Return to the Holidays

Its been a while. I've been busy and not making anything too special but with the return to the holidays, comes also the the need to discover new and impressive recipes to try out on the guinea pigs, ahem, family and friends... For this Thanksgiving, I continued my on-going search for the perfect fat free alternative to the apple pie. My dad is a BIG fan of the apple pie, however his heart condition makes it near impossible for him to snack freely on the butter laden crusts. Every year I turn my thoughts to trying to return that joy to him. This year I think I came pretty close. I designed a meringue "nest" that was incredibly melt in your mouth light then created a ginger apple filling to go with it. When added at the last minute, you got all the great textures and tastes (almost) of apple pie. It was a crisp light crust accompanied by warm flavorful apple. HOWEVER, this is not a dessert that sits well. The shells absorb the moisture of the apple filling converting from crisp lightness to a chewier THING within minutes. Anybody with a suggestion on how to overcome this, let me know.

Apple Meringue Nests

For the nests:
2 egg whites
1/4 cup caster sugar (I  use regular sugar and spin it around the grinder first for finer granules)
pinch cream of tartar

For the filling:
4 apples peeled and cut into thin chunks
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp cardmom
1 tsp crystallized ginger finely minced
1/4 cup maple sugar (more depending on how sweet you like it)

fat free whip cream (optional, and I used mimic cream)

Bring the egg whites to room temperature. Add the cream of tartar and whip at high speed until soft peaks form. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time and continue to whip until you get stiff peaks. Put into a piping bag with a big round tip (sorry I have no idea what size my tips are) and squeeze out in a long coil six 3 inch diameter discs. Go back over the edge of each disc with additional rounds of meringue until you get about an inch high wall to each nest. Feel free to make them bigger or smaller as you'd like but you want a nice depth to fill later. Bake at 200F for about 2 hours or until the nests are dry. Do not let them get any color at all. Mine look golden but really that's a because I'm a sucky photographer. They were snowy white in reality. Turn off the oven and leave in there over night to dry fully. You can make these ahead of time and store them in an airtight box in the fridge for several days. Nice huh?

For the filling, mix the apple, ginger, and spices into a heavy bottomed pot. Cook until the apples just start to soften and give off some liquid. Add the maple sugar and continue to cook until the apples have fully softened and the juices caramelize. Let cool until still warm but no longer steaming hot. Fill the nests with the apple mixture then top with whip cream as desired. Eat immediately! If you aren't having dessert right away the apple rewarms nicely later on. Do not fill until you are ready to eat.

Just a Bit of Pretty

There's no real recipe to this but its so pretty I had to post it. I made it as a veggie side dish to our holiday feast. All the sparking colors made my family exclaim over its beauty and my dad at first mistook it for a fruit platter because, of course, veggies would not be so bright. There was about 1/3 of the platter left over at the end (I always make too much) when we were splitting up the Thanksgiving meal and my dad quickly muttered "you won't want to take this back" then scraped it all into a bowl and popped it into his fridge. Its very simple to make, you peel and cut a variety of veggies into about the same size, toss to coat in grapeseed oil with salt & pepper, then roast in a single layer spread out over a cookie sheet at 375F until a little shriveled and cooked through.

Veggie Tart

When my CSA first started the ground had barely defrosted and the pickings were slim but I was ok with that. I live alone. How many veggies does one girl need? Well summer is fading fast and I've been inundated with zucchini, tomatoes, and interestingly enough, potatoes! Last night I racked my brains on how to use them up or at least preserve them. Generally preserving food to me means cooking them up somehow and freezing them in tiny portions for the future. I sliced up some potatoes and made a low fat gratin by basically layering them with onion and spices then pouring a can of evaporated skim milk over it all before baking. Chopped up zukes went into a dutch oven with tomatoes and some indian spices to be cooked down into a kind of all purpose sauce which works great over pasta, meats, fish, etc. All this was great but I felt it was a pity not to show case the produce themselves somehow. Flipping though various possible recipes I came up with the idea of a veggie tart with a potato crust. It helped use up my surplus and was so simple as to allow the veggies themselves to shine. And while it tastes great, next time I would hide the basil layer as they turned a rather unattractive brown post cooking.

