Recipe | Beet Velvet Cupcakes

I wanted to make red velvet cupcakes but didn't want to use red food coloring, so I came across a recipe for natural colored cupcakes using beets. When I told B about this, he exclaimed "Beets?!", then after he tried one: "Hey, it doesn't taste like beets, that's pretty cool!" These don't taste like beets, nor do they exactly taste like red velvet, but they are still pretty good! Moist and fluffy, on the dense side. It was a bit sticky at first, but with the cream cheese frosting it's barely noticeable, and even better after two days. I'm quite happy with my first attempt. It was fun to make and the bright color is fantastic.

Recipe | Oatmeal Cranberry Cookies

Adapted from Here

Instead of my usual holiday cookie (cornflake marshmallow), this year I tried something new - chocolate chip cookies and these soft oatmeal cookies. I like making them small and round - perfect bite size snack.

Makes about 20-30 small cookies.

Ingredients

• 1/2 C unsalted butter (1 stick)
• 1/2 C packed brown sugar
• 1/2 C white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 C flour
• 1/4 t baking powder
• 1/4 t salt
• 1 1/2 C old-fashioned oats
• 3/4 C dried unsweetened cranberries
• Cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. Combine flour, salt, baking powder.
3. Cream butter and sugars for a few minutes, then add egg and cream until light and fluffy.
4. Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
5. Stir in the oats and cranberries.
6. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and place balls on sheet.
7. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Enjoy! :)

Macaron Diaries: Chocolate Macarons

Attempt #2 – Chocolate Macarons with Chocolate Ganache

 

Piping into circles - batter is smooth and shiny; good size and flat courtesy of B. The key to piping is squeeze from the top with right hand, and point straight down.

Macaron Diaries: Green Tea Macarons

In search of the perfect macaron recipe... experimenting with different methods and learning from mistakes.

First attempt: Green Tea Macarons with Green Tea Buttercream



Piping into circles - batter appears thick and grainy, shells look large

Recipe | Starbucks Banana Walnut Bread

I've been searching for a more dense and strong flavored banana bread and came across this Starbucks recipe here . I omitted the walnuts and vanilla and substituted 1% milk + squirt of lemon juice for the buttermilk.
Total baking time: 1 hr 15 mins.

Recipe | Banana Bread

Ingredients 1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup water
2 to 3 ripe bananas

1. Put dry ingredients in medium sized bowl.
2. Mash bananas and mix in wet ingredients.
3. Add (2) to (1) and mix until incorporated.
4. Bake in preheated 350C oven for 40 minutes. For muffins, reduce baking time to about 20-25 minutes.

Quick and easy recipe for fluffy banana bread every time.

Recipe | Scones

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 14 minutes

This wet dough makes scones with an airy texture and crisp tops.  Enjoy warm straight from the oven with a hint of butter, jam or fresh cream. Recipe modified from Canadian Living.com

Before: Wet dough

Finished Product! Golden, crisp tops

Success!

Soft and airy inside

Makes 15 scones 

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 egg

3/4 milk 

Preparation

In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With pastry blender, 2 knives or fingertips, cut in butter until in coarse crumbs with a few larger pieces. Mix in raisins.

In glass measure, beat egg with fork; add enough of the milk to make 1 cup (250 mL), stirring to blend. Remove 2 tbsp (25 mL) and set aside. 

Pour remaining mixture, all at once, into centre of flour mixture. Stir with fork just until dough comes together to form wet dough. Using hands, shape into ball. Transfer to lightly floured surface; pat out into scant 3/4-inch (2 cm) thickness.

Using floured 2-inch (5 cm) round cutter, cut out biscuits. Repeat with scraps once. Place on parchment paper–lined baking sheet; brush with reserved milk mixture. Bake in 425°F (220°C) oven until risen, golden and firm to the touch, about 14 minutes. 

Notes

Making scones was much easier than I thought. Under half an hour, does not make a mess and only requires a few simple ingredients. At first, I was worried that the dough was too wet and sticky, but they came out perfectly crisp on top and soft on the inside with a hint of buttery flavor. I don't have a pastry blender so I used my hands to mix the butter into the flour and I don't have a round cookie cutter so I just used my hands to form chunks/balls (don't roll them smooth if you prefer the natural crumble top) 

Recipe | Strawberry Cream Cake

First time making this strawberry cream cake for my friend's birthday. I had to use a lot of cream to make the cake look bigger and to cover up flaws.

Two layers of sponge cake with cream and strawberries in between.

Recipe from openrice.com

Plain Sponge (1 lb):

1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon flour

1/3 cup sugar

3 egg whites

3 egg yolks

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon vanilla essence

2 tablespoons melted butter (1 oz)

Filling & Topping:

1 cup mixed fruit (I used strawberries instead of fruit)

1 slice tinned peach ，1 slice tinned pineapple

1 bottle fresh cream (8 ozs) (I used 16oz of cream and 4 tbsp sugar)

2 tablespoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla essence (I omitted vanilla in the cake and cream)

Sponge Cake:

Blend egg whites until stiff. Add sugar in and blend well until stiff.

Blend eggyolks slightly. Add in egg white mixture immediately and blend well.

Sift flour and salt. Add in egg mixture in 3 portions. Blend mixture well after each addition of egg mixture.

Add vanilla essence. Finally, add melted butter and blend quickly.

Grease 7" round baking pan. Dust flour on pan. Pour mixture in pan.

Preheat oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit, bake for 25 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool. Then slice cake into 2 layers.

Cream:

Pour fresh cream into a basin and place basin on top of bed of ice.

Add sugar in. Blend slowly until cream thickens. Add vanilla essence imediately.

