Doggy biscuits for the spoilt pooch

I wrote on Facebook earlier today, while the last batch of these peanut butter doggy biscuits were baking in the oven, that I was "so bored I baked cookies for my dog...probs time to go back to uni." It occurred to me afterwards perhaps this sort of attitude made me a bad dog owner. After all, if you really loved your dog, you wouldn't bake cookies for them simply out of boredom, would you? No, you would go out of your way to acquire the finest ingredients, and lovingly craft each and every one of the cookies so that your treasured pooch could have the artisanal treat it knows it deserves.

My two doggies, a few years back.

We have two dogs in the family, but it's only Wango, the chihuahua, which gets spoilt rotten. Our other dog - Bella the akita - is obedient, loyal, and affectionate. Wango, on the other hand, is more likely to pee on your shoes than to roll over, or beg for a bone. But it seems that, the more pairs of shoes he pees on, the more we mollycoddle him, and talk to him in a baby voice, and stuff him silly with delectable doggy treats. 

Aww, lookee at his little snout. And his itsy bitsy paws. And his ears(!) 

Don't make me get all eharmony video on you.

One of Wango's specialties is playing dead, so that we feel sorry for him and feed him watermelon and frozen yoghurt and all the other stuff dogs aren't supposed to eat. Except chocolate. Cos we don't want him actually dead.

A few days ago, I had a lightbulb go off in my head: why haven't I thought to bake for my dogs before?! And before I get accused of being frivolous and wasteful: store-bought dog treats are much more expensive! And full of preservatives, and goodness knows what else. All it took was a quick search on the internet for a simple, peanut butter-based dog biscuit recipe, and checking to see what dogs are not allowed to eat (chocolate!) to come up with this recipe for Peanut Butter, Honey and Coconut oat doggy biscuits.

These are so simple to make: simply combine the ingredients into a dough, roll out straight away, cut out the shapes with cookie cutters, and bake for 15 minutes. I got about 60 chihuahua paw-sized cookies out of it. 

I'm not trying to pass these off as healthy dog treats, but they are what they are: dog treats. Save them for the special occasion when your canine friend finally succeeds in fetching that thrown frisbee, or for a doggy birthday party, or on the off-chance that your chihuahua decides to pee in the bushes, rather than on your groceries.

(Wanna know something funny? My sister's been secretly eating the cookies. She usually has very little interest in my baked goods, only nibbling on a sample and then forgetting all about it. Kids. I'll never understand them :D)

A futile attempt to get Wango to exercise off some of his excess pudge.

Recipe for Peanut butter, honey and coconut oat doggy biscuits

Adapted from The Doctor's Dishes

Ingredients

Makes around 60 mini cookies

2/3 cup smooth peanut butter

2 cups all-purpose/plain flour

1/4 cup desiccated coconut

1 cup raw rolled oats

2 tablespoons honey

1 cup water

Method

1. Preheat oven to 190 degrees Celsius (375 degrees Fahrenheit).

2. Combine all ingredients in a bowl.

3. Mix together with hand or wooden spoon to form a smooth dough.

4. Roll out the dough to around 8mm thick. Cut out the biscuits with cookie cutters of choice.

5. Bake in oven for 15 minutes. Cool, then serve to your greedy doggle!

Wango in a tree, back in his more daring (and skinny) days.

Valentine's Day Madeleines

Facebook was positively a-buzz yesterday with updates about Valentine's Day, with accompanying pictures of impressive arrays of flowers sent by the Significant Other of the owner of the updates. Being my usual competitive self, I parried the onslaught of nauseating expressions of luuurve with photos of these:

That's right, they're Valentine's Day Madeleines! I did start off referring to them as "red velvet Madeleines", but have decided to switch tags since, upon careful consideration, these aren't really "red velvet" as they lack the usual ingredients of cocoa powder. They're still red, though. Clearly!

To be honest, I only made some of the batch red as an after-thought; the real objective was to try out my new Madeleine pan, purchased impulsively during a recent shopping spree in Balmain.

Most of the madeleines were of the natural hue, as I feared that the artificial colouring may turn people off. To get the red colour, I simply dissolved a bit of powdered colouring in water, and added that to the remaining batter.

That's some powerful stuff! Like love. Okay, I'll stop it.

