Bangkok trip part 2 and Heart shaped Nutella rolls

Continuing on my Bangkok trip, we went to Chinatown and Terminal 21 on the 2nd day. Usually I don't drop by Chinatown as the traffic jam is quite bad and there is no direct BTS. 6 years ago, a friend working in Bangkok showed me another way to get to Chinatown. Since my mum is with me for this trip, I thought I would attempt to use this route to Chinatown. When we arrived at the Central pier (Saphan Taksin BTS station), I wasn't too sure which boat to take and ended up following all the tourist by taking the 40 bhat per trip tourist ferry and alighted at Pier 5. We exited the pier and walked along the main road and saw the accessories wholesale market which I visited 6 years back. There were so many varieties of necklace, earrings and rings that I had a hard time choosing them.
After making my purchases, we walked along the shops and came across other wholesale shops selling ribbons, party decorations, toys, bags, kitchenware, etc. I bought very pretty foldable luggage bags, recycle grocery bags, aprons, bath towel and bath sponge.

As it was nearing lunchtime, we exited the wholesale market and walked towards the main road, Yarowat. Mum was very happy to see dried food stalls and fruit stalls. She bought 1 kg of cashew nuts and 2 guavas. I had to stop her from buying more as I was worried about the load. There were numerous roadside food stalls and we even saw Chwee Kueh, Thai style.

We found a nice restaurant across the road and had a good lunch of roast duck, claypot glass noodles with prawns and spinach. The roast duck in Bangkok is moist and tender and I love the chilli sauce they have to go with the duck. I was very tempted to order another serving but restrained myself.
On our way back to the pier, we came across a traditional Teochew pastry shop. There were many local Chinese ladies there buying the pastries. It was very nostalgic to see many traditional pastries.

That evening, I brought Mum to Terminal 21 as she hasn't been there before. She was impressed with the travel theme of the mall. We tried a new restaurant, Reflections and I finally had my steamed fish with lime and chilli and my curry crab!

Look out for my next post on my last day in Bangkok.

Today I decided to bake Nutella bread as I had a bottle of Nutella expiring this weekend. I tried the recipe that was posted on Everyone eats well in Flanders but decided to shape the bread similar to Cinnamon rolls. This is the 2nd time I tried the recipe. I spread too much Nutella the first time round in bid to finish the Nutella and the buns were pretty greasy. Since Valentine's day is round the corner, I used my heart-shaped Chiffon pan today for the rolls.

Heart-shaped Nutella rolls (recipe adapted from here)

450g bread flour
70g sugar
2 eggs yolks
2 tsp instant yeast
250ml warm milk
30g unsalted butter
a pinch of salt
6 tbsp Nutella

1) Put all the ingredients (except Nutella) into a mixing bowl. Using a dough hook, mix all the ingredients till it forms a dough.

2) Continue beating for about 10 minutes till the dough becomes elastic and non-sticky.

3) Remove the dough, grease the mixing bowl and return the dough to the bowl. Cover with a damp cloth and allow the dough to prove in a warm place till double in size. (I switched on the oven to 60 deg C and left the mixing bowl on the door of the oven to shorten the time).
4) When the dough has risen to twice the size, punch out the air and let it proof it again in a warm place. (It took 45 mins to double in size)
5) Divide the dough into 3 portion so that it's easier to handle.
6) Flour the work area and roll out 1 portion of the dough into a rectangle.

7) Spread 2 tbsp of Nutella on the dough and roll the dough up like a swiss roll. Using a pastry cutter, cut the roll into 2 inch size and place them on a greased heart-shape pan (or any other pan of your choice). Remember to leave space between the cut rolls as they will expand.

8) Pre-heat the oven at 180 deg C. Leave the rolls to proof for another 20 mins in a warm place. Brush on some egg whites to glaze the buns.

9) Bake them at 180 deg C for 20 mins till golden brown.

10) Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan.

Note: I used 2 portions of dough for my 21 cm heart-shaped pan and put the 3rd portion into a 16cm chiffon pan.

I love the texture of the bread. Its soft and fluffy and goes very well with coffee or tea. Do bake them for your love ones this Valentine's Day.

