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

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!

daging masak hitam

there is absolutely no way to translate the name of this dish in a beautiful manner. seriously. i could go beef in black sauce, or beef in soy sauce, but beef in soy sauce does not even reflect the true nature of this dish. so, let's just call it daging masak hitam. okay?

 

apahal ler lauk ko asyik black je sejak-dua menjak ni temah? entahlah senah...

how shall i describe this dish? it is very delicious. if you guys are familiar with nasi kandar, then you guys will surely know that one of the dishes served, apart from the usual curry, would be the daging hitam. well, this dish taste like thatlah. ejactly. i kid you not. you donch believe? you trylah. okay? and then lemme know.

ready for the recipe? let's go!!

you will need:
(a)
500g beef, sliced thinly
1 tsp cumin powder, mixed with some water*
1 tsp fennel powder, mixed with some water*
2 tbsps cooking oil
5 tbsps dark/thick soy sauce
½ cup tamarind juice
salt to taste
water as much as you need
3 lemongrass, bruised *ouch?*

(b) blend these
10 shallots
3 garlic
1½ inch ginger
15 dried chillies

the how to:
1)  heat oil in wok and saute the lemongrass, (b), the cumin and fennel powder, till fragrant.

2)  add in the sliced beef and a little bit of water. let them be till the beef is tender.

3)  once tender, add in the tamarind juice and the dark soy sauce.

4)  cook and simmer till the gravy becomes thick.

5)  once done, it's ready to serve with hot rice. *yums*

*i didn't have these so, i pounded my fennel and cumin seeds.

okay guys...what are you waiting for? get crackin'!!

come back okay?

recipe source: 1 hari 1 resipi by chef hanieliza

kung pao chicken

okay, what is up with me and chinese lately? i don't know. but then again, i do know. i LOVE chinese food. really, i do. i think it must've something to do with the being in a chinese school but not being able to eat the stuff at the canteen thing, you know? you don't? aiyer! nemindlah. well, i made kung pao chicken...i didn't know, prior to research (*ehem* research konon...) that there are actually many many versions of kung pao chicken and that you can kung pao anything you want. squidlah...prawnslah...haaaa....did you know that? why didn't you tell me??? hahaha!! so, now i know.

this is one of my favorites.

no matter where i go and which chinese restaurant i go to, i must kung pao. kung pao, i like.

so, shall we kung pao? oh, before i forget, i got this recipe from yet another blog, kungpaochickenrecipe.org. check out the name of the blog...how can you not have confidence with a name like that, right? it's a blog totally dedicated to kung pao-ing (?) hehehehe...

okay, we shall kung pao now. eh, it rhymeslah...kung pao now...kung pao now...waaahhh...best ni! kung pao...*eh sorry...didn't mean to go all gila over here...kung pao now. how? i tell you how. to kung pao. okay-okay...hahahaha!!

what you need:

15 dried red chilli peppers (use less if you don't want it hot), rinsed

6 chicken thighs, or breast. (up to you. i used breast) cubed, about ½in
3 cloves garlic, minced
1½ tbsp minced ginger
3 spring onions (alaahhh...go ahead, go CRAZY, use more!!!) use the white part for cooking and the green for garnishing later on.
½ cup unroasted cashew nuts
1 tbsp of sichuan peppers (optional - i didn't have any, so i tak pakai)

for the marinade:
1½ tbsp Shaoxing Wine (chinese rice wine), i of course did not add this
1 tbsp light soy sauce, didn't have any so i used regular soy sauce
¾ tsp salt
1 tsp cornstarch, or cornflour

for the sauce:
1 tsp light soy sauce, i used regular soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce, this i have
1½ tbsps sugar
1 tsp corn starch
2 tsps black vinegar, dont have so i used distilled white vinegar
1½ tbsps water
tiny dash of sesame oil

the how to:
1) mix together all ingredients for the marinade. marinade the chicken and set aside.

2)  heat cooking oil in wok, once hot, turn the heat to low and begin to stir fry the cashew nuts till golden brown. remove and drain the oil. *i of course do not need to tell you that if you are using cashews that are already roasted, you do not need to go through this process. i don't need to tell you, right?* :-p

3)  mix together all ingredients for the sauce in a separate bowl.

