What's Christmas Without Trifle

Trifle - Sweet and refreshing on a hot, Darwin Christmas. This recipe is ideal for those who want to say that they made it but the truth is, they only assembled it all together.

Trifle
1 jam roll
2 packets portwine/raspberry jelly (follow manufacturer's direction and allow to set)
1 litre custard (I made mine with 2/3 cup of custard powder and 1 litre of milk, boiled until it thickens and let to cool)
500gm fruit salad in syrup (drained, and reserve the syrup)
600ml cream

Method:

1. Cut jam roll into 1cm slices.
2. Line half the jam rolls into glass bowl,
3. Drizzle 1/3 of the fruit salad syrup over the jam roll slices.
4. Cut jelly into cubes and fill the glass bowl with half the amount of jelly made.
5. Pour the custard over the jelly.
6. Top with half the drained fruit salad.
7. Place the remaining jam rolls on top of the fruit salad layer.
8. Repeat steps 4 - 6.
9. Whip cream until cream almost triple in volume (but before it turns into butter)
10. Using the spatula, layer the cream on top of the trifle.

Note: No cream layer in my pic as it was nearly overflowing, and my partner has to take it into work so I didn't want cream all over the car.

Christmas - A Time to Get Drunk

Christmas - drinking with family and friends which kinda inspired me to make these rum balls. However as I don't take alcohol and neither should I compromise my partner's and his workmates' work ethics as paramedics, I thought I had better substitute it with rum essence

Rum balls

250gm plain biscuits (Arnott's Arrowroot, Marie and Nice biscuits would do fine)
3 tbsp cocoa
1 tbsp rum essence (or the real stuff)
395ml condensed milk (1 tin)
1 cup desicated coconut
Extra desicated coconut, cocoa, or chopped nuts, for decoration

Method:

1. Process the biscuits in a blender until they resemble bread crumbs.
2. Add in the desicated coconut.
3. Sift in the cocoa.
4. Add the rum and condensed milk into the mixture and stir until the mixture sticks together.
5. Roll into balls and roll over the extra desicated coconut (or cocoa or chopped nuts) for decoration.

Colour of Christmas

Been deprived of my decorating set for so long that I decided to make cupcakes - only so that I can decorate them. I went through some websites and found ideas on what to decorate on my cupcakes, and because I couldn't decide which ones I wanted, I ended up with all of them.

Cupcakes
250 gm butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
5 egges
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup self raising flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
370ml milk

Method:

1. Cream butter and sugar together
2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Add in vanilla essence and beat well.
4. Sift the flour and baking powder together.
5. Add the flour in 3 portions along with the milk, and mix well, starting and finishing off with the flour.
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celcius for 20-25 mins.

Glace:
1 1/2 cups icing sugar
2 tbsp boiling water
1 tbsp milk
20gm butter (softened)

1. Sift icing sugar into a bowl.
2. Make a well in the centre of the icing sugar and add in butter, and 1 tbsp boiling water.
3. Stir until well combined.
4. Add milk and stir until well combined.
5. If more water is required to acquire the right consistency, then add in some more boiling water and stir.
6. Colour icing as desired and coat the cupcake tops.

Note: Making the glazing is optional. I only did it because I wanted a coloured surface to place my buttercream decorations. If using this step, place the iced cupcakes into the fridge for 10 mins so the icing glace can harden.

Buttercream:
120gm icing sugar
240gm butter
colouring

1. Sift icing sugar into a bowl.
2. Add the butter and beat until the butter achieve a pale ivory colour.
3. Colour as required and decorate (the fun bit)

Christmas once again

It's been a long time but with Christmas holidays here, and having just resigned from my job (as I got a new position), I finally found my baking & decorating hobby once again.

Oreo Truffles

250gm Philadelphia Cream Cheese (softened)

3 packets of Oreo cookies (39 pieces of oreos)

Method:

1. Place the Oreo's (including the sandwiched cream) into a blender and blend until finely processed.
2. Place Oreo's into large mixing bowl.
3. Combine the softened Cream cheese with the Oreo's until thoroughly combined.
4. Roll into balls, or shape them into the desired shape. Place into fridge for 10mins or freezer for 5 mins before decorating with icing.

*DO NOT place the cream cheese along with the Oreo's into the blender otherwise when oil starts weeping out in big droplets, don't say that you haven't been warned.

Icing:
Heat white chocolate as per directions on the packet. Add in peppermint oil once the chocolate is melted. Colour and decorate truffles as desired.

Cheesecake makes baking worth it

I love making cheesecakes, especially after I learnt that cream cheese DO NOT belong in the freezer. I love the way that they form so effortlessly and I have discovered that no-bake cheesecakes are not so bad afterall and they are so much easier to make, without having to worry if the water from the bain-marie has seeped into the springform and destroyed my hard-nights' labour.

I made this in an attempt to renew my faith in myself over the past disasters. It didn't turn out so bad. Plus it was also an attempt to ponder what I will/can make with my new KitchenAid that I redeemed from my flybuy points plus paid $400 for. Well worth the money *dancing on the bed because I am overjoyed at my new purchase* It's coming in 4 weeks, Yippee.