I am submitting this post to "My Treasured Recipes #5 - Chinese New Year Goodies (Jan/Feb)" hosted my Miss B of Everyone Eats Well in Flanders and co-hosted by Charmaine of Mimi Bakery House

Bangkok trip and Artisan bread

Sawadee-ka! I am writing this post from Bangkok while drinking my morning coffee. Arrived here yesterday with my mum for a short trip. Our first stop after checking in was Aree Baker Centre (Ari BTS station, across the road from Villa Supermarket) which was on our way to the BTS station. Bought some cute cupcake cases and I heart U candles. All for Bht205! Contemplating whether to buy the pretty polka dot cake boxes back.

 Next stop is my favourite dessert place, After you (above Villa Supermarket, opp Ari BTS). Missed my Cheddar Cheese toast with vanilla ice-cream. Mum was impressed with the way coffee was served and she loved the toast. I was worried that she will complain about the cheese but she loved it.

After a nice relaxing massage at Napaspa (level 5, Siam Discovery Centre), we had dinner at another of my favourite restaurant, SomTam. There’s now an outlet at Siam Centre! Thanks to Mum for insisting to check out Food Republic, I saw the new place next to the exit. No more queuing and jostling with the crowd at Siam Square! We ordered Crispy Fried Fish, Fried Chicken and Green Mango Salad. Mum loved the fish so much that she insisted we ordered another! Finished the day with shopping at Boots Pharmacy and Siam Paragon Foodhall. We are off to Chinatown and Platinum today. Keep watch for next post.

 Alas, the recipe I am sharing today is not Thai food. You may want to check out my earlier post on Roast Chicken with Tom Yum herbs if my post on BKK has got you craving for Thai food. I am going to share with you a recipe for Artisan bread and the tip for making the bread soft and fluffy. I have been baking breads for 2-3 years but found that the western bread tend turn dry and hard the next day. I asked my friend, a chef on the reason and he asked me how many times I punch down the dough before shaping them. I replied once and he said I needed to do it about 2-3 times and he gave me the recipe for his yummy bread. I finally got a chance to bake the bread 2 Sundays ago on a rainy afternoon. I kept one loaf in an air-tight box for 3-4 days and I froze the rest.  I brought one frozen loaf to a barbeque last Sunday and toasted it lightly in the oven. Everyone loved it.

Artisan Bread (makes one big loaf and 2 smaller ones)

500g bread flour

500g plain flour

500ml warm water

1 tbsp instant yeast

1 tbsp sugar

1 1)      Dissolve the sugar and the yeast in the warm water. Leave it to bubble in a warm place for 5-10 mins. (if the yeast doesn’t bubble, please discard and use a new pack)

2 2)      Put the bread flour and plain flour into a mixing bowl and add in the yeast solution bit by bit till it forms a dough. You may use a dough hook or your hands. Knead the dough for about 10 mins till elastic.

3 3)      Cover the mixing bowl with a clean damp cloth and leave the dough to rise till double in size. It took me about half hour. (I switched on the oven to the lowest temp and left the mixing bowl on the open door)

4 4)      Punch down the dough to remove the air and let it rise again. Repeat the process.

5 5)      After the 3^rd rise, flour the tabletop and your hands before shaping the dough into your desired shape. I shaped them into round loaves and made some cuts with a serrated knife.

6 6)      Leave the bread to rise for 15 mins before baking at 180 deg C for about 25-30 minutes.

7 7)      The bread will sound hallow when you knock it if it’s baked.

The bread goes very well with the Pumpkin soup which I have shared previously.

Chinese New Year dessert: Glutinous rice balls in Osmanthus sweet fermented wine (桂花酒酿圆子）

I am very excited to be holding my first Chinese New Year cookie baking class this coming Sunday 18 January. It's a fully hands-on class for the all-time favourite Pineapple tarts and Osmanthus cookies. Do come and join us if you enjoy baking and meeting new friends with similar interest.

