Crusty White Bread

It was during my very first visit to Australia when I discovered that- There's a WHOLE LOT more to Bread than just the commercialised packet breads in supermarkets. 

Artisanal Breads

I was in love, addicted, "take it away from me!!"

From that time on I never looked at bread the same way..I think the only bread I wanted was crusty bread.

So there I was, thinking "ahh how hard could it be to make"

 eh eheh..maybe not so easy... I've tried and failed countless of times but I've found a concoction that works for me.

It has a very thin layer of crust and a soft inside

But it's best when toasted the day after.

 

recipe:

3 cups warm water

1 1/2 tablespoons instant yeast

big pinch of Sugar

big pinch of Salt

6 1/2 cups All-purpose flour

Combine the Warm water, yeast and sugar.

Set aside for 10 minutes until the mixture turns frothy

If it doesn't bubble and froth, it means the yeast is dead, and you need to get new yeast.

In a large bowl, combine Sifted flour and salt.

Make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast mixture.

Use one hand to fold everything together, but don't knead it too much.

Cover it with a towel and leave to prove for 1 hour, till it's doubled in size.

Flour your hands and take out half of the dough.

Form a loaf and place it on a baking tray lined with grease-proof paper.

Repeat with remaining dough.

Cover again and prove for another 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 220C and place an empty oven tray on the bottom shelf

Boil a cup of water in a kettle.

Put the tray of bread on the top shelf

Pour some hot water onto the bottom shelf and Shut the oven door.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool.

 

Chiffons

After my umpteenth try at Chiffon, I've finally made it!

And I've learnt the hard way, why using a non-stick tin is an exception in this case.

Apparently, the cake needs a surface to "climb on to" and stick while baking..HUH???

Anyway, the "stick" tin worked magic so I won't argue..

You need to get the one with the so called "legs" so that you can invert the cake while it cools.

Man I wish I had come up with that..its Genius!!!

whoever invented it really understood gravity xP

haha anyway the recipe's pretty simple to whip up..give it a try

The cake's texture is absolutely fluffy, just like the ones in the shop : )

recipe:

150g flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

5 tablespoons corn oil

5 tablespoons water

5 egg yolks

5 egg whites

2 teaspoons vinegar or lemon juice

1/2 cup sugar

Preheat the oven to 180C

DO NOT grease the cake tin

In a bowl, sift the flour and baking soda

add in the oil, water and yolks. Mix till smooth.

In another bowl, whip the egg whites till soft peaks form

Add in the vinegar and sugar

Beat till Stiff peaks form.

Add half of the egg white mixture into the egg yolk mixture.

Mix

Add in remaining half

Fold everything together.

Pour it into the chiffon tin.

Bake for 35 minutes.

Invert the cake in the tin and leave it to cool.

Scrape the sides with a pallete knife and remove the cake from the tin carefully.

And go ahead and try out other flavours like black sesame, chocolate, the sky's the limit!

For a Black Sesame Chiffon,

replace 2 tablespoons of corn oil for Sesame Oil

and 50g of the flour for finely ground Black sesame seeds.

Everything else is the same.

Brandied Walnut cake with Orange syrup

I get quite a number of successful recipes from my Women's Weekly recipe book. It's a great book for anyone to get started in Baking.

This recipe in particular, caught my attention. Firstly of all, I'm a big walnut fan. And secondly, it hardly contains any flour, and I was out of flour! (results of baking without keeping track)

This would be lovely with some fresh cream. But my waistline's telling me NOhh



It has a great texture..slightly crumbly, really moist and dense at the same time

recipe:

2 cups walnuts, ground finely

125g butter

zest of 1 orange

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

2 tablespoons Brandy (i used cognac)

2/3 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

Orange syrup:

juice of 1 orange

3 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon brandy (cognac again)

Set the oven to 160C (low)

Line an 8 inch round springform tin with butter and baking paper

Blend the walnuts till its fine. set aside

Cream the butter, zest and sugar till its light and fluffy

Beat in the egg and brandy

Sift in the flour, baking soda and ground walnuts

Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, Place all the syrup ingredients Except the brandy in a small saucepot

Simmer until the sugar is just dissolved.

Turn off the heat

Add in the brandy.

When the cake is out of the oven, brush the syrup all over the top of the cake

Use as much or as little syrup as you like.

Serve warm.

Spiced Cake

Inspired by one of my favourite teas in one of my favourite restaurants, I thought it crucial to involve spice in my next bake.

I'm talking about Masala Tea. It's like Teh Tarik, without the tarik and infused with spice.

Fresh Cinnamon sticks, grounded to a lovely lovely powder..

Whole Cloves, blended to a.. err..a little too strong for my taste. Thats why I only used a teaspoon

Anyway, the cake turned out to taste exactly like Masala tea! the walnuts were an added bonus..

