Apam Snow White

Salam to all,

Ever since I bought the little $4 steamer I've been wanting to make more Malay kuihs that requires to be steamed.  I cant fit a baking tin into the steamer but it fits 8 pieces of the tiny red cups ;)  I've always wanted to make these apam snow white and purposely leave some cooked rice that is required for this recipe.  Jannah was so excited when I told her that I was gonna make apams today but when she saw these apams instead she asked how come they dont look like the ladybug apams.  Cheett!!

As I was asked repeatedly how come these apams doesnt look like the ladybug apam, I explained to Jannah its bcos they are called apam snow white.  She replied "Huh??  Snow white??  Mana atok2 -referring to the dwarfs dia arh?"  She kept on saying that she doesnt want this apam cos they dont look anything like snow white.  Adeehhh *scratch head*  I asked her if she wanted to try one and she said she wanted the pink one.......after 1 bite, she said she wanted the purple one and she said they were yucky and she wanted to try the white one next.  She gave me 1 million reasons not to finish them like.........(although there wasnt really a millon cos I've forgotten what else she said hehehez.)

- Jannah tak nak apam ni.....nak yang ladybug aja, yang dalam ada coklat.
- Bau apa ni?  Asal apam ni ada bau arh mama?
- Apasal bau macam nasi busuk aja....
- Apasal dalam takde apa2.
- Apasal apam ni tak best aja.
- Apasal mama tak buat apam ladybug aja.
- Jannah tak nak lah apam yang ni, tak cantik aja.
- Apasal apasal apasal apasal.

Haizzz she likes to ends her sentences with aja.  Bodoh aja, pandai aja, cantik aja, memang banyak cakap lah ini budak.  Anyway, she did have 2 whole pieces of apam after I forced her to eat them hehehez.  She then asked for more, I asked how many she said 2.  Ok and so, I gave them to her.  She went into her room and was very quiet.  The next moment, she went into the kitchen....took 2 cups and 2 plates.  I thought she ate the 2 apams but instead she held a tea party for her 2 care bears.  Haiiizzzz she said the care bears wanted the apams and they like them hmmmmmzz.  Anyway, I luv them and luckily I only made half of the recipe, otherwise confirmed arhhhh I will be bloated like an apam wahahahaz

Source :  Rima @ Bisousatoi
Ingredients
3 cups rice flour
1 cup flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 package baker's yeast mauripan @ (11gm)
2 cups cooked rice
3 cups water
1/2 grated coconut steamed and a pinch of salt

Method
- Put all above ingredients except the cooked rice and water into the container. Mix well and set aside briefly
- Grind cooked rice with water until smooth.
- Pour rice and water mixture into flour mixture and stir till combined.
- Let it set for an hour. (use clingwrap to cover the top of ur container)
- Meanwhile.. heat ur steamer. Lightly oil the molds.
- Pipe in batter into each mold.. steamed it for abt 15 mins over medium heat.

First pic : The different sizes.  One was filled slightly more than the other.

Second pic : This is what happened when u fill mixture to the brim.

Third pic : When u leave steamer unattended with slightly high heat.

Photos of the one and only skinny persimmon tree along our driveway.  Looks like they gonna be ready soon.  Have to pick them before the birds eat them.  TTFN folks ;)

Pandan Raisin Buns

Salam to all,

It was 9.30pm when I composed this entry.  Current temperature abt 10 deg celcius.  Its getting a little cold at night and in the early morning.  Really love the day part these past few days, blue skies with bright sunshine.  I have to turn on the fan in the afternoon though as it does get scorching hot in this house.

Lights were off a little early today....abt 8.15pm as hb starts work at 7am tomorrow.  As for Jannah, she must be tired today.  She fell asleep quite easily and must have dozed off at abt 8.30pm just now, I can hear her snores hehehez.  She had  a fall on the pebble foot path and bruised her knee earlier, trying to chase me bcos she thought that I was gonna leave her behind when I wanted to go to the supermarket haiiizzz.

