Crusty Country French Bread(and my "brick-oven")
Friday, October 26, 2007Inspiration: Dan Lepard (the handmade loaf), and Baker's Manual
Sourdough breads take advantage of the unique tangy flavors produced by “wild” yeast and bacteria. Once you get to understand your own sourdough starter, the results would just get better and better....hmmm...that chewy, tangy, crusty....sourdough bread.
|
- Put the starter, bread flour, half of AP flour, and one cup of water into a large bowl of mixer attached with dough hook. Mix well and let proof 2 hours at room temperature in a covered plastic container. Then transfer it into the refrigerator to ferment overnight.
- Next morning you take the dough out and return it to the mixer. Add in salt, remaining water and flour, one fourth at a time, until you have a smooth dough ball. Put the dough in a large bowl covered tightly with plastic wrap and a damp cloth to follow. Let rise in a warm place for 3 hours until doubled in volume.
- Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into three or four pieces. Shape each into a ball and let the dough rest, covered with plastic wrap, for 30 minutes. Form each of dough ball into an oval and place them on the prepared tray lined with a linen cloth or baking paper dusted with flour. Sprinkle the loaves with flour and cover them loosely with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel. Let rise for 45-60 minutes.
- Place a small pan for water on the bottom shelf of the oven and preheat the oven with baking stone. (I placed a layer of bricks at the bottom of my old oven. It works very well. If you need bake more bread, just place one more layer of bricks on a baking tray. ) to 220C/425F. Make a couple of slashes on the top of each dough. Five minutes before baking, pour 1 cup of hot water in the pan to form steam and provide a moist environment for the bread. Place the dough on a baking tray, brush with some water and bake for about 35-40 minutes on the middle shelf of the hot oven until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Remove the rolls from the oven and cool on a rack for at least 2 hours before slicing.
Tangzhong Starter - Water Roux Starter via Starch Gelatinization
Friday, October 19, 2007A Tangzhong starter / Water roux starter is a mixture of flour and water. That is to combine together one portion of bread flour and five portions of water by weight in a pot. Heat up the mixture to bring out the gelatinization of starch in flour. What makes the bread baked with this kind of starter difference is Starch Gelatinization, which helps to engage more water, namely more water will be absorbed, to provide a characteristic softer, more elastic-textured bread. Moreover, the bread will have long-lasting freshness.
- 50 g Bread flour
- 250 ml Water
- In a bowl, whisk together the water and the flour until the mixture is well blended and lump free. Stir the mixture while it cooks over the medium heat to reach 65C/150F. It takes about 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from heat and cover loosely with plastic wrap to prevent from drying. Store the starter in the refrigerator after after completely cooling down. To use the starter, measure out the amount called for in a recipe and let it warm to room temperature. Unlike sourdough starter, this special Tangzhong starter doesn't improve its flavour with age. So it's preferably to use up in 3 days.
Pumpkin Pie
Sunday, October 14, 2007Autumn. Some call it Fall. It is the one that many people enjoy very much. Pavements covered with brightly-coloured fall leaves, varieties of nuts, chill in the air, Halloween, seasonal moodiness, and the days get shorter....Still nothing express AUTUMN better and more than a piece of delicious spiced pumpkin pie in the afternoon.
Crust | Filling |
---|---|
|
|
- Sift the flour, salt and sugar into a bowl. Add the butter. Rub into the flour with a fork until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add in ice water to the flour mixture and gently mixing dough after each addition until dough forms a ball. Wrap the ball of dough with greaseproof wrapper and chill it for 30 minutes.
- Take out the dough and place it between 2 baking paper and roll out to a circle about 3mm thick. Place it onto a 9-inch heart-shaped baking tin, draping it gently. With the fingertips, ease the dough into the tin, gently pressing it smoothly over the bottom without stretching it. Trim the excess.
- Prick the bottom of the pastry case all over with a fork. Return to the fridge for anther 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F.
- Lay a baking paper or tin foil on the pastry case and put enough dried beans to cover the bottom thickly. Bake the case in a preheated oven 180/350F for 18 minutes, remove the paper or foil and beans. Prick the bottom again with a fork. Return to the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes. (Bake custard and cream filling can make pastry soggy, so the cases for these tarts are often given an initial baking before the filling is added. Such prebaking is referred to as baking blind. The purpose of using weights is to prevent the bottom of the pastry case from rising too much and becoming distorted, thus keeping its neat shape.)
- Mix all the ingredients, except nuts, for the filling until all well-combined and pour into pie crust. Then sprinkle the top with pine nuts. Bake in a preheated 180C/350F oven for 45 minutes.
Braised Beef Brisket With Carrots
Sunday, October 07, 2007Briskets is the cut from breast section, under the first five ribs. Although many other animals have briskets, the term here is to describe beef.
|
|
- Peel and diagonally cut the carrots across. Roll it a quarter of a turn and cut off the next piece diagonally again. Cut scallion into chunks. Thoroughly rinse the brisket and cut into large pieces. To get rid of the blood and slime effectively, plunge brisket into a pot filled with boiled water and let stand for 15 minutes.