The natural-coloured ones I dusted with a bit of icing sugar, to great effect:

Making these also presented another opportunity to use my beloved, new KitchenAid. As you can see from the picture below, I added lime zest to the madeleine batter. The original recipe called for lemon zest, but I found that the lime flavour went very well with the honey in the batter. And anyway, green zest is fun-ner than yellow zest!

The recipe was for 12 big madeleines, or 72 small ones, but I ended up with enough batter for 15 big ones, meaning that I had to bake the final 3 in a second batch. And, even though I adhered to exactly the same baking times and methods as the first batch, my red madeleines came out browned around the edges. Definitely not as pretty as the first batch:

First batch on the bottom; the more browned, second batch is on the top.

Perhaps it had something to do with temperature adjustment? My oven has been acting up lately. However, regardless of the disparity in visual appeal, all the madeleines had the same, wonderful lime fragrance standing out against the richness of the butter, eggs and honey. The lime and honey combination is a definite winner; I'm excited to apply it to future recipes. Madeleines are best eaten fresh out of the oven, since that is when they're crunchy on the outside but moist within. They do have a tendency to become a bit chewy after cooling completely, but are still great as a snack. My siblings certainly gobbled them up when they came home from school. There almost wasn't enough for me to make a gift package out of them - for my friend, of course, rather than a genuine Valentine xD

Hope those of us with romantic attachments had a great Valentine's Day!

Recipe for Lime & Honey Madeleines

Adapted from From Donuts to Delirium

Makes 12-15 large madeleines

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose/plain flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Pinch of salt

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon packed light brown sugar

Finely grated zest of 2 small limes

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Red food colouring (dissolve in few drops of water if in powder form): Optional

Confectioners'/icing sugar, for dusting

Method

1. In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer or hand mixer to whisk together the eggs, honey, white and brown sugar, and lime zest. 

The eggs, honey, white and brown sugar, and lime zest

3. Beat until mixture is creamy and light in colour. Add the dry ingredients from step 1, and whisk until just combined. Pour in the melted butter, and stir in until well-incorporated. Cover the mixture in the bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

The madeleine batter

4. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (400 degrees Fahrenheit), and place the baking rack towards the bottom of the oven. Grease well a 12 mold madeleine pan. Use about 2 tablespoons of batter for each madeleine, or fill mold until two-thirds full. If you want to make some red like I did, reserve some batter to mix with the food colouring.

Madeleine pan, about to be filled with the chilled batter.

5. Bake for 5 minutes, before reducing heat to 150 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit), and baking for another 5 minutes. 

Fresh from the oven.

6. Remove from oven, and remove madeleines either by inverting the pan and tapping it against the counter, or gently prying the madeleines loose (don't burn yourself!) 

Serve madeleines warm, dusted with confectioners' sugar. If packaging in plastic, wait until completely cool. 

Skinny Nutty Biscotti

Happy Monday, y'all! I, too, am susceptible to the bout of blues that follows a sensational weekend spent having fun with friends and family, and absolutely dread the prospect of returning to the tedium that is "real life" (read: the weekdays). However, I am a firm believer in the maxim, "fake it till you make it". Perhaps a sense of genuine enthusiasm towards hard work and having to make an honest living will naturally follow my presently ersatz cheer. One can only hope.

In the meantime, how about a few of these Skinny Nutty Biscotti to go with your morning cuppa on this dreary Monday? I call these "skinny" for no other reason than the fact that it rhymes with "nutty" and "biscotti", and I happen to be teaching poetry analysis to my little protégés at the moment. I have no idea if these are low-calorie or "good for you", but I suppose the use of only egg whites may be a point of attraction for some. I personally find the notion of "healthy" desserts to be absurd. Eat your no-frills meat and vege during the week, and splurge on the good stuff on weekends. Why bother with the fat-free, sugar-free, taste-free substitutions? Honestly!

So that's my little Monday morning rant. Anyway, it just occurred to me that there's actually a better reason to call these "skinny"; look how thin the slices are! I've been on the look-out for the longest time for a biscotti recipe that produces the paper-thin (okay, cardboard-thin) cookies I've seen sold in Italian delicatessens. Prior to these, the biscotti I've made have been the chunky ones (see: these). And whilst they were crunchy and delicious dipped in coffee or tea, I do love how refined and delicate these Skinny Biscotti look:

I've adapted the recipe I found here to include quite a few different nuts. How many can you spot? 