Anyway, made this buns today.  Second attempt at using the water roux method.  I know how to make the water roux now without over cooking it hehehez.  I added raisins to the original recipe of these buns.  Have to agree with Yat that the buns turned out so soft & fluffy and the pandan aroma makes me want to eat these buns non stop ahakkkss.  They are only for me and Jannah as hb wont even touch anything that comes out of the oven green @_@

Source : Yat @ Easybakes
Adapted From : CMG @ Dapur Tanpa Sempadan


BAHAN-BAHANNYA (Ingredients)
190 gram tepung roti ( 190 gm high protein flour)
70 gram gula halus (70gm fine sugar)
1/4 camca teh garam (1/4 tsp salt)
6 gram instat yeast (6gm instant yeast)
1/2 camca teh bread improver (1/2 tsp bread improver - I omit)
1 kuning telur ( 1 egg yolk)
50 gram santan kelapa (boleh letak susu segar) (50gm coconut milk - I used fresh milk)
1/2 camca teh pes pandan (1/2 tsp pandan paste)
80 gram water roux (80gm water roux - recipe below)
30 gram mentega (30gm butter - room temp)
Kelapa kering secukupnya (desiccated coconut for topping)
50g kismis (50g raisins) - I added.

CARA MEMBUATNYA : (Method)
Satukan semua bahan di atas kecuali kelapa kering, dalam breadmaker. Pilih setting untuk DOH dan tekan ON, tunggu hingga siap. (Mix all ingredients in a bread maker except dessicated coconut & choose the dough setting. Wait 1.5 hours for the dough to be ready) - I added the raisins when the breadmaker beeps, indicating to add the dry ingredients.

Keluarkan doh, tumbuk untuk membuang udara. Bahagikan kepada 9 bahagian sama besar, kurang lebih 50 gram setiap satu. (When dough is readsy, remove it from the BM & punch out air. Divide dough into 9 equal portion abt 50gm each)

Bulat2kan dan susun dalam tin yang telah disapu mentega (mat guna tin 8 inci x 8 inci x 2 inci).(Round each dough &place into a greased square pan)

Biar naik sekali ganda, kurang lebih 50 minit. Sapu permukaan doh dengan putih telur dan tabur dengan kelapa kering rata. Bakar dalam oven yang telah dipanaskan pada suhu 180c selama 25 minit atau hingga kuning keemasan.Sejukkan sebelum dihidangkan. (Let the dough rise for abt 50 minutes, glaze the top with egg white & sprinkle dessicated coconut on top. Bake for abt 25 minutes in a 185C preheated oven. Cool & serve.

Water roux
50 gram tepung gandum(50gm multi purpose flour)
250 ml air (250ml water)

Method
Satukan air dan tepung gandum, kacau rata dan masak dengan api kecil sambil dikacau hingga pekat, matikan api, sejukkan. Boleh digunakan, simpan baki dalam peti sejuk, boleh tahan selama 3 hari.

(Mix water & flour in a saucepan, stir well & cook over small flame until it thickens and then let cool before using) (Leftover can be kept in a fridge for abt 3 days)

 Nothing much going on here today......same old same old.  Gonna continue sitting at my dark,dinghy corner and surf the net until I get tired and goes to sleep I reckon.....hehehez.  Have a great week ahead ;)  TTFN.........

Feijoa

Salam to all,

The Feijoa (Feijoa sellowiana, synonym Acca sellowiana), also known as Pineapple Guava or Guavasteen, is an evergreen shrub or small tree, 1-7 m in height. It comes from the highlands of southern Brazil, parts of Colombia, Uruguay, Paraguay and northern Argentina. They are also grown throughout New Zealand.

Description of fruit and plant
The fruit matures in autumn and is green, chicken-egg-sized, and ellipsoid-shaped. It has a sweet, aromatic flavour. The flesh is juicy. The fruit drops when ripe, but can be picked from the tree before to prevent bruising. Feijoa fruit have a distinctive smell. The ester methyl benzoate smells strongly of feijoas and the aroma of the fruit is caused mostly by this and other closely related esters.
Source : Wikipedia

This is how it's eaten.....cut into half and scoop it with a spoon.  You can see the tiny seeds and the 'jelly' like centre, this indicate the fruit is ripe.  The seed has the same texture like a guava.

