Wholemeal Chocolate Milo Buns

To end my Milo adventure this month, I baked these yummy buns
I wish today is not the end of September as I still have a few Milo munchies recipes waiting to execute. But then again, I can always make them anytime and share here :)

These buns made using straight method, fuss free method which I like and yet the result is not compromised. They are soft, fluffy and delicious. With some goodness of wholemeal flour in it. My house was full of Milo and chocolate aroma during baking. Love it
My kids love them, which is no surprise. Chocolate with Milo in a bun? Who can say no? :)

See the first pic below. Notice the little tiny specks on the buns? It's because I used wholemeal flour to replace whole wheat flour. I usually use Origins brand organic wholemeal flour, but I had no stock this time, so I used Prima brand wholemeal flour which has coarser texture. To us, this change didn't give any effect at all

This is one of the part I enjoyed the most every time I bake bread. Tearing them apart LOL

 

Happy happy. Soft and fluffy. Chocolaty and yummy. Pass :)

 

Recipe is from Honey Bee Sweet

What you need:

315g bread flour
50g whole wheat flour
75g Milo powder
35g caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
4g instant yeast
225ml chocolate milk
40g egg white
30g unsalted butter, room temperature
some chocolate chips for filling (optional - I added)

Method:

1. Using breadmaker to knead, add in chocolate milk and egg white into the pan, followed by bread flour, whole wheat flour, Milo powder, caster sugar, salt. Lastly, add in yeast, make sure it's not in touch with salt
2. Choose 'dough' function and press start. After 5mins of kneading, add in butter and let the machine does its job (about 1hr 30mins with proofing)
3. After done, take out the dough from the pan and on lightly floured surface, divide into 50g balls
4. If you want to add filling, flatten the ball and add in chocolate chips at the centre and seal the ball
5. Place onto a lined baking pan (sealed side down)
6. Let proof til doubled in size about 45mins
7. Preheat oven to 175degC. Before baking, brush them with eggwash (I had 1 beaten egg mixed with 1 tbsp fresh milk) and then bake them for about 12-15mins til golden brown
8. Once baked, remove from oven and transfer to cooling rack. Brush the top with butter
9. Once cooled, keep in an airtight container

Enjoying every bite :)

 

 

 

 

This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (September 2015: Milo) organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY

 

Moo Moo Chocolate Ferrero Snowskin Mooncakes

This year I made only two types of mooncakes, the all time loved cheesy shanghai mooncakes and chocolate snowskin mooncakes. The latter one is Abby's request, my chocoholic girl :)

This time I used Kenneth Goh's recipe for the snowskin mooncakes since I found it's so cute especially the moo moo white/brown combination :)
As for the filling, I used the same recipe I used last year with a slight modification, and I added Ferrero Rocher in the centre as a surprise. Yum!

My moo moo white brown color combination wasn't as neat as Kenneth's :)

 

A very nice surprise in the centre :)

 

 

 

Recipe below...

 

For the skin:

(for 50g mould)

 

What you need:

 

White portion:

38g kao fen

38g icing sugar

20g shortening

40g cold water

 

Chocolate portion:

38g kao fen

38g icing sugar

20g shortening

40g cold water

1 tbsp cocoa powder

 

Method:

1. In a bowl, mix all ingredients for the white portion til form a soft dough. Weigh into 15g balls, let rest for 10mins. Do the same to the chocolate portion in another bowl, but weigh 10g instead, to make the total weight of 25g
2. To assemble both colors: flatten white ball and then take 1 chocolate ball, divide into 4 little balls, flatten them and stick them on the flattened white balls, not touching one another. Flatten them one more time

For the chocolate filling, please view HERE

My modification this time:

1. I didn't use Baileys, I replaced with fresh milk, so total = 3 tbsp
2. I used 70% dark chocolate
3. I added another 1 tbsp of custard powder, so total = 2 tbsp (result was better, not as sticky filling as what I got last year)
4. I weighed 20g for the filling as I added Ferrero Rocher ball at the centre, if not it's 30g

Enough Ferrero Rocher (optional)

 

*Assemble the mooncakes by wrapping Ferrero Rocher with the flattened chilled chocolate filling til a ball formed and wrap the chocolate ball with the snowskin mooncake

Place in the floured mould, press and release

Keep in an airtight container and refrigerate

 

 

To chocoholics out there, must try! :)

 

HAPPY MID AUTUMN FESTIVAL EVERYBODY!

