Homemade Nutella

Please visit http://www.cakeiteasyagain.com/homemade-nutella/ for this recipe.

Nutella Crepes

   

Yields 8 crepes:

(Crepes)
100 g flour
40 g sugar
2 pinches of salt
2 (100 g) eggs
250 g milk
20 g butter, melted

(Fillings)
Nutella
12 - 16 strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries

See the methods here.

Apple Streusel Muffins

We had our special best friend's daughter's 3rd birthday celebration the other day and I had to bake this fluffy, nice apple streusel muffins for her. To be born in Japan, a perfect birthday cake would be a strawberry sponge cake with a lot of vanilla whipped cream all around but our date was the day after her actual birthday when she mentioned she would have a big birthday cake at home so I wanted to avoid the same cake. I thought any girls or kids would usually love apples and vanilla flavor and strawberries as garnish would make her smile.......and indeed I did see her biggest smiles on her face (successfully!) trying to wrap her arms all around the muffins:-) Love and Happy Birthday to her and her family💕

Adjusted a recipe from Akiko Hirano's Muffins, Scones, Biscuits.

Serves 12 muffins:
(Wet ingredients)
120 g unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
240 g granulated sugar
4 eggs
2tsp vanilla extract

(Liquid ingredients)
120 ml whole milk
120 g plain, unsweetened yogurt
100 ml vegetable oil (I use grapeseed oil)

(Dry ingredients)
340 g flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

(Stuffing)
3/4 - 1 apples, diced (I use Fuji apples and chop into large dices to leave the crunchiness after baking)

(Streusel)
60 g flour
45 g granulated sugar
15 g brown sugar
1.5/4 tsp cinnamon powder
30 g walnuts, roasted and chopped (I use macadamia nuts)
15 g oatmeal (I use instant quick oatmeal)
30 g butter, soften at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven at 350 F.
2. Take eggs and butter out of the fridge and keep them at a room temperature.
3. Prepare streusel by mixing all the ingredients in a bowl until crumbly (butter will be lumpy in the crumbs so make sure to use room temperature butter).
4. Prepare the dry and liquid ingredients in each separate bowl.
5. Combine the wet ingredient in a medium sized bowl by creaming butter and sugar until fluffy, mixing in eggs and vanilla extract by hand or stand mixer.
6. Combining the first half of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients while mixing in half the liquid ingredients. Combine the other half of dry and liquid into the wet ingredients again until you see no flour in the batter. I use a hand mixer to incorporate all the ingredients quickly for just about 3 - 5 seconds and then switch to a spatula. Don't over mix!
7. Stir in apple chunks into the batter quickly.
8. Bake in the upper middle rack oven at 350 for 12 - 15 minutes.

Japaense Souffle Cheeseckae

This is my best favorite cheesecake in the world. Moderately rich but very light and moist.  Apparently, this cheesecake was originally created in Japan. Thanks to Rumi Kojima's recipe, we could satisfy our craving for this cake at home. It just took longer to bake it in the oven (about 45 - 50 minutes to brown the surface and 45 - 60 minutes to let it stay in the oven that has been turned off) more than it was instructed but the final result was just divine.To my surprise, this cake does not contain flour or baking powder but just a little corn starch, cream cheese mixture, custard and meringue. What a guiltless desert!

                                                                                                            

This is approved by our little man who says "oishii!"

Here is the adjusted (simplified) recipe from Rumi's book:

(A - Meringue)
Egg white from 3 large eggs
55 g sugar

(B - Cream cheese mixture)
300 g cream cheese, room temprature
45 g butter, unsalted

(C - Egg custard)
20 g granulated sugar
Egg yolk from 3 large eggs
11 g corn starch
150 g milk

1. Put baking paper in a cake pan, all around and at the bottom.
2. Separate egg white and yolk and chill the egg white in the freezer.
3. Melt butter and mix well with cream cheese (B).
4. Mix sugar, egg yolk and corn starch (sifted) in a bowl and pour in hot milk (microwaved 40 - 50 seconds) to mix all quickly and pour it into a double boiler.
5. In a low-medium heat, heat the custard until it thickens a little bit (don't over heat! (C)).
6. While the custard is warm, pour into the cream cheese mixture to mix all well (B & C) 
7. (normally, I preheat the oven at this time to 340 F)
8. Take out the egg white from the freezer and whip it by gradually adding sugar in 3 steps (A).
9. Fold the meringue (A) into the cream cheese and custard mixture (B&C) and beat by spatula about 65 - 70 times.
10. Pour the batter into the cake pan and place it in baking paper on the baking tray.
11. Pour in the hot water into the baking tray until 1/2 inches high.
12. Bake about 45 minutes at 340 F and turn it off to let the cake stay and continue to bake for       another 45 - 60 minutes.
13. After baking, chill the cake in the fridge right away. Don't try to take the cake out of the pan     until the cake completely cools and chills in the fridge.

