something chocolaty

It was one of those mornings when I decided that I should bake something chocolaty...

and, it has to be that classic chocolate cake that I have bookmarked for weeks. Never mind that I do not own a 15cm round pan, I can do with ramekins. Never mind that I do not have rum, I can do with vanilla extract, to me, it's no rum no harm ;)

Preparing the batter was just like making a chiffon cake...even the ingredients used is identical...

Just 15mins into baking, the cake rose beautifully in the individual ramekins. They puffed up real nice and climbed well over the rim. It was an admirable achievement considering the fact that the ramekins were barely 3/4 filled with batter.

Alas, what goes up would eventually come down (except my age and my weight!)...those little cakes started to sink the minute they were out of the oven. What were once muffin-like domes came crashing down...by the time they were completely cooled off, the cake pulled away from the sides of the ramekin and there were cracks here and there. Unlike the usual classic chocolate cake I have made many times before, there was no sight of nice flaky crusts :_(

It's always good to have some berries in your fridge (I wrapped the berries with kitchen paper towels before storing them in air tight containers, it helps to keep them stay fresh for extra few more days). They are lifesavers when it comes to dressing up a 'not-so-appealing' dessert made by 'some unqualified, self-taught home baker', meaning me! Plus the magical power of icing sugar, these little cakes were ugly ducklings no more.

The sunken centre serves as a great nest for the berries! Oh, if you do not have berries, but happen to have a tub of ice cream in your freezer, I am sure a scoop or two of your favorite ice cream will fit in perfectly!

Now, it's time to dig in...

Do not expect a soft centre as it is not a molten cake (something which I will bake the next time I crave for something chocolaty)...the texture is excellent for what it is meant to be...a classic chocolate cake! Lighter and not as fudgy as brownies, but denser and so rich in flavour that no chocolate sponge cake or chiffon cake could match it. I will use the adjective yummilicious to describe its taste...according to Urban Dictionary, 'when food is so more than yummy and beyond delicious so it is yummilicious'. Well, but that is IMOHO since taste is something so subjective.

The only thing that I am proud of myself from this little baking episode of mine...was to be able to take the last picture without any help. The picture was taken with my right hand holding on to the camera, while I held the spoon with my left hand, with the spoon turned at an angle so that it faced the camera lens, I know, it is hard to imagine! I had to cross my hands so that my right could rest on my left to steady the camera, and, all the time trying to keep the spoon as steady as possible. Any photographers' toes would be laughing out loud if anyone of them caught me doing such an acrobatic act, lol! Even though the effect was not what I had expected...the spoon didn't really stand out...but seriously, I think I should give myself a pat on my shoulder, at least, for the effort :)



Sunken Chocolate Cake (法式巧克力蛋糕)

Ingredients:
(makes one 15cm cake, or about 4 ramekins(6 oz size))

50g dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
60g unsalted butter
40g caster sugar
40g egg yolks (about 2 yolks from large eggs)
5ml rum (I replace with pure vanilla extract)
35g cake flour
15g cocoa powder

70g egg whites (about 2 whites from large eggs)
40g caster sugar

icing sugar for dusting


Method:

