All posts tagged: featured

North Island New Zealand

Published by

Hello Middle Earth! This is my last travel for 2018 and also my graduation trip. When I was planning this summer road trip for both North and South Island, I was very shocked by how expensive New Zealand is. Everything is easily at least NZD100 per pax hence I had to be very selective in my choice of activities. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed myself in the North Island especially at Rotorua and Taupo. We started the journey in Auckland and ended it in Wellington. From Wellington, we flew via Sounds Air to Picton for our South Island road trip. I really enjoy planning and sharing my road trips with fellow travellers. Feel free to leave comments or ask any questions! Travel plan Destination Duration of stay Distance travelled to next destination Auckland city 1N ~168km (2h 40min) Coromandel 3D2N or 2D1N ~156km (2h 20min) Matamata (Hobbiton Movie Set) Passing through ~88km (1h 20min) Waitomo 1N ~140km (2h) Rotorua 3D2N ~81km (1h) Taupo 2D1N ~372km (4h 40min) Wellington 1N Day 1 Arrive in Auckland city and spend …

Black bean banana muffin (GF)

Published by

I’m finally done with four years of studies and now I’m off to New Zealand for my grad trip! So exciting! While I’m sitting at Sydney Airport waiting for my flight, I’ve realised that I haven’t been posting for a long time. I made these black bean banana muffins a couple of weeks ago but have been so busy with moving that I didn’t have a chance to post. Black beans have become one of my favourite ingredients to use. I absolutely love working with it because the cakes turn out so flavourful and moist. These black bean banana muffins topped with my reindeer frosting decorations make the perfect healthier Christmas party dessert! Ingredients 1 can of 420g black beans (no salt added) 3 large over ripe bananas 3 eggs 60g cocoa powder 100g almond meal 80ml honey 60ml olive oil 0.5 tsp baking powder 50g chocolate chip cookies Directions  Preparation time: 10min Baking time: 30min or when the skewer comes out clean Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Prepare a 12 case muffin tin Place …

Halloween black bean pumpkin cupcakes

Published by

Back onto the black bean band wagon and this time with a little halloween twist. I loved these cupcakes so much that I wanted to make it for my family when I went back to Singapore. Strange enough, I could not find canned black beans in Singapore and my mom said that she has never seen canned black beans before too. Guess it’s not an asian thing to consume black beans. As halloween is just around the corner, I’ve decided to include pumpkin into the recipe and make little “spooky” frostings. These cupcakes are gluten free and it’s really dense and moist. You can add in chocolate chips if you like. I had a lot of fun making the halloween frosting. I’ve tried drawing a skull using melted chocolate but my skills were terrible so I stuck with cobwebs and the spooky ghost frosting – idiot proof! Ingredients for the cupcakes 2 cans of 420g black beans (no added salt), drained 200g raw pumpkin 3 eggs 60g cocoa powder 120ml maple syrup (1/2 cup) 60ml …

Black bean brownies

Published by

I just finished my five weeks placement with Grains & Legumes Nutrition Council. Have to admit, I was hit by the legumes bandwagon. Now I am going through a phase of experimenting with black beans and chick peas in baked goods. There are many advantages of consuming legumes. They are low in fat and also an excellent source of protein, fibre and B-vitamins. The first time I made these black bean brownies, I felt that the recipe required some tweaking. This is my second attempt at it and I absolutely loved it! I’ve decided to keep the recipe vegan and used So free Organic Milk Alternative Chocolate Spread but you can use Nutella or chocolate chips if you prefer. I used no salt added canned black beans and rinsed it before processing it. Not only is this recipe vegan-friendly, it is also gluten-free. Hope that you’ll enjoy it as much as I did! Ingredients 2 cans of 420g black beans (no salt added) 200g pitted dates 60g cocoa powder 120ml maple syrup (1/2 cup) 120ml vegetable oil …