Homemade Assorted Bread

Saw this interesting and easy to make Bread recipe in one of my blogger friend Evan's blog. Her Ham Bread was very nicely done and it really give me an inspiration to try making this bread. I do a slight change on the sequence of adding certain ingredients based from another bakery book which will decrease the wetness and easier handling of the dough.

The most tedious part of making bread at home without bread machine is the kneading part. Because you had to knead at least 20 to 30 minutes until the dough is smooth, elastic and stick free from your fingers. So it's might not be a easy job if you thought of giving it up half way through.

But come to think about it..... When you can have homemade bread anytime with any fillings you prefer. It's really a wonderful things. Especially to fill the bread filling with the help of another family member or kids.... I am sure they will enjoy more of the bread which is done by them.

This recipe that Evan shares with us is really a very test-proof recipe. Since we can do it.... I am sure those who wants to try on this recipe will be able to do it as well... Just remember during the kneading process.. DO NOT GIVE UP.... Keep on kneading with your fingers without adding EXTRA FLOUR(which I used to do previously) or OIL..... I am SURE your dough will be ready within 30 minutes or less.... Do give it a try..... and I am sure you won't regards it....

Recipe taken from Evan's Kitchen Rantings.....
Ingredients: (make around 12 60g portions)
300g Bread Flour
100g Plain Flour
80g Sugar
1 Egg
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
2 Teaspoon Instant Dry Yeast
175ml Ice Water
50g Butter Or Margarine
For The Filling :
Picnic Ham
Spring Onions, Chopped
Mayonnaise(optional)
1 Beaten Egg, For Glazing

Methods:
1. Mix bread flour, plain flour, salt, sugar and dry yeast till well blended in a big mixing bowl.
2. Next add in Egg, and use finger to mix it well and slowly add in the cold water while you knead the mixture till combine then add in the butter and knead to form a pliable & elastic dough.
3. This process may take quite a while, about 30 mins or so.
4. The dough will be wet & sticky at first (and kinda messy as well), but keep on kneading (without adding oil or water) until dough no longer sticks to fingers & is glossy on surface.
5. And if you're about to give up just like I did, DON'T!
6. Place the dough in the mixing bowl, wrap it up and set aside in a warm place to allow dough to fermentate, approx. 45 minutes - 60 minutes,(depend on the weather, or you can place it in the oven with a bowl of hot water beside it) the dough must at least double in size after fermentation.
7. Use finger to press into the dough, it should show a clear finger tip mark but the dough should not sink and it's ready to use the dough.
8. Punch to release some air. Separate dough into individual 60g portions & refrigerate for about 10 mins.
9. Taking a portion of the dough out of the fridge, knead into a flat sheet just abit bigger than a slice of picnic ham.
10. Place ham on top of the dough and roll up.
11. Cut into 5 portions and place them onto a small round dish or flan tin.
12. Repeat steps 9-11 for the rest of the dough.
13. Leave on to fermentate for another further 35 mins.
14. Glaze with egg wash, drizzle with some mayonnaise & sprinkle with chopped spring onions.
15. Bake in a preheated oven of 200 degree for about 10 mins until golden brown. Brush top with margarine for a shiny glaze.

Notes: You can use the same dough for different kind of fillings: eg; red bean or green tea paste, curry chicken, hotdog or etc.

Bubor Terrigu - 椰浆大麦露

Bubor Terrigu(椰浆大麦露) is a local Singapore dessert that you can found in most of the dessert stalls in the hawker centre or foodcourts. It's actually wheat cook in sugar syrup then serve with some coconut cream.

Ingredients:
150g Terrigu(大麦)
90g Rock Sugar
100g Palm Sugar
100ml Thick Coconut Milk
Pandan Leaves
50ml Water
Pinch Of Salt

Methods:
1. Soak the terrigu for at least 3 - 4 hours with plently of water. Discard the water.
2. Boil the rock sugar, palm sugar in 50ml of water until sugar melts, sift and set aside.
3. Put coconut milk and salt in a saucepan, simmer over low heat and set aside to cool as topping.
4. Fill a large pot with 1.2 litres of water and add pandan leaves and bring to boil.
5. Add the terrigu, switch to low heat and cook the terrigu until tender and keep stirring to prevent mixture from sticking to the pot.(use non-stick pan is better)
6. Add water if mixture goes too dry, keep stirring and lastly add sugar syrup and cook for another 10 minutes.
7. For a thicker mixture, mix 1 tablespoon plain flour with 2 tablespoons water, stir in and bring to boil again over low heat and remove from heat.
8. Scoop terrigu into a bowl and add 2 tablespoons of coconut milk and serve.

