tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58279258604055921852024-03-28T05:18:24.084+08:00Sugar & Spice & everything nicesugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.comBlogger52125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-20219575149767785862012-11-19T22:56:00.001+08:002012-11-19T22:56:55.622+08:00Eggplant Brownie - Guilt Free Pleasure<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAFOYQ-mYKZfQMV2UXTcn682d_PFu9mBFiUs9Q_cwKEkRt8xe_cAULqn9X0TaLxwzdZHeliTfyD-XlHTXpMUxKlRg-dRQKZf-McMwZhm05vOCPtTaSN19xregMBubQ6neX3Tm2SkM7siO1/s1600/DSC02620.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAFOYQ-mYKZfQMV2UXTcn682d_PFu9mBFiUs9Q_cwKEkRt8xe_cAULqn9X0TaLxwzdZHeliTfyD-XlHTXpMUxKlRg-dRQKZf-McMwZhm05vOCPtTaSN19xregMBubQ6neX3Tm2SkM7siO1/s400/DSC02620.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Sneaky sneaky...that's what I thought of this month's <a href="http://84thand3rd.com/2012/11/19/cinnamon-cauliflower-coffee-cake-caramel-sauce/" target="_blank">Sweet Adventures Blog Hop : Cake and 3 vegetables</a>. The only vegetables I know used regularly in desserts are pumpkin, carrots and maybe a sweet potato or two. Hmm... perhaps something a little more challenging? How about eggplant? And no butter or shortening of any kind? Flourless?</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuVMdhL2do0MJqokz9JRr1liveQ-EguWffnnqNdbJ6Qbb2EBggNKJ5FB3bMbN7X1UXoYnVG7I1Alya5LrIwbkO5SV-PPEszhO5KclIL9-Lk4-b7VvkXByji_s10aEU3r-_rD9CpXf1nMKQ/s1600/8155877791_ae8e48e154_o.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuVMdhL2do0MJqokz9JRr1liveQ-EguWffnnqNdbJ6Qbb2EBggNKJ5FB3bMbN7X1UXoYnVG7I1Alya5LrIwbkO5SV-PPEszhO5KclIL9-Lk4-b7VvkXByji_s10aEU3r-_rD9CpXf1nMKQ/s1600/8155877791_ae8e48e154_o.gif" /></a></div>
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I recalled a recipe which I'd been meaning to try out but kept chickening out because it really had no butter, no flour, and used eggplant as the main ingredient. Eggplant Brownie, posted by <a href="http://peachesanddonuts.blogspot.com/2011/08/aubergine-in-brownie.html" target="_blank">Peaches and Donuts</a>. Sounded too healthy to be baked into any dessert. And I must confess to being slightly sceptical. </div>
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Ok. Very sceptical. </div>
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After all eggplant in its violent purple glory is best in curries or stir-fried with sambal or mashed into a smooth baba ghanoush. But, given that it is rather bland on its own and usually needs something spicy to zing it up, perhaps it would work in a brownie after all. </div>
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So, enough contemplation and time to get to work. Baking out the Eggplant Brownie. The recipe is actually adapted from a Harry Eastwood recipe - originally for a chocolate cake, I think. However I agree with <a href="http://peachesanddonuts.blogspot.com/2011/08/aubergine-in-brownie.html" target="_blank">Peaches and Donuts</a> that it is rather more brownie-like than cake. So that's why I'm calling it an Eggplant Brownie instead. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeYg5SD6LTMXwPiNHnBmOBYJLbgPJvfFwc6yTRwxOWUeAVRWng0S_kIHFIFKGkN6-uEnsoYYzJYIvDZn34eaEuXyeuMASQaFD2hLn6yNO2BsxlXMs6ohZpbPnXiba8mPA8E6-aanruOhJ/s1600/DSC02629.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDeYg5SD6LTMXwPiNHnBmOBYJLbgPJvfFwc6yTRwxOWUeAVRWng0S_kIHFIFKGkN6-uEnsoYYzJYIvDZn34eaEuXyeuMASQaFD2hLn6yNO2BsxlXMs6ohZpbPnXiba8mPA8E6-aanruOhJ/s640/DSC02629.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>serve with some icing sugar dusting and a scoop of your favourite ice cream</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio-H7FS0GmFrMSA1sCqLlg-ulzoJ7S5v0x5iua3cTI80ZP8OL1RXLv4iIaGYBFV0r7GyOL45fpL9oZ6PgY29ZfXizCr1CKrFJd8dneGnxzTHFQ3DIkn_1gJEW6tuM2K3PP9keyHRwOGwwb/s1600/DSC02621.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio-H7FS0GmFrMSA1sCqLlg-ulzoJ7S5v0x5iua3cTI80ZP8OL1RXLv4iIaGYBFV0r7GyOL45fpL9oZ6PgY29ZfXizCr1CKrFJd8dneGnxzTHFQ3DIkn_1gJEW6tuM2K3PP9keyHRwOGwwb/s640/DSC02621.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>dense, moist and chocolatey - traits of a super yummy brownie</i></td></tr>
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The verdict? Dense and moist. Chocolatey. Guilt-free. It is quite good. Not even the slightest hint of </div>
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eggplant or anything unorthodox. Just more soft and less structure than usual - I suspect because of its flourless, oil-free nature. No one suspected it was made of anything other than the usual brownie ingredients. Not one. Jaws dropped when announced the main ingredient was eggplant. And for more brownie points *wink*, made without butter and flour. Serve it with some vanilla ice cream on the side. </div>
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Be warned though, it is rather a messy recipe. On hindsight, I would have peeled the eggplants before cooking them, and melted the chocolate separately instead of whizzing it in the blender with the eggplant. Getting the eggplant-chocolate mixture out of the blender was tough as it was too thick. I ended up nicking my fingers on the blender blade.</div>
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<b>Eggplant Brownie - recipe adapted from Harry Eastwood's Red Velvet Chocolate Heartache</b></div>
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<i>Yields 1 square tin 7 inch x 7 inch</i></div>
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<b><u>Ingredients </u></b>:</div>
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2 small eggplants (approx 400g)</div>
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300g dark chocolate</div>
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50g cocoa powder</div>
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60g ground almonds</div>
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3 medium eggs</div>
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200g honey</div>
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2 tsp baking powder</div>
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1/4 tsp salt</div>
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<b><u>Method</u></b>:</div>
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1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.</div>
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2. Line the tin with baking parchment and lightly brush the base and sides with a little oil. </div>
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3. Steam the eggplants till soft or microwave them on high for 8 minutes. Drain any liquids away.</div>
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4. Cool them and peel the purple skins off. </div>
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5. Blend the eggplants and dark chocolate together until well mixed. It will be easier if you melt the chocolate in the microwave and then blend/mash the eggplant. Then mix the blended eggplant to the melted chocolate.</div>
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6. In a large bowl, mix the honey, eggs, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt together. Then stir in the eggplant/chocolate.</div>
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7. Pour into the tin and bake for 30 minutes (I had to bake it for 50 minutes).</div>
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8. Remove from tin and cool on a wire rack. Be careful, the cake is soft and tends to break off.</div>
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9. Serve on its own, or with some vanilla ice cream.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: transparent; border: 0 !important;" /></a></div>
<!-- start LinkyTools script --><script src="http://www.linkytools.com/thumbnail_linky_include.aspx?id=154321" type="text/javascript"></script><!-- end LinkyTools script -->sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-6526570479562769212012-10-30T01:06:00.002+08:002012-10-30T01:06:43.085+08:00Old Fashioned Pineapple Upside-Down Cake<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTehF1UTsCBlFwr3i4rznGiB9cPlvJWpKEM9aPbFlQORh6wE714BKA0j7Iwg0Q8XGPCN6Q64jGdFr3U6_RTpRU4i5bpkJzQflOktPqvKP_Bh016KMYG_cqqOumf8RVNIJLp9V8PQ4IsvUJ/s1600/DSC02099.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTehF1UTsCBlFwr3i4rznGiB9cPlvJWpKEM9aPbFlQORh6wE714BKA0j7Iwg0Q8XGPCN6Q64jGdFr3U6_RTpRU4i5bpkJzQflOktPqvKP_Bh016KMYG_cqqOumf8RVNIJLp9V8PQ4IsvUJ/s640/DSC02099.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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There's something very old-fashioned about fruity cakes, and the pineapple-upside-down cake is no exception. It has been quite a while since I saw an upside-down-cake. Remember those pineapple rings studded with the red maraschino cherries? Throwback to the eighties where watermelon baskets and pineapple porcupines were the rage back then and every Tupperware party had one or both. Ouch, that was a painful statement to make - actually confessing to growing up in the '80s...</div>
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Anyways, age aside - fashionable as it is to have cupcakes and fondant decorated fashion-cakes, nothing beats an old-fashioned butter cake when it comes to simple flavours. Top, or bottom-up with pineapple slices on a sticky-sweet caramel sauce layer. Butter cream in Monet-worthy colours? Nope. Dainty finger-sized bites? Nope. </div>
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No frills. Just a good old-fashioned fruity butter cake. A pineapple upside-down cake. A gloriously golden pineapple upside-down cake with mini golden sunshiny discs. Like rays of sunshine. On a cake.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMcgGzZsKI3jT82AuFWD01zDRJda3b4Y3YGnTmIKRagQQVlcDrNc41XQMec3R1QQHwonNhrcYKjaXqgib35Elzql0rK-JAgCIUZ8CXrhynfIqQEIhUNXXhjtEVSB095HXNcN_NtNnfX81e/s1600/DSC02095.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMcgGzZsKI3jT82AuFWD01zDRJda3b4Y3YGnTmIKRagQQVlcDrNc41XQMec3R1QQHwonNhrcYKjaXqgib35Elzql0rK-JAgCIUZ8CXrhynfIqQEIhUNXXhjtEVSB095HXNcN_NtNnfX81e/s640/DSC02095.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>sunshiny pineapples baked in caramel</i></td></tr>
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The pineapple upside-down cake is turned over to serve, so that the fruit is served on top. Somewhat like a tart tatin. Start with making a simple caramel which is poured into the cake tin, and pineapple slices arranged over the caramel. The cake batter is poured over this and baked out. To serve, the entire cake is inverted (or turned upside-down) with the pineapple bottom now becoming the top. You get a self-decorated cake, featuring yummy caramelly pineapple slices. The cake is wonderfully moist and buttery too, mostly from the caramel. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheKFkN5tbKJCqOdB4aePA3wjVz4Qiholr1B0wSbdK9p23s-aovj5bNg5oShqJFVZRwOzDkvGIx-qD1JM5LG-KGg8I7JnQ0ERnJqxRRMU-raHuVytJnT_YPz1GCLnLI5HfL4oxVK8HCSckN/s1600/DSC02074.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheKFkN5tbKJCqOdB4aePA3wjVz4Qiholr1B0wSbdK9p23s-aovj5bNg5oShqJFVZRwOzDkvGIx-qD1JM5LG-KGg8I7JnQ0ERnJqxRRMU-raHuVytJnT_YPz1GCLnLI5HfL4oxVK8HCSckN/s640/DSC02074.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>pineapple rings on the caramel. See the too-light caramel already hardening.</i></td></tr>
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The recipe is adapted from <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/pineapple_upside_down_cake/" target="_blank">Elsa of Simply Recipes</a>. Be warned, this recipe has lots of butter. Lots and lots. It is also rather sweet even though I had reduced the sugar in the recipe. Possibly because of the tinned pineapple slices as well. Maybe I'll use fresh pineapple the next time. I removed the caramel too early, so it's not as browned as I like it to be. Regardless of the colour, it received rave reviews and was polished off as fast as I could cut it.</div>
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<b>Pineapple Upside-Down Cake</b> - adapted from <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/pineapple_upside_down_cake/" target="_blank">Simply Recipes</a>. <br />
<i style="text-align: justify;">Makes a 9 inch round cake</i><br />
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<b><u>Ingredients :</u></b> </div>
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Topping:</div>
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1 cup dark brown sugar</div>
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1/2 cup unsalted butter</div>
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1 can (20 oz) of pineapple slices - drained and pat dry with kitchen paper</div>
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Cake:</div>
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1 1/2 cups all purpose flour</div>
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6 Tbsp cake flour</div>
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6 Tbsp of ground almonds (from about 2 oz of whole almonds) - <span style="color: blue;">I omitted this</span></div>
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3/4 teaspoon baking powder</div>
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1/2 teaspoon salt <span style="color: blue;">(if using salted butter, just omit)</span></div>
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1 3/4 cups of sugar - <span style="color: blue;">reduced to 1 1/4 cup</span></div>
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1 cup (250gms) unsalted butter at room temperature</div>
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4 large eggs</div>
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3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract</div>
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3/4 cup sour cream</div>
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<b><u>Method:</u></b></div>
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1. For the caramel topping. Combine brown sugar and butter and melt in a saucepan on medium heat until sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbly, this should take several minutes. (After sugar dissolves, don't stir.) Pour mixture into a 9 inch round non-stick cake pan. Quickly arrange pineapple slices in a single layer on top of the caramel mixture before the caramel hardens. </div>
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2. Preheat oven to 170C. </div>
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3. Sift the flours and baking powder together and mix in almonds and salt in a large mixing bowl. </div>
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4. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the sugar and butter together until light. </div>
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5. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. </div>
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6. Beat in the vanilla extract.</div>
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7. Fold in dry ingredients alternately with sour cream in 2 additions each. Pour cake batter over caramel and pineapple in pan.</div>
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8 Bake cake until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.</div>
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<b>Notes :</b></div>
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The cake baked out to about 1 1/4 inch height in my tin. You can adjust the tin size but bear in mind you want enough surface area for the pineapples. </div>
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To make removal easier, use a non-stick spring form tin.</div>
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There is an optional method/recipe for the caramel in the original recipe, but it read too sweet for me.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="border: 0px !important;" /></a>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-24501638141150107022012-10-20T23:26:00.000+08:002012-10-20T23:26:55.021+08:00Kaya Bread<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZoOSA8SO8zoQOPvnENblzoZZmeeMxSKIr8QH-cMNl_wSNyNRD15PdyMaYOt4UZz5ITMhH4Cn_vm4ZkUNVWf7d40wxa3u-yH3vdc7WE6Gp_SFe55Mp7eIF6H7QPbdErUuj4bVOg4O1QoyW/s1600/DSC02409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" nea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZoOSA8SO8zoQOPvnENblzoZZmeeMxSKIr8QH-cMNl_wSNyNRD15PdyMaYOt4UZz5ITMhH4Cn_vm4ZkUNVWf7d40wxa3u-yH3vdc7WE6Gp_SFe55Mp7eIF6H7QPbdErUuj4bVOg4O1QoyW/s640/DSC02409.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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The 1st Bread-Bake-Out was a humongous success and hopefully inspired some more bread making amongst the Singletons. We were still pretty divided over bread-machines and elbow grease, but that's ok. And that's the beauty of bread-making. You can choose either and it doesn't need much TLC. As we are all busy multi-tasking career-women, something that Monster Mom said during our 1st Bread-Bake-Out made me think of this. </div>
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After making <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/10/my-mothers-homemade-kaya.html" target="_blank">kaya</a> in the last post, I decided to see if I could combine baking out bread and kaya together to make a kaya bread. If successful, I only have to spread butter on the bread slices and that will cut down breakfast preparation time. How lazy is that? Bake the spread together and you can even eat the bread on its own. In my defence, I prefer to look at it as multi-tasking bread. </div>
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I've made this loaf many times, and the trick is to slather on the kaya thickly. A super-thick layer. Don't be afraid. The kaya won't bite. Too thin and you'll only get a faint whiff of it. And you'll end up having to spread more kaya in the mornings. Sort of defeats the purpose, don't you think?</div>
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The basic bread recipe is from a previous post, <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/08/orange-swirl-bread.html" target="_blank">Orange Swirl Bread</a>, and you will need a couple tablespoons of <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/10/my-mothers-homemade-kaya.html" target="_blank">kaya</a>, preferably homemade. If you are super-efficient, you can even make the kaya while waiting for the bread to proof. Now, that's multi-tasking.</div>
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<strong>Kaya Bread</strong> </div>
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<em>Makes a 9 inch loaf</em></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients :</u></strong></div>
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For the bread dough:</div>
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57 gms unsalted butter, cut into small chunks<br />1/2 cup hot water<br />1/2 cup milk<br />2 large eggs<br />3 1/2 cups plain bread flour<br />1/4 cup sugar<br />2 tsp instant yeast<br />1 tsp salt</div>
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For the filling:<br />4 - 5 tablespoons <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/10/my-mothers-homemade-kaya.html" target="_blank">kaya</a><br />2 tbsp milk</div>
