Homemade Sushi

Since there are only 3 of us at home this week, decided to make sushi for dinner last night. Despite the fact that I have made these sushi for the 5th time this year, I still couldn't manage to roll the maki neatly :(

I find it very tricky to be able to spread the sushi rice evenly on the sheet of nori (Japanese seaweed). Even if I could get a decent rolled "log" of maki, I always "deformed" them when trying to slice it into pieces. Instead of neat round shapes, they ended up in irregular forms. I wonder how many times I must try before I could get a nice and neat の on my maki?!

For the filling, I used crab meat sticks (my kids favorite), cucumber, salmon spread (ayam brand) and some pork floss. The combination of these ingredients was just right, although they were not the ones used in authentic California rolls.

With these basic ingredients, I made 4 types of sushi...Chumaki, Hosomaki, Gunkan-maki and Uramaki.

Maki Zushi
Maki Zushi or rolled sushi is made with a sheet of seaweed spread with vinegar flavored Japanese rice and then rolled up with different fillings. Hosomaki are small sushi rolls about 1 inch in diameter. I simply rolled up crab meat sticks with some mayonnaise to form these thin rolls. The medium ones are called Chumaki, around 1 1/2 inches wide. I have not ventured into making Futomaki which are large rolls, more than 2 inches wide.


Gunkan-Maki (Battleship Sushi)
These are special type of the nigiri zushi(finger sushi). Battleship sushi is make by wrapping a strip of seaweed around a small oval-shaped rice ball, and topped with soft fillings such as fish roe. The collar of nori that's wrapped around the rice ball make the sushi looks like a tiny vessel...hence the name battleship sushi. I made mine with pork floss and salmon spread toppings.

My younger boy enjoyed making the rice balls. Somehow, small kids simply like to play with anything that they could shape with their hands, like playdough and making sandcastles.


Uramaki Zushi (Reverse Maki)
These reverse maki or inside-out rolls are wrapped with the rice on the outside and the nori within. This is supposed to be easier to make than Chumaki as the sushi rice on the outside helps stick everything together when you roll it up. On the contrary, I found it more difficult as the filling couldn't stick on to the nori, as such they were not firmly bounded together. I coated the outer layer of rice with toasted black seasame. The seasame really enhanced the taste of the maki, and they were the most delicious of the lot!

Dried Fig Muffins

Dried figs are very healthy snacks. A cup of figs will give as much calcium as a cup of milk. Besides being rich in calcium, they are also high in dietary fiber and contain other minerals such as iron, potassium, omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids. I used to eat quite a fair bit of dried figs when I was pregnant, they are really a good alternative source of calcium since I didn't really like milk.

I didn't know that dried figs could be added to muffins until I came across this recipe from a cookbook, Muffins by Williams-Sonoma. It didn't take me too long to get a pack of dried figs to try it out.


Unlike most muffin recipes where dried fruits are simply added to the batter, this recipe recommended that the dried figs be soaked in a mixture of orange zest, apple juice and melted butter for an hour. This softened the dried figs and turned them into a rich mahogany colour. When the muffins were still baking in the oven, my kitchen was filled with this sweet and enticing "perfume" of dried figs. The pleasant aroma lingered till the muffins were completely cooled. The muffins were a little on the sweet side (although I did cut down on the sugar a little), mainly due to the figs. My little one though I have added in a candy in the muffins ! The texture was a little dense, but overall the taste was really delicious. Definitely a wholesome and healthy bake, good for breakfast or as tea-time snacks.

Ingredients:
(makes 11 muffins)

375g dried figs
90g unsalted butter
250ml apple juice
grated zest of 1 orange
315g plain flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
125g granulated sugar
60g dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract/essence

Method:

1. Remove the stem and cut dried figs into quarters.
2. Heat apple juice and butter in a saucepan over low heat until the butter is melted.
3. Remove from heat and add in the figs and orange zest. Leave to cool until the figs are softened, about 1 hour.
4. Preheat oven to 190 degC. Grease muffin cups with butter or line with muffin liners.
5. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugars, salt and baking powder.
6. Make a well in the centre and add the cooled fig mixture, eggs and vanilla. Stir until just combined. Do not overmix, the batter will be slightly lumpy.
7. Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling to the rim of the cup.
8. Bake for 20 ~ 25 mins, until golden, and toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Transfer muffin pan to cooling rack and let cool for 5 mins. Unmold the muffins and let cool completely.

Chewy Oatmeal Raisins Cookies

Almost two months back, my friend gave me a pack of rolled oats. I have not used it as I have yet to come across any suitable recipes. Lately, I have set some basic requirements when it comes to baking recipes...the amount of sugar and fat to be used should not be too overwhelming so that I could still indulge on the bakes without expanding my waistline further ;)

I finally found this cookie recipe that uses roll oats, with only 1 egg and vegetable oil instead of butter. It's taken from a cookbook, Homemade Cookies by Jacqueline Bellefontaine. The method for making these oatmeal raisins cookies is almost similar to the muffin method, where the wet ingredients(milk, egg & oil) are added to the dry ingredients (flour, rolled oats, sugar, raisins) to form a soft dough. The cookies were lightly browned by around 10mins in the oven, and I gave it a couple more mins to reach golden brown.


