Simple sponge cake

Light, soft and fine texture, that’s what I like about Sponge cake. It’s the very first cake I tried baking when I got my oven.

Looking back…it’s not an easy cake to begin the journey into the world baking as compared to the traditional butter cake. Strangely enough, I was not deterred by the difficulty. I kept trying to improve and kept reading up on the tips.

And, so… my lovely supportive family had to endure the 3 sponge-cake-sessions a week! Feeling guilty, I added different flavours to create varieties!

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Quick Tiramisu

You would have read and probably tried many versions of Tiramisu, the Italian dessert...the Classic, the Traditional, the Authentic...if you like coffee, chilled creamy dessert with a hint liquer...you'll like Tiramisu. 


(For those who may know about Tiramisu, you can check it out in the Wikipedia about its origin, history and the actual preparation).


I actually hesitated posting Tiramisu (not another one!), though I've made it a number of times over the years. This is my easy and quick version, without raw-eggs and can be prepared ahead and kept chilled in the fridge, till ready to serve.

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Snow Fungus Tong-sui

Chinese, especially Cantonese love sweet soup or tong-sui.

This is a simple recipe with lots of nutritional benefits. It only needs 5 ingredients, nothing too complicated.

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Strawberry Muffins

Breakfast and school snack box gets more interesting this week with these fluffy muffins. I tried these muffins after having read the good reviews and adapted slightly. Daily snack of bread with jam spread, peanut butter, nutella, ham-eggs is getting boring and "uncool" as I was duly informed by the little one…sigh!...oh, the fussy one :-)

As strawberries are his favourite and his Dad's, I decided to make some Strawberry Muffins.

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Nutella Swirl Pound Cake

I made this some months ago when some friends came over for coffee. Being too busy at that time I forgot completely later about posting it.

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Sweet Saturday

Tropical Pineapple Jelly

This is a very simple recipe.

 

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Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all my friends.

I dedicate this Tiramisu to all of you.and I hope you have a wonderful day with your family and loved ones. Moms these days, juggle a career and family successfully, have time with their friends, blogging to stay in touch with the friends far and wide...and still be beautiful inside and out. I salute all women & supermoms.

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Mango Pudding

I love Mango. I think they are just the most juciest tropical fruits.

Generally, they are sweet and except for some species which are sour. Some have soft or firm flesh and have sweet or strong smell.

However, some have fibrous texture flesh which may be a put-off for a truly pleasurable experience of the sweet fruits.

I bought some nice plump Chukanan Mangoes and thought it’ll be nice if I can make Mango Pudding. The bought ones in the plastic cups which many children likes are overly sweet, so I figure I’ll try making them, less sweet and low-fat.

250ml low-fat milk

250g mango, diced

200 ml water

50g fine sugar

1 ½ tbsp gelatine powder

4 tbsp water

1. Soften gelatine in 4 tbsp water in a small bowl. Let it sit in larger bowl of hot water, stir till gelatine powder dissolve well.
2. Peel Mango. Dice flesh and put into blender to blend with water. Strain to remove stringy fibers.
3. Dissolve sugar in milk over low heat. Cool.
4. Stir mango puree with gelatine, add in milk and stir till well mixed.
5. Pour into 6 jelly molds or glasses.
6. Chill in fridge overnight.

Serve chilled.

 

 

If fresh mangoes are not available, don’t despair. I have also tried with Mango juice (your favourite from the shelves) from the carton, yes…when I’m craving mangoes and there aren’t any available, ...not even on my neighbour’s tree!!! … hehe J

With the same recipe as above, substitute mango puree with Mango juice (300 ml).

The good thing about Mango juice from the carton is, no need to strain! There’s no fiber to catch between your teeth!

Enjoy the smooth chilled dessert this hot summer… well, it’s always hot in the afternoons here. 

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Coffee Cake

I enjoyed this Christmas very much probably because I baked more than I did the previous year. I injured my arm in late 2008 but have since recovered, somewhat. Hehehe...I enjoyed probably because I ate a lot too the past few weeks. Oh my, it's going to be tough with Chinese New Year barely 5 weeks away... how can I resist the festive food?

Here's some of the Xmas stuff... mouth-watering stuff! I made 2 small 6” cakes and presented 1 to my friend for Christmas this year. A white cream cake with chocolate & strawberries are normally kids favourite. I think I didn’t do too good a job on the decoration but we love the chunky & tart strawberries and chocolate combined with coffee sponge cake.

(This Coffee Cake decorated with chocolate shavings was given to a friend)

Sponge Cake

1 packet sponge-cake mix 250g

Eggs, water and melted butter, please follow instruction per packet

1 tsp of mocha or coffee paste

Topping & Cream filling

350g Rich’s Gold Label Whip Topping

2-3 tbsp of ice-cold water

100g strawberries, hulled and cut into small chunks

75g dark chocolate

2 tbsp double cream

2 tsp of butter

1-2 tsp fresh milk

1.      Prepare sponge cake as per instruction. Beat all ingredients in a mixing bowl till soft and fluffy. Add in mocha paste and continue beating till well combined.