When hb first introduced this fruit to me, I really didnt like it.  The smell was kinda strong when I first had it.  It was as if I was eating perfume.  Texture wise reminds me of the pink guava and they taste sweet and sourish at the same time.  I sort of can accept the fruit right now but am not really a big fan of it.  I know to choose the ones that has just ripen as these ones doesnt smell too 'perfumey' hehehez and the texture is just right for me too.  The overly ripen ones.....are good for baking.  Just like bananas....the riper they are the better they will be for baking.

The fruit trees.

These trees are located just beside my neighbour's house it belongs to them of course.  We were told to help ourselves to the fruits bcos feijoas have a short season and doesnt have long shelf life.  Once matured, they will fall off the trees or u can pick them from the trees if u think they are ripe.  Once picked they will last abt a week in a fruit basket.  It's in season right now and cost abt $8 a kg at the supermarkets and abt $6 a kg at the fruit shops.

The fruits.

Sometimes hb's work mates will share bags of feijoas with us.  They are yummy when baked into cupcakes, cakes, crumbles or muffins.  I usually used a banana cake/muffin recipe and substitute the bananas with feijoas.  They are yummy as fruit juice and chutneys too.  Most kiwi's home have these fruit trees in their garden.

Have a great weekend.....TTFN ;)

Chocolate Caramel Banana Upside Down Cake

Salam to all,

I actually planned to bake something else for hb today....but bcos I spied with my little eyes 3 bananas almost going rotten in the fruit basket, I had a changed of plan.  Thinking mode was on just now.  Should I bake banana muffins....NO!!  Banana cupcakes....Boring!!  Banana Bomb...no one else eats them except me!!  Banana pancake...Don't feel like pancakes!!  I suddenly remembered that someone posted a banana cake recipe that I've never attempted before.  So, I went on my blog and taaa daaa.....I decided to give June's upside down banana cake recipe a try.

When the cake came off the baking pan, I was actually quite disappointed with the look of my cake.  It was kinda ugly :(  I was so tempted to cut a slice to give it a try and wasn't even motivated to photo the cake haiiizzz.  I changed my mind after I finished with my cooking.  I only made quiche for dinner today and it was still a little early for dinner.  As there was some time to spare before dinner,  I took photos of this cake.....while waiting for the quiche to cool down.

June did indicate to serve the cake warm.  Warm aye....what should we serve a warm dessert with??  Ice cream and chocolate sauce of course ahakkksss.  Why not add more calories to the ones that are already stored in my body hehehez.  While taking the photo,  I had a bite of the cake.  Oh me oh my, looks can be so deceiving.  The cake was sooooooo soft!!  It was like eating sponge pudding, no chewing required....it melts in ur mouth.  The caramel, the banana and the soft chocolate cake was a match made in heaven yummmo!! The 3 of us shared a slice of this cake with ice cream cos I didnt want to spoil our dinner.  In the end hb had the most and Jannah cried.  I had to dish out a small serving for her hmmmzzz.

Source : June @ Amateurish Passionate Baker Wannabe
Adapted From : Cake Keeper Cake

 For The Topping :
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
3 ripe bananas, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices

For The Cake :
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch process cocoa powder, sifted (I used Varlhona)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar (I added 3/4 cups)
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup buttermilk

Make the topping :
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 9-inch round nonstick pan and dust with flour.
Heat the butter in a medium saucepan over a medium heat until foaming. Whisk in the brown sugar, turn the heat to low, and cook, whisking, for 2 minutes. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula. Arrange the banana slices in concentric circles on top of the sugar mixture. Set aside.

Make The Cake :
Combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Combine the butter and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides after each. Turn the mixer to high speed and beat until the mixture is light and increased in volume, about 2 minutes. Stir in the vanilla.
With the mixer on low, stir in 1/3 of the flour mixture. Stir in 1/2 of the buttermilk. Repeat with the remaining flour and milk, ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat the batter on high speed for 30 seconds.
Pour the batter over the bananas, gently spreading it into an even layer.
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let stand for 5 minutes. Holding the pan and a plate together with oven mitts, immediately invert the hot cake onto the plate. If necessary, replace any fruit stuck to the bottom of the pan. Let the cake cool for 20 minutes and serve warm, or serve at room temperature. Store uneaten cake in a cake keeper, or wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to 2 days.

