Cranberry, Pumpkin Seed & Caramel Flapjacks

Flapjacks is actually another term for oat bars in British. The base is mainly rolled oats but is rather a sinful treat as this 9" square flapjacks uses up ONE whole slab of salted butter and ONE can of caramel! *Gasp* Instead of slicing into 16 servings as suggested, I divided it into 30 small squares :D Better to savour it little mouthful at a time….

Recipe source : Good Food Mag Nov 2013
Ingredient (30 small squares)

• 200gm salted butter
• 90gm dulce de leche
• 30gm light brown sugar
• 350gm regular rolled oats
• 85gm plain flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

Topping

• 300gm dulce de leche
• 50gm salted butter
• 25gm pumpkin seeds
• 50gm dried cranberries
• 30gm mini dark chocolate chips

Method

1. Preheat oven at 160 deg cel. Line a 9" x 9" pan with baking paper.
2. Combine oats, flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl.
3. Melt butter, caramel & sugar in a saucepan. Pour the mixture into the oat and stir well till the oats are evenly coated with the butter mixture.
4. Pour the oat mixture into the pan and press down evenly and firmly. Bake for 45 mins until golden brown.
5. Topping : Dissolve caramel and butter over low heat, stirring continuously for about 5 mins, until the mixture turns dark golden brown and thickens slightly.
6. When the flapjacks is done, remove from oven and spread the hot caramel evenly over it. (I did not use up all the caramel!) Leave to cool for 5 mins.
7. Scatter the pumpkin seeds, cranberries and chocolate chips evenly over the surface and leave to cool completely in pan before cutting into squares.

This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs Up organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY and hosted by Vivian of Vivian Pang's Kitchen.

I am also submitting this to Cook-Your-Books #6 hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours

Dulce de Leche Oatmeal Cookie

This is a lovely and healthy oatmeal cookie with lots of bite. Good for jaw exercises hehehe. No butter nor sugar in this recipe, the cookie is sweetened with some dulce de leche and sultanas! Not feeling sinful after popping in a few at one go :D If you like soft and chewy oatmeal cookie, you will like this  recipe :D 

Recipe source : ChefLaLa.com

Ingredient

• 1 cup wholemeal flour
• 1 cup rolled oats (regular, not instant oats)
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup corn oil
• 3 tbsp dulce de leche
• 1 egg
• 3 tbsp milk
• 1 tsp vanilla paste
• 1/2 cup sultanas

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, oat, cinnamon, salt, baking powder & baking soda. Stir evenly to mix.
2. Add in oil, dulce de leche, egg, milk, vanilla and sultanas.
3. Stir thoroughly until all ingredients are combined.
4. Line a baking sheet with baking paper. Shape 1 tbsp of dough into rounds and place on baking sheet. Flatten the dough slightly. (the cookie dough does not spread much)
5. Bake in preheated oven at 180 deg cel for 15-20 mins (depending on the size of the cookie) until golden at the edge.
6. Cool completely on wire rack before storing.

This post is linked to the event, Little Thumbs Up organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Doreen of My Little Favourite DIY and hosted by Vivian of Vivian Pang's Kitchen.

Bake-Along #25 - Bake-Along 1st Anniversary Layer Cake : Chocolate Fudge Cake

Happy 1st Anniversary to Bake Along!!
&
Happy Birthday to Mummy!! ^-* (5 days ago!)

One 6" & Two 4" cakes

Dulce De Leche Ganache!! addicting & sweet!

A 4" Chocolate Fudge Cake :) sweet & petite :)

Recipe adapted (with slight modifications) from Carnation
Ingredient (makes two 7" cake or two 4" + one 6" cake)

• 175gm self-raising flour
• 2½ tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 120gm caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 150ml corn oil
• 150ml milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 125gm dark chocolate, melted
• 397gm Dulce De Leche (caramel condensed milk)

Method

1. Sift flour, cocoa powder & baking soda in a mixing bowl. Add in sugar and stir well to combine.
2. Combine eggs, oil, milk, vanilla extract and 2 tbsp of DDL and stir well.
3. Pour eggs mixture into dry ingredients and fold well to combine.
4. Pour batter into lined cake pan and bake in preheated oven at 160 deg cel for 25-30mins or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
5. Rest cake in pan for 10mins. Unmould and cool completely on rack.
6. Combine melted chocolate and DDL and stir till smooth. (Microwave on high for 30 secs if mixture is too thick to spread.)
7. Place a slice of cake on a serving plate, spread some DDL ganache over and top with another slice of cake. Cover cake with remaining ganache. Chill in fridge before serving.

* Note : After layering the cake, I make a crumb coating over the cake, chill for 10mins, then spread ganache over the cake and use a piping tip #123 and run the patterns across the top of the cake :D

I loves the texture of the cake, very moist and light, compatible with the sweet & rich ganache :)

Caramel Apple Crumble

Ingredients (2 servings)

• 1 green apple
• 1 large red apple
• 25gm wholemeal flour
• 25gm rolled oats
  
• 25gm butter
• 2 tbsp dulce le leche
  
• 12gm walnuts, chopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200 deg cel.
   
2. Peel the apples and chop into a chunky dice. Tip into a pan with 3tbsp water and simmer for a few minutes until starting to break down but still keeping a little shape.
3. Scoop apples into ramekins and top with 1/2 tbsp caramel over each pot.
4. Place the flour, oats and butter into a small bowl and mix till crumbly. Add 1 tablespoon of caramel and mix roughly with a fork. Stir in walnuts.
5. Top each pot with the crumble mixture and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
6. Serve with evaporated milk, custard or ice-cream.

