Twice Baked



Almond Pistachio and Cranberry Biscotti 

No, this biscotti recipe is not found in this issue of Donna Hay. I visit the library once a week, and each time I would borrow food magazines like The Australian Good Food,Donna Hay, Delicious,Martha Stewart Living,etc. You be surprised the library do have the latest issues in stock.

This is the first time I baked biscotti and these are not difficult at all. This recipe by Donna Hay has pistachios and cranberries only, but I added extra almonds.

Nespresso with Biscotti

Donna Hay's Pistachios and Cranberry Biscotti

Ingredients

2 cups plain flour,sifted
1 1/2 tsp baking poweder sifted
3/4 cup caster sugar
3 eggs,lightly beaten
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp finely grated orange rind
1 cup sweetened,dried cranberries
1 cup shelled unsalted pistachios

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160C place flour,baking powder and sugar into a bowl and mix to combine.
2. Add eggs,vanilla,orange rind,cranberries and pistachios and mix until you form a dough
3. Turn the dough out onto a table and with some flour,knead until smooth.
4. Form into two logs an flatten slightly. Bake in oven on two lined baking trays for 30-35 mins or until firm cool completely.
5. When cooled use a serrated knife to cut thin slices and place them back on baking trays. Bake for a
    further 8-10 mind until crisp, cool on trays.

Green,Soft and Fragrant

Pandan Chiffon

Pandan Chiffon is still a very popular and everybody's favourite cake. It is light in texture and if made with natural pandan juice, is very fragrant. There are many recipes and this is the recipe which never fails me. I got this recipe from a newspaper cutting.
Ingredients

5 pandan leaves, finely chopped
3 tbsp water
48g egg yolk, about 3 eggs
70g sugar
1/8 tsp salt
20ml corn oil
36ml thick coconut milk
1/4 tsp pandan paste
54g cake flour
120g egg white, about 3 eggs
1/8 tsp cream of tartar

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 190C
2. Blend the pandan leaves with water to a fine pulp. Wrap the pulp in muslin cloth and squeeze to extract the juice. Discard the pulp and set aside the juice.
3. Whisk together the egg yolk,30g sugar, salt, corn oil, coconut milk, pandan paste and pandan juice until well incorporated.
4. Sieve the cake flour into the pandan mixture and continue to whisk until smooth. Set aside.
5. Whisk the egg white, remaining sugar and cream of tartar until stiff, such that a firm peak forms when the whisk is pulled from the mixture.
6. Gently fold the egg white mixture into the cake batter until well incorporated.
7. Pour the batter into a 20cm tube pan and bake for 40 mins until the surface is brown. 
8. Remove the cake from the oven and invert it on a cooling rack. Allow the cake to cool before removing it from the mould by running a palette knife along the circumference of the cake to loosen the sides.

Note: I find the oven temp too high, and the pan used is too big. I do not use cream of tartar and I double the ingredients. My oven is at 160C,55mins, tube pan 23cm. The chiffon always turn out perfectly,no cracks.

Chocolate Eclairs With Mocha Creme

  

Chocolate Eclairs With Mocha Creme
Australian Good Food Magazine

Makes 18
100g unsalted butter,chopped
1 cup or150g plain flour,sifted
4 eggs, at room temperature 

 Mocha creme
1 cup or 250ml milk
50ml espresso or strong coffee
1 egg yolk
110g caster sugar
2 tbsp plain flour, sifted
70g milk chocolate,finely chopped
1/2 cup or 165ml thickened cream,whipped

Chocolate glaze
1/2 cup or 110g caster sugar
110g dark chocolate

1. To make mocha creme,bring milk and coffee to heat. Add in sugar and chopped chocolate. When mixture is slightly cooled, whisk yolk and flour. Whisk mixture until thick and transter to a bowl,plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold. Fold through whipped cream and transfer to a piping bag without a nozzle. Refrigerate until needed.
2. Preheat oven to 220C. Grease and line two baking trays with baking paper.
3. Combine butter and 1 cup water in a pan on high heat. Bring to simmer and cook for 1-2 mins, until butter is melted. Add flour, beating vigorously with a wooden spoon until mixture pulls away from sides of pan. Remove from heat, cool for 5mins, then add eggs one at a time, beating  well to combine after each addition.
Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm plain nozzle, or a resealable plastic bag with one corner snipped off. Pipe 8cm lengths onto prepared trays. Bake for 10 mins, then reduce oven to 180C and bake for another 5-10 mins, until dry and light golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Using a serrated knife, split in half horizontally.
4. T make chocolate glaze, heat sugar and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan on medium-high, stirring, until sugar dissolves. cook, without stirring, for 8-10 mins, until light caramel in colour. Remove from heat, add chocolate and 50ml water. Return to heat and stir until smooth. Add another 50m; water,stir to combine, then strain through a fine metal sieve into a heatproof bowl. Dip top halves of eclairs into chocolate and set aside until set.

