Recipe: Pumpkin brownies

It was Eid al-Adha last Monday, and yesterday some of the Malaysian students in the Netherlands came to our lil city for celebration. We booked the bbq pit on campus, and brought lots of food (like always), and the guys started grilling the delicious sate and other marinated meat.

The food was awesome (thanks guys!) I even prepared brownies and pumpkin brownies for dessert. I had the pumpkin puree stored in the freezer, and I thought this would be the perfect time to use it since fall is coming *wohoo*!

The texture is like a mix of pie and brownies. It is dense and creamy. I love the touch of the spices in it along with the sourish taste of the cream cheese.

Choose the pumpkin variety suitable for baking. The one usually sold in the grocery store in the Netherlands is the variety suitable for making soup (less sweet, more watery). I bought several pumpkin varieties last year from a nearby farm, and I kept the leftover baked flesh in the freezer in case I feel like eating pumpkin pie one day haha.

Pumpkin brownies
[click for printable version]

Ingredients

800 g pumpkin puree
1 cup sugar*
5 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
1/2 cup cream
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sunflower oil

For the cream cheese marble:
300 g cream cheese
1 egg
1 tablespoon sugar*

*adjust the sugar based on your liking

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 170 C. Line a rectangular baking pan with a baking paper, set aside. 
2. Combine the pumpkin puree, sugar, eggs, the spices and salt in a large bowl and by using the hand blender, mix until smooth. 
3. Mix the flour, cream, baking powder and oil with the rest of the ingredient. Mix using a rubber spatula and spread the batter into the baking pan.
4. Combine the cream cheese, egg, and sugar in another small bowl. Put a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture onto the batter, and by using the back of a spoon, spread the cream cheese with the batter to get the marbling effect.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the brownies come out clean.

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Recipe: Matcha cinnamon rolls

It finally feels like summer here. The weather has been sunny for many days after the continuous rain. I could wear my flip flops, wear sunglasses, and not wear any jacket. As funny as it sounds like, it is hard to experience real summer here. Once you have it, you just have to make out the best of it. 

Ph.D. life is good. I love doing my work, and I have many friends that I can talk. Whenever the weather is warm and sunny, I and my peeps will eat outside, sit on the grass, and enjoy the sun. We talk about our work, life, and bull shit stuff. We have different nationalities, and we always make fun of the stereotypes that we have about one culture to another. Ahh...I just love hanging out with them (you know who you are ;) ). 

If there's anything that I miss about my home country when living abroad, it will be about my family, nature, and food. Well...I can't do much with the first two, but I always try my best to prepare food that I miss so much or recreate something that reminds me of home.

So okay, matcha is not something common back home, but I love the flavour, and I try to create something new out of it. If only matcha is not expensive here (then again, what is cheap here? oh yeah...dairy products..), I would go crazy inventing more matcha based food. Anyway, this is one of them. If you like to have stronger matcha taste, just put extra matcha powder. 

Matcha cinnamon rolls

[click for printable version]

Ingredients:

Dough:
3 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons butter

180 ml buttermilk, room temperature

4 cups flour, or more

1 tablespoon matcha powder

1 package instant dry yeast, approximately 2 1/4 teaspoons

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Filling:

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

100 gm milk chocolate bar, cut into pieces

2 tablespoons butter, melted

Icing:

100 gm white chocolate

200 gm cream cheese

3 teaspoons matcha powder

Directions:

1. In the stand mixer with the dough attachment, whisk the eggs, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add 2 cups flour, matcha powder, yeast and salt, whisk until combined. Add more flour on low speed for about 10 minutes until the dough forms a ball. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 30 seconds using hands. 
2. Lightly oil a large bowl, and transfer the mixture into the bowl. Cover and let it rise for about 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
3.  In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and brown sugar together, set aside.
4. Butter a large baking pan. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Shape the dough into a rectangle. Roll into an 18 x 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the melted butter, and sprinkle the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture. Rearrange the milk chocolate onto the dough, and roll the dough into a tight cylinder. 
5. Cut the dough into 12 rolls. Rearrange them in the baking pan. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in the refrigerator overnight.
6. Fill a shallow pan with hot water and set it at the bottom of the oven. Take out the rolls from the fridge and place it on the rack above the hot water. Turn on the oven to 160 C and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
7. Melt the white chocolate in a microwave and combine it with the cream cheese and matcha powder. Pour the icing onto the freshly baked rolls. Serve immediately

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His big fat Greek 'wedding'

"So...you are going to be my paranymph"

.......WHAT?!! I had to think twice if what I heard was real...and it was

Christos, a colleague cum friend. We started to become close during our conference trip in Bordeaux last year. He's a very friendly person and a sweet guy. It was quite a shocked for me to hear his request,  but I was honored.

To be a paranymph is a big job, especially if you are close to that person. Me and Cynara, the other paranymph, started coming up with ideas about a month before Christos's big day. We want to make it as cheesy and memorable as possible, because we know he likes it that way :P

We contacted few people in our department to help out, and we decided to make a parody movie about him.

Well you see...Christos is a very smart guy and he is born to be a scientist, but at the same time he is also funny in his own way - especially when it comes to food, alcohol and his honesty!

Manos, another Greek in the department, was chosen to act as Christos. We came out few stories based on real life incidents with Christos (with some exaggeration) and the recording was done when he was not in the office.

A night before his defense, I had two nightmares: I cannot read the propositions properly and somebody edited the movie that we made. I was soo nervous that I just had to tell to one or two (well maybe six) people. Peter help me with pronouncing the word correctly, and I spent quite some time rehearsing reading Christos's thesis propositions loudly and clearly. "Why in the hell do you have eight freaking propositions!" I told myself repeatedly.

Christos was really calm on the stage, and he can answer all the opponents questions calmly and articulately. I tried to put myself in his shoes, if it was me, how would I answer those questions. Just the thought and the fact I was waiting for the opponents to ask me reading one of the propositions made my palms sweaty......LIKE HELL!! You have no idea how many times I swept out the sweat onto my dress, which was very obvious btw if you keep looking at me up there.

