frying them to make tasty crispy snacks, tempeh is also great as a meat replacement patty.  The trick is to marinate the tempeh to taste “meaty” and saute till brown after.  Garlic powder, Worcestershire or BBQ sauce are great for that purpose.  I boil the tempeh slices first before dipping them in marinate so that they can absorb the sauce better when they are still hot.  After topping up with mushrooms, alfalfa sprouts (another superfood!) and caramelised onions, my kids can’t even tell that there is no meat in this sandwich.

VEGGIE TEMPEH SUB SANDWICH

INGREDIENTS
Makes 1 sandwich

2 tempeh slices
1 Ciabatta bread
Olive Oil

Tempeh Marinate :
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon tumeric powder
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce

Toppings:
Cheddar cheese slices
1 big portobello mushrooms, sliced
1/2 yellow onions, sliced
Alfalfa sprouts

1. Mix marinate ingredients in a saucer, set aside.
2. Cook tempeh in boiling water for about 3 minutes, remove tempeh from water place in marinate sauce.  Prick tempeh with fork a few times and marinate for about 10 to 30 minutes.
3. In a heated pan with olive oil, saute onion slices till they turn soft over medium heat.
4. Add portobello mushrooms and continue to saute, add more oil if necessary.
5. Once onion slices have caramelised and mushrooms turn soft, remove from pan and set aside.
6. Add some oil to the pan, and saute marinated tempeh on both sides.

Assembly
1. Slice Ciabatta bread into half, and toast with cheddar slices. Place tempeh slices.
3. Add saute mushrooms and onions.  I added some chopped uncooked onions as well for some crunch.
4. Lastly, top with alfalfa sprouts and serve immediately.