Banana & Stawberry Mini Muffins

Finally, it's time for strawberry! There are lots of strawberries in the market but the price is still somehow expensive and the taste is not sweet as it should be. My hubby told me that it's too early for the having strawberry as dessert. Normally we like having them with some sugar and a little bit lemon juice mix together.

Last week, I saw some red and big strawberries in the market so I did not hesitate to take them with me…..hehehe.




And yes, my hubby is right!! They are not enough sweet to eat them fresh, so I thought to use them in making muffin.

I have never make dessert with strawberry and banana together, I am curious how it will be and it's really perfect!







Adapted from Banana and Strawberry Muffins from Leiths Baking Bible

280 g strawberries
100 g ripe banana
2 eggs, beaten
85 g butter, melted and cooled
140 g sugar
225 g. self-raising flour
1/2 ts bicarbonate of soda
demerara sugar, for sprinkling

1. Het the oven to 190° C

2. Wash and hull the strawberries, then cut in dice.

3. Mash the 70 g strawberries and banana.

4. Stir in sugar, butter and eggs.

5. Sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda over the wet mixture and fold in (no more than 20 strokes) Overfolding will make the muffins tough.

6. Stir in the diced strawberries.

7. Put in the mini muffin cups and sprinkle with demerara sugar.

8. Bake for 20-25 mins. or until a tooth stick inserted in the centre comes out with out any batter sticking to it.

9. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Penne with prawns, cream & tomato

We really love having pasta for lunch; we usually have pastasciutta (cooked pasta) one meal a day. I love trying to cook pasta in new recipe which normally I learn from my mother in-law and my sister in-law.



This time I tried the recipe from the book "Apple for Jam" but I modified a little bit just the way we like.

40 grams butter
200 grams tinned tomatoes
200 grams penne
2 tsp olive oil
400 grams raw prawns, peeled and deveined
2 garlic cloves, peeled and squashed a bit
2 tbs Martini
3 tbs cream
some chopped parsley
a little bit ground chilli
salt & pepper
ground parmesan cheese

1) Melt half butter in small pan and when it's sizzling, add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.

2) Cook over medium heat for 10 mins.

3) Cook the pasta in boiling salted with a few drops of oil.

4) Heat a large non-stick pan over high heat.

5) Add oil and the rest of butter, when it's sizzling add prawns and garlic.

6) Cook the prawns over the highest heat until they are quite bright undersides are golden and crusty in places.

7) When they are cooked, scatter with salt add the martini and cook until it evaporates.

8) Add the tomato sauce to the prawns then cream and chopped parsley.

9) Heat until just bubbling then add the cooked pasta and toss.

10) Serve with some ground parmesan cheese.

This dish has become one of our favourite pasta sauces; it's very easy and quick to prepare it.

Enjoy!

Raspberry truffles

This is the 1st time for me to do the chocolate truffles..it's kind of exciting! I really enjoyed making them! It's fun and I cannot stop myself licking the melt chocolate and the ganache filling!! They're absolutely tasty :)



I decided to make this because we love the fruit liqueur more than others and it's also easy to find them somewhere in our house.






Raspberry truffles

Shells (15 truffles)

White chocolate 160 grams

Ganach

Heavy cream 25 grams
Glucose syrup 8 grams
White chocolate, chopped 66 grams
Raspberry liqueur 8 grams

Raspberry jam

Prepare the shells and get them ready to fill the ganache.


For the ganache

1. Combine the heavy cream and glucose syrup in a saucepan and bring to boil.

2. Pour the hot cream mixture over the chopped chocolate and let it sit for 1 min. to allow the chocolate to melt.

3. Use the spoon to stir the mixture in small circles in the center of the bowl until it emulsifies.

4. Stir in larger circles till all the chocolate has melted. If necessary, place the ganache over the warm water (not excessing 34° C) to melt the chocolate.

