lazy days.....

I had a lazy 4 months away from my blog, hahaha ... I am sooo lazy... havent had the time or the energy to post for awhile.. should definitely be one of my new year resolutions... to blog more!! ...

Time has passed sooo quick and even though I have been away from the kitchen for all this time, it doesnt mean I've stopped eating all things sweet... ^^ ....

Lets start with a Birthday slice...

this is a slice of carrot cake that one of my colleagues bought me for my birthday from a local cafe near where we work. This is one of the best carrot cakes I have tasted. It was moist and not too sweet. Often you get cakes that are just overpowered with sweetness... this cake was just right. Needless to say I ate it all .... pretty quick... umm my mouth is watering just thinking about it....

The Great British Bake Off

BBC 2 is currently showing The Great British Bake Off.... every Tuesday at 8pm.
http://www.greatbritishbakeoff.com/

This show is heaven for bakers out there, as I've not really ever seen a show that is dedicated to just baking. Interest in baking has seemed to increased over recent years, just look at the number of blogs about baking and the number of new entrepreneurs in the industry. I am sure this show will no doubt influence and inspire many people to start baking or bake even more. I know it has that affect on me.

This week's focus is on baking bread, an area that I have not yet experienced. I always imagined and thought of bread as a timely process with a lot of kneading, proving and waiting around. But most of all one that requires a lot of skill to get a good baked bread. The show has definitely confirmed these points but watching this week's show, its really tempted me to give it a try. I love the smell of freshly baked bread and it might be time to be brave and give it a go... watch this space!!!!

Can I have another cookie please????

I've been really lucky to sample a lot of my friends baking recently.... you can't get them better than homemade.

One of my friends made a chocolate cornflake cookie crunch..... When I first saw these I honestly thought they were shop bought. You can see why right??

These looked good for sure, and they tasted delish!!! After taking a bite, you are hit with a crumbly chocolate biscuit with a chocolate topping and then comes the cornflake crunch. A surprise in disguise!!!

This isn't shop bought either.. but made by the same friend. A good cookie with a chewy middle and choc chips... I could have easily eaten half a dozen of these. I've made a lot of cookies before, but they never turn out this shape, mine tends to spread out while baking and then either come out too chewy or crunchy!! whoopssss......

Coconut and Rum Macaroons

ummmm.... some more macaroons.... don't these look like the Laduree ones I raved on about before.... ???
These are in fact home made, not by me of course... I havent as yet gotten around to making these. These are made by a really good friend of mine. Coconut and Rum Macroons... these were really moist with a hint of rum flavour......melt in the mouth..... and completely delicious.....

As you can see the macaroons has the the rough edge, which is known as the foot. The macaroons were smooth on top, with a slight shine and no cracks at all. This may sound easy but it requires a lot of skill to get them to this perfection.

I'm hoping this post will award me another one... lol.... x

Pandan Chiffon Cake

I love the pandan cakes that you can buy from chinese supermarkets or bakeries. Pandan is of Malaysian origin and comes in the form of a leaf. The cake is made from the juice of pandan leaves, and so the colour of the cake appears light green.

I attempted to make this once before and failed considerable. The cake just sunk as soon as it came out the oven and so was not light and fluffy. My sister found a recipe on the internet and asked if I could make it for her. I was dubious but thought I'd give it a try anyway. U can find the recipe below, taken from http://nyonyafood.rasamalaysia.com/

Pandan Chiffon Cake Recipe

Ingredients

Step 1:

8 medium egg yolks
2oz  fine sugar
2oz Pandan /Screwpine Leaves Juice ( Made from blending 6 Screwpine leaves with 2 – 3 oz water)
3oz corn oil or olive oil
5oz self raising flour

Method:

1. Beat egg yolk and sugar lightly with a hand whisk till sugar dissolve.
2. Stir  in pandan juice and corn oil.
3. Fold self raising flour into egg mixture.
4. Set aside.

Step 2:

Ingredients:

8 egg whites
5 oz fine sugar
pinch of salt

Method:

1. Beat egg whites till frothy. Slowly add in sugar and pinch of salt while beating at high speed.
2. Beat until the egg white is stiff and shining but not dry. ( About 3 minutes)

Step 3:

1. Preheat oven at 175 degrees Celsius.
2. Use a spatula and gently fold egg yolk mixture into the egg white mixture(meringue).
3. Pour into an ungreased 25cm tube pan.
4. Bake for 40-45 minutes.
5. Once cake is cooked, remove cake from oven immediately and invert  pan onto wire rack. Let it cool before removing cake from pan.

