Cream Cheese Brownie

Brownie Layer: 113g unsalted butter, cut into pieces 115g unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped (can choose to use chips) 250g granulated white sugar ( I would suggest going low on the sugar, perhaps 170g if you are using sweet chocolate, cause mine turned out too sweet for my liking.) 1 tsp pure vanilla essence 2 large eggs 65g all purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt Cream Cheese Layer: 227g cream cheese, at room temperature 65g granulated white sugar (If your chocolate is sweet, maybe lower this to 40g) 1 tsp pure vanilla extract 1 large egg 1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 deg C) and place the rack in the center of the oven. Have ready a 9 x 9 inch (23 x 23 cm) square baking pan that has been lined with aluminum foil across the bottom and up two opposite sides of the pan. 2) In a stainless steel (heatproof) bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar and vanilla extract. (Make sure the sugar melts completely!) Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well (with a wooden spoon) after each addition. Stir in the flour and salt and beat, with a wooden spoon, until the batter is smooth and glossy and comes away from the sides of the pan (about one minute). 3) Remove 1/2 cup of the brownie batter and set it aside. Place the remainder of the brownie batter evenly onto the bottom of the prepared pan. 4) Then, in the bowl of your food processor (or with a hand mixer), process the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla, and egg and process just until creamy and smooth. Spread the cream cheese filling evenly over the brownie layer. 5) Spoon small dollops of the reserved brownie batter evenly on top of the cream cheese filling. Then with a table knife or wooden skewer, swirl the two batters without mixing them. 6) Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes or until the brownies start to pull away from the sides of the pan and the edges of the brownies are just beginning to brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. 7) Refrigerate the brownies until they are firm enough to cut into squares (at least two hours). Once chilled, remove the brownies from the pan by lifting with the ends of the foil and transfer to a cutting board. With a sharp knife, cut into 16 squares. It is a good idea to have a damp cloth nearby to wipe your knife between cuts. These brownies can be stored in the refrigerator for several days. Makes about 16 - 2 inch squares. ok, in the end, I'm not sure why but for the top layer, my cheese kind of fused in with the brownie, so it looked very yellowish brown but you can still see the layers when you cut them open. As mentioned atop, in my opinion, you can cut back on the sugar, it's too sweet for my liking. Never get tired of looking at recipes from JOB

Pan Fried Potato Patties

So on a Sunday where the whole family was not in and the maid had to go to the sister's new place to help clean up, I was left alone to take care of my own lunch. This is a really easy dish (especially for comfort food!) albeit with too much carbohydrates.

CARBO-LOAD (yep, I like to rip their photos off directly cause my camera usually doesn't do justice to the photos)

Serves 2

Ingredients:
6 medium potatoes

1 tbsp finely chopped parsley

1 egg, beaten

1 onion, chopped finely

25g caster sugar

50g plain flour, sifted

Dashes of black pepper

1/4 tsp salt

2-3 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

1) Boil the potato with salted boiling water for 10 minutes. Drain. Peel potatoes when cooled.

2) Mash the potatoes using a potato ricer. Mix mashed potato, parsley, onion, flour, egg, salt & black pepper (more if you want it hotter) in a bowl.

I didn't add parsley to mine though

3) Heat the oil in a frying pan. Place 1/2 tbsp of the mixture in the oil and then flatten with turner. When mixture becomes firmer, turn over to the other side. Pan fry till both sides of the patties are lightly browned.

4) Drain the excess oil on tempura papers and serve.

5) Serves 2.

yep, i finished it myself.

Personally, I like NoobCook a lot because it teaches really simple and comprehensive steps towards making good food, and the food are catered towards our taste buds cause the author is a Singaporean herself :)

Lemon tassies

Lemon Tassies (pictures off blog directly)

Makes 4 dozen

For the Crusts:
2 cups (400g) all-purpose flour
10 tablespoons (150g) cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1/4 cup (50g) + 2 tbsp (30g) sugar
2 large egg yolks
2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp coarse salt
vegetable oil

For the Filling:
8 ounces (250g) cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 cup (70g) sugar
1 large egg
3 tbsp finely (45g) grated lemon zest
1 tbsp(15g) fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp pure vanilla essence

1) Preheat oven to 350F (180 deg) upper rack in the oven. Coat two 24-cup mini-muffin tins with oil. (Do try to use muffin tins to allow the biscuit to remain its shape so that you can apply the cheese to it easily later)


yep, this was what happened to mine cause i didn't use muffin tins. it was so hard to put the cheese later.

