Chocolate Banana Marble Bread

Ingredients:
3 medium very ripe bananas, at room temperature
1/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup unsifted unsweetened good cocoa powder
3 tablespoon boiling water, plus more if needed
180gm unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 175C. Lightly spray the 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with vegetable oil and line with a parchment paper that extends 1 inch beyond the long edge of both side s of the pan.
2. Peel the bananas and mash them with a fork or using a food processor. Mash or process to a smooth puree. Measure 1 cup of the puree and transfer it to a medium bowl. Add the buttermilk and vanilla and whisk until blended. Set aside.
3. Sift the cake flour, baking soda and baking powder into a medium bowl. Whisk to blend well and set aside.
4. Place the cocoa powder in the small bowl. Pour the boiling water over the cocoa powder and stir until smooth. If it is too thick, add a little water. Set aside.
5. Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on medium high until the butter is very light and white in colour, about 4-5 minutes. Scrape down the bowl with a silicone spatula.
6. On medium speed, gradually add the beaten eggs, 1 tablespoon at a time. About halfway through, turn the mixer off and scrape down the bowl. Continue adding the rest of the eggs. Scrape the bowl again.
7. On low speed, add one third of the flour mixture. Add half of the banana mixture. Repeat with the flour-banana-flour. Scrape down the bowl and finish blending the batter by hand using a silicone spatula.
8. Transfer half of the batter to a clean medium bowl. Add the cocoa paste and blend well.
9. Drop alternating spoonfuls of dark and light batters into the prepared pan, then marbleize by using a spoon or knife.
10. Bake the cake for 55-60 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
11. Transfer the cake to a wire rack and let it cool completely in the pan. When cool, remove from the pan, peel off the parchment paper and cut slices with a serrated knife.

Note:

To ensure that the cake has an intense burst of banana flavor, be sure to use bananas that are very ripe and soft, with plenty of black spots speckling their skins.

Breakfast Rolls

Breakfast Rolls

Ingredients:

12 slices of sandwich bread - I used Gardenia Sandwich Bread
6 Cheddar cheese slices - halved
6 slices of chicken meatloaf - halved
Mushroom Filling
Tomatoes & capsicum - diced (optional)

Butter
1 large egg
2 tsp milk

Instructions:
Using a rolling pin, flatten the a slice of bread.
Place a half sheet of the cheese on top of the flattened bread. Put the meatloaf, a tablespoon of mushroom filling and vegetables. Roll up like a swiss roll cake. Set aside. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

Heat a tablespoon butter in a frying pan over a medium low heat.
Lightly whisk the egg and milk.
Dip the roll into the egg mixture, carefully place it in the frying pan and cook until golden brown.
Repeat with the remaining rolls.


Mushroom Filling 

Ingredients:
1 medium sized yellow onion - diced
4 large sized portabello mushrooms - sliced (you can also use button mushrooms)
Olive oil
1 tbsp butter
Pinch of salt
Pepper

Instructions:

Drizzle some olive oil in a pan over a medium heat.
Add the onion and cook until translucent. Add in the mushrooms, butter, salt and pepper. Cook until the mixture looked a bit dry. Remove from heat.

Mini sausage buns

The temperature in the country has been dropping since a couple of weeks ago. It is cooler in the morning and at night. So we decided to have a picnic in one of the recreational area here on Sunday morning. Made these mini sausage buns on Saturday night for the breakfast picnic.

Ingredients

120 ml warm milk
100 ml warm water
4 tbsp sugar
2 tsp dry yeast
340gm bread flour
60 gm plain flour
1 large egg
60 gm unsalted butter, melted
1/4 tsp salt
16 mini/cocktail sausages