Christos accompanied by the Lovely Paranymphs; Cynara and me.
-Photo by Cynara-

All the nerve wrecking moment (for me) ended smoothly. In the end none of the opponents ask me to read his propositions (hahaha WTH..) and Christos received very good grades for his performance. He was not nervous at all, and I wonder where he got that self confidence from..

After the defense! Finally I was able to laugh haha!
-Photo by Cynara-

Gerard, his supervisor, gave very heart warming and touching speech. I almost cried, but kept my composure.

I headed home early after the reception. We had to assemble his 'wedding', married to the university, cake at the restaurant. I made two-tier chocolate cake for him, and I put plenty of chocolates on the cake, and a handmade fondant Smurf figurine as the topper.

Christos with his 'wedding' cake :)
-Photo by me-

The dinner was something that I didn't really expect. There was plenty of Greek food with loud live performance  throughout the LONG dinner. People were dancing in between the course, and at the latter part Christos's dad started doing a one man dance which was a surprised for me because he looked expressionless throughout the dinner.

The fact that he got up and dance was not really what I had in mind. I was told by another Greek that he's dancing a difficult traditional one man dance, which the dancer dance freely expressing himself. Suddenly I was shocked  hearing the sound of crashing plates. He started breaking the plates...and the dance and the plate breaking continued from one Greek guy to another. "Oh boy...I feel like I'm in the 'My big fat Greek wedding' movie" I told myself.


Anyhow the defense, party, and the surprise that we prepared for him ended well. He liked the movie *wohoo* and I hope he likes the cheesy photo album containing  pictures and messages that we prepared for him.

Congrats again Dr. Christos! You deserve it :)

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Recipe: Teh tarik cake (milk tea cake)

It's been months since I last updated my blog. Pictures are still in the RAW format and I still haven't had the time to edit them. Recipes are written somewhere in the head, and I just need to blog to have them out again. Sometimes when you have too many things to do, or you just had busy days, all you want to do during the weekend is to lazying around. That is how I'm feeling at the moment, and yet I'm forcing myself to write this before this blog being untouched for a longer time.


-----------------

This cake was made during spring. It was the time when the weather was still chilly, and I was hoping the day is getting warmer and sunnier. A cup of warm tea brightened up my day, and a sip of it brings out the happy memory that I have had almost forgotten. Teh tarik - milk tea made out of black tea and condensed milk, is my personal favorite during the cold season. It reminds me of my childhood, and the warm and sunny Malaysia. Strong black tea with a hint of sweet and creamy condensed milk, that's how I like mine to be.


I tried to recapture the taste of the tea that I like so much into a cake, and had fun creating it...

When I think back, the joy of making this cake came from remembering the things and moments that not present here. I was relieving the past...and not feeling melancholic about it. 

Teh tarik cake (milk tea cake)
[click for printable version]

Ingredients:

Milk tea
8 bags extra strong black tea
1 cup hot water
1/2 cup condensed milk (adjust the sweetness based on your liking, the condensed milk in Europe is not as sweet as the one in Malaysia)

Cake
125 g butter
5 tablespoons sugar (add more if you like it to be sweeter)
3 eggs
150 ml milk tea
300 g flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt


Milk tea frosting
60 ml milk tea
400 g cream cheese
20 g butter
*add icing sugar if you want it to be sweeter


Directions:
1. Brew the tea bags with hot water for 30 minutes. Remove the tea bags and stir in the condensed milk.
2. Preheat the oven to 170 C. Grease four 6-inch pans. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl, set aside
3. Beat the butter and sugar until white and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one followed by a tablespoon of the flour mixture to prevent the batter from curdling. Add half of the flour mixture, followed by the milk tea and the rest of the flour mixture. Pour the batter into the cake pans and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Put the cake pans onto the wire rack and take out the the cakes when the pans are cool.
4. While waiting for the cakes to cool, prepare the cream cheese frosting by adding all the ingredients into a small bowl and beat them slowly.
5. Assemble the cake by spreading the frosting onto each layer and cover the whole cake. Pour the remaining milk tea on the cake.

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Recipe: Saffron and dates cupcakes

A good friend of mine, "A" , gave me a huge bag of  saffron from Iran and she taught me how to make saffron tea to help elevates my mood. I love it so much that I drink it almost every time I'm feeling down. My husband even made fun of me and said it's my "drug" haha.


I love the unique taste of saffron. Not only does it taste good in savory dishes, it also tastes great in desserts. As for that, I made cupcakes with a touch of saffron flavor. The cupcakes has light taste, and you could put more saffron if you want the flavor to be stronger.  I topped the cupcakes with two types of frosting, and we especially love the combination of the cupcakes with the pistachio cream cheese frosting.

Saffron and dates cupcakes
[click for printable version]

Ingredients

Cupcakes
145 g dried dates, chopped into small pieces
120 ml hot water
Two pinches of saffron, infused in 4 tablespoons of hot water
145 g flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
65 g unsalted butter, softened
80 g brown sugar
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt

Pistachio cream frosting
100 g pistachio, chopped into pieces
200 ml whipped cream
3 tablespoons icing sugar
or

Pistachio cream cheese frosting
100 g pistachio, chopped into pieces
200 g cream cheese, softened
100 g butter, softened
4 tablespoons icing sugar

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Mix dried dates with hot water in a medium sized bowl, set aside.
2. Combine flour and baking powder in a medium sized bowl, set aside. Beat butter with sugar until fluffy. Combine egg one at a time in the butter mixture for 20 seconds followed by a tablespoon of the flour mixture. Put the rest of the flour, saffron water, dates, salt into the batter. Scoop out the batter and fill up the cupcake liners up to 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
3. While waiting the cupcakes to cool down, prepare your desired frosting. To make the pistachio cream frosting, beat whipped cream and icing sugar until hard peak forms, fold in the chopped pistachio into the cream. To make the pistachio cream cheese frosting, beat the butter with icing sugar until fluffy followed by the cream cheese and fold in the chopped pistachio into the cream cheese frosting.

p.s: The weather is getting warmer and the sky is getting sunnier. Wageningen looks so pretty, and I'm going to cherish the days that I'm spending with my loved ones deeply.

