Homemade Bagels with Maple Walnut Cranberry Cream Cheese and Smoked Salmon Spread

I used to make bagels before I started this blog. I remembered how impressed Adrian was. He was telling everyone that I made bagels - "handmade, not machine. I didn't even know that's humanly possible!?!" The lady whom I'm doing rehabilitation work with even suggested I should start selling; seeing the lack of quality bagels in Thailand. Although I'm flattered, but apparently there are tonnes of others in the world who make bagels, with hand, at home.

I'm doing it again after so many months because Adrian is craving for good bagels. He even asked Sandra to buy bagels back from The State after her Thanksgiving trip in San Diego. Let's say we established that's not possible. Eventually he decided to ask me to bake them. As all good wives do, I obliged.

This time I'm using the recipe from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice. This intimidating looking book is the only food book that I bought (or I made Adrian bought for me). It is a shame but I have to admit I haven't been making good use of the book since I got it through Amazon months ago. However, from what little I have gone through, I know it is THE book for amateur bread baker. It's full of recipes and instructions to experiment with artisan breads, also, basic concepts of bread baking, the science of bread, and information about equipment and ingredients. It also includes an extremely useful section on the twelve stages in the life of bread. What I like the most about this book is it helps me to understand why the recipe does what it does.

I made a mistake by making too many bagels at once: I forgot we have a small kitchen and refrigerator with limited space. Besides, 12 bagels is a lot of kneading to do with bare hand. Next time, I'm leaving the arm works to the American who craves for good bagels.

I made the bagels with two different toppings: poppy seeds and white sesame seeds to go with sweet filling such as Maple Walnut Cranberry Cream Cheese, and minced onions and garlic to go with savory filling like Smoked Salmon Spread.

I'm too lazy to type out the recipe but you can go to The Fresh Loaf for it. Nevertheless I'm happy to share our favorite bagel fillings:

Maple Walnut Cranberry Cream Cheese

Most recipes use a mix of sugar and maple syrup but why would you do that? I certainly don't.

• 8 oz cream cheese, softened at room temperature
• 1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
  
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped
  
• 1/4 Cup pure maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  

Whip cream cheese until smooth. While continuing to whip, slowly add all of the remaining ingredients. Cover and chill until firm (at least an hour or two).

Smoked Salmon Spread

• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 4 oz smoked salmon, chopped
• 1 Cup sour cream (lemon juice + cream)
  
• 2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
• 1 tablespoons capers, drained and chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 1 teaspoon lemon and zest
  

In large bowl, stir cream cheese until light and fluffy. Fold in salmon, sour cream, dill, capers, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Stir in lemon juice and zest. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to overnight.

Dill and Buttermilk Biscuit with Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese

My first attempt of this recipe was almost disastrous. I added only half of the required flour and didn't listen to my gut feeling. It was too late when I saw how the batter had gone flat after 5 minutes in the oven. I literally squatted in front of the oven and watched for the next 15 minutes as it continued to bake. Even Adrian knew something was amiss-ed. It ended looking like a jigsaw puzzle/ world map/ deformed pizza. Nevertheless it smelled really good. Adrian took a small piece of it and proclaimed "WOW!". So I decided to let it be.

It would have been the envy of breakfast club with a pretty looking fried egg. Anyway I'm glad I didn't throw the now-deformed biscuit away. It was really good. The credit must go to the sharp cheddar, which was the best I've bought so far (it came buy-one-free-one, too! Go get it now at Paragon's Gourmet Market.)

I also came to learn a new trick frying egg: wait for the egg white to set and pour in a couple tablespoon of water to the skillet. Cover so the yolk steams and set to your liking.

Anyway my undying spirit swore to make a come back - immediately the next day. You'd think I'd stick to the core of the recipe. Tsk, tsk, tsk. I decided to substitute the flour with 1/2 cup wholemeal, double the amount of baking powder and added an extra splash of cream to the batter.

As it turned out, with the correct shape and form, Adrian proclaimed "It's all good and delicious, but I prefer the messed up one." What do you know? Accidents make geniuses.

