Basic Brownie Recipe

It's one of my favourite slices! Easy to prepare and they have long shelf life. Perfect for potlucks or as a gift. Brownies is one of the first few recipes I learned when I was in grade school. You can't go wrong on this, promise! Brownies are either cakey or fudgy. The recipe I'll be sharing with you today is fudgy and a bit chewy. Don't expect a great height on your slices.

I prefer using Dutch processed cocoa powder whenever I make brownies because it tastes better and the colour looks more attractive, in my opinion. Some natural cocoa powder renders a light or pale brown finish despite the good cocoa taste. I guess it also depends on the brand. Sometimes high quality cocoa powder being used commercially can't be sourced from local stores.

In  my knowledge, there are two types of cocoa powder in the supermarket, natural  and dutch processed cocoa powder. Cocoa powder, by nature, is acidic. Hence, if you've noticed, recipes calling for natural cocoa powder are paired with baking soda as a chemical leavener. It is because the chemical reaction happens with the presence of acid. Dutch processed, on the other hand, had the acids neutralized through alkali treatment. Baking soda will not work if you used dutch processed cocoa unless there are other ingredients in your recipe which are acidic, such as brown sugar or vinegar.

Now, go and get your cocoa! Happy baking! 

BROWNIES

3/4    c melted butter
1 1/2 c sugar
1/2    c Dutch processed cocoa powder
2 pcs.  eggs
1      c flour
1 1/2 t  baking powder
Optional topping: chopped nuts (almond,pecan or walnut)

Procedure:

• Pre-heat oven at 350 F or 170 C.
• In a bowl, mix butter, cocoa and sugar with a wooden spoon.
• Add eggs.
• Then, the remaining dry ingredients. Mix until lump free.
• Pour in a 7x7 or 8x8 square pan lined with foil.
• Bake for 30 mins or until done.

Notes:

• Photo above shows how to have a neat lining of aluminum foil in your square pan. 
• Cool completely before slicing. Chill before slicing so you'll have cleaner edges.
• Baked brownies can be kept in the freezer and thaw few hours before serving

P.S. If you plan to try this recipe, kindly let me know how it turned out. I would be very delighted to hear your comments. Maybe we can post photos of your brownies. 

Guylian at Darling Quarter

As of date, Guylian at Darling Quarter is one of our happy places. We love having our breakfast there and the park in front of the cafe spells fun especially for my girls. So, coming here is like hitting two birds with one stone. They always order their fluffy pancakes with strawberries topped with chocolate sauce while I like the bacon, spinach & mushroom. Chocolate based drinks taste good, too. The cafe has nice ambiance and relaxing atmosphere. We recently visited the place, this time with my husband, and they are quite consistent with their good service.

Their pastries?Hhhmmmm. Not that bad but I'll still go for La Renaissance or Becasse for French pastries. Each time I visit a pastry shop for the first time, I make sure that I order a slice of L'Opera or an eclair,  the classics. It would somehow be my basis of rating their pastries ha.ha. Theirs is so-so. 

Check out Darling Quarter http://www.darlingquarter.com/ .
Average Bill per head: AUD20

To sift or Not to sift?

We sift dry ingredients for few reasons.

• First, to remove lumps. Flour, baking powder,baking soda, sugar and other dry ingredients are normally prone to lumping. If not properly sifted, we'll end up having tiny lumps in our cake. Worst, if chemical leavener (e.g. baking powder)was not sifted, your cake might rise uneven due to its uneven distribution in the batter or when eaten, you'll have that funny soapy taste. 
• Second, to blend dry ingredients into a homogeneous mixture. There are recipes which are so delicate that we can't overmix the batter. Hence, sifting ingredients together beforehand is the only way to go. 
•  Lastly, we sift to remove foreign objects. In my baking experience in the Philippines, flour can easily have weevils. The flour is either old or an infestation might have taken place, perhaps from the milling plant, supermarket or even from our cupboards. We can also blame the warm and humid weather for weevils for they thrive on those conditions.

Technically speaking, we should sift. In the years that I've spent in the professional kitchen, where time is always of essence and the amount of baked products being produced are huge, sifting is rarely done. But with the quick turn over of ingredients, supply is always fresh, lumping or weevils is never an issue. Again, if the recipe procedure calls for it, then we should follow.

