Brown Butter Miso Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

"Christmas starts in November!" I tend to say that a lot in an attempt to lengthen one of my most favourite times of the year, and to convince myself that Christmas is more than just on the 24th and 25th of December. With Christmas being so wonderful, it has to be longer than a mere two days, right? It would explain why I very much like to call it the Christmas season, as it gives the impression of Christmas being longer than it is.

Naturally, with Christmas fast-approaching, I have plans to bake as many desserts as possible. You wouldn't believe how many ideas I have written down and whirling in my head, but sadly, I can only bake so much, so I have to choose wisely! Out of all the things on my list, I think cookies are a must. Christmas season is cookie season, don't you agree?

So let's kick things off and usher in the festive season with brown butter miso chocolate chip pecan cookies. These delicious morsels are toasty from the brown butter and pecans, slightly umami from the miso, and perfectly chocolatey. Make sure that you use good quality butter and chocolate as this will ensure that your cookies have the best possible flavour.

A few notes:

• I used koji miso, which has a sweet, mild taste and rich aroma. It is not the usual type of miso that most people would use when baking sweet treats – most people would use shiro miso aka white miso. Honestly I think either koji or shiro miso works well in these cookies, so take your pick.

• When browning butter, you want to watch it closely as leaving it on the stove for any longer than needed would result in burnt butter. Once you are able to smell the nutty aroma from the butter, watch the colour of the butter. Remove the butter from the heat once it becomes a deep amber colour.

• I used a mixture of 70% Cacao Barry chocolate callets and 66% Valrhona chocolate feves for texture and also to get pockets of melty chocolate in the cookies. Yummmm.

• Toast the nuts for optimal nutty flavour!

Make these and enjoy it warm, with a cold glass of milk. Share it with family, friends, neighbours, coworkers. It will surely go down well.

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Brown Butter Miso Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

Makes approximately 36 medium-sized cookies

Ingredients

• 200 g pecans, toasted and roughly chopped

• 240 g (1 cup + 1 Tbs) unsalted butter, cut into cubes

• 360 g (approximately 2 3/4 cups + 2 tsp) all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 390 g dark chocolate, roughly chopped into chunks

• 80 g (4 Tbs) koji miso or shiro/white miso

• 200 g (1 cup) light brown sugar

• 150 g (3/4 cup) white granulated sugar

• 2 large eggs, fridge cold

• 1 Tbs vanilla extract

• A bit of flaky sea salt, for sprinkling (optional)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Spread out pecan nuts evenly on a baking tray and place the tray on the middle rack of the preheated oven. Toast the pecans for 10 minutes until toasty. Remove from the oven and set the nuts aside to cool completely.

2. In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, brown the butter, stirring with a heat-resistant spatula. You are looking out for a change in aroma as well as colour. Once the butter smells nutty and the colour of the butter has turned a deep amber, remove the butter from the heat. Set the brown butter aside to cool completely. (Note: Plan ahead, since brown butter needs time to cool).

3. While the brown butter is cooling, prepare the other ingredients. Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda in a medium sized bowl. Chop the chocolate (if using chocolate bars) and set it aside.

4. Pour the cooled brown butter into a large bowl. Whisk in the miso until there are no lumps. Then, whisk in the brown sugar and white granulated sugar until there are no lumps of sugar.

5. Whisk in the eggs one at a time until combined. The mixture will become smooth at this point. Whisk in vanilla extract.

6. Switch to a spatula. Fold the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until it is almost all combined. Then, fold the chocolate (reserve about 80 g of chocolate chunks) and pecans in until distributed throughout the cookie dough.

7. Using a cookie scoop, scoop out evenly sized cookie balls and place them on a parchment-lined baking tray. In addition to using a cookie scoop, I like to use a weighing scale to ensure that my cookies are all the same weight, about 50 g each. This ensures that the cookies are the same size and thus bake evenly. Take the reserved 80 g of dark chocolate chunks and place one chocolate chunk on top of each cookie dough ball. At this point, I highly recommend chilling the cookie dough balls in the fridge for at least one hour or overnight for the cookie dough to firm up and develop a bit more flavour. You can bake the cookies directly from the fridge. (See note for make ahead tip.**)

8. When ready to bake, arrange the cookies on a parchment-lined baking tray, leaving at least 1.5 inches in between them. Bake until cookies are puffed and golden, for 12 to 15 minutes.

9. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the cookies with a little bit of flaky sea salt, if desired (the cookies taste great with or without the flaky sea salt, it's just a matter of preference). Let the cookies cool on the baking tray for 5 to 8 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely. Or, you know, enjoy these warm and fresh from the oven with a glass of milk because nothing beats freshly baked cookies. These cookies also keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days (not that they would last that long).

**Note on making these ahead of time: I like to flash freeze the cookie dough balls for 30 minutes and then freeze them in freezer-safe ziplock bags. This way, I can bake them off straight from the freezer (no thawing required!) whenever cookie cravings strike. Bake them directly from the freezer for the same amount of time stipulated in the recipe. Enjoy!

#cookies #dessert #baking

Lemon Yogurt Loaf Cakes

The academic year is finally over, and things in school are starting to wind down slowly. It has been a lot less busy lately, with a lot more breathing and thinking (and baking!) space.

These are the times of rest that I have been yearning for. I'm definitely someone who does not thrive in extreme busyness. Rest is so important, so essential. It gives us space to recharge and be refreshed; it allows us to redirect our energies, and also prepares us for the next season of busyness. As I grow, I've come to appreciate opportunities to slow down a lot more. Rest is time I have to intenionally set aside. That being said, idleness isn't good either. Somewhere in between is that delicate, productive balance.

With things beginning to slow down somewhat, I drew out some time to make these lemon yogurt loaf cakes, which has been on my ever-growing to-bake list for the longest time. Did you know that lemon is one of my favourite flavours in cake? It might be only second to chocolate (chocolate is always number one to me!).

Packed with refreshing lemon flavour, these small lemon yogurt cakes are a wonderful combination buttery, sweet and tangy. They are also moist and fluffy as a result of using Greek yogurt in these cakes (I love Greek yogurt, by the way; I could eat it as is!). Best of all, because these were made in small loaf pans, they are good for sharing and also ensures that you don't eat too much cake in one sitting (though if you do eat more of it, like I did, no one will blame you!). Also, small cakes are just cute, don't you think?

If you prefer or want to make a larger cake, you could certainly make this lemon yogurt cake as a large Bundt cake or two large loaf cakes. You would just need to adjust the baking time. I would suggest baking a larger cake for 50 to 55 minutes, but do check it at the 45-minute mark by inserting a skewer into the cake to check for any wet batter. If there is still wet batter clinging to the skewer, you would know that you need to bake it longer.

I hope you'd give this cake a go! Happy baking!

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Lemon Yogurt Loaf Cakes

Makes 8 small 2 x 4-inch loaf cakes

Adapted from various sources

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 370 g (approx. 3 cups) all purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 350 g (1 3/4 cup) granulated sugar

• Grated lemon zest of 4 to 5 large lemons

• 230 g (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or sea salt

• 4 large eggs

• 250 g (approx. 1 cup) Greek yogurt

• 3 Tbs fresh lemon juice

• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the lemon syrup:

• 50 g (1/4 cup) granulated sugar

• 4 Tbs fresh lemon juice

For the lemon glaze:

• 180 g (approx. 1 1/2 cup) confectioners' sugar (aka icing sugar)

• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C and set an oven rack in the middle position. Prepare eight 2 x 4-inch loaf pans by coating the insides with butter and flour.

2. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda.

3. In a large bowl, place the sugar and grated lemon zest (be careful not to add the pith of the lemon, which is bitter). Using your fingers, gently rub the zest and sugar together. This allows the zest to release some of its juices, flavouring the sugar and producing a more pronounced lemon flavour.

4. Into the large bowl with the sugar and lemon zest, add softened room temperature butter and salt. Using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and salt together until it is pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

5. Add the eggs into the butter mixture, one at a time, ensuring that each egg is well-incorporated before adding the next one. Remember to scrape down the bowl to ensure everything is well mixed.

6. Once all the eggs have been incorporated, beat in half of the yogurt and lemon juice. Then, fold in one-third of the flour mixture into the butter mixture.

