Rat-a-tat-tat

Those of you who are aware of the Chinese Zodiac and the lunar calendar would know that this year is the year of the rat.

Yes, that's right, the same rodent whose celebrity status shot up last year as kids and adults alike lapped up the delicious animation Ratatouille as if it was the best stew ever.

And it so happens that I am a rat. Yes siree. I'm one of those...

those pesky creatures who raid your garbage cans, and of course, I love cheese. But I'm smart enough not to fall for those silly mouse-traps.

Ah-ha, so now you know, I'm actually a rat blogger.

Hey, don't give me that look of disbelief. If a rat can be a chef and run his own French restaurant, why can't I have a blog of my own?

Aren't you so biased! So what if Remy's now a Hollywood superstar. Heck, I can have what he's having. He's just lucky!

Okay, so maybe I'm going cuckoo. Or maybe I'm just so fascinated by these rat pastries:




Yep, aren't they super cute? They're also edible. Which is a pity. I just want to keep them forever. My fellow rat cookie friends.

By the way, I wasn't kidding when I said I am a rat. It's just that hmmm I don't have whiskers, I don't have a tail and unlike your typical neighourhood rat, I'm not small... no no no... I'm tall, quite tall. All 1.7m of it. So maybe if I'm a rat, I'll probably represent my town in rat basketball. Hmmm.... and I'll be the most popular rat because I can reach that top cupboard - ya ya, I know where you all hide your goodies. All those delicious chocolate chip cookies, Tim Tams, jelly beans and Pringles... Don't you pretend!

Ha, I see that, I see you rolling your eyes! Okay, maybe I can never be a real rat. But it's okay. I think I'm glad I'm human. But it won't hurt to be a cute rat, not unlike this cute little cookie:



Let's give him a name shall we? Hmmm... Mr. Cat.

Haha. that'll be really funny. No, that's not funny. That's lame.

How about Mr. Snook. Yes that fits better.

So about Mr. Snook - you see... some baker (from a stall at Old Airport Road I think!) was feeling creative and decided to create Mr. Snook and his merry friends. Then my neighbour (she lives next block) was so sweet and she bought a box of them rat friends and gave it to us.

My mum used to babysit her grandson Timmy.

Ah Timmy's one adorable child. Very creative and very smart. He's now 8. He likes to draw as well. And so when we were busy eating up Mr. Snook's friends, Timmy decided to draw a portrait.

And here it is:



A portrait of Mr. Snook. Okay, it doesn't look much. But hey it's pretty accurate. Wait till you put Mr. Snook next to his 2D likeness:



Not bad eh? Okay perhaps the nose could have been pointier. But hey, it's pretty good!

Haha... and I was that much amused. So amused that I had to take photos.

I wish I had the time and patience to make cute goodies like these.

Maybe I should try it out. When I have time. Oh by the way these rats were stuffed with pineapple paste. Yep, they were rat versions of your typical pineapple tarts.

In case you were also wondering.... yes, Mr. Snook and his friends are dead. They went to pastry heaven.

Timmy ate them all....



hahaha... okay I lied. Not all... But he did eat Mr. Snook.

Oh well, at least I have this blog post to remember him by....

R.I.P Mr. Snook.

Pistachio Cocoa Nibs Cookies

How big a chocolate fan are you?

If you love chocolate as much as I do, then I'm sure you would have thought about how pure chocolate tastes like. When I mean pure, I mean straight from the source. You know, the cocoa beans from the glorious cocoa fruit.

The last time I saw a real cocoa fruit was eons ago. I was at a zoo or a park and they had actual cocoa fruits. The guide opened one up and boy oh boy, you can really smell the euphoric scent. Well it's pure euphoria to me of course, because I love chocolate.

So imagine my excitement when I got a box of unopened Scharffen Berger cocoa nibs from my boss. She thought I would probably put it to good use in my baked goods. So that's what I did! At the risk of sounding totally nuts, I'd say that it's the first time I've ever seen and used pure cocoa nibs and that box was like pure gold to me.

Okay, yes I like to exaggerate, so sue me :D

But seriously, I've only ever tasted cocoa nibs in chocolate bars. It was really cool to actually have actual cocoa nibs to play with. So I got down to googling recipes that used cocoa nibs. There were a few, and most of them involved nuts, and cookies. That was perfect because I love nuts. I mean, how can a nutty person like me not love nuts? But that's another story.

In the end, I decided to use this Pistachio Cocoa Nibs Cookies recipe from Tartelette.

I was rather delighted to be finally baking again after so long. I'm sure you've noticed how my recent posts never have any new recipes or baking endeavours. No, it's not that I've lost my baking 'touch'. haha, god no, I will always love baking. I've just been too busy. And I need a new oven! It's tiring to keep going to my aunt's place when I want to bake. I'm going to save up and try to get a decent oven soon. As much as I treasure my Dad's trusty Moulinex oven, I know I can make do with a bigger better one.

