Category Archives: Cooking international

Cooking international, Desserts and baking

Hot cross buns – one a penny two a penny.

♦This hot cross bun comes from the pastry maestro Angelo Roche, who was our batch coordinator and trainer many many many moons back in 1994.. I was able to catch up with him again when i moved to Sydney from Aotearoa.

There are 2 parts to the recipe, nay 3 including  the cross on the top

The Tanzhong- cooked starch paste- which makes them soft and fluffy.

  • water- 65g
  • milk -60 g
  • flour – 25 g

mix well together and microwave for 30 seconds or if you have a fancy 30k Rational Combi oven steam it there for 5 minutes. The idea is to have a cooked starch paste as the base for the recipe, which then makes the buns super soft and increases shelf life.

The next part has

  • tangzhong- 120 g-
  • milk-120 g
  • milk powder-7 g
  • sugar-35 g
  • yeast- 6 g
  • raisins- 100 g or mix of raisins , currants and mixed peel.
  • flour- 350 g
  • allspice- 1 g
  • cinnamon- 1g
  • Butter 30 g soft
  • cardamom- pinch
  • egg- 1 ea
  • salt- 5g

Mix warm tangzhong , with milk flour and yeast and set aside to bubble bubble boil and trouble.

Hehe no incantations required just cos it’s a rich dough do need to activate the yeast a bit more really.

Then add  everything else except salt and butter, which goes in the end .

Form the dough, keep it covered in a warmish place ..you know the drill.

Once proofed, knock back, divide into equal sizes -(50 g ) each roughly and arrange on a baking tray close to each other .

For the third part cos the power of three shall set us free.

  • Flour 250 g
  • Oil 75 g
  • Water 300 g

Mix oil and flour and then add water to form a smooth paste which can be piped.

Pipe horizontally on the buns , then vertically.

proof till nearly doubled in size, brush with egg wash. and bake in preheated oven at 180 C for 12-15 mins.

 

 

 

 

Cooking indian, Cooking international

Crab or prawn tortellini

This is a kid of a pleasant fusion recipe i want to make and have made before using prawns..

  • Crabmeat or chopped prawn – 425 g approximately
  • wonton wrappers- 1 small packet
  • egg 1/2 to seal edges of pastry above
  • onion – 50 g/ 1/2 a medium brown / yellow onion
  • oil-10 ml
  • mustard seeds-1/4 tsp
  • curry leaves- 1/2 sprig stripped and shredded
  • ricotta or cream cheese- 30-40 g to bind the meat and keep moist
  • Basil and coriander – to embellish , chop and make your crab even more sexy
  • ,Heat oil, add mustard seeds and crackle them, then add chopped onion and saute with the curry leaves
  • Add your crabmeat or chopped prawns and take off the heat..
  • Add in ricotta and herbs and mix well.
  • The next bit is tricky but with practice easy to do.Take each wonton sheet/ wrapper and brush with beaten egg. Put a small piece of filling in the centre and fold into a trinagular shape and seal the edges. Then turn the two edges of the triangle to the back and stick to each other to form the classical tortellini shape.
  • Poach in boiling salted water and serve as is or with a moilee sauce
Cooking indian, Cooking international

Barbacoa with roasted coconut and chettinad spice rub

This version of meat comes from a transmogrified version of a Barbacoa, but flavoured with traditional south Indian spice mix where they would shudder at the mere thought of the holy cow tainting the spices .Never mind the fact that the neighbouring state Kerala has plenty of Beef Pepper fry .

