Asian sweet buns - bánh mì ngọt

 I've  got a few requests recently from friends and since i have nothing to do at this moment , i decide to go back here and sharing how to make Asian sweet buns .

 heres the original link i followed : 

 http://www.instructables.com/id/Asian-Sweet-Bread-Hong-Kong-Pai-Bao-Hokkaido-Mil/step2/Making-the-Tangzhong/

after a few trials and errors and modification , i just got one for myself because its quick and simple just to fit my lazy cooking style :-D

First , try to gather all the ingredients at once 

And here we need : 

3/4 cup milk + 1/2  stick butter  :  put in microwave for 1 minute 

 add 2 1/2 tps active yeast + 1 tsp sugar  : mix well and  wait 5 mins to activate the yeast 

 in the mixing bowl using flat hook ,  add :  2 cups bread flour + pinch of salt + 2 T sugar  ( add more sugar if you prefer )  : mix at speed 1 for 1 min 

add 4 eggs , one at a time  , then turn mixer at  highest speed for 3 mins . The batter is runny at this point . 

Use the timer to not over mix 

Change to dough hook , add 2 1/2 - 3 cups bread flour , mix at speed 4 for a good 7 mins until the dough is no longer sticky , smooth and elastic 

Let dough rise in warm place for 90 mins or doubled in size  .

 i toss mine in the oven and here it is  after 90 mins

then deflate the dough and divide into 16 equal balls 

shape or stuff the balls as needed , then let balls rise again for another 90 mins in warm place

here it is , double in size again after 90 mins 

Now its time to have some fun , i let little one in charge and gosh she is so excited :)

Egg wash : 1 egg yolk + 2 tsps water 

Bake @ 375F  for 15-20 mins , cover the top with aluminum foil if it gets too brown 

These are great after-school- snacks for the little one  

" mommy can i have 1 more please ? "

She loves and can it every.single.morning with cream cheese or peanut butter .

the bread is just soft, fluffy and slightly chewy. I  store it  at room temperature for 2 days then put it in the fridge for up to a week , microwave 30 seconds and it tastes as good as it's out of the oven :)

Hope it helps . Happy baking :)

Mooncakes in October

Cuối cùng thì sau 1 thời gian dài bị treo mỏ vì lượng đường cao hơn mức cho phép , mẹ đã hoàn thành tốt nhiệm vụ ăn uống khoa học và  bs đả cho phép mẹ có thễ quay vè vói việc làm bánh trái có đường :) khõi phãi nói Adele vui như nào khi biết sẽ được trỡ vè vói cái ...lò nướng . Khi mẹ hỏi Adele và dad muốn làm bánh gì đây , cã 2 cùng đồnh thanh " moon cakes "  !!! Mậc dù mùa trung thu đã qua từ lâu rồi , nhưng 2 cha con vẫn không thể quên , chác là họ thèm lắm đây  , nhưng vì phải kiêng theo mẹ nên chẳng ai dám ...đòi ăn :)  Thế là sẵn đồ đạc có sẵn trong nhà vì mẹ đã chuẫn bị sẳn sàng lâu lám rồi , trứng muối cũng ở nhà muối luôn vì sợ hàng....chái nà ...Cả nhà lên lịch làm bánh ngay lập tức và khỏi nói , Adele thật là háo hức ! 

 Chủ nhật sau khi dinner xong thì bắt tay vô làm , như thường lệ mẹ vẫn theo công thức đơn giãn nhất mà làm , cũng như năm ngoái , mẹ cắt giãm những nguyên liệu không cần thiết , mặc dù biết thiếu nó thì bánh sẽ không mềm mại , nhưng Dad nói mẹ không phải đang ăn 1 mình nữa hihihi , cho nên nhửng gì không cần thiết là làm từ China thì phải ....giục . Thế là Dad thẵng tay... quăng chai nước tro tàu mói toanh chưa khui  , và lọ kẹo mạch nha vô....thùng rác .Trong bụng mẹ củng mặc kệ, năm ngoái bánh mẹ và Adele làm ra cũng mềm sau 3 4 ngày làm mà , thế là cã nhà bắt tay vô làm ngay không thôi muộn  rồi ...

Lại thêm cái tội lười biếng mang máy chụp hình chụp , cứ cái phone cùi mẹ chụp cho nhanh nên hình ảnh xấu và mờ quá chừng , thôi kệ , mình share cho vui thôi mà ..

Như thông thường , Adele vẫn luôn là nguoi đóng vai trò...quan trọng  , lúc này Adele đang giúp mẹ trộn hỗn hợp nước đường + dầu ăn ...năm nay cô nàng cũng đả biết ...giải trí nghe nhạc trong khi ....làm việc căng thẳng  hehehe 

Sau đó thì mẹ phụ trách phần nhồi bánh , và Daddy lo cho bánh vô khuôn và ..ịn , công nhận làm nhanh thiệt vì có nguoi phụ , bàn tay thô cứng của Daddy củng khéo ra phét , đây là kết quã  :

Vì qua trung thu lâu rồi nên cũng chẳng làm cho ai , thành ra mẹ chỉ làm công thức ít , cho ra đũ 8 cái nhõ và 2 con heo cho Adele :)

Sau khi nướng 20 phút , bánh chín , nhưng  phãi chờ đến vài hôm sau mói được ăn , Adele không chịu nỗi đớp luôn ...2 con heo nóng hổi

Và điệu đàng khoe mẹ còn ...phần mông con heo chuổn bị cho hết vô miệng ....

Thế là xong , ket thúc lúc gần 12 giò đêm sau khi Dad help dọn bãi chiến trường và rửa đồ đạc ..

