Pumpkin Bao with Char Siew filling

I realize that I have not been making baos for awhile now. And since making bao is much much easier as compared to bread baking, I will usually opt for steaming up some baos instead during busy days. This time I decided to make the bao a flavored one, which is pumpkin! Such an obvious choice since I love root vegetables! And just so happened I bought some char siew from the market, so char siew pumpkin bao it is!

I adapted the pumpkin bao dough recipe from Carol's cookbook on "面点新手必用的第一本书 " which was pretty easy to handle. Here is the recipe:

Char Siew Filling:

300g Char siew pork, chopped finely (store bought)
6 shallots*, sliced thinly and fried till golden brown
Seasonings:
120ml water
1.5 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
2.5 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp tapioca flour
1 tbsp corn flour
1 tsp plain flour

• In a large mixing bowl, add all the seasoning ingredients together and mix well.
• In the saucepan with medium low heat, add the seasoning mixture and cook till it thickens.
• Add the chopped char siew pork and fried shallots and stir till well combined.
• Off the fire and dish up to cool till ready to use. This can be made ahead of time and kept in the fridge for 24 to 48 hrs. 

Starter dough: 

120g plain flour

1/4 tsp instant active yeast

80ml water

pinch of salt

• Mix everything together to a soft pliable dough. Cover and let rest in a greased bowl to proof for 1hr so it doubles in size.

 Main Dough:
180g pumpkin (peeled, steamed and mashed)
100g starter dough
300g cake flour/ Top flour / HK flour
1/2 tsp instant active yeast
20g milk powder
20g caster sugar
20g olive oil
1/8 tsp salt
10-20ml water can be added is dough is too try. Or 10-20g cake flour can be added if dough is too wet

• Knead everything together in a mixer till not sticky and everything comes together into a smooth pliable dough.
• Let dough rest in greased bowl covered for another 45mins to 1 hr until double in size.
• In the meantime, prepare steamer and some cut out grease paper.
• Punch out the air and divide the dough into 45g portions, roll round and let sit for 10 mins covered before wrapping.
• Take a portion and roll flat into a round disk, place about 1 heaping teaspoon of char siew filling in the center and then seal up the dough by pleating along side. 
• Place the wrapped bao on a grease paper and let it proof for another 15-20 mins before steaming. Repeat this till all the dough portions are used.
• While the steamer is boiling at medium low, place the baos in and steam at medium fire for 10-12 minutes. make sure your steamer cover is wrapped with kitchen towel to prevent the water from dripping on the baos.
• Once done, off fire and let seat for 5 minutes. Then slowly lift cover and open a small gap to cool for another 10 minutes before removing the cover completely.

 

The bao skin is fluffy soft and with the pairing of char siew filling was awesome! My kids ate them happily and say it's better then store bought! ~happiness~ hahaha! The bao skin does have a faint pumpkin aroma to it! I love! :D

Do try this recipe if you like baos and pumpkin as much as I do. And feel free to change the filling to whatever you like, red bean, lotus paste or even black sesame, I think it'll be yummy too! ;)

Okay folks, thats all for today, will post another fruity cake soon, stay tune!

Negeri Sembilan MFF : Seremban Siew Pau

Okay, I will keep this post short since I am pretty tight down by other stuff. Why bother if I'm so busy? Well, I meant to bake and put up this post earlier this week, but waited till this very last day of the month!! *sucks to be so busy* Nevertheless, here it is, my version of Seremban Siew Pau, in support of this month's MFF, featuring Negeri Sembilan.

This is the 2nd time I attempted this. Frankly speaking I can't really remember how it was back when I first did it, but at least I remember the taste was not bad, lol! Anyway, here is the new version of this Siew Pau:

Ingredients (makes 12 pau)

Ingredients for Char Siew filling:300g Char siew pork, chopped finely (store bought)
6 shallots*, sliced thinly and fried till golden brown
Seasonings:
120ml water
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
2.5 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp tapioca flour
1 tbsp corn flour
1 tsp plain flour

• In a large mixing bowl, add all the seasoning ingredients together and mix well.
• In the saucepan with medium low heat, add the seasoning mixture and cook till it thickens.
• Add the chopped char siew pork and fried shallots and stir till well combined.
• Off the fire and dish up to cool till ready to use. This can be made ahead of time and kept in the fridge for 24 to 48 hrs. 

