Now Tossing: Pizza Dough

Today is the new milestone of my pizza chef career. This evening, I made several successful pizza dough toss for the first time. It flew up in the air, circles, and landed on my palm. This Youtube Video gave the inspiration on how to learn to toss pizza. And to avoid waste pizza landing on the floor, I practice by tossing a small bath towel :D.

While it is pretty easy to learn the technique of pizza tossing from the video, and using towel as a safe learning tool, making a good pizza dough that is toss-able will test your patience. It is a matter of making the right dough, that elastic enough, thus would not tear when it lands on your hands. Experience will tell you the right mix of water and flour. And if you have to error, error on the wetter side, because the mix will dry up during the kneading process.

This is the dough that marks my new milestone. It was only 1/3 of its size when I finish kneading it last night. The tile under the plastic container is 30x30cm.


The tossed pizza dough soon become 3 nice pan of pizza: The Quattro Formaggi, Sweet Corn, and Cocktail sausage pizza.

This is the recipe I follow for the dough, thanks to Rosa for allowing me to repost her recipe. A little bit modified based on my experience.

~ BASIC PIZZA DOUGH ~
Original recipe taken from “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” by Peter Reinhart.

Makes 6 pizza crusts (about 9-12 inches/23-30 cm in diameter).

Ingredients:
4 1/2 Cups (20 1/4 ounces/607.5 g) Unbleached high-gluten (%14) bread flour or all purpose flour, chilled
1 3/4 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Instant yeast
1/4 Cup (2 ounces/60g) Olive oil or vegetable oil (both optional, but it’s better with)
1 3/4 Cups (14 ounces/420g or 420ml) Water, ice cold (40° F/4.5° C)
1 Tb sugar - FOR GF use agave syrup
Semolina/durum flour or cornmeal for dusting

1. Mix together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a big bowl
   
2. Add the oil, sugar and cold water slowly and mix well (with hand) in order to form a sticky ball of dough. On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much, though) and if it is too dry add 1 or 2 teaspoons extra water. If you are in doubt, error to the wetter side.
   
3. Once it is well mixed, start kneading. Pull the dough and fold, repeat until the dough springy, elastic, and less sticky
   
4. Flour a work surface or counter. Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.
5. Split the dough into 6 pieces. Gently round each piece into a ball.
6. Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into plastic bag or enclose in plastic food wrap.
7. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to thee days. Take it out from freezer the morning you want to make the pizza, and let it rest for couple of hours before start tossing it
   
8. NOTE: You can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag if you want to save some of the dough for any future baking. In that case, pour some oil (a few tablespooons only) in a medium bowl and dip each dough ball into the oil, so that it is completely covered in oil. Then put each ball into a separate bag. Store the bags in the freezer for no longer than 3 months. The day before you plan to make pizza, remember to transfer the dough balls from the freezer to the refrigerator.

Blue Cheese, Salami & Pepperoni

We still remember the taste of Blue Cheese in the Quattro Formaggi of Warung Italia. The pungent distinctive flavor of Blue Cheese, when mixed with other cheese and proper pizza dough taste heaven. I was prepared to make a Quattro Formaggi, when I found only 3 kind of cheese in the fridge. Insisting on having Blue Cheese on top of a pizza, I made a Triple Formaggi instead. Some trapped air pocket screw the appearance of the pizza, but didn't not affect the taste. Complemented with the slight salty taste of cheddar, the cheese mix is excellent.

The 2nd pan of pizza is requested by Kiko: Salami pizza. The salami wrinkle a little bit when baked - there should be a better way to bake a salami pizza

And the final pan of pizza was decorated with round of Pepperoni. Among all pizza topping I've used, I'm still impressed with the salty taste of pepperoni, which has become my favorite pizza topping.

Photo of our pizza can be found at http://www.pbase.com/bennyc/pizza_venture

Quiche Lorraine : The Guilty Pleasure

I still remember the shabby old patisserie on one famous shopping centre in the old days where I used to hang around after school. This shop quite small with 2-3 round table for coffee cupping and usually deserted. People preferred to take away their pastry instead of sitting down and have chit chat. The display itself was my own feast -young girl with much appetite- : danish pastry with peach, plain croissant, fruit pie, chicken curry pie, strawberry danish, quiche lorraine, etc etc. But the “buttery” smell along the alley gave extra pleasure for me, like my cat when driven by her whiskas pouch dinner.

