Wheat Mantou 麦馒头

Delicious Wheat Mantou 麦馒头

大家好！今天我做麦馒头。很好吃。麦馒头是健康的。我爸爸喜欢吃麦馒头。我也喜欢吃。过的星期，我有很多考试。不容易。
So, finals were very hard. The AP classes in which I took the finals in were even worse. In AP Lit, I had to write an essay and do an AP style multiple choice test on a book we have read in class.
Anyway, back to the bread. This Wheat Mantou 麦馒头 is actually pretty good. Actually, it's 100% Whole Wheat Mantou, because it doesn't use any white flour. I like it better than my other mantou recipe. Well, maybe it's because I've grown accustomed to healthier foods, but my dad also likes these too. He usually doesn't like whole wheat items.

My first attempt

These took about 3 to 4 hours to make. It'd probably be easier and faster if you used a bread machine. I'm so happy because these are really healthy and don't use a lot of ingredients. I've calculated the nutrition facts too. I got 18 rolls out of this, making it around 110 calories each. If you get 15 rolls, then they're around 130 calories. Healthy Asian Food. My favorite. So, here's the recipe. I've adapted it from RasaMalaysia.

Ingredients:

My 2nd attempt at making Wheat Mantou 麦馒头. Much better.

• 2 1/2  cups Whole Wheat Flour
• 1 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2  cup warm water
• 1 to 1  1/4 cup warm fat free milk
• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 2 tsp baking powder

Directions: 

1. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and 1/2 cup warm water. Then, mix in the yeast. Stir. Let it stand for 10 minutes. It should get foamy. 
2. In another bowl, combine both the flours. Add in the sugar/yeast mixture. Then, pour in 1 cup of warm milk. If more liquid is needed, add milk a little bit at a time until a dough forms. Once the dough has formed, knead for 1 to 2 minutes. Do not over-knead. Put the dough into another bowl.
3. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise until double in size. This can range from 1 to 2 hours, depending on the temperature. It rises faster in warmer temperatures.
4. While waiting for the dough to rise, combine the baking powder with 2 tablespoon warm water. Once the dough is done rising, mix in the baking powder mixture. If the dough is already sticky enough, you can add the baking powder directly into the dough. You can also add it to the flour before mixing in the liquid. Knead until incorporated. Remember to add flour if the dough is sticky or add more liquid if the dough is too dry. 
5. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle. Then, fold one side into the middle, and then fold in the other side to the middle. Roll it out again.
6. Roll the dough into a log.
7. Divide into 12 to 18 pieces. 
8. Let it rise for about another 20 to 30 minutes. 
9. Steam for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the buns. 
10. Serve warm. 
11. Enjoy with tea or rice porridge. 

 

The steamer I used

My first attempt..after steaming. ugly

My first attempt..right before steaming, ugly.

                                      

新年快乐！Happy Chinese New Year!

恭喜发财!新年快乐！身体健康！今天是中国的新年。This year is the year of the 龙。I wish everyone a prosperous New Year!
I can't believe that it has been one full lunar new year since I have started this blog. Blogging has been quite an experience for me and I really enjoy it. I thank you readers who come stop by to see what I have cooked up in the kitchen. I'm hoping that more readers come the upcoming year.
Anyway, for the New Year,  I've decided to change my blog layout a bit, to make it more organized. I'm going to make a separate page for the different types of foods I have made. For example, I might make a category for "Asian" food, "Breakfast" and so on.
To celebrate the New Year, here's a really cute Chinese New Year song:

Here are some recipes that can be made for the Chinese New Year:

Baked Nian Gao
Red Bean Sesame Balls
Red Bean Mochi
Steamed Nian Gao　年糕
Steamed Sweet Glutinous Rice Balls
Chinese Steamed Cupcakes (Prosperity Cupcakes) 发糕

However, for the 发糕，I'm going to repost the recipe here. It's seems like everyone loves that recipe and, I've changed some of the measurements for the ingredients.