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Recipe: Orange drizzle cake

I have problem with eating fruits - I'm lazy to peel and cut them into pieces. In the end, I have to make them into smoothies or cakes. This is one of the perfect example. My hubby brought a huge bag of oranges (my definition of huge is actually a normal size bag for other people), and I was dumbfounded of what to do with them. I was hoping he will eat some if he were hungry, but I was wrong. The oranges lay at the same spot without being touched by both of us. So after several weeks, and I could clearly see the oranges almost turn bad, I push myself to peel them and make orange juices and tea cake. Well, more energy wasted there, but the taste and texture are definitely better than eating fresh fruits *smirk*



Anyway, this is a very simple cake and you cake substitute lemon or other citrus to make it.

Orange drizzle cake
[click for printable version]

Ingredients:
6 eggs
350 g castor sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
360 g flour, sifted
2 teaspoon baking powder
150 g butter, melted
200 ml cream
Finely grated zest of 3 large oranges

Drizzle:
100 ml water
3 tablespoons sugar
Juice of 3 large oranges

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius and grease a bundt pan.
2. In a large bow, beat the eggs, sugar, salt, flour and baking powder. Add the melted butter, cream and lemon zest to the mixture.
3. Pour the batter into a bundt pan and bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
4. Prepare the drizzle by combining all the ingredients into a small pot on high heat until the mixture boils. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes and set aside.
5. Remove the cake from the oven and pour the drizzle onto the cake (while it is still in the pan). Leave the cake to cool and invert the cake pan onto a plate.
6. Serve with tea or coffee

p.s: The only fruit that I don't mind to peel and eat it fresh is Durian! Weird, but that is my most favorite fruit in the world (no matter how disgusting my non-Malaysian friend might think :P)

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Recipe: Potato cakes

I was not a fan of potatoes, not until I’ve come to the Netherlands and eaten different types of potato varieties. Most of them are so good even if you just boil them. When my husband brought back home many bags of potatoes, I was dumbfounded – ‘what in the world am I going to do with them?’

Hence, I experienced many ways to cook them. So far, potato cakes is my most favorite of all. To make them more flavorful, put salami or any sliced meats in the potato mixture ;)

Potato cakes

[click for printable version]

Ingredients

500 g leftover mashed potatoes (or boil the potatoes, mashed it, mix with milk, butter, salt and pepper and leave it overnight)
200 g shredded cheese
1 onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves, sliced
1 egg

3 tablespoons flour (Type 550)
A bunch of parsley or coriander, roughly chopped
Cooking oil for frying

Method

1. Combine mashed potatoes, cheese, onion, garlic, egg, flour and fresh herbs in a large bowl and mix.
2. Using your hands, divide the mixture into several small portions. Roll each portion into a compact ball then flatten it into a pancake about a 1 cm thick.
3. Heat 3 to 4 tablespoons of oil in a large pan on a medium heat. Fry the pancakes, in batches, until they are golden brown and crispy on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Transfer the potato cakes on kitchen paper and serve with your favorite sauce. 

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Potato cakes (Kartoffelpuffer)

[anklichen für Deutsche Druckversion]

Zutaten

500 g Rest Kartoffelbrei (oder gekochte Kartoffeln, zerdrücken mit Milch, Butter, Salz und Pfeffer mischen und über Nacht stehen lassen)

200 g geriebener Käse

1 Zwiebel, in Scheiben geschnitten

2 Knoblauchzehen, in Scheiben geschnitten

1 Ei

3 EL Mehl (Typ 550)

Ein Bund Petersilie oder Koriander, grob gehackt

Bratenöl

Zubereitung

1. Die Kartoffeln, den Käse, Zwiebeln, Knoblauch, Ei, Mehl und frische Kräuter in eine große Schüssel geben und mischen.

2. Mit den Händen, die Mischung in mehreren kleinen Portionen teilen. Jeden Teil in eine kompakte Kugel teilen, dann zu einem 1 cm dicken Pfannkuchen plätten.

3. In einer großen Pfanne 3-4 Esslöffel Öl erhitzen (mittlere Hitze). Die Pfannkuchen einzeln goldbraun und knusprig auf beiden Seiten (3 bis 4 Minuten) braten.

4. Die Reibekuchen auf Küchenpapier legen und mit deiner Lieblings-Sauce servieren.

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Recipe: Crème brûlée cheesecake

The sun is shining to my face and I can feel the warmth of the ray touching my skin. If I were in Malaysia, I would have closed the curtains by now, but I didn't do that today. The gray and gloomy weather makes me missed the sun so much. I don't mind the cold, but the color of the sky can be depressing sometimes. I've been looking at the pictures of the beaches a lot lately, which I rarely did in Malaysia. The sunshine is something that I took for granted before, and now I'm really looking forward for summer.

I don't regret with my decision doing PhD here even though I have successful part-time home bakery in Malaysia. I do take orders and conduct classes, but not as active as I was back home. As for my PhD project, it goes well. Spending time with other PhD students in the department is one of my stress relievers, and I always have great times with them. 

This cheesecake was one of the desserts that I made during our last 'International Christmas Dinner' together. It combines two of my favorite desserts - crème brûlée and cheesecake. It takes some time to prepare, but the result is amazing! The German recipe was translated with the help of my husband. This is one of the few recipes that me and my husband work together for my mother-in-law Christmas present.

Crème brûlée cheesecake
[click for printable version]

Ingredients

250 g digestive biscuits, processed into fine crumbs
50 g butter
500 ml cream
1 vanilla pod (or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)
6 large egg yolks
60 g castor sugar, plus extra for the topping
800 g cream cheese

Method

1. Melt the butter and combine it with the biscuit crumbs. Press the crumbs on a 23 cm springform pan. Bake it for 10 minutes at 180 degree Celsius and set aside to room temperature. Put it in the fridge for later use.

2. Preheat the oven to 140 degree Celsius. Pour cream into a medium pan. Lay the vanilla pod on a board and slice lengthways through the middle with a sharp knife to split it in two. Use the tip of the knife to scrape out all the tiny seeds into the cream mixture. Drop the vanilla pod in the pot, and set aside.