Plain Great Biscuits

Makes 14 - 16 biscuits

(Wet ingredients)
255 grams butter
225 ml milk
*Some bread flour for folding the dough

(Dry ingredients)
540 grams flour
3 tsp baking powder
3 tbs granulated sugar
1.5/4 tsp salt

1. Cut butter into small cubes and put them in the freezer for at least 10 minutes.
2. Sift all dry ingredients into a bowl and transfer 2/3 of it into the processor.
3. Add in chilled butter into the processor and pulse just about 7- 10 times.
4. Add in the remaining dry ingredients and pulse about 10 - 13 times. Important to see more like a flour mixture before becoming like crumbs, so don't over mix!
5. Transfer it into a bowl and add in milk and mix with a large fork quickly until it becomes a big lump.
6. Using a rolling pin, shape a rectangular shape and fold the dough in half. Repeat this four times and cut it with a cookie cutter. For the second batch, don't roll it into a ball! Keep folding to make a rectangular shape and fold in half and cut it with a cookie cutter.
7. Place biscuits next to each other, attached on a baking pan and bake about 13 minutes at 390 - 400 degrees.

Tips:

1. When pulsing butter and dry (flour etc.), pulse 2/3 of flour and frozen butter about 7 - 10 times. Add in the remaining flour and pulse 10 - 13 times. Should be more flour before soboro.
2. Lay the biscuit next to each other, attached place some mold next to the last one.
3. When shaping the second and third dough, don't roll it to make a ball! Keep folding in half to shape it.

Eringi and Zucchini Quiche

• 
  

Pie Crust:

• I love the following pie recipe from "serious eats" the best so far. The method was a little adjusted for my preference. 
• 
  
• 2 1/2 cups (12.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 1/2 sticks (20 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pats

1. Dice butter and chill it in the freezer.
2. Put 1 1/2 cup flour, sugar, salt in the processor.
3. Add in the butter in the processor and pulse about 25 short times.
4. Add in the remaining 1 cup flour and pulse about 5 short times until the dough starts to collect in clumps.
5. Add 4 tbs cold water in the processor and mix gently by spatular and 4 - 5 pulse.
6. Add in remaining 2 tbs cold water and pulse 2- 3 short times.
7. Fold the dough until it becomes like a ball in a bowl and wrap it with saran wrap.
8. Leave the dough in the fridge for at least a half an hour before use.
9. Shape the dough in a dish and make holes with a fork at the bottom of the dough.
10. Place aluminum foil over the dough in a dish and cut a circle in the center of the foil and bake the bottom of the crust on the top rack at 365 F (185 C) for 10 minutes before pouring in a filling.

Filling:

• 1.5 tbs olive oil
• 1 shallot
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1.5 - 2 large eringi
• 1 medium zucchini
• 1/2 big sweet potato, diced
• 1/2 cup spinach or kale
• 4 large eggs
• 1/3 cup and a half 1/4 cup heavy milk 
• 1/3 cup and a half 1/4 cup whole milk
• 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheeze
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 100 g cheddar cheese, diced
• *1/4 & 1/8 tsp salt
• *a pinch of pepper  and some ground pepper
• *1 1/8 tsp thyme
• *1 1/8 tsp oregano

          *Can be adjusted for flavor preference

1. To bake pie sheet, put aluminium foil all around and cut the center in circle and put pie weights in the center. Bake for 5 minutes at 375°F and remove pie weights to bake it for another 10 minutes.
2. Heat olive oil and cook all the vegetables with garlic, except for spinach.
3. Beat eggs in a bowl and add in heavy milk & milk (take some egg mixture on the side for baking pie crust edge).
4. Add the cooked vegetables, cheese and spinach in the egg mixture.
5. Flavor with salt, pepper, oregano, tyme and pour in the pie crust.
6. Bake with aluminium foil for 50 - 55 minutes at 375°F and remove the foil and brush egg mixture (from step 2) on the edge of the crust to bake it for another 3 - 5 minutes.

Cafe O'Lei Butter Cream Cake

Papaya Short Cake

Greek Style Eringi (Mushroom) Pizza

Baking with a baby was somehow possible although my son just tried to eat the pizza dough as we shaped them. However, the pictures look like he's already baking like a pro!