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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1. Combine the butter and the hot water and stir until butter is completely melted. <br />2. Stir in the milk into the butter/water mix and leave to cool before whisking in the eggs. Be careful as you don't want to have scrambled eggs!<br />3. If using a bread machine to knead, place the liquid mix in first before adding the flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Knead in dough cycle until the dough is smooth and elastic. If it is too sticky, just keep adding 1 tbsp of flour and continue kneading until it becomes less sticky. <br />4. If kneading by hand, knead until dough is smooth and elastic. <br />5. Cover the dough with a damp tea towel or clingwrap to prevent dehydration. Allow to ferment and rise until doubled ( approx 1 hour). <br />6. Once the dough is doubled in size, gently punch it down and rest it for 10 minutes before shaping.<br />7. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a rectangle 12" x 18". <br />8. Lightly brush milk over the dough and spread the kaya over the dough. Spread to within 1 - 2 cm of the edges to prevent any kaya oozing out later.<br />9. Roll the dough up tightly into a loaf shape (like a swiss roll), and place it seam-side down into a loaf tin. <br />10. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size (approx 1 hour).<br />11. Bake at 350F (180C) for about 40 - 50 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 190F inside.<br />12. Turn it out and while still hot, brush some butter over the top of loaf as a glaze. Cool on a wire rack before slicing and serving. </div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a></div>
sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-6742386125277160202012-10-08T18:30:00.000+08:002012-10-08T18:30:02.077+08:00My Mother's Homemade Kaya<div style="text-align: justify;">
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My mother's kaya is something that I grew up with. Kaya slathered thickly over buttered bread for our morning breakfast. She's made these regularly through the years, and I still remember how she would keep the eggshells for us to draw cartoon faces on. This was the easiest way to get almost-whole eggshells as she could make a small hole on the base and let the eggs flow out slowly for the kaya. That's why we looked forward to kaya making days. Eggshell faces...Simple pleasures.</div>
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Many years have since passed, and we've grown out of eggshell faces. But she still makes her own kaya and we still have them for breakfast. The benchmark has been set for so many years, so much so that store-bought ones have always been found lacking and we go back to making them. However, I do admit that kaya is a very personal thing and everyone swears by their own recipes.</div>
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<br />Despite the many recipes, kaya is made from simple ingredients - eggs, sugar and coconut milk flavoured with pandan. The main difference is usually in the cooking method, colour and the number of hours spent slaving over the stove stirring the mixture to its finally custard-like consistency. I have seen kaya double-boiled, steamed, double-boiled and steamed, made in bread-machines etc. In fact, my mother remembers my grandmother making kaya over a charcoal stove and stirring continuously for at least 4 hours. <br />
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<em>traditional breakfast - kaya spread on bread with soft boiled eggs and black coffee</em></div>
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If it's so much work, then why make them? Isn't it easier to just buy them off-the-shelf? I've been told that commercial kaya is thickened with starch and nasty preservatives. Ugh...If I wanted additional starch, I'd rather reserve them for some McDonald's French Fries. And unpronounceable additives? Same as starch - reserve them for other foods that you can't get at home.</div>
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The good news is, my mother's kaya recipe can be made up in less than 1 hour, from all natural ingredients with no additives. The secret I believe is in the caramel. Not only does it give the kaya a lovely dark brown caramelly colour, it also thickens it. She learnt this from a friend and has been making it this way for the last 30+ years. The original recipe is still in katis and uses fresh dessicated coconut for the coconut milk. We have adapted it to reflect this day and age. This uses the double-boiled method, so have 2 pots ready. </div>
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<strong>Homemade Kaya</strong> <br />
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<em>Yields 2 jam jars</em></div>
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<strong><u>Recipe:</u></strong> </div>
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5 large eggs</div>
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250gm caster sugar</div>
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1 packet coconut powder, reconstituted in 300ml of water</div>
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some pandan leaves, torn and knotted up</div>
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80 gm caster sugar - this is for the caramel</div>
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<strong><u>Method</u></strong>: </div>
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1. In a large mixing bowl, hand-whisk the eggs and 250gm sugar until the sugar is dissolved, about 3-5 minutes. You don't need to whisk for aeration, only to dissolve the sugar. Mix will be pale and slightly foamy at this stage.</div>
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2. Add in the coconut milk, stir until fully blended into the mix.</div>
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3. Pour the egg/sugar/coconut mix through a sieve into a small pot. Toss the pandan leaves into the sieved mixture. </div>
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4. Put some water into the large pot and heat it up to barely simmering point. Place the small pot in. Ensure that water level is not too high or too low when you place the smaller pot in. Too high and you will splash the kaya. Too low a level and it won't cook.</div>
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5. Stir the mixture every 30 seconds or so initially. This will ensure smoother kaya as the eggs will start to cook and thicken the mixture. </div>
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6. After about 15 minutes, the kaya will start to thicken. <br />
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7. Using an old ladle or small pot, heat the 80gm caster sugar over low heat until it starts to turn brown. Use a spoon to stir the sugar so that it melts and colours evenly. This is the caramel.</div>
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8. Very quickly, pour the caramel into the kaya pot, and stir the kaya vigorously. Be careful as the kaya may splatter. You will see the kaya thicken immediately, and its colour will darken.</div>
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9. Continue to cook the kaya for another 5 - 10 minutes, depending on how thick you like it to be. It will thicken slightly once cooled. </div>
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10. Once done, remove from heat and spoon into clean glass jars. Remove the pandan leaves from the kaya. Cool before storing in the refrigerator. </div>
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11. The kaya will keep for at least 2 weeks in the refridgerator.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: x-small;">the ingredients - sugar, eggs, coconut</span></em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>step 1 & 2 - whisk eggs, sugar and coconut milk</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>step 4 - double boil </em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>step 7 - making caramel over stove</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>step 8 - after stirring caramel into kaya</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>step 9 - kaya is done</em><br />
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Notes: </div>
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<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Sieving removes undissolved sugar and other impurities and helps give a smoother kaya. </li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I like using a pair of wooden chopsticks to stir as there's enough length to prevent getting splattered.</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The final colour depends on the caramel. If you like pale kaya, then ensure you have a much lighter caramel. </li>
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Be careful with the caramel as it can burn quickly. Use low heat and stir continuously.</div>
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<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Stirring kaya is like making risotto. Not necessary to stir continuously, but enough turns to prevent clumping. I have read about people who insist the secret is stirring in only 1 direction. Believe me, that's not true. You can stir it anyway you want, clockwise or counterclockwise. Just make sure you stir and get to the bottom and sides thoroughly.</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Some people like really smooth kaya. So you can 'cheat' by blending the final product. For me, it isn't necessary as I think my kaya is quite smooth already :)</li>
<li style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">If you are particular about using sterilised jars, you can sterilise them in the same pot of boiling water. Otherwise just ensure all your utensils used are washed and cleaned. </li>
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sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-15126364328140539602012-09-22T16:01:00.000+08:002012-09-22T16:01:02.530+08:00Fluffy Pancakes<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: justify;">
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Ever since I sunk my teeth into my first McDonald's Hot Cakes, I've been hooked on what I term American-style pancakes. Thick and fluffy with a hint of vanilla, served with salted butter and drenched in golden maple syrup. All that sweet salty flavours combined together to make a truly indulgent breakfast.</div>
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Thinking to replicate this at home (McDonald's breakfast ends at 11am) on a lazy weekend - I mean, how difficult can it be? After all I'd worked in McDonald's before, and made Hot Cakes (also fries, Big Macs, Quarter Pounders...you get my drift). Since McDonald's is what it is (fast), the pancake mix came all ready to use and all I had to do was add water to it. And what can be so difficult about making pancake batter at home? Make batter, pour and cook, and voila - I should have a stack of fluffy pancakes. Famous last words. </div>
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All my pancakes turned out flat. Like crepes. Or something in between a crepe and a pancake. Fluffy just refused to show up! Yikes! At this rate, I will have to wake up earlier and scoot to the nearest McDonald's for my breakfast fix. It took me a few weekends of trying to get this right. Then I found <a href="http://bossacafez.blogspot.com/2009/11/fluffy-pancakes-finally.html" target="_blank">Evan's blog</a> which recommended separating the egg whites and beating them to soft peaks before adding them to the batter. Fluffy showed up! Saved by egg whites!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>see how fluffy they are,,,</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>delicious with butter and maple syrup</em></td></tr>
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To celebrate this success, I decided to up the indulgence factor with fresh strawberries, piled higgledy-piggledy on a stack of pancakes. Salty. Sweet. Tart. Fluffy. Heavenly. </div>
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<strong>Pancakes (recipe from <a href="http://www.joyofbaking.com/breakfast/Pancakes.html" target="_blank">Joy of Baking</a>)</strong><br />
<em>Makes 8 - 10 pancakes</em></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong><br />
1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour<br />
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder<br />
a pinch of salt <br />
2 tablespoons (28 grams) sugar<br />
1 large egg, separate the white from yolk<br />
1 cup (240 ml) milk<br />
2 tablespoons (28 grams) butter, melted<br />
a knob of butter for greasing the pan.</div>
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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1. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together.<br />
2. In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolk, milk and melted butter.<br />
3. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and then pour in the liquid mixture all at once. <br />
4. Stir with a spatula until just combined. Don't over stir or pancakes may be tough. Lumpy batter is fine.<br />
5. While the batter is resting, whisk the egg white until soft peaks form. <br />
6. Gently fold the egg white into the batter. <br />
7. Heat a frying pan over medium heat, and lightly brush a little butter over the surface. <br />
8. With a small ladle, pour about 1/4 cup of batter into the hot pan. Batter will spread a little. <br />
9. Wait until bubbles start to appear on the top surface of the pancake (about 2 - 3 minutes), then only turn over. Cook until lightly brown (another 1 - 2 minutes).<br />
10. Repeat with the balance of batter. </div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a></div>
sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-35223788215474429542012-09-09T00:38:00.000+08:002012-09-09T00:38:06.387+08:00Arugula Corn Pasta Salad with Lemon Dressing<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSZd85mSJxO8tKOw5m5pS5bPThq5VucWi7CgKBYndvTB0XBjiRV1UqwdlyBjekXoEaWCB0jSwyi0RxkB6MiZZ40VsdSB85vupug7FOjpWSq_3HJj3A6URZjcCngjOx4of9d2JP18gSdnI9/s1600/DSC02213.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSZd85mSJxO8tKOw5m5pS5bPThq5VucWi7CgKBYndvTB0XBjiRV1UqwdlyBjekXoEaWCB0jSwyi0RxkB6MiZZ40VsdSB85vupug7FOjpWSq_3HJj3A6URZjcCngjOx4of9d2JP18gSdnI9/s400/DSC02213.jpg" width="265" /></a>When we do one of our jaunts down to Singapore, pizza at Peperoni Pizzeria is always a must-have. The pizzas there are the thin-crust type which I prefer, and they even have a humongous 21 inch "family size". Big Dog's fond wish is to one day be able to order the family size. *glutton*. One of our favourite pizza toppings is prosciutto topped with a simple arugula salad. It always felt healthier especially when we usually over-indulge whilst on holidays. Haha. Healthy pizza is oxy-moronic, don't you think so?</div>
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Anyways, for today I had a sudden craving for arugula salad. But coming after a vigorous kick-ass BodyCombat class, salad leaves just wasn't going to cut it. It needed more substance and more punch. After burning out 500+ calories, I think I can indulge a little. But, an indulgent salad is oxy-moronic. Again. </div>
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So I decided to add some pasta in to bulk it up a little. Toss in a zingy lemon dressing, sweet corn, pine nuts and shaved Parmesan. It doesn't need lashings of dressing; just enough to coat the pasta and arugula. The lemon gives it a refreshingly summery flavour and the corn gives a nice sweet contrast to the pungent peppery arugula. I could eat this everyday.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_19W6OAyLRfWGHmmYHRNB5mwYxzHyPTQki_OKEmBGO3F3vGCTLGeHhSRIZgBwSe_S6-9UGZpfvQwdzu-MyPvH1LvK754npn3rAvTs7uenOg3qQ4Wf76Ifi81nV6Tkh56akPF8AlHPRwFj/s1600/DSC02228.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_19W6OAyLRfWGHmmYHRNB5mwYxzHyPTQki_OKEmBGO3F3vGCTLGeHhSRIZgBwSe_S6-9UGZpfvQwdzu-MyPvH1LvK754npn3rAvTs7uenOg3qQ4Wf76Ifi81nV6Tkh56akPF8AlHPRwFj/s640/DSC02228.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This is a very easy to fix salad, and tastes best slightly chilled (in tropical heat). Dressing can be made ahead, but toss just before serving. If you want to cut out the carbs, you can omit the pasta.</div>
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<strong>Arugula Corn Pasta Salad with Lemon Dressing</strong></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients</u></strong>:<br />1 cup cooked penne, or any other short pasta<br />1 cup arugula leaves<br />1/2 cup corn kernels<br />1 handful shaved Parmesan<br />1/4 cup pine nuts</div>
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<em>For Lemon Dressing</em>:<br />2 tbsp lemon juice<br />1 tsp balsamic vinegar<br />3 - 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil<br />salt and freshly ground black pepper</div>
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<strong><u>Method</u></strong>:<br />1. Whisk together the ingredients for the lemon dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste.<br />2. In a large bowl, combine the arugula, pasta and corn kernels.<br />3. Toss in the dressing just before serving. Add in the pine nuts, toss again lightly and garnish with shaved Parmesan.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-13046018683797548692012-08-31T19:36:00.003+08:002012-08-31T19:36:24.626+08:00Merdeka Day and Teh Tarik<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAZGseI8WbP1Bh803hFtj_Eh29SesHambPESfpXTkQ5IO2UJEBBkMPwPo1Z6Qch796fq-WYYPhCUngngHaISHm8qF1jBHYo6Ph_tDEbaE3UrvcULTIm6t9xdlB3hb-7B4szcAutw-BU1bk/s1600/jk_merdeka.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" fea="true" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAZGseI8WbP1Bh803hFtj_Eh29SesHambPESfpXTkQ5IO2UJEBBkMPwPo1Z6Qch796fq-WYYPhCUngngHaISHm8qF1jBHYo6Ph_tDEbaE3UrvcULTIm6t9xdlB3hb-7B4szcAutw-BU1bk/s320/jk_merdeka.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>31 Aug 1957</em></td></tr>
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Happy Merdeka Day to all Malaysians here and abroad. Today marks our 55th year of independence from British colonial rule. My feelings about Merdeka Day and its associations run the gamut, from apathy to optimism. As a child, Merdeka Day meant 'yay-it's a holiday-no school-so yippeeyay'. As a student abroad, Merdeka Day was just another day in the calendar marked in the Overseas Students' Union (if we bothered to look). Now back in Malaysia after living abroad for some years, it reminds me that I live in a wonderful country. Wonderful, yes. Perfect, no. </div>
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I am thankful that I still have kind, muhibah neighbours (the type who still share goodies during Hari Raya and Deepavali and keep an eye on the house when we are away). I am thankful that we do not suffer from earthquakes or typhoons, apart from the occasional <em>banjir</em> (flooding). I am thankful that the colourful rojak of Malaysians give us diversity in food, language and culture (how many of us are multi-lingual and multi-dialect?) And most of all I am thankful that we are unscarred by war, and we live in a peaceful country (apart from the occasional Bersih demonstrations and politicians who suffer from foot-in-mouth disease). </div>
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Malaysia isn't perfect, but it's where I live and I'm proud to be a Malaysian. </div>
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Putting aside the ridiculous politicking and politically-motivated Merdeka themes this year, I thought I will celebrate Merdeka Day with something quintessentially and ubiquitously Malaysian. Loved by all Malaysians - anytime, anywhere. I give you...... Teh tarik. Anywhere you go, you'll find Malaysians bonding over a good cup of teh tarik and roti canai.</div>
