Grilled Sweet Spicy Tangy Chicken Legs

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

2 chicken legs

Marinade

1 tsp grated ginger

1 tsp chopped garlic

2 tsp Korean red chilli paste

1/2 tsp light soya sauce

1 tbsp cooking wine

2  tsp sesame oil

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp honey

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp black soya sauce (to add color)

Glazing sauce

Left over mainade

2 tsp honey

1 tsp golden syrup

2 limes, juiced

Direction

1. Rinse chicken legs and cut into drumsticks and thighs.

2. Add marinade to the chicken parts. Mix and coat well.

3. Cover and let them marinate for at least 1/2 an hour.

4. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. And preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius.

5. Place the chicken parts into the baking tray and bake in the oven for 15 minutes at 180 degree C.

6. Mix the leftover marinade with honey, golden syrup and lime juice to make the glazing sauce.

7. After the 15-minute-.grill, remove the tray of chicken from the oven and baste it with the glazing sauce. Return it to the oven to bake for 5 minutes.

Repeat this process for about 4 times, or till you finish the glazing sauce.

If you like it honey-sweet, you can baste the final coat with pure honey.

8. After the final baste, you can turn off the oven and let the chicken parts sit inside the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. 

Enjoy the soft and juicy grilled chicken  :)

Natural Red Velvet Cupcake with Ermine

This vegan red Velvet cupcakes replaces egg by cooked beet root purée, making it a healthier version. The beet root purée gives the cupcake the vibrant red colour without the use of high dosage of artificial colour. It also naturally fortified with iron and fibre.

Instead of the usual cream cheese frosting, the Ermine or butter roux frosting, give a light and fluffy butter cream topping to the cupcakes. With a higher temperature tolerance, Ermine frosting allows the cupcakes to be kept at room temperature :)

Yield: 16 regular size cupcakes

Beet root purée

1. Rinse and scrub beet root.

2. Steam beet root for 45 to 60 minutes, or till tender. 

Alternatively, you can wrap the beet root with aluminum foil, and bake at 190 degree Celsius for 50 to 60 minutes.

3. Peel and cut the beet root into chunks. Purée the beet root into very smooth paste.

Red velvet cupcake

Ingredients 

165g cooked beet purée

70g coconut oil

200g fine sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

140g cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 tbsp cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

220g fresh milk

Direction

1. Add coconut oil to beet purée and mix well.

2. Pour sugar and vanilla extract to the beet mixture.

3. Mix all purpose flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa powder in another mixing bowl.

4. Pour flour mixture and milk into the beet batter, in alternate order. Blend well.

5. Line the cupcake moulds with cupcake papers.

6. Pour batter into the cupcake mould to about 3/4 full.

7. Bake in a pre-heated oven set at 175 degree Celsius for about 20 to 25 minutes. 

Ermine Frosting

Ingredients 

120 g whole milk

13g all purpose flour

Pinch of salt

110 g unsalted butter

40 g fine sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

(80g sugar too sweet, so I amend it to 40g 😆)

Direction

1. Whisk flour into milk and heat over low flame.

2. Stirring regularly till the mixture thickens. When you lift up the whisk, the drizzle is able to leave a trail which can last for a few seconds before "dissolving" into the top.

3. Add pinch of salt and stir well. Pour the mixture to a bowl, cover with a lid, and let it cools down.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk butter and sugar till fluffy. Add vanilla and blend well.

5. When the milk mixture has cool down, add it by tbsp to the butter mixture using a mixer set at medium speed.

At the end of the mixing, you'll get very light, fluffy and buttery cream frosting.

6. Transfer the frosting to a pipping bag and pipe on the cool red velvet cupcakes. Enjoy :)

Taste nicer after chilling :)

Cupcake recipe adapted from:

http://alimentageuse.com/home/2013/06/14/natural-red-velvet-cupcakes-made-with-beets/

Ermine frosting recipe adapted from: 

http://culinaryalchemist.blogspot.ca/2009/02/ermine-wrapped-velvet-ultimate.html?m=1

Choco-Milk Braided Loaf

Yield: one 20x9x10 cm loaf

Ingredients 

135g bread flour 高筋面粉

15g top flour 低筋面粉

25g fine sugar 细糖

1/2 tsp instant dry yeast 速发干酵母

1/8 tsp salt 盐

15g beaten egg 蛋液

5g condensed milk 炼乳

90g fresh milk 鲜奶

20g unsalted butter 无盐奶油

1 tsp cocoa powder 无糖可可粉

1/2 tsp hot water 热水

Direction

1. Mix cocoa powder and hot water into a smooth paste. Set aside.

2. Mix all the ingredients, except the butter and milk, in a big mixing bowl.

3. Slowly pour in the milk and stir to mix at the same time. When the ingredients form into a lump, cover with a lid and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes.

4. Wear a pair of CPE disposable gloves to handle this rather sticky dough. Grab one end of the dough and slam it against the wall of the mixing bowl. Fold it, turn 90 degree, and grab the other end of the dough. Continue to slam-fold-turn til the dough pulls away from the bowl and stickiness reduced. This process will take about 1 to 2 minutes.

5. Transfer the dough to a floured work top and repeat the slam-fold-turn process till you get a smooth dough.

6. Spread out the dough and apply softened butter onto it. Rub and fold the butter into the dough till no visible butter can be seen. Repeat the slam-fold-turn process till the dough becomes elastic and can pull out into a membrane. This takes about 5 to 10 minutes.

7. Divide the dough into 1/3 (100g) and 2/3 (200g). Mix the cocoa paste to the 1/3 portion. Perform the slam-fold-turn process to keep the dough elastic.

Pull down the sides of both dough and shape them into balls. Spray some water over both doughs, and keep in a covered bowl. Let the doughs proof for 1 hour or till the size doubles

8. After the first proofing, sprinkle some flour on the surface, and invert out the doughs to the floured work top separately.

Flatten the milk dough to release the trapped air. Divide the dough into two portions. Pull down the sides of the doughs to tighten the dough outer skin and shape into two balls. Dust with some flour, place back to the bowl and cover with a lid.

Repeat the same steps, except dividing into two, for the Choco dough.

Let both doughs rest for 15 minutes.

9. After the 15 minutes rest, first roll out the dough into a flat oval dough. Then roll up from the longer end into a long dough. Seal at the end by pinching. 

10. Use your hands to roll and stretch the dough slowly into a length longer than the mould by 10 cm.

11. Join the three doughs together at one end. Start plaiting the doughs accordingly, and seal at the end. When transferring the braided dough to the pre-greased mould, tuck both ends below.

12. Spray some water over the dough, and put it into a closed oven to do the second proofing for about 40 minutes, or till the dough fills up 4/5 of the mould.

13. Remove the dough from the oven, and preheat the oven to 170 degree Celsius (about 10 minutes). Brush the dough with beaten egg.

14. Bake the dough in the oven set at 170 degree Celsius for about 25 to 30 minutes. If the top of the dough brown too quickly, cover it with a aluminum foil.

15. After the baking, invert out the loaf to cool down. The bread will be very soft when it is hot, try not to touch the side of the loaf. Once "dented", the bread will be "disfigured". Only to invert back to its upright position when the bread outer crust has cooled down substantially.

16. Slice the loaf with bread knife after it has completely cool down. Enjoy :)