Cooking – ohdenny

Checkered Cookies

February 27, 2015 Posted in Baking, Cooking, RecipesLeave a comment

There are these checkered cookies that my mother used to buy for us as kids growing up. I love the look of the cookies with its contrasting colours and the buttery goodness of the biscuits. We received a gift of these biscuits from Malaysia one day and it spurred me to try making it myself. Not an easy task mind you. I found this wonderful recipe from Cook & Be Merry with amazing photos to boot. Being a perfectionist in this instance is probably for the better but alas I was a bit pressed for time so my “checkered” cookies were a bit more individualistic. Loved the taste of them though!

Checkered Cookies (Cook & Be Merry Recipe)
Makes: ~100 cookies

Ingredients
Vanilla Cookie Dough
170g unsalted butter
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk (reserve egg white for brushing)
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

Chocolate Cookie Dough
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder, sifted after measuring
½ teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
115g unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg

1 egg white, beaten, for sticking layers of dough together
2 cookie sheets with 2 sheets parchment cut to fit sheets

Method – Vanilla Cookie Dough

1. In a large bowl or a mixer, beat the butter, sugar and salt until well mixed, light colored and fluffy, about 2 minutes, then beat in the vanilla and egg yolk. Keep beating until very smooth, about 2 more minutes.

2. Scrape the bowl and beat in the flour. Cover and chill the egg white until needed.

3. Scrape dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface and press into a 2.5 cm (1 inch) thick square. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill until firm, several hours or up to 3 days.

Method – Chocolate Cookie Dough
1. In a bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Stir well with a whisk to mix.

2. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar with a fork until well mixed and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

3. Beat in the vanilla and egg until the mixture is very smooth, about 2 minutes longer.

4. Mix in the flour mixture until well combined.

5. Form the dough into a ball and press into a 2.5 cm (1 inch) thick square. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill until firm, several hours or up to 3 days.

Method – Assembling the Checkers

1. Unwrap the Vanilla Cookie dough and roll it out on a floured parchment sheet on work surface into an 20×30 cm (8×12 inch) rectangle about 1 cm (3/8 inch) thick with square corners. Slide dough on parchment onto a cookie sheet, cover securely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes until firm again. Do the same with the Chocolate Cookie dough.

2. Place the unwrapped vanilla dough on parchment on your work surface. Paint with the egg white and place the chocolate dough on top, parchment side up. Place a cookie sheet on the stack and gently push down so the two layers stick together.

3. Cut the dough rectangle in half through the parchment so you have two 20×15 cm (8×6 inch) rectangles. Paint the top of one rectangle with egg white and put the second rectangle on top so the four layers are alternating black and white. Press gently with pan to help stick together. With a sharp knife, trim the four sides so they are straight and square. Wrap and chill for several hours, keeping the corners square.

4. Place unwrapped dough stack on cutting board with the 20 cm (8 inch) side facing you. With a sharp knife, cut the 15 cm (6 inch) side into sixteen 1 cm (3/8 inch) thick slices.

5. Place one striped slice on the cutting board and brush it with egg white. Turn the next slice over and place it on top of the first slice so the stripes are alternating in color. Repeat two more times so there are four layers with alternating colors and the end looks like a checkerboard.

6. Make three more stacks with four slices each. Wrap each stack in plastic wrap and gently press each side with the pan to square it. Refrigerate on cookie sheet for several hours or freeze for future use.

7. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius (350 degrees F) with racks in upper and lower thirds of the oven.

8. Slice the cookies to roughly 1/2 cm (1/4 inch) thick, turning the stack after each cut so it doesn’t become flat from the knife pressing down.

9. Place cookies on parchment covered pans one inch apart and bake for 9 to 11 minutes until firm to the touch. Slide the parchment with the cookies onto a rack or countertop to cool. Store in one layer between parchment in air-tight container.

Chilli Pork Sausage Rolls (Jamie Oliver)

January 30, 2015 Posted in Baking, Cooking, RecipesLeave a comment

I’ve always liked a sausage roll that varies slightly from the norm. I grew up with Four and Twenty Sausage rolls at school but to be honest it was never a favourite. The Aussie Meat Pie came out on top each time. However, sausage rolls are great for picnics or finger food parties so I found this recipe on the Jamie Oliver website. Recipe is by Peter Begg, it creates an interesting combination of chilli and paprika. I made some additions to the recipe to give it a bit of sweetness and also if you cannot find pork sausage meat or it may be out of your price range it can be substituted with pork mince and a few other ingredients as noted below. Check out the recipe below!

