Macadamia Nutella Brownies

I simply couldn’t find anymore excuses not to bake such easy fuss free 3-ingredient brownies.  Oh! Found a pack of macadamia nuts in my pantry ! To provide a balance to the sweetness and chocolaty of these fudgy crunchy macadamia nuts brownies, I sprinkled a little of flaky sea salt.  Taste really amazing.  

Recipe adapted from here with slight adjustments made.

Macadamia Nutella Brownies

Ingredients:

325g Nutella

2 large eggs + 1 large egg yolk, room temperature (size of my egg is 60g each with shell)

62g all-purpose plain flour

1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt

80g macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180ºC.  Position the rack in the middle. The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust the temperature and timing to suit your oven.

Line an 8 x 8 inch square pan with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the Nutella and eggs until smooth and combined.

Add the flour and mixed until combined.  Fold in the macadamia nuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, sprinkle the flaky sea salt.

Bake for about 20 - 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a little batter and a few moist clumps clinging to it.  Do not over bake as overbaking will create a dry brownie.

Remove the pan from oven and let cool on a wire rack before cutting into squares.

Served warm for brekkie with a glass of cold milk.

Happy baking!

Lychee Martini Cake

This is not the first time that I've added some alcohol in dessert bbq orange parcels or in some cooking.  Have heard about Lychee Martini Cake (source Recipe lychee cake) but have not tasted one.

Baked this cake with some adjustments made to my personal preference.
Lychee Martini Cake (7-inch round cake)
Ingredients (A) : Lychee soak in rum
1 cann of lychee
60 - 80 ml Bacardi white rum (you can use Vodka, Martini)

Drain the cann of lychee and cut into small pieces. You can  reserve the #syrup to make syrup water, cold drinks or make cocktail. Put the cut lychee pieces into a bowl of 80ml of white rum and soak for a few hours. Best if it is overnight.

For the Sponge Cake (adapted from mini mango charlotte cake ) :
Ingredients:
3 Eggs (the size of my egg is 60g each with shell)
85 grams Caster sugar
100 grams Cake flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
15 grams Vegetable oil
10 grams Unsalted Butter
30 grams Fresh Milk
*1 teaspoon of rum from the soaked lychee

Method:
1) Preheat oven to 170°C. Position the rack in center of oven. Note : The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust accordingly.

2) Lay a 7- inch round pan with parchment paper greased with butter. Set aside.

3) Sift the cake flour and baking powder together and set aside.
Separate the eggs into yolks and whites. (Note that I prefer using cold eggs)

4) Melt butter and milk in a heatproof dish. Once melted, add the vegetable oil and mix well.

5) In a clean mixing bowl, whisk the cold egg whites till foamy using the electric mixer. Gradually add in caster sugar in 3 separate additions and beat till stiff peak, formed into a firm meringue.

6) Add the egg yolks to the meringue and whisk on low until evenly combined (about 1 minute).  Add in *1 teaspoon rum.

7) Next, fold in the sifted flour in 3 separate additions, folding gently with a spatula until combined.

8) Mix in the melted butter mixture in 2 separate additions with a spatula.

9) Pour batter into the prepared cake pan. Tap the pan lightly on a table top a few times to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

10) Bake for about 30 minutes or until the cake surface turns golden brown.  Check for doneness with a skewer or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake if it comes out clean.  (I tent it with aluminium foil in the last 10 minutes of baking).

11) When the pan was removed from the oven, I used the suggested technique to drop the pan at a height of 20~30cm onto a table top. This action helps to keep the springy texture of the cake when it is left to cool.

12) Carefully invert cake pan onto wire rack, remove pan and the parchment paper for cake to cool completely on wire rack.

Ingredients B : Lychee icing
350ml whipping cream (note I left with this amount, can use 400 to 500ml)
2 tablespoon icing sugar (add more if you prefer it sweeter)
1 teaspoon Bacardi rum (optional)

Method:
1. Remove the bowl of soaked chopped lychee from fridge, drain and reserve the liquid.

2. Freeze the cleaned mixing bowl for about 15 minutes.  Take it out from the freezer, immediately put all together the cold whipping cream, icing sugar and rum in the cold mixing bowl. Use the electric mixer to whisk till ribbon and a soft peak form.

3. Scoop about 100g of whipping cream and mix with the chopped lychee pieces.

4. Fill some whipped cream in a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle.

To make the syrup water:
2 tablespoon rum (from the soaked lychee)
3 tablespoon lychee #syrup
Mix them and pour the syrup water either into a sprayed bottle or small bowl.

To assemble:
1) With one hand firmly on top of the cake, run a serrated knife around the centre of the cake and slice horizontally into 2 even layers.

2) Spread some whipped cream onto the cake board to stick the bottom cake layer. Place the half of one cake on a cake board and place it on a turntable.

3) Brush the cake top or spray the surface with syrup water. Pipe outer ring with whipped cream. Spoon the lychee cream mixture to fill the center. Then use a straight spatula or off set spatula to evenly frost the lychee cream mixture.  Gently stack the other half cake on top of each other, brush a little syrup water and frost the top with some whipped cream.

