Joanne's Easy Bake: Easy Roasted Savory Peanuts

Joanne's Easy Bake: Easy Roasted Savory Peanuts: Easy Roasted Savory Peanuts During school days, there was a old man who sold all sorts of peas, nuts and beans on the roadsi...

Easy Roasted Savory Peanuts

Easy Roasted Savory Peanuts

During school days, there was a old man who sold all sorts of peas, nuts and beans on the roadside - peanuts, lentils, green peas, chick peas etc. Some of us used to call him the 'kacang putih' man. He sold them at 5 cents for a handful in a rolled paper cone to school children after school and he carried the tray of nuts on his head. My favourite is these salty roasted peanuts! The nut treats were always a welcome if I have some pocket money left at the end of the day because they satiate the hunger after a long day at school. These roasted peanuts are also one of the condiments served with our famous 'nasi lemak' and the Chiu Chow porridge that my dad loves for breakfast. I never learn how to make them in the traditional way where they are fried over a hot frying pan with lots of oil. This method is very tedious and tiring to the arm. Recently, during some of my trips to visit mom, she showed me how she made these roasted peanuts in the easiest way! All one needs is a toaster oven and the ingredients are simple!

Utensils required:-

Toaster Oven

Deep bowl

Colander

Kitchen scale

Paper towels

Wooden spoon

Salt shaker

Ingredients:-

300 g raw peanuts with skin on

3 teaspoons cooking oil of your choice (I used olive oil)

Salt (adjust to your taste)

Method:-

1. Weigh out the raw peanuts on a scale. Pick out and throw away any peanuts that are moldy or shriveled or black. 

2. Place them in a wire colander and rinse off dust and dirt over cold running tap water (please do not soak). 

3. Drain completely and spill them out onto a piece of paper towel to absorb all remaining water and dab the peanuts to dry them if possible.

4. Place cleaned and dried nuts into a deep bowl. 

5. Measure and drizzle 3 teaspoons cooking oil over peanuts. Mix with a wooden spoon to coat them. 

6. Line the baking tray of toaster oven with aluminium foil. Empty out the peanuts onto the lined baking tray and spread them out into a single layer.

7. Place tray with peanuts into the toaster oven. 

8. Turn temperature knob to 220 degrees F and bake for 25 minutes. 

9. After 25 minutes, remove baking tray from oven. 

10. Stir the peanuts with a wooden spoon and spread them out again into a single layer. 

11. Place the baking tray with peanuts back into the toaster oven and bake for another 25 minutes. 

12. Repeat steps 9, 10 and return baking tray with peanuts to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes until the skins turn rich brown. (Oven temperature may vary; please keep an eye on the browning in the last 10 minutes bake so as not to burn the peanuts). You may remove if you find that the peanuts are browning too fast or reduce the temperature.

13. Remove from oven and shake salt from the salt shaker over the peanuts. Give it a stir using the wooden spoon to evenly distribute the salt.

14. Let it cool to room temperature and serve. Enjoy your 'kacang'!

*Peanut texture will be soft when still hot. They will crisp up when cooled completely. May store for one week in an airtight jar. 

Joanne's Easy Bake: Plain Soft Sugar Cookies

Joanne's Easy Bake: Plain Soft Sugar Cookies: Plain Soft Sugar Cookies This is the original soft sugar cookies. You may want to vary with various flavouring using mint,...

Plain Soft Sugar Cookies

Plain Soft Sugar Cookies

This is the original soft sugar cookies. You may want to vary with various flavouring using mint, almond or orange or lemon or chocolate (be versatile). They are easy peasy and extremely addictive. If you do not care too much about the shapes, you may just roll the dough by hand and bake them. Otherwise, you may press the dough out using a cookie press. Good for cookie exchange or as gifts for Christmas, special occasions or just for your daily dose of dessert with your favourite mocha! Recipe was adapted from Gemma Stafford's Bigger Bolder Baking.

Utensils needed:-

Mixing bowls

Stand mixer (if you do not have one, you may use a hand held mixer)

Measuring cups and bowls

Spatula

Cookie baking sheet

Parchment paper (I used silicone mat)

Whisk
Scrapper or butter knife

Ingredients:-

3/4 cups unsalted butter at room temperature

3/4 cups minus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

3 teaspoons pure almond essence (you may use any other pure flavourings)

2 large eggs at room temperature

2 1/4 cups flour * (If you live in a different country, you might want to vary the amount of flour slightly if your cookies turned out too hard or too soft. If too hard, reduce the amount of flour and if too soft, add a little more).

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup skim milk powder

Decorative sugars (optional)

Food colouring (optional)

Method:-

1. Measure and place butter and sugar into the mixing bowl. Turn on stand mixer and beat using the paddle beater, until butter and sugar become light and fluffy.

2. Crack eggs into a small bowl. Add one egg at a time to the butter mixture and beat until egg is combined before adding the other. Repeat and beat until all eggs are combined into the butter mixture.