1. Melt dark chocolate and butter in a saucepan over very very Low heat. Remove from heat. Let cool.
2. Line the bottom of a 15cm round pan (with removable base) with parchment paper. Grease and flour the sides. If using ramekins, grease the inside with butter, set aside.
3. Separate egg whites from egg yolks when the eggs are still cold from the fridge. (It's easier to separate eggs while they are cold). Sift together flour and cocoa powder, set aside.
4. With a manual whisk, whisk egg yolks with the caster sugar, till the mixture turns pale, becomes thick and creamy (takes about a couple of mins). Add in the melted chocolate/butter mixture. Whisk till well mixed. Add in rum (or vanilla extract), whisk till combined.
5. Add in flour mixture and fold gently with a spatula. Set aside.
6. In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat egg whites with a handheld electric mixer on high speed until mixture becomes frothy and foamy. Add the caster sugar in 3 separate additions, beat well after each addition. Continue to beat until the egg whites reaches the soft peak stage. The soft peak stage is reached when the peaks of the whites curl over and droop slightly. The egg whites should appear smooth and glossy. (Do not over beat the whites still stiff, it is better to beat the whites still soft peaks for easy folding with the yolk batter.)
7. Add the egg white to the egg yolk mixture in 3 separate addition. Each time, fold in gently with a spatula, making sure all the egg whites are incorporated into the batter, take care not to deflate the batter. (Note: finished batter should be thick and flows like lava when pouring.)
8. Pour batter into the prepared cake pan or ramekins (fill up to about 3/4 full). Tap the cake pan/ramekins gently on tabletop a few times to release any trapped bubbles in the batter. 
9. Bake at 160 degC for 15 mins, turn down the heat to 140 degC and continue to bake for another 10 ~ 15 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out with a few moist crumb. Do not over bake. 
10. Remove from oven. If using ramekins, leave them to cool. If using cake pan, leave it in the pan for about 5mins. Unmould and let cool, right side up (do not invert) on wire rack. Decorate cake with berries (optional). The cake is best eaten at room temperature. If stored in fridge, bring the cake to room temperature (to soften) before serving.

Recipe source: 最適合新手的点心烘焙入门 by 隈部美千代

knocking down my mental blocks

Here's another small step towards getting out of my comfort zone...

I love baking and eating muffins, but believe it or not, this is the first time in my 5 years of baking that I have ever tried making savoury ones...

To me, it has always been, muffins = sweet, never savoury...and I am too overly concerned with whether my family members would be able to accept the taste. I even made myself worry with what to serve alongside a batch of savoury muffins...soup, salad?? These mental blocks were all knocked off when I finally sank my teeth into a soft, warm and buttery tuna muffin.

Thanks to the lovely post by Pook of Dailydelicious, her Tuna Muffins made me wanted to rushed into the kitchen to make myself some right away. I am always very inspired by her elegant pastries and mouth watering desserts....however, most of the time I failed to pick up the courage to try her recipes. I really doubt I could make anything close. But, this time, her savoury muffins look easy enough for me, and most important of all, my kids like tuna. At least, I know there is no danger of me having to end up eating all the muffins on my own ;)

As expected, these savoury muffins I made are miles apart from those by Dailydelicious. Nevertheless, the recipe yielded some really awesome muffins I have ever tasted. Other than taking the liberty to add in some sweet corns, I followed her recipe to a T.

I started preparing the ingredients just one hour before breakfast time. My table was already set when the muffins were almost done. I took them straight from the oven to the breakfast table and had to keep reminding the rest at the table to be patient, to leave the muffins to cool off a little.

My initial concerns were unfounded, these muffins were better than I could have ever imagined. I was filled with a great sense of satisfaction as I devoured a freshly baked muffin, every mouthful was a delight! I love the tiny hint of crisp on the crust lending a contrast to the soft, very fine, cake like crumbs. Surprisingly, they didn't leave a greasy after taste at all even thought they were made with the creaming method. I tried one later in the afternoon, eaten cold, it tasted just as good, I had no issues with the muffins turning dry. I warmed the leftovers the next day and they tasted just like freshly baked. Now, the only downside is, not everyone in the family is as receptive, guess I'll have to make these more often to get everyone to acquire the taste :)




Tuna and Sweet Corn Muffins

Ingredients:
(makes about 8~9 muffins)

60g tuna chunk (I used canned tuna chunk in water)
50g sweet corns kernels
half of a medium-size yellow onion (finely chopped)
some vegetable oil

180g cake flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
80g unsalted butter, soften at room temperature
25g granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly grounded black pepper
1 large egg, lightly beaten
120g milk

some parsley flakes (optional)

Method:

1. Saute chopped onion with some vegetable oil over medium to low heat until the onion turns soft and translucent. Leave to cool.
2. Drain tuna, break into smaller pieces with a fork, set aside. If using frozen sweet corns, thaw, wash and drain, set aside.
3. Sieve together cake flour and baking powder, set aside.
4. In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar, salt and pepper until light and fluffy (I used a manual whisk). Add in the egg gradually, beat well after each addition. 
5. Add half of the flour mixture, fold with a spatula to combine. Add half of the milk, fold to combine. Add half of the remaining flour mixture, fold to combine, followed by the rest of the milk.
6. Add the rest of the flour with the tuna, onion and sweet corn kernels, fold to combine
7. Spoon batter into paper cups or muffin pans lined with paper liners. Sprinkle parsley flakes over the top (optional).
8. Bake at 180degC for 18 ~ 20mins or until a tooth pick inserted into the centre comes out clean. (Note the muffins will only be very lightly browned due to the small amount of sugar used.) Best served hot or warm from the oven.

