Parsley and Garlic Buns Recipes

When I saw these buns at Grace of Kitchen Corner I bookmarked it right away but only now I have the chance to try it out. This recipe is a keeper as the buns turn out to be really soft and fluffy. I did some minor changes to the topping and added garlic to it. Do go and check out her wonderful blog  where she showcase all the beautiful bakes.

Ingredients for dough

150 gram bread flour
50 gram flour
15 gram sugar
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp yeast
130 ml milk
15 gram unsalted butter

Topping

2 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
1 tbsp freshly chopped garlic
2 tbsp unsalted butter
½ tsp salt

1. Mix all the ingredients for dough except butter at low speed using dough hook mixer, then turn to medium speed until it become smooth dough.
2. Add in the unsalted butter and knead with low speed until the butter combine with the dough. Turn to medium speed for the kneading process until it becomes smooth and elastic dough.
3. Place the dough into a lightly grease bowl and cover with cling wrap to proof for an hour or until double in size.
4. While waiting for the dough, mix the ingredients for herbs topping until it become a smooth paste. Put the  paste into a piping bag.
5. Divide the dough into 6 portions and round them into small balls. Let them rest for 10 minutes.
6. Roll each dough out into a sausage shape and proof for 30 minutes.
7. With a sharp knife cut a line on the middle of each bun and continue proofing for another 10 minutes.
8. Egg wash the bread and squeeze some of the topping to the center of the buns. Bake at 350 degree F pre-heated oven for 18 minutes until golden brown.

I am submitting this bread to Yeastspotting

Amazing wedding food and drinks - Dairy Foods

{Photo credits: Meg Perotti via Style Me Pretty}

Today's post is all about this amazing wedding that had the most delicious looking cocktails, cheese and mini burgers I've ever seen.  If the food is this gorgeous, curious to see how amazing the wedding was?  Head over to Style Me Pretty to check it out.

Mini chocolate whoopie pies - Dairy Foods

As promised, I spent Sunday morning baking up a storm. After spending time researching different recipes and reading reviews for whoopie pies, I decided on one I found on the iPhone Epicurious app (love that app, by the way).

These Whoopie Pies are by no means healthy, but this recipe uses whole wheat flour. I also reduced the amount of marshmallow cream because I don't like frosting being overly sweet. These desserts were relatively easy. To ensure the little cookie/cakes were all the same size and had a nice shape, I piped the batter onto parchment-lined cookie sheets.

Mini chocolate whoopie pies (recipe adapted from Epicurious)

Ingredients

Cake:

1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa, such as Droste
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 cup milk

Filling:
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup marshmallow cream

Arrange the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat the oven to 425°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Make the cakes:

Whisk together the flours, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the egg and beat at medium speed until incorporated. At low speed, add the flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the milk, mixing until just blended.

Pipe 1 inch rounds of batter onto each sheet, leaving about 2 inches between cakes (instead of piping the batter you can also use the drop method). Bake the 2 sheets at the same time, 5 to 7 minutes, until springy to touch. Let cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, and transfer to racks to cool completely. Change the parchment and repeat using the remaining batter.

Make filling:

Beat the butter and confectioners' sugar at low speed until blended and then beat at high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the vanilla and marshmallow cream and mix at low speed until blended, about 1 minute.

Match pairs of cake with the same shapes and spread the bottom side of 1 cake with filling and sandwich together with the other cake. (Store the finished whoopee pies in a covered plastic container and chill for up to 3 days.)



Since these guys are pretty sticky, putting them in cellophane bags wouldn't be the best. Instead, I tried to package them in short canning jars, but then you can only fit one, and that's just not enough. These are really yummy and I wanted to eat like 16 of them (but then I remembered I'm in 3 weddings in the next 6 weeks).

Definitely give these a try. They are satisfying treats and would look adorable on top of a cake platter stacked on top of each other for any party.

Happy Monday!

Nyonya Vegetable Curry Recipes

It is the time to clean up the vegetable compartment of my fridge. I do this every two weeks before I buy more of it. As usual there will some leftover of vegetable in there. A little bit of carrot, long beans, red peppers, zucchini etc. I will normally make a quick stir-fry out of it but when I saw this delicious looking Nyonya Vegetable Curry at Kiersten blog I decided to give it a try. The curry turns out really good. There is nothing more comforting than indulging a big bowl of this homemade curry.

