Chocolate Bao

Nod if you like to eat anything that's stuffed... stuffed pizza (a.k.a calzone), stuffed croissants (a.k.a chocolate croissants), and fruity hand pie like my apple hand pie. See, all stuffed foods are fun to eat.

I posted steamed bao recipe about two years ago, and let me tell you. I've been having a lot of fun stuffed the bao with savory and sweet you-name-it-I'll-stuff-it items.

After teaching Grandpa how to make the bao dough, he decided to stuff the bao with something sweeter like chocolate and sweet taro root butter (that he magically cooked up one day).

I've steamed and baked the chocolate bao too many times, and my kids always ask for more. To no surprise, Camden asked Grandpa to stream some more chocolate bao. And he did... for lunch. For this Chinese New Year or Valentine's day, how about steaming these chocolate bao for someone special.

Chocolate Bao
makes 15 (2 to 2.5 oz. each)

1 my bao dough recipe
15 teaspoons semi-sweet or dark chocolate

1. Make the bao dough according to my recipe's instruction.
2. Cut out fifteen 1-inch square parchment papers.
3. Place a steamer One the dough is ready, divide them into 15 equal parts.
4. For each dough ball, roll it out into a small round.
5. Place a teaspoon of semi-sweet chocolates.
6. Gather up the edges of the dough and pitch to seal. TIP: When making more than one flavor, add a chocolate chunk on the top of the bun to label the filling.
7. Place the dough seam side down on a prepared parchment paper and place it in the steamer.
8. Steam the dough for 12 minutes. NOTE: Start the clock when the steam is visible.  
9. Serve the bao warm. Keep them in the steamer to keep warm. 

STORING: Keep these chocolate bao in a container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat by microwaving it for 15 seconds or steam it until warm.

Allergy Info: This chocolate bao recipe is free from or can be made without dairy, egg, corn, legumes (soy and peanuts), nuts, and fish. 

Chocolate Croissants (dairy-free)

Every single time I stop by Whole Foods, I must have one of their chocolate croissants. For as long as I could remember, I really wanted to bake a dairy-free version so that Brek could enjoy them as well.

After I mastered the art of croissant dough, I ventured into baking variety of savory and sweet croissants. Nothing compare to chocolate croissants. They really do take the cake. Not only are they relatively easy to make, they are so addicting.

Making the chocolate croissants are pretty much the same technique as making mini-croissants. The difference between two of my recipes is the shape of the croissants. If you prefer the classic croissant shape, you can certainly make them that way. You may need to use less chocolate chunks. No change to baking time.

Ready to bake???

Chocolate Croissants
makes 8

1 croissant dough
1/4 cup or more for dusting
1/4 cup (2 oz.) palm shortening
1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chucks
1/2 cup warm water
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Line the baking pan with non-stick mat. Set aside.
2. Roll the croissant dough out to about 9 by 15 inch. TIP: No need to be accurate as the dough will need to be measure and cut to size.
3. Cut the dough into 8 equal pieces.
4. Working with each piece at a time, place a row of chocolate chunks at the short end and fold the dough over them. (picture 1)
5. Place one more row of chocolate chunks.
6. Fold the dough over the chocolate until the small log is formed.
7. Press to seal the edges.
8. Place it in the prepared pan.
9. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
10. Allow the dough to rest in the fridge for 20 minutes. NOTE: In a hurry? Go head and preheat the oven while the dough is resting in the fridge (or at a room temperature during winter months).
11. Once ready, preheat the oven to 400F degrees.
12. Make the baking soda wash by dissolving the baking soda to warm water.
13. Brush the baking soda wash over the croissant dough.
14. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
15. Allow the croissants to rest for 5 minutes. Enjoy them while they are piping hot or warm. TIP: For more chocolatey flavor, drizzle more melted chocolate over the chocolate croissants.

STORING: Keep the chocolate croissants in a container at a room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 7 days.

Allergy Info: These chocolate croissants are free from or can be made without dairy, egg, corn, legume (soy or peanuts), nuts (not palm), and fish. If you don't have dairy allergy, you can go ahead and use the same amount of butter instead of palm shortening.  

Mini-Croissants (dairy-free)

Since it is nearly the end of 2015, I'd like to dedicate the last two posts to my favorite dessert, chocolate croissants. But first, let's learn how to bake regular croissants.

When I was on Camden's allergy free diet, I really missed eating bread. As I mastered the art of pizza dough and bao dough, I wanted to try croissant dough as well.

At first, I really hated making croissant dough. For a butter substitute, I used coconut oil which could be temperament. Can't expect much from oil when making the yeast dough, you know? The croissants were the thing of the past in my kitchen. It wasn't until I started using palm shortening for dairy substitute that I realized the potential of making a really flakey croissants again.

 

Sure enough, I was right. NOW, the croissant dough is super easy to make. Nothing more than making a pizza dough. The challenge may occur when folding laminated dough as the palm shortening may oozed out, especially in the Texas warm weather. But seriously, don't let that keep you from making some croissants from scratch. 

 

So this post will be about making the croissant dough. Then I will teach you how to make mini-croissants. Next week, I'll post a recipe for the chocolate croissants. So let's bake!!!

 

Dairy-Free Croissants Dough

 

3/4 cup (6 oz.) coconut milk  (105° to 115°F)

1 teaspoon active dry yeast

1 1/2 Tablespoons granulated sugar

1 3/4 cup (7 oz.) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/8 - 1/4 cup (1 - 2 oz.) palm shortening

1. In a large bowl, mix the milk, yeast, and sugar. Set aside until the mixture is foamy, about 5 to 10 minutes, depending on a room temperature.
2. In another bowl, sift together the flour and salt.
3. Add the flour to the yeast mixture.
4. Mix until the dough is formed.
5. Knead the dough on the non-stick mat until it comes together, about a minute.
6. Place the dough back into a bowl and allow it to rest to double its size, about an hour, depending on a room temperature.
7. Once ready, knead the dough again. 
8. Place the dough on the non-stick mat. Dust the dough with flour as needed to prevent sticking.
9. Roll the dough out to about 9 by 15 inch (original size). TIP: No need to be accurate as the dough will need to be measure and cut to size.
10. Spread the shortening over the left half of the dough, making sure to leave about 1/2 inch boarder (see picture 1). NOTE: I use about 1.5 oz. palm shortening. The more shortening, the more flakey the croissants will be.
11. Fold the other half of the dough over to shortening.
12. Press to seal the edges.
13. Fold it again from the short side.
14. Roll out the dough to the original size, careful not the allow the shortening to ooze out of the dough. TIP: During the summer, place the dough in the fridge for about 5 to 10 minutes to allow the shortening to harden a bit.
15. Fold the dough half way then roll out the dough to the original size. NOTE: As the dough is folded over and over again, the dough will have more layers. When baked, the layers will puff up and create that classic croissant layers.
16. The dough is ready to use in making savory and sweet croissants.