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Teh tarik (literally pulled tea) is a hot, sweet milky tea. What differentiates it from other teas is the acrobatics that it goes through before serving. It is stretched and pulled from cup to cup to create the froth and if the mamak senses an appreciative audience, the tea will be pulled to greater and greater heights. The tarik or pulling also helps to cool the drink to an acceptable drinking temperature. Hey, I live in the tropics so drinking super-hot tea isn't going to make me go "ahhhh...".</div>
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Traditionally, teh tarik is made from tea and sweetened with lashings of sugar and condensed milk. Personally I think this is a sugar-laden recipe to diabetes, but hey, what's a little living dangerously? There is a variation known as <em>teh susu lembu</em> (cow's milk tea). This is a little healthier in that it uses fresh milk instead of condensed, and sugar is to taste. It is less creamy than the condensed milk version, but I prefer this. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Teh Tarik in my McDonald's Coke Glass - World Cup edition </em></td></tr>
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<strong>Teh Tarik Susu Lembu </strong></div>
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M<em>akes 1 cup</em></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients</u></strong>:<br />strong black tea<br />hot milk<br />sugar to taste</div>
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<strong><u>Method</u></strong><br />1. Hold a container in your left hand. With the hot milk in another container in your right hand, pour the milk in a stream into the empty container. Repeat a few times until you get frothy bubbly milk. The higher you pour, the faster you get froth. <br />2. Once it is frothy, pour it into your mug and top with the tea. Add sugar to taste.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4BexABOBWC0yDDkkaeD1TC6-JcsjH-H0Sm_Uqj_OocFICMleyG8_5eclHPms-OlmjTvhz1p19uYVKSzWZpIyKrv1KFRM7_wSprKvZT39t-IPLomeB8a2uLYI3lecunvMaWmhbwA98aQHu/s1600/tarik.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" fea="true" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4BexABOBWC0yDDkkaeD1TC6-JcsjH-H0Sm_Uqj_OocFICMleyG8_5eclHPms-OlmjTvhz1p19uYVKSzWZpIyKrv1KFRM7_wSprKvZT39t-IPLomeB8a2uLYI3lecunvMaWmhbwA98aQHu/s320/tarik.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>here's how the tarik is done</em></td></tr>
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Happy Merdeka Day everyone :)<br />
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-71931778259752918952012-08-19T23:22:00.000+08:002012-08-19T23:22:09.715+08:00Orange Swirl Bread<div style="text-align: justify;">
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This week's bread project works off from the <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/07/chocolate-layered-bread-mad-about.html" target="_blank">layered bread</a> theme a few weeks ago. Instead of layers, how about swirls? Beautiful large loopy swirls spiralling around a sweet loaf. Swirl breads are a somewhat indulgent treat at breakfast because it's made with a sweet bread dough. Throw in some citrus zest and we have ourselves an orange swirl bread. <br />
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Most swirl breads are flavoured with cinnamon, but I'd decided against it because it isn't too popular a flavour in our house at breakfast. Oranges on the other hand - we can't seem to get enough of. It's blended into our morning smoothies, snacked on, even the breakfast jam is marmalade (albeit rotating with strawberry jam). It didn't take a genius to work out that the swirl bread was going to be an orange swirl bread.</div>
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Having had previous successes with <a href="http://bakingdom.com/2012/01/vanilla-swirl-bread.html" target="_blank">Darla of Bakingdom's</a> bread recipes, I decided to work on this using her vanilla swirl bread recipe and adapted it for the orange zest. </div>
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I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into a slice - the eggs, milk and orange zest produced the most enticingly warm sweet scent while baking out. The kitchen smelled like a real bakery. And it didn't disappoint either. Biting into a slice was like eating bread with marmalade - only without marmalade. It was great on its own, and it was just as nice slathered thickly with butter. It brought me back to school days of eating bread with butter and marmalade with a side of Enid Blyton's Mallory Towers. Yummers....</div>
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<strong><u>Orange Swirl Bread</u></strong> - adapted from <a href="http://bakingdom.com/2012/01/vanilla-swirl-bread.html" target="_blank">Bakingdom Vanilla Swirl Bread</a></div>
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<em>Makes a 9 inch loaf</em></div>
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<strong>Ingredients</strong> :<br />
For the bread dough:<br />
57 gms unsalted butter, cut into small pieces<br />
1/2 cup hot water<br />
1/2 cup milk<br />
2 large eggs<br />
3 1/2 cups plain bread flour<br />
1/4 cup sugar<br />
2 tsp instant yeast<br />
1 tsp salt</div>
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For the filling:<br />
zest from 3 oranges<br />
1/4 cup sugar<br />
2 tbsp milk</div>
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<strong>Method</strong>:</div>
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For the filling:<br />
1. Combine the zest and sugar and gently rub the sugar/zest mixture to release the aromatic oils. Keep aside until needed.</div>
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For the bread dough<br />
1. Combine the butter and the hot water and stir until butter is completely melted. <br />
2. Stir in the milk into the butter/water mix and leave to cool before whisking in the eggs. Be careful as you don't want to have scrambled eggs!<br />
3. If using a bread machine to knead, place the liquid mix in first before adding the flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Knead in dough cycle until the dough is smooth and elastic. If it is too sticky, just keep adding 1 tbsp of flour and continue kneading until it becomes less sticky. <br />
4. If kneading by hand, knead until dough is smooth and elastic. <br />
5. Cover the dough with a damp tea towel or cling wrap to prevent dehydration. Allow to ferment and rise until doubled ( approx 1 hour). <br />
6. Once the dough is doubled in size, gently punch it down and rest it for 10 minutes before shaping.<br />
7. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a rectangle 12" x 18". <br />
8. Lightly brush milk over the dough and sprinkle/dab/pat the orange zest sugar over the dough.<br />
9. Roll the dough up tightly into a loaf shape (like a swiss roll), and place it seam-side down into a loaf tin. <br />
10. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size (approx 1 hour).<br />
11. Bake at 350F (180C) for about 40 - 50 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 190F inside.<br />
12. Cool on a wire rack before slicing and serving.</div>
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<strong>Notes</strong>:<br />
The original recipe uses more sugar which I cut down as I didn't fancy such a sweet bread<br />
Do wash the oranges carefully before zesting as there may be waxed. Used unwaxed oranges if possible.<br />
For more fibre, substitute 1 cup of plain bread flour with 1 cup whole meal bread flour.<br />
The dough can be fermented overnight. Just cover the dough and leave it overnight in the fridge. If you are using wholemeal flour, overnight ferment produces a more flavourful bread.</div>
<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-48050143433427485362012-08-04T17:10:00.001+08:002012-08-04T17:10:03.889+08:00Simply Nutty over Banana Nut Muffins<div style="text-align: justify;">
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It's been a pretty crazy week at work. Missed deadlines, last minute requests and late nights conspired to drive me barmy and I'm shattered. Fortunately, the weekend brings some respite from the madhouse aka The Office. So, I thought it would be apt that this week's bake out choice landed at bananas and nuts. A banana nut muffin. Going bananas and driving me nuts, get it? Haha. </div>
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You will have noticed that bananas feature quite regularly in my muffin recipes. It's cheap and abundant here, plus there's always a hand or two handy on the kitchen counter for a quick healthy snack. Bananas also serve as a quick pick-me-up before a punishing Body Combat class. More energy for more stylo-mylo punches :) The flip side is being left with ripening or over-ripe bananas. Luckily for me (and for the bananas too), they get converted into yummy muffins. </div>
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These banana nut muffins yield a moist crumb, punctuated by crunchy nutty bits with a natural sweetness from the bananas. Don't cut down on the amount of nuts as you want nuts with each mouthful. Instead of spicing it up with the usual cinnamon, coffee is used and gives it an added darkness to the flavour. Quite a nice change actually. As an added bonus, the only utensils required are a large mixing bowl, sieve and spatula - no mixer necessary.</div>
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<strong>Banana Nut Muffin - recipe from <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_nut_muffins/" target="_blank">SimplyRecipe</a></strong><br /><em>Makes 12 muffins</em><br />
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong></div>
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3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed<br />1/3 cup melted butter<br />3/4 cup sugar <span style="color: blue;">( reduced to 1/3 cup)</span></div>
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1 egg, beaten<br />1 teaspoon vanilla<br />1 Tbsp espresso or strong coffee (optional)<br />1 teaspoon baking soda<br />Pinch of salt<br />1 1/2 cup of flour<br />1 cup chopped walnuts (toasted or raw) <span style="color: blue;">(I used almonds)</span></div>
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/190C and lightly grease a muffin tray or line with muffin liners.<br />2. In a large bowl, mix butter into the mashed bananas. <br />3. Add in the sugar, egg, espresso and vanilla. <br />4. Sieve the flour with the baking soda and salt over the wet mixture and stir in until just barely incorporated. Do not over-mix. <br />5. Gently fold in the chopped nuts. <br />6. Spoon mixture into muffin tin and bake for 25-30 minutes. Check for doneness at 25 minutes with a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin. If it comes out clean, it's done. <br />7. Cool on a rack before serving.</div>
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Notes:</div>
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Changes made to original recipe is in blue text.</div>
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I reduced the sugar because the bananas are already quite sweet once they ripen.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a></div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-13827511350120470892012-07-21T14:18:00.000+08:002012-07-21T14:23:46.684+08:00Brandied Cherry and Nut Chocolate Cupcake<div style="text-align: justify;">
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As a child, happiness was biting into a bar of Cadbury's. Peeling back the purple wrapper and foil to sink your teeth into the luscious dreamy chocolate squares. Mmm....My favourite Cadbury chocolate is the Fruit and Nut - the one with the raisins and almonds, and remains that until today. I still buy huge slabs from London holidays to give away (after keeping some for my personal stash, but of course). There's something about biting into the contrasting flavours and textures of the milky chocolate, plump juicy raisins and crunchy almonds that goes so well together.<br />
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The Cadbury bar of childhood is the inspiration for July's SABH challenge "Nuts about Sweets" hosted by Nic of <a href="http://diningwithastud.com/blog/2012/07/16/peanut-brittle-semi-freddo-nuts-about-sweets" target="_blank">Dining with a Stud</a>. Chocolate, cherries and almonds. All in a cupcake. Does re-hydrating dried cherries in brandy qualify them as brandied cherries? I'm going to say yes to that :) Use plenty of brandy, get them really boozy. Add chopped almonds and some good quality cocoa and we're all set for this month's challenge. </div>
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I used a simple chocolate cupcake recipe for this, and I deliberately didn't make it too fudgy so that it wouldn't overpower the flavour of the almonds, cherries and brandy. </div>
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<strong>Brandied Cherry and Nut Chocolate Cupcake</strong></div>
<em>Makes 12 cupcakes</em><br />
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong><br />
1/2 cup (50 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder<br />
1 cup (240 ml) boiling hot water<br />
1 1/3 cups (175 grams) all purpose flour<br />
2 teaspoons baking powder<br />
1/4 teaspoon salt<br />
1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature<br />
3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar <br />
2 large eggs<br />
1 cup dried cherries - soaked overnight in brandy and/or water<br />
1/2 cup almonds - chopped into halves<br />
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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<li>Grease or line a 12 cup muffin tray.</li>
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Preheat oven to 190C (375F).</div>
</li>
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Reserve the soaking liquid from the cherries and top up to 1 cup with hot water. </div>
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Dissolve the cocoa powder in the hot water, and set aside to cool to room temperature.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: justify;">
Sieve together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.</div>
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Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.</div>
</li>
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Beat in the eggs one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition.</div>
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Stir in the cocoa mixture, then fold in the sifted flour.</div>
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Lastly stir in the dried cherries and the almonds.</div>
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Spoon into the muffin trays and bake for 16 - 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.</div>
</li>
<li><div style="text-align: justify;">
Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.</div>
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Serve with a light dusting of icing sugar or with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream on the side.</div>
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</div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-17729756181082106902012-07-15T16:25:00.003+08:002012-10-08T23:31:58.440+08:00Nuts about Almond Nut Butter<div style="text-align: justify;">
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User discretion required : highly addictive.</div>
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Yesterday, I made almond nut butter. Yup, from almonds. From scratch. Homemade. And, guess what? It's easy! It's delicious too!<br />
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Almond nut butter isn't as ubiquitous as peanut butter, and my first taste of almond butter was a gift from a friend last year. It came from a health farm somewhere near Melaka, so I thought I'd be able to find it in most organic or health shops in KL. Duh. None to be found. If I wanted almond nut butter, it was either drive to Melaka to get a jar, or <em>tumpang</em> my friend who will have to drive to Melaka to get a jar. Much as I love food, no bl**** way for one bl**** jar.</div>
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A couple of clicks later, and yes, almond nut butter can be made at home. Yippee! All you need is a blender or a food processor, almonds and some patience. It takes about 12 - 15 minutes. I used a Vitamix and had to pause frequently to scrape down the sides. It smells yummy as you process because the almonds are releasing their volatile oils. I also kept to KISS and only added a little salt at the end to enhance the flavour. Some recipes add in a neutral vegetable oil like coconut, salt or honey. One thing to remember though, if you intend to add salt or honey, add those in at the end otherwise the almond butter may seize up and turn into a clumpy curdled mess.</div>
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Best served slathered thickly on your morning toast. Or naked, licked off the spoon. Be warned. It is highly addictive. I licked off every last bits from the spoon...and spatula....and blender....Oh just give me the entire jar!<br />
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<strong>Almond Nut Butter</strong><br />
<em>Every 1 cup of nuts yields about 1/2 cup butter</em><br />
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<strong><u>Ingredients :</u></strong><br />
Roasted almonds<br />
Sea salt<br />
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong><br />
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1. Place the almonds in the blender and turn it on.<br />
2. Pause at 30 - 40 second intervals - to scrape down the sides and also to avoid over-heating the blender.<br />
3. Mixture will start to get clumpy (about 8- 10 minutes) and ball up before it reaches the creamy stage. <br />
4. Once the almonds start to release their oils, it will get smooth and creamy. Blend until you get a consistency you like. Stir in some salt if you prefer.<br />
5. Transfer into a jar and store in the refrigerator. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRmecRwoimRtdcbsqFAlcMdLRggjaFOXovL8Kbz_F_sfiR1cOCilgBbt4IcEKvQgkNmckigw6MFjqYJWLs7KudhHPlNFA8m2Gx1yNF-PWKuJJA8r38f7uGyCQeDtY9nsD3L9dg3Gb1tqcW/s1600/DSC01857.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ca="true" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRmecRwoimRtdcbsqFAlcMdLRggjaFOXovL8Kbz_F_sfiR1cOCilgBbt4IcEKvQgkNmckigw6MFjqYJWLs7KudhHPlNFA8m2Gx1yNF-PWKuJJA8r38f7uGyCQeDtY9nsD3L9dg3Gb1tqcW/s320/DSC01857.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>30 seconds - still coarse</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb8w4QTuSMU_YrNHC_JgzyzRR5k6ASjzWClVkX46Ztu21eM0LMbm4zUPb8Qt5zsP6KsLfAtXIyr-ZZ20gIg0qRcvtLPUIvk06f1F48hrX_V5o45PAzhyphenhyphenD1caM6Kj3UUk36-ItajFhoQzny/s1600/DSC01864.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ca="true" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb8w4QTuSMU_YrNHC_JgzyzRR5k6ASjzWClVkX46Ztu21eM0LMbm4zUPb8Qt5zsP6KsLfAtXIyr-ZZ20gIg0qRcvtLPUIvk06f1F48hrX_V5o45PAzhyphenhyphenD1caM6Kj3UUk36-ItajFhoQzny/s320/DSC01864.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>8 minutes - starting to clump</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>10 minutes - getting creamier from the almond oil</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5bkDoCL2ZIJfgEDSYSZBQLYBQP241JH0mUdp6LsBOJWSCzLwKCQvgZpieCrXL5dcOtR6attPm-XcUWlg1fbTqi61MEyP1z4rtAM-4kf8moTdltFXrQqSxrMLfBRLmTlyI24AyVeAvJtJN/s1600/DSC01879.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" ca="true" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5bkDoCL2ZIJfgEDSYSZBQLYBQP241JH0mUdp6LsBOJWSCzLwKCQvgZpieCrXL5dcOtR6attPm-XcUWlg1fbTqi61MEyP1z4rtAM-4kf8moTdltFXrQqSxrMLfBRLmTlyI24AyVeAvJtJN/s320/DSC01879.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>12 minutes - done</em></td></tr>