For making the pastry skin: (recipe adapted from Carol's "The First Book of Noodles for Beginners)

(Water Dough)

95g plain flour

15g confectioner's sugar

20g vegetable oil (I used ghee)

50ml water

• In a large mixing bowl, add flour, confectioner's sugar, and ghee/oil then add the water to form a soft dough.
• Knead dough until it's not sticky and smooth, about 5-6 minutes.
• Let dough rest for 30 minutes and cover with plastic wrap.
• Divide the dough into 15g each.

(Oil Dough)

90g cake flour

30g vegetable oil

• Mix the shortening into the cake flour. It will feel crumbly at first, but continue to knead to form a dough that is pliable.
• Divide the dough into 10g each.

Assembly:

• Roll the water dough flat enough to encase the oil dough inside. Place oil dough inside water dough, cover and seal the edges.
• Then press and roll out the combined dough into long flat oval. Then start rolling in from one end to make the dough like a swiss roll. Cover let rest for 10 minutes.
• Then again repeat by taking a portion and roll it flat into a long rectangle and then roll it up from the short end into a swiss roll.
• Using your rolling pin, roll out the dough into a roll disc at least 10cm diameter.
• Place 1 heaping tablespoon of the filling in middle of the dough. Gathering the edges of the dough into top middle, pinching the edges together to seal up the top.
•  
• Preheat oven to 180°C.
• Brush the surface of each Siew Pau with egg wash and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.
•   
• Bake in the oven for 20-23 minutes till golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool before serving.

I was very please with the siew pau. Although can't compare with the original Siew Pau in Seremban, but it was still tasty. ;) The filling was flavorful and the crust was crisp and flaky! As you can see, I might have over-filled the pau which causes the yummy char siew oozing out, waste! Lol!

Indeed packed full of yummy char siew~! Will reheat it in the oven (140C for 10 mins) next morning to have it for my breakfast with a cup of coffee. ;) 

I am happy to submit this post to this month's Malaysia Food Fest, Negeri Sembilan month hosted by Hody of Cook 4 you & me.

Okay, all have a great weekend ahead! Happy baking NY goodies that is, lol!

Tender Stewed Pork with Whole wheat Buns (香嫩卤扣肉和全麦刈包)

Today's recipe is probably one of those that most of us have a "love-hate" relationship with. What is it? It's Stewed Pork sandwiched in steam buns(卤扣肉和刈包) or what the Hokkiens normally call "Kong Ba Bao". Why "love-hate"? Love is obvious, it is so sinfully GOOD, tender juicy pork that has been stewed over low fire for long hours, soaked it its favorable fat & gravy. Yummy! Hate? Well, it's kind of obvious too isn't it? I guess for me is that I always hate myself for chomping down all those fatty meats knowing that it ain't that good for the body. But life is too short to worry so much...at least for now, lol! So eat first and worry later ya?

Okay, if you have noticed, I made whole wheat buns instead to lessen the guilt, hahaha! The stewed pork recipe was actually from my mum whom has even took the trouble to buy the pork for me that morning. Thanks MUM! She went through with me step by step on how to cook the pork, so I tried my best to replicate her wonderful recipe at my very own home for the first time. :)

If you are interested to try this recipe out, read on:

Ingredients for Tender Stewed Pork(香嫩卤扣肉):

~1.5kg of Pork, the part which includes skin, a thin layer of fat plus lean meat (扣肉)