Spread mixed fruit and cream on each layer of sponge cake. Put layers back together and spread cream on entire cake. Decorate the top with peach and pineapple.

It was the first time I used a recipe that required folding egg yolks into egg whites. The cake was a good sponge cake but some bites were lumpy due to not mixing thoroughly (I did not want to overmix the egg whites)

Recipe | Gluten Free Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate Cupcake:

1/4 c coconut flour
1/4 c cocoa powder
1/2 c sugar
1/4 c corn oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 eggs

Combine dry ingredients. 
Blend eggs, oil, sugar. 
Blend dry into wet. 
Fill 1/4 c in each tin
Bake at 375F for 20-22 min.

Supposed to make 10, but ended up making 7.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting:

1/4 c strawberry cream cheese
1/4 c butter
1 1/2 c icing sugar

Beat cream cheese and butter til smooth. Add icing sugar in 2 additions, beat until smooth.

Makes enough for 12 cupcakes.  

One of my coworkers is allergic to gluten, so I decided to try making gluten-free cupcakes. It tastes the same as regular cupcakes. These were so moist and delicious, I ended up eating most of them myself. 

Recipe | Sesame Crisps

Ingredients:

25g egg white (approximately one medium egg) (* used 2 medium egg whites)
30g castor sugar (* approx. 45g using measuring spoon)
30g plain flour (* 30 g measuring spoon)
20g unsalted butter
90g toasted white sesame seeds

Preparation:

1. Thaw egg white till room temperature
2. Sieve plain flour twice
3. Melt butter with double boil method. Put butter in a small bowl, transfer to a sauce pan with water. Heat the pan with medium flame until the butter melts. Set aside to cool down.
4. Line baking tray with grease proof paper.
5. Put white sesame seeds in a non-stick pan and dry fry (without oil) with a wooden spoon over a medium-low heat until they are fragrant.
6. Preheat oven at 170°C.

Methods:

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk egg white (with a hand whisk) until you see white bubbles. Add in sugar and beat in circular movement until the sugar dissolves.
2. Stir in melted butter and mix well.
3. Add in flour (all at once) and mix till no traces of flour and lump-free.
4. Add in toasted sesame seeds, use a spatula to fold in until the mixture is well combined. You will find the mixture is dry and sticky. That’s the correct texture you need.
5. Spoon 1/3 or ½ tablespoon of mixture on the baking tray. Spread out into a round shape (about 2cm diameter) using a fork.
6. Bake at 170°C for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Rotating the baking tray towards the last 2 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven, leave to cool and then store into an air-tight container.

Notes:

1. The layer must be thin and even (no overlapping of seeds) so that it will be very crispy. Wet the fork lightly to avoid mixture sticking on it and easy spreading.
2. You may need to bake these crisps in 3-4 rounds. The unbaked mixture can be left in the room temperature. (*I made this in 2-3 rounds; did not stick to the "2 cm" suggestion, hence different shaped/sized crisps)
3. Be careful not to overbake the crisps. If not, the sesame seeds will be burnt (Baked for 8 minutes the first batch - too soggy; approx. 10 minutes is good, slightly burnt, but crispy)
4. Use hand whisk from step 1-3 and spatula in step 4 only.
5. If the crisps turn soft, you can reheat them for 2-3 minutes at 160°C in a preheated oven.

I think this turned out to be a success. Though not as good looking as the original source, they are tasty and crispy!

(Source:food-4tots.com)

Recipe | Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies

*Inspired by Momofuku Milk Bar Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies*

Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1 ¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 ½ tsp kosher salt (plus more for sprinkling)
3/4 cup oatmeal 1 1/4 cup lightly crushed cornflakes (= about 1 1/2 cup cornflakes before crushing)
2/3 cup mini chocolate chips
*about 3/4 cup mini marshmallows

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes on medium speed.
Add the eggs and vanilla extract, and beat until combined.
Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and beat on low speed, just so the dry ingredients become incorporated.
With a wooden spoon, mix in the oatmeal, crushed cornflakes, and chocolate chips. (If you have time and would like the cookies to spread a little less, refrigerate the dough for two hours.)
On a parchment-lined baking sheet, scoop up and roll the dough into golf ball-sized spheres. (Six will fit comfortably on one pan–give them room to spread!)
Lightly press down 4 mini marshmallows in the center of each ball of dough. Sprinkle tops with a touch more salt. Repeat with the remaining dough. Bake for 9-10 minutes. The cookies will still look soft in the middle when you take them out of the oven. Allow them to cool directly on the tray for a few minutes before moving them onto a platter.

These are delicious! Made them twice over the Christmas break. I incorporated marshmallows into the dough. For the first batch I pressed 4 marshmallows on top; the second time baking these, I only put 1-2. Rolling the dough into perfectly smooth balls will give a nicely shaped round cookie, if that’s what you prefer.


(Source: thecookbookchronicles.com)

Recipe | Tofu Cheesecake

Ingredients

300g soft silken tofu (Couldn’t find Silken, used Soft instead)
150g whipping cream|
150g cream cheese
45g sugar
75g water (hot)
11g gelatine
Graham Cracker Crust

Steps

Dissolve gelatine in hot water, set aside.In a large bowl, cream together tofu, cream cheese and sugar until smooth using an electric mixer.In another bowl, whisk the whipping cream to soft peaks, then fold in the tofu batter.Fold in the gelatine solution.Fill in the prepared pan & refrigerate to set.

Notes 

- Texture: Mousse-like, not stiff enough (need more gelatine?)
- Taste: tofu

(Source: http://yuehandicrafts.blogspot.com )