4)  heat some oil in wok, about 2tbsp, once hot, add in the dried chilli peppers and fry till aromatic. when you can smell the chilli, add in the minced ginger, garlic and the white parts of the spring onions. turn the heat to medium and saute till fragrant.

5)  add the marinated chicken into the wok and turn the heat on to medium-high, stir fry briskly to coat the chicken with the aromatic oil. do this for about 3-5 minutes. next, in goes the fried cashew nuts. turn the heat to high, stir to mix well.

6)  finally, add in the prepared sauce and stir-fry to coat the chicken cubes well. serve hot.

* the only change i would make would be to pre-fry the chicken, coating it with a bit of the egg+flour mixture...so that it has the 'crunch' thing going on, you know? in this particular recipe, while it's very tasty, i didn't quite like the way the chicken turned out.

thank you so much, kungpaochickenrecipe.org for the recipe, i'll definitely try each and every other kung pao recipe in your blog.

OCD much? :-p

tata everyone and enjoy the looooooong weekend!!

stir fry broccoli with prawns

have broccoli will stir fry...with prawns. :-)

it's been a while since i last posted anything food related here. don't get me wrong, i have been cooking AND baking, but the stuff that i cook lately have been pretty basic stuff. something, i think, you guys have done before. so, basically they were not blogworthy *pandai je aku, kan? kecik hati makanan tu seme temahhh...* it's just that, it's after raya, and i dunno...

but, i think i'm getting my mojo back. :-p hence the broccoli and prawns...i know, i know...you guys prolly have it every other day, but i don't, so it's a big deal, okay? okay. *insert insane laughter here*

i took this recipe from here. you know, sometimes you need to see what others have in store for you. sure you have your recipe books but sometimes, these food blogs are a-may-zing!! taste wise, i like it...it has the chinese thing going on, you know? so, ready?

let's go!!

what you'll need:
450-500g broccoli, cut into florets and blanched (oopsie! i didn't blanch them)
200g prawns, shelled and tail intact
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 tsp minced ginger, i sliced mine in thin strips
2 tsp peanut oil, i used EVOO
sea salt to taste, i used MALDON (love love love!!!)

for the sauce:
1 tbs oyster sauce
1 ½ cornflour
10 tbsp chicken stock or water, i used water

the how to:
1)  heat oil in wok, cook the garlic, remove the garlic when they are fragrant and golden in colour.

2)  turn the heat on high, cook the prawns briefly and toss in the ginger, garlic and broccoli. stir fry for about 2 minutes.

3)  add in the sauce, bring to a quick boil and season with the sea salt.

4)  the sauce should be thick and the broccoli cooked but still firm. serve immediately.

easy? you betcha!!

recipe source: www.seasaltwithfood.com thank you!!!

the case of the hungry serger

serger darned well ate the back of my pants!! well, not literally, but it did take a chunk (okay, okay i'm exaggerating!) out of the pants that i was trying to sew. *nangeh*

okay, if you look above, i'm sure you can see what happened. i was trying to serge the whole thing when i reached the curved part of the pants, i proceeded to serge and before i knew it, it ate the fabric. apparently, i'm supposed to hold the fabric at a certain angle when serging curvy parts of anything. the left is how it was supposed to turn out (well, after the serger went wild episode, i had to cut and serge another piece) and the right side...oh well...

lunch, anyone? :-p

seafood tom yum

or tomyam makanan laut...

i still haven't gotten my photography mojo and why is my tomyum so pale? but ah, the taste is very nice. *kaverline nampak ko temah???*

it's a week after raya and i think it's still not too late for me to wish you guys 'Selamat Hari Raya' and 'Maaf Zahir dan Batin'...maybe i've said something that has offended you guys or anything and everythinglah...you know, i'm human, you're human and sometimes we do/say things and don't realise that we've hurt the other party. so, with that...please accept my apologies and let's get started with today's recipe.

i took the recipe from the Kelantan book, although, after i've reviewed the recipe, it's exactly how i make tomyum (minus a recipe book) anyways. so, takpelah, since i took it from the book, i will give the credit to the chef. i only made one minor adjustment je.

alrighty then, here's the recipe:

what you need:

2 tbs of tomyum paste*
1 liter water
2 lemongrass, bruised (titikler senahhh)
5 squids, i used 3
7 prawns, i used 10
5 bird's eye chillies, i used 3
1 tomato, cut into 4, or 6 if you want
1 big yellow onion, cut into circles (if you can call it that)
1 carrot, cut prettily :-p
200g cauliflower, i didn't have any so i replaced with baby corns.
a little bit of french beans (yup, you read right, the recipe calls for 'a little bit of')
1 tbs of freshly squeezed lime juice
4 kaffir lime leaves, i didn't have any
salt and sugar to taste
cooking oil

the how to:
1)  heat oil in wok, sweat the onions till they are clear.**

2)  add in the water and all of the ingredients.***

3)  simmer till it starts to boil.