We luv this cake and me and hb already planned to substitute the fruits with apples, peaches and even durian next time hehehez.  Yeah right durian.....dream on Anie ZZZZZ.  

Be safe u olls ;)  TTFN........

Mee Rebus

Salam to all,

Last Friday I had a chat with my bestie in Singapore via Skype.  A week before she was hospitalised due to pneumonia.  She has recovered but was still on hospitalisation leave until today.  She told me how the hospital food sucks hehehez.  She was served plain porridge with tasteless dishes for lunch and dinner.  For breakfast, she had quaker oats.  What do u expect bestie??  You were on diabetic diet weren't you ;)  Story goes that she ordered mee rebus on her last day, before she checked out and described to me how wonderful and yummilicious the mee rebus was.....hmmmzzz.

It was almost bed time when I finished skyping with her and I was tossing and turning in bed thinking of mee rebus hehehez.  I've never cooked mee rebus before but it certainly was one of my favourite street delicacies back home ;) yummz yummz.  Since I cant sleep....I googled for recipes and chose this one since my pantry was running low and it needed to be stuffed with groceries badly.  I havent had the chance to do groceries bcos hb needed the car for work :(

Woke up the next morning....not really early around 8am hehehez.  Was still thinking if I should start my mee rebus project.  The morning is getting cold nowadays making it a tiny little bit hard to get out of bed.  When Jannah jumps in the bed with me and I asked her if she wanted mee rebus....she quickly answered YES!!  I had no choice but to satisfy my cravings hehehehez.  It was really worth it......this recipe is certainly a keeper.

Source : CMG @ Tiffibiru
Adapted From : Chef Wan's Cook Book.


BAHAN-BAHANNYA :-)
1 kg mee kuning
150 g taugeh, buang ekor
2 keping tauhu, goreng terendam, hiris nipis
2 biji cili hijau, hiris
1 biji cili merah, hiris
1 pokok daun sup, hiris
1 pokok daun bawang, hiris
4- 5 biji telur rebus, kupas dan belah 2
6 biji limau kasturi, belah 2
Bawang goreng secukupnya
Kuah mee rebus*

INGREDIENTS :
Yellow Noodles
Mung Bean Sprout
Hard Tofu - Deep Fried & Sliced
Green Chillies
Red Chillies
Chinese Celery
Spring Onions
Hard Boiled Eggs
Calamansi Limes (I used limes can’t find calamansi here)
Fried Shallots
Mee Rebus Gravy*
(I didn’t specify quantity here…..it’s really up to u ;)

BAHAN KUAH MEE REBUS* :-)
1/4 cawan minyak masak
2 camca besar rempah kari daging
2 1/2 camca besar tauco, tumbuk lumat
500 g daging lembu (sedap yang ada lemak sikit)
5 - 6 cawan air
500 g keledek
1 cm lengkuas, dititik
1/3 cawan kacang tanah, goreng tanpa minyak dan kisar halus
1 biji tomato, belah 4
7 biji bawang merah kecil*
3 ulas bawang putih*
1 cm halia*(*tumbuk halus)
Garam dan gula secukup rasa

MEE REBUS GRAVY INGREDIENTS* :
¼ Cup Canola Oil
2 tblsp Meat Curry Powder
2 ½ tblsp Fermented Soya Beans* (I washed & drained them)
500gm Beef
5-6 Cups Water
500gm Sweet Potatoes (I only had a 350gm sweet potato and added potatoes to make up to 500gm)*
1cm Galangal - Bruised (I substituted with 1 lemon grass)
1/3 Cup dry roasted peanuts (I substituted with roasted cashews)*
1 Tomato - Cut into four (I did not add)
7 Shallots (I used 2 medium brown onions)*
3 Cloves Garlic*
1 cm Ginger*
Salt & Sugar To Taste
1 Ikan Bilis Cube - I added.

Easy peasy fried chicken.....no specific measurements though.  Cumin, coriander, chilli, turmeric (all in powder form),  finely chopped garlic, salt, pepper and ground rice flour.  Deep fried in hot canola oil. 

