January 2017 – The Essence of Homemade

On weekends, my husband and I like to take extra time for breakfast. We love to linger over our morning coffee, talk about our plans for the day, and enjoy our first meal of the day together. These cute muffin tin french toasts are delicious way to start the morning, and they are easy to put together. In fact, these were prepared the night before. You might wonder why these french toasts are in a muffin tin, and the answer is simple. I had leftover cubed bread from my turkey stuffing recipe, needless to say, I overestimated just how much I needed. Since the bread was already cubed, and since I badly wanted french toast, in they went into the muffin tin.

The custard for the french toast is simple, and it involves the few ingredients that are usual for this eggy bread recipe. Personally, I don’t like seeing the white of an egg on my cooked french toast, so the only tip I wish to impart for this easy recipe is to thoroughly whisk the eggs with the milk. This ensures that the pale yellow custard is harmonious throughout.
As for the compote, plump berries and maple syrup are simmered together to produce an aromatic topping. If you do not have berries, frozen or fresh, please feel free to use whatever you have on hand, whether it is chopped apple, pear, banana or otherwise. If using banana, I find that using a couple of pinches of grated nutmeg, just makes the compote sing. You will note that I have quantified the amount of fruit required this compote, but please use whatever quantity you prefer.

INGREDIENTS (serves 4, 8 muffin cups)

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups of milk, 1% or otherwise
1/4 cup of sugar
2 tablespoons of maple syrup
1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
zest of 1 one orange
grams of bread of your choice, a few days old, cubed
3 tablespoons of butter, melted

COMPOTE
1 cup of berries of your choice, fresh or otherwise
1/8 teaspoon of ground cinnamon (couple of pinches)
1 tablespoon of butter
1/2 cup of maple syrup

METHOD

1. In a medium sized bowl, whisk the eggs thoroughly. While continuing to whisk, slowly incorporate the milk. Then whisk in the sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and the orange zest. Transfer the custard to a measuring cup that is easy to pour. Set aside.

1. Brush 2/3 of the melted butter over the muffins tins, then fill with cubes of bread 3/4 way full, packing the bread down as you go. Divide the custard equally among the prepared muffins tins, while continuing to still pack down the bread to help absorb the custard. Wrap in cling film and let rest in the fridge overnight.

1. In the morning, preheat the oven to 375 F. Remove the muffin tin from the fridge and discard the cling film. Dot each prepared french toast with a small cube of butter. Bake in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes, till french toast has puffed up, lightly browned, and the custard has set. Let cool for 1 minute, then carefully plate up the french with a generous drizzle of the compote.

Compote. While the french toast is baking, combine all of the compote ingredients, bring to a low simmer. If desired, add a small splash water to bring the compote to the consistency you prefer.

I love coconut. Shredded, pureed, toasted, frozen, fresh, or dried, coconut in all its forms is delicious. When toasted its aroma is especially unbeatable. Its usefulness transcends beyond sweet treats, which is why I hoard savoury recipes that use coconut. In rendang, it shines as a key component, as the flavour of coconut is abundant, its nuttiness and velvety richness is embodied throughout this dish.

My version of rendang is not authentic, but it is wholesome and aromatic. It has been adapted to the ingredients found in my kitchen and of course, altered to suit my family. Although you could use chicken, or vegetables here, I opted for stewing-style beef that has great marbling throughout, and also extra-firm tofu. The coconut milk base needs to simmer for about 2 1/2 hours to become beautifully thick, dark, and concentrated. The timing for the addition of your protein to the coconut milk base will depend on the type of protein or vegetables used. Stewing-style beef will take about 2 1/2 hours to become falling apart tender, so ergo it should be added to the pot along with the coconut milk. Boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts will take 30 minutes or less, so it should be added after the coconut milk has reduced for about 2 hours, that also applies to the tofu. With only about 15 to 20 minutes left of the simmering time, vegetables can be added. The goal here is to not overcook whatever is being added to the coconut milk base, just use your judgement! If all else fails, it will still taste great!

