Baking for Housewarming

I've been terribly busy eversince moving into my new place. Long task list of unpacking, cleaning, shopping for things, getting things in place ... and finally Housewarming with friends, colleagues and family after barely settled down. Still, I'm glad to have my cherished ones over to share my joy ... and also serve as a chance for us to catch up! ;)

The unfortunate thing is I don't have a habit of having a camera on hand to capture these moments. So most of my housewarming sessions went off 'unrecorded'. >_<

Luckily, for the gathering with my colleagues, we managed to snap a few photos, including the cakes I bake for them ! 3 different types of cakes and they are ...

An ultra moist ultra rich Chocolate Cake ...


Mango Cake in slices & cup-cake cases ... (got these really cute cases from Phoon Huat)


Matcha (Green Tea) Swiss Roll w/ Azuki Red Beans

I had the cakes nicely displayed on this 3-tier plates bought from Ikea. Hehe ... don't they look simply beautiful and tempting ?!?! (^_^) Most important is, I'm glad my colleagues enjoyed it.

Dessert of the day

I'll be posting the recipes for these cakes soon ... probably over the next few posts. So do keep a lookout if you wish to try it out. They are really yummy-licious! :P~~~~

Cakes, anyone ?!?! :)

These Buns Rock ...

I had a rare chance of having ONE WEEK BREAK before I start on my new job & it was great !!! I can sleep in & wake up later than usual, not having to rush for work, have the time to prepare lunch (for myself) & dinner (for my family) & best of all ... had the whole day to myself baking, cooking, experimenting, messing around in my kitchen & trying out recipes I've been dying to do a LONG LONG TIME AGO. It was simply blissful being 1 week of home-maker. (^-^)

After baking the Gateau Au Chocolat (recipe here), I had some time to kill before fixing dinner & decide to do something quick & simple. I chanced upon this recipe accidentally in one of those entertainment magazine & it's really easy plus nostalgic to me. I find it nostalgic as I remembered we used to bake this in Home Economics class during my Secondary School days. It didn't seemed easy to me at that time ... in fact, I hated Home Econs lessons & always wondered why we have to learn about cooking, sewing & all. The preparations, baking & cooking for the exams were nightmares to me but now I actually enjoy & love spending time in the kitchen. People do change, I guess.

According to the recipe. these rock buns uses more butter, resulting in a more fragant & scone-like version. I could have baked mine a tad too long (though I'm quite sure I sticked to the recommended baking time of 15 mins & checked that my oven temp is 180 degC), it was nice & crunchy when fresh out from the oven but turned rather hard when cooled. Mine were a little dry on the inside and not scone-like, different from what I expected.

However, I would still give this recipe a second chance as it's really easy & simple. Something I would do again to satisfy my baking itch when pressed for time. And I think these would serve as very good tea-time snack. But I'll make sure to reduce my baking time or temp or both the next round.

Almost Rock Buns
Ingredients (Yields 16 pieces for me)

100g flour, sifted (type of flour not stated. I use plain flour)
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
60g unsalted butter, diced
50g caster sugar
salt to taste (to omit if using salted butter)
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup mixed fruit or chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degC. Grease baking pan.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt & butter in a mixing bowl. Using your fingertips, gently rub butter into flour till it resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Stir in the sugar, fruits & chips. (I use dried cranberries & mini chocolate chips)
4. Stir in the egg & vanilla essence; beat till it becomes a soft dough.
5. Using a tablespoon or ice-cream scoop, spoon the dough onto greased baking pan, leaving some space in between each for expanding.
6. Bake at 180 degC for approx. 15-20 mins or until golden brown.

It collasped ... & cracked !!!

This chocolate cake recipe is something I photocopied from a food magazine (if I remembered correctly) 'thousand years ago' & didn't had the chance to try. It's interesting to know that while I'm usually so afraid of seeing my cakes sink/crack (so does my heart), this recipe actually states that if the cake collaspe in the center & cracked, it means the baking is successful. I'm confused (-.-?) & I wondered "So what can get worse? That it doesn't sink & cracked?" With that, I tried.