CARA MEMBUATNYA :-)
UNTUK KUAH MEE REBUS :- 
Daging dihiris nipis dan rebus hingga lembut (kalau guna daging batang pinang tak perlu rebus dulu). Keledek direbus hingga lembut dan kisar halus. Panaskan minyak, tumis bahan tumbuk halus hingga harum, tambah taucho dan rempah kari, kacau rata. Tambah sedikit air jika perlu. Masukkan daging (kalau daging rebus, masukkan sekali air rebusannya), air, keledek dan lengkuas. Masak perlahan selama 20 minit. Tambah kacang tanah kisar dan tomato, perasakan dengan garam dan gula. Masak hingga kuah pekat. (selalunya kuah mee rebus perlu manis sedikit).
PENYEDIAAN MEE REBUS :-
Celur mee dan taugeh mengikut kuantiti yang diperlukan. Letak dalam bekas sesuai. Kacau kuah dan tuang atas mee. Letak telur rebus dan taburkan cili hijau/merah, tauhu, hirisan daun sup/daun bawang, bawang goreng dan diakhiri dengan perahan jus limau kasturi. Hidangkan segera.

Method : (I did my way instead)
Slice beef thinly and boil until tender.  Do not discard the beef stock.
Boil sweet potatoes/potatoes until tender.
Blend all the (*) ingredients until fine.
Heat oil in a pot.
Fry all the blended ingredients, curry powder until fragrant.
Add beef, beef stock, water, lemon grass and ikan bilis cube.
Simmer on low heat for abt 20 mins to thicken the gravy.
Season with salt & sugar.

To Assemble Mee Rebus :
Blanch yellow noodles & mung bean sprouts in hot water for 30 secs.
Place noodles and bean sprouts in a bowl.
Pour the gravy on top of the noodles and bean sprouts.  Garnish with chillies, eggs, chinese celery, spring onions and shallots.  A squeezed of lime and its ready to be served immediately ;)

I completed my mee rebus with bagedil & fried chicken!!  PBG!!  The chillies were freshly harvested from the garden and they were so crunchy.  Burrrpppsss.....excuse me, alhamdullilah hehehehez.  Have a great week u all.......TTFN ;)  

Apam Polka Dot

Salam all,

Yesterday I was at the supermarket doing my usual fortnightly groceries shopping ~ what else can anyone be doing at a supermarket aye?? hehehez.....I chanced upon a pot steamer for only $4 and so I grabbed it.  Its not the whole steamer thingy but its the one like a saucepan with holes in it.  Hmmmzzz how do I explain it hehehez.  Just imagine it lah huh.  Oh well $4 for a 16cm steamer and it fits nicely in my 20cm saucepan I was stoked ;)  Its nothing big but I was able to put a few of the red little cups to steam these little beauties in the steamer.  Yeay.....I can make more kuihs now.

Saw these apams at Yat's yesterday and I thought I should give them a try.  These apams were so popular at one stage that u can see them popping up at almost all the food blog except here of course hehehez.  First it was only designed with polka dots.  Then some creative people start to have a makeover for the apam....from ladybugs to bumble bees to mushrooms to strawberries.  Now u can see them decorated like angry birds and even facebook, twitter, apple and many more logos.  Really envy those people with those kinda skills.

When I whipped up the batter, I was a little skeptical at the amount of the batter produced.  I thought that it was kinda a lot and will take me ages to finish making these apams.  I was glad that it actually didnt take me very long to make them.  After making the first few, I started to enjoy making them ahakkkss. The only downside of making them colorful is doing the dishes....haiizzzz.   Oh well, I did enjoy making them and Jannah enjoyed eating them of course.  She kept on saying she wanted the pink ones and the ladybugs only........hhhmmmzzzz.