Ingredients:
Recipe adpated from here

1 zucchini
1/2 head of cabbage, cut
A bunch of long beans, cut into 2” lengths
1 carrot – cut into 1” lengths
2 red pepper, cut into wedges
½ packet bean curd pockets (tau foo pok), cut into halves
2 potatoes – peel and quarter
2 - 2 1/2 cups of coconut milk
2 tbsp curry power, mixed with 3 tbsp water
1 chicken stock cube or vegetable cube
Salt and sugar to taste

Blend into paste:

3 stalks of lemongrass
2 cm galangal
1" fresh turmeric
8 shallots
6 garlic
3 pieces candlenuts
3 tbsp chili paste ( I used sambal oelek)

1. Heat up about 3 tbsp of oil in the pan. Stir-fried the blended ingredients until fragrant.
2. Add in the curry powder. Continue to stir-fry so that it won’t burn. Add in a little bit of coconut milk. Continue to stir-fry until you see oil starts to appear.
3. Add in the rest of the coconut milk and chicken cube. Bring it up to boil. Add in the carrots and potatoes. Cover and let it cook for 5 minute. Add in the rest of the vegetables and continue to cook over medium low heat until vegetable are about done.
4. Add in the bean curd pockets. Let it simmer for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and sugar to taste. Serve warm.

Note: I replaced one cup of the coconut milk with evaporate milk.

Whoopie pies - getting back in the kitchen - Dairy Foods

{Photo credits and recipes: Cooks, Bakerella, Food Network, Martha Stewart}  

Remember when I used to cook/bake and post recipes? Yeah...I barely do, either. It has been way too long since I have had time to spend in the kitchen and I miss it so much.

Luckily, I have all day Sunday set aside for some much needed baking and I am going to attempt one of these whoopie pie recipes. Whoopie pies have been making their way around the blogosphere and I am basically obsessed with little sandwich cookies. Remember these shortbread and the red velvet sandwich cookies I made?

Whoopie pies would be perfect wrapped in a cellophane bag tied with a ribbon or stacked on top of each other in a mason jar. They would also be a nice addition to any dessert display.

Stay tuned to see how they turn out and I hope you all have an amazing weekend!

Plum Galette/Plum Crostata Recipes

We’ve got plums coming out in abundance now. I bought a big bag of it the other day and it just cost me $1.98. I left it on the counter to ripen and they were so sweet and juice. With the leftovers I made this free-form crostata or gallette, it is the easiest way to make a pie. You don’t need a pie pan, no elaborate edge crimping, and no lattice weaving. All you have to do is roll out the dough and fold it up over the fruits of your choice. This rustic plum galette is bright, delicious and a great way to finish up all the plums that you has at home.

Ingredients for the pastry:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
10 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
some ice water

Mix the flour, salt, and sugar together in a bowl. Cut in the butter by hand or using a mixer with a paddle attachment, leaving some pea-sized chunks. Sprinkle the ice water over the top by the tablespoon and toss it with the flour mixture until you can bring the dough together into a ball. Press it into a disk and refrigerate for 30 minutes before rolling it out.

For the filling:

6 plums – core and cut into thin wedges
2 1/2 tbsp of sugar – for sprinkle
1 egg – beaten for egg wash

1. To form a galette, roll it out on a lightly floured counter into a 13” circle about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer the dough into a line baking pan.
2. Arrange the plums all around the dough leaving about 1 ½” away from the border, then sprinkle the 2 tbsp of sugar on top of the fruits.
3. Fold in the edge of the dough to cover the outer rim of the plums. Brush it with some egg wash and sprinkle the remaining ½ tbsp of sugar all over the pastry.
4. Baked in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes or until fruit is tender and pastry golden brown. Let the galette cool on the baking pan for 10 minutes before transferring it to the cooling rack. Serve warm or cold.

Note: The amount of sugar needed depends on the tartness of the plums.

Savory Glutinous Rice/Chu Bee P'ng Recipes

Is the time of the year again. Malaysia will be celebrating her 53rd birthday end of this month. As usual Babe In City - KL is hosting a Virtual Merdeka Open House 2010 and team for this year is Food From Our Hearts . We were to cook a dish close to our hearts.

Being so far away from home makes me appreciates home cooked food even more. I used to take it for granted that I can easily eat the food at home or buy it outside. But since living here in the US I don’t have the luxury to do so. If I want something from home I have to cook it myself. In a way it is a good thing as I learned how to cook them myself.