5. Pour in the liqueur and stir the mixture until it's homogeneous.

6. Pour the ganache into the bowl, place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the ganache. Allow the ganache to rest at room temerature until it reaches 25° C or around 20 mins.

7. Pipe the ganache into the shells to fill only halfway and refrigerate the shells for 10 mins to firm the ganache.

8. Pipe the raspberry jam in the center on top of the ganache filling.

9. Fill the shells with remaining ganache almost to the top of the shells.

10. Allow the ganache to crystallize at room temperature for 1 hour.

11. Seal the shell with tempered white chocolate and rest at room temperature until all set.

P.S Thank you P'Thip (Bonbini) for her tips in making chocolate.

Enjoy!

Thumbprints ... Christmas Cookies

Lately, I enjoy making cookies as Christmas gift which I usually do every year. Apart from gingerbreads, chocolate chip cookies and sugar cookies..I also made thumbprints as well.



The recipe is taken from "Baking from my home to yours" by Doris Greenspan, I chose this one because we love shortbread and the texture of this one is similar to shortbread. But I made some changes by using almonds and strawberry jam instead of hazelnuts and raspberry jam.




1 3/4 cup finely ground almonds
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp pure almond extract
Confectioners'sugar for dusting
about 1 cup strawberry jam

* I used vanilla sugar so I did not put the vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Whisk together ground almonds and flour.

2. Beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy.

3. Add the extract and beat to blend.

4. Reduce to low speed and gradually add the nut-flour mixture, mixing only until it is incorporated into the dough.

5. Working with a teaspoonful of dough, roll the dough between your palms to form small balls and place them 2 inches apart on the baking sheets.

6. Steady each cookie with the thumb or the end of a wooden spoon to poke a hole in the center of each cookie.

7. Bake for 15-18 mins, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point.

8. When the cookies are baked, remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies rest on the sheet for 2 mins before transferring them to the rack and sifting confectioners'sugar over them.

9. Repeat with the remaining dough, remember to cool the baking sheets before baking the next batch.

10. Bring the jam to boil in the microwave then fill it in each cookie's hole.

11. Cool to room temperature.

Let's enjoy the Christmas cookies.

I also think to send this Thumbprints Cookies to Susan of Food Blogga for season 2 of Eat Christmas Cookies (If I can because I just noticed that today is the last day I can submit) - a nice event Susan organizes,Announcing Eat Christmas Cookies, Season 2, http://foodblogga.blogspot.com/2008/11/announcing-eat-christmas-cookies-season.html

My 1st homemade croissants.

Yappy.... finally I can make croissants!!!

I have never thought to make croissants myself although we like to have them for breakfast. I always thought it was complicated and I didn't dare to make them. But, we got lot of butter in the fridge and I gotto get rid of them. So, I decided to make a trial.

I saw the recipe in the "Tartine" baking book for a long time and also my friend Pook told me that she have made it and it turned out so good.

After reading carefully for the recipe I told myself, "hmmm.. it seems a hard job to do but worth to try it"



AFter 2 days working on it, I can say that it's absolutely fabulous! The taste and the outcome are so good for me.

I would like to give all the credit to the writers in this book, they help the beginner croissants baking like me to reach my goal!

Thank you.

Apple and Raisin Jalousie .... something we cannot resist!

For us, apple is a queen for this season. There are many kinds of apple available in the supermarket. I have tried almost all of them but "Pink Lady" is still my favourite. For making the dessert, I prefer the one that so pity I cannot remember the name, the taste is sweet and sour.

I told myself that next time I go to this fruit stall; I will make a note for its name.




I made it at noon but we did not have any left for our dinner dessert! It’s hard to believe that but it’s happened to us!

I used the recipe from "Baking Bible” and I just changed only one ingredient to suit us.

