Had a good 10.4km run at East Coast Park with the housemates. Sis and her boyfriend Eric had participated in the 15km category instead. Picture was taken after the race. All of us looked so tired...
Sunday, May 24, 2009
PHOTOLOG #21: 20090524
Had a good 10.4km run at East Coast Park with the housemates. Sis and her boyfriend Eric had participated in the 15km category instead. Picture was taken after the race. All of us looked so tired...
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Cream Puff
Cream Puff is one of the first few pastry that I had learned to do when I had just started baking at about 15. I still remember how happy my mum was when she let her friends to get a taste of the puffs and they had nodded their heads with approval. That kinda boosted up my confidence and since then I had exposed myself with all kinda recipes from cut newspapers and mum's cookbooks. It had been about 10 years since I made my last batch of cream puffs but strangely it felt as though I had just caught a glimpse of my mum's smile yesterday...
Cream puff is basically choux (pronounced "shoe") pastry + pastry cream. A dollop of choux paste will puff up into a hollow ball when baked and then it's up to you what kinda filling you would like to serve it with. I had made a sweet filling of the renowned creme patisserie (chinese is known as 糕点师傅的奶油) with the leftover vanilla pod.
125ml water
125ml full cream milk
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
110g butter
140g plain white flour (sifted)
5 eggs
Methods:
1. Pour the water, milk, sugar, and salt into a pan. Add the butter. Bring to the boil. As soon as liquid boils, add the flour all at once. Stir vigorously until the dough is smooth.
2. Continue to stir the mixture over the heat for another 2-3 minutes until the dough dried out and comes away from the sides of the pan in a ball. Tip it into a large bowl.
3. Add the eggs one by one, beating well so that each egg is thoroughly incorporated before adding the next. (Use a mixer at low speed if you have one, I didn't bother with that and use a wooden spoon and stir like mad.)
4. When the dough falls as a ribbon, it is ready to be used. (You will know the dough is ready when you lift the wooden spoon, the spoon pulls up some of the dough that then detaches and forms a slowly bending peak.)
5. Preheat the oven to 180 ˚C. Put the choux pastry dough into a piping bag (I had used a disposable one). Pipe balls of the mixture about 5cm in diameter onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment, spacing them about 5cm apart.
6. Bake in oven for about 10 mins or until the pastries are puffed up. Lower the temperature to about 170 ˚C and continue to bake until the pastries are golden and feel hollow, about 10 minutes.
7. Transfer to wire rack and cool.
The choux paste cannot be kept so bake it as soon as you have made it. If you want to make it in advanced, bake the choux paste and keep the cooled choux pastries instead in airtight container.
Creme Patisserie
Ingredients:
250ml full cream milk
22.5g cornflour
62.5g castor sugar
1 vanilla pod
3 egg yolks
25g unsalted butter at room temperature
Method:
1. Whisk the milk and half of the sugar in a heavy-based pan. Split the vanilla pod in half lengthways and scrape out the seeds with the point of a sharp knife. Add the vanilla seeds and pod to the pan. Bring to the boil, whisking all the time.
2. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks, corn flour and remaining sugar until well mixed. Pour the hot milk onto this mixture in a thin stream, whisking all the time. Transfer the mixture back to the pan and bring just to the boil, whisking constantly, then immediately remove the pan from the heat. (Be careful not the let the mixture cuddle if not you will get scrambled egg instead.)
3. Stand the pan in a shallow bowl filled with iced water. Remove the vanilla pod. (I simply rest the mixture on the counter, stir occasionally till no smoke can be seen.)
4. When the sauce has cooled a little (to 60 ˚C), add the pieces of butter, whisking briskly until they have melted and the sauce is smooth and shiny.
I had doubled the pastry cream recipe to fill in all the choux pastries. The cream is best made before it is being used but if you have to make it in advanced, store it in a container with cling wrap touching the surface to prevent the surface from drying. To assemble, insert the pastry cream into a piping bag and pipe the pastry cream into the choux pastry case with a tip. Or if you don't have any of those gadgets, simply cut the tops off the choux, about half the way up. Fill in the base with pastry cream and put the top back. Sprinkle with some cocoa powder or icing sugar. Serve it to your neighbours, your boyfriend/girlfriend, your colleagues, your family or your pet and receive compliments. :)
Now I have 6 egg whites sitting in the fridge. What am I going to do with them? Hmmm.. Chiffon cake anyone? :D
Cream puff is basically choux (pronounced "shoe") pastry + pastry cream. A dollop of choux paste will puff up into a hollow ball when baked and then it's up to you what kinda filling you would like to serve it with. I had made a sweet filling of the renowned creme patisserie (chinese is known as 糕点师傅的奶油) with the leftover vanilla pod.