2) For the crust: Process flour and butter in a food processor until mixture is the consistency of fine crumbs. Add sugar, egg yolks, vanilla, lemon zest, and salt. Process just until combined and sandy in texture; do not overprocess.

3) Divide dough into quarters. Divide each quarter into 12 equal pieces, and shape into balls. Place each ball in a muffin cup; press into cup, stretching dough up the sides. Set each muffin tin on a baking sheet. Bake crusts, rotating halfway through, until lightly browned all over and slightly darker at the edges, 18 to 20 minutes. Tap down any puffed centers of the shells with the end of a wooden spoon or your finger. Transfer sheets with muffin tins to wire racks to cool.

4) For the filling: With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese, sugar, egg, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla on medium speed until smooth. Using a 1-inch ice cream scoop, fill the cooled crusts with filling. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until filling is set and just beginning to color at the edges, 10 to 12 minutes.

5) Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Tassies can be refrigerated in single layers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

6) Serves approximately 4 dozens.

yea, i know. look very different from the original photo but it was still tasty, i assure.


Also made honey water specially for the sick boy but it turned out to sour so i would suggest not adding lemon next time.

for more, visit taste&tell :)

Profiteroles

Happy Chinese New Year cum Valentine's Day to one and all :) well, what better way to kill time this festive season than to engage in some baking. This time round, it was a rather impromptu idea to bake this. Was contemplating between lemon tassies and other V-day cookies but I eventually ended up with this.

Profiteroles in the house

(Yeah, I practically stole this off the blog)

Sweet Profiteroles (pronounced pruh-FIHT-uh-rohl) are small, crisp, hollow rounds of choux pastry that are split in half and filled with sweet whipped cream, ice cream, or pastry cream.

Choux Pastry:
65g all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon granulated white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
57 grams unsalted butter
120 ml water
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Egg Wash Glaze:
1 large egg
1/8 tsp salt

Chocolate Ganache:
115g semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
120 ml heavy whipping cream
14g unsalted butter
1/2 tbsp cognac or brandy (optional)

Filling:
Vanilla Ice Cream

Choux Pastry: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a bowl sift together the flour, sugar and salt. Set aside.

Place the butter and water in a heavy saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and, with a wooden spoon or spatula, quickly add the flour mixture. Return to heat and stir constantly until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a thick smooth ball (about a minute or two). Transfer the dough to your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, and beat on low speed a minute or two to release the steam from the dough. Once the dough is lukewarm start adding the lightly beaten eggs and continue to mix until you have a smooth thick sticky paste. Spoon or pipe 12 mounds of dough onto the baking sheet, spacing them a couple of inches apart. Beat together the egg and salt for the glaze. With a pastry brush, gently brush the glaze on the tops of the dough.

Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C). Bake for a further 30 to 40 minutes or until the shells are a nice amber color and when split, are dry inside. The choux pastry is baked, first at a high temperature and then at a slightly lower temperature. The high temperature is needed so the dough will rise quickly (leaving a hollow center) and to set the structure of the shells. The temperature is then reduced to allow the outsides of the shells to become firm, while at the same time allowing the insides of the pastry to dry out. (Okay, for some reasons, mine didn't split so I actually did it manually)

Turn the oven off and, with the oven door slightly ajar, let the shells dry out for a further 10 - 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. (The puffs can be frozen. Defrost the puffs and then reheat in a 350 degree F (177 degree C) oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until crisp. Cool before filling with ice cream.)

Chocolate Ganache: Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth. If desired, add the liqueur. Use immediately. (The ganache can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for up to a week. Reheat in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water.)

To Assemble: Split the pastry shells in half, fill the bottom halves of the shells with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, and replace the top. Drizzle each profiterole liberally with warm chocolate ganache. Serve immediately.


I know, I totally did a lousy job with the photo :( It looks more like scones.