Milo Dinosaur

My kids love Milo, in any form. Well, I think ALL kids love it
No exception to this drink. Yum yum, they said. And I must agree :)

 

 

Source: Doreen from my little favourite DIY

 

What you need:

 

5 tbsp  Milo powder

120 ml hot water

120 ml milk

3/4 tbsp condensed milk

some ice cubes

more Milo powder for topping

 

Method:

1. Into the hot water, pour in Milo powder and condensed milk, stir well
2. Add the mixture into milk, stir and pour into a tall glass or mug
3. Add in ice cubes and top with LOTS of Milo powder
4. Serve immediately

 

 

 

This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (September 2015: Milo) organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY

 

 

Healthy Milo Pancakes

This pancake is really yummy I can eat it not only for breakfast but also desserts or snack! :)
Look so sinful, huh? Surprisingly, this pancake will not make you feel so guilty since it's gluten free and you can opt for dairy free too, also it's eggless :)

 

Eat with strawberry and melted dark chocolate. This will chase all blues away LOL

 

 

Inspired by IG sweetendwithdates

 

What you need:

(makes 6 medium size pancakes)

 

1 cup ground oats (I grinded rolled oats til fine)

2 tbsp Milo powder (original recipe: cacao powder -> healthier!)

1/2 tbsp baking powder (I used double acting)

1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup fresh milk (original recipe: non dairy milk)

1/4 cup applesauce (I used my homemade applesauce)

1/4 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

 

Method:

1. In a bowl, mix together oats, Milo, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and sugar
2. In a separate bowl, mix in vanilla, apple cider vinegar, milk, applesauce
3. Pour in wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix til just combined
4. Fold in chocolate chips and let the mixture stand for 10mins
5. Heat a non stick pan and scoop about 50ml (close to 1/4 cup) of the batter and wait til the surface bubbled. Flip over and cook for about 1-2mins
6. Repeat the procedure til the batter all used up
7. Serve with strawberry slices and melted dark chocolate

Note:

• The texture of this pancake is soft and fluffy with slight chewiness since oat flour is used. All purpose flour or whole wheat flour can be used if you don't have to go gluten free, and it'll be less chewy
• You can opt for non dairy milk if you want to have a dairy free pancake. Almond, oat, cashew, soy or rice milk is good substitute
• Using cacao powder is definitely healthier option but don't forget to increase the sugar used since cacao is unsweetened, or you can follow what the original did by adding 1 tbsp of maple syrup

 

 Healthy indulgent breakfast, anybody?

 

This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (September 2015: Milo) organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY

 

 

 

Microwave Milo Mug Cake - 2 Recipes

I always love easy recipes, and fast, and delicious. Mug cake is one of them. Hence my interest when I found this 3 minutes milo mug cake

Believe it or not, I failed in my first try! I was so pissed I threw that recipe aside and started looking for another. So I found one and I made it the next day, and it turned out well
But I was still curious about the first recipe so I gave that another try, on the very same day, and guess what, it turned out well, too, and it's in fact, better than the other recipe haha..

When I read both recipes, it's in fact very clearly shown which one will gives better result
And when I gave a thought again what actually caused me to fail, it's either because of the gluten free flour I used, or because of me opening the microwave door to check every single minute during baking, or both are the culprit!

