Tuesday, March 5, 2013

A prayer for Sabah



Kota Kinabalu, Sabah

Tanjung Aru, Sabah

 I have been to Kota Kinabalu, Sabah once- way back in 2010. I fell in love with Sabah. I really did. Sabahans are one of the nicest, honest and friendliest people I have ever met in my life. I have friends and family in Sabah, and hoping for the best for all of them. Malaysians in general, are peace-loving people and civilians are not used to see fire arms openly displayed in public. Thus, it was an unfortunate event that stirred the peaceful condition of Sabah. Humbly, in my prayers, I pray for the safety of  Malaysian policemen and army troops in Sabah. A prayer for my friends and family in Sabah. May God be with all of us. Amin...

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Moist Steamed Haw Flakes Layered Cake- The Recipe


Beautiful layered cake...

Moist Layered Cake with Haw Flakes
Hi there...How's life treating you, so far.. I hope it is good. And how's the weather in your area? Talking about the weather, I remembered that I was totally obsessed with weather forecasts back then-when I was studying in the UK. I was really looking forward to see whether it was going to rain or it would be sunny. You see, weather forecasts were important to me as I walked to my college every single day. I needed to see whether it was necessary to bring an umbrella as I did not like to wear   a rain jacket. It had always been the long coat and an umbrella-hmmm. Well, back here in my area- it has been raining today and I do not have the urge to bake anything, so it is time to do an entry in my blog as I  have made a resolution for 2013 - that is to bake and blog more.

    Last week I have managed to come out with a better version of Steamed Haw Flakes Layered Cake. This cake was a sure winner as my colleagues gave good reviews on it. They could not imagine that I had the patience to layer and steam the cake. Well... ha ha, talking about  my patience, I never thought that I had the patience to layer a cake. Being me, the ever busy career lady, the layering process seemed to be messy and full of hassles. But I was taken aback by the results, I meant the end product- it was a therapeutic process for me.  You see, I was so stressful with the ever mounting paper work that I forced myself just to bake something, just to get away from usual routine. And I was really really pleased with what I had achieved. Now, as promised, I am sharing the recipe of Moist Haw Flakes Steamed Layered Cake. I wish to write more- but I am having  a tonne of assignments to be done. So here goes;

Ingredients


6 eggs (large or medium)
1 cup of unsalted butter ( I used SCS) -room temperature
3/4 cup of caster sugar ( you could reduce it to 1/2 cup)
2 cups of superfine flour ( you could use cake flour)
** (You could also use plain flour, but please make sure you sift it for three times)
4  1/2 tbsps of sweetened condensed milk ( I used F&N brand milk- and not the creamer)
**( You could  reduce to 4 tbsps  of sweetened condensed milk)
1 packet of haw flakes ( containing 10 small tubes)- ( you could use two packets as well...)
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of vanilla essence
1 tsp of apple green colour essence (I used Star brand) ( you could add in 2 tsp )

How


##Heat your steamer. (Moderate heat).


1) Separate the egg whites and yolks.
2) In a separate bowl, using the hand mixer, mix the white eggs and caster sugar until stiff.
3) In another bowl, mix well the egg yolks with butter. Add in the sweetened condensed milk.
4)Then, add in the vanilla essence. Mix well again.
5) Pour in the stiff egg whites into the butter mixture. Mix well.
6) Sift through superfine flour and baking powder into the mixture. Mix well again.
7) Grease your baking pan with butter. ( I used a round baking pan). Put a round-sized baking paper on the base of the pan.
8) Divide the batter into two bowls. Put the green colour essence into one bowl. Leave the other one on its own. (original colour).
9) Using a spatula, spread the green batter evenly into the baking pan. Then, arrange the haw flakes on top of the batter. Steam it for 5 mins. (Remember to cover your baking pan with a plastic sheet, aluminum foil or kitchen cloth, so that the water from the cover of the steamer will not drop down onto your cake).
10) Then, after 5 mins, (or when the cake is ready), take out the baking pan from the steamer. Put another spatula of the original- coloured batter into baking pan. Arrange haw flakes on the original- coloured batter. Steam it for another 5 mins.
11) Do this process again, alternating the green and original batter. You will have the original batter as the last layer.
12) Check if your cake is ready by inserting a skewer into the cake. If it comes out clean, your cake is ready.