Last week, I checked out the new mall, Big Box at Jurong East with my mum. Had thought the new mall would be crowded and wanted to wait a while but was informed by a friend who went that the place is surprisingly not crowded. There's a link to Big Box via Jem (next to Marks & Spencer). The place is an interesting concept, many different shops/brands under the umbrella of Big Box so it feels like just one big department store. The place is divided into various sections such electrical/home furniture/decoration/clothes. There's also a big supermarket on the first floor that reminds me of those in Malaysia and Thailand. There is a cafe on level 2 that tried to imitate Ikea's cafe. I tried the waffles after lunch as it was priced at $2 but the picture was misleading. The picture showed the waffles with ice-cream and indicated the price at $2 but in the end I had to pay another $1.50 for the scoop of ice-cream and I gave the feedback to the waitress.

I like shopping in the supermarket as there are brands and items not commonly found in the neighbourhood supermarkets. I came across the sweet fermented wine (甜酒酿) and immediately got a bottle to make my favourite Shanghainese dessert (桂花酒酿圆子). It is not easy to get the sweet fermented wine here in Singapore, the only other place that sells it is Yue Hwa department store in Chinatown. I fell in love with this dessert about 10 years back when Crystal Jade Shanghai introduced it in their restaurants. I never thought of making my own till I was working in Shanghai 4 years back as the sweet fermented wine and Osmanthus syrup are readily available in most supermarkets there. It was only in the recent 2 years that I see both items in Singapore.

Most of us in Singapore usually eat the glutinous rice balls or tangyuan (汤圆）during the Winter Solstice in December. Did you know that Tangyuan is also know as YuanXiao in some parts of China and is also commonly consumed during the 15th day of the Chinese New Year? 

Glutinous rice balls in Osmanthus sweet fermented wine (serves 2)

50g glutinous rice flour

3.5 tbsp water

1 cup water

150ml sweet fermented wine

a small piece of rock sugar or honey

1 tsp osmanthus flowers/osmanthus syrup

1) Mix the glutinous rice flour with 3 tbsp of water and knead to form a dough. Slowly add in the last 1/2 tbsp if needed to have a non-sticky dough

2) Roll into small balls and set aside on a plate. Boil some water and put in the balls to cook. Once the balls starts to float, it's cooked.

3) Dish out the cooked rice balls and soak them in cold water to prevent them from sticking to each other.

4) Bring 1 cup water, Osmanthus, sweet fermented wine and rock sugar to a boil. Do not use a metal pot for this as it contains alcohol. Once the rock sugar dissolves, you can switch off the fire.
5)Ladle into a bowl and put in the cooked rice balls to serve.

The eating of glutinous rice balls symbolises family reunion. May you have a good family reunion this Chinese New Year.

I am submitting this post to "My Treasured Recipes #5 - Chinese New Year Goodies (Jan/Feb)" hosted my Miss B of Everyone Eats Well in Flanders and co-hosted by Charmaine of Mimi Bakery House

Chinese New Year bakes: Sugee/Suji Cookies

Following my last post, here are the photos of the Chocolate M&M cake and chocolate M&M cupcakes that were baked for little Cheryl who loves pink and purple colours and Chocolate!

I know, I know it's a little early to start Chinese New Year baking! Seems like we have barely recovered from all the Christmas baking and cooking and now we are preparing for Chinese New Year (CNY). CNY starts on Thursday 19 February this year (extended weekend yay!) and is the year of the Sheep.

I kickstart my spring cleaning yesterday with a thorough washing of my built-in dish rack and just started the washing machine to launder one set of curtains. Hopefully the weather holds so that the curtains can hang dry quickly.

My first CNY bake is the super easy Suji/Sugee cookies. It's one of my favourites and I found out over last weekend that this is a cookie that is a favourite festive cookie among the 3 big ethnic groups in Singapore; the Chinese, the Malays and the Indians. My sis and I got to talking on Monday why we love Suji/Sugee cookies and when we were introduced to it as our Mum doesn't bake her own cookies. We concluded that we were introduced to this yummy melt-in-mouth cookie by my mum's ex-colleague, Aunty Hasnah who bakes really delicious cookies. This is the 2nd year that I'm baking these cookies. I remember having a sudden craving last CNY eve and my dear friend, D had to go all the way to Mustafa in Little India to get me a can of QBB ghee as most shops have already closed for the holidays. I baked these cookies at 9pm on CNY eve last year after reunion dinner with the family! The batch of cookies which I have baked last week is all gone over last weekend. Brought a bottle to the church gathering and my friend's little daughter was popping them so fast that we had to hide the bottle!

