Nyx's 7th Birthday Cake (2) ~ ChessBoard Cake with Chocolate Chess Pieces ~

My Ah Lao posted this pix on his FB, quoting ~Chess is a piece of Cake~ :D

This is a cake combining my daughter's hobby & mine..... Nyx plays Chess in School... she is in the Junior Chess Club @ Northland Primary School.

Nyx wanted me to make her this Chessboard Cake (aka checkerboard cake) for her Birthday since few months ago... I wasn't sure if I'm able to do it... so I spent a few days browsing websites about this kind of cake. At first I tot it was easy... just need to buy candy mould can oredi... :D

Doing this cake take me many evenings to melt those chocolate... Its actually easier than molding fondant figurines.... but chocolate-melting is a messy task :P I dunno how much paper hand towel r wasted and every nite I have to bleach those kitchen hand towels as all r stained by my chocolate :D

I used chocolate compound for the "black" pieces as its much easier to melt & harden compared to high-cocoa content chocolate.... anyway, kids just love the "sweetness" not the % of cocoa content :P

Actually, I know nuts about chess game.... I dun even know how to display the chess pieces... so I got to get my daughter to be my adviser :P

These white pieces r melted with white chocolate compound.... very SWEET!!

I'm so satisfied with this cake.... everyone in school was like "WOW!! U MEAN THIS IS A CAKE & U MADE IT???" heheheee.... my lips swinging from left to right :D

Nyx's 7th Birthday Cake (1) ~Strawberry Charlotte~

How time flies.... My baby Nyx is 7!! It's my 2nd time baking her personalised BD cake! This is Cake No.1... for celebrations with cousins @ Ah-Ma's House. She wanted a Heart-Shape Cake with Finger Sponge fencing around the cake so I can tie a nice ribbon with "Happy Birthday" wordings around the cake, making it look like a present ;-) Inside the cake, of coz, its her favourite Vanilla sponge cake sandwiched with layers of strawberry slices with whipped cream....

Nice ribbon with "Happy Birthday" wordings and nice "7" candle I found in JB last week.

Mini Fondant wordings cut-outs using my new FMM cutters.

I bake this cake using the Heart-shape cake tin from LH aka Fatmum. She bought it for me from her Batam Holiday trip few months back... see, my Baking-pal so nice to me ;-)

Here's the last slice of the cake... and its Nyx's 2nd!! I'm surprised the whole cake was gone! This is the 1st time we finish up the whole cake so far wor ;-)

一个蛋糕，四种吃法

1. U can eat it just like that.....

2. Or u can top it with lots of hundreds & thousands + chocolate kisses

4. U can also try with lots of golden ball-balls + chocolate kisses...

4. this is my favorite.... with lots of STRAWBERRIES!! YUMMMMM..... ;-)

Oreo Chocolate Kisses Loaf Cake

Oh!! I miss my cakes so much!! I have not been reporting to my cake blog since the start of the June School Holiday.... seriously, I was enjoying this June School Holiday with my 2 girls to the ultimate :D We went out almost everyday for the past month and I have not bake anything till today :P

This is a simple to make, easy to decorate & nice to eat cake ;-) best of all, me and my gals love it to bits :D
**Minus point for this cake** ~ remember to brush your teeth after eating this.... else u'll look as if u have tooth decay :P heheeee :D

Ingredients & Method
Sponge Cake (makes 2 Loaf cakes of Tin Size: 20cm x 7cm x 7cm)

I used Optima flour for this sponge cake... usually I will measure 220g of the optima flour, then I'll sieve it at least 3 times to filter out the sugar... as the premix is often far too sweet for my taste-bud :P as for the excess sugar?? I throw them away :P

Using a electric mixer, mix 180g Optima Flour, 3 eggs and 25g water @ highest speed for about 8-10mins. Turn to lowest speed, mix in 25g melted butter. Line Cake Tin with baking paper, pour batter in & bake @ 180 for 25-30 mins.

Turn out the cooked cake on cooling rack, gently peel off the baking paper. Allow cake to cool on rack for at least 20mins, put inside freezer for 30-45mins. Cut the loaf cake into 3 slices.

Whipped Cream
Using Electric mixer, beat 250g of whipping cream @ medium speed for about 8-10 mins till u get a soft peak effect on the beater.

Spread the whipped cream on slice No. 1, topped with chocolate kisses, chips, rice or even oreo crumbs (watever u like ;-)) Stack on top slice No. 2 and repeat procedure.... then stack slice No. 3, spread a thicker layer of whipped cream on top and also the 4 sides of the cake.