Recipe source: from Dailydelicious

单反篇

最近老大好像对摄影越来越有兴趣，每次参加学校的摄影活动他都会向摄影协会借个单反相机，通常他只把相机摆在一旁，这回却看他一有空就那出来把玩。这可是一件好事。我个人认为摄影是一项很好的爱好，通过摄影能培养孩子的想象力，提升审美感。对性格木纳，害羞，做事 粗枝大叶的老大来说，我希望借助摄影活动可以让他多接触事物，培养观察入微的能力，进而学会从不同的角度观察与判断事物。

不过我对摄影可是门外汉哦。。。我只会用我哪八岁高龄，半傻瓜相机拍照。。。而且我只会用自动功能， 其他一概一窍不通！

这次趁他把单反相机借回家，我试着用它拍了我的最新之作：奶酥面包。效果不是很理想，那是必然的，因为我把单反当傻瓜相机来用啦！还有就是单反超重，没有三脚架真的不行，没一会儿，手臂就感到很酸。有点杀鸡用牛刀的感觉。。。因为我又不是什么专业美食博客，觉得还是用普通相机就ok啦。

一直都想做这个65度C汤种奶酥面包，终于特地买了一包干椰丝，为的就是喜欢面包上那毛茸茸的效果。汤种做的面包绝对是好得没话说，口感绵软，放两天也不会老化。不过奶酥馅口感不是很好，吃起来有点沙沙的感觉，不太能适应这种口感。干椰丝倒是起了锦上添花的作用，而且还很香，之前我还以为干椰丝是没味道的呢！面包在烤箱烘烤的过程中，厨房一直飘忽着一丝丝面包的麦香味，夹杂着一阵阵令人难以抗拒的椰香味。满屋子的面包香，花钱是买不到的，这或许就是烘焙的乐趣所在吧！

I know, one shouldn't count their chickens before they are hatched, but I couldn't help but keep counting mine:) I took up a one-off home based assignment recently, and with the little extra income that I will be expecting, I have been thinking of saving it up for a digital slr...as a birthday present for my elder child who has shown increasing interest in photography. To get a feel of a dslr, I took the opportunity to play with the camera which he borrowed from school. After a 5 mins crash course, I gave up trying the learn how to use it! The first three photos in this post were taken with the dslr, but they don't look like they were taken with an expensive camera...of course what can I expect if I had used it just like a point-and-shoot? All I could manage was set the camera to the 'flower' aka 'macro' mode and clicked away ;)

I don't know much about food styling, composition, etc...everything is done by 'gut feel'...so please bear with me for my sub standard photography skill. I feel so ashamed of myself for using a good camera but producing something that is as good as taken with an idiot proof one(^^!)

Back to the bake of the week...yes, yet another tangzhong (water roux) bread buns! This time, the buns were wrapped with a cream-like filling made with butter, icing sugar, egg and milk powder. The bread buns didn't fail me, they were soft and yet had a very slight chew to it. It was the first time I baked something with desiccated coconut and I was totally taken aback by the wonderful aroma when the buns were baking in the oven. I really didn't know that desiccated coconut would smell that good!

We don't really like the cream filling though...the texture was a little 'sandy'...likely due to the milk powder. My younger son suggested that the next time I were to make them again, I should wrap the buns with grated coconuts mixed with that 'brown sugar' (gula melaka or palm sugar) we bought from Malacca...I know exactly what he was talking about :)

This shot above was taken with my faithful, eight year old camera. It looks quite similar to the first picture...but the one taken with the dslr has got a better or more shallow depth of field, creating a softer feel to the image. Anyway, as long as my compact camera is still alive and kicking, I will stick to it, unless one day, I make it a point to brush up my photography skill, otherwise I won't do a dslr camera justice...

