Love letters, or Kueh Kapit in Malay, is one Chinese New Year delicacy that's definitely made with love. Labouriously cooked over a charcoal stove, each love letter has to be peeled from its metal mould and rolled into shape the minute it's done. -

Ingredients

. Plain flour 600 g (lib 5 oz), mixed with

1 tbsp rice flour

. Castor sugar 600 g (lib 5 oz)

. Coconut 1.6 kg (31/2 Ib), grated

. 8 Eggs

Method

1 Sun the flour and sugar separately for 2-3 hours. Sift the flour and set aside to cool.

2 Using a piece of muslin, squeeze grated coconut to extract milk and set aside.

3 Beat eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl.

4 Place flour in another mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in a cupful of the egg mixture. Fold in the flour from the sides to form paste. Add the remaining egg mixture and gradually stir in the coconut milk.S Pass the batter through a sieve to remove the lumps. Smooth out lumps with a little egg mixture and set aside for 0.5 hour.

6 Heat love letter pan over red hot charcoal. When hot, oil both sides of the pan.

7 Stir batter before using. Pour 1 tablespoon onto the centre of the pan. Cover pan and place over the fire. Grill for 2.5 minutes or until light golden. Using a knife, remove water from the hot pan and quickly roll into a cylindrical shape.

8 Store in an airtight tin when cool. Repeat until the batter is used up.