Veggie Tart

(Please note these amounts are approximate as a lot depends on the size of your veggies. Just keep slicing until you have enough to cover. A mandoline or food processor greatly helps with all the slicing here.)

5 small potatoes sliced paper thin
1 onion thinly sliced
4 zucchini sliced into 1/4 inch rounds (my zukes are ~6 inches long each)
4 tomatoes sliced 1/4 inch thick and gently squeezed to get rid of some seeds/liquid
1/2 cup basil chiffonade
1 cup shredded cheese of your choice (make sure its one that melts well)

Set oven to 400F. Spray a half sheet pan with canola oil. Cover the pan in a double layer of potato slices overlapping slightly so they form a giant crust. Salt lightly between layers. Bake for 20 minutes. Spray top of crust with more canola oil. Bake for another 20 minutes until golden. Lower temp to 375F. Layer as follows: cheese, onion, basil, zucchini, tomato. Salt and pepper top generously. Bake for 40 minutes or until you see the tomato starting to shrink/dry a bit. Remove and let cool 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Healthy treats?

Quite frankly if there's anything that's going to kill me in this life time it will be sugar. I can easily give up fats, salts, etc but my carbs/sugars are my friends. I'm fairly sure it accounts for the entire donut currently around my middle so when I make myself treats these days, I try to go for an at least slightly healthy spin. This loaf certainly covers all the bases. Its chock full of veggies. I've replaced most of the fats in the original recipe with apple sauce. I've also subbed out almond flour for some of the regular. Not only does this make for a lighter airier loaf but a healthier one as well. Best of all, its still extremely delicious and my parents accused me of making such a rich loaf when my dad has heart disease! They were a little suspicious of lies when I informed them of how nutritious it really is.

Zucchini Carrot Cake

3 eggs (I used cholesterol free egg replacer)
1 cups sugar
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 tblsp oil
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cup shredded carrot
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups AP flour
1 cup almond flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cardamom
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder

Nuke zucchini 3 minutes on high. Place into clean towel use towel to squeeze out as much moisture as possible. Set aside to cool. Beat eggs and sugar into pale and creamy. Add  apple sauce, oil, zucchini, carrot, and vanilla. Mix well. In another bowl mix flours, salt, spices, baking soda, and baking powder. Add to wet mixture and mix well. Pour into to prepared loaf pan. Bake at 350F for 45-60 minutes.

Breakfast Decadence

I'm generally not much of one for breakfast or even brunch. A giant cup of coffee will do me most mornings with maybe a cup of yogurt and fruit on the exceptionally hungry mornings. On the weekends, staying in and indulging would generally mean a smoothie but today I was recovering from my jet lag. For me, jet lag rarely means tiredness. There's a bit of that but mostly I lose my bearings. Can't tell when to eat or when to sleep. I like having the chance to slowly ease back into my regular schedule by allowing my body a day or two to do as it likes which can involve 4AM bedtimes and noon breakfasts. There was a lobster sale so I bought a few and set aside the meat for a nosh when hungry. I've also been dying to make something with my new little mini Staub cocottes. I decided on a baked eggs and it was amazing. Decadent, filling, and just what I needed. You can easily multiply the recipe as needed. What I have below makes one generous serving (I was hungry).

Please excuse my picture as it was taken with my crummy camera phone. My regular camera has been "borrowed" by family members.

Lobster Eggs en Cocotte

1 stalk of scallion (green part only) finely minced
1/4 cup lobster rough diced
2 eggs
2 tblsp cream
1 tblsp garlic butter (I make mine by mixing equal amount of mashed roasted garlic and butter)

Butter the cocotte with the garlic butter. Add in the lobster and scallion. Toss the two together. Top with the 2 eggs then the cream. Bake at 350F for 10 - 13 minutes until eggs are just set. EAT!