Mini-Croissants

makes 16

1 croissant dough

1/2 cup warm water

1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Line the baking pan with non-stick mat or parchment paper. TIP: Be sure to use baking pan with rims so the melted shortening will stay inside the pan and not drip on to the oven floor.
2. Roll the croissant dough out to 9 x 15 inch.
3. Cut the dough into 8 equal part (see picture 2).
4. For each square, cut it into 2 triangles.
5. Starting from the long side, roll the dough upward to meet the short end.
6. Place it on the prepared pan then curve the shape a bit to take on the classic croissant shape.
7. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
8. Allow the dough to rest in the fridge for 20 minutes. NOTE: In a hurry? Go head and preheat the oven while the dough is resting in the fridge (or at a room temperature during winter months).
9. Once ready, preheat the oven to 400F degrees.
10. Make the baking soda wash by dissolving the baking soda to warm water.
11. Brush the baking soda wash over the croissant dough.
12. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
13. Allow the croissants to rest for 5 minutes. Enjoy them while they are piping hot or warm.

STORING: Keep the mini-croissants in a container at a room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 7 days.

Allergy Info: These mini-croissants are free from or can be made without dairy, egg, corn, legume (soy or peanuts), nuts (not palm), and fish. If you don't have dairy allergy, you can go ahead and use the same amount of butter instead of palm shortening.  

Garlic Bread (dairy and egg free)

A few weeks ago, I received an email from King Arthur's Sunday round up recipes. The picture of the pull-apart bread was so mouth watering that I had to click on the link. After reviewing the recipe and pictures of how-to, I came up with my own version. Just because...

After serving the garlic bread to my munchkins and their friends, they asked for more. I think that means the garlic bread got the stamp of approval. Well, next time, I better bake at least three batches.

I baked this bread using a muffin pan. When serving to kids, I like to make everything individual for easy handling. How about baking this garlic bread for your Thanksgiving dinner. I know I will... and for Christmas dinner, for New Year.... Actually, I'll make this garlic bread every time I serve pasta.

Garlic Bread (dairy and egg free)
inspired by King Arthur's pulled-apart bread
makes 9 individual garlic bread

1 my bao dough's recipe
1/4 cup (2 oz.) organic palm shortening
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. dry oregano leaves
Any cooking oil

1. Make the bao dough according to my recipe instruction.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the shortening, garlic powder, salt, paprika, and oregano. Set aside.
3. Spray a cooking oil on to the muffin pan. Set aside.
4. When the dough is ready, divide it into 9 equal parts, about 2.5 to 3 ounces.
5. With each dough, knead and roll it into an oval shape. NOTE: No need to be perfection with the rolling of this dough. They will be folded and stuffed into the muffin pan anyway.
6. Spread about 1 teaspoon of the garlic spread on to the dough.
7. Using a pizza cutter, cut the dough into 3 equal parts.
8. Sandwich the dough so that the garlic spread is in the inner layers.
9. Fold and fit the dough into the prepared pan.
10. Allow the dough to proof for 15-20 minutes, depending on the room temperature.
11. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
12. When the dough is ready, bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes.
13. Allows the garlic bread to cool in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer them to a plate. Enjoy them with your pasta meal or just snack on them.

STORING: Keep the garlic bread in a container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Wrap the bread in foil and warm it in the oven under a boiler until warm, about 7-10 minutes.

Allergy Info: My garlic bread is free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish.

Pretzel Bites

After my kids had some pretzel bites at Red Robbins, I decided to make some at home.

I tested these pretzel bites before I tested the pretzel rolls. So if you already have the experience of making the pretzel rolls, these pretzel bites will be like "a walk in the park".

It wasn't very difficult to test out the pretzel bites recipe. Using my pizza dough, I tried two techniques to achieve both dark color and chewy texture. First technique is the soda bath, and the second is the soda wash.

I couldn't really tell if there was any difference between these two techniques, but Brek sworn that pretzel bites that had soda bath were chewier than the ones with just a soda wash. So let me know what you think.

Sprinkle the sea salt on the dough before baking is optional. We do eat a lot of salty snacks here so if I don't have to, I'd skip the added salt. Serving them with my honey mustard dipping sauce or a pasta sauce is optional but highly recommended.

1 my pizza dough recipe
4 and 1/2 cup water, divided
3 Tablespoons and 1 teaspoon baking soda, divided

1. Line the baking pan with a non stick matt or a parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Prepare the pizza dough according to my pizza dough recipe instruction.
3. Once the dough is double its size, cut the dough into 6-8 equal part. TIPS: There is no need to be perfect when make the shape of the pretzel bites. Just make sure they are some what the same size.
4. Knead and roll each dough into a rope.
5. Then cut them about an inch cube and place them on prepared pan.
6. Let the dough rest.
7. Preheat the oven to 400F degree.
8. For baking soda bath, add 4 cups of water in a pot and bring it to a boil.
9. Add the dough about 3-5 at a time.
10. Let them bath in the soda water for about 30 seconds per side.
11. Take the dough out of the soda bath to place them back on a prepared pan.
12. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes.
13. For a baking soda wash, heat 1/2 cup of water in a microwave for 40-60 seconds.
14. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda and mix it well.
15. Bruch each dough with the soda wash.
16. Bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes.
17. Once they are baked, let them rest before serving. Enjoy them with your favorite condiments.

STORING: These pretzel bites are best kept in an air tight container at a room temperature for up to 3 days.

Allergy Info: These pretzel bites are free from or can be made without dairy, egg, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish. When searching for a pasta sauce, look for real ingredients. There shouldn't be any additive or preservative, like citric acids, added.

Pita Bread (with or without pokets)

If you think pita bread is difficult to bake, you are... sorta correct. It's easy to bake the pita bread without pockets. It's tricky to bake them with pockets. Every time I aim to bake pita bread with pockets, it's been hits and misses.

Here's the tricky part. Pita bread with pockets is a puffy bread. So if the dough doesn't puff up during baking, it will just be... pita bread.

My tricks to baking pita bread are three things:

1. Never press the dough with your fingers. Have you ever bake focaccia? It's basically a large rectangular pizza but has finger impressions all over the dough. The dough won't rise (or puff) up during baking. For the pita with pockets, stretch the dough, using a lightly press rolling pin.

2. Let the dough rise at least 30 minutes. Because the dough is kneaded and rolled out, baking them right away will not allow the dough to puff up. It will become just a regular pita bread. Let the dough relaxes before baking helps the dough to puff up during baking.