Chilli Pork Sausage Rolls (Jamie Oliver)

Serves: 10 (as snack)
Preparation: 25 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes

Ingredients
3-4 red chillies (or use 1 to 1 1/2 tbsp chilli flakes)
500 g higher-welfare pork sausage meat*
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
3 tbsps sweet chilli sauce
2 tbsps chives (freeze dried or fresh)
black pepper
500 g puff pastry
2 free-range egg yolks, beaten with a splash of milk
1/2 tbsp whole cumin seeds

*Variation
500g pork mince (fine)
50g breadcrumbs
1-2 tbsps water (if necessary)
1 tsp pepper
2 tsp salt

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4.

2. Pierce the chillies then toast over a gas flame or a hot grill until black and blistered. Place in a bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave to cool.

3. When cool enough to handle, pull off and discard the skins then scoop out the seeds – or leave in if you want fireworks! Chop the chilli flesh and set aside.

4. Mix with the sausage, paprika, chives, sweet chilli sauce add in the chilli flesh or chilli flakes and add a pinch of pepper.

5. Sprinkle a work surface with flour. Cut the pastry in half and roll out into 2 strips, 50cm x 15cm each.

6. Shape the sausage meat into 2 sausage shapes and place along the middle of each strip. Coat the pastry either side of the sausage with the egg mixture. Fold the pastry over and press down to seal.

7. Brush the tops of the sausage rolls with egg wash, sprinkle with cumin seeds and sea salt (Sprinkle less on top for a more subtle cumin taste). Cut into 5cm lengths and place on a non-stick baking sheet.

8. Bake for 20 minutes, until risen, puffed and golden brown.

Blue Glutinous Rice Cake (Pulut Tai Tai) with Kaya

December 12, 2014 Posted in Cooking, Desserts, Malaysian, RecipesLeave a comment

On my last trip to Malaysia, I purchased a couple of recipe books (as I usually do), one of these was Nyonya Kueh by Chef Ricky Ng. I love how cheap the books are over there and such delicious looking recipes too. Nyonya Kueh are one of my favourite Malaysian snacks, there is incredible variety with sweet and savoury delights, but I have a preference for the sweet varieties. On occasion we buy the blue glutinous rice cakes with pandan kaya from Madam Kwong’s in Box Hill but I love giving it a try and making everything from scratch. So here is my adapted recipe from Ricky Ng.

Blue Glutinous Rice Cake (Pulut Tai Tai)

Rice Cake
Ingredients
A
820g glutinous rice (soaked overnight)
12 bunga telang/clitoria flower (or a few drops of blue food colouring mixed with water)
a few pieces banana leaf

B
2 ¼ cups thick coconut milk
1 tsp salt
1 piece pandan leaf (knotted together) – Original recipe uses 3 pieces

C
3 tsp sugar (coconut sugar used)
a few drops pandan essence (optional)

Kaya

85g sugar (coconut sugar used)
35g brown sugar
3 duck eggs/eggs (chicken eggs can be used too)
1 tbsp custard powder
90ml thick coconut milk

Method
1. Pound bunga telang (blue flowers), mix with 4 tbsp of water well, and strain to get the blue colouring

2. Mix soaked glutinous rice with Ingredients B and let it rest for 5 minutes.

2. Steam the rice over high heat for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir well with chopsticks.

3. Add in Ingredients C and mix well. Steam mixture for another 10 minutes

4. Add in blue colouring to ½ portion of cooked rice, mix well and steam it for 5 minutes

5. Line a 19cm square tin with banana leaves. Spoon cooked blue rice and white rice alternatively into the tin. Cover the rice with banana leaf and place a heavy object on top to compress the rice.

If you don’t have a square tin and banana leaves, you can scoop all the mixture out and place it back into the tray so it’s all mixed up a bit but you’ll also need to compress the rice in the tray too. Set it aside to cool completely before cutting into pieces. Serve with Kaya (Recipe below)

Kaya
1. Mix all the ingredients well in a pot, and if need be strain the mix to rid of any lumps.

2. Place water in a pot to boil. Once the water is simmering, place a heat proof bowl on top of the pot (make sure the water does not touch the heat proof bowl) and cook until kaya mixture turns golden brown and thick. Be careful not to curdle the eggs. Stir constantly to prevent burning at the base of the pot.