4) Apply crumb coat - Use spatula to add frosting to the sides / top of the cake. Wipe the excess frosting off with spatula into a bowl.  Chill in the fridge for 30 min.

5) Frost the cake using the remaining whipping cream.  Wipe the excess frosting off with spatula into a bowl.  When the sides are done, smooth out the top edge. Using your spatula, smooth the excess frosting inward toward the center of the cake. Decorate the cake as desires.

Looks like I'm getting back my motivation in baking cream cakes :)
Enjoy & happy baking !

Blueberry Compote Cake

Looks like I got the hang of baking cream cakes for our weekends snacks.  Afterall, my 2 adults enjoy homebaked cakes.

Using the same sponge cake adapted from Strawberry cake, this time I added homemade simple blueberry compote as filling.  Perfect combination ! I just love the tangy compote with natural sweetness sandwich between the sponge layers.

Blueberry Compote Cake
Ingredients:
3 eggs (60g with shell each)
110g caster sugar
33g unsalted butter melted
53g milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
120g cake flour - sifted

To make simple syrup water :
About 150ml water
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan, boil over medium flame over the stove.

Stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture is clear, approximately 3 to 5 minutes. Put aside to cool.

For the filling :
Blueberry Compote
300g blueberries
2 tablespoon honey
2 tablesppon water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Combine all ingredients in a small pot and cook over low flame for about 8 - 10 mins.
Stirring and meshing the blueberries ocasionally till all softened. Leave cool and the mixture will be slightly thickened.

For whipped cream
200ml Whipping cream
10 grams caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method :
1) Preheat oven to 170°C. Position the rack in center of oven. Note : The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust accordingly.

2) Lay a 7- inch round pan with parchment paper greased with butter. Set aside.

3) Fill 3/4 cooking pot with water and bring to a boil.  Off the fire remove the pot from stove.  In a stainless steel bowl placed over the cooking pot of hot water, whisk together the eggs, caster sugar and vanilla extract with a whisk. Test batter with thermometer for temperature reached 40 degree celsius.  Remove the bowl from the cooking pot.

4) Combine the milk and butter in a small bowl and put into the pot of hot water to melt the mixture.

5) With electric mixer, beat in low - medium speed the egg batter until smooth, light (about 3 to 4 minutes), switch to high speed and continue to beat for about 5 minutes and ribbon trail forms when whisk lifted up.

6) Add in the sifted cake flour. With a spatula, fold in the flour gently till combined.

7) Remove the butter and milk mixture from the pot. Add a spoonful of batter and mix it with the butter and milk mixture. Pour all into the batter, fold and mix well with a spatula.

8) Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  Smooth the top evenly with a spatula.  Lightly tap the pan  2 - 3 times on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.  Bake in preheated oven for about 35 - 40 minutes.

9) Check for doneness with a skewer or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake if it comes out clean.

10) Remove cake from pan, remove the parchment paper and place cake onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the whipped cream:
Freeze the cleaned mixing bowl for about 5 minutes.  Take it out from the freezer, immediately put all together the cold whipping cream,  vanilla extract and caster sugar in the cold mixing bowl. Use the electric mixer to whisk from low speed (about 1 min) then change to high speed until medium to stiff peaks form.  Do not over beat.

Add 1 tablespoon of blueberry compote to the whipped cream, mix well.

Fill some whipped cream in a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle.

To assemble:
1) With one hand firmly on top of the cake, run a serrated knife around the centre of the cake and slice in half horizontally for 2 layers.

2) Spread some whipped cream onto the cake board to stick the bottom cake layer. Place the half of one cake on a cake board and place it on a turntable.

3) Brush the top with a little syrup water. Pipe outer ring with whipped cream. Spoon the blueberry compote to fill the center. Gently stack the other half cake on top of each other, brush a little syrup water and frost the top with some whipped cream.

4) Use spatula to add frosting to the sides of the cake. Wipe the excess frosting off with spatula into a bowl.  When the sides are done, smooth out the top edge. Using your spatula, smooth the excess frosting inward toward the center of the cake.

5) Decorate the top as desires. Chill in the refrigerator for a few hours for the frosting to set before slicing and eating.

Baked a cream cheese frosting blueberry compote birthday cake to a dear frend.
Looked lovely and so glad she had given good compliments to the cake.

Cream Cheese Icing
Enough to frost a 7 inch cake
200g cream cheese, softened
100g unsalted butter, softened
80g sifted icing sugar
1 - 2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 - 2 tablespoon fresh milk (adjust the texture to your preference)

To make cream cheese icing:
1) Allow cream cheese and butter to stand at room temperature. In large mixing bowl beat cream cheese and butter with mixer on medium-high until light and fluffy. Add in fresh milk and lemon juice and whisk to combine.

2) Gradually add in the powdered sugar in 3 additions, beating well. Scrape the sides of the bowl if necessary.  Beat until it reach spreading consistency.