4)  ready to serve.

okaylah, okaylah...maybe i made a 'few' changes...haha! here:

*i didn't have any so i used 1½ tomyum cube. * (ingatkan kalau buku recipe they will teach you how to make the paste from scratch. nan ado)

**the recipe didn't say whether i am to saute the big yellow onion or prepare some other forms of onion for sauteing, so since i like my big onions a bit on the crunchy side, i sliced some shallots and garlic to saute.

***i didn't add 'everything' together and cook, i left out the seafood until the very last minute because i don't like my prawns to be overcooked and my squid to be rubbery, so once the tomyum soup starts to boil, all i did was add in the seafood for just a while.

ta da!! easy peasy. trylah! :-)

recipe source: Panduan Langkah Demi Langkah, Resipi Tradisi Kelantan, by Chef Hafiza.

ikan bilis cili hijau

or, anchovies with green chillies.

never thought i would say this...but, i miss blogging. i miss updating this place with new recipes that i have tried and most of all i miss trying out new things. :-(

it's ramadhan now, and that means MrG will go crazy over the ramadhan bazaars. he loves going to e-ve-ry sing-le stall looking at e-ve-ry sing-le items for sale. let's just put it this way, him going to the ramadhan bazaars is like women shopping. nuff said. 

i still cook though, but it's only for sahur and those are really simple stuff, plus i don't think he'd appreciate me taking shots of our early morning food. you know how i get, right? sometimes, i'd have to take 50 shots before i can be satisfied. anyhoo, just thought i'd share this recipe with your guys, it's really simple to make but the only thing i'd change about this recipe is, i'd prolly squeeze in some lime/lemon juice right before serving. call it the ramadhan appetite, but i think it'll taste a tad better with some acidic action going on.

i took the recipe from the sabah book. it's a pretty simple recipe to follow. you can do it with both eyes closed.

okay, here goes the recipe:

you will need:

1 bowl of ikan bilis or dried anchovies

10 green chillies, sliced

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 big onion, sliced

2 shallots, sliced

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

cooking oil

the how to:

1)  heat oil in wok and fry the dried anchovies, set aside.

2)  with the same oil (maybe you need to reduce it jusssst a tad) saute the sliced shallots and garlic till they are both a wittle bit on the yellow side.

3)  add in the fried dried anchovies and stir till combined.

4)  add in the salt and sugar to taste, stir till everything is combined.

5)  last but not least, in goes the big onion and sliced green chillies.

6)  stir, stir and stir some more...and it's done.

7)  get a plate of rice and eat away!!

*like i mentioned earlier on, i would definitely add in freshly squeezed lime/lemon juice before serving and i would also opt to not put in the sugar.

why don't you guys give it a go and lemme know.

come by again, aight?

recipe source:  citarasa Malaysia - Sabah by chef Arm

image of the bookcover taken from http://pts.com.my/ terima kaseyyyy!

sambal tumis udang dan petai

or, chilli prawns with petai, or bitter beans or stink beans.

waaahhh...kemain lama lagi mak temah tak hapdate blog ye... (read: i've been a bit lazy. :-p) well, a lot has been going on lately, with the baking AND stamping of 50 million shortbreads, 50 million red velvet cupcakes AND one chocolate cake for kamiyya's birthday party and all, i thought after all that is over and done with, i could have a little quiet me time, right? W.R.O.N.G! because now, i need to continue baking for our Ramadhan project and also after that straight to the orders of cookies for hari raya (that are already coming in, alhamdulillah, thank you guys!!). as with the past years, the oven and the giant, will be given a ONE month break immediately after Ramadhan. hehehe...

but, baking tu baking ler jugak, the dapur still have to cook for lunch and *ehem, sometimes* dinner, right? so, my lovelies, today, i present to you what i made for lunch...(lohhhh...tengokler gambor kat atas tu...)