3. Put the egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk for 1 minute with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Put the pan with the cream on a medium heat and bring almost to the boil. As soon as bubbles appear round the edge, take the pan off the heat.

4. Pour the hot cream into the beaten egg yolks, stirring with a wire whisk, and scraping out the seeds from the pan. Set a fine sieve over a large wide bowl and pour the hot mixture through to strain and set aside.

5. Beat the cream cheese on a medium speed using a stand mixer or hand mixer until the cheese is soft and smooth. Using a wooden spatula, fold the custard mixture into the cream cheese. Take out the springform pan from the fridge and pour the batter into it.

6. Bake for 1 hour or more until mixture is softly set. To check, gently sway the springform pan and if the cheesecake is ready, the edge will be set and the middle will wobble a bit like a jelly. Turn off the heat, and let the cheesecake be in the oven with the door closed for 1 hour.

7. When the pan is cooled to room temperature, put the cheesecake in the fridge and let it cool for about 3 hours.

8. When ready to serve, sprinkle castor sugar over the cheesecake and spread it out with the back of a spoon to completely cover. Use a blow torch to caramelise it or set the oven to the highest temperature (broil) and put the cheesecake on the top rack and bake for 2 minutes until the sugar burned.

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Crème brûlée cheesecake (Crème brûlée Käsekuchen)

[anklichen für Deutsche Druckversion]

Zutaten

250 g Kekse (digestive cookies), in feine Krümel verarbeitet

50 g Butter

500 ml Sahne

1 Vanilleschote (oder 2 Teelöffel Vanille-Extrakt)

6 große Eigelb

60 g Puderzucker, plus extra für den Belag

800 g Frischkäse

Zubereitung

1. Die Butter schmelzen und mit den Kekskrümel kombinieren. Die Krümel auf einem 23 cm Springform drücken. Für 10 Minuten bei 180 Grad Celsius backen und auf Raumtemperatur abkühlen lassen. In den Kühlschrank zur späteren Verwendung stellen.

2. Den Backofen auf 140 Grad Celsius vorheizen. Die Sahne in eine mittel große Pfanne gießen. Die Vanilleschote der Länge nach in 2 Teile aufschneiden. Die Samen mit der Spitze des Messers in die Sahnemischung herauskratzen. Die Vanilleschote anschließend in den Topf geben, und die Pfanne beiseite stellen.

3. Das Eigelb und Zucker in einer Schüssel geben und 1 Minute lang mit einem elektrischen Mixer rühren, bis die Farbe verblasst und die Konsistenz flauschig wird. Nun die Pfanne mit der Sahne bei mittlerer Hitze fast zum Kochen bringen. Sobald Blasen um den Rand erscheinen, den Topf vom Herd nehmen.

4. Die heiße Sahne in die geschlagenen Eigelb gießen, mit einem Schneebesen rühren und die Samen aus der Pfanne kratze. Ein feines Sieb über eine große große Schüssel legen und die heiße Mischung passieren und beiseite stellen.

5. Den Frischkäse auf einer mittleren Geschwindigkeit mit einer Küchenmaschine oder Handmixer schlagen, bis er weich und geschmeidig ist. Mit einem Holzwender, die Puddingmischung in den Frischkäse vorsichtig verrühren um Blasenbildung zu verhindern. Die Springform aus dem Kühlschrank nehmen und den Teig hinein gießen.

6. Für 1 Stunde oder etwas länger backen. Zur Überprüfung, die Springform sanft wiegen. Wenn der Käsekuchen fertig ist, sollte er wie ein Pudding wackeln. Sobald dies der fall ist, die Hitze abschalten und den Käsekuchen für 1 Stunde mit geschlossener Tür im Ofen lassen.

7. Wenn die Pfanne auf Raumtemperatur abgekühlt ist, den Käsekuchen in den Kühlschrank stellen und für etwa 3 Stunden abkühen lassen.

8. Wenn bereit zum servieren, Streuzucker über den Käsekuchen geben und mit der Rückseite eines Löffels verteilen. Mit einemn Kochbrenner den Zucker karamellisieren oder den Backofen auf die höchste Temperatur stellen (grillen) und den Käsekuchen auf der oberstenen Schiene für 2 Minuten backen bis der Zucker braun wird.

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Recipe: Mushroom soup

Last Christmas we made a recipe book for mama 'J,' . It contains a small collection of our favorite dishes and these include recipes of Malaysian foods and fusion dishes. My hubby helped me out with the German translation, and hoo boy that really helped me a lot (I would've just used the Google translate if he had refused to help me out haha). 

This is one of the few recipes that we wrote together. I've been using fresh mixed mushroom from the market for this recipe, and I do believe the taste is better compare to using just one mushroom variety. I like to have some chunks of the mushrooms in the soup thus I don't blend it that fine. This soup is one of our favorites, and it is one of the best thing to have in the cold weather :D

Mushroom soup

[click for printable version]

Serving size: 4 people

Ingredients

1 carrot, peel and cut into pieces
½ leek, cut into pieces
½ celery stick, cut into piece
1 onion, peel
3 liters water

1 tablespoon butter

3 pieces small potatoes, peel and cut into small pieces

500 g mixed mushrooms
1 liter vegetable stock (or more)
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

To make the vegetable stock:
1. Combine all the vegetables and water in a large pot on a high heat. When the water boils, reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

To make the soup:

1. Melt the butter in a medium pot on a medium high heat and sautée the potatoes for 5 minutes. Combine the mushrooms and sautée for another 2 minutes.