Enjoy & happy baking !

Strawberry Cake (mini semi-naked cake)

It's been quite a long while that I've baked a decent layered cake with cream frosting.  Occasionally I would make simple creamy cakes for brithday or tea-time treats.  Had been craving for whipped cream cake but don't wish to indulge in 'too much sweet creamy' cake so a semi-naked cake would be just right to satisfy my craving :)

Strawberry cake (mini semi-naked cake)
Recipe adapted from : https://youtu.be/bqXSNXMf760
I've omitted the corn syrup and reduced caster sugar slightly, below my slight modification adjusted to my preference.

Ingredients:
3 eggs (60g with shell each)
110g caster sugar
33g unsalted butter melted
53g milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
120g cake flour - sifted

To make simple syrup water :
About 150ml water
2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan, boil over medium flame over the stove.
Stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture is clear, approximately 3 to 5 minutes. Put aside to cool.

For the filling :
200ml Whipping cream
10 grams caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
250g Strawberry - washed and pat dry, hulled and chopped into small pieces. *I reserved about 8 - 10 whole pieces to decorate the cake.

Method :
1) Preheat oven to 170°C. Position the rack in center of oven. Note : The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust accordingly.

2) Lay a 7- inch round pan with parchment paper greased with butter. Set aside.

3) Fill 3/4 cooking pot with water and bring to a boil.  Off the fire remove the pot from stove.  In a stainless steel bowl placed over the cooking pot of hot water, whisk together the eggs, caster sugar and vanilla extract with a whisk. Test batter with thermometer for temperature reached 40 degree celsius.  Remove the bowl from the cooking pot.

4) Combine the milk and butter in a small bowl and put into the pot of hot water to melt the mixture.

5) With electric mixer, beat in low - medium speed the egg batter until smooth, light (about 3 to 4 minutes), switch to high speed and continue to beat for about 5 minutes and ribbon trail forms when whisk lifted up.

6) Add in the sifted cake flour. With a spatula, fold in the flour gently till combined.

7) Remove the butter and milk mixture from the pot. Add a spoonful of batter and mix it with the butter and milk mixture. Pour all into the batter, fold and mix well with a spatula.

8) Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  Smooth the top evenly with a spatula.  Lightly tap the pan  2 - 3 times on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.  Bake in preheated oven for about 35 - 40 minutes.

9) Check for doneness with a skewer or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake if it comes out clean.

10) Remove cake from pan, remove the parchment paper and place cake onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the whipped cream:
Freeze the cleaned mixing bowl for about 5 minutes.  Take it out from the freezer, immediately put all together the cold whipping cream,  vanilla extract and caster sugar in the cold mixing bowl. Use the electric mixer to whisk from low speed about 1 min) then change to high speed until medium to stiff peaks form.  Do not over beat.

Stir and mix in the chopped strawberries.

To assemble:
1) With one hand firmly on top of the cake, run a serrated knife around the centre of the cake and slice in half horizontally for even layers. (I made 2 layers instead of 3).

2) Spread some whipped cream onto the cake board to stick the bottom cake layer. Place the half of one cake on a cake board and place it on a turntable.

3) Brush the top with a little syrup water. Then use a straight spatula or an off-set spatula to evenly frost the top. Gently stack the other half cake on top of each other, brush a little syrup water and frost the top with some whipped cream. 

4) Use spatula to add frosting to the sides of the cake. Smooth out the sides and allow the cake to peek through.  Wipe the excess frosting off with spatula into a bowl.  When the sides are done, smooth out the top edge. Using your spatula, smooth the excess frosting inward toward the center of the cake.

5) Decorate the top with some strawberries, as desires. Chill in the refrigerator for a few hours for the frosting to set before slicing and eating.

Ta-da! Glad that we enjoyed this fruity whipped cream cake for our afternoon break!

Happy baking!

Fruit Pastry Cake

I remembered I learned to bake this fruit pastry cake about 6 years ago as it was very popularly shared by recipe bloggers then.  A butter cake of light texture with a combination of fruity bites. 

My girl invited 2 friends over for lunch.  Since I have some strawberries and a can of peaches, decided to bake a tray of fruit pastry cake for their afternoon snack.  And it was very well received.

Adapted from recipe source: Happy Homebaking, Anncoo Journal

Pan size : 9-inch round pan or 8-inch square pan
Ingredients:
100g unsalted butter, soften at room temperature
200g caster sugar (I cut down to160g)
50g yogurt
3 eggs, lightly beaten, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest
210g plain flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon baking powder
400-500g fruits and tossed with 2 tablespoon sugar* (I omitted tossing with sugar)
You can use strawberries, peaches, blueberries, peaches, bananas, oranges, pears, apples, pineapple, or any other fruits that are not too juicy.

Method:
1) Grease the sides of an 8-inch square pan with butter or spray. Lightly coat with flour.  Line the base of the pan with lightly greased parchment paper.

2) Combine plain flour and baking powder in a dry clean bowl. Sieve and set aside.

