Parker House Rolls

These rolls are simply wonderful, soft, fluffy, with just the right amount of sweetness and great eaten on its own with a cup of tea or coffee. I've already made these twice! Really easy to make.

The recipe is rather huge, as it makes 24 rolls, so I have halved the recipe to make 12 rolls, just nice for my family. Bobby Flay did not mention anywhere in the recipe on the suitable size of baking pan to use, and for half a recipe with 12 rolls, I have used a 9"square pan which is just perfect.

The dough is really easy to work with, and the rolls bakes up high  with lovely golden brown crust.

Look at the softness of the rolls. They are soft, fluffy and really good! Great eaten on its own as the rolls has a light sweetness to it. I had two with a cup of coffee for my breakfast. The rolls stays just as soft on the next day.

The second time I made the rolls, we had it as a weekend breakfast with some sliced luncheon meat, cheese slices and my homegrown cucumber. Yummy!

* my measurements for half a recipe, yield 12 rolls, listed in blue

Parker House Rolls
(source from : foodnetwork.com , Bobby Flay)
Makes 24 rolls
1-1/2 cups milk (3/4 cup)
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for brushing (60gm salted butter)
1/2 cup sugar (1/4 cup)
1 package active dry yeast (1 tsp)
1/2 cup warm water (1/4 cup)
3 large eggs, lightly beaten (1 egg)
1-1/2 teaspoons salt (1/8 tsp)
6 cups all-purpose flour (3 cups plus 2 tbsps)

Place milk in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat, stir in the butter and sugar and let cool. Dissolve yeast in warm water and let sit until foamy. Combine milk mixture, eggs, yeast, salt, and 1/2 of the flour in a mixer with the dough attachment and mix until smooth. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and stir until a smooth ball forms.

Remove from the bowl and knead by hand on a floured surface for about 5 minutes. Place in greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 60 to 70 minutes. On a floured surface, punch down the dough and shape into desired shapes. Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cover again and let rise until doubled, about 30 to 40 minutes.

(I divided the dough into 12 equal pieces, about 65gm each, shape into rounds and placed in a greased 9" tray. Cover with cling wrap and let rise until doubled, remove cling wrap, proceed with baking).

Preheat the oven 350F.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and brush with melted butter before serving. (I baked for 23 minutes, tent the top with foil during the last ten minutes of baking, as the the rolls are already golden brown).

*************************

I am linking this post to "Cook Like A Star : Bobby Flay" event hosted by Zoe of Bake For Happy Kids, Baby Sumo of Eat Your Heart Out and Grace of Life Can Be Simple.

Purple Pickled Eggs

"Stock Your Exotic Pantry", the theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC). Pickled eggs are pretty exotic to me, especially when they look such as pretty as these Purple Pickled Eggs. These purple pickled eggs got their colour from a few slices of beetroot. I have seen other pickled eggs recipes from various websites and have always wanted to try at making them. So this is the perfect time to try Diana Henry's recipe, the featured chef at IHCC.

Firstly boil the eggs. I've made only 4 eggs. Peel the eggs, and use a cake skewer or wooden skewer to poke some holes onto the eggs. Put the eggs in a jar. 

The brine is made by bringing to a boil, the sliced beetroot, coriander seeds, cinnamon stick, sugar, dried chilli and white wine vinegar. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes. Pour the hot brine mixture over the eggs in the jar. Seal and refrigerate once cool. Keep for a few days before eating.

Such pretty eggs! I just love the colour from the beetroot. Makes the eggs looks really pretty in purple! 

How does it tastes like? Hmmm... I ate one on the very next day, and it was a little sour and the insides are not as purple as the ones above. I ate the second egg on the fourth day, as pictured above, the colour purple can be seen, already seeped into the eggs. The eggs are sour, and the whites has a chewy texture, while the york..well, tastes like yorks should be, I find no difference to its texture. It is an interesting pickle and would be great eaten as a side dish or appetizer accompanying a meal such as an Indian Briyani meal (suggested by my sis!). For those of you who love pickles, might like these pickled eggs, though it is not everyone's cup of tea. Would I make this again? I probably would, I rather enjoy eating it but prefer it to be less sour, so I would increase the amount of sugar, add a pinch of salt, reduce the amount of vinegar, to suit my taste.

Purple Pickled Eggs
(adapted from : Salt Sugar Smoke, Diana Henry or here)
14 eggs (4 eggs)
1 litre (1-3/4 pints) white wine vinegar (1 cup)
1 beetroot, sliced (a few slices)
100gm (3-1/2 oz) granulated sugar (2 tbsp)
2 tbsp coriander seeds (1/2 tbsp)
1/2 cinnamon stick (a small piece)
3 dried chillies (1)

1. Boil the eggs for 10 minutes, then drain, run cold water over them and peel. Make a few punctures in each egg with a slim skewer or a cocktail stick. Set aside.
2. Mix all the rest of the ingredients together in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer for about 15 minutes. Put the eggs into a sterilized jar and pour the hot vinegar over them. Seal with a vinegar-proof lid and keep in the refrigerator once cold. The eggs will taste better after a couple of days. They'll keep - covered with the vinegar - for about a month.

I'm linking this post with I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), theme for this week, "Stock Up Your Exotic Pantry".

Spaghetti with Bacon, Egg, and Cheese

"What Came First - The Chicken or the Egg?", the theme for this week at I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC). This is my second post for this week at IHCC. The first one, I've made a chicken dish, Chicken Skewers with Lime, Chilli and Mint. I could not decide which dish I should make, either a chicken or an egg dish, so I made one of each!

This is a pretty simple pasta with simple ingredients, and it takes just minutes to make. Ingredients used are just a few; bacon, olive oil, salt and pepper, and parsley, of which I have used a generous amount of fresh coriander from my garden pot. I have however added two more ingredients ; garlic powder and lemon juice. I'm nuts about garlic powder! I really love garlic powder, especially in pasta dishes like this. It adds a nice garlicky taste and fragrance with just a teaspoon or so. Lemon juice is needed for pasta like this; at least that's my personal preference. I find that lemon juice always turn a simple pasta such as this into a really yummy simple pasta!  And be generous with the salt and pepper, the pasta needs it!

And of course the egg! Who could resist fried eggs? I love fried eggs with the whites all cripsy at the edges with soft-set york, sprinkle with more black pepper over the top before serving. A simple, yummy and satisfying lunch. This is one pasta dish that I would make again!

Spaghetti with Bacon, Egg and Cheese
(adapted from "Pure Simple Cooking", Diana Henry)
serves 2
6 oz spaghetti
3 tbsp olive oil
4 oz bacon
2 large eggs
salt and pepper
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (use about 1/2 cup chopped cilantro)
2 oz smoked cheese, grated (Parmesan)
1 tsp garlic powder (my addition)
1 tbsp lemon juice, or more, to taste (my addition)

1. Cook the spaghetti in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente. When it's almost ready, heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in a large frying pan and cook the bacon until crisp and well coloured. Transfer it into a bowl and heat the rest of the oil. Fry the eggs, spooning the warm oil up over the top of the eggs to cook the yolks. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Drain the pasta, then put it back in the saucepan. Add the extra virgin olive oil, a little salt, pepper, garlic powder (if using), the bacon, parsley and lemon juice (if using), and toss. Divide between two plates, sprinkle on the grated cheese, and top each serving with a fried egg. Serve immediately.

I'm linking this post with I Heart Cooking Clubs (IHCC), theme for this week, "What Came First - The Chicken or the Egg?"

 

and 

Cook-Your-Books #18 @ kitchen flavours