Cupcakes Design

It has been quite sometime since I update anything related to cupcakes. Here introducing some basic design you may choose;

Dollop M&M's

Moist Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Basic Chocolate

Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Basic Vanilla

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Rosies

Strawberry Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Chocolate Banana Cake

I know I have a very bad memory. I couldn't remember most of the things happened in my life. I don't know because of the fact that I hate raisins as much as I hate cockroaches or because my brain processor is very small I tend to omit details that won't be beneficial for me for the next 10 years.

But apart from this short term memory I do remember one thing clearly. I'd never had any homemade birthday cake made for me. I'd never fancied a birthday celebration. I thought I looked like an idiot celebrating, singing and cheering my birthday. I do prefer a quite celebration, with the family.

And I do prefer a homemade cake.

So, when a birthday is approaching, I will immediately scuffled with tons of recipes, scrutinizing everything, each of the ingredients to make a perfect birthday cake.

And when it was time for the boyfriend, I know one thing: he loves Secret Recipe's Banana Chocolate Cake. Although I was contemplating to bake one at first (because I just gave him a chocolate cake) but in the end it was his day, and I should get over it.

I was having problem with the ganache as always. I just have to find a good ratio of the whipping cream and chocolate and a proper temperature to pour.

I opted for a simple design. I don't want anything fancy. I don't want any wordings on the cake (now whose cake was it for? hehe).

The verdict? The bf loved it! My principle of making a layered cake: be generous! You really don't want a layered cake to be stack with just a few mm of filling. No, not good.

And the bananas? To prevent browning you can mix few drops of lemon/lime after slicing it.

Chocolate Banana Cake

Adapted from Citarasawan

Chocolate Chiffon:

(A)

30 g cocoa powder

4 egg yolks

100g sugar

130g self rising flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

60ml oil

1 tsp vanilla

(B)

4 egg whites

60g sugar

1/4 tsp cream of tartar (I omit)

Filling:

400ml sweetened whipping cream

100g melted cooking chocolate (I used Hershey's chocolate syrup)

1 1/2 tsp nescafe (dissolve in 1 tbsp hot water)

1 tbsp gelatine (I soaked it in 40ml warm water for 15 minutes)

Banana slices

Chocolate Ganache:

140ml whipping cream

350g cooking chocolate

1 tbsp butter

1. Heat the oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2. Mix all ingredients in A and beat using high speed until fluffy.
3. In another bowl, beat B until stiff peaks form.
4. Fold in A into B mixture gently and pour into a 8" pan. Bake for 40 minutes.
5. When the cake has cooled down, slice it into three or four even layers.
6. Beat the whipping cream until it doubles in volume and add in vanilla essence, melted chocolate, coffee and gelatine. Mix well.
7. Spread the filling on top of the first layer of the cake as a base. Make sure it is about 1/2 inch thick. Arrange banana slices on it before topping it off with another layer of cake. Repeat until finish.
8. Spread a thin coat of the filling around the whole cake as a crumbcoat. Cool it in the fridge for 30 minutes.
9. Meanwhile, heat the whipping cream using a double boiler until its boil. Take it off from the heat and add in cooking chocolate and butter. Stir until it melts. When it has cooled down and reach to your desire consistency, pour it over the cake.

Of course I am not perfect!

Did you know there are few certain things that you don't know about my baking adventure. Like how I'd never bake anything related to yeast. Or my biggest fear during the whole baking process is beating the egg whites. and many more.

What you didn't know is it is not all beauty when it comes with the cake. I had few failures, sinking cake, as hard as rock cake (yes ain't no lie here), no taste cake, awful cake, yes you named it!

This is my brother's birthday cake. And I totally forgot peanut butter and cheese really ain't my thing.

We'd settled for three slices and threw away the rest. Well, it was more like I accidentally flipped over the cake pan and the cake fell on the floor, facing down. But I didn't even feel guilty afterwards. It was more like, relieved! :p

Recipe from here: Peanut Butter Fudge Cheesecake

And then, among other cakes that on my failure cakes list was Durian Cake.

My boyfriend was a hugeeeeeeeeeeeeee fan of durian until one day we ended up of having three large size tupperware filled with durian until we almost puke everytime we closed the fridge's door. I searched high and low for the recipe and settle for this; cake from here and filling from here.

