Cranberry Coconut Rolls

Remember the Coin Bread I baked recently? Well... it is part 2 of what I did to the balance of the dough that I stashed into the freezer.

I turned them into Cranberry Coconut Rolls!!!!!!!!

This bun/roll is inspired from the recipe "Raisin Coconut Rolls" by my aunt, Amy Beh (the Celebrity Chef) in the column "Cook's Nook" published in The Star newspaper on 10th March, 2010.

Amy Beh (Celebrity Chef, Cook Book Author)

I did not follow the original recipe by her as I used my Coin Bread dough and replaced raisins with cranberries as the latter is preferred by my kids.

This is my version of the Rolls.

Cranberry Coconut Roll

Ingredients

1 portion of the Coin Bread dough

1 small egg

1 tbsp honey

20gm soft brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon powder

20 gm cold butter, cut into thin strips

50 gm cranberries

25 gm desiccated coconut

1/2 tsp salt

Method :

• Cover the dough with cling wrap or damp towel and let it prove till double in size.
• Punch the dough down to release the air from the dough.
• Shape it into a ball.
• Let them rest for about 10 -15 mins.
• Roll it out to a rectangle of 0.5cm thickness on a lightly floured tabletop.
• Beat the egg and honey together lightly with a fork.
• Brush the rectangular dough with the egg and honey mixture.
• Sprinkle it with most of the cinnamon powder and soft brown sugar (keep a little for the topping)
• Combine the desiccated coconut and salt.
• Keep about 1 tsp of the coconut mixture for topping and spread the rest over the dough.
• Sprinkle the cranberries evenly onto the surface of the dough.
• Place a few strips of butter liberally around.
• Roll the dough tightly into a swiss roll.
• Cut into even portions (about 2 cm).
• Place each portion into a muffin tray lined with paper casing.
• Set aside to proof for another 30-40mins or till doubled in size.
• Brush the top of the buns with the remaining egg mixture.
• Sprinkle the top with the remainder of the coconut, sugar and cinnamon powder.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 180C/350F for 15mins or till golden brown.

The aroma of the freshly baked buns was heavenly. The combination of cranberry with coconut was also good and tasty. My niece and nephew dropped into my home just when the buns were about to be taken out from the oven. They tasted them and love it!!!! So... packed some for them to take home too ;-p

The rest were polished up by us at home by the next morning for breakfast.

Therefore I only managed to take the photo of 1 bun (my share) as the rest are all happily stuffed into the tummies;D

Thanks, Aunty Amy for the inspiration!!!!!

Coin Bread

The name Coin Bread caught my attention while I was browsing the through the Internet. My first impression was this bread must be the shape of a coin. When I saw the image of the bread, I was quite surprised. Maybe from the top elevation it does resemble coins but it is definitely too thick to be called a coin from the side!!

Anyway, due to the simplicity of the recipe, I decided to try it out. The outcome is a yummilicious bread. I added some cinnamon powder to give it a great aroma and sprinkled chopped almonds to provide a crunch to it.

Here is the recipe

Coin Bread (adapted from Angie's Recipe)

Ingredients

300gm Bread flour

300gm Cake flour

10 gm dried instant yeast

6 gm salt

250 ml milk

2 eggs

120 gm sugar (I reduced it to 80 gm)

100 gm butter

Grounded cinnamon

Chopped almond nibs

Method :

• Mix all the ingredients onto a mixer.
• Once the dough is well combined, add in the butter.
• Knead till the gluten is fully developed and the dough is smooth, elastic, non sticky and leave the sides of the mixing bowl.
• Cover the dough with cling wrap or damp towel and let it prove till double in size.
• Punch the dough down to release the air from the dough.
• Shape it into 2 balls.
• Let them rest for about 10 -15 mins.
• Take a ball out and roll it down to a thickness of 2 cm .
• Using a round cookie cutter, cut the dough into rounds.
• Do the same for the other ball of dough.
• Arrange them into two 10 inch pie pan.
• Let it prove for another 45- 60 mins till double in size.
• Brush the top with egg wash. Sprinkle some ground cinnamon and chopped almond nibs on top.
• Bake for about 10-12 mins in a preheated oven of 180C/350F.

Notes :

This bread can be dipped in maple syrup, condensed milk, chocolate sauce or just simply with milk.

I only baked 1 ball of the said dough into coin bread. The other ball of dough was stashed into the freezer for another variation.

Enterpreneur

When I left the rat race 8 years ago to become a full time homemaker,I had secretly planned that one day (after my children are all grown up) I would like to run a little craft store. It had never crossed my mind that the transition into this will happen so soon.

