Hot Cross Buns

Since today is Good Friday, I tried baking something more for this occasion...

Yeah!!! Hot Cross Buns!!!

Hot Cross Buns, Hot Cross Buns
One a penny, two a penny
Hot Cross Buns!

ha ha!!! This is some song that I used to sing a lot when I was a child.

Hot cross buns are traditionally eaten on Good Friday. They are sweet buns with spices and raisins added, with a cross marked on top of the bun. I came across different methods (recipes) of marking the cross. The most common uses pastry, which is mixing flour and water together to a paste-y consistency and then piped onto the risen buns before sending them to bake in the oven. I have also came across another method that uses icing to mark the crosses after the buns are baked.

Well, as much as I am tempted to use icing to mark the crosses, I told myself to try out the pastry since it's more challenging... Haha!!! Mistake... BIG mistake!!! Coz I had a hard time in making the pastry right. I spent so much time in meddling with the pastry that my buns were over-proofed. And I guess the crosses I made were toooooo thick!. Kinda heavy for the risen buns that they actually got "deflated" when I piped the pastry cross on them. Then... The recipe that I followed (from LCB Complete Cook Home Collection) also provided a kind of glaze which I am not familiar with. It requires milk to be boiled with sugar and spices till the sugar dissolved. This glaze is to be brushed on top of the buns the moment they come out of the oven and after they have cooled. I tried, but I felt the glaze effect wasn't as glossy as it seems from the picture given in the recipe. And my buns were kinda sticky with the glaze. Maybe it would be better if I had just used eggwash?

And so, I think the buns didn't turn out as pretty as I wanted it to be. It tasted a little sour (from being over-proofed) too. I also felt that the buns were a little dry. I actually doubled the liquid stated in the bread recipe because I felt the dough were too dry while kneading. It still turned out a little dry and hard though. Aiyo!!! But luckily, the dried fruits (which were plumped with brandy) within the buns sort of covered the flaws. So they are still edible... Hahaha!!!

And for my next attempt (dunno when), I will use some tried and tested sweet buns recipes to make the buns and use the icing method to pipe the crosses!!! hahaha!!!

Something Vegetarian....

I went to Fortune Centre a few days ago and bought a few food stuff from there. I would say Fortune Centre is a "Vegetarian Paradise" as there are lots of vegetarian eateries in the building itself.

I still can remember my dining experience at the New Green Pasture Cafe located on level 4 of the building quite some time ago (probably a year back?). Back then, I had Brown Rice Vermicelli Salad (supposed to be Soba salad but the owner said she ran out of soba, so replaced with Bee Hoon instead), and I have to say that it was good, really really good. There were many different kinds of shredded veggies in the dish, together with some toasted nuts and dried fruits. The self-made dressing is pleasantly sweet and delightfully refreshing - just right and not overpowering. It's so yummy that I kept wanting to go back for another meal but have not found the chance even up till now... Besides cooked meals, this small organic cafe also sells organic vegetarian products. I find the cafe quite cosy, with an open-concept kitchen, and the owner (who happens to be the chef as well) is kinda "casual", for you can hear her sing and prepare the food at the same time. Cool right?

Okay. That's my one and only dining experience at Fortune Centre. Besides the several vegetarian eateries one can find in Fortune Centre, there are also minimarts selling vegetarian stuff. And for my trip there a few days back, I loaded myself with some rather interesting stuff I found in one of the minimarts located at the first level of the building.

Steamed Buns...

Hahaha!!! This is what I call when"the small pau meets the big pau"... Hahaha... Well, the small pau isn't that small afterall. It's the same as those normal-sized pau with diameter about 2.5 inch. But the big pau is really huge! It measures a little more than 4-inch in diameter!!! This is definitely bigger than the usual big pau (which filling is pork and 1/4 hard-boiled egg) that I am aware of. So that makes this the GIANT pau. hahaha!!! When I saw this giant pau, I really cannot resist myself but to buy it... The filling for this giant pau is mock meat with some mushrooms.

Hmmm... Pity to say... this may look fascinating but I won't say it's something that I enjoy eating. I wasn't really expecting the mock meat to be in such small pieces like the pieces of meat one find in char siew pau. I was expecting bigger pieces actually. And because it's mock meat, they are all made of gluten. I felt really (uncomfortably) stuffed after eating this giant pau. It probably would be better if there were more mushrooms within.