8-10 dried shitake mushrooms, soaked and rehydrate till soft, stems removed

8-10 cloves of garlic

8-10 cloves of shallot

8-10 slices of ginger

1/2 tsp five spice powder

2 star anise

1 cinnamon stick

4 to 5 tbsp quality dark soy sauce

2 tbsp sugar

salt and pepper to taste

• First, par-boil the pork with some boiling water. Throw away water and dab dry the pork after it cool down a little.
• Season the pork with about 1 tsp of salt. Then prick the skin with a toothpick several times. Then place the pork together with 3 to 4 pieces each of ginger and garlic in a pot, add just enough water to cover the pork. Slowly boil at low heat for a good 12-15 minutes till the pork is cooked through.
• Remove the pork and retain the soup for later use. Let the pork cool down and pat dry. Then slice the pork in to wedges that is about the size to go with the buns. Set aside.
• In a larger pot, add a tsp of cooking oil and heat up. Add remaining garlic, ginger and shallots into it and stir dry for a minute. Then add in mushrooms, cinnamon stick and star anise and continue to stir fry till fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Now add the pork slices and stir dry for a couple minutes.

 

• Add the reserved soup to the pot, follow by the dark soy sauce, five spice and sugar. Cover and let it boil. Once it reached boiling, lower the heat to simmer and let it slowly stew for 2 to 2.5 hours(yes, it's that long). Or if you have a pressure cooker, it should be much faster. :)

Isn't this a picture of beauty! Lol! Well at least it is to me. ;)) While the meat is stewing, you can make the whole wheat buns. Here is the recipe which I adapted from Carol's site: 全麦刈包:

Ingredients for whole wheat paus (全麦刈包): (makes about 12 to 14)

250g all purpose flour (I used pau flour)

50g whole wheat flour (I used Prima's whole wheat meal)

1 whole egg

130ml water

1/2 tsp instant dry yeast

15g caster sugar

20g olive oil

1/8 tsp salt

• In a stand mixer bowl, add all ingredients and mix well to form a soft pliable dough. Then continue to knead till not sticky, about 8-10 minutes. The dough will be elastic and bouncy, but there is no need to knead till window panel stage.
• Cover and let proof till it doubles in size. The punch out air and divide the dough into 40g each portions. Roll round and cover to rest for 10 minutes before shaping them.
• Take a portion and roll into a flat oval, brush with olive oil (I used water) on the surface and fold into half. Place in on a piece of grease paper and let it proof for 30 minutes in the cold steamer. Repeat with all the rest of the dough portions.

• After 20 minutes, start the steamer fire at medium to low heat. Steam for approximately 7-8 minutes then off the fire without removing the cover. Let it sit for 3 minutes. Then after 3 minutes, partially open the cover and let the paus cool slightly before removing them from the steamer.

These "fat lips" may be made from whole wheat, but they are still fluffy and soft. At least I won't feel so guilty chowing down them down with the pork, heehee. :P

So how? Did this photo nail it? Does it make you want to try it out too? Yes, indeed it involves several steps but I can guarantee you it is definitely worth it. Do it like me, make a big pot and slow enjoy it for a 2 to 3 days, lol! I definitely had my fair share (ahhhh! Exercise time!) and truly satisfied that I made it myself. My whole family loved it, even my elder one whom don't fancy meat usually, had 2 at a go, heehee. (^v^)

Okay folks, gonna go now and hopefully be back soon with more to share. Cheers all!

Maple Syrup Loaf and Red Wine Yeast Bao (枫糖土司 & 红鞠包子)

Here I am again with another bread loaf recipe. Since I bake bread every week without fail, so inevitably I will post up a new recipe...I just hope I don't bore you guys out, lol! In fact I still have 3 more backlogs on breads which hopefully I will get the chance to post up soon. (^_^) Boring perhaps to some...but never to me! I'm always excited and haven't found an ounce of boredom in baking bread till now! (^o^) Anyway, uh-hum(clearing my throat)....today's bread, Maple Syrup Bread Loaf(枫糖土司) is again using pre-fermented dough technique, which to me is one of the more trusted method to yielding a good loaf.

That bottle of maple syrup was purchased while I was in States last year. It is really thick and has a fine woody scent which I think is the real stuff! The bread it has mild maple scent to it. ;) But no worries if you can't get really good maple syrup from where you stay, the bread loaf will still be equally good. :) And who says maple syrup is only good for topping over pancakes/waffles?