Early this year, I was toying over the idea of starting up my own business. (not that I have plenty of leisure time at home...since I need to tend to my schooling children). The motivation came from an old friend of mine who suggested that I could turn my hobby into a business. I was hesitant at first. However, just before Chinese New Year a gym buddy of mine informed me that her daughter (who has an online webstore) was looking for someone to take over the business as she (and her family) is relocating to Canada. After much considerations and discussions with my other half, I finally decided to dive right in. I have opted for an online store instead of the normal brick and mortar institution due to the flexibilities of working hours. (mind you... online business takes up a lot of your time too!)


So, early this month I officially registered my enterprise "Bag N Craft Trading" with the Companies Commission of Malaysia. With all the requirements fulfilled I took over the webstore
BitsofPink.com. I officially became an Entrepreneur!!! It is a very exciting and interesting phase of my life (having to juggle between my duties and responsibilities as a homemaker and an e-entrepreneur). Spent many hours and late nights getting the store ready. Now... finally I am able to launch my very own online store today.

Here's my new baby ;-p

BitsofPink.com

This store will showcase the very best in fashion accessories. It offers quality products and in-style designs and mostly handcrafted. With the tagline "Adorn Yourself", I strive to put together an array of collectibles that will truly epitomize ones natural charm.

Shhh..here is a little secret....

I have many things up my sleeves , so please drop into my store frequently.

Trust me, you will not be disappointed!!

Chicken Pie with Caramelized Onion Crust

There are many versions of chicken pie and almost every cook in this world would tell you that they have their own version of this very simple yet comforting food.

I made these!!!

My family loves chicken pie and one of the best chicken pie that I have ever made is the one that uses caramelized onion/shallots in its crust. I saw this recipe in Elin's blog (another great cook)

in December last year. Had it earmarked but only managed to try it out last weekend. I must agree with Elin this one is definitely a winner. The sweet aroma of the caramelized onion is a notch up from the normal classic chicken pie.

Here is the recipe:

Chicken Pie with Caramelized Onion Crust (adpted from Elin's)

Ingredients:

Chicken & Mushroom Filling :

1 large chicken breast - diced

1/2 tsp corn flour

1/2 tsp oyster sauce

12 pcs fresh swiss brown mushroom -sliced thick

6 baby corn - diced

1 large carrot - diced

2 large onion - diced

2 sprig italian parley - chopped

2 pips garlic - chopped

1 tin of Campbell cream of mushroom soup mixed with 1/2 cup water

1 tsp black pepper - crushed finely

2 tbsp olive oil

4 hard boiled eggs - quartered

Method :

• Marinate the chicken with oyster sauce and corn flour for 10 mins.
• Mix well the Campbell soup and 1/2 cup water and leave aside.
• In a frying pan, heat up some olive oil.
• Add garlic and onion.
• Saute for 2 mins under low heat till aromatic and soft.
• Add in chicken and the rest of the diced veggies. Stir fry till soft.
• Pour in the Campbell soup and stir till well incorporated with the veggies and the mixture is a thick consistency.
• Add in parsley and turn off the heat.
• Let the fillings cool down to room temperature then chill in the fridge for at least 30 mins before using.
• This filling can be prepared a day in advance.

Crust

Ingredients

2 shallots - thinly sliced

3 cups plain flour

1.5 tbsp sugar

2/3 cup iced water

180 gm butter

Method:

• Slice shallots as thinly as possible and toss with a large pinch of salt. Salt helps to break down the cell wall and speed up the carameliazatio.
• Add 2 tsp olive oil to a pan over medium heat and fry the onions till very soft and light beige all the way through.
• Allow them to cool to room temperature then put them into the freezer.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degree F.
• In a bowl, mix the flour and sugar together.
• Cut the frozen butter into small cubes.
• Rub the butter lightly into the flour mixture until it resembles bread crumbs.
• Add in 1/4 cup ice water and mix the mixture into a dough. Do not over work the dough.
• Divide the dough into 2 portion, for them into balls and wrap with cling wrap.
• Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Lightly flour the work surface and roll out a ball of dough to 1/8" thick.
• Fold the top edge to the center then fold the bottom edge to the center.
• Fold the rounded bits to the left and right over to make an envelope shaped rectang;e.
• Flip the dough and roll this out trying to keep the rectangle shape of about 12 " x 8".
• Cut this into six 4" squares.
• Return them to the fridge and repeat the same with the other ball of dough.
• When you have 12 square pieces, gently press each piece into a muffin tin and fill with the filling.
• Fold the 4 edges of the dough together to close off the top of each pie.
• Brush the tops with egg yolk and cream wash then put them in the oven.
• Bake for 15 - 20 mins or till the filling is bubbly and the crust is golden brown.
• Remove from oven and allow to cool.
• Serve warm with salad.