3. Bake the bread in a high oven temperature. Since I use a baking pan instead of a baking stone, I can only heat the oven up to 400F degree. For baking stone, the oven can be as high as 500F degree. Remember to preheat the baking pan for at least 5 minutes before placing the pita bread dough on top of it. For baking stone, preheat it at least 20 minutes. I prefer the baking pan method as it is faster and safe money on utility bill.

Now that's discuss the high heat. Think about how the dough rises slowly at the room temperature. In the summer, the dough doubles in size rather quickly because well, the temperature is quite warm in my kitchen. Same idea with high heat oven temperature. The dough will rise super fast when it sits in high heat. Remember that everything needs to be HOT.

For a lightly brown color, use the baking soda water wash. This is optional but of course, we eat with our eyes. Lightly brown color pita bread will look tastier than dull beige color. Don't you agree?

Pita Bread
makes as many as you want

1 recipe of my pizza dough
all-purpose flour for dusting
1/4 cup hot water
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Make the pizza dough according to my recipe directions.
2. When ready to bake the pita bread, place a nonstick matt or parchment paper over the baking pan. divide the dough into baseball size dough ball, about 3-4 ounces.
3. Roll the dough ball out into a pie shape, about 1/2 inch thick.
4. Place them on prepared pan.
5. Allow the dough to rise for 30 minutes or more. TIP: Touch the dough lightly with your finger to feel if the dough is soft to touch.
6. Preheat the oven to 400F degree. Place the baking tray in the oven right away.
7. After the oven is preheated, set the kitchen timer for 5 minutes to allow the baking pan to heat up even more.
8. When ready, mix together the hot water and baking soda.
9. Brush the soda water over the dough.
10. Pick up the nonstick matt or parchment paper and place it on the preheated baking pan.
11. Bake in a preheated oven until the pita bread puffs up, about 10 minutes.
12. Allow the pita bread to cool completely before cutting it in half. Enjoy them with your favorite sandwich fillings.

STORING: Keep the pita bread in an air tight container at a room temperature for up to 3 days.

Allergy Info: These pita bread is free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish.

Pretzel Rolls

The first time my kids and I saw the pretzel rolls, it was like seeing a rainbow on a cloudy day. They looked tasty, and they were. The ingredients were simple flour, baking soda, yeast, salt. But a few months afterward, I noticed that the labeling changed, seeing more strange ingredient listed.

After I decided to stop buying any more pretzel rolls, my kids were pretty upset. What could they do? Well, they asked ME to bake some for them. The things I do for my kids.

Every time I test a new recipe, I always give a pizza dough or a bao dough a go. Both of these recipes are very versatile. Since the store bought pretzel rolls had the chewy texture, I decided to go with my pizza dough recipe.

Making the dough and rolling it out into pretzel shape was super duper easy. The challenge was getting the pretzel rolls to have that deep dark caramel color. I have a lot of luck with baking soda wash for other bread. Thinking about it, I figured to go with two baking soda washes. First, baking soda bath. Then ending with baking soda wash. And it worked!!!

Pretzel rolls looked so pur-tee. My kids were "ouuuu" and "ahhhh" when they saw the pretzel rolls. I was a proud mommy. But how did they taste? Chewy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. Yup, just like the store bought pretzel rolls but with better ingredients.

Pretzel Rolls
makes 6 rolls

1 pizza dough recipe
8 1/2 cups water, divided
5 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon baking soda, divided

1. Make the pizza dough according to my recipe instruction.
2. Divide the dough into 6 equal parts, about 4.2 to 4.3 oz. each.
3. While the dough rest, boil 8 cups of water in a heavy bottom pot.
4. While the water is heating up, preheat the oven to 400F degree.
5. Line a nonstick mat or parchment paper on a baking pan. Set aside.
6. Once the water comes to full boil, add 5 tablespoons of baking soda, 1 tablespoon at a time. NOTE: Be careful with this step as water will bubble up every time the baking soda is added into the boiling water. If your kids haven't seen this, get them in the kitchen. It's fun to watch.
7. Slash each dough with a sharp knife 3 times.
8. Drop the dough into the boiling water, two at a time.
9. Allow the dough to sit in the boiling water for 30 seconds per side.
10. Take the dough out with a slotted spoon and place them in a prepared pan.
11. Repeat until all the dough gets the baking soda bath.
12. Place 1/2 cup of water in a microwavable bowl.
13. Heat the water on HIGH for 40 seconds.
14. Add 1 teaspoon of baking soda into the hot water.
15. Stir with a baking brush.
16. Brush the baking soda wash on to the dough.
17. Bake in a preheated oven until dark brown, about 20 minutes.
18. Let the pretzel rolls cool in a wiring rack. Serve warm or at a room temperature. Enjoy!!!

STORING: Place the pretzel rolls in an air tight container at a room temperature for up to 3 days or in a fridge for 5 days. To reheat, wrap the pretzel rolls in foil. Boil for about 5 to 10 minutes until heated through.

Allergy Info: These pretzel rolls are free from or can be made without dairy, egg, corn, legume (soy), nuts, and fish.

Sweet Fried Dough

For this month, I would like to post everything bread dough. Starting off with sweet fried dough.

There isn't much to talk about this particular post. I just happened to come across a cooking show, featuring Daddy's Fried Dough. He basically deep-fried pizza dough and served them with his chocolate sauce.

After watching it, I was inspired to deep-fry my own pizza dough. I tested this recipe over three years ago when I was in a make-everything-from-scratch diet. Drizzle with melted chocolate and ummm... so addicting.

When I plan to make pizza for dinner, I would take just enough pizza dough to make this dessert for our afternoon snack. Feel free to deep-fried the whole pizza dough recipe for a big crowd. Think of it this way, my sweet fried dough is an easy version of beignets. Powdered sugar is highly recommended.

Sweet Fried Dough
serve 3

10 oz. of my pizza dough recipe
safflower or sunflower oil for deep-frying
chocolate chips, melted
a lot of powdered sugar for serving

1. Make a pizza dough according my recipe instructions.
2. Place 2 inch of the oil in a heavy bottom pot.
3. Heat the oil until the deep-frying thermometer reaches 350F degree.
4. Place a wiring rack over a baking pan. Set aside.
5. Roll out the dough into 1/2 inch thick.
6. Cut the dough into desired shapes. TIPS: Sometimes I like to but the dough into short stripes. They are easier to dip into melted chocolate.
7. Deep-fry the pizza dough until puffy and golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. NOTE: Depending on how thick and the size of each piece of the pizza dough, the cooking time may varies.
8. Transfer the deep-fried pizza dough on to the prepared pan and allow the oil to drain.
9. Serve the fried dough with melted chocolate or powdered sugar. Enjoy them with a cup of hot cocoa (in the winter) or a lemonade (in the summer).

STORING: These sweet fried dough are best eating right away, but be careful as they are piping hot.

Allergy Info: These sweet fried dough are free from or can be make without dairy, egg, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish.