No Knead Foccacia and Garlic "Butter"

Foccacia is one of my favorite breads. You top it with all sorts of flavorful things and its soft open crumb is perfect for soaking up sauces, spreads, and oils. This is my first attempt as making it and it turned out a lot thinner than I'd like. I suspect my half sheet pan size jelly roll pan is much bigger than the one the recipe was meant to be used it. Commonly the bread is a good inch or two tall. However, the crust was wonderfully thin and crisp while what middle there was, was soft and wonderful. As a bonus I thought I'd offer my tips on easy peasy garlic "butter." There's no real butter. Its just garlic roasted so soft it mashes easily into the oil its roasted in. Makes for an addictive topping and dragon breath if you're a true garlic lover like me.

No Knead Foccacia (recipe from Bread Wise)

2 1/2 cups cool water
3 1/2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon table salt
3 tablespoons olive oil + enough for pan
spices (use what you like)

Stir together the flour, yeast, sugar, and table salt. Add the water and stir together. The dough will be very gooey. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 2 hours. Spritz jelly roll pan with oil. Scrape/pour dough into pan. Spread out as evenly as possible over the bottom of the pan. For me, there was barely enough for a super paper thin layer but no worries, it will rise! Drizzle olive oil on top of dough. Sprinkle top with your choice of spices. I used some parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and rosemary. Cover and let rise for another hour. 30 minutes before its done, preheat over to 400F. Bake for 30-45 minutes until golden on top. Let cool 10 minutes, cut into squares and top with garlic butter (recipe found below).

Garlic "Butter"

whole heads of garlic
olive oil
salt

Measure out a piece of aluminum foil 2.5 times as large as the bottom of your crock pot. Cut the tops off the heads of garlic so that the cloves are exposed. Place on foil and drizzle with enough oil so that it pools slightly at the bottom. Salt generously. Fold up foil into a sealed packet. Place in crock pot on low for 4-6 hours until the cloves are super soft. They mush up at the slightest poke. Let cool. pour off oil into a container. Squeeze cloves out into the same container. Using a fork mush it into the oil into its all incorporated into a smooth spread. Enjoy!

Seared Scallops

One of my favorite things to eat is scallop. Good ones cooked just right have a darkly seared crust and barely done center. They are sweet, tender, and not at all fishy. This isn't so much a recipe as a head up. You ever wonder why you try and try with all the proper pans and heating but your scallops never sear up as beautifully as the restaurant? I'm here to let you in on the big secret. Many ingredients of course benefit from getting the best of the best than us normal peons will never find at the local supermarket unless you're willing to pay through the nose at a fancy one like Whole Foods but with proper technique and spices you can create a fair approximation with something a bit more affordable and commonly found. Scallops are the exception. You need to buy DRY scallops. The average store sells scallops soaked in water to make them look more plump and beautiful. It also adds weight so while you think you're paying less you're actually just paying for water. Every bring home those giant scallops only to find that they shrink down considerably in a little pool of liquid when attempting to cook? That's the wet ones and the liquid they release is what they were soaked in. Its also what prevents a good sear regardless of your skill. Dry scallops, on the other hand, have never been soaked so they tend to cost twice as much but what you see is what you get. They will stay as giant as when you originally bought them and will not release any liquid when cooking. This makes for a great sear.

Seared Scallops with Tobiko

6 dry scallops
1 bag baby spinach
2 clove garlic minced
1/2 cup vegetable stock
tobiko
Kewpie mayo

Briefly rinse scallops clean and dry with a paper towel. Salt and pepper to taste. Heat a heavy 10 inch skillet over medium heat until screaming hot. Add in a bit of grapeseed oil and butter (about half/half of each) so that the bottom of the pan is coated. Gently place in the scallops so they are evenly spaced apart. Do not over crowd the pan. If you can't fit in all the scallops without them touching do it in two batches. Wait 2-3 free minutes then jiggle the first scallop you placed in with a pair of tongs. Once its seared properly it should release easily from the pan. If its still sticking, you're going to need another minute. Flip and repeat. Remove scallops into a plate. Pour in the veggie stock and garlic. Let it come to a boil, scraping up the fond as you do so. Add spinach. Cook until spinach has wilted but is still a bright green. Remove spinach onto serving platter. Place scallops on top. Continue cooking stock until you've got only about 1/8 cup left. Pour over the scallops. Top each scallop with a little dab of mayo then a little pile of tobiko.

