Butter Rolls

I love butter and although I am not a major fan of bread, I make an exception for soft fluffy rolls. So, I couldn't resist the urge to try my hand at making Butter Rolls some time back when I happened to see the recipe online.

These bread rolls with a butter pocket in the middle and topped with a yummy butter glaze did not require much fuss and were both cheap and easy to make! They turned out better than I expected. I fretted a little about them not rising but they did rise beautifully and you can check them out the photos below.

Butter and sugar mixture
Dough balls ready to be
shaped and filled

Just before applying glaze and rising

Puffing up beautifully after leaving the rolls in a warm oven for half an hour

Voila! Butter Rolls!

Nippon Fever: Hokkaido Cakes

I love Japanese food and in several aspects, the Japanese culture as well. Nevermind that J-Fever has come and gone and K-fever, Face Shop and Gangnam style has invaded our shores. I still cling to Nippon Land for a ton of great holiday memories and greater food. 

View from our room at the Ryokan in Otaru-chikko (2008)

So, in tribute to the land of complicated origami pieces that I constantly YouTube about but never quite accomplish, I baked Hokkaido Cakes yesterday. It's fairly simple to make, I think once you have tried the Japanese Cotton Cheesecake or any Chiffon Cake, this one is nothing to sweat about.

Still, I was fairly nervous about whipping the cream. In the past, whipping cream has been a hit and miss  for me. Tragic thing is once over-whipped, the cream separates and you get a clumpy mess that you want to fling against the wall. This time, I refrigerated my mixing bowl and whisk beforehand and went about it in a calm and collected manner. I think calm and collected was the key for me, not so much the refrigeration. I just needed STOP worrying so that I will not suddenly sprout ten meddlesome thumbs. Anyway it turned out perfect, I did not panic unnecessarily and under-whip, or over-whip. It was just right.

Phew! That was alot of whining about cream. Anyway, Tada! Hokkaido Cakes!

Kiwi Cupcakes

I started out last Friday wanting to make some fruit tarts but clever old me forgot to buy digestive crackers for the tart base so I decided to switch things around and make Kiwi cupcakes instead.

I made a plain Vanilla cupcake base and through some quick surfing on the net, got some ideas for a Kiwi cream cheese topping. To decorate my cupcake, I added a slice of Kiwi fruit on top.

Nothing like a yummy dessert, yeah baby, yeah!

Verdict: This is possibly one of the best cupcakes I ever made! The tangy Kiwi went really well with the cream cheese and the topping in turn went splendidly with the Vanilla cupcake. Mmmmmmmm..........the cupcake was a big hit at our gathering and we all went home with our sweet tooth satiated. As always i wish I decorated it abit better but I have never been a skilled decorator to start with, maybe because by the time I reach this point, I just want to sink my teeth into the goodies!

Ok....I also confess that at this crucial moment, I am also busy dipping my fingers in the topping and finding extra kiwi slices to mop up that Kiwi cream cheese......more! more! more!!!

French Loaves

Freshly Baked!

Two weekends ago, I decided to make my own French loaves to accompany a curry dish. As always, I expected alot of mess during my first attempt but it turned out to be a surprisingly fun and fuss-free experience. I think its probably because I usually bake my own bread anyway so this was not a far deviation from what I was already doing. That said, the most exciting part of the entire process came when I had to throw a cup of water in the hot oven to create steam for that crusty French loaf exterior. 

There is absolutely nothing like the smell of fresh bread wafting through the house and that is what I always enjoy from the experience of bread making. I have to confess I am not a big fan of actually eating the bread (ironic I know!) but I totally dig that distinct bakery smell and these French loaves were no exception.

My only regret was in not shaping one of them properly, the one on the left has a crooked top and I think I was supposed to cut the slits before the second proofing and not after. Well, better luck next time!

Just before baking

Right texture and right consistency
but could look better!

Belated Post: Nutella Muffins and Shrimpy Friends

This is a seriously belated post, I need to get into the groove of this blogging thing quick.

I recently went away with my parents for a short trip, it was only for 4 days but I could just see Mr M (also known as "the husband") skulking around the kitchen with nothing to eat. So I decided to be sweet and baked him a batch of muffins so he could have one for breakfast everyday. He loooves Nutella and usually has that on toast so I surfed around the net for Nutella Muffins and found this yummy recipe.

I picked this one out of the dozens online because I liked the idea of having that creamy pocket of Nutella hidden inside the muffin as a surprise. Its like spooning the stuff in your mouth only that it comes hidden in a sweet yummy Vanilla muffin.

That's how they looked like after adding the Nutella,
I then topped it with another layer of batter.

And they are done!

In other (unrelated) news, I got a couple of shrimps for my aquarium the other day and they look so pretty I just have to share a photo.

They remind me of Nemo!

These shrimp don't come cheap at about $5 each but I couldn't resist them. They're called Banded Coral Shrimp and I was hoping that they would beautify my aquarium after a couple of my fancy guppies died. However sad to say that the moment I released them, they pretty much went into hiding and only come out occasionally to eat. Here's hoping that they will become braver as they grow. I notice that the other fish tend to mistake them for food which explains their reticence.

And that's it for today! Our sunflowers have been blooming beautifully lately so I shall be sharing some photos from the garden soon.