Impressions

I bought some coconut sugar from Costco and thought it would be a good idea to use it in the glutinous rice as well as the kaya. Coconut sugar as a distinct taste (of coconut, duh!) but it also has this toasted coconut taste to it which might be a bit overpowering for some.

What I found was that if you soak the glutinous rice too long and/or leave the rice to steam for too long, the grains aren’t as defined. The rice appears to absorb too much of the coconut mixture or too much moisture from the steam. Flavour wise it’s great, but leaving it longer than just overnight might be overdoing it.

I also realised the colouring from the blue flowers didn’t seem to cover all the rice, so it might be good to make a bigger batch of the natural colouring mixture just in case or if you prefer a darker blue kueh.

Also as a warning, making the kaya even over steaming water that doesn’t touch the bowl can still be a dangerous affair. The eggs can cook extremely quickly if you’re not careful or if you leave the flame too high. If it does look like the eggs have cooked, one little trick is to use a hand blender and give it a good mix to break it up, that allows the kaya to form a smoother paste (taste-wise it’d be the same)

Using coconut sugar in the kaya also gives the kaya a very strong toasty taste, I’d probably just opt for caster sugar next time for that more authentic taste but that’s the good thing about cooking and experimenting, food is never the same.

Oreo Cupcakes with Cookies & Cream Frosting

October 12, 2014 Posted in Baking, Cooking, RecipesLeave a comment

I was thinking of something new to bake one day and I trawled through pages and pages of different cupcake ideas and recipes until eventually I found a recipe with Oreos in it. However, that particular one used a chocolate cake base which I preferred not to as I wanted to avoid a chocolate overload. So onwards I searched for the perfect Oreo cupcake recipe with icing and subsequently I found a recipe from Cook With Manali which looked absolutely beautiful that I had to give it a try. Spoiler alert: This were seriously addictive.

Oreo Cupcakes with Cookies & Cream Frosting (Cook With Manali Recipe)
Makes: 16-18 cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcakes
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups Oreos (broken into small pieces) + 16-18 Oreo halves
2 eggs, at room temperature

Cookies & Cream Frosting
115g cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3- 3 1/2 cups icing sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
2-3 tbsp heavy cream or milk
1 cup Oreo crumbs (crushed in a blender & then strained)

Mini oreos for decorating the cupcakes

Method

Oreo Cupcakes
1. Line a muffin pan with cupcakes liners, set aside. Preheat the oven to 175 C/ 350 F degrees (Depends on your oven as I have mine at 150 C for most baking)

2. In a bowl sift together all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In the steel bowl of your stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or using hand mixer, beat the eggs and both the sugars together till creamy & pale in colour, around 3-4 minutes.

4. Add oil, vanilla and mix until combined.

5. Start adding the flour mixture and buttermilk in batches. Add the flour first, combine then add the buttermilk. Add the flour mixture in 3 parts and buttermilk in 2 parts, starting and ending with flour.

6. Mix the batter till everything is well combined but do not over mix.

7. Fold in the broken Oreo pieces, stir and combine.

8. Place an Oreo on the bottom of each cupcake liner or twist the Oreo and put one cookie at the bottom of the pan with cream side up.

9. Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake for 15-20 minutes on until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Mine were done in 16 minutes at 150C)

10. Cool the cupcakes on wire rack before frosting them.

Cookies & Cream Frosting

1. Crush Oreos in a blender/food processor to get Oreo crumbs. Strain or sieve if needed to get rid of any bigger chunks.

2. Using your mixer, beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth and creamy.

3. With mixture at low speed, add 1 cup of icing sugar. Mix until it’s incorporated with the butter and cream cheese and them beat it at high speed for 30 seconds. Add the remaining sugar and mix.

4. Add vanilla and cream/milk and mix.

5. Add Oreo crumbs and beat till frosting is smooth and creamy.

6. Frost the cupcakes and decorate with mini oreos.

Notes

These are vanilla Oreo cupcakes, you can make chocolate Oreo cupcakes using cocoa powder in the batter.
Adjust the consistency of the frosting according to your preference. Add more cream for a spreading consistency, more sugar for thicker consistency to pipe flowers etc.
You can use milk in the frosting but cream adds a wonderful rich flavour so if possible please use heavy cream.
Do not over-bake your cupcakes. Keep an eye on them after 15 minutes.