Hot Dog Buns

You know, my kids actually like to eat the hot dogs without the buns. If they want them with the buns, I'd definitely prefer baking the fresh hot dog buns than buying the prepackage ones.

Using my bao dough, I bake them in a hot dog pan. The pan that I bought is really expensive but worth the investment. I've baked kolache in this pan before, and they turned out delish.

The only thing to remember to do is the be sure that all of the buns are the same size. Using a kitchen scale is helpful to measure out the dough.

That's about it really. Now about the hot dog toppings. You decide. My kids like them with just ketchup and/or yellow mustard. But they like them on the side for dipping. Me? I like to have it with pickled jalapeños. One time I topped their hot dogs with scrambled eggs and sweet seaweeds. My kids luv them. See, I get a lot of inspirations from watching cooking shows.

Finding the clean prepackaged hot dogs is tricky, especially when it comes to a corn free diet. Some people react to all of the brands, and some can tolerant the same brands that others are reacting to. You will have to call the companies and find out in details about their ingredients and the processing. Remember that just because you bake hot dog buns, doesn't mean you have to serve hot dogs in them. I've served them with tuna salads, and it is perfect for Brek's lunchbox.

Hot Dog Buns
makes 10 hot dog buns

1 bao dough recipe
wash options: egg yolk mix with 1 Tablespoon water or 1/4 cup of hot water mix with 1 teaspoon of baking soda

1. Make the bao dough as directed.
2. Using a kitchen scale, measure out 10 dough balls, at 2.5 ounces per hot dog buns.
3. For each dough ball, knead and tug in the dough until dough surface feels smooth.
4. Roll out the dough into a log and place it side by side in the hot dog pan. NOTE: Each dough doesn't have to touch each other. This happens when they rise during resting period and baking.
5. Let the dough rest until it has double its size, about an hour. 
6. Preheat the oven to 350F degree.
7. Brush the dough with a preferred wash.
8. Bake the dough in a preheated oven until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
9. Take the hot dog buns out of the pan to a wiring rack to cool down a bit before serving.

STORING: These hot dog buns can be kept in an air tight container at a room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days. To warm up the buns, wrap them in foil and broil for about 7 minutes. 

Allergy Info: These hot dog buns are free from or can be made without dairy, eggs (if egg wash is not used), corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish. 

Fruit of the Earth Bread

In honor of Earth Day, which is April 22nd, I present to you the Fruit of the Earth Bread.

I saw this recipe of the same name in the King Arthur's cookbook and decided to bake one using my bao dough recipe. Not much to write about really. It's a fruity and nutty bread that can be served for breakfast or snack.

Super easy to bake. I usually have extra bao dough left to play around with. So if you want to make more, just double or triple the recipe.

Another tip for baking this bread is not to worry too much about measuring out the dried fruits and nuts. Just estimate the amounts. Maybe add more raisins than walnuts. Or vice versa.

Fruit of the Earth Bread
makes 1 6-inch log

10 oz. from my bao dough recipe
1 oz. raisins
0.5 - 1 oz. dried cranberries
1 oz. raw walnuts, roughly chopped
1 large egg yolk
1/2 Tablespoon water

1. Place a nonstick matt over the baking tray. Set aside.
2. Make bao dough as directed in my recipe.
3. Take out about 10 oz. of the dough.
4. Knead a dough for about 30 seconds.
5. Roll the dough out into any size or shapes.
6. Sprinkle the dried fruits and nuts all over the dough.
7. Bring the dough together and shape into an 6-inch log. NOTE: Remember that this bread will expand after bake, so it'll be about 8-inch log once baked.
8. Place it on a prepared tray.
9. Let the dough rises for about 20 minutes.
10. Preheat the oven to 350F.
11. To make the egg wash, whisk together the egg yolk and water. NOTE: See "Allergy Info" for alternative egg-free wash.
12. Brush the bread with egg wash.
13. Bake the bread in a preheated oven for 20 minutes.
14. Transfer the bread to the wiring rack and let it cool for about 10-15 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!!!

STORING: This fruit of the Earth bread can be kept in an air tight container for up to 3 days. It freezes wrapped in a foil then plastic for up to 3 months.

Allergy Info: This fruit of the Earth bread is free from or can be made without dairy, corn, legumes (soy), and fish. If you have egg allergy, mix together 1/4 cup of hot water with 1 teaspoon of baking soda. Then brush the baking soda water all over the bread instead of using the egg wash. You can also skip this step, but the bread might come out not as golden brown. But still taste good. If you have nuts allergy, substitute the nuts with sunflower and/or pumpkin seeds or omit them all together.

Palmiers (dairy-free quick puff pastry)

Yup, as of this writing, I haven't been able to find a clean puff pastry. Even the well-known brand actually has high fructose corn syrup. I did find one brand that is pretty cleaned at Whole Foods, but for ten dollars??? No thanks!!! Since we are avoiding dairy, I had to come up with my own version.

You know, puff pastry is basically all-purpose flour mix in with cold butter and ice water. When bake in high heat, the layers of dough puff up and becomes very flakey. When making anything dairy free, I substitute butter with coconut oil or palm shortening.

What can I do with puff pastry? Tons!!! I've baked palmiers, pop tarts, hand pies, and I'm pretty sure I have yet to discover what other something sweeter I can come up with.

Dairy-Free Quick Puff Pastry
makes about half pounds
adapted from William Sonoma's quick puff pastry

1/4 cup (2 oz) ice water
1 cup (4 oz) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup (3 oz) coconut oil, soft at room temperature, or palm shortening

1. Fill a cup with ice then add water. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the flour and salt.
3. Mix in the coconut oil or palm shortening to the flour with your fingers.
4. Crumble the oil or shortening into pebble size.
5. Add one tablespoon of ice water at a time.
6. Using your fingers, continue to mix the flour mixture until it comes together into a dough ball.
7. Knead the dough until it comes together to a ball.
8. Follow the instruction on the recipe of your choice.

NOTE: My dairy-free quick puff pastry dough is ready for you to make something sweeter or savory right away. The dough then need to be in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before baking. This process will firm up the coconut oil or palm shortening. When baking in high heat, the oil will melt slowly, creating that flaky curst.

Give this palmiers recipe a try. They are super easy to make.

