珊瑚草甜品 Coral Jelly

这是一些素食馆常看到的甜品，也是我们家常做的甜品。几乎所有的访客也都喜欢吃哦。做法非常简单，平时不进厨房的人也做得了。把以下“海燕窝露”跟2000ml的水一起煮沸，然后倒入杯子、小碗，放入冰箱。冷却后即成果冻，也可以趁热当饮料喝。

This jelly has become quite a common dessert in vegetarian outlets recently. I also make it regularly to serve whoever visits... mostly I make it to serve ourselves, haha... =) This is probably the easiest dessert to make, almost kitchen-idiot proof I suppose. Put the whole pack (see picture below) into 2000ml of water and boil. Transfer into bowls/ glasses and refrigerate. The liquid will solidify once cooled down, it can also be taken as a hot drink.

包装上面写着用2500cc的水，水量可依个人喜好酌量增减，我个人觉得2000比较合我的口味，果冻做出来也比较有弹性，吃起来口感较佳。另外，你可能跟我一样，不明白cc和ml有什么区别，它们是一样的，台湾似乎都说“cc”。

It's stated on the package to use 2500cc of water, you can have more or less of it, depending on how sweet or firm you want the jelly to be. 2000ml is about just right for me. If you are wondering whether 'cc' is any different from 'ml', from what I've researched, they're the same, seems like in Taiwan they use 'cc'.

一般的果冻用的是白糖，这个则全是黑糖，不但健康得多，也好吃得多！其他成分还有红枣、桂圆（龙眼）、寒天、珊瑚草。珊瑚草（别称海底燕窝）含大量胶原蛋白，据说不仅养颜功效大，而且富含钙、铁、镁等矿物质，对骨骼也很有益处。

The usual jelly that we eat are full of white refined sugar, but this uses only brown sugar, not only is it healthier, it's also tastier. Other ingredients are dates, longan, kanten and coral seaweed. Coral seaweed contains a high amount of collagen (good for the skin), as well as lots of minerals like calcium, iron and magnesium (good for bone health).

这果冻优于我们从小吃的果冻的另一点是，就算搁置一段时间，也不会变成水状。这一整块我一般做出大概10或11杯的果冻，就是放在冰箱一个礼拜，也没问题。我尝试过把它切半，但怎么砍都砍不断，大概是刀法太拙劣，确实有人砍成两块保存起来的……不过，一般不用等一个星期已经扫荡完毕，所以我也没必要研究刀法或锻炼臂力……

Another selling point is that, this jelly doesn't 'melt' like the usual jelly. I can make about 10 or 11 glasses with a single block, no problem at all leaving them in the fridge for a week or so. I've tried chopping it into two, but it was hard as a rock... Some people can do it apparently, but since we usually finish everything within a week, I suppose there's no need for me to perfect my chopping skill.

上图的海底燕窝（健康之道）现在一般售价S$9.90（以前S$9.50呢，涨价了！），最近我也看到一些别的牌子，我尝试另一个S$5.70的，味道还不错，但是没有那么香。

The brand above that I usually get retails at S$9.90 (used to be S$9.50), but I've found some other brands recently. Tried one ($5.70), it was pretty good, but not as fragrant.

要是你在餐馆吃这果冻，一般他们上面会给你淋上豆奶。以前我也买来浇上，但是现在我自己做坚果奶。很容易，只是稍微费时:

This jelly is usually served with some soy milk on top. You can get those packaged ones, or you can make your own nut milk. It's very easy, except that it can be a little bit troublesome.

1）预先浸泡美国杏仁、腰豆（最好隔夜）

1) Soak some almonds and cashews (overnight if possible)

2）泡过的水倒掉

2) Discard water

3）加入水、蜜枣、葡萄干，然后用搅拌机搅拌（最好也都预先泡过水，容易搅拌，干果的水一起倒入，别扔了）

3) Add water, dates, raisins, then blend well in blender (it would be better to pre-soak the dates and raisins as well for easy blending, don't discard this water though, this is precious syrup, I pour it all into the blender.)

4）倒入过滤袋，滤干

4) Use a nut bag to strain.

坚果、水、蜜枣等的量都酌量吧，我也是每次都看着办的……哈哈。过滤好了以后尝一尝味道，甜度不够我再加龙舌兰甜浆。

I leave it for you to decide how much nuts/ water/ dates/ raisins to use, I myself have never used the same amount twice... =) After straining, if the nut milk is not sweet enough, I'll add some agave nectar.

因为容易坏，又有点麻烦，所以我喜欢多做，做好了倒入冰块盒，以备随时享用。（要是不过滤就简单方便，但是不过滤的话，特别是放在果冻上，口感就不怎么好。）我们一般不吃/喝冰冷的东西，所以坚果奶冰取出来以后，跟珊瑚草一起放置一下，解冻以后再吃。但是一般不等它退冷，我已经迫不及待用汤匙敲碎奶冰，果冻虽然还冷，还是吃了下去……

Because nut milk spoils quite easily, and the straining part is quite labourous, so I like to make more at one go and save it in ice cube boxes, then I'll have nut milk whenever I need it. (If you skip the filtering part then it's really quick and easy, but it won't be smooth and not as yummy.) We don't usually take cold food/ drinks, so when I'm having this dessert, I leave the nut ice to defrost together with the jelly. But I usually can't wait till nature finishes its job, I'll hit the ice repeatedly till it melts, and gobble up all the jelly when it's still pretty cold...

坚果奶也可以就这样当下午茶喝，代替美禄或咖啡……

You can also make this nut milk and drink it as and when you like, it's better than having Milo or coffee...

剩下的坚果渣可以放在沙拉，或者做沙拉酱，但是记得这不能保存很久，要尽快把它吃完。

The left over pulp can be used in salads/ as salad dressings, but remember that it spoils easily, so you have to finish it soon.