Chinese New Year Prosperity Cupcakes
Ingredients

• 1 box yellow cake mix (18.25 oz)  any other flavor is fine  
• 1 cup Glutinous Rice flour 糯米粉
• 1 cup Rice Flour 米粉  
• 1 1/4   3/4 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil 

Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl,  combine the cake mix, sugar and both the rice flours. 
2. Next, mix in the water. oil and eggs.  
3. Boil water in a wok or steamer.
4. Fill the cupcake pans. 
5. Once the water has boiled, put the pan into the steamer or wok, cover it, and steam for 15 minutes. Once 15 minutes has gone by, take the lid off. 
6. Take it out of the wok, take out the cupcakes, and repeat until all the batter is gone. Wait until the cupcakes cool down before eating them. Enjoy! There is no need for frosting. :)

煎堆 Red Bean Sesame Balls

大家好！下个星期是中国的新年！一月二十三日！星期一．What sucks is that the week of Chinese New Year, is also the week of finals. I would rather celebrate the holidays than study for  finals. 4 AP classes to study for!
So, anyways, to celebrate the Chinese New Year, I decided to make these, 煎堆 . They're deep fried sesame glutinous rice balls. These have red bean filling in them. I love read bean. Anyway, even though they are really unhealthy (being deep fried in peanut oil) , they are so delicious! Don't eat too much of them though. Just a warning. Also, the deep frying part is the hardest part. Good luck. Here's the recipe.

Ingredients: 

• 3  1/2 cups glutinous rice flour
• 1  1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1  1/3 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup sesame seeds
• 1 cup red bean paste

Directions: 

1. In a bowl, add the sugar to the water. 
2. In another, put in the rice flour. Gradually add in the sugar water to the flour.
3.  Dust your hands with rice flour and form balls the size of golf balls. 
4. Then, with the red paste, form balls smaller than the dough.
5. Punch a hole into the rice balls (but not all the way) and shape it into a cup like container. Place a red bean ball inside the cup and close the dough over the red bean.
6. Roll it into the sesame seeds. Then deep fry in peanut oil.
7. Blot the balls (because of the oil) and enjoy. :) 
8. Don't eat too much. ;)

烤年糕 Baked Nian Gao

大家好！　一月二十三日是中国的新年。　昨天，我做烤年糕。很好吃。这个糕，我自己做。我家喜欢吃。　：）　 Chinese New Year is around the corner and I've decided to make a baked Chinese New Year Cake, Nian Gao. It's quite easy and simple to make. My aunt always makes these whenever we have a family get together. It's about time for me to make it myself. However, this recipe is a bit different from the one my aunt gave me. I've changed some things, however, but it's still traditional. 
I love how it's crunchy on the outside but soft and chewy on the inside. It's a great texture. Yes, the texture of the outside is different from the steamed version, but the inside is still the same chewy, sticky texture. The difference besides how both is cooked, is how you can eat it afterwords. For the steamed version, you just beat up an egg, dip a slice of the cake in, and fry it. This baked version, you can eat anytime. You can microwave it if you like it warm, or re-bake it. I would re-bake it, to get it's crunchy outside again. My dad brought this to his coworker to try, and she loved it. :) Anyways, here's the recipe. I hope you guys enjoy. :)

Here's a cute video before I continue on with the recipe: 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb glutinous rice flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 can coconut milk (400 mL or 13.5 oz)
• red bean paste (optional)
• sesame seed (optional)

Directions: 

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease a 9 x 13 baking dish.
2. In a bowl, mix together the flour, sugars, and baking powder. 
3. Add in the eggs, oil and milk. 
4. Pour the batter into the baking dish. 
5. If you want, you can sprinkle some sesame seeds on. 
6. Bake for 55 minutes to one hour. Use a toothpick to make sure it's cooked all the way. 
7.  When you take it out, the cake will deflate. Cutting it into pieces will be a bit difficult, since the inside is sticky.
8. If you want to add red bean, you can add that to the batter, add it in blotches into the batter before baking and swirling it, or adding it in and swirling it after 10 to 20 minutes of baking. It's up to you guys. Enjoy. 

Happy New Year! Top 3 Recipes of 2011

大家好！新年快乐！ This past year has been quite a year. I can't believe that it's 2012! So, here are the top 3 recipes of 2011. There was a tie for 3rd place, so, there will be 4 recipes instead of 3. I can't wait until the next year!
But, before I continue on, here's a song. :)

Top Recipe:Chocolate Crinkles

2nd place goes to: 
Arroz Con Leche 

Tied For 3rd place: 

Red Bean Mochi 糯米糍  

AND

Chinese Hot Dog buns and Bolo Bao (菠蘿包)

Thank you guys so much for a great year. 谢谢你们！ I look forward to posting more recipes! Email  me if you have any requests. Have a happy and prosperous 2012!