3) Wash and drain the fruits. Cut in slices or chunks and toss with sugar (if desired) and set aside. If using canned fruits, wash the fruits to remove the syrup, drain and pat dry with kitchen towel. Set aside.

4) Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC. Position the rack in the middle. The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust the temperature and timing to suit your oven.

5) In a clean mixing bowl, cream together the butter, castor sugar, and yogurt until light and fluffy using an electric mixer on medium speed. Dribble in the eggs gradually and beat till incorporated in the batter. (The mixture may appear slightly curdled.)

6) Add vanilla extract and zest. Mix to combine.

7) Add in the flour in 3 additions, mix till combined and smooth.

8) Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with spatula. Tap the pan lightly on a table top a few times to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

9) Arrange fruits on top, don’t press the fruits down into the batter. Decorate the fruits as desired.

10) Bake in pre-heat oven for 60-70 minutes or until golden brown.
*note: tent it with aluminium foil in the last 15-20 minutes of baking.

11) To check for doneness, insert a skewer or toothpick in the center of the cake if it comes out clean

12) Leave the cake to cool in the pan for about 5~10 mins. Unmould and transfer to wire rack to let cool completely.

To serve, dust the cake with some snow powder sugar if you like.

While cooling on rack, the fruity tangy fragrance filled the dining place. Finally! Served the cake and glad that they enjoyed it.

Happy baking!

Chocolate Orange Chiffon Cake

I remembered that I've tried making some curvy waves on one chiffon cake Trio colour chiffon cake 2 but that was to spoon the batter to create the curves.

After my attempt in making a hurrican swiss roll, I saw another sharing of hurrican pattern chiffon cake in video link https://youtu.be/ANLDACjWWGo

I used one of my chiffon cake recipes here  and modified/adjusted for this chocolate and orange flavour.

Chocolate Orange Chiffon Cake
17cm chiffon pan
Ingredients:
For egg yolk batter :
4 egg yolks
20 grams caster sugar
30 grams canola oil
45 grams fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
75 grams cake flour, sifted

1.5 tablespoon cocoa powder - sifted

For meringue :
4 egg whites
50 grams caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Method:
1) Separate the eggs into yolks and whites. (the size of my egg is 60g each with shell)

2) Position the rack in 2nd bottom level and preheat oven to 160°C.
(Note: The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust accordingly)

3) In a clean mixing bowl, whisk the cold egg whites and lemon juice till foamy using the electric stand mixer. Gradually add in caster sugar in 3 separate additions and beat till stiff peak, formed into a firm meringue. Transfer to a big bowl and chill in the fridge.

4) In the same mixing bowl, cream together egg yolks and caster sugar until pale and thickened using the electric mixer (about 3 - 4 minutes).  Add oil, orange juice and zest and whisk until the mixture is combined.

5) Sieve in cake flour and whisk again until mixture is well combined.

6) Scoop about 1/2 of the batter and add 1.5 tablespoon cocoa powder, mix well.

7) Divide the meringue into 2 portions: for cocoa mixture and the remaining for orange mixture.

8) Gently fold meringue (in 2 batches) into the cocoa mixture with a manual whisk or spatula until it looks evenly mixed (no streaks of meringue).

9) Gently fold the meringue (in 2 batches) into the orange mixture with a manual whisk or spatula until it looks evenly mixed (no streaks of meringue).

10) Pour the vanilla batter into the un-greased chiffon pan.
Smooth the top evenly with spatula. Lightly tap the pan  2 - 3 times on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

11) Gently spoon the cocoa batter on to the vanilla batter using a big spoon.

To make the hurrican effect on the side, use the base of a spatula/spoon to draw circle upwards and downwards. Repeat till it reach one full circle.

12) Bake in a preheated 160ºC for 10 minutes. 
Then lower the temperature to 130ºC and bake for 30-35 minutes.

13) Cover with a piece of loose foil over the pan if top of the cake is browning too quickly.  Bake until the cake surface turns golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

14) When the pan was removed from the oven, I used the suggested technique to drop the pan at a height of 20~30cm onto a table top. This action helps to keep the springy texture of the cake when it is left to cool.

15) Immediately invert the pan to cool before unmoulding the cake from pan. To unmould cake by hand, gently pull cake from the sides of the tube pan. Turn the cake pan over and press down on the bottom firmly to dislodge. Gently pull the cake from the base around the edge and around the whole cake. Continue to lift up the cake and moving inwards until you reach the tube.

Well, I didn't achieve those powerful hurricane effect on my chiffon cake :(

Hope to perfect it in my next attempt.

Nutella Marble Cake

We love anything with Nutella.  Even spread on bread tastes so yummy good.  I've added Nutella in some of my cake baking or as filling :
Nutella butter cake
Nutella bundt cake
Mini baked cheese cupcake

For this Nutella Marble Cake, it is used as filling, piped into the cake.  I supposed Nutella could be spreaded over the cake to save the hassle of piping it?  Whichever way, I'm sure the cake tastes just as good.  Nicely browned although the 'marbling' or zebra effect didn't turn out well.  We like the light not too greasy texture.