最后这张是用我的老爷相机拍的。。。乍看没什么不同，仔细一看还是有区别的，用单反拍的， 画面比较柔和，比较能突出主题／焦点。我还是会继续用我的老爷相机啦，我这种懒人还是用傻瓜相机比较适合！




65度C汤种奶酥面包 (milk butter buns)
(makes 9)

tang zhong (water-roux):
25g bread flour
125ml water

bread dough:
210g bread flour
56g cake flour
20g milk powder
42g caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
6g instant yeast

30g egg, lightly beaten
85g water
84g tang zhong (water-roux)*

22g unsalted butter

filling:
70g unsalted butter
30g icing sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
30g egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon corn flour
80g milk powder

some desiccated coconut


Method:

to make filling:
* Beat the butter with icing sugar, salt, until light and pale. Dribble in the beaten egg, mix well after each addition. Sieve over the corn flour and milk powder. Mix with a spatula until just combined. Do not over mix. Divide the mixture into 9 portions (the mixture is quite wet and sticky), use either an ice cream scoop or scoop with a measuring tablespoon and place on a plate. Let the mixture chill in the fridge until needed.

to make tang zhong:
* Place 25g bread flour in a saucepan. Add 125ml water, mix till smooth, making sure there are no lumps of flour. Cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly with a hand whisk to prevent it from burning. Within 1 to 2 mins, the mixture will start to thicken, stop when you see traces in the mixture for every stir you make with the hand whisk. The 65degC tang zhong is ready. Immediately transfer the hot tang zhong into a bowl and cover it with a cling wrap, making sure the cling wrap sticks onto the surface of the mixture. This is to prevent a film from forming on the surface. Leave to cool completely before using it.

to knead dough by bread machine:
* Place water, egg, tang zhong (use 84g), sugar, salt, bread flour, cake flour, milk powder in the pan of the bread machine (according to the sequence as stated in the instruction manual of your bread machine). Make an indentation on the flour and add in the instant yeast. Select the Dough function of the bread machine and press start. Leave the lid of the machine open (this is to prevent over heating). After about 10mins of kneading, add in the 22g of butter. Let the machine continue to knead the dough. After the kneading cycle has stopped (20mins), Stop and Restart the machine. Continue to let the machine knead for another 20mins. Remove dough from the bread pan. (Note: refer this post for instructions on how to knead dough by hand.)

* Place dough in a lightly greased (use vegetable oil or butter) mixing bowl, cover with cling wrap or a damp cloth and let proof in room temperature (around 28 to 30 degC) for about one hour, or until double in bulk.

* Remove the dough from the bowl and give a few light kneading to press out the gas in the dough. Divide the dough into 9 equal portions (60g each). Roll each dough into smooth rounds, cover with a damp cloth or cling wrap and let the doughs rest for 10mins.

* Remove the chilled filling from fridge.

* On a lightly floured work surface, roll each dough into a round disc (I used my hands). Press out any trapped air as you flatten the dough. Wrap each dough with one portion of the filling. Pinch and seal the seam tightly. Brush top with some water, then coat with desiccated coconut. Place dough seam side down on a greased (or lined with parchment paper) baking tray. Space doughs two inches apart to allow them to expand. Cover with damp cloth or cling wrap and leave doughs to proof for the second time for about 40mins, or until double in size.

* Bake in pre-heated oven at 180 deg C for 15 mins or until golden brown. Remove from oven and transfer to wire track to let cool. Once cool, store immediately in an airtight container.

