My Kinda Snack - Muesli Cookies

I'm the kind who hardly ever eat snacks especially those junk food that comes in packet. It's not that I'm snobbish or trying to be healthy, just that my parents forbade us to eat those stuff or munching on things in between meals as they said it will spoil our appetite. So it never became a habit even until now. Occasionally I do however itch for some bites, so I will rummage through the fridge for chocolates or left over cakes.

Recently, I came across this recipe that said crunchy muesli cookies which seems very simple and easy. As usual I don't really follow the recipe but just guesstimate my way since it's not a cake and I tend to reduce the sugar amount anyway.

I've reduced the amount of sugar so it wasn't really crunchy but rather crumbly as very little butter is used to bind the total amount of ingredients used. If you have sweet tooth, steer clear of this recipe or maybe add a little more sugar :p



What I love about this cookie is, there is the crunch from the oats and nuts; then there's the chewiness from the dried fruits. Tasted very much like my homemade granola. So if you like granola for breakfast, you'll love this cookie recipe.

Muesli Cookies 

(A)
90 g (1 cup) rolled oats
150 g (1 cup) plain flour
200 g castor sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground mixed spice
100 g (3/4 cup) finely chopped mixture of dried cranberries, raisins and dates (you can use any combination ie. apricot, sultanas, citrus peel etc)
70 g (1/2 cup) chopped almonds and walnuts (any combination of nuts will work too) 

(B)
125 g butter
2 Tbsp maple/corn syrup or even honey (I've used maple syrup)
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 Tbsp boiling hot water 

Preheat oven to 160C, grease bottom of oven try and line with baking paper. Mix all ingredients (A) in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt butter and maple syrup over low heat. Once butter is completely melted, add in bicarbonate of soda and the boiling hot water. Remove pan from heat and cool a little. 

Pour warm butter mixture into the dry ingredients (A). Combine them thoroughly. Roll them into balls* and place on lined tray. Flatten a little with hand. Leave some space in between to allow the cookies to expand. Bake about 15 - 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool the cookies on cooling rack before storing in air tight container. 

I've roll them using about 1 slightly heaped tablespoon dough mixture and managed to get about 35 cookies.

Homemade Healthy Granola

Homemade Healthy Granola V1.0

I've been making my own granola for a while. It's really super easy and healthy as you know what ingredients you have put into the mix. Way easier than reading and deciphering the ingredients used in boxes or packages.

Served with the usual milk and fresh fruits or what we liked yoghurt and fruits which at times BoiBoi would love this as his dessert with a drizzle of chocolate sauce or maple syrup. For myself, I'll have a handful of these when I crave for a snack. For those who are new here, do check out my homemade yoghurt recipe filled with fail proof tips. Yes, yes I know a bit over the top huh, everything homemade except I don't have a cow to milk from heh! :p

Homemade Healthy Granola V1.0 in a mixing bowl

Homemade Healthy Granola V1.0 all laid out on baking tray

Anyway the first version of granola where I experimented using raw cane sugar instead in syrup form. The only issue is the sugar did not melt and caramalised. Conclusion is... best to use sugar in syrup form which can be corn syrup, maple syrup or honey. Don't fret over the use of sugar in your granola as the entire recipe only requires 2 Tbsp! Consider very little as oppose to store bought stuff.

Homemade Healthy Granola V1.0 cooling down

Homemade Healthy Granola V1.0

250 g rolled oat
50 g sunflower seed
50 g pumpkin seed
20 g flax seed
150 g walnut and almonds, roughly chopped
80 g organic raw cane sugar
30 ml sunflower oil
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
250 g mixture of golden raisins, black raisins and cranberries

Mix all ingredients except the dried fruits in a mixing bowl. Line tray with baking paper and bake in pre-heated oven at 170ºC between 15 - 20 minutes. Turn the mixture every 8 minutes or so or when you see the edges and top portion turned browned. It's done when mixture become golden brown. Remove from oven and cool down. Once cooled, mix in the dried fruits and store in air tight glass jar.

Yield about 700 g of granola. Keep up till 7 days or longer in the fridge.

Version 2.0 is the tweaked version where a syrup is used. The granola mix is just lightly coated with syrup hence it's not exactly sweet. The dried fruits are there to sweeten up anyway. Just feel free to experiment to put in your choice of dried fruits and nuts.