NO-BAKE TRIPLE CHOCOLATE CHEESE CAKE

Ingredients

180gm marie biscuits

1 tbsp castor sugar

1 tbsp cocoa powder / milo

90gm butter, melted

80ml warm water

1 1/2 tbsp gelatine

400ml whipping cream

3 tbsp castor sugar

500gm cream cheese

1/2 cup castor sugar

60gm dark chocolate

100gm milk chocolate

80gm white chocolate

Method:

1. In a food processor, blend the biscuits, sugar and cocoa powder together until they resemble fine, sandy crumbs.
2. Add in the melted butter and pulse the food processor for a few seconds until they resemble slightly wet sand grains.
3. Remove the biscuit crumbs and press well onto a 23cm springform pan.
4. Add gelatine to water and put it over the stove until the gelatin dissolves. Set aside to cool slightly.
5. In a bowl, whisk the whipping cream and 3 tbsp of sugar together until soft peaks form. Set aside.
6. In another bowl, whisk the cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar together until creamy.
7. Add the gelatine mixture into the cream cheese and beat until well combined.
8. Fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture. Gently beat it to combine the cream cheese with the whipped cream.
9. Divide the mixture into three equal parts.
10. Pour the slightly warm dark chocolate into one part of the mixture while beating it with one beater attachment (on a handheld beater) until thoroughly mixed through. Pour into the springform pan over the biscuits.
11. Using a spatula, smooth the layer until it is reasonable flat.
12. Repeat steps 10 & 11 with the milk chocolate, pouring it over the dark chocolate layer.
13. Repeat steps 10 & 11 with the white chocolate, pouring it over the milk chocolate layer.
14. Cover the top of the springform pan in foil and place it into the fridge for at least 4 hours.

Note:

*DO NOT pour chocolate into the cream cheese mixture without beating it immediately, otherwise you'll have small (or large) pieces of chocolate - unless you want it to be a chocolate chip cheesecake. The milk chocolate layer turned out a little like chocolate chip cookie and tasted pretty good actually.

*I used leftover white chocolate with 2-3 drops of food colouring from my previous cooking to draw concentric circles with a piping bag. Then I ran a skewer from the side of the cake towards the center and then in the opposite direction around the cake to produce the spider web effect.

A Disastrous Weekend

Few weeks ago, I decided to make pandan steamed cupcakes, fatt koh and blossom cake - all of which are steamed and supposed to "smile" once the steamer lid is lifted.

Well, mine didn't smile and instead, made me grumpy for the rest of the week, and has prevented me from coming back to my blog because I hate to admit that I have failed miserably in making things "smile" and to add insult to injury, mum and dad weren't particular helpful in making me cheerful either.

So here is the best of my three efforts. The latter 2 were nearly unedible. But I have seen yochana's site and her blossom cake looked amazing - unlike mine.

Pandan Steamed Cupcakes

No recipe until I perfect this one.

Finally

Well, my mum's birthday has been and gone (28th April) and I still haven't updated my site with her cake. Oh, I took the whole-cake pic with another camera so I can't upload the pic just yet. With this camera, I remembered to take a photo when it was already half eaten

It was nothing elaborate since I did it last minute and she doesn't enjoy the sweet richness of icing and butter cakes. So instead, I had to make a cheesecake and it can't be just any ol' no-bake cheesecake, it had to be one that has been in a bain-marie for about 1hr.

Marbled Baked Cheesecake


Ingredients:
500gm softened cream cheese
50gm castor sugar
5 eggs, separated
zest of 1 lemon
1 tsp lemon juice
230gm whipped cream
120gm plain flour
120gm castor sugar
50gm melted milk chocolate
1 tbsp milk

Method

1. Beat the softened cream cheese with the 50gm of castor sugar until fluffy.
2. Add each egg yolk, one at a time into the cream cheese mixture, beating well after each addition.
3. Add in the lemon zest and juice.
4. Using a spatula, fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.
5. Sift in the plain flour and fold until well combined.
6. In a separate, greasefree bowl, beat the 5 egg withes with the remaining castor sugar until soft peak forms.
7. Fold the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture.
8. Beat in milk until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
9. Remove 200gm of cream cheese mixture and quickly mix in the melted chocolate.
10. Dollop some white cream cheese mixture followed by the chocolate cream cheese mixture into the spring form pan. Swirl patterns with a skewer if desired.

Note:

*Do not pour in chocolate and let it stand while you finish scraping the bowl or the like, otherwise the chocolate will set in the cooler cream cheese mixture and you'll have little clumps of chocolate.

*I have poured the chocolate mixture on the base and saved about 2 tablespoon of the mixture, then poured on the white mixture. Using the remaining chocolate mixture, I have placed it in a piping bag and drew little circly patterns and swirled it with a skewer. Chocolate icing made from piping and floodwork: Melted white chocolate with a bit of pink colouring for the letter flooding. Melted milk chocolate for the borders.