Recipe source: 65度C汤种面包, 陈郁芬

cupbread 杯子蒸面包

前几天在图书馆借了一本新书：《松软可口！Cupbread - 杯子蒸面包》(おいしい蒸しパン)。

之前看过好多网友都做了类式日式蒸蛋糕，但我都没试，我对蒸蛋糕真的没什么兴趣。不过看了这本书后，被里面各式各样，小巧very kawaii 的蒸糕吸引住了。况且作法超简单，用料也不多，不好吃也没关系啦！

说做就做，就这样花了25～30分钟，我的第一个杯子蒸面包出炉了！真的，前后不到半个钟就搞定。

手上没什么材料，所以只做了原味的，其中两个撒了一些海苔芝麻肉松在面糊上才送去蒸。出炉的蒸面包圆圆滚滚还蛮可爱的！

原味蒸面包味道就像传统的蒸鸡蛋糕没两样，只是没那么甜。鸡蛋味有一点偏重，口感有一点点扎实，不是很松软(或许我拌的面糊哪里出错了？)，也不是说扎实到像kuih。肉松口味倒还不错，肉松盖过鸡蛋味，咸咸甜甜的。这款日式蒸面包，说不上喜欢或不喜欢，要试一试其他口味后才能下判断。

At the beginning of the year, I told myself, I should get out of my comfort zone and try a new bake at least once a month. So for this month, the new item on my 'baking' list is none other than Steamed Cupbread, or commonly known as mushi pan (蒸しパン), a Japanese steamed cupcake.

These steamed cupbread or cupcakes are very simple and easy to put together. All you need is a hand whisk to stir the ingredients together. I made a couple of them topped with pork floss and they turned out nicely domed...I had expected them to crack like huat kuih, lol!

These steamed cupbread tasted just like the traditional steamed sponge cakes...although they tasted less sweet. The texture was not fluffy, yet not as dense as kuih. I didn't really like the eggy smell, but those topped with pork floss were not bad. They certainly taste better when served warm. I reheat them by steaming for about 5mins and they were as good as freshly made ones. I can't say they were not delicious, but I have yet to fall in love with them. I'll have to try out other flavours, with fruits and nuts or savoury ones in order to decide...


Basic Cupbread 杯子蒸面包

Ingredients:
(makes 4 if using 7cm by 3cm paper cups)

1 large egg
40g caster sugar
60ml milk
100g cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

some pork floss as toppings

Method:

1. Place a steam rack in a pot. Wrap the lid with a tea towel. Fill pot with water (fill just below the rack) and bring water to a boil. (Note: The lid is wrapped with cloth so as to prevent condensed water from dripping over the cupbread.)
2. While the steamer is preheating, whisk egg in a mixing bowl. Add in sugar, beat till sugar dissolve. 
3. Add in milk, whisk to combine.
4. Sieve over cake flour and baking powder, whisk to combine. 
5. Add in vegetable oil, stir till mixture becomes smooth.
6. Pour mixture into paper cups (or pudding moulds or ramekins lined with paper liners) till 70-80% full. Sprinkle top with some pork floss (about 1 teaspoon).
7. Place in the steamer and steam over medium-high heat for about 12~15mins or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from steamer and let cool on wire rack. Best served warm.

Recipe source: 松软可口！Cupbread-杯子蒸面包 by Akemi Komatsuzaki

the missing link

Over the years, a few of my blogger pals have left the blogging scene, links to their blogs or recipes no longer work. One of them is MH...someone who shared with me her experience with making steamed buns. She had also taken the time and effort to type out a char siew pao recipe for me. Even though she has stopped blogging, I still keep the recipe as I know, someday, I will get to try it.

Since I am now in a bread making frenzy, instead of making steamed buns, I made the baked version of the char siew bao...

Just like my previous raisin loaf bread, I made these bread buns using the tangzhong or water roux method. I was in fact very inspired by MH's bread posts when she showed her bread made with tangzhong. So far, the tangzhong dough gives me the best result...bread buns with texture that is soft and springy, almost like commercial ones...minus the additives. When I pressed my finger onto one of these voluptuous-looking buns, it springed back immediately ;)

A close up of the nice, even texture of the bread crumbs. I used my bread machine to knead the dough for a total of 40mins. By right, for bread buns, 30mins of kneading should be sufficient, but the dough was still quite sticky so I left the machine to run for another 10mins. The dough was pretty easy to handle once I dust it very lightly with some flour. The bread dough used slightly less sugar compared to sweet buns dough, but used one whole egg and more butter. Since I did not have any left over eggs, I didn't bother to brush the top with egg wash. The buns were nicely browned anyway.