Today I wanted to share with you my mom’s simple Savory Glutinous Rice. I remember on every festive season she will cook a big pot of her savory glutinous rice. She will wakes up as early as 5.00am to cook this dish besides other dishes. She likes doing that as this way nobody gets in her way in the kitchen and she can cook in peace. We used to get upset with her as we will smell the fried garlic and shallots all the way to our upstairs rooms where else we still wanted to continue our beauty sleep. But now I wish I can have that smell to wakes me up in the morning here. This dish has both a sentimental and comfort  to it that will always reminds me of home and my mom.

Ingredients:

500 grm glutinous rice
6 shallots, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic – finely chopped
1 piece chicken breast – sliced thinly
10 dried mushroom, soaked till soft, drained and thinly sliced
6 dried scallops, soaked till soft then drained and shredded
1 Chinese sausage - remove casing and diced small (optional)
3 tbsp light soya sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp sugar
salt to taste
pepper to taste
1 cup water

For garnish

Some fried shallots
some roasted peanuts
some small diced green onions

1. Soak the glutinous rice in water for at least 2 hours. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat up the wok, add in some olive oil and fry the shallots until golden brown. Remove for garnish later. Add in the chopped garlic and stir-fry until fragrant.
3. Add in the meat, chinese sausage,mushroom and scallops and stir-fry for five minutes.Add light soya sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce, sugar, salt and pepper. Mix well. Add glutinous rice and stir-fry for few minutes.
5. Add in the water, mix well and cook the rice for two minutes.
6. Transfer the rice into a steaming pan and steam the rice for 40 minutes. Stir rice every 20mins, sprinkle some water if necessary. Steam until the rice is cooked.
7. Remove the rice from the steamer and top with fried shallots, roasted peanuts and some spring onions.

Note: For best results, steaming is recommended so that the rice doesn't get mushy.

Real party: southern bridal shower luncheon - Dairy Foods

{Photo credits: Kristen Steel Photography}

This gorgeous, feminine bridal luncheon was sent to me by Kristen Steel Photography. She attended the shower and shot all these lovely photos.  What's not to love about this party?  I adore the soft color palette and the vintage-inspired decor.  I would say that bride-to-be Kelly is one lucky gal! 

As told by Kristen:

This vintage-inspired luncheon was brought to life by amazing milk glass vases and floral arrangements by Leah of Whimsical Gatherings, gorgeous cupcakes by The Cupcakery and oh-my-gosh-to-die-for food by Luxe Catering and Events. Anderson Rentals provided the tables and our fun and frilly pink table linens. Heather with Simplicity Event Planners graciously donated the Chair covers and helped coordinate all of the fun!

The amazing menu:

Chicken Salad Stuffed Pasta Shells with Parsley and Pecans

Heart Shaped Cucumber Tea Sandwiches

Fresh and Savory Winter Salad Stuffed Pears

Mustard Roasted Potatoes with Buttermilk Aioli

Lemon Cheese Cake Puffs topped with Strawberries, Blueberries and Mint

Assorted Seasonal Fruits

Veggies, Cheeses and Breads

Honey Ginger tea

Thanks so much for sending this amazing bridal luncheon my way, Kristen!

Real party: a LumberJack and Jill couple's shower - Dairy Foods

{Photo credits: ICG Photography}

I love this couple's shower designed by Trish of Frilly Milly Events. It incorporates personal interests of the couple with a completely unique theme and the food....wow!

As told by Trish:

The original concept/theme was somewhat of an “enchanted forest” due to the couples’ love for vintage/outdoorsy/retro pieces, but when it all came together I decided it was more appropriately titled “Lumber Jack and Jill”.



Because it was a couples shower, Trish wanted it to not only be feminine and dainty, but have a strong masculine presence as well. In order to do that she incorporated plaids and wildflower prints.
Trish served bbq foods (burgers, baked beans, corn on the cob, etc.) in small packages (sliders, tiny baked bean pots, etc.).  I am in love with those baked beans in a jar and the french fry cones!!!


Trish put together little brown bags with all of the ingredients to create s’morea with a  label that read “s’more love” and on the backside the couples’ wedding date.
Be sure to head over to Trish's blog, Frilly Milly Events and check out photos from the "photo booth" she set up as entertainment for the party.

Amazing job on this couple's shower, Trish.  This is one party I'd love to attend!