A Taste Of Nostalgia.

Double Peanut Cookies

One of my fondest memories from celebrating the Chinese New Year as a kid, other than collecting red packets knowing I was gonna be a little richer- and hopefully luckier from the act of receiving said red packets- by the end of the day of course, was the tubs of cookies my aunt used to make.

You see, back then, my aunt used to make tons and tons of cookies just for the Chinese New Year. We would all show up for our reunion dinner the night before the first day of Chinese New Year, have said dinner amidst catching up with- or in my case, bullying- our cousins and then leave with a bag bursting full with cookies. The ride home would then seem agonizingly long as I had to patiently wait until we got home before I could rip the tub of cookies open and eat myself silly with my favourite cookies, as if the reunion dinner I had just returned home from had never happened.

Yeahhh, I might not have had very discerning tastebuds as a kid but I certainly knew a good thing when I came across it- and believe me, those crunchy, buttery cookies were just to die for.

My aunt has since sadly stopped making those cookies so when I came across a recipe for almond cookies, I knew that even if it was just for nostalgia’s sake, I couldn’t go past this Chinese New Year without making them.

Double Peanut Cookies II

I ended up swapping the almonds for peanuts as we already had tons of really good almond cookies courtesy of the boyfriend. Besides, believe me, when it comes to Chinese New Year treats, there can really never be too many variety of cookies.

Having never made any form of Chinese New Year cookies before, I honestly was quite surprised at how incredibly easy these cookies were to make and how incredibly delicious they were. I mean, I always thought the local bakeries were all in on some prized, closely guarded peanut cookie recipe that justified the ridiculous prices they charge whenever the Chinese New Year period draws near- who knew it could really be this easy?

That all said however, I certainly am not complaining. A super easy recipe that makes a whole lot of delicious peanut cookies? They might not be the same cookies my aunt used to make that I grew up on but they do make a pretty damn good substitute for sure.

Double Peanut Cookies [adapted from Betty Saw's More Kitchen Secrets from Betty Saw]

Notes: As mentioned earlier, the original recipe was for almond cookies, to which I simply swapped out the ground and whole almonds for ground and whole peanuts respectively. I also threw in a pinch of salt and used salted peanut to top the cookies because salt just makes everything taste better if you ask me. I’m so so thrilled that this recipe worked out so well that I can’t wait to make it again next Chinese New Year perhaps with almonds or hazelnuts. Oh and while I’m at it, happy Chinese New Year, everyone! May the year of the Dragon bring you good health and prosperity!

Double Peanut Cookies III

Ingredients
180g cold butter, cubed
90g caster sugar
1 egg, separated
180g plain flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
90g ground peanuts
A large handful of salted peanuts

  1. Preheat the oven at 175C. Line two baking trays with baking paper and set aside.
  2. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and caster sugar together till light and fluffy. Add the egg yolk and mix well.
  3. Sift the plain flour, baking powder and salt into the butter mixture. Add the ground peanuts and fold both the flour mixture and ground peanuts into the batter until just combined.
  4. Roll the batter into small balls the size of marbles, placing them about 4cm apart on the prepared baking trays. Flatten each ball slightly into a small disc and press half a salted peanut into the cookie. Brush the cookies with a lightly beaten egg white.
  5. Bake the cookies for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the cookies are light golden brown and the edges feel crisp to the touch. Let the cookies cool completely before removing from the baking tray; they will harden as they cool. Makes about 100 small cookies
5 Comments
by thecoffeesnob on January 24, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Cookies

Posted by thecoffeesnob on January 24, 2012

http://eatandbehappy.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/a-taste-of-nostalgia/

When Push Comes To Shove.

Arrowroot Chips

Do you remember the first time you ever tasted something, had your mind instantly blown and wondered how you lived your life having never tasted it before?

Well, I do- and it involved me and a small plastic bottle of chips my baby sister had lugged all the way back from Malaysia a couple of Chinese New Years ago.

Now, to grasp the enormity of the situation (and also because I’m a bit of a drama queen), you have to first understand that up till that very day, the only form of chips my palate was well acquainted with were that of the regular potatoes, vegetables, sweet potatoes and apples. So when I first chanced upon that bottle of golden brown chips, I naturally assumed they were the good old potato chips as I reached into the bottle and grabbed a handful.

So imagine my astonishment when I discovered that while what I was snacking on looked like potato chips, crunched like potato chips, they were definitely not potato chips. These were much lighter, tastier and way more addictive than potato chips; something I really didn’t think could be possible. And then I questioned how fully and fulfilling I could have been living my life having never known such a delicious snack in all my years of existence for about two seconds before reaching into the bottle to grab another handful.

