Ensaymada

Ingredients
5-6 cups bread flour
3/4 cups butter, melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 pieces raw egg
2 1/2 tsp. yeast
1 cup fresh milk, warm





Procedure:

1. Sprinkle yeast, 1 tsp sugar over warm milk.  Mix well until the yeast is dissolved.  Set aside for 5-10 minutes or until bubbles appear at the top of the mixture.  (always use new packs/sachets of yeast)

2.  In a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, salt and mix well.

3.  Add in eggs to flour.

4.  Add butter.

5.  Add in yeast mixture.

6.  Mix well and knead the dough until soft.  You may need to use more than 5 cups of flour until the dough doesn't stick to your hands or if you are using a heavy duty mixer, put flour until the dough doesn't stick to the edges of the bowl.  About 10 minutes.  Form dough into a ball and put it into a greased bowl, cover and let rise for 2 hours or until it doubles in size.

7.  Punch down to release air.

8.  Flatten dough and divide into four.   Take one part of the dough and flatten it and roll to make a log.  Seal the edges and set aside.  This will make a small ensaymada flavored loaf.

9.  To make a single serving size ensaymada, take another part of the dough and flatten it and roll to make a log.  Seal edges.  Cut the dough one inch apart.  Take one of the cut dough and flatten roll to make a log and seal edges and for into a coil.

10.  You can also shape the cut dough into ball, put it into a baking pan or you can use a muffin pan.

11.  I shaped the rest of the dough into small balls and put it into a round baking pan. Let all the dough rise for another 45 minutes before baking.

12.  Preheat oven 30 minutes before you put the dough at 130C.  Bake the individual sized dough for 15-25 minutes or until the top of the dough is light brown.  I didn't put the pan into the center of the oven, i put it a bit lower so because the top of the dough turns brown fast and will leave the bottom not full cooked.  Bake the rest of the dough until light brown on top.

 
13.  See to it that the bottom part of the ensaymada is light brown to make sure that it is cooked.

14.  Cool completely.  Put butter on top, dip in granulated sugar and top with grated cheese.

Pizza

Ingredients:

Dough:

4-5 cups bread flour
2 1/2 tsp. yeast
2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups warm water
2 tbsp. granulated sugar

Toppings:
ham, cut into small squares
red and green bellpeppers
black pitted olives
pizza sauce, italian style
white onions
button mushrooms
pineapple tidbits
parmesan cheese
cheddar cheese
quickmelt cheese


     I always make pizza putting all the toppings I want on the other half and just pineapples, ham and cheese on the other side.  Every batch I put in the oven, there will always be a slice for me and my husband and for my son. I don't have mozzarella cheese then, if you have just sprinkle it on top.

Procedure:
1.  Proof the yeast:  Sprinkle yeast and sugar over warm water and set aside for 5 to 10 minutes until bubbles appear at the top of the mixture.

 2.  Combine bread flour, salt and olive oil. Add in yeast mixture and mix well. Knead into a floured surface until soft.

3.  Grease a big pan with olive oil to rise the dough with.  Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and set aside for 2 hours or until it doubles it size.

4.  Punch down to release air and divide into 4 and form into a ball and let rise again for the second time for 45 minutes or until it doubles its size.  You can make 4 medium sized pizza, if you want a bigger one, divide dough into three.

5.  Get one dough and flatten on your preferred pan. I want a not too thick crust, depends on what you like.   Put slices of cheddar cheese at the end of the dough and tuck it in.  This will also create a more prominent edges on your pizza to make it look better.

6.  Spread just a right amount of pizza sauce over dough... don't put too much so you will not have a soggy pizza at the middle.

7.  Sprinkle parmesan cheese over pizza sauce.  Preheat oven at 200C.

8.  Put the toppings you want.  You can put all toppings evenly, I just prefer mine this way the other half for my husband and the other for my son.

9. Sprinkle pizza with quickmelt cheese... most of the time I prefer quickmelt cheesse as it is a lot cheaper than mozerella, but if you have one available, just sprinkle it on top.

10.  Bake pizza for 35-45 minutes or until the dough is cooked.  I put it in the lower part of the oven.  Just check it every once in a while.  If the cheese on top already melts and beginning to brown, turn off the heat above the oven and leave the bottom on in a medium heat to cook the dough further.

Banana Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon powder
2 medium sized eggs
1/2 bup butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
6 ripe bananas (preferably lacatan), mashed
brown sugar

Procedure:
1.  In a medium sized bowl, put together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon powder.

2.  Using a wire whisk, mix dry ingredients well.  Set aside.

3.  In a small bowl, mix together melted butter, mashed bananas, vanilla and eggs.

4.  Fold dry ingredients to wet mixture just until combined and the batter is thick and chunky. (Do not over mix the batter to achieve a soft texture muffins.  Over mixing the batter will yield tough, rubbery muffins.).

5.  Preheat oven to 180C. Spoon mixture into prepared muffin pans with cupcake cups.  Top with brown sugar. 

6.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until wooded toothpick inserted at the middle of the muffin comes out clean.  Cool muffins in a wire rock.

Pasta in White Sauce

Ingredients:
400 grams pasta, cooked according to package direction

1 tsp oil
2 tbsp. butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium sized onion, minced
250 grams ham, cut into small squares
1 cup mushroom, sliced thinly
1 cup all purpose cream
1 cup evaporated milk
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp. cornstarch diluted in 3 tbsp. water


Procedure:
1.  Set stove to medium heat, put a pan and put oil and butter.

2.  Saute in garlic, onion and ham for a few minutes.

3.  Add in mushroom, season with salt and pepper to taste and saute until cooked.

4.  Add in all purpose cream and simmer.

 5.  Add in milk and simmer for 2 minutes.

6.  Add in cornstarch mixture to thicken the sauce.  Add in right amount of pasta.  Mixture shouldn't be too dry.  Top with grated parmesan cheese.

    The only pasta available in my cupboard is the shell one, would be better to use spaghetti pasta.

Oriental Chicken

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken, cleaned and dried with a paper towel

4  tbsp butter, melted
4 tbsp. oyster sauce
2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
1 tsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tsp finely ground pepper
4 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. garlic powder
lemon grass



Procedure:
     These are the ingredients I used in the recipe.  You can add a little hoisin sauce if you want it a little sweeter or pepper,garlic powder, hot sauce if you want it a little spicy and flavorful.

1.  Prepare the marinade:  In a small bowl, melt butter.

 3.  Put the rest of the ingredients except lemon grass and mix well.

2.  Clean and rub chicken with salt.  Rinse thoroughly and pat dry with a paper towel.  Set aside.  Take 4 tbsp. of marinade and put it in the fridge (for basting).  Put marinade sauce in chicken and inside the cavities.  Put lemon grass inside the chicken.  Put the marinated chicken in the fridge and cover, marinate overnight.

3.  Preheat oven at 200C.  Prepare chicken in a baking dish and cover with aluminum foil.  Bake for 1 1/2 hours.  Remove aluminum foil and brush with the remaining sauce.

 4.  Lower heat to 130-C and cook until chicken turns brown (about 40-50 minutes).