Ingredients for Maple Syrup Bread Loaf (Makes one 9x5x4 loaf)

270g bread flour

30g cake flour

70g pre-fermented dough (refer to here for recipe)

3g salt

12g milk powder

15g brown sugar

40g maple syrup

6g active dry yeast

80g beaten whole egg

8-ml fresh milk

35g unsalted butter

• Knead all ingredients of the main dough together, except the butter. Add pre-ferment dough piece by piece. Knead after each addition until soft and smooth. Add butter. Knead until stretchable and pass the window panel consistency.
• Put the dough into a big bowl. Cover with cling wrap and let it prove for 30minutes till double.
• Divide the dough into 6 equal portions. Flatten each portion with your hands to drive the air out. Roll it into square shape, cover and let rest for 20 minutes before shaping.
• Flatten the dough to drive the air out. Roll each out into a rectangular sheet with a rolling pin. Fold about 2cm from both sides towards the center and roll it out again. Roll the dough up like swiss roll (the width should be the same as the tin) and out them into the mould. Repeat for the rest of the dough portions. Cover with cling wrap.
• Let it prove for about 45 minutes or until the dough has risen to 80 to 90% of the depth of the loaf tin. You can either cover the lid or bake it open top. I omitted the egg wash to make it pure vegetarian version. Bake in 175C for 30 to 35minutes.

The texture of the loaf did turn out pretty good...soft and bouncy and even stays so the next day. :) Day after? Probably, but the bread was all gone by then. (^o^)

Just to show you the nice texture of the bread...to convince you a little bit more, heehee. (^_^) If you have maple syrup sitting at the furthest corner of your fridge....you know what you should do with it now. :)

Another recipe I want to share today is 红鞠包子. I have actually come to know about this 红鞠(red wine yeast) pretty long ago through a Taiwanese cooking show. The chef was using it to stew a piece of roast pork and it looked so goooood! Since I didn't know how to get my hands on the red wine yeast..it just got forgotten. Until recently......I saw Sonia using it for her chiffon! I was so excited and found out it was Lena whom got it for her. And guess what? Sweet Lena sent me a bottle! Thanks Lena! I wanted to try it on something simple and found a decent recipe from Carol's cookbook: 红鞠馒头. But since I'm not too fond of plain buns, I went ahead and modified the recipe to baos with fillings, heehee. :D

The baos turned out with a light salmon color, quite pretty and festive in color. ;) Although I did worry that the strong wine aroma might be evident in the bao....so I reduce the amount of red wine yeast used...but in the end I can't smell or even taste it in the baos. :P

Here is the recipe I came up with:

Ingredients for Red Wine Yeast Baos(红鞠包子) (makes about 8)

20g brown sugar

110ml warm water

3/4 tsp active dry yeast

50g starter dough (see here for recipe)

370g plain flour

50g cake flour

80ml red wine yeast (I used 60g only and added 1 tbsp more water to compensate)

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp shortening

1. Place everything in a large mixing bowl except the butter and knead till it comes together. Once it forms into a dough, add in the shortening and continue to knead for a good 5 to 7 minutes on the mixer or 10 minutes by hand till it is elastic and smooth.
2. Place the dough in a greased bowl and let proof till double in size. Punch out the air and divide the dough into 40g each.
3. Take a dough portion and flatten it into a disc, making sure the center is thicker then the edges. place about 2 tbsp's worth of red bean / black sesame paste filling in the center. Seal up and roll round. Place on a greased proof paper and put the bun into the steamer (already prep with water) to further proof for about 40 minutes. Repeat.
4. Once proved, start the steamer and steam at medium high for 10 to 15 minutes. Note that do open the lid completely after steamed, open partially with a small gap for 15 minutes to let the buns cool slowly to prevent them to deflate.

I am actually quite excited about trying more recipes, even savory dishes with the red wine yeast. Hopefully will post them up soon. Thanks again dear Lena for taking the trouble to send it to me!

Showing off the fluffy texture of the bao, heehee! :D If you are lucky enough to access to red wine yeast, do try this recipe out...you'll not only be eating healthy, you'll enjoy it very much too! ;) If you are interested to read more about the medicinal values of 红鞠, please visit this link....but it's in Mandarin. :P

Hope this post had inspired you to bake some bread and steam some healthy buns! The weekend is just around the corner...make use of it and make something yummy! Hope you all have a great one!