For the rough puff pastry

225 g. plain flour
a pinch of salt
140 pliable butter cut into small cubes
6-9 tbs (85-140 ml)ice-cold water

For the filling

225 g. apples
30 g. unsalted butter
55 g. light brown sugar
squeeze of lemon juice
1 tbs rum ( I used this one instead of brandy)
55 g. raisins

To finish

milk
caster sugar

For the rough puff pastry

1. Sift the flour with the salt into a large bowl. Using a table knife, toss he butter cubes with the flour.

2. Sprinkle 6 tbs of water over the flour and stir quickly with a table knife so the paste clumps together.

3. Using your fingertips to gather the lumps together, leaving any dry mixture in the bottom of the bowl.

4. If necessary, you can add water over any remaining dry flour to make it into a soft but not sticky paste.

5. Knead the paste lightly once or twice to bring it together into a smooth, even-texture paste.

6. Form the paste into a rectangle 2 cm. thick and wrap it in clingfilm or greaseproof paper. Chill for at least 10 minutes.

7. The butter must not be allowed to become hard or it will tear the paste when it is rolled out.

8. Give the paste a total of 4 rolls. (as before photo) If the paste still looks streaky after 4 rolls and folds it can have one more before being used. Allow the pastry to relax at least 10 minutes before using.




For the filling and finishing

1. Heat the oven to 220° C or 425° F

2. Roll the pastry ito 2 thin rectangles. One is around 13 x 20 cm. and the other should be 17 x 25 cm. Prick the smaller all over with a fork. Chill until firm.

3. Make a filling , Peel and core the apples and cut into large chunks. Melt the butter with sugar and allow to caramelize then add stir in the apples and lemon juice.

4. Cover with the lid and cook until the apples are tender but not mushy. Stir in rum and allow to cool. Stir in the raisins.

5. Bake the smaller piece of pastry until brown and crip. Remove from the oven and turn over the baking sheet and allow to cool.

6. Spread the filling all over it.

7. Lay the larger pastry on a board. Dust it lightly with flour so nothing sticks and fold it in half lengthways.

8. Using a sharp knife, but through the folded side of the pastry in parallel lines, at right angels to the edge. (it like when you were cutting between the teeth of a comb)

9. Leave an uncut margin about 2.5 cm. wide, all round the other edges, so when you open up the pastry you will have a solid border.

10. Lay the cut pastry on top of the pastry covered with the filling and tuck the edges. Brush the top layer carefully all over with milk. Sprinkle with sugar.

11. Bake for about 20 minutes or until well-browned. Save warm or cold.

Hope you enjoy. ^O^

Triple chocolate semifreddo

I have to confess that I really missed my kitchen when we were away from home nearly 2 months. So, once I back home I made pasta for our lunch and we told ourself that now we are home!!

Baking is the one I mostly missed, we got the invitation for dinner from my friends, Kate & Scott. I told myself it's the perfect time for making Triple chocolate semifreddo as we are kind of people who love eating chocolate!




I made this from Donna Hay cookbook, the one I felt in love at first sight when I saw from my friend, Pook (Dailydelicious) and she sent me some recipes from this book making me really happy. Thank you Pook.

We absolutely enjoyed the result. Just from the first bite....I felt like the touch of the angel's wings ^O^



250 g. dark chocolate, chopped
3 eggs
2 eggs yolks
110 g. caster sugar
430 ml. cream
100 g. chopped white chocolate (the recipe said 1/2 cup)
100 g. chopped milk chocolate (the recipe said 1/2 cup)

Place the dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl over the saucepan of simmerig water and stir until melted and smooth. Set aside.

Place the eggs, yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk for 4-5 minutes or until the mixture is thick and pale.

Remove from the heat and beat with an electric mixer for 5-6 minutes or until cool.

Fold through the melted dark chocolate and set aside.

Place the cream in the bowl ad beat until soft peaks form.

Fold the egg and chocolate mixture and the white and milk chocolate through the cream.

Pour the mixture into a metal bowl or cake tin. ( I made 6 glasses an one small cake tin) cover and freeze for 4-6 hours or till firm.

Enjoy ^O^