Source : Yat @ Easybakes
Ingredients
3 cold eggs
275 gm all purpose flour
200gm castor sugar
150ml fresh milk
3 tspn baking powder
1 tspn ovallete
Filling of your choice ~ I used nutella
Colour of your choice

Method
Mix all ingredients (except food colouring) & filling in an electric mixer & mix well for 6-8 minutes.
Divide batter into portions with additions of food colourings of your choice.
Put them in separate piping bag.
Arrange papercups in cup holders & heat up steamer.
Pipe in batter into paper cups fill in with filling of your choice & cover it with batter.
You can either dot the top of the batter or marble them up ~ your choice
Steam in preheated steamer on low heat for about 10-15 mins until done.

Definitely heaps for us to share ;) Nobody has to lick the papers LOL!!  TTFN........

Balloons Over Waikato - ASB Night Glow

Salam to all,

This hot air ballon event is held yearly in the Waikato state of New Zealand.  This year, it was held on the 31st of March *eheemmss* yeah this was overdue.  Just one day before daylight savings ends.  I've been here for 7 yrs now and this was the first time that I went to this event.....hehehez.  I just wasnt motivated to go before but this time I have promised Jannah to take her there.  For the night glow show, the balloons didnt lift off the ground.  Instead, it was an orchestrated Balloon Glow show which ended with a dramatic Fireworks Finale display. The event started at 3.30pm but me and Jannah only reached there at abt 6.30pm ish as the night glow only started at 7.30pm.  During the day part, there were live music shows as well as a carnival there.

I almost missed this event this year bcos I thought the night glow was gonna be held on Sunday.  Lucky that I checked my fb and saw some friends updatating their status saying that they will be going to the event on Saturday.....phew!!!  I only went there with Jannah as hb wasnt feeling well.  I had to leave our car at the special bus pick up as I didnt want to scramble for parking space near the event area.

Jannah really had a great time.....she danced, screamed, hopped, jumped and lurved the fireworks the most.  I've yet to go for the morning/afternoon event where you can go up close to the ballons while they were being inflated and lifted off the ground.  Enjoy these photos.....I am still not good with night photography thus the shaky photos.  I tried to upload some videos......but my attempt failed :( booohoooo!!!

Oooohhhh to add on.....I lost my lens cover cap :(  Lucky it was just a lens cap....have yet to replace it.  Wonders why am I taking my own sweet time lalalalalala........

The carnival.

The coupon prices & the very long queue for the rides @_@

More rides.

Food stalls....

No briyani kambing for us to buy :(  so, we brought our own muchies....hehehez.

Live music by the 'Big Girls'

Dancing nannas and dancing nannas got tired of dancing and so, they sat down ;)

Dancing Jannah......

Still at lying down position.

And so they rose.....

Orchestral glow.....

Shaky picture of Jannah among the crowds....she had to find a spot so she can see the balloons.  I cant keep on carrying her.  Tired hands.......

Boom Boom Pow.....TTFN ;)

Hot (Without) Cross Buns (Tangzhong Method)

Salam to all my dear friends ;)

I must have misplaced my blogging aura or must have wiped it cleaned when I was busy cleaning the house the other time.  It really made me disappear for awhile from my space here *grins*.  Nonetheless, I am thankful that I still have visitors coming to my blog despite me being David Copperfield and sometimes McGyver too ahakkksss :ppp.  A big thank u to al that still do visit my humble blog despite it is only updated when I have the mood *shy*  I've been wanting to share photos of me and Jannah when we went to the Hot Air Balloons Night Glow show last 2 Saturdays....yup yup last 2 Saturdays and I still havent got any motivation to do it.  I hope to do it soon before the photos become too stale hehehehez.

Let's talk abt the hot cross buns.  I made these buns not in celebration of Good Friday nor Easter.  Made it just bcos hb wanted to eat them.  He asked me to get some from the supermarket the other day and I said that I will make them for him instead.  Can u believe it, I said that I will make them instead...ahaakkkss.  Yes, it kinda feel like ages since I bake anything for us.  Seems, I am not a fan of anything with cinnamon, I've never eaten a hot cross bun before.  I asked hb, traditionally the crosses are made of icing or just tasteless flour?  He said its tasteless flour......just how the nannas and mommas from DownUnder traditionally made them.  Hb said not to do the crosses but to add crescent moon instead.  I said, the crescent might just spread when I bake the buns and will make the buns ugly hehehehez (reason cos I didnt want to make them :ppp).  Hb said nevermind the crosses or crescents then bcos they are not the ones determining the taste of the buns.  Phewwww that made my job easier.  One less step for the buns...yeayyy!!