And what's in the smaller pau? Okay. This is actually wholemeal pumpkin pau. If I have not remembered wrongly, it's organic as well. PuMpKiN pau... Sounds so different right? Well, this is something unheard of for me. So... MUST buy!!!! hahaha

But when I sliced open to find the inside with CHUNKS of pumpkin, again, I was a little disappointed. I was expecting more paste-y (or puree) like of pumpkin as the filling, like that of lotus seed pau or red bean pau. And when I took a bite... I found it quite tasteless. Maybe because I was expecting the pumpkin to have some sweetness. Anyway, eventually, I just got used to the unexpected not-so-sweet pumpkin filling and was quite okay with it.


After the pau, here comes Eggless Cream Puffs!!!

Yes, eggless!! When I saw these little cuties sitting nicely among the other vegetarian pastries, my eyes widened and my mouth opened big big! How is that possible? I mean, how can cream puffs be made without eggs? It's like saying making butter cakes without using butter (hm, okay, I noe vegan butter cakes are made without butter. but well,... i just hope i get my pt across...). I have made cream puffs before, and I know very well that egg is the essential ingredient in making the cream puffs (choux pastry) puff up during baking. I just couldn't figure out what could possibly go into this eggless version. And for the filling, it looks quite creamy, just like pastry cream/custard. But of coz, I don't expect them to use pastry cream or egg custard for the filling. My guess was that they probably have used buttercream instead. But when I finally tasted them, I think I was only half right in guessing the filling. I dun think the cream was made of butter. It tasted more like margarine/shortening to me. Not my kind of "fat". And for the choux pastry itself? I think it is quite nicely done for it tasted near to the "real thing" in terms of the texture. Maybe it just lacked the egg fragrant?

Actually, I also found other pastries like cakes, muffins, swiss rolls in that the shop, which are eggless as well. But I didn't buy them. I saw on the ingredients' list that SP is added. Without eggs, I guess this SP chemical is the key ingredient that helps to tenderize and leaven the cakes. There was another interesting thing which I saw among the pastries. Eggless Egg Tarts!!! Quite an oxymoron right? Like butterless butter cake? (oops! is that the same example as above?hahaha!). I probably will buy them if I see them again during my next trip there. Anyway, after seeing so many eggless vegetarian food and bakes, I wanna say that I'm really impressed with those vegetarian chefs in coming up with these creations.

--------------********---------------

Okay... Besides this trip to Fortune Centre, I baked something vegetarian too. Ha ha. I dun mean to bake something vegetarian, but it just happened that this can fall into the vegetarian category...


The Sage Soda Bread...

Soda bread, better known as Irish soda bread, is a quick-bread that uses baking soda, instead of yeast, as the leavening agent. Traditionally, the Irish Soda bread is made from only four ingredients - Flour, Buttermilk, Baking Soda and Salt. So, the acid in the buttermilk will react with the alkali baking soda to provide the leavening for this bread. Refer to Baking Bite's entry on Traditional Irish Soda Bread for the traditional recipe.

As human beings are creative, additional ingredients were included into the traditional recipe, giving it different variations. Common add-ons are sugar, butter, eggs, dried fruits, herbs and seeds. But I have also read from here that a soda bread should strictly be made from the four ingredients only. If there are anything more than that, it should not be called a soda bread anymore...

So when I know the background, I wonder if I should still call this Sage Soda Bread. Anyway, I got this recipe from "The Ultimate Book of Baking" by Martha Day, which was a gift to me. This 500-page recipe book is really bulky and massive. It is measures about 12 inches by 9 inches, 2.25 inches in height and weighs 4kg!!! Ha ha. Anyway, this sage soda bread is really simple, made only with the basic four ingredients (flour, buttermilk, baking soda and salt) plus sage. But because I didn't have buttermilk and had a tub of yoghurt that is going to expire, I substituted the buttermilk that the recipe called for with yoghurt instead. And since it was for my own consumption, I made 1/4 recipe only.

Sage Soda Bread Recipe (modified from Martha Day's The Ultimate Book of Baking)

Ingredients:
60g whole-wheat flour
35g bread flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp shredded fresh sage
80g plain yoghurt

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F (about 220°C).
2. Sift dry ingredients into a mixing bowl
3. Stir in sage and add enough liquid (yoghurt) to make a soft dough
4. Shape the dough into a round loaf with your hands and place on a baking sheet
5. Cut a deep cross in the top. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the loaf is well risen and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

The inclusion of sage is actually a nice surprise. I like its aroma. Very fragrant. I have tried making the traditional soda bread before but I think I am not really used to the taste. Too tangy, which is probably due to the buttermilk. So with yoghurt, it turned out just right for me. And I actually like the mixture of whole-wheat flour and plain flour. The whole wheat flour gives this bread a different bite. MORE bite I should say. Ha ha.. It really requires one to chew and chew and keep chewing... This bread is even more rustic than rustic breads. hahaha!