Joining the Cake Pop Craze

So my dear buddy T got me a cake pop pan from Nordic Ware. I've made brownie pops before but have refrained from the cake pops because in general the recipes call from crushing up a regular pan of cake and mixing it with enough frosting to hold all the crumbs together and shape. This has never appealed to me because I've never really been a fan of frosting. Eating a giant ball of it really made me balk even though I have long admired the many adorable cake pops being created and shown off around the web. This is my first try to make little cutie ones so please be kind to me. This recipe does require the special cake pop pan:

Cake pop bouquet anybody?

Adorable little face?

Cake Pop

Cake (recipe from the pan wrapper with minor modifications):
3/4 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cups butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsp cocoa
2 eggs
3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt

Pop:
12 lollipop sticks
12 oz colored candy coating
assorted sprinkles
candied rose petals
food safe pens

Dump chocolate chips and butter into mixing bowl (mine is plastic but if yours is metals you might want to do this in a separate bowl first) and melt in 30 second bursts in the microwave stirring between each burst until smooth. Once melted, add sugar and cocoa. Mix until blended. Add eggs one at a time mixing between each. Add flour and salt and stir until smoothly blended.

Heat over to 325F. Spray pan with oil. Powder lightly with flour or cocoa powder. Spoon in batter until you get a slightly rounded top over the edge of each well. You will end up with some extra batter. I just baked this along side in a little pan as my personal treat :) Place top of pan on and secure with keys. Bake for 15-18 minutes until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Cool for 10 minutes in pan. Take top off pan and poke lollipop stick into the middle of each round so it goes about 3/4 of the way to the bottom but not all the way through. Stick the whole pan into the freezer. While its chilling melt the candy coating in 30 second bursts in the microwave and stir between each burst until its nice and smooth. Take pan out of freezer. Gently release each pop from the pan and dip into coating so it goes up the stick beyond the cake ball about half inch, shake excess off gently, and place on silpat or parchment paper to cool. By the time you get to the end, the first one should be set. Decorate as you like with petals and sprinkles using the melted candy coating to adhere as needed. A toothpick is your best applicator tool. Re-melt coating as needed. Use pens to draw on faces.

Chocolate Turtle Bread!

That's right. I've finally gathered enough confidence with bread to create my first character based bread. Not only that, in one fell swoop I think I've finally perfected a chocolate bread I love. Its got a deep cocoa flavor, the perfect balance of sweetness with savory so its not dessert you're eating but real bread, a fluffy interior, and a decently crisp thick crust without too heavy. If you haven't already guessed by now, my bread is a turtle shape! It seemed well within my limited artistic abilities while still being a shape near and dear to my heart as the proud owner of two (no you can NOT eat them!) turtles.

Turtle Face

Turtle Butt

Chocolate Turtle Bread

2 cups bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour (you can use all bread flour but I try to be a wee bit healthy here)
4 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp instant yeast
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk + a little extra for wash
120 g tangzhong
3 tsp softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (bit more if you want it sweeter but not over 3/4 cup)

Whisk together the flours, sugar, salt, yeast, and cocoa powder. Make a little well in the middle. Add the egg, milk, and tangzhong into the middle of the well. Mix on low speed with dough hook for about 15 minutes to get a well incorporated dough. Add butter. Mix on medium speed with hook for another 20 minutes. You should now have a tacky ball of dough. Shape into a round and put into a lightly oiled bowl. Allow to rise for 60-90 minutes.