With sun-dried tomato scrambled egg.

Ingredients:

(makes 6 bun-sized or 12 cookies-sized)

For the Biscuit

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
• 2 oz coarsely grated extra-sharp Cheddar
  
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 1 cup buttermilk (1 TB lemon juice + 1 C milk)
  

1. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Add the grated butter and mix until coated in flour.
2. Add the dill and the buttermilk until you get a sticky dough. Line a baking sheet with baking paper and preheat oven to 200C.
3. Spoon 6 mounds (or 12 for cookies-sized) of dough about 2 inches apart onto an ungreased large baking sheet. Brush with melter butter.
4. Bake until puffed and pale golden, 15 to 20 minutes (or less if you make it into cookies-sized).

For the Cream Cheese:

• 1 box cream cheese
  
• juice from 1/2 lemon
• 15 capers
  
• 1 tbs chopped dill
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Mix the cream cheese with the lemon juice, capers and dill, add salt and pepper to taste.

To serve:

1. Slice biscuit into halves.
2. Spread cream cheese over the inside of biscuits.
3. Put rocket salad on top of cream cheese, followed by smoked salmon and fried egg. Top with the other halve of biscuit.
   

Smoked Salmon Frittata

Ingredients:
(serves 6)

• 6 large eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
  
• 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/4 pound smoked salmon, torn into pieces
• 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
• 5 green onion, chopped
• 2 TB fresh dill
  
• 1 TB butter
• Dill sprigs and sour cream to serve (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
   
2. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream, salt, and Tabasco sauce. Blend in flour to combine. Stir in salmon pieces, cheese, onion, and dill.
3. In a ovenproof skillet, melt the butter. Pour in egg mixture. Allow the bottom to set and transfer to oven to bake for 20 minutes or until the top browned.
4. Cut into wedges, serve with dill sprigs and sour cream.
   

Smoked Fish and Egg Salad Tartine on Roasted Potato

I have this strange attraction to egg mayonnaise. Everytime I order the make-your-own sandwich at Central Chitlom Food Court, I inevitably tick egg mayonnaise on top of the roasted vegetables. Maybe I'm just a cheapskate trying to stuff as many fillings into the bread as possible at THB149.
I made quite a bit of adaptation to the Smoked Salmon and Egg Salad Tartine recipe. Firstly, I used smoked snow fish. Secondly, instead of using bread, I used roasted potato as the base. I also added sour cream and Kew Pie mayonnaise just for fun. Besides dill, I suspect tarragon and chive would work well in the egg salad, too.
Now that I have made my own egg mayonnaise, I shall never look at the deli sandwich in the same light ever.

Ingredients:
(makes 2 servings)
1 Large potato
sea salt and olive oil
sprinkle of chopped thyme leaves

3 large eggs
2 tablespoon real mayonnaise
swirl of Kew Pie (Japanese mayonnaise)
1 tablespoon sour cream (lemon juice + cream)
1 teaspoon Dijon wholegrain mustard
salt and pepper to taste
chopped dill

2 slices smoked snow fish

1. Preheat oven to 200C. Halve the potato lengthwise, brush it with olive oil and sprinkle with generous amount of sea salt. Sprinkle some chopped thyme over the cut side. Put to the oven and let roast until just tender.
2. Fill saucepan with enough water to cover the eggs by 1 inch. Bring the water to a boil and turn off the heat. Let sit for exactly 11 minutes. Transfer the eggs to ice cold water to stop cooking. Peel and mash roughly.
3. In a bowl, mix together mayonnaise, Kew Pie, sour cream, mustard, and dill. Stir in mashed eggs. Taste and adjust with seasoning
4. When the potatoes are ready, remove from the oven and top it with a slice of smoked fish. Spoon egg salad over the smoked fish and garnish with a sprig of dill.
   