At home, generally, I don't, as the flour here in Australia isn't lumpy or some are presifted. The trick is (lazy way? ha.ha.), I mix my dry ingredients in a bowl & use my wire whisk to blend them together. For fuzzy recipes, I do. With the busy lifestyle here abroad, I can't afford to waste time. I'd rather sift than repeat or pass the batter into a sieve.

Just a reminder, sifted dry ingredient weighs differently from an unsifted one :D.

Ube-r Jam

I put great effort in preparing Filipino food for my children. I want them to grow up learning about our cuisine. I'm lucky that my mom loves to cook. I guess my early influence of  food was from her, plus the fact that I was surrounded with imported American food products when I was growing up because of my father's business. My mom would also take me with her when she goes to the market. Saturday early mornings are spent in Pampang (equivalent to Flemington Market here in Sydney). I miss those days.

One of my favorite Filipino desserts is Ube Halaya. Ube is also known as purple yam.  My mom does her halaya the traditional way. She uses freshly squeezed coconut milk, sugar and condensed milk. She painstakingly mixes her ube using her big "kawali". She even grew ube in our backyard.

When I had a taste of Good Shepherd's Ube jam from Baguio City, I fell in love with the taste and texture.It took me few trials before I got satisfied with my final result. It's very easy, the hard part though is mixing it until thick. Spent 25-30 minutes! Happy cooking :)

Ube Jam

1 pack (454g) ready to-use-boiled ube or 1/2 kilo boiled & grated ube

1 tall can evaporated milk

1/2 can condensed milk

1/3 c sugar

1/4 c butter

1 tsp. ube flavour (optional)

Procedure:

In a heavy saucepan, mix all ingredients together except for butter. Cook in medium low heat until thick. Mix continuously, otherwise, you'll burn your mixture or you'll have lumps. Lastly, add the butter for extra flavour and shine.

Notes: 

• I used ube flavour because sometimes the ube that you get from the market is not very dark in colour.
• For a native taste, you can replace the evaporated milk with coconut milk or half coconut milk & half evaporated milk.

Sweet Paris

I had anxiety attacks weeks before I left for my holiday in September last year. I was worried of the amount of work when I come back,  lectures that I'll skip in my accounting class and most of all, I'll miss my girls.  After bidding our goodbyes (with matching tears) and as soon as I got into the train to the airport, I knew it will be a great adventure. It was my first time to travel to Europe.

Paris is every patissier's dream. To me, Paris means tasting the real thing. Macarons, baguette, croissant, crepe and I could just go on and on enumerating different yummy French treats. I realized that in my ex-profession,ouch! it is not enough to gain work experience and learn the rudiments in culinary school but it is also important to travel. It is very interesting to know the history of a country for it tells a lot about their cuisine.

I visited well known pastry shops, took a baking lesson, rode the bike, which I have crossed out from my bucket list and tried to live like a Parisian for five days. I stayed in the city for two days and the remaining days were spent going to different suburbs by taking public transportation. It is always an advantage to know someone who lives there. I'm so blessed in that aspect. Oh, you'll fall in love with Paris.

What's in a flour?

I only knew three major kinds of flour before, Plain or All Purpose Flour, Cake Flour and Bread Flour. When I went to the culinary school, pastry flour was added to my list. Now that I work in a flour milling company, my list got longer. For home baking, we're fine with the first three.

Here's a short description of the following:

• Bread Flour - Technically, it has the highest protein content among the four, ranging from 12 to 14%. The higher the protein, the stronger the flour is. Protein produces gluten which is responsible for giving structure to our bread. It is the main reason why we don't use it in making cakes because we want a softer texture.

• Plain or All Purpose Flour- The name speaks for itself. We use it for making cookies, pastries, some cakes and even breads (e.g. cinnamon rolls, which we want softer than our usual breads). We also use plain flour for cooking and to thicken our sauces. Protein content lies between 9 to 11%. 

• Pastry Flour - Used for pie bases, biscuits or cookies and other pastries. Its protein content is between 8 to 9%. A cross between plain and cake flour. If you can't find any pastry flour in the market, you can combine plain and cake flour; 1:1 ratio.

