Hakuna Matata... It's now at our doorstep.....

           The first time we tried to watch the Lion King Musical was 13 or 14 years ago when we were in NewYork. We were walking around and exploring the city when we found ourselves outside a theatre which, I  recently discovered, was the  Amsterdam Theatre. The new theatre was showing the Lion King Musical. My husband and I were quite excited, not because we were keen on theatrical performances but because it was showing a musical show based on the Lion King movie. Our family, especially our two girls (there were only the two of them then), was always watching the movie on  the VCR. So we thought it would be a great thing to watch! But, it was not meant to be..... The lady at the ticket booth apologized and told us that tickets for the show until the following year were all sold out!

  So when the musical arrived in Singapore at the MBS theatre, my eldest daughter, Amira, got so excited that she and her best friends went to watch it. Since then, she had not stopped telling me how good it was and that we must watch it. All the more since we did try to watch it, though it's more than a decade ago and 50 million people have already done so! So since it's the school holidays and before we miss it again, my family, my sis and brother-in-law went for the show last Sunday afternoon. 

        

 

          What a spectacular musical performance!!! Everything about it - the performers,  props, music, lighting, visual effects - was just amazing! Words just cannot capture its extravagance. You just have to watch it! I'm thinking of watching it again. Not with the whole family (it's costly for a big family like mine)....just me and my husband. My birthday is around the corner, so maybe that's a good excuse! 

          We were early for the show, so my husband suggested we go up the Sands SkyPark on the 56th floor of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. The view was breathtaking. It's better than the view from the Flyer. I'll go up the SkyPark again when the Gardens by the Bay is completed.

          

 The weather was scotching hot so we stopped for a drink at the cafe  on the observation deck.

           On the 57th floor was the Infinity Pool........nice....

          All in all, it was a good day. I know the children, especially the boys, were very happy as  the whole family went out and did things other than shopping and eating out!

Oreo Malted Milk Gelato.....

          This is my second ice-cream post although I've actually made ice-cream a few times. While I'm typing this entry, the Oreo Malted Milk Gelato is almost depleting.... What did I say about my hungry bears......? The good thing is they like my ice-cream and I feel good. But taking the pictures was a challenge. For one, Amir & Maisur kept bugging me while I was trying very hard to exercise my creativity...."Can we eat the ice-cream now? Can I eat the Oreos now? Wait! Don't touch that! Move aside!" Just imagine the noise....

       
           And today's weather is  not helping either! It's so hot and humid that I had to work very fast. After taking some shots of the ice-cream in the big container, I had to put it back into the freezer before I could take more photos later. I even put the small cup I was going to use in the freezer first!

        

         

            The first time I made malted milk ice-cream, I used the recipe from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz. It was just too rich and sweet to my taste. So this time, I've adapted the recipes by Lebovitz and Toffance Kopfer, the authour of Making Artisan Gelato.  I used Kopfer's basic gelato recipe and added half the amount of malt used by Lebovitz in his Malted Milk Ice-cream recipe. I also added Oreo cookies. It tastes much better. It's rich but not too sweet, although I would add a bit more malt powder the next time I make this gelato.

Ingredients:

2 cups (470ml).............................whole milk

1/2 cup (100g)............................. granulated sugar

4 (large) .......................................egg yolks

1 cup (235ml)...............................dairy whipping cream

1/3 cup (45g)................................malt milk powder (I used Horlicks & will add 25g more in future)

1/2 tsp..........................................pure vanilla paste

6...................................................Oreo cookies (Remove cream & break into small pieces. 3 to 4 hours before churning the chilled mixture in the ice-cream maker, place cookies in the freezer.)

Method:

1. Combine the milk and about 1/2 of the sugar in a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until it registers 77 deg C (170 deg F) on an instant-read thermometer.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the remaining sugar until foamy and slightly thickened.
3. Carefully and slowly, pour about half of the hot milk to the eggs, whisking continuously. Pour the heated egg mixture into the saucepan with the hot milk and return to the stove top.
4. Stirring continuously with a wooden spoon, cook the mixture over medium heat until it registers 85 deg C (185 deg F) on an instant-read thermometer or is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon or spatula,  Do not allow the mixture to boil. Remove from the heat. If the mixture is not completely smooth, emulsify it by using a hand whisk or stand  blender and blending it until smooth, before proceeding to the next step.
5. Combine the malted milk powder, whipping cream and vanilla paste in a stainless steel or glass mixing bowl and stir until the powder dissolves and set it over an ice bath (i.e. a bowl filled with ice & cold water).
6. Pour the heated custard through a strainer into the cold cream and stir until fully incorporated and the mixture has fully cooled. Then remove the bowl of  mixture from the ice bath, cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours or overnight.
7. When ready, pour the chilled mixture into the  ice-cream maker and process according to manufacturer's specifications. Add in the frozen cookies about 10 minutes before the end of the churning process.
8. Remove the finished gelato from the ice-cream maker and place it in a plastic container. Cover with plastic wrap or silicone paper by pressing the wrap or paper gently against the top of the gelato.Affix lid to container and place in the freezer to fully harden before serving.

Makes about 1 litre.

Super Soft Potato Doughnuts...........

          Finally,  I  found a doughnut recipe that's supersoft and best of all, the doughnuts stayed soft even after 24 hours!!!! My kids and I could'nt stop eating them! I've made them twice within a week...hehe...

