Thursday, August 27, 2009

MATCHA MILKY BREAD

While checking out one of my favorite blog site HappyHomeBaking.Blogspot.com, I came across her Matcha Milk Bread Recipe.  I tried her recipe for Matcha Milk Bread with Red Bean Paste - AZUKI.  It turned out great.  This is from her link to another site where HOKKAIDO MILKY LOAF recipe was listed ( http://schneiderchen.de/ ).  I tried to gather as much similar ingredients as I can, but unfortunately I do not have Powder Milk in my pantry.  So, I substituted it with Coconut Powder (20g) and Matcha (Green Tea Powder, 10g).  Truly as described at happyhomebaker that while the dough is being kneaded, it was very sticky.  I decided to use my "Artisan" Kitchen Aid Mixer with dough hook.  As the photos show below, the dough looks very sticky - sticks to the mixing bowl.  I started to mix the dough around 8:40 pm and finally got the glutenous shiny dough around 9:35 pm.  It was worth the wait.  The doughs are rising right now.  Cant' wait to see the result.  They will likely be baked at the crack of dawn.
Mix all dry ingredients as listed at http://schneiderchen.de/ HOKKAIDO Milky Loaf Recipe.  But I only had 179 g of Bread Flour left in the pantry, so I had to improvise by substitution, 1 C High Gluten Flour Plus 1 C All Purpose Flour = 353 g to make up the total 540 g of Bread Flour the recipe called for.
I warmed up the milk and heavy cream in the microwave a bit.   Warmed up the whole egg in a bowl of warm water also.  
Mixed warm milk, heavy cream, and beat the egg together a bit with a small whisk.
As you can see the dough is very sticky - sticks to the dough hook and the side of the mixing bowl for the first 30 minutes.


Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl.  As you can see, the dough is very sticky.  The gluten has not finished developing to the consistency I want - shiny and smooth.
Finally, close to an hour.  Stopping and scraping the bowl at least 5 times.  Noticed the dough started to leave the side of the bowl and started to show the shine and smooth surface.
At this time, you should almost clearly see the bottom of the bowl.
Stop the mixer.   And roll it out to a work surface.   I did not use more than 1/2 tsp (half tsp) of Bread Flour on my "glass" cutting board (because my kitchen surface is "tile" surface")

The dough is smooth and did not stick to my hands at all.  


Cut them into 4 equal sizes.  282g each.    Roll and Tuck.  After thought:  Dividing into 3 portions maybe better.  The recipe called for 13x33x12 cm load pan.  If I had 7x4x4" Pullman Loaf pan, it would have helped also... the size matters.  :-)  Placed in the square cake pan for the 1st rise...  
After looking at the photo of the HOKKAIDO Milk Bread at Angies' website, it looks like the breads were baked in a large Pullman loaf pan right next to each other.  (Beautifully baked.)
 I though I would use my 9x9 square cake pan to proof and bake after the 1st rise in it.  (It's sprayed with Vegalene).    Well, decided not to take the risk at my 1st try with this recipe.
After the 1st rise, I transferred the dough into my large Roasting Pan.  
I quickly rolled each one out on my flat glass cutting board... as I have tiled counter.  Then, rolled the dough out, roll and tuck and placed in the roasting pan. 

As it was already 11 pm.  I decided to just cover the pan with the lid and went to sleep.


Truthfully, I use this roasting pan for many other bread baking.  Something about this "dark" coating and the lid that it produces wonderfully baked bread.   I have been having a great baking result with my Mediterranean Olive Bread or the No-Knead Bread. After the perfect beautiful 2nd rise, I put the pan in the oven to bake at 345'F.  Recipe called for 40 min. baking time.
At:5:30 am, the doughs were well doubled to their beautiful Loaf size. I preheated the oven to 345'F.


 A glass pan with HOT water was placed at the bottom of the oven to provide some steam.... this is called for in the original recipe, but it has been my habit to place a pan of hot steaming water in the oven when I bake bread.  It's like doing the job of "steam injection"of the commercial oven.  I egg wash on the doughs.  Started the bake time at 5:55 am.
The bread was beautifully baked after 35 minutes.  
Due to the timing - had to leave for work.  I loaded the hot pan into my van & in the hasty loading of cutting board and serrated knife and packing Ziplock bags, I unpanned the beautiful bread...  My car smelled wonderful... and the bread looked wonderful. 

But the bread started to deflate while I started to drive. ... but not in a bad way....  What I mean is that I am expecting this to be very soft tender bread as I have tasted it to be so when I purchase the Milky Loaf Bread from the Asian Market. ($3.99 for half a loaf!!)  
The bread actually deflated to half it's size.  I am not sure if the bread would have stayed tall and true even if I had waited for 15 minutes minimum before unpanning.  
Regardless, the bread's texture is soft and well developed.
 Love the chewy tasty flavors.
This is a successful Matcha Milky Bread.
I read at one of the blog site about this "Steam Baking Master Pan" for French Bread, etc.  The design make sense, and I would like to get hold of one and test it myself.
Well, for now, I am very happy with this Milky Loaf recipe.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Other Misc Furlough Weekend Projects

CHOCOLATE GENOISE WITH LEMON CUSTARD MOUSSE and BLUEBERRIES


Chocolate Genoise
Recipe from www.joyofbaking.com







 
Assembled Genoise dabbed with Raspberry Liquer, filled with lemony Lemon Custard Mousse, and Blueberries (dipped in Rasberry Liquer+Sugar mixture)










YELLOW GENOISE WITH LEMON CUSTARD MOUSSE and BLUEBERRIES











MATCHA BREAD

 
Matcha Bread: Japanese Matcha Tea with Sweet Red Bean Paste.  Recipe from http://happyhomebaking.blogspot.com/





KASUTERA (Japanese Sponge Cake)




This is the actual image from the Japanese Baking Book that I would like mine to turn out to be.





