Homemade Almond Milk + Black Sesame Cookies

I realised I haven't been updating as often as I used to or would like to! But I want to say if you've been following - thank you for continuing to visit this little space here and your encouraging words. Or just coming as a silent visitor! :)

Life has been kinda pulling me in all directions lately. And so I've just been...waiting. On different things. 

And talking about waiting, while I was tapping my fingers for these black sesame cookies to bake, I picked up my lately neglected camera and took some random shots around the home. I learnt that for me it is difficult to develop an eye to view things so familiar and mundane and capture them through a different lens in a way I've not seen before. A different perspective. I think that's what continues to challenge me and requires me to really stretch my not-so-dominant right brain (aka creative side).

Thanks Julz!

A while ago, I noticed my supermarket starting to stock up on various milk alternatives - like oat milk and almond milk. There definitely has been different 'milk' trends over the years! 

I grew up detesting milk (the traditional cow's milk, that is) yet was forced to drink it as my parents told me it's full of calcium to help me grow taller (it's probably safe to conclude that milk did nothing to my height.) Then later on, there was this debate on why the cow's milk is designed for...uhhh only cows, and not us humans, and how it can actually promote cancer. 

Then the health conscious (particularly those living in the western society) started making the switch to drinking soy milk. Before I knew it, articles after articles were published to discuss how soy milk can lead to infertility and all that kinda bad stuff.

How confusing does this all get? Do these information affect you at all? As for me, not really. I still continue to drink my milk and soy (can't quite imagine a dairy-free or soy-free lifestyle!)...but in moderation like all good things I suppose.

Almond milk, on the other hand, just doesn't seem to have any bad reports (hmmm yet?!) It's full of vitamins and antioxidants, low in fat and calories (compared to normal milk). And contains no cholesterol! Perhaps the only downside that I know of is the cost! At over $5 a litre over here, I can see that not many can afford to make the switch.

And so I learnt recently you can make it at home for a fraction of the cost and it really doesn't require much effort or time too. Just soak raw almonds over night in water, and then blitz it together with water and sieve! Voilaaaa, you've just made fresh almond milk!

Homemade almond milk is soo creamy and very delicious with my morning porridge. 

It makes for the best afternoon tea treat with these buttery, crunchy black sesame cookies too! 

They say milk and cookies make a great pair. They are just meant to be and belong together.

I'd say the same applies for almond milk too :)

Anyways, I hope you have a joyous week ahead! God's mercies are new every morning...even on Monday mornings ;)

Almond Milk

• Raw almonds 
• Water 
• Honey (optional) 
• A blender cheese cloth or a sieve 

Note: Use almond and water in the ratio 1:4 (I went with 1:3 which was more creamy. You can dilute it later if you wish).

1. Soak the almonds overnight in water.

2. The next day, drain the almonds. Add the almonds and (fresh) water (in the ratio of 3:1 or 4:1 water to almonds), to a blender.

3. Blend well. Add a touch of honey to sweeten (if you wish. I didn't as I found almond naturally sweet already on their own).

4. Strain through either a sieve or cheese cloth.

I've yet to figure out what to do with the left over almond bits...any ideas?

Black Sesame Cookie

Makes 20 6cm cookies

• 65g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 40g sugar (I used raw)
• pinch salt
• 1/4 egg (~15g), room temperature
• 1 tsp milk, room temperature
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 125g cake flour, sifted
• 20g black sesame, toasted

1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter until smooth.  Gradually add in the sugar.

2. Mix the egg, milk and baking powder together in a bowl. Add mixture slowly to the cream/sugar in previous step while continuing to mix in a stand mixer (or hand held mixer).

3. Add the sifted flour and salt into the stand mixer and mix until just combined, then add in the black sesame seeds. Let the dough mix for another few seconds.

4. With a spatula, combine the black sesame seeds well into the dough. Roll out the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper with a rolling pin until the dough is around 3mm thick.

5. Transfer to a flat cookie sheet and refrigerate for around 2 hours.

6. Preheat the oven to 170C.

7. Use your favourite cookie cutters, cut out as many cookies as you can and transfer to a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Remember to pierce the cookies once or twice with a fork before you bake!

8. Bake for around 12-14 minutes. Check your oven and take out if already slightly browned.

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Black Sesame Brownies

Obsession: Black sesame.

Confession #1: Not a big fan of chocolate (except dark bitter ones).

