Home Economics: Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Hi there! 

This blog post is from late May 2020.

Today I will be writing about how I made Dairy Free Banana Chocolate Muffins.

Ingredients:

• 2 c self raising flour 
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 c dairy free chocolate chips
• 100g butter
• 1 c soy milk
• 1 egg 
• 1 c mashed bananas (2-3)
• 1 t vanilla essence
• 100g dairy free spread

Method:

1.  Mix flour, salt, caster sugar & chocolate chips in a bowl.
2. In a separate bowl melt butter then add milk, and egg and beat to combine
3. Mash & measure the bananas and add to liquid ingredients
4. Tip liquid mixture into the dry ingredients. Fold carefully. Do not overmix.
5. Carefully spoon muffin batter into prepared muffin tins (line with paper cases.)
6. Optional topping: Mix 1 T sugar & 1/2 t cinnamon and sprinkle over top of muffins. Drop some chocolate bits on each.
7. Bake at 220°C for 12-15 mins, testing to check if muffin is cooked. Cool for 2-3 mins before removing from pan.

SUBSTITUTIONS for Banana and Chocolate Chip Muffin Recipe

Make the Muffins as per the recipe adding 1t Vanilla Essence to the milk, egg, butter mixture for added flavour

No Egg is to be used in the recipe. 

Instead use the Egg Replacer provided. Check instructions on the packet

Add 1t Vanilla Essence to the milk, egg, butter mixture

No Butter or Milk (Dairy) is to be used in the recipe. 

Instead substitute the Butter with 100g Olivani (Dairy Free spread)  

Instead substitute the Milk with 1c of Soy Milk

Add 1t Vanilla Essence to the soy milk , egg, Olivani mixture

Reduce the refined Sugar by using ¼ c of Apple Sauce and ¼ c of Caster Sugar

Add 1t Vanilla Essence to the milk, egg, butter mixture

Replace the Self Raising Flour with Plain Flour and Baking Powder

Ratio  =  2t Baking Powder : 1c Plain Flour

Add 1t Vanilla Essence to the milk, egg, butter mixture

Replace the Butter with 75ml Canola Oil

Add 1t Vanilla Essence to the milk, egg, oil mixture

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: Term Learnings

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about what I have done this term in Home Economics. 

Here are some photos of what I made:

This term, we have been learning about colour, flavour and texture. These 3 things are very important when it comes to making meals.

Colour:

Colour is important because as humans, before even trying something we eat with our eyes. If a dish isn't colourful, we won't be very tempted to try it - no matter how good it looks. However, too much colour in a dish isn't good either. It can throw a person off wanting to eat it if the colours look sickly or are too saturated. 

To entice a person and really want them to eat a certain dish, the colour must be balanced out. You must include different colour groups. Here is a list of different fruits and vegetables, including what colour group they fit in.

• Red
• Strawberries
• Capsicum
• Apples
• Yellow/orange
• Oranges
• Lemons
• Carrots
• White/brown
• Mushrooms 
• Parsnip 
• Ginger
• Green
• Celery
• Chives
• Avocado
• Blue/purple
• Eggplant 
• Figs
• Beetroot

Flavour:

Flavour is extremely important in food. It provides excitement when we are eating, giving us a variety of different tastes. Flavours come naturally but are very commonly artificially produced too. Both natural and artificial flavours are needed in food, sometimes natural flavours aren't strong enough and therefore don't come across, making the food taste bland. 

Without flavour, we wouldn't be able to taste anything we eat, everything would taste the same - bland. Can you imagine eating chilli and not feeling the burning heat which comes along with it? It seems wrong, doesn't it?

Flavour/taste helps us decide what to eat and it influences our mind to digest it effectively and efficiently too. 

Texture:

Texture is defined as properties of food that are determined by touch in the mouth and touch by the hands. Texture is important to enjoyment and acceptability of foods. In a dish, the texture cannot just stay the same, otherwise it would get boring and difficult to eat. So, like colour, texture MUST be contrasting. Some good examples of texture contrast are: 

• Chips and dip
• Soup and toast/bread
• Nachos
• Waffles and fried chicken
• Popcorn chicken
• Crème brûlée

Texture is important to identify too, an experiment conducted where young adults were asked to identify what food they were tasting in puréed and strained form. The young adults were only able to identify 40.7% of the foods, this shows that flavour is not enough. 

Our mind thinks that foods which squeaks is bad, whereas foods which are crunchy are good as we are very sensitive to texture. 

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics Year 10 2021

 Hi there!

This will be my blog post for all the food I make in Home Economics. 