Spread a parchment paper onto a half sheet pan. You will build the turtle on this paper.

Set aside one 2 inch ball of dough, four 1 inch balls, and one 3/4 inch ball. Take the remaining dough and roll it out as thinly as possible. Spread the chocolate chips out on the dough and press quickly and lightly on top of them to adhere into the dough. Fold top of the dough down to about the middle, fold up the bottom of the dough to meet that middle, fold in the left and right sides to meet in the middle too so you should have a roughly rectangular packet now. Flip the packet over so the seams are down and roll it out into a long rectangular strip. Roll the strip back up into a big fat roll. Pull and tucks the sides of the roll under until you get a nice dome-y ball. Put this ball on your pan. Roll the 2 inch ball of dough into a smooth ball and tuck under the front end of the dome. This is the turtle head. Shape the 3/4 inch ball into a thick triangle and tuck under the opposite end of the dome so the point stick out. This is your tail. Roll the other 4 pieces of dough into fat tubby sausages and tuck 2 on each side under the dome for legs. Get a nice sharp knife make two little cuts into the end of each sausage to form 3 toes per foot. Press but do not cut through the tail dough to form a little X on it. Slice a smile into the head. Slice a round circle then cross hatch the middle of the circle into the dome to form the shell. Cover and let rise for another hour.

Press two mini chocolate chips into the head into they are deeply sunken in for the eyes. Apply milk over the top of the dough with a pastry brush as the wash. Bake at 350F for 30-40 minutes. Let cool completely before biting a foot off.

Bacon and Scallop Pizza

So this week was a bacon challenge week and one thing I have always wanted to recreate was the bacon and scallop pizza. Its delicious awesomeness. This is also my first pizza ever. I don't have a pizza stone. If you do, use it. Instead I used the back of my jelly roll pan with a piece of parchment on top. I also chose to a little less fuss by using pre-cooked bacon. Bay scallops are my favorite for little quick cooking nuggets of sweetness. I tried for a little bit of health with low fat mozzarella and whole wheat in the crust but with bacon on top, really, who was I kidding? This is done Sicilian style with a quick crust that's ready in an hour. Next time I think I'll try for a thin crust.

Bacon and Scallop Pizza

Dough:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp italian seasoning
1 tsp dried minced garlic
2 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp salt
2 tblsp grapeseed oil
1.5 cups room temperature beer (I used Sam Adams Oatmeal Stout)

Topping: (These measurements are approximate. Feel free to load up your pizza as you'd like)
1 cup spaghetti sauce
1 cup low fat shredded mozzarella
1 cup mixed shredded italian cheeses
6 strips precooked bacon cut into half inch long slices
1.5 cups bay scallops

Mix all the dough ingredients together in a stand mixer with a dough hook until you get a nice smooth dough, about 10 minutes. Let stand for 1 to 2 hours.

Start reheating oven to 475F. Roll out dough to fit the back of a half sheet jelly roll pan. Turn the pan upside down and lay a sheet of parchment paper over it. Place the dough on the pan. Prick it all over with a fork. Bake dough for 5 minutes. Take out and spread the spaghetti sauce all over. Top with the cheeses then the bacon and scallops. Place back into oven and bake for another 15 minutes until the scallops are opaque and the cheese melty. Eat as soon as you can bear to hold the piping hot dough.

Continuing the yeasty journey

I've prepared the tangzhong bread a few times now. Its seriously my favorite. It produce the light fluffy bread with thin crisp crust that I seek out in my favorite asian bakeries. Today I've decided to try out my first loaf using part whole wheat flour and braided. I have never braided a loaf before! I was anxious also that the flour substitution would weigh down the loaf. Many commercial whole wheat breads are dense and grainy, a main objection I personally have to them. I like the grainy nutty taste but the texture is terrible! My fears were unfounded. The loaf came out as softly fluffy as all the others. I warn you that despite a long kneading session on my mixer, this never hits that window pane stage of gluten development. Don't worry. It will rise and fluff up just fine if a tad (barely noticeable) less than the all white bread flour kind.