This is the very first time I have tasted any cookies that are made of roll oats. I was slightly taken aback by the texture of the cookies. They differ from the familiar crunchy texture I always associate with cookies. Instead, they are rather chewy, probably due to the rolled oats...and the middle is soft and moist, a result of the use of liquid oil, I think. I don't know whether this is the right texture and I seriously think that they are like half-baked cookies!

I personally have yet to acquire the taste of such kind of cookies, but surprisingly, my better half finds it very delicious! Well, like what he commented, "These certainly tasted not like cookies and not like muffins either", but he likes it that way...


Ingredients:
(makes about 36 cookies)

150g plain flour
150g rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
150g light brown sugar
50g raisins
1 egg
125ml vegetable oil (I used sunflower oil)
4 tablespoon milk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200 deg C. Lightly grease a baking sheet (I lined the baking sheet with parchment paper for ease in cleaning).
2. Mix together flour, oats, baking soda, sugar and raisins in a bowl. (I 'plump up' the raisins a little by soaking them in water for a couple of mins.)
3. In another bowl, whisk together the egg, oil and milk.
4. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the egg mixture. Mix together to form a soft dough.
5. Place spoonfuls of dough well apart onto the baking sheet, and flatten slightly with the tines of a fork.
6. Bake for about 10 mins. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an air-tight container.
   
   

Banana Blueberry Bread

The one week school holidays is over. It was a good break for all of us. The boys are back to school and I had some quite moments this morning.

I had some left over blueberries and bananas, and decided to bake something with them. After looking through the various recipes I have gathered, a banana quick bread recipe from the Australian Women's Weekly cookbook series, Great Casual Food, caught my eye. I liked the fact that it uses 1 egg and only 20g of butter!

I added in blueberries, reduced the sugar amount, used low-fat milk and turned it to a Banana Blueberry Bread. I don't know whether this could be considered low-fat, but I would certainly feel less guilty if I eat more than 2 slices at a go.


The taste of quickbread is almost similar to muffins...this loaf turned out to be very soft and fluffy, especially when it was fresh out of the oven. The sweetness of the bananas blends very well with the slightly tangy blueberries. This recipe is certainly going to be the "base" for all my future banana quickbreads...besides being low fat, it's so easy to make! I am sure it can live up to other variations such as banana-strawberries; banana-orange, banana-raisins, and of course banana-chocolate chips.

Ingredients:
(makes one loaf)

185g self-raising flour
20g butter
80g sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
60ml low fat milk
1/2 cup mashed banana (about 2)
1/2 cup fresh blueberries

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degC. Grease 14cm x 20cm loaf pan; line base with parchment paper.
2. Working over a bowl, toss the blueberries with about 1 ~ 2 teaspoon of flour in a sieve, and set aside. Coating the blueberries with flour helps to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the muffins as they bake.
3. Sift flour into a mixing bowl, rub in the butter with fingertips.
4. Stir in sugar, egg, milk and mashed bananas. Do not over mix, the batter should be lumpy. Gently stir in blueberries and spoon mixture into loaf pan.
5. Bake for 30 mins or until skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
6. Remove from oven, let cool for a few mins. Unmold and leave to cool completely.
   

Chocolate Swirl Bread

Ventured into making this challenging Chocolate Swirl Bread this morning.

When I first saw this recipe, posted by Ida of Baking Fiend, I thot I should only give it a try after I am more comfortable with bread-making. With the little success I had earlier with my wolf berries bread, I though I should be able to manage, although this is only my 4th attempt in bread-making. Little did I know, it turned out to be a really challenging task!


After more than 30 mins of continuous kneading, the stubborn dough still remained very sticky! Since I had already gone so far, I refused to give up. I continued to wrestle with the dough for another 10 more mins and it became less sticky and slightly smoother. By then, I was too tired, and had to surrender to the dough...I left it to proof, hoping for the very best.


Fortunately, the 1st proofing turned out fine.


I took out the chocolate filling which I made last night and tried to follow the instructions to wrap the dough with it. It appeared easy before the actual hiccup surfaced. While trying to roll the dough to the required size, the chocolate paste came oozing out. I tried to "patch" out with dough from the other sides, but it didn't really help. I quickly folded the dough as instructed and left it in the fridge for an hour...hoping it would help to freeze up the chocolate paste a little. The final step was real messy...I had the dough all covered with chocolate paste, after trying to twist and plait it...and the dough really looked horrendous!!!


Since I was already at the final step, I give it a shot and sent the dough into the oven after the final proofing. As I was attending to my younger son, I didn't have a chance to remove the bread from the oven on time. The top was almost burnt :'(

Naturally, with so many hiccups along the way, I wasn't able to achieve the numerous beautiful swirl as compared to those made by Ida. Luckily, other than the slightly burnt crust, the texture and taste of the bread was surprisingly good...soft, light, airy, and almost feathery! Half of the loaf was gone by tea time and my elder boy gave me a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars :))


It was only after making the bread that I managed to get to the original recipe in Japanese. The photos posted on the Japanese website will certainly help to give a better idea how to roll and shape the dough correctly in order to get the nice swirls. There is also a tip that says to cover the top with foil when the bread starts to brown to prevent it from getting burnt.