This is also the first time that I ever used Tangzhong or Water Roux for my buns.  I had to dump the first tangzhong mixture bcos I cooked it until it turned solid.  It was hard for me to determine the cooking time as I couldnt get any 'lines' on the side of my pot since I was using an anodised pot.  When I was cooking the tangzhong, nothing seems to be sticking to the side of the pot. I googled again on how to make tangzhong and found out that another method was to cook the mixture on medium fire for 2-3 mins until it reaches 65 deg C.  That was so much easier to follow hehehehez.  There's still a couple of pieces buns leftover today, hb had one and said that they are still as soft as how he tasted them yesterday.

Source : Christine @ Christine's Recipe


Ingredients: 
350 gm bread flour
35 gm sugar
5 gm salt
56 gm whisked egg, plus extra for egg wash
7 gm milk powder, optional
125 ml milk
120 gm Tangzhong
5 to 6 gm dried instant yeast
30 gm butter, softened at room temperature
100 gm raisins
1/2 tsp mixed spice, or to taste (I added 1 tsp cinnamon powder instead)


Flour paste: 
4 Tbsp plain flour
2 to 2 1/2 Tbsp water

Method: 
Add all ingredients (except butter) into a breadmaker, first the wet ingredients (milk, egg, tangzhong), then followed by the dry ingredients (salt, sugar, milk powder, mixed spice, bread flour, yeast). (Remark: I used to make a small well in the bread flour, then add the yeast into it.)
Select the “dough” mode (please refer to the manual of your breadmaker and select the kneading dough program). When all ingredients come together, add in the butter. Knead until the dough becomes elastic. (Note: my breadmaker has an alert function to remind me of adding fruits or nuts. If your breadmaker doesn’t have any function like this, just put in the raisins 5 to 8 minutes before ending the kneading process.) Then let the dough complete the 1st round of proofing in the machine, about 40 minutes, until doubled in size.
Line a baking tray with baking paper.
Transfer the dough onto a clean floured surface. Deflate and divide into 12 equal portions. Knead each into a ball shape and place on the baking paper, at least 1cm apart. Cover with a cling wrap, let rest in a warm place for about 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 190C/375F.
To prepare flour paste: Combine 4 tablespoons of plain flour with 2 tablespoons of water. Stir to a smooth paste, then gradually add a little bit of water at a time if it’s too thick. Spoon into a piping bag and cut away the tip, or fitted with a fine nozzle.
Brush whisked egg on the surface of buns. Pipe flour paste over tops to form crosses. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until golden.

Ingredients of tangzhong (湯種 The amount is enough to make two loafs):
50gm/ 1/3 cup bread flour
250ml/ 1cup water (could be replaced by milk, or 50/50 water and milk)

Method of making tangzhong:
Mix flour in water well without any lumps. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring consistently with a wooden spoon, whisk or spatula to prevent burning and sticking while you cook along the way.
The mixture becomes thicker and thicker. Once you notice some “lines” appear in the mixture for every stir you make with the spoon. It’s done. You get the tangzhong. (Some people might like to use a thermometer to check the temperature. After a few trials, I found this simple method works every time.) Remove from heat.
(I used a thermometer and cooked it for 2-3mins until the temperature reaches 65 deg C.)
Transfer into a clean bowl. Cover with a cling wrap sticking onto the surface of tangzhong to prevent from drying up. Let cool. Chill in fridge for several hours. (I chill it overnight.) Then the tangzhong is ready to be used. (Note: When you are ready to use the tangzhong, just measure out the amount you need and let it rest in room temperature for a while before adding into other ingredients. The tangzhong can be stored up to a few days as long as it doesn't turn grey. If so, you need to discard and cook some more.)

It's public holiday today, the sun is shining brightly.....I wish I was at the beach enjoying the beautiful day ;)  We are just too lazy to drive to the beach, as it will take abt 2 hrs to get there and we didnt plan it ahead anyway.  Just gonna relax at home for now.....TTFN!!!