MOCHI GNOCCHI COCONUT PUDDING ~ BUBUR PULUT a' la GNOCCHI

Two of the most harrowing events happened within the past week.  Where fear and gratefulness merged.

 ~ Our cat Sweetie went missing. 

Thank God, at 2 am 2 nights later, she returned. A little scruffy, damp and hungry but complete and safe. The home was whole and warm again, hearts were lifted, joy was etched on faces, Sweetie tailed closely behind N, later to morph into aloofness and surely promises were made to selves to cherish her more than ever before.


~ I could not sign in to my blogger account.

It was an agonizing night, repeated re-setting of passwords, punching of unnecessary keys, head waggings, head aches, furrowing eyebrows, deep breaths, even deeper frustrated sighs and when by a mere miracle I succeeded it was a feeling of release and humbleness that I felt ~ after a long, solitary confinement in that black hole of Blogland that had, for hours, not a crack of light in sight. And then the final sense of complete charge and control over this little area of my life. Woo hoo. 

Life is back to its normal and comfortable disarray.

In between those events I had made a mochi gnocchi-shaped pudding. It was quite by accident that I gave them the adorable 'gnocchi' (pronounced n'yo-kee) imprint. A fork happened to be within reach. It was addictive to sculpt the form. The dough was made of glutinous rice flour or mochi mixed with coconut milk, a little sugar and a pinch of salt. A very forgiving dough.

This is  dough that can never go wrong. This is also a typical South East Asian dessert the gnocchi shape of which gave the dessert a little twist (literally almost). It would have otherwise been rolled into little balls and left at that. Its satisfyingly chewy, with a caress of sweet, soaked in creamy. A little palm sugar syrup (or maple syrup) dribbled over the top would have added a lovely and tasteful finale.

The recipe ~

250 gm glutinous rice flour
1/2 - 3/4 cup coconut milk minus 2 T, preferably fresh ( I used packet)
2-3 T castor sugar
a pinch of salt
2 T pandan juice (3-4 pandan leaves chopped and blended with a little warm water in a blender and then strained) OR a few drops of green colouring 

Coconut syrup :

250 ml coconut milk the consistency of fresh milk
50 gm sugar or more if you would like it sweeter
a pinch of salt
1 pandan leaf tied in a knot

Place the glutinous flour, add sugar and salt and pour in almost half of the coconut milk and 1 tablespoon of the pandan juice in a medium bowl. Mix with your hand and add some more coconut milk and pandan juice as you go along until it becomes a soft, smooth and ball of dough. Add pandan juice until you get the shade of green that pleases you. You may or may not use up all the liquid. The amount is just a guide. Add more if necessary.
Roll the dough into little balls about 1 cm  in size and then press it against the back of a fork and roll it off. Finish off the rest of the dough. Bring a pot of water to a boil and throw in the mochi gnocchi a batch at a time. When the mochi gnocchi floats to the top skin them off and do the rest of the dough. Keep aside on a plate.

The coconut syrup :

Bring all ingredients into a pot. Place over a small heat and stir constantly until the mixture becomes quite warm and the sugar has dissolved. This must be stirred and not left to boil otherwise the coconut milk will 'break' and separate causing oil to rise to the surface. Taste and adjust for sweetness.

To serve :

Place a few or as many mochi gnocchi in a serving bowl and pour the coconut syrup over it. Serve warm or at room temperature or even chilled.

MARTHA STEWART'S CREAM CHEESE POUND CAKE

I've made a lot of mistakes in my life and this is one of them. I over beat and over baked this pound cake and Martha Stewart would not have been pleased.

Look at that fissure. I do wonder if it was supposed to be like that. Look at those sugar spots. Look at those holes. Yes I'm guilty.

But at least I've used up the cream cheese that I've had in my fridge since forever. This recipe used no baking powder. So it was heavy and dense but it had a lightness and moistness to it when sliced. Six eggs must have done that. It cuts very well. Very few at home got excited. But many reviewers raved over this. So it must be me.


I'm not too happy with the photographs either so I'm not saying much. 


Click here for the recipe ~ Yes .....I'm so unexcited and feel so guilty that I don't even have the desire to type out the recipe.

BUT it's almost gone though. H liked it ^o^. Phew! I've been acquitted. *Taking off the leg irons*

SHORTBREAD COOKIE SHELLS

When a gurl gets going the going gets gurrrly. I was in the mood for something purrrrty so I made some 'oysters', filled it with nutella, inserted a silver dragee inside, pulled out my string of pearls, did everything up, around it, in pink and snapped a picture. It looked purrrty guurrrrly. When a gurl gets going the going gets purrrrty gurrrrly.