Cream Puff
adapted from The Cook's Book, recipe of Pierre Herme
Ingredients:
adapted from The Cook's Book, recipe of Pierre Herme
CHOUX PASTRY
125ml water
125ml full cream milk
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
110g butter
140g plain white flour (sifted)
5 eggs
Methods:
1. Pour the water, milk, sugar, and salt into a pan. Add the butter. Bring to the boil. As soon as liquid boils, add the flour all at once. Stir vigorously until the dough is smooth.
2. Continue to stir the mixture over the heat for another 2-3 minutes until the dough dried out and comes away from the sides of the pan in a ball. Tip it into a large bowl.
3. Add the eggs one by one, beating well so that each egg is thoroughly incorporated before adding the next. (Use a mixer at low speed if you have one, I didn't bother with that and use a wooden spoon and stir like mad.)
4. When the dough falls as a ribbon, it is ready to be used. (You will know the dough is ready when you lift the wooden spoon, the spoon pulls up some of the dough that then detaches and forms a slowly bending peak.)
5. Preheat the oven to 180 ˚C. Put the choux pastry dough into a piping bag (I had used a disposable one). Pipe balls of the mixture about 5cm in diameter onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment, spacing them about 5cm apart.
6. Bake in oven for about 10 mins or until the pastries are puffed up. Lower the temperature to about 170 ˚C and continue to bake until the pastries are golden and feel hollow, about 10 minutes.
7. Transfer to wire rack and cool.
The choux paste cannot be kept so bake it as soon as you have made it. If you want to make it in advanced, bake the choux paste and keep the cooled choux pastries instead in airtight container.
Creme Patisserie
Ingredients:
250ml full cream milk
22.5g cornflour
62.5g castor sugar
1 vanilla pod
3 egg yolks
25g unsalted butter at room temperature
Method:
1. Whisk the milk and half of the sugar in a heavy-based pan. Split the vanilla pod in half lengthways and scrape out the seeds with the point of a sharp knife. Add the vanilla seeds and pod to the pan. Bring to the boil, whisking all the time.
2. In a bowl, whisk the egg yolks, corn flour and remaining sugar until well mixed. Pour the hot milk onto this mixture in a thin stream, whisking all the time. Transfer the mixture back to the pan and bring just to the boil, whisking constantly, then immediately remove the pan from the heat. (Be careful not the let the mixture cuddle if not you will get scrambled egg instead.)
3. Stand the pan in a shallow bowl filled with iced water. Remove the vanilla pod. (I simply rest the mixture on the counter, stir occasionally till no smoke can be seen.)
4. When the sauce has cooled a little (to 60 ˚C), add the pieces of butter, whisking briskly until they have melted and the sauce is smooth and shiny.
I had doubled the pastry cream recipe to fill in all the choux pastries. The cream is best made before it is being used but if you have to make it in advanced, store it in a container with cling wrap touching the surface to prevent the surface from drying. To assemble, insert the pastry cream into a piping bag and pipe the pastry cream into the choux pastry case with a tip. Or if you don't have any of those gadgets, simply cut the tops off the choux, about half the way up. Fill in the base with pastry cream and put the top back. Sprinkle with some cocoa powder or icing sugar. Serve it to your neighbours, your boyfriend/girlfriend, your colleagues, your family or your pet and receive compliments. :)
Now I have 6 egg whites sitting in the fridge. What am I going to do with them? Hmmm.. Chiffon cake anyone? :D
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
PHOTOLOG #20: 20090520
My daily MRT rides are always time for some serious readings and sudokus. I had just finished this inspiring book in the MRT in less than a week. Long rides those are.
Monday, May 11, 2009
The Best Scrambled Egg
For those who enjoy a home-cooked english breakfast (or brunch) on a lazy Sunday, this is a perfect recipe for you. In fact it's more like a method of making eggs than a recipe. Seriously no joking, I had tried it myself and personally think it's the best scrambled egg that I have ever tasted. Not too watery nor too dry, the delicate scrambled bits are so smooth that they almost melt in your mouth. I guess must be the method of on-and-off the stove that makes the wonderful texture of the scrambled egg. See it for yourself.
Instead of using creme fraiche (pronounced as "cream fresh"), I had substituted it with a dollop of natural yogurt instead (the leftover ingredient of yesterday's dinner) and I think you can also use sour cream. I had too added some cheddar cheese in which I do that everytime when I make scrambled egg. Didn't have chives so had omitted that, pepper and salt to taste (I put less salt cause the cheese is already salty) and voila!
Trust me, get some sourdough bread, creme fraiche, chives, tomatoes and mushroom and start right away!