2. Cover the mushrooms and potatoes with vegetable stock and increase the heat until the soup boils and reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until the potatoes soften.
3. Take out some of the mushrooms and potatoes with a little amount of soup into a blender, and blend until smooth. Repeat the process until there is no more potatoes and mushrooms. Put the blended soup back into the pot and season with salt and pepper.
4. Serve with your favorite bread :)

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Pilzsuppe

[anklichen für Deutsche Druckversion]

Portionsgröße: 4 Personen

Zutaten

1 Karotte, geschält und in Stücke geschnitten

½ Lauch, in Stücke geschnitten

½ Selleriestange, in Stück geschnitten

1 Zwiebel, geschält

3 Liter Wasser

1 EL Butter

3 kleine Kartoffeln, geschält und in kleine Stücke schneiden

500 g gemischte Speisepilze

1 Liter Gemüsebrühe (oder mehr)

Salz und Pfeffer nach Geschmack

Zubereitung

Für die Gemüsebrühe:

1. Das Gemüse und Wasser in einem großen Topf bei starker Hitze geben. Wenn das Wasser kocht, die Hitze reduzieren und 30 Minuten köcheln lassen.

Für die Suppe:

1. Die Butter in einem Topf auf mittlerer Hitze schmelzen und die Kartoffeln für 5 Minuten erhitzen. Die Pilze hinzufügen und für weitere 2 Minuten erhitzen.

2. Die Pilze und Kartoffeln mit Gemüsebrühe abdecken und Hitze erhöhen, bis die Suppe kocht. Danach Hitze reduzieren und 30 Minuten köcheln lassen oder solange bis die Kartoffeln weich sind.

3. Einige der Pilze und Kartoffeln aus dem Topf mit einer kleinen Menge der Suppe in einen Mixer geben und fein mixen. Den Vorgang wiederholen, bis keine Kartoffel- und Pilzestücke mehr vorhanden sind. Die Suppe zurück in den Topf geben und mit Salz und Pfeffer würzen.

4. Mit deinem Lieblings-Brot servieren :)

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Recipe: Apple cake and caramel glaze

Apples have never been my favorite fruits. The crunchiness, the subtle sweetness with a touch of acidity are the reasons why I dislike apples, and yet what others love about them. I had plenty of apples that I bought from the market and given by my friend. I was hoping for my hubby to eat them once a day, but it didn't turn out that way. The apples were about to turn bad that I had to make several desserts to get rid of them. Turning the apples into dessert is the only way for me to eat them, and the best way for me to finish them up quickly.

I used Elstar apples for all my desserts as it is the most abundant cultivar in the Netherlands. One of my favorite apple dessert is this apple cake recipe from Paula Deen. I made few modification especially the amount of apples I put into it. The result was juicy and flavorful cake. My hubby gave some to his friends and they enjoyed it as much as we did.

Apple cake with toffee glaze
[click for printable version]

Apple cake
6 apples, peeled and diced
1 cup roasted pecans
1 teaspoon vanilla powder 
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder
1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 1/4 dark brown sugar (or more for sweeter cake)
1 1/4 cups corn oil
3 eggs

Caramel glaze
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon icing sugar

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Lightly greased a Bundt pan and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, vanilla powder, baking soda, salt, the spices, set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat the oil and brown sugar until combine. Beat the egg in the oil mixture one by one on a low speed. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and mix.
4. Fold in the diced apples and pecan into the mixture. Scrape of the cake batter into the Bundt pan and bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
5. Allow the cake to fully cool in the pan, and put it out onto a plate.
6. Make the glaze by melting the butter and brown sugar in a small pot on a medium heat. Set aside and combine the caramel mixture with icing sugar. Pour the glaze onto the cooled cake.

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Recipe: Chocolate bundt cake with salted caramel chocolate ganache

It was late at night and I was craving to eat chocolate cake. Too much mental work made my body hunger for sweet stuff. I procrastinated and took some time to prepare bundt cake as I was lazy to make layer cake.

As I was covering the cake with chocolate ganache, I felt the presence of my husband near me. He looked at me in a weird way,  'are you going to eat that now?'  he asked concernedly. I stopped for a moment and resisted the temptation of having that one sinful bite. He has a point there, if I didn't cycle I would look like a whale by now. Reluctantly I waited the next day to gorge over the delicious cake. Besides, I think cake tastes better the next day  ;)

Chocolate bundt cake with salted caramel chocolate ganache

[click for printable version]

*I used a tea cup for the cup measurement

1 cup butter (approximately 215 g), softened 

1 3/4 cups sugar

4 eggs, at room temperature

1 cup cocoa powder (I used Valrhona cocoa powder)

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

3/4 cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream)

Salted caramel chocolate ganache

60 gm butter

50 gm dark brown sugar

45 ml cream

100 gm dark chocolate (I used Valrhona)

sea salt

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius.  Grease the bundt pan with butter and dust it with flour.

2. Combine cocoa powder, flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a medium bowl, and in another bowl combine buttermilk and Greek yogurt together, set aside.

3. Cream the butter and sugar using a stand mixer on a high speed until creamy and fluffy (about 10 minutes). Add eggs one by one followed with a tablespoon of the flour mixture. Add half the flour mixture and mix until well combined followed with the buttermilk mixture and another half of the flour mixture. 

4. Pour the batter into the bundt pan and spread the batter smoothly. Bake in the oven for 50 - 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out smoothly. 

To make the salted caramel chocolate ganache

1. Melt the butter and brown sugar on a pot on a medium heat until the sugar dissolves, set aside.

2. Combine the cream and dark chocolate in a porcelain bowl and melt the chocolate in a microwave (about 1 minute and 30 seconds), set aside

3. Combine the caramel into the chocolate ganache mixture and sprinkle with sea salt.

4. Pour the ganache on the cooled cake.

*for delicious chocolate cake, use great quality chocolate and cocoa powder. Valrhona is one of the bests but you can also use Callebaut etc

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Recipe: Pumpkin roll with white chocolate cream cheese filling

It is the pumpkin season and I bought lots of pumpkins a month ago in the neighboring town. I made lots of delicious food from the pumpkins, and this baby is one of them. I've been wanting to make one since watching a video by Divas Can Cook a year ago and I was so happy with the result. The cake was moist, and the combination of the cake with the white chocolate cream cheese frosting was sooo good.