1 egg yolk
1 tbsp milk
Grated cheese


Instructions 

1. In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm milk, water, sugar and yeast together and stir. Set aside for 5 minutes or until foamy.
2. Add the egg, butter, flour and salt. Place the bowl on the mixer with a dough hook. Knead on low speed for 8-10 minutes and until the dough does not sticking to the sides of the bowl. Add a tablespoon of extra flour at a time if it does.
3. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2 minutes. Form into a ball and put it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or kitchen towel and let it rise for 1 hour or doubled in size.
4. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into 16 weighing about 50 gm each. Shape each into a rope about 5-6 inches in length.  Wrap the rope around the sausages, slightly pinch and tuck both ends underneath.
5. Transfer the bun on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat.Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap or kitchen towel and leave to rise for about 20 minutes. 
6. Preheat the oven to 175C.
7. On a small bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolk and milk. Brush the loaf with the glaze, sprinkle some grated cheese on top and bake for 15 minutes or until golden.
8. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Cover with a kitchen towel.

Variation
Instead of sausages, you can also shape the dough into a round braided or long braided bun, glaze and sprinkle some cheese and sugar for some beautiful Cheese Braided Buns.

Enjoy these lots with a cup of tea or coffee under a tree on a freshly cut green grass in a beautiful garden.

Honey Oat Bread - Revisited

Ingredients:

3 cups of bread flour, extra as needed

3/4 cup rolled oat

1 cup warm milk (not hot)

1/4 cup lukewarm water

1/2 tsp sugar

2 1/4 tsp instant yeast

1/4 cup honey

2 tbsp salted butter, softened
2 tbsp warm honey
2 tbsp rolled or instant oat

Instructions (by hand):

1. In a large bowl, combine 3 cups of the bread flour and oats and lightly whisk using a fork just until incorporated.
2. In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm milk, water, sugar and yeast together and stir. Set aside for 5 minutes or until foamy.
3. Add the honey, butter and the flour mixture. Attach a dough hook attachment to the stand mixer and fit the bowl to the mixer. Beat for 8 minutes. (Note: If you are not using a stand mixer, knead by hand for 10 minutes).
4. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2 minutes. Form into a ball and put it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for 1 hour or doubled in size.
5. Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands, knead it for 2 minutes and roll it into a log shape, add more flour if needed.  
6. Place the dough into on a lightly greased or parchment-lined loaf pan, cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap or clean kitchen towel, and let rise for about an hour. 
7. About 15 minutes or so before baking, preheat the oven to 180C degrees  and bring 2 cups of water to a boil. 
8. Brush the dough with warm honey and sprinkle with 2 tbsp of oat.
9. Lower the temperature to 160C. Put 2 cups of the boiling water in an empty loaf pan, place it at the bottom rack of the oven and put the loaf in the oven.
10. Bake it for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden. Remove it from the oven.
11. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing it with a serrated knife. 

Note: 
The oven temperature may varies. My oven is very hot at 160C...so study your oven :)

Sesame Swiss Braid

Ingredients:

For the bread
350g / 3 cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
8g dry yeast
2 tbsp warm water (not hot)
150ml / 2/3 cup sour cream ( I used the same amount of buttermilk), at room temperature
1 egg, lightly beaten, at room temperature
50g / 1/4 cup butter, softened

For the glaze
1 egg yolk
1 tbsp water
1 tsp sesame seeds

Instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm water, sugar and yeast together and stir. Set aside for 5 minutes or until foamy.
2. Add the sour cream, egg, butter and the flour. Place the bowl on the mixer with a dough hook. Knead on low speed for 8-10 minutes and until the dough does not sticking to the sides of the bowl. Add a tablespoon of extra flour at a time if it does.
3. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2 minutes. Form into a ball and put it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for 1 hour or doubled in size.
4. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into half. Shape each into a long rope about 14 inches in length.  
5. On a baking sheet, place the 2 pieces of rope on top of each other to form a cross (X). Fold one top end over and place between the bottom ropes. Fold the other top end over so that the four ropes are pointing downward. Starting from the left, braid the first rope over the second, the third and over the fourth. Continue with the other ropes, and tuck the ends underneath.
6. Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap or kitchen towel and leave to rise for about 40 minutes. 
7. Preheat the oven to 190C.
8. On a small bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolk and water. Brush the loaf with the glaze, sprinkle some sesame seeds on top and bake for 30 minutes or until golden.
9. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Easy Breakfast Pancake

