Maple Walnut Cupcake

Recipe

Ingredients
140g butter
120g maple syrup
50g egg
130g cake flour
1/4tsp baking soda
60g walnut (roasted and chopped)

Nestum

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Sift flour and baking soda together, set aside.
3. Cream butter and maple syrup until light and fluffy.
4. Slowly beat in egg.
5. Fold in flour until well combined.
6. Lastly fold in the chopped walnut.
7. Pour batter into paper muffin casing till 80% full and sprinkle some nestum on the surface.
8. Bake for 25mins, if skewer comes out clean when inserted into cake then it done.
9. Cool cakes on a wire rack.

Honey Cranberry Cake

Recipe is from '孟老师的100道小蛋糕'. I felt that this bakery book is worth buying. The steps are very clearly explained and what I like best is that most of the recipes come in a smaller portion. This time I didn't use my cake mixer to do the work instead I used the old fashion way, I used a wooden spoon to do all the mixing.

For this recipe I replace the 100g of canned sweeten red bean with 60g of cranberry (my boy favourite). And as for the mirin part, you can replace it with vanilla essence or just omit it as the amount used is so small so it don't give the cake any distinguish flavour at all.

Recipe

Ingredients (yield 7 cakes)
80g unsalted butter (softened)
100g cake flour
1/2tsp baking powder
30g caster sugar
70g eggs
1/2tsp mirin
2tbsp honey
60g cranberry(chopped)

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2. Sift flour and baking powder into a mixer bowl.
3. Add butter and beat until creamy.
4. Add in egg and sugar and beat until well blended.
5. Add in honey and mirin and beat until well-blended.
6. Lastly, fold in the chopped cranberry into the batter.
7. Spoon batter into the greased mould until 70% full.
8. Bake in the preheated oven for 20mins.
9. Remove cupcakes and cool on a wire rack.

Chocolate Pound Cake

Recipe

Ingredients
125g unsalted butter
55g dark brown sugar
90g caster sugar
1/4tsp salt
1/2tsp vanilla paste
2 large egg
120g cooking chocolate (melted)
185g cake flour
1/4tsp baking soda
1tsp baking powder
60g milk

almond flake

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 175C.
2. Grease a 17cm tube pan, dust with flour and shake of excess.
3. Sift flour, baking soda and baking powder together and set aside.
4. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
5. Slowly beat in egg and vanilla paste until well combined.
6. Mix in the melted chocolate until blended.
7. Add in flour and milk alternately until well combined.
8. Pour batter into the tube pan and sprinkle surface with almond flake.
9. Bake for 35-40mins, if skewer comes out clean when inserted into cake then it done.
10.Leave cake to cool in pan for 5mins then remove and cool on a wire rack.

Pandan Kaya Butter Cake

Recipe

Ingredients
230g unsalted butter
200g caster sugar
1/3tsp salt
2tbsp kaya
4 eggs (about 240g)
20g pandan juice
50g milk
1/2tsp pandan paste
260g self-raising flour
10g coconut powder (coconut cream powder)
1/2tsp baking powder
30g dessicated coconut

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 175C.
2. Sift self-raising flour, coconut powder, salt and baking powder together, set aside.
3. Mix pandan juice, milk and pandan paste together, set aside.
4. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
5. Add in kaya and continue to cream till well blended.
6. Slowly beat in egg until well combined. (If batter curdle add in some flour.)
7. Fold in flour and pandan mixture alternately until well combined.
8. Lastly, fold in dessicated coconut into the batter.
9. Pour batter into a lined 8" round tin.
10.Bake for 50-60mins, if skewer comes out clean when inserted into cake then it done.
11.Remove cake from tin and cool on a wire rack.

