Cakes for Australia Day

Mango passionfruit cheesecake from The Cheesecake Shop.

Happy Australia Day!

I dashed to the nearest cake shop a couple of minutes ago, hoping to buy a piece of cake which could hopefully inspire me to continue writing my report. As the clouds were grey and could apparently rain any minute, I had the excuse to walk with my UV proof umbrella. And that simple fact got me smiling while walking as no one in Australia normally walks with an umbrella when it's not raining!

I baked this some months ago for a friend.

Upon reaching the cake shop, I headed to the corner where quarter slices of cakes were displayed. I was looking for my favorite passion fruit cheesecake; but it was unfortunately unavailable so I had to make do with a chocolate cake topped with fresh strawberries (a cake which I normally bake for a friend's birthday when I don't have much time). When the cake attendant came, I asked him if they happen to have a passion fruit cheese cake which was not on display. Unfortunately, there wasn't so he suggested I take the mango passionfruit one which he reckons is also delicious. I was surprised he gave me a generous discount and I didn't even ask for it! It must be the Australia Day spirit. I walked off jubilant and paid the nice cake attendant with a beautiful smile.

Chocolate rum balls

I feel fatigued for the first time this month. I think it's the first time I exercised vigorously. My body has gotten so unfit, my system was shocked after I ran 3 Km today. While on the treadmill, I was imagining the mornings and afternoons I spent running on campus grounds while I was still studying in Belgium. I'm looking forward to running on campus again once I arrive in Australia. Meanwhile, I will be burning my calories on the treadmill we bought for my mom this Christmas. I really love our gift for her not only because it will really help my mom lose weight, but also because it will also help me stay in shape! I need to burn the calories I gain thanks to the many experiments I am performing in the kitchen. Yes, I did another kitchen experiment today. 

I wanted to "recycle" the leftover chocolate cake by making chocolate rum balls. These rum balls are so easy to make. Follow these simple steps:

Remove the left over cake from the fridge.

Throw in the food processor to make cake crumbs. I used 2 cups cake crumbs.

Get hold of 1 1/2 c. nuts. In this case, I used cashew.

Throw the nuts in the food processor until they're finely chopped.

With the nuts and cake crumbs, add 2 T corn syrup, 1/4 c sugar 2 T unsweetened cocoa and 1/4 c rum. Roll into 1-inch balls.

Obtain 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate.

Slice any bar of white chocolate you can fund.

Melt the semi-sweet chocolate and coat the rum balls.

Decorate your rum balls. I used the white chocolate to top the chocolate-coated rum balls.

You can also sprinkle the rum balls with confectioner's sugar, nuts or powdered cocoa.

And there you have it! You can make about 40 1-inch rum balls using this recipe.

Good night for now. I think I need to sink in my dreamland.

Simplest fruitcake recipe

Fruitcake is one of the most popular cakes during Christmas and New Year. I initially started baking fruitcakes for consumption at home. But then my mom suddenly suggested, "why don't you start selling them?" And so that's what I did last Friday. My very first business venture. However, I didn't go large-scale because I didn't want to advertise on facebook and meet up with customers/strangers. I only sold the cakes at my mom's work place--for a very cheap price of course. So cheap, I barely earned a cent. But that is OK. I just liked the idea of selling. I would like to engage in business someday when I have the chance.

Fruitcake

Meanwhile, I am blogging about the simplest fruitcake recipe I formulated. Yes, I conducted 3 fruitcake experiments before I came up with this recipe. The major problem I encountered while I was shopping for ingredients was the scarcity of ingredients itself. I live in a tropical country where 100 grams of dried cherries cost a fortune.  I also couldn't even find my favorite dried fig anywhere in the supermarket. This is the reason why I couldn't use the available recipes online. I had to modify the recipe to come up with a delicious fruitcake with minimal ingredients.

The ingredients I used are as follows:

2 c sugar

2 sticks butter

1/2 c canola oil (I added this because I wanted more moisture)

4 eggs

1/2 t salt

2 1/2 c rum (I used 80 proof rum)

3 1/2 c flour

2 t baking soda

2 t baking powder

2 t cinnamon

1/2 c molasses

250 g pitted prunes cut into cubes

250 g raisins

250 g chopped cashew nuts

500 g glazed fruits

I soaked the prunes and glazed fruits in 2 c rum two days before baking, leaving 1/2 c rum to be mixed with the batter.