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sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-47565491941591740382012-07-07T15:05:00.002+08:002012-07-09T13:08:42.491+08:00Chocolate layered bread - mad about layers<br />
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I like layers - layered cakes like kek lapis, layered jellies, mille feulle etc The visual contrast between the layers can be stunning. But making layered cakes is a very tedious affair, heck making anything with layers is tedious. Long hours slaving over the oven waiting for each layer to bake out or set before doing the next one. </div>
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While searching for something stripey to make, I had stumbled upon <a href="http://anhsfoodblog.com/2009/09/how-to-make-japanese-multi-layer-marble.html/" target="_blank">Anh's Foodblog</a> and decided I was going to take up the layered bread challenge. I'd also seen what looked like swirl breads being sold in bakeries and they looked very pretty indeed. </div>
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This is actually my 2nd attempt at making this. My first attempt used a Hokkaido milk loaf recipe which produced a very wet slack dough and I had to make substantial improvisations on the spot to salvage the bread. It turned out well considering and I had beautiful layers, but the bread was a little tough and chewy. Like a baguette. Not at all like a Hokkaido Milk Loaf. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXc1rhNptQ9s9DHEKEuNRnokiLdvQAuzTEneqee4uaDJ2MljTwxw5BqRn2XHLFgmp189BpOzNuItnmiGumwFu8xvNpH2KqSeKHZrzKx8GldnMNEK8Q-_pQvXMATAoIMn1AHhU28livjzQ5/s1600/DSC01765.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXc1rhNptQ9s9DHEKEuNRnokiLdvQAuzTEneqee4uaDJ2MljTwxw5BqRn2XHLFgmp189BpOzNuItnmiGumwFu8xvNpH2KqSeKHZrzKx8GldnMNEK8Q-_pQvXMATAoIMn1AHhU28livjzQ5/s640/DSC01765.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>my 1st attempt - beautiful layers, chewy loaf</em></td></tr>
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Back to the drawing board.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRHceYVSV4fWK6KQkISP8DpMOI04_g4JMX8ejyLhG0YVddgNlNpUUDlgZTLA643nVdwtmVaZI4hA4bE7HOuKuAnh6QRbtgTdZbpenZtki5EGuuCKBie0e_UtB0RI0sbBVuWu9wF3t2pOt9/s1600/DSC01808.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRHceYVSV4fWK6KQkISP8DpMOI04_g4JMX8ejyLhG0YVddgNlNpUUDlgZTLA643nVdwtmVaZI4hA4bE7HOuKuAnh6QRbtgTdZbpenZtki5EGuuCKBie0e_UtB0RI0sbBVuWu9wF3t2pOt9/s640/DSC01808.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>2nd try - with honey oat bread</em></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0hC-uTCNGbdn1MtmnmGEeY_P4Xgc0EIGmp-CnYLH2Q9pdoyt7Guq8hsS7HumPkq3b-tx4JwbeLZOV3qTUp3xBshyYppgA8_Q3OXA_qYhPgVuwCSH9ELhiEGYOlsNVcAWeH3MfNtrjgU9/s1600/DSC01804.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju0hC-uTCNGbdn1MtmnmGEeY_P4Xgc0EIGmp-CnYLH2Q9pdoyt7Guq8hsS7HumPkq3b-tx4JwbeLZOV3qTUp3xBshyYppgA8_Q3OXA_qYhPgVuwCSH9ELhiEGYOlsNVcAWeH3MfNtrjgU9/s640/DSC01804.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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This time, I decided to use the same folding technique but changed out the bread recipe to something tried and tested. The <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/05/just-look-at-how-soft-it-is-and-how.html" target="_blank">honey oat bread recipe</a> which I'd posted on before. This gave me a beautiful soft bread with chocolate layers. You'd be surprised at how easy it is to make the layers. You just need to spend about 10 minutes rolling and folding the dough, and once you get the hang of it, it's a piece of cake (or dough). It was good enough to eat on it's own because of the lovely chocolatey addition. Served with homemade almond butter and it's almost like Nutella bread!</div>
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<strong>Chocolate Layered Honey Oat Bread</strong><br />
<em>Makes 1 loaf 9" x 5"</em><br />
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong><br />
<strong><em>For the honey oat bread dough</em></strong> - <em>original recipe from <a href="http://bakingdom.com/2011/09/homemade-honey-oat-bread.html" target="_blank">Bakingdom</a></em><br />
1 cup (250 ml) milk<br />
1/4 cup (62 ml) lukewarm water <span style="color: blue;">(can substitute with 1 large egg)</span><br />
2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter or margarine <span style="color: blue;">(can substitute with vegetable oil)</span><br />
1/4 cup honey <br />
3 cups (381 grams) bread flour<br />
3/4 cups oats <span style="color: blue;">(I have used instant and quick cook)</span><br />
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast<br />
1 1/2 teaspoons salt<br />
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<em><strong>For the chocolate layer:</strong></em><br />
30 gm chocolate<br />
1 tbsp cocoa powder<br />
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong><br />
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1. Prepare the chocolate layer - melt the chocolate in a microwave by zapping it for about 40 seconds on high. Then stir in the cocoa powder until mixture is smooth and has no visible lumps. Set aside until ready to use.<br />
2. If using a bread machine, put in all the liquid ingredients first before adding the dry ingredients. Use the dough mode to knead.<br />
3. If kneading by hand, pour the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until it comes together to form a soft dough. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. <br />
3. If the dough is still very wet and sticky after 5 minutes of kneading, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough is barely tacky. If the dough is too dry, add water, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) at a time, to soften it up.<br />
4. Once the dough is smooth and elastic, remove about 1/4 of the dough into a separate mixing bowl. Knead in the chocolate mixture. It will take some elbow grease to incorporate the chocolate into the dough. Have some patience.<br />
5. Place each portion of the bread dough separately in lightly oiled bowls, cover, and allow to rise until doubled, about 1-1 1/2 hours.<br />
6. Once doubled, place the plain dough on a lightly floured surface. It’s time to shape the dough.<br />
7. Gently punch the plain dough down and with a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a rectangle approx. 9”x12”. <br />
8. Do the same for the chocolate dough, but roll out into a smaller rectangle approx 7"x 10". Place this on top of the plain dough. The chocolate dough should be well inside the plain dough.<br />
9. Fold over the plain dough (top, sides, bottom) to cover the chocolate layer. Pat it flat so that it's easier to roll out next.<br />
10. Roll the dough into a rectangle shape, and fold the dough in three lengthwise.<br />
11. Turn the dough 90 degrees and repeat step 10. Roll the dough out into a rectangle and fold over into threes. Turn.<br />
12. The more turns you made, the more layers and marbling you'll get. I turned it about 5 times only as the layers were becoming quite thin.<br />
13. At the final rectangle, roll the dough up like a swiss roll into a loaf and tuck in the sides neatly. It is now ready for the 2nd proof. Place the shaped dough into a loaf pan, cover with a clean towel and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 - 1 1/2 hours. <br />
14. Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). <br />
15. When the shaped loaf is doubled, place the bread in the oven and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the bread is deep golden brown and the internal temperature is about 190F.<br />
16. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before slicing.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Step 8 - place chocolate layer over plain dough</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Step 9 - fold over plain dough to cover chocolate layer</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Step10 - roll out, fold into threes, lengthwise</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Step 12 - the final product just before rolling it up </em></td></tr>
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<strong>Notes:</strong></div>
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You can choose to braid the loaf - here's the link to the folding and braiding instructions in <a href="http://anhsfoodblog.com/2009/09/how-to-make-japanese-multi-layer-marble.html/" target="_blank">Anh's Food Blog</a>.</div>
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The braided version did produce a more marbly-layered effect.</div>
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Depending on the humidity, you may have to add more flour or more water to the bread dough. I find that I have to add more flour due to the high humidity in my kitchen.</div>
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</div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-86639799909048675772012-06-24T01:06:00.001+08:002012-06-24T01:06:09.790+08:00Steamed Pumpkin Muffins<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNu9MFHYqj1wwasZU2RgqNY8lTwRJ6nKxsHMpHtFBc216Sd5G1xo3AFbG8hyphenhyphenTTouM3BcZULH0xs7Ctx8f2BjBxyaI5Ta_Mz_7PsaMcoqLcl3uQC5k9fqLVkFGoQXdxwKIQ9v3a3_Rdai3v/s1600/DSC01341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" rca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNu9MFHYqj1wwasZU2RgqNY8lTwRJ6nKxsHMpHtFBc216Sd5G1xo3AFbG8hyphenhyphenTTouM3BcZULH0xs7Ctx8f2BjBxyaI5Ta_Mz_7PsaMcoqLcl3uQC5k9fqLVkFGoQXdxwKIQ9v3a3_Rdai3v/s640/DSC01341.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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On a recent trip down to Singapore to visit my adorable nieces, I noticed a lot of steamed muffins being sold. Aha....this must be the latest food fad in food-fad-mad Singapore. This is one uniquely Singaporean trait - be it apple strudel, bubble tea, doughnuts, ramen, or Hello Kitty plush toys - come the latest fad, you will find Singaporeans queueing for hours to purchase the product and proudly sharing their find (spoils?) with all and sundry. Then you'll find restaurants and kiosks sprouting up like lallang after the rain, all selling the same stuff. And just as sudden as the next thunderstorm, it'll die down when the next new kid on the block comes along. Economics 101, the law of supply and demand; real-life demo. To be fair, you do get the same behaviour in Malaysia, but somehow just not as intense and frenzied. </div>
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Anyway, back to the steamed muffins - these looked very Japanese (very cute, pastel colours) and came in flavours like corn, melon (?), chocolate, cheese and pumpkin. I couldn't resist trying some and found them quite delightful - almost like a Chinese steamed cake (鸡蛋糕). And because they are steamed, the flavour and texture are actually way lighter than baked products. Quite suitable for the little kiddies, whom by the way are super cute. Did I mention that I adore them?</div>
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I found this lovely steamed pumpkin muffins from <a href="http://food-4tots.com/2011/06/08/steamed-pumpkin-muffins/" target="_blank">food4tots</a>. It uses mashed pumpkin and the extra zing comes from adding coconut milk into the recipe. The coconut milk gives the muffins a sweeter <em>lemak</em> flavour which complements the pumpkin mash. It is also very easy to make because it uses what I describe as the 'muffin method' - add wet to dry, stir and pour. I mean, how much simpler can it get? </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>smiling muffins :D</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>muffins sitting prettily in their teacup moulds</em></td></tr>
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As it uses double action baking powder, you can be assured of a good rise and my muffins 'smiled'. Huat-ah....(that's the homonym for rise and prosper, so symbolically very nice too). Although I confess to helping them along the smile journey - I scored the tops of the batter before steaming and these helped to split the tops of the muffins. You will notice I used teacups instead of muffin pans. Well, muffin pans wouldn't fit into the steamer, so I improvised. The old adage with the mountain and Muhammad thing. Teacups are traditionally used to steam huat kueh anyway, so they sufficed. I thought they looked quite cute too. What do you think?</div>
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PS - the current fad in KL is Bubble Tea resurrected. Are you a fan?</div>
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<strong><u>Steamed Pumpkin Muffins</u></strong></div>
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Source: Adapted and modified <a href="http://wendyinkk.blogspot.com/2011/01/steamed-pumpkin-muffins-pumpkin-trio-1.html" target="_blank">Table for Two and More</a> and originated from <a href="http://auntyyochana.blogspot.com/2009/02/steamed-pumpkin-muffin.html" target="_blank">Yochana Cake’s Delight</a></div>
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<em>Makes about 8 muffins in teacups</em></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong></div>
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125g pumpkin <br />1 large egg<br />85g castor sugar<br />½ tsp salt<br />100g thick coconut milk - I used coconut powder added to water<br />30g salad oil (I used vegetable oil)<br />200g cake flour<br />1 1/2 tsp double acting baking powder </div>
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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1. Prepare a steamer for steaming the muffins and line 8 teacups with muffin liners.<br />2. Remove the skin from pumpkin, cut into small cubes, steam and mash. <br />3. Sieve the cake flour and baking powder into a large mixing bowl.<br />4. In another mixing bowl, whisk the egg until foamy. <br />5. Add in sugar and salt. Continue beating until well combined and the sugar and salt are dissolved.<br />6. Stir in coconut milk first, then oil and lastly mashed pumpkin. Stir well until evenly incorporated.<br />7. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture. Pour the wet mixture into the flour in 2-3 batches. Use a spatula to fold in the flour. <br />8. Spoon the batter into the lined moulds until 80% full. If you want them to 'smile', use a knife and score the top of the batter with an 'X' design.<br />9. Steam on high heat for about 15 minutes. Check by inserting a skewer into a muffin. It should come out clean.<br />10. Once done, remove the muffins from the steamer and cool on a wire rack.</div>
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The muffins are best served warm.</div>
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<strong>Notes:</strong></div>
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1. Extra muffins can be stored in the freezer. To reheat, just steam them up again. But they tend to dehydrate easily so you may want to serve with some jam on the side. </div>
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2. I used a ladle to spoon the batter into the muffin liners. It's easier and you get a consistent volume.<br />3. You could use ramekins instead of teacups or whatever that will hold a muffin liner. The muffin needs a mould to hold its shape otherwise you'll end up with an unsightly steamed amoeba-like puddle.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://signatures.mylivesignature.com/54490/202/ABFF8005CAA48D8F51B202419ABD7258.png" style="background: none transparent scroll repeat 0% 0%; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-top: 0px;" /></a></div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-7545886650284103942012-06-16T17:02:00.001+08:002012-06-16T18:09:34.866+08:00Beating the haze with a Lemon Yogurt Cake<br />
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The haze is back with a vengeance this year, with the API readings at unhealthy levels again. It makes my nose itch terribly, and the air smells vaguely burnt. Other than lighting up scented candles or fragrance oils to counter it (which isn't so smart since its already so hazy), perhaps baking a cake will help. There's comfort food, and there's comfort smells. A baking cake in the oven is the best of both worlds - comforting, safe. Ahhhh....<br />
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I'm old-school, and was taught to make cakes using the creaming method ( cream sugar and butter together for aeration). But this Lemon Yogurt Cake recipe from Ina Garten was a "mix-and-bake' cake. Most "mix-and-bake" cakes can turn out dense and doughy, almost like muffins since it uses the same technique. Since it relies only on chemical aeration ( baking powder), it will never be as light and fluffy as 'normal' cakes. However I was curious because this recipe had good reviews and looked extremely easy. So armed with vitamin C loaded lemons and some <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/05/udderly-delicious-homemade-yogurt.html" target="_blank">home-made yogurt</a>, I baked a Lemon Yogurt Cake. </div>
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Oh boy, was I glad I did. As it was, the cake turned out deliciously infused with fresh zesty lemon flavours. Every mouthful was lemony and with a nice balance of sweet and tart. It is definitively a lemon cake, and not at all shy to proclaim it. <em>I am lemon and proud of it!</em> It was moist, and as expected slightly dense and not cake-like fluffy. But it wasn't doughy, and neither was it 'heavy'. You know how some cakes are so rich and you can't eat more than a slice? Well, this isn't one of them. It actually feels skinny! This is a winner and testament to that fact - it disappeared within a day. To the last crumb. Everyone loved it. Just smelling the cake is guaranteed to lift the blues and chase the haze away. </div>
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I did tweak the recipe slightly, by cutting down the sugar and upping the amount of zest. The original recipe was a tad too sweet for me. I also skipped the final glaze as I'd run out of icing sugar. My tweaks are blue.</div>
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<strong>Barefoot Contessa's Lemon Yogurt Cake - from </strong><a href="http://www.food.com/recipe/barefoot-contessas-lemon-yogurt-cake-205777" target="_blank"><strong>Food Network</strong></a></div>
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<em>Makes a 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 inch loaf</em> </div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong><br />
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour<br />
2 teaspoons baking powder<br />
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt <span style="color: blue;">(I used ordinary salt)</span>1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt<br />
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided <span style="color: blue;">(cut down to 1 cup, and divide into 3/4 cup and 1/4 cup)</span>3 extra-large eggs<br />
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest <span style="color: blue;">(zest from 3 lemons)</span><br />