Needless to say, that bottle was completely emptied, right down to the last tiny crisp, by the end of the day.

And that, my friends, was my very first taste of arrowroot chips.

So since that Chinese New Year, arrowroot chips have been the one thing I really look forward to whenever Chinese New Year rolls around. I would snack myself silly on them any chance I got to both make up for lost time and get my fill before they disappeared all too soon with the end of the festive period.

But things all changed this year when I was told  I had to fork out fourteen dollars for a bottle of arrowroot chips. I mean seriously? Fourteen bucks for a bottle of chips? There are a lot of things I would pay good money for but a small bottle of crisps was certainly not one of them, however addictive they might be.

And that only meant there was only one other route I could take to get my fill of these delicious chips; get over my fear of spluttering oil and fry them myself.

Arrowroot Chips II

Making these paper-thin arrowroots crisps thankfully proved a lot easier and effortless than I thought with the aid of a mandoline (one of my best and cheapest kitchen investments!). A quick shave of these onion-like bulbs through the mandoline and a soak in lightly salted water to rid the slices of starch and I was all set to conquer my fear of deep frying.

The wimp that I am when it comes to hot oil, I have to admit that I stood as far from the frying pan as my pair of metal tongs would allow me to, gingerly placing each slice into the hot oil with the pair of tongs, all poised to leap back in case of any spluttering.

With no major oil spluttering or burns, I soon found myself standing a little closer to the pan, tossing slices in and fishing the golden brown ones out like I was made to do this all my life. I was surprisingly having such much fun deep frying that it didn’t take long before I was staring down at an empty strainer that once held raw arrowroots slices and a whole tray of crisp, golden brown arrowroot chips.

And for all that time it took me to slice, soak and then fry them, these freshly fried arrowroot chips sure disappeared quickly- not that I’m complaining. With fries as easy to slice and fry as they are addictive to polish off, I think it was safe to say it was a win-win situation for all.

So it might have taken a little nudge to get me to start making these myself but I’m sure glad I did. For I may not know what any of the future Chinese New Year festive periods might hold but I’m pretty sure they won’t be involving bottles of arrowroot chips that cost fourteen bucks a pop.

Arrowroot Chips

Note: I pretty much winged this recipe; doing the same steps I would take with potato chips, just with arrowroot bulbs. The two things I found that really made all the difference is making it all easier is one, a mandoline- paper thin slices guaranteed with minimal effort- and two, a Chinese strainer- this will help you fish those golden brown chips out quickly as soon as they are done cooking and you won’t end up with burnt chips. Oh, one other thing, because the chips are fairly thin, small slices, they will cook rather quickly so keep a close eye on them and take them out once they turn light golden brown. That’s about it. All that aside, if you’re lucky enough to live near a supermarket or wet market that still have plenty of these in stock, take it from me, buy more than you think you might need. They seriously will disappear in no time.

Arrowroot Chips III

Ingredients
500g arrowroot (about medium-sized 6 bulbs)
Sea salt, to season
Vegetable oil, for deep frying

  1. Peel and thinly sliced the arrowroots into paper-thin sizes, using a mandoline, if you have one. Place the sliced arrowroots in a large bowl of lightly salted water and let them soak for about half an hour to remove the starch.
  2. Strain the arrowroot slices, discarding the salted water and making sure to give the slices a good shake in the sieve to get rid of any excess moisture or the oil will splatter as you fry the chips.
  3. Line a baking tray with baking paper or clean newspapers and set a wire rack over the baking tray and set aside.
  4. Pour enough vegetable oil into a wide, shallow frying pan so that it comes up to about 2cm. Heat the oil over high heat until the oil starts to move gently across the base of the pan.
  5. Lower the heat to medium heat and using a pair of tongs or wooden chopsticks, place a small handful of arrowroot slices into the pan, one at a time. Set aside a Chinese strainer.
  6. Fry the chips until light golden brown and remove immediately from the pan using the tongs or chopsticks and Chinese strainer. Keep going with the rest of the arrowroot slices and let the fried chips drain on the prepared wire rack. When you’re almost done frying, preheat the oven at 120C.
  7. Bake the chips in the oven for about ten minutes to allow any excess oil to drip off. Toss with sea salt, if desired, and let the chips cool completely before storing in an air tight container. Makes about 2 medium size jars’ worth of chips
7 Comments
by thecoffeesnob on January 21, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in The Odd Misfits

Posted by thecoffeesnob on January 21, 2012

http://eatandbehappy.wordpress.com/2012/01/21/when-push-comes-to-shove/

One Step Closer.

