Japanese Cheesecake

Adapted from Dianna Dessert 

Ingredients:

250g cream cheese (softened)
50g butter (softened)
120g caster sugar
90ml orange juice
10ml lemon juice
zest of 1 orange
6 egg yolks
60g plain flour
20g corn flour
6 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar



Method:

• Preheat oven to 160 degrees C.  Grease and line a 23cm springform pan.
• Sift together plain flour and cornflour.  Leave aside.
• Beat cream cheese, butter and half of the sugar until soft and fluffy. Add in egg yolks and beat until combined.  Then beat in orange juice and zest.
• Fold in sifted flours.  
• In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until foamy.  Add in cream of tartar.  Gradually add in the remaining sugar and whisk until soft peaks form.
• Fold egg whites into the cream cheese mixture.  Stir until just combined.
• Pour into the prepared pan.
• Bake in a water bath for 1 hour.
• Turn off the oven and leave the cake to cool in the oven with the oven door ajar for about 1 hour. 

Banana Carrot Walnut Bread

Ingredients:

250g butter, softened
325g caster sugar
4 eggs
230g self-raising flour
230g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup mashed banana
1 cup coarsely grated carrot
1 cup chopped toasted walnuts
50ml orange juice
zest of 1 orange


Method:

• Preheat oven to 160 degrees C.
• Grease and line 2 loaf pans (23 x 13 x 7 cm).
• Cream butter, vanilla extract and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy.
• Add eggs, one at a time and beat until combined.
• Stir in the banana, grated carrot, zest and orange juice together with the sifted dry ingredients and chopped walnuts in two additions.  Stir to combine.
• Spread mixture evenly into prepared pans.  
• Bake in moderate oven for about 50 minutes.
• Stand for about 5 minutes in the pan before turning onto a wire rack to cool.
• Serve buttered if desired.

Japchae - Korean Sweet Potato Noodles

Ingredients:

200g Korean sweet potato starch noodles

150g beef - cut into thin strips

5 dried shitake mushrooms (soaked until softened) - sliced into thin strips

1 small onion - thinly sliced

1/2 carrot - julienned

1/4 red capsicum - thinly sliced

2 stalks spring onions - sliced

2 stalks celery - sliced

dried wood ear fungus - soaked and thinly sliced (optional)

3 cloves garlic - minced

3 slices ginger - minced

1/2 tbsp sesame seeds - toasted

Marinade - for beef:

1 tbsp light soy sauce

dash of pepper

1 tsp cornflour

2 tsp sesame oil

Seasoning (according to taste) - for noodles:

4 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tsp dark soy sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp rice wine

1 tbsp sesame oil

dash of pepper

salt

• Marinate beef with marinade and leave aside for at least 30 minutes.
• Cook noodles in a pot of boiling water until soft (about 5 minutes).  Plunge them into cold water to stop the cooking process.  Drain.  Toss noodles with a little sesame oil to prevent from sticking together.
• Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat; add beef and stir-fry until just cooked.  Transfer to a plate and set aside.
• Heat oil in the same frying pan and saute onion, minced garlic and ginger.  Add in shitake mushroom and fungus; stir fry for about 3 - 4 minutes. 
• Toss in vegetables and add in noodles together with seasoning. Fry until noodles are cooked through. Then add in the cooked beef. 
• Turn off heat and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds over the noodles.
• Transfer to a serving plate.