• Cake Flour - The weakest and has the lowest gluten. It has around 6 to 8% protein content. Cakes such as chiffon or sponge types are soft & tender, hence, we don't need a strong flour to be used in our recipe. It is whiter in color so it's easy to distinguish between a bread flour or plain flour. I had difficulty sourcing cake flour here in our supermarkets not until recently.

Ooops, I forgot, here overseas, we have self raising or self rising flour. It is flour with baking powder mixed in it.

I know, I sounded like a geek. Ha ha.

Bourke St. Bakery, Surry Hills

I promised myself that for 2013, I will visit Surry Hills often. A lot of good cafes and restaurants are located here. The place that my kids and I visited recently is always listed in the top 10 bakeries in Sydney. We only had few photos as the place was very busy even during odd hour. You won't regret lining up for a couple of minutes because the products are of good quality, reminded me of Paris ♥.

I commissioned my 10 year old, funny daughter to write about it, as this is what she loves to do. Here we go...

Sabina Says:

Bourke St. Bakery is one of the best bakeries I've been to, the taste of their pastries rivaling Becasse Bakery. Bourke St. Bakery brings high-quality, fresh, delectable breads & pastries to the Surry Hills public. The only flaw about the actual shop is that it's painfully small.

I would recommend the Dark Chocolate and Raspberry Muffin. The flavours are well balanced, with the bittersweet taste of dark chocolate contradicting the tartness of the raspberries. The texture of the muffin's top is a bit crunchy, and I liked how the small touch of sprinkled sugar contributed to the pleasant crust.

The bakery's own-made drinks is now a favourite. I ordered lemonade and the taste of the refreshing lemon always come to my taste buds. 

I highly recommend that you visit the most convenient Bourke St. Bakery branch and try one of their palatable pastries.

Banoffee Pie, ftw!

This is really a quick pie dessert; yummy, too!

Banoffee Pie

Crust:
1 packet of Crushed Graham Crackers*
1/2 c melted butter
2-3 tsps. cinnamon powder
1/3 c  chopped walnuts

Filling:
1 can Nestle Caramel Top N Fill**
Prepared chocolate ganache (see previous post for the recipe)
5-6 pcs of bananas, sliced

Topping:
300 ml Thickened Cream***
2 t instant coffee, dissolved in 1 T water
1 T powdered or icing sugar

Procedure:

1. Prepare the crust:

• Combine all ingredients together until properly mixed.
• Pour mixture in a round pie pan. Using the back of the spoon, spread and pat the crumb mixture evenly. 
• You can either: put the pie crust in the fridge as the melted butter will set or put in oven at 350F for 5 minutes. The second option will give you a different texture and less crumbly. I prefer the second option but it is not practical to pre-heat the oven for 10-15 mins and use it for only 5 mins. I normally do this if I'm also baking some other stuff. 

2.  Pour the caramel on top of the crust. Using a spoon or spatula, spread evenly. Then, drizzle some chocolate ganache on top. Arrange the sliced bananas on top.

3. In a mixing bowl, add dissolved coffee in thickened cream. Whip the  cream on high speed using a hand mixer until soft peaks form and slightly double in volume. Careful not to over whip your cream otherwise, you'll have butter. Lastly, add icing sugar. This can be omitted if you don't want a slightly sweetened cream. Top your pie with cream.

4. Chill in the fridge for at least an hour or until set. Serve with chocolate ganache on top or grated chocolate.

Notes:

* If Graham crackers is not available, a biscuit with neutral flavour can be used (e.g. Nice biscuits by Arnotts)

**  As replacement for Nestle Caramel,  you can boil condensed milk for 2-3 hours. Ensure cans are covered with enough water. Alternatively, combine 1/4 c brown sugar, 2 T butter and a can of condensed milk in a saucepan and cook until thick. 

*** For those in the Philippines, all purpose cream can be used.

Banana Bread

Here's a very easy recipe. This is actually the first recipe my eldest daughter learned to bake when she was fourteen. My children love having their banana bread toasted for breakfast topped with ricotta or cream cheese and jam. Bananas are quite expensive here but fruit shops sell them on special when they are over ripe. Perfect! it's just what I need . If you have excess of the over ripe bananas, it can be stored in the freezer. Pre-weigh then just thaw as you need it.