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract<br />
1/2 cup vegetable oil<br />
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice</div>
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<strong>For the glaze:</strong> <span style="color: blue;">( I skipped this step)</span>1 cup confectioners' sugar<br />
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice</div>
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Method:<br />
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.<br />
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl.<br />
3. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 3/4 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated.<br />
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.<br />
5. Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.<br />
6. When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.</div>
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For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake. </div>
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<strong>Notes:</strong></div>
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If you have the time, do rub the lemon zest together with the sugar. This helps to release the volatile oils from the zest.</div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-47241324845045298112012-06-03T22:26:00.003+08:002012-06-17T08:52:02.171+08:00Fruit Compote in Ginger Honey Syrup<div style="text-align: justify;">
Breakfast is usually a rushed affair for me and means something quick with my morning coffee. It's not quite grab-and-go as I hate eating on the run. However it does mean no cooking and it has to be strong enough to kick start the day alongside the coffee (and believe me when I say I need a good kick-start to get going especially when I'm as fast as molasses on a Monday morning). Since making <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/05/udderly-delicious-homemade-yogurt.html" target="_blank">my own yogurt</a>, its been a regular breakfast staple. To save on washing, I confess to eating it straight out of the bottle. Oops. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh40KKpkfNC1XyD1OCA0raqKMzRbT7cxLd35KYOE55evSCtmlz13X3yQevmj0juzgNK2PEP4p0J5_0mCpt4qmReoA02U0aY3893OF8t3otG5gqmV92vELEJqwyIEkDi94vQKIpE7OWs13UV/s1600/DSC01664.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh40KKpkfNC1XyD1OCA0raqKMzRbT7cxLd35KYOE55evSCtmlz13X3yQevmj0juzgNK2PEP4p0J5_0mCpt4qmReoA02U0aY3893OF8t3otG5gqmV92vELEJqwyIEkDi94vQKIpE7OWs13UV/s640/DSC01664.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Look at those juicy fruits stewing in the thick ginger syrup</em></td></tr>
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To jazz up the yogurt a little, I decided to make some fruit compote and add it to the yogurt as a topping. This was actually inspired by breakfast at Galaxy Hotel, Macau. They had tiny pots of plain yogurt alongside equally tiny pots of fruit compote - apple, pear, rhubarb and apricot. Really prettily served in little glass jars so you can see the fruit and syrup. </div>
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Most compotes are simply cooked fruit in a syrup. I decided to use the same dried fruit topping I use for my usual yogurt - dried apricots, cranberries, raisins and prunes. You can use your favourite combination. And to make the flavours a little more intense, I used a ginger honey syrup, spiced up with cinnamon, star anise and cloves. A really heady aromatic mixture. Mmmmm.... it smelled great as it was cooking up. Plus ginger is reputed to be a good stomach-settler due to its 'warming' properties. Cook up a batch to last you over the weekday breakfasts, serving it over yogurt or oatmeal. Or serve it as a dessert over vanilla ice-cream (ooh, decadent) or on its own. Deelish.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ1v-X6_sElK7zO9NCQOQfYVdbhf-ltrEualghFA6WO_YAAcX3X9oW4JtAEp3dwhI71HJ3nenRc2GUdQDhO2MODoJCJ_t0eVcYwIVAPpQiqqtrkdZVffikjiZuj3htKFYW3tNZfuOus5AL/s1600/DSC01691.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ1v-X6_sElK7zO9NCQOQfYVdbhf-ltrEualghFA6WO_YAAcX3X9oW4JtAEp3dwhI71HJ3nenRc2GUdQDhO2MODoJCJ_t0eVcYwIVAPpQiqqtrkdZVffikjiZuj3htKFYW3tNZfuOus5AL/s400/DSC01691.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>served over thick Greek-style yogurt</em></td></tr>
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<strong>Recipe for Fruit Compote in Ginger Honey Syrup</strong><br />
<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong><br />
1 cup mixed dried fruits - use any of your favourites<br />
1 cup water<br />
3 tablespoons ginger honey concentrate <br />
1 cinnamon stick<br />
1 star anise<br />
3 cloves<br />
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong><br />
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1. Place all the ingredients into a pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Make sure the fruits are immersed in the water.<br />
2. Reduce heat and gently simmer until fruits are plump and syrup is of the desired consistency. I wanted a really thick syrup to spoon over yogurt, so I cooked my syrup down to about 1/4 cup.<br />
3. Cool before storing in a non-reactive container. Store compote in the fridge for up to 1 week.</div>
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<strong>Note for ginger honey syrup</strong>:<br />
If you can't find ginger honey concentrate, make your own. Take a knob of fresh ginger (about thumb size), clean it and smash it with the back of your knife. To the cup of water, add 3 tablespoons of honey and the smashed ginger. If you want a more intense ginger flavour, pound the ginger and squeeze out the ginger juice before adding it to the water. <br />
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Here's the link to <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/05/udderly-delicious-homemade-yogurt.html" target="_blank">homemade yogurt</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZUFI_UiJL7-wZKjVqkef1T7wgrGV1XunG7YhVHHfuGmMhRr-R6ka7NBqaDw5piG30JSUqaxtgTmPNlr5_5m5BAC8vQK0gYKw68PWdC5Sm-fwoF6GaUWm2uz09a7WuI_kxLLNpxMZ_cXQc/s1600/DSC01673.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" rba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZUFI_UiJL7-wZKjVqkef1T7wgrGV1XunG7YhVHHfuGmMhRr-R6ka7NBqaDw5piG30JSUqaxtgTmPNlr5_5m5BAC8vQK0gYKw68PWdC5Sm-fwoF6GaUWm2uz09a7WuI_kxLLNpxMZ_cXQc/s400/DSC01673.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
</div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-69092463063412894962012-05-27T14:35:00.001+08:002012-06-17T08:52:25.911+08:00Udderly Delicious Homemade Yogurt<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Two cartons of yogurt walk into a bar. The bartender says to them, "We don't serve your kind in here." One of the yogurt cartons says back to him, "Why not? We're cultured individuals." Badabam. Haha.</div>
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Bad puns aside, I happen to be watching River Cottage on AFC one day, and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall made yogurt. From scratch. Without a yogurt machine. I’d never thought of making my own yogurt. Never one to shy from a challenge, I set out to understand the process better. It’s all and well to follow a TV show but because this deals with milk, I was a little concerned over the food safety aspects of making yogurt. But I didn’t have to worry. It is very easy to do, as long as you remember the basics. </div>
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Why make your own yogurt? Isn't it easier to pop into a supermarket and buy a couple of cartons? Have you ever read the ingredients label on a store bought yogurt? </div>
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Homemade means it only has milk and culture. No nasty stabilisers, sugar, gums or artificial flavours. Nutritionally, you are in full control. <br />
Homemade means doing your bit for the environment - no need to recycle those little plastic containers with the plastic spoons.<br />
Homemade means cheaper grocery bills - have you seen how much imported yogurt costs here? Not being a snob here, but local yogurt is too sour and runny for my liking, plus they mostly leave a funny grainy texture in your mouth. <br />
Homemade yogurt is milder than the store variety and you get to control how tart or mild you like your yogurt. I found that 6 - 8 hours of incubation is good enough to produce a mild yogurt. </div>
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I confess to being a little paranoid over the food safety aspects the first time I made yogurt, and this post walks you through it. However, it appears that if you live in the tropics (like I do), it's as simple as just heating up the milk, stirring the starter in and leaving the entire mix to incubate at room temperature. My Indian friend very kindly set me right. Indian mamas have been producing yogurts in their kitchens for generations, using nothing more than milk, culture and a pot!</div>
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Some basics : <br />
1. Use milk as fresh as possible, or pasteurised. Full cream gives a thicker richer yogurt, while low-fat will be runnier. You can boost low-fat milk with dry milk powder to give it more body if you like. <br />
2. Scald the milk. This is to denature the milk proteins so that you get a firmer set, and gets rid of competing bacteria so that the yogurt culture can go forth and multiply. Don't boil the milk because your yogurt won't set.</div>
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3. Use the freshest starter yogurts that say “live culture” ie not towards end of shelf-life. This ensures there are plenty of good bacteria to turn the milk into yogurt. <br />
4. Resist the temptation of adding more yogurt starter. More starter must mean more nutrition, right? Nope. Too much and you'll end up with watery fermented milk. Imagine all that bacteria fighting for a space to live in - bacteria also like a nice comfortable living area, not slums. 2 tablespoons for every 1 litre of milk is good ratio. <br />
5. There’s a narrow range of temperature for the bacteria to flourish and multiply. Like Goldilocks, too hot and you kill them. Too cold and they go to sleep, zzzz. It needs to be just right; 90F – 120F (32-49C) is about ideal for those little buggers to thrive and do their work.</div>
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6. Incubate anywhere between 4 - 12 hours. The longer you incubate, the tarter and firmer it gets.<br />
7. I encourage using a thermometer the first few times you try this out, so that you get a feel of what it should be. After that, do as Indian mamas do - visual all the way.</div>
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The method I've used so far includes sterilising the jars and utensils. You may choose to skip this step if you wish. </div>
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<strong><u>Utensils needed :</u></strong></div>
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Thermometer</div>
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Clean glass jars with lids</div>
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Tongs, spoons and whisk</div>
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2 pots - 1 large enough to hold the jars, and 1 large enough to heat the milk</div>
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1 insulated cooler box, large enough to hold the jars</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdGZT4aenu65oSYX2-_Q60RMsrbtwOIWJrXxLD5SeRtQgJUVNGqqnsQlKKhfXOlhkjFp-tGJTXUcbZfyJ2GqrfT3zlgMX7WJaTDTmleyaclFTgqzsXeGHhj7J_57ZHwRy2O1YYXR8ahFME/s1600/DSC01512.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" qba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdGZT4aenu65oSYX2-_Q60RMsrbtwOIWJrXxLD5SeRtQgJUVNGqqnsQlKKhfXOlhkjFp-tGJTXUcbZfyJ2GqrfT3zlgMX7WJaTDTmleyaclFTgqzsXeGHhj7J_57ZHwRy2O1YYXR8ahFME/s400/DSC01512.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>sterilise the jars and lids in boiling water</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_gK0WJn9uPoug8OugQtW4vUncFg-OwFVQ7K_cQrIaDwf0bTZ1pRo_GsuHmVmYgPJShdORWmQVHtWg-T9rbc-q_MCiavXyVPMdx6D_iGz7XZB1sm9OJmvwK82XSAVg70FkbYN38-lsjoP/s1600/DSC01507.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" qba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii_gK0WJn9uPoug8OugQtW4vUncFg-OwFVQ7K_cQrIaDwf0bTZ1pRo_GsuHmVmYgPJShdORWmQVHtWg-T9rbc-q_MCiavXyVPMdx6D_iGz7XZB1sm9OJmvwK82XSAVg70FkbYN38-lsjoP/s400/DSC01507.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>my version of double-boil milk. </em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhakm3ofDmG8HozD7jDhKB90kKH_wbKiS3JofRWZJR7ZCmPzcf7HWVFZttOqf0bUpT1BElRz3yiSwHnoFM9Ht_BobBAuYwUC_o6lgWa6wCCVCu2da0if1WTSZtxb1h-C2vu5aaD-2kVsmAV/s1600/DSC01508.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" qba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhakm3ofDmG8HozD7jDhKB90kKH_wbKiS3JofRWZJR7ZCmPzcf7HWVFZttOqf0bUpT1BElRz3yiSwHnoFM9Ht_BobBAuYwUC_o6lgWa6wCCVCu2da0if1WTSZtxb1h-C2vu5aaD-2kVsmAV/s400/DSC01508.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>visual for milk heated to 185-190F. See the tiny little bubbles and foam on top?</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy_5097sw_wEmOznxi7DRIUJ_gFxRR4ruYoLMtQuak-N2NLfJLSKuaPqFLHU1MnOWxmbvdkxFHWHx1AaMvH06NF68xPFRm6TAdRRi9o0nKpueGTE-7AmDhX1Ek9P6qfioDIfa-M2Fkkb3c/s1600/DSC01518.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" qba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy_5097sw_wEmOznxi7DRIUJ_gFxRR4ruYoLMtQuak-N2NLfJLSKuaPqFLHU1MnOWxmbvdkxFHWHx1AaMvH06NF68xPFRm6TAdRRi9o0nKpueGTE-7AmDhX1Ek9P6qfioDIfa-M2Fkkb3c/s400/DSC01518.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Sit jars into the insulated cooler box with some warm water to incubate</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>my super kiasu way to ensure heat is kept inside - wrap towel around cooler box</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>after 6 hours of incubation - yogurt is set</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>smooth creamy homemade yogurt with honey, almonds and raisins</em></td></tr>
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<strong>Recipe for Homemade Yogurt</strong></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients</u></strong>:<br />
1 litre of pasteurised milk<br />
2 tablespoons yogurt - for the starter culture</div>
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<strong><u>Method :</u></strong></div>
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1. Using clean jars and lids, place them into a pot with about an inch of cold water and bring to boil. Cover with a lid and boil gently for 10 minutes before removing from heat. Leave the pot covered until you are ready to use.<br />
2. Heat the milk to 185-190 F(85-90 C). Be careful not to let the milk burn at the bottom, so stir, stir, stir. I actually double boiled the milk to ensure that it wouldn't burn. Use a thermometer if you have one. I stuck it into the boiling water to sterilise it before sticking it into the milk pot. If you don't have a thermometer, visually, the milk will be at 'steaming' stage. It will be foamy and almost velvety, like the top of a flat white. Keep it at this stage for about 5 minutes or so. Then remove from heat.<br />
3. Let the milk cool down to 90F - 110F (32-43C). Without a thermometer, this is about the passing the 'ouch' test : being able to hold the pot for more than a few seconds with bare hands, or drip a bit of milk onto your wrist. <br />
4. Stir the yogurt starter with a bit of the warm milk to loosen it up. Then stir the starter into the pot of milk. Stir well to ensure that the starter is evenly distributed, otherwise you may end up with different textures in each jar!<br />
5. Remove the jars and lids from the earlier pot. Pour the milk+starter into the jars and lid them.<br />
6. Place the jars in a warm environment for 6 - 10 hours or overnight to incubate. I placed them into a cooler box. Remember the pot of hot water from the jar sterilisation? If it is between 90F - 120F (32 - 49C), pour the water into the cooler box - this will ensure your box is warm enough for the jars to incubate. Close the box, cover with a towel if you prefer, put a "Do Not Disturb"sign and come back later. The yogurt will look a little soft when the time is up. Don't worry, it just needs to be chilled to firm up. <br />
7. Remove the jars and keep them in the fridge to further set and firm the yogurt. <br />
8. You may see some yellowish liqud separation in the jars - this is the whey. Highly nutritious. If you don't fancy it with your yogurt, just pour it away and use it for making breads, pancakes etc. <br />
9. Serve with some honey and fresh fruit or muesli.</div>
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<strong>Notes:</strong></div>
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You can use any non-metal containers to hold the yogurt. Glass or porcelain are best. You can see that I used an assortment of recyled jam and honey jars.</div>
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Use wider-mouth jars or containers as it is easier to pour in/out. </div>
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I like the results best when I cool the milk to 100F and incubate for 6 hours.</div>
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Do stir the yogurt starter thoroughly into the milk. The first time I made it, it must have been uneven because I ended up with 5 jars perfectly set and 1 that still looked and smelled like milk. I discarded that. </div>
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If you like a thicker, Greek-style yogurt, just strain the yogurt using a cheesecloth or coffee filter. Strain the yogurt in the fridge for about 3 hours or overnight and voila. Greek-style yogurt without paying a premium for it.</div>
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Save 2 tablespoons of your homemade yogurt as your starter for the next batch you make :)</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>thick and creamy Greek-style yogurt</em></td></tr>
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sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-21684933963864282142012-05-22T01:02:00.000+08:002012-06-17T08:58:06.687+08:00Chai tea cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love a good cup of chai ( or better known as masala tea here) and really learnt to drink it from my ex-boss. His wife served me masala tea when I visited them in London and I was hooked from then. And there's nothing better than chai as an after-dinner drink especially after a heavy Indian curry dinner redolent with spices. I find that chai settles the tummy and helps with the digestion. Making chai is easy; nothing more than bringing a pot of milk to boil with the tea and spices, simmering the milky tea for about 10 minutes or until the spices release their aromatic oils and infused the tea concoction. Simple, really. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBVCmp12L02w5oeWtFmCKUcupKGt-SNiQ4AH_kqHAeqpIOa8eYUvUIynSBW4lbGrevYxvXGVFf7eJ4MUXjCSl00xG4mhLiU5qRbeyC_JsIlf_2e370ODgeirQvdDlj21Oy_ly9DCZ1C1k/s1600/DSC01543.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBVCmp12L02w5oeWtFmCKUcupKGt-SNiQ4AH_kqHAeqpIOa8eYUvUIynSBW4lbGrevYxvXGVFf7eJ4MUXjCSl00xG4mhLiU5qRbeyC_JsIlf_2e370ODgeirQvdDlj21Oy_ly9DCZ1C1k/s400/DSC01543.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>chai spices clockwise from top - star anise, cinnamon, cardommon, ginger</em></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV2aZfbD3Q08wwU2I1QGqqs17BdE1mrn90gPiI7pPf8m7tXZLIPPp5UOveNJBaCH1DE1i5autYpkFTUSC5Mhw9XY0TPmODFGoOluBG-Kn9RGue5SWWli9oLESUX7DSoYMnhZTNpk9yNy6I/s1600/SABH_12-5c_Tea-150x150.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV2aZfbD3Q08wwU2I1QGqqs17BdE1mrn90gPiI7pPf8m7tXZLIPPp5UOveNJBaCH1DE1i5autYpkFTUSC5Mhw9XY0TPmODFGoOluBG-Kn9RGue5SWWli9oLESUX7DSoYMnhZTNpk9yNy6I/s1600/SABH_12-5c_Tea-150x150.gif" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the first time I'm joining a bloghop and May's theme from <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_532467062">Sweet Adventures BlogHop is "</a><em><a href="http://84thand3rd.com/2012/05/21/macha-green-tea-cupcakes/" target="_blank">what's your cup of tea?"</a>.</em> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tea flavoured cupcakes seem to be quite popular, and it didn't need a lightbulb moment to connect Chai + Cupcakes = chai tea cupcakes. All I needed was a cupcake recipe which has liquids as an ingredient so that I can incorporate the chai into it. This recipe produces a pretty airy-fairy, almost delicate cupcake with a lovely moist crumb which holds well. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For the frosting, I kept it to a simple vanilla buttercream so as to not overpower the cupcake flavour. The vanilla buttercream enhances the chai flavour and rather resembles the steamed milk component in a store-bought chai. I didn't pipe the frosting over as I preferred to slather it on with a palette knife and create the jagged peaks.</span> </div>