Homemade Healthy Granola V2.0 all mixed up

Homemade Healthy Granola V2.0 all laid out for baking

Homemade Healthy Granola V2.0

250 g rolled oat

50 g sunflower seed

20 g flax seed

150 g hazelnuts and almonds, roughly chopped

2 Tbsp golden syrup (can be replaced with maple syrup or honey)

30 ml sunflower oil

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

250 g mixture of golden raisins, black raisins, cranberries, dates (diced), apricot (diced)

Mix all ingredients except the dried fruits in a mixing bowl. Line tray with baking paper and bake in pre-heated oven at 170ºC between 15 - 20 minutes. Turn the mixture every 8 minutes or so or when you see the edges and top portion turned browned. It's done when mixture become golden brown. Remove from oven and cool down. Once cooled, mix in the dried fruits and store in air tight glass jar. 

Yield about 700 g of granola. Keep up till 7 days or longer in the fridge.

Homemade Healthy Granola V2.0 with dried fruits mixed in

Homemade Healthy Granola V2.0 served with fresh fruits and yoghurt

Harry Potter's Apple Pie

With a brand new year, I would love to share this Apple Pie recipe in The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook by Dinah Bucholz for a sweet start. Yup... you heard it, there's actually a recipe book on the food mentioned in Harry Potter series but it's unofficial though. It falls under Chapter 8 Desserts and Snacks at School. Did you drool when you read thru the books over what Mrs Weasley cooks for the kids and the daily feast the elves served at Hogwarts??

My ex-colleague, Bobby, who is a movie buff... loves to order movies and memorabilia via the net and I was surprised that he actually went all the way to get this recipe book even though he don't cook! He was kind enough to lend me the book (which reminds me that I need to return to him hehe!!!). The book does not have any photos and it was printed to make it look old school. I loved the "hand torn" feel of the long edge bind of the book!

The author is an American hence the measurements are not in metric which is quite a pain as I need to calculate and convert them before using. Anyway, I've only tried one recipe from this book hence I'm not sure if all the recipes work. Another disappointment is there is no recipe for Butter Beer which is something I'm always curious how it would taste like. However there are numerous recipes on the net though just that I haven't given them a go.

The other thing is some of the recipes are pretty lame... like fried eggs and bacon... hmmm perhaps this is targeted at the younger audience?

For this pie, I've tweaked the recipe. Did not have shortening so I've just used butter. Surprisingly the pie is pretty good. The crust is buttery (heh maybe because I've used everything butter) and loved the cinnamon apple fillings. To make it more decadent, I've served it ala mode - with a scoop of vanilla ice cream! For the full recipe, check here.

Apple Pie
The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook by Dinah Bucholz

Pie Crust:
560 g flour
3 Tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
280 g butter, cut into chunks (it called for shortening as well but I just use butter for the whole lot)
1/2 cup ice water

Filling:
8 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and chopped
Juice and grated zest of 1 lemon
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1 egg, lightly beaten, for brushing over the crust
Sugar, for sprinkling over the crust


1. Place the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse a few times to combine.

2. Scatter the chunks of butter over the flour and pulse about 20 times, until the mix resembles coarse crumbs. Since I do not have a food processor, I just use my finger tips and rub in the butter.

3. Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle on the 1/2 cup water, and mix with a spatula or your hands until the dough sticks together. If it's too dry, you can add more water 1 Tbsp at a time (better too wet than too dry).

4. Divide the dough in half and shape into round discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.

5. Preheat the oven to 180C. Remove one of the discs and roll it out on a floured surface into a 11" circle so that it can fit inside a 9" pie dish.

6. Fold the circle in quarters to lift it, then unfold it inside your pie plate. Trim the overhang to about 1", and place the plate in the fridge while you make the filling.

7. Combine the filling ingredients and mix well. The book asked to place the fillings directly on the pie bottom but I cooked it a little just to soften some of the apple pieces and thicken up the liquid. Cool the apples down before piling on the bottom crust.

8. Remove the second discs from fridge and roll out into 10" circle and place on top of the apples. Trim off the excess from the edge and crimp with fork or fingers. There should be excess dough, just make some leaves or flowers with it to decorate the pie.

9. Beat the egg and brush over the crust with a pastry brush. Cut slits in the top to form air vents. Sprinkle the extra sugar generously over the top.