Nutella Marble Cake
Recipe source YouTube : https://youtu.be/SESRnQy0S_g
Ingredients:
3 eggs (60g with shell each)
90g caster sugar
40g unsalted butter
45g milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
100g cake flour
10g honey

20g warm milk or warm water
10g cocoa powder

70g Nutella

Method :
1) Preheat oven to 170°C. Position the rack in center of oven. Note : The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust accordingly.

2) Lay a 4x8- inch loaf pan with parchment paper greased with butter.

3)  On the stove, 3/4-fill a cooking pot with water and bring to a simmer.  In a stainless steel bowl placed over a pot of simmering water, whisk together the eggs, caster sugar, vanilla extract and honey with a whisk. Test batter with thermometer for temperature reached 40 degree celsius.  Remove the bowl from pot.

4) Combine the milk and butter in a small bowl and put into the pot of hot water to warm the mixture.

5) With electric mixer, beat in medium speed the egg batter until smooth, light (about 5 minutes) and ribbon trail forms when whisk lifted up.

6) Sift in the cake flour. With a spatula, fold in the flour till combined.

7) Remove the butter and milk mixture from the pot. Add a spoonful of batter and mix it with the butter and milk mixture. Pour all into the batter, fold and mix well with a spatula.

8) Divide the batter, pour half into a jug.

9) Add warm milk or water to cocoa powder and mix well. Mix in one portion of the vanilla batter and pour the batter into another jug.

10) Begin from the middle of the pan (the long length), pour some of the vanilla batter, fill the base for this first layer.  Then pour the cocoa batter in the middle of the pan.  Alternate the process with vanilla batter till finished up the batters. Lightly tap the pan  2 - 3 times on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter. Bake in preheated oven for about 30 minutes.

11) Check for doneness with a skewer or toothpick inserted into the center of the cake if it comes out clean.

12) Remove cake from pan onto a wire rack to cool completely.

13) Insert with a chopstick into the cake to make 3 or 4 holes in a row in the middle of the cake.

14) Fill Nutella in a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle. Push the piping tip into the hole and pipe/squeeze some amount.

Slice the cake and serve !

Enjoy !

Hurricane Swiss Roll (cocoa & vanilla)

Update on 27 August.  As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. My 3rd attempt in Hurricane swiss roll and so glad it turned out well. Same recipe but added whole strawberries in the filling and managed to achieve a rounder roll. 

2nd attempt in Hurricane Swiss Roll

I've been wanting to make this Hurricane Swiss Roll when it was so popular sharing in FB and by many recipe bloggers two years ago.

Finally ... had some fun to try it out together with my baking kakis (friends) on a relaxing weekend afternoon.  But the cake sheet was too thick (I knew cos I didn't have the right pan size) and the roll broke and turned out flat.  But we loved the fluffy soft roll texture.

I made another attempt the next day with scale down the ingredient quantity.

Recipe adapted from Bakingintotheether typhoon chiffon swiss roll with my adjustment made for a 10 x 10 inch tray.

Hurrican Swiss Roll (Vanilla & Chocolate)
Ingredients (10 × 10 inch tray)
Vanilla batter:
2 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
25g canola oil
40g milk
45g cake flour, sifted

Cocoa batter:
2 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
25g canola oil
40g milk
30g cake flour, sifted          }combine and sift
15g cocoa powder, sifted   }

Meringue
4 egg white
60g caster sugar

For the filling:
200g cold whipping cream
15g caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method :
1) Sift the flour and set aside. You will need a baking sheet/tray 10 x 10 inch size, line with parchment paper and lightly grease with butter.  Preheat the oven to 170°C and position the rack in center of oven.

2) Separate the eggs into yolks and whites.
(the size of an egg is 60g with shell)

3) For the vanilla batter, cream egg yolks until pale and thick using the electric mixer (about 4 minutes).  Add in vanilla extract, canola oil and milk and continue beating till it incorporated.

4) Add the sifted flour and mix with manual whisk until combined/no longer lumpy. Set aside.

5) In another mixing bowl, repeat the same process to make the cocoa batter. Set aside.

6) In a clean mixing bowl, whisk the cold egg whites and  till foamy using the electric mixer.  Gradually add in caster sugar in 3 separate additions and beat till stiff peak, formed into a firm meringue.

7) Gently fold in about 1/2 of the meringue (in 2 batches) into the vanilla batter with a manual whisk or spatula until it looks evenly mixed (no streaks of meringue).

8) Gently fold in the remaining  1/2 meringue (in 2 batches) into the cocoa batter with a manual whisk or spatula until it looks evenly mixed (no streaks of meringue).

9) Pour the vanilla batter onto the baking sheet. Using a spatula, quickly spread evenly the top. Then carefully use a big spoon to spoon the cocoa batter on top of the vanilla batter.  Briefly level evenly with the back of the spoon.