Instead of buying their famous croissant, I fell in love with the quiche. Small flan pastry, yellow tone with brown spots, the appearance made me drooling already. The creamy taste filling and ham strips combine with delicious outer crust pie made my first bite lasts forever until now. From that time, I used to search or scanned any quiche lorraine displayed when visiting other pattiserie or bakery shop. And I could not find any better than theirs. Some of the pastry maker now bake them unproperly, either too soft or too crusty. And the most intolerable thing: substitute proper cream.

In search of the original one, I pledge myself to explore the recipe from my cookbooks on shelf. Our first quiche turn into overcooked pastry flan. As written, gas marked on 180 C and turn out baking time extended to almost an hour with the overcooked result. We suggest you to set the temperature 200 or 220 C to speed up the process. The tricky parts lies on how to lining perfect pastry over the base. It is one of most important thing because if you failed, the cream mixtures will flow all over the base.

Quiche Lorraine

This open tart originated in the Lorraine region around 16th century. The name quiche come from the german word “kuchen” meaning cake. A quiche can contain many fillings but a quiche lorraine is traditionally made with cream, egg, smoked bacon and is considered a classic of french cuisine

Prep time - 30 min
Cooking time - 1 hr 5 min
Serve 4-6

½ quantity shortcrust pastry (separate recipe)
1 egg beaten

Filling

Oil for cooking
180 g smoked bacon, rind removed and cut into thin strips
3 eggs
Nutmeg to taste
250 ml cream
80 g gruyere cheese grated

1. Lightly grease a 22 x 3.5 cm loose bottomed flan tin. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 3 mm and line the prepared thin. Preheat oven to moderate 180 C, bake blind for 25 minutes or until firm. Remove the beans and paper, and brush the bottom of the pastry with the beaten egg. Bake for another 7 min.
2. To make the filling, heat a little oil in a frying pan. Saute the bacon, drain on paper towels and set aside. Whisk the eggs with the nutmeg and season with salt and pepper. Mix in the cream and strain throuh a sieve.
3. Sprinkle the bottom of the pastry with the bacon and cheese. Gently pour in the egg mixture until the pastry is three quarters full. Bake for about 20-30 minutes or until the filling is well coloured and is set. Serve hot.

Although we have to learn more to lining proper pastry crust, the taste resembles of guilty pleasure kind. Creamy, buttery, with legitimate smoky ham. Bon appetite!

The 6th Pizza

The recipe for the pizza dough called for 6 servings, and last weekend, we only baked 5 pizzas. If you ever wonder what happen to the 6th, I just baked it this evening. I made a progress in so-called my pizza chef career: This time no rolling pin used :D. Although.... I stretch the dough a little bit too thin in some part that, it tears when I tried to move it from the pan.


The Pepperoni is a little bit burnt, thanks to the dead clock in my dining room that screw my baking time. The combination of Mozzarella, Gruyere, and Cheddar should gave a good taste, if mixed with proper portion. The Gruyere gave a slight cow taste, cheddar gave the salty, and the mozzarella bind them all. The mushroom is unnecessary, it ruins the whole appearance of the pizza.

Next time... I'll toss the pizza dough....

Pizza Weekend

In our last trip to Bali, we fell in love with Warung Italia. As the name said, it is an Italian restaurant, serving pasta, pizza and other Italian dishes. It is the pizzas that impress us, with its flaky crusty and delicious cheese. Not only the taste, but also the fancy of the chef preparing the pizza crust; He tossed the round pizza dough up in the air. Obsessed with the taste and the fancy, I pledge myself to made one.

It does not take long to find the recipe from Rosa of Daring Bakers. I went shopping, went home with high spirit, which diminished once I started making the dough. The dough, which will be the base of the pizza, is the key thing that can make or break a pizza. It looks too wet, yet I’m not confident enough to add more flour. So with hesitant, I split the dough into 6, cover it in olive oil, and put it in the fridge, while crossing my finger. I even asked Kiko to cross her finger too.

