Arranged with Tab to go over to her place on Sat with many agendas.
First was to borrow her scanner to scan the grant, so that I can use it for email to NTUC to settle off one more item on the Sg side. Secondly, she wanted to fly the drone I made earlier from the nlb course. Thirdly I wanted to borrow her kitchen, which she agreed, to bake. Previously was cinnamon rolls but since I did it at home, so I changed it to Giant cookies and pizza dough. The cookies can be for tea and dessert. The pizza dough can be used to make pizzas for dinner. Needed more stomachs, hence Tab lumped me and Juls together on the same afternoon. Later Quetzal came over in the evening for dinner. I msged FH but he wasnt free on such short notice. Finally also to catch up with Tab who just came back from her trip but hadnt had the time to fully listen to her travel stories and look at her pictures.
Overall, it was a great day of baking and enjoying the fruits of our labour.
I am still in the midst of realigning my body clock to saner sleeping time and hours but I managed to wake up. I was quite afraid to have overslept cos I was supposed to meet Tab and Juls for lunch there. I had to go buy a last minute item - baking paper and then packed my KM bag full of ingredients, some baking tools. In a second bag went my important documents and the drone kit. Set off around 11.30pm and reached around 12.40pm. Met Tab and her mom at the doorway.
So I settled in and took out all the ingredients I've brought, baking tools and recipe sheet. Then as we chatted, Juls came and I was doing up the first pizza dough. It was my first time so wasnt sure what was the serving size but later after it rose, we felt it was enough dough for one pizza. I started making the giant cookies. Came across the recipes on Youtube videos while I was checking up about cinnamon buns. They seem simpler and so great for Tab's kitchen cos dont need so much specialized equipment, lesser mess too. And after making the cinnamon buns, I wanted to try out pizza doughs.
Tab showed us a slide show of her travel photos. So we looked and if we saw any interesting photos, she'll tell us about it. I glanced at some and listened to the stories and join in the conversations that arose while going about with the first giant cookie. It was supposed to be chocolate. I was surprised by the size of the giant cookie after it had finished baking. And continued with the Sugar cookie, then Raisin oats one and finally the Cinnamon one. Interestingly they all came out in various sizes though the biggest could cover my face. And it was unanimous that the Raisin Oats was the best. I feel it was due to the molasses sugar I used. It has a fragrance and creaminess about it. After a long while, I was about done with giant cookies and switched to doing up the second pizza dough. And also flew the drone about a bit, more like try to let it not bump or crash into things. Tab had a go and it was not easy. This was my third time flying the drone, had slightly improved control but this is really not the model to be learning to fly cos it had too many instabilities for a beginner flier.
Nearing 5pm, we headed out to the supermarket to buy the ingredients for the two pizzas. This part, I let Juls be in-charge cos my goal was to make the cookies and dough. Plus Juls and Tab had made a quick-hack pizza last time using pita bread and simple ingredients. After checking with Tab exactly what she had in her fridge - 2 onions, we can gauge what ingredients to buy. So they decided on making Hawaiian and Bacon Mushroom pizzas. Then with budget conscious shopping, plus I added Vanilla ice cream (for the cookies), we arrived home with the ingredients that averaged $8 per pax. Would have been lower if not for the ice cream. By then a whole afternoon of chatting, baking had caught up and we lazed about on the sofa and enjoy the fan cos it was hot hot and sunny on the way and back from the mall.
After lots of playing around with the Plusheen and Peanut plushies which involved lots of cat butts and evolved into the search for peanut-love and peanut-phobia fetishes. Erm not my idea nor my fetish.
At 6.30pm we started to get ready to make the pizzas. I only did the rolling out the dough onto the baking paper. Tab and Juls washed, cut and prep the ingredients, laid out the ingredients on the half-baked dough and others. Spices and ginger were sprinkled generously to give the pizzas more taste.
There was a part where we searched online how long to bake a pizza and a bit of trial and error on how to transfer the half baked dough from the oven to the counter. All went well enough. No kitchen burnt down, no charred pizzas, no exploding oven. So it was great to have enough hands to help out. Feels easier also with the work spreaded out. Then of course the cleaning was also easier, cos while cooking, we were cleaning up and washing up so there was no mess.
The joke was 'how many people are needed to ...?" , to take a picture, to move a pizza out of the oven, to make a pizza.
The first pizza Hawaiian was not baked at high temperature but came out with the mozzerella cheese still melty and our first few bites, there was the stringy cheese. The dough was fluffier. My first pizza with so much toppings that it covered the entire dough surface except the edges. A big generous decadent quarter. After we ate that, we were a bit full.
Then went about cooking the second Bacon Mushroom pizza. This time cos the bacon was raw, so decided to cook it a bit longer and a bit higher temperature. Keeping an eye on it wasnt easy cos cant see through the oven door clearly. But luckily nothing burnt. It came out to be a juicy pizza with the cheese browned by the heat. Phew. We realised the 'juice' was the oil from the bacon so we tilted the pizza slightly over a tray to drain the oil. While letting the pizza cool, we headed to Tab's study room to borrow the scanner to scan. So while scanning, we looked around her study at the number of cameras, her travel booklet and others. Then after the scanning and emailing was done, we headed out to eat the pizza.
I was worried that it would turn out hard cos the dough wasnt as fluffy compared to the first one and, cos it stayed longer in a hotter oven but except for the edges, it turned out great. Like pita bread. When we all bit into the pizza, all let out a very satisfied groan of yummy. So meaty, tasty, juicy, flavorful. After that quarter, it was like the inner carnivore in all of us were satisfied. Quet and I had liquor while cooking and eating the pizzas.
Then we had hot tea to aid digestion and clear the palate. Tab and I managed some vanilla ice cream with cookie crumbs, so satisfying. Soon it was time for me to head home or risk missing the last bus. I left around 10pm and reached home close to 11.30pm. Bathed, and slept soundly.
This successful and delicious session makes me inspired to find more of such stuff to try. I wouldnt mind making more DIY-pizzas in the future too.
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