Showing posts with label cake. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cake. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 15, 2017
Blueberry Lemon Buttermilk Cake
Blueberry Lemon Buttermilk Cake
The Legend of The Blue Sea Ep 19 Eng Sub ?? ??? ?? 19 ?
The Legend of the Blue Sea Episode 19
The Legend Of The Blue Sea Ep 19 Engsub - YouTube
Available link for download
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Boozy Yellow Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting and Caramelized White Chocolate Ganache
Boozy Yellow Birthday Cake with Chocolate Frosting and Caramelized White Chocolate Ganache

Guys, I'm 28 today.
I don't have too many feels about it, except that, according to this Buzzfeed article, it's supposed to be the best year of my twenties. I don't know about that, but I do know that I have a reservation at one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco, a new creme brûlée torch courtesy of the boyf (since I woefully gave mine away when I left Portland), and the BEST yellow birthday cake recipe to celebrate:


Because if you've been a reader of my blog for sometime, you'll know that I'm a firm believer in the fact that birthdays should be celebrated with a yellow cake covered in generous amounts of dark chocolate frosting. I made one for Erlend's birthday a few years ago, and I made myself this saffron butter cake with cardamom and milk chocolate fudge frosting last year.
I'm cheating a little bit with this year since this is actually the same recipe I made for Erlend with some slight variations. The original recipe is one of my favorites and comes from Miette, one of my favorite bakeries in San Francisco. Its a decadent butter cake that uses TEN egg yolks (and no egg whites!) to give the cake its sunny yellow color; the cake is then soaked with a simple syrup to keep it ever so moist.

So what did I do to a cake recipe that I love so much to make it even better? One word: BOOZE. Lots of it. Since I love the flavor combination of chocolate orange, I soaked the cake with a Grand Marnier syrup and added some orange zest to the yellow cake batter. The boozy orange paired wonderfully with the dark chocolate ganache frosting.
And because it was my birthday, I figured I'd be extra freaking decadent and top the cake off with a caramelized white chocolate ganache. Did you know that if you roast white chocolate at a low temperature for about an hour or so (but more on this later, in the baker's notes don't panic just yet!), it caramelizes and you get the most wonderful toasted white chocolate flavor? The end result is almost like a dulce de leche caramel and it's absolutely heavenly.
Some baker's notes:
- There's a lot going on with this cake, so I suggest breaking it down by making the cake first, and then the syrup two ganaches the following day. Make the cake first and cover it in plastic wrap and keep it in the refrigerator until you're ready to frost it the cake's butter flavor actually intensifies overnight.
- So, this cake uses a shit-ton of egg yolks. You will need to use an entire dozen's total for the cake and the frosting combined. I recognize the ridiculousness of that situation (but it was my birthday, and I had to indulge myself), so let me offer you up these recipes for the leftover eggwhites: use 4 egg whites for this rhubarb and pistachio pavlova, another 4 egg whites for this white chocolate malt cake, and the rest for an egg white scramble with a ton of spinach, fresh herbs, and gruyere.
- Let's talk more about caramelized white chocolate, because I know I just dropped it in there last minute like whoa. I first found out about the phenomenon ever since spying this recipe in Food52's Genius Recipes cookbook and I've been playing around with it since. My one complaint, however, is that the original recipe requires you to heat at a ridiculously low temperature (265 (F)) for almost an hour, along with stirring it every three minutes or so. It's fussy, because if the chocolate gets too hot, it seizes and turns into solid crumbles instead of caramelizing.
So a couple of things: because the oven in my new apartment runs so insanely hot and I really don't have time to stir something in the oven every 3 minutes, I started playing around with trying to find a shortcut. I found out that you can basically get the same result in almost a quarter of the time suggested by the original recipe if, instead of baking in an oven, you cook the white chocolate over the stovetop. The trick is to melt the white chocolate over low heat, and then once it's melted completely, turn the heat on high and to scorch it. Stirring constantly to distribute the heat evenly throughout the mixture achieves the same sort of caramelization, and I found that I actually had more control over the final flavor using the stovetop method because it's happening right in front of you, you can really control how roasted and caramelized you want the final product to be. - It took me a couple of times to get the ratio of white chocolate to cream for the topping; don't be afraid to troubleshoot it! If you find the ganache to be too runny, feel free to add a few more chunks of white chocolate to thicken it up. If it's too thick, add a splash of cream. The trick is to add just a little bit at a time to get the consistency you want. Because you're going to be pouring it over the cake, you're going to want a ganache that's still warm and just ever-so-slightly runnier than normal to get that pretty spilled frosting look. The ganache will set as it cools.
Available link for download
Thursday, March 30, 2017
Black Sesame Chiffon Cake
Black Sesame Chiffon Cake