Notes:


1) Eventually it will only take 5 mins to steam each layer.
2) The overall process will take you more or less two hours.
3) Cut your cake when it is already cool.
4) The heat from the steamer, could be very hot and dangerous. Use suitable kitchen mittens or thick cloth to transfer the baking pan from the steamer.



Love is layered cakes
Nothing beats the taste of your own home made cakes...


I simply loved layered cakes


 
 On a final note, what make us happy towards the end of the day, is doing things that we love very much. In this case, I love baking too much that it is definitely my passion rather doing endless of paper work and assignments. Happy baking, everyone. May all your dreams come true...

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Moist Steamed Haw Flakes Layered cake- "cake style"- A sneak peek

Moist steamed haw flakes layered cake.. mmmm (Second time experiment)


Hmm... I just couldn't wait to share the pictures of my moist steamed haw flakes layered cake. Just giving you a sneak peak or preview on the beauty of this cake, until I get the time to write the recipe.  I had managed to get the right taste and moisture of this cake after my second experiment. Till then, have a feast of the eye for this beauty.


The " apam"-styled layered cake.... (Note the difference on the first picture and this one)

I just love steamed layered cake...
 Life is beautiful, indeed...... ;) with your own homemade cakes. Happy days ahead.....


Steamed Haw Flakes Layered Cake - Apam Style

Steamed Haw Flakes Layered Cake -"Apam style"

 I had this craving for this Steamed Haw Flakes Layered Cake a few days ago. Thus, I went through many recipes from books and the net and eventually came out with my own version of steamed layered cake. I did not want to go through many tedious process of layering and steaming this cake, so I made my own experiment and sailed through. Huh... This was my first time of doing a layered cake, so forgive me of the not-so-neat visual effects of this cake. The result was marvellous. Son took many pieces of this cake and gave two thumbs up. Eventually, by day two, it was all gone. This cake is like an "apam style" cake, as it is not that really moist, but it stays soft even the day after. Keep this in your fridge and have it with a cup of black coffee or not- so- sweet black tea and you will definitely fly to heaven. All right, let me share the recipe with you ;

Ingredients

5 eggs (large or medium)
1 cup of unsalted butter ( I used SCS) -room temperature
1 cup of caster sugar ( you could reduce it to 3/4 cup)
2 cups of superfine flour ( you could use cake flour)
** (You could also use plain flour, but please make sure you sift it for three times)
2 tbsp of sweetened condensed milk ( I used F&N brand milk- and not the creamer)
**( You could add in 3 tbsp of sweetened condensed milk- but remember to reduce the caster sugar
by 1-2 tbsp)
1 packet of haw flakes ( containing 10 small tubes)- you could use two packets as well...)
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of vanilla essence
1 tsp of apple green colour essence (I used Star brand) ( you could add in 2 tsp )


How

##Heat your steamer. (Moderate heat).


1) Separate the egg whites and yolks.
2) In a separate bowl, using the hand mixer, mix the white eggs and caster sugar until stiff.
3) In another bowl, mix well the egg yolks with butter. Add in the sweetened condensed milk.
4)Then, add in the vanilla essence. Mix well again.
5) Pour in the stiff egg whites into the butter mixture. Mix well.
6) Sift through superfine flour and baking powder into the mixture. Mix well again.
7) Grease your baking pan with butter. ( I used a round baking pan). Put a  round-sized baking paper on the base of the pan.
8) Divide the batter into two bowls. Put the green colour essence into one bowl. Leave the other one on its own. (original colour).
9) Using a spatula, spread the green batter evenly into the baking pan. Then, arrange the haw flakes on top of the batter. Steam it for 5 mins. (Remember to cover your baking pan with a plastic sheet, aluminum foil or kitchen cloth, so that the water from the cover of the steamer will not drop down onto your cake).
10) Then, after 5 mins, (or when the cake is ready), take out the baking pan from the steamer. Put another spatula of the original- coloured batter into baking pan. Arrange haw flakes on the original- coloured batter. Steam it for another 5 mins.
11) Do this process again, alternating the green and original batter. You will have the original batter as the last layer.
12) Check if your cake is ready by inserting a skewer into the cake. If it comes out clean, your cake is ready.

