DIY: Kaya Toast and Thick Toast with Soy Sauce Eggs

What's for breakfast today?

I had a sudden flashback of the Kaya Toast from Kopi Roti and the Thick Toasts from Toast Box that I had to fix myself some - soy sauce eggs included. I always love the contrast of flavors and textures - crunchy toast with smooth and creamy fillings, sweet kaya with the warm and salty eggs. Unbelievably easy to make - no real recipe around it so all you have to do is prep. Costs less than ordering it too but the party in your mouth is just as heavenly!

Ingredients:

Unsliced Pan Americano (from Pantojas or Pan De Manila work fine, you can ask them not to slice it just yet)
Eggs, room temperature
Cold Butter
Coco Jam (kaya)
Peanut Butter
Choco-Hazelnut Spread
Jam
Soy Sauce

Procedure:

1. Buying unsliced bread ensures you that it is the freshest from the batch. Cut it up into thin 1/4 inch slices for the kaya toast and a good 1 inch thickness for the thick toast. Toast in the oven, under a broiler or over a hot pan for about 4-5 minutes, until golden brown. Bread for the kaya toast should be crisp but the thick toast should still be soft and bready inside.

2. Meanwhile, prepare eggs. Soft-boiled eggs are done by dropping eggs in boiling water for 3 minutes. If you do not like the idea of soft-boiled eggs, I found that this work just as well with hard-boiled eggs, boiled for 7 minutes. Each egg gets around 1/2 teaspoon of soy sauce (you should try it at least once).

3. Spread coco jam over the "thin" toasts and add slices of butter. Top with another piece of "thin" toast with coco jam.

4. For the thick toast, top with either peanut butter, jam or choco-hazelnut spread. I love Finetti as it tastes like Nutella (purists don't kill me), at half the cost. Available at Rustan's.

5. To serve the Kaya Toast, slice in half with a serrated knife and serve with the eggs. Here I served it with hard-boiled eggs.

6. For the thick toast, slice it into nine small cubes and serve with the eggs. I played with it and made a checkerboard design using different toppings.

No I did not top each of the cubes individually. Just prepare another set of thick toasts with different toppings and construct the patter on the serving dish, alternating flavors. A morning puzzle that will surely wake you up!

Yum yum yum! To eat the egg separately or dip your kaya and thick toasts into it is your decision. Sure to enjoy it either way! :D

Fresh Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping

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I have always frequented the Lung Center Sunday Market to look for good food finds and fresh ingredients for Sunday lunch. Sometime last year the stalls transferred locations to nearby Eton Centris. So last Sunday, I went to the Sidcor Sunday Market at the Eton Centris Station at the Quezon Avenue MRT station to check out if the stalls have changed. I promise to write about the dozens of concessionaires at the market and what is worth eating and buying. You can easily find the stall if you ask around as they are the only ones selling fresh blueberries (P300/kilo or P50 per cup) aside from other nice produce like raw wild honey with honeycomb (P200/bottle), fresh gooseberries (P50 for 100g), and local passion fruit or granada (P50 for 1 kilo) - which is orange but grey inside which I don't like because it ain't pretty in recipes but is generally sweeter than the tropical variety.

This recipe is so easy my niece was able to make it, with little help from me. :)

Ingredients:

1/3 melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 extra-large egg
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vinegar
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
pinch of salt
1 cup fresh blueberries + 2 tablespoons flour

Streusel
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup quick cooking oatmeal
1/4 cup cold butter
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

My niece and "apprentice" Alessa helping me out!

Procedure:
1. Pre-heat oven at 400 F or (200 C) for at least 10 minutes.
2. Cream sugar, egg and melted butter until well-blended. No need for an electric mixer :)

3. Mix all the dry ingredients with a whisk.
4. Add the vinegar to the milk.
5. Add half of the flour mixture to the egg mixture and stir. Add the milk and stir again. Fold in last half of the flour mixture and stir. Do not over-beat, some lumps are ok.

6. Fill greased  or paper-lined muffin cups (we used a heat-proof silicon mold which is non-stick) with batter 3/4 full to give space for muffins to rise. Top with blueberries which are tossed in flour (to avoid the fruit from sinking).

7. Combine streusel ingredients until well-mixed and sprinkle over muffins.

8. Put in the oven for 20-25 minutes (depending on size of mold, test with a toothpick until center comes out clean and muffin top springs to the touch.
9. Remove from mold and cool on wire racks. Enjoy!
* makes 12 regular sized muffins

Great for a quick snack or breakfast!

Streusel gives it a nice crunchy texture and a homey taste

the blueberries make it moist and give it a nice tartness you cannot get from canned blueberries or jams

Other fresh berries or fruit can be substituted for the blueberries to suit your fancy!

Feel free to share the recipe on Twitter and Facebook. :)

Croque Monsieur Breakfast

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Woke up today inspired by a guerilla dinner I attended last night (will do a post on that soon). I decided to use the Perfect Italiano cheese I got in the goodie bag to make breakfast. This is my version of Croque Monsieur - a hot ham and cheese sandwich. Sounds and looks fancy but so simple to make, promise!!! And more importantly will definitely perk up those taste buds in the morning!

Here are the ingredients. Rosemary gives it that homey, country taste. Try the Rye bread from the Rustan's bakeshop. It has caraway seeds and gives the sandwich a nutty, slightly anise flavor. But a sourdough bread, ciabatta or a soft french bread should work.



Square Ham, Eggs, Rosemary, Butter, Mozzarella, Milk, Rye Bread


Procedure:
1. Beat 2 eggs and I cup of milk
2. Assemble sandwich (bread --> cheese --> ham --> rosemary --> cheese --> bread)
3. Dip sandwich in the egg & milk mixture (like a French Toast)
4. Fry in butter over low heat until golden brown (use low heat so cheese inside melts)
5. Slice in between (so you can see chese ooze out) and eat!
*Prep and cooking time: 15 mins



Is that cheesy enough?


If you are feeling adventurous and want it more breakfast-y? Try what I did.




MAPLE SYRUP!!! Nice sweet- salty combination. Plate it up and add a rosemary skewer to make it more fancy!

 Let me know how yours turns out or if you have suggestions. :)

Little trivia - call your sandwich a Croque Madame by adding a poached or easy over egg inside. Was just thinking, how did adding eggs make the name so feminine?