The roll didn't come out perfect, I think I rolled it too tightly when it was hot, but hey....it looks gorgeous! The cake looks like spider web designed and great for the coming Halloween :D

Pumpkin roll with white chocolate cream cheese filling 

*adapted from Divas Can Cook 

[click for printable version]

Pumpkin cake

3 egg yolks 

3 egg whites

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup flour

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder

1/4 teaspoon ginger powder

a pinch of salt

Filling

200 g cream cheese (60%) (or you can use light cream cheese)

100 g white chocolate

1-2 tablespoons milk

Method:

1. Preheat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius. Grease a 10' x 15' pan generously with butter and cover it with a parchment paper and grease it again with butter,

2. Beat egg yolks in a large bowl until pale yellow and thick. Combine sugar, flour, baking soda, cinnamon powder, nutmeg powder, ginger powder and salt in a small bowl and mix the dry ingredients into the yolks. Fold in the pumpkin puree using a wooden spatula into the mixture.

3. Beat egg whites until soft peak form, and fold in the batter. 

4. Pour the batter in the pan and spread it into an even layer. Let it rest for 10 minutes and bake it in the oven for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

5. Once the cake is done, cover the cake with icing sugar and cover it with a kitchen towel and flip it slowly.

6. Take out the parchment paper slowly, and start to roll the cake (with the kitchen towel) tightly. Set aside until it cools.

7. To make the filling, combine white chocolate with milk in a medium porcelain bowl and put it in the microwave on High for a minute. Stir the chocolate and if it is not melting put it back in the microwave for 30 seconds or more until the chocolate melts. Let it cools to a room temperature and mix it with the cream cheese. 

8. After the cake has cooled down, spread the frosting on the cake evenly. Roll the cake and slowly peeling out the kitchen towel. Wrap the cake with an aluminum foil and plastic wrap and put it in a fridge overnight (this helps in developing the flavor). 

9. Dust the cake with icing sugar and slice it.

p.s: I recommend you to watch the video by the Divas Can Cook for you to have a better idea how to do it. Enjoy! :)

Owh, and Happy Deepavali and Maal Hijrah to all who are celebrating them :D

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Recipe: Quintuple chocolate cake

Last Eid al-Adha I made a chocolate cake to celebrate with the Malaysians here. When my friends asked me the name of the cake, I was dumbfounded. 'It's a chocolate cake' I replied. I find it really cheesy to name a food something out of the ordinary - e.g super duper marvelous chocolate cake, kek coklat buaian mimpi...well you get what I mean. Hence, I called it based on the number of chocolate I used to make it - five (quintuple)!  I blamed my scientific side for this.

The cake is made of chocolate sponge cake filled with chocolate hazelnut (a.k.a homemade Nutella) mousse, white chocolate mouse, dark chocolate mousse and covered with chocolate ganache. It may seem like the cake is inspired from the famous Chocolate Indulgence cake from the Malaysian chain cake store the Secret Recipe ; however, my friend 'A' is the one who really responsible behind this cake.

'A' is a French, and like any other French in my opinion is really particular with food and cooking. When I was baking with 'A,' I can see the huge difference in our style. I'm the campak-campak (this is a slang in Bahasa meaning you throw whatever you have) type of person and adjust the food based on my personal taste. My style is quick and I lack patience (but I do produce good food :D ).  'A' on the other hand really puts effort, time, energy and love when she's baking. I was impressed with her patience, and I can see why she said it takes her three hours just to bake a cake. 'A' taught me how to make mousse, which is easy to make but with a lot of care. She even gave me tips on baking that she learns from herself and family. As for that, this cake is inspired by my friend 'A' who is really dedicated in cooking/baking/whatever she is doing. I can't believe I spend more than seven hours to make and decorate this cake, which usually takes me the most two hours to make other cakes.


So yeah, if you like to make this cake remember that you need to put a lot of care (and love), but most importantly patience!

Quintuple chocolate cake
[click for printable version]
*for best result use good quality ingredients

Simple homemade Nutella
200 gm milk chocolate
200 gm ground hazelnut
1 tablespoon vegetable oil (if desired)
1 tablespoon cocoa powder

Mousses
400 ml cream - beat until soft peak forms
100 gm of homemade Nutella
100 gm white chocolate (plus 2 tablespoons milk)
100 gm dark chocolate

Chocolate sponge cake
200 gm butter
200 gm sugar
150 gm flour
50 gm cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
3 eggs

Chocolate ganache
100 gm dark chocolate
100 gm milk chocolate
200 ml cream


Method:

To make homemade Nutella
1. Roast the ground hazelnut on a pan until brown, set aside to room temperature.
2. In a ceramic bowl, melt the milk chocolate in a microwave (about 1 minute or more), set aside.
3. In a food processor, put the roasted hazelnut and mix until it becomes a paste. You can add oil if you want as this helps with making it becoming a paste faster. Add the melted chocolate and cocoa powder and mix until the mixture becomes smooth. Scrap of the homemade Nutella and put 100 gm in a ceramic bowl and the rest in a glass jar (you can keep this up to a month or more in a fridge)

To make chocolate mousses
1. In a ceramic bowl add the white chocolate with milk and melt them in a microwave (putting milk helps in melting the white chocolate easily - tips that I learnt from 'A'), set aside. Repeat with the dark chocolate in another separate ceramic bowl.
2. Once all the chocolates have cooled down to a room temperature, divides the whipped cream into three parts (approx. 133 gm of whipped cream for each chocolate).  Put two tablespoons of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate at a time and stir until the mixture well combined (this helps in preventing the fat in the cream to curd instead of putting all the cream inside the melted chocolate) . Repeat until approx 133 gm of whipped cream is used per chocolate. Do the same thing for the rest of the chocolates.
3. Cover the mousses with plastic wrap and put them in the fridge until needed (you can do the mousses a day before to make them more stable)

To make chocolate sponge cake
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Mix the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Beat the butter and sugar on a high speed using a mixer until it becomes white and fluffy (about 10 minutes).  Add one egg at a time following with a tablespoon of the flour mixture. Repeat with the rest of the eggs. Fold in the rest of the flour with a wooden spatula, and divide the cake batter into four 6' cake pans that have been oiled and lined with baking paper.
3. Bake the cake for 30 minutes or more until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
4. Put the cake pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, invert the cake pan and take out the cake and let the cake cools down to a room temperature.