It's a rather dense chocolate cake as it uses quite a lot of chocolate, cocoa powder. butter with NO flour. Though the end result is supposed to collaspe & crack, it still calls for careful mixing to work the egg white mixture into the batter (rather ironic, don't you think). And while it was baking in the oven, it rises nicely just like any other chocolate cake & I was thinking "oh no ..." but the moment it was done & took out of the oven to cool, IT happened.

See the crack here? And there?

It was like a slow motion movie but it happened. I watched with excitement as the center start to sink slowly ... the sides start developing cracks as the center pulls away & collaspe. Hoo-ray !!! (^o^)

It was a success.

The taste? Ummm simply irresistible. A really dense & moist texture with a rich chocolatey taste. I would suggest using really good chocolate here & if you have a sweeter tooth than me, you can use milk chocolate (I prefer dark chocolate) as the cocoa powder will also add a hint of bitterness.

Served plain w/ strawberries


Or dusted w/ icing sugar & vanilla ice-cream


Now you see it ... next you don't!


For those who loves chocolate &/or rich, dense cake, I would highly recommend this ... and it's best eaten with vanilla ice cream or berries to complement & balance out the sweet yet bitter chocolate taste. I'm pretty sure your family & friends will be so impressed if you serve this dessert that they'll lick their plates clean.

Hahaha ... I did. Clean, isn't it?



Gateau Au Chocolat (Chocolate Cake)
Ingredients (Yields 1 24-cm or 9" round cake)

123g chocolate converture buttons (I used dark chocolate)
123g butter, cut into cubes
36g cocoa powder, sifted
4 eggs
138g caster sugar
icing powder, ice-cream, berries to serve (optional; own choice)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160degC. Line the baking pan with parchment paper. Separate the egg yolks & the egg white.
2. Add the yolks & 1/2 amount of the sugar in a clean, dry mixing bowl. Beat at high speed till the mixture is thick & fluffy and turns pale yellow in colour.
3. Place the chocolate converture & butter in a clean, dry metal bowl. Using the double boiler method, melt the chocolate & butter over a pot of simmering water till well combined.
4. Add the chocolate mixture into the egg yolk batter from step 2. Mix well.
5. Whisk the egg whites in a clean, dry mixing bowl using an electric whisk till it's foamy. Add in the remaining 1/2 amount of sugar slowly bit by bit, beat at medium-high speed till stiff peaks form.
6. Fold the egg white icing into the batter from step 4, gently in 2 -3 separate additions. Do not overmix as this will cause the air bubbles to burst.
7. Lastly, add in the sifted cocoa powder & mix till well blended. Bake at 160degC for approx. 40 mins or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Leave the cake to cool in the pan. If the center collaspe with some cracks, this means the baking is succesful.
9. Dust with some icing sugar, served with vanilla ice-cream & strawberries, as desired.

Recipe from: Unknown source

Baking 101 - When melting chocolate converture over a pot of simmering water (double boiler method), make sure the bowl does not touch the water. Do not overheat as this will cause the oil to separate (油水分离) & affect the texture of the chocolate.

Sour Cream & Chocolate Cake

I have tried this recipe several times and it has never failed me so far. I even baked this once for my MIL's birthday. It's a rather easy recipe and I like the taste a lot. This cake has a nice mocha flavor with a moist texture (due to the sour cream used).

I usually prefer cakes with texture that's light (think chiffon) yet moist (think sponge soaked with alcohol, syrup or juice) and rich (but not overwhelming) in aroma/flavor (think coffee, chocolate, citrus). I'm not really a fan for cakes with texture that's too creamy (think mousse) or dense (think cheese) ... even thinking about it makes me feel 'gelat'.

Confusing ?!??! Ya I know ... I'm simply not good at describing. All I wanna say is ... this recipe is simply GOOOOD in my opinion as it fits what I like (^_^) I guess you just have to give it a try to see what I mean. Hope you'll like it as much as I do. You can bake it in cupcake tray, small individual cake moulds or in a 6" or 8" round cake tin.