Now to make it even better, I served it with a Spiced Yoghurt. That's just yoghurt with some cinnamon and cloves added to it.

It really went well!

recipe:

1 cup Flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

125g Cold butter

1 egg

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup walnuts, roughly chopped

Spiced Yoghurt:

1 cup natural yoghurt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cloves.

Preheat Oven to 180C

Line a 9 inch round springform tin with butter and baking paper

Blitz the flour, baking soda, sugar, spices and butter in a food processor until they look like breadcrumbs.

Place 1 and a half cups of the mixture into the cake tin

Press it down to form a base.

set aside

Add the egg, baking soda, milk and walnuts into the remaining flour mixture.

Mix well and por it over the pressed base.

Bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Mix the yoghurt and spices together and serve it alongside the cake.

Kesom Pesto

The very first time I saw Pesto, I thought eww that's stuff's so green and nasty.

Even after tasting it, I thought it was pretty mediocre, nothing spectacular

But knowing how healthy it really is, made me want to like it more

So, I came up with my own version, which made me wanna eat more and more of it!

Like I've said time and time again, I love Kesom..Its peppery, really unique and fragrant, gosh, I just love it!

And pasta's not the only way to go. Use it as a dip on crackers, spread it on pizza and even sandwiches.
It's a healthy and easy way to get some greens and nuts.

It may not look sexy..but its tasty alright!

recipe:

for the pesto,

2 cups kesom leaves

1 handful of mint leaves

1/4 cup cashews

1/4 cup pistachios

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons salt

Blitz everything in a food processor

Toss it with some boiled pasta and cherry tomatoes

Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Happy Birthday to two very special people, 

Julian Lee all the way in Australia 

&

Stephanie Lai who lives 10 minutes away <3

This Chocolate Cupcake recipe is just Fantastic! 

why?

because they're moist and delicious and you don't need any eggs ( I always run out of eggs )

Believe me, they're delicious

It's actually a Vegan recipe. But the frosting is a Rich and Velvety chocolate buttercream.

 Having so few ingredients to mix in, these cakes can be ready in no time!

 The hardest part (for me) was sprinkling the peanuts in the pattern I wanted.

This muffin recipe makes 8 or 9 cupcakes.

(I made 3 batches)

recipe:

1 1/2 cup Flour

 1/4 cup Cocoa Powder

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1 cup Sugar

big pinch of salt

1 cup warm water

2 tablespoons Instant Coffee

 dash of Vanilla

1 tablespoon white Vinegar

1/4 cup oil

Preheat oven to 180C

Sift the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda into a big mixing bowl

Add in the salt and sugar

Mix well

In another bowl, combine the water, coffee, vanilla, vinegar and oil.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients

Mix well until smooth (a few small lumps are fine)

Spoon batter into 8 or 9 cupcake cups (3 quarter full)

Bake for 25 minutes.
They're best texture-wise when COOLED

So eat them only when they're cool.

This Frosting recipe yields enough for 30 cupcakes.

Frosting:

250g butter, softened

300g icing sugar

1/4 cup cocoa powder

2 or 3 tablespoons room temperature coffee

Beat the butter a little to smoothen it out

Sift in the icing sugar and cocoa powder

 Mix it together, gradually adding in the coffee as you go, until it's a spreadable consistency

Ice Away!

 

Chicken Rice

It's actually one of my brother's recipes. He used to make it quite often when he was a student..

And I must say, it's pretty good... But sorry Kor, I think I do it better.

An easypeasy recipe that everyone (who loves chicken rice) will love.

Of course, you could use boneless chicken. But I personally prefer a big chunk of chicken on my plate..it's somehow more satisfying!

What's different about this recipe is the use of dried Shitake mushrooms. The Chinese Sausage (lap cheong) is quite common in most Claypot chicken rice dishes..

recipe:

 5 Chicken Thighs

 10 slices Ginger

10 cloves Garlic

1 tablespoon Sesame Oil

2 tablespoons Oyster sauce

3 or 4 Chinese Sausages, sliced thinly

 4 cups Rice

 Water

 salt and pepper to season

 In a bowl, Marinate the chicken with ginger, garlic, sesame oil and oyster sauce

Cover and leave it for about 30 minutes, or even overnight.

When you're ready to cook, Heat up a pan.

Add the sliced sausages into the hot pan. It will release some oil.

 Fry the chicken thighs (and all the marinade), skin side down until its golden brown

 While the chicken is browning,

 Wash the rice once or twice in your rice cooker

Fill it up with enough water (follow the marker)

When the chicken is browned but not totally cooked yet, Add it all into the rice pot.

Season with a good pinch of salt and pepper

Mix well.

Set up the timer and cook the rice as you normally do.

When the timer goes off, the rice and chicken SHOULD be fully cooked.

If not, cook it for another half cycle..

Garnish with fresh coriander!