Fruity Rainbow Jello

I've been wanting to participate in a blog event for a while. I finally found the courage to actually do so. Here's my entry for this months Aspiring Bakers #24 (October 2012) : Jellies & Puddings.
Thank you MiMi Bakery House for hosting this lovely event!

I decided to do a healthy version of rainbow jello. So no added food coloring just the beauty of nature itself. It's cute, its healthy and also very tasty (let's not forget that important bit ;)

I also did a simplified yogurt version.

Although very easy, I can understand that this recipe may seem like quite a hassle for you busy mums. Luckily you can always use biological fruit juice instead, saving time but retaining the healthiness!

What you'll need:
2 red grapefruits
1 honeydew melon
300gr red grapes
5 kiwi's
12 gelatin leaves
sugar (optional)
blender/fruit juicer

Peel and cut up the melon and kiwi's. Deseed the kiwi's if you want a clear green color. If you leave it in, it will create a murkier kind of green. Set fruits aside for later.

Soak 3 gelatin leaves in cold water.
Cut grapefruit in half and squeeze all the juice out. Sieve the juice to get all the pits out.
Simmer over low heat in a small saucepan. Do not bring to a boil. Add the gelatin leaves and stir till completely dissolved. Leave to cool a bit, then divide evenly over cups. Place in refrigerator for about 35 minutes.

Soak 3 gelatin leaves in cold water.
Place cut up honeydew in blender and blend till a smooth thick juice. Sieve and simmer over low heat. Dissolve gelatin leaves and leave to cool. Check if previous layer is firm enough. If so, spoon the new layer on top. Place in refrigerator for about 35 minutes.

Soak 3 gelatin leaves in cold water.
Place grapes in blender and blend till a smoothish juice. Do not sieve yet. We want that pretty purple of the skins, so simmer first, add gelatin leaves and then sieve juice. Leave to cool. Don't worry, it seems a bit brown now but it will turn more purplish once cooled. Check if previous layer is firm enough. If so, spoon the new layer on top. Place in refrigerator for about 35 minutes.

Soak 3 gelatin leaves in cold water.
Place cut up kiwi's in blender and blend till a smooth thick juice. Sieve and simmer over medium heat. Since kiwi fruit has an enzyme that can break up the gelatin, be sure to properly heat the kiwi juice. Dissolve gelatin leaves and leave to cool. Divide evenly over cups. Place in refrigerator for about 1 hour or until completely firm.

Your healthy fruit jello is now ready to eat!

PS: You can use pretty much any fruit you want, but be aware that not all fruits are gelatin/agar agar friendly. Sometimes it helps to heat them (like I did with the kiwi's). If you feel your juice is to sour, add some sugar. It does decrease the healthiness a little, but oh well. And if you choose to use agar agar instead of gelatin, keep in mind that agar can start to "firm-up" at room temperature.

A leap of faith

I've read the "The life of Pi" many times. But never before had it touched me in such a private and personal way. I'm not the religious type, but I profoundly understood what he was trying to convey. He spoke about the treacherous edge of logic & reason. Do we remain in limbo. Forever wondering what lies beyond? Or do we take a leap of faith into the unknown?

Lately I've been drowning in a sea of obligations. I tried to cut some ballast to maintain my float, but was unsuccessful in doing so. Indecisiveness was weighing me down and I remained in a permanent state of limbo. Something had to be done. So I took a leap of faith and quit university.

I fully understand why some might perceive it as a loss of time, money and potential. But to me it's another step towards fulfilling my hearts desire. I always say: No matter how far you've gone down the wrong path, as soon as you realize it, go back!

I realize this has not been one of my usual cheerful posts. But this concerns a matter so dear to me, I felt I needed to share it nonetheless.

So here's to the future. Whatever it may bring, I shall continue my pursuit for happiness!

Almond Chiffon Cake

For our family gathering last Sunday I whipped up a almond chiffon cake. As you might remember from my previous pandan cake I had a little trouble unmolding the cake without ruining it's appeal. So I was a bit worried about the outcome. I knew it would taste great, I just wasn't sure it would look it. However it was a 90% success. The sides came out perfectly, but I had a little fumble with the top. Fortunately I was able to cover it up just fine, so no one ever noticed :)

To make the cake I just adapted my pandan cake recipe to make it almondy.
Ingredients:

5 egg yolks (I used medium eggs)
50 gr caster sugar
90 gr milk
60 gr vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
pinch of salt
100 gr cake flour (90 gr flour+10 gr cornflour)
30 gr dried almond pulp (or another 30 gr flour)

5 egg whites (I used medium eggs)
65 gr caster sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
I used a 22 cm chiffon pan.