Sour Cream & Chocolate Cake
Ingredients (Enough to yield 15 cupcakes for me)

250g butter
230g sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla essence
4 eggs, lightly beaten
150g sour cream (can also replaced with plain yoghurt)
1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
2 tablespoons boiling water
100g dark chocolate, chopped
300g flour (can use plain or cake)
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180degC. Line cupcake tray with baking cases or baking tin (if baking a whole cake) with baking paper. Grease sides & bottom of the baking tin with melted butter.
2. Dissolve the instant coffee granules in the boiling water. Set aside.
3. Sieve the flour, baking powder & soda together. Set aside.
4. Cream butter, sugar & vanilla essence in a mixing bowl with an electric whisk till light & fluffy. Add in the eggs slowly over 3 -4 separate additions & cream till smooth & light.
5. Add in the sour cream, followed by the coffee mixture & chopped dark chocolate. Mix till well blended.
6. Add in the sieved flour & mix till well incorporated.
7. Pour batter into individual cake moulds or baking tin & sprinkle some flaked almonds on top.
8. Bake at 180degC for about 25 mins or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Recipe from: Temptation of Chocolate by Alex Goh

Baking 101 - Cakes using 'wet' ingredients (e.g. milk, sour cream, yoghurt) in the recipe will usually end up with a moist texture.

Panda Adventure

An adventure of 2 Panda ...

Although cake decorations using cream & fondant never fail to amaze/impress me, I have never been comfortable coating my cakes with layers of cream or fondant. Somehow it just makes me feel guilty if I have to use layers of fats/sweets to 'beautify' my cakes. I rather keep it simple. That's also the main reason why my cakes are more of 'plain Jane' in terms of their looks.

So when I came across this in one of the books I have on Chocolate, I thought it will be a cool substitute. It's a method for making pliable chocolate ... the texture is supposedly to work just like fondant. Cool isn't it? Imagine all those things I can make ... except it's in chocolate ! I believe most of us have a weakness for chocolate.

But the results was rather disappointing. Firstly, I'm supposed to end up with pliable chocolate that can work like 'plastersin' or fondant. It could be because I used compound chocolate instead of converture chocolate ... my 'chocolate fondant' (this is what I called it) ended up rather hard and not as knead-able as I expected. Secondy, it ended up shiny & greasy, totally different from the pic in the recipe which look matte. In the end, my panda look like they are perspiring ... hahaha (^.^)

They looked worlds apart, doesn't they? (But I thought mine look kinda cute too)

Sigh ... guess I still need to work on it. I was thinking of using it to decorate some cupcakes I intend to bake for my neighbours during this coming Easter. Ummm .... (-_-!)

A Dessert to "Pick-Me-Up"

Tiramisu. A famous Italian dessert and definitely one of my favorite. Once, a TV program I watched explained that the word tira~mi~su actually means 'pick-me-up' or 'pull-me-up'. I totally agreed. Somehow, indulging in this soft velvety dessert always has an uplifting effect on me.

So, my mum requested that I do this 'pull-me-up' as a birthday treat for my uncle's birthday yesterday. Prior to that, she's been asking for it several times but I keep delaying, partly also be'cos I didn't want her to have too much of it for health reasons. Though I doubted her 'kind' intention *lolz*, I gladly obliged this time since it was requested on 'legitimate' grounds. (^_^)

The original recipe is meant to end up with a tiramisu cake but I prepared in individual cups instead to serve as after-dinner dessert. I also settled on commercial lady finger biscuits (known as savoiardi) rather than baking my own, not wanting to 'burn' my Thurs night after work, & simply concentrated on making the 'mousse' portion.

I love the dessert cups as I feel it adds a nice touch to the look of the tiramisu. It even comes along with dome-shaped cover to make space for decorations on top.

