Toasted Marshmallow Squares

I stand before you with a giant smile on my face.

I imagine that rainbows and shooting stars light up the sky behind me. I imagine I have the ability to summon a parade of ponies and sea horses thats how (humbly) excited I am about these cookie squares.

Theyre so simple: vanilla bean crust, cherry jam, and toasted marshmallows. I know I havent invented cookies I just feel particularly proud of these.

The possibilities with these cookie squares are endless, and yours to create. I know youre thinking Nutella I know you.

However you fancy, I promise that when you make these squares, youll feel like summoning the pony parade. This is real!

And GO!

My favorite kind of dough is a press-in situation. This is that.

Dough is simply sprinkled with with flour and pressed with clean fingers into the four corners of the pan.

So satisfying.

Totally like adult play-doh.

Adult play-doh that turns into a giant cookie!

This is a shortbread-ish cookie, thought its softer and more chewy. Less cri! sp that a traditional shortbread. We want it more pliable that crumbly.

This is the part when the spreadables come in. I chose a good cherry jam.

This might be the part where you start yelling.

Why did you use jam and not Nutella!? Whhhyyyyy!? Why did you not use Nutella!?

Well sure, chocolate hazelnut spread is totally an option. An awesome option. Surely.

Theres something you should know about me. I like Nutella two ways: with pretzels or with a giant spoon. Not complicated into baked goods.

So cherry jam it is!

Marshmallows are sliced in half before being lined atop the jam.

Now.

Now we work the oven.

The marshmallow topped cookie is placed in a 350 degree oven just to warm the marshmallows, making them smashable.

Marshmallows must be smashable to be toastable. Its like science but not really at all.

This is the part when hot hot fire gets thrown in the mix.

Well need some broiler action to toast these marshmallows. Please trust me when I say that these marshmallows only need about 3 to 5 seconds under a gas broiler to toast. Translation: I set my first round of marshmallows ablaze. Dont even close the oven door.

Yea its that serious.

Imagine all the combinations you could use in this preparation: orange curd and chocolate chips, nutella, caramelized bananas and toasted peanuts, dulce de leche!? SO MUCH!

Think of these marshmallow squares in math terms:

Lemon bars lemon + vanilla bean + cherry jam + toasted marshmallows = perfectly perfect.

Toasted Marshmallow Squares

makes 9 squares in an 8-inch square pan

adapted from the Joy the Baker Cookbookand The Complete Book of Cookies

Print this Recipe!

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 vanilla bean, scraped or 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 large egg yolk

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for pressing dough into pan

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon fruit preserves

15 marshmallows, cut in half

Place rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper (leaving some overhanging paper flaps on two ends) and grease parchment paper. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together butter and suga! r until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl, then beat in vanilla bean scrapings (or vanilla extract) and egg yolk. Beat until well incorporated. Stop the mixer and add flour. Beat on low speed until completely incorporated.

Spoon batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle with flour. With clean fingers, press the dough into the bottom of the pan. Use a bit more flour as necessary so that the dough doesnt stick to your fingers. Try to make the crust as even as possible.

Bake crust for 20-24 minutes until golden brown around the edges, but still slightly soft in the center. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 20 minutes.

Run a thin butter knife around edges of the pan. Use the two parchment paper flaps to carefully remove the crust from the pan. Run a butter knife between the crust and the paper and carefully slide the crust from the paper and onto a unlined baking sheet.

Top crust with a thin layer of fruit preserved. Arrange marshmallows on top of jam. Return to the 350 degree oven for about 4 minutes. This will warm and soften the marshmallows. Remove from the oven and turn the oven onto the broiler setting. Use the back of a spoon to gently press and smash the top of each marshmallow.

Once all the marshmallows are smashed, return to the broiler. Keep a very very very very close eye on the marshmallows. Theyll toast in seconds. Theyll burn in seconds. I didnt even close the broiler door. They just need a kiss of broiler action.

Remove toasted marshmallow cookie from the oven. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Cookies can be served slightly warm or at room temperature. Cookies can be left, well wrapped at room temperature, for up to 4 days.

Yee Shun Milk Company, Macau

deconstruct has added a photo to the pool:

double steamed milk custard

The Curious Cat The Cat gives home deco tips!

Lately, I noticed that a lot of people have been sharing a series of video clips on Facebook about a talking cat. One of their videos has even garnered almost 7,000 hits in just 10 days!