7. Repeat with the next one-third of yogurt and lemon juice, as well as the flour mixture.

8. Finally, fold in the remaining yogurt and lemon juice, followed by the flour mixture, until everything is well incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure that everything has been mixed in. Do not over-mix.

9. Using a spoon or ice cream scoop, divide the batter as equally as possible among eight small loaf pans. Fill the loaf pans two-thirds full and gently tap the loaf pans on the counter to level the batter. Do not over-fill the loaf pans, else the batter would overflow as it bakes.

10. Bake the cakes at 170°C for 25 to 30 minutes, until the cakes are golden or a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

11. Make the lemon syrup. As the cakes are baking, place 50 g of sugar and 4 Tbs of lemon juice into a bowl and microwave on medium, stirring the syrup at intervals, until all the sugar has dissolved.

12. Once the cakes are done, remove the cakes from the oven and invert them onto a wire rack to cool. Using a pastry brush, generously brush the hot lemon syrup over the cakes, letting the syrup soak into the cakes. Some syrup might drip off, but don't rush the process so that as much syrup can be absorbed by the cake as possible. Then, let the cakes cool completely.

13. Make the lemon glaze by sifting the icing sugar into a medium bowl and stirring in the lemon juice until it forms a thick pour-able glaze. If you want a thicker glaze, add more sifted icing sugar. If you want a thinner glaze, add more lemon juice.

14. When the cakes have cooled completely and are ready to be served, pour the lemon glaze onto the cakes. Slice and enjoy!

Note: These cakes can be frozen sans glaze (but make sure you brush the cakes with lemon syrup before freezing them). Once the cakes have cooled completely, double wrap them in cling wrap and place them in a freezer-safe Ziploc bag. Freeze the cakes for up to three months. To thaw, simply place the cakes, still wrapped up in cling wrap, on the counter-top until thawed through.

#cakes #dessert #baking

Earl Grey Bundt Cake with Miso Caramel

A few weeks ago, I bought my first two large Bundt cake pans on Amazon. I've always loved Bundt cakes (prior to the two large ones, I own a small 6-cup Bundt pan, which I love but don't use nearly enough), admired them in photographs or in real life, mainly because they always looks so effortlessly beautiful with their intricate patterns and coating of glaze.

So imagine my elation when the Bundt pans, one standard Bundt pan and one Heritage Bundt pan, finally arrived in the mail. I got down to cake making as soon as I could, resulting in this beautiful Earl Grey Bundt cake you see here!

I also made miso caramel to go with the cake, because why not? For those of you who may not know what miso is, it is basically a fermented soybean paste. Originating from Japan, miso has an 'umami' flavour, which is somewhat like a mix of salty and savoury and slightly beany... it's a little bit hard to describe – you just have to try to for yourself! There are many different varieties of miso too – some are milder in flavour, some are more 'beany' than others, etc.

For miso caramel, you want to use white miso as it has a milder flavour that complements caramel. For me, I used koji miso, which worked wonderfully.

A few notes on making a Bundt cake:

• Use a good quality Bundt pan. Mine are from Nordicware, which I purchased from Amazon.

• To ensure that the cake releases from the Bundt pan easily, coat the insides of the pan with butter and flour. Ensure that every nook and cranny are coated with butter and flour. Do not skip this step.

• Then, when you want to unmould the cake, flip the pan over and the cake should release easily.

A few notes on making the miso caramel:

• I used the dry caramel method as opposed to adding water to the sugar (i.e. wet caramel) because it's just the method I prefer. You can go ahead and make a wet caramel and then add the miso paste (more on that in the recipe below).

• When using the dry caramel method, make sure that you place the sugar in an even layer on bottom of the saucepan. Give the pan a shake so that sugar spreads out into an even layer.

• Then, on a low to medium heat, let the sugar melt and caramelise (the edges will caramelise first). Do not stir it yet.

• Once the sugar around the edges start to caramelise, use a heat-proof spatula to bring the melted and caramelised sugar at the edges into the middle of the pan.

• The thing about dry caramel is that the sugar may start to clump as it melts. Do not panic. Just keep stirring until the sugar lumps dissolve.

Happy baking!