The taste? Simply wonderful. It's so light in texture yet so rich in flavor. Ummm ... am I getting a little dreamy ?!?! I feel like I'm being lifted up to the sky ...... (must be the Khalua working).

Oh btw, I found this website that shares quite a lot of information on Tiramisu.

Tiramisu
Ingredients (Enough to yield 8 servings or a 6" round cake)

2 egg yolks
30g honey
30g icing sugar
2 gelatine sheets*
250g mascapone cheese
250g dairy whipping cream

Coffee liquor mixture

10g instant coffee granules
50g caster sugar
150 hot water
10g coffee liquor (I use Khalua)

Some savoiardi (lady finger biscuit) or vanilla sponge cake base
Cocoa powder

Method

1. Soak the gelatine sheets in cold water to soften.
2. n a mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks till slightly thick & pale yellow in color. Add honey, icing sugar & set the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Mix well & increase the temperature slowly till approx. 65 degC. Remove the bowl from the pan of simmering water.
3. Squeeze the gelation sheets to get rid of excess water & mix into the heated egg yolk mixture from Step (2). Add in the mascapone cheese & mix till well blended.
4. In another clean, dry mixing bowl, whisk the dairy cream till soft peaks form.
5. Add the whipped dairy cream into the egg yolk mixture & fold till combined.
6. Lay the base of a 6" round mousse ring /the dessert cups with some lady finger / sponge cake & brush the coffee liqour mixture over generously. Pour in 1/2 portion of the mousse.
7. Repeat with some more lady finger / sponge cake, the coffee liquor mixture and pour in the remaining 1/2 portion of the mousse. Spread evenly.
8. Refrigerate till set & dust some cocoa powder on top. Decorate as desired. Best served chilled.

Recipe from: 轻松学会做点心 by 吴美珠(台湾)

*The gelatine sheets can be replaced with 8g of gelatine powder. You may reduce the amount of gelatine used or omit it if serving in cups/container. Reducing it will result in softer, mousse-like texture while increasing it will result in firmer, cake-like form.

Baking 101 - As raw egg yolks are used in making tiramisu, heating the egg yolk mixture to 65 degC helps to "sanitize" & kill the germs.

Marble Chiffon Cake

Here's the other Chiffon Cake I did on Sunday - Marble Chiffon Cake which is a mixture of vanilla & chocolate chiffon. This time round, I folded in the egg white icing gently with patience making sure it's well blended without small lumps of egg white still 'floating' inside the batter, yet not too much to burst the air bubbles.

This round, the end result was rather pleasing as the cake did not shrink after cooling. The texture is as fluffy & springy as I like it to be, the taste is very good too (though I prefer the refreshing fruity scent of the Grapefruit version). In fact, when I try it minutes ago, it still stays soft right out from the fridge with a nice cooling sensation ?!?! The only grumble I had was the marble effect which didn't show up contrasting enough - I was too anxious to pour the batter into the pan for baking & did not do a very good job of swirling the patterns ... ummmm (>_<)

Though the mixing of egg white poses a challenge to me and will continue to do so till I conquer thee, I will not give up exploring & experimenting more Chiffon recipes & improve on my baking (which is still very much at amateur level). (^_^)

Marble Chiffon Cake
Ingredients (For a 20-com round chiffon tin)

100g egg yolks (I use about 5 yolks)
50g caster suagr (A)
80g vegetable oil (I use canola oil)
80g fresh milk
3g vanilla essence (I use 1 teaspoon)
10g rum
110g cake flour
2g baking powder (I use 1/2 teaspoon)
250g egg white (I use about 6 - 7 whites)
90g caster sugar (B)
2g salt (I use 1/2 teaspoon)
10g cocoa powder
40g hot water