Ready for the answers? We've got: macadamias, pistachios, walnuts and cashews, oh my! :D

Worry not about trying to slice through the nuts after the first baking. Learning from my disastrous attempt at slicing bread fresh out of the oven, I left the biscotti loaf to cool overnight before slicing it the next morning. My serrated knife made short work of the loaf, and within minutes I had a pile of beautifully spotted, soft slices of biscotti to return to the oven to crisp up. Do keep an eye on these around the 20 minute mark during the second baking because, as you can see from the picture above, these brown around the edges quite easily. And you wouldn't want to sully that pale, white canvas, studded with flashes of green and cream, would you?

Recipe for Skinny Nutty Biscotti


Adapted from the recipe found here


Makes 25-30 biscotti, depending on how thin you slice it


Ingredients


4 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
100g caster sugar
120g all-purpose/plain flour
2 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon almond extract
50g roasted or raw macadamia nuts
50g roasted pistachio kernels
50g roasted cashews
50g roasted or raw walnut kernels


Method


1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius (300 degrees Fahrenheit). Line a loaf tin with non-stick parchment paper.


2. Whisk egg whites and cream of tartar until fluffy, and soft peaks form. Slowly add the caster sugar, tablespoon by tablespoon, and whisk until stiff peaks form.


3. Sift in the flour, and stir gently to combine. Add in the canola oil, and fold gently into the batter. Add all the nuts, and stir in.


4. Pour mixture into the lined loaf tin and bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the surface is light brown.


5. Remove from oven, and allow to cool in tin slightly before placing on cooling rack. Allow to cool overnight, or for 5 hours at least.


6. The next morning (or whenever the loaf has finished cooling), preheat oven to 120 degrees Celsius (250 degrees Fahrenheit). Cut the cooled loaf into thin slices, around 5mm in thickness, with a serrated knife. Place on lined cookie trays and bake in preheated oven for 30-45 minutes, flipping the biscotti over halfway through. The biscotti are done baking when they feel dry and crumbly to the touch, but may be slightly soft and springy. Do not let them brown.


7. Remove from oven and cool completely before serving. Biscotti are great for dunking into a steaming cup of coffee or tea. Store in an airtight container to keep the biscotti crispy.

Mango and Cream Swiss Roll

Despite being on summer break from uni at the moment, I don't have nearly as much time to spend on baking and pastry-making as I would like. Yesterday evening provided a rare opportunity for me to carry out two wishes I've had for a while now: 1) try out my flashy new KitchenAid stand mixer and 2) make a Swiss roll.

I've made a Swiss cake roll only one time previously, around a year ago, and the result was not very good. There were visible lumps of flour in the cake part, and the filling made everything soggy. I am pleased to say that this Swiss roll turned out very well. Due to either a superior recipe for the sponge cake, or the use of gelatine-stabilised whipped cream for the filling, or the assistance I received from my KitchenAid, or a combination of the three, this Mango and Cream Swiss Roll had it all in terms of flavour and looks. Okay, almost had it all in terms of looks. But it tasted great, and when baking for friends and family, flavour trumps appearance, yes?

Before I forget - allow me to show off my KitchenAid! Which I've already formed an emotional attachment to xD Whenever I feel depressed about having to go to work, I look to it as a reminder that only some of the good things in life are for free, lol :D

Apart from a minor incident in which I managed to electrocute myself when I touched the mixer bowl because I'd plugged the KitchenAid into an extension cord socket (which wasn't properly grounded), my first baking project involving the mixer went very smoothly. Prior to this, I've always used a hand mixer to make the meringue base for a sponge cake, whip cream for frosting, mix the batter, etc., and I was so surprised at how much effort I was saving myself by using the stand mixer. In fact, I felt kinda guilty and lazy just standing by the sidelines and watching, while my Yellow Pepper-hued beauty did all the work for me. All I had to do was clean the bowl and the whisk intermittently! And assemble the cake roll, of course.

Now, some key pointers when making the sponge cake sheet: 

• Firstly, make sure you have the correct sized pan for the recipe you're using. I've made the mistake of spreading the batter too thinly before, and I ended up with a toffee-coloured sheet which shattered when I tried to manipulate it into some semblance of a roll. I used the sponge cake recipe I found at What's For Dessert Today!, which was perfect for a 9" x 12" (23 x 30cm) pan. 