10) Draw lines closely for the entire sheet from left to right using a chopstick, then repeat the lines vertically for the entire pan.

At this stage, DO NOT attempt to level surface as you may risk tainting the cocoa top with original batter.

11) Gently tap the baking sheet a few times on table top to release the trapped bubbles in the batter.

12) Bake in pre-heated oven for about 15 - 17 minutes or the top is evenly light browned, and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

13) Remove the baking tray from the oven, immediately drop the baking tray at a height onto a table top. This action helps to keep the springy texture of the sponge when it is left to cool.

14) Remove the sponge from the tray by lifting the parchment paper and place it on the cooling rack. Cover the surface with the tray for about 3 minutes to retain its soft and moist for easy rolling.

15) Remove the tray and turn/flip the 'skin' side over onto another clean sheet of parchment paper. Peel off and remove the other sheet of parchment paper.

16) Spread the whipped cream on the sponge. Spread more cream on the edge closest to you. Roll up gently by lifting it up with the parchment paper. Place the rolled cake seam side down. Wrap with parchment paper and chill in the refrigerator for a few hours before cutting and serving.

To make the whipped cream:

(Note: I've prepared the whipped cream in advance of baking and chilled it in the fridge till ready to spread the sponge roll).

Freeze the cleaned mixing bowl for about 10 minutes.  Take it out from the freezer, immediately put all together the cold whip cream, vanilla extract and caster sugar in the cold mixing bowl. Use the electric mixer to whisk till stiff peaks form.

Glad that able to roll it abit rounder but some of the 'skin' peeled off :(



Practice makes perfect.  Hope a achieve a perfect hurricane on my next bake. Until then, we enjoyed a slice of this hurricane swiss roll with a cup coffee !

Happy baking!

Roselle Jam Chiffon Cake

The homemade Roselle jam  in the jar left with just a few tablespoon, so I just simply add them to bake a roselle jam chiffon cake.  Baked the cake on a weeknight for the next morning's breakfast.  Adjusted the recipe from Apricot yogurt chiffon cake

Roselle Jam Chiffon Cake
17cm chiffon pan

Ingredients :
For the yolk mixture
4 egg yolk
30g canola oil
35g caster sugar
50g yogurt
50g roselle jam
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
80g cake flour (sifted)

For the meringue
4 egg white
2 - 3 drops of lemon juice
35g caster sugar

Method :
1) Separate the eggs into yolks and whites. (the size of my egg is 65g each with shell)

2) Position the rack in the lowest level and preheat oven to 170°C.

3) In a dry clean mixing bowl, beat the cold egg whites and lemon juice till foamy using the electric stand mixer. Gradually add in caster sugar in 3 separate additions and beat till stiff peak, formed into a stiff peak meringue. Transfer to a big bowl and chill in the fridge.

4) In the same mixing bowl, cream together egg yolks and caster sugar until pale and thickened using the electric mixer (about 3 - 4 minutes). Add canola oil and lemon juice and continue beating till combined.  Next, add the yogurt and jam and whisk until the mixture is combined.

5) Sift in cake flour and salt and whisk again until mixture is well combined.

6) Gently but quickly fold 1/3 of the meringue into the yolk mixture with a manual whisk. Fold the remaining meringue in 2 batches into the mixture until it looks evenly mixed (no streaks of meringue).

7) Pour the batter into the un-greased chiffon pan. Lightly tap the pan a few times on a table top to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

8) Bake in a preheated 170ºC for 10 mins. Reduce to 160ºC and continue baking for 25 mins or until the cake surface turns golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Cover with a piece of loose foil over the pan if top of the cake is browning too quickly.
(Note: The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust accordingly and observe especially in the last 10 - 15 minutes of baking.)

9) Remove the chiffon pan from the oven, drop the pan at a height of 20~30cm onto a table top. This action helps to keep the springy texture of the cake when it is left to cool.

10) Immediately invert the pan to cool before unmoulding the cake from pan.
*note: to unmould the cake:
a) Run a thin-bladed knife or palette knife around the edge of the pan and the funnel. Release the cake and run the knife along the base of the pan to remove the cake.
Or
b) By hand, gently pull cake from the sides of the tube pan. Turn the cake pan over and press down on the bottom firmly to dislodge.  Gently pull the cake from the base around the edge and around the whole cake. Continue to lift up the cake and moving inwards until you reach the tube.

Soft texture with the slight burst of fruity tangy jam flavor in each mouthful bite  ... glad that my big kids loved it.  Two slices for me paired with a cup of hot coffee ! That's how I enjoyed my early morning brekkie :)

Happy baking !

Vanilla Cocoa Banana Mini Cakes

My big kids like chocolaty bitter-sweet flavor cakes.  They like banana butter cake too. So pairing of vanilla + cocoa banana cake won't go wrong.  Instead of using the normal baking pan, I used muffin pan to make a few mini cakes.

Recipe adapted from here Black & White Banana Cake with slight ajustment made.

