The Magic of Baking

Mixed Berry with White Chocolate Muffins

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 23:13:00 -0400

What you need :

2 Cups Plain Flour
1 Cup Milk
1/2 Cup Oil
100 gr Butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 Egg
3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda
3 Tsp Baking powder
2 Tbsp Cinnamon Powder
2 Tbsp Pure vanilla extract
A pinch of Salt
1 Cup White chocolate chips/chunks
2 Cups mixed berries (Frozen or fresh)

Methods :

Preheat oven to 180C (356F)
Pour all the wet ingredients (oil, milk, egg, vanilla, egg, butter) , whisk them to combine.
Place the dry ingredients in another bowl (Flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, white chocolate), stir to combine,
Pour the dry mixture into the wet mixture and mix it until combines, do not over mix because it might result in tough muffins!
Add the berries
Pour the mixture into the paper
Bake it for 25 minutes until skewer inserted comes out clean

Lemon Tart with Biscuits Base

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 23:04:00 -0400

What you need :

185g Marie or Nice biscuits, processed to fine crumbs
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
90g Butter, melted
1/2 Cup Caster sugar
1/2 Cup Lemon juice
Finely grated lemon rind
1/2 Cup Cream
Icing sugar, for dusting

Methods :

Preheat oven to 180C or 160C fan
Lightly grease a 2cm-deep, 24cm (base) loose-based round flan pan. Combine biscuit crumbs, cinnamon, nutmeg and butter in a bowl. Press into base and sides of prepaed pan. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Mix together eggs, sugar, juice, rind and cream. Pour into prepared tart shell. Bake for 15 minutes until just set or you will burn the biscuits base. Cool in pan.
Dust tart with icing sugar, refrigerate.

thecakebar: Blind Baking a Pie Crust (pre-baking your crust by...

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 22:12:53 -0400

thecakebar:

Blind Baking a Pie Crust

(pre-baking your crust by itself before baking the pie with the crust)

Macaroni Schotel

Mon, 25 Jun 2012 00:41:38 -0400

Macaroni Schotel is a baked pasta that i don’t know where it is originally coming from but my mother said that it is from Dutch. Back in Indonesia, this is a very popular dish because Indonesia is influence by Dutch. My mother often made it and i really like it!Here is the recipe :

What you need :

200 gr Macaroni pasta, boiled and drained

1 Onion, chopped

2 Garlic cloves, chopped

Hams and Bacons, sliced

3 Cups fresh or skim milk (You can substitute this to 2 Cups of Thickening cream)

3 Eggs, beaten

2 Carrots, diced

A pinch of Salt (To your liking)

A pinch of Pepper (To your liking)

1 Tsp of Ground nutmeg

1 Tbsp of Mixed herbs

2 Tbsp of Plain flour

Shredded Mozarella cheese

For the hams and bacons you can always change it to ground chicken, it depends to your own liking. You can also add other veggies such as peas or mushroom and corns.

Methods :

Preheat the oven to 175 C (375 F).
In a big pan, heat 2 Tbsp of olive oil or vegetable oil, sauté the garlics and onions.
Add all of the remaining ingredients, stir well.
Heat off, add cheese and eggs, stir well.
Transferred the macaroni into the buttered baking dish (Pyrex is a good choice).
Put some mozzarella cheese on top.
Bake it for 45 minutes.

thecakebar: Matcha Shake … Obsession

Mon, 25 Jun 2012 00:07:05 -0400

thecakebar:

Matcha Shake … Obsession

thecakebar: Mini M&M and Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 13:39:58 -0400

thecakebar:

Mini M&M and Peanut Butter Cookie Sandwiches

thecakebar: oreo cheescake!

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:19:21 -0400

thecakebar:

oreo cheescake!

thecakebar: Partaaaaay cupcakes

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:18:37 -0400

thecakebar:

Partaaaaay cupcakes

thecakebar: Sponge Wedding Cakes! so gorgeous am dying!

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:18:18 -0400

thecakebar:

Sponge Wedding Cakes!

so gorgeous am dying!

thecakebar: Dunkin’ Donuts Homemade Crullers Tutorial

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:14:51 -0400

thecakebar:

Dunkin’ Donuts Homemade Crullers Tutorial

thecakebar: strawberry puff pastries

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:13:48 -0400

thecakebar:

strawberry puff pastries

thecakebar: rose bud macarons!

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:13:41 -0400

thecakebar:

rose bud macarons!

thecakebar: baklava w/ chocolate drizzle

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:12:41 -0400

thecakebar:

baklava w/ chocolate drizzle

oh-lolaaa: CHOCOLATE COOKIES AND CREAM...

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 08:19:53 -0400

oh-lolaaa:

CHOCOLATE COOKIES AND CREAM CUPCAKES

INGREDIENTS

1 box Dark Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix, plus eggs, oil, and water needed to prepare

24 Chocolate Sandwich Cookies (like Oreos)

Filling:

13 oz jar Marshmallow Creme (or Fluff)

1/2 stick (4 TBS) butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Frosting:

2 sticks butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 Tablespoon hot water

Chocolate Shell:

2 cups milk chocolate chips

2/3 cup vegetable shortening

Mini cookies or chocolate sprinkles, for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line 24 muffin tins with paper liners. Add a cookie to the bottom of each liner.