Pineapple Tarts

It is, I suppose, fairly telling of how traditional I am that this site has now seen five Chinese New Years gone by and nary a pineapple tart recipe in all that time.

Especially since almost everyone I know- even the ones who proclaim themselves to be non-bakers- religiously brings out their pineapple tart cookie cutters and shredders to make pineapple tarts every time Chinese New Year draws close.

But this year, in an effort to get in touch with my Asian roots a little more, I decided it was high time I do a little more than just eat my way through Chinese New Year and, armed with a old recipe my mum got from a friend years ago, finally get on the bandwagon and make myself some pineapple tarts.

For those who are not quite familiar with this traditional cookie, pineapple tarts are the quintessential Chinese New Year treat. Essentially a disc of pastry usually cut out with a pineapple tart cookie cutter, topped with a sweet, thick pineapple jam and then baked until golden brown, you would be hard pressed to walk into any Asian bakery or any household celebrating Chinese New Year during the festive period and not find jars after jars of these addictive, bite sized cookies.

But the disc of pastry and dollop of pineapple jam are pretty much the only similarities most pineapple tarts share, for the texture of both the pastry and jam can vary significantly even with store-bought tarts depending on the bakery you buy them from.

Pineapple Tarts II

I personally prefer my pineapple tarts with a buttery, crisp pastry and a slightly coarse pineapple jam so it was with that in mind that I went about making my first ever batch of pineapple tarts; cooking my finely chopped pineapples into a sticky, caramelized jam and whipping up the tart dough with the aid of my electric mixer.

And so after about an hour of stamping out the cookies, imprinting them with their signature swirl (which I admittedly gave up after imprinting half a tray’s worth of cookies, figuring they really wouldn’t make much of a difference once the pastry discs were all topped with little balls of pineapple jam), brushing them with egg wash and topping them with a ball of pineapple jam, I finally pulled my first tray of pineapple tarts out of the oven with much anticipation.

As it turns out, the pineapple tarts were thankfully everything I had hopes they would be; tender yet firm discs of pastries topped with a slightly coarse, caramelized pineapple jam. I had one just out of the oven and found myself polishing off my third tart before I even realized it.

So while these pineapple tarts might look a little different from the smooth jam, imprinted ones you see selling at bakeries every year this time of the year, they sure were just as delicious.

And I’m pretty sure, even though I don’t uphold most Chinese New Year traditions and can’t communicate my dialect to save my life, my Asian ancestors would be proud of me for taking one step closer to my roots this Chinese New Year.

Pineapple Tarts [slightly adapted from a friend of my mum's recipe]

Note: As mentioned before, this recipe makes for some buttery and firm pastry discs and slightly coarse pineapple jams the way I like them but feel free to puree the pineapples before cooking them down if you prefer your jam smooth. Also, I’m not sure if it’s my cookie cutter or if my dough was too firm right out of the fridge but I had a little trouble getting the pattern on the cookie cutter to imprint firmly on my pastry discs. But imprints aside, I was really pleased at how well these turned out. And now that I’ve had my first run with Chinese New Year baking, you can bet there will be no stopping me this festive period!
 

Pineapple Tarts III

Ingredients
Tart dough 
455g unsalted butter, softened
100g caster sugar
100g milk powder
500g plain flour
210g self raising flour
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Jam filling
3 fresh pineapples, chopped finely
400g sugar, adjust to taste and sweetness of the pineapples
1 1/2 tsp salt
4 cloves
2 cinnamon sticks

1 egg, lightly whisked, for glazing tarts

  1. To make tart dough Sift the plain and self raising flour, milk powder and salt together and set aside.
  2. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well to combine. Fold the flour mixture in thoroughly till the dough comes together.
  3. Divide the tart dough into four equal portions. Roll each portion out between two sheets of baking paper about 1/2 cm thick. Refrigerate for at least half an hour or until the dough firms up.
  4. To make pineapple jam Combine all ingredients together in a pot. Bring the mixture to a boil before lowering the heat and letting the mixture simmer for about 45 to 60 minutes, stirring frequently, until thick and slightly sticky. Cool completely before using the jam.
  5. To assemble Preheat the oven at 175C. Line two baking trays with baking paper and set aside.
  6. Using a pineapple tart cookie cutter, cut as many tarts as you can out of each portion of tart dough and place them 2 cm apart on the prepared baking sheets. Brush the tarts with the egg wash and top each tart with a rounded dollop of pineapple jam.
  7. Bake the tarts for about 25 to 30 minutes or until the the edges of the tarts are light golden brown. Let the tarts cool completely on the baking sheets before storing them in an airtight jar. Makes about 150 tarts
13 Comments
by thecoffeesnob on January 15, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Fruits, Pies and Tarts

Posted by thecoffeesnob on January 15, 2012

http://eatandbehappy.wordpress.com/2012/01/15/one-step-closer/

Starting the Year Right.