For the pizza dough, we just used our bread maker to make it (our life saver every day!):

For the garlic sauce, we used Emirel Lagasse's recipe - Roasted Garlic White Pizza with Garlic Sauce
*I just adjusted by adding 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper instead of 1/4 tsp

Makes One 14 inch round pizza:
(Garlic White Sauce)
2 tbs unsalted butter
1 cup whole milk
2 tbs all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp plus a pinch salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
4 heads Roasted Garlic (cut the upper side, drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper)

(Toppings)
2 of 6 oz (170g) glass jars Artichoke
Sprinkles of Kale
1 large 1 small Eringi Mushrooms (can be substituted with regular mushrooms)
15 - 20 sliced dried tomatoes
1/4 cup Parmesan
2 to 3 oz Mozzarella

(Pizza dough)
About 14 oz store bought or home made pizza dough
Sprindles of corn meal (optional)

1. To make garlic white sauce, cut the upper side of each garlic head, drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper to coat the cut side. Lay a foil baking sheet on the pan, with the cut side down, bake (roast) the garlic in the oven at 350 for about 45 minutes to an hour (I normally do this ahead of time).
2. In a pot, melt butter and add in flour to stir avoiding it from coloring. Slowly add in warm milk while whisking well. Add in salt and cayenne pepper and turn up to the medium heat. Remove from the heat when it boils and thickens. Squeeze out roasted garlic into the sauce and blend it (I use an immersion blender).
3. Make a pizza dough by a bread machine or thaw a store bought dough.
4. Sprinkle corn meal on the pizza pan and spread and shape a pizza dough over the pan.
5. Put the sauce all over the dough and all the toppings in the order of cheese, vegetables and parmesan cheese on top.
6. Bake on the second rack from the top at 430 degrees for 18 - 20 minutes.

Chocolate and Whipped Cream Cake

Referred to http://cookpad.com/recipe/1589335

Coffee and Cream Jello (non caffeinated)

Makes 4 small cups jello:

6 grams gelatin
42 ml water

(A) 400 ml hot water
      2 tsp decaffeinated coffee
      5.5 tsp chikoli coffee
      2 tbs sugar

Syrup:
25 ml water
12.5 gram sugar

Heavy milk to your preference

1. Dissolve gelatin in cold water and wait till it hardens.
2. Mix above (A) and microwave until it gets hot
3. Add in gelatin in (A) and mix well and let it cool before pouring it into cups and make them cool in the fridge.
4. In a small little bowl, make syrup by mixing water and sugar and microwave until sugar completely melts. Let it cool while the jello firms up in the friedge for a couple of hours.
5. When jello is ready, pour some syrup and heavy cream on top and eat it all together.

Referred to:
http://www.nhk.or.jp/kamado/recipe/103.html

http://cookpad.com/recipe/2502141

Summery Ginger Mojito

200 grams ginger
140 grams sugar
20 grams honey
300 ml water
2 cinnamon sticks
7 pieces of clove
1/2 red pepper (1/2 of a small stick or some sprinkle of its spice)
1 & 1/3 lemon juice
Mint leaves as garnish

1. Wash and clean the ginger skin and slice them.
2. Add sugar in the sliced ginger in a bowl and leave it in the fridge for about 20 - 30 minutes (or over night) until water comes out of ginger and sugar.
3. You can skip this step but blending the ginger before heating it in the pot deepened the flavor.
4. Add in all other spices and water except for lemon juice and mint leaves and simmer it over low heat for about 20 minutes.
5. Strain the ginger syrup into a bowl and add lemon juice.
6. Store in the fridge till cool down and serve it with sparkling water (ginger syrup : water = 1 : 4 or to your preference) and mint leaves on top as garnish.
   
   

Carrot & Blood Orange Cupcake with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

 

Carrot and Blood Orange Cupcake (9 cupcakes):
(Dry ingredients)
128 grams flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1/2 tsp ginger spice
2/3 of 1/4 tsp nutmeg

(Wet ingredients)
137 ml grapeseed oil
10 ml blood orange juice
160 grams sugar
 (170 grams for very sweet cupcakes, 150 grams for breakfast cupcakes)
2 eggs, medium-size

(Carrots and walnuts)
120 grams shredded carrot
2 grams orange zest
25 grams walnut, cut into small pieces

Cream cheese frosting:
75 ml cream cheese
35 gram powder sugar
1/8 squeezed lemon
45 ml heavy cream
Some vanilla extract

1. Sift the flour and all the dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. Mix sugar in eggs well in a separate bowl.
3. Add in warm orange juice and melt sugar in eggs and then add in oil well quickly.
4. Add in all the dry ingredients.
5. Mix the shredded carrots, orange zest and walnut in the batter quickly and pour it into the mold.
6. Bake at 180 degrees (Celsius) for 18 minutes and another 4 minutes at 170 degrees.
7. Make cream cheese frosting by mixing cream cheese, sugar and lemon juice in a bowl and whipping heavy cream in a separate bowl (added with vanilla extract) and fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.