Palmiers (a.k.a. Elephant Ears)
makes 24 minis

1 quick puff pastry dough
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Place a nonstick matt or parchment paper on a baking sheet. Set aside.
2. On a nonstick matt or a parchment paper, roll the puff pastry into 1/4 inch thick and rectangular shape.
3. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and cinnamon.
4. Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar on the rolled out puff pastry dough.
5. Roll the longest side of the dough tightly toward the center of the dough.
6. Turn the dough around and repeat on the other side until they both meet in the center.
7. With a sharp knife, slice the dough into 1/2-inch thick for minies or 1-inch thick for bigger size palmiers.
8. Place the palmiers on to the prepared baking sheet.
9. Freeze the dough for at least 30 minutes. NOTE: At this point, keep the unbaked palmiers in the freezable container or a plastic bag for future baking.
10. When ready, preheat the oven at 375F degree.
11. Place the unbaked palmiers cut side up and make sure they are about an inch apart.
12. Bake the palmiers for 20 minutes.
13. Flip the palmiers over and lower the temperature to 320F degree.
14. Bake for another 10-15 minutes. The palmiers should look golden brown.
15. Set the palmiers on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wiring rack to cool completely. When the palmiers cool, they have crispy texture.

NOTE: During the summer, the coconut oil might be a bit soft to work with. Place the coconut oil in a small bowl and put it in the fridge. Check every minute until the coconut oil has a soft but not hard texture. Palm shortening doesn't liquefied. I definitely prefer palm shortening for the puff pastry.

STORING: Keep the palmiers in an air tight container for up the 3 days.

Allergy Info: This quick puff pastry recipe is free from or can be made without dairy, egg, corn, legumes (soy), nuts (not coconut or palm), and fish. If you can have dairy, I highly recommend William Sonoma's original puff pastry recipe. I believe Kerrygold unsalted butter is corn free, but do your research on this product to be sure it is 100% safe for your diet.

Salted Caramel Sticky Buns

From time to time, I would test recipes just because there's too much dough or batter to bake just one something savory or sweet. That's exactly how I came up with the salted caramel sticky buns. After I made my kids some steamed bao, I decided to use half of the bao dough to bake sweet breakfast.

I baked sticky buns many times. A few times I made them with almonds, but my kids didn't like them that much. They ate a few buns but not like "mommy, can you make more?" Recently, my kids fell in luv with the raw pecans. I saw a chance to test the sticky buns again, but this time... with pecans.

Super duper happy that they luv my salted caramel sticky buns now. Here's the thing though. Camden preferred the caramel pecans, and Brek wanted the sticky buns. You know how that went, right? Sharing!!! Luv it!!!

If you want to double the salted caramel sticky buns recipe, the whole recipe of bao dough is needed. Be sure to double the cinnamon sugar mixture and chopped pecans. The salted caramel recipe doesn't need to be doubled and should be enough for the 18-20 buns. But feel free to double the salted caramel recipe because more gooey caramel is better than less of it.

sticky buns made with chopped almonds

Salted Caramel Sticky Buns
makes 9 buns

Dough:
1/2 recipe (10 oz) bao dough 

Filling:
3 Tablespoons light brown sugar
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon

salted caramel:
1/4 cup (2 oz) maple syrup
3 Tablespoons (1.5 oz) water
3/4 cup (3 oz) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt

cooking spray
1 cups roughly chopped raw pecans, divided

1. Prepare the bao dough as directed. NOTE: You will need only half of the bao dough recipe unless you want to double the recipe.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.
3. Spray an 8 inch square baking pan with a cooking spray. Set aside.
4. In a saucepan, whisk all of the salted caramel ingredients.
5. Heat the caramel until the candy thermometer reaches soft thread stage (230F degree).
6. Pour the caramel on to the prepared pan.
7. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of chopped pecans over the caramel. Set aside.
8. With a rolling pin, roll the bao dough until it's 16 by 9 inch rectangle.
9. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar all over the dough surface.
10. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of chopped pecans over the cinnamon sugar.
11. Starting with the longest side of the dough, roll the dough into a log.
12. Using a knife, cut the dough into 9 equal parts.
13. Place each dough on the caramel, spiral side up.
14. Let the dough rest until they double their size, about an hour. NOTE: Each dough will almost touch each other. In a hurry, let the dough rest for 30 minutes. Keep in mind that the buns will taste lighter if they are rested more.
15. When the dough is ready, preheat the oven to 350F degree.
16. Bake the dough in a preheated oven until golden brown and the caramel is bubbling, about 20 minutes.
17. Remove the salted caramel sticky buns from the oven.
18. Carefully turn them out onto a wiring rack right away.
19. Spoon more salted caramel on top of each bun.
20. Enjoy them warm or at a room temperature.

STORING: The salted caramel sticky buns taste best on the day they are baked. Keep them in an air tight container at a room temperature for up to 3 days.

Allergy Info: These salted caramel sticky buns are free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), and fish. To make them nut free, replace the nuts with dried fruits or just omit the nuts all together. If you can have nuts, you can substitute any nuts, such as walnuts or almonds, for pecans.

Crispy Tortilla Wraps

This recipe came to me after watching Dinner, Dine, and Drive featuring crispy Asian wrap. The wrap looked seriously crunchy and oh so mouth watering.

Got me wondering... how easy it was to duplicate this meal with my own flour tortilla recipe and my own fillings. OK, I have to say it, "Super duper easy!!!"

Basically, I used my flour tortilla recipe for the crispy tortillas. Instead of cooking it on a dry griddle, I pan fried the tortilla. The fillings were very versatile. I was thinking of a brunch, so I was aiming for some breakfast fillings. My kids luv scramble eggs with candied bacons. Sometimes I added candied salmon or leftover proteins like chicken nuggets.

These crispy tortilla wraps have been my kids' favorite brunch. Great for dinner too with pulled pork filling. I even packed them in Brek's school lunchbox. Feel free to make a lot to feed a big crowd.

Crispy Tortilla Wraps
makes 6

1/2 flour tortilla recipe
a lot of safflower oil
Fillings: scramble eggs, candy bacons, smoke or candy salmon, ham, or shredded cheese

1. Make half of the flour tortilla dough.
2. Set aside to rest for 15 minutes while preparing the fillings, like scrambled eggs.
3. Preheat the oven to 225F degree.
4. Place a wiring rack over a baking pan then place both of them in the oven.
5. When ready to make the crispy tortilla, heat a 10 inch frying pan to a medium low heat.
6. Add a good amount of oil to the pan.
7. Take about a golf ball size dough.
8. Roll it out into a thin round tortilla.
9. When the oil is hot, place the tortilla in the frying pan.
10. Pan fry the tortilla until crispy and lightly brown, about 45-60 seconds per side.
11. Place the crispy tortilla on a plate and add the fillings.
12. Fold the crispy tortilla in half then place it in the preheated oven to keep warm.
13. Make the rest of the crispy tortilla. Serve warm.

TIP: There is no need to make a new batch of tortilla dough. Add the filling to the cooked tortilla. Fold the tortilla like a wrap. Pan fry until golden brown, about 60-90 seconds per side.

Allergy Info: These crispy tortillas are free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish. Choose the filling according to your allergy free diet.