Notes:

1) Eventually it will only take 5 mins to steam each layer.
2) The overall process will take you more or less two hours. (I started the mixing of batter from 7 p.m. and finished my steaming process by 9.30 p.m. It was worth the wait as the cake was soft and fluffy).
3) Cut your cake when it is already cool.
4) The heat from the steamer, could be very hot and dangerous. Use appropriate kitchen mittens when transferring the baking pan from the steamer.
5) Cover your steamed cake with a cling film and keep it in the refrigerator. (this is to keep the moisture of the cake).When ever you want to serve the cake, you could steam it again. However,  remember to take out the cling film from the pan before steaming it.




You would not stop at one slice.
Well, nothing beats the taste of a homemade apam-styled steamed layer cake. If time permits, I will do the moist-styled steamed layered cake post in another entry. Till then, have a marvellous Sunday. Happy days ahead...

Love is red velvet ......



Red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
 

Red lovelies

Hi, it's already February... Times does fly, I guess. I was busy during the month of January, so I kind of postponing all my posts. But today, I have made some ammendments. I am going to post a few entries to make up for the lost time.  In the month of January, I was sick with viral fever and on top of that, I had an appointment with my ENT consultant, nothing serious though... and I am recovering now ;). Well, back to this entry, I had done a baking project for my friend, S. She had requested me to bake for her sister's wedding since last year. So, true to my promise, even if I was extremely busy and not feeling quite well, I  had managed to fulfill her request. So, there went 65 red velvet cupcakes on a good Thursday morning of 24th of January, 2013. I started baking from five in the morning and finished frosting and packing those cupcakes by two in the afternoon. Fuh, it was really a mammoth project for a novice baker like me.

    The truth was, it had been three years since I last baked red velvet cakes. I kind of got bored with red velvet, until my friend persuaded me to bake these red lovelies.. On top of that, this was my first time doing red velvet cupcakes. Before this, I have only baked red velvet cakes. Well, there will always be the first time moments right...

 
Pinkish red velvet batter ...

I have used my usual recipe from the Joy of Baking website. Please  click -  red velvet cupcakes. I have replaced the use of double cream in the cream cheese frosting recipe with  2 tbsp of  SCS unsalted butter and 3 tbsp of Farmcows Fat spread (Blended Edible Vegetable Fats and Milk Fat). I have also added  1/2 tsp of salt and 1 tsp of freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Red velvet cupcakes baking in the oven



 Eventually, you could always find your own favourite cream cheese frosting recipe and make some adjustments here and there. Well, you just have to find the recipe which suits you best.

Red velvet cupcakes to die for....
Back to these red lovelies, I went shabby chic  this time, as I was totally exhausted the day before. I topped the cream cheese frosting with ready made sugar flowers from Queen and pink- coloured sugar sprinkles from CK products. All done with such enthusiasm and quality decorations for the bride-to-be. Since I was rushing, I had only managed to take these cupcakes' pictures after they had been packed in boxes. There was not even time to have a better setting for photography session.

I went shabby chic this time...
 Well, it was nice to do wedding projects at times, as I was really satisfied at the end of the day. Never mind for me feeling extremely lethargic a day after as I got to make others happy too. I wish all the best for the newly -weds and may happy moments sail through the ocean of their new life. Congratulations....


Love is red velvet... ; )


Friday, January 18, 2013

Brownie "muffins"



Brownies in cups





These are definitely meant for kids or those young at heart....
 