Impressions

I made this for my Buddhist community celebration earlier this year and the feedback was very positive! One thing to note though was that I prepared the frosting earlier in the day and then popped it in the fridge, and I forgot to take it out again to leave it at room temperature and as you can see the frosting I made initially does not look like the end result! I over whisked the frosting and consequently the frosting turned from what was a beautiful cookies and cream frosting where you can see the white cream and chocolate cookie crumbs to a completely chocolate frosting, so please be cautious of this when making the frosting.

Other than that, I do suggest reducing the sugar, I reduced it by a third from the original recipe and I found it a bit too sweet still because the Oreos are already ridiculously sweet as you have the base as Oreos plus the Oreo pieces in each cupcake. I haven’t tried just using 1/4 brown sugar but next time I’ll give it a go and update.

What I love about these cupcakes was the broken Oreos in the cake for some bite and also the half Oreos for the base that give it a cheesecake-like crumb base. Plus, the vanilla cupcakes itself are so moist and light. The use of oil instead of butter really makes such a difference!

Spanish Baked Eggs (Ms I-Hua Recipe)

April 4, 2014 Posted in Cooking, European, Recipes, SpanishLeave a comment

Having wanting to make Spanish Baked Eggs after being exposed to it here and here. It really does seem like a simple, yet delicious breakfast, brunch or even lunch dish that you can whip up yourself in minimal time. I found this recipe from Ms I-Hua which looked so inviting that I definitely had to give it a try. After making some tacos, I had left over corn and capsicum which I just added in and came out quite well might I add.

Spanish Baked Eggs & Chorizo (Recipe by Ms I-Hua)

Ingredients:
4 mid-large Eggs (room temperature)
1 mid-sized SpicyChorizo (sliced diagonally)
1 can (400g) of Diced Tomatoes
1 can (400g) of Cannellini Beans or Butter Beans (washed and drained) – I used mixed beans
1/2 can (200g) of Sweet Corn Kernels
1/2 Red Capsicum (diced)
1 French Shallot (diced)
2 Garlic Cloves (diced)
1/2 tsp of Smoked Paprika
1/4 tsp of Ground Cumin
1/4 tsp of Cayenne Pepper
1 tsp of Parsley Flakes
1 Tbsp of Ketchup
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 Tbsp of Olive Oil
Handful of Mozarella or Cheddar cheese shredded

Method
1. Preheat your oven to 200°C (degrees Celsius).

2. In a pan, heat olive oil on medium heat and add in diced garlic and French shallots. Cook until fragrant but careful not to burn them.

3. Add diced tomatoes, cannellini/butter beans, chorizo slices, capsicum, smoked paprika, ground cumin, cayenne pepper and ketchup. Cook for about 6-8 minutes till it reduces slightly. Add in the chorizo slices (Ms I-Hua’s recipe suggests you can add them in now or just before placing the dishes in the oven)

4. Turn heat off and add in parsley flakes with salt and pepper to taste.

5. Transfer into individual cazuelas (terracotta dish) or baking dishes.

6. Make a well in the middle and break an egg into each dish. You can add some cheese on top as well before placing in the oven.

7. Place each dish into the oven and cook for 8-12 minutes depending on how you want the yolk (oozy or solid). It will take longer to cook if the eggs are straight from the fridge.
(Ms I-Hua Note: It’s best to keep an eye out on the yolk as different ovens and baking dishes/cazuelas (flat or tall) may vary in cooking time)

8. Once the baked eggs are done, take them out of the oven carefully (it’s hot!) and sprinkle with a little more salt and pepper. Garnish with fresh chervil or parsley and some cheese if preferred. Serve with a slice of sour dough bread

Impressions
I loved this recipe. It’s especially fragrant and the right amount of spices. I kinda used this recipe to use up all my other leftover ingredients which suited the recipe here actually. The cheese gave it an added richness but you can always do without it.

I must admit I over cooked the eggs, but it still came out pretty well in the end. I’d also prefer more diced tomatoes in the mix, to give it a bit more sauce though. Would definitely recommend this recipe to others, you’d be amazed at how the simplest spices of paprika, cayenne pepper and cumin (in such small quantities) can really burst out in flavour and create a genuine crowd pleaser.

Fettuccine with Parsley Pesto and Walnuts

February 14, 2014 Posted in Cooking, Italian, RecipesLeave a comment

During the last couple of months, my home grown parsley grew wild and unattended (oops). It almost looked like a small tree with a very thick and stern trunk/stem. Having an exorbitant amount of parsley I searched for recipes that used parsley in excess, which was really why I was growing parsley in the first place but never gotten around to cooking anything with it. Luckily, I found this seemingly quick and easy fresh vegetarian pasta recipe from Foodandwine.com which looked fantastic and turned out quite well too if I do say so myself. Check it out below!