Yeast Waffles

I made yeast waffles many moons ago, just to test the recipe. Because it is a yeast batter, it needs time to rise, up to an hour or overnight. Most of the time I don't plan the breakfast or brunch menu ahead of time. For that reason, I rarely make these yeast waffles.

On a lazy morning, I was watching Throwdown with Bobby Flay. The episode was battling Belgium waffles called Leigi waffles. The secret ingredient to make these Leigi waffles are the yeast and the pearl sugars. After watching the waffle battle, I was inspired to make the yeast waffles for dinner. My kids luv the idea of an upside down dinner anyway.

The yeast waffle recipe was adapted from William Sonoma's raise waffles. I added a lot more sugar for sweeter taste. To make these waffles dairy free, I used coconut milk and palm shortening. Keep in mind that the Belgium waffles are made using Belgium waffle maker, with the deeper grooves. I've used my regular rounded waffle maker which worked well. When I make regular batter waffle, the setting of my waffle maker was at the highest setting, number 5. For these yeast waffles, I set the waffle maker at a medium setting, number 3, for perfect golden brown. Do a test run on your waffle maker and see what heat setting is best.

For our upside down dinner that night, I made scrambled eggs, candied bacons, salmon nuggets (from leftover baked salmon), and hash browns. I also blended together frozen strawberries, frozen sheep's milk yogurt, rice milk, and agave for a strawberries smoothie. Enjoy the warm and crunchy waffles with maple syrup.

These yeast waffles are excellent bread alternative. The wheels are turning in my brain... Brek's school lunch!!!

Yeast Waffles
adapted from William Sonoma's raised waffles
makes 8 - 10 round waffles

1/4 cup (2 oz) warm water (105° to 115°F)
1 1/2 teaspoon yeast
1/2 cup (4 oz) coconut palm sugar
1 cup (8 oz) coconut milk (105° to 115°F)
1 Tablespoon (0.5 oz) palm shortening
1 cup (4 oz) all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1. Place the water in a large bowl.
2. Mix the yeast and palm sugar in the water. Set aside until the mixture is foamy, about 10 minutes.
3. Whisk in the milk and shortening.
4. Add the flour and mix until the batter is thick.
5. Set the batter aside and let the yeast relax in a warm and draft free place, about an hour. TIP: At this point, the batter can be refrigerated overnight and follow the next step on the next day.
6. Preheat the waffle maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Since I use coconut palm sugar on this batter, the waffle will brown quickly. The setting I use for the waffle maker is at number 3 (right in the middle).
7. While the waffle maker is preheating, whisk in the egg and baking soda to the yeast batter.
8. Spray the waffle maker with vegetable oil.
9. Scoop about 1/2 cup of batter on to the waffle maker.
10. Close the waffle maker and cook it according to the manufacturer's instructions.
11. Transfer the yeast waffle to a plate and repeat step 9 to 10.
12. Enjoy them while they are hot with maple syrup, honey, or dust them to powder sugar. This yeast waffles are super light and are great for breakfast bread alternative. How about, scrambled eggs and shredded cheese wrap. Yummeee!!!

Allergy Info: These yeast waffles are free from or can be made without dairy, corn, legumes (soy), nuts (not coconut or palm), and fish. If you are allergic to nuts, substitute the same amount of coconut palm sugar with brown sugar and use your preferred milk instead of coconut milk.

Egg Salad Puffs

When I saw the crab puffs recipe in the Taste of Home cookbook, I thought about the possibilities of having other fillings in these little puffs. How about egg salad. Brek's favorite.

I made these little puffs or profiteroles before. They were filled with ice cream and drizzled in melted chocolate. Brek found it to be hard to eat and also said that the puff shell tasted plain. To make the puffs tasty for this recipe, I added a little bit of garlic powder. The puffs were hallow on the inside with slight crunch on the outer layers. They were perfect bite size too. Maybe two bites for my kids.

I think these puffs are a perfect canvas for a bread alternative. Try cutting turkey deli meat into the same size as the puffs, using small cookie cutters. Once I cut the turkey deli meat using a little turkey cookie cutter. Add cheese, pickle, mayo, mustard, and there you have it... mini mighty tasty sandwiches. Super cute! And Camden thought so too because he ate them all up.


Egg Salad Puffs
inspired by Taste of Home's crab puffs
serve 2

1/2 cup (4 oz) water
1/8 cup (1 oz) coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup (2 oz) all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
2 large eggs

1. Preheat the oven at 350F. Line the baking tray with non stick matt or parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a small pot, bring the water, oil, and salt to a boil.
3. Whisk together the flour and garlic powder.
4. Add the flour mixture to the boiling water.
5. Lower the heat to LOW setting.
6. Using a spatula, stir the flour until the dough is formed.
7. Add the eggs and whisk until the dough is smooth and glossy.
8. Turn off the stove and remove the pot to the side.
9. Place the dough into the pastry bag.
10. Cut the tip of the pastry bag.
11. Pipe the dough to form a circular mound on to a prepared baking pan.
12. With a wet finger, tap the tip of the mound into the dough.
13. Bake in a preheated oven until golden brown, about 35 minutes.
14. Take out the puffs and split them open to let the steam out .
15. Once the puffs are cool, add the egg salad filling. Enjoy!

Egg Salad

2 hard boiled large eggs, peeled and roughly chopped
1 Tablespoon mayo
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1/8 teaspoon paprika
salt to taste

1. Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix until just combine.

NOTE: The egg salad can be made ahead. These little puffs don't need that much egg salad filling. Enjoy the rest of the egg salads as a dip with pita chips, bagel chips, or potato chips. So addicting!

TIP: Feel free to come up with your own version of the egg salad. Maybe add finely chopped parley (my favorite), chopped sweet bell pepper, or even mashed avocado.

Allergy Info: These egg salad puffs are free from or can be make without dairy, corn, legume (soy), nuts (not coconut), and fish.

Ham and Cheese Popovers

So every morning, I would bake or cook a brunch for my kids. From waffles to pancakes. Tortilla breakfast wrap is a great option when I have extra homemade flour tortilla. Fill it with scrambled eggs and candied bacons. Lotsa goodness and yummy factors!!!

One night while flipping through a cookbook, I saw a recipe with a batter baked in a muffin pan. After I reviewed the ingredients and methods of baking them, the recipe reminded me of the popovers recipe. I decided to bake my kids some popovers the next morning. I looked up three recipes and tweaked them to come up with my own. I decided to go with less flour and more eggs.

The success of making popovers is to make sure the over is super hot and to preheat the ramekins or muffin pan. Some recipes stated that ingredients needed to be at a room temperature. I didn't do that when I was making my ham and cheese popovers, and they all turned out well. So remember, super hot over and preheated ramekins or muffin pan.

I came up with ham and cheese filling because of two things. First, I had extra black forest ham that I really needed to just use it up. And second, I had to use manchego cheese because of Brek's dairy allergy to cow's dairy products.

