[Maude's Quarantine Kitchen] Baking Bread

So it's July! Just like that, half of the year's gone and our lives are still pretty much at a standstill. My mood swings are bad these days, especially now being away from Maddie. But wait, don't worry, this is not another emotional post. I just wanted to say that what instantly turns my mood around is baking! I did a baking marathon yesterday and I'm feeling so tired yet so accomplished so I'm gonna write it down just to record my mini achievement.

I have always wanted to bake bread. I started with Cinnamon Rolls last month. The first time wasn't so good. I burnt the top and the bread was overall tough. Good thing hubby eats everything I make, so it's okay. We live, we learn. I learnt that the yeast that I used was supposed to be for crusty breads. Eureka moment. LOL! So the next try was a big hit. Okay, I used a different recipe, too. But I really feel it's the yeast that made the difference.

Here is my 2nd attempt at Cinnamon Rolls.

Does it look enticing? :)

And then yesterday, I thought that if I'm gonna bring out my huge kneading board again, I better make the most of it. Hence, I made Pan de Sal, Cheese Rolls a la Mary Grace and Ensaymada all at once! Nakakapagod, mga teh! But when I took that first bite of the cheese roll, gosh, the effort was all worth it!

Here, let me show you.

Perfect with butter, coco jam or dipped in condensed milk!
How do you like yours? :)

The pandesal was so-so. It's okay to satisfy the Sunday morning Pinas breakfast feel that we always miss here, but honestly, the texture was more dinner rolls than pandesal. I will try Erwan Heusaff's recipe next time so I can compare.

But this. This is the star of the night! 😍

Tastes as good as it looks 💖

To be honest, I didn't expect much while baking the cheese rolls. First and foremost, I knead manually. I have always lusted over a pink Kitchenaid but last February I passed on a $488 Raspberry Ice Kitchenaid on sale and it haunts me to this day. I don't wanna buy a regular-priced one so I have to wait for now. I have to work these flabby arms out anyway, so manual kneading it is :)

Secondly, my first-time baked goodies usually fail so I said if this one fails too, I'm very much okay and I will try better next time. But lo and behold, na-achieve ang Mary Grace peg! It was so soft and had just the right sweetness! It looks perfect too! Sometimes I bake and even if it tastes good, I fail on the aesthetics. But this one is a real feat. Please indulge me for a bit here because I was so happy with it ;)

But like any other kitchen adventure, there's an improvement point too. I used Eden cheese because natural cheeses daw melts into the bread but half of what I put still melted. 

I need to put bigger cheese slices next time.

Oh by the way, all the credit goes to Chef Jackie Ang Po's recipe. She posted it in her Facebook page. You might wanna check it out and give it a try too.

And then lastly, I also made Ensaymada, because it's just made of the same sweet dough as the rolls. The only difference is that it has no filling, you need to roll it longer and twirl it into the mold, and then top with cheese. This time I used Gouda and it just worked. This, friends, is obviously beginner's luck :D

The saltiness of Gouda balanced the sweetness so it's 👌

Now excuse me while I reheat my breads and make a cup of my favorite Old Town Hazelnut coffee (that alone is 26g of carbs but what the heck, haha!)

Happy Sunday, dears!

Hope you are having a lovely weekend too :)

My Baking Adventures Part 1

Since I have briefly mentioned in this post that I have been baking the past few months, I figured I should share a bit more about this new hobby. I started experimenting with the oven 2 years ago but back then I only bake pre-mixed pastries like brownies and double chocolate cookies. Just add oil and eggs and you're done! Easy-peasy! Baking a cake was a slightly different story so it was only late last year that I had the guts to try it. And friends, promise not to laugh, but this is how my very first cake looked like...

M is for Maddie! Actually, that's me trying to be artistic. I know, it only made things worse! Haha!

But still, my first customers thought it's nice. Or maybe they just love me enough not to hurt my feelings. Lol.

It doesn't look very pretty but it tasted okay. I blamed it to a lot of other things - maybe because it was only a boxed cake mix or maybe the lack of proper baking tools like an electric mixer, piping nozzles or turn table. I could go on and on. That said, I started watching Youtube videos on how to bake from scratch and I frequented baking supply shops and hoarded whatever stuff I saw on those videos.

 First things first. I bought an electric mixer. Just a basic and cheap one but it does the job. I swear, my baking life has been a whole lot better since! :D

I tested the new kitchen gadget and this is the result. There's a bit of improvement on the cake's appearance but more importantly, the mixer made baking quite effortless. No more painful arms after the buttercream preparation! =)

My 2nd cake straight from a Betty Crocker box. Haha.

Since baking became more enjoyable after I got the mixer, I continued shopping for other tools.

Yes, I even got myself a turntable because based on the tutorials, frosting will be a piece of cake when you have one (turns out it's not always the case. haha)

 Even in Daiso (the 2 dollar store), I would go straight to the baking department.

I got so addicted to it that there was one time I spent more than 60 SGD in one go.

I stopped after that because I got some good scolding from my husband. Hahaha.

Even so, I continued receiving gifts from wonderful friends so my bakeware collection grew and grew. 

...Until such time that I felt I am ready to try baking a cake from scratch :D

My first attempt was a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. I went a little overboard with the carrots so it's heavier and more moist than intended.

It looks good, doesn't it? :) However, my critique husband didn't like it because he doesn't have an idea how a carrot cake tastes like but according to my officemates, it's actually nice! Woohoo!

My first cake baked from scratch. Achievement unlocked! :)

On the same day, I baked chocolate chip cookies as well! J would always comment that when it comes to baking, I don't get tired. To be honest, I get tired, too! But there's just something about it that makes the exhaustion worth it. Perhaps, seeing the flour and butter and eggs and sugar magically transform into something beautiful and sinfully delicious? :)

Can't wait for it to cool, I just had to take one bite!

I tried many other cakes thereafter. I did a red velvet thrice, slowly improving with every try.

1st try: Friends teased me that it was a brown velvet instead of red! Haha! Personally, I'm also not too impressed because I can still taste the flour.

2nd try: The taste and color is so much better now but the other layer crumbled so I had to make do with this. The frosting is also a bit runny.

The last try was a request by one of my close friends for their housewarming party and finally, it was a hit! The guests (mostly our officemates as well) loved it and wouldn't believe that I baked it! :)

I've also made a Filipino favorite, Brazo de Mercedes. Looks good on the outside although I still haven't perfected the custard filling. One day, Maudey. One day :)

Was also able to make meringue cookies from the left over egg whites.

Surprisingly, I got a thumbs up from J for this! =)

Lastly, the cake that I'm most proud of... my Double Chocolate Cake! It's the first time I tried making a ganache (the glossy top layer) and I'm oh so amazed at how pretty it turned out! Scroll all the way up and compare it to my very first cake. Haven't I come a long way already? :D

It's Maddie's 9th month celebration that day hence the number candle.

And because I was too happy about it, I baked the same cake for our Christmas party here at home! Noticed where the cake sits? At this point I've already bought myself a decent cake stand. It's not cheap but I bought it anyway thinking that I will someday have a dessert buffet business and I can put it to good use. Hahaha. Daydreaming 101.

That was also the last real cake that I baked but I still make cupcakes every now and then and just recently, I tried making a Yema Cake because it's a highly-sought-after dessert in the Philippines. Let me tell you more on those in the next installment of My Baking Adventures! 

And oh, if you want the recipes, let me know in the comments! :D