Decadent Chocolate Brownies

How about some Brownies?

Brownies are everyone's favourite....unless really...if you don't like chocolates!

These brownies are chewy on the inside and has a crack on the outside.

So very easy to make them! Try it...QUICK!

Here's a quick video on how to make these brownies. 

 

All you need:

 150g butter, melted

1 cup baking cocoa

4 eggs

1 3/4 cups caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

200g white chocolate chips (optional)

All you need to do:

1 - Preheat oven to 160c and line your square baking tin. Set aside.

2 - Melt butter, once that's done, remove from heat. Stir in your cocoa powder. Set aside to cool it slightly. 

3 - Add in your eggs into your butter & cocoa batter, beat well, at first it may not look like it's coming together, but it will, you should get a thick smooth batter (similar to chocolate ganache). 4 - Stir in sugar and vanilla extract.

4 - Combine flour and baking powder in a separate bowl before adding to mixture. Stir until just combined.

 

5. Stir in the white chocolate chips.

 

6 - Pour in tin, bake it for about 45-50 minutes or until your brownie cracks a little on top and skewer comes out with some moist crumbs. (Do not overbake it, otherwise it'll be dry - this is when your skewer comes out completely clean).  

 7 - Set aside to cool completely on wire rack.

 

Happy Brownie Day! :)

Kitchen Essentials Part 5 : How long can you store your ingredients?

Ever wonder where to store baking ingredients and what is the shelf life on them? Don't worry, I'm here to help. It is important to store ingredients properly to ensure the freshness of it. The worst thing is to use stale ingredients or ingredients that are not as fresh as it should be.

You can use jars, air-tight containers, sealable bags to store your ingredients. Don't forget to write the purchase or expiry date of the ingredients so that you're able to keep track.

It is also good to know which ingredients you use on a regular basis and which you don't. That way, it can help give you an idea on where you should store them. 

I have here a short list of examples on what, where and how long you can keep the ingredients.

Egg - See how to test the freshness?* 

I hope that this list will help give you some guidance on what you should and can do.

At the end of the day, just taste or smell the ingredients, if something doesn't smell alright, it's time to replace it. Also, from my experience usually ingredients that are kept properly especially when kept in the freezer or the fridge, lasts longer than the expiry date. But hey, at the end of the day, use your senses to lead you! 

Happy organising! :)

How to find out the freshness of the eggs you're using?

Have you ever wondered, how to tell whether the eggs you're using are fresh?

Simple.

Fill a bowl or cup with cold water. 

Put an egg in it.

 [right] If the egg sinks to the bottom - the egg is fresh :) 

The higher the egg floats to the top of the surface, the less fresh it is.

[left] The egg isn't as fresh as the right egg.

Sorry, I don't have a picture of an egg floating to the top, we go through eggs by the dozens, there is no chance for the eggs to go stale. I was lucky to find an egg that is suspended mid-way in the water.

Happy Hump Day! :)

p/s: I just made a batch of these cookies! Yum! I've already eaten too many even before they are cooled properly! shhhh don't tell anyone. 

Sweet Findings

Hey!

1 - EGGS! 8 ways to make an egg salad sandwich!

pix: thekitchn

2 - I can't wait to try this Espresso Alfrajore Ice Cream.

pic: thesweetestkitchen

3 - How to make the best Popcorn Caramel?

pic: thekitchn

4 - There's a cookies recipe from the "Cookie Monster"!

pic: thekitchn

5 - Double dough Ice cream - YUM! 

pic: takeamegabite

Happy Friday! :)

A Family Recipe: Sugee Cake

Today is my daddy's special day, it is his birthday. And to celebrate this occasion, I have asked him, "What cake would he like for his birthday?". I should have guessed! He has requested for his all time favourite cake - Sugee Cake.  For those who do not know what a Sugee cake is, it is basically a cake made out of fine semolina flour and lots of egg yolks! You'll see what I'm talking about when you read the recipe below! 

This recipe is a family recipe. It is pretty easy to follow too! If you like to try it out, check out the recipe below! I made half the recipe in the pictures below. If you're doing half the recipe, bake the cake for about 45-50 minutes in a loaf tin.

All you need:

1 pound unsalted butter

1 pound sugee flour (fine semolina flour)

1 pound caster sugar 

15 egg yolks

5 egg whites

150g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g toasted chopped finely almonds (I used slivered almonds and chopped them) - for flavour purposes, not really for texture

100g mixed peel, chopped finely - for flavour purposes, not really for texture

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2-3 tsp brandy (optional)

All you need to do:

1 - Beat egg yolks lightly with a fork. 