Confession #2: Craves comfort food on cooler days. Please come back soon summer.

Confession #3: Get emotional when watching home renovation T.V shows as if I'm the owners of the house. I'm just kidding...hmmm really.

Conclusion: Black sesame brownie seems like a pretty swell idea.

Not convinced? 

Here is why I like black sesame...

- Keeps my hair black and shiny (although I may be too young to be graying)

- Are full of healthy goodness - calcium and magnesium amongst others.

- Will likely to never go out of fashion (little black dress, black cats, black Fridays)

- Tastes good...have you tried black sesame ice-cream?

And...how about black sesame paste? 

You can get these thick puree of roasted black sesame seed in a jar from good Asian/Japanese stores (I bought mine on my last trip to Japan - it seems smoother). I usually use it as a spread on my toast in the morning when I need a break from peanut butter.

Check out the comparisons...are you a crunchy or smooth type of person?

Anyways, this brownie is moist, slightly buttery and dense (but more cake-y than fudge-y). The sesame flavour is incredibly strong and having a slice or two is likely to make you fall in love with black sesame (if you don't already). Instead of salt in most chocolate brownie recipes to heighten the flavour, this recipe calls for soy sauce instead. Surprise much? This is definitely a very much Asian inspired type of brownie :)

You're of course welcome to use your favourite brownie recipe too but just substitute the chocolate for the sesame paste!

Black Sesame Brownies

Inspired from an old Japanese cookbook

Makes a square tin (or loaf tin)

• 80g unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 40g sugar (I used 25g - check whether your sesame paste is already sweetened or not)
• 2 egg yolks
• 40g black sesame paste
• 1/4 tsp soy sauce
• 1 egg white
• 10g caster sugar
• 50g flour (All purpose)
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tbsp black sesame (to sprinkle on top)

1. In a bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer on low, until it lightens in colour and texture then add the sugar (40g) and carefully combine.

2. Add in the yolk one by one, making sure to fully blend into the mixture before each addition.

3. Add the black sesame paste and soy sauce into the mixture.

4. In a clean bowl, beat the egg white with the remaining sugar (10g) with a hand mixer until the egg white is fluffy and does not fall when you tip the bowl upside down.

5. Combine and sift the flour with the baking powder. Add half the meringue/whipped egg white into the black sesame mixture as well as half the flour mixture. Use a rubber spatula to fold and combine.

6. Further beat the meringue until stiff and finer in texture, then add into the black sesame mixture along with the remaining flour and baking powder. Fold and combine.

7. Add the mixture into a brownie tin, and sprinkle the black sesame seeds on the batter. Bake for 15 minutes at 150C.

8. After it cools down a bit, slice and serve!

Somehow I failed to notice that my previous post was the 100th (HUNDREDTH!) post - which makes this the 101th post!

Yay! Glad I started this blog and glad that it's still here!

Thanks for coming to visit...definitely wouldn't have been the same without you! So thanks again - wish I could share this brownie with you too :D

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Black Sesame Agar Agar + winners of Baker's Delight challenge

[Scroll to the bottom of the post to see if you're the winner of the Baker's Delight Challenge!]

This week I am learning to surrender. 

The relinquishment of one's own will, says wiki. 

What exactly am I surrendering? Well, a dream of mine. Although small - it does mean something to me. A dream that is almost within an arm's reach.

But circumstances change in our lives, and most of the time with little notice. So you try to be mature about it. You wrestle with the decisions in your head over and over. Then you step back. If you don't let go your hold on it, how can you know what else God has planned for you?

So here I am.  I am trying to be patient and I am waiting. I am also a bit scared of the unknown. 

Thankfully the thought that this joyous time of the year is upon us (9 more sleeps 'til Christmas - I kid you not!) just makes everything a little better. The sun came out for me this morning... Did that 'mean' person from work just smiled at me? Oh why, doesn't my hair look fashionably messy today? And how could I have made this black sesame agar agar look rather...well, presentable? ;)

Truth be told, I haven't been able to do any Christmas cooking/baking! But I have definitely enjoyed reading soo many wonderful posts from all over the world. This agar agar was made just because I happened to have the ingredients available. It may look like black sesame panna cotta, but the texture is completely different! Do not expect some smooth, velvety kind of pudding. The agar agar makes it rather 'chewable' if you know what I mean. It's almost like eating a banana that's black sesame flavoured. That sounds weird, doesn't it? But if you're a black sesame fan like I am, you'll be addicted and have one after another....