It was my birthday a few weeks ago. Along with the pre-birthday blues, gifts and well wishes from dear friends and family that this day usually brings, it also came with the reminder just how fast time flies - no wonder the mark a persons life span is usually that quick dash sign - between the year of birth and year of death. (What a way to start this post...!)
Of the many goals Ive set for myself at the awareness of this flying time, one of them was to pick up my camera again and write. I almost forgot how much I miss interacting and sharing with you on this space!
I confess, being busy wasnt really the only reason why Ive been away for some time.

Throughout the past year, I have worked hard, played hard, traveled some, adjusted to changing circumstances, made new friends, mellowed and matured a little bit (hopefully). And in between all these activities, theres been a whole lot of sorrow and a whole lot of gladness.

With each passing week and month, I became more convinced that I no longer know which buttons to press on my camera. I once visited this space, and could not quite find the voice or words to begin the next post. Strange, isnt it? But I still continued to bake.

Anyways, so I am back! One year older and still just as clumsy at times. You see, this chiffon cake is a bit of a shorty. I was in such hurry to take photos with the limited and setting winter sun over here that I couldnt wait until it has cooled down completely (remember to invert your pan!) so it might have been a bit flat!
Chiffon cake is really all about the egg whites - if you whip it to the right consistency, you can be sure to have a pillowy soft result! Paired with one of my favourite ingredients, black sesame, I am ready to eat more cakes this winter!
Black Sesame Chiffon Cake
Ingredients:
- 4 large eggs
- 100 g cake flour
- 40-50g ground black sesame powder
- 1/3 cup sugar + 4 tablespoon for the egg whites.
- 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used grapeseed oil)
- 1/2 cup full fat milk
1. Heat the oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, sift together the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the black sesame powder and whisk the dry ingredients well to make sure they are thoroughly combined. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.

2. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks until pale yellow add the vegetable oil slowly. Continue beating until the mixture turns slightly thick.

3. Pour the egg yolks into the well, mix gently and add the milk. Beat the wet ingredients into the dry until completely smooth.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat the egg whites until foamy. With the mixer running, slowly rain in the remaining 4 tablespoon sugar. Continue to beat the whites until stiff peaks form when the beater is lifted.

5. Fold the beaten whites into the rest of the batter by gently spoon one-third at the time. Fold in the white slowly and carefully using a spatula. Be very gentle as you fold in the whites so you not deflate them. Gently fold in the remaining third of the whites. Spoon or gently pour the batter into a 10-inch ungreased angel food cake pan.

6. Place the pan in the middle of the oven and bake for 45 minutes at 160C (325F), and a toothpick inserted into the comes out clean.

7. Remove from heat and invert the pan over an inverted cup. Set the pan aside until cooled completely, 1 to 2 hours.

Available link for download
Sunday, February 12, 2017
Bourke Street Bakery Carrot cake recipe
Bourke Street Bakery Carrot cake recipe

One fine Sunday after church, Sister and I were due to have lunch at Friends so we decided to drop by the famous Bourke Street Bakery nearby to pick up a few items.
One should never turn up at a friends empty-handed. This is instructed in Mothers book of etiquette.
This tiniest bakery is located at a small corner in the artsy Surry Hills and from afar, I could see a long line of people waiting for their lazy Sundays caffeine and pastry/pie fix.
In my book of etiquette, one should also never turn up at a friends famished and low on sugar. It may result in unsightly and unlady-like table manners.
Something has to be done about it. So we indulged in....

the smoothiest and flakiest chocolate tart...

beef brisket pie and pork & fennel sausage roll...
And packed the following for post-lunch treats at Friends:

Lemon tart (I think I prefer Pierre Hermes recipe to this)...

Ginger brulee tart (so delicious - must try their Strawberry brulee tart next time)...

Carrot cake (see below for recipe)...