Maple Oat Waffles

Waffles have always been, to me, a bit of a special occasion brunch; something that required a bit more of a reason than just because to bring out the (oft neglected, I must admit) waffle iron.

Seeing as how we just entered a brand new year slightly more than a week ago (and also, mostly because I couldn’t resist picking up one too many super cheap punnets of blueberries that had popped up at the supermarket), it seemed like the perfect reason to whip up some waffles for brunch.

And that is how I found myself in the kitchen, preheating the waffle iron, whipping up some batter, filling and closing said waffle iron with said batter and spearing each golden brown waffle out of the waffle iron this morning- all very therapeutic, I must add.

Maple Oat Waffles II

Made with a mixture of oats (both in the form of oat flour and oat bran) and plain flour and then lightened with some baking powder and whisked egg whites, these waffles were as flavourful- nutty from the oats with a subtle sweetness imparted by the maple syrup- as they were crisp and light.

Served with a bit of salted butter, fresh blueberries and a drizzle of maple syrup, these sure made for hearty and delicious way to start our Sunday morning- and the perfect first brunch for the year.

And as if having some seriously good (and healthy to boot!) waffles wasn’t enough, accomplishing two items on my to do list for 2012 – cooking out of a previously unused cookbook and dabbling in some whole grain goodness- at one go with this one recipe?

I seriously can’t think of a better way to start the year.

Maple Oat Waffles [Adapted very slightly from Kim Boyce's Good To The Grain]

Notes: I’ve been intrigued by Kim Boyce’s Good To The Grain, a book all about whole-grain baking, for as long as I’ve had it so I was thrilled to finally try this waffle recipe out and even more thrilled by how delicious they turned out. I certainly would never have guessed how healthy they really were if I didn’t make them myself. My only minor adaptations to the recipe was to use vanilla sugar and skimmed milk in place of regular caster sugar and full fat milk because I had them on hand. Oh and if you don’t have oat flour, just blitz one cup of rolled oats in the food processor until you get ground oat and voila, oat flour you have. I really can’t define the depth of love I have for these waffles (I even had them with sausages for dinner!) so I will say one thing- I can’t wait to check out the rest of Kim Boyce’s book! Oh and I really need to kick the habit of making waffles only on special occasions and start making them on a regular basis.
 

Maple Oat Waffles III

Ingredients
1/4 cup oat bran
1/2 cup oat flour
1 cup plain flour
1/2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 cup milk, divided
2 eggs, separated
1/4 cup maple syup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp vanilla sugar
A knob of butter, softened, to butter the waffle iron

  1. Turn the waffle iron up to the highest setting and let it heat up while you prepare the batter.
  2. Put the oat bran into a small bowl. Heat 1/2 cup of the milk until just below boiling point before adding it to the oat bran. Stir the hot milk and oat bran together and set aside to let it soften.
  3. Whisk the oat flour, plain flour, baking powder and salt together into a large bowl and set aside.
  4. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks, maple syrup and vanilla extract together until combined. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of milk to the oat bran mixture and whisk the milk mixture into the maple syrup mixture.
  5. Whisk the combined milk and maple syrup mixture into the flour mixture until just combined, resisting the urge to whisk the lumps in the mixture.
  6. Using an electric mixer, whisk the egg whites until frothy. Add the vanilla sugar and continue whisking on high speed until firm peaks form.
  7. Fold the egg whites gently into the batter in two batches, until just combined.
  8. Brush the heated waffle iron generously with butter. Using a ladle, spoon 1/2 cup of batter onto the waffle iron. Close the iron and cook the waffles till golden brown. Remove the waffles with a fork and repeat with the remaining batter. Serve warm. Makes 6 waffles
9 Comments
by thecoffeesnob on January 8, 2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Pancakes and Waffles

Posted by thecoffeesnob on January 8, 2012

http://eatandbehappy.wordpress.com/2012/01/08/starting-the-year-right/

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