Got this recipe while doing my apprentice ten years ago but I've tweaked it a bit according to my preference. It is in grams as almost all of the recipes in the professional kitchen are measured by weight for obvious reasons. The addition of honey will make it moist. I sometimes make cupcakes for my children to bring in school then half of the mixture, I turn into a loaf or even a round cake and cover it with chocolate ganache. Very versatile ha.ha.

Try it guys!

Banana Bread

500 g ripe bananas, mashed (more ripe, the better)
500 g brown sugar
450 g plain flour (one cup is approx. 125 grams)
25 g  baking soda
6 pcs. eggs
250 ml fresh milk
250 ml oil
50 g honey

Procedure:

• Pre-heat oven at 350degF or 180degC.
• In a bowl, using a wire whisk, mix mashed bananas, sugar and liquid ingredients until properly blended. (I used my kitchen aid because I'm lazy to manually mash the bananas.)
• Add dry ingredients. Mix until there are no traces of flour.
• If desired, add chocolate chips.
• Pour on greased & floured loaf pan. If making cupcakes, scoop mixture (at least 2/3 full).
• Bake 50 to 60 mins for loaf and 20-30 mins. for cupcakes or until done.

Important things to remember:

• If using fan forced, remember to reduce the temperature to 160degC.
• For large loaf tin, reduce the temperature to 170degC.

Halo Halo...Taiwanese Style

We tried beating the heat by visiting this Taiwanese dessert place here in George Street, Sydney. This branch has lesser queue than the other one located in Haymarket. 

It's similar to our Halo Halo and Malaysia's Ice Kacang. Shaved ice is served with sugar syrup, which I think is made from palm sugar. The serving is quite big so it can be shared. The taro balls tasted like our "bilo-bilo". We tried their Taro Ball No.2, which had sweet potato,  taro balls, pearls and barley, and  Supreme Mango Crushed Ice. 

Truly refreshing for the hot weather. Although, I wish my Taro Ball dessert was served with coconut milk. I, obviously, miss our halo halo.

Green Tea Panna Cotta

When pressed for time, panna cotta pops into my mind. It is perfect for parties as you can serve this in plastic disposable shot glasses. My office mate recently gave me a green tea powder because she asked me to bake a cake for her husband last week. You can get the powder from any Asian store. By the way, get Macha green tea powder. There is another popular green tea, Sencha, which is frequently used for drinking. Macha is more commonly used for making desserts or ice creams.

Recipe for Green Tea Panna Cotta
(This is a basic panna cotta recipe minus the green tea powder. It can be replaced with any flavorings like vanilla, coffee, etc.)

150 ml heavy or thickened cream
150 ml fresh milk
1/2 c white sugar
1-1 1/2 t Macha green tea powder
1 to 1 1/2 t unflavored gelatin**
1to 1 1/2 T  c cold water

Procedure:

• On low heat, combine milk, cream, green tea powder and sugar until sugar is dissolved.
• In a small container, pour cold water and add gelatin. When gelatin has absorbed the water, add it to hot ingredients.
• Stir. Pour mixture in ramekin cups or moulds. 
• Chill until set.
• Finish with fresh fruit on top.

   ** If you want your panna cotta firmer then, 1 1/2 t of gelatin is suggested

Using gelatin in recipes:

1. Normally, unflavored gelatin is used. It is softened in cold or tap water and never hot water.
2. It will swell or absorb the water. This process is also known as blooming.
3. IT is then added to hot ingredients; heated using a double boiler or microwave (few seconds) or heated with other ingredients until it is fully dissolved.
4. Mixture is chilled until it sets.

Understanding your Recipe

How can we live without a recipe? Quite difficult. While it's true we can memorize a recipe or two by heart but in my case, I have a lot of favorite recipes that it's difficult not to consult my pocket notebooks. In every workplace that I've been to, I keep a small notebook. Funny, when I asked my children which stuff they would want to have when I'm gone, my eldest ask for some pieces of jewelry while my youngest asked for my recipe notebooks. 

Except for home recipes, ingredients are always measured by weight especially in the professional kitchens or bakeshops. Convenience, consistency and definitely accuracy are the main reasons. Imagine baking a big batch using a home recipe, will we measure 20 cups of flour or 8 teaspoons of baking powder? For home consumption, measuring ingredients by volume is perfectly fine.