To make chocolate ganache
1. Mix everything in a ceramic bowl and melt the chocolate in a microwave, stir and set aside.

To assemble the cake
1. Level each layer of the cake with a serrated knife. Put one layer of the cake on a cake board and spread the milk chocolate hazelnut mousse, followed with another layer of the cake, white chocolate mousse, another layer of cake, dark chocolate mousse and the last layer of cake.
2. Crumb coat the cake with the leftover mouse (or chocolate ganache) and put it in the fridge for about two hours (or more) until the crumb coating is set. Cover the cake with chocolate ganache and leave it for an hour or more before serve.

Enjoy and Eid Mubarak again! :D

p,s: This cake gone in a minute during the gathering. The most well liked cake by the rest so far. Too bad I'm a vanilla person or I would I have enjoyed this cake more haha

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Recipe: Kuih seri muka labu (glutinous rice with pumpkin custard layer)

Few months ago I wrote a recipe of my favorite kuih - kuih seri muka . Well, weeks ago I made a fusion version of my favorite kuih using pumpkin custard as the top layer (labu = pumpkin). The combination of sticky rice with pumpkin tastes great, and I was surprised how it turns out to be. It's like enjoying both of my favorite Malaysian and American desserts in one bite (I love the American pumpkin pie!).

Instead of using a microwave to cook the sticky rice I used a rice cooker, and I must say that I'm going to stick with using that from now on. It didn't create mess like what I had experienced before (it must be the springform pan...geez). Anyway, since now is the pumpkin season *yeay* why don't you just give this recipe a try. It's a great way to impress your family and friends ;)

Kuih seri muka labu
[click for printable version]

Bottom Layer (glutinous rice):
200 g glutinous rice (soaked for an hour, drained)
125 ml coconut milk + 125 ml water
1 tsp salt

Upper layer (pumpkin custard):
3 large eggs

500 gm pumpkin - roast until soften
1/2 cup coconut milk

5 tablespoons dark brown sugar (or to taste)
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder

1/4 teaspoons salt

Method:

1. Cook the rice in the rice cooker until set. Fluff up the rice using a fork and put it in a 24 cm springform pan which has been oiled and press the rice until compact, set aside.

2. Combine all the ingredients for the custard in a food processor and processed the mixture. Pour the custard layer on top of the rice layer and bake in the 180 degrees Celsius for 40 minutes or until the custard layer becomes brownish.

3. Let the kuih cools to a room temperature, and cut it using oiled knife.

p.s: This dessert tastes sooo good despite the look haha

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Recipe: Moussaka

Moussaka is one of my favorite dishes. It's like a cross between lasagna and ratatouille - all the delicious goodness layered together and tastes awesome!

So this is the 'unauthentic version of my moussaka, and...it's a great way to finish up all those leftover vegetables haha. 

Moussaka

[click for printable version]

Meat sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil

250 gm minced beef

3 large tomatoes - roast for 30 minutes or until tender and peel of the skin

2 cloves garlic

half large sweet onion

1 tablespoon tomato paste

salt and pepper to taste

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried marjoram

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 large eggplants - thinly cut and drizzled with salt for 10 minutes and rinse

1/2 large green zucchini - thinly cut

1/2 large yellow zucchini - thinly cut

1 large potato - thinly cut

2 tablespoons olive oil

a pinch of saffron, turmeric powder salt and pepper

200 gm of cottage cheese (you can omit this if you want)

Egg custard 

3 eggs

6 tablespoons Greek yogurt

100 gm Gouda cheese (or your favorite cheese)

salt and pepper to taste

Method:

To make the meat sauce and potato filling

1. In a large pot on a medium heat put the olive oil and sauteed the garlic and onion until aromatic and put in the minced beef until browned. Put in the rest of the ingredients and stir well. Increase the heat and wait until the meat sauce thickens and turn off the heat and set aside.

2. Put the olive oil in a pan over a medium heat and sauteed the potato with saffron, turmeric powder, salt and pepper until each side browned. Set aside

To make the egg custard

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.

To assemble

1. Put the fried potato at the bottom layer of a casserole dish followed with meat sauce, cottage cheese, eggplants and zucchini. Repeat the layer and cover the filling with the egg custard. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 40 minutes or until the custard browned. 

p.s: Moussaka tastes great the day after as the flavors developed.

Owh yeah, Eid Mubarak guys! Hope you guys have a great Eid al-Adha :)

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Recipe: Clementine cake - gluten free and dairy free

You know that feeling when you finished watching a movie and you just have to try/eat/do/travel because the movie is affecting you so much. Well, that happens to me a lot.....especially when food is involved. The most recent 'I-have-to-make-this' feeling was when I watched The Secret Life of Walter Mitty months ago when I was still in Malaysia. Too bad I can't find clementines in the country thus the planned was postponed for a while.


It was not until recently when I went pumpkin hunting that I had the chance to buy clementines and bake similar cake in the movie *weee* The cake was based from this recipe with slight modification. I was pretty doubtful before making the cake as the recipe didn't call for butter or oil, but changed my mind once I bite the cake. It was so moist! And yeah, tastes great too! The moist comes from the clementine puree and the eggs.


To make the cake more healthy use natural sweetener instead. You can use maple syrup and dried dates instead of processed sugar and the taste will still be amazing!

Clementine cake
[click here for printable version]

5 clementines
150 g dark brown sugar
200 g ground almond
100 g coconut flakes
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder
1/4 teaspoon allspice powder
6 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons icing sugar (or more for glazing)

1. Put clementines in a large pot and cover with water. Boil clementines for 2 hours or until soften and set aside until they cool down to room temperature and puree them using a blender. Use 3/4 of the total puree for cake, and the rest for glazing.
2. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Greased your desired pan (I used a Bundt pan). Combine brown sugar, ground almond, coconut flakes, baking powder, spices and vanilla powder in a large bowl. Make a well in the middle of the dried mixture, and put 3/4 of the clementine puree and eggs and fold the mixture gently. Pour the batter in the cake pan and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
3. To make the glaze, mix the rest of the clementine puree with icing sugar (I like to make mine less sweet, thus it becomes more runny) and pour on the cooled cake.