10. Place the pie on a baking sheet to catch any drips and bake the pie on the bottom rack for 1.5 - 2 hours or until the crust is golden.

So which would be my next recipe to try out???

Cranberries Hot Cross Buns

(Trying to "instagram" the pic lol)

I really loved Donna Hay's Hot Cross Bun recipe which I've made last year. I've knead one today based on this recipe but with some changes in the ingredients. Loved the cinnamon smell whilst the buns are baking in the oven!

Cranberries Hot Cross Buns
Adapted from Donna Hay's Modern Classics 2

Ingredients:
For the buns:
1 tablespoon dry yeast
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 1/2 cups milk, lukewarm
4 1/2 cups plain flour, sifted
2 teaspoons all spice
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
50g butter, melted
1 egg
1 cup dried cranberries

For the crosses: (mix the ratio of flour and water into thickish but still runny)
1/2 cup plain flour
1/3 cup water

For the glaze:
Strawberry jam, warm in microwave for 10 secs cos I was too lazy to make the glaze (see I told you guys I'm a very lazy person!)

Method:
1) Place the yeast, 2 teaspoons of the sugar and milk in a large mixing bowl. Set
aside for 5 minutes, until the mixture starts to foam. When it forms, it means
the yeast is active.

2) Add flour, all spice, cinnamon, butter, egg, raisins, cranberries and remaining sugar to the yeast mixture. Use a spoon to mix until a sticky dough forms.

3) Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface for about 8 minutes, or until it feels elastic. You can use the hook dough on your heavy duty mixer but I didn't. Stretching this dough is not all that difficult.

4) Place in a large oiled bowl, cover with a tea towel and allow to stand in a warm place about 1 hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.

5) Divide the dough into 12 pieces and roll into balls.

6) Line a 9X9-inch cake tin with non-stick baking paper. Place the dough balls in the tin and cover with a clean tea towel. Allow to stand for 30 minutes in a warm place, or until they rise.

7) In the mean time, preheat the oven to 200°C. Combine the flour and water for the crosses. Place in a piping bag or a plastic bag with the corner snipped off and pipe crosses on the buns when they are ready to be baked.

8) Bake for 35 minutes or until browned and springy to the touch.

9) Brush the hot cross buns with the warm strawberry jam while the buns are hot. Serve warm, with butter.

Ref: Modern Classics Book 2, Donna Hay

Have a blessed Easter!

The US Cranberry Bakery Seminar & Workshop 2010

Since my last attendance of the cheese tasting, I'm glad that Kenneth Wee of Total Agri Marketing still remembers me and put me on the invite list amongst the chefs, bakers, celebrity chefs etc. I'm so honoured actually! Since it was a work day, nobody else could come along except for FBB. This seminar cum workshop was held at Berjaya University College of Hospitality.

Total Agri Marketing is promoting cranberries in Malaysia on behalf of the Cranberry Marketing Committee USA. Thanks to them, it's quite easy to get frozen or dried cranberries and juice on our supermarket shelves these days. All these while I only know the answer for urinary tract infection is to drink lots of cranberries juice but now, I know cranberries hold more than that.



Cranberries contain no fat, no cholesterol, and very little sodium. Whole cranberries are a good source of dietary fiber, and all cranberry products contain flavonoids and polyphenolics, natural compounds that offer a wide range of potential health benefits. Since we can't get fresh cranberries, the closest would be the frozen kind but I'm not sure if they're sweetened like their dried counterparts. We were told fresh cranberries can be very very tart.

Kenneth introduced 2 officials from the committee and they each gave a short speech on cranberries and all.



Next, we were introduced to Chef Tim Healea who is the principal baker and owner of Little T American Baker. His bakery specialises on handcrafted breads, Viennese-style pastries and rustic desserts.



Without wasting time, Chef Tim demonstrated 8 out of the 10 recipes provided to us all within 3 hours plus! To help those who are sitting at the back, there's even a screen zooming into what Chef Tim is doing upfront. How thoughtful!



As he goes along, Chef Tim impart some tips here and there for each of the recipes. I noticed a lot of the participants were so hardworking taking notes! Mid way, there was a short coffee break where we were served pre-made goodies from the recipes of Chef Tim demo. There were the Baked Doughnuts and Almond Rolls which are made from the same dough base. Then there is the Crumb Brioche, Cream Scone, Apple Turnover, Apple Wholewheat Muffin, Gibassier, Sweet Cream Tart (my fave out of the lot) and Financier. All of these have cranberries in them!