But never mind we must go boldly where no man has gone before . We will then take it further and serve this rich spice laden stupedous concoction and put it in a bao or a sourdough bun or even a dosa .Our recipe serves 4 hungry people or more if you only serve it as finger food

Beef rump or similar-600 g
For the marinade
Yoghurt- 2 TB/55 gms approximately
Turmeric – 1/4 tsp , 2 gms
Ginger and Garlic paste- 2 t /10 gms
Salt- 1
For the gravy
Oil- 1T /20 gm
Curry leaves- 1 sprig/ 1 gms
green chilli- 2 ea/ 5 gms
Onions brown peeled and chopped-250 gms
Tomato crushed/ Tomato passata – 75 gms
coriander powder- 1 t/ 5gm
cumin powder- 1/2 t / 2 gm
chipotle chilli – 5 gms-
coconut cream- 100 ml
For the dry spice mix
Cardamom green- 3 ea
Cloves- 2
cinnamon stick – 1 small
Bayleaf- 1/2- The indian bayleaf is actually a cassia cinnamon leaf called tej patta, if you dont have that then use bay,
dessicated coconut- 1T/ 15 gms
peppercorns- 8-10
star anise/anasi poo- 1/2
fennel seeds- 1/2 t
Dagadphool/Kalpasi- 1-2 gms this gives it a unique aroma
Toast all in the microwave and then grind to a coarse mix
Method.
Marinate beef, ideally overnight, if pressed for time then atleast a few hours.
for the gravy, heat oil add curry leaves , and green chilli and then the chopped onions, sand saute till brown
add the powder spices and tomato and cook till the oil starts to separate from the mix.

Garnish with toasted sliced coconut ..

Cooking international, Desserts and baking

Warm Flourless Chocolate soufflé

serves 6..

  • Egg yolks- 3 ea
  • Sugar- 30 gm
  • Cocoa powder- 30 gm
  • Cornflour -15 gm
  • Egg whites- 3 ea
  • Sugar -30 gm
  • Chocolate dark- 120 gm
  • Butter- 100 gm

Additional butter to grease ramekins

Additional sugar to dust ramekins with.

We used to make this dark chocolate souffle in my hotel in Dubai and serve it in our Latin American restaurant Pachanga, and 5 years and several menu changes later this was one item which had stood the test f time. Never fails to please or your money back!!

Method.

  1. Pre-heat oven to 200 C.
  2. Grease ramekins with some melted butter and line with sugar, just enough to coat the bottom and sides of the ramekins.
  3. Separate egg yolks and whites.
  4. Melt chocolate and butter over a double boiler
  5. Whisk egg yolks and sugar till well combined and fluffly.
  6. Sieve cornflour and cocoa powder together
  7. Add cornflour and cocoa mix to chocolate mix.
  8. Whisk egg whites with 30 gm sugar till stiff .
  9. Mix egg yolk mix and chocolate mix.
  10. Fold in egg whites, a little at a time, to ensure we do not lose too much volume.
  11. Fill into the ramekins approximately ¾ th full.
  12. Bake at 200 C for 8-10 minutes, for soufflé with a soft centre. For a fully cooked and drier product can be cooked for upto 12 minutes.
  13. Dust with icing sugar and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Note- these soufflés can be kept in the refrigerator and cooked to order and will stay without losing significant volume for upto 1 day.

Cooking international, Desserts and baking

The orange and poppy seed cake

Orange poppy seed cake

This cake I made at work but m writing a condensed smaller version which can fit domestic ovens and don’t need a huge amount of eggs etc.

  • Butter 60
  • Oil 60 g
  • Sugar 150 g
  • Eggs 2 nos
  • flour 150 g
  • almond powder 50 g
  • Baking powder -7 g
  • orange -1 slice thinly
  • Vanilla essence
  • Orange flower water
  • Poppy seeds- 5 g

heat sugar with 25 ml water and make into syrup and poach orange slices for a little bit and drain. Cool down syrup

preheat oven to 175 C and get your tin lined with baking paper . Arrange orange slices on base.

cream the butter and oil mix with the sugar syrup .

add eggs and essences. Mix flour almond poppy and baking powder.Fold into the mix and pour into tin.

bake at 175 C for 25-30 mins until done . Cool down and invert. Don’t share ..😆😆