Warm Chocolate Soufflé Tarts

I'm amazed with myself. It's been more then a month since I last made a chocolate desert! For a chocoholic like me, it's pretty abnormal, lol! Perhaps with the stuff that was going on around me lately had dampened my chocolate appetite. :P Hopefully this doesn't carry on, as I can never have too much chocolate...good dark chocolate in any form that is. :))

Today I am going to share with you all something that will melt any chocolate lover's heart. :) In fact, if you love soufflé , you'll love this desert even more! It's call Warm Chocolate Soufflé Tarts. Even the name itself is so tempting. ;)) Elegant chocolate soufflé that gain stability and crunch from a chocolate shortbread crust. Sounds good huh? However the elegant name can't really match those tarts that I baked up. Why?See for yourself. :P It took me ages to get a decent shot of the tarts. (*o*)"

Due to the fluffy "nature" of the soufflé filling, the characteristic look of this tart is to have a crack on the surface. Not that pretty if you ask me. But please don't be discouraged by it's looks, it's truly deceiving....this tart taste heavenly good. :)

I got this recipe from a book call "The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern" by Claudia Fleming. I had this book forever now and would occasionally refer back to it when I want some special desert to serve up. Interested in this tart? Here is the recipe:

Ingredients for Warm Chocolate Soufflé Tarts (makes about 18)

Chocolate Tart Dough:
1/2 cup (4 oz) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup (2 oz) +1 tbsp confectioner's sugar
1 large egg yolk
3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup (3/4 oz) unsweetened coca powder (I used Valrohna Cocoa powder)
1 & 1/4 cup (6.25 oz) all purpose flour

Chocolate Souffle filling:

10 tbsp (5oz) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
5oz extra bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used Valrohna 70% cocoa)
4 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup(5.25 oz) plus 2 tbsp caster sugar
3 tbsp all purpose flour

Method:

• To prepare the pastry dough: In a large bowl, cream the butter and confectioner's sugar together until light and creamy. Add in the egg yolk and beat till smooth. Sift in the flour and cocoa powder and mix till the mixture comes together. Place the dough in a large plastic wrap and chill it at least 2 hrs or up to 3 days.
• To prepare the filling: Over a double boiler, melt the chopped chocolate and butter and stirring till it combines well. Remove from the heat and let cool before use.
• In another bowl, beat the eggs and sugar at high speed till the mixture is light in color, thickens & tripe in volume; also known as ribbon stage. Fold 1/3 of this egg mixture into the cooled chocolate mixture. Once incorporated, fold it back into the remaining 2/3 egg mixture and careful not to deflate the batter.
• Then in 3 separate portions, sift in the flour mixture and folding in carefully till no visible flour. Repeat till all the flour has been folded in. Cover the filling and chill it for at least 2 hours, or at least up to 2 days.
• Preheat the oven to 170C. Take the chilled chocolate dough out from the fridge. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into about 10" X 15" rectangle. Using a 2.5" or 3" round cutter, cut out about 16 to 18 rounds. Then press the cut out doughs into the tart tins. Prick the base of the dough in the tins and chill the shells for 20 minutes before baking.
• After chilling, bake the tart shells for 13 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely. (I placed them under the fan.)
• Spoon the chilled souffle fillings into the cooled tart shells to 80% full. Then bake in the oven at the same temperature for another 12 to 14 minutes.
• 
• The filling will puff up but will naturally deflate a little once it starts to cool down. Serve when still warm. Or if you like, chill the tarts and serve them cold...it's equally delicious!

Remember that the key point in making these is to use good quality chocolate & cocoa powder, or it won't taste as good.

How good does that look? Although the picture might make you think its a "brownie" or "cakey" texture, but in fact it's so much lighter then that. Well, it taste exactly like a soufflé ! Once you take a bite, you'll first feel the flaky chocolaty crust then follow by this light and fluffy intense chocolate filling which simply just melts away in your mouth. Truly heavenly. :) Don't wait folks, get busy now and bake some for yourself! :D

Needless to say, I will be submitting this to Aspiring Bakers #10: Easy As Pie ( August 2011) hosted by Janine of Not The Kitchen Sink! Thanks for hosting this month Janine! Have you submitted your post yet? Hurry before the month ends!