Crushed Oreo Topping
Using hand or food processor, crush about 30 oreo cookies into crumbs or bits texture (up to your preference)

Shower the creamed cake with the oreo crumbs till its all covered up.... put the cake back to the fridge to set for at least 2hrs before serving....

~ ENJOY!! ;-) ~

Chocolate Fudge Cake for Paul's 9th Birthday

I made this for Paul's 9th Birthday.

Its a 4-layers Chocolate Fudge Cake sandwiched with Valrhona 70% dark chocolate ganache.

Its covered with Chocolate Fondant, topped with 13 mini fudge-balls stuffed inside mini candy foil cups. I topped them with a sheet of white fondant, making them looked like mini-cupcakes.

All the colourful "HAPPY 9th BIRTHDAY PAUL" are fondant cut-outs.

I had lot of fun making this colourful Birthday cake for Paul... and I'm glad the family like it ;-)

Cherry Swiss Roll

Had another attempt of Cake Rolling :D

This time the skin came off a little. And as advised by many, I'm less greedy this time... I spread a thinner layer of whipped cream.

Funny thing is everyone at home prefer my previous swiss roll! That TOOOOOO Creammmy Blueberry roll wor :D

So my girls prefer blueberry filling rather than this cherry filling... and they prefer it with MORE cream! So, no more anything CHERRY in mybakez from now on :P

Vol Au Vent with Lemon Cream

I was browsing FoodGawker again... and guess what? I had craving for those many-many layers puffy Vol Au Vent pastry :P And I remember I have some frozen cases in my freezer and I made these.... really fast! everything is done within 20mins or so.... :D

Thaw those frozen cases on table top while u Preheat oven @ 220°c... then bake for 7mins, take out of oven and brush the top with some egg wash. Then put them back to bake for another 5-6mins. When done, leave them to cool on table-top....

Then u prepare the Lemon filling... I use the 2mins Jell-O solution :D

Add the whole pack of Jell-O powder with 300ml of milk and mix for 2mins using a electric mixer @ high speed.

Lightly Dust the Baked Puff-ed cases with some snow powder. Then fill the hollow with some Jello Lemon cream.... and they r DONE!!

But I feel that my fussy Nyx will not be satisfied with just THAT!! so I added some cherry topping :D And I've got this can of Cherry Pie filling in my baking cabinet for sometime oredi... I better use them b4 they expire (again):P

The Effect is kind of 画蛇添足to me:P BUT Nyx might like them this way... KIDS!! they just like colourful stuff!! dun they??? ;-)

Cherry Vol Au Vent with Lemon Cream

Picasa can only allow me to blog few pix at a time.... so I put this in another post.... Haha... it seems like I have lots of postings :P anyway, These Cherries added some colours to my Lemon Cream Vol Au Vents... I Think they now look more appetizing for my fussy Nyx ;-)

And I'm glad she said they looked very nice and she want to eat them after her shower :D I'm glad!!! Okie.... I'm going to prepare her dessert now!

Creammy Blueberry Roll ~My 1st Swiss Roll Attempt~ ;-)

Actually I did my 1st Swiss Roll during my Secondary School's Home Econs lessons... and I never succeed :P everytime, my sponge just break when I roll :( so I told myself I never want to roll any cake anymore :P

I'm addicted to Rachel Allen's Bake on Discovery Travel and Living Channel.... Saw her teaching @ her baking school this yummy Swiss Roll... it looked so simple and I just wanna make it ;-)

Rachel Allen's Recipe & method

Whisk 4 eggs and 125g or caster sugar @ high speed for 5-7mins till u get a pale and fluffy texture
add in 1 tsp of vanilla extract and 2 tbsp warm water... whisk for another min.
Sift in 125g of plain flour and fold in to the egg mixture using a spectular.

On a Swiss roll tray, line with baking paper. Lightly brush the sides with Oil and dust with plain flour. Then shake off the excess flour from the tray.

Empty the batter on the Swiss roll tray, spreading gently. Bake @ 190°c for 12-15mins.

After u take the baked sponge out of the oven, lightly press down the sides, sticking to the tray, to release the cake.
Turn out quickly on a big piece of baking paper, dusted with icing sugar. Peel off the baking paper from the sponge cake carefully.
Take a dammed clean tea towel and cover the cake to prevent drying out and also to cool off the cake.