Ingredients:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
A pinch of salt
2 tsp sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
1 cup milk (or a combination of 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup buttermilk)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract or 1/2 tsp orange juice (optional)

Instructions:

1. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar until combined.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the egg, milk and vanilla until just blended. Pour into the flour mixture. Whisk until fully incorporated.
3. Add in the melted butter, whisk until smooth.
4. Spray some vegetable oil on a medium frying pan over a medium low heat. Scoop 1/4 cup onto the heated pan. Cook for 1 minute or until  bubbles appear on the surface, the side of the pancake becomes firm and the pancake is golden underneath. Flip it over and cook for another minute. Repeat with the remaining batter.
5. Serve with maple syrup, pancake syrup or honey with some blueberries or any fruits of your choice.

Petits Pains Au Lait (French round milk rolls)

Ingredients (12 rolls):

450g / 4 cups bread flour
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp caster sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
7g / 1.5 tsp dry yeast
1 cup warm milk (not hot)

Instructions:

1. In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, combine warm milk, sugar and yeast together and stir. Set aside for 5 minutes or until foamy.
2. Add the butter and the flour. Attach a hook attachment to the stand mixer and fit the bowl to the mixer. Beat for 8 minutes.
3. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 2 minutes. Form into a ball and put it into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for 1 hour or doubled in size.
4. Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into 12 equal pieces. Shape into balls and put them on a baking sheets with 1 inch space from one to another.
5. Using a sharp knife, cut a cross on top of each roll. Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap or kitchen towel and leave to rise for about 20 minutes. 
6. Preheat the oven to 200C.
7. Brush the rolls with milk and bake for 20 minutes or until golden.
8. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Round Braided Brioche

I can never tired of breads...sometimes it is just the same bread all over again but I'm making it or trying it using a different element. This brioche recipe is the same recipe that I used for the past few years but I don't think I have ever put it on in this blog. Normally I will use a strong flour but today I am making it using unbleached plain wheatflour (10% -11% gluten) and mixed it with a small amount of strong white bread flour (13% gluten). The texture of this bread recipe using a strong bread flour is more chewy because of the high percentage of gluten inside it (see Challah) whereas if using an unbleached white plain flour, it produces a slightly flatter and denser texture as seen below. It is a bit crumbly, but not as crumbly as a cake. But the taste it still the same. So, if you want a slightly denser bread, you may want to add up to a 1/2 cup of strong flour on top of 500gm unbleached plain wheatflour. I think, the one using strong bread flour is a bit lighter...

Ingredients:

200ml warm milk

2 tsp active dry yeast

60gm sugar

90gm melted butter

2 eggs

500 gm strong bread flour, more if needed

1 tsp salt

Instructions:

1. Combine the warm milk & sugar in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast over the top. Lightly whisk to blend and let it stand for 5-10 minutes until foamy.
2. Add the egg, butter, 500gm flour and salt. Place the bowl on the mixer with a dough hook. Knead on low speed for 8-10 minutes. If using unbleached flour, you may want to add one tablespoon at a time and up to 1/2 cup of flour until the dough does not sticking to the sides of the bowl.
3. Remove the dough from the bowl. Form it into a ball, transfer it into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1.5 hours. 
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and lightly knead, add more flour if needed. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. With flattened hand, roll each piece back and forth, forming a 15 inch rope with tapered ends.
5. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat and lay 2 ropes horizontally and 2 ropes vertically on the sheet crossing each other, just like lattice pastry. Weave or braid the ropes together accordingly into a round shape. Pinch together the four ends and tuck them under the bread.
6. Cover the braid loosely with oiled plastic wrap or clean kitchen towel and put in a warm place, let rise 40-50 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180 degrees C a few minutes before baking.
7. Glaze the braid with beaten egg and bake in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes until golden.
8. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing it with serrated knife.