Black Sesame Agar Agar

Makes around 4

• 3 tbsp sweetened black sesame paste (I used 3 tbsp of black sesame powder instead)
• ~2 tbsp sugar (omit this if you're using the paste. Adjust the sugar according to your personal taste.)
• 100ml cream
• 400ml milk
• 1 tsp agar agar powder
• (optional) - whipping cream
• (optional) - brown sugar syrup

1. In a bowl, add in the sesame paste and slowly pour in the cream and mix until combined. If using black sesame powder as I did, combine with the sugar first before blending in with the cream.

2. In a pot, add the milk and agar agar powder. Let sit for a few minutes and begin heating it up on a stove on low/medium heat until it boils. Take the pot off the stove.

3. Pour the black sesame cream paste from step 1 into the pot with the hot milk and mix to combine.

4. Let the pot sit in a bath of ice cold water and to cool down before pouring into the pudding molds.  Place into the fridge until set.

5. To serve - whip up some cream and pour some brown sugar syrup over the top.

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Baker's Delight Challenge Winners!

Sorry for the long wait - but here are the randomly picked winners of the Baker's Delight challenge:

grub

Duong

Angela

deb

LimeCake

Congrats people! I will be sending you an e-mail soon.

Angela - I do not have your details so you will have to shoot me an e-mail!

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Black Sesame Steamed Cupcake

It's one of those weekends you wake up to the sounds of the rain and traffic. You try hard to re-enter the world of dreams but alas, your mind is filled with messy and scrambled thoughts - like a fuzzy TV with bad reception.

So you start making plans for this precious day.

Will it be a day of chores *gasps*? Or a day in the cafe (specifically St. Ali in South Melbourne) with a favourite book? How about taking the new granny trolley out for a test drive at the food market? Or hop on those tourist bus and explore this new city?

No doubt the decision will set the pace for the whole day....

I wrapped myself up in a blanket and head out to the kitchen to put some water in the kettle. From the window, the wet concrete road seems to be to drying up. It was this moment I caught myself with a selfish thought - I wanted it to pour outside. I want a downpour to be precise. I would like to be stuck at home with a reason like that - and to cook hot chocolate over the stovetop and to make ginger snaps with molasses and watch black and white movies.

But I have no molasses nor ginger!

So I get out a bowl and started whisking together the flour, egg, milk...and ground black sesame powder. I miss this steamed cupcake recipe that I used to make.

I also found some left over sweet red-beans in the fridge and decided that perhaps, they'd make a good match with the black sesame. And they did!

Within 20 minutes, I had several steamed goodies in front of me. Right this moment, everything seems to be falling into place. The piping hot steamed cakes were soft like bread, full of strong black sesame flavours and just plain simple. And sometimes, isn't it usually the simple things in our daily lives that cause us to pause - and feel content and grateful for the moment?

All of a sudden -  I didn't want it to rain anymore. No hot chocolate, thank you.

Quickly pulled my favourite jumper over my head. Rain or shine, Melbourne - here I come!

Steamed Black Sesame Cupcakes
Makes 6 cupcakes

• 1 large egg
• 30g sugar (I used brown)
• 1/4 cup of milk (or yoghurt)
• 1 tablespoon grapeseed oil (can use other oil like canola or olive)
• 60g flour
• 50g cooked/sweetened red beans (optional)
• 20g black sesame powder (you can get it from most Asian grocery stores)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

1. In a bowl, beat the egg lightly then add the sugar and mix well.

2. Then add the milk into the mixture as well as the grapeseed oil. Beat well.

3. Sieve the flour, and baking powder then combine with the black sesame powder. Incorporate into the egg mixture and mix well.

4. Finally incorporate the red-bean into batter and mix gently (or you can keep the red bean separate from the batter and ladle it in between the batter as I did)

5. Ladle the batter into 6 separate cupcake/panna cotta containers which are lined with cupcake liners/muffin cups.

6. In a large pot (or cast iron casseroles), fill it with enough boiling hot water such that when you put the cupcakes in, the water comes about half way on the mould. Steam for around 13-15 minutes with the lid on. I prefer to wrap a cloth/towel on the lid to prevent water droplets dropping onto the cupcakes.

7. Carefully remove from pot as they cupcakes will be steaming hot!

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