Smoked Salmon Egg Florentine to start the day

Have I raved enough about my crave for breakfast yet? I get particularly excited on days when I don't have to leave home early. Well, late enough to have breakfast at home anyway. And this is one of those beautiful days.
I have made this egg Florentine many times before. It even got me a "I'm impressed" from my elder sister whose affection for me is so deep you can never tell from her face. It's also one of Adrian's favorite morning egg dishes. Although I doubt he recognized this one. It's simply because I finally used proper measurement for the white sauce instead of playing with the amount as I did. And, I added Smoked Salmon.
I don't eat much fish. Restaurant fish always come with funny taste. I'm very doubtful of their freshness. Having said that, I do enjoy sashimi. And I have to thank Adrian for introducing me to the store bought smoked salmon. They smell marvelous! I also did another dish with smoked salmon before.

Smoked Salmon Egg Florentine
I used apple cider vinegar for poaching the eggs. I did it with balsamic vinegar before. Although it worked but it browned the eggs. White vinegar would do if you don't use apple cider vinegar.

Ingredients:
Serve 2
4 eggs
A bag of spinach leaves, about 150gram
1 tomato, sliced
4 smoked salmon fillets (or more)
Milk, 150mL
1 Tablespoon flour
25 gram Cheddar cheese, grated
Shave Romano Cheese (Optional)

1. Add a splash of vinegar to a pan of water. Break one egg to a small bowl. When the water simmers, gently tip the egg in the pan. Scoop the egg out with a slotted spoon when ready. Rest on paper towel to drain off excess water. Repeat with the other eggs.
2. Preheat oven to 180C.
   
3. Cook spinach leaves with just the water clinging to it until just wilted. Remove from heat to a colander. Drain off excess water. Add a tablespoon of butter and pinch of salt and pepper.
   
4. Arrange spinach into to baking dish. Top each plate with 2 tomato slices and then 2 smoked salmon fillets. Cover the dishes with foil and let it bake for 20 minutes until the fish become flaky.
5. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, boil together milk, flour and butter. Stirring constantly until the mixture thicken. Add 1/2 the cheese and let melt. Remove from heat.
6. Distribute milk mixture evenly over the two dishes. Add the remaining Cheddar cheese to top. I added some shaved Romano too.
7. Shove the dish to the top layer of oven and let broil til golden brown.
   

What else came out of boredom? - Lemon Curd (and the subsequent Lemon Bars and Smoked Salmon Quinoa)

Friends back home always wonder how I spend my time since moving to Bangkok. Apart from practicing and teaching Yoga, I spend an awful lot of time in front of the computer surfing for articles that may or may not contribute to my practice/ teaching. When my brain is jammed with too much "spiritual" and "anatomy" stuffs, I switch on to my second brain - stomach -. I feed it by painstakingly going through pages after pages, sites after sites, blogs after blogs of recipes. Most of the time, it's completely random.

Adrian once bought some smoked salmon fillets that I turned into cheesecake. I still drool when I think of the combination of baked cream cheese and Gruyere. True to the spirit of Cook from Scratch, I thought I would try smoking salmon for future needs. I gave up the idea after reading just one post. Well, let's just say I live in a one-bedroom apartment with a kitchen good for two. Anyway I was glad to have found a recipe site that uses only smoked salmon.

So, as I was reading the many subscriptions for some "champion" smoked salmon recipe contest, I found a Smoked Salmon Quinoa that uses Lemon Curd. Now, I may speak and write English pretty fluently, but still, there is a lot of terminology that are completely alien to me. Besides, I didn't grow up eating Western foods. Anyway, I decided to look it up and thought Lemon Curd not only has a nice ring to it but seems to taste good, too. Besides, I could also use the extra Lemon Curd for making Lemon Tarts! Unfortunately, due to my insistence of using natural cane sugar instead of white sugar, the Lemon curd turned out to be beige in color instead of bright yellow that would look good on a tart. Therefore, in order to "hide" the lack of visual presentation, I chose to make Lemon Bars (another "novelty" to me).

For Lemon Curd
I was dismayed with the colour of the curd and didn't want to take the picture of it. I was actually thinking of throwing it away. I'm glad I didn't.