Custard Sauce Ingredient :
* 1/2 cup unsweetend soy milk, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp custard powder & 1/2 tsp vanilla paste
* Mix the mixture well and heat up in a small sauce pan till sugar dissolves. Cool down and chill till use.

Dulce de Leche Pound Cake

A pleasant looking loaf!! :)

The amount of Dulce de Leche left in fridge just nice for making this pound cake! Loves the caramel fragrant lingering in the kitchen during baking process! Seems that the Japanese Flour works well with most type of cakes! So far I've tried using this flour for making steamed cake, chiffon cake and now pound cake! what's the next experiment? muffins? genoese sponge?....

Recipe modified from All That Matters & Bakericious

Ingredients

• 180gm unsalted butter
• 50gm light brown sugar
  
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1.5 tsp vanilla essence
• 3/4 cup dulce de leche
• 180gm Japanese flour / plain flour
• 1.5 tsp baking powder
• 3 eggs
  

Method

1. In a bowl, using an electric whisk, cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy. Add in salt, vanilla essence and dulce de leche, whisk till incorporated.
2. Sift over flour & baking powder. whisk on low speed. Scrap down the sides and whisk till the batter is smooth and not lumpy.
3. Add in the eggs, 1 at a time, whisk well.
4. Pour the mixture into a lined 9" x 5" loaf pan and bake at 160 deg cel for 50 mins.

Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies

So excited when found this recipe online yesterday nite!! could not wait, since is cookie making, nothing complicated in the making process, therefore quickly went ahead baking though is already almost 10pm!! ^-^ waited patiently for the cookie to cool down....took a piece and taste it....crunchy & sweet caramel taste! :) took another piece & spread with my Dulce de Leche....oh so addicting but is SWEEETTTTT !!! >< maybe I seldom take so sweet stuffs, I prefer munching on the plain caramel cookies instead :P

this picture reminds me of my failed macarons did previously hahaha...

Ingredient (30 sanchwich cookies)

• 150gm plain flour, sifted
  
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 110gm unsalted butter
• 100ml dulce de leche, plus more for filling
• 60gm light brown sugar
• 40gm sugar
• 1 large egg

Method

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.
2. Using a electric whisk, beat the butter at medium speed until just softened and broken up a bit. Add dulce de leche, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg, beating to incorporate.
3. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients all at once. Mix only until the flour is just combined.
4. Spoon the dough onto the lined baking sheets using a heaping teaspoon of dough (do not drop too large dough if not you will get a jumbo cookie!) for each cookie. The dough is soft & spread a lot during baking therefore leave 2 inches of space between each cookie for the baking spread.
5. Baked in preheated oven at 180 deg cel for 10 to 12 minutes. The cookies will be honey brown with a light crust, but still very soft when they come out of the oven. Let them rest on the cookie sheet for a minute or two before removing to cool.(will harden upon cooling)
   
6. Once the cookies are cooled completely, spread them with dulce de leche and sprinkle with a bit of sea salt if you like. Keep well wrapped for up to four days.

Recipe source with slight modification : JoyTheBaker

Banana Dulce De Leche Chiffon

Trying to be adventurous & luckily did not turn out disastrous hahaha...I found a banana chiffon and subsitute some of the sugar with homemade Dulce De Leche I've made few days back, and plain flour with Japanese Flour! The texture I've got nothing to pick on as it is soft & fluffy, like biting onto a piece of cotton :P, but the taste of Dulce De Leche is untraceable, still it is ok to me as the banana flavour is there! hahaha, trying to comfort myself :P

first time took a pic on the stiff egg white :) see... so stiff it did not drop from the overturned bowl!

Ingredient

• 6 egg yolks
• 60ml corn oil
• 100gm Dulce De Leche
• 160gm banana, mashed
• 120gm Japanese Flour, sifted
• 6 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
• 50gm sugar
  

Method

1. Whisk egg yolks, corn oil, Dulce De Leche & banana till smooth. Fold in flour till batter forms.
2. Beat egg whites with cream of tartar till foamy. Gradually beat in sugar on high speed in 3 additions till stiff peak formed.
3. Fold in 1/3 of the egg white foam into batter. Mix evenly. Pour the batter into the balance egg white foam and fold in gently till combined.
4. Pour into ungreased 9 inch tube pan and tap the pan on hard surface to release excess trap air bubbles and bake in preheated oven at 180 deg cel for 40 mins. Invert immediately to cool completely before removing from pan.

Dulce De Leche

Dulce De Leche on Toast

What is Dulce De Leche? Extract from Wikipedia : Dulce de leche is the most common name for milk caramel in Spanish. Made as both a thick jam and a caramel candy, it is prepared by slowly heating sweetened milk to create a product that derives its taste from caramelised sugar. Its origin is widely debated, and it remains popular throughout Latin America, where it is known by this name in Argentina,..."

The first time I come across this term is from Tartelette's Dulce De Leche's Macarons 2 years ago when I was crazing over making macarons. Not until few days ago browse through a few blogger's site and come across this term again :) Therefore I decide to follow Table for 2 method of making Dulce De Leche. Though her method is safe and successful, I could not help worrying the can of milk will explode during the boiling process hahaha...

More Reading on How to Make Dulce De Leche

Boiling Method...

1. Put the can of condensed milk in a pot, on an over turned steaming metal rack. (see pic above)
   
2. Bring it to a boil and lowered it to a simmer and check frequently to ensure the pot didn't dry up and water level is at least 1.5 inches above the can. Pls take extra note on it cos if the pot dry up, the can will be exploded!
   
3. Simmered the can for 3-4 hours.
   
4. Cool the can completely before open it. Do not attempt to open a hot or warm can!!!!
5. Stir the content and transfer to an air-tight container and store in fridge.