Peanut Butter Cookie

Peanut butter cookie! I finally get my hands in making this cookie recipe which I got from Judy Koh's Recipes from the Heart recipe book. When I first saw it, I thought it was gorgeous and made a mental note that I will have to make this.

And when my dear colleague (now ex) left the company, I told myself I got to bake her something as a farewell gift. I couldn't think of anything but this Peanut Butter cookie because I wanted to bake something that she hasn't tried from me before. Ha ha. Yupz. She has tasted quite a few of my bakes already. Thanks gal for your support.! Furthermore, it was also a good chance to try out the new cookie press which I acquired some time ago.

Talking about the cookie press, I had a hard time with it. I spent quite a great deal of time pressing the cookie dough out. I also made lots of re-attempts in shaping the cookies because the dough that were pressed out looked kinda out of shape. Hahaha!!! It's not that friendly that I thought it would be. Now, I wonder if I will ever use it again.

Anyway these are the little peanut butter cookies that I made for my colleague. I topped some with almond slices before baking... I also followed Judy's tip in the book to decorate some cookies with compound chocolate and hundreds of thousands after they were cooled...

I tasted a few plain ones and I thought they were quite good. But it can be quite "heaty". Ha ha.. Might get sore-throat if you eat too much.

The packed cookies....

I would like to take this chance to wish my ex-colleague all the best in her new career. Do take care and all the best in whatever you do. Hope you like cookies made specially for you. Keep in touch ya?

Mandarin Orange Yoghurt Cake

As I mentioned in previous post , I still have a lot of mandarin oranges lying in my fridge. None of my family members seem to be eating them anymore, and so I thought I should just use them for my bakes. =)

This time, I made a simple yoghurt cake and glazed it with mandarin orange juice.

This french-style yoghurt cake seems to be the basic cake where all French households will know how to make. It uses yoghurt tub as the only measuring tool. It is one no-fuss cake that require minimal ingredients and equipment. The steps are really straightforward and the results can be quite rewarding. I got the basic recipe from here. What I like about this recipe is that the amount of ingredients to use is really easy to remember. They are all in ratios w.r.t the yoghurt amount. I actually remember the amount by the numbers 3,3,2,1,1 and the ingredients by the "abbreviations" F-E-S-O-Y. Joining them together, i will get:

3 tubs of Flour (self-raising)*
3 Eggs
2 tubs of Sugar
1 tub of Oil
1 tub of Yoghurt (natural)

*if SR flour is unavailable, replace flour with plain (all-purpose) flour and add in another 2 tsp of baking powder.

This cake can have many variations. It's up to the individual to add in any additional ingredients (citrus fruit zest / ground nuts / fresh fruits / nuts) into the batter and also top the baked cake with any glaze. Refer to Orangette's blog for her post on French Style Yoghurt Cake with Lemon for the possible variations.

Below is what I used and did for Mandarin Orange Yoghurt Cake. I used a 125ml tub (1/2 cup) for all my measurements. I actually took down the weight of the ingredients so that I can weigh my ingredients the next time I do it. I find it more convenient to measure my ingredients by weight.

Ingredients:
3 tubs (about 200gm) of sifted Self-Raising Flour
3 Eggs
2 tubs (about 200gm) of Sugar
1 tub (about 85gm) of Canola Oil
1 tub (about 120gm) of Natural Yoghurt
40 gm untoasted Almond flakes
Zest from 2 Mandarin Oranges
Juice from 3 Mandarin Oranges


Method:

1. Preheat oven to 170 degrees. Line a 8" round cake tin
2. Mix all ingredients together until smooth.
3. Pour batter into the prepared tin. Top batter with almond flakes **.
4. Bake for about 35 minutes or cake tester inserted in the centre comes out clean.
5. Cool cake completely in its tin. After it is cooled, poke several holes in the cake from the surface and spoon juice over the cake. Let the cake stand overnight before serving. This is to allow the cake to mellow. I actually find it tastes better (more flavourful) two days later.

**For this variation, I think adding the almond flakes was quite a mistake because they turned soft after glazing...

I quite like the taste of this cake. It's not the rich kind of cake and so I can easily gobble down a few slices at one go. I will definitely make it for my self-indulgence. Hahaha!! This is a simple cake which I enjoyed making. It is one of the few cakes which I don't really need to refer to the recipe in order to make. No sophisticated equipment required (except for the oven??). So that means, I can make this cake almost anytime and almost anywhere with just the few basic items. Yippie!!!