I was so happy my mom's office mates loved my fruitcake. Although I barely earned in my so-called "business," I was really glad to see there faces light up after eating my fruitcake. I've always wanted a fruitcake for everybody.

How to bake Empanadas

Because my wanderlust has ceased for awhile, I have been making myself useful by learning how to cook and bake, skills which will come in very handy after I finish my PhD hopefully 3 years from now. Awhile ago, I was craving to eat one of my favorite snacks which I rarely ate when I was growing up because no one at home was ever fond of making it. I have always imagined it isn't  that difficult to do. But it was only awhile ago that I was able to prove this hypothesis. Indeed, empanadas are very easy to make.

1. I made the dough and cut them into circles. I used 3 cups all purpose flour, 1/2 cup margarine and 1/4 cup cold water. If cold water isn't enough, slowly add more (tablespoon by tablespoon). I also added 1 tablespoon brown sugar and a pinch of salt. Making this empanada dough is no different from making a pie crust. It's very easy. Just don't be afraid to get your hands dirty. However, make sure your hands are exceptionally clean!

2. Cook the filling. I sautéed the following: minced pork, onions, garlic, capsicum, carrots and green peas. I added salt, soy sauce and pepper. Once cooked, I mixed the sautéed minced pork and veges with raisins and cubed cheese. 

3. Wrap the filling and brush with egg wash. For my egg wash, I used 1 whole egg plus 1 tablespoon milk. I'm yet to discover what is the best egg wash formula though...

4. Bake at 200 C for 15 minutes or less.

5. You know it's ready when the empanadas have turned golden brown.

6. Enjoy your empanadas! I really love the fact that these empanadas are crispy on the outside but juicy on the inside. The texture and taste are superb!

Give it a try and let me know how you went. Have fun!

Why is kneading important in breadmaking?

Cinnamon roll

I finally succeeded in baking bread today! Finally, after 2 failed attempts in the past. The first time I ever tried baking bread was two years ago. I failed miserably that I turned my back against breadmaking. However, last week, I decided to give myself another chance. Unfortunately, I failed again! Desperate to taste success, I gave it another try this afternoon; I paid more attention to the process this time. After careful scrutiny, I came to the conclusion that the reason why I failed in my previous attempts was because I did not knead the bread properly! This is a very crucial step in breadmaking!

And so, you are probably asking, "Why is kneading important in breadmaking?" 

Flour contains proteins including gliadin and glutenin. When water is added to the flour and the mixture is kneaded, gliadin and glutenin are released. These two proteins combine to form gluten strands. As kneading continues, the gluten strands are stretched, making the dough supple and elastic. Kneading will also enable more efficient trapping of the CO2 molecules the added yeast released. When CO2 molecules are trapped, the dough will rise; and your bread will become softer.

Pies for my lovely sister

My sister's semestral break ended too soon and she had to go back to Thailand to continue studying for PhD. But before she left, I baked her two pies: cherry and apple. I will not jot down the ingredients yet because I still haven't perfected the recipe. Although, they weren't perfect, everyone at home told me they were delicious! I just need to work more on the consistency. I also need to practice making the crust. For some reasons, I actually find kneading the crust really relaxing. I really enjoy baking!

Before

After

Chocolate chip cookies

Baking chocolate cookies is so basic, a superior baking skill is not a prerequisite. That is why I decided to bake these crispy "morish" chocolate chip cookies yesterday. I took this recipe from my mom's old (and ancient-looking) notebook. I reduced the amount of sugar as I am not really very fond of very sweet "sweets." Here are the ingredients I magically tossed into my baking bowl:

- 1.5 cups brown sugar (maybe next time, I will use only 1 cup because using 1.5 cups is still too sweet for me).

- 1 cup butter

- 2 eggs

- 1.5 teasp. vanilla

- 3 cups all purpose flour

- a pinch of salt

- 1 teasp. baking powder

- 1.5 cups chocolate chip cookies ( I used the dark Belgian chocolate chips)

Because I wanted a crispy cookie, I set the oven to 200 C until the cookie turned golden brown. I also made sure the dough was not-so-thick. By "not-so-thick," I meant, it should be at most 7 mm thick.  If you prefer chewy cookies, I suggest you limit the temperature to 150 C.

Oh, forgot to mention. I'm now eating the cookies while sipping a mug of homemade chai tea latte. Feels like I'm at Starbucks right now!