Bread's 4 Essential Ingredients

For me breadmaking is therapeutic....it can easily provide you satisfaction seeing the yeast becoming active and foamy in the warm water. When the dough doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl, you will feel relieved knowing the gluten has actually worked. The soft and elastic dough while you kneading it with your bare hands makes you very happy because you are more that half way through before having some freshly baked breads on the table for breakfast. I like making bread and seeing my children eating the bread that I made...just priceless.

The Bread Bible by RLB listed 4 essentials ingredients in making bread - unbleached wheatflour, water or other liquids, yeast and salt. It is simple, isn't it? So talking about flour, what type of flour to use in making bread? The simplest way of choosing the flour is...look for a bread or strong flour. Bread flour or strong flour is normally used interchangeably, so what is strong flour? It is a flour with a protein content between 12%-14%. Another type of flour that can be used is unbleached all purpose flour with 8%-11% protein. You can check the amount of protein at the back or side of the packaging. 

If you are using normal plain/all purpose flour for a recipe that calls for bread flour, just replace:

1 cup bread flour = 1 cup plus 1.5 tablespoon all purpose flour

Other ingredients that are commonly used in bread is sweeteners such as sugar or honey or maple syrup, and fat such as butter and oil.

Maple Pecan Sticky Buns

Dough

Ingredients:
1/2 cup warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1.5 tsp active dry yeast
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
2.5 cups bread flour  (I used 1.5 cups bread flour & 1 cup cake flour)
1/2 tsp salt
113g or 4oz unsalted butter, soft at room temperature

Instructions:

1. Combine the warm milk & sugar in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast over the top. Lightly whisk to blend and let it stand for 5-10 minutes until foamy. 
2. Add the egg and egg yolk and whisk until combined. Add in the flour and salt and place the bowl on the mixer with a dough hook. Knead on low speed for 2 minutes and increase to medium speed for 1 minute. With the mixer still running, add the soft butter, 1 tbsp at a time, allowing each addition to blend well before adding the next. Once all the butter has been added, let the mixer knead the dough for another 5-6 minutes at medium low speed, until the dough looks soft and silky.
3. Remove the dough from the bowl. Form it into a ball, transfer it into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1.5 hours. 
4. Start preparing the topping & filling (recipe follows).
5. Punch down the dough and turn it onto a lightly floured surface. Press down the dough firmly to flatten it and expel the gas. Dust the top with some flour. Roll the dough into a 10x16 inches rectangle. Position the dough so that one of the long sides is parallel to the edge of your work surface.
6. Using a metal or silicone spatula, spread the filling over the dough, leaving a 1 inch border along the long side opposite you.
7. Beginning with the long edge closest to you, roll the dough into a cylinder, gently tucking and tightening as you roll. Gently but firmly. Wet your finger and gently run your wet finger over the long edge opposite you (it will serve as a glue to seal the roll). Finish rolling the dough onto the border. Roll the dough backwards so that the seam facing upward and pinch all along it to seal the dough. Turn the seam side down and cut the roll into 10-12 equal pieces. Set each bun with a cut side up on your work surface and gently flatten it a bit with the palm of your hand. Place the buns into the prepared cake pan, spacing them evenly. Cover loosely with a plastic wrap and let them rest for 45 minutes. 
8. Preheat the oven to 180C. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the buns are deep golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack for 5 minutes. 
9. Run a metal spatula around the edge of the pan to loosen the buns, invert the bun over a large baking sheet . You have to do this while the buns are still quite warm or else the topping will stick to the pan.

Topping
90g or 3 oz unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup maple syrup
1 cup chopped pecans

In a mixing bowl of a stand mixer or a hand mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat for 2-3 minutes until creamy and a bit pale. With the mixer still running on medium speed, pour the maple syrup in a thin stream down the sides of the bowl and blend until smooth. Scrape the topping into a 12 inch  cake pan and spread evenly. Scatter the chopped pecans over the top. Set aside.

Filling
60g or 2 oz unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Place all ingredients in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer and beat for 2-3 minutes until creamy and lightened.