Ingredients: (makes 1 1/2 Cup)
3 Large Eggs
Juice of 2 lemon (about 1/3 Cup)
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
3/4 granulated white sugar
4 Tablespoon butter

In a stainless steel bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, whisk together eggs, sugar and lemon juice. Stir to prevent curdling. When the mixture thickens (like sour cream), remove the bowl from heat and strain the mixture to remove lumps. Whisk the butter into the mixture to melt. Add in lemon zest and let cool.
The curd will thicken. Immediately cover it to prevent skin from forming. It can be refrigerate for up to 1 week.

For Lemon Curd Bars
This bar has a lemon tangy taste. It's a little bit hard and on the dry side. I'd imagine it going well with tea/ coffee.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar (I used less than 1 Cup of cane sugar)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 Cup lemon curd
2/3 cup flaked coconut (Isubstituted with dried cranberrry)
1/2 cup toasted and chopped almonds

1. Preheat oven to 190C.
2. In a large mixing bowl cream the butter with flour, sugar and baking soda. Mix until the mixture forms coarse crumb.
3. Pat 2/3 of the mixture into the bottom of one 9x13 inch baking pan. Bake at 190 C for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool slightly.
4. Spread the lemon curd over the baked layer. To the remaining 1/3 of crumb mixture add the coconut (cranberry in my case) and the almonds. Sprinkle over the top of lemon curd.
5. Lower oven temperature to 175 C and bake bars for 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
   

For Smoked Salmon Quinoa
(serves 4 big portions)

2 Cup Quinoa, cooked
4 Tablespoon basil pesto (you can buy from store or refer to my previous post)
1 Cup Parmesan
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 Cup milk
1/8 Teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1C smoked salmon

1Cup plain yogurt
2 Tablespoon lemon curd
2 teaspoon lemon zest

Prepare the yogurt lemon dressing: mix yogurt, lemon curd and zest together. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Prepare the quinoa crust: Cook quinoa according to instruction. Toss basil pesto with quinoa. Mix with 1/2Cup cheese. Press pesto quinoa onto the bottom of a 9 inch pie pan, covering sides and bottom. Set the crust at 180C for 15 minutes. Remove and set aside.




Prepare the topping: In a bowl, whisk together eggs. milk,salt and pepper. Gently fold in salmon pieces.
Pour the egg mixture over quinoa crust and bake at 180C for 40 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 Cup cheese and bake for another 20 minutes.
Let the pie sit for 5 minutes before serving. You can either drizzle the lemon yogurt on top or serve it alongside.

We ate the leftover for breakfast few days later and it's just as flavorful as fresh.

I'm flooding Facebook with food pictures, no more

Just this evening, I was experimenting self-concoct recipes with leftover from weeks ago. They turned out to be surprisingly good. As I was proudly chattering about my genius cooking skill to the man whom very existence is the reason I enjoy cooking, this same man whom also acts as my inspiration jabbered with his mouth full "you should keep a blog".

Moment of revelation - he's bored of listening to my kitchen story. Just kidding.

I was hesitant of having a food blog because I get my recipes from other bloggers. But then, they too get their recipes from other bloggers/ cookbooks. I guess it's no secret that most of us cooks are not original anyway.

Also, I have been flooding my Facebook account with food pictures; pity my friends who can only drool and subsequently dream of the foods at night. I shall spare them the pain and move my "food archive" to a proper food blog.

Now that I have set up Cook from Scratch, I'm rather eager to post something. Should I start with the dinner that result from leftovers? What about the many pretty food pictures from before? Do I cook them again so I can blog about it? Can I just post all the past recipes so my blog looks active? Hmmm..... One step at a time, Shiang Ying, one step at a time.....

So, here's what transpired from the leftovers I found in the refrigerator:

Fresh Tomatoes and Zucchini Gratin that I adapted from Pinch My Salt . The recipe calls for yellow squash and Tabasco green sauce, which I didn't have on hand. I used yellow and red bell peppers, and smoked Tabasco instead. The original recipe swears by the MUST of Tabasco green though. The "gratin" turned out just fine with a flavourful taste. Looking at this picture, I should definitely put more effort in presentation.


