a little straw hat

the result didn’t turn out quite like i expected, it actually has a unique texture and tastes very good as long as you reduce the sugar a bit. it has a very crispy on the outside and crunchy on the inside. Too bad that i am not going to make it again because of high sugar content.

材料:

蛋白 ２隻
粟米片 ３５克
可可粉 ３湯匙
砂糖 ８０克
朱古力（刨碎）１２５克 – 所以將原本125克砂糖改為80克

Methods:

1. 焗爐預熱 １６０C，在烤盤上塗油或牛油(或可塗在焗爐紙上)
2. 先將蛋白打至起泡，再慢慢加入砂糖並打至蛋白企身
3. 將壓碎粟米片和朱古力輕軾拌入蛋白料內，攪拌混勻
4. 將大約 ２茶匙量的脆糖料放在烤盤上，每個之間要有２公分距離，以１６０C烤２５-３０分鐘或觸摸時是乾而硬實的，然後撒上可可粉，5. 移放在鐵架上待冷即可

Ref: cookeasy

I remember it tasted just like melty kiss even though I used Nestle and Hershey chocolates, not the expensive brands. I did not add any liquor as usual, because it is difficult to get a small bottles. Anyway, it still tasted good.

Ingredients: (1/2 inch 128 pcs)

Bittersweet Chocolates 300g
Orange liquor 2 tbs
Light Cream 1 + 1/2 c
Coco powder 30g

Methods:

1. Chop chocolate into small pieces and melt it with a double broiler (of course, I use microwave to do the job)
2. Mix in light cream and coco powder until everything is incorporated, then remove from the stove
3. Add orange liquor into 2.
4. Pour 3. on a sheet pan which is lined with plastic wrap, let it cool and line with another plastic wrap. Cool the chocolate in room temperature until set
5. Remove chocolate from the pan and cut it into squares, covers chocolate blocks with coco powder
6. Remove any exceed coco powder
Tips:

Orange liquor can be replaced with coco liquor / almond liquor / Kuala (I guess I could use Kuala next time because I still have one bottle of it, which was bought 2 year ago, hahahha)

Reference: cheerfulkiki

My brother – Peter who isn’t a big fan of baklava, however, the only chance that I can make baklava is when he is back from school. I strongly believe a perfect family should has at least 4 members, it just makes the cook’s life easier. Preparing Baklava is extremely easy as long as you are generouso enough in “pouring” the butter in, actually, a good pastry brush is very important too. I recently got a Mario Batali Silicone Basting Brush on amazon.com which I thought is a pastry brush. Although there is nothing wrong with the brush, and it is actually doing its job pretty well, I know once I found a good bristles brush, it would be time to say “Ciao” to Mario Batali.

p.s. After reading the book called Heat, I feel Mario Batali is more like a businessman than a chef. Anyway, a chef cannot be succeed without money.

Ingredients: (based on 1/2 pack of thephyllo dough)

For the Syrup:
1 cup sugar
1 cup honey
1/2 cup water
3 tablespoon lemon juice
lemon zest (optional)

Filling and Dough:
1/2 pound walnuts, or a combination of walnuts, pistachios, and almonds
3/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 pound phyllo, thawed according to package instructions

Methods:

To make the syrup:

1. Combine the sugar, honey, water, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a medium saucepan.
2. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved.
3. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the syrup is slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove the lemon zest and set aside to cool.

To make the filling and dough:

1. Finely chop the nuts. In a mixing bowl, combine the nuts, cinnamon, and salt and stir well to combine.
2. Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan.
3. Using a pastry brush, lightly coat a 9-by-13-inch or 10-by-15-inch baking dish with some of the melted butter.
4. Open the package of phyllo and lay the thin sheets on a clean work surface next to your baking dish.
5. Cover the sheets with a piece of plastic wrap or a lightly damp kitchen towel.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

1. Place one of the sheets of phyllo in the bottom of the buttered baking dish and lightly brush with some of the melted butter. Repeat this procedure for a total of 7 layers.
2. Spread 3/4 cup of the nut mixture evenly over the buttered phyllo sheets.
3. Repeat again with 7 more sheets of phyllo, buttering each layer as before, and top these sheets with another 3/4 cup of the nut mixture.
4. Continue this layering process, buttering 7 sheets of phyllo and topping each 7 sheets with 3/4 cup of the nuts, until you have used all of the nut mixture.
5. Layer any remaining sheets of phyllo on top, buttering between each layer, until all of the phyllo sheets have been used.
6. Use a sharp knife to cut the layered phyllo into diamond-shaped pieces.

Bake the baklava until golden brown, about 40 minutes.

1. Remove from the oven, set aside on a wire rack to cool 5 minutes.
2. Using a ladle or small measuring cup, drizzle the cooled syrup over the warm baklava.
3. Allow to stand several hours before serving.

Reference: foodtv