Baileys Chocolate Cheesecake

Baileys Chocolate Cheesecake

Ingredients:
250g cream cheese
3 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp Baileys
250g whipped whipping cream
1 Tbsp gelatin + 3 Tbsp water (microwaved)
10g Liv unsalted butter + 50g chocolate (microwaved)

caramel chocolates (for decoration)

Method:
1. Whisk cream cheese with sugar till smooth. Fold in whipped cream & add gelatin till combined.
2. Add 1/4 of the batter to chocolate mixture. Add in baileys to the remaining batter.
3. Pour some Bailey batter into tin alternate with chocolate batter, swirl to combine.
4. Chill till set.

Danish Swirl Bread

Danish Swirl Bread

Ingredients

180g bread flour

20g plain flour

30g Kinako

10g sugar

1 tsp yeast

1 egg

120g milk

**Direct method

125g Liv salted butter (to be wrap into dough)

Another version of Danish Swirl bread with chocolate chips

 These little crispy bread are really addictive!

叉烧面包

叉烧面包 

Ingredients:

200g bread flour
50g plain flour
1 tsp yeast
1/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
4 tsp orange curd 

110ml milk

20g Liv unsalted butter 

*Direct method 

Verdict: Soft, fluffy bread with a light orange taste & it goes very well with the moist char siew fillings.

N95 masks, do you need them?

 My collection of N95 masks

The smoke haze from the fires in Sumatra has affected Singapore since 13 June & the PSI (Pollutant Standards Index) is getting worse these days. Staying indoor in an air conditioned room is the best & recommended option so far.  However, sad to say that I still experiences some eyes & nose irritations as a result of the haze =(

Everybody in Facebook were 'updating' & discussing about PSI. There are even sales of N95 masks going on! These thoughts came to my mind immediately,

*Do they know their mask size when purchasing?

*Do they know how to don/remove an N95 mask correctly?

*How do they know whether the mask fits them?  

Well, it is quite worrying to see people buying things 'blindly' (no offence). As a healthcare professional, we were trained & certified on the usage. In school, this is the first few lessons that we taught our nursing students as they need to go out attachment & needed protection when needs (such as SARS) arise.

Just to share some tips on how to don & remove an N95 mask:

Donning an N95 mask

* Cup the N95 mask on your palm

* Place the mask over your nose & mouth

* Pull the top elastic strap & place it over top of your head

* Pull the lower elastic strap & place it on the base of your neck

* Adjust the mask for a comfortable fit & mould (Not Pinch!) the metal strap on the nose using fingertips of both hands

*Perform a seal check. If air leaks, adjust, reseal & recheck (in sch, we ask the student to wear his N95 mask & stand inside a hood. It is a plastic dome-shaped enclosure that covers their head & shoulders. A small hole is on the front of the hood where we insert a nebulizer & sprays a few puffs of a bitter solution at the student. The student is then asked to lift, bend & move his head sideways. Finally he needs to count to 10 slowly. If he is able to taste the bitterness at the back of his throat, that means the mask does not fit snugly & is 'leaking' somewhere. He thus needs to adjust, reseal & recheck. Some people may still failed the test despite multiple tries & using different brands of N95 mask!) 

Removing an N95 mask

* Hold the lower elastic strap of mask & bring the strap over to the front of mask

* Pull the top elastic strap with the other hand & lift the mask off the face

* Do not touch the front of the mask

* Discard after use (in hospital, we discard after our shift duty ends ~ roughly 8hrs) or store in Ziploc bag (during meal times & reuse until shift duty ends)

Choosing the right mask size is very crucial, else it defies the whole purpose of wearing an N95 mask! (btw, the size of mask is printed on the mask itself) If you have try wearing an N95 mask before, I'm sure you know how hot & suffocating it was =P

Take a look at this video by 3M 

Vibrant Red Velvet

Double Celebrations

Just a simple cake to celebrate my dad's birthday & Father's day

Potato Bacon Tart 薯泥培根咸派

 

Potato Bacon Tart 薯泥培根咸派 

(Recipe adapted & modify from 孟老师的‘甜派与咸派’)

Ingredients:
Tart base:
(A)
120g plain flour
1/8 tsp salt

65g Liv unsalted butter
10g egg mixture 
**Sift (A) ingredients into a bowl. Add in butter & mix until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add in egg mixture. Knead lightly to form a soft dough. Press into a 7” tart pan & bake @ 180C for 10mins.

Fillings
50g bacon, fry till crispy
250g potato, boiled & mashed
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 small carrot, chopped into cubes
30g Liv unsalted butter
**Mix all ingredients together. Divide into small portions & form balls. 

Egg custard
50g milk
60g eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper 
mozzarella cheese  
capsicum 
**Lightly whisk all ingredients together & pour into tart. Sprinkle some mozzarella cheese in top. Bake @ 180C for 25mins.   

 Before I pour in my egg custard

 

Ready to be eaten ;)

Cream Corn Bread

 

This is my first time baking bread using a 17hrs pre-fermented sponge dough. All thanks to Vivian Pang Kitchen for sharing this recipe. The bread texture is amazing soft & fluffy just like chiffon cake! You ought to give this a try!

Cream Corn Bread

(Recipe adapted & modify slightly from Vivian Pang Kitchen)  

Ingredients (yields 1 loaf & 3 small buns):
17 hours pre-fermented sponge dough
¼ tsp instant yeast
75g water
75g bread flour
**Add yeast, water & flour into a container. Mix with spatula till well combined. Cover & leave at room temperature for an hour. Keep inside refrigerator for another 16 hours before used. 

Main dough 

25g sugar

90g cream corn (canned)
175g bread flour
1/2 tsp instant yeast
15g Liv salted butter

Methods:
1. Put all pre-fermented sponge dough into mixing bowl. Follow by the rest of ingredients for main dough except butter. Knead till form dough. Then add in butter & knead till form smooth & elastic. Proof for 1hr.

2. De-gas dough & transfer on a lightly floured surface. Shape into round & set aside to rest for 10mins. Roll out the dough into rectangle shape with rolling pin. Then, roll up like swiss roll. Place into lined baking tin.

3. Prove for 1hr. Bake in preheated oven at 160C for 30mins. 

I added some mozzarella cheese on top of the buns... heavenly yummy ;) 

I added some sliced zucchini, tomato & prawns with mozzarella cheese =)

Dual Colour Loaf

 

Dual Colour Loaf

Ingredients:
Sponge Dough
125g bread flour
8g sugar
1 tsp yeast
80mls water
*Mix all ingredients together & proof for 3hrs

145g sponge dough
63g bread flour
20g egg
1/4 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp yam powder
10g water
5g butter 
*Direct method

145g sponge dough 
63g bread flour
20g egg
1/4 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp 紅麴粉
10g water
5g butter 
*Direct method

Panda Cookies

Panda Cookies

(Recipe adapted from the cookie cutter package)

Ingredients

60g unsalted butter  

60g sugar                      

25g egg                      

(A) 80g plain flour    

(B) 75g plain flour

       5g Cocoa flour

Method: 

1. Sift (A) & (B) & put aside.
2. Put butter in bowl. Beat until creamy form. Add in sugar & mix well. Add beaten egg & mix well.
3. Divide into 2 portions. One portion add to (A). The other portion add to (B) & mix well. Wrap up both doughs separately & put in fridge for 30mins before rolling out.