Another MeMe

This is another MeMe which Emily from Mimosa's Diary has tagged me to.


The Meme rules:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 5 facts about yourself.
3. Tag 5 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they've been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.


Here are the 5 facts about myself:

1. I am obsessed in baking. I am so obsessed that I am constantly thinking of what to bake and finding "reasons" to bake. I can come up with fantastic reasons like ' I need to keep my oven in working condition' and 'I just need to use this ingredient before it expires'.
   
   
2. I am using Rowenta OR9040 oven which is serving me quite well. It's is a 38-litre conventional oven. I find it quite classy in look. Good and big enough to let me indulge in my baking fantasies.
   
   
3. I have my orange KitchenAid KSM150 to do all the mixing, kneading and beating. I think I have "tortured" it so much that it is beginning to "protest" now. The engine is kinda noisy when it is in operation. =(
   
   
4. I have two fridges in my kitchen. One of it is actually packed with my baking stuff.
   
   
5. I think I can't live without TV. And so... even my kitchen has a TV set, so that I can watch when i bake. Ha ha!!!

I hope they are interesting enough....

And just like the previous Meme.. I will end it here... =)

MeMe Time

Ha ha. I was being tagged by Sandy from The Baking Blog. This is actually my first time doing a Meme... =) It's kinda fun typing out things about myself.

Here is it...


What were you doing 10 years ago?
Studying and most probably playing too!. Haha... Was a secondary student then, so besides going to school, I spent most of my time going out with frens and watching tv!!!


What were you doing 1 year ago?
Work work...


Five snacks you enjoy:

1. Cakes (especially no-cream cakes that are light, e.g chiffon cakes, angel-white cakes...)
2. Biscuits (Meiji Plain Biscuits is my favourite!!!)
3. Nonya Kuehs (especially those steamed multi-colour lapis kueh)
4. Good quality dark chocolate (above 70%).
5. Ice-cream (Must be premium kind one...)

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire:

if only...

1. Renovate my house (especially my kitchen... I'm gonna buy nice nice kitchenware and make the place very conducive for my baking. )
2. Give a portion of money to my dearest elders...
3. Go overseas (be it holiday, or study)
4. "Indulge" in baking business...?
5. Invest to let money grow grow grow. Hopefully I don't need to slog for money...

Five bad habits:

Aiyo... this is kinda embarrassing...

1. I don't like to take shower when I feel cold at night. So that means I can sleep without bathing. Of coz! I will definitely take my shower in the morning if I didn't do that the night before. Not that bad right? haha!
2. I fall asleep watching tv quite often. When that happens, my family members will need to help me turn off the tv and lights which kinda annoy them. Ooopsss...
3. Buying things (especially baking stuff) even when I don't really need them. Sometimes, I even lost track of what I have and end up buying things that I already have.
4. Ordering/buying more food than I can actually eat. I am pretty curious when it comes to food. So I end up ordering/buying a lot of food but not finishing them. The poor fellow(s) with me will need to help me clear the plates.. Very bad right?
5. Even though I like to eat, I can be very picky at food. Ha ha! I only eat what I like to eat.

Five things you like doing:

1. Bake (Of coz!!!)
2. Eat (Only food I like)
3. Sauna/Steam Bath after a good workout.
4. Shopping for baking stuff
5. Going to pet shop to look at rabbits.

Five things you would never wear again

1. My school uniforms
2. Stockings (I just feel weird in them)
3. Jumper (I used to like it when I was in my early teens. I thought it was cool... but now, I guess I've grown out of it. I will "run far far" when I see it in boutiques.)
4. My gong ku. (martial arts pants). I used to be involved in Lion Dance during my JC and Uni days but have not gone back to join the alumni for training since I started working. *guilty*.
5. A key pendant given to me when I turned 21. I guess I won't wear it again, but it will always remain in my safe-keeping.

Five favourite toys:

1. My KitchenAid mixer
2. Oven
3. Computer
4. Camera
5. Handphone

Yupz. That's all for this Meme.. I know I need to tag five people for this, but I guess I will just leave it as it is. =)

Spreader of Love Award

I received this award from Chawanmushi 2 months back.

This blog has been awarded The Spreader of Love Award created by The Love Blog, for an outstanding demonstration of blogging love.


Thank you Chawanmushi. This is really an honour. It keeps me going in spreading my love to my precious ones.

And now, I would like to pass this award to Happy Homebaker. I find her one amazing baker whom bakes and cooks with love for her family.