So there come the moment of truth, after a slight sleepless night of having 6 wasted pizza doughs. I pulled one of the dough and start stretching it, hoping that I can toss it like the fancy chef at Bali did. My first attempt failed, second attempt failed, third attempt, the dough fell into the floor. I gave up and use the rolling pin instead.

We arrange the topping of our first pizza: tomato paste, pepperoni, bell pepper, mozzarella and bacon bits. We throw the pizza into the pre-heated oven, waiting anxiously while looking through the oven. Fifteen minutes later, we feel a slight hope as we saw the sizzling mozzarella. Well, at least the topping is delicious enough.


Our first slice and bite certainly cheer us and remove all doubt. While not comparable to the pizza in Bali, the dough is certainly better than edible. It is excellent, especially for our first attempt. We are anxious and immediately start the 2nd pan, and get even better result with flatter pizza dough.

At the end of the day, we are eating the 3rd pan of pizza, and the next day, I complete our weekend pizza venture with 2 more pans, for a total of 5 pans of pizzas. Most of the pan won’t last for more than 30 minutes.

Panini @ 30k Feet

It might be not a proper Panini, but it certainly taste great. On board Mandala flight RI592, bound for Bali. It is actually still few hours from lunch time, but since I decided to find some stuff to fill my stomach, just in case I won't have a heavy lunch later. So, I ordered a Panini and a cup of Coffee. The stewardess served my coffee while saying "We are heating the Panini". I paid my food and waiting for the food to come.


Moment later, a Panini wrapped in white paper bag was served on the table. It is hot, so I carefully take a peek to the white bread. Carefully, I took the bread out of its wrapping. It smell nothing. From the mark on top, I see that it is being baked with some kind of Panini Press, but it lack of burnt mark. Between the bread, I can see a slice of cheese, and green pesto sauce.

I took a first bite, and happy with the taste of the Panini, chicken and pesto touching my tongue. The chicken fillet is chewy, match the oily pesto sauce. The chicken rolled, then cut, forming 3 thin circle slices of patty-like chicken. The bread is firm, not hard like ordinary aircraft's bread.

I finish my meal, slowly sipping my cup of coffee that began to cool down. It is an ordinary 3-in-1 coffee, nothing worth to tell about. But the whole meals last me few hours until I finally enjoy a good food of Bali

Dining in the Garage? Why Not?

It is not a garage used to park your car (even though I don’t mind dining in one with good food and view). Gourmet Garage, the establishment in Kemang Street, always tickling my curiosity. What kind of restaurant it is that, 3 times I came here; I can’t get a parking space!

So finally, on a day near a long holiday, when Jakarta is deserted by its people, we run from our office to this establishment. As expected, the parking space is empty. I can even choose my parking spot this time :D.

From the menu, we learn that Gourmet Garage is actually formed by 3 restaurants: Jbay, Hiro and Saba. Each of them serves a different menu, from Western to Japanese cuisine. On the first floor is a supermarket, and on 2nd floor is the dining area, where the restaurants located. We pick on a spot near the window in a separate room.

Done with ordering, we look around. In this room, there are several tables, occupied by local and foreigner, busy chit chatting, eating, or waiting for their friends. The roof of this place is constructed by steel bar, visible and painted in black to strengthen the garage environment.

Our lunch started with a plate of Nachos, topped with Jalapeno, cream cheese, salsa and guacamole sauce. The sauce combination gave a very nice sour, hot, creamy, as well as sweet. Very refreshing.


Not long before we finish the Nacho’s, our main course was served: 2 large J Bay Sandwich, and Blue Cheese Burger. The Sandwich is served with French fries and coleslaw. Although taste nice, but nothing special worth to write here. The blue cheese burger on the other hand, leaves some memorable salty taste. The blue cheese and streaky bacon, you get the idea of why it tastes so salty.



I took the last sip of my latte as we pay our bill. To end our lunch, we walk in the supermarket downstairs to get some ingredients for the planned weekend cooking session.

For The Love of Gyoza

Try serving a full plate of moist- neat pleated-oily-good smell of gyoza in front of us. Believe me, for less than 10 minutes you’ll find clean plate without any favor to wash. In Chinese dishes, we recognize similar dishes called Guo Tie, another long time favourites. My friend told me once, the difference between gyoza and guo tie was the filling. If guo tie consists more meat, then gyoza should reserved more vegetables. You can find another guo tie recipes from here.