Although I utterly despise am not a fan of cats, due to the amount of attention the videos have garnered, my curiousity was piqued.
Heck, Im always up for sniffling out anything potentially viral due to the nature of my job.

It was a well made video; credit to be given wheres its due. Hopping over to the site, I was slightly out off by the flash but navigation and loading of pages were quick and easy so I guess a competently designed flash site still works.

The layout was designed rather cleverly too. They went along with the detective theme with the case file, magnifying glass, and notebook displayed on a floor with cracked tiles.

The description of the website below the header says, Feline tales about bumps on the floor, cracks on the walls, and the little horrors of home life. So, I am guessing that the Curious Cat website isnt just a normal site which was created by college students for their class project work. Hmm. Im sure the people behind it will reveal themselves soon.

Meanwhile I clicked around, and noticed the on and off light switch button at the top right corner of the page. I clicked on it, and to my surprise, the whole page actually dimmed down!

< p>And heres one of the fun part! When the light switch is on OFF mode, if you are to click on anywhere on the page, a glow-in-the-dark cat paw print will appear! I admit that feature did got occupied for a few seconds as I was just clicking on random spots on the page just to see the paw prints appear. Lol.

On the side of the notebook, you can click on any of the 3 tabs there.

If you proceed to click on the tab with the title, Curious Characters, a pop-up will appear within the site, and you can read about the introduction of the titular character, Curious, as well as a couple of other characters which appeared in the videos.

You can find all of the Curious Cat video series in the Curious Vlog tab

I must admit the copywriting was pretty good. The dialogues witty and some successfully solicited a loud laugh from me while a few made me grin rather gleefully. This site definitely managed to capture the attention of its readers and viewers.

If you fancy some catty humour, hit the Curious Reports tab. Youll find all the pictorial and written reports of Curious Cat blogging about his life here.

Based on date stamp on the Curious Reports, it seems like it is updated every couple of days, so you can check it out often for updates!

But all in all, there isnt much information on what the Curious Cat website really is about .They have a Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/curiouscatdotmy as well but even after checking their FB page out, I am still clueless!

Has anyone else checked out the site yet? Do drop a comment if youve figured it out! I am really intrigued by this. My guess is that this cat has got something up its whiskers. LOL!

Jaipur Mahal Indian Food @ Ipoh Road

I did not know that there is an Indian restaurant in this part of Ipoh Road and I only know of a Sentul Curry Fish Head as far as this area is concerned.

The restaurant looks pretty new andconducive.

The interior of Jaipur Mahal Restaurant

Briyani Rice

Chicken Masala

Bryani Fish

Bryani Mutton

Jaipur Mahal

No.239 Batu 2, Jalan Ipoh, Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, 51100

GPS : 3.174287,101.691347

The Orbit and Supermoon

The Orbit

It was one of those days when I wanted to lunch alone, in my cubicle. That lasted 15 minutes, at most. With ample time to spare, and that the flu virus was spreading like wildfire in the office, I decided to catch some fresh air outside the building. As the sky cleared that afternoon, I took the opportunity to walk around the compound and later, circled the outer perimeter of the industrial cluster. I must say that I enjoyed this healthier way of spending my lunch hour. It was a good change from the usual routine of waiting for the bus to reach the food court, queuing to order my usual ban mian and spending extra money on coffee or tea that comes with conversations that do not interest me much.

s I walked on, patches of sweat appearing fast on my shirt, I realized how similar my life was with this circling, repetitive motion. It is dictated by commitments that keep us orbiting the same surrounding, day after day. I grinned when I thought of how this pattern also revealed itself in my usual physical activites - running loops and swimming laps! This is not meant to be a grouse but rather, a gentle reminder of how rewarding will all these commitments be in the end.

Supermoon

Did you manage to catch the supermoon yesterday?, asked a colleague. I didnt know what it was until I did a quick search on the internet. Wikipedia explained this phenomenon as the closest approach the Moon makes to the Earth on its elliptical orbit, resulting in the largest apparent size of the moon's disk as seen from Earth. Oh, it seems like Id missed the fun.

Approximately twenty four hours after the moon moved its closest to Singapore, I met an old friend for dinner. The timing was quite unfortunate, really, as I was required to attend a few late night meetings that week. But that parti! cular ni ght, Id somehow managed to, tactfully, avoid the meeting. Besides enjoying a serious amount of ramen (3 whole bowls on the last count), I had a good time catching up with her. Its been a long while since we sat down together for a meal. That few hours spent was my supermoon.

