Bites from other blogs

Exam preparation has left me with no time to bake. But I enjoy trawling through food blogs to save recipes for another time when I am free to bake. This just so happens to be in 2 weeks, which is when my baking companion Natalie will be around!

Until then, these are a few recipes that have caught my eye in the food blogosphere.

Nutella Palmiers

From Handle the Heat

Only two ingredients to this easy dessert. Yes, I like simplicity. And I like Nutella.

Microwave Cheesecake

From Cooking by Ruza123

I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this: Microwave. Cheesecake. There was the "most dangerous recipe" with microwave chocolate cake, but this is just as sinful. The recipe's in Croatian but a quick translate revealed quite a simple recipe, using a mixer, baking dish, your hands, and a microwave.

Pandan Coconut Muffins

From Melting Wok

Something about this caught my attention. Maybe because it was green. To me, green translates into pandan, which is something I've grown up smelling/eating/drinking. My Dad makes amazing pandan chiffon cake, and this recipe seems like miniature versions of it.

Cinnamon Chocolate Feather Pudding

From Life's a Feast

Winter (which has just started here in the Southern Hemisphere) reminds me of warm and gooey desserts, so there is nothing quite like good ol' fashioned pudding to warm up the cold nights. Winter is also the time for weight gain.

Momofuku Crack Pie

From Momofuku for 2

I have heard so much about Momofuku and its head chef David Chang. There is no way I can ever visit the restaurant because: A) It's super pricey, B) It's in New York City, and C) Apparently you have to order everything in advance. All of this intrigues me. From my scant research, Momofuku has six concept restaurants: Momofuku Noodle Bar, Ssäm Bar, Ko, Milk Bar, and the most exclusive of all, Má Pêche, in which reservations have to be made at least 3 months ahead. The recipe above comes from Momofuku for 2, a mere foodie's attempt at cooking every recipe from the Momofuku cookbook. In complete contrast to the earlier recipes I've posted, the Momofuku Crack Pie is no simple, easy, two-ingredient recipe. Hell no. There's a lot of hype surrounding this pie - its name as well as its taste - and the only way to see what all the fuss is about is by trying it. Maybe. As I said before, I like simplicity.

Success comes in the form of brownies

After two failed attempts, I finally managed to bake something by myself that was, a) not burnt and b) edible. Everyone's tastebuds can stop crying now.

What I made one afternoon were a simple batch of brownies for a friend. I was so nervous throughout baking this as my failure rate has been incredibly high and seeing that these were for a friend, I had to be extra cautious. Which meant extra pressure. Perhaps pressure was what made me super pedantic (more so than usual), that I measured out everything exactly and made sure that I followed the recipe word for word (unlike this).

Peanut Butter and Nutella Brownies
(Adapted from The Craving Chronicles)

Ingredients:

• ½ cup butter, melted
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup plain flour
• ¼ cup cocoa powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 4 tbsp (¼ cup) peanut butter (chunky or smooth)
• 4 tbsp (¼ cup) Nutella

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line 8×8 inch or 7×11 inch pan with baking paper.
2. Measure the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a small bowl and whisk to combine.
3. Using an electric mixer, cream the sugar with the melted butter. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then add in the vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
4. Put the Nutella and peanut butter in a small bowl and microwave until runny. Fold into brownie mix (don't completely combine the mixture if you want visible streaks of Nutella and peanut butter to appear on the brownie crust).
5. Pour batter into pan and bake for 25-30 minutes, until top forms a crust.

Print-friendly version of recipe here.

These brownies are not like your usual rich and fudgey brownies as they are fluffier and less dense. This may have been achieved through the use of an electric mixer, which the original recipe didn't call for.

If you live in New Zealand, the taste of these brownies are similar to Farmbake's peanut brownie cookies. Which are not bad if you're a fan of those biscuits. For me, I wish it was a tad more peanut buttery, but that's just being nitpicky. I should accept these little victories for as long as they last!