Vanilla Cocoa Banana Mini Cakes
Ingredients
110g salted butter, softened at room temperature
130g caster sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
200g ripe bananas, peeled & mashed
190g cake flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

20g  unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

Method :
1) Preheat oven to 180°C and position the rack in center of oven. (Note: the oven temperature may vary, do adjust accordingly).

2) I used a square muffin pan, lightly greased with butter, makes 8 mini cakes.

3) In a big clean bowl, combine the sifted flour, baking soda, baking powder and set aside.

4) In a mixing bowl, cream the butter with electric mixer in low speed. Gradually add the caster sugar.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and continue to cream until the mixture is smooth (about 5 minutes). Add in the egg and vanilla extract, followed by mashed bananas and continue to cream for about 1 - 2 minutes.

5) Add in half the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. Pour the remaining flour and mix until just combined.

6) Spoon about 1 and half tablespoon of batter for each of the 8 muffin cups, smooth the surface.

Add the cocoa powder to the remaining batter, mix well and gently spoon 1 tablespoon over the top of the vanilla batter.

7) Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes. Check for doneness with a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake if it comes out clean. 

8) Let the cakes cool for 5 minutes in the muffin pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before storing in airtight container. Serve warm if you like you.
Do not leave the cakes in the muffin pan otherwise the base will be soggy.

Overall, the taste is a mix of bitter-sweetness.  Love the fragrance of the banana and a hint of bitter cocoa flavor ! Enjoy with a cup of coffee for our afternoon coffee break.

Have a great weekend and happy baking !

Nutella Bundt Cake

Had not been baking cakes in the past 2 months.  Not even try picking up to bake some hassle free muffins on weekends.  No time to bake ?!  Well, just my excuses and excuses ... but I'm coming through in some hard times.  Ya, needed to sort out some personal things that had affected my emotion.

Well, glad I've managed to sort things out, a breeze to relax and enjoy a slice of warm buttery Nutella filled butter cake on a sunny afternoon.

Tweaked/adjusted from the previous bundt cakes recipe that I've attempted here 

Nutella Bundt Cake

Recipe:
Makes one 6-cup Bundt pan or one 8-inch cake pan.
Ingredients (A)
113g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon salt
90g castor sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature (the size of my egg is 60g each with shell)

Ingredients (B)
100g All-purpose plain flour
80g cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Ingredients (C)
100g full cream fresh milk

4 - 5 tablespoons Nutella

Method:
Preheat the oven to 170ºC. Position the rack in the middle. The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust the temperature and timing to suit your oven.

Combine Ingredients (B) in a medium bowl, sifted and set aside

Grease the 6-cup Bundt pan lightly with some *vegetable oil using brush or with kitchen towel, set aside.
(*or well-greased with butter and lightly flour)

In a clean mixing bowl beat together the butter, castor sugar, and salt until light and fluffy using an electric mixer on medium speed.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

With the mixer on low speed, add alternately the ingredients (B) & (C) starting with B (flour mixture in three additions) and milk (in two additions) [starting and ending with the flour mixture]. Mix well until just combined for each addition.

Pour half the batter into bundt pan and smooth the top. Next, spoon about 4 to 5 tablespoonfuls of Nutella and lightly spread evenly over the batter. Pour the rest off the batter in the pan, smooth the top.
*note: you could aslo make a swirl with a knife or skewer if you like. But I preferred the thick Nutella spread sandwiched in this bundt cake.

Tap the pan lightly on a table top a few times to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

Bake the cake in preheated 170°C oven for 40 to 45 minutes.  Check for doneness, insert a skewer in the center if it comes out clean with a few moist clumps clinging to it. Do not over bake else it will be dry.

Enjoy!

Coffee Walnut Streusel Cake

Have been cracking my head ... what cake to bake for Father's Day celebration at home. My hubby loves beer and coffee (well, most guys do ... don't they? hee.. hee !) ... Obviously, I can't bake a "beer cake".  He didn't like too sweet and creamy cakes either.

My previous bakes coffee walnut loaf and cranberry coconut streusel muffins. So, a simple Coffee Walnut Streusel Cake it is !

A few days ago, I baked a Coffee Cinnamon Chocolate Chips Bundt Cake for breakfast with my colleagues. A yummy recipe I tweaked from here.

Coffee Cinnamon Chocolate Chips Bundt Cake

I liked the texture and glad that it was well received by most colleagues. So I adjusted the recipe a little (cos realised didn't have any yogurt) and added streusel toppings to bake a coffee walnuts streusel cake.

Coffee Walnut Streusel Cake
Makes one 8x8-inch square pan
Ingredients (A)
113g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
110g castor sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature (the size of my egg is 60g each with shell)

Ingredients (B)
1 teaspoon baking powder
180g all-purpose plain flour

Ingredients (C)
120g full cream fresh milk
2 tablespoons instant coffee mixture (dissolved 3 teaspoons Nescafe instant coffee in 2 tablespoons hot water, cooled).

