Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

I have been in a shoot hiatus for months. The photos in my last blog was shot back in March, that was 7 months ago! My Stockfood account manager has been asking me for new materials and I have not submitted anything new. I just couldn't find the time to do a proper shoot!

But I miss it. I love the creative process; from planning, sourcing the ingredients, to cooking, plating, the actual shoot and the post-process. It is not easy being a one-woman-team: I'm the cook, the stylist and the photographer so that means it's 3x the work and takes 3x longer to produce. But I am not complaining. In fact, I wish I could find time to do this more often.

Good thing there was a long weekend a few days ago, I finally got time! There was also an added motivation to shoot; a food photography contest with Andy Harris, editor of Jamie Magazine, as one of the judges. I thought, wouldn't it be cool if I win? So I gave it a shot, (literally!). What have I got to lose except a few hours of sleep, right?

So, 2 of the photos here were submitted for the contest, can you guess which ones? I'm pretty pleased with the results and am happy to share them with you.

Now about the muffins.

This recipe is perfect for brunch, snack or for a picnic in the park. It's still pretty hot in Bahrain but I'm already looking forward to going to the parks in the winter. This will also be good as holiday gift or to take to potlucks for Christmas breakfast.

The recipe for the muffins was adapted from Gather for Breads' Raspberry Cream Cheese Muffins and the streusel topping from The Girl Who Ate Everything's Blueberry Streusel Muffins. I love their blogs, you should check them out!

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins with Streusel Topping

Prep Time: 20-30 minutes
Bake Time: 17-20 minutes
Total Time: 37-50 minutes

Ingredients:

4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 stick of butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
3/4 cup caster sugar
3/4 cup full cream milk
1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
3 tsps baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 + 1/4 cup fresh raspberries
1/2 cup fresh red currants, stems removed + 1/4 cup with stems

For the streusel topping:
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 stick of cold butter, cut into cubes

1/4 to 1/2 cup icing sugar for dusting

Instructions:

For the streusel topping:
1. Mix sugar, flour and the cold butter using your hand until you get a clumpy, sandy texture. Keep it in the fridge until ready to use.

For the muffin:
1. Preheat the oven to 425*F for at least 30 minutes.

2. Line 2 x 12-muffin pan with muffin liners. Set aside.

3. In a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, mix the cream cheese and butter on high speed until light and creamy, 1-2 minutes. Add milk and vanilla extract, (I use my homemade vanilla extract).

4. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Make sure all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed by whisking it a couple of times.

5. Add the dry ingredients into the butter and cream cheese mixture and mix well.

6. Using a spatula, fold in 1/2 cup of the raspberries and 1/2 cup of the red currants.

7. Put half of the remaining berries into the muffin liners, ( roughly1 raspberies, 2-3 red currants).

8. Using an ice cream scoop, pour the batter into the muffin liners. Decorate the top with the remaining berries then sprinkle with streusel topping. Bake for 450*F for 5 minutes then lower the temperature to 375*F and continue baking for another 12-15 minutes. Check for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the middle of a cupcake; when the toothpick comes out clean, it's done!

9. Cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before transferring on to a wire rack. Cool for 30 minutes to 1 hour on the rack. Sprinkle powdered sugar before serving.

Makes 24 muffins.

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Red Berries and Cream Cheese Muffins I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

09 Oct 2015

Haidee's Kitchen

Roots and Fruits Power Smoothie

Roots and Fruits Power Smoothie I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

It seems summer will never end here in the gulf. Today was 37*C but feels like 41! We're in the middle of September and still not a cloud in sight! So hang in there for a few more days, winter is coming, eventually.


And since it still feels very much like summer, I thought it's not too late to share one of my favorite superfood power smoothie, one that will quench your thirst and that your body will love. It's packed with natural vitamins and other nutrients that will boost your immune system; perfect for this extended hot and very humid weather. Rawsome!

Roots and Fruits Power Smoothie I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Ingredients:
1/2 cup frozen cooked beets, (pre-cut into 1-inch cube)
1 small carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 cup frozen strawberries
1 apple, roughly chopped
zest of 2 oranges
juice of 2 oranges
fresh mint leaves (from 4-5 sprigs of mint leaves)
1 tbsp ground flax seed
1/2 to 1 cup of ice
Optional,(because I love spices!):
1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
a pinch of 1/8 tsp freshly-shaved nutmeg

Procedure:
1. Toss everything in a blender and blend until smooth.

That's it! It's that simple. Enjoy!

Roots and Fruits Power Smoothie I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

Roots and Fruits Power Smoothie I www.haideekitchen.blogspot.com

15 Sep 2015
Haidee's Kitchen

Mixed Berries and Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

Thinking of a gift for mother's day? Why not surprise your mom, (or the mom of your kiddos) to a breakfast-in-bed with this super easy bread pudding. It's so easy to make that I did it during my lunch break! It takes 5 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to bake. How easy is that? However, if you have time, I would recommend you let the bread soak in the milk mixture for a good 20 minutes before you pop in the oven to absorb the flavor.

Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients:
4 slices of white loaf bread, cut into 1 inch squares
4 eggs 
1cup fresh milk 
1cup heavy cream 
1/2 cup sugar*
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder 
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt 
a few shavings of nutmeg 
1 and 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries 
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips 
maple syrup, to serve (optional)
*If not using maple syrup, sugar may be adjusted from 1/2 to 1 cup.


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 200*c. 

2. Except for the bread, berries and chocolate chips, mix everything together in a saucepan over low heat. I don't intend to cook the mixture, I just find it easier to mix together when its warmed, 3-5 minutes. 

3. Butter 4 ramekins. Divide the bread, berries and choco chips into 4 ramekins. Pour over cream mixture (Note: If you're not in a hurry, leave it for 20 minutes in the fridge so the bread will soak up more of the cream). 

4. Put the ramekins into a roasting pan with water halfway to the ramekins and bake bain marie for  20 minutes. You may also sprinkle sugar on top 1 minute before you get it out of the oven and crank the heat to broil so you'll have a bruleed crust. But watch closely, you want the top bruleed not toasted.

5. Serve hot drizzled with maple syrup on top.

Serves 4.

Homemade on 23 April 2013

Easy Berry Pavlova

I have been craving for pavlova for about a month and I was frustrated that I can't find one in any of my favorite patisseries and cafes in the island. So what's a craving girl to do but make her own dessert? Luckily, I don't have to slave myself in the kitchen because I found a box of perfectly-shaped meringue nests at Waitrose. Yey!

For this post I only used blueberries but other berries work really well too-- strawberries, raspberries and blackberries. You should try physalis and red currant too, they are absolutely fabulous!

Now, I can enjoy my pavlova with my afternoon tea.

Difficulty: Easy

Prep Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:
1 box meringue nests, (8pcs, 2.5in diameter)
400g fresh blueberries

For the sweetened whipped cream:
250mL whipping cream
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Red wine syrup, (for the recipe, click here.)

Direction:

1. Whip the cream in a stand mixer with whisk attachment. When it starts to thicken, add sugar and vanila and continue to whip until firm. Careful not to over beat or the cream will curdle.

2. To assemble: Put the meringue in individual dessert plate. Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream and fresh blueberries. Drizzle with red wine syrup. Serve immediately.


Makes: 8 servings

30 June 2012
Home-made Dessert

Panna Cotta with Red Wine Syrup and Blueberries

Panna cotta is an italian dessert made by cooking cream, hence the name which literally translate to "cooked cream". This dessert is best served chilled and is perfect on a hot summer day.

This recipe is adapted from David Lebovitz, but I used crème fraiche instead of heavy cream.

Ingredients:
PANNA COTTA
2 cups crème fraiche
¼ cup granulated white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 tsp powdered gelatin
3 tbsp cold water

RED WINE SYRUP
1 cup red wine*
½ cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 pc cinnamon stick
*For the red wine, I recommend something sweet and fruity, like Pinotage. However there is no hard rule on choosing red wine for cooking.It is best to use whatever you enjoy drinking.

1 cup fresh blueberries


Direction:

Grease ramekins or cups with neutral-flavored oil. You can use canola, corn or vegetable oil. This is done if you wish to unmold your panna cotta before serving, otherwise, you do not need to grease the cups. Wine glasses are perfect to use if you do not want to unmold the panna cotta.

PANNA COTTA:

1. Bloom gelatin in a cold water. Set aside.
For tips on blooming gelatin, check this video.

2. Heat crème fraiche and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring continuously, until the sugar is dissolved. Do not bring to a boil. Remove from heat when the sugar is completely dissolved.

3. Stir in vanilla extract.

4. Add cream mixture to the gelatin and stir until completely dissolved.

5. Pour the mixture into the prepared cups or glasses.

6. Leave to set for 1 hour then cover with plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for 2 hours or preferably overnight.

RED WINE SYRUP:

1. In a small saucepan, combine red wine and sugar.Add cinnamon stick. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously until the sugar is completely dissolved and thick bubbles appear. When the sauce has thickened and reduced to about half its original amount, remove from heat.

2. Add vanilla extract.

3. Transfer to a bowl and cool completely.

To serve:
Unmold the chilled panna cotta by running a spatula or knife around the edge of the panna cotta, then dip the bottom of the cup into hot water for 1 minute to loosen the bottom. Place on a plate and serve with fresh blueberries and red wine syrup.

For panna cotta in wine glasses, top it with berries and syrup then serve.


Enjoy!