Served over rice, this dish is rich and spicy, with the perfect note of tanginess. I have composed a speedy cucumber salad to cut through the richness of the rendang.

INGREDIENTS (serves 4)

3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 cup of rendang paste, refer below
398 ml or 1 can of coconut milk, shake the can before opening
1/4 teaspoon of turmeric powder
1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce
10 grams of dried tamarind, soaked in 2-3 tablespoons of hot water
285 grams of stewing-style beef, cut into large pieces
70 grams of fresh or dried coconut, shredded
250 grams of extra-firm tofu, cut into bite size pieces
salt to taste
1 cup of cooked rice of your choice
coriander, chopped
fresh chile, sliced (optional)
lime, zested, juiced

PASTE
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
1 large cinnamon stick, broken into pieces
1 star anise
3 green cardamom pods, whole
3 cloves, whole
6 dried red chiles, soaked in 2-3 tablespoons of hot water
3 large shallots, trimmed, peeled, quartered
3 fresh red chiles, trimmed
25 grams or 1 stalk of lemon grass, trimmed, outer shell removed
45 grams or 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled, chunked
7 cloves of garlic, trimmed, peeled

METHOD

Separately, steep the tamarind and the red dried chiles in a couple of tablespoons of hot water to soften, about 20 minutes. While waiting, toast (without oil) the cumin seeds, star anise, cardamom pods, and cloves till fragrant. Let cool, then using a spice grinder, grind the spices to a fine powder.
After 20 minutes, mash the dried tamarind in the now cooled water to obtain a thick pulpy paste, drain with a small sieve to separate the pulp from the liquid, refer to the picture. Alternatively, if you find concentrated tamarind paste ready made, you will need 1/2 tablespoon of the paste, loosened with water. Which ever option you choose, you need just under 1/4 of a cup of liquid tamarind paste.
If already not grated, using a food processor, blitz the coconut till fine. Using the pan the spices were toasted in, toast the coconut (without oil) till golden, set aside. Note: Coconut has a pesky habit of quickly burning, especially the dried flakes kind, and yes, I am speaking from experience.
In the same processor (you don’t have to clean the processor), add the shallots, fresh chiles, lemon grass, ginger and garlic, along with the ground spices. Blitz to a paste. I got a generous cup of the paste.
In a heavy duty pan, heat the olive oil, add the prepared paste, and cook the paste in the oil, till the paste starts to catch, 3-5 minutes. Add the coconut milk, the tamarind paste, turmeric, soy sauce, salt, along with half a coconut can of water. Stir, and then, add the beef. Turn the heat down to low, let simmer for 1 hour, then add less than half of the toasted coconut, reserving some for garnish, stir. Continue simmering the rendang for additional 1-2 hours on low, stirring periodically, till the beef is falling part, and most of the moisture from the rendang has evaporated. The rendang will change colour as it cooks, turning a deep brown colour. Before platting, add the zest and juice of half a lime. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Tofu alternative. I also made this recipe with tofu by splitting all of the rendang sauce ingredients between two pans to make a vegetarian version for myself. If you are making both versions like I did, just split all of the ingredients in half and follow the steps as noted in step 5; otherwise ignore the splitting step. Tofu cooking method. Let simmer on low for 1 hour, then add less than half of the toasted coconut, reserving some for garnish, stir. Continue simmering the rendang for additional 1 hour on low, stirring periodically. After the hour is up, add the chopped tofu, and let the flavours amalgamate for a further 30 minutes. Before platting, add the zest and juice of half lime. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Serve the rendang over rice, along with the Cucumber Salad, and garnish with coriander, lime, chile, and the reserved toasted coconut.

Month: January 2017

OVERNIGHT FRENCH TOAST WITH MAPLE BERRY syrup

BEEF & TOFU RENDANG with CUCUMBER SALAD