Stuff Eggplant With Basil Pork mince - 塔香茄子肉

Another dish of the week using Thai Basil Leave(click link for more details). It can be treated as finger food or appetizer because of it's light content. You can easily get hold of Thai Basil Leave(it with purple-red flowers and fresh green foliage which offers an intense licorice aroma) in those vegetables stall in the wet market. The one selling in the Cold Storage is Sweet Basil which had a bigger leave and it's fragrant and taste will be different from Thai Basil Leave.


Raw Eggplant has a somewhat disagreeable taste, but when cooked, becomes tender and develops a rich, complex flavour and firm texture. Salting and then rinsing the sliced eggplant can also remove much of its bitterness. This is a spongy, mild-tasting vegetable that's meaty yet low in calories. You can either sever it with or without sauce dressing. It's all depend on individual taste. As for the sauce dressing, you can click on the Thai-style Basil Salad for it's sweet chilli sauce dressing.

Ingredients:
1 Large Purple Eggplant(Brinjal) 茄子
50g Pork Mince
4-6 Leave Of Thai Basil Leave(九层塔), finely chopped
1/2 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon Soy Sauce
1/4 Teaspoon Pepper
2 Tablespoons Plain Flour
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch

Methods:
1. Wash and cut the eggplant into halve, then slice them length-wide thinly to about 0.5cm thick.
2. Soak it in some lightly salted water or else it will oxidize and darken in colour.
3. Marinate the pork mince with chopped basil leave, sesame oil, soy sauce, pepper and 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch and set aside.
4. Coat 2 slices of eggplant with some plain flour then sandwich it with a thin layer of basil pork mince.(do not put too much filling inside, otherwise it will not be cooked with deep-frying)
5. Continue to sandwich the pork mince with the rest of the eggplant slices then let them in the fridge to infuse the favour for about 30 minutes before deep-frying.
6. Evenly coat the eggplant stuffing with some cornstarch on both side of the eggplant slices(set it aside for a few minutes before deep-frying, so that the flour will stick to the eggplant) and deep-fry it in medium hot oil until golden colour.
7. Drain and set aside. Blanch some extra basil leaves in hot oil, drained and crash it on top of the eggplants and serve with or with sauce dressing.

Si Shen Dang Gui Chicken Soup - 四神当归鸡汤

I think alot of people had heard or taken Si Shen Tang before. There are actually a few version of the ingredients. You can bought those pre-packed type from any supermarket or Chinese medical hall. The ingredients inside may vary and you can add in extra ingredients to suit your needs and taste.


For this Si Shen Tang of mine, I add in Fresh Huai Shan, Gou Qizi and Dang Gui(click link for more details) to make it more effective for the blood circulation. And the Lotus seed that I used is those type with skin. Lotus seeds are classified as astringents, being sweet and neutral, and benefiting the spleen, kidney, and heart. The sweet taste and nourishing qualities of the seed are responsible for the benefit to the spleen; this helps stop diarrhea associated with qi deficiency. The astringent quality helps prevent loss of kidney essence, so the seeds are used to treat weak sexual function in men and leukorrhea in women. The seed also has calming properties that alleviate restlessness, palpitations, and insomnia.

Ingredients:
2 - 3 Chicken Drumsticks
1 Piece Fresh Huai Shan(淮山), about 150g
40g Lotus Seed(莲子)
40g Chinese Barley(中国薏米),optional
20g Fox Nut(茨实)
20g Fu Lin(茯苓)
15g Slices Dang Gui(当归), about 5 pieces
1/2 Tablespoon Guo Qizi(枸杞子)

Seasoning:
1 Tablespoon Rice Wine
1/4 Teaspoon Salt

Methods:
1. Blanch chicken drumsticks in boiling water, rinse and set aside.
2. Rinse all the herbs, drain and add in the pot with about 1.5 litres of water and bring to bowl.
3. Peel the fresh huai shan, wash and cut into thick section then add into the water.
4. When it comes to boil, add in the chicken drumsticks and let it boil for 10 minutes on high heat.
5. Transfer to slow cooker and simmer on low heat for about 2 hours then season with salt and rice wine then serve hot.

Notes: If you just want normal plain si shen tang, then obmit the Dang Gui slices and Guo Qizi.