Fettuccine with Walnut-Parsley Pesto
Total Time: 30 mins
Servings: 4

Ingredients
3/4 cup walnut halves (3 ounces)
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves, plus 2 tablespoons coarsely chopped
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus shavings for garnish
1/2 pound fettuccine (225 g)
1 garlic clove, smashed
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup vegetable stock
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Toast the walnuts in a pie plate for 7 minutes, or until golden; let cool. Coarsely chop 1/4 cup of walnuts and transfer to a bowl; add the 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley and half of the grated Parmesan.

2. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta until al dente; drain.

3. In a mini food processor, pulse the remaining 1/2 cup of walnuts with the 1/4 cup of parsley leaves and the garlic until finely chopped. Add the remaining grated Parmesan cheese and the olive oil and process to a coarse purée. Season the pesto with salt and pepper.

4. Return the pasta to the pot. Add the vegetable stock and butter and simmer until the liquid is nearly absorbed, 1 to 2 minutes. Off the heat, add the pesto and toss until combined. Transfer the pasta to a bowl, garnish with the walnut, parsley and Parmesan topping and Parmesan shavings and serve.

Impressions
My only downfall with this dish was my failure of pouring in all the dry fettuccine into boiling water all at once. This resulted in clumping of the noodles and uneven cooking as some became thick strands (undercooked) and others cooked past al dente.

Flavour wise, it was pretty tasty for a dish that has minimal ingredients, the parsley pesto was extremely flavourful and a bit of a zing. As this dish has no meat, I’d actually prefer more walnuts to be added (maybe 1 cup) instead as I also added one whole bag full of fettuccine (probably too much actually). Other than that, I found this recipe to be one I’d be keen to try again.

Walnut and Choc Chip Cookies

January 31, 2014 Posted in Baking, Cooking, RecipesLeave a comment

I love freshly baked cookies and even more so love making cookies. For one, it’s so easy to make and secondly, just the smell of them baking in the oven makes you all feel like a kid again. I made these cookies when I really had nothing else to do and had walnuts and choc chips lying around in the pantry. I must point out that these cookies don’t use baking powder so you will find they will not expand in the oven nor will they have that chewy texture some might prefer (like Subway cookies). These are slightly denser but tasty nonetheless. Check out the recipe from Taste.com.au below

Walnut and Choc Chip Cookies (Taste.com.au)

Ingredients
125g butter, softened (You can use baking margarine but will not have the same taste)
50g (1/4 cup, firmly packed) brown sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
225g (1 1/2 cups) plain flour
150g good-quality dark cooking chocolate, coarsely chopped (or buttons)
150g (1 1/2 cups) walnut halves, coarsely chopped

Method
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line 2 baking trays with non-stick baking paper.

2. Use an electric beater to beat butter and sugar in a medium bowl until well combined. Add the egg and beat until combined.

3. Sift the flour over the butter mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined. Add the chocolate and walnuts, and stir to combine.

4. Use your hands to roll tablespoonsful of the cookie mixture into balls. Place the balls, 3cm apart, on prepared trays. Use a fork to flatten slightly.

5. Bake in preheated oven, swapping the trays halfway through cooking, for 20 minutes or until light golden. Remove from oven and set aside to cool on the trays for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Impressions

I used margarine (that can be used for baking) but found it lacks the buttery taste that makes cookies so tasty and also slightly drier. It’s a somewhat strange taste at first but after a few bites it isn’t so bad and actually kinda addictive. The chopped walnuts have this beautiful aroma in the cookies and the dark chocolate chips give it just enough sweetness. I know most would prefer more sugar, so even doubling the sugar while using dark chocolate chips still would be not too sweet.