The char siew filling was rather delicious. I used 'rather' and not 'very' simply because the store bought char siew was a little saltish to me. However, the 'sauce' that coated the char siew bits was good, not too sweet, not too saltish. These homemade buns were so good that I finished two when they were still warm. They were great for breakfast too, as I am sure my boys won't feel hungry before the recess bells ring!

MH, if by any chance you are reading this, thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe!


Char Siew Bread Buns (叉烧小餐包)

Ingredients:
(makes 9)

* filling:
1/2 tablespoon oil
2 shallots, flatten
200g char siew,diced
1 1/2 tablespoons roasted sesame seeds

seasoning (mix together):
80ml water
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon oyster sauce
1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
1 1/2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tablespoon tapioca flour
1/2 tablespoon corn flour
1 teaspoon plain flour

* dough:
tang zhong (water-roux):
20g bread flour
100ml water

bread dough:
195g bread flour
90g cake flour
12g milk powder
30g caster sugar
6g salt
6g instant yeast

60g egg, lightly beaten
65g water
75g tang zhong (water-roux)

45g unsalted butter


Method:

to make char siew filling:
* Heat up oil on medium heat, saute shallots till fragrant. Discard the fried shallots. Pour in mixed seasoning, immediately stir the mixture as it boils. Keep stirring until it thickens. Takes about a few seconds. Add char siew, sesame seeds and mix well. The finished mixture should dry up and becoms sticky (for easy wrapping). Dish up and leave to cool.

to make tang zhong:
Place 20g bread flour in a saucepan. Add 100ml water, mix till smooth, making sure there are no lumps of flour. Cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly with a hand whisk to prevent it from burning. Within 1 to 2 mins, the mixture will start to thicken, stop when you see traces in the mixture for every stir you make with the hand whisk. (Take a look at the video clip here.) The 65degC tang zhong is ready. Immediately transfer the hot tang zhong into a bowl and cover it with a cling wrap, making sure the cling wrap sticks onto the surface of the mixture. This is to prevent a film from forming on the surface. Leave to cool completely before using it.

to knead dough by bread machine:
* Place water, egg, tang zhong (use 75g), sugar, salt, bread flour, cake flour, milk powder in the pan of the bread machine (according to the sequence as stated in the instruction manual of your bread machine). Make an indentation on the flour and add in the instant yeast. Select the Dough function of the bread machine and press start. Leave the lid of the machine open (this is to prevent over heating). After about 10mins of kneading, add in the 45g of butter. Let the machine continue to knead the dough. After the kneading cycle has stopped (20mins), Stop and Restart the machine. Continue to let the machine knead for another 20mins. Remove dough from the bread pan.

* Place dough in a lightly greased (use vegetable oil or butter) mixing bowl, cover with cling wrap or a damp cloth and let proof in room temperature (around 28 to 30 degC) for about one hour, or until double in bulk.

* Remove the dough from the bowl and give a few light kneading to press out the gas in the dough. Divide the dough into 9 equal portions (60g each). Roll each dough into smooth rounds, cover with a damp cloth or cling wrap and let the doughs rest for 10mins.

* On a lightly floured work surface, roll each dough into a round disc (I used my hands). Press out any trapped air as you flatten the dough. Wrap each dough with one heaped tablespoon of the char siew filling. Pinch and seal the seam tightly. Place seam side down on a greased (or lined with parchment paper) baking tray. Space doughs two inches apart to allow them to expand. Cover with damp cloth or cling wrap and leave doughs to proof for the second time for about 40mins, or until double in size.

* Dab finger tip with some water, then dab with black or white sesame seeds, then 'stamp' it on the surface of the bun. This step can be omitted. (Note: I do not apply egg wash on the buns.)

* Bake in pre-heated oven at 180 deg C for 15 mins or until golden brown (if necessary, tent the surface with foil if the top browns too quickly closer to the baking time). Remove from oven and transfer to wire track to let cool. once cool, store immediately in an airtight container.

Recipe source: 
fillings: Delightful Snacks and Dim Sum, Agnes Chang
bread dough: 65度C汤种面包, 陈郁芬