2.      Pour in (2 x 6” round pans) or 1 pan of 9”. Lined bottom with baking paper and lightly grease the sides.

3.      Bake at 180C for 35-40 minutes till golden brown and when the cake has pulled slightly away from the sides of pan.

4.      Remove from oven, gently remove from pan and set to cool on wire tray.

5.       Once cooled, chill in the fridge while we set to prepare the whipped topping and chocolate fillings

6.      In a double boiler method, melt chocolate, cream and butter, stir till combined, add milk little by little. Let cool, thicken slightly but enough for spreading & piping but not harden at all.

7.      Whip Topping : Beat whip topping and iced water, in a chilled mixing bowl and beater, till lines start appearing. (Do not overbeat)

8.      Remove the cake from the fridge and slice across into 2 layers.

9.      Decorate with cream, add strawberry chunks and melted chocolate, as desired. Or, you can add chocolate shavings too.

I hope you have enjoyed eating as much as I did during the holidays. :-D

By the way, this is my present from my Hubby... nope, not the Estee Lauder... but I was also eyeing this CUPCAKE by Joanna Farrow when we visited the bookstore the last 2 times. :-)

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Blueberry Swirl Cheesecake

I like Cheesecake, the baked and the non-baked, the creamy, cheesy, firm, mousse-like, with or without fruits, the sinfully rich and calories laden, irresistible...there, I like Cheesecake! I'm being totally honest about this, honest confession!

They are the perfect dessert for potluck, BBQ parties, children parties or just a weekend get-together with some friends for tea/coffee. I made these for some friends who dropped in for a quiet New Year count-down without the partying, fireworks...guess we are getting too old for the countdown parties! We went out for a simple 6-dishes chinese dinner and came back for some cheesecake and coffee.

I hope you'll like, I think it's just sweet enough with blueberry pie filling swirl giving the added sweetness needed.

Base crust
150g McVitie’s Plain Digestive Biscuit

70g Unsalted butter, melted

Cheese fillings

2 tbsp Unflavoured Gelatine Powder

3 tbsp Boiling water

250g Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

70g caster sugar

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp of lemon zest (optional)

200 ml whipping cream, whipped

100ml low-fat milk or plain yoghurt

150g blueberry pie filling

1.      Process the biscuits till fine with food processor or place the biscuits in a medium-size plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin till fine crumbs. Add melted butter and mix well.

2.      Line the base of a 21cm square pan which has a removable bottom with baking paper or you can use aluminium foil with enough length to go over the 2 sides for ease of removal when you are ready to serve (if you do not have a loose bottom pan)

3.      Lightly grease the sides with butter.

4.      Press the biscuit mixture to the bottom evenly and chill in the fridge till needed.

5.       Soften gelatine powder with boiling water in a small bowl. Keep warm by placing the small bowl in a larger bowl with very hot water, till gelatine melts.

6.      Beat softened cream cheese with caster sugar till smooth. Beat in gelatine mixture and lemon juice.

7.      In a separate chilled mixing bowl, beat whipping cream till soft peaks form. Fold whipping cream gently into the cream cheese mixture.

8.      Gently add milk 2 tbsp by 2 tbsp till combined or plain yoghurt.

9.      Pour cream cheese mixture onto the chilled biscuit base. Drop small teaspoon of blueberry pie filling over the cream cheese filling.

10.  With a chopstick or a clean stick, swirl to make some nice marbling design.

11.  Cover and chill for 6 hours or overnight for it to set.

Cut into small pieces, I got 16 and serve.

Hubby enjoyed it with a cup of coffee, as with a couple of others… yes, at midnight and he was snoring away at 1am when all guests left. (Chuckling)… coffee or espresso has never been able to keep hubby awake when it comes to sleeping time. Hahaha!

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Cheesecake Saturday...

It was raining again :-( after a couple of days hot-hot sun. Grey skies and feeling a little restless...I'm getting it from Max!

So, instead of staying home watching the rain drumming tit-tit-tat-tat rhythmically on the polycarbonate skylight and playing a game of chinese chess, we went for afternoon tea minus the tea...that is we had a afternoon with an espresso.

Espresso Cheesecake

Blueberry Cheesecake

Oreo Cheesecake

One of the best cheesecake in town, Secret Recipe,  Ooooo....absolutely yummy! Of the 3 flavours, I like Espresso Cheesecake the best, it's firm and rich with very strong aroma of espresso. The Blueberry is a bit too sweet for me and the Oreo is creamy and quite light & fluffy, almost mousse-like.

I managed to capture these delightful slices just before crumbs were all that is left ! What a cheessssssy afternoon...dinner was just a salad after a very satisfying & so filling tea-time.

:-)

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Christmas is coming...