2. Prepare batter according to box directions. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter and bake for about 12-15 minutes, until tops spring back when lightly touched. Place on a wire rack until cool.

3. While cupcakes cool, make filling: In the bowl of a mixer, combine marshmallow creme, butter, and vanilla until smooth. Add powdered sugar and beat on medium high until light and fluffy. Fill cooled cupcakes by either cutting a hole in the top with a small knife and spooning it in, OR piping it in with a disposable piping bag and Bismark Tip.

4. Once cupcakes are cooled and filled, prepare frosting: In the bowl of your mixer, combine butter and vanilla until smooth. Add powdered sugar and cocoa powder, beating on low until just combined. Add hot water and beat on high for about a minute. Fold in cookie crumbs. Pipe frosting on cupcakes, or frost with butter knife or spatula. Place cupcakes in the fridge for about 30 minutes to chill.

5. Chocolate Shell: Place chocolate chips and shortening in a medium-large microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth. Dip frosting part of cupcakes in the melted chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. Immediately top with mini cookies and sprinkles. Wait until chocolate is set before serving.

Notes:

If you’re going to pipe the frosting on high, you’ll want to double the frosting recipe.

Alternatively, you could use your favorite homemade chocolate cake recipe.

thecakebar: Nutella Banana Gyoza Dumplings! (recipe/tutorial)

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 08:19:32 -0400

thecakebar:

Nutella Banana Gyoza Dumplings! (recipe/tutorial)

TeTe's Treats: Fat Free Banana Muffins - TeTe's Treats

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 19:36:17 -0400

TeTe's Treats: Fat Free Banana Muffins - TeTe's Treats:

tetestreats:

Fat Free Banana Muffins - TeTe’s Treats

Wow Wow Wow these are the first banana muffins I have ever made and they came out so good! The recipe makes 12 muffins I found a recipe online but I changed it up a lot to make it healthy so please try the recipe and let me know what you think! I took…

Mojito Genoise Cake

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 08:28:00 -0400

Mojito Genoise is a traditional Italian cake, based from an area called Genoa. I haven’t actually tried to make this cake but it is on my waiting list so probably sometime within this month i will try to make it. This cake is popular because of Lorraine Pascal, a British model/baker. I saw this cake from Masterchef Australia show a few weeks ago and constantly fell in love by its look. They invited Lorraine Pascale from Britain to Australia just to show people how to make her “special” cake, Mojito Genoise. Alright here is the recipe, enjoy! I will post the photo of the cake if i already try to make it which i don’t know when :p

What you need :

For the sugar syrup :

150 gr Soft light brown sugar

40 ml Water

2 Finely grated zest and juice of limes

80 ml White rum

1 Bunch of fresh mint leaves

For the sponge :

260 gr Caster sugar

115 gr Butter, melted and cooled, plus extra for greasing

260 gr Plain flour

6 Eggs, lightly beaten

For the buttercream :

100 gr Butter, softened

200 gr Icing sugar

2 Drops of Vanilla extract

1 Lime, finely grated zest and juice

For pecan coating :

1 Dash of vegetable oil for oiling

200 gr Granulated sugar

200 gr Pecans

Methods :

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F), Gas Mark 6. Grease a 20cm cake tin and line the base with baking paper.
Make the sugar syrup first to allow the flavours to infuse. Put the sugar, water, lime juice and rum in a medium pan over a low heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves, then boil for 2–3 minutes until the syrup thickens. Add the mint and lime zest and set aside.
Fill a large saucepan around a third full of water. Place over a high heat and bring to the boil, then remove from the heat. Set a large heatproof bowl over the pan, making sure the base isn’t touching the water. Add the sugar and eggs to the bowl and whisk. This causes them to foam up and gives a lighter, fluffier cake. The egg mixture should be whisked for about 10 minutes, then remove the bowl from the pan and continue to whisk for a further 5 minutes. The mixture is ready when it holds itself well in the bowl and, if you take a spoonful and then drop it back in, the resulting ‘blob’ should take 3–4 seconds to blend back into the mixture.
Once you have reached this ‘ribbon stage’, pour the melted butter into the bowl, around the sides (pouring it into the middle knocks out all the air). Fold the butter into the egg mix, moving the bowl around and scooping down to the bottom to fold the mixture over itself, using as few movements as possible to retain the air.
Next, add the flour and fold in until the mixture is uniform and smooth. Pour gently into the prepared tin and bake in the centre of the oven for about 30–35 minutes. When cooked, the sponge should spring back when pushed lightly, will be a light golden colour and a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake will come out clean. Leave to cool for 10 minutes or so, then remove from the tin and place on a wire rack to cool completely. Once it is cool, slice the cake in half horizontally and set aside.
To make the buttercream, put the butter, icing sugar and vanilla in a bowl and whisk until pale and fluffy. Add the lime zest and juice to taste.
To assemble the cake, put a dollop of buttercream on a serving plate (to stop the sponge sliding around the plate). Place the bottom of the sponge on the plate and brush with the reserved sugar syrup. Be quite liberal to make the cake really moist. Put a big dollop of buttercream on top and, using a palette knife, spread the buttercream over the cake until it is level. Take the top half of the cake, turn cut side up and brush with the sugar syrup. Turn it back over and put it on top of the buttercreamed sponge.
Next, cover the whole cake with the buttercream, including the top and sides, making sure it is as smooth as possible with straight sides and top. Put the cake in the fridge for 10 minutes or so to firm up a little. For the pecan coating, oil a baking tray. Put the sugar in a medium pan over a low heat and leave to melt, stirring as little as possible. If any sugar sticks to the sides of the pan, dip a pastry brush in water and brush it off. Once the sugar is melted bring the mixture to the boil and cook for 1 minute making sure it does not burn. Add the nuts and pour the mixture onto the prepared baking tray. Leave to cool.
Once this has cooled right down, blitz the praline in an electric mixer or put it in plastic bag, smash it with a rolling pin and think of your boss. Once the praline pieces are the size of breadcrumbs, use them to coat the sides of the cake.

