What

I have this intense urge to write, to create something beautiful with words. But, I can't figure out, what should I write about.

Do I even have the capability to create something beautiful with words? Hmmm..  I really don't know. I guess, I need some inspiration, but then again, from where?

sigh!

Another baking adventure!

Well... being lazy for two days sort of fills me with lots of pent up energy and while I was looking for a nice Banana Bread recipe, I came across this really easy recipe for mini tarts at Salad in a jar and had to try it, with a few tweaks of course!


So while the Banana Muffins were in the oven, this is what I did


Fresh Fruit and Cream Mini Tarts
(Prep Time: 1 hour, Baking Time: 22 mins, Makes: 15-18 mini tarts)


Ingredients



Tart Crust:
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour (maida)
1/4 cup castor sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, chilled
1 egg yolk



Cream Filling:
2-3/4 cups milk (I used 2 cups milk + 3/4 cup heavy cream but any type will work)
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch or corn flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 egg yolks
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract



Directions
Crust:
Combine flour, sugar and salt in food processor or just whip it using your beater.


Cut butter into 8 slices and add to flour, pulsing several times until mixture resembles oatmeal. Add egg yolk. (Go ahead and add the egg white if you want a sturdier but not quite as tender crust.)

Getting there...

Pulse until all ingredients are moistened but not yet a solid ball. (If mixture too dry, add a bit of cream or a table spoon of milk.) 


Lightly press into a ball, cover and chill 30 minutes.

Ready to go into the fridge

Pull off small amount of dough and press into molds with fingers being careful to keep thickness consistent. Use a knife to trim off any extra at the top. Freeze for at least 30 minutes. I wish I had taken a picture of my perfect tart shells... with all that happened after this!


Place frozen tart shells on cookie sheet and cook at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Watch carefully as the time can vary according to the thickness of the crust. This is where the recipe was unclear. In the recipe she uses plastic moulds which of course can't be baked. So I used plastic moulds, froze the shells and then tapped them out to bake them.. and this is what happened

My tart shells became tasty biscuits!:(

Cream Filling:
Add milk, sugar, cornstarch, salt, and egg yolks, (in that order) to blender. Blend and pour into a microwave-safe bowl. 


Microwave 6 minutes on HIGH, whisking until smooth after 3 minutes, then every minute thereafter.
Add butter and vanilla and whisk until smooth.


Assembly:
Fill each baked tart shell with cream filling. Top with fruit of your choice. Melt 1/4 cup jam and use a brush to dab some shininess on each piece of fruit. It’s OK if some drips onto the cream.  Now, this is what was supposed to happen, but given that my shells were now biscuits.. this is what really happened.

Don't go on the looks, it passed the taste test! tasted just like the best tarts ever

what a nice end to a lazy weekend.....

The Banana Walnut muffins and the nearly there fruit tarts.

And just in case things went really belly up.. there's always Hello Panda!

Hello! Hello Panda

LOL! Am going to go buy the metal shell shapes and try this recipe again... this time.. it will LOOK and taste good.


Amateur experimenter says Good Bye, good night and Allah hafiz

A baking experiment.. errr.. adventure on a lazy Sunday

Hello!


Just realised how busy I've been when I saw that my last post was sometime in 2011! Well.. after a long time had a completely lazy weekend, where all I did was sleep, eat , read and then sleep some more. Felt like eating some Banana Bread so decided to make some. got inspiration from Tyler Florence , tweaked it a bit and decided to use my newly acquired muffin tins. 


Well.. let the adventure begin

The finished product.. but lets not get ahead of ourselves!

Banana Walnut Bread/ Muffin 
(Prep time: 10 minutes, Cooking time: 20 mins, Enough For : 12-18 muffins


Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour (maida)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 overripe bananas
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup walnut, chopped
• 1 table spoon coffee powder or coffee essence (I used coffee essence as a couple of my colleagues are allergic to coffee) (optional. This is just to give it a heavenly smell)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 


Either butter a muffin tin or use cupcake cases.


In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. 


Mash 2 of the bananas with a fork in a small bowl so they still have a bit of texture. 


With an electric mixer whip the remaining bananas ,sugar and coffee together
(Warning: Looks very yucky, but tastes fantastic... so hands off!).

Bananas and brown sugar.

Add the melted butter, eggs, and vanilla and beat well.


Mix in the dry ingredients a little at a time, till incorporated. Fold in the nuts and the mashed bananas with a spatula.

Once all the ingredients are mixed

 
Spoon the batter into the muffin tins to fill them about halfway. Give them a rap on the counter to get any air bubbles out.

Ready for the tin

Ready for the oven

Bake until a toothpick stuck in the muffins comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.

Warning!: May encourage pilferage!

Let cool for a few minutes before turning the muffins out. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Viola! The Banana Walnut Bread masquerading as muffins!

I've always loved baking. Mixing the ingredients, looks kind of watery or too tough.. but then it goes into the over and the magic happens!

This was my attempt at baking after a couple of years and the first time I've ever tried this. Was very tasty... but now, can't wait to experiment!

Cheers!