I couldn't get hold of any leaves for this recipe so I used pandan food flavouring instead, you can buy this from chinese supermarkets. This seemed to work, although next time I might put a little more in the mixture. I was really careful of how much flavouring to put in, as the pandan flavouring tastes bitter and really strong. The last thing I wanted was to put too much in and have a bitter cake.

The cake was a success this time, although there are still areas to improve on. It was light, moist and fluffy with little sunkage... though the overall appearance of the cake could be better. But I was happy that it tasted good and had some good feedback from my sister and other guinea pigs I have!

Event Day

Arrived at about 9.30am to set up on the day of the event. Setting up the stall didn't take too long, as the cakes were packed in a way that the larger box contained a selection of cupcakes of all the designs and colours.

I bought a disposable three tier cup cake stand for the day, as this was light and easy to transport on the day. It was very easy to assemble and very sturdy. We placed about 35 cupcakes on the stand and replenished as they were sold throughout the day. I bought this online for about £6, easily found with a quick search on the internet, especially on sites like ebay stores. The only downside of the stand are the stain marks from the cupcakes itself.

I had positioned the cup stand on the right hand of the table, and the left was a little setting created with flowers, tea set, almost an afternoon tea setting.

Event Baking Day 2

I was really excited about day 2, because this is where the fun really starts. I love the decoration part of baking, it is where I can be creative and imaginative... and I love making things look pretty.

On this occasion, as there were 100 cupcakes to decorate and pack up, one of my close friends came over and helped. It was a really fun day, having a catch up, bouncing off ideas and all for chairty too. Its a lovely feeling to be able to do something that you enjoy and have the task done for a meaningful cause.

There were a lot of experimenting of colours and designs on the day, and so this batch of cupcakes I made looked a little different from the ones I made before.

All of the cupcakes were frosted with vanilla flavoured buttercream frosting. Food colouring were added to the buttercream to create a range of cupcakes in different colours. I used food colouring that came in a liquid form (pink/red colour), like the ones you find in the local supermarket and one in a paste form (purple), which is a lot more concentrated. They both produced similar results though I prefer to use paste as adding too much liquid to the buttercream mix can weaken its stiffness and affect the piped result.

Have a look at the photos below and see what you think....

Selection of decoration ingredients, food colouring and flavourings.

Packing up .... 35 cupcakes in this box...

The pink and white batches here, with different piping techniques. 

Event Baking Day 1

5 hours.....
27 eggs.....
5 blocks of butter.....
1.4kg of flour.....
1.5kg of caster sugar.....
and a bottle of vanilla extract later  .... equals.....

I used a basic cupcake mix, (I've blogged the recipe in a previous entry), which makes 12 cakes per batch. To make the baking process more efficient. I first made sure all butter and eggs were at room temperature, then batches of 2 were weighed and put aside ready for use.

I mixed the batter in batches of 2 and baked every 12 cakes at a time, as unfortunately my oven isnt big enough and I only have one cupcake tray. Nevertheless the whole process actualy went pretty smooth and took quicker than I had anticipated.



All cupcakes are packed away in air tight tuppleware boxes now... ready for Day 2... frosting and decorating!!!....

Just a little piece of card....

From my last blog, I mentioned about a cupcake stall for a charity event, well the time is nearing. So my baking schedule has been set up.... getting ready to bake 100 of these sugar things to help raise money. Everything is under control at the moment... only days away from my first event.

I got some business cards made to accompany my stall, as my boyfriend always says you have nothing to lose and you dont know what might come out of it. Sounds like some wise advice, so my business card was born ^^

Afternoon Tea at the Wyndham Grand, London Chelsea Harbour

Not long after visiting The Orangery, a group of friends and I headed to the Wyndham Grand for a birthday Afternoon Tea Party. The tea was served in the lounge of the hotel, and where we were sat we could see the marina outside. With it being a nice bright sunny day, it was a perfect setting for a group of 10 girls sipping away and secretly scoffing on the sweet delicates. 

We decided to share an afternoon tea per couple, but the tea sets were bought out in sets for four people to share. 