Instructions:
Preheat your oven at 170 C.

Sieve the cake flour with the almond pulp and set aside.

Place egg yolks in a mixing bowl and whisk the yolks a little. Add in sugar and whisk till the mixture turns pale and thick. While mixing gradually add the milk. Next slowly add the vegetable oil and continue mixing. Now add vanilla extract, almond extract and salt and continue mixing. Sieve over the flour and mix till it is fully incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix. Set aside.

In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat egg whites with cream of tartar on low speed until mixture becomes frothy and foamy. Then add half of the sugar and turn to high speed, continue adding the rest of the sugar and beat until the egg whites reaches the soft peak stage. Do NOT beat until stiff, it is much easier to fold in the egg whites in soft-peak-stage.
Now gently fold in the egg whites into the egg yolk batter, try to do so in three additions, until you have a fluffy and well blended batter. FOLD, do not mix!

Sprinkle some almond flakes in your chiffon pan and pour your batter on top. Do NOT grease the pan. Tap the pan lightly to get rid of any trapped bubbles, then place pan in oven for about 35 minutes or until a inserted toothpick comes out clean. I increase the temperature a bit in the last 5 minutes to crust the sides a little extra. I find it helps when unmolding.

Immediately after removing the cake from the oven, turn it upside down/invert it/overturn it and leave to cool completely. Make sure the cake is not to close to your tabletop so the condensation does not harm it.

After cake is cooled completely, run a knife around all edges and unmold. 

Cut a big slice and enjoy the fruits of your hard work!

PS

I had a bit of a midnight snack with one of the burgers that fell apart in the pan.
I wish I could say this was a platter for two... but it's not. I ate it all! Sssst, don't tell anyone.

Beanie Burgers & Chips

I've been craving burgers and chips for a while now. But I'm trying to loose a bit of weight so this is what I consider to be a healthier version. Simple butter bean burgers with potato and pumpkin chips.

What you'll need:
1 can butter beans
1/2 grilled onion
1/2 grilled red pepper
1/2 grated/chopped garlic clove
some flat leave parsley
handfull of breadcrumbs
1/2 small egg
salt and pepper
sesame burger buns

Greek yogurt
1/4 grated/chopped garlic clove
1 tsp mayonnaise
salt and pepper

tomatoes
cucumber
some flat leave parsley
salt and pepper

I simply mashed the beans. Chopped up the grilled onion, red pepper and flat leave parsley  Mixed it all together with the garlic, breadcrumbs and a egg. Seasoned it with some salt and pepper and made some patties with it. Then I baked them nice and crispy in some olive oil.

For the chips I washed and wedged the potatoes. Drizzled them with some olive oil and seasoned with rosemary and pepper. I peeled and cut the pumpkin. Drizzled them with some olive oil. Seasoned with pepper and I also added some chopped garlic for a bit of a punch. Pop it in the oven for about 40 minutes at 200 C, turning them over half way. I prefer to season the chips with salt after they're  done.

The sauce was yogurt and garlic, with just a hint of mayo (couldn't resist) and some salt and pepper. I also made a simple salsa from chopped up tomatoes, cucumber and flat leave parsley. Of course salt and pepper again. No, garlic here 'cause there's garlic in the burgers and in the yogurt sauce as well.

Stack your burger on some grilled buns and enjoy!

Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie

As the weather get's suckier each day, I long for some hearty winter food. Shepherd's pie is one of my favorites but I've never tried to make a veggie version before. Since there has to be a first for everything, I give you (drum ruffle) tadadaaaaa my version of vegetarian shepherd's pie.

And yes, I'm sticking with shepherd, not cottage, 'cause really who can say what type of fake minced meat this is and either way I think it sounds better :)

I made it on impulse, so basically I just grabbed whatever was in the fridge. Therefore my ingredients might not be completely in line with tradition. Either way it tasted yummm, so decide for yourself if you're willing to risk it.

I used about half of a very big carrot, half a courgette, a medium onion, about 150 grams of vegetarian minced meat. Since I didn't have any celery stalks I used a very generous hand of celery leaves and stems to add some punch. Simply chop up the onions and sauté in some olive oil in pan. Add the other veggies and stir fry on high heat. Add the veggie meat, some thyme, about 3-4 tbsp of ketchup,
3-4 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce, 2-3 bay leaves and continue frying for a few minutes. Personally,
I really like the taste of Worcestershire sauce in this, but most people wouldn't use more than 2 tbsp... oh well. Season with some salt and pepper, add some water and leave to simmer for 10 minutes or so.

