Puffy Puff From The Puffy Makcik

Hi all! I know it has been a long time since I last blogged. I was caught up with work, work, work and never ending work. As usual, cooking is always my escapism from all the daunting responsibilities at work. Whenever I feel like my head is going to explode, I will venture into the kitchen. Call me awkward, but I always find the kitchen to be a place where I can seek some solace.

As an ardent recipe collector and avid recipe blogs enthusiast, I feel really grateful to have discovered an amazing ingredient called 'puff pastry'. Yes! This ingredient is cheap, user-friendly and guarantees a superb outcome. I've used the 'Kawan' brand puff pastry. It costs RM3.49per packet of 10 pieces. It's very versatile because all you need to do is to prepare fillings that suit your liking. Here are some photos of my experiment using puff pastry.

MINI CHEESY SAUSAGE PUFF

TUNA PUFF

Here's the recipe if you feel like trying. Since I've discovered puff pastry, I always make sure that I have it stored in the freezer in case I need to prepare something for supper. Nope! You've guessed it wrong! Not for my kids, but mainly for my food critic. Who else? My hubby, of course!

To make these simple but satisfying puffs, you will need :
A packet of puff pastry (Size : 5'x5')(thawed for 20 minutes)
10 cheese sausages ( cut into threes) or you can use Ayamas Mini sausages
one egg
2 tbsp of fresh milk ( I used low-fat)
some butter

Method:

1. Preheat the oven at 175C.
2. Take out a piece of puff pastry. Using a small knife, divide into three equal pieces.
3. Then, place a piece of the cut sausage on the pastry and roll until all the sausage is covered.
4. Cut diagonal lines on top of the pastry.
5. Repeat Step 3 and 4 until all pastry and sausages have been used.
6. Line your baking tray with aluminium foil and grease with butter.
7. Place your rolled up sausages on the tray.
8. Beat the egg and mix with the milk.
9. Brush the egg mixture on your sausage rolls.
10. Bake until golden brown for 20 minutes/ lesser, depending on your oven.

* If you want to make tuna puff instead, divide the pastry into two and put the filling on one half of the pastry. Fold the remaining half over the filling and use a fork to seal the edges. A small can of Ayam Brand Chilli Tuna would be more than enough. Make sure to drain the oil to prevent your pastry from becoming soggy.

Food Does Bring People Together

Through facebook, this friend of mine managed to locate me after more than five years of not meeting one another. She's my junior both at secondary school as well as in college. In short, both of us end up as teachers! Started with a simple hello in facebook, it continued with chatting and later, phone conversations. Finally, we decided to meet and I invited her for lunch at my place.

Since I am aware of the fact that she is a superb baker and bakes wonderful cupcakes, I was kind of worried of what to prepare for her. I gave her a call and she mentioned 'masak asam'. I'd expected this for both of us are Malaccans. There could not be another appropriate dish to celebrate our 'mini' get-together. We chatted over lunch and it was time for dessert. I served Mini Mixed Fruits Tartlets and 'Rojak Buah'. Here are the recipes.

MINI MIXED FRUITS TARTLETS

Ingredients :

For the pastry:

125g butter

60g icing sugar

1 egg yolk

220g flour (sifted)

1/2 tsp vanilla essence

For the custard filling:

1 tbsp flour

1 tbsp custard flour

4 tbsp caster sugar

1 cup / 250ml fresh milk

1 egg

1 tbsp / 30 g butter

1/2 a medium can of mixed fruits (drain the juice)

Method:

• For the pastry, combine all the ingredients and mix well until the mixture forms a soft dough.
• Take a small amount of dough and roll out to 5mm thickness. Using a cookie cutter, cut out rounds to fit into your moulds. Use your fingers to to press the pastry to fit into the well. Use a small knife to trim the edges.
• Heat the oven at 175C. Using a fork, prick holes in the middle of the pastry.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
• Take out from the oven and keep aside to cool.

• For the custard filling, put the flour, custard flour and sugar into a small pot. Using 2 tbsp of the milk, stir until the mixture is well-mixed.
• Put in the egg and mix again.
• Pour in the remaining milk and stir.
• Using a balloon whisk, stir the filling mixture continuously, using a double-boiler method.
• Cook until the mixture thickens and let to cool.

• To assemble your tartlets, spoon/pipe the custard filling onto the tartlet casings and decorate with the mixed fruits.
• Serve your tartlets within 2-3 hours after to prevent them from getting soggy.
• Enjoy!

ROJAK BUAH WITH HOMEMADE SAUCE

Ingredients:

A selection of pineapple, cucumber, 'sengkuang', raw mango, 'jambu air" (cut into bite size pieces)

For the sauce:

1 bottle / 340ml of chilli sauce

1/2 bottle / 175ml of sweet soy sauce

1 medium piece of palm sugar ('gula melaka')

4cm toasted shrimp paste ('belacan')

10 birds eye chillies ('cili api')

1/2 cup of toasted, ground peanuts

Method:

• For the sauce, mix all the ingredients and cook over a medium fire. Stir continuously.
• Cook until the mixture thickens.
• Put your selected fruits into a bowl and pour in the sauce.
• Mix well until all the fruits are evenly coated with the sauce and transfer into a plate.
• Sprinkle the toasted peanuts on the top and enjoy!