Traditional Afternoon Tea £15.00

Sandwiches  (seen on the bottom tier)

Scottish Smoked Salmon and Herbed Cream Cheese
Honey Glazed Wiltshire Ham and Grape Chutney
Cornish Yarg with Homemade Piccalilli
Free Range Egg and Chive Mayonnaise

Homemade Plain & Raisin Scones (middle tier)
Served with Clotted Cream & Fine Strawberry Preserve

Sweets and Pastries (top tier)

Elderflower and Gooseberry Fool

Cheeky Chocolate Bourbon
Strawberry Crumble Tart
Earl Grey Cream Slice
Cherry and Almond Cake
Fruit Cake

Selection of Coffees, Teas and Fruit Infusions

The experience here although the setting was perfect was not as good as some of the places I have been to before. We had to ask for milk when our tea arrived and only a small jug was brought over, so we had to ask for some more. The clotted cream portions were tiny and was not sufficient for four people sharing, the portion size is usually for one person at any other afternoon tea place. All in all it ruined the experience a little bit as we had to keep trying to attract the attention of the waitress. The service could definitely have been more attentive and better. And the fact that we were amoung a few other diners there, the service was very very slow. It took almost half an hour for them to prepare the table for us to be seated. Definitely will not be coming back here, its such a shame as the scenery was absolutely stunning. 

http://www.wyndhamgrandlondon.co.uk/food-drink.php

Trial Baking

I've recently become a volunteer for a really worthwhile charity, called Shanti International that helps vulnerable people in Asia. There is an clothing event next month, and I have been given the opportunity to have a stall on the day selling cupcakes. Of course all proceeds go to charity. But the thought of the idea of having a stall that is mine, even for a day feels pretty good.

So I've since then been planning what types of cakes to make and how to decorate my stall. Its all under control at the moment and I can clearly envisage it in my head. Just hope the execution of it will be the same.

I did a quick test trial of the cupcakes..

Vanilla cupcake with strawberry flavoured

buttercream, with sugar star

sprinkles

I was pretty happy how these turned out, as I used a different recipe for the buttercream. Think I found the winning recipe! 

Afternoon tea at The Orangery

Nothing beats afternoon tea in the summer especially when it allows you to dine alfresco. Enter The Orangery at the Kensington Palace.

View from our table

Their speciality is the orange scented scone, although these are only available in the afternoon tea sets and cannot be purchased on its own. 

 Enchanted Palace Tea

£17.95

Enchanted Palace chocolate ganache slice and heart 

shaped raspberry shortbread, signature orange scented

scone with Cornish clotted cream & strawberry

jam and an assortment of finger sandwiches. 

Served with a choice of teas or coffees. 

This tea set recommended the chocolate tea, which was very unusual. Chocolate pieces are infused with the tea leaves, creating a very aromatic chocolate smell and slight sweet taste. 

Chocolate Tea 

There are also a selection of other cakes on offer...

This the scone set ... a fruit scone with Cornish clotted cream and strawberry jam

ummmm .. think its time to visit another afternoon tea place........ ^^

Abu Dhabi Dessert

Its been a long long while since the last blog... (shameful...lol).... so here I am blogging about the things I should have done.

Went to Abu Dhabi in May, and needless to say I ate a lot and I mean a lot of good food!! Combined with sun, pool and sand... you really cant go wrong. We stayed at the Beach Rotana, where it housed many of the city's best restaurants. We particularly loved the Rosebuds Restaurant... cos it was buffet style... ahaha... and of course with any buffet hotel restaurants comes with it an extensive dessert selection!!!

Only a small selection of the desserts available.... I didn't have the stomach to try all of them, and cos they were not all labelled, I can only guess what some of desserts were.

Creme Caremel...yum yum....

 

This one was super yummy, a light fluffy vanilla cheesecake decorated with fresh fruit... I had two helpings!! ehehe

Lime Moouse Cake with a light freshly whipped cream on top, garnished with a cherry and chocolate stick.
Very tangy and refreshing dessert, a good twist on the lemon curd puddings you normally find.

Didn't have any stomach space to try these, these were strawberry and orange fool pots!!!

Eastern Sweets... Baklava.... Yum!!! ^^

Laduree in a little town called Paris.....

Equation: 
A mini break in Paris over the weekend = a lot of good food + a bigger waistline.

The food was just so delicious, especially the 3 course lunch we had at Laduree. For those of you that are not familiar with Laduree, they are a luxary patisserie based in Paris. Their speciality and rise to fame was all due to the macaron. Which is a described as a meringue type confectionary, 2 pieces sandwiched with a creamy filling.