 
This is my version #2 home baked KASUTERA that I am quite proud of. Some day, mine will also look like the ones in the recipe book.


Japanese - MITARE YAKI DANGO

FYI - visit my newest test on MITARE or MITARASHI DANGO / MITARASHI YAKI DANGO (means all the same) at http://rockdavinci.blogspot.com/2010/06/pollys-mitarashi-yaki-dango.html    I just tested again two nights ago 6/11/2010 and got the best result from using SHIRATAMAKO (glutinous rice flour) than this "JIO SHIN KO"(rice flour). 

I was very busy this weekend. I retried the MITARE YAKI DANGO recipe again. This is one of our childhood favorites, and it brings up a lots of fun childhood memory growing up in Japan. *Note: JIO SHIN KO is the Japanese term for this particular Rice Flour. It might not have ROMA JI (Japanese in English Writing/Sound equivalent translation) on the package, but the rice flour is found at Japanese Grocery Store.   Asian / Oriental Market carries Rice Flour, but I do not know they will turn out . . . hopefully the same.  *8/26/09, 9 pm:  It did not turn out the same with "Rice Flour"  manufactured in Thailand.  Sadly after boiling and or steaming the rice balls for 3 hours, I had to toss out 45 rice balls.

 

Preparation time:
3 hours.  Prep time can cut down significantly if you have two other family members helping in rolling the rice flour dough into round balls.
Yied:
28 to 45 round rice balls on the bamboo skewers

Equipment:
Medium mixing Bowl, Measuring cups with meteric measurement, Scale to weigh in Grams, small Sauce pan, Mixing spoon, Measuring spoons.  Large pot to boil water & rice ball; strainer and a large bowl filled with cold water to chill cooked rice balls.  Short Bamboo skewers - 12 to 20 skewers--depending on the size of the rice balls.  Small tabletop indoor BBQ Grill or stove top grill.



Ingredients:
JIO SHIN KO - Rice Flour - 250 g (about 1-3/4 Cup)
Water - 200 CC (*1 cc = 1 ml)

Sauce:

1/2 C Soy Sauce (*I prefer to use Low Sodium Soy Sauce mixed w/some Water)
2 Tbsp Sugar
1 Tbsp Cornstarch

Process:
Mix half of the water into Rice Flour and knead in a mixing bowl.
Add additional water as you go along.   Knead until it is well incorporated.
The dough feels very firm.
You can feel the moisture on the smooth surface of the dough when held in hand.
It won't hurt to add 2 more Tablespoons of water.   But do not add more than needed.
The soft rice ball would not keep its shape after boiling, and we want it to keep its round shape.
Divide the dough into 4 equal size.
Roll one of the dough into a long rope.

*Depending on the size of the rice ball you want, your rope maybe anywhere from 1/2 inch to 6/8 inch to 1 inch in diameter.
My rope was about 6/8 inch in diam.
Cut them equally, 1 inch long.

*Diam and length equal the size of the Rice Ball. So, gauge it to your liking and make sure there are enough for everyone to enjoy.




Recruit family members.   Wash their hands clean and start pressing and circling the dough into a Round Ball.  You should feel the moisture on the surface of the dough at the same time that it is taking the round shape.  The dough will crumble if the dough is too dry or too much pressure is applied.







 
In the meantime, BOIL a pot of water. *Bubbling hot
Start putting some Rice Balls into the boiling water.
*The Rice balls would sink to the bottom. Use the spoon to unstick off of the bottom of the pot. Give it a swirl.
The boiling water would quiet down at this time.  Then, after a few minutes, it starts to boil again. Now Boil the Rice Balls for 2 Minutes.
During this 2 minutes, the Rice Balls will start to rise to the top and stays afloat.  Normally a sign of doneness.  Scoop up the Rice Balls and transfer to the bowl of cool water with strainer.



Cool the Rice Balls in the cool water bowl. About 30 secs.








Scoop them out to a large flat plate. Try not to let the rice balls touch each other.








Skewer 4 to a stick or 3 to a stick.






Prepare the Sauce. Mix Soy sauce and sugar and Cornstarch in a small sauce pan/pot.  Bring to a boil.   Stirring constantly.   Becareful not to burn yourself from the Lava like activity going on in the pan.   Cook for 1 minutes.   The sauce should be glue like. Remove from heat.

Prepare stove top BBQ Grill or Japanese HIBACHI, whatever works to dry bake the Rice Balls on the Skewers a bit to give it a bit of charred markings.

Roll the Rice Balls on the skewers in the sauce.
*Scoop some sauce in a large soup spoon, and roll the Rice Balls to cover each ball entirely.
Set aside and eat warm or cooled.

*Tip: Do Enjoy it as soon as possible.   Do not put homemade Dango made with JIOSHINKO in refrigerator.   They will turn rock hard.
Serve fresh and enjoy!!

Note:  for newer testing result with SHIRATAMAKO glutinous rice flour instead of JIOSHINKO, visit my other blog on YAKI DANGO.  The YAKI DANGO made from SHIRATAMAKO is taste much better and has longer retention of the natural softness.