you want in on the recipe? i let you in on the recipe, okay? by the way, i took the recipe from the Melaka book. :-)

here we go!

ingredients:

(a)

10 prawns. TEN prawns? biar betik chef...only TEN? well, i added a lot more

petai or stink beans

1 tbsp of tamarind juice

some dried chilli paste (blended dried chillies)

1 big onion, cut into circles

salt and sugar, to taste

(b) please blend these
4 shallots
2 cloves garlic
1" belacan or shrimp paste

the how to:
1)  heat oil in wok and saute (b)

2)  then add in the dried chilli paste, and tamarind juice. let it simmer for a while or two. :-p

3)  next, in goes the prawns, petai, salt and sugar. stir and incorporate everything. (read: let them friend-friend)

4)  lastly, add in the big onion, stir and heat off.

5)  ready to eat! like i'm about to do now. join me? :-)


recipe source: citarasa Malaysia - Melaka by Chef Salbiah
information on petai and belacan taken from: en.wikipedia, thanz horrr...

belado campur

err...mixed everything? yes? *aiyer* i don't know how to translate thislahhhh... *tulah, cari lagi resipi susah nak translate*

this to me is a vanderful dish not only because it's easy to prepare, but also the taste is vanderful. i especially love the crunchy ikan bilis and fried tempe. they really work well together. FYI, for those not in the know, tempe is made from fermented soy beans. it looks like this. some people like to coat them with a bit of turmeric powder and salt before frying, i like it with just a little bit of salt, minus the turmeric powder.

okaylah, enough of yakking...some people have tempe to fry, yes?

i'll cut to the chase and give you guys the recipe.

ingredients:

4 pieces of tempe, sliced thinly

½ cup of dried anchovies or ikan bilis
½ cup of peanuts
vegetable oil, for frying
juice from 2 limes
a wittle bit of sugar

these things below need to be pulverised by your blender:
20 dried chillies
2 big onions
6 cloves garlic

the how to:
1)  heat oil and fry tempe till golden brown. set aside.

2)  fry the ikan bilis, till just done. set aside.

3)  fry the peanuts. set aside... *sigh*

4)  next, you saute the pulverised items till they are fragrant.

5)  add the lime juice and a little bit of sugar. add salt if you want, but i didn't.

6)  then you mix 'em all together. done!

easy peasy...except for numbers 1 till 3... *malasnya aku*

okay, i'm going to start on my weekend now. tata!

recipe source:  citarasa Malaysia - Johor by Chef Hafiza
picture of tempe taken from:  www.tempevstapaiubi.blogspot.com thank you!

ayam masak kicap

or, chicken in soy sauce? yes?

i made this for lunch today. i like the little bit of spicy taste it has (thanks to the blended dried chilli that this recipe calls for.) normally, when we talk about ayam masak kicap, we'd already be imagining, something slighty salty but not spicy. this little addition of the chilli is a welcoming one. i like! and congrats to Kedah for coming up with this recipe in their book. hehehe...hamboi! kemain bias lagi naaaahhh....

okay, without further ado, lemme share with you the recipe so that you can get the chicken out of the freezer and prepare this dish already!

ingredients:
½ of a chicken, i like to cut mine in small and cute sizes
4 tbs thick/dark soy sauce
1 clove garlic, sliced thinly
1 shallot, sliced thinly
1" ginger, sliced
1 big onion, cut into circles, or rounds...or...can somebody help me with the correct term pleaaaasseeeeee....
2 tbs blended dried chillies
salt and sugar, to taste
water
vegetable oil

the how to:
1)  fry the chicken till it's half cooked, set aside.

2)  saute all the sliced items, then add in the ginger and chilli blend.

3)  next, in goes the thick soy sauce and water. let it simmer till it starts to boil. now it the time for you to add in the salt and sugar.

4)  after that, in goes the chicken and last but not least, the big onions. stir till well mixed. and...eat with rice. YEAY!

recipe source: citarasa Malaysia - Kedah by Chef Habibi.

sotong masak titik pelepah

o-kaaaay...i am not even going to attempt to translate this...basically it's squid in clear soup. hehehe...taken from the book below.

i had squid, and wanted to try something new...guess i shouldn't have. well, i don't think squid in clear something will taste nice, remember i made the singgang sotong last time and said that the taste of the squid was bland? well, it is the same for this one as well. the soup (broth?) has a bit of a soury thing going on, because of the tamarind peel, kinda okay on its own, but if you try having it along with the squid...the taste is kinda off...you know? maybe i am not used to having squid this way. maybe you wanna give it a go and lemme know? 

here's the recipe for you.

ingredients:

½kg squid
2 red chillis, sliced
2 green chillis, sliced
2 lemongrass, bruised (ouch! :-p)
1 turmeric leaf
1 big onion, sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1 tamarind peel
5 cups water
3 tbs oil
salt to taste

the how to:
1)  heat oil in wok. add in all the sliced items and saute till they are fragrant.