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Cupcake recipe adapted from <a href="http://www.joyofbaking.com/VanillaCupcakes.html" target="_blank">Joy of Baking vanilla cupcake recipe</a></div>
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<em>Makes 12 cupcakes</em></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Ingredients for cupcakes: </strong></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">100 grams caster sugar ( original recipe 2/3 cup (130 grams) granulated white sugar)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 large eggs</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 1/2 cups (195 grams) all purpose flour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1/4 teaspoon salt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1/4 cup (60 ml) chai (original recipe is 60 ml milk)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>For chai:</strong> </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 cinnamon stick</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 cardamom pods - smashed</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 star anise</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1 thumbnail size fresh ginger - peeled and smashed</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4 tea bags</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1/4 cup milk</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1/4 cup water</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>For buttercream frosting :</strong> </span></div>
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</strong><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3 tablespoon butter - room temperature</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12 tablespoon icing sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">few drops vanilla extract</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><strong>Method:</strong></u> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Prepare the chai first so that it has time to cool. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners, preheat oven to 350F or 177C.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. For cupcakes, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs in, one at a time, beating well after each addition. This incorporates air into the mix and makes it light.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">4. Mix the flour, baking powder and salt and sieve together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">5. Fold the flour and chai into the creamed butter mixture, in 3 additions. Flour, chai, flour, chai, flour. Be gentle as you don't want to stir all that air out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">6. Fill the muffin cup with the batter and bake about 17 - 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not over bake as the cupcakes will be dry. Check at 17 minutes with toothpick. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">7. Remove from oven, and place on wire rack to cool. Ensure the cupcakes are completely cool before frosting otherwise frosting will just melt and run off.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><strong>To make chai:</strong></u> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Bring water and spices to boil and throw in the teabags. Add in the milk, simmer for 10 minutes and stir constantly. Remove from heat and cool before using. Alternatively, place in a microwaveable jug and microwave for 4 minutes on 30 second bursts. Be careful as milk tends to boil over and teabags may burst. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Sieve the chai and squeeze the teabags to extract all that tea flavour when ready to use. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong><u>To make vanilla buttercream frosting:</u></strong> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Beat the butter until light and smooth. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Add in a few drops of vanilla extract and half the icing sugar. Beat on low speed until smooth, then add in the remaining icing sugar. Continue beating until frosting is light and fluffy. If you need to loosen it a little, add in a teaspoon of milk. In our hot humid weather, I had to chill it for 15 minutes before I could use the frosting as it was too soft to work with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Notes *:</strong> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don't worry if the creamed butter mixture looks a little curdled as you add the eggs in. Just ensure you beat well after adding each egg. Once you fold in the flour, it will be fine.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The chai for this is stronger than the usual drinking version as I wanted the tea and spices to dominate the butter and eggs. So don't worry if it the chai turns out quite dark. Watch the chai as it simmers on the stove or heats in the microwave. Stir, stir, stir. It boils over very easily. Some teabags aren't very robust and tend to burst. Just sieve before using. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial;">I smash the ginger and cardamon pods so that the flavours release easier.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I used a simple 4 :1 ratio of icing sugar to butter for the frosting. This way you can make as little or as much frosting as you want.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chill the frosting to firm it a little if you find it too soft to work with in the tropical heat.</span><br />
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sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-77548044169112480842012-05-19T23:31:00.004+08:002012-06-17T08:53:42.382+08:00The best wanton noodles in Bangkok<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"<em>You must try the wanton mee near Platinum Mall guaranteed more than 1 bowl</em>" - so read the message I received as I landed in Bangkok airport. Huh? The land that gives us tom yum, green curry and pad thai, and I'm to go look for wanton mee? Okaaayyy.... trusting the messenger, I verified this with the local guide and he kindly offers to take us there for lunch. And it was a good thing too since my texted directions consisted only of <em>"turn right at hotel, walk towards McDonald's and turn into a side lane</em>". Wah, very helpful. Do you know how many side lanes or <em>soi</em> there are?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Already sweating buckets from the humidity and heat, I gamely trotted out of the hotel at noon with half a mind to turn back if this was a roadside stall. No way was I going to perch precariously on a stool under the scorching heat to have wanton noodles, no matter how good it's touted to be. Temperature check showed 35C. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After weaving through the narrow sidewalks and navigating pedestrians, food stalls, clothes stalls, fake goods (the Thais are very entrepreneurial people, every inch of sidewalk is taken up by a stall), we see McDonald's just before Shibuya and turn right into <em>Soi 19</em>. The shop is somewhere in the middle of the lane. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWJ71UmCY9F2RY_m1XVh7SPjzthI3AUD0rNE5L8RFrz78rklrD6YYN_3nBj4T_ozPCqhKkkSrOAUwSaYDzKyPIoFp9zU6_mhRgqlJ7NAl_dslDbO9ZQMkrzq_ZZ8_aHwZi2AT-hPFnqhhg/s1600/DSC00990.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWJ71UmCY9F2RY_m1XVh7SPjzthI3AUD0rNE5L8RFrz78rklrD6YYN_3nBj4T_ozPCqhKkkSrOAUwSaYDzKyPIoFp9zU6_mhRgqlJ7NAl_dslDbO9ZQMkrzq_ZZ8_aHwZi2AT-hPFnqhhg/s400/DSC00990.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: small;">selling toothbrushes outside a dentist, enterprising no?</span></em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8OYiWCaG_E1thONXdbCn-RupbL-PUvWtgkZFB2Kg6kR3Dpx5XL0aPnX1B2VUJc9WOvgHf_L4kqXTHISNqqQF5Y-dMN0yR2OKzCBFo9KRiyUwECv7yz11t661iR0fCjbqvCkhB2DjgJ-z/s1600/DSC00994.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="424" kba="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8OYiWCaG_E1thONXdbCn-RupbL-PUvWtgkZFB2Kg6kR3Dpx5XL0aPnX1B2VUJc9WOvgHf_L4kqXTHISNqqQF5Y-dMN0yR2OKzCBFo9KRiyUwECv7yz11t661iR0fCjbqvCkhB2DjgJ-z/s640/DSC00994.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: small;">the noodle shop, unfortunately I don't read Thai </span></em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's a humongous pot of braised pork bubbling away on the left, and with the wanton soup boiling merrily on the right, the entire entrance is enveloped in a hazy steam </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">mingled with the aromas rising lazily from the pots. But glory be, the shop proper is air-conditioned. Hurrah!</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: small;">the pot of braised pork simmering away with eggs and pickled mustard</span></em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The menu is simple enough - wanton noodles and braised pork (tau yu bak), in their usual permutations. The verdict? Ok, the wanton noodle is very good. More than good. Extremely good. The noodles are springy and very <em>QQ</em>. The tiny wantons are flavourful and the char siew was very tender - both wantons and char siew were strangely slightly sweet. Don't be deceived by its simplicity - it was surprisingly rich and flavourful. But oh lardy lard lard - the secret to all that flavour and mouth feel; good old lard. I found the little bits of fried crunchy lard pieces at the bottom of my bowl. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em>wanton noodle dry</em></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em>wanton noodle in soup</em></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: small;">crunchy lard bits used to garnish the noodles</span></em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The braised pork is served with hard boiled egg and pickled mustard and you can request for intestines if you like. I've not had any bad braised pork in Bangkok before, and this wasn't any exception. Pork braised until meltingly tender in soya sauce and spices, with all that fat and juices in the thick rich gravy. You can have this with rice to soak up all that lovely gravy for THB50. The wanton noodle is THB40 per bowl.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><em>braised pork and intestines</em></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Very sinful indulgences, both dishes. If you have issues with saturated fats, then this obviously isn't going to work out. But I figured that if I walked through all the floors in Platinum Mall for the next 2 days, the exercise will make up for all the cholesterol and fat. Haha - bloody good excuse to shop too since Platinum Mall is a wholesale fashion mall.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Watch outs - the portion size is puny, and I finally understood the cryptic message about guaranteed more than 1 bowl. 1 portion is equivalent to about half the usual Malaysian noodle size. Barely enough to tickle your tummy. The shop is also rather puny, so be prepared to share a table. I noticed a pair of giggly girls plonking </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">themselves next to a rather dishy looking Utt-lookalike eating alone. Heh, sharing a table has its plus points :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Address:</strong><br />Soi 19 Petchburi Road,<br />Pratunam, Bangkok.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><strong>Directions:</strong><br />From Amari Watergate Hotel entrance, facing Platinum Mall, head right towards Shibuya mall and McDonald's (against traffic flow). When you see McDonald's, turn right into </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Soi 19. The shop is somewhere down the middle of the lane. I couldn't make out the name in Thai even though the guide repeated it a few times. </span><br />
<br />sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-81182357958678629042012-05-05T23:33:00.001+08:002012-06-17T08:58:39.279+08:00Rustic Honey Oat Bread<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQotUupkf16mB4U9czp6hT5M77lkShrC7QBviFp5EzlbO4dtcAQuHr4nKLc-3v8OggGORYi7DRzFn2m-aZniT_HPX7IMXguGlgJdR1CLVph6Q8jJe6hez4sZ22ggMsX07n_Q82E2K6JrNB/s1600/DSC01467.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" mea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQotUupkf16mB4U9czp6hT5M77lkShrC7QBviFp5EzlbO4dtcAQuHr4nKLc-3v8OggGORYi7DRzFn2m-aZniT_HPX7IMXguGlgJdR1CLVph6Q8jJe6hez4sZ22ggMsX07n_Q82E2K6JrNB/s640/DSC01467.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Just look at how soft it is</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>and how rustic it looks</em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Once in a while I crave for white bread, the soft white of the supermarket variety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At times, all you want is to sink your teeth into some soft white and not bother with all that chewing that comes with whole-grains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know, white = bad in these enlightened times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Refined carbs = bad carbs that go straight to your thighs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I found what I was looking for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Honey Oat Bread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ivdKfeqaftvuz3dSwdpkNEdEt7-ThWJpywd9fBqZu3unux8g_QzrCxq6GrqIaf_S-Lg8dhXZpy_p-An-11PEyrb8SPyrhO5kL4vink42aBDFNNdGf6NW9WrZ98vRBgxeEwNiwDuGPpj4/s1600/tick.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" mea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ivdKfeqaftvuz3dSwdpkNEdEt7-ThWJpywd9fBqZu3unux8g_QzrCxq6GrqIaf_S-Lg8dhXZpy_p-An-11PEyrb8SPyrhO5kL4vink42aBDFNNdGf6NW9WrZ98vRBgxeEwNiwDuGPpj4/s1600/tick.gif" /></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Soft </span><span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f"> <stroke joinstyle="miter"></stroke><formulas><f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0"></f><f eqn="sum @0 1 0"></f><f eqn="sum 0 0 @1"></f><f eqn="prod @2 1 2"></f><f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth"></f><f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight"></f><f eqn="sum @0 0 1"></f><f eqn="prod @6 1 2"></f><f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth"></f><f eqn="sum @8 21600 0"></f><f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight"></f><f eqn="sum @10 21600 0"></f></formulas><path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f"></path><lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit"></lock></shapetype></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ivdKfeqaftvuz3dSwdpkNEdEt7-ThWJpywd9fBqZu3unux8g_QzrCxq6GrqIaf_S-Lg8dhXZpy_p-An-11PEyrb8SPyrhO5kL4vink42aBDFNNdGf6NW9WrZ98vRBgxeEwNiwDuGPpj4/s1600/tick.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" mea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ivdKfeqaftvuz3dSwdpkNEdEt7-ThWJpywd9fBqZu3unux8g_QzrCxq6GrqIaf_S-Lg8dhXZpy_p-An-11PEyrb8SPyrhO5kL4vink42aBDFNNdGf6NW9WrZ98vRBgxeEwNiwDuGPpj4/s1600/tick.gif" /></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">White </span><span style="mso-no-proof: yes;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></span><shape alt="Description: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\MEDIA\OFFICE14\Bullets\BD21301_.gif" id="Picture_x0020_2" o:spid="_x0000_i1028" style="height: 9.6pt; mso-wrap-style: square; visibility: visible; width: 9.6pt;" type="#_x0000_t75"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> <imagedata o:title="BD21301_" src="file:///C:\Users\mayyin.lee\AppData\Local\Temp\msohtmlclip1\01\clip_image001.gif"></imagedata></span></shape></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>heart friendly oats and honey</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>looks just like liquid gold doesn't it?</em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">All the right ticks in place.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeess!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Made with oats (what can be more heart friendly than oats) and sweetened with honey (no processed sugar), this is one of the most delicious breads I’d ever baked out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus it’s easy on the ingredients too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The usual flour, yeast, butter, milk plus oats and honey, how complicated is that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nutty and slightly sweet is how I would describe it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I love how the bread looks so homemade and rustic on the outside, yet retains a soft texture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Truth be told, I try very hard to swallow my requisite spoonful of oats before breakfast – been told that it aids in lowering cholesterol levels –but it is very difficult to swallow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ever notice that when something is good for you, it doesn’t taste very good?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By adding oats to the bread dough and baking it out, you don’t even know that it’s there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Sneaky isn't it?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I’ve been making Honey Oat bread at least once a week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first time I tried it, I made it entirely in the bread machine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It came out quite nicely in texture, nice crumb but it wasn’t shaped evenly and the crust was a little tough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I figured out that the bake out time was too long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then I used the machine to knead in dough mode only, shaped it manually and reduced the auto bake time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It came out perfect and disappeared before I even had a chance to take a photo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aha… a winner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since then, I don’t chuck it into the bread machine all the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you have the time, the results are worth it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If not, use the bread machine and it’s still good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span> </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>brushed with honey and dusted with oats - waiting to be baked</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>honey oat bread - overnight proofed version</em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">At times when I want a richer flavoured bread, I add an egg into the mix.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> It can be dairy-free. </span>I’ve tried it with soy milk and vegetable oil instead of milk and butter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I guess vegans will need to replace the honey with something more vegan friendly like agave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However when I experimented with whole meal flour, the bread didn’t rise very much and was quite compact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I autolysed it, for some reason the dough over-proofed and collapsed when I baked it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For whatever the reason, keeping to the basic recipe and method works best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At most, I’ve overnight proofed it before shaping and this works well too with a nice rise and good even crumb.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>best eaten with just butter and jam</em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span> <span style="font-family: Calibri;">As it is homemade, it’s best to eat it within 3 days, otherwise keep the excess in the freezer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is brilliant toasted and served it butter and more honey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Quite the bee’s knees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yum yum.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Homemade Honey Oat Bread</b> – recipe from <a href="http://bakingdom.com/2011/09/homemade-honey-oat-bread.html" target="_blank">Darla of Bakingdom</a>.</span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Makes 1 9×5-inch loaf</span></i></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ingredients:</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 cup (250 ml) milk (almond or soy milk for vegan/dairy free)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/4 cup (62 ml) lukewarm water (can substitute with large egg)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter or margarine (can substitute with vegetable oil)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1/4 cup honey </span></div>