I was super happy with the result. The bread was hallow when split open (see photo). There was a crunchy cheese at the bottom of the bread (see photo). I believe I finally found my go-to popover recipe. I will have fun testing my popovers recipe with different fillings. Oh, the best thing with these popovers is that it is super easy to put together. Seriously, who wants to slave in the kitchen in the morning?



Ham and Cheese Popovers
makes 6 regular muffin size

Filling
1/2 cup (1.4 oz) shredded manchego cheese
1/4 cup (1.3 oz) black forest ham, diced

Batter
2 large eggs
1/2 cup (4 oz) coconut milk
1/2 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 cup (2.5 oz) all-purpose flour


1. Preheat the oven to 425F degree.
2. Once the oven is preheated, place the 6 small ramekins (or regular muffin pan) in the oven to preheat, about 5 minutes. TIP: If using ramekins, place them on a baking tray for easy handling.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until the mixture is creamy.
4. Whisk in the milk and sugar.
5. Add the flour and mix just until combine.
6. Take out the preheated ramekins.
7. Spray them with vegetable oil.
8. Divide the diced ham and shredded cheese evenly into the bowls. NOTE: Remember the ramekins are hot. Use oven mitten or a thick towel when touching the bowls.
9. Divide the batter evenly on top of the ham and cheese, about 1/4 cup in each ramekin.
10. Bake for 20 minutes. NOTE: Whatever you do, DO NOT open the oven. Keep the oven super hot so the bread will rise or pop over. Use the oven light to see the baking process.
11. Lower the oven heat to 375F degree and bake 10 more minutes. 
12. Enjoy these popovers with maple syrup on the side. NOTE: Be careful with the ramekins as they are super hot. Go ahead and take out the popovers before serving them to your kids.

Allergy Info: These ham and cheese popovers are free from or can be made without dairy (not sheep), corn, legumes (soy), nuts (not coconut), and fish.

Spinach Pancakes

One of my fun activities is to look for recipes that incorporated any type of veggies in my cooking. Let's face it. My kids just don't like vegetables. Sure, they eat raw carrots and cucumber slices. But that's pretty much it.

While I was looking for recipes to make for the Chinese New Year's blog post, I came across chives pancakes recipe. I knew right away that my kids would not go for the chives. The strong onion taste and aroma would winkle their noses. They'd definitely look cute but nothing accomplish. Then I remember how I tried to add spinach into their diets, and they would eat it IF and only if the spinach was cooked softly with no taste. Talk about a challenge, right?

I decided to use my flour tortilla recipe but with the Chinese pancake style cooking method. The verdict??? The spinach pancakes are much thicker than the flour tortilla. But the crispy of the outer layer is the best part of the pancake. What did my kids think? They asked me, "what's that green thing?" See what I mean? But they ate them and asked for more. Serve them with any type of proteins, just like I would with flour tortilla. My kids actually have them for snacks too.

When finely chopped the spinach, make sure to remove the ribs. Only use the spinach leaves and save the ribs for fresh salad or other means of cooking. I choose to light brush the dough with oil then cook it on the griddle. Another option is to pan fry the pancakes. The pancakes are crispier when pan fry but they are also more oily.

Spinach Pancakes
makes 8 six-inch round

1 flour tortilla dough (click for recipe)
1/2 cup fresh spinach leaves, ribbed and finely chopped
1/4 cup of safflower oil, for brushing

1. Prepare the flour tortilla dough as directed. TIP: Adding the ground flax seeds to the dough is optional. I add them in for the omega-3. If the ground flax seeds are omit to the recipe, the dough maybe wet. Add a little bit of all purpose flour between kneading. The dough is ready when it is no longer sticky and has a smooth texture.
2. Heat the flat griddle on a medium low heat.
3. Place the oil in a small bowl, and have a pastry brush nearby. TIP: Use a silicone pastry brush so it can tolerate heat when brush the dough with oil in step-13.)
4. Divide the dough into 8 equal parts.
5. Flat the dough using a rolling pin.
6. Spread chopped spinach leaves, about 1 teaspoon, and press them into the dough. (picture 1)
7. Roll up the dough into a log. (picture 2 and 3)
8. Coil the dough log into a spiral shape. (picture 4)
9. With the rolling pin, roll the dough out again into a 6-inch disk. (Guesstimate this. Remember that these are homemade so the shape doesn't have to be perfect. Be sure the rolled out dough is on the thick side, not thin like the flour tortilla.)
10. Brush the dough with oil.
11. Place the oil side down on to the griddle.
12. Cook until the pancake is golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes.
13. Brush the top side, flip the dough, and cook another 2 to 3 minutes.
14. Cut the spinach pancakes into wedges and enjoy.

Allergy Info: These spinach pancakes are free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish.

Steamed Bao

Here's the thing about being on an allergy free diet, especially to corn or to soy. Cannot eat out without a risk of getting a food allergy reaction. When I had cravings, oh boy, you betcha I wasn't in good company. One of many meals I missed when I couldn't eat out was dim sum. I luv the little dishes and the fun of picking out my favorite dishes. Of course, these little dishes definitely come with MSG and so many other ingredients I cannot pronounce. But I really wanted to eat the little dishes without getting Camden's sick. So for my 2012 New Year's resolution, I wanted to master the art of making dim sum.

After searching, scanning, and reading many dim sum recipes in cookbooks and on the internet, I came across a few recipes that looked promising. I highly recommend a cute children's book called Dim Sum for Everyone by Grace Lin. Check out the back of the cover and the back pages where there are drawings of ingredients and little dishes. For cookbooks, I highly recommend Dim Sum: The art of Chinese Tea Lunch by Ellen Leong Blonder. The ingredients are easy to find in Asian markets, and her instructions are easy to follow.

Of course, making the dim sum to eat at once was impossible. Too many techniques. Too many little dishes. I did it a few times, and it took a lot of planning. Did I master the art of making dim sum? Not even close. These little dishes are really difficult to master. BUT I did accomplish a few things like steaming bao buns. Since I already master the art of making bread (from my 2011 New Year's resolution), making bao buns is like boiling water. Yup, it's that easy.

Steamed bao is one of Brek's favorite homemade breads. When my mom came to live with us last year, I made steamed bao for dinner one night. Between steamed bao and chicken lunch meat, she was very impressed. She kept asking me how did I managed to pull these off. Well, I told her, I can pretty much bake and cook anything. It's the matter of researching the recipes and techniques, and taking the time to test the recipes.

Are you wonder what is the difference between the pizza dough and the bao dough? Baking powder and among other things. The ingredients are what make the difference texture in the steamed bao. So let's start measuring, mixing, and kneading the dough.