For your mash you'll need some potatoes, butter and milk. Peel potatoes and boil them in salted water until tender. Drain, then mash with butter and milk. Add some salt and nutmeg to taste. I like my mash nice and creamy so I'm very generous with the butter and milk.

Now simply place your mince mixture in a casserole dish and top with the mash. A little butter on top and in the oven she goes for 30-40 minutes at 180 C.

I forgot to take any other pictures, but I think you get the picture :D

Poffertjes for lunch

Today I was in snack mode. So for lunch I made me some poffertjes. For those of you who don't know them, it's a typical Dutch treat. Best way to describe it is like small pancakes. They look a bit like bellini's but they're a lot softer and sweet instead of savory.
I had never made them from scratch before and it was super easy. Only down side is I had to wait an hour and a half for the batter to fluff up since there's yeast in it :(
But it was totally worth the wait and I'm never buying them in the super again! It's so inexpensive and they're whipped up in a second (minus waiting time of course).

To have a go yourself, here's what you'll need:
100 gr     flour
1             egg
4 gr         dry yeast
2 tsp       sugar
               pinch of salt
150 ml    lukewarm milk
              poffertjes pan
              some powdered sugar
              butter
              pastry brush

Simply mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk the egg in and bit by bit add the milk while mixing. Mix until you have a nice smooth-ish batter (about a minute or so). Set aside in a warm, draft free spot (your microwave will do) and wait for an hour and a half :(

When you're finally done waiting, put your poffertjes pan on the stove on medium heat. Brush with some butter and simply spoon in the batter. Bake until the little bubbles on top start to disappear and turn them over. They should be a nice golden brown color when done.

Simply stack them on a plate and dust generously with powdered sugar, add a wad of butter and enjoy!
I know I did :D

Peter Pan Collars

I am obsessed with peter pan collars! Like really literally obsessed. I could wear some kind of peter pan collar any day everyday. Of course I don't, since that would be a bit uncreative and well boring. But that won't stop me from gathering as many different types as possible.

Initially I had set my mind to making them myself, and I actually did do a few, but I was really dreading to do the cotton ones. I had the templates and all but it just seemed like so much work! Fortunately my good friends in China sell many types of collars on Ebay for a fraction of what you'd pay for it here. So I bought two: a cotton one and a metallic chain-like one. And while I was at it I also bought another arabesque-ish metal collar necklace. Not really a collar and certainly no peter pan one, but cute none the less. Ooh! I almost forget, I had also bought this gold metallic one at Primark. I think it was about €5 which is acceptable, but in most shops they start around €10.

The first ones I made are of course crochet. I made one in blue and one in cream. I used the cheapest yarn ever and faux pearl buttons I had left from an other project. I LOVE them! If you want to have a go yourself, check out the patterns here and here. I also made a leather one, which is more of a necklace than a collar. I used some leather scraps I had lying around so it's not necessarily a color I would buy, but hey you work with what you've got. Here's how I did it. The last one I did was made of felt using the Honestly... wtf tutorial. It is super easy! I used that iron-on-stuff that sticks fabrics together when heated, but you can also use a long ribbon, pull it through completely and tie.

I bought them, but like I said, you can find many tutorials on how to create your own cotton collar, like here, here and here. And doing a metal chain-like collar necklace is not hard either, check out here and here.

Now of you go and DIY!

Fully Certified!

So proud to finally say: I'm a fully certified TEFL teacher!!!
After months and months of dragging myself through the course, extending one, two and maybe, maybe even three times, I am finally done. Yippee!

Don't get me wrong the course is really interesting and I learned a lot, but I had a hard time finding the time for it. I, of course, had to do the 140 hour programme, 'cause you know, why take the easy way out if you can do it the hard way. Juggling school and two jobs with the course was quite a challenge.
I really enjoyed the weekend course and our teacher Alison was the best! But I learned the most from the grammar awareness course. I've been speaking English for most of my life now, but my grammar was quite rusty. I was just passively using language and now I have once more learned why I use certain patterns, what functions they have and what they're called. Kudos to me :)

So what's next now? Not sure really. Still need to finish my masters at uni, but sometime next year I hope to be one of those lucky people living their dream in a foreign country...