• Secondly, roll up your cake fresh out of the oven, being careful not to burn your hands. The reason for this is that, if you allow your cake to cool before trying to roll it up, you'll end up with cracks all over. So roll it up while it's still warm. Without the filling, of course. Keep it rolled up while it cools slightly, then unroll, spread out the filling, roll it back up, and put it in the fridge to chill for a few hours.

• Thirdly (and this is a general tip for all sponge cakes), I find that flour lumps are easily avoided by using the "chiffon method" when making the batter. This is where you mix the flour and other dry ingredients with the egg yolks, whip the egg whites and sugar into a meringue separately, then combine the two. This is in contrast to what I did before, which was to sift in the dry ingredients into the wet. 

I mentioned that I used gelatine-stabilised cream for the filling. This is simply a fancy name for cream whipped after gelatine had been added to it. After chilling for a bit in the fridge, it takes on a mousse-like consistency which is perfect for spreading or piping. The gelatine helps it to hold its shape, and stops the moisture from the cream from leeching into the surrounding cake. 

The whipped cream filling holding its shape, thanks to the addition of gelatine

Next time, I may puree whatever fruit I choose to use and mix it with the cream to form a pretty, uniformly-coloured filling. I do quite like the distinct chunks of mango in this roll, though :D 

Here's the recipe!

Recipe for Mango and Cream Swiss Roll

Adapted from What's For Dessert Today!

Makes one 23cm long swiss roll

Ingredients

For the sponge cake:

4 large eggs, separated into yolks and whites

70g caster sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used vanilla bean paste)

10g corn flour (sifted)

70g all-purpose/plain flour

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

40ml canola oil

40g milk

For the gelatine-stabilised whipped cream:

1 cup whipping cream

3 tablespoons confectioner's/icing sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (again, I used vanilla bean paste)

1 teaspoon powdered gelatine

1 tablespoon cold water

And, of course...:

Flesh of half a large mango, sliced into 5cm sticks

Method

To make the gelatine-stabilised whipped cream (do this first):

1. Combine the cold water and powdered gelatine, stir together, and set aside until the gelatine has absorbed the water to make a goo. Microwave this goo for 15 seconds or until liquid. Set aside.

2. In a bowl, combine whipping cream, confectioner's/icing sugar, and vanilla extract. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, start whipping the cream. When soft peaks start to form, add in the liquid gelatine mixture. Continue whipping until stiff peaks form. Do not over-beat or cream will separate and curdle. Transfer into a container, and refrigerate until needed.

To make the sponge cake sheet:

1. Preheat oven at 175 degrees Celsius (350 degrees Fahrenheit). Line a 9" x 12" (23 x 30cm) sheet pan or baking tray with non-stick parchment paper, and place the baking rack towards the middle of the oven, closer to the bottom. 

2. In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and 35g of the caster sugar until light and creamy. Sift in the all-purpose/plain flour, corn flour, and baking soda and whisk until smooth and lumps-free. Add in the vanilla extract, and whisk it in well.

3. In a separate bowl (here's where my KitchenAid came to the rescue), add the cream of tartar to the egg whites, and whisk until soft peaks form. Gradually add in the remaining 35g of caster sugar, tablespoon by tablespoon, and beat until stiff peaks form. 

4. Add 1/3 of the beaten egg white mixture from step 3 to the egg yolk mixture from step 2. Stir in with whisk, so that the batter is more liquid. Pour this batter into the remaining egg whites, and fold in gently with a rubber spatula. Be careful as to not deflate the batter.

5. Pour batter into the lined sheet pan and smooth the top with the back of a spoon. Place in oven, and bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the surface is a light, golden brown. 

6. Remove from oven, and straight away, cover the top with a pieces of parchment paper and roll up the cake. Allow to cool slightly, for around 5 minutes, then unroll and fill with the whipped cream and mango. Roll back up, wrap with cling wrap, and put in the fridge to chill for a few hours before slicing and serving.

Yuki's at the Quay, Circular Quay

Yesterday was the 15th and final day of the Chinese New Year. Also known as the 'Lantern Festival' or 'Yuanxiao Festival', it is traditionally the day on which the sweet, glutinous rice balls known as 'tangyuan' are eaten, and paper lanterns are hung up or carried in night parades. This year, we didn't get the chance to make our own 'tangyuan' (we rarely buy ready-made ones from stores), but we did have a whole family celebration at Yuki's at the Quay with the 7-course menu. It was excellent!