2)  add in water, tamarind peel, lemongrass and a bit of salt.

3)  when the broth starts to boil, add in the turmeric leaf and squid.

4)  stir for just a few minutes and take it off the heat.

5)  ready to serve.

*be sure to not cook the squid too long because it'll be tough and rubbery.

that's it for today folks. *frust sebab sotong ni kureng*

recipe source: citarasa Malaysia, Johor by Chef Hafiza

kangkung goreng belacan

or water spinach stir fried with shrimp and chilli paste

amboi! kemain lagi mak temah, kangkung goreng belacan pun nak letak kat blog ni kaaaan?

well, in the spirit of sharing and also because i have this 'condition' to still want to follow the recipe book, even if i already know how to prepare this dish...i present to you, kangkung goreng belacan, malacca style. how is it that i know it is malacca style? becauseeeee...i took the recipe from the malacca book...behold, exhibit A:

Exhibit A

so? since everyone know how to prepare this dish, you still want the recipe or not? haaaa...this is the malacca version...it could be different... *how different could, kangkung stir fried with belacan be...* haha!

okaaaylaaahhhh...since you insist, here's the recipe:

ingredients:

(a)

300g kangkung

oil for stir frying

salt to taste

(b)things into your blender

5 shallots

2 cloves garlic

4 red chillies

1" shrimp paste

1 tbsp dried shrimp

the how to:

1)  really? seriously? okaaay...... heat oil in wok, saute (b) till fragrant

2)  add in the kangkung and stir fry till they blend together. add salt if you want.

3)  heat off, eat with rice. yummay!!

there you have it. the very difficult to prepare but really tasty dish. hope you guys will give it a try.

information on kangkung taken from mr. wikipeadia
recipe from: citarasa malaysia - melaka, by chef salbiah.

i hope i win!!!

dear rima,

i've been eyeing this particular item from your blog for the longest time...and usually it will be sold out the minute you put it at you online store...so, naturally when i was there today reading your blog (read: faithful blog stalker) and saw that you were having a giveaway...and the prize is my dream come true of a prize...i immediately decided to write this entry.

well, dearest rima, i did attempt to make macarons...just that one time...and i am now, currently, gathering more courage to attempt it for the second, or third time...and hopefully *ehem* with the help of the giveaway prize, i will be motivated to make more of them...haha...

here's what happened a bunch of us got together one weekend and attempted macaron baking. i chose to color mine blue, because when i was in school i was in the blue house, also known as McNeil. hehehhee...

i got the recipe from Gee who got the recipe from a class she attended. my macs ended up having a teeny weeny bit of a feet but then because it was the first tray to go into the oven, it was also the first tray to be taken out prematurely and after a lot of poking and prodding from all of us...we found out that it was undercooked. but hey, at least i attempted to make macarons.

so, rima? how? this entry can ah?

your ever faithful blog stalker, dotty. muah!

stamped shortbread

raya cookies project
recipe#4

first off, lemme just tell you that i am NOT the most immaculate person in the world. i get a headache if i need to do intricate things. i am clumsy and i like to keep things VERY VERY simple. but, after reading this post from pook's blog, i somehow managed to convince myself that i could do it. now, to most of you, something like this would not be that challenging...but to me, it takes days of prepping and convincing the mind that i can actually do it. that it's not THAT hard...it's not rocket science, it's not like i have to perform a root canal or something like that. it's not, right? WRONG!!

lemme just say that i salute all you people out there who have the patience to do beautiful things. my idea of a cookie would be to just scoop the dough with an ice cream scoop and transfer it onto a baking sheet.

why do it? well, because i sometimes like to deliberately give myself a migraine and also because i LOVE shortbreads and pretty little shortbread things...like this. haha!

okay, this very talented lady pook made the effort to give you a step-by-step on how to make this. see? other *normal* people will not think twice to do something like this. me? aiyer...no need to cakaplah. you can view the step-by-step pictorial here at her blog. thank you soooo much pook!

you want recipe? yes? okay.

ingredients:
100g unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
1/8 tsp salt, i thought i saw 1/2 so i added 1/2tsp...no wonderlahhh a bit salty
40g icing sugar
120g cake flour
45g rice flour

the how to:
1)  place the butter into a mixing bowl and sift both the flour, icing sugar and salt into the bowl.