Note the braid. I'm terribly proud of my first braid.

Here I've sliced it open so you can see the loft. crumb, and raisin distribution.

Whole Wheat Raisin Braid

A:
280 grams bread flour
200 grams whole wheat flour
10 grams instant dried yeast (aka bread machine yeast)
50 grams sugar
7 grams salt
2 tsp vital wheat gluten

B:
1 egg
150 grams milk
120 grams tangzhong

C:
50 grams melted butter
Raisins to taste
1 egg beaten

Mix up all the dry ingredients listed as part A. Create a well in the middle. Add in all the B ingredients. Using the dough hook on a slow speed, mix until everything comes together and there's no more dry flour (about 5 minutes). Up the speed to medium and mix for 15 more minutes to develop the gluten. Add the butter.
Mix for another 10 - 15 minutes. You should have a nice smooth ball of dough right about now. Barely tacky to the touch.

Put into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and proof until doubled in size, about an hour. Take out and split into 6 equal pieces. Shape each piece into tiny balls and allow to rest 15 minutes under a damp cloth. Roll out each ball into as flat a pancake as possible. Sprinkle on as many raisin as you'd like but try to err on the side of not too many :) Fold top of the pancake down to about the middle of the dough, fold up the bottom of the pancake to meet that middle, fold in the left and right sides to meet in the middle too so you should have a roughly rectangular packet now. Flip the packet over and roll it out into a long rectangular strip. Roll it up into a thick cigar along the longer edge. Roll the cigar back and forth until you have a roll of even thickness. Line up three of these and pinch/press one of the ends together. Braid the three strands then pinch/press the other end together. You should end up with two short far braids. Place on parchment on the cookie sheet. Cover with a damp cloth and proof for another 40 minutes or until more than doubled in size.

Heat oven to 350F during this time. Paint the top with the beaten egg. Bake for about 30 minutes. To test if the bread is fully cooked take it temperature just like you would with a big roast! You're looking for 200F. If its not there yet, let it bake for another 5-10 minutes. Immediately remove onto a rack and allow the loaves to cool. I can only wait till about warmish before diving in with some butter :)

Osmanthus Jelly

Its Lunar New Year so I'm following my family's tradition of basically me making a bunch of delicious things, packing them into little boxes, and bringing them over to my parents' house to be enjoyed by all before settling down to hot pot dinner. This year I've started with osmanthus jelly. Why osmanthus? Years of perfect product placement finally got to me. I've always loved watching historical Hong Kong movies. Great costumes, melodrama, and wire-fu. What's not to love? And in those movies the rich or royal ladies would always be snacking on osmanthus cakes. Supposedly the fragrance was heavenly (it is!) and some magical substance in the tiny osmanthus blossoms would make your skin beautiful. I've always been DYING to try some of those royal dishes and while I haven't figured out the perfect recipe for the cakes yet, jelly seemed easy enough to tackle.

Osmanthus Jelly

10 grams konnyaku powder
950 ml water
4 tsp dried osmanthus flowers
1/4 cup honey
sugar to taste

Add flowers to the water. Bring to a boil. Turn off and leave covered for 30 minutes. Bring back to a boil. Add honey then enough sugar to taste a bit sweeter than preferred. Add powder and let boil for 8 minutes while whisking occasionally. Pour out into molds and it will set as it cools.

Conquering the tiny yeast II

So this is my second attempt using yeast. My first bread had delicious flavor but lacked the texture I was looking for. I have since learned the no knead breads are more geared toward "artisan" style loafs. Big crusty things with structure to the crumb. I had hoped for something more like the Asian breads I grew up with from the bakery. A little sweet crust on top, soft fluffy white insides with just a bit of chew to it. I think I've found the secret here with the aid of the tangzhong method. Google it and there a ton of information about it online but basically its making a kind of water roux to add to the bread. This roux absorbs a ton of moisture and releases it back into your dough while baking, giving you lofty rise and a super soft fluffy loaf just like the bakery. I gave it a try in the common hokkaido loaf, basically just a loaf of fluffy white bread enhanced by a little sugar and milk. I deviated a bit because I was too lazy to hit the store and used almond milk. Also I added raisin into half the batter to see how that would work out since my dad loves raisin bread. By the way, my belly hurts from eating too much bread. Somebody please come and pry the rest of this loaf from my greedy little hands.