And so, back to my cookies! Yes yes, baked using my aunt's excellent Brandt oven. They turned out great - loved the taste but I think it was a bit too crumbly. Too much butter perhaps?

Nonetheless, they're great when eaten with coffee or tea in the morning

It is really intriguing how the taste from the cocoa nibs actually matches the nutty undertones of the pistachios. At first bite, I only noticed the crunchiness but as I ate more, I realised that the light bitter notes of the cocoa nibs actually balances out perfectly.

That said, all this reminds me of how baking is really a science and how fun it can be when you play around with new ingredients and learn how it works. And that Eureka moment that comes along when you marry two or three or four ingredients together and it actually works! That's pure bliss. Yes, these are words spoken from a person who truly loves to bake and has an equal passion for consuming baked goods.

MMmmm...

Now these rock. Time to find other delicious cocoa nibs recipes. I still have some left. Or if you have a great recipe, do email or leave a comment!

By the way, Happy Lunar New Year to you all!

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Pistachio Cocoa Nibs Cookies

1 cup raw skinned pistachios, finely chopped
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup cocoa nibs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tb. Cognac

Combine the butter and sugar, in bowl of electric mixer and beat on high speed until smooth and creamy (1 minute). Add the vanilla and Cognac. Beat in the pistachios and cocoa nibs. Add all the flour at once. Beat on low speed until flour is incorporated.
Form dough into 12-inch log about 2 inches thick. Wrap in parchment and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. At this point you can freeze the log for up to 3 months.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Use a sharp knife to cut the cold dough log into 1/4 inch thick slices. Place cookies at least 1 1/2 inches apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the cookies are light golden brown at the edges. Let cookies firm up on the pans for about 1 minute before transferring them to a rack to cool completely. Try to save some for the day after, they taste even better 24 hours later. The cookies can be stored in airtight container for at least 1 month.

Makes about 2 dozens

The day I baked 800 cookies...

Someone once asked me if I'd actually bake for my own wedding (in the distant distant future) and I gave a hopeful answer, saying that I just might!

I didn't give much thought about my very optimistic answer until recently.

A bride-to-be ordered a total of 800 cookies from me to give away as gifts on her wedding and I agreed to do it. It did help that she contacted me like a loooong time ago, earlier this year. So I should have planned the entire process out to a T yes?

Well no, I didn't take into account that I would have school still, in November! But I was really keen to brighten up someone's happy day so I just stuck to my guns.

haha... this experience did make me think twice about ever baking for my own wedding. I don't think I'd have the energy to do that, as much as I'd love to. It's a tedious and tiring process especially if you don't own an industrial oven!

Once again, I baked at my aunt's place, borrowing her fantastic Brandt oven and KitchenAid. And with the help of my two fantastic friends Vivian & Tek Xin, I managed to bake the 800 chocolate cookies in a span of about 10 hours. I cannot imagine how long it would have taken if I had do shape all the cookies myself!

I have to thank my dear Dot for designing the sweet tag as well... and my sister! My sister who helped me cut all the tags and put the ribbons through them. It was a long drawn process but it was done do beautifully.

I'm blessed to have amazing family and friends who won't bat an eyelid when I ask for help. Thank God!

So in the end, the 200 packets (4 cookies in each pack) were nicely packed and tagged with matching ribbons and the bride collected them the day after. The fresh cookies travelled off and it was the last I had seen of them.

This project was no doubt fun and exciting but it was also really exhausting and it didn't help that I had a paper due the same day the cookies were due. Talk about bad timing! But I managed to tackle both and I can say that both went fine.

I heard from the bride that the guests liked the cookies. I'm glad they did. I was actually rather worried. I mean, it's one thing to bake for one, but another to bake for hundreds.

So anyway here's some snapshots of the packaged cookies:




Everything came together nicely....



Chocolate cookies packed and baked with lotsa love....



Congratulations Hwee Yee & Zhi Han! Here's to a blissful marriage!

Bakin' & bakin'

Been baking for 4 days straight but it feels as though I've been baking for weeks!

A typical day begins with me taking the butter out of the fridge at about 7am and me going back to sleep for a bit. I wake at 9am then start to prep the ingredients. The flour gets sifted, the eggs get beaten, the muffin pans get lined and I get my apron and start to get ready for the day ahead.

Surprisingly, things haven't been that hectic. I'm usually done before 6pm. It's been smooth sailing as well - thanks to Dot :) She manages almost all of the packaging. We're pretty satisfied with the way things are going. I've gotten positive feedback about our goods.

But of course, we always appreciate more feedback. So you, if you have bought our stuff and tasted them, please feel free to leave comments ya...

Here's more shots for you to munch on...



Sprinkling crumble topping onto the blueberry muffins.

Man oh man, there's nothing more exciting than exploded blueberry muffins.

