Milo Cookies

One day, I was wondering what special dessert I could make out of our usual food or ingredients we can find from the very usual humble kitchen of ours. Then my sister exclaimed - "Milo!".

She is a milo addict  for sure, and hmm... that reminds me of a colleague too. (LOL)

Well, I finally managed to get a recipe on hand, with twist on the normal chocolate cookies as I replaced the cocoa powder with milo powder. But they tasted great!

I had made these cookies quite sometime back, had already finished savoring the rich and flavorful cookies. 

This is a very very very simple recipe. So here's your to have a chance to taste 'em!!!

Ingredients:

- 125g butter

- 1 cup caster sugar

- 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour (sifted)

- 1/2 cup milo powder (Not the 3-in-1)

- 1 egg (beaten)

- 1/2 cup Sultanas (optional)
Preheat oven on 180°C.

1) Cream butter & sugar together.

2) Add egg & milo. Mix well.

3) Add self-rising flour in slowly while blending to prevent clumps forming.

4) Bake 180°C for 15mins. Cookies will doubled in size whilst baking (No worries!). It will fall back after cooled.

5) Allow cookies to cool on rack for 10mins before removing & Serve!

Items for used for this baking can be purchase here:

  

Langue De Chat (Cat's Tongue)

Ever tasted a light brittle biscuit sandwiched with either white chocolate or milk chocolate?

The texture is grainy and the crispy layer will soon melts in your mouth upon just a few munching.

Believed anyone would have tasted the infamous Hokkaido Shiroi Koibito (白い恋人) .

Yes, these kind of biscuits are known as the Langue De Chat that was possibly date to the 17th Century where at that period was the time where refined white sugar and piping bags were popular with the wealthy classes of Northern Europe. In Europe, they are sometimes known as "cat's tongue" as it is usually baked in long, flat and with rounded ends shape.

These biscuits are crisp, dry and brittle as the key ingredients includes cornflour and mainly of egg whites rather than whole egg. Because of the dry nature and ingredients used, these biscuits can be kept for quite a long time and are usually served with certain liqueurs and sparkling wines. =)

Alright, enough of the introduction.

Here's the recipe on how simple these biscuits can be made!

• 125g butter
• 100g caster white sugar
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 100g flour
• 25g cornflour

Recipe can make approximately 12-15 sandwiched biscuits.
Preheat oven to 150°C.

1) Cream butter + sugar till fluffy. Sugar should melt into the butter.

2) Gradually add egg whites bit by bit while blending. Mix in vanilla extract.

3) Sift in flour + cornflour. Fold well. Mixture should turn into a paste-like texture.

4) Place mixture into piping bag. (You may use a plastic/ziploc bag, put it into a tall glass as shown & pour in the mixture. This is my best mess-free method.)

5) Pipe 2" strips onto tray that is lined with baking sheet.

6) Bake on 150°C for 20mins or until the edges turn slightly brownish.

7) Melt some coating chocolates under the double-boiler. Spread on the biscuit and sandwich another biscuit together. Serve!

Some ingredients you may need to purchase:

Chinese New Year Cookie - Kueh Bangkit

Its another time of the year - Chinese New Year and of cos it is cookie baking time again.


Since the last few cookies batches I had tried baking, this one is quite a success in terms of texture which I failed slightly in my previous batches of cookies. There's still room for improvement in terms of taste though. I guess instead of the instant packet-ed coconut milk, the ones squeezed directly from the real grated coconuts might bring out stronger taste.


2 weeks before Chinese New Year, I've been browsing recipes. Spotted the "Durian Cookies" but the ingredient for the filling suggested the "durian paste" from supermarkets. I saw such paste before and it's not like how we think of those fresh yellow puree. It is sold in packets (usually next to pineapple tarts paste) & look nothing more than a "Durian Dodol" (a durian flavored chewy cake that looks like "Nonya Kueh"). I imagined sinking my teeth into the fluffy cookie crumbs, like that of the pineapple tarts, but when the teeth sinks into the gooey thick "candy" without rich durian fragrace, it's really not a "marriage". Hence, my nature of experimenting, I wanted to use the fresh durian puree.


I even researched on how to make the puree into a thicker pliable paste so that it can be easily wrapped in the dough.


But later, I realized its not the good season for durians anymore. My dad, who is good in buying durians, claimed that it won't be nice. Too bad. :(


So I ended up with an "easier-to-get" recipe, i.e. the "Kuih Bangkit" as most of the ingredient I already had, just top-up a few stuff items only.


So here it is, just to share as an amateur in cookie-making, the recipe of the "Kuih Bangkit" :)


INGREDIENTS:
* 300g tapioca flour
* 3-4 pandan leaves
* 20g magerine/unsalted butter
* 1 egg yolk
* 140g icing sugar
* 120ml coconut milk
* 1/4 tsp vanilla powder


METHOD:
Step 1
Wash & clean the pandan leaves dry. Cut them with scissors into about 4cm long pieces.

Step 2
Turn on the stove to low flame.

Sift tapioca flour into a pot/saucepan. (I used pot so as to minimize flour from spurting out as you stir fry)

Put the pieces of pandan leaves together into the pot.

Dry fry the flour & pandan leaves for minimum 30mins or more.

(I heard from a friend that the usual method is to fry for 2hours!!)

The longer the better as the pandan fragrance will infuse into the flour.
As you fry, the flour will become more "fluffy" and "light". You will realize the density & moisture of the flour slowly lightens.


Tipped by a friend: After frying, I set the flour with pandan leaves aside with a lid covered to cool overnight. (This may let the fragrance get stronger)


Step 3
Next day, take out the flour & sift it again into a mixing bowl.
Together, sift icing sugar & vanilla powder into the same mixing bowl.

Step 4
In another bowl, mix the liquid ingredients together.
Mix the coconut milk, egg yolk & margarine/unsalted butter (melted would be better but without melting may do as well)

Step 5
Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture & knead 'em into dough.
If you realize the dough is still a little crumby and does not hold into a shape as you knead, you may add little coconut milk & knead again to the consistency that is pliable.

Step 6 (Preheat oven to 165°C / 329°F)
Sprinkle some flour onto the table.
Put the dough onto it & roll it flat about 1/2cm thick.
Use a cookie cutter, cut out the desired shapes.

Step 7
Place baking sheet onto the baking tray/pan.
Put the cut dough onto the baking sheet.
Bake at 165°C / 329°F for 15mins.

DONE!


Because this year's Chinese New Year crashes with the Valentines' Day, I did something slightly special~ Heart-Shaped Kuih Bangkit.

Well, when I was baking the first batch, my mom kept coming into the kitchen exclaiming that it smells very nice.


She kinda loves these cookies. My dad finally said at least the cookies are crispy for the texture (Melts in your mouth~). My sis asked me to bake a small tub of 'em for her to bring to office to munch. My boyfriend, erm.. well he munched off almost 1/3 of a tub!


But there were some who said it's not nice, and some said the coconut fragrance isn't strong enough which I guess it is because I used the packet coconut milk instead of the real grated coconut to extract the milk out of it.


But I guess, it is not a bad success for the first time baking this cookie with the proper tools in hands!

You may get items here for this recipe (TOTAL BELOW $50!):