Tangzhong

50 grams bread flour
250 ml water

Whisk flour and water together in a pan until smooth. Continue to slowly whisk over a medium high heat and watch carefully. It will thicken up and as soon as you can see your whisk creating little trails in what looks baby food paste, stop! Pour out into bowl and top with plastic wrap to keep from drying. Let cool in fridge over night. Bring back to room temp before using.

Hokkaido Milk Bread

2.5 cups bread flour
3 tbsp + 2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp bread machine yeast (also called instant)
2 eggs (save one for the glaze)
1/2 cup almond milk
120 grams tangzhong
3 tbsp butter (cut into small pieces at room temp)
1/2 cup raisins (optional)

Combine flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Create a little well in the center. In a separate bowl whisk together 1 egg, almond milk, and tangzhong. Pour the liquid mixture into the well. Mix with dough hook until all the flour is incorporated and you get a shaggy looking dough. Add in butter. Continue to knead with dough hook about 20 minutes more until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl and is elastic and just slightly sticky. To test stretch a little piece into a square, you should be able to get a thin filmy square without the dough tearing.

Lightly grease a bowl with oil. Turn dough out into bowl. Cover with a damp cloth and let proof until doubled in size, about 50 minutes.

Pour dough out onto work surface. Divide into 4 equal parts. Lightly shape into round balls. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.

Roll out a ball of dough into a round. If using raisins, sprinkle some on now (I used raisins for 2 balls and no raisins for 2). Imagine a line running across the middle of the circle. Fold the top of the round down so the tip of circle meets the line. Fold the bottom up to meet the line. Now imagine a vertical line down the middle. Fold the right side over so the tip meets the line. Now fold the left side over to meet the line. Pick up the dough and flip it over so all the seams face down. Roll it back out until a strip. Now roll the strip out and place the dough roll, seam down, into a loaf pan. Repeat with the rest of the balls until you have 4 rolls of dough nested next to each other in your loaf pan. Cover with a damp cloth and let proof for about 40 minutes until it has doubled in size.

Beat the remaining egg. Brush on top of the loaf as a glaze. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Let cool to room temp and enjoy.

Lapin aux Pruneaux

It sounds better than bunny n prunes right? Never had rabbit before? Give it a try. Its got the smooth richness of dark meat chicken without any of that fatty feeling. I haven't seen them much around the standard supermarkets here but frozen ones are readily available in the asian marts. When I first came across this recipe I was excited to see a savory main dish use for the humble prune. I couldn't wait to give it a try. It melts into the sauce and thickens it while adding just a touch of sweetness. I'm going to be using this prune trick more often in the future. The original recipe is found in one of my favorite blogs here and for once I followed it pretty true except for the finishing touch which she does state is optional. My bunny did not come with any liver. Never has in the past either...

Lapin aux Pruneaux

One rabbit, cut into six to eight serving parts
1 tbsp butter (I used some rendered duck fat)
3-4 large shallots, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
15-20 prunes
1/2 cup shaoxing wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
salt & pepper to taste

Melt butter in braising pan big enough to hold all the rabbit pieces in a single layer. Brown the rabbit pieces and set aside. In the same pan, add shallots and garlic and cook until the garlic is fragrant and the shallots translucent. Add thyme, bay leaf, wine and chicken stock. Boil until reduced by half. Add back in the rabbit pieces and prunes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Braise over a medium low heat for 45 minutes. Plate rabbit pieces and continue to cook the sauce for about another 5 minutes over medium high heat until thickened. Pour over the rabbit and serve.