Mini Pandan Loaf

Recipe

Ingredients
(A)
300g bread flour
1 1/2tsp instant yeast
55g sugar
1/2tsp salt
1tbsp milk powder

(B)
30g egg
70ml coconut milk
80ml water
1tbsp pandan juice
1/3tsp pandan paste

(C)
20g shortening/ unsalted butter

(D)
100g raisins

egg wash
dessicated coconut

Steps:
1. Combine (A) together in cake mixer.
2. Add in (B) and mix in low speed until it form a dough.
3. Switch to medium speed and add in shortening.
4. Continue to beat until it form a smooth and elastic dough.
5. Add (D) and mix till well blended.
6. Cover dough and let it prove for 50-55mins.
7. Divide dough into about 8 equal portion(about 80g each) and rest for another 10mins.
8. Shape into oval and place it into the greased mini loaf tray.
9. Cover and leave to prove for 45mins until it doubled in size.
10.Preheat oven to 180C.
11.Brush surface with beaten egg and sprinkle some dessicated coconut on top.
12.Bake in a preheated oven for 15mins until buns is brown.
13.Remove buns from tray and cool it on a wire rack.

(Note: You may adjust the amount of coconut milk and water(liquid total amount-150ml) to your own prefer.)

Comment and Reply

Two days ago, I had received a comment from Joyce. She commented on my blog layout ("your header photo is a bit blurry and bland. You should add more color and pazzaz.") and how I should put in more words than just photos and recipes. Lastly, she also requested not to post her advice. I respected her request and I do like to thanks her for her advice.

However, I must share my thought on what she had commented. Everyone had their own view and opinion on how theirs and others blog looks and layout. I'm very happy with my header and my blog layout, so for the moment I will not make any changes to it.

I'm not sure whether did you read my past posts. I do provide details on my bakes when I think it is necessary. In future I will try to write a bit more but I'll still preferred readers to leave questions on the comment corner where I can answer specific questions then for me to post irrelevant information on my blog. And I also preferred to spend more time on researching and testing out recipes.

My blog and blogging is only a small part of my daily routine. So I wanted to keep it simple and easy for me to manage. Please try to understand my points.

Pandan Sponge Cupcake

Recipe

Ingredients (yield 9 cupcakes)
2 eggs
75g castor sugar
1/2tbsp glucose (optional)
65g cake flour
2tbsp coconut powder(instant coconut cream powder)
1/4tsp baking powder
1/4tsp salt
10g pandan juice
20g milk
20g veg. oil
1/4tsp pandan paste

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 190C.
2. Lined cupcake tray with paper casing and set aside.
3. Mix flour, coconut powder, salt and baking powder together and set aside.
4. Pour egg and sugar into a mixing bowl and whisk at high speed for about 3mins.
5. Add in glucose and continue to whisk for 1min.
6. Then reduce speed to medium and whisk till thick and fluffy.
7. Sift the flour mixture into the egg batter in 3 portions and fold in. (I used hand whisk to fold in.)
8. Mix milk, pandan juice, pandan paste and oil together.
9. Pour some egg batter into the pandan mixture and stir until well-blended.
10.Pour the mixture into the egg batter and mix until well-blended.
11.Spoon batter into cupcake tray until 80% full.
12.Bake in a preheated oven for 15mins.
13.Remove cakes from tin and cool on a wire rack.

Rich Milky Cake

Recipe

Ingredients
2 large egg
125g castor sugar
1tbsp honey
120g cake flour
15g cornflour
15g milk powder
1/2tsp baking powder
1/4tsp salt
95g unsalted butter
50g whipping cream
1/2tsp vanilla paste

Steps:
1. Preheat oven to 175C.
2. Sift flour, cornflour, milk powder and salt together, set aside.
3. Melt butter and whipping cream over a double-boiler.
4. Remove from fire and stir in vanilla paste, set aside.
5. In a clean bowl, whisk eggs and sugar together over a double-boiler.
6. Remove from fire when the egg mixture feel warm about 40C. (Use a Candy Thermometer to measure the egg mixture temperature.)
7. Pour egg mixture into a mixing bowl and whisk at high speed for about 3mins.
8. Add in honey and continue to whisk for 1min.
9. Then reduce speed to medium and whisk till thick and fluffy.
10.Gently fold in the flour mixture until well blended.
11.Lastly fold in the cream mixture until well blended.
12.Spoon batter into baking cups till 80% full.
13.Bake in a preheated oven for 25mins.
14.Cool cakes on a wire rack.
15.Dust surface with icing sugar and serve.