Whole Wheat Sweet Potato Bread With Cheese

I was recently in Hong Kong and I came across this big bookstore in Hysan Shopping Centre. As usual, I headed straight to the cookbooks section and a book caught my eye. It says 麵包機新手的第一本書 (The first book for bread making machine amateurs). Hmm sounds like me. Haha.. But I do like it that the author has alot of interesting ideas for different flavours. I also like it that it has alot of step-by-step photos.

This is the 1st recipe I'm trying from the book and so far I like it. Well, I did make slight adjustments to the original recipe, but it still works.

1. Original recipe uses 40g of cream cheese instead of butter. I don't have any, so I opt for butter. Will try cream cheese next time.
2. Original recipe is actually a sandwich loaf. I divide into 12 pieces and wrapped cheddar cheese cubes in them. YUMS.

They say sweet potatoes are super food, so I guess this must be one nutritious bun! Because it's supposed to be a sandwich loaf, it's not sweet. So if you like it sweeter, you can add some more sugar. I like it as it is. Soft, fluffy and goes well with the salty cheese in the middle. Thumbs up!

110g milk
120g sweet potato mash
15g sugar
1/4 tsp salt
Whole wheat flour 30g
Bread flour 220g
Butter 40g
3/4 tsp Instant yeast

Cheddar cheese cubes (about 2cm cubes)
Extra milk for brushing

1. Cut sweet potatoes into small cubes and steam them under high heat for about 10mins, or cooked through. Mash them up and set aside 120g to cool. 
2. Place all ingredients except for the cheddar cheese cubes into the bread making machine pan and select "DOUGH" function. 
3. When the dough is ready flatten it out and roll it up again into a log. Cut out 12 equal portions. (I weighed the whole dough and divided the weight by 12. Which is about 45g each.)
4. Flatten each dough, place a piece of cheese in, pinch it together to close and gently roll the dough to smoothen it. Place it seam side down into a muffin tray. 
5. Proof for 30-45mins. 
6. Preheat oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 10-15mins. 
7. Gently brush milk on top of buns before baking in a preheated oven for 20mins. 
8. Remove buns from muffin tray to cool on wire rack. Best eaten warm!

Breakfast Chocolate Muffins with a warning

PLEASE READ FIRST!!!

I don't know how to post this recipe.

It started out with my daughter requesting for chocolate muffins for breakfast. The glutton in me screamed yeah! But the Mom in me frowned disapprovingly. So in order to meet in the middle, I adjusted my go-to muffin recipe and try making it healthier with whole wheat flour and oatmeals. They turned out GORGEOUS!


I posted it on the FaceBook and the members of the baking group loved how it looks. But when I took a bite, it turned out that it was a tad dry.

Don't get me wrong, it tasted DELICIOUS and I loved how the wholewheat flour and oatmeal added a little texture and flavour to it. But still, a little dry. I tried baking another batch with more buttermilk. It's softer, but it turned out like cupcakes, which defeats the point of a muffin. A muffin is SUPPOSED to be firmer than a cupcake FYI.

So. After much deliberation, I think I should just post the recipe as it is. I think people should be smart enough to adjust the recipe according to their own liking? Let me know how it goes!

1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
4 tbsp instant oatmeal

1/3 cup vegetable oil (try 1/2 cup instead)
1 egg
2/3 cup buttermilk (you can use milk with a tablespoon of white vinegar)

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. 
2. Sift all the dry ingredients except for the oatmeal. Add in the oatmeal to the sifted ingredients. 
3. Mix all the wet ingredients together. 
4. Gently FOLD the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until they are just incorporated. Do not overmix! 
5. Scoop muffin batter into lined muffin trays and fill it up to the brim to get a nice muffin top. 
6. Bake for about 20mins. You know it's done if you insert a skewer into the middle of the muffin and it comes out clean.