Shells are so pretty. So when I came across a cookie mould that would yield pretty dainty shell shaped cookies I did not overwork my brain. I bought it and these are what came out of it. Shortbread shells with a drop of silver in each purrrty purse. Precious!

They are made from Mary Berry's shortbread recipe. They are quite delicious although  I do think it could do with an ounce more of butter. As with a typical shortbread recipe this had a little rice flour in it which provided  those teeny bits of crunch as you bite into it. And it held its shape quite well as it baked. Unless you're moulding them into a fancy shape like I did an ounce more of butter could only make it better ~ that much more buttery with a more melt-in-the-mouth sensation as it hits your tongue.

Now to the cookie mould. This little charming mould stamped out perfect shells. It is one of the different kinds of moulds that I had made the pineapple jam tarts with. I now have a precious collection of all the different shapes available. These cookie presses are very commonly found here in Malaysia and I think in Singapore too. As the years go by more and more patterns are added. I think these are one of the newer shapes available. They would make lovely gifts for passionate bakers. They're very inexpensive too. Isn't it sweet?

The recipe ~ by Mary Berry ~

4 oz plain flour
2 oz rice flour
4 oz butter, extra for greasing
2 oz castor sugar, extra for sprinkling


Sift flour and rice flour into a medium bowl. Rub in butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Pour in the sugar and stir. Then bring the mixture together kneading a little until it forms a soft ball.


Roll out between 2 sheets of baking paper and cut out with a cookie mould, or cut into fingers (and prick surface with a fork to form little holes) or form into large circle (bake whole and cut into wedges 5 minutes after it comes out of the oven).


Place on a baking tray and bake for about 20 to 30 minutes depending on the design and size of the biscuits.  Allow to cool before storing. Or.......I sandwiched mine with Nutella.  I would have much preferred a rich smooth chocolate ganache instead. But I didn't have that.

It's just being cute ~

Them too ~

JAMIE OLIVER'S BOTHAM BURGER

I made and ate such a beefy Jamie Oliver burger that I was cleaning the house the whole afternoon. Upstairs and downstairs and in my master's chamber.

I dusted, I swept, I mopped and I sweat. I must remember never to have Jamie's burger for lunch ever again. It just gave me too much enthusiasm, excitement and passion ~ for all the wrong things. I need rest. Rest is what I need. Rest is best.


Being petite I struggled to eat this big fat thick dolloped-with-curry-mayonnaise-and-piled-high-with-caramelized-onions burger. Heck, I even struggled to clamp it between my two little paws. I had mayonnaise and crumbs smeared within a 2 inch perimeter of my mouth and yet I missed biting down on the beef patty. I must remember that I am not a troll. 

I made these burger buns yesterday and 'painted' them with flour. I thought they looked pretty neat. I cut out a small piece of plastic grid that my super duper DIY husband has around the house amoungst a host of other puzzling things, placed it closely over the risen bun dough and sifted flecks of flour over them. Even after baking and throwing them into a plastic bag the pattern stayed...I was Jamie Oliverishly thrilled and excited that I went around cutely reminding everyone that Bob's their uncle.

Jamie Oliver's burger recipe was very good. I cannot comprehend why anyone would ever want to eat a MacDonald's when it is so easy and healthy AND TASTY to make your own. I used very lean meat, chopped it up in my food processor to the texture that pleased me, mixed them up with the other ingredients and had fun compacting them into a lid that was slightly larger then the buns. I saw this tip just a couple of days ago but unfortunately I cannot remember where. If it's you please do let me know so that I can link. It was a brilliant idea. Pure genius.

Jamie Oliver's Botham Burger Recipe ~

1 kg lean meat
2 medium red onions, finely chopped (I omitted this)
2 eggs
1 -2 handfuls of fresh breadcrumbs
1 T coriander seeds, crushed
1 small pinch of cumin seeds, crushed
1 heaped tsp of Dijon mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper


Preheat the oven to 230 C. Mix and scrunch all the ingredients together. Divide into 4 (I made 7 and they were big, about 150 gm each). Pat into a lid or just use your hands to shape.


Place in the oven and roast for 25 minutes if very thick like Jamie's or less if not too fat and thick. Jamie Oliver's timing will leave the burger slightly pink in the centre and the outside nice and crispy.


Build a burger with what you have.


NOTE : Because I did not read the instructions for this recipe I didn't realize that these burgers were roasted in the oven. I had pan fried them..*smiling like a dope and scratching the back of my calf with my big right toe*

Curry Mayonnaise ~


A slap of bottled mayonnaise
1/2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp mustard


Mix them all well. Slap on burger.