Instead of using creme fraiche (pronounced as "cream fresh"), I had substituted it with a dollop of natural yogurt instead (the leftover ingredient of yesterday's dinner) and I think you can also use sour cream. I had too added some cheddar cheese in which I do that everytime when I make scrambled egg. Didn't have chives so had omitted that, pepper and salt to taste (I put less salt cause the cheese is already salty) and voila!
Trust me, get some sourdough bread, creme fraiche, chives, tomatoes and mushroom and start right away!
Saturday, May 2, 2009
Vanilla Sugar
After sending J off at the bus terminal (he was leaving to KL after the ice-cream making workshop), I headed to Phoon Huat to get some plump and pulpy vanilla pod. I am going to visit my uncle and aunt who had just came back from the US for a short stay and thought that a jar of home made vanilla sugar could be a very decent and earnest gift for them.
The first time I got to know the existence of vanilla sugar was through Jamie Oliver's The Naked Chef show which was showing at Discovery Travel and Living channel about 4 years ago. It was very impressive when Jamie said he had always sent a big jar to his mother on her birthdays. I think it's really a great gift especially for people who enjoys tea and coffee. It acts just like the vanilla syrup that is used in caramel macchiato which you order from the menu at Starbucks. When your coffee can now taste so much better, it too looks so much cooler when you bring your friends over for a cup of coffee and indulge them with this deluxe sugar.
the small dots are the seeds from the vanilla pods
Ingredients:
1 vanilla pod
1 cup of superfine sugar (I had used 5 vanilla pods for 1 kg of sugar;try to get the finest sugar you can get but not icing sugar)
Methods:
1. Cut the vanilla pods into quarters and place in a food processor (I had used a blender instead) and process. Scrap the side and process again.
2. Mix the sugar in and process for about 2 minutes. Sieve the mixture into a bowl and return the big lumps into the food processor and blend again. Repeat the process until you get the most out of the pods.
3. Keep the vanilla sugar in an air-tight container and use it for your coffee, tea, dessert and anything you like.
I had infused an extra whole vanilla pod in the jar to further intensify the aroma and taste and perhaps as decorative purposes too.
When J is back from KL, we will make our jar of vanilla sugar together. :)
And I guess I will use the remaining pods to make custard for eclairs that I always wanted to make. Stay tuned.
P/S: You can get vanilla pods at Cooking Island for those who are staying in Penang.
The first time I got to know the existence of vanilla sugar was through Jamie Oliver's The Naked Chef show which was showing at Discovery Travel and Living channel about 4 years ago. It was very impressive when Jamie said he had always sent a big jar to his mother on her birthdays. I think it's really a great gift especially for people who enjoys tea and coffee. It acts just like the vanilla syrup that is used in caramel macchiato which you order from the menu at Starbucks. When your coffee can now taste so much better, it too looks so much cooler when you bring your friends over for a cup of coffee and indulge them with this deluxe sugar.
the small dots are the seeds from the vanilla podsVanilla Sugar
adapted from Jamie Oliver
Ingredients:
1 vanilla pod
1 cup of superfine sugar (I had used 5 vanilla pods for 1 kg of sugar;try to get the finest sugar you can get but not icing sugar)
Methods:
1. Cut the vanilla pods into quarters and place in a food processor (I had used a blender instead) and process. Scrap the side and process again.
2. Mix the sugar in and process for about 2 minutes. Sieve the mixture into a bowl and return the big lumps into the food processor and blend again. Repeat the process until you get the most out of the pods.
3. Keep the vanilla sugar in an air-tight container and use it for your coffee, tea, dessert and anything you like.
I had infused an extra whole vanilla pod in the jar to further intensify the aroma and taste and perhaps as decorative purposes too.
When J is back from KL, we will make our jar of vanilla sugar together. :)
And I guess I will use the remaining pods to make custard for eclairs that I always wanted to make. Stay tuned.
P/S: You can get vanilla pods at Cooking Island for those who are staying in Penang.
PHOTOLOG #19: 20090501
J and I went to an ice-cream making workshop at a local ice-cream parlour today. I personally think that the workshop is very well conducted and I had won myself a pint of ice cream by giving the correct answer of a quiz question. We had fun making and tasting our self-made ice-cream and the best part was what that came next... ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET!!!! As what the owner David said, there are about 30 flavours selling at the shop but J and I only got to taste 8 flavours... We were too full after sharing the 8 scoops of ice-cream, 1 waffle and 2 cappuccinos. We had chosen the 8 most appealing flavours and I think we had found our favourites. There are some really adventurous flavours like D-24 durian, mau san wang durian and cempedak which we weren't interested to try. But I guess those are the flavours that somehow make the shop stands out from the typical ice-cream parlour you always see.
In the end I had chosen a flavour that J, Elmo and I can enjoy together... no chocolate or coffee this time. :D
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