I still remember my gyoza served with jigoku ramen at Ramen 38, a specialty ramen restaurant in Jakarta. Dipped in vinegar, ginger, and soy sauce, the smell and taste successfully hit me off . Later on, another free flyer gyoza recipes hanging on supermarket rack. I was mumbling to myself, why not? Fortunately when browsing through my finger food book, the recipes was also there so I tried to compare both and practice the combination. Here they are :

Prep Time : 30 min
Cooking Time : 15 min
Makes 35 - 45

250 gr pork mince
250 gr finely shredded and lightly blanched Chinese cabbage with the excess water squeeze out
60 gr fresh leek (or japanese chives: daun bawang wakegi)
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger
¼ cup (60 ml) soy sauce (i used konbu-tsuyu --> see next pic)
1 tbsp rice wine
1 tsp sugar
35 – 45 gow gee wrappers (here you can find the gyoza wrappers in large hypermarket or japanese supermarket)
2 tsp ra-yu (japanese chilli & sesame oil)

Dipping Sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp black chinese vinegar
1 tsp ra-yu

1. Place the pork mince, chinese cabbage, leek/chives, and ginger in larger bowl and mix together. Add the soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, ra-yu, and salt (if necessary-remember: soy sauce is salty enough) to the mixture and mix together very well.
2. Place a gow gee wrapper flat in the palm of your hand, then using your other hand place 2 tsp of the filling mixture into the centre of the wrapper. With wet fingers, bring the sides together to form a half moon shape and pinch the seam firmly to seal it in a pleat. Press one side of the dumplings onto a flat surface to create a flat bottom. This will make the dumplings easier to pan-fry.
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the gyoza to the pan in batches and cook for 1-2 minutes on the flat side without moving, so that the gyoza become brown and crisp on that side. Gradually add 100 ml water to the pan and put the lid on. Steam for 3-5 minutes. Empty the pan and wipe it dry between batches.
4. To make the dipping sauce, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl. Serve with gyoza.

Our Tips :

1. Meat vs vegetables at least 1 : 1. You may add more vegetables if you wish (1 : 1,5)
2. You can make the filling a day before assembling the dumplings. Keep it on the freezer and it will lasts up to 3 months.
3. Blanching the cabbage also make it very watery. My mom suggest to chopped without blanch to minimize the excess water.
4. Be careful on timing to avoid overcook wrappers.

Good luck and have a nice practice!

Farfalle with Prosciutto and Parmesan

This simple pasta dish makes the most of two of Italy’s most famous ingredients – prosciutto, a salt cured ham, and the rich, grainy parmesan. As both of these ingredients are salty, particular care should be taken when seasoning this dish.

Yes, it is a simple dish, and offers impressive combination between rich creme fraiche and flavor of parmesan, so why not dare to try? If you lack of prosciutto, try streaky bacon and smoked ham for substitution.

I have practice this recipe few weeks ago to explore the taste and share a good lunch (although the zabaglione recipe failed, sorry Scal). Rather than liquid cooking cream used for carbonara or alfredo sauce, cream fraiche gives lighter after taste. Pick some rich or fresh starters like bruschetta with parma ham, chorizo tapas, or tomato and balsamic salad.


Prep time 20 min
Cooking time 20 min
Serves 2 – 3
(Recipe in half, original was doubled)

3 tbsp olive oil
200 gr farfalle (pasta bows)
1 large onion, thinly sliced
100 gr mushroom buttons (champignon will be fine), thinly sliced
1 large zucchini (courgettes), cut into batons
1 clove garlic, chopped
75-100 gr prosciutto (I used streaky bacon+smoked ham), cut into strips
150 ml crème fraiche
50 gr parmesan, grated
Fresh basil leaves, to garnish

1. Bring a large pan two-thirds full of water to boil. Add a good pinch of salt and add farfalle to the bubbling water. Stir with a fork and cook according to manufacturer’s instructions until the pasta is al-dente. Pour immediately into a colander then refresh under plenty of cold running water. Leave to drain until needed.