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3 cups (381 grams) plain bread flour</div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">3/4 cups oats (either instant or quick cook)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 1/2 teaspoons salt</span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">For glazing</span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons honey </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons oats</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Method:</span></u></b></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">1.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the flour, oats, yeast, and salt.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Warm the milk so that it’s hot enough to melt the butter, but not boiling. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Add the butter, stirring until melted, then stir in the water and honey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If using an egg, cool the milk-honey-butter mixture before adding the egg.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Otherwise you may end up with scrambled eggs!</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3. </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If kneading by hand, pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture, mixing until it just comes together to form a dough. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Knead for 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the dough is still very wet and sticky after 5 minutes of kneading, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the dough is barely tacky. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the dough is too dry, add water, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) at a time, to soften it up.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">4.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">If using a bread machine, put in the liquid mix first before adding the dry ingredients.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Use the dough mode to knead.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">5.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Once the dough is smooth and elastic, place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">6.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Once doubled, place the dough on a lightly floured surface.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s time to shape the dough.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">7.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Gently punch the dough down and roll the dough out into a rectangle approx. 9”x12”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roll the dough up tightly like swiss roll into a loaf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Place the shaped dough into a loaf pan, cover with a clean towel, and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">8.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">9.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">When the shaped loaf is doubled, brush the top with honey and sprinkle with the oats.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slash the top if you like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">10.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Place the bread in the oven and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the bread is deep golden brown and the internal temperature is about 190F.</span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">11.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Transfer to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely before serving.</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Notes:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Warming the milk sweetens it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It also helps to dissolve the honey, otherwise the dough is difficult to work with.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In our humid weather, I found the dough to be quite wet and sticky.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had to add more flour by the tablespoon during the kneading process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I monitored it even when using the bread machine.</span></div>
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sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-83532992186638285452012-05-01T15:44:00.000+08:002012-06-17T08:55:01.717+08:00Shrek muffins aka sweet potato muffins<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMYhpYhkBQYOnSaseLRaTGq97vUI1jIbQGIlBn5ngTePml9mHyo_SIE734tvThE4rUyKwvYGA00x14v2bPAlYph-IHQgJ_Y_os0czZ4W7pxD65DNadL-YSnqQfEtvMD8s4u7ps25zLdM0/s1600/graphics-shrek-630278.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" dba="true" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipMYhpYhkBQYOnSaseLRaTGq97vUI1jIbQGIlBn5ngTePml9mHyo_SIE734tvThE4rUyKwvYGA00x14v2bPAlYph-IHQgJ_Y_os0czZ4W7pxD65DNadL-YSnqQfEtvMD8s4u7ps25zLdM0/s400/graphics-shrek-630278.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYQIbXpzIHff40d2Nz0X2q2VbLFIIGqN_dc4gGPmhfO-FWW01sHtTnOY0e4sYceBq-DKUEQ-Btjr52tmpWr0qtdSr51rDvFjJtFsFKoOgm0H-55srlHExLF18T0FdvFULdKY9Bem-NqmM9/s1600/DSC01445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" dba="true" height="422" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYQIbXpzIHff40d2Nz0X2q2VbLFIIGqN_dc4gGPmhfO-FWW01sHtTnOY0e4sYceBq-DKUEQ-Btjr52tmpWr0qtdSr51rDvFjJtFsFKoOgm0H-55srlHExLF18T0FdvFULdKY9Bem-NqmM9/s640/DSC01445.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>green ogre vs green muffins</em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Shriek!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shriek muffins? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shrek muffins?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bright green muffins!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How on earth did purple sweet potatoes morph into green muffins which resembled a certain <strike>Disney</strike> Dreamworks ogre?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I swear they started out as purple-gray batter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I had some purple sweet potato and thought of turning them into muffins this time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The last recipe I made with sweet potatoes was turning them into <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2011/10/potahto-potayto-i-say-steamed-sweet.html" target="_blank">steamed sweet potato buns</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This recipe called for the orange variety, but I thought nevermind… can substitute-lah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Orange or purple, still sweet potato.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just different colours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What can go wrong?</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>from purple sweet potato</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>to green sweet potato muffins</em></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And go wrong it did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It turned green.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I thought it was the oven light playing tricks on me. </span>Luckily it was a bright green, almost a lovely deep emerald.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not any pale seasick green. I turned green when I saw them. My parents keeled over laughing. My cousins went overboard. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">For this post, I thought I’ll share something different instead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You hear and read a fair amount of success stories, but no one really likes to bring up their failed stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Sweet is success but it is failures that you learn from. </span>I’ve had my fair share of bombs, but this was one of the more spectacular and dramatic outcomes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Naturally this episode prompted some research (and what better resource than the www) and with a few clicks, voila – the answer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <em>Drum roll....</em></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Purple sweet potatoes turn green after baking because it reacts to the presence of baking soda and baking powder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aha. Learnt something, right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Looking at the brighter side, it wasn’t so bad after all. So what if it was green? It is all natural, no artificial colouring used.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With sweet potatoes, the muffins had a naturally high fibre content.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps I could tempt a leprechaun with it and reserve it for St Pat’s next year?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In case you are wondering, no, I didn’t forget to insert the recipe for this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not sharing the recipe because I wasn’t happy with the muffin texture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The recipe needs some work.</span></div>
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Go on, have a laugh... </div>
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sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-72574488261401380702012-04-22T10:05:00.001+08:002012-04-22T10:07:14.367+08:00Hainanese Chicken Rice in Taipei<div style="text-align: justify;">
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I used to think that Singapore had the best Hainanese chicken rice around. Singapore does a pretty good job branding their chicken rice, so you get the likes of Boon Tong Kee and 5 Star branches everywhere. And even the single outlets like Tian Tian and the used-to-be good Chatterbox @ Mandarin Hotel generated passionate discussions and legions of loyal fans. Then I went to Taipei.</div>
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It was the last place I'd expected to find chicken rice - a hole in the wall, literally. Big Dog had stumbled upon it during one his sojourns to Taipei. When we first ate there, it was a hut sandwiched between 2 shops. In winter, you'd eat quickly and vamoose because you're dining alfresco freezing your toes off. No heating, no frills. Y<span style="background-color: white;">ou </span>pay, eat and go. Chop chop. Business must have been good because a year later, they'd upgraded to a proper shop. Luckily for us, it was still in the vicinity when we went back for a visit and we found it easily. </div>
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So what do you get at Ching Cheng Hoinan Chicken Rice? The smoothest, tenderest, poached chicken with an awesomely flavoured rice. Rice cooked to perfection with each individual grain loose and fluffy. Not sticky or clumpy. You can taste the chicken stock, fat and the merest hint of garlic in the rice. The chicken is served plain - no sauce, no garnishing to distract. Smooth, smooth, smooth - even the white meat was tender.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Smooth poached chicken with ginger-spring onion dip</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Large portion served with sides</em></td></tr>
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<em></em>What do you not get? Unlike Malaysian and Singaporean versions, they don't serve it with chilli or soy sauce. Instead you get the most piquant minced ginger-spring onion dip on the side. Be prepared that the dish isn't piping hot - the rice is warm, the chicken and sides are room temperature. The only piping hot dish is the free soup simmering away in the corner which you help yourself to. You have a choice of small or large portions. Small (NT65) comes with just rice and chicken. Large (NT85) gets you additional sides of omelet and stir-fried vegetables. Oh - you are expected to clear your own tray after eating - just like in McDonald's. There aren't any cheap foreign labour or amahs to clean up after you here. </div>
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Hainanese chicken rice is a dish which Chinese immigrants brought across with them to Malaysia and Singapore. When I was in Hainan island, I was hard put to find Hainanese chicken rice like the ones back home - I found wengchang chicken instead. Just like you'll never find Hokkien Mee in Fujien or Singapore Fried Noodles in Singapore, Hainanese chicken rice is a dish which has evolved and taken on local influences over the years. </div>
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Most Taiwanese speak the Hokkien dialect, or Min Nang hua, so conversing and ordering wasn't difficult even with our limited Mandarin. In fact the wait staff were pretty delighted and amazed that we could speak in Hokkien (we were obviously not local and not from mainland China).</div>
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<strong>How to get there:</strong><br />
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Take the MTR to Nanjing East Station and exit Qingcheng Street. You will see Brother Hotel on your right. Keep the hotel to your right.</div>
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Walk down Qingcheng Street towards McDonald's, pass Les Suite Taipei and Movenpick. Turn right into the lane when you see Hooters. </div>
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The shop is on the right side, opposite Friends Pharmacy.</div>
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Address :</div>
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Ching Cheng Hoinan Chicken Rice</div>
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Lane 16, Qìngchéng Street, Songshan District, Taipei,</div>
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Taiwan</div>
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</div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-74558753386639196442012-04-15T17:49:00.002+08:002012-04-15T17:49:11.133+08:00Street food at Feng Jia Night Market, Taichung<div style="text-align: justify;">
On our last trip to Taichung, Big Dog and I found ourselves hurtling towards Feng Jia night market in a taxi. Now, Taiwan taxis are a world of difference from their KL counterparts. Having experienced KL taxi drivers who are grumpy, have no clue how to get to point B, refuse to use the meter, or refuse point blank to take you to point B and are generally more a menace than a service, Taiwan taxis are a breath of fresh air. There's always a taxi when you need one. As a plus point, they even have practical taxis to boot, the Toyota Wish - it can actually fit more than 1 suitcase into the boot. Ever tried that with the KLIA taxis? I always end up paying for premium taxis just to fit our luggage. My only gripe with Taiwan taxis is the way they drive - the muddle of cars, scooters and pedestrians always just seem to miraculously avoid collision; there's probably an invisible force-field protecting them. </div>
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Feng Jia market in Taichung is the 2nd largest night market in Taiwan, after Shilin market in Taipei. As it is situated next to Feng Jia university, expect plenty of students and affordable trendy fashion. But we were there not to shop, but to explore street food dining options.</div>
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I'd recommend that you hit the market early, at about 6pm as it gets claustrophobically crowded as the night wears on. Humans, scooters and the occasional dog on a leash. Taiwanese love their dogs, mostly the cutesy lapdog variety. They dress them and parade them everywhere.</div>
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The first long queue at a stall - this is the "big sausage wrapped around small sausage" aka double layer roll aka sausage wrapped in glutinous rice. </div>
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Plain tau foo far and tau foo far with the ubiquitous tapioca balls. The tau foo far texture is different in the sense that it is more jelly-like rather than curdy. It's also served steaming hot, which makes the tapioca balls rather gummy. Smooth, springy and gummy textures - weird in an interesting way.</div>
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Honey glazed fruits arranged very prettily. Are tomatoes fruit? Very temptalicious but resist I must.<br />
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Another local favourite, similar to our lok-lok. The Taiwanese version of fast food. Meat, vegetables and processed food on skewers waiting to be dip and cooked in large vats of boiling water (<em>photo on right</em>). You'll see variations of this even at c-stores (convenience stores). They also love offal. You can see the selection of offal available for cooking up -stomach, intestines, kidneys liver etc all waiting to be selected by hungry customers.</div>