5. Pipe mocha creme onto bottom half of eclairs, replace tops and serve.

Chocolate Eclairs With Mocha Creme

My children love these eclairs and have asked me to make again. See the plate in the picture? Bought it 25 years ago in Debenham,London. It is a dinner/tea set for 6 and over the years, used and broke some plates and cups. There are 2 cups left:(

Paella



Paella

This paella recipe was obtained from a Spanish restaurant chef. I have attended a one day Spanish food introduction course organised by the local community centre. The chef demonstrated 3 dishes.
The first dish he cooked was this paella,second dish was Gambas al Ajilo(Garlic Prawn) and last dish Calamares a la Pancha(freshly Grilled Squid with Olive Oil).
I have cooked this paella many times, sometimes with bomba rice, other times with sushi or calrose rice.
I bought bomba rice from Mâché restaurant.

Paella Valencia(36cm pan)
Bomba rice 320g
extra virgin oil 40ml
red capsicum 50ml
tomato dice 40g
ground almond 10g
dried parsley 5g
chicken leg boneless(cut into cubes) 150g
Spanish Chorizo Sausages 35g sliced
prawns 8pcs
squid ring 80g
half shell mussels 8pcs
chicken stock 1L
sweet paprika powder 3g
saffron 0.5g
green peas 90g
salt and pepper to taste

Method
1 heat up the paella pan with olive oil
2 sauteed the onions,tomato,red and green capsicum and ground almond for few minutes.
3 add in squid,chicken,prawn,mussels and sauteed it until half cook
4 remove and set aside prawns and mussels.
5 add in rice into the pan and sauteed for 3minute
6 add in the stock and let it boil,medium heat
7 add in paprika,salt,saffron,dried parsley and pepper
8 uncovered until the rice is almost dry
9 put the prawn,mussels,chorizo and green pea with foil and low heat. Let sit 5-10mins,until rice is cooked.

Note: picture shows paella cooked in sushi rice, I omitted mussels and chorizo. only yellow capsicum. Green
peas served as side.I usually prepare food from whatever ingredients I have in the fridge and larder. I don't go out to buy ingredients just for the dish.

Yesterday, I was at a shopping mall library distributing this flyer. My church has been organising this children outreach camp for the past 6 years and we always receive good response from the neighbourhood. One of the reasons could be the low fee of $15 inclusive of 3 lunches, teas and a T-shirt. Another reason could be because these children are from dual income family, the parents are busy working and what better place to send their kids during school holiday than to a church. Whatever reasons they may be, I'm glad they have spent a meaningful holdiay knowing Jesus. Most of them are unchurched.
My role is a shepherd to them. There will be 12 children under me and I lead them to various activities like songs and praises,crafts,games and speech and drama. I will also have an assistant shepherd to help me.
This year we have increased the fee to $20 and there's buses to bring the kids to camp.The Lord has kept me to serve every year and it has been a fun and rewarding experience for me. It warms my heart to know of children who are in church for the first time, singing praises to God. Most importantly, they get to learn God's Word and know Jesus.
This year, the camp is on the 21st Novemeber to 23rd. We are expecting 200+ children. Urgent prayers are needed for more volunteers to come forward and good response from the flyers distribution.



Help yourself dinner

Roast Chicken

Thursday is the day where my part time cleaner comes to clean my place. She is really good and  I trust her enough to leave the whole house to her while I'm out. I usually return after she leaves, forI do not like to interfere with her cleaning or get into her way.
There will be no heavy cooking in my kitchen on this day, so as to keep and enjoy the cleaned kitchen. This roast chicken will be ideal to prepare for it takes 10 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes cooked. There are no specific ingredients, I just made do with what I have in my fridge. Salad is store bought and I added dry cranberries and toasted walnut with balsamic vinegar dressing

1 Chicken,butterflied
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp Thymes
1 tsp Rosemary
1 lemon,quartered
1 onion,quartered
1 clove of garlic
sea salt and black pepper

Place lemon,onion and garlic on a foil lined baking tray.Rub olive oil on chicken. Add salt and pepper,sprinkle thymes and rosemary. Roast in an oven 250C for 35 minutes.

Mash Potatoes
5 russet potatoes,peeled and quartered
1/2 cup milk
30g butter
salt to taste

Boil potatoes till cooked, mash and add butter. Add milk and salt.