2. Heat a pan over high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion, garlic, mushroom, zucchini, and fry for about 2 minutes, or until the vegetables are lightly coloured. Reduce the heat, add the prosciutto strips and fry for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the crème fraiche and heat the mixture for another 1-2 minutes. Stir in the grated parmesan and season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

3. Add the pasta to the pan, stir to combine and cook briefly to ensure the pasta is heated through. Serve immediately with the fresh basil leaves sprinkled over the pasta.

Happy meal, everyone :)

Raise and Fall: Lusciously Classic Italian Tiramisu

Hello, I’m back now. And pleased to report no such satisfaction rebound once you complete the lesson you have started. All the hassles began with Le Cordon Blue recipe book series when we were looking for simply pasta and suddenly hooked on this tiramisu picture. How could you not fall for quick preparation time, and all you have to do is mixing, dipping, and chilling. So simple, eh? You bet, but there are always tricky step on every recipes.

On 1st attempt we mixed the whipped cream for quite a long time without really understanding the meaning of “stiff peaks”. There goes the blow out, cream separated into water and the whole mixture become crumbly. Oh well, no further choice, we’d have to taste it anyway since making a new one was far beyond expectations. Few hours chilling, and we scoop our spoon onto. Hmm, the taste was less awful than its appearance. Coffee, kahlua, sugar, cheese and broken cream were blended together.

On 2nd attempt, fear of another failure, I tried to beat the cream carefully and still have no idea of stiff peaks forming. Only when the cream began to rise I stopped the mixer and start fold the mixture at once. The result? It became very soft even after chilling. A big grin decorated our faces, now we have tiramisu ice cream instead the real one. Oh, who cares, the taste was still finger lickin’ good anyway.

The 3rd revenge took place last couple week after long pause. Still unsatisfied and wondering how to deal with “stiff peaks” after googling on trial and error suggestion from many recipes tested. Differences between raise and fall were as thin as hair. You just have to managed your eyes and dip your finger into the cream to make sure the stiff peaks have forming. And, your experience never lied then.

Now we have passed the exam and happy with the results. This classic recipe was definitely superior and indulged everyone, and we still promise to make another tiramisu. For our pleasures, or never ending satisfaction to create a good and fancy one.

Classic Italian Tiramisu
(From Le Cordon Bleu Home Collection: Italian)

Layer of sponge biscuits soaked in coffee and kahlua, rich mascarpone cream and a generous dusting of cocoa powder have contributed to the enormous success of this dessert today

Prep time 35 min + chilling
Total cooking time : nil
Serves 4-6

3 egg yolks
120 gr (4 oz) caster sugar
180 gr (5 ¾ oz) mascarpone
300 ml (10 fl oz) cream, for whipping
3 tbsp kahlua
500 ml (16 fl 0z) strong coffee (espresso required), cooled
36 sponge finger biscuits
cocoa powder, for dusting

1. Beat the egg yolks with sugar until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is light. Add the mascarpone and mix well. Beat the cream into stiff peaks and gently fold into mascarpone mixture, then spread a thin layer of the mascarpone cream over the base of a deep 35 cm (14 inch) oval dish.

2. Add kahlua to the coffee. Dip the sponge fingers into the coffee, soaking them well. Depending on the freshness of the biscuits they may require more or less soaking, but be careful not too oversoak. Arrange a layer of sponge fingers close together in the dish – you may need to break them to fit the shape of your dish. Cover with another layer of the mascarpone cream, then another layer of sponge fingers, arranging them in the opposite direction to the first layer. Repeat the layers finishing with mascarpone cream. Smooth the top and keep chilled until ready to serve. Generously dust with cocoa powder just before sevring. Tiramisu is best made several hours in advance so that the flavours have time to blend before serving.



Our tips:

1. The recipe measurement was proven, so better stick to the recipe in details.
2. The whipped cream must be cold enough when mixed to avoid splitting. Better chilled first, but not frozen.
3. Be very careful when whipping the cream and forming “stiff peaks”. You just have to learn to notice, dip your finger to taste it. When you beat too much the cream will split into water and cream.
4. Some recipes would suggest non dairy cream or powder one for anti failure potion.
5. Do not tempted to use instant coffee. Have an extra worth miles by using fine espresso.
6. Do not dip the sponge finger too long otherwise your mixture will be very watery.
7. We use around 24 sponge fingers for the whole recipes.
8. Better serve the tiramisu next day ahead or at least chilled for 12hrs to acquire better taste.
9. Classic tiramisu usually served in glass, or thin dish. If you expect to make the fancy one like those pattiseries used to, search another recipe using gelatin for hardener.

