Big-sized macarons @ Coffee Planet, Shah Alam



Massive macarons






The  coffee shop in Section 13, Shah Alam.

 



 Sometime in April this year, I happened to crave on iced coffee. Since there's a coffee joint in Shah Alam aptly named Coffee Planet, I went to have a nice glass of iced coffee. Eventually, I saw some big-sized macarons lined up delicately in the covered dessert counter. Hence, I've ordered these two big macarons and I was exasperated to finish even half of one mac. Next time, I should only order one. hehee. These macarons are delicious and  the butter cream filling was even nice. Not overly sweet and we could just lick off the buttercream. From my readings I've found that these jewels are baked by Tomoko of  Caramel Factory . She is actually a Japanese lady married to a Malaysian and conducts baking classes in her baking school, right here in Section 13, Shah Alam. No, I don't know her personally but I read about her in one of the Malaysian cooking magazines recently. I thought of joining her macaron classes, but the dates always clash with my commitments. In fact, it also happened that I past her baking school a few months ago, and thought of checking her store, unfortunately it was closed at that time. But, never mind- some other time I might be lucky, perhaps.

   All right, just another short entry for today. Have a nice day, indeed ;)

French Macarons

French Macarons

I've been super duper busy lately, until there's no time to blog anymore. I was lethargic most of the time and couldn't divide my time between work commitments and house chores. That's why this blog has been abandoned for three months. When I started this blog four years ago, I thought that  this space would become my "place", where I could share my baking inventions and thoughts on life. However, it didn't go as planned. Along the years, I've seen myself being overwhelmed by work commitments and pressures. No more simplicities in life for me, and that made me very unhappy. Last few years,  whenever I had work pressures or things didn't go well in my personal life, I used to spend time doing a little bit of gardening  or bake something in the morning. But nowadays, I hardly got the luxury to spend time for myself. It's always doing bits of everything for someone else, without being acknowleged for the things I do.

      However, a few days ago, my friend Nuyui  of cake2u,  called me for a recipe and she asked me of my absence of blogging these few months. And that got me thinking ;). Before fb, instagram and twitter, blogging used to be my therapeutic space. It was definitely my first love, where I could "blabber" and share my thoughts, doing inventions of cupcakes and nobody bothers to read anything on it. But to do that- it's such a luxury nowadays. Life is full of surprises and it doesn't help thinking that our own happiness would be sacrifised just to make the others happy. Hmmm..;(

    Well, enough of blabbering- back to this post. These macarons- I didn't bake them. I bought them in Jaya Grocer and they costed me RM29.90 for 12 plumpy "petit"  pieces. The taste? Wow, it's something different from the usual Malaysian macarons I bought in various cafes or chocolates' store. These macarons are rightfully plumpy, crunchy, chewy and adictive at the same time. I've tasted the framboise and pistachio flavours and they are simply out of the world. The sweetness is of the right balance and their textures are a bit smooth as well. I could even taste the richness of almond meal. For RM29.90, I would say these jewels are worth buying. Mind you, they came all the way from La France. They tasted like almond biscuits and not like some fancy overly sweet egg white and almond meal creations that I have tasted along the years. Some local Malaysian macarons are good, but some failed to make me rave about them. These macarons are what macarons should taste like, they make you realise that they are of their own standards. Apparently, they are in the league of their own. These are srumptiously almond biscuits which deserve their own accolades. These are gems.

Twelve flavours at the same time ;)

After tasting these macarons, I don't know whether I have the guts to bake macarons again. A few years ago, I did try to bake them but failed miserably. Up until now, I didn't have the courage to bake them again. There are so many recipes to choose from and I have six books just on macarons but still, I couldn't have the patience to try them all. Say it  whether it's Italian or French technique, I still have nightmares on doing macarons. That's why you see me blogging about macarons over the years. None of these, I baked. For the time being, I think I will stick to buying macarons rather than baking them. Wait until I have the "calling" to bake them and achieve the best results.

I go crazy on these :)

The box is presentable as well.

 On a final note, let  me show you some well-deserving pictures of French Macarons and I hope that they will give you a pleasant start on a Sunday morning. Happy Sunday, everyone ;)

Could you see the texture of the pistachio macaron?



My brother went to Paris and he bought for me this box of macarons from the queen of confectionary
-Laduree ;). Will blog about this in the next post.



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...

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...

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... ; )