Note: Truffles can be made with leftover Ganache. Truffles are just small balls of chocolate that can be rolled into cocoa powder, powdered sugar or toasted chopped nuts. Make sure the chocolate ganache is well chilled before forming into balls. You can use your hands to form the truffles, or else a melon baller or small spoon. Truffles can be refrigerated for a couple of weeks or else frozen for a couple of months.

Serves 6.

credits off JOB

Lemon Frosted Lemon Cake

I haven't gone on a hiatus intentionally but school has just kept me too busy to bake :( Or rather, I don't really condone baking if I cant even get my readings completed, so there. This baking incident was purely coincidental since it was my dad's birthday and it's a quick cake.


Lemon Frosted Lemon Cake

226g unsalted butter

200g white sugar

4 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla essence

Zest of 1 large lemon

280g all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

60 ml fresh lemon juice

Lemon Frosting:
115g confectioners' (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Lemon Cake:

1) Preheat oven to 180 deg C and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter, or spray with a nonstick spray, a 9 inch (23 cm) spring form pan and then line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. Set aside.

2) In the bowl of your electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy and pale in color (about 3 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.

this is about the only picture i took

3)Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and then add to the batter along with the lemon juice. Mix only until incorporated.

4) Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with an offset spatula. Bake about 40 - 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool, then gently remove the sides of the pan.

Lemon Frosting:

5) In a bowl, combine the sifted confectioners' sugar with the 2 tablespoons lemon juice.

6) Pour the frosting over the top of the cake, allowing the icing to drip down the sides. Let the icing set before covering.

Makes one - 9 inch (23 cm) cake.

credits off JOB

Corndog Casserole

Second semester has officially started :( Maybe the truth will only dawn upon me when I step into the lecture theatre. In any case, this is the last-bake item before I start to drown myself in my immense readings and projects. Not that I will be going on a hiatus, but probably attempt lesser new dishes. Cheers :)

2 cups celery, sliced
1 cup onions, chopped
1 1/2 pounds (680g) hot dogs
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon sage
1/3 teaspoon black pepper
18 oz. (510g) cornbread mix
8 oz. (226.7g) shredded cheddar cheese

your ingredients

hot dog mixture

milk mixture

combining milk with hot dog mixture

before turning it into the oven

In a skillet, cook celery and onions until tender. Place in a mixing bowl; set aside. Cut hot dogs into quarters, then into thirds. Place in a skillet, cook until lightly brown. Fold into celery mixture; set aside. Reserve one cup mixture. In another bowl, combine eggs, milk, sage, and black pepper. Fold in hot dog mixture. Stir in cornbread mix. Add on and a half cups cheese. Spread mixture into a greased 3 quart dish. Top with the reserved hot dog mixture and cheese. Bake uncovered at 350F( 177 deg cel) until golden brown.

I'm not sure why the bread crumbs didnt turn out as wet and crispy as i wanted. Maybe it had to do with the milk and cheese. But for better reference, visit taste and tell

Cranberry- Oat Scones

My all time favourite- scones :) (the picture is not very clear cause i realized i put the camera too close to the scone)

Recipe: (credits off JOB )

245g all purpose flour

65g granulated white sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

113g unsalted butter, cold and cut into small pieces

60g old-fashioned rolled oats

40g dried cranberries/ cherries (raisins or currants)

Zest of one lemon/ orange

160 ml buttermilk

Egg Wash:

1 large egg

1 tablespoon milk/ cream

Note: For the buttermilk, you can make your own by adding 1 tablespoon of white distilled vinegar, cider vinegar, or lemon juice to 1 cup of milk. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before using.

your ingredients

1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. ( I actually used a non stick tray, makes things easier)

the dry ingredients

2) In a large mixing bowl place the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder and whisk to combine. Add the butter and using two knives or a pastry blender cut in the butter until it resembles coarse crumbs. Add the rolled oats, dried cranberries and zest. Mix until combined. Stir in the buttermilk (adding more buttermilk if necessary) and mix just until the dough comes together.

3) Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough four or five times and then pat, or roll, the dough into a circle that is 7 inches (18 cm) round and about 11/2 inches (3.75 cm) thick. Cut this circle into 8 triangular sections. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet.

egg wash

4)Make an egg wash of one beaten egg mixed with 1 tablespoon milk or cream and brush the tops of the scones with this mixture.