I found that the original recipe uses 200g of cooking chocolate but when mixing it all in, it looked like a ridiculously large quantity that would overwhelm the entire cookie and you wouldn’t be able to shape them properly. Just slowly add the walnuts and chocolate in until you come to your preferred balance. As mentioned above, the cookies will almost be the same size before and after baking so keep that in mind. I wouldn’t call these healthy cookies but they are a lighter option if using margarine and less chocolate (and sugar)

Greek Almond Crescents

January 17, 2014 Posted in Baking, Cooking, RecipesLeave a comment

There is this bakery in Newmarket/Flemington that has wonderful biscuits. One of these is their crescents which are buttery, light and nutty. I came across a Greek Almond Crescents recipe in the book, Mastering the Art of Baking by Anneka Manning. These Almond Crescents are very similar to the ones I found in Flemington but the ones in the recipe book do call for chopped nuts which I don’t recall them being so prominent in their version. These crescents are very easy to make and I don’t think you can really go wrong with the mixing, just knowing when the crescents are done is probably the most difficult part. Check out the recipe below!

Greek Almond Crescents
Makes 38
Preparation Time: 20 mins
Cooking Time: 20 mins

Ingredients
200g butter (softened)
1/2 cup icing sugar (sifted) plus extra for dusting
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
1 egg (at room temperature)
1 egg yolk
1 tbs brandy
375g/2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
155g/1 cup blanched almonds, toasted and finely chopped

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160C (315F). Line 2 large baking trays with non-stick baking powder.

2. Use an electric mixer to beat the butter, sugar and orange zest in a small bowl until pale and creamy.

3. Add the egg, egg yolk and brandy and continue to beat until well combined. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

4. Sift together the flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Then stir in the almonds. Add to the butter mixture and use a wooden spoon to mix until well combined.

5. Shape level tablespoons of mixture into crescents and place on the trays, leaving about 3 cm (1 1/4 inches) between each to allow for spreading

6. Bake for 15-20 minutes, swapping the trays around after 10 minutes, or until lightly golden and cooked through. Leave on the trays for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Dust heavily with icing sugar while still warm then cool to room temperature.

Impressions

As mentioned above, the difficult parts is probably whisking the eggs and sugar until it’s light and fluffy, mixing the flour in well and letting the crescents bake in the oven for the specified amount of time. If your crescents are larger (they will take more time) so you may want to factor that into your baking time but also a good way to check is if the bottom of the crescent is firm and can easily be lifted up (also a tad brown)

I love these crescents, it has just the right amount of butter but also the cinnamon flavour subtly comes through. If you find cinnamon a bit strong, just half the amount in the recipe and I think you still will be able to taste it. You know the crescents are perfect when it melts just ever so slowly in your mouth. Truly a recipe you wouldn’t want to miss.

White Chocolate Panna Cotta with Espresso Coffee Syrup and Toffee

January 3, 2014 Posted in Confectionery, Cooking, Desserts, RecipesLeave a comment

Wanting to make a Panna Cotta but without the trouble of pureeing fruits like mangos to make the Panna Cotta, I found this white chocolate recipe on Taste.com.au. The addition of the coffee syrup intrigued me as it seemed too delicious not to give it a try. I’ve made this a couple times already and have made a few changes to the recipe to my liking. As something extra, I tried to add some toffee on top just to make it look nicer.

White Chocolate Panna Cotta with Espresso Coffee Syrup (Taste.com.au)

Equipment
You will need eight 150ml capacity dariole moulds for this recipe. If you like to serve it in bowls, just any small bowls will do.

Ingredients
Panna Cotta
600ml thickened cream
1 x 180g pkt white chocolate, broken into small pieces
160ml (2/3 cup) milk (can use light milk)
70g (1/3 cup) caster sugar
2 tbs boiling water
3 tsp powdered gelatine

Coffee Syrup (Version 1)
100ml freshly brewed strong espresso coffee or 3 Nespresso capsules using the espresso function
3 or 4 tsp white sugar

Coffee Syrup (Version 2)
100ml freshly brewed espresso coffee (3 Nespresso capsules using the espresso function – froth skimmed off)
100g raw sugar/caster sugar

Toffee (Taste.com.au)
215g (1 cup) caster sugar
60ml (1/4 cup) water

Panna Cotta
Method
1. Heat water in a small saucepan over medium/high heat until it starts to boil. In a separate heat-proof bowl place the cream, chocolate, milk and caster sugar in the bowl and over the saucepan over medium/low heat. Cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes or until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth.