Chicken Pepperoni Pizza

Ingredients:

The Crust

5 tsp active dry yeast
2 1/4 cups warm water
2 tsp sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
5 cups bread flour, plus some extra as needed
1 tbsp salt
Plain flour and semolina flour for rolling and shaping

The Topping

2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups instant spaghetti sauce
200gm sliced chicken pepperoni or salami
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
2 medium sized portobello mushroom - cleaned and sliced
1 red capsicum - chopped

Instructions:

By hand:

1. In a very large bowl, dissolve yeast & sugar in the warm water and let stand for 5-10 minutes until foamy.
2. Add oil, flour and salt. Stir with your hand until a rough ball forms, don't worry if it is still sticking to your hands at this stage. Using a plastic pastry scraper, scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough until smooth and elastic, 8-10 minutes. Add up to a cup of extra flour while kneading to prevent the dough from sticking.

By stand mixer:

1. Or...if you are already fit enough :) and do not need extra exercise, dissolve the yeast in a mixing bowl of a stand mixer and let stand until foamy, add the oil, flour and salt and place the bowl on the mixer with a dough hook. Knead on low speed for 10 minutes.  Add up to a cup of flour while kneading so the dough will not be sticking from the sides of the bowl.
2. Remove the dough from the bowl. Form it into a rough ball, transfer it into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1.5 - 2 hours. Beware...the bowl must be big enough!
3. Preheat the oven 250C for at least 30 minutes before baking.
4. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Cut the dough half . Gently shape each half into a loose ball. Cover loosely with the plastic wrap and let them rest for 10 minutes.
5. Lightly dust 1 dough ball with plain flour and roll it into a round 30cm in diameter or a rectangle
6. Sprinkle 2 tbsp semolina flour on your baking tray and transfer the dough onto the tray.
7. Brush the top of the dough with olive oil.
8. Spread 1 cup spaghetti sauce over the surface. Sprinkle half of the cheddar cheese. Scatter half of the pepperoni and vegetables. Top with 1 cup mozzarella.
9. Bake the pizza for 10-15 minutes until crisp and golden.  Repeat with the other half dough.

Cranberry Orange Scones

Ingredients:
2 cups of all purpose flour
1 3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup dried cranberry
1 egg, lightly whisked

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200C
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add the sugar & orange zest. Whisk them to combine. 
3. Grate the cold butter into the flour mixture and mix with your fingertips until it became crumbly.Add the buttermilk to the flour mixture just until it combined and became a soft dough.
4. Transfer the dough into a lightly floured surface, gently knead and roll it into a 1/4 inch thick dough. Dip a scone cutter into flour and stamp the dough into 8-10 scones depending on the size of the cutter.
5. Place the scones into the baking tray 1 inch apart, brush the top with egg and sprinkle some granulated sugar if you like. Bake them in the oven for 12 minutes.
6. Serve it warm with cream and jam

Coconut Friands

I was watching the latest Masterclass episode of the Masterchef Australia Season 5 last week. The MC Oz S5 is in their final week with 5 remaining contestants i.e. Rishi my man..., Lynton, Emma, Christina and Samira. I hope (fingers crossed) that Rishi will win. That man is a machine, he's genius, he's so focussed but at the same time has some sense of humour.

So back to the story of the Masterclass episode, Gary made a batch of friands and I never thought that it was so easy. I saw one coconut friands recipe in one of my cookbook by Dorie Greenspan but it didn't come with a photo so I was turned off. But when I saw Gary made it which is obviously so simple and seems like making a pancake batter, so...I thought I can do this. I have an office potluck scheduled on Monday 26th August and my colleageus requested for tiramisu. I made 2 batches of tiramisu using 12 egg yolks on Sunday. So I thought of using the egg whites for the friands and I thought the cakes are best to be consumed on the day they are baked so I bake them on Monday morning.