Enjoy your luscious tiramisu!

Pondan Brownies Mix

I once made a very successful brownies, so long ago that I now forgot how it taste, let alone how it made. It was made with flour and melted chocolate, not with one ready mix flour that we use now.

In hope to recall the memory of the brownies, we bake the Pondan Brownies mix. Instruction is simple, should took less than 5 minutes to prepare, although it forgot to mention that, transferring the mix from mixing bowl to the baking pan took at least 5 good minutes.


Before putting it into pre-heated oven, we grated some cheddar, and put a generous amount of almond chunk on top. We maybe set a wrong temperature of the oven that the brownies feels so dry afterwards. It taste just sweet enough, slightly lack of chocolate. Well, at least it is good enough to satisfy the crave for brownies... until I found my good ol' recipe.

Chorizo Tapas

In her frenzy for Tapas, she made a very nice Chorizo Tapas. The smoky and salty taste to Chorizo goes very well with small cut of pan-fried bread with garlic butter. A layer of lettuce add some freshness as well as crunchiness.

Good for starting a dining, or just for evening snacks.

Experimental Maki Sushi

Following our success at Nigiri sushi, and a small practice rolling sausage and bread, we finally decide to make sushi roll, or known as Maki Sushi. We have no time to buy the fish from our favorite supplier, so we use Kani Stick, Zuchini, Lettuce and some Tobiko. The bamboo mat (Makisu) rolled, the sushi cut, and we have our first Maki Sushi, topped with Tobiko.

We still have lots of cooked sushi rice left, so we decided to make another roll with slight variation – nori rolled in rice.

And we have a nicer look of Maki Sushi, although taste more or less equal to our first plate.

Horde of Sausage Bread Roll

Fresh from my oven this evening, Sausage Bread Roll with Cheddar Cheese... well.... absically that's all I used in it. it lined up nicely, red beef sausage in white uniform of bread, marching out of my oven. Smoke still came from the sizzling cheddar cheese, adding more temptation to finish it as soon as possible.

It took less than 1 hour to prepare. Roll the bread with pastry roller, then put the sausage. This is where creativity began. While I'm only using cheddar this evening, I just think of several other option, such as mayonnaise, parsley, pepper or lettuce.

Once you've made up your mind, wrapping the the sausage and the extra filling of your choice. Push 1 toothpick on each side to keep it rolled, then slice the rolled bread 1-1.5cm chunk. Push a toothpick through each roll, and line it nicely on a brass. Here is another room for creativity. Just before going into the oven, you can put something on top of the sausage. What about bacon bits, or some prepared dip sauce?

Baking is totally optional, I bake it to reheat the whole thing and melt the cheese. Serve it right from the brass for casual day, or transfer to serving plate for more serious occasion, and wath how they love it. A chili sauce might pair nicely with this food.

Chocolate Surprise

I was expecting some shipment from our partner when the reception called me at the office this morning. "A package from Clara", she said. I should be suspicious, since the person who contacted me wasn't Clara, but still, I'm surprised when the reception suddenly said Happy Birthday.

"How can she know", I thought while going to the front desk. My question soon answered when she point out a man with a big box written "Clara's Bakery". A cake cutter on top adds to my suspicious that it is a birthday cake. The sender was soon no mystery to me when I signed the receipt: Kiko. I smiled :D.


Clara's Bakery specialized in healthy food, specifically low calories food for diabetic. It use no sugar in its food, replaced with artificial sweetener. As a result, most of my colleague who tried the black forest love the less sweet taste of the cake. As for myself, I would prefer Kirch with more brandy, rather than what they use, probably to meet the low calorie cake. Beside cakes, it also sells low calories gelato ice cream.

Thanks Kiko for the pleasant surprise, you caught me this time :D.

Clara’s Bakery
Jl. HOS Cokroaminoto 52A, Jakarta Pusat
021 31908123

Feta Cheese & Spinach Salad

Still in the process of cleaning up the fridge, Kiko also cleaned up her book rack when she came across the recipe book, with this salad recipe inside. We were happy because it will used up some rarely used ingredients (Feta Cheese, mustard cinnamon, and many more), and I'm happy because it use cheese :D.