Macarons require a lot of skill and technique to get the consistency, the foot (the rough bottom edge of the macaron), the shiny and non cracking top correct. Thus making this a challenge to a lot of enthusiatic bakers. It is a huge fascination, during my search for a macaron recipe (another recipe on my attempt list... so watch this space) I found a book that just focused on macarons.

The macaron looks a little hard on the outside, but when bitten into, the combination of the moistness and softness of the macaron with the creamy filling creates an interesting and delicious consumption. Definitely worth a try if you've never had one of these before.

I've tried macarons from several places before, Paul, Fortnum and Mason, but Laduree is definitely the one you want to go to try these. These little indulgences are just made to perfection. There are currently two Laduree locations in London, Harrods and the Burlington Arcades so you do not need to travel all the way to Paris. ^^

During my lovely lunch at Laduree, I decided to try their desserts rather than eat the macaron.

 A delicate combination of puff pasty cookie, chantilly cream, and rose water flavoured mini cream filled choux buns. A light and refreshing dessert. Did not disappoint at all... think I might need a visit to the London branch very soon... ^^

Happy Easter....

Next came the easter cupcakes... : )
Vanilla sponge cupcakes with a buttercream frosting. I used a different recipe to the one I normally use. These cupcakes came from the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook (I was inspired by the Hummingbird cupakes I tried last week .. hehe). The sponge is definitely a lot more softer and moist, will definitely use this recipe again.

After frosting the cupcakes, I coloured the remaining buttercream and piped a crown on to the cupcakes to give a nest effect. Then placed the speckled chocolate eggs on top.

Recipe from Hummingbird Bakery :

The cupcake sponge

* 120g plain flour
* 140g caster sugar
* 1½ teaspoons baking powder
* A pinch of salt
* 40g unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 120ml whole milk
* 1 egg
* ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
* Hundreds and thousands or other edible sprinkles, to decorate
* A 12-hole cupcake tray, lined with paper cases

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/gas mark three.

2. Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric whisk) and beat on slow speed until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined.

3. Gradually pour in half the milk and beat until the milk is just incorporated.

4. Whisk the egg, vanilla extract and remaining milk together in a separate bowl for a few seconds, then pour into the flour mixture and continue beating until just incorporated (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula). Continue mixing for a couple more minutes until the mixture is smooth. Do not overmix.

5. Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until two-thirds full and bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until light golden and the sponge bounces back when touched. A skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.

6. Leave the cupcakes to cool slightly in the tray before turning out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

7. When the cupcakes are cold, spoon the vanilla frosting on top and decorate with hundreds and thousands (see below for recipe).

Vanilla frosting

(makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes)
* 250g icing sugar, sifted
* 80g unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 25ml whole milk
* A couple of drops of vanilla extract

1. Beat the icing sugar and butter together in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a handheld electric whisk) on medium-slow speed until the mixture comes together and is well mixed. Turn the mixer down to slow speed.

2. Combine the milk and vanilla extract in a separate bowl, then add to the butter mixture a couple of tablespoons at a time. Once all the milk has been incorporated, turn the mixer up to high speed.

3. Continue beating until the frosting is light and fluffy (at least five minutes). The longer the frosting is beaten, the fluffier and lighter it becomes.

Creme Brulee

Spent the afternoon hidden in my kitchen with my ipod and recipe books to conjure up some sweet creations.
First came the creme brulee, have never made this before but it is a recipe that has been on my to do list for a very long time.

Fresh out of the oven, in the cooling process before being chilled in the fridge. The burnt sugar topping will come straight before serving.

A day with lots of smiles....

It's always unfortunate when you're home bound because you've managed to catch a nasty cold. But all was changed when a good friend came round mine, with a hand of chinese egg tarts and in the other.. a bagful of hummingbird bakery cupcakes. My jaw just dropped down and the pitch of my voice went up a few notches.
I have been dying to go to the bakery after buying the recipe book a few years ago, but never managed to make it there. So you can imagine the surprise when it came to me!! Thank you so so so much Sue, they were super yummy and definitely made my day!!

Chinese Egg Tarts!!!...... puff pastry with a sweet custard like egg filling in the middle. These ones were very fresh and just melted in your mouth.

Two boxes of Hummingbird Bakery cupcakes!!!

Chocolate cupcakes with buttercream in yellow and green colouring. These were demolished in less than 5 mins.

The one on the left is Easter special I am told. : )