Here in Australia, we use the metric system. Recipes from  USA use their own system of measurement. Basic units of metric system are gram, liter, meter and degree Celsius.

Please familiarize yourselves with the following abbreviations as I will be using it through out my posts:

• c   = cup
• t   = teaspoon
• T  = tablespoon
• g   = gram
• kg = kilogram
• L  = liter
• ml = milliliter

This basic conversion will also come handy to you.

1 T                = 3 t

1/4 c              = 4 T

1kg                = 1000g

1 pound (lb) = 454 g

Some final words: follow your recipe, measure or weigh correctly and use the ingredients specified.

Once you fully understand how ingredients react with each other and  you're confident with your baking prowess, you can tweak or make your own recipe.

Basic Tools & Equipment

For those who haven't tried baking, I'm sure you're quite unsure where or how to start.Firstly, you need few basic tools & equipment enumerated below:

• Oven
• Your home oven is fine. I survived selling baked stuff every Christmas when I was a teenager using my mother's conventional gas oven. Most ovens installed in newer units here in Australia are convection ovens, which are fan forced. Remember, these are slightly hotter than the conventional ovens because of the air that is circulating inside. We normally bake 20deg lower than the prescribed temperature in the recipe. If you ask me, I prefer using the conventional oven. There are just recipes that bake well in a conventional oven than in a fan forced oven and vice versa.

• Oven Thermometer
• Even if you have developed a good baking skill but if your oven's temperature is incorrect, you wouldn't be happy with your finished product. It takes awhile to know your oven.  In a conventional oven, there are spots which are hottest. Normally, the sides would be hottest or the upper and lower most rack are because they are either near a heat source like the flame or heating element; or the walls of the oven. These are conductor of heat. Plus,  I don't trust an oven dial.Commercial ovens,of course, can be trusted for these are being calibrated regularly.

• Hand Mixer/Stand Mixer
• If you're just starting, you will survive using a hand mixer. That's how I also started. You can even do away with it because you can first practice recipes that will not require a mixer. Recipes like carrot cake, banana bread, brownies or some cookies can be mixed manually.
• Once you're serious in baking, that's when you entertain the idea of buying a KITCHEN AID. Notice it is all in caps lock ha.ha.ha. I'm a great fan of it. I'm not being paid for this but I believe in the product. I think it's one of the best kept secrets of bakers. I remembered getting frustrated when I first made my boiled icing when I was 15. I just couldn't get the right consistency even after following the recipe religiously. On my 16th birthday, my mother bought me my first Kitchen Aid. Wow! that's when I realized it's not me, it was the mixer ha.ha.ha. Until now, my first Kitchen Aid is still working. My mother, who's 65, uses it to make muffins that she sells in our cafe.  Yes, it's a bit expensive but don't look at it as an expense. It's an investment and will go along way.
• For commercial operations, Hobart is a good brand.

• Measuring cups and spoons
• There are two types of measuring cups. The nested cups are for dry ingredients while the other one is for liquid ingredients .  Not all recipes are written in cups. You'll come across recipes in grams. Soon, you'll consider having a weighing scale. I'll discuss one of these days the advantages and disadvantages of recipes in cups and grams.  

• Bowls and cake tins
• Plastic bowls can be used when measuring ingredients. I prefer using stainless bowls when mixing ingredients though. Aluminum bowls can react with certain ingredients or if you use a whisk to mix , don't be surprised if your batter turns greenish or grey in color due to chemical reaction. By the way, beat egg whites in a stainless bowl.  It produces better peaks than if using a plastic bowl.
• Cake tins. I use aluminum or stainless tins instead of silicone pans because the former gives nicer color when baked and are better conductor of heat. Using the latter gives you a paler cake.You can start with the following and add other sizes or shapes as you progress:
• Square pan for your brownies or bar recipes
• Cookie sheet
• 8" or 9" round pan for your cakes
• Muffin/Cupcake tin

• Other Tools
• Wire whisk
• Metal spatula
• Rubber scraper
• Serrated knife (to slice your cakes)
• Wire rack to cool your cakes or cookies
• Sieve or strainer, for sifting your dry ingredients

I hope I didn't bore you. A bit lengthy but I think it's important. Now, if you have those, you're all set to bake.