On the slideshow below, I will show my work.

Home Economics: ANZAC Biscuits with Sultanas

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing about how I made ANZAC Biscuits, a classic Kiwi treat and how I gave it a fun and tasty twist by adding sultanas.

Ingredients:

1 cup Standard Grade Flour

1 ¾ cups rolled oats

½ cup White Sugar 

¼ cup (firmly packed) Soft Brown Sugar

1 cup desiccated coconut

125g Butter, cubed

¼ cup Golden Syrup Tin

2 Tablespoons water

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 cup sultanas or raisins

food handling gloves

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 150°C conventional bake. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. In a medium sized bowl, sift together the Standard Grade Flour and cinnamon. Add the rolled oats, coconut, sultanas and sugars; mix well.

3. Combine the Butter, Golden Syrup and water in a small saucepan and stir over low-medium heat until the Butter melts and the mixture is well combined (ensure the mixture does not simmer or boil). Remove from heat and stir in the bicarbonate of soda. Add immediately to the dry ingredients and use a wooden spoon to stir until well combined.

4. Roll 1-2 tablespoons of mixture into balls and place onto a tray about 5cm apart. Use your fingers to flatten each slightly (until they are about 1cm thick) and bake for 16 minutes (for a chewy biscuit) or 20 minutes for a crunchier biscuit.

5. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Keep in an airtight container for up to a week.

Sensory Evaluation:

These ANZAC biscuits with sultanas was probably one of the tastiest things I have ever made. The outside had a great golden brown colouring on top and on the sides and a light brown inside. The Sultanas added small pops of colour all round the biscuit which made it more appealing to the eye. The coconut and oats also added speckles of white through the biscuit making it look more textural.

The biscuits were nice and sweet, the golden syrup came through very nicely, the brown sugar was also noticeable, not as much as the golden syrup though. The butter also came through very nicely. The sultanas added a great flavour to the biscuit, helping balance out the sweetness. The oats and coconut also balanced out the sweetness as well as added extra flavour which was very nice. There wasn't a baking soda aftertaste when eating the biscuit which was really good.

The texture of the biscuit was great. The outside was crispy and crunchy while the inside was soft and chewy. The biscuit was dense inside and everything was spread out evenly inside. The sultanas added an extra chewy element to the biscuit which was really nice. The sultanas also added a surprise element when biting through the biscuit as it added more texture. The oats and coconut added the classic texture normally found in an ANZAC biscuit and went very well with the sultanas which was great. 

Here are some photos from my end outcome:

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: ANZAC Biscuits

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about how I made ANZAC Biscuits in Home Economics.

Ingredients:

Amended Version:

1 cup Standard Grade Flour

1 ¾ cups rolled oats

½ cup White Sugar 

¼ cup (firmly packed) Soft Brown Sugar

1 cup desiccated coconut

125g Butter, cubed

¼ cup Golden Syrup

2 Tablespoons water

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 pair of food handling gloves

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 150°C conventional bake. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. In a medium sized bowl, sift together the Standard Grade Flour. Add the rolled oats, coconut and sugars; mix well.

3. Combine the Butter, Golden Syrup and water in a small saucepan and stir over low-medium heat until the Butter melts and the mixture is well combined (ensure the mixture does not simmer or boil). Remove from heat and stir in the bicarbonate of soda. Add immediately to the dry ingredients and use a wooden spoon to stir until well combined.

4. Roll 1-2 tablespoons of mixture into balls and place onto a tray about 5cm apart. Use your fingers to flatten each slightly (until they are about 1cm thick) and bake for 16 minutes (for a chewy biscuit) or 20 minutes for a crunchier biscuit.

5. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Keep in an airtight container for up to a week.

Notes:

• My group decided that we would remove cinnamon which was previously included as we read a review which said that it didn't go well.

Sensory Evaluation:

My ANZAC Biscuits turned out pretty good. They were golden on the top and light brown on the inside. The biscuits had a crunchy outside layer and a soft, chewy inside. When looking at the biscuit, the coconut and the oats were very visible and were eye-catching. The coconut and oats provided the biscuit with great texture, the outside's crispiness complimenting the inside's soft consistency. Some spots on the outside of the biscuit were goldener and crispier than others, this also add texture to the biscuit. The biscuits were dense, resulting in them being chewy biscuits (baking time also effected this). There was even distribution of the coconut and oats through out the biscuit this was good because every bite you took was the same as the last. The biscuits were sweet, I could taste the golden syrup the most in the biscuit. Luckily, the golden syrup didn't overtake the flavour of the coconut or oats. The biscuit left a lingering sweet flavour in your mouth, the same goes for the coconut and oats.

