ST: Hey, since you bought so many blocks of cheese from your trip to Melbourne, how about I make some cheddar biscuit.
The Brother: Sounds good.
So ST went into the kitchen and baked a batch of cheddar biscuit
The Brother: Eh, these are not cheese biscuit. These are muffin scone thingy!
ST: These are biscuits what. The American kind of biscuit. What you expecting, cheese crackers?
The Brother: You bluff me.
ST: Why do I even bother......
Hello! Sorry for the lack of updates in the past month. I was hit by the flu bug. With a fever, runny nose and aching body, trying out new recipes was the last thing on my mind. To sooth the sore throat, I was drinking lots of lemon water and soon had squeezed dried lemon piling in the fridge. The Madeira Cake is a good way to use the rind. Recipes are mostly similar because the Madeira cake is simply a lemon pound cake. I like Nigella Lawson's version because she uses more butter and sugar which we all know is good for us, even when we have the flu.
A childhood favourite of mine, the pan fried water chestnut cake is a dim sum classic. The caramelized surface is crispy while the inside is slightly sticky and chewy. Bits of juicy water chestnut add a nice crunch and refreshing sweetness. It is quite amazing when one realises that the flour used for making the cake is water chestnut too. The same raw material and yet such difference in texture when cooked.
It is good to be back on the IMBB wagon after missing the last two editions. IMBB 13 is hosted by one of my favourite food blogger, Maki of i was just really very hungry and the brilliant theme she has chosen is cupcakes.
Cupcakes, muffins or fairy cakes, I adore them all. I was having a hard time deciding what to make when I thought of the Chinese cupcakes I grew up eating. Known as huat kueh 发糕 (prosperity cake), it does not have icing and it is not even baked. However, the huat kueh is truly a cupcake as the cake is steamed in little Chinese tea cups.
A vital feature of the huat kueh is that the top of the cake has to crack open like a flower. A huat kueh that does not "bloom" loses its auspicious meaning even though it is still edible. That is probably the reason why in recent years store bought huat kueh tend to be over generous with baking powder to ensure the cakes bloom. After throwing away yet another huat kueh with a horrible chemical after taste, I decided to try making one myself. Just in time for IMBB too.
The very talented and innovative Yulia made us doughnuts inspired by Krispy Kreme doughnuts a friend had kindly brought back from Australia. While Krispy Kreme remains my number 1, Yulia's doughnuts are simply the best in Singapore, JB and some say Batam. So far, we have had doughnuts dusted with icing sugar, smothered in maple syrup and coated with Nutella. I have yet to interrogate ask Yulia for her secret recipe because I was, umm, too busy eating. Will follow up with the recipe soon.
For the first outing with my brand spanking new mixer, I picked a blueberry oat bread recipe from Kitchenaid. Assemble ingredients, dump everything into the mixing bowl, let the mixer do its job, pour into the loaf pan and 1 hour later, wah la, freshly baked orange peel infused cake.
By the way, it is cheap berries season in Singapore where a punnet of berries goes for S$2.50 so now is a good time to eat and cook with strawberries, blueberries and cherries. Go berry crazy!
Making a trifle from scratch is not a trifle. There's the sponge cake, the fruits, the compote, the jam, the custard and the whipped cream to prepare. Not to mention all that layering. In other words, it is something I avoid making. That is however all in the past. I have since found that by using store bought sponge cake or in this recipe's case, a pandoro, making a trifle can be a breeze.
For Sugar High Friday #4: Let's Go Nuts hosted by Viv from Seattle Bon Vivant, I wanted to bake, I really do. But I was tired and had to go to the airport to pick up the parents and my electric mixer died but that's another story. This one is about nuts.
I am jumping up and down in a state of euphoria. I make Kek Batik and it is a huge hit with friends and family. The chocolaty, fudgy cake is so easy to make. Really, 45 minutes of non stop stirring is a great way to work the arms. Here is a little innovation of my own: I used a cake ring to make a little heart shape kek batik for a friend who is getting married this week.
Thank you Renee for the wonderful recipe. Kek Batik is my new favourite chocolate dessert!
Making chocolate custard tarts from store bought puff pastry should be an easy enough thing, yes?
Not if you are making them on a humid afternoon. It was so hot, the dough started melting the minute I took it out of the freezer. I quickly cut the dough into small pieces and put them back in the freezer to chill. I had to take one piece of dough from the freezer, roll it into a round, push the round into the muffin tin , put muffin tin back into the freezer. Now repeat the same process 36 times. I ended up with delicious tarts that everyone loved and the worst backache in recent memory. Note to self: next time, just make a chocolate custard pie.
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