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There are plenty of stalls selling soup noodles. The soup is more like a 'kang' ie thick and starchy, not the usual clear broth. Rather like mee suah kang. It's served piping hot and is just the right tummy filler on a winter night. One of our main handicaps is our inability to read fluently in Chinese. We recognise words, but sometimes menus still confound us. So we make do with recognising key words, and pointing to what looks interesting at neighbouring tables. It was hit & miss initially, but as you can see, we've gotten better with every trip we make. </div>
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This was at a dimsum stall. Rice balls and black glutinous rice balls, steamed up in little mini muffin cups. It's rather like eating flavoured sushi rice. <br />
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A couple of literal translations into English - would you care for some bloody cake, a porky box or even a fish that wants sauce to eat? Upon closer inspection, bloody cake isn't as gory as it sounds. It's just black pudding ie congealed pork blood. Still looks pretty blood-curdling though. Porky box = a pork fillet bento. However I really couldn't decipher "fish eat sauce".<br />
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I couldn't help but stop at the neon sign shouting 'squid' in such bright lurid colours. The grilled squid was irresistible; tender, juicy, liberally brushed with a sweet teriyaki sauce which caramelised over the grill and sprinkled generously with toasted sesame seeds. The prawns were largish and sweet, and in Australia you'd call them yabbies. Finger-licking good.</div>
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Malaysia Boleh! Our export toTaichung - Satay! Would have missed this or thought it was yakitori if not for the Malaysian flag which caught my eye.<br />
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With winter being very mild in Taichung (night temperature in the mid-teens), it was quite pleasant to walk around the market. For shoppers, there are plenty of inexpensive bits and bobs - I bagged a winter scarf for NT100. And check out the helmets below :)<br />
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<strong><u>Address :</u></strong><br />
Feng Jia Night Market<br />
Xitun District Taichung, Taiwan.<br />
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<br /></div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-46174484732122374062012-04-08T00:45:00.000+08:002012-04-08T00:45:09.776+08:00Hot Cross Buns<div style="text-align: justify;">
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I never knew that hot cross buns are synonymous with Good Friday. Traditionally, a hot cross bun is a sweet spiced bun made with dried fruit and topped with a cross. Here in KL, you'll see local versions of the buns in bakeries all year round, but these are mostly just sweet buns topped with a piped cross for decoration. Apparently there are a number of beliefs with hot cross buns, and one of my favourites is that you'll have lifelong friendship with the person you share it with.</div>
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Anyway, making hot cross buns isn't difficult at all. Like making any yeast breads, all you need is time for the dough to proof and either some elbow grease or a machine to knead. I was rather careless in my first batch and chucked in a cup of wholemeal flour instead of plain flour. I did wonder why the flour looked odd at that time. Darn. Then as I was getting ready to shape them after the 1st proof, something came up. So I ended up chucking the dough into the fridge for shaping later. Double darn. I thought I was done for, as the dough may have been abused beyond recognition. Luckily for me, this recipe is pretty hardy and as the buns turned out pretty well considering. </div>
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I liked that the cinnamon gave it a warm aromatic flavour and the currants remained plump and juicy (well, about as juicy as dried fruit can get). The kitchen smelled heavenly of cinnamon and spices during the bake-out. The wholemeal gave it more of a bite, so mistake or not, I decided to keep it in the recipe. </div>
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Dear friends, for logistics reasons if I can't share a hot cross bun with you, here's a yummy hot cross bun recipe to share. To life-long friendship :D</div>
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<em>Makes 12 buns</em></div>
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Hot Cross Buns - adapted from <a href="http://bakingdom.com/2011/04/hot-cross-buns.html" target="_blank">Darla of Bakingdom</a></div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong>For buns:<br />1 1/2 cups plain bread flour<br />1 cup wholemeal bread flour<br />1/4 cup sugar<br />1 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast<br />1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon<br />1/4 teaspoon salt<br />1 egg, lightly beaten<br />1/4 cup vegetable oil, or butter <br />3/4 cup warm milk<br />1/2 cup raisins or currants<br />1/4 teaspoon ground allspice (optional) <br />1 egg for egg wash (optional)</div>
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For Icing:<br />3 tablespoons icing sugar<br />2 teaspoon warm water</div>
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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1. Line a baking tray with baking paper. <br />2. Combine the flours, sugar, yeast, cinnamon, allspice and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the center.<br />3. Stir the liquids (milk, egg, oil) into the dry ingredients and mix until a dough just forms. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and rest for 15 minutes. <br />4. Once rested, add in the dried fruit and knead until smooth and elastic. Or use the dough function in a bread maker. If the dough is too dry, add a teaspoon of water at a time. If it is too wet, add a tablespoon of flour at a time.<br />5. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover the proof until double in size, approximately 1 hour.<br />6. Gently punch down the dough, and turn it out unto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 12 pieces, roughly the size of a golf ball.<br />7. Shape the dough pieces into round-ish balls and place on the lined baking tray. Ensure you leave enough space between the dough balls for them to double in size. <br />8. Cover with a clean tea towel and allow to rise until double in size, approximately 1 hour.<br />9. Lightly whisk the egg, and glaze the dough with the egg wash if preferred. Bake in a pre-heated oven 200C/400F for 15-18 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. It should be nicely brown when done.<br />10. Remove from oven and cool completely before icing the cross design.</div>
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11. To make sugar icing, mix the icing sugar and water until smooth. It should be quite </div>
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thick and 'sticky'. Pipe or paint a 'cross' design on each bun.</div>
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<strong>Notes:</strong></div>
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If you don't like wholemeal, just use plain bread flour instead.</div>
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I like baking buns out where they are 'joined' to one another, so I used a 3x4 configuration. Alternatively they can be placed individually.</div>
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Ensure buns are completely cooled before piping the sugar icing, otherwise the icing just melts into the buns.</div>
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I painted the design using a teaspoon :) No more messing with a piping bag or zip-lock.</div>sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-29196323190203491632012-04-04T00:05:00.000+08:002012-04-04T00:05:23.578+08:00Mandarin orange sorbet - without ice-cream machine<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Chinese New Year has come and gone, but it left in its wake more mandarin oranges than we could possibly eat. If like me, you got tired of eating them, why not make them into a nice refreshing sorbet? A mandarin orange sorbet. After all, sorbet is nothing more than frozen fruit juice with syrup. Plus with the weather opening in the low 30s and hitting the mid-30s by noon, a sorbet is a delicious non-fat frozen alternative to ice-cream. You get an almost explosive burst of citrusy mandarin flavour with every spoonful. Somehow the flavours are concentrated and intensified after the entire freezing process. Ooohhh....yummers.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPRdTsGEV8WO1Alu6ZKUSVlAUksqkq1UUE8K6qN7rW_s2eIMiK0q6xLUScFaunkM_L6_1oTi_NmBRgMadt9R-tcqMdq_NorKPGXE4EGN5LV30ILF2FLhhzVc40vuoCJ21g3dI6t-C6ZAn/s1600/DSC01133.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" dea="true" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCPRdTsGEV8WO1Alu6ZKUSVlAUksqkq1UUE8K6qN7rW_s2eIMiK0q6xLUScFaunkM_L6_1oTi_NmBRgMadt9R-tcqMdq_NorKPGXE4EGN5LV30ILF2FLhhzVc40vuoCJ21g3dI6t-C6ZAn/s400/DSC01133.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>isn't it a gorgeous mandarin colour? </em></td></tr>
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After doing some research, most sorbets are best made with simple syrups. A simple syrup is made from equal parts water to sugar. It is the syrup that reduces the freezing point and gives the softer texture to sorbets. Otherwise you end up with a large crystalline icy texture or worse, a solid ice brick. I normally make extra syrup as you can keep the balance in the fridge for later use. Adding a splash of alcohol also gives a less icy texture as alcohol also reduces the freezing point. As a plus, a shot of vodka gives it an added zing and makes it <em>'tres adult'</em>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>splash some of your favourite vodka into your sorbet!</em></td></tr>
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As I didn't have an ice-cream machine, I had to do this manually, which although easy enough, took some time as I had to wait for the freezing process to happen. Do this well ahead of time. It took a couple of tries to get the texture that I wanted. The first came out looking like shaved ice (ala ice kacang). I had forked up the semi-frozen mixture and it stayed that way, like loosely packed snow. It was soft, not icy at all but the texture was too loose and fluffy. Then I tried beating it with a whisk until smooth. This worked better. I had a more compact mixture and it was still soft textured and not icy.</div>
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Trust me, once you've tried making your own sorbet with fresh fruit, there's no going back to the store-bought stuff. I can't begin to describe the clean mouthfeel you get; none of the artificially flavoured funny mouthfeels you get with commercially sold sorbet. </div>
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No additives, no artificial flavours, 100% real. To paraphrase, nothing tastes as skinny as a sorbet feels ;D</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpsMZ1_WK_0GKsqU2c1oLaVdi-Xu76UTPgsbeDzozpdZB1FBh_gqjtMHdV1VI1vflbfC076zGVi5nY69aW1UsTPylkVd9bExm1lGOLIXsyqfRfnP5tvvoY_hre0wgkeTnQuXG9Zd07Larc/s1600/DSC01186.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" dea="true" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpsMZ1_WK_0GKsqU2c1oLaVdi-Xu76UTPgsbeDzozpdZB1FBh_gqjtMHdV1VI1vflbfC076zGVi5nY69aW1UsTPylkVd9bExm1lGOLIXsyqfRfnP5tvvoY_hre0wgkeTnQuXG9Zd07Larc/s640/DSC01186.jpg" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>home-made and guilt-free</em></td></tr>
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<strong>Mandarin Orange Sorbet - without ice-cream machine</strong><br />
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong><br />
300ml mandarin orange juice - squeezed from approximately 5 oranges<br />1 cup water<br />1 cup sugar<br />1 tsp mandarin orange zest<br />30ml of vodka (optional)<br />
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<strong><u>Method</u></strong>:<br />
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1. In a pot, bring the water and sugar to a boil to dissolve the sugar. Boil for about a minute or until the syrup is slightly thickened. <br />2. Stir the orange zest into the syrup. Leave to infuse and cool the syrup before using.<br />3. In a large bowl, pour in the mandarin orange juice and add 1/4 cup of the syrup first. Taste first before adding more syrup. Adjust the syrup quantity to taste. This is important!<br />4. Add the alcohol in if preferred.<br />5. Pour the fruit/syrup/vodka mixture into a shallow pan, preferably glass as this is citrus-based.<br />6. Freeze about 2 - 3 hours, or until it comes to a soft set. The edges should be starting to freeze up, and the center still slushy. With a fork, scrape the frozen bits towards the center and use a whisk to beat vigorously until you have an icy slush. Put it back into the freezer and repeat the freeze/beat cycle another 1 to 2 times. <br />7. After the final beat, leave in the freezer until fully set before serving.</div>
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<strong>Notes:</strong><br />
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After a few days in the fridge (assuming it actually stays that long in the freezer), the sorbet gets icier. Don't fret, just beat it up and freeze it again. <br />I prefer to use a whisk to beat the sorbet. Some recipes suggest using a blender, but I ended up with a semi-frozen slush which was difficult to blend. </div>
<img height="63" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgclccTDaiTGfT4IAKtrfi8C-3GvJ8Qy2DtAzjPusMS4Hjn55x-napoYQXVpHF_FXu4Oblv2zdKtyWdZCOqtL-UjoKmWIYKYI_UqcQy5YuQvvW0e0AGrHHOO_0NkM7CjuWo9d8xV3InlzfG/s320/DSC01133.jpg" style="filter: alpha(opacity=30); left: 300px; mozopacity: 0.3; opacity: 0.3; position: absolute; top: 273px; visibility: hidden;" width="96" />sugarplumhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08269156837558364432noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5827925860405592185.post-56230026876791634312012-03-25T00:40:00.002+08:002012-03-25T00:41:05.974+08:00Banana Apple Muffins - a healthy treat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi81-n-odmaWbq7YtSkKth6EdXwvdjDmCusl6MSxIy1t_ywqKGQxu8YRsoXjvqvcBk8vn4aiDpAytC5HzGXi7oScD0S1Oo6n6aVueEyGLmUiTHORgjj7qbP_e7-cfxBHddaDsbxqkydygJc/s1600/DSC00682.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img aea="true" border="0" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi81-n-odmaWbq7YtSkKth6EdXwvdjDmCusl6MSxIy1t_ywqKGQxu8YRsoXjvqvcBk8vn4aiDpAytC5HzGXi7oScD0S1Oo6n6aVueEyGLmUiTHORgjj7qbP_e7-cfxBHddaDsbxqkydygJc/s640/DSC00682.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I've been on a bit of a roll lately, a muffin roll to be exact. After the <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/02/goji-and-blueberry-super-berry-muffins.html" target="_blank">goji blueberry muffins</a>, and the <a href="http://sugarplumgal.blogspot.com/2012/03/happiness-is.html" target="_blank">banana muffins</a>, this time it's banana apple muffins. Over the last few weeks for some strange reason, we had plenty of bananas in the house (the fruit, not manic humans). I guess the neighbourhood market was selling them on the cheap. </div>
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Incidentally, the most expensive bananas I'd seen were in Sydney in 2006. AUD10! That worked out to AUD2 per banana - I almost fainted in Coles. Coming from a country where banana trees are a dime a dozen, and bananas equally cheap, paying so much for bananas was just mind-boggling. I think they were expensive because Australia was plagued by a severe drought at that time.</div>
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This recipe is a variant on the banana muffin recipe. It produces a moist muffin because of the apples. They are good eaten on their own as the baked apples add a nice flavourful sweetness to them. Who says you can't have healthy and tasty at the same time?</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4pIQIWXeWhzFZUWAFaRtA6m79QsDsIbrshEYGdPOR5B6TxQgCjhGWglOOj5EEJ_4WvuPS4_BtWqKmfZqjsBdrlhw7nkP06RK3xANtYfGVrPN5J1af0dSzy3CEs35G4-kBVvZTqjMyGEw/s1600/DSC00712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img aea="true" border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4pIQIWXeWhzFZUWAFaRtA6m79QsDsIbrshEYGdPOR5B6TxQgCjhGWglOOj5EEJ_4WvuPS4_BtWqKmfZqjsBdrlhw7nkP06RK3xANtYfGVrPN5J1af0dSzy3CEs35G4-kBVvZTqjMyGEw/s320/DSC00712.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>you can see the layer of diced apple in the middle</em></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyTVVjNehiL1yBVMV7apyzpDkkf6OPVtyT1d0oQi7Xx6dDEX21BVaLywZfeDogR95sSJCQclYUEjDE0F77L3Gwp_FfCNKgxHpyCQAeJ9oGo7F2SV6ZYyHeWLGAQEhjW9R8GPnJEw8myUaL/s1600/DSC00713.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img aea="true" border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyTVVjNehiL1yBVMV7apyzpDkkf6OPVtyT1d0oQi7Xx6dDEX21BVaLywZfeDogR95sSJCQclYUEjDE0F77L3Gwp_FfCNKgxHpyCQAeJ9oGo7F2SV6ZYyHeWLGAQEhjW9R8GPnJEw8myUaL/s320/DSC00713.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>soft and moist</em></td></tr>
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<em>Makes 12 muffins</em> <br />
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong></div>
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75g/3oz melted butter<br />
250g/9oz plain flour<br />
2 tsp baking powder<br />
1 tsp soda<br />
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon<br />
115g/4oz sugar<br />
1 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1 tsp honey<br />
2 large ripe bananas<br />
2 medium eggs<br />
125ml/4oz milk<br />
1 green apple</div>
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<strong><u>Method :</u></strong>1. Preheat oven to 190c and prepare muffin trays with liners.<br />
2. Melt the butter in the microwave oven and leave to cool. 20 seconds on medium-high is normally sufficient.<br />
3. Mash the bananas. Peel, cored and dice the green apple.<br />
4. In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, soda and ground cinnamon. Add the sugar and mix well. <br />
5. In a second bowl, mix the eggs, milk, honey and vanilla extract. Stir in the mashed bananas and diced apple. <br />
6. Make a well in the center of the dry bowl and stir in the egg/milk/fruit mixture. Don't over mix. Batter should be lumpy. <br />
7. Scoop batter into muffin tins, about 3/4 full and bake for 20 - 25 minutes.<br />
8. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Use a skewer to test for doneness. Cool 5 minutes in tin before removing. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi019bhK8JC6i_CI09wMDZaYoDh0khW4HO5J3Vs9NzeWZ95ayKrmMkV2sgkjY3NSCEQwz9f0zj3MpoVCs5DwyNF54N86d6S8J2qgO-74jUxOPjXq8CgtYL_7RfcbEkHpaDLa7z19scOBnFy/s1600/DSC00691.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img aea="true" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi019bhK8JC6i_CI09wMDZaYoDh0khW4HO5J3Vs9NzeWZ95ayKrmMkV2sgkjY3NSCEQwz9f0zj3MpoVCs5DwyNF54N86d6S8J2qgO-74jUxOPjXq8CgtYL_7RfcbEkHpaDLa7z19scOBnFy/s400/DSC00691.jpg" width="265" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><em>Enjoy :)</em></td></tr>
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