Dad không quên nhìn trầm ngâm máy cái bánh và  và tự hỏi " sao mình củng có thể nặn ra những chiec bánh như vậy đuộc nhĩ ? " hehhehe ... good job Daddy :)

Sau khi chờ 3 ngày cho bánh mềm đề ăn thì từ 8 cái còn có ....3 thôi , vì ai cũng chịu không nỗi và đớp từ từ haha . Bánh không ngọt gắt và ít dầu nên đở ngán , ăn 1 lúc 1/2 cái cũng không sao :)




Happy ...very late the Moon festival  2013 :)

Im a happy Vitamixer :)

I am not a big smoothie person, but I was motivated by my constant efforts to get more greens into my body and my kid. Green smoothies sounded like a great way to do this painlessly. I have wanted a Vitamix blender for a few years now ,however, I just couldn't see myself parting with the $500 to get one. However, after watching the demo at Costco, and then tasting the spinach smoothie .... red cabbage ice cream , I was sold. And I'm not disappointed. I would have bought it a long time ago if I knew how great it was.

A lot of people complain about the Vitamix being a little too high to store under the counter but its not a problem in my kitchen :) The cleaning part is very simple , you put some hot soapy water in the container and blend, and then rinse . 

  I dont like eating veggies and have never wanted to eat kale or pears or fresh cranberries ......and i can't just believe that im eating them everyday 

I no longer juiced oranges . The white pithy part of oranges contains lots of vitamins and important nutrient with antioxidant and anticancer properties while juicing extracts water and nutrients and discards all the fiber .  It's recommended that women eat 25 to 30 grams of fiber each day to decrease the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes, as well as some types of cancer including breast cancer.
Fiber is aslo filling , without fiber in the juice , you will be hungry again quickly   .This explains why i started eating less  but still feel full longer , great !!! ;-) its just exactly what i need for my healthy diet  *wink*wink*

I love my smoothies thick and smooth (like jamba juice) Thanks to the vitamix , we are now enjoying healthy smoothies at anytime we want . 
Look at how i throw all sorts of things in there:honeydew ,pineapple ,pear ,orange, kale, spinach, chopped walnut , 10-grain power , chia seeds , dried dates , fresh cranberries , grapes ...lots of things that we can hardly finish them all within ... a few days  

But now they all go into our bodies easily everyday , I can't say enough good things about this baby  

  I hope this helped and happy Blending :)

Homemade Christmas dress for little girl

I can't just believe it's been a month i had not checked my page , lots of things happened last month but im glad they turned out great after all . Today , a day after mom flew back home , house still feels so quiet and empty , me and little one decided to do something fun together ,so  we cleaned up , folded the clothes ,  reorganized the closet and i just realized there were so many clothes that we had not had a chance to wear ... Just like moms out there , i have also made lots of mistakes of buying clothes online and felt regretted ... so , when Adele asked if i can make her a few more dresses , i thought it's just perfect to recycle those unused clothes and give them some brand new looks :)

So , i took out the looooong black dress i bought at 21 a few years ago , still i did not understand why i bought it :) i think it was ..super cheap lol , anyway ,  now i like it because its plenty of fabric that can make enough a dress for little one  , and ...another skirt for ...mommy haha 

I also pulled out Adele's 18 month dress that she quickly outgrew very longggg time ago ...these 2 colors are just perfect for this holy season . My little girl already has lots of dresses but it never seems to be enough , so when i told her i would make another dress , she just right away turned off  her favorite Sponge bath channel , ran to get the sewing machine and helped me set up the work station ..There the fun went on ...

the little red dress was cut in half , i kept the half top , cut the half bottom into 2 sleeves , wanted to make long sleeves but there was not enough fabric

and tada ...2 hours gone by quick with lots of fun

the front : 

And as usual , she could hardy wait to put it on ...its just what i imaged how it would turn out . It's a little long so she can wear her leggings underneath to keep her warm :)

She was just having so much fun with the " new dress " and the tree ....

Silly face melted my heart :)

finally .......there is a smile ...

oh ...and another fake one .... 

Bed time ! I'll update with a few more dresses  later .

Review on the Hann steam mop

I am so  so so excited to share with you one of my favorite household items that i just purchased 3 months ago . It was actually a recommendation of the sister in law who had visited us and boy i can't thank her enough for it  .  Even though my house is a shoes free zone but having an active toddler and 2 little chihuahua dogs  means vacuuming and mopping constantly since i can't stand the thought of having her crawling around and laying down on dirty floors . Oh boy this machine truly saves my backache and i just wondered how i had not heard about it that long ...Now i never  want to go back to the traditional way : mop and water bucket . Look back at the $10 mop i have used for 6 years and how happy i am to say goodbye lol 

And here's my back saver . I bought it at Kolh's . It's very light ,  looking great and doing a nice job cleaning and keeping the floors shiny and i love it when it cleans without using any chemicals . My house has 3 different type of floorings : hardwood , tiles and carpet and this baby does it all . Its very simple to use : fill the water , turn on the unit , wait for a minute for the water to be steamed and off to glider across the floors ...now having to cleaning the floors twice a week is not a problem at all :)

Haan Select Sanitizing Steam Mop (Google Affiliate Ad)

I love the way it leaves no streaks on the hardwood floors , it dries up too quick that sometime i got to touch the floors to see if it was actually working lol

The water tank looks small but i still have some water left after cleaning 1000 sfq living space 

And yes , like any mop ,you need to sweep first . I vacuum before using this machine and my floors feel clean and look great . Im so happy with this machine and hope it lasts :)