Bourke Street Bakery
633 Bourke Street Surry Hills (Corner Devonshire Street)Tel: (02) 9699-1011.
Hours: Tue-Fri 7am-6pm
Sat-Sun 8am-5pm
Ive started to see a trend recently - I love to incorporate veges and fruit in my baking! This carrot cake is definitely one fine example of it!
For this recipe - I substituted self-rising all purpose flour for self-rising wholemeal flour, which may be the reason why my cake didnt rise. I also omitted the cream from the frosting and used Greek style yoghurt as a substitute.
BSBs Carrot Cake
Serves 10
- 70 g (2 1/2 oz) walnuts
- 150 g (5 1/2 oz / 1 cup) self-raising flour (I used self-rising wholemeal flour)
- 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp ground cloves
- 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 55 ml (1 3/4 fl oz / about 2) egg whites
- 60g (2 1/4 oz / 1/4 cup) sugar for egg whites (I halved this)
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 160g (5 3/4 oz / 3/4 cup) sugar for egg yolks (I halves this)
- 170 ml (5 1/2 fl oz / 2/3 cup) extra light olive oil
- 125 g (4 1/2 oz) carrots, peeled and grated
- 20 g (3/4 oz / 1 tsp) icing sugar, plus extra, for dusting
- 20 g (3/4 oz / 1 tbsp) butter, softened
- 145 g (5 1/4 oz) cream cheese
- 40 ml (1 1/4 fl oz / 2 tbsp) pouring (whipping) cream (35% fat) (I used greek yoghurt instead)
Method1. Preheat the oven to 200C (400F). Grease an 18 cm (7 inch) round cake tin and line the base and side with baking paper - the paper should protrude about 2.5 cm (1 inch) above the tin.
2. Place the walnuts on a baking tray and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until lightly roasted. Cool and cut into thirds. Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, spices and salt into a bowl. Repeat to ensure they are evenly mixed.
3. Put the egg whites in a very clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks start to form. Slowly pour in the sugar for the egg whites, while the motor is still running, being careful not to overmix - the meringue should reach soft peak stage. Quickly transfer the meringue to another bowl and set side until needed.
4. Put the egg and egg yolk in the bowl of the electric mixer and add the sugar for the egg yolks. Mix on high speed for 3-4 minutes, or until the mixture doubles in volume and is quite airy. With the motor still running, slowly pour in the oil in a thin stream being careful that it doesnt split or deflate too much.
5. Remove the bowl from the mixer and with a spatula or gloved hand, gently fold in the flour mixture until combined. Fold in the carrots and walnuts. Quickly and lightly fold in the meringue - do not fold it through completely, you should still be able to see streaks of meringue through the mix.
2. Place the walnuts on a baking tray and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until lightly roasted. Cool and cut into thirds. Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, spices and salt into a bowl. Repeat to ensure they are evenly mixed.
3. Put the egg whites in a very clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks start to form. Slowly pour in the sugar for the egg whites, while the motor is still running, being careful not to overmix - the meringue should reach soft peak stage. Quickly transfer the meringue to another bowl and set side until needed.
4. Put the egg and egg yolk in the bowl of the electric mixer and add the sugar for the egg yolks. Mix on high speed for 3-4 minutes, or until the mixture doubles in volume and is quite airy. With the motor still running, slowly pour in the oil in a thin stream being careful that it doesnt split or deflate too much.
5. Remove the bowl from the mixer and with a spatula or gloved hand, gently fold in the flour mixture until combined. Fold in the carrots and walnuts. Quickly and lightly fold in the meringue - do not fold it through completely, you should still be able to see streaks of meringue through the mix.

6. Pour into the preapred tin and bake for 1 hour 10 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into centre of the cake comes out clean.
7. Meanwhile, make the cream cheese frosting. Cream the icing sugar and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until pale and smooth. Add the cream cheese in small amounts, allowing it to completely incorporated before adding the rest. Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl during this process to ensure even mixing. Add the cream and mix until smooth, being careful not to overmix at this stage or the cream may curdle and separate. If using a different type of cream cheese for this recipe you may need to add a little more cream - the frosting needs to be of a spreadable consistency but not at all runny.
8. Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for about 30 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Using a serrate knife, slice horizontally through the centre of the cake to form two even-sized layers and fill with cream cheese frosting.

Verdict?!
My version is definitely a little bit more dense than Bourke St. Bakerys as I used wholemeal flour instead. I would also recommend that you half the sugar as I did...its sweet enough (I guess that is a personal preference). Nevertheless, the cake is still delicious with crunchy wholesomeness from the walnuts and full of aroma from the spices!
Available link for download
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