This cake goes really well with tea and coffee. Enjoy!

p.s: If you can't find clementine, you can use tangerine instead. Take out the seeds and boil the skin and flesh until soften. The good thing about clementine is that it is seedless.

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Recipe: Berry poke cupcakes

A while ago my friends I and C came to me and said "if you don't make cake for us, we will put your name on the ice bucket challenge." I was dumbfounded for a while, and the three of us laugh hysterically. Those two are among the perkiest people in the department, and I knew they didn't really mean what they said. However, I did bake cake for them and others in the department as I love baking, and it was fun succumbing to their crazy 'threat' ;)

This cake is a modified version of the Victoria's sponge cake, and it is one of my favorite! To have fluffy cake, use cake flour instead of normal flour, and whenever you mix eggs one by one in the batter, always put a tablespoon of the dry ingredients to prevent the eggs from curdling.

Berry poke cupcakes 
(make 2 9' cake or 18 large cupcakes)
[click for printable version]

Cake
300 gm cake flour
300 gm unsalted butter
300 gm castor sugar
6 eggs (or 300 gm eggs)
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla powder

Blueberry compote
200 gm blueberries
4 tablespoons castor sugar
1 cup water

400 ml whipping cream - whipped until fluffy
250 gm fresh berries of your choice (I used strawberries)

Method:

To make the cake:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degree Celsius. Mix baking powder, vanilla powder and cake flour in a small bowl, set aside.
2. Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until creamy and fluffy (about 10 minutes). Beat eggs one by one into the butter mixture with one tablespoon of dry ingredients for each egg to avoid the batter from curdling.
3. Fold the rest of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture with wooden spoon, and pour the batter in the cake pans or cupcake liners. Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

To make blueberry compote:
1. Mix all the ingredients in a large pot on a high heat until boiling. Reduce the heat until the compote becomes thick

To assemble:
Poke the cake/cupcakes several times with a fork. Pour the blueberry compote on top of the cake followed by the whipping cream. Decorate with fresh fruits

I'm glad you guys love the cake! :D And happy belated birthday to I (I baked the same cake for her) ;)

p.s: Fun facts - in the Netherlands, when it is your birthday you are the one bringing the cake to the office and people will shake your hand and congratulate you. In Malaysia on the other hand, your close friends bring the cake for you to celebrate your birthday. So I (if you read this post), you should be prepared for my cake next year hehe

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Recipe: Cinnamon rolls with chocolate chunks and cream cheese glaze

I always looked forward when my sister came back home from boarding school when I was young. She always brought back sweet treats for us - Dunkin Donuts, Auntie Anne's pretzels, and cinnamon rolls from Cinnabon, which we rarely eat and pretty hard to find back then. I always enjoyed eating them, and always asked my sisters to buy for me whenever they came back home, or went out for shopping at big cities.

Over the years, I got fed up eating those sweet treats. They are good, but too sweet for my liking. Plus, I find that they are not 'purse-friendly' for a frugal and cheapskate student like me.

Beside from the fact it is more economical preparing my own food, I can also control the amount of sugar and adjust the taste based to my liking. It is more enjoyable that way, at least I will be more satisfied with what I prepared no matter how shitty the food turns out to be.

I've been wanting to eat cinnamon rolls, so I woke up early this morning and prepared this easy cinnamon rolls recipe. It took me about 1 hour (more or less) to prepare them, and they are insanely good to eat when they are still warm. We ate them with milk coffee, and I wish I could prepare them almost every day haha.

As requested by many, and I don't have anything to do at the moment due to my laziness and cold weather, here is the recipe for these delicious cinnamon rolls (the Germans call them Zimtschnecken - cinnamon snails haha so cute :3). I was hoping to bring them tomorrow for my office mates, but I might have to cancel the plan as we kept eating them *sorry guys*

Cinnamon rolls with chocolate chunks and cream cheese glaze (adapted from Gimme some oven)
[click for printable version]
note: I love my baked goods to be less sweet, do add more sugar based on your liking.

Ingredients
Dough:
1 cup full cream milk
1/4 cup butter

1 envelope instant yeast (approx. 2 1/4 tsp)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon castor sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg

Cinnamon-sugar filling with chocolate chunks:
4 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons butter, softened

50 gm dark Valrhona chocolate, chopped into pieces

Cream cheese glaze:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup cream cheese, softened
6 tablespoons icing sugar (or more)
2 tablespoons milk

Method

To make the dough & filling:
1. Combine milk and butter in a porcelain bowl and heat on High in the microwave for 1 minute. Remove, stir and repeat the step until the butter melts. Keep aside until the milk becomes warm to the touch.

2. Combine the warm milk and yeast in a large bowl, and stir. Add 3 cups flour, sugar and salt and mix using hand mixer with dough attachment and knead until the ingredients are fully combined. Add egg and knead for few minutes using low speed, if the dough sticks to the side add more flour a tablespoon at a time until it doesn't become sticky. Knead for another 5 minutes using low-medium speed.

3. Cover the bowl with damp cloth (or plastic wrap) and let rest for 10 minutes at warm place.

4. Meanwhile, make filling by whisking dark brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
5. When the dough is ready, put generous amount of flour on work surface and pun the dough on it. Flatten the dough using a rolling pin into a large rectangle (about  14' x 9'). Cut out the sides to make perfect rectangle. Spread the softened butter on top of the dough using hands or pastry brush. Sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar filling all over the dough and sprinkle chocolate chunks on top of it.
5. Roll up the dough as tightly as possible, and cut into 11-12 pieces using knife. Put them on a greased 13' x 9' rectangular with about 1/2 to 1 inch apart.

6. Cover with damp cloth, and let them rise for 25 minutes at warm place.

7. Bake for 20 - 30 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius until the rolls are golden brown. Take out from the oven and let them cool for about 5 minutes and sprinkle with cream cheese glaze, serve warm.

To make the cream cheese glaze:

1.  Combine everything in a small bowl and mix using handheld mixer. Add more sugar if desired, sprinkle on top of warm rolls.

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