Streusel ingredients (D)
45g unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
45g light muscovado sugar
45g all-purpose plain flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
80g toasted walnuts, finely crushed

Method:
Preheat the oven to 170ºC. Position the rack in the middle. The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust the temperature and timing to suit your oven.

Combine ingredients (B) in a medium bowl, sifted and set aside

Make the streusel ingredients (D) : In a large bowl, whisk together flour, light muscovado sugar, ground cinnamon and walnuts. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with either a pastry blender, your fingertips or two knives until it resembles coarse crumbs. Cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Line and grease the base of a 8x8-inch square cake pan with parchment paper. Lightly grease the sides with butter.

In a clean mixing bowl, beat together the butter, castor sugar, and salt until light and fluffy using an electric mixer on medium speed.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

With the mixer on low speed, add alternately the ingredients (B) flour and ingredients (C) milk & coffee. (flour mixture in three additions) and milk & coffee (in two additions) [starting and ending with the flour mixture]. Mix only until just combined.

Pour batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with spatula. Dot or spoon the streusel evenly all over the batter top. Tap the pan lightly on a table top a few times to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

Bake the cake in preheated 170°C oven for 40 minutes or until golden brown.
*note: you may tent it with aluminium foil if it gets browned to quickly.

To check for doneness, insert a skewer or toothpick in the center of the cake if it comes out clean with a few moist clumps clinging to it.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing top-side up, onto wire rack to cool completely.

Well, we have them warm with hot coffee!

It is a soft with tender crumbs, not too buttery cake. The streusel crumb topping is an addition ... crunchy, sugary crusty with a hint of cinnamon fragrance.

Be it a celebration cake or not, we simply enjoyed this simple cake.
Happy Father's Day to my hubby and all daddies out there !

Happy baking! Enjoy !

Lemon Chocolate Swirl Bundt Cake

Indulgence in another lovely baked bundt cake.

I wanted something lemony and chocolate flavour.  A citrus tangy and chocolate flavour all in one ! Ta da ! ... a Lemon Chocolate Swirl Bundt Cake ! The tangy aromas filled the kitchen as it baked.

Lemon Chocolate Swirl Bundt Cake
Makes one 6-cup Bundt pan or one 8-inch cake pan.
Ingredients (A)
113g unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon salt
110g castor sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature (the size of my egg is 60g each with shell)
2 teaspoons lemon zest

Ingredients (B)
100g All-purpose plain flour
80g cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Ingredients (C)
100g full cream fresh milk
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the chocolate batter:
1.5 tablespoons cocoa powder (I used Hershey's cocoa)
2 tablespoons hot water.

For the Icing:
3 - 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
100g confectioners' (powdered or icing) sugar, sifted

Method:
Preheat the oven to 170ºC. Position the rack in the middle. The temperature of the oven may vary, do adjust the temperature and timing to suit your oven.

Combine Ingredients (B) in a medium bowl, sifted and set aside

Grease the 6-cup Bundt pan lightly with some *vegetable oil using brush or with kitchen towel, set aside.
(*or well-greased with butter and lightly flour)

In a small cup or bowl, mix the cocoa powder with hot water and set aside.

In a clean mixing bowl beat together the butter, castor sugar, and salt until light and fluffy using an electric mixer on medium speed.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.

With the mixer on low speed, add alternately the ingredients (B) & (C) starting with B (flour mixture in three additions) and milk + lemon juice (in two additions) [starting and ending with the flour mixture]. Mix well until just combined for each addition.
Lastly, stir in the lemon zest till just incorporated into the batter.

Scoop about 1/3 lemon batter to a bowl, mix in the cocoa mixture well with a spatula.

Pour half the lemon batter into bundt pan and smooth the top. Next, spoon all the chocolate batter. Spoon the remaining lemon batter and level the top with a spatula. Tap the pan lightly on a table top a few times to get rid of any trapped air bubbles in the batter.

Bake the cake in preheated 170°C oven for 40 to 45 minutes.  Check for doneness, insert a skewer in the center if it comes out clean with a few moist clumps clinging to it. Do not over bake else it will be dry.

Let the cake cool in the pan for about 10 - 15 minutes and then invert onto a rack to cool completely. Once cooled, carefully lift the cake onto a serving dish or platter.

Once the cake is completely cooled, make the icing.
In a bowl, combine the sifted confectioners' sugar with the lemon juice. Stirring and mixing constantly with a spoon. Start with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. Adjust the consistency to your preference by adding more lemon juice or confectioners' sugar accordingly.

Use a spoon to drizzle the icing over the top of the cake and allow it to fall down the sides. Let the icing set for a couple of minutes before slicing the cake.

Let the icing dry before covering and storing.


Beautifully browned !

Love the texture ... like a light pound cake not too dry or too dense.

Love this simple yet gorgeous lemony chocolate flavour cake with fine tender crumbs.

Enjoy our weekend afternoon break with a slice of lemony and chocolate swirl flavour cake. Perfect with a cup of warm honey lemon tea.

Happy Baking!

My modifications made from recipe source : King Arthur Flour