3. Add pure almond essence and beat until combined.

4. Add 4-5 drops of food colouring if using, and beat until combined.

5. Measure all the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, salt and milk powder, into a large bowl. Whisk gently to combine with a wire whisk.

6. Add all the dry ingredients to the butter mixture all at once. Turn on mixer to slow speed to combine the dry and wet ingredients. Turn off mixer once the mixture  becomes dough form.

7. Lightly flour your work surface and turn dough out onto the surface.

8. Gather the dough and gently pat into a thick round disc. If you wish, you can shape the dough into a round log. Wrap with plastic food cling wrap and place into a plastic bag to chill in the fridge for at least one day. *Dough must be refrigerated for at least one day and shaped when cold so that cookies can keep their shapes when baked.*

9. On the next day, preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Remove cookie dough from fridge. Divide into equal small bite size portions and roll in your palms into round globes.

10. Place onto a lined baking sheet with space in between each dough and bake for 8-9 minutes until the cookie is firm to touch and lightly brown at the bottom. Do not over bake!

11. Remove from oven. Let it cool for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight cookie tin and serve when desired.

Keeps for 4-5 days (if they are not gobbled up in a day)! Enjoy! Wishing everyone a "Merry & Joyous Christmas"!

Joanne's Easy Bake: Coconut Pandan Flavoured (Screw Pine Flavoured) So...

Joanne's Easy Bake: Coconut Pandan Flavoured (Screw Pine Flavoured) So...: I have always wanted to make sugar cookies but never tried. Bought all sorts of sugar cookie presses but never get to use t...

Coconut Pandan Flavoured (Screw Pine Flavoured) Soft Sugar Cookies

Coconut Pandan Flavoured (Screw Pine Flavoured) Soft Sugar Cookies

I have always wanted to make sugar cookies but never tried. Bought all sorts of sugar cookie presses but never get to use them. This is my first ever sugar cookies and they are surprisingly easy to make if not for paying too much attention on the shapes or using the press. I just used my hands and roll them into bite size balls and baked. They are all one-bite and I managed to make a whole lot from one batch! This recipe was adapted from Gemma Stafford's Bigger Bolder Baking. It was hard for me to buy pure Pandan essence; so I decided to make it myself and it turned out pretty good!

Utensils needed:-

Stand mixer (if you do not have one, you may use a hand held mixer)

Mixing bowls

Measuring cups and spoons

Spatulas

Cookie baking sheet

Parchment paper (I used reusable silicone mat)

Scrapper or a butter knife

Ingredients:-

3/4 cups unsalted butter at room temperature

3/4 cups less/minus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

3 teaspoons pure Pandan essence* (see below how to make your own pure Pandan essence)

2 large eggs at room temperature

2 1/4 cups flour

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup coconut milk powder

1/4 cup skim milk powder

Green food colouring (optional)

Method:-

1. Measure and place butter and sugar into the mixing bowl. Turn on stand mixer and beat using the paddle attachment, until butter and sugar become light and fluffy.

2. Crack eggs into a small bowl. Add one egg at a time to the butter mixture and beat until egg is combined before adding the other. Repeat and beat until all eggs are combined into the butter mixture.

3.Add Pandan essence and beat until combined.

4. Add 4-5 drops of green food colouring if using, and beat until combined.

5. Measure all the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, salt, coconut milk powder, skim milk powder, into a large bowl. Whisk gently to combine dry ingredients with a wire whisk.

6. Add all the dry ingredients to the butter mixture all at once.  Turn on mixer to slow speed to combine the dry and wet ingredients. Turn off mixer once the mixture turn into a dough.

7. Lightly flour your work surface and turn dough out onto the surface.

8. Gather the dough and gently pat into a thick round disc. If you wish, you can shape the dough into a round log. Wrap with plastic cling food wrap and place into a plastic bag to chill in the fridge for at least one day.

8. On the next day, preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Remove cookie dough from fridge. Divide into small equal bite size portions and roll in your palms into round globes.

9. Place onto a lined baking sheet leaving space between each cookie dough and bake cookies for 8-9 minutes until the cookies are firm to touch and bottom is slightly brown. Do not over bake!

10. Remove from oven. Let it cool for 3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight cookie tin and serve when desired.

Keeps for 4-5 days (if they are not gobbled up in a day)!

***Please make sure to chill dough in fridge for at least one day and form cookies when dough is still cold so that cookies will maintain their shape when baked.

*How to make Pandan essence

Ingredients:-

200 ml vodka (you may buy something in the medium price range) I used Absolut vodka from Sweden

6-7 pieces of pandanus leaves. 

Method:-

Wash thoroughly and air dry the pandanus (screw pine) leaves. Cut into 4-5 inches length per piece and stuff the leaves neatly into the bottle of vodka, making sure that all the leaves are submerged in the vodka. If bottle is overflowing, pour out some vodka into a cup and top the bottle up when all leaves have been stuffed into the bottle.

When the bottle is filled, screw the cap back on and secure tightly. Write the date on a sticker note and stick on to the bottle. Store in a cool and dark place. Let it sit for 6 weeks before using.