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170 degC. Sieve the flour & baking powder together, set aside.
2. Separate the egg yolks & egg white. Whisk the yolks & sugar (A) in a mixing bowl till it turns pale yellow in color.
3. Add oil, milk, vanilla essence & rum. Mix till combined.
4. Sieve in the flour mixture & whisk till the flour is fully incorporated into the batter.
5. In another dry, clean mixing bowl, add the salt into the egg white & whisk till foamy/frothy. Add in the sugar (B) over 2 separate additions & whisk the egg white till stiff peaks form.
6. Add 1/2 the egg white icing into the egg yolk batter. Fold the egg white in gently using a spatula. Then add in the remaining 1/2 portion of the egg white icing & repeat till just combined.
7. Dissolve the cocoa powder in the hot water. Add in a small portion of the cake batter & mix till well blended to form the cocoa batter.
8. Pour the cocoa batter into the vanilla batter & mix gently with a few strokes using the spatula. Pour the batter into the tube pan (do not grease the pan) & using a chopstick, swirl the batter to create a marble effect.
9. Bang the pan gently on a work surface to release large air bubbles trapped inside the batter. Bake for 30 - 40 mins till the top turns golden brown or a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
10. Remove from oven & invert the pan immediately. Let cool completely before unmould.

Recipe from: 轻松学会做点心 by 吴美珠(台湾）

For those who would like to give Chiffon Cake a shot, here's some pointers I have gathered based on my own trial & errors. I would greatly appreciate if anyone (food bloggers, baking bloggers all are welcome) can share their comments & experiences. A big THANK YOU in advance!

1. Do not grease the pan. The batter needs to adhere to the wall of the cake pan so that it can 'crawl' up when baking. This is due to its relatively high liquid content.
2. If possible, use refrigerated egg whites & add salt / cream of tartar to the egg white when whisking. These will help to stabilise the egg white icing & lower the chance of 'bursting' the air bubbles in it required for the cake rise & 'bloom'.
3. If dried fruits, nuts or chocolate are being added to the batter, the amount should not be too heavy and/or the size of the fruit/nut/chip should not be too big. These may cause the cake to collaspe or the ingredients may settle at the bottom (as it's too heavy for the cake to support).
4. Do not overbeat the egg white icing.
5. Remember to invert the pan immediately & leave the cake to cool completely before unmould.
6. Use a palette knife to run through the sides, centre & bottom to unmould.

Madeleines

Today is my off-day. Want to bake something for my colleagues & decide on Madeleines. Didn't have the shell-shaped mould so I use other moulds instead ... (^.^)

Lemon Madeleines with Raisins


Baked some using mini-tartlet mould


Cross-section of the Madeleines


Also baked some using mini-cupcake mould


2 flavors. Lemon with raisins & Chocolate with chocolate chip


Lemon Madeleine
Ingredients (Yields 24 mini-cupcake or 12 seashells)

2 whole eggs

60g castor sugar

60g unsalted butter

60g cake flour

2/3 teaspoon baking soda (aka bicarbonate of soda)

1 g salt (I use approx. 1/4 teaspoon)

Zest from 1/2 a lemon (I use a whole lemon instead of 1/2)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180 degC. Grease the pan/mould with melted butter or line pan with paper cups.
2. Melt butter using either microwave oven or over water bath.
3. Sift flour & baking soda together.
4. Add eggs, sugar & salt in mixer or bowl and mix well till sugar dissolves.
5. Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice and flour using spatula. Then add melted butter & mix well.
6. Spoon batter evenly into prepared cupcake pan/mould. Bake for 10-13 mins or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
7. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely and store in container to prevent drying.

Recipe from: 送礼西点DIY by 加藤千惠(日本)

This is the basic Madeleine recipe. I thought it was a little plain and decide to add some raisins. I soak the raisins in hot water first to plump them up follow by a little rum to enhance the flavor. One important tip I got from a baking teacher is that the rum would prevent the dried fruits from drawing moisture out of the batter while baking, thus not affecting the texture of the cake.

As for the chocolate Madeleine with chocolate chip, simply replace 10g cake flour with 10g cocoa powder. Sift the flour, baking soda & cocoa powder together. Next, substitute the lemon zest & juice with 10g semi-sweet mini chocolate chip. You may add more chocolate chips as desired.