Yummy treats



I love brownies. I really do. That is why when I came across these delectable treats in m recipe book, I just couldn't say no to baking them. Well, I am saying hello to 2013. Pardon me for my missing posts, I had had some issues to be solved. And now, I am back to my first love- they are blogging, writing, baking and sharing recipes. I am not going to be taken aback of brickbats by undeserving parties.  The truth is blogsphere has been rather kind of me all these years. I met some wonderful people through blogs and I intend to remain friends with them. Well, back to these delectable treats- I actually bake them way back in December 2012, but I did not have the time to post the recipe.  I brought them for my students and they finished them in a blink. These muffins are not overly sweet due to the existence of brown sugar and it suited my taste bud. Do try baking them as you will definitely keep this recipe for the future generation. Trust me ;).  From the recipe book, Brownie Bliss by Linda Collister, I am here to share this recipe. Here goes ;



Ingredients:

2 large eggs
125g light brown sugar
125g unsalted butter, melted
230 ml full-fat milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
225g plain flour
50g unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
50g milk choc chips, plus extra to decorate

*a 12-cup muffin or cupcake tray, lined with 12 paper cases

How

1)Preheat the oven to 150C
2) Break the eggs into a mixing bowl, add the sugar . Use a hand mixer to beat thoroughly. Combine them together. Beat in the melted butter. Then, add in milk and vanilla.
3) Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder directly onto the mixture and mix in. Then, stir in the choc chips.
4) Divide the mixture evenly between the paper cases and sprinkle a few extra choc chips on the top of each muffin to decorate.
5) Bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 mins until just firm to the touch.
   (These muffins will not rise that high, they will not look like normal muffins)
6) Remove from the oven and let them sit for 5 mins before transferring to a wire rack. Store in an airtight container.


I "heart" brownie muffins

Happy baking, every one. Happy days ahead.....

Friday, January 4, 2013

It's 2013!!


Wish to see Bluebells again ( google)

Wish to spend time doing nothing here-
A park near Kelana Jaya
My first cupcake posting in this blog way back in 2008
My favourite banana bread picture in 2012


It's 2013 now. Time does really fly... I didn't have any clue on how 2012 went by. Time was just not on my side. For the first time, I barely had time to do a special entry on saying goodbye to 2012 and welcoming aboard 2013. On a personal note, 2012 was full of colours. There were heartaches and joy along the way. And again, time constraint played a full factor in the lack of of recipe entries and other postings in this blog. I am not a full-time stay- at -home mother. I wish to have that coveted profession. Oh, I wish. Unfortunately or fortunately (maybe) I have a day job outside the comfortable home environment. Not that I enjoy that much, though. It brings quite a big pay cheque, but again when we win some, we lose some. It's just that I don't have much time to spend with my family. Mum said frequently that I hardly went back to my hometown in 2012, so   in the last two weeks in 2012 - I went back to my hometown and spent time with my mum. Driving her around to the places where she would like to go.

  I do not know whether I should do a promise this year. People say that promises are meant to be broken. Perhaps I shall say this to myself- I should do less work and enjoy life more. Spend more time with loved ones. Indulge in my passion- that is, baking. Stop thinking on what others say. Do more postings in my blog. Bake and bake again. Reflecting on the years, I personally have come a long way. Each year, I become more aware of circumstances. I learn to be more accomodating to myself and my child and not really on others.

     I will definitely continue blogging, as this blog is just a channel to write about my passion - that is, baking. I write because I have always liked to write. With this coming year, I hope for good things to come, and be positive along the way. I wish for all the good things too for my fellow friends and readers.

I am  ending this posting with a picture of my friends and I during our last reunion in 2012. We have been friends for 18 years  and it is definitely a beautiful friendship. Lastly, thank you for being with me along this journey. It has been a good one minus the heart breaks. Well, life is short, might as well cherish it to the last moment. Bonjour 2013......






Friends for life.....

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