----------

Towards the end of my walk that afternoon, I still couldnt answer the question about rewards that Id reminded myself earlier. But recalling the supermoon, I guess despite life orbiting the constant surrounding, it is a time like this, when the extraordinary appears, that makes the journey more worthwhile.

Kungfu Paradise & Finest Bake @ Paradigm Mall

Calling itself "the cafe with a kick," Kungfu Paradise is one of Paradigm Mall's main magnets for youngsters seeking a casual meal that costs below RM20.

Comfort food that's as guilty as it gets: hot mozzarella-baked rice (about RM18, including taxes), topped with crisply juicy chicken chop and fish fillet with tomato and cream sauces. Note: this is also available at Kungfu Bake Rice at Suria KLCC's Signature Food Court.

Korean curly ramen with egg and chicken sausages (about RM12). Not exactly low-sodium, but that's precisely what some customers might enjoy about this.

Kungfu Paradise is the no-pork sister outlet of Paradise Dynasty and Paradise Inn, all from Singapore; unlike its siblings, it dabbles in Western-inspired fare s! uch as t his "Kungfu Bumger" _ a sandwich of chicken thigh with kung pao sauce (about RM8).

Salted egg custard buns (about RM10). There are better versions elsewhere with creamier, less artificial-tasting fillings, but they're probably pricier.

Kungfu Disciple Frappe, creatively blended with both peanuts and pineapple (!!!), alongside Kungfu Stylo Coffee, made with Arabica and Robusta beans.

Also worth checking out at this mall: a kiosk by cookie-maker Finest Bake.

Choices include cube-like pastries laced with everything from green tea to black tea ...

... as well as boxes of traditional cookies _ the perfect present for a mother-in-l! aw.
< br>

The pastries we tried tasted reminiscent of pineapple tarts. Not bad at all.

As mentioned before, Paradigm Mall has barely a handful of booze-serving outlets ...

... so thank God for TGI Friday's margaritas, even though they're too sweet.

Kungfu Paradise,

Level Two, Paradigm Mall.
Finest Bake,
Lower Ground, Paradigm Mall.

Lotus Root with Dried Octopus in Chicken Soup

Soup Name: Lotus Root with Dried Octopus in Chicken SoupTraditional Chinese Name: (zhng y gn linu j tng)Introduction:This is a simple, easy-to-make soup that doesnt require many ingredients. Its ...

Hui Lau Shan 1 Utama and Berjaya Time Square

1 Utama old wing has gone thru some upgrades and refurbish. Now the area where previously TGV cinema resides has turn into a food junction. I had a damn good authentic Japanese Ramen with a group of menu crashers ( we order the whole menu except beers and sky juice) at Menya Musashi. We had our main course and next we move to desserts since there are no dessert in Menya Musashi menu.

In front of the Korean and Japanese food area, theres an escalator leading down. You wont miss Hui Lau Shan the famous HK dessert shop which I frequent when I go HK. I previously wrote about their HK International Airport outlet HERE.

We were ratherdisappointedupon placing orders here. Most of their signature items like theGlutinous Rice Balls in Mango Juice with Extra Mango and Mango Mochiwere sold out. However we still order most of the available items from the menu. The waiter had a big sweat taking our orders since we pick what ever is in the menu.

Pomelo Icy Sago Cantaloupe RM7.90

Pomelo Icy Sago Watermelon RM7.90

Pomelo Icy Sago Honey Dew Melon RM7.90

It was a range of refreshing desserts that prepared solely with natural ingredients. However the mangoes used here is not as good quality compared to the one in HK. It is not as fragrant and sweet. Still I dont mind as the price tells. Good mango aint cheap. A bowl of the similar dessert in HK outlet cost easily double or more.

Pomelo Ice Sago with Coconut Milk RM7.90

Mango Icy Delight RM9.90

Mango puree on top of mango ice sago with cut mangoes

Supreme coconut stewed birds nest with harshma jelly RM22.90

This one taste better than the one I had in HK. It is not as thick and more easy to taste the rest of the ingredients inside. In HK versions, the coconut milk taste over power everything.

Triple Mango Delight RM9.90

Same with mango delight above but come with a scoop of home made mango ice cream