Ingredients:
1 zucchini, sliced into coins
Half a yellow bell peppers, sliced
Half a red bell pepper, sliced
1 large tomato, cut into wedges
1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoon of fresh basil, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. In a large bowl, combine the first 4 ingredients together.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together basil, garlic, salt and extra virgin olive oil.
4. Toss the olive oil dressing into the large bowl.
5. Pour the mixture into a baking dish and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until zucchinis are soft.


Baked Smoked Salmon Cream Cheese with Pesto Quinoa that I dreamt up in my head. I made quite a bit of basil pesto two weeks ago. Some of it went to a Stuffed Portobello Mushroom with Camembert and Cranberries, and some was made into a pesto quinoa crust for a Baked Smoked Salmon. This Pesto Quinoa was leftover from the latter. Also, I've been very into baking bagel lately. Among the bagel spreads that I made is smoked salmon cream cheese. Hence another leftover.


Ingredient:
2 Cup Pesto Quinoa (frozen)
1.5 Cup salmon cream cheese
1.5 Cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoon parsley, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Press quinoa into the bottom of a baking dish to form a crust base.
3. Mix parsley and salmon cream cheese together. Pour over quinoa crust.
4. Sprinkle Parmesan over top.
5. Bake until browned.

I totally made this dish up. I willl post the recipes for pesto quinoa and salmon cream cheese from my previous cooking soon. Also, most of the steps I took tonight are spontaneous and not to scale. I shall be more precise in the future with proper measurement. (Note to self: Blogging takes a lot of works)

Last but not least, the true star of the night:

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Pudding
It's an open secret that I have a super-sweet tooth. I never feel bad indulging in sweets. I'm a strong advocate of moderate eating with a balance diet of everything good (for health) in life :) Besides, knowing the good quality ingredients I used in this no-no for Atkin's makes my sweet tooth tinkles with joy. This decadent dessert is so easy to make it would seem silly to buy from outside. Following is the original recipe, I've made a few changes to my own preference.

Peanut Butter Pudding:

1/2 cup sugar
5 teaspoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 cups whole milk
1/2 cup creamy (smooth) natural peanut butter (made with only peanuts and salt) (Note: I used crunchy peanut butter simply because I like it.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (Note: I use only pure vanilla although it's more expensive but, you know....)

Dark Chocolate Pudding:
6 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
2 cups whole milk
4 ounces good-quality dark chocolate, chopped (Note: I always choose 85% Lindt when it come to baking)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:
1 cup chilled heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon powdered sugar
chocolate shavings or curls, or cocoa (Note: I opted for ground cinnamon)

Directions
Make the peanut butter pudding:

Place the first 3 ingredients in a large saucepan and whisk them to blend. Whisk in the milk and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Boil until thick, whisking constantly, about 30 seconds. Whisk in the peanut butter, then boil until thick again, whisking constantly, about 1 minute longer. Turn off the heat and whisk in the vanilla, then divide among 6 glasses. Chill, uncovered, while you make the chocolate pudding.

Make the chocolate pudding:

Whisk the first 4 ingredients in heavy large saucepan. Gradually whisk in the milk, then whisk over medium heat until mixture comes to boil. Boil until thick, whisking constantly, about 30 seconds. Add the chopped chocolate and continue boiling until the chocolate melts and the pudding is thick again, whisking often, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Turn off the heat and whisk in the vanilla. Cool the pudding 5 minutes, then spoon it atop the peanut butter pudding in the glasses, dividing equally (about 1/3 cup each). Chill puddings uncovered until cold, at least 2 hours.

When you’re ready to serve, whip the cream with the powdered sugar into soft peaks. Spoon whipped cream on top of the puddings and garnish with shaved chocolate or cocoa.

Makes 6 servings.

Note: I never knew whipping cream takes THAT long to whip into peaks, even with blender. It helps to keep the cream REAL chilled before whisking. I had to stop and put it to freezer before I whisk it again, at high speed. I always have frozen raspberry in hand. It goes very well with the pudding. I'm also a big fan of ground cinnamon. I add it to almost everything sweet.