          I saw this recipe at  Yatie's blog, Sinar Kehidupanku. Apparently, many bloggers have tried this recipe which was originally posted by an Indonesian lady, Madam Fatmah Bahalwan, in her website NCC Indonesia. Thank you Madam Fatmah for sharing this recipe. The pictures you see here are the ones I made today. I mixed the dough about 7 in the morning and left it (in a bowl, covered) in the fridge to prove and left the house to run some errands. When I returned in the afternoon, I took the dough out and left it in room temperature for about 30 minutes. Then I continued with dividing, shaping and frying the doughnuts. So if you or your family love doughnuts, you must try this recipe.

Ingredients:

500g...................... ...high protein flour

50g............................milk powder

11g (1 sachet)........ ...instant yeast

100g .........................sugar

200g .........................potato

100ml .......................cold water

4 ...............................egg yolk

75g ...........................butter

1/2 tsp ......................salt

Method:

1. Steam or microwave the potato. Leave to cool slightly. Remove the skin and blend with the cold water until it becomes a smooth puree. Then I left it in the fridge to cool.
2. Combine flour, milk powder, yeast and sugar in a mixing bowl. Add the blended potato and egg yolk and mix using  the dough hook for about 2 minutes. ( The mixture looked very dry at first, so don't add anymore water!)
3. Add in butter and continue mixing for about 2 minutes. Finally, add in salt and mix for another 3 minutes until the dough is smooth.
4. Remove the dough from the bowl and shape it into a ball and place it in a clean bowl. Leave it to prove for about 45 minutes.
5. Divide the dough into small portions of about 40g each and mould them into smooth balls. Leave them to rest for 10 minutes. Then shape them into ring doughnuts.
6. Leave to prove for 35 minutes.
7. Deep fry in medium hot oil till goden brown.
8. Coat the doughnuts with fine sugar. (I coated mine with cinnamon sugar and chocolate ganache with colourful sprinkle.)

When the hungry bears are at home.......

          It's the June school holidays here in Singapore. So my two sons, Amir & Maisur, will be home a lot. That also means that I'll get a lot of  "Mummy, is there any snack for us?". The first week of the holidays is over and to the delight of my hungry bears, I've already baked Cinnamon Roll (2 times), Potato Doughnuts and Snowy Princess. 

          Today I'm posting the pictures and recipe of the cinnamon rolls I made. Cinnamon roll has always been my  family's favourite. Thanks to our stay in the USA. There, cinnamon rolls are very popular and we always ate the ones at the Cinnabon outlets whenever we went to the  malls. Cinnabon used to have an outlet here in Singapore. There were also some other bakery outlets that sold cinnamon rolls in town. But now, they've all ceased operations. So every now and then, my children and sister would request that I bake some.

          I've tried many recipes for cinnamon rolls. But I've decided to stick to the recipe used at BITC during the bread-making course.The most important ingredient is, of course, the cinnamon powder. I've ever used a store-bought cinnamon powder but it didn't smell like cinnamon. So since then, I've ground the cinnamon sticks myself and store it in an airtight container in the fridge. I know it's time-consuming but I tell you it's really worth it! Even before baking the rolls, we could smell the fragrant cinnamon....... Can you imagine the smell when they are in the hot oven??? 

Dough

500g .....................High protein flour (bread flour )

75g .......................Castor sugar

10g .......................Milk powder

10g  ......................Instant yeast (I used 1 sachet (11g) instant yeast)

1/2 tsp ..................Cinnamon powder

1 ...........................Egg

250g .....................Cold water

50g .......................Butter

1tsp .......................Salt

For rolling-up:

Butter (softened)

Cinnamon powder

Dark brown sugar

1. Combine all the ingredients except butter and salt in a mixing bowl and mix using the dough hook on medium speed for about 2 minutes. (I'm using  Kenwood cake mixer, so I always use speed no 3 for mixing bread dough, as advised by the service centre.)
2. Add the butter and continue mixing for another 2 minutes.
3. Finally, add the salt and mix for about 4 more minutes.
4. Remove the dough and mould it into a round dough. Place it in a bowl and cover it with a cling wrap. Leave to prove for about 45-60 minutes.
5. Divide the dough into 2 portions and mould them into balls. Leave them to rest for about 10 minutes.
6. Then roll the dough into a rectangle of about  30 x 20cm (12 x 8 inches). 
7. Place the rolled-out dough on a pan lined with silicone or grease paper. Then place it in the freezer for about 10 minutes. This way, it's easier to roll up and cut the dough. Remove from the freezer and the pan. Roll out the dough again if it gets out of shape.
8. Spread the soft butter evenly on the rolled-out dough. Sprinkle the cinnamon powder generously and evenly, followed by the dark brown sugar.
9. Roll up the dough tightly and pinch the edge. Then cut the log into 9 equal parts and arranged them on a 20 x 20 cm (8 x 8 inch) pan lined with grease or silicone paper.
10. Leave the dough to rise for 30 to 45 minutes.
11. Bake at 180 deg C for about 35 minutes.

Cream Cheese Frosting (Optional)

125g.............. cream cheese

35g................ butter

70g ................powdered sugar

1/2 tsp ...........vanilla essence

Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Beat the ingredients until smooth & creamy. Spread the frosting evenly onto the warm cinnamon rolls.

Cinnamon Powder

          Break some cinnamon sticks and fry them in a dry pan over medium fire. Turn off the fire once the sticks becomes fragrant. Keep frying for a while. Then grind the sticks ( I used a coffee grinder) until it turns into powder. Sieve the powder and put it in an airtight container and store it in the fridge.