The original recipe by Dorie uses 4 egg whites so I doubled the recipe...and I still have some more egg whites in the fridge. Her recipe is a basic recipe using coconut without any filing, nuts or fruits. So I took Gary's idea by adding some raisins soaked in some liquid. So what I have here is an adaptation of Dorie Greenspan and Gary Mehigan's recipe. Actually I was a bit worried seeing the ratio of sugar in it! But Dorie assuring us a not-too-sweet little tea cake...and yes it was true. So enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup orange or grape juice

4 egg whites
1/2 cup cake flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup sugar
1.5 cups shredded dried or dessicated unsweetened coconut
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1. In a small saucepan, combine the raisins and juice. Heat them up on medium, and let it boil and the juice reduced a bit. Turn of the heat and set aside.
2. Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 180C. Have ready 12 paper cups or a 12-hole greased muffin pan 
3. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Fold in the sugar, salt and coconut. Lightly whisk and set aside.
4. In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites until smooth and a little foamy. Whisk in the dry ingredients in 2 addition, making sure it fully incorporated. Add the melted butter and whisk until smooth.
5. Spoon the batter into the paper cups, filling them almost to the top. Spoon a small amount of the soaked raisins on top.
6. Bake for 15-17 minutes, rotating halfway of the baking time. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
7. Cool on wire rack.

Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup sunflower or canola oil
2 large eggs
1.5 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
zest of 1/2 lemon
zest of 1/2 orange
2 medium carrots, grated
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Have ready 12 paper baking cups
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, whisk sugar and oil together until just combined, then add eggs one at a time. Fold in the flour mixture and zests. Add in the carrot and walnuts, and stir until combined.
4. Spoon the mixture evenly into the baking cups and bake for 20 minutes.
5. Cool completely on a wire rack. 
6. Start on the Cream Cheese Frosting.
7. Once the cakes completely cooled, just smear the frosting on top.

Honey Oat Bread

I haven't baked any bread for quite some time, well it also has been a while since my last post on food obviously. I was sick a week after the birthday party, my taste bud had gone haywire, I wasn't in the mood of baking anything as my sense of smell was also affected. If you can't taste and you can't smell the food, so what's the point, right?

So, last night, I felt like I need to start gaining back my momentum in baking. Bread making seems comforting and easier so I Googled a good Honey Oat recipe, I found one from Bakingdom.com. It was delicious... just plain honey oat bread with butter...

 Ingredients:

1 cup milk

1/4 cup lukewarm water

1/4 cup honey

2 tbsp salted butter, softened

3 cups of bread flour

2 1/4 tsp instant yeast

3/4 cup rolled oat or instant oat - (i used 1/2 cup rolled oat and 1/4 cup oat bran)

2 tbsp warm honey
2 tbsp rolled or instant oat

Let's roll!:

1. Place milk, water, honey, butter, flour and yeast in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Put the oat in the ingredient dispenser and set for Dough/Knead and press Start.
2. If using hand, follow Bakingdom's link as above, cover the dough, and let it rise for 1 to 2 hours, or until it's nearly doubled in bulk.
3. When cycle finishes, gently deflate the dough and turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and lightly knead, add more flour if needed. 
4. With floured hands, knead it for 2 minutes and roll it into a log shape. Place the dough into on a lightly greased or parchment-lined loaf pan, cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap ir clean kitchen towel, and let rise for about an hour.
5. About 15 minutes or so before baking, preheat the oven to 160 degrees. Put 2 cups of water in an empty loaf pan, place it at the bottom rack of the oven and bring it to boil. 
6. Brush the dough with warm honey and sprinkle with 2 tbsp of oat.
7. Bake it for 40 to 45 minutes, until golden. Remove it from the oven.
8. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing it with a serrated knife.

 As no preservatives were used in this bread, it is best to be consumed within 3 days max.

