I never imagined having to write an entry with this title! Let me tell you the back story first:
During the last week of January earlier this year, a violent storm hit Portugal and subsequently The Shire. The thunder scared the cats while the lightning fried my internet router. After two days without internet I ventured down to the MEO shop to exchange the router. Without any hesitations, the router was exchanged for a new one, albeit they gave me the wrong charger, a detail I discovered only when I got home. So down the hill I went again and back to the MEO shop. The salespeople were rather surprised that the charger was wrong, and what ensued what a hilarious conversation among four people, consisting of only a single phrase: “não encaixa” (it doesn’t fit), with varying degrees of astonishment and acknowledgement. Long story short, I went home with the proper charger and everything was back to normal. Side note, I work from home so an internet connection is a must!
Well, everything was fine until the next storm came around, which was last week. Storm Jana hit Portugal last Thursday evening and, you guessed it, knocked out my internet again. I called the MEO hotline and they said it would be restored over the weekend. Said weekend came and went and no internet in sight. I called the hotline again and they said they would send a technician the next day. I never saw the technician, as his work was outdoors, but I was informed that the problem was not with me but the distribution grid of the area that had been affected by the storm. Nevertheless, I was appalled by the news and called MEO back, saying that this was not acceptable. The agent on the line informed me that the problem was bigger than they thought but they would send someone the next day (Wednesday).
Once again, no encounter with the technician, but what followed was an even more disturbing message saying that the issue requires an external team of specialists and it can take up to three days for them to address my problem. Well hot dang potato fudge! What do I do with that? In the meantime, I changed mobile phone providers because my existing subscription with Lyca, though it included unlimited data, the phone calls were on a pay-as-you-go basis, requiring constant topping up, not to mention they do not offer hotspot service. This adds up and eventually exceeded the cost of a postpaid contract with Vodafone. I applied for a Vodafone subscription right away (Saturday) and received the SIM on Tuesday, naively assuming that I would simply exchange SIM cards and all would be well. Oh no… Vodafone sent me the documents in the wrong order, so the activation instructions came in the evening of that day, and they required additional documentation to carry out the number portability (migration of the same number). In short, I was between contracts at the moment, juggling two cards and two phones (I had to resurrect my old iPhone from the netherworld!) and I have no idea when the damn number transfer will be done and my full contract will be activated. This morning I get the notification that my Vodafone tariff is fully activate but the number migration was migrated. What the Fudgecake?! So whilst I do have hotspot now, its not enough to work but enough to get back online with a computer instead of straining my eyes with the mobile phone screen. Sigh.
My life is a digital mess at the moment and I have no assurance from anyone when anything will be repaired, restored, activated, and so forth. What do I do with my time? Bake and cook! I experimented with a new brioche recipe for air fryer, tried out a Filipino chocolate rice pudding (champurrado) recipe I saw on Instagram that added peanut butter(!!!), made and apple crumble, a chocolate tiramisu, a new batch of ricotta, and topped up my pancake sour dough mixture. Oh and the farm delivery arrived with my fruits and vegetables. The weather outside is still frightful, and many a cat takes refuge indoors to snuggle up to the heater and curl up in their cat beds. It´s a cosy time together, and we are all well fed.
Here is the Air fryer Brioche recipe:
Ingredients:
- 2/3 cup heavy cream or greek yoghurt (quark if you are in the DACH region)
- 1 cup milk (plus 1 tablespoon)
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast (or instant yeast)
- 1 teaspoons salt
Instructions:
- Placethe ingredients in the following order into a mixing bowl: cream, milk, egg, sugar, flour, yeast, and salt. Run the mixer for 10 minutes until the dough pulls away from the sides but still sticks to the bottom of the bowl. If kneading by hand, knead for an additional 5-10 minutes.
- Proofing: Cover the dough with a damp towel and let it sit in a warm spot until it has doubled in size, about 1-2 hours. Punch down and allow it to rise a second time.
- Grease two baking vessels on all sides with butter. You can use two standard loaf pans, two 9-inch round pans, or a combination of one loaf pan and one round pan. Once the dough has doubled, stir it in the mixer for another 5 minutes to remove air bubbles. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, divide it in half, and shape each half into a rough rectangle. Cut each rectangle crosswise into three equal pieces for loaves, or divide into 8 pieces for rolls. Arrange the shaped dough in the prepared pans. Let it proof, covered, for another hour.
- Preheat your oven to 175°C or air fryer to 170C. Position a rack in the center of the oven. Brush the risen dough with milk wash. Bake for 23-25 minutes (oven) or 30 min in the air fryer, or until golden brown. Upon removal from the oven, immediately brush the warm brioche with simple syrup to add a shiny glaze and a touch of sweetness.
Alternative 1: Brioche Croissants
Roll out a portion of the dough into a large rectangle on a floured surface.
Cut out triangles
Roll the triangles into croissant shapes
Brush with butter when fresh out of the oven
Dust with powdered sugar
Alternative 2: Stuffed Brioche Croissants
Make a paste from ground nuts (hazel or walnuts), sugar, cinnamon, grated coconut
Spread on individual triangles before rolling into the croissant shapes.
This dough keeps well in the fridge if you don’t want to cook the entire batch at once. However, you need allow the dough to reach room temperature first and rise before baking.
Peanut Butter Champurrado
Most Filipinos grew up with this recipe, a well-loved breakfast favourite. I don’t make it very often but when I do, I definitely dispense with the traditional accompaniments of salted dried fish! I saw this peanut butter version on Instagram and was intrigued so I played around with the measurements and this is my version.
(Solo portion, 2 servings)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 C cooked rice
1 C milk
1/2 C coconut milk
1 tbsp sugar
1/3 C unsweetened cocoa powder (for baking)
2 tbsp peanut butter
1/2 tsp grated coconut for garnish
- Place the rice, milk, and coconut milk in a saucepan on medium heat, and bring to the point before boiling, stirring constantly.
- Add the cocoa powder, sugar and continue stirring at low heat until the mixture thickens.
- Add the peanut butter and astir only a few seconds da until it is fully incorporated into the champurrado and remove from the stove.
- Garnish with grated coconut.
Note: I make my own peanut butter which much less sweeter than the commercial variety. If you use a store-bought peanut butter, skip the 1 tbsp sugar altogether. This does not keep well, so make sure to make just enough for one meal! If you are new to the champurrado concept, think of it as a chocolate rice porridge!
FrogDiva Thoughts 