2. Place the boiling water in a heatproof bowl. Sprinkle with gelatine and whisk with a fork to remove any lumps. Set aside for 3 minutes or until gelatine dissolves. (I also just place the bowl of gelatine on top of my bowl of boiling water which helps keep it warm/dissolve any extra gelatine powder)

3. Add gelatine to cream mixture and whisk to combine.

4. Pour among eight 150ml capacity dariole moulds. Place on a baking tray. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 6 hours to set. Or overnight. Make sure the plastic wrap is tight as some of the heat from the mixture may create water droplets and affect the consistency on the top layer of the panna cotta (Although not an issue if using dariole moulds and turning them upside down)

5. Dip moulds, 1 at a time, into hot water for 1-2 seconds, then turn onto serving plates. Drizzle with coffee syrup (steps below) to serve.

Coffee Syrup (Version 1)

1. Place the coffee and white sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Set aside to cool.

Note: You may not even need to heat it over a saucepan if you can dissolve the sugar in the hot coffee/espresso. If using Nespresso capsules, just skim off the froth before serving.

Coffee Syrup (Version 2)
1. Place the coffee and sugar in a small saucepan over medium/high heat until it starts to boil. Reduce down to a medium/low heat and stir until the syrup coats the back of the spoon or until the consistency desired. Please note that if you place the syrup in the fridge (or when cooled down) the syrup will be slightly more thicker and viscous than when it was cooking. Set aside to cool and then place into the fridge if you prefer it to be a thicker consistency.

Toffee
1. Stir water and sugar in a saucepan over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Don’t bring it to the boil until all the sugar is dissolved.

2. Increase heat to high. To dissolve any sugar left on the side of the pan, brush down with a wet pastry brush. Bring to boil.
3. Cook until the mixture is a rich golden colour – don’t let it burn. Remove from heat – the residual heat continues to colour toffee.

4. Allow to cool and break into pieces to decorate. Please only add the toffee when wanting to serve, otherwise the moisture from the panna cotta will result in the toffee to turn to liquid.

Notes:

Toffee troubleshooting: A common problem when making toffee is crystallisation. The sugar clumps together into a white and grainy syrup that turns into a messy solid mass. To avoid starting again, try these tips.
Dissolve the sugar completely before increasing the heat and bringing the mixture to the boil. You’ll know when it’s dissolved – there won’t be any crystals on your spoon.
Brush any sugar crystals from the side of the pan with a wet pastry brush during the toffee-making process. Undissolved sugar on the side of the pan causes crystallisation.
Don’t stir the toffee mixture once it comes to the boil – this also leads to crystallisation.

Impressions

I reduced the sugar from the original recipe as I find the white chocolate already adds a significant amount of sugar to the panna cotta. The panna cotta here is smooth and creamy but slightly denser due to the larger quantity of thickened cream used. Some may prefer a lighter panna cotta (I actually do) but due to the amount of cream used and in the white chocolate too, it really can’t be helped. I’m not sure if increasing the milk quantity and lowering the cream would result in a panna cotta that sets properly but certainly I’ll keep you updated to see if that does work.

The coffee syrup (Number 1) is a more liquid syrup with less sugar. It allows the bitterness and strong espresso flavour to come out and since the panna cotta has enough sweetness, the contrast makes an excellent combination.

Version 2 of the coffee syrup is sweeter due to the requirement to make it more viscous and thicker. You don’t know how many times I tried reducing the first version into a thicker syrup when it couldn’t possibly do so with the minimal sugar added. The consistency of version 2 is lovely though.

As mentioned above, the toffee should only be added at the very last minute, as it will start to turn to liquid when either in contact with the panna cotta or coffee syrup slowly.

This recipe was a crowd pleaser so I definitely can recommend giving it a try and it’s very easy to make as well.

Roast Turkey with Bacon, Pine-Nut and Herb Stuffing

December 20, 2013 Posted in American, Bakery, Cooking, RecipesLeave a comment

I’ve always wanted to cook a turkey and have that American Christmas. It’s something you always see on TV with the centrepiece being this just golden brown turkey straight out from the oven looking ever so lovely. This recipe I’ve tried a couple of times and the stuffing that goes with it is absolutely delicious. It can really take quite sometime to prepare and wait for it to cook but the end result is always satisfying. Check out the recipe below, I believe it’s from Women’s Weekly Christmas Edition from a couple years back.