Improvements:

Some things that I think that could have improved my ANZAC Biscuits was rolling/packing them tighter as they started to fall apart when I flattened them, resulting in them falling apart more while baking. Apart from this, I was extremely happy with my end product.

Here are some photos of my end product:

 

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: Mini Pastry Savouries

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about how I made Mini Pastry Savouries in Home Economics.

Ingredients:

• 2 pre-rolled sheets of flaky puff pastry 
• 1-2 eggs
• pinch of salt
• pinch of pepper
• 1-2T Milk
• 1-2 slices of ham, shredded (optional)
• 1-2 cherry tomatoes, chopped (optional)
• 100g Edam cheese, grated (optional)
• frozen corn, thawed (optional)
• frozen peas, thawed (optional)

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Using pastry cutters, cut circles to fit patty pans. Chill in fridge. 
2. Mix: egg, pinch of salt, pinch of pepper, 1T milk. (Make again if needed/if you run out!) Whisk with fork.
3. Transfer egg mixture into a measuring cup.
4. Place ham, cheese, cherry tomatoes or whatever your preferred toppings into your pastry case.
5. Carefully pour egg mixture into each case. Don't spill any!
6. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
7. Cool and eat.

Notes:

• Keep pastry as cold as possible
• My group left our ones in the oven for an other 7 minutes after switching to the 'fan bake' setting. 

Sensory Evaluation:

My Mini Pastry Savouries turned out amazing. The pastry was soft and flaky on the outside as well as being soft on the inside of the pastry. The egg mixture was well seasoned and was soft and springy when bitten into. My group added cheese, ham, cherry tomato to our pastries and it tasted really good, the different toppings provided for a nice array of texture in the pastries. The tops of the pastries were light brown and crispy while the inside was soft and light. Our pastry puffed up very nicely in the oven and gave extra volume to our product. There were many different flavours in the Mini Pastry Savouries, they all went together brilliantly. I will definitely be making them again!

Here are some photos of my end outcome:

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: Pikelets

Hi there!

Today I will be writing about how I made pikelets in Home Economics.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Edmonds standard flour
• 1 tsp Edmonds baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup
• 3/4 cup, approximately

Method:

1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. 
2.  In another bowl beat the egg and sugar with a whisk until pale and thick. 
3. Add the egg mixture and the milk to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. 
4.  Gently heat a non-stick frying pan and drop tablespoonfuls of the batter from the point of the spoon onto the surface.
5.  When bubbles start to burst on the top of the pikelets, turn them over and cook the second side until golden. Place in a clean tea towel to cool.

Sensory Evaluation:

My pikelets turned out very well. They were sweet and well cooked. They were an even consistency throughout. They were soft and sprung back easily when bitten. They were light and fluffy and had nice brown and golden colouring on both sides as well as being a pale golden colour inside. The butter used to grease the pan also provided a nice flavour which compliented the pikelets. 


Something I would change/do differently next time is instead of putting the milk and egg mixture in all at once I would add them bit by bit so that there aren't as many flour clumps in the mixture, this was a problem we encountered. I would also use an electric mixer to beat the eggs, although I got a good arm workout in I think it would be more efficient to use a mixer instead of doing it my hand. 

Here are some photos of my end outcome:

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hi there! 

Today I will be writing about how I made Chocolate Chip Cookies in Home Economics. 

Ingredients: 

• 100g butter 
• 1/2 cup Chelsea White Sugar 
• 1/2 cup Chelsea Soft Brown Sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Method:

1. Melt butter, and add both sugars and cream together. Beat in the eggs and vanilla then mix in the dry ingredients.
2. Roll into medium sized balls, making sure the mixture is not too wet! Put on a well greased baking tray. They shouldn't spread too much so flatten slightly. Bake at 180°C for 8-10 minutes. 

Tip: you can easily half this recipe. Or roll half into a log, wrap in cling film and freeze. Cut into 15 pieces while still frozen and bake.

Sensory Evaluation:

The cookies were nice and sweet. The chocolate chips were evenly spread throughout the cookies and added extra bursts of sweetness while eating. The cookies had a nice golden brown colouring on top and on the bottom and had a light golden colour on the inside. The cookie was harder on the outside edges and got softer as it reached the middle of the cookie. The cookies were a bit hard to chew through after fully cooling down but were still delicious. The cookies stayed together well and didn't splay all over the tray when baking. They stayed together when out of the oven as well. The cookies had an even thickness throughout and were very delicious to eat!

