Rainbow Pinata Frozen Cake

This cake was made specially for my girl's 7th Birthday.  When she requested for a Frozen cake, I suggested using a Frozen icing sheet for the cake and she was fine with it.  After some research online, I decided on a rainbow cake.  However, nearer the date, I happened to see a post on facebook saying "Rainbow cakes are out, Pinata is the in thing".  So I thought, why not a Rainbow Pinata Frozen Cake?  So here it is.  :)

Cake base prepared 2 days before the actual date

Recipe for Rainbow Cake, (Recipe taken from Passionate About Baking)(Makes a 7", 6 layers)
320g cake flour
3 tsp baking powder
3/8 tsp salt (I used ¼ tsp)
170g unsalted butter, slightly softened ( I used SCS butter)
320g caster sugar (will reduce)
4.5 egg whites, room temperature
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
270g fresh milk, room temperature
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
270g fresh milk, room temperature 
50g Sugar 
Colourings (Red, yellow, green, blue, violet – mix yellow & red for orange)
Order of colour : Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet 

Method:

1.Preheat the oven to 175C.  Line cake panswith parchment paper. (Alternatively, grease the cake pans and dust generously with flour, then tap away excess flour). Set aside.

2.Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large mixing bowl. Mix well and set aside.

3. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

4.Add the egg whites gradually, then add the vanilla extract and mix until incorporated.

5.Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk, until just blended. Stop to scrap down sides of the bowl with spatula as necessary.

6.Divide into 6 portions (each about 180g).

7.Add food colouring to each portion using toothpick, bit by bit to desired colour tone. Mix thoroughly to ensure all the colouring is well blended with the batter.

8.Pour batter into cake pans and smooth the surface. 

9.Bake for about 13 mins. Remove from the oven and let it cool for a couple of minutes. Remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely. Repeat for the other three batters.

10.If not frosting immediately, wrap each layer individually with clingwrap.

Frosting
240g Whipping Cream
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

1.Put all ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat until stiff peak.

2.To make the pinata cake, I cut a round hole for the 2nd to 5th layer, leaving the top and bottom most uncut.

3. To assemble the cake, place one cake layer on a serving plate/tray and spread some whipping cream evenly. Repeat this process until the fifth layer.

4.Pour in the M&Ms or candies and fill up the hole.  

5.Add the final layer and crumb coat the whole cake.  Place in fridge and chill for 30 mins before the final decoration.

I made 4 cupcakes with some leftover batter.  Just right for the figurines the little girl asked for. All in...  

The surprise after cake cutting.... 

The busy kids....

Note :

1) Batter can be further reduce because the height of each layer is slightly high.

2) I would prefer using a lighter cake base, maybe sponge or chiffon for future bakes.

Baked Chocolate Mooncakes - 4th September 2014

I’ve been seeing lots of postings on baked chocolate mooncakes.  When I saw Ann’s dark beauty, I immediately bookmarked her recipe!  So, here’s my version of dark beauty!   

Ingredients  (Recipe shared by Anncoo Journal)
113g Plain flour
18g Cocoa powder
85g Sugar syrup
25g Peanut oil
1/2tsp Alkaline water

360g lotus paste with one handful of melon seeds,  divide into 12 portions, 30g each

Method:

1. Mix sugar syrup, peanut oil and alkaline water together thoroughly.
2. Sift plain flour and cocoa powder in a bowl. Make a well in the center and pour sugar syrup mixture. Using a rubber spatula to mix and form to a soft dough. Cover with a cling wrap and let it rest for 30 minutes.
3. Divide dough into 12 portions, 20g each and roll into balls. Wrap in coffee lotus paste.
4. Roll it into ball and dust with some flour. Press firmly into mould, unmould and place on a lined baking tray.
5. Bake at preheated oven 170C for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and rest mooncakes to cool for about 15 minutes. Then bake the chocolate mooncakes again for another 10-15 minutes.
6. Leave mooncakes to cool down completely before storing into an airtight container.

This mooncake can be eaten immediately with the cripsy....Wait for about 3 days for the mooncakes for skin to soften (回油)before serving.

Traditional Mooncake – 30th August 2014

This is my second mooncake bake.  This time round, I referred to the recipe shared by Jess Lim in her blog.. The recipe below is for a small batch, which is only 1/3 of the original recipe.

Ingredients
100g ---- Cake Flour
74g ----- Sugar Syrup
20g ----- Peanut Oil
3g ------- Alkaline Water
350g ---- Lotus / Pandan Paste
25g ------ Melon seeds
5 --------- Salted egg yolks (around 11-12g each) 

Glaze : 1 egg  + 1 tbsp water (mix well & sifted)

1 am using 125g mould (Skin : 38g,  Paste, yolk & melon seeds : 87g) 

Method:

1. Mix sugar syrup, peanut oil & alkaline water together thoroughly.
2. Sift cake flour in a bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the sugar syrup mixture. Use a rubber spatula to mix and form a soft dough. Cover with a cling wrap and let it rest for 2hrs.
3. Divide dough into 5 portions (38g each) and roll into balls.  Wrap in the fillings.
4. Dust with some flour and press firmly into mould, unmould and place on a lined baking tray.
5. Bake at preheated oven 180C for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and rest mooncakes to cool for about 10 minutes. Then glaze with egg yolk mixture.
6. Bake for another 10-12 minutes till golden.
7. Leave mooncakes to cool down completely before storing into an airtight container. 

公仔饼（香化饼） - 28th August 2014

This year, I was kind of hesitating whether I should bake mooncakes.   It was a struggle between whether I have the time and whether I can resist not to, especially when I see so many postings on mooncakes!  