It does look like it’s complicated to make this cake when you read the recipe, but why not give it a shot? I cannot wait to try to make this now! This recipe is a courtesy of Lorraine Pascale. You can try to Google her and you will see that she has her own baking show and she owns a cupcake store as well. Happy trying!

Non Baked Homemade Tiramisu

Mon, 18 Jun 2012 22:33:00 -0400

Tiramisu is an Italian coffee cake that can be easy to make. If you buy Tiramisu in a café or cake shop it could cost about $6 for a slice and could be more than $25 for the whole cake. In this recipe i will tell you how to make a Tiramisu without baking it, easy to make and most of all…it’s cheap! This is actually the original recipe of Tiramisu. Back in Italy hundred years ago people used to make Tiramisu with Savoiardi fingers biscuit and here is the recipe. Enjoy!

What you need :

250 g Mascarpone Cheese
3 eggs (700g per box for 12)
3 soup-spoons white sugar
Savoiardi biscuits (or Sponge fingers)
Espresso Coffee
Rum
Bitter cocoa dust (or chocolate powder)

Methods :

Make enough coffee to soak in it all the necessary biscuits to layer the cake. Let the coffee cool in a bowl, add in a bit of rum.
Mix only the yellow part of the eggs with the sugar. Add the mascarpone cheese and mix all together to form a cream.
Separately foam the egg white (they have to become really thick and dense, like foam!!). Add the foamed egg white to the cream mix and mix all to form a smooth and soft cream.
Soak the Savoiardi biscuits in the bowl with coffee and put them orderly in the bottom part and along the borders of the container.
Spread an even layer of cream on the base layer of biscuits. Then another layer of coffee soaked biscuits…another layer of cream…another layer of biscuits…..till the top layer of cream.
Spread on the top cocoa dust to finish.
Put the ‘tiramisu’ in the freezer. My experience is it can last for two nights!

See how easy it is?! Now grab yourself the ingredients and start experimenting in your kitchen!

"Life is uncertain, eat dessert first!"

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 02:25:47 -0400

“Life is uncertain, eat dessert first!”

- Ernestine Ulmer

Green Tea Matcha Cupcake and Chocolate Cocoa Cupcake

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 02:12:00 -0400

So this is actually just a simple cupcake that i made in my spare time. Since i’m in my semester break now i have nothing to do in particular so i decided to bake something each week. This week is only a simple cupcake that i improvised to Green tea matcha (My favourite!) and chocolate cocoa. The recipe is very simple and it is easy to make. I was trying to make the frosting for the first time and it wasn’t so good as you can see it. The texture of the frosting is kind of rough, whereas it is supposed to be smooth. I will try to make a better frosting next time.

What you need :

115 gr unsalted butter, softened

115 gr caster sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

115 gr self raising flour

1 tbsp milk

Green tea :

3 tbsp matcha powder (This actually depends to your liking)

Cocoa Chocolate :

2 tbsp cocoa powder (Again, depends to your liking but it is best not to use it too much as cocoa powder has a strong flavour)

Frosting :

175gr unsalted butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract

280 gr icing sugar

If you never tried to make frosting before, try to use quarter or half of the recipe portion first. As for me, i only used around 100 gr of butter and 200 gr of icing sugar.

Method :

Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
Cream together the butter and sugar until it looks pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs gradually. Sift in the flour and fold into a mixture with the milk.
Add the matcha powder or Cocoa powder.
Spoon the mixture into the paper cases evenly.
Bake in the preheated oven for around 20 minutes until golden brown. Insert a skewer to the cake after 20 minutes and if the skewer inserted is dry, your cupcakes are ready. Transfer to a wire rack and leave it to cool.
To make the frosting, put the butter and vanilla extract in a bowl, beat until the butter is pale and very soft using an electric mixer. Gradually sift in the icing sugar, beating well after each addition.
Spoon the mixture into a piping bag. You can also add some sprinkles to your liking :)