Here are some photos of my end outcome:

Thanks for reading!

Home Economics: My Birthday Cake

Hi there! 

A couple of days ago it was my birthday. My sister made me a cheesecake which was made by combining two recipes (I'll leave a link to both.) and making one delicious cake.  

Nutella and Dark Chocolate Cheesecake

Ingredients:

• 225g Rice Cookies
• 75g butter, melted, unsalted
• 300g Nutella + 15g, warmed in microwave
• 150g Dark Chocolate (used 70% Cadbury Old Gold)
• 45ml boiling water
• 2 ¼ teaspoons gelatin powder
• 560g cream cheese (we only had 500g), softened in microwave
• 1/3 cup caster sugar
• 225ml fresh cream
• 40-70g hazelnuts, roasted and chopped

1. Grease and line the base and sides of a 20cm (base measurement) springform pan.
2. Place the biscuits in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely crushed. Add the butter and 15g Nutella and process until well combined. Transfer mixture to the prepared pan. Use fingers or a glass to spread and press mixture firmly over the base. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill.
3. Place the Cadbury white chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir with a metal spoon until chocolate melts. Remove from heat.
4. Place the boiling water in a small heatproof glass. Sprinkle over the gelatin. Stir until gelatin dissolves.
5. Use an electric mixer to beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the cream and beat until smooth. Add the gelatin mixture and stir until well combined. Separate the cream cheese mixture into two thirds, and one third. Add the 300g warmed Nutella to the two thirds of the cream cheese mixture and stir to combine. Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with the back of a spoon. 
6. Meanwhile, place the dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl over saucepan of simmering water. Stir with a metal spoon until chocolate melts and remove from heat. Add the remaining cream cheese mixture to the chocolate and stir to combine. Pour into the middle of the Nutella mixture and smooth the Nutella mixture over the surface. 
7. Sprinkle the chopped hazelnuts over the top, cover with glad wrap, and put freezer for 2-3 hours to set.
8. Take out of freezer about 10 minutes prior to serving, it can be kept in fridge after this.

Notes

This recipe takes inspiration from this Triple Chocolate Cheesecake.
https://www.taste.com.au/recipes/triple-chocolate-cheesecake-2/0745db87-bfba-4094-9764-0c7a948ee527

Except as we were using a 20cm pan instead of a 23cm pan, My sister calculated the area of each pan, to find out by how much to decrease the ingredients (it worked out to be roughly a 25% smaller area, so we multiplied all the original ingredients by 0.75, and allocated the milk and white chocolate weights to the Nutella. 

We decided to not buy another container of cream cheese to get the required 560g, and just kept it at 500g.

If one were to want sides made from the biscuit base, more biscuits would be required.

The dark chocolate mixture is thicker and denser than the Nutella mixture, and so doesn’t pour or spread well – hence why it was ‘hidden’ under the Nutella. We may try putting it as the first layer next time, so that it spreads easier over the base.

We also used this Nigella Lawson Nutella Cheesecake recipe as a reference.
https://www.nigella.com/recipes/nutella-cheesecake

We took the idea of putting a bit of Nutella in the biscuit base, as well the idea of using roasted chopped hazelnuts on top. 

We also used less butter in the base as the amount of from the Triple Chocolate Cheesecake recipe seemed like too much, and Nigella’s recipe used a smaller butter to biscuit ratio.

Regarding the maths above, my sister worked all of this out.

Sensory Evaluation:

The Nutella and dark chocolate complimented each other really nicely and went very well together. The two flavours also went very well with the rice cookie crust. The hazelnuts were a great addition to the cheesecake too. The Nutella layer was creamy and sweet. It wasn't overpowering and complimented the dark chocolate. The dark chocolate layer was a bit harder than the Nutella one but was still easy to get through with a spoon. It was also sweet but had a bit of a bitterness which complimented the Nutella layer.

The rice cookie crust and hazelnuts added a nice crunchy texture to the cheesecake making it more interesting when you ate it. The creamy Nutella layer and firmer dark chocolate layer went well, it was interesting eating it as the consistencies were quite different to each other. I liked this as it would've been quite odd having a completely creamy cheesecake or a cheesecake which was firm and slightly bitter throughout. Both flavours bought out the flavour of the other one when paired together, you could always distinguish which was which and neither were too strong or overtook the other. 

The cake looked very appealing, the hazelnuts on top made it very eye catching and made the cake look more exciting and interesting. 

Here are some photos of the end product:

Thanks for reading!