“Jingle bells, jingle bells…” - I’m starting on my preparation for Christmas.

I know there’s still 28 days to Christmas but I’ve started my Christmas shopping, it’s going to take time to get the perfect gift. I love shopping for gifts and wrapping gifts. Sometimes, it’s so difficult to get the perfect gift… we can only guess what he/she needs by the hints (sometimes not so subtle uh? J ). Well, more like suitable gift.

I’ve drawn out my Action Plan, hahaha… that’s what I do… I have weekly plan, monthly plan and yearly plan so I just prepare a Christmas celebration plan! Easy & organized, right? … J My Strategic Christmas Plan! My Boss will be so proud of me...

First, draw up the Gift List so we’ll know how many gifts we need to get. Then, there is the Christmas baking, what are we going to bake and cook and what are we going to order from the Shops. Entertaining guests – are you hosting a family dinner, Christmas party or having the celebration at a posh hotel restaurant? It is best to make early plans so you don’t get run off your feet, getting the stuff, ingredients, gifts, send invitations and then you’ll be too tired to enjoy the fun.

This year, we’ll be celebrating at my aunt’s place, so it’s going to be easy for me. I’m already shopping for some gifts and will bring something from my kitchen.

There’s the fruitcake that I need to start baking next week for ourselves and some friends. And, I tried out a nice Christmassy jelly late last night. I need to improve on the timing and I found the jelly layers separating as I unmolded it. :-(

Here it is…

I'll be baking some cookies to gift to some friends... I think December is the busiest month for most though it's the school final term break where teachers get to rest & Moms get to climb trees (just joking!) keeping kids busy, most working people will be clearing annual leave, taking kids for holidays and some will be catching up with incomplete 2009 New Year Resolution. Err.. me too!

Meantime...Happy Thanksgiving !

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Red... Strawberry Mirror Cheesecake

Yay! I did it this time! J

I got the taste and texture right this time…hubby and the little prince both love it too. My lucky neighbours too!

I worked on it late last night and it’s well worth it. As I unmoulded it just now, I was a little apprehensive something might be wrong… the last time I made it…it was a real failure! I was worried it might be too runny, won’t set, strawberries floating or… or something. Luckily it looks almost perfect, the red strawberry-flavour jelly is very pretty looking and strawberries weren’t too tart.

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Layered Jelly

Lately, I seem to be making lots of chilled dessert... and this is another of my weekend experiment.

I just added another one to the collection, 2-tone layered jelly. A book, all on jelly and pudding in a bookstore caught my eyes a couple of weeks ago. They looked so delightful & colourful and that gave me an idea to experiment a little over the weekend.

The recipe is the same as Soymilk Jelly. I just tweaked it a little, used small cute jelly molds instead of a big glass dish, to create small cute individual chilled dessert. I used fresh soymilk instead of coconut milk or evaporated milk or condensed milk which can do as well.

And, the last piece...

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Grandma’s Birthday - Cappuccino Cake

This is the cake I made for my Mom’s birthday over the weekend. It’s a light and fluffy aromatic cappuccino sponge cake, frosted and topped with chocolate shavings.

Something is missing… I know, some big juicy strawberries would be great to complete the picture! I didn’t have time to get any. Mom love it, the kids love it, the family love it, despite the missing piece.

I had planned on getting some chocolate design.... but it's one of those..."when you rush-when you are short on time-when your kids needed your attention...." well, something like that. So this is the end result! Sigh!

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Strawberry Cheesecake …failed!

I have been planning to make Strawberry Cheesecake for a couple of weeks now but I must admit I FAILED! … (so sad), the taste is right, the texture is “No-No” and the looks, a big “No-No”.


As it’s my first attempt, I wasn’t confident of success so I used a small 12cm round pan and some cute small plastic cuppies.

Thinking back, these are my biggest mistakes,

1.   I accidentally poured whipped cream (before whipping) into the cream cheese mixture and whipped them together, the mixture started ‘separating’, almost like curdling. The texture is not smooth at all. Next time, I must remember to whip whipping cream separately and fold in gently.

2.   When I poured the jelly onto the cheesecake, the strawberry slices started ‘floating’ and some tiny bits of cheesecake also started floating to the top…arrrggh! I should have placed the pieces of strawberry slices on the cheese fillings right after pouring, for them to stick on
3.   Strawberry puree needed to be strained for a smooth cheese filling.

So, you can imagine my non-photogenic strawberry cheesecake cuppies...:-(

The recipe portion can make 1 piece of 12cm round cheesecake and 8 small cute cheese cuppies.

Well, Max likes the cute cheese cuppies very much, so did hubby. I kinda like the cute butterflies. The nice thing about using these plastic cuppies is that they can be covered and stacked neatly in the fridge. Great for serving chilled desserts at kids parties. Good idea, uh? 

Sigh! One of my kitchen disasters… but I'll try again when I can find some nice plum juicy strawberries.

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