By the way, Iron Man 3 starts today...tried to book a ticket at my favorite cinema, but all the good seats are fully booked until 1st May.. :(

source: Google

Maple Pecan Squares

Maple & Pecan are best friends. It always great together. The earlier post on Maple Walnut Squares which I did because I do not have pecan within reach so I decided to substitute it with walnut...well, this weekend I finally baked it with the suggested ingredients...pecan! It is so delicious and I wouldn't substitute it with walnut..ever again! We just can't separate or substitute our best friends, right? Even when there are times that we need to say farewell to our best friends...InsyaAllah...we will find a way to catch up, even for just for a little while... :)

 

Ingredients:

Crust

1 1/4 (200g) cup all purpose flour

1/3 (75g) firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 (125g) cup cold unsalted butter, chopped

Filling

6 tbsp (90 g) butter

1/3 cup (105 g) pure maple syrup

2/3 (155 g) firmly packed brown sugar

1/3 cup (80 ml) heavy /double cream

2 cups (250 g) coarsely chopped pecans

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius and line a 9 inch square baking pan with heavy duty aluminum foil. Let the foil extend up the sides of the pan. Spray the foil with vegetable oil.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt, stir until blended. Fold in the butter and mix until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
3. Press the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for 12-17 minutes until edges are lightly browned.
4. In a saucepan over medium heat, combine and stir together the butter, maple syrup and sugar until the butter melts and sugar dissolves.
5. Bring to a boil and continue to let it boil for 1 minutes.
6. Remove from the heat and stir in the cream. Fold in the nuts and pour the filling over the crust. Spread evenly.
7. Bake for 25 minutes or until the filling is set when you give the pan a gentle shake.
8. Let cool completely for about 1 1/2 hours before lifting up the liner from the baking pan.
9. Cut it into 25 small or 16 medium squares.

Oatmeal Energy Bars

Kids will never in a million years...love rolled oats. At least for most of the kids that know...my kids, my nieces, my nephews, grandkids (I'm not that old by the way)...so how to get them to eat oat? Put them in the things that they do love to eat. Oatmeal chocolate chips cookies for example? Yeah...but it kinda a cliche, don't you think. My kids love this energy bars...it has lots rolled oats, rice krispies, nuts, sunflower seeds and of course I have to put a little bit chocolate chips in it...just to make it more appealing for the kids..urmm adults too :) .

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 cups rolled oat
2 cups rice krispies
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup melon seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cups dessicated coconut
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Bake it alright!:

1. Preheat oven to 175Cel, spray an 8x8 baking tray with vegetable oil
2. In a small saucepan over a medium heat, melt the butter, honey & brown sugar - or you can just put them in the microwave and heat until the ingredients fully melted.
3. In a big mixing bowl combine all the dry ingredients except the chocolate chips.
4. Fold in the butter mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until combine. Add the chocolate chips.
5. Scrape and fold the mixture into the prepared baking tray and using the back of a wooden spoon press it evenly as possible
6. Bake for 15 mins, cool for about one hour at room temperature and and refrigerate about 30 minutes before slicing them up.

Dairy Challah

I have been meaning to make Challah for quite some time...ok...ok..when I said some time, it means a few years :). Like the croissant in the previous posting, I did some research on it, reading from a number of books, multiple websites, youtube-ing etc. So today, I finally baked Challah...a dairy one. Traditionally, the classic Challah is made with water instead of milk and oil instead of butter. For those who loves bread pudding, Challah is great to be used in making it.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup milk

2 tbsp honey

1 1/8 tsp instant yeast

2 large eggs, at room temperature

3 tbsp butter, softened

2 1/2 bread flour, plus more if needed

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

Method:

1. Place milk, honey, 2 eggs, butter, salt, flour and yeast in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Set for Dough/Knead and press Start.
2. When cycle finishes, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and lightly knead, add more flour if needed. Divide dough into 3 equal pieces. With flattened hand, roll each piece back and forth, forming a 15 inch rope with tapered ends.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat and lay the 3 ropes on the sheet with the ends facing you. Pinch together the three ends furthest from you and braid the ropes together. Tuck the ends under just slightly.
4. Cover the braid loosely with oiled plastic wrap or clean kitchen towel and put in a warm place, let rise 40-50 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180 degrees C a few minutes before baking.
5. Glaze the braid with beaten egg and bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes until golden.
6. Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing it with serrated knife