5) Bake for about 15 - 18 minutes or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and then turn your broiler on high. Sift confectioners (powdered or icing) sugar heavily over the tops of the scones and place them under the broiler. Broil for just a few seconds, turning the pan as necessary, until the sugar has melted and turns golden brown. Make sure to watch the scones carefully as the sugar will burn very quickly. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. (Alternatively, skip the icing part if you're not a fan of sugar)

fresh out from the oven

Makes 8 scones.

Of course, I wouldn't bake them for no specific reasons this time round. It's for my dear old friend who's celebrating his 21st today :)

happy birthday, dear friend! hope u'll enjoy the scones :)

Mash Potatoes with mixed vegetables

On thanksgiving dinner, I'm supposed to prepare mash potatoe with vegetables. Initially, it made me worry since I've never really tried making this dish from scratch, what more with vegetables. After sourcing around for recipes, I kinda combined 3 into 1 :)

Potatoe- 2 pounds butter-1 stick milk-1/2 cup mushroom- 1 pound salt & pepper cheese- ½ cup cauliflower- 1 oil- 4tbsp

1) Remove blemishes and scrub potatoes. Slice the potatoes into quarters and place in a large sauce pan. Add water to pan until potatoes are covered. Bring to a boil.

2) Reduce heat, cover and continue cooking 20 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat, drain and peel off skins.

3) Place potatoes in a large bowl. Add butter and cheese and beat with an electric mixer. Gradually add the milk, continuing to beat potatoes until they reach desired consistency. Add more milk, if needed and salt and pepper to taste.

Blending the potatoe, cheese, milk and butter

Gobbly wobbly

4) Preheat oven to 200deg c. Spread cauliflower pieces on baking sheet. Sprinkle with about 1/4 cup olive oil. Sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper.

5) Bake in oven 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned and tender.

6) Melt 4 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

7) Add mushroom and sauté until soft, stirring.

8) Stir mushrooms into potatoes.

9) Place in serving bowl and sprinkle with fresh Parmesan cheese.

End results (I know, my skills are not very good)

I suggest going light on the cheese because mine was commented to be too cheesy and hard to down.

credits to recipe tips with mushrooms, bacon bits, and cauliflower

Gingerbread Cookies

How better to soak into the festive seasons than to do something which you enjoy? For me, baking is something therapeutic and something i enjoyed.


Gingerbread Men:

3 cups (390 grams) all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoons salt

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter

1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar

1 large egg

2/3 cup (160 ml) unsulphured molasses

Note: To prevent the molasses from sticking to the measuring cup, first spray the cup with a non stick vegetable spray

Confectioners Frosting:

2 cups (230 grams) confectioners sugar (icing or powdered sugar), sifted

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 tablespoons milk or light cream

Assorted food colors (if desired)

Gingerbread Men: In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and spices. Set aside.

your ingredients

sift the flour and baking soda together

the dry stuff

In the bowl of electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and molasses and beat until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture beating until incorporated.


your black molasses

Divide the dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside while you roll out the dough.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Use a gingerbread cutter to cut out the cookies. With an offset spatula lift the cut out cookies onto the baking sheet, placing the cookies about 1 inch (2.54 cm) apart. If you are hanging the cookies or using as gift tags, make a hole at the top of the cookies with a straw or end of a wooden skewer. (I actually didnt have the gingerbread cutter so i just used normal cookie cutters)

Bake for about 8 - 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. Small ones will take about 8 minutes, larger cookies will take about 12 minutes. They are done when they are firm and the edges are just beginning to brown.

Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for about 1 minutes. When they are firm enough to move, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

If desired, you can press raisins, currants, or candies into the dough for eyes and buttons while the cookies are still warm. Otherwise, confectioners frosting can be used to decorate the cookies. You can also use the icing as a glue to attach candies, raisins, and sprinkles.

Confectioners Frosting: In an electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth and well blended. Add the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beater. Add the milk and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes). Add a little more milk if too dry. Place the frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip and decorate the gingerbread men as desired.

Tint portions of frosting with desired food color (I use the paste food coloring that is available at cake decorating stores and party stores).

Makes about 3 dozen cookies depending on the size of cookie cutter used.

Store in an airtight container.

for more, visit joy of baking