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Earl Grey Bundt Cake with Miso Caramel

Makes one 10-inch Bundt cake

Ingredients

For the Earl Grey cake

• 195 g (3/4 cup) whole milk

• 8 Earl Grey tea bags

• 340g (2 2/3 cup) all-purpose flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• ½ tsp baking soda

• 170 g (12 Tbs) unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 300 g (1 1/2 cup) granulated sugar

• 1 tsp sea salt

• 4 large eggs

• 2 tsp vanilla extract

• 54 g (1/4 cup) neutral vegetable oil

• 64 g (1/4 cup) greek yogurt

For the Earl Grey milk soak:

• 65 g (1/4 cup) milk

• 1 Earl Grey tea bag

For the miso caramel:

• 200 g (1 cup) granulated sugar

• 118 g (1/2 cup) heavy whipping cream, warmed

• 2 Tbs (42 g) white or koji miso paste

• 1 tsp vanilla bean paste

Method

Make the cake and milk soak:

1. Heat milk in a saucepan over medium heat until it almost boils. Remove from heat and place into the milk 8 Earl Grey tea bags. Set aside to let the tea steep and cool down.

2. Prepare the Bundt pan. Coat the insides of the pan with butter and flour, ensuring that you cover the nooks and crannies of the pan. Invert the pan and gently tap out any excess flour. Do not skip this step! Coating the insides of the pan with butter and flour will prevent the cake from sticking and ensure that it releases cleanly from the pan later on.

3. Preheat the oven to 170°C.

4. In a medium sized bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda.

5. In a separate large bowl, cream together butter, sugar and salt until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

6. Add the eggs into the butter-sugar mixture, one at a time, whipping to ensure that each egg is well-incorporated before adding the next egg. Then, add in the vanilla extract. Remember to scrape down the bowl to ensure the mixture is well-incorporated.

7. Stream in the oil and add in the greek yogurt. Mix to combine.

8. Fold one-third of the sifted dry ingredients into the batter. Then, mix in half of the steeped Earl Grey milk.

9. Again, fold in the next third of the sifted dry ingredients and the remainder of the Earl Grey milk. Fold in the last third of the sifted dry ingredients until everything is well-combined. Do not over-mix the batter.

10. Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan. Gently tap the Bundt pan on the counter to ensure that the batter fills every corner of the pan and the top levels out.

11. Bake the Bundt cake at 170°C for 50 to 55 minutes, until the cake has risen and browned and a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

12. Remove the cake form the oven and let it cool in the Bundt pan for about 5 minutes. Then, with gloved hands or using a tea towel (the Bundt pan would still be very hot!), very carefully invert the Bundt cake onto a wire rack. The cake should slip out of the Bundt pan easily.

13. Make the milk soak for the cake. Warm the milk and steep one tea bag in the milk. Then, using a pastry brush, brush the entire cake with the Earl Grey milk soak. The cake will absorb the Earl Grey milk. This is to lock in the moisture in the cake.

14. Let the cake cool completely on the wire rack.

For the miso caramel:

1. While the cake cools, make the miso caramel. Heat the cream in the microwave until it is very warm but not boiling. Set aside.

2. Place the sugar in an even layer in a saucepan.

3. Set the saucepan over low to medium heat to melt the sugar. At this point, do not stir the sugar. Let the heat gently melt the sugar.

4. The sugar around the edges will begin to melt and caramelise first. When this happens, use a heat-proof spatula to gently 'pull' or bring the melted and caramelised into the middle. This is to encourage sugar to melt and caramelised evenly. If there are some lumps in the sugar, keep stirring over low to medium until it has dissolved. Do not increase the heat as the sugar might burn.

5. Continue to stir all the sugar has melted and caramelised. Watch the colour of the caramel. Once it has reached a dark amber colour, remove the caramel from the heat and carefully stir in the warm cream. Keep stirring as you pour the cream until the cream is well-incorporated into the caramel. The mixture will bubble up; don't worry, it is normal.

6. Return the caramel to the heat and stir until it is smooth.

7. Remove the caramel from the heat and stir in the miso paste. Then, pour the caramel through a sieve (to get rid of any lumps) into a container. Set aside to cool. The caramel will continue to thicken as it cools.

To serve:

1. Drizzle the warm miso caramel over the Bundt cake. Cut into slices, drizzle more miso caramel and enjoy!

#dessert #cake #baking