2 - Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

3 - Gradually add in the egg yolks. Add the vanilla extract.

4 - In a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until stiff peak.

5 - Gently fold in egg whites into mixture and mix well.

6 - Fold in flour a little at a time, to avoid deflating the air in the batter.

7 - Add in the sugee (semolina) flour, almonds and mixed peel. Mix well.

8 - Pour into square 9" cake tin. Let the mixture rest for at least 30 minutes.

9 - Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees for about 1 hour or until skewer comes out clean.

10 - Cool cake in tin before removing to cool completely on a cooling rack. 

And lastly, a birthday shoutout!

Happy birthday daddy dearest! Love you to bits! xx

Recipes to Stay Warm this Winter

It has been pretty cold the past few days. How have you been keeping warm?

I have compiled a short list of recipes that you can make this winter!

Croissant Bread and Butter Pudding

You can use any stale bread - croissants, brioche, bread, buns. That's the beauty of it.

Sticky Date Pudding with Butterscotch sauce and Almond Pralines

Oh My...looking for something STICKY? Try this pudding! It has just the right amount of sweetness and it is oh so MOIST!

Pillow Peanut Butter Chocolate Puffs

Chocolate always warms the soul, so why not make some puff pastry. Those flaky crispy pillows, still hot and filled with delicious-ness.

Chinese Peanut Sweet Soup 

Soup is good for you too...let's go for a sweet dessert soup to finish off the meal, shall we!

Happy Hump Day! :)

My top 3 favourite ingredients

Hey! 

So...I thought I'll share with you my top 3 favourite ingredients to have! :)

Eggs

Have I told you lately...that I LOVE eggs?!?! There are endless ideas you can do with eggs! What more can I say? You can poach, fried, steam, scramble, stew! Eggs adds richness to your baked goods and it definitely makes my meal so much more satisfying..but I guess I'm bias cause I can't live without them! Now let's jiggle!

pic: caterking.co.uk

Anchovies

Yes, many people may be thinking "ewww, yucks...smelly". But seriously it is such a great base for your cooking. I use it when I am cooking western food usually. I buy them in oil, so not the dried ones. It has that salty fragrance taste to it, very strong, but with the right amount, it gives just a hint of saltiness and depth to your food. Add it in together with your garlic and onions when cooking. 

pic: cookery-ideas.co.uk

Chillies

I have to have pretty much everything savoury with chilli! Not a fan of chilli in chocolate though! But definitely when I am having savoury food. There are so many types of chilli....fresh, dried, oil.....

If I am in charge of cooking, you will definitely find at least one if not all dishes that has chilli in it!

Now you know what are my 3 top favourite ingredients to use...what are yours?

Happy Hump Day! :)

How to use a double boiler for your raw eggs and sugar?

Just the other day, I was making Tiramisu, usually I prefer not to have raw eggs in my recipe, so I generally put it over a double boiler. This helps to dissolve my sugar too in the recipe. It helps the mixture from being grainy.

All you need...is a pot and another bowl to put on top of the pot. You can use a metal bowl or a Pyrex bowl like I did.

Have some water on slow boil in the pot, once that's ready, put your bowl of egg yolks and sugar on top of the pot. Make sure to beat it continuously, you don't want to cook the egg.

In my Tiramisu recipe, I make sure that my egg yolks and sugar comes to a ribbon stage. Check out the video, it is just a short clip to show you what it looks like.

 

I used this Tiramisu recipe on my blog, it is an old post, so please forgive some poor photos. I omitted the egg whites this time. Will refresh the recipe when I get the chance :)

 

Hope this helps!

 

Enjoy! :)

 

Lesson 6: Everything to do with Poaching and Steam Dumplings

More photos than words today. It was definitely a busy day for us in class. It was my first time poaching eggs. Poaching eggs isn't as easy as it looks. I had to go through a few eggs to get it right, even after my 6th egg, I've still got some practising to do.

Breakfast...

Poached eggs with parsley on toast

Ate this for lunch...

Poached chicken and mushrooms with salad

and to finish off the meal, dessert...

Poached Pear with Caramel Sauce and Cream

Pear Crumble and Cream with Cinnamon sprinkles

Steam Scones with Apple Compote and Caramel Sauce

More food in the next lesson! :)