Preparing the dressing is simple and quick. I prefer to prepare it in advance, and put it in watertight container, and stash it in the fridge for later use. And when you crave for the salad, put the spinach, cucumber, onion and tomato in salad bowl or plate, shake the pre-mixed dressing, and sprinkle on top of the vegetables. Crumble enough amount of Feta Cheese, and it is set for a picture, or to satisfy your craving.

Since I'm running out of powder mustard, we use mustard jam, which is why the taste is so strong. Adding some pepper didn't help, Feta cheese slightly helps. Probably you might want to reduce the mustard a little bit.

And a little bit of note for the recipe. The amount of vegetables used is too much.... I think you can feed a horde of goat with it. Other than that, this salad is very refreshing.....


Ingredients (Serves 6)

• 2lb/1kg fresh spinach
• 1/2 cup/125ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 tbsp White Wine Vinegar (We replace with white cooking wine & white vinegar with the same ammount, probably explain the weird taste we got)
• 2 tbsp Lemon Juice
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
• Salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cucumber, sliced
• 1lb/500gr cherry tomatoes
• 8oz/250gr Feta Cheese, crumbled
• 6 spring onion, chopped

Directions:

• Trim the spinach and rinse thoroughly under cold running water. Dry well and place in a salad bowl
• Put the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, cinamon, mustard, salt and pepper in a small jar with a screw top and shake well
• Pour half the dressing over the spinach and toss well
• Add the cucumber, tomatoes, Feta and spring onions to the salad
• Pour the remaining dressing over the top, toss gently and serve

Recipe from Cheese Cook Book, published by Silverback (ISBN: 1-930603-89-4)

Evening Feta & Pepermint Dipper

Still in the attempt to clean up the fridge, we are looking some recipe that will use up our Feta when we found Dagmar's Cucumber, mint and feta dip. We made one last week, only to find that our Sour Cream has expired. And when it finally completed last night, we were not happy. The dip lack the taste of mint, and it is totally awful with Nachos... the salty Nachos just didn't match the dominant salty taste of Feta and the sour cream.

It is after we browsed through the original recipe that we recall our cucumber last week, bought before we found out about the expired sour cream. It is immediately de-seeded, cut into 5x1cm piece, dipped, and chewed. We instantly fell in love with dipped cucumber, and the dip didn't last more than 15 minutes that night.


With some raw materials left, I grab some fresh peppermint leaves, and made a new dip sauce, this time with generous amount of peppermint leaves. In addition to cucumber, I dipped a piece of French Baguette, leftover from garlic bread. Both match perfectly, and the baguette will certainly be on the dip list next time.

Again... this one does not last more than 15 minutes......

Pancake Never Dies

Who can resist this flat round dessert, with melting shiny honey and fresh-look of pineapple on top of it? Even better, it is so simple to make that people already start eating pancake since ancient time. Such simplicity and taste helped pancake to gain worldwide publicity; some places even has its own pancake day, where people eat pancake all day long.

Technology makes it even simpler to make a pancake. Ready-mix flour is available everywhere for lazy chef like me to start flipping it in couple of minutes. Just add water and egg, mix for couple of minutes, and you are set.

We use Pondan Pancake & Crepes Mix for our pancake last week. Vanilla fragrant spread instantly as we open the packaging. In no time, a pancake is served before us, topped with honey, pineapple sweet and dash of butter.

The pancake is firm enough, slightly harder when cold, but still enjoyable. As with the fragrance, taste of vanilla also dominates the pancake, blend perfectly with the honey and pineapple sweet. And the dash of butter made it a perfect dessert for the evening.

PS: When frying the mix, use the smallest flame you can get. Also, use a slightly larger non-sticky pan. I love to toss it in the air instead of flipping using spatula, and it is easier to do with slightly larger pan.

The 2 in 1 Tomato Soup

Although I insist that it would be safer for us to buy instead of cooking our own tomato soup, she insist me to promise to cook her one. So finally last week I keep my promise, and use Jamie's recipe posted by Venny in her blog. Since there are only 2 of us, not to mention other recipe tried that day, we cut the recipe into half. Here is the result:


We put the soup from the recipe to a blender, then strain to obtain smoother texture. The result looks convincing, except that we got only 1 small cup instead of 3. Then here all the laughter came.