So, when my husband offered to bring me to Kwong Cheong Thye to buy the ingredients, I was like, why not?  ;)

So, I started my bake with this 香化饼 by 蓝色小厨.   I bookmarked this recipe right away after seeing it as I was eager to try out this recipe which has lotus paste added.

Ingredients (makes - 25g x 16 pcs) 
175g ---- Cake flour (sifted) 
115g ---- Mooncake syrup 
50g ----- Peanut oil 
2.5g ----- Alkaline water 
75g ------ White lotus paste 


Glaze : 1 egg  + 1 tbsp water (mix well & sifted) 

Method: 

1. Mix sugar syrup, peanut oil, alkaline water and lotus paste together thoroughly.
2. Sift flour in a bowl. Make a well in the center and pour sugar syrup mixture. Using a rubber spatula to mix and form to a soft dough. Cover with a cling wrap and let it rest for 2hrs. 
3. Divide dough into 16 portions, 25g each and roll into balls. 
4. Dust with some flour and press firmly into mould, unmould and place on a lined baking tray. 
5. Bake at preheated oven 160C for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and rest mooncakes to cool for about 10 minutes. Then glaze with egg yolk mixture. 
6. Bake for another 15-20 minutes till golden.
7. Leave mooncakes to cool down completely before storing into an airtight container. 

The  公仔饼 are made using the colorful egg moulds on the bottom left.

Transformer Cake (25th June 2014)

This is the first time I am baking a birthday cake for my little boy. So, I ask him what kind of cake he wanted months ago. Initially, he asked for 'Henry the Hugglemonster'. So, I surfed online for the picture, waiting for the day. 

However, nearer the date, I asked him again and he asked for a Transformer cake as his dad bought him an Optimus Prime!

I do not have the confidence to do the face of Transformer. So I surfed online again and found others sharing their transformer cake drawing an autobot instead. So, here is mine!  :P

I baked the chiffon cake 2 days before the actual date. And I spent almost 5 hours to slice, crumb coat the cake, freeze it before doing the piping and wash up.  I was kind of disappointed with the color though, but I am happy my boy like it. :)

Chocolate Chiffon Cake

Recipe from Angel Cook Bake Love

   Ingredients:
   (A)
   8 egg yolk
   90g sugar
   (B)
   100g milk
   140g vegetable oil
   1/4 tsp salt
   (C)
   138g plain flour/cake flour
   12g cocoa powder
   2 tsp baking powder
   (D)
   8 egg white
   180g castor sugar
   ¼ tsp cream of tartar

Method

1) Whisk egg yolk and sugar in (A) till sugar dissolved. Add (B) and mix well.

2) Sift in (C) and mix till a smooth and uniform batter is formed. Set aside.

3) Whisk egg white till frothy, Add 1/3 of sugar and cream of tartar in (D). Continue to beat and add remaining sugar in 2 sessions and beat till stiff peak (original recipe is to beat whites till soft peak then add sugar/cream of tartar at one go).

4) Fold in 1/3 of the meringue to egg yolk mixture, fold till just incorporated. Repeat the same for the remaining meringue.

5) Pour batter into 10" square pan, bang it on tabletop twice to release air bubbles.

6) Bake in preheated oven at 170C for about 50 mins (when in doubt, bake for a few more mins. For chiffon cake, it's better to over baked than under baked). Invert the cake immediately once taken out from the oven. Cool completely before removing from mould. 

Whipped Cream ( I made 2 portion )

240g Whipping Cream

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tblsp sugar

1. In a large mixing bowl, place whipping cream, vanilla extract and sugar together.

2. Beat the mixture until stiff peaks form.

3. Add colouring and decorate as desired.

Note :

1) Will bake the chiffon longer as the bottom part of the chiffon did not rise fully.

2) Will reduce sugar as my family commented that the cake is sweet.

Anniversary Cake - 22 May 2014

This cake was made specially for my parent's 40th wedding anniversary.  I made the cake base two nights before the actual date and did the decorating the next day, which was the night before the actual anniversary date.  The decoration of the cake was not what I intended.  Faced with the soft whipped cream, I just simply piped round the cake using Wilton tip 32.  Guess the candle helps make the cake look much prettier.  :)

Chocolate Cake (by Aunty Yochana)
Ingredients:

8 egg white
8 egg yolks
300g sugar
160g cake flour
64g corn flour
4 1/4 tbsp cocoa powder
2 1/8 tsp baking powder
106g corn oil

Method:

1. Sift cake flour with cornflour, baking powder and cocoa powder.
2. Whisk egg white until soft peak forms and then add in sugar gradually and whisk till sugar dissolved and mixture is thick and glossy.
3. Drop in egg yolks, one at a time, making that it's evenly combined before the next addition.
4. Fold in 1/2 of flour mixture and mix well.
5. Pour in oil and mix well, fold in the balance flour mixture and mix till well combine.
6. Pour the mixture into round cake tin and bake in pre-heat oven at 175C for about 45 mins or till skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
7. Leave cake to cool on a wire rack.

Whipped Cream
Ingredients
360ml heavy whipping cream
1/2 + 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1.5 tablespoon castor sugar

Method:

1. In a large mixing bowl, place whipping cream, vanilla extract and sugar together.

2. Beat the mixture until stiff peaks form.

3. Add colouring and decorate as desired.

2014 Chinese New Year bakes

These are some of my CNY bakes early this year, just for record.

18 Jan 2014
Tried out the pineapple golf balls using Kenneth Goh's recipe.

22 Jan 2014
Almond cookies (shared by Meng Choo at CK)

25 Jan 2014
Pineapple tarts (Recipe from food for tots)

Almond cookies (New Year Cookies by Alan Ooi cookbook)