Anyway, I am now sharing both recipes. You may choose according to your preference

First recipe is from The Open Oven
This gives a pretty soft cake when eaten warm from the microwave, but it's dense when cool and rather chewy. It will turn soft again when warmed up

 

 

What you need:

(1 serving)

 

1 tbsp melted butter

2 tbsp milo powder

1 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp self raising flour (original recipe used plain flour)

1/2 part of 1 lightly beaten egg

tiny pinch of salt

 

Method:

1. When the melted butter is still hot, mix in milo and sugar, stir well til no lumps
2. Add in egg, salt and flour, mix well
3. Microwave for 1 1/2 min (600w). When the skewer comes out clean, it's ready

 

Sprinkle with more Milo powder makes the cake even more milo-ey, if there's such word LOL

 

 

 

The second recipe is actually the first recipe I tried and failed. Second try was a success and personally I prefer this recipe. It is from HERE

 

 

What you need:

(1 serving for a large mug)

 

4 tbsp milo powder

3 tbsp sugar (original recipe used 4tbsp)

4 tbsp self raising flour

4 tbsp oil (I used rice bran)

4 tbsp fresh milk

1 egg

 

Method:

Put all ingredients in the above order in a large mug. Stir well and microwave for 4mins (600w). It's done when skewer comes out clean

 

 

Here I made just half of the above recipe using 240ml size ramekin

 

This post is linked to the event Little Thumbs Up (September 2015: Milo) organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY

Almost Famous Amos Chocolate Chips Cookies

I cannot believe I have been absent from blogging for a month! My August posts were only 2!
Confession: I have been on detox clean eating plan for close to 4 weeks which is rather strict in the choice of food, therefore the activities in the kitchen have been rather different, resulting in absence in my own blog haha.. Well, at least a piece of good news, I managed to shed 3.2 kilos as of today. I am quite happy as I have cheated a lot of times and the plan does not make me starve myself, in fact I have not been feeling hungry at all, and I still managed to lose some kilos :) I am to continue this eating style for the next few months, hopefully getting rid of more and most of all, be healthy :)

Now that I made time to sit and start typing, I feel that I miss blogging! Okay, let's continue then :)

Another recipe that I have been eyeing for so long but only now I made time to try. And true enough those full of praise reviews, these little bite size cookies are to die for!
Light and crunchy, delicious! Not hard at all! The coffee oil infuse definitely makes a big difference!

 

 

 Recipe is from Victoria Bakes

What you need:

250g butter, softened
200g light brown sugar
a pinch of salt
1/2 tsp coffee oil
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup oats, grinded to bits
1/4 cup ground almond
1/2 cup nuts of your choice (I skipped)
1 pack of semi sweet chocolate chips (I used 250g Hershey's)
300g self raising flour

Method:

1. To do a day before: In a small bowl whisk together egg, vanilla extract and coffee oil, cover and keep in the fridge overnight. Bring to room temperature before use
2. Preheat oven to 160degC
3. In a mixing bowl, cream butter, salt and sugar til combined. Add in coffee oil mixture, mix well
4. Add in grinded oats, ground almond, chocolate chips and mix to combine
5. Fold in sifted flour til combined
6. Scoop a flat tsp of the dough and drop on a lined cookie sheet slightly apart, bake for about 18mins*
7. Remove from oven, cool completely on cooling rack and keep in an airtight container

I personally always prefer softer chewy kind of cookies usually, but I kept popping in these crunchy cookies in my mouth. It's really addictive, help!

 

 

I packed some for Teacher's Day presents :)

 

 

 

*The baking time is for my own oven and I got browned crunchy cookies. The original recipe wrote 9-10mins, while Victoria baked for 10mins at 190degC and 27mins at 160degC , I tried the timing from the original recipe but I found it's too soft to my liking. I should try Victoria's next time. Please know your oven to decide the perfect timing, longer baking time for crunchier texture and shorter time will give soft and chewy cookies - your choice, but advisable to make bigger size for chewy type, approximately 1 heaped tbsp dough

 

I didn't bother to shape the dough into balls, I just dropped them onto the cookie sheet, hence the not so uniform shape. I should invest in the 3cm ice cream scoop Victoria used :)

 

Please do give this recipe a try! You will not regret it! :)