- Heat up a frying pan with oil. Stir in slices of ginger, onion, garlic, star anise and peppercorns until aromatic. Add in sweetened flour paste, sambel ulek rice wine, sugar and soya sauces Stir briefly. Add in briskets and carrots. Stir till all ingredients blended. Turn off the heat.
- Transfer the whole mass into an electric pressure cooker. Fill in water to just cover all the ingredients. Close the lid and turn the knob to pork cooking cycle. After cooking, the cooker automatically enters the "keep warm" status. After cooling, return the briskets into the frying pan and stir over the high heat until the whole mixture has thickened. Season with chicken bouillon and salt as needed. You can also thicken the mass by adding in one tablespoon of starchy solution and serve with steamed rice.
Soya Milk Prepared With Soya-milk Maker
Wednesday, October 03, 2007Soya milk is full of proteins, Vitamin-B and isoflavones. I am talking about REAL SOYA MILK, not those diluted one, or the soya beverages, which probably contain much of sugar. In supermarkets we can easily buy them in powder form, and they are no exception sweet. Street vendors sell just watery soyamilk. Therefore, homemade soya milk starts to gain its popularity.
|
|
- Measure dry soybeans with the included measuring cup, about 55-60 grams. (I use JYDZ-15B soya-maker) Rinse the measured soybeans 2-3 times until water is clear. Discard the damaged beans and cover them with 3-4 times of water. Soak 8-10 hours at room temperature. After soaking, wash soybeans thoroughly with fresh water. Rub the skins off for a more smooth drink.
用随机搭配的量杯勺出一平杯干黄豆,大约是55克。(我使用的是九阳豆浆机JYDZ-15B)黄豆清洗2-3次直到水清澈即可。挑出坏豆不用。用3-4倍清水,室温浸泡豆子8-12小时。泡好的豆子务必再用清水洗净才可以使用。搓去黄豆皮这样做出来的豆浆更顺滑。 - Place the soaked soya beans into the cup, and fill with warm water between the water level marks. It is quicker to make soya milk with warm water. Attach the filter to machine head and position machine head onto the cup. Connect power and press the SOYABEAN button to start. The whole process takes 8-10 minutes. Multiple audio beeps with a flashing light indicate the soya milk is ready. It may be consumed immediately. Filter through a colander to yield drink with a less grainy and creamier texture. Enjoy the fresh made soya milk with self-made yau-char-kwai.
黄豆放入杯内,加入温水至水位线之间。用温水可以缩短制浆时间。拉法尔网装上机头,然后正确放入杯体。通电源,按下全豆豆浆键。制浆过程大约8-10分钟,完成后机器会用声光提示豆浆已好。喜欢口感更细腻顺滑口感的豆浆,可过滤后饮用。搭根自制油炸鬼,蘸着豆浆吃。
Okara Honey Bread
Saturday, September 29, 2007Okara or Soya pulp is low in fat, high in fiber, and also contains protein, calcium, iron, and riboflavin. If you make soya-milk by soya-maker
angiesrecipes, then the soya pulp/okara shall be cooked during the process. Or you will need to steam or bake the raw okara for about 20-30 minutes before applying to a recipe.
|
- Combine flour, yeast, soya milk and honey in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with dough hook. Knead on lowest speed until a rough dough is formed, about 3 minutes. Add in salt and okara. Increase the speed and knead the dough until smooth and springy, about 8 minutes.
- Lightly oil a mixing bowl and place dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof at room temperature for approx. 1 hour until doubled in bulk. Punch down dough and divide into two or three even pieces. Gently round each piece into a ball. Cover dough closely and let rest about 20 minutes.
- Press down and shape the dough into a loaf. Or divide the dough into 3 or 4 small even portions. Shape each into a round and place into a loaf pan. Or divide the dough into 2 portions and shape each into a log and place them in a loaf pan. Cover the loaf and set in warm place to rise until doubled in size. Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle with desired topping, such as oat bran, poppy, caraway or sesame seeds. Bake in a preheated 180C/350F oven for about 35-40 minutes.
Matcha-Green Tea Marbled Cheesecake
Tuesday, September 18, 2007Matcha, which contains significant amounts of amino acids, is powdered green tea. Since antioxidant polyphenols ( the antioxidant effects of polyphenols appear to be greater than vitamin C) have been discovered in green tea, people start getting a bit way too much crazy for its health benefits.
Take a note that any possible benefits of green tea are negated if it's taken with milk as calcium neutralize antioxidants. So now you get the idea....those matcha smoothie, ice cream, cakes...ect.etct.... they might taste good, but may not as healthful as you think.
|
|
- Line an 9 to 10-inch springform with baking paper. Place the cake layer onto the bottom. Preheat the oven to 175C/350F.
- Sift matcha tea powder into a bowl. Pour in hot water and blend together. Cream together philiadelphia cheese and sugar with electric mixer until blended. Sift in the cornstarch and then stir in eggs, one by one, mix until well-blended.
- Strain the whole mass through a sieve into a clean bowl. Combine the prepared matcha with 1/3 of the plain cheese mixture. Drop two batters alternately into the center of the prepared mould, gently strike the surface with a toothpick for marbled effect.
- Bake in the preheated oven in bain-marie for about 30 minutes, then decrease temperature to 160C/320F and continue to bake for 25-35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely on a rack. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.