Posing in front of the gorgeous view at Circular Quay while waiting for dinner to begin.

I was very surprised by how small the restaurant was, but pleasantly so because it lent a more intimate feel to our gathering. Our table was situated near one end of the restaurant, where I had a good view of Sushi Chef Akira Tanaka serenely preparing our dishes throughout the evening. The gorgeous view of the harbour set off within me a profound craving for fresh, raw seafood, and I made the decision to forego the set menu in favour of the Chef's selection of assorted sashimi. After I extracted a promise from my sister that I would get to taste from her 7 courses :D

Chef's selection of assorted sashimi, $45

I'm not usually too fussed about presentation, and view some of the more ornate dishes I've seen in food magazines as unnecessarily ostentatious . But I totally got a kick out of seeing all the different varieties of sashimi arranged so artistically and thoughtfully. Everything was fresh, fresh, fresh; there was none of that awful grainy taste of defrosted frozen fish. My favourites were the juicy scallop pieces sprinkled with crunchy fish roe, and the melt-in-your-mouth salmon slices. I wish there'd been more pickled ginger, as I am seriously addicted to that stuff.  It goes particularly well with the fatty salmon belly.

Salmon belly sashimi

Onto the set menu! The first course was the assorted Japanese antipasto. Going clockwise from the top, we have a piece of cooked salmon soaked in a sweat and sour sauce in the teacup, fried soft shell crab, tender slices of beef, and a fresh oyster.

Assorted Japanese antipasto

The break between courses was around 15-20 minutes; just the right amount of time to eat each course, engage in some conversation, do some digesting, and not feel like we were being kept waiting to eat more. The serving size of each dish was quite substantial, as seen in the next assorted sashimi course. A good thing, as I'm not sure how my grandfather, who dislikes fussy and frilly food, would have responded to a single fish roe balanced precariously on the tip of a lotus blossom petal. Just sayin' ;D

Chef's selection of assorted sashimi (7-course degustation version)

I didn't get to try the steamed egg with crab sauce, but everyone at the table seemed to enjoy it, and it looked very smooth and wobbly.

Steamed egg with crab sauce

The next dish, roasted duck breast, was one that I did get to try and absolutely loved. In fact, I deem it my favourite dish of the night. The duck breast was slightly pink in the middle and so melt-in-the-mouth tender and, even without the spicy miso sauce it was served with, was packed with flavour.

Roasted duck breast and deep fried onion with spicy Miso sauce

The last of the entrees was the paper bag seafood, which was Yuki's' take on salmon cooked en papillote. The salmon itself was a bit dry and flaky, but tasted very good once it was mashed into the garlic butter sauce.

The paper bag in which the seafood was cooked. This was cut open at the table.

The bag cut open to reveal the salmon, prawn, spinach, potato and tomato cooked in butter sauce.

For the main, there was a selection of either the Wagyu beef sirloin steak or the 7 pieces of sushi featuring the chef's selection of seafood. I didn't try any of the sushi or take a picture of the dish, but it was as fresh-looking and artistically presented as the sashimi. The Wagyu beef I did get to try, and it was succulent and pink in the middle.

Premium wagyu sirloin steak with chef special sauce

The final course was the dessert. Today, it featured a creme brulee, a pot of white sesame blanc-manger, an almond tuile cookie, and fresh fruit with whipped cream. The surface of the creme brulee cracked with the tap of the spoon, and the custard beneath was smooth and fragrant with vanilla. All components were polished off in no time at all!

Selection of desserts

Afterwards, I took a stroll around the harbour with my cousin, whom I had not seen in years and who was visiting from China along with my aunty. We decided to take the train home so he could experience what travelling on Australian public transport was like. He appeared to have enjoyed the night very much. It's nice being able to share the good things in life with your family: both the special ones like a 7-course dinner, and the unassuming, simple pleasures like a train ride home at night! :D

Yuki's At The Quay

Level 4, Overseas Passenger Terminal, Circular Quay 2000 

Phone: (02) 9252 8600

Email: info@yukis.com.au

Website: http://www.yukis.com.au/