The Tea Room at QVB

We visited this place on my 40th birthday last November, few hours before watching the Coldplay concert at Moore Park. My daughters are quite hesitant on the idea of going there because they knew it was expensive. But since it was my big day and I wanted us to experience a proper high tea, we went despite their apprehensions.

Wow! What can I say? Perfect ambiance, customer service and the china were nice and polished. There was a good selection of finger foods, scones and petit-fours.Also, a wide range of tea variety. For awhile, we felt like members of the Royal family. It was strictly no sharing (as written in the menu), although, they allowed my youngest daughter, who recently turned ten years old, to share with us.

Definitely, the food was a bit pricey compared to the amount that was served. I think ambiance is something we can't quantify. We,obviously, paid for the experience. I would still recommend it to those who want to spend a memorable afternoon or morning chat with their loved ones over a cup of tea.

Average Bill per head : AUD40-45

Here's the website, should you visit one day: https://www.thetearoom.com.au/

Umi Kaiten Zushi

Sydney, unfortunately, is one of the most expensive cities in the world next to Tokyo. That shouldn't dampen our spirits to dine outside our homes once in awhile.

Umi Kaiten Zushi in the city is one of Sabina's favorite places to eat. The place is clean and has good customer service, something which is not very common here, and you get your money's worth. We normally go for the menu combo, choice of 3 plates from the sushi train, entree with rice and miso soup. Also, there is a  great variety of sushi rolls and sashimi.

Our average bill per head: AUD15-20

Here's the link to its location:  http://www.umikaitenzushi.com.au/

French Toast

It's a nightmare dealing with leftovers. Whenever I have leftover breads, French toast will always be part of our breakfast menu. It is true, once you start earning hard earned money, it is very difficult to throw stuff easily. I wasn't like this when I was younger, I guess, it's because I haven't realised the real value of money and hard work.

Anyway, here's what you need:
(This is not a fuzzy recipe, measurements not very crucial)

French Toast

2-4 pcs . Left-over breads
1/2 cup to 1 cup of milk (the amount will depend with the bread size)
1-2 pcs. eggs
cinnamon powder, as desired

Topping:
Bananas (any fruits in season will do),sliced into pieces
2 Tbsps. butter
3 Tbsps. brown sugar

Simple Ganache:
One part thickened cream (all-purpose cream for others) and One part chopped cooking chocolate
(e.g. 1/4 c cream & 1/4 c chopped cooking chocolate)

Procedure:

• French Toast
• With a fork or whisk, mix milk, eggs & cinnamon powder.
• Dip each piece of bread until it has absorbed enough of the liquid mixture. Soaking it too long will give you a very soggy french toast.
• On medium heat, cook each bread using a non-stick pan sprayed with canola spray or lightly brushed with butter until golden brown in color. Set aside.
• Topping
• To save time, using the same pan used for cooking the French toast, melt butter and add the brown sugar. Cook until slightly caramelized.
• Add cut-up fruits.
• Ganache
• Quickly heat the cream in the microwave  (if making a big batch, cream can be heated on the stove in a small sauce pan, just before boiling).
• Off the heat, add chopped chocolate & mix until smooth.
• To assemble:
• Arrange the caramelized fruits on top of french toast and drizzle some ganache using a teaspoon. Chopped walnuts can be added for some texture.

*Note: excess ganache can be used as ice cream topping or dipping sauce for your fresh strawberries

Loving your own

She now writes her blog,too. arianasayshey.blogspot.com.au

Welcome! Sharing is caring.

Having turned 40 last November, I decided to share more. I have been getting a lot of recipe requests from friends and have flooded my FB account with food pictures. I guess, blogging is the solution. I have attempted this before when I first migrated in New Zealand five years ago. Then, when I arrived here in Australia, came my second attempt. Due to the busy lifestyle and the nature of my work then, people overseas would understand what I mean, I wasn't able to post as much as I want to. Plus, I had a very crappy camera before, not that I have an extremely nice one now ha.ha. Oh well, hopefully,this time around, it will be a success.

This blog will talk about my kitchen adventures, recipes I have tested over the past two decades in and out of the professional kitchen,  love for food, some interesting places I've been and could be the daily struggles of a full time working mum or food for our souls. I'm not sure with you guys, but it is always a relief for me to find out that other women and mum also feels the same way I do. 

Please read on. Ciao!