2)  cut the butter and flour mixture into small pieces. until it turns into breadcrumb like texture.

3)  pour out and work the dough onto a flat surface. i just kneaded the dough in my mixing bowl...perhaps this is where i went wrong? *

4)  knead until they all stick together and smooth. (i think i did it till they were all sticking together and, not to mention, smooth...so what went wrong, eh?)

5)  wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours. (i didn't wrap, i just plonked the whole thing into a covered container. my my, arent we having a blast with not following instructions, huh?)

6)  after that, pre-heat your oven to 160°C.

7)  line a baking sheet with baking paper or silicone mat.

8)  roll the dough until 5mm thick.

9)  cut into desired shape, place them all onto the prepared baking sheet and stamp the cookies.

10) bake for 15-20 minutes or until slightly golden.

* as you can see from my photos, my shortbread is not pretty as pook's, prolly because i didn't follow instructions. ;-)

the taste? what can i say, these babies taste vanderful. perfect with a cup of tea.

come back soon, aight?

i would like to thank pook and her wonderful blog: dailydelicious.blogspot.com for the recipe and also for tip on where to get the cookie stamps. thanks pook!!
aaaand also for my friend Jude for allowing me to use her address for the stamps to go to. hehehe...thanks Jude!! muah!

polenta crescents

raya cookies project
recipe #3

okay, if you like lemons and crunchy cookies, then this is the one for you. i particularly like the lemony taste the cookies have, it's somewhat refreshing, because i usually associate cookies with something chocolatey and sweet...but this one, has a very mild sugar taste nothing too overpowering.

will i make it again? good question, hmmm...i don't think so. why? mainly because the dough is a little bit of a challenge to handle. as you know polenta is really, really gooey, like mush and even after refrigerating the dough for 24 hours, you are still left with sticky fingers. in the end, i had to fill the dough into a piping bag, pipe it into a straight line before making the shape. lots of work = me no like. heheheh...

but i might do it again for the taste...and let the robot handle all the difficult bits. hehehe...or i'll try to figure out on how to make it easier. well, you guys try it and lemme know kay?

here's the recipe.
ingredients:
115g (4 oz) unsalted butter
100g (3½ oz) icing sugar
2 egg yolks
grated zest of 1 lemon (2 to 3 tsp)
2 tsp vanilla essence
150g (5 oz) plain flour
pinch of baking powder
50g (2 oz) finely ground polenta/cornmeal

the how to:
1)  pre-heat oven to 160°C (325°F/Gas Mark 3).

2)  grease two baking sheets.

3)  beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

4)  add egg yolks, lemon zest and vanilla essence.

5)  in a separate bowl, sift flour and baking powder together and mix in the polenta, add to the butter mixture and mix to a smooth dough.

6)  roll the dough into 1cm (½in) thick lengths and cut into 10cm (4in) pieces. *alaaaaa...ni yang tak syok ni!!!* shape them into crescents and space them 5cm (2in) apart on the baking sheets.**

7)  bake for 15 minutes until pale in color.

8)  cool on wire racks.

**because it was too gooey, i decided to refrigerate the dough for 24 hours. tu pun tak boleh gak... :-s

recipe source: 500 cookies by philippa vanstone

red velvet cupcakes

well...the mini version that is. i made mini red velvet cupcakes yesterday. that's one more recipe i can scratch off my list. the wife and her sister, on their trip to NYC years ago told me about this place called the magnolia bakery, that sells the best cupcakes ever. i think the place was made famous because of the few episodes of SATC. i haven't tasted anything from the bakery, BUT! the last time i was in LALA Land, the wife got me the banana bread pudding from the magnolia bakery branch in LA (that just opened) and lemme just tell you that every mouthful was a sinful experience to remember...sedap giler!!!!! it was 80% cream, 15% banana...and until now, i still cannot figure out where the 5% of bread is in that tub of happiness. haha!