First, the soup smell more to sambal balado (Padang's Cuisine), and taste like one. We can still trace the taste of the tomato, though, and she said that it taste good, but I still think it reminds me of sambal balado. I think somehow I cut wrong amount of red pepper and chillies from the original recipe

And when we see the residue on the strainer, we almost rolling on the floor laughing. It reminds us to chili for Ayam Pop, another Padang's cuisine.

Fortunately the soup is still edible, and does not cause any side effect so far. And hopefully she now agree that it is better to buy rather than my version of tomato soup :D

United Color of Loca! @ Kemang

If Benetton is identical with colors in fashion, then I would nominate this small establishment in Kemang for the colors in Cafe's industry.

Walk into their shop at Jl. Benda Raya 7A, Kemang in South Jakarta. The logo on the signboard is colored with fresh pastel color on top of black background. Once you walk through the door, an orange wall readily greets you as well as the reception lady. Too bad that they don't have non-smoking area available. Nevertheless, we took a corner table, from which we could observe people coming in and out.

A very helpful and knowledgeable waiter took our order: Strawberry Margarita, Loca Sunset, Panacota and Tiramisu. While waiting for our order, we quickly notice that the decoration on the wall also reinforce the focus of Loca! in colors. A photo on our right shows 2 boys wearing bright blue and red t-shirts, in front of green plastic chair. Another painting behind us is decorated in another pastel color.

Unfortunately, such wonderful ambiance is not followed with great drinks. My Margarita taste more to ice blended syrup, with little to none trace of tequila. Same case with the Loca Sunset, too much ice. Well, the name should be obvious; this is a coffee shop, not a bar. Probably should order a cup of coffee next time.

The food fortunately provide some relieve for the drinks. Tiramisu taste good, although us as Tiramisu chef-wannabe ourself always has some complaint: the lack of liqueur and the use of cake instead of ladyfinger. The Panacotta is great, not to sweet, and firm enough to be enjoyed.

As we finish the both desserts, we sip our drinks, and call ourself a day, a long tiring Saturday...

Loca! Coffee Plus
Phone: +62 (21) 78831979
EMail: loca.coffe.plus@gmail.com

A good review of this establishment with pictures is available in here (Bahasa Indonesia)

Breakfast @ GA510

It is very rarely that I can enjoy the meals on board an aircraft. First, the freshness of Tomato served with omelet, beef sausage and the potato make up my breakfast on board of GA510 (served by PK-GZP), bound to Balikpapan.

I was even more surprised to find small cut of smoke beef and tomato inside the omelet. Certainly one of the best airlines meal I ever have.

Still avoiding coffee, to keep my sleeping mode....

Heart on Sleeve

There will come the time when your friend –once in a blue moon- invites for special lunch cooking on leisure weekend. To my surprise, I did not take it seriously (yeah, that’s the dangerous side effects of becoming dear friend with no boundaries and thought they were kidding). Persistency does matter, later on we decided to accept the invitation with one condition: time will not count.

It was happy hours as we arrived, perfect time to brew coffee or tea but it seems that a complete surprise has been prepared nicely. Four white Shih Tzu greeted us, barking, and wag their tail happily. Then our eyes caught on a simply nice object: batik table cloth covering small table with four chairs, white candles and traditional placemats. Jazzy tunes in the air, evening sun shades light between doors, fence, and roof created a soothing atmosphere. Hearts stunned in second, warm feeling present in sudden. We were speechless.

The sincerity continued to bowl of green salad with Italian dressings for appetizer. We changed stories and laughter, later on plate of marinated chicken and shiitake mushroom served with generous orange mayo sauce. Hmm, smells good. Our host said those chicken breast fillet had been marinated overnight with cheese and parsley to enhance the meaty flavor. Secondary course was sauteed prawn and parsley served with passion fruit mayo. I felt for sweet tangy orange mayo, but the idea for stylish decorated passion fruit mayo was pleasing.

Cups of coffee and tea accompanying the lovely afternoon. Nothing tastes better than warm sincere heart, and friendship of course.