Christmas Turkey with Pine Nut, Herb and Bacon Stuffing

Ingredients

5kg turkey (I used a ~4kg turkey)
60g butter, melted
1 1/2 cups (375ml) salt-reduced chicken stock (or enough to cover the pan)

Pine Nut, Herb and Bacon Stuffing
125g butter
2 medium (300g) brown onions, chopped finely
2 trimmed (200g) celery stalks, chopped finely (did not include)
4 rashers bacon, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, crushed
4 cups (200g) loosely packed coarse fresh white sourdough breadcrumbs
1/2 cup (80g) toasted pine nuts
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsely
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh sage
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon rind
1 egg, beaten lightly

Gravy
60g butter
50g plain flour
1 cup (250ml) dry white wine
1 1/2 cups (375ml) salt-reduced chicken stock

Method
Pine Nut, Herb and Bacon Stuffing:
1. Melt the butter in a large frying pan over medium heat; cook the onions, celery, bacon and garlic, stirring, until softened; cool. Combine onion mixture in a large bowl with the remaining ingredients

2. Preheat oven to 180C (160C fan-forced). Discard neck from turkey if still intact. Briefly rinse turkey under cold waterl pat dry inside and out with absorbent paper. Fill neck cavity loosely with some of the stuffing (don’t pack too tightly, as it will stop the meat from cooking evenly). Secure skin over the opening with toothpicks to enclose stuffing. Fill large cavity loosely with remaining stuffing (you may have some stuffing leftover). Tie legs together with kitchen strings tuck wings under.

3. Place turkey on oiled rack in a large flameproof baking fish. Brush turkey all over with half of the butter, rub a little salt onto skin. Pour the stock into the dish. Cover dish tightly with greased foil; roast for 2 hours. Uncover turkey; brush with remaining butter. Roast, uncovered, for a further 1 hour 30 minutes or until browned all over and cooked through, adding more water to the dish if needed. Remove turkey from dish, cover turkey with foil; stand for 15 minutes while preparing gravy.

Gravy
4. Pour turkey pan juices from dish into a medium heatproof jug discard fat from surface of pan juices. Heat the butter in same baking dish, add flour; cook, stirring, until mixture is well browned. Gradually stir in wine; bring to the boil. Stir in reserved pan juices and stock; bring back to the boil and simmer, stirring until gravy thickens. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Strain gravy into a jug. Serve with turkey (Not suitable to freeze or microwave)

Side Note:
Thawing Your Turkey
Allow time for thawing a frozen turkey. A 5 kg turkey will take about 3 days to thaw in the refrigerator. Place it on a tray in its original packaging or covered with plastic wrap

Checking if the Turkey is Cooked
Test it by inserting a skewer sideways into the thickest part of the thigh, then remove and press flesh to release the juices. If the juices runs clear, then the turkey is cooked.
Or, you can use a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh without touching the bone. It should reach 90C

You can cook the stuffing separately
Make it as per the recipe but increasing the eggs to 2 eggs. Shape into a 28cm log on an oven tray lined with baking paper. Once the turkey is cooked, increase the oven temperature to 200C (180C fan-forced). Cook, uncovered for about 20 minutes or until well browned and crisp.

Carving Your Turkey
1. Remove kitchen string. Cut through the skin between the breast and the leg and push the leg away from the breast to make room to carve

2. Begin carving slices off the breast, starting at the top of the breastbone and slicing at an angle away from the centre of the bird. Cave as much as your family needs

3. Separate drumsticks from the thigh by cutting through the knuckle at the point of the bend.

4. Make a vertical cut above the wing through the body and remove. Repeat these steps for the other side of the turkey.

Cooking Times for Turkey Sizes
2kg to 3kg – 1 hour 30 mins to 2 hours 15 mins
3.1kg to 4kg – 2 hours 15 mins to 2 hours 45 mins
4.1kg to 5kg – 2 hours 45 mins to 3 hours 30 mins
5.1kg to 6kg – 3 hours 30 mins to 4 hours 15 mins
6.1kg to 7kg – 4 hours 30 mins to 5 hours 30 mins

Impressions

Following the recipe to a T, it works out wonderfully. The meat of the turkey comes out so buttery smooth and just cooked to perfection. It can be very easy to overcook turkey. I find it you stick with those meat thermometer recommended temperatures like at 90C it can be a tad dry. I find that you can have great tasting turkey at around 77C but should be at least 74C for health and safety reasons.

The stuffing is the best stuffing I’ve ever had, and the parsley and pine nuts play a big part in that. It truly is a wonderful recipe. I’ve never tried the gravy to be honest, as I like to eat turkey with just a bit of tabasco sauce but I think most gravies taste similar so never bothered with it. The recipe is also very easy to follow and the hardest part is basically making sure the turkey is cooked right so once you got that down, cooking turkey will become a breeze.