January 1, 2021

Brioche with a bread machine

Serving Size

8 to 10 brioches

Ingredients

200g bread flour (or 195g T65 + 5g gluten flour)
25g white sugar
4g salt
45 to 50g unsalted butter
4g dry yeast
1 egg + enough whole milk to make a total of 150g
3g whole milk powder
50 to 60g pearl sugar

Instructions

1. Add milk, egg, bread flour, (gluten flour), sugar, salt, and milk powder in the pan of your bread machine. Select dough cycle and press start as per manufacturer's instructions.
2. After 5 min, add butter and add yeast in the yeast compartment.
3. When the dough cycle is complete, remove the dough from the machine and place it on a floured surface.
4. Punch the dough down while sprinkling pearl sugar and knead together gently. Then divide it in 8 to 10 pieces and lightly shape the dough into balls. Cover them with a dry cloth. Let rest for about 15min bench time.
5. Re-shape each piece into a round ball. Arrange them on a lined baking tray or in a cupcake or muffin mold (as you prefer). Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for 40~60min in a warm place or until the dough has doubled in volume.
6. Bake in a preheated 180℃ oven for 10 to 12 min. Remove from the oven and let it cool down on a wire rack.

July 18, 2020

Bagna Càuda

Prep Time

30 hours

Cook Time

30 hours

Total Time

60 hours

Ingredients

50g garlic cloves
100ml water
50ml milk
20 to 25g anchovies in oil jar
40ml + 1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp soy sauce
1/3 tsp sugar

Instructions

1. In a small cooking pot, add milk, water and garlic. Cook over medium heat until garlic is soft. Drain and transfer the garlic into a bowl.
2. Put together anchovie filets and olive oil (40ml) with the garlic, blend with your hand blender or (food processor) until it turns into a paste. Then add soy sauce and sugar. Mix.
3. Transfer into a small cooking pot and add 1 tbsp olive oil. Cook over medium high heat until it boils. Remove from the heat.
4. Serve the sauce warm or cold with raw or cooked vegetables, bread etc.....

May 17, 2020

Black baguette made with black cocoa powder

Serving Size

2 baguettes

Prep Time

2 hours, 30 minutes

Cook Time

15 minutes

Total Time

2 hours, 45 minutes

Black baguette made with black cocoa powder

Ingredients

240g bread flour (T65)
10g black cocoa powder
5g fine salt
1/2 tsp malt powder
20g white sesame
2g dry yeast
205ml water

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, add all the ingredient (except water) and mix evenly. Pour water and mix with a spatula to make a soft dough. Cover and let rest for 15 min. Remove the cover and knead the dough a few times with a spatula. Cover and let rest for 15 minutes again. Remove the cover and knead the dough (with a spatula) a few more times. The dough will be elastic, soft and smooth, even a bit airy. Keep it like that. Finally cover and let rise in a warm place for a few hours or until it doubles in size.
2. Coat the work surface with a bit of flour, then put the dough on it. Split the dough in half. Cover and let them rest about 10 to 15 minutes.
3. Then fold both ends over the center. With the seam side down, roll the dough into a 30~35 cm long slender loaf. You can hold it vertically to help stretch it into shape too.
4. Transfer the baguette to a lightly floured cloth, seam side down to rest. Lift up the cloth between the 2 baguettes into a pleat to help the dough hold its shape. Let it rise for about 40min in a warm place or until it about doubles in size (the volume increase actually depends on the temperature).
5. Pre-heat the oven to 240℃ degree.
6. Once the baguettes have risen, gently transfer them onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (seam side down). Slash cut each baguette 3 or 4 times along its length on the diagonal, using a baker's lame, razor blade or a very sharp knife.
7. Mist lightly with water and put the baguette into the oven. Bake for about 15 minutes. Let it cool on a wire rack.

May 8, 2020

Making Kazari Sushi : Sakura petals

Please take a look at my sushi making video!

May 6, 2020

Oreo Swiss Roll

Serving Size

1 swiss roll

Prep Time

40 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Total Time

1 hour, 20 minutes

Ingredients

For the cake :

3 eggs
60 white sugar
50g plain flour/cake flour (T45)
8g unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp coffee powder
20ml milk
10g unsalted butter
300ml heavy cream/whipping cream (more than 35% fat is preferable)
45g white sugar
8g cremfix (whipped cream stabilizer) - better use this if your cream is less than 35% fat
8 oreo cookies

Instructions

1. Remove the cream layer inside the oreo cookies. Crush the cookies. Set aside.
2. Cut a piece of parchment paper to cover the bottom and sides of a 26x30cm jelly-roll pan.
3. Sift flour, cocoa and coffee powder into a medium bowl and set aside. Pre-heat the oven to 190C degree.
4. Beat the eggs and sugar with an electric hand mixer in another medium bowl, using a hot bath until it gets creamy.
5. Add the sifted flour mixture and mix gently using spatula until smooth.
6. In a small cup, add butter and milk and microwave it for 15sec at 600W. Gently mix until completely melted. Then add into the mixture gently. Mix well to combine.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared sheet pan, flatten the surface with a spatula. Tap gently the bottom of the pan to punch out the air.
8. Bake for about 12 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
9. Remove from the oven, immediately loosen the edges of the cake from the pan gently. Flip the cake upside down. Peel off the parchment paper from the cake (I even use A4 paper sheets sometimes!). Cover the cake and let it cool down completely.
10. Combine sugar and heavy cream in a bowl and whip until firm-peak. Add crushed oreo and mix.
NOTE : if your cream is less than 35% fat, I recommend you to add whipped cream stabilizer (I used "cremfix" here). In that case, mix cream stabilizer to the sugar ahead of this step. Add when your cream is getting a soft peak, then continue to beat until firm-peak.
11. Spread the whipped cream from #10. Spread more thinly along the front edge of the cake (the part that will be rolled last).
12. Roll the cake together with the parchment paper and then tighten the paper to firm it up. Wrap the paper firmly around the cake. Refrigerate a few hours to set.
13. Slice to serve.

May 3, 2020

Soy Sauce ‘Shoyu’ Senbei

Shoyu Senbei - Senbei with soy sauce

Serving Size

about 10 senbei

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

20 minutes

Total Time

35 minutes

Ingredients

20g rice flour
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp fine salt
1/2 tbsp grated parmesan
1 tbsp white sesame
20ml boiled water
150g steamed japanese rice (reheat with a microwave if was frozen)

For the dipping :

1/2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp mirin
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 sheet of nori/seaweed - cut into small pieces

Instructions

1. In a heat-safe bowl, add rice flour, sugar, grated parmesan and salt. Mix well.
2. Slowly pour the boiled water, using a cooking scale to help you add the right quantity. Mix with a silicone spatula until it comes together.
3. Add the steamed rice (microwave it for 30 sec at 600W if it was frozen) and sesame. Knead with your hand (or a spatula) until well combined. Pre-heat the oven to 200℃.
4. Spoon some rice mixture (about 1 to 2 tbsp) and make it into a ball, then flatten it with your hand. Make it even thinner, using your fingers. Place on a baking sheet on an oven tray. Repeat until you have used up all the rice mixture.
NOTE : a thinner senbei will be crispier.
5. In a small bowl, add the dipping ingredients (soy sauce, mirin and sugar) and mix. Set aside.
6. Bake senbei 10 min, pull it out from the oven once and flip them all once. Brush the dipping sauce from #5 onto each senbei and sprinkle some nori over the sauce.
7. Then put it back to the oven and bake for another 10 min.
8. Transfer to a wire rack.