Have a good day all! Cheers!

Dear Mum's Birthday: Passion Fruit Swiss Roll Cake & "寿桃" (Peach) Buns

It's my mother's birthday again. It goes without saying I have to bake a nice cake for her as well this year...nicer then the one last year. But because of the recent Father's Day cake I made, my family kind of fell in love with the passion fruit cake flavor. So I decided to bake a passion fruit cake but in the same Swiss Roll cake deco I made for my MIL's birthday cake in June. I have to say this cake is like a marriage of 2 recipes & technique I learned in these months. And this is the result of the happy "marriage", heehee.

I know I should have come up with a new design on the outside, but I really don't have that kind of time leisure, so I just went to the same design as the previous one. But bare in mind that this is a Passion Fruit Swiss Roll Cake...meaning the cake is rolled up just like the one in the Father's Day & my Hubby's Birthday cake I made. Meaning the cake layering are in vertical form. Anyway, I will upload a picture of the sliced cake after tonight's celebration. :)

Instead of using the same recipe of sponge cake (whole egg technique); I decided to change the recipe to using the egg separation method "分蛋式海绵蛋". Main reason is this method yields the softest of all the techniques (i.e. Chiffon, Sponge and egg separation). Here is my recipe:

Ingredients for Passion fruit Cake Batter (13" by 15"):

Set A:

5 large egg yolks

60g caster sugar

110g superfine or cake flour

2 tsp corn flour

Set B:

50g unsalted butter

50ml fresh passion fruit juice (~ 3 passion fruits)

Set C:

6 egg whites
pinch of salt
50g caster sugar

Ingredients for Passion Fruit Cream Cheese Filling:

150g unsalted butter

250g cream cheese, room temperature

80g confectioner's sugar

50ml passion fruit pulp

100ml non dairy whipping cream

1.5 tbsp gelatine powder melted in 2 tbsp boiling water

Method:

• Melt the butter together with the passion fruit juice from Set B under double boiler and let cool until needed.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and greased it again. Preheat oven to 170C.
• Again under double boiler, beat the egg yolks and sugar (from Set A) till triple in volume and thickens.
• At the meantime, beat the egg white with gradual addition of the sugar in Set C and beat till mixture is stiff peaks.
• In 3 separate portions, add the egg whites into the yolk mixture, folding gently till all is added in.
• Sift in the flours in 3 separate portions as well, using the electric mixer at its lowest speed. Do this till there is no visible lumps of flour and making sure not over beating and deflating the mixture.
• Take about 2 tbsp worth of the batter and mix into the melted, cooled butter mixture. Make sure it is well mixed and then add it back to the cake batter and gently stir to blend.
• For the Swiss Roll decoration details, please kindly refer to this post.
• Finally, pour the batter into the baking tray and level out with a scraper. Then bake in the oven for 13 minutes or till tester comes out clean. Let cake cool completely before use.
• In the meantime, prepare the cream cheese filling: Cream the butter, cream cheese, sifted powder sugar, gelatine mixture and passion fruit juice together till smooth.
• Pour in the whipping cream and continue to whip at high speed till mixture fluff up and increase in volume more.
• For details on how to assemble this cake, please refer to this post.

I really have to work on my piping skill...my Chinese characters are not very nicely done. ;P And hopefully the taste of the cake will work out nice as well tonight. *fingers crossed*

Latest update!

Managed to get a shot of a slice....the cake was indeed very yum, just like the previous time, heehee!

I will be submitting this to Aspiring Bakers #9 - Swiss Rolling Good Times hosted by Obsessedly Involved with Food.

Besides the cake, I also made some "寿桃" (peach) buns for my mum's birthday. Traditionally, these buns that are served during an elder's birthday celebration. Since this was my first attempt, I had a very rough work done...but still presentable...I think, lol!