MB Banana Bread Puddin'

 so, naturally, when i was looking for red velvet recipes and found the magnolia bakery version here, mestilah nak try, right? and so i did. lemme just tell you that the cupcake itself, was really moist, there were an isolated 2 or 3 cuppies that was a bit bitter tasting at the bottom, that was my bad, my fault entirely because i think i didn't mix the batter thoroughly and the bitter bits were the soda and vinegar mixture...maybe? haha! the cake itself was really moist and not that sweet...i think the recipe was made to compliment the frosting, so that the taste will not be too overpowering. another booboo i made was i didn't follow the frosting recipe from the same site. mainly because i had a whole chunk (read: all 500g of it) of cream cheese sitting in the fridge and i don't want it to go to waste, so, i took the frosting recipe from this other website...unfortunately, it didn't turn out too great, think once again, i overdid it with the beating of the cream (hmm...what exactly is my problem with cream??) and i had to redo the whole thing (only three letters can explain this action O.C.D.) but i decided to use a recipe from here instead. and, alhamdulillah..it turned out just fine.

waaahhhh...very long one my explanation...bla bla bla like that...are you headache? hahahaa!!

okay, to make a very, very long story short...(i haven't even told you how hard it was to find red food coloring...it seems as if half of malaysia is making this, and i had to go to a few places to find red food coloring...but, nemindlah, no needlah, yes?) i will now share with you the recipe, taken from sarahmeyerwalsh's blog.  since the recipe is not in metric, i have taken the liberty to convert it for you guys. as for the instructions and bla bla bla, you can guys go over here okay?

ingredients:
437½g cake flour
170g butter
562g caster sugar (the recipe didn't specify what kind of sugar, so i used caster)
3 large eggs, at room temperature
6 tbs red food coloring, i used up almost 3 tiny bottles of star brand food coloring
3 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
1½ tsp vanilla extract
1½ tsp salt
1½ cups buttermilk*
1½ tsp cider vinegar
1½ tsp baking soda
1 batch creamy vanilla frosting, that i didn't do (stoopidstoopidstoopid *bang head to wall)

*if you don't have buttermilk, fret not, because who in malaysia has a stock of buttermilk in their fridges anyways, right? okaylah, if you're a hardcore baker, maybe you havelah...but i don't. so, i went online and found this guide on how to make your own buttermilk. easy, right? if you don't have milk and/or vinegar, then i cannot help you...but if you do, then you're all set. :-p

now for the frosting, i followed the recipe for the frosting taken from here. this is a very useful site because each recipe has its own metric converter.

wow! this is one heck of a long entry, i'm sure you guys are already sick and tired listening to my nonstop babble...i wish you all the best of luck in your red velvet adventure.

come back soon, aight?

red velvet recipe taken from: sarahmeyerwalsh.wordpress.com thank you!
1st frosting recipe taken from: www.joyofbaking.com thank you!
2nd frosting recipe taken from: allrecipes.com thank you and i LOVE you!!



 

kerabu tomato ikan bilis

or fried anchovies and tomato salad or can also be known as *YUM* :-)

i got this recipe from this blog. and what can i say...this recipe is definitely a keeper. it's just the kind of salad you'd want to make when you don't have the appetite to eat anything or when you're craving for something saltysourish. then this is the one for you. if you want it to have a bit more 'kick', you can add in some more bird eye chillies. i only used about three, because i can't stand the heat YO!

ready for the recipe?

ingredients:
2 tomatoes, sliced in whatever way you like
dried anchovies, fried
½ big onion, sliced thinly
3-4 bird's eye chillies, sliced
1 lemongrass
salt and sugar to taste
lemon juice
MSG, if you like (i didn't put any)

the how to: seriously? you really want this part of the recipe? really? okaylah!

