Wednesday, October 05, 2011

chocolate chip and raisin brioches

ahhhh...bread. bread bread bread bread bread. i can say this word once, or i can say it a million times...and still not be tired of it.

bread you always turn my frown upside down,
makes me wanna smile instead;
i love you bread.

HAAAAHAHAHAHA!! looks like someone's high on yeast, huh? *hic*



who doesn't like bread, right? show me a person who hates bread and i will show that person my yeast collection...okay, THAT does not sound right. okay, let's try again, show me a person who does not like bread and i will show that person my sachets of dry yeast (?). no? okaylah...let's get on to the recipe then.

this wonderful muffin looking bread is really nice if served once it comes out of the oven, you can either do it one better by slathering it with your favorite butter...or you can have it on it's own. also sedap.

so, i shall now share with you the recipe. ready? let's go!

you will need:
½ tbsp active dried yeast*
115ml (4 fl oz) warm water
1 tsp sugar
275g (10 oz) plain flour
4 eggs
60g (2½ oz) caster sugar
pinch of salt
115g (4 oz) unsalted butter, softened
90g (3¼ oz) raisins
115g (4 oz) plain chocolate chips
1 beaten egg, poor egg :-p

the how to:
1)  combine the yeast, water and the tsp of  sugar in a large bowl. stir well and leave in a warm place for 10 minutes.

2)  stir in 100g (3½ oz) of the flour until the mixture becomes a smooth paste.

3)  beat the eggs and add them to the yeast mixture. add the sugar and salt.

4)  stir in the remaining flour, and mix until the dough is soft and slightly sticky. leave in a warm place, covered with cling film, for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

5)  preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas mark 6).

6)  grease 12 mini brioche or muffin moulds.

7)  beat in the butter, raisins and chocolate chips.

8)  fill the moulds halfway, leave in a warm place to rise for about 20 minutes, until the dough has risen to fill about two-thirds each mould.

9)  brush each brioche with a little of the beaten egg and bake for 20 minutes. cool in mould for 5 minutes, remove and cool on a rack.

*see? have yeast, will bread. NOW do you want to see my collection???

you can store these in an airtight container for up to 2 days. but then again, who is crazy enough to not devour these freshly baked brioches, kan? who?? who???

for variation, you can also make:

a)  saffron, chocolate chips & raisin brioches
~  prepare the basic recipe, adding a pinch of saffron to the dry ingredients.

b)  white chocolate and macadamia nut brioches
~  prepare the basic recipe, substituting 90g (3¼ oz) white chocolate chips and 115g (4 oz) chopped macadamia nuts for the chocolate chips and raisins. or,

c)  chocolate and cinnamon brioches
~  prepare the basic recipe, adding 2 tsps cinnamon to the flour.

well folks, what are you waiting for? giddy-up and get baking!!!

recipe taken from: 500 cupcakes and muffins by fergal connolly



Monday, October 03, 2011

peanut butter bombs

a.k.a homemade pieces of heaven :-p


i was talking to a friend the other day about how you can make your own version of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups...although, obviously, the taste is not exactly the same, but it's similar. bolehlahhhh...bak kata orang melayu, kan?

if you look at the watermark on the photo, it was taken some time in 2010. that was the last time i made these. maybe because it's a little bit time consuming to produce these babies...but believe you me, it is well worth it. betul! mak temah tak tipu!!!

so? you want in on the recipe? yes? okaylah...because i'm such a nice person *barf*, i will let you in on the recipe. before that, let me just thank Pook from dailydelicious.blogspot.com because this was where i got the recipe from. thank you once again Pook, your recipes rock!!


okay, everybody ready? let's go!!

you will need:
225g milk chocolate, melted and tempered for lining and sealing the cups, i used dark chocolate
130g smooth peanut butter
30g icing sugar, sifted
60g butter, soft at room temperature
30g milk chocolate, melted. once again, i used dark chocolate
pinch of salt

the how to:
well, the ever so helpful Pook has even prepared a step-by-step method as to how you can do this...so, here it.

enjoy you guys!!

p/s: this font too small for you or not ah?

recipe source: Pook's blog, www.dailydelicious.blogspot.com thank you Pook!!
image of reese's peanut butter cups taken from www.hersheys.com thank you hershey's!