I had these buns filled with white lotus paste (no sugar added). Had thought of adding salted egg yolk in it too but decided not to, as there's too much work!! :P As for the bun recipe, it's none other then my trusty soft mantou recipe of course, hee. :D

Hope you guys are not laughing your pants off looking at my ugly "寿桃" (peach) buns. :P Seriously need some practice on the shaping. Luckily it is just for my family's consumption....hee. :D But let's hope my mum won't be disappointed in these. *double fingers crossed*

Okay folks, gotta go and prepare for the celebration tonight, will post again soon! Have a great week!

Pumpkin Pork Floss Mantou

Making breakfast for the family has become a routine for me. I seldom purchase off the shelf bread loaf or frequent any bakery unless necessary. And ever since I found a couple of good bread and pau recipe, making breakfast seems not all that troublesome or difficult now. All you have to do is twig the old trusty recipe a little or simply adding new ingredients to make it different. ;D This time I used the same mantou recipe which I so loved and added pumpkin to it. Simple as that, we got pumpkin mantou. ;) And just the other day I saw Vivian Pang adding pork floss in her mantou and thought I try it too. Result? Delicious! :)

Truth is, I actually had 2 failed attempts on making this steam pumpkin mantou before this. Nothing disastrous, but just kind of puffed up and then deflated right after I remove them from the steamer. :P *sigh* Suspecting that it might be the butter I added into the dough, I omitted it this time and it just turned out perfect. *phew!*

With the addition of savory pork floss was a superb idea! My kids loved it, even my picky eater. ;)) The pork floss I used has sesame and seaweed in it, so it's even more fragrant, yum. ;))

Ingredients for Pumpkin Pork Floss Mantou (Makes about 16 to 20):

Starter dough:

120g pau flour (original calls for plain flour)

1/2 tsp active instant dry yeast

80ml warm water

pinch of salt

Method:

Knead all the ingredients together till it comes together to form a soft, smooth dough. Chill in the fridge up to 6-8hrs before use.

Main dough:

100g starter dough (the other half can continue to chill up to 36 hrs before use)

1.5 tsp active instant dry yeast

300g pau flour

180g steamed pumpkin

20 ml water

40g caster sugar

1/4 tsp salt

Red Bean / Lotus paste filling

Method for Red bean / Lotus paste steam buns:

1. Place everything in a large mixing bowl except the butter and knead till it comes together. Once it forms into a dough, add in the butter and continue to knead for a good 5 to 7 minutes on the mixer or 10 minutes by hand till it is elastic and smooth.
2. Place the dough in a greased bowl and let proof till double in size. Punch out the air and divide the dough into 2 portions. Roll round and let rest for 5 minutes.
3. Take a dough portion and roll it out with into a big flat rectangular, about 20am by 30cm. Brush with water and sprinkle with about 1 cup of pork floss or how ever much you like.
4. Roll it up from the long side like a swiss roll and then slice it up into 8 or 10 equal portions. Place on a grease proof paper and let proof in the steamer (cold) for 10 minutes.
5. Start the stove fire, once the water boils, lower it to medium low and let steam for 8 to 10 minutes. Then turn off the fire and let the mantous stay into the steamer for another 5 minutes before taking them out.

The mantous turned out soft and delicious, definitely a keeper. In fact I made it again a couple days later but minus the steamed pumpkin puree. I made fresh milk mantou with pork floss and it was equally good. :)

Hope you all are a little more motivated and make it for breakfast tomorrow for your family. For sure a home made breakfast is more more healthy and wholesome then those outside. :))

Ooops, duty calls! Got to go, so I have to stop here and come back again with another post soon.

Have a good week ahead all!

Chocolate Hot Fudge Pudding Cake & Steamed Chocolate Piggy Baos

Finally, school holiday is here! A little breather after the hectic schedules from the first half of the year. But again, there's quite a number of things lined up in the month of June. Father's day coming in a couple week's time; My elder child's birthday, which means I need to whip up a special cake for her; Friends....good friends to be specific, are coming to visit me from Malaysia! Not one but 2 separate groups of friends. :)) Excited? You bet I am, lol! So I didn't really plan for any get away trips this time. For I know I'm gonna have a blast when my girlfriends are here. :)