Chef Tim continued on after the break and by the end of it, he have all these goodies all done out! Amazing that they all looked good as some demo I've been to produces messy products :p




Apple Turnover


Baked US Cranberry Doughnut


Cream Scones


Crumb Brioche


Sweet Cream Tart


Almond Roll

Hmm the recipes for the above goodies are not available on the website but they do have other recipes. I would love to try some of these recipes but only when I have the time :( First on my list would be the Sweet Cream Tart, it's quite simple and soooo tasty!



Thanks to Kenneth and staff at Total Agri Marketing, Cranberry Marketing Committee, Berjaya University College of Hospitality and most importantly Chef Healea for the great afternoon.

BTW, do check out FBB's creative post!

Another pic of Chef Tim ;-) with the completed Apple Turnover. Just can't get enough of his smiles :p

Moon Festival Cutey Biscuits aka Gung Tzai Pheng

I've made a batch of Gung Tzai Pheng (Moon Festival Cutey Biscuits) this year and they all turned out quite good. I experimented with various molds and found those like peach or even angkoo are the easiest to mold the biscuits as I do not have to spend time ensuring the nooks and corners of complicated shapes like goldfish or khei loon (a type of Chinese lion) are properly filled with dough. So the moral of the story is - don't buy molds that looked super cute with lots of designs on them :p



I did the angkoo one just for fun cause GFAD made some angkoo kuih using square mooncake molds :p



This biscuit is quite easy peasy but just tedious in terms of having to weigh the dough and fillings before assembling them. Recipe can be found here and here.

This year, Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated on 22 September. You'll still have some time left to make these cutie biscuits!

Note: There is no need to refrigerate the dough! It'll make your dough "melt".

Luxe Up Version of Potato Pie

Based on the Fish and Potato Pie recipe, I luxe up this version by using asparagus and salmon other than green peas and eggs. Needless to say, it's wolfed down in a jiffy!



Here are the other versions of potato pies that kids would love:
Chunky Chicken and Potato Pie
Another version of Chicken and Potato Pie
Fish and Potato Pie


Happy weekend!

Pavlova

Hmm it has been a long while to have a sugar high Friday, let's just have one today. I can't help it but to make some myself, not when your idol keep parading his ware plus drooling over the pavlovas beautifully pictured in the latest issue of Donna Hay magazine (summer issue) .

There were a few recipes dressing pavlovas in different ways found in this issue but I just made a simple one. However, I used the recipe for individual portions instead of a large one since there are only 3 of us at home.

Pavlova

150ml eggwhite (approximately 4 eggs)
1 cup (220g) caster (superfine) sugar
2 tablespoons cornflour (cornstarch), sifted
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 cup (250ml) single (pouring) cream

Preheat oven to 150°C (300°F). Place the eggwhite in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, whisking well, until the mixture is stiff and glossy.

Add the cornflour and vinegar and whisk until just combined. Spoon half cupfuls mixture onto a baking tray lined with non-stick baking paper. Reduce oven to 120°C (250°F) and bake for 1 hour. Turn the oven off and allow the pavlova to cool completely in the oven.

Whisk the cream until soft peaks form. Spread over the pavlova, top with fruits (in my case, I've used strawberries, fresh dates and oranges, can't find passionfruit last weekend but the previous weekend have abundant of them in the market! *roll eyes* and serve immediately. Makes 10.

• You’ll know when the meringue is stiff and glossy because the mixture will have tripled in volume and stands up when the beaters are lifted.
• The low heat puffs up the meringue while the long cooking time dries it out to give you a lovely crisp shell.
• Store your pavlova, undressed, in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

For a large pavlova, use this recipe.


Technorati Tags: dessert + pavlova

Orange Marbled Cake

Let's begin by me telling Skinny Mum and Family First thank you so much. Skinny Mum said my blog converted her family to love mooncakes and the simple recipes suited her new found interest - cooking. Family First gave Babe in the City - KL an award for being one of the coolest blog in her list. *sobs* I sincerely thank you both for these... reading two mentions in one morning could be a little overwhelming heh :p

Apologies to Family First, Nigel and Ciki for not participating and continuing with your meme/tag/award. I've mentioned sometime back that I'm not very fond of these, and at one point it was hard but I managed that very emo one. So thanks but no thanks.