Steamed Bao
adapted from Dim Sum: The art of Chinese Tea Lunch by Ellen Leong Blonder
makes 15 buns (2 to 2.5 oz each)

Starter ingredients:
1 cup (8 oz) warm water (105° to 115°F)
2 teaspoons yeast (Red Star)
1/2 cup (2 oz) granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups (6 oz) all-purpose flour

Dough ingredients:
2 cups (8 oz) all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 Tablespoon (0.5 oz) coconut oil
1 Tablespoon (0.5 oz) rice vinegar

1. To make a starter, mix all of the starter ingredients together in a large bowl. Set aside until the mixture is foamy, about 5 to 10 minutes, depending on a room temperature.
2. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Whisk the oil and vinegar into the starter mixture.
4. Add the flour mixture to the starter mixture.
5. Knead the dough on the non-stick mat until it comes together, about 3-4 minutes. (See my pizza dough recipe's step 5 for the kneading technique.)
6. Place the dough back into a bowl.
7. Cover the bowl with a towel and let the dough rises in a warm and draft-free place until double in size, about an hour. NOTE: I usually make the dough in the morning, then I'd let the dough sit at the room temperature until I am ready to make dinner. 
8. In the meantime, cut out 15 one-inch square of parchment papers and set aside.
9. When the dough is ready, punch it down and knead it for a minute.
10. Divide the dough into 15 equal parts or using the kitchen scale, measure the dough to 2 to 2.5 ounce each.
11. Shape each dough into a ball by continuously fold the side of the dough to the middle. Keep doing this step until the dough feels smooth on top.
12. To steam the bao dough without a filling, place it on a parchment paper and place it in the steamer. NOTE: The steamed bao will double in size. Make sure the dough are about an inch apart when placing them in a steamer. 
13. To steam the bao dough with a filling, flatting the dough with your finger, add the filling, then pinch the edges to seal. Place the dough seam side down on a parchment paper and place it in the steamer.
14. Steam the dough for 12 minutes. NOTE: Start the clock when the steam is visible.  
15. Serve the bao warm. Keep them in the steamer to keep warm. Store the leftover bao in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat them using a steamer.

TIPS: You can pretty much use any steamer to steam the bao. I use the stacked steamer. For presentation, I place them in the bamboo steamer before serving. The stacked steamer can be purchased at the Asian grocery stores, and it is really inexpensive. I bought a medium-size steamer for about $30.

The possibilities to having different steamed bao versions are endless. Split the unfilled bao in half, then add any favorite filling, from deli meat to pulled pork, just like you would use with regular sandwich bread.

Allergy Info: The steamed bao is free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish. Make the filling according to your allergy free diet.

Flour Tortillas

If you read my blog on The Endless Possibility of a Pizza Dough, you'd have known that my 2011 New Year's resolution was "to master the art of bread making". With a lot of practice, I did master the art of bread making. But let me tell you, there were times when I was so frustrated that the bread didn't turn out. Loaf bread is the hardest to bake. The dough has to rise correctly. The dough has to be baked at the corrected oven temperature. I mean, one little thing off and poof... no beautiful loaf of bread.

A few times, I had the urge to grab a bag of flour tortilla at my local supermarket. Of course, I couldn't do that because of the strict allergy free diet I was on at the time. Watching the fresh and puffy tortilla came out of the tortilla machine made me drool.

When I came across several recipes for flour tortilla, I was surprised that they are non yeast dough. The whole process of making yeast bread is pretty easy (if it doesn't involved loaf bread) but it is time consuming. Without yeast in the flour tortilla, my future of bread making is looking rather bright.

I tried several recipes and decided to come up with my own healthier version with the added grounded flax seeds. Not only is flax seeds are good for you, but they add to texture and color to the flour tortilla.

What do I do with the flour tortilla? Let me count the way. Addictive something sweet: deep fried stripes of tortilla and drench them in cinnamon sugar. Second round something savory: pulled pork tortilla. On-the-go breakfast: breakfast tortilla with scrambled eggs and whatever I have on hands. Something fast: quesadilla of whatever I have in the fridge (grilled salmon, ham, or grilled chickens with manchego cheese). Or what my kids luv to do: "Mommy, can I have just tortilla?" Seriously, they luv them plain.

Flour Tortillas
makes 6 - 10 six or eight inch (somewhat round) tortilla

1/2 cup (4 oz) water
2 cups (8 oz) unbleached all purpose flour
1 to 2 Tablespoons grounded flax seeds
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup (2 oz) vegetable oil

1. Pour the water in the mug and microwave it until it is hot, about 45 seconds.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, grounded flax seeds, and salt.
3. Add the hot water into the flour mixture and combine it with a fork.
4. Add the oil and mix again with a fork until the dough is formed.
5. Take the dough out of the bowl and knead it for 1 to 2 minutes.
6. Place back into the bowl and let the dough rest for 15 to 30 minutes.
7. Heat the flat griddle on medium low heat.
8. Take about a golf ball size dough and with a rolling pin, roll it out thinly in a circular form. Doesn't have to be perfect because they still taste delish. Mine seems to take a square shape.
9. Place the rolled out dough on to the heated griddle.
10. Cook the dough for 55 to 60 seconds per side. Adjust the heat as needed.
11. Place the flour tortilla on a plate and cover it with a  towel to keep warm.

After the tortillas are cooled, keep them in a plastic bag or an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature. Keep them in the refrigerator for a week. Freeze them for up to 6 months.

Allergy Info: My flour tortillas recipe is free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish.

French Bread or Baguettes

Here's what I love about my go-to pizza dough. I can use it to make French bread or baguettes and so many other delicious breads. Yum-and-easy factor.

To make the pizza dough, check out my Endless Possibility of Pizza Dough. Then follow the directions below on how to make French bread or baguettes.

French Bread or Baguettes
makes 2 French bread or 3 baguettes

1 Pizza dough
1/4 cup (2 oz) warm water
1 tsp baking soda

1. Make the pizza dough as directed from The Endless Possibility of Pizza Dough recipe.
2. Divide the dough into equal amount: 2 equal amount for French bread or 3 equal amount for baguettes.
3. Roll each dough into a log, using the all-purpose flour to prevent the dough from sticking.
4. Place a dough on to the Non-Stick Perforated French Bread Pan or the Non-Stick Perforated Baguette Pan. (If you don't have these pans, put the dough on a baking sheet lined with the parchment paper.)
5. Cover the pan with a towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for 30 minutes.
6. When the dough is ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400°F.
7. Mix the warm water with the baking soda to make a wash.
8. With a light stroke, brush the baking soda water over the dough.
9. Score the dough with a knife if desire.
10. Place the pan on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
11. Remove the pan from the oven.
12. Before slicing the bread, wait for 5 to 10 minutes. Enjoy.

Allergy Info: My French bread or baguette is free from or can be made without dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nuts, and fish.