1)  pound the fried anchovies coarsely, i skipped this part because i like to have them whole then add in all the other ingredients and toss away!

this is so easy that it'll be a shame if you guys don't give it a try. hehehe...

bon appetit!

recipe source: hanamemories.blogspot.com thank you hana!! :-)

peanut butter cookies, anyone?

raya cookies project
recipe #2

wow! is all i can say. the taste of these cookies reminds me of my childhood, back when my mum used to make cookies for hari raya. this particular one reminds me of biskut kacang mazola. i don't know if people still make them, but i can remember it has peanuts and corn oil. these cookies taste similar to that but with a more 'peanut butter-ry' taste in them. *duh...nama pun peanut butter cookies, right?

i know you guys are dying to know how 'easy' it is to make these right? well, lemme just tell you, it IS easy...if you minus the part about shaping the dough into balls and then pressing them with the back of a fork. i *ehem* actually went the extra mile (read: OCD, takde keroje, cari keroje) and weighed each ball. so that they are all uniformly sized. la la la la la laaaa..

aneeways, here is the recipe.

ingredients:

200g (7oz) plain flour

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
115g (4oz) unsalted butter
100g (3½ oz) caster sugar
100g (3½ oz) unrefined light brown sugar
1 egg
225g (8oz) crunchy peanut butter
pinch of salt

the how to:
1)  sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda together.

2)  in a separate bowl, beat the butter and sugars until soft and creamy.

3)  combine the egg, flour mixture, peanut butter and salt.

4)  add the butter and sugar mixture, and mix until smooth.

5)  wrap the dough in foil or parchment and refrigerate for at least two hours, preferably overnight. *groaaan*

6)  pre-heat the oven to 160°C (325°F/Gas Mark 3).

7)  shape the dough into a 3cm (1¼in) balls and place them 5cm (2in) apart on baking sheets.*

8)  flatten slightly with a fork.

9)  bake for 15 minutes, or until golden.**

10) remove from oven and allow to cool.

*i am about to get all OCD here, so consider yourselves warned, okaaayyy? haha!! at first i used the smallest ice cream scoop i have to scoop out the dough but the end product turned out to be a bit too big to my liking, so i decided to weigh the dough. using the smallest ice cream scoop, with the dough weighing 14g the diameter of the cookies came up to 7cm (2½in). then i weighed each dough to 12g/ball and the diameter reduced to 5cm (2in)...still a bit too big to my liking. so, i reduced the dough to 8g/ball and the diameter came out to 4cm (1½in). okaylah kot? bite size, right? (told ya, OCD...haha!)

** i also had to increase the baking time, you know how it is, right? different oven, different attitude. i increased my baking time to 20 minutes.

happiness is having some cookies with a glass of cold milk. *sigh*

recipe source:  500 cookies by philippa vanstone

butter cookies

raya cookies project
recipe #1

hell-o!! raya cookies project? really??? i know, this is a VERY ambitious project i'm about to embark on...for all you know, after the 2nd recipe, i would've already given up! haha! but, let's hope not. because we all LOVE cookies, right? what better timing than to have entries about baking cookies now, with ramadhan being a month away and all.

okay, i'm sharing this recipe with you guys because i made this for hari raya last year and it was a hit! it's quite easy to make and since i like things to be super easy, i even skipped the 'shape dough in a log of about 4cm thick and wrap in foil and refrigerate for two hours' bit. to be fair, i tried. but the dough stuck to the foil and let's face it, with soft cookie dough, it aint easy getting them to co-operate and let them be shaped into a log. i tell you. seriously! so, i skipped that part. still, it's up to you. hehehe...

here's the recipe.

ingredients:

225g (8oz) unsalted butter*

150g (5oz) caster sugar

1½ tsp vanilla essence

¼ tsp salt
300g (10oz) plain flour

the how to:
1)  pre-heat your oven to 175°C (350°F/Gas Mark 4).

2)  beat the butter, sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy, but not fluffy.

3)  add the salt and flour and mix to a smooth paste.

4)  shape the dough into a log about 4cm (1½ in) thick, wrap in foil and refrigerate for two hours until the dough is firm. ***i skipped this part, la la la la laaaa***

5)  when ready to bake the cookies, cut the log into 6mm (¼ in) thick slices. ***too much numbers!! ohhhhh my headddd...my heaaadddd!!*** since i skipped (4), what i did was to stuff the dough in my mum's vintage (read: my years old...) SAWA cookie press and immediately start to make them.

6)  place the slices 4cm (1½in) apart on a non-stick baking sheet or use parchment paper on a standard baking sheet.

7)  bake for 12 to 14 minutes.

8)  cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight container.

*use good quality butter because for this one, it's ALL about the butter.

have fun making these babies, guys!

come back okay?

recipe source:  500 cookies by philippa vanstone
SAWA Cookie Press image taken from : www.lulushop.co.za **thank you lulushop!!**