Chocolate Chip Cookies

It was a nice sunny day today, the temperature was around 18 degrees centigrade and yet i was bored ( hubby wasnt home). I have played with Shadow and walked longer than we used to but still feel lonely and grumpy. Then i decided to bake something, something sweet, simple and doesn't leave many dirty dishes (lazy hehe). 

Hubby loves Nigella´s Totally chocolate chip cookies (TCCC) and i have been making these cookies many times. This time i will just make Chocolate chip cookies (CCC), it still comes from Nigella´s recipe. Hubby loves them both but for me, i love CCC better. 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from KITCHEN: Recipes From The Heart of The Home by Nigella Lawson

Ingredients:

150 gr soft unsalted butter

125 gr soft light brown sugar

100 gr caster sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg, fridge-cold

1 egg yolk, fridge-cold

300 gr flour

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 x 326g packet of milk chocolate morsels or choc chips

1 x large baking sheet

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170C/gas mark 3.  Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.

2. Melt the butter and let it cool a bit.  Put the brown and white sugars into a bowl, pour the slightly cooled, melted butter over them and beat together.

3. Beat in the vanilla, the cold egg and cold egg yolk until your mixture is light and creamy.

4. Slowly mix in the flour and the bicarb. until just blended, then fold in the chocolate chips.

5. Scoop the cookie dough into an American quarter-cup measure or a 60ml round ice-cream scoop and drop onto the prepared baking sheet, plopping the cookies down about 8cm apart.  You will need to make these 2 batches, keeping the bowl of cookie dough in the fridge between batches.

6. Bake for 15-17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted.  Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks.

Make Ahead Note: The cookies can be made up to three days ahead and stored in an airtight container.  Cookies will keep for a total of five days

English Crumpets

English Crumpet

English crumpet is traditionally eaten as a breakfast snack or a snack for afternoon tea in the UK. If you think my British husband was the one who introduced me to this snack, well you´re wrong. It was his friend Terry, he introduced me to the English crumpet when hubby and i spent Christmas with him in York last year. The thing is, hubby is not such an adventurous person as i am when it comes to food!. 

I searched for the recipe on the internet and stumbled on Lisa´s blog Sunday Hotpants. I tried it yesterday and we both loved it  :-).  

English Crumpets

Adapted from Sydney Food by Bill Granger

Ingredients:

1½ cups of milk

1½ tsp sugar

7 gr dried instant yeast

375 gr flour

½ tsp baking soda

200 ml water

pinch of salt

Method:

1. Pour the milk into a saucepan and heat until just warm. 

2. Transfer into a bowl and add the sugar and yeast. Allow to stand for 10 minutes or until the milk starts to bubble.

3. Sift the flour and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the milk mixture to the flour and beat with an electric beater until completely smooth. 

4. Cover in plastic wrap and stand in a warm place for 1 - 1½ hours until doubled in volume and full of air bubbles.

5. Mix the baking soda with the water and use your electric beater to combine this with the batter.

6. Heat a heavy based frying pan over a medium heat and grease with a little butter.

7. Grease your crumpet moulds (baking rings) - keep them greased throughout the cooking. Place your moulds on the hot surface and place 2-3 Tbsp of mixture inside the mould. 

8. Within a short period of time your crumpets should get small bubbles all over the surface that begin to break.

9. Once the surface is covered in broken bubbles and a light skin has formed you can gently remove your crumpet from the mould, turn and cook on the other side.

10. Remove from the pan and snuggle your crumpets in a clean tea towel while you cook the rest.

11. The crumpets can be eaten fresh or toasted.

You can spread it with butter, jams, honey or anything else you fancy. For me, i love it with just butter. 

Langedrag Naturpark, Norway

Langedrag Naturpark

Langedrag is a mountain farm and wild life park located in Nesbyen, around 2 hours driving from Kongsberg. This farm lies 1000 meters above sea level and has a fantastic view of lakes and mountains. Besides seeing the animals, the main attractions are when they feed the wolves and the Lynx. Hubby and i went there last summer with some friends, it was a nice experience for me to see the animals in close proximity.


For more information about Langedrag Naturpark, please visit their website here.

Wolf is waiting to be feed

Lynx

Reindeer

Highland cattle

The pictures above are only few different animals at Langedrag. They have around 22 different species with 250 individual in total. It´s worth the visit :-).

Fiep Westendorp Postcards

I just LOVE all Fiep Westendorp´s illustrations and this time i got it on postcards. 

Jip and Janneke

Walking with Shadow

Shadow is staying with us again. Since hubby´s son has so many things to do at the moment, we offered him to take care of Shadow for the next few days. I really enjoyed his company last time so i dont mind doing it again. Walking with Shadow is fun and i enjoy it very much but i am not looking forward to pick up his poop :p.


These pictures below were taken this morning.

Kongsberg Ski Center from a distance

Ski day

Wednesday and another day of skiing at Kongsberg ski center. We had very nice weather and the snow on the slope was gorgeous. I must say i am a beginner but i am getting better, just still need more practice. Unfortunately, this winter has been pretty mild so we didn't have much snow so i guess i need to wait until next winter for more practice.

The Kiddy´s slope

and that was me :-)

Kembang Goyang

This is one of Indonesia´s traditional crackers. If you translate the Indonesian name into english kembang means flower, and goyang means shake so kembang goyang means shaky flower?!? it sounds weird for a cracker doesn't it? :D. 


To make this cracker you need a flower shaped iron mold. My mum sent me a kembang goyang mold months ago. Surprisingly i also found this mold at the flea market here in Norway and they call them rosettbakkels. 

Kembang Goyang Mold from Indonesia

The one i found at flea market in Norway

There are 2 different flavors, sweet and savory. I decided to make savory kembang goyang first and try the sweet one or even the norwegian version next time :-). The original recipe is from here but i made few changes to suit my taste.


Kembang Goyang
Adapted from Tabloid Nova


Ingredients:
125 gr Rice flour
25 gr Sugar (this one i skip)
1 Egg
¼ tsp Salt
200 ml coconut milk
25 gr Sesame seeds (i substitute with crushed coriander seeds)
Oil for frying
My additional ingredient: finely chopped kaffir lime leaves.

Method:
1. Place all the ingredients together in a bowl (except oil) and mix it well.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan and place the mold in the oil.
3. Once the mold is hot enough, dip it into the batter (the batter will stick on the hot mold). Dip it just below the top of the mold but do not submerse. 
4. Put it back in the oil and shake the mold to release the batter.
5. Deep fry until light golden color. 
6. Place on a paper towel to absorb excess oil.
7. Serve.

Now you know why it´s called Kembang goyang ;-).