Spread a generous layer of your favourite jam on the sponge cake, follow by another layer of whipped cream ~then ROLL ~:D

I think my cake look kind of ugly :P but being my 1st attempt after 20+yrs of "cake rolling phobia"... I think I got out of that phobia and will be rolling more cakes in my future baking adventure ;-)

and just like what Rachel Allen said.... there is no butter in this cake.... no fat! so u can feel guilt-free splurging lots of non-diary whipped cream in this cake :D and I think I really had too much whipped cream in my cake this time :D hahaa....

Happy Mother's Day with Vegan Cuppies & Vegan Buttercream

I borrowed this wonderful vegan book from NLB last week and I'm glad I tried out its recipes today ;-) Actually these vegan cupcakes dun really taste like those cakes I usually bake.... they taste more like kueh than cake :D anyway, they dun taste bad.... just different. I feel that they r kind of too sweet for my blend taste bud... will reduce the sugar half its called potion next time.

Ingredients for Vegan Cupcakes (the book says makes 12 but I get only 7!)

Preheat oven @ 180°c and line muffin tray with cupcake liners

· 1 cup soy milk (plain, unsweetened)
· 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
· Whisk the above together and leave to curdle for 5mins

· 1 ¼ cup plain flour
· 2 tbsp corn starch
· ¾ tsp baking powder
· ½ tsp baking soda
· ½ tsp salt
· Sift all the above together

· 1/3 cup canola oil ( I use corn oil)
· ¾ cup granulated sugar
· 2 tsp vanilla extract

· Beat the soy milk mixture and the above for a few mins till the sugar dissolved
· Slowly, beat in the flour mixture till u get a smooth texture batter.
· Fill cupcake lines 2/3 full and bake for 20 mins. Or till cake tester come out clean

Ingredients for Vegan Buttercream

· ½ cup margarine (I use daisy brand)
· ½ cup shortening (I use Crisco- plain)
· 3 ½ cups icing sugar, sifted ( 1 reduced to 2 cups)
· 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
· ¼ cup soy milk or soy creamer

· Beat margarine and shortening together till well combined and fluffy. Add in the sugar and beat for about 3 mins. Add the vanilla and soy milk and beat for further 5-7mins till u get a fluffy texture.

DECORATE!! :D

Happy Cookies for the long weekend

It's Labour Day today.... and school will be closed on next Monday too :( Its long weekends here in Singapore... meaning my 2 girls will be home to make me crazy in the next 3 days :(

Think these cookies will keep them busy munching for some time :D

They look kinda pretty with these Strawberry chocolate kisses + hundreds & thousands color balls....

The r just the same old butter cookies... but the girls just love them so much!!

Butter Cookies

• 250g Fairprice Brand butter
• 1 egg
• 120g sugar
• 350g Plain Flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp vanillin powder

Cream the wet ingredients using electric mixer till fluffy. Combine the dry ingredients to the creamed, wet ingredients until just blended

Wrap the above dough with cling wrap and refrigerate for half an hour.

Preheat oven to 180°c. and Roll out dough to about 0.5cm thickness, cut out to your desired shape, using cookie cutters. Decorate with whatever toppings u like... I'm using Strawberry Chocolate kisses + hundreds & thousands color balls for this batch of cookies

Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 15mins

Remove from oven and leave on tray to cool for at least 5mins before transferring them to the cooling rack. Make sure cookies are completely cooled before keeping them in air-tight container for storage.

Above ingredients makes 1-1/2 jars of cookiezz... sorry, I forgot to count the actual number again :D

Btw, u dun have to use up all the cookie dough at one shot... u can keep the balance, cling wrapped tightly in the fridge for up to a week... and my teacher even say can keep in freezer for up to 3 mths!!! but i have not tried to do so yet :P

Quiche again... and Portuguese Egg Tart

Yesterday, Tessa told me she wanted to have Quiche for her dinner... and she wanted "Happy Face" Quiche... so I decorated the quiche with these pineapple rings.... and we had funny faces quiche for dinner last nite ;-)

Its Hawaiian Quiche again by the way...

and I have quite a bit of the shortcrust pastry left after I'm done with the 3 Quiches... so I used up the balance for some sweet pastries.... Portuguese Egg Tart, but using shortcrust instead of puff pastry ;-)

Portuguese Egg Tart Filling

• 4 egg yolks
• 150ml Cream
• 150ml Milk
• 3tbsp condensed milk
• Beat everything together till u get a smooth texture.
• Strain thru a strainer before pouring in pastry shell

Egg wash

• 1 egg yolk, 1 tsp honey, 1 drop yellow coloring, 3 drops vanilla extract.

Bake @ 180°c for 15 minutes. Take out, brush with egg wash and put it back to the oven to bake for another 10 minutes or till u get the browning op top.