Back to today's post. I figured it's already the end of May now. So why not have the excuse of baking something chocolate to post the last submission to Aspiring Bakers for this month, heehee. :D But frankly speaking, I have so many chocolate recipes to share, just doesn't have the leisure to post them this month. *sigh* Anyway, I decided to post something really simple to whip up, yet so chocolaty, gooey good that is sure to melt any chocolate lover's heart. :)

I got this simple recipe from The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book which I bought awhile back. In fact I have been holding back to bake this for awhile now since my child was having cough earlier. Now that she's all better...yoohoo! Baking time! :) 15 minutes after its out from the oven, I topped it with a scoop of Rum & Raisin ice cream....and it's all good! :D Wanna give it a go? Here is the recipe, but I modified it to slightly less sweet:

Ingredients for Hot Fudge Pudding Cake: (makes about four/ five 6 oz ramekins)

2/3 cup (2 ounces) Dutch Processed cocoa powder (I used Valrohna)

6 tbsp (6 ounces) unsalted butter

2 ounces quality bittersweet chocolate (70% cocoa or higher), chopped coarse

3/4 cup all purpose (3 3/4 ounces) )

2 tsp baking powder

3/4 cup granulated sugar ( 5 1/4ounces) (Original calls for 1 cup)

3 tbsp light brown sugar (Original calls for 1/3 cup)

1/3 cup whole milk

1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

1 large egg yolk, room temp

1/4 tsp salt

1.5 cup weak coffee (i just used a packet of instant coffee mix + 1.5cups water)

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 200C. Grease five 6 oz ramekins and set aside for use later.
• In a saucepan, add in butter, 3/4 of the cocoa powder (1&3/4 ounces) and chopped chocolate and heat over low heat. Stir well and mix. Then turn off the heat once everything blends together. Set aside for now.
• In a small bowl, whisk the flour and baking powder together. Then in a separate bowl, combined 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar, 1/4 cup cocoa powder and the light brown sugar. Stir to mix well and break up any lumps. Set aside for later use.
• In a large bowl, whisk the remaining granulated sugar, milk, vanilla, egg yolk, and salt and stir to combine. Then whisk in the cooled chocolate mixture, followed by the flour mixture. Divide this batter equally into the ramekins. Sprinkle 1 heaping tbsp of coca powder mixture into each ramekin, follow by 3 tbsp of the coffee solution. Repeat till all the ramekin is filled.
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes till bubbly and puffed. Note that you shouldn't over bake this, else the gooey effect will be gone. Remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes and serve while warm. Bon Appetit!

I love this chocolate pudding cake! The method may sound really unorthodox, as it doesn't mix in all the ingredients into the batter. But trust me, that sprinkle of cocoa mixture and coffee really create pure magic in the pudding. These "loose" ingredients form sort of a fudge sauce in the oven and, after the cake is baked, the sauce winds up underneath the cake....yum!! If you are chocolate fanatic like me, please don't miss out on this. :) I believe this is quite a wonderful desert to serve after dinner, just top it off with some creme fraiche / whipped cream or even better, some vanilla ice cream!

Before I finish this post, I would like to share with you all something fun I made a couple weeks back. It is actually the same bao recipe that I was raving about. Super soft and delicious even on its own. But this time round, I shaped the chocolate baos into cute little piggy heads and filled it with peanut butter paste. Yum? Yummy good! :))

Frankly speaking these piggies are cute enough to have their own post. But I really don't have that time to do that, so I have to do this combine post again. :P

Again the recipe turned out wonderful, soft and yummy, even days after. So even if you made a big batch, just chill in the fridge up to 5 days or freeze it up to a month, no problem. ;)

The peanut filling was really good, but it might have been a little on the dry side. Will improve it and make this version again as I love peanut butter more then red bean paste, lol! How I made the peanut paste was using roasted ground peanuts, peanut butter and some melted butter plus powdered sugar to taste.

As mentioned, I'm submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #7 - Chocolate Delight (May 2011) hosted by DG from Tested and Tasted. I LOVE CHOCOLATE!

Hope the cute piggies have lightened your mood a little. ;) It sure did for me and best part is it filled my tummy too, lol! :D Okay, folks, have to leave you all for now and will post again when I get some free time. Have a nice day!!