Suji Cookies (adapted from QBB website)
250g Ghee
500g Plain flour
150g Icing sugar
1 tsp Vanilla essence
2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt

1)Pre-heat the oven to 170 deg C
2) Melt the Ghee and leave it to cool
3) Add vanilla essence to the cooled ghee

4) Sieve plain flour, icing sugar, baking soda and salt together into a big bowl.

5) Pour the ghee into the sieved flour mixture and knead into a firm dough

6) Shaped into bite-sized balls and place them on a lined cookie tray. The dough is pretty crumbly so shape with gentle pressure.
7) Baked them for about 18-22 minutes. The cookies will be white and crumbly in texture.
8) Cool before packing into containers.

I am submitting this post to "My Treasured Recipes #5 - Chinese New Year Goodies (Jan/Feb)" hosted my Miss B of Everyone Eats Well in Flanders and co-hosted by Charmaine of Mimi Bakery House

Update 8 January: Baked another batch of the cookies for my friends today and took more pictures of the process.

A tribute to Paddington Bear! Marmalade cupcakes

My first order for 2015 is chocolate cupcakes and chocolate cake for a little girl's fifth birthday. As she had very specific ideas on how the cupcakes should look like, her mum and I had to brainstorm in order to have her name and Happy Birthday indicated on the cupcakes. I suggested having letters and numbers candles but they were pretty expensive. The ones for Happy Birthday were reasonably priced but for her name and number, it will cost about SGD30. After looking around for different ideas, I decided to print my own cupcake toppers in the birthday girl's favourite colour, pink. Pretty?

When that was done, I searched for Paddington Bear cupcake toppersonline as I just watched the heart-warming movie on very early on New Year's Day. I was introduced to Paddington Bear as a child when my uncle bought me a very thick storybook on the adventures of Paddington Bear. Along with Pooh Bear, Paddington Bear has become a personal favourite. Till this day, I still have a Paddington Bear plush at home.  As I didn't find any cupcake toppers online, I decided to make my own using Microsoft Publisher. It was not difficult though I had to adjust the images a few times in order to get the correct size. Here they are!

After printing the toppers, inspiration struck! Why not make Marmalade cupcakes to go with the cupcake toppers since that is Paddington's favourite? Coincidentally I have a church gathering the next evening and so I ended up baking at almost 10pm! The cupcakes smell so good and while waiting for them to cool before decorating, I decided to write this post. Sorry I didn't take much photos while making the cupcakes. The photos will be taken in the morning when the light is better.

Marmalade Cupcakes (makes about 15 cupcakes)

175g soften unsalted butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 cup self-raising flour
3 tbsp of marmalade
1 tsp salt

1. Pre-heat oven at 180 deg C
2.Beat soften butter and caster sugar till creamy and pale.
3. Add in the marmalade and mix well
4. Beat in the eggs one at a time
5. Add the vanilla essence and mix well
6. Add in the salt and self-raising flour and mix well.
7. Scoop into cupcake liners till about 80% full.
8. Bake for 20 minutes till skewers come out clean.
9. Leave till cool before frosting

Cream Cheese frosting 
250g soften cream cheese
125g soften butter
1/2 cup icing sugar
3 tbsp marmalade
1 tsp vanilla essence

1. Beat the cream cheese and butter till smooth.
2. Add the icing sugar, marmalade and vanilla essence and mix till smooth.
3. Frost the cupcakes as desired.

I had difficulty piping the cupcakes due to the chunky zest in the marmalade. I would probably used orange juice to replace the marmalade in the frosting next time.

Here they are all frosted and chilled after one night in the fridge.

With the cupcake toppers and the star!

All packed in the box and ready for the party later!