It wasn't my biggest mistake but the cake was tasteless. I was dying to finish my unsweetened whipping cream so I used that. And I was never a fan of a chiffon or spongy cake, so I threw it away half of it because eventhough I thought it was tasteless, my brother think the other way round.

Just wait until the next durian season (probably next month).

The most disastrous cake I made was an attempt to bake a Pandan Layered Cake. An attempt because I couldn't even assemble. An attempt because eventhough I halves the recipe, my cake was solid. Like rock. Like a thick chopping board. Hard, very hard. And bitter.

In the middle of measuring, I realized that I was out of cake flour (and all purpose flour) so I substituted it with corn flour. Just a teeny weeny corn flour and 30 minutes after, I could just use the cake as my temporary hammer.

I was devastated at first but happy few minutes after that because I could finally called it off for that day and sleep early :)

I baked a Buttermilk Banana Bread the other day. Looking at the picture from the original blog, I thought mine would be as delicious at it seems. But no. I don't know what happened but I just baked a Bingka Pisang instead of a bread. So yeah. I don't know what went wrong. Up until now i just called my delicious banana bread as bingka pasang.

Maybe I should be a magician?

Carrot Cake (The Best!)

Ok now this is an improvement :p One post a day hehe.

Back to the carrot cake hunting.

There were only few days left before I had to deliver the cake to my friend. And then she texted me again. She needed it a day earlier. I was dumbfounded. Obviously because I had no recipe to bake and I don't think I can make it.

A day before the delivery, I rolled up my sleeves and wished that I made a good decision by picking this one recipe. A recipe that I'd never bake before, a recipe that required all the basic ingredients only.

And there were only 3 carrots left. So it must be perfect.

Since I really had to test it, I took few scoops of the batter, arranged some cupcake liners and baked it.

And I glad I did. Because it was the best carrot cake I had ever tested!

I woke up early in the morning and started to assembled everything and frosted it. Delivered it to my friend and she told me it was delicious! Everyone loved it and it wasn't enough for everyone!

Of course I was overwhelmed. This is my journey to a perfect carrot cake.

And I glad it ended like how I wished for.

Best Carrot Cake

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp ground all spice

2 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups canola oil

4 large eggs

3 cups grated carrots

1 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup raisins

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees celcius.
2. Sieve together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and all spice in a medium bowl.
3. Whisk the sugar and oil in your mixing bowl (I did not used an electric mixer) until well blended. Add in the eggs one at a time until well incorporated. Add flour gradually into the wet mixture and stir until well blended.
4. Fold in all the dried chunky ingredients: carrots, walnuts and raisins.
5. Bake for 45 minutes.

ps: sloth it generously with any cream cheese frosting that you love :)

Big Bill's Carrot Cake

A few weeks ago, my bestfriend texted me. She needed a cake, for her former working place colleagues, which she did her practical. We discussed about that few days before that and settled for a carrot cake since most of them were quite veteran and they did not fancy any schmancy cake.

And the journey to find a perfect carrot cake began...

A perfect carrot cake should be moist but not spongy. Dense but not soggy. Full with flavour but not overpowering.

The was this one time when Big Bill's carrot cake became a phenomenal in blogosphere. And so i decided to try, a pre-testing recipe to make sure I could deliver the most perfect carrot cake.

But it was nothing like what I like about carrot cake. It was dense but too dry. It was full with flavour but too many flavour until you won't know if its a carrot cake or a coconut cake. Definitely not the traditional carrot cake that I loved.

Big Bill's Carrot Cake

Adapted from: Dorie Greenspan

2 cups all purpose flour

2tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp ground all spice

3/4 tsp salt

3 cups grated carrots

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup dessicated coconut

1/2 cup raisins

2 cups sugar

1 cup canola oil

4 eggs

For frosting:

8 ounces

1/2 cup butter

3 3/4 cups icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

1. Heat the oven to 170 degrees celcius.
2. Sieve together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, all spice and salt in a medium bowl. In another medium bowl, mix together carrots, chopped nuts, coconut and raisins.
3. With the wire whisk attachment, beat together sugar and oil until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time and continue beating until incorporated. Reduce the speed to low and gently add the flour mixture gradually.
4. Fold in the carrots mixture and mix well.
5. Divide the batter onto your desired pans (either one, two or three) and bake for 40 to 50 minutes.
6. For the frosting, beat cream cheese with a paddle attachment until smooth and creamy. Add in the butter and continue beating. Gradually add in the sugar and continue beating until smooth. Add vanilla essence.