Crossiant

Lots of people have very complicated feeling about crossiant. People love crossiant because of the crispy, but we are afraid of knowing how much butter bakeries use. Although not everyone has this king of feeling, but most of us have. When I told to my friend I’m doing Crossiant, my friend said I’m not coming to kitchen now. Because I don’t want to know how much butter you use in. Hee… Not a lot!!

Someone said I’m crazy to bake crossiant by myself because you can buy 4 for a pound!! I know it, but I just like to do it. So, enjoy your Crossiant

Oven Temperature Settig: 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6

Baking Time: 15~20 minutes

Recipe: 12

 

 

Steps of Crossiant

(1) Add flour, salt and sugar into a big bowl. Mix a little.

(2) Add 200 ml milk with instant yeast into the bowl. Knead it into the chunk
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: My instant yeast’s instruction is to add yeast in the water around 5 minutes. Check the instruction before using it.)

(3) Then, move dough to a floured table and knead the dough until it turns soft and elastic.

(4) Shape the dough into a ball and put back to the bowl. Leave the dough in a warm place to double its size. It takes around 90 ~ 120 minutes

(5) After the first grow-up, move the dough to floured table. Roll it into a big flat, around 30X50 cm.

(6) Place 200g butter in the middle of the place. Fold one third into the middle. And then, fold another one third on top. Then, it will turn into a long strip.

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: Leave around 2 cm at the top and bottom of the edge. Then, butter will not be split at rolling later.)

(7) Fold one third into the middle from the top. And the fold another one third into the middle from the bottom. Then, wrap with a kitchen film. Put in the freezer. Wait for 30 minutes.

(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: It will be easier to handle the dough.)
(8) Then, roll it into a 30X 50 cm rectangle. Repeat (6) and (7) at least 3 more time.

(9) Roll it into a 30X50cm rectangle. Cut the dough into 12 triangles like the picture.

(10) Roll into the crossiant from the base of triangle

(11) Leave in the cold place to grow up. It takes around 90~120 minutes.
(12) Brush some egg and then send it into the pre-heat oven at 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6. Bake it around 15 minutes until the top turns golden and crispy.

Fresh Crossiant is also so yum. Crispy top and soft inside. Who can say NO to this delicious bread?! Just enjoy it!

Bagel

 

I have a long long story for the bagel. It was not so popular back 10 years ago in Taiwan. Only few shop sold bagel. My classmate at college had a part-time job at Costco so that I always needed to ask his help to buy it for me. But, I felt sorry to bother him a lot. Probably, I just ate it once per quarter.

Later, when I started to work, Costco set up a new branch in that city. I had more chances to eat it. Or, I should say I always went there every two weeks to purchase some bagels! It is weird, isn’t it? People can obsess on one thing without any reasons. Plus, Bagel can be eaten as breakfast, brunch, lunch, or light tea time. It is a very good choice, isn’t it?!

Oven Temperature Setting: 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6

Baking Time: Around 15 minutes
Recipe: 6 Bagels

 

Steps of Bagel

(1) Add flour, salt and sugar into a big bowl. Mix a little.

(2) Add 200 ml milk with instant yeast into the bowl. Knead it into the chunk
(Selena’s Kitchen Talk: My instant yeast’s instruction is to add yeast in the liquid around 5 minutes. Check the instruction before using it.)
(3) Then, knead olive oil into the dough.

 

(4) Knead the rest of milk into the dough gradually until it turns softer and more elastic.

(5) Shape the dough into a ball and put back to the bowl. Leave the dough in a warm place to double its size. It takes around 90 ~ 120 minutes

 

(6) After the first grow-up, move the dough to the working table with light flour. Separate it to 6 small balls equally.

 

(7) Roll one small ball into a long stick. Fold in one side and press it into a flat dough. And lightly moisten both ends with water. Using the flat end wraps another end and press to join. Slightly widen the hole in the middle. Repeat this step for the rest of 5 dough. Set aside at a warm place and wait for bagels double the size again. It takes around 40 ~ 60 minutes.

 

(8) Prepare a deep saucepan. Boil the water and add 50 g sugar in. Then, boil 3 bagels at once. It takes 30 seconds at one side. Then, turn over and boil another side 30 seconds. Then, place them on the baking tray. Repeat this step for the rest of bagels.

(9) Brush some whisked egg over the top of bagels. Send the bagels into the pre-heat oven at 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6. It takes around 15 minutes until it turns golden on the top.

 

The reason I like to eat bagel is because of its texture. It has a very chewy crust. So, how will you eat your bagel? Eat straight away, or as a brunch?!

 

Potato Pancake

Actually, it was funny when preparing potato pancake. I was reading a recipe of potato scone then I though… WOW… it is very interesting… Normally, we see scone or cheese scone or scone with some dried fruit. Potato scone??? No… It totally triggers my interesting… I put it in my to-do listing. Then, I discussed with my friend, why not have a brunch. I can cook potato scone. Both of us though that it is a good idea. When we had our first bite, we LAUGH… It is potato pancake instead of potato scone. But, it is still very tasty. Eating with bacon, sausages, egg… Very perfect for the brunch.

Recipe: Around 8” Potato Pancake

 

Step

(1) Wash and peel all potato. Chop it into small pieces. Prepare a pan with boiling water. Place all chopped potato into the pan and add 2 tea spoon of salt in. Keep boiling around 12~15 minutes until potato is soft to be mashed.

(2) When potato is ready. Pour over all the water. Then, add butter and milk into the pan. Mix a while. Then, mash the chopped potato. Then, place mashed potato into a big bowl.

(3) Prepare beaten egg, flour, baking powder and another tea spoon of salt into the bowl. Mix all ingredients well

(Selena Kitchen Talk:
*This dough is very sticky because of mashed potato. Don’t worry about the sticky dough
**We ate with sausage and bacon which are salted food. So, I only add 1 tea spoon of salt in my potato dough. If you eat without anything, you can consider to increase the amount salt to 2 tea spoon.)

(4) Prepare a fried pan. Add some oil into the fried pan. Switch to the small-medium heat. When it is ready, place the dough into the fried pan. Fry one side until it turns golden. Turn another side. Again, fry it until it turns golden.

 I always like to try some new things for my cooking. So, I am not surprised when potato scone turned into potato pancake. It is the most amazing thing for cooking. You never know what it is if you try new things. Enjoy it.