Dot and I go ga-ga over them:



I guess their name: Blueberry Burst is befitting!

Then there's our Swirly Whirly Nutella Cupcakes.



I have so much fun doing the swirls. That's the best part :)

I get a kick out of seeing the final product after it gets baked.



There are alot more photos but I'll post them up another time.

For more information, visit my Cocoa & Butterscotch site. We have some cool wallpapers you can download from there too! :)

Tata...

Cocoa & Butterscotch bakin'

Sorry for the lack of updates.

Dot and I have been really busy. Try and imagine two girls trying to bake cookies and cupcakes by the hundreds and you'll understand why I don't have time to blog!

The July Bake Sale has started - the baking I mean.

Last month I collected orders for 5 items and I'm distributing the goods this week and next. It's a huge feat but we'll manage. I'm just glad I'm not alone this time round. Dot has been really patient and really helpful. She's my lovely assistant. Without her help, I think I'd have died. haha. Thanks babe, love ya!

So anyhow, here's some snapshots so you have an idea just what we've been up to:



That's our Skippety Nuts cookie - loads of them.

And here's how our jars look like...


Cocoa & Butterscotch - Together We will make this world a HAPPY, YUMMY place!



:)

All right, back to the kitchen to slave over the hot oven and my aunt's beautiful dutiful KitchenAid.

Cheerios!

SHF #27 - Chocolate By Brand

Good chocolate is expensive. Or not?

I do think that the best chocolate might not necessarily be the priciest one. Many people might beg to differ but I stand by my statement. You see, sometimes we're so blinded by brand that we fail to recognise the underdogs.

Perhaps it's just my inclination to always support the underdog brands or my innate allergic reaction to conformity. When I try something, I don't judge it based on the brand - I'm fair.

That doesn't mean I don't like well-known brands such as Valrhona, Lindt or Green & Black's. Their chocolate rocks but I do fancy experimenting with other lesser-known brands. Seriously, I conclude that one can find good chocolate in the most unlikely places.

And I'm going to talk about it in this post since the theme for Sugar High Friday #27 is Chocolate by Brand. Hosted by David 'The Chocolate Guy' Lebovitz, I was really excited when I found out about the theme. Thanks David!

The chocolate in question is Carrefour's Dessert Chocolate. I know I know, the packaging looks simple and unassuming. But wait till you unwrap it:



Something mysterious lies within and it's 52% dark.



I suppose it's just me and my love affair with the dark. Dark chocolate soothes me, it heightens my senses and man, it's too good to be replaced with anything else. There's nothing like a good bar of dark chocolate.

Alot of times, when I bake cookies that call for chocolate chips, I immediately replace them with chocolate chunks. I always have a few bars of Carrefour Dessert Chocolate in my refridgerator because I always have the urge to bake these chocolate chunk cookies whenever I have the time. I've used Carrefour's chocolate to make fondue and truffles. They always turn out great and I've stuck to the Carrefour brand ever since.

I don't remember when I started using Carrefour's Dessert Chocolate. I think it was 3 years ago when I started to bake avidly. That was about the time Carrefour came to Singapore. There are currently two outlets here. I love Carrefour because of the French and international products the carry. Alot of times, they have stuff that I find hard to find at NTUC.

Usually people scoff at homebrands but truly, Carrefour's chocolates are a force to be reckoned with. Call me biased if you wish, but I am a firm believer of quality and am not blinded by brands. Yes, it might be cheaper than branded chocolates (SGD$4.90 for two 200g bars) but it suits me fine. I think it gives my cookies that extra omph.



That's how big I chop them chocolates. I don't believe in scrimping when you bake chocolate chunk cookies. The more chocolate the merrier! Chocolate chips just doesn't do it for me. I think they are toooo tiny!

My cookie dough loves its marriage to Carrefour's Dessert Chocolate....



In order to get mighty fine chocolate cookies, you need good chocolate and I have found that in Carrefour.

Oh what would I do without their chocolates?

Perhaps then, I wouldn't have the yummiest chocolate chunk cookies.



What's so thrilling about these cookies? Those who have tried them will know what I'm about to describe. These cookies contain the chocolate chunks well and one bite brings you closer to chocolate heaven. What's more, they're easy to make! I won't deny that it's not the most perfect cookie but right now, I've been baking them so often that it becomes second nature. My friends eyes widen with excitement when I bring them some and I find joy in seeing others enjoy these delights. I've sold these cookies in previous bake sales as well. People seem to love them, so I hope you will try them out and put a smile on someone else's face :)

With good chocolate, you find infinite possibilities.

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Chocolate Chunk Cookies

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
200g bittersweet chocolate, cut into chunks


Directions:

Set your oven temperature to 180 degree celcius.

Cream together butter and sugars until smooth. Add egg and vanilla and blend in.

Mix the rest of the dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate chunks.

Drop cookie dough onto a greased baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.