 

Carrot Soup

1/4 onion, minced
8 grams butter
85 - 90 grams carrot, chopped
1 tbs flour
150 ml chicken stock (water and 1 tsp ofu-dashi/consomme powder)
100 ml milk (add 2 tbs milk or heavy cream next time)
1/16 tsp salt

Kinpira Gobo (Sauteed Burdock Root)

1/4 takanotsume, sliced or 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
2/3 gobo
30 gram carrot
2 tsp white sesame
1/4 tsp sesame oil

Sauce:
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs mirin
1/2 tsp sugar

1. Thinly slice burdock and put it in water in a bowl. Thinly slice carrot and boil in water in pot quickly.
2. In the same pot, heat up the red pepper in oil quickly.
   Cook burdock and carrot until they soften a little bit for about a minute.
3. Add in Sauce and simmer burdock and carrot until the Sauce almost completely evaporate.
4. Add in sesame oil and sesame.

Sesame Spinach

100 gram spinach, boiled for one minute, put in cold water and squeezed to get water out.
2.5 tbs white  sesame, grinded
2 - 3 tsp dashi soy sauce

Tofu and Soy Milk White Cream Gratine with Shimeji and Bacon

 

Soy milk white sauce gratine:

200 ml Soy milk

100 ml milk

50 ml heavy cream

1 tbs Kuzuko (a starch powder), dissolved in water

30 grams onion, sliced

50 grams bacon

80 grams shimrji

300 grams tofu, cut into thin big dices

8 grams bouillon cubes

1.5 of 1/4 tsp salt

a pinch of pepper

1. Cook onion, bacon and shimeji with batter.
2. Add in soy milk, milk and heavy cream and when it simmers, add bouillon, salt and  pepper.
3. Add in Kuzuko, dissolved in water, and wait until it thickens.
4. Add Tofu and let it simmer for a couple of minutes.
5. Pour the gratine in a plate and sprinkle cheese on top.
6. Put it in a toaster or oven (220 degrees) to brown the cheese on top.

Soy Milk Pudding with Kuromitsu (Brown Sugar Syrup)

 

Soy Milk Pudding (three cups)

105 ml soy milk

95 ml heavy cream (made from animal/vegetable fat)

1/3 vanilla stick and a few drops of vanilla extract

20 gram sugar

2 gram gelatin + 14 ml cold water

1. Add cold water in gelatin and stir until it dissolves and leave until it hardens.
2. Put soy milk, heavy cream, vanilla seeds and sugar in a pot and simmer it.
3. Turn off the stove right before boiling, add in and mix well the hardened gelatin.
4. Strain the mixture in a bowl with spout and add in vanilla extract.
5. Pour the mixture in cup containers and chill them in the fridge for about 30 minutes or more.

*Different way of adding gelatin: Add gelatin powder into water and mix it well. Microwave it for 30 seconds and add it into the soy milk mixture. Let it cool in the fridge.

Brown Sugar Syrup (Kuromitsu)

35 gram brown sugar

15 gram soft brown sugar

50 ml water (about 3 tsp)

1. Simmer the sugar and water over low heat until it thickens but remove from the stove as soon as it starts to thicken to make smooth syrup. Never mix it until it heats up (makes bubbles) to avoid the sugar from getting solid.
2. Pour the syrup over the pudding when it's ready or make this syrup first before the pudding and pour it at the bottom of each pudding container to be chilled together with pudding.

Strawberry Milk and Vanilla Chiffon Cake

Used the same recipe as the vanilla chiffon cake but with strawberry milk glaze on top.

Strawberry milk glaze:
2 tbs strawberry compote
2tbs milk
1 tsp condensed milk
125 gram powder sugar
3/4 tsp squeezed lemon

Blueberry Smoothie

Ingredients:
100 grams blueberry
180 grams yogurt (sweetened)
60 ml milk
Squeezed lemon

Just blend them all together. How easy and yummy is that!