Back to today's post... I just improvised on my Marbled Cake recipe and came out with this one, Orange Marbled Cake. Just need to substitute the milk with orange juice. On top of that, grated zest of an orange. The orange smell and taste was unbelievable. I was glad it made somebody's kid happy :p that day.



Please excuse for the look of the cake. The crack was caused by putting too much batter into the loaf pan. I've read that to prevent that, you'll need to fill the pan half-way through and not any more.

Do soak the orange in hot water for a while to remove the wax off its skin. Errr for double security reason, I tend to give it a brush as well haha. Wash off with more hot water and wipe dry before zesting. I do this with my lemons too.


Technorati Tag: marble cake

Another Variation of Chicken and Potato Pie

Here's another variation of the Chunky Chicken and Potato Pie. This time the filling, I've chicken, yellow zuchinni, green peas, carrots and broccoli.

The testament of its deliciousness... my boiboi finished 3/4 of this single serving portion :D YAY!!!








Technorati Tags: pie

Mid-Autumn Festival Cutie Lotus Paste Biscuits

These are the plain version of the Mid-Autumn piggy biscuits...



These batch of fishes have lotus paste kneaded into the dough. Recipe as stated below.



These plain janes were inspired by those bought by hubby at Jusco's Mid-Autumn Fair at 1 Utama (old wing concourse). I was wondering why he bought them when I can make them myself hehehe... he told me the aroma was hard to resist as they came fresh outta oven. Using the same recipe below, I added some melon seeds into the dough and shaped them into rounds. Yummyumm!

Mid-Autumn Festival Cutie Lotus Paste Biscuits

Ingredients:
300g biscuit dough
150g lotus paste
some plain flour for dusting

Topping (beaten):
1 egg yolk
1 egg

Decoration:
some black beans (halved), if needed

Method:
1. Mix dough with lotus paste until well combined.

2. Divide dough into many portions, form it into rounds or ovals depending on biscuit moulds. Dust flour in mould, then press dough into mould. Next, invert onto baking tray.

3. Bake in preheated oven at 180C for 10 mins. Remove from oven, leave to cool, and brush beaten egg on the surface evenly. Continue to bake for 10 mins until golden brown. Serve.

Ref: Famous Cuisine Vol. 51 July-Aug 2008, page 7

BTW, I finally found out why my dough sagged!!! I was too smart alec to place the dough in the fridge when in actual fact, you don't need to! Took me a couple of batches before discovering this *blush blush*


Technorati Tags: mooncake festival + mid-autumn festival + mooncake

Fish and Potato Pie

Quickie post today cos I've been running around like a headless chicken since yesterday. Using the same recipe of the Chunky Chicken and Potato Pie, I've made a Fish and Potato Pie instead. I've poached my fish slices in milk, remove the fish and set aside. Made the roux using these milk instead of the vegetable liquid. Pile on the fish and vegetables on a baking dish. I topped these with sliced hard boiled eggs before lashing on the mashed potatoes. Bake and serve hot.



Need I repeat that this is a very simple dish to make and tasted very very yummy too!


Technorati Tags: pie

Citrus Yoghurt Muffins

By far this is one of the most delicious and delectable muffins I've ever made! The citrusy tang and fragrance was absolutely addictive. They doesn't look very attractive though, pretty pale and the top doesn't brown evenly like normal muffins. This recipe is definitely a must keep!

Citrus Yoghurt Muffins

(A)
200g flour
175g caster sugar (I've reduced this so adjust to your taste)
1 tbsp each grated lemon zest, lime zest and orange zest
1 tbsp baking powder
pinch of salt

(B)
225ml fat-free plain yoghurt
115ml sunflower oil
1 lightly beaten egg

Preheat oven to 200C. Grease a 12-cup muffin tray.

In a bowl combine (A) thoroughly. In another bowl, mix (B) until well blended. Add the flour mixture until well combined, do not overmix.

Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake for 20 mins. Remove from oven and cool for 5 mins. Then remove muffins from pan and serve warm.

Ref: 500 Cupcakes & Muffins, By Fergal Connolly book (published by PageOne Publishing)

Technorati Tags: muffins