Cashew Nuts Cookies

This year, beside pineapple tarts, I didn’t have chance to bake more for CNY cookies, only extra 2 more varieties. The first one are these cashew nuts cookies, which I had been on my baking list since last year, but only this year I got chance to try this. Thanks Wen for her generous of sharing her Auntie’s yummy recipe.



Ingredients:

250 gr Butter (used quality butter and chilled)
190 gr Icing Sugar

420 gr Plain flour (I reduced to 320 gr)
1 Tbsp Milk powder

1 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Salt

1 no Egg
2 tsp Vanilla Extract

200 gr Ground roasted Cashew nuts (I used 300 gr)
300gr Cashew nuts (Halves it, bake until half cooked for topping)

Extra egg for egg wash

Method:
- Sift flour, milk powder, soda and salt together, set aside.
- Cream butter and icing sugar till light and fluffy.
- Add eggs and vanilla till well mix.
- Lastly add sifted flour & ground cashew nut, mix well with the low speed.

- Form a soft dough and chill till firm (min. 2 hours)
- Roll the form and cut into the preference shape using cookies cutter

- Egg wash a layer first, place cashew nut on it, slighlty press. Egg wash again on top of the cashew nut too, to make the nuts look shiny.
- Bake at preheated oven of 180 degree C for 15-25 mins.

Yields : approx 100 pcs for half recipe.

Christmas Fruit Cake

I know this a bit too late to post, so sorry not to be able to update the blog, and I was actually baking this fruit cake at the last minute of Christmas day.  Just hope that I never too late to submit to Aspiring Bakers #14 : Creative Christmas Bakes (December 2011) hosted by Hankerie :)

Ingredients:

250 gr Mixed Fruits

50 gr Apricot

50 gr Cranberries

3 Tbsp Rum

250 gr Butter

130 gr Sugar

1 tsp Orange zest

4 Eggs

210 gr Plain Flour

½ tsp Baking Powder

40 gr Orange juice

40 gr Ground Almonds

Method:

- Soak mixed fruits, apricot and cranberries with rum over the night.

- Cream butter and sugar until pale & fluffy, add in orange zest.

- Add eggs one at a time till thoroughly mixed before adding in the next egg.

- Mix 2 Tbsp of flour to soaked fruits.

- Fold in shifted Plain Flour+Baking Powder, orange juice and ground almonds alternately to the butter batter, lastly add in soaked fruits, mix well.

- Pour into 8 inch square cake tin.

- Bake at 160C for 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hour or until cook.

- Let the cake cool in tin for 20 mins, then remove and leave it to cool completely.

PS : Dizzle some drop of rum onto cake once a while (every 2-3 days) to keep cake moist in the fridge.

Here, I would like to wish everyone HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!

Black Glutinous Steam Cake

I brought two cakes for our recent bloggers’ gathering using the same basic ingredients (black glutinous flour) and this is the steam version. I prefer steam one cause you can really taste the fragrant of black glutinous in the cake compare to chiffon. It is soft and has chewy texture too. If you prefer soft & fluffy texture, then you should try this chiffon version.

Source : NCC - Fatmah Bahalwan with modification

Ingredients :
2 Eggs
50 gr Caster Sugar

75 gr Black Glutinous Flour

25 gr Cake Flour

40 gr Oil

60 gr Instant Coconut Milk
1 Tbsp Condensed Milk
Pinch of salt

Method:
- Preheat the steamer.
- Beat eggs, sugar until pale & thick.
- Add in mixed flour, stir a while.
- Add in mixed oil, coconut milk and salt, stir until well incorporated.
- Pour in small pan, steam for 40 mins or cook.

Black Glutinous Chiffon Cake II

 

I got chance to go back Jakarta just before gathering, and brought back this black glutinous flour. Since it is hardly found here, then I was thinking to bake some cakes for the bloggers’ gathering. Just hope they may like it.

The first time I made few years back, I could taste a bit of sawdust in the cake. However, with this brand, quite okay, there was no sawdust taste in the cake (agreeable with fellow bloggers during last week gathering).

Here, I made half of the recipe with modification.

Source : NCC – Fatmah Bahalwan



Ingredients:
A:
80 gr Egg yolks
35 gr Caster sugar

B:
120 gr Egg whites
50 gr Caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt

C:
25 gr Plain flour
50 gr Black Glutinous flour
1/2 tsp Baking Powder Double Acting

D:
75 ml Instant coconut milk (I used KARA)
1-1/5 tbsp Oil

Method:
- Use hand whisk A until creamy.
- Then by using mixer beat B until stiff.
- Add C and D to A creamy mixture, then mixed with B.
- Pour into tube pan, then bake into preheated oven of 150C for 50 minutes or until cook.
- Invert the cake for cool down process.
- Remove the cake once cool down and serve.

Bloggers' Gathering (NOV 2011)

Thanks Bakertan to be an initiator and Eelin for being a great host that we all were enjoying  this wonderful gathering. I found this time we had quite balance between sweet and savoury of the buffet spread this time.

Let’s look at the spread details :)

The Batter Baker : Green Tea and Pina Colada Cuppies

Baking Library : American Sandwiches and New York Cheesecake

Passionate About Baking : Roti John and Oriental Salad

Yummy Bakes : Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes

Baking on Cloud 9 : Cinnamon Buns

Busy Gran : Shepherd's Pie and Choux Pastry

Kohken69 : XO Sauce Fride Lo Shu Fan

HoneyBee Sweets : Dorayaki Ham&Cheese and Green Tea Red Bean

My contributin : Black Glutinous Chiffon & Steam Cake

Chocolate Cream Cupcakes

I am submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #13: EnjoyCupcakes (November 2011) hosted by Min of Min’s Blog.

Ingredients:

70 gr Boiling water
25 gr Cocoa Powder
20 gr Sugar

4 Egg yolks
15 gr Sugar
50 gr Oil
75 gr Cake flour

3 Egg whites
50 gr Sugar

Topping:

150 gr Chocolate, melted

100 gr Buttercream

Decoration: Marshmallow (optional)

Method:
- Shift cocoa powder and sugar in bowl, then pour in the boiling water and stir well incorporated.
- Preheat oven 180 degree.
- Hand whisk egg yolks and sugar until pale. Add in oil & the cocoa mixture, mix well.
- Fold in cake flour until combined.
- In separated bowl, whisk egg white until foamy, add in 50gr sugar, whisk until stiff (soft peak).
- Pour 1/3 egg white mixture into egg yolk-flour mixture and mixed well, then pour this into the rest of the egg white and mixed well.
- Pour into cupcake cases and bake for 15-18 mins.

- Chocolate cream : mix the melted chocolate into buttercream, pipe the cream over the cupcakes, decorate it with marshmallow.



Black Bottom Cupcakes

Saw Hearty Bakes and I Love.I Cook. I Bake baked this too, here I'm submitting my version of these irresistable cupcakes to Aspiring Bakers#13: Enjoy Cupcakes (November 2011) hosted by Min.

Source : David Lebovitz's The Great Book of Chocolate via Joy of Baking

Ingredients:

Cream Cheese Filling:

227 gr Cream cheese, room temperature
65 gr Caster sugar
1 large Egg
1/2 tsp Vanilla extract

Chocolate Cupcakes:

195 gr All purpose flour
200 gr Caster Sugar (I used Brown Sugar)
30 gr Unsweetened Cocoa powder
1 tsp Baking soda
1/4 tsp Salt
240 ml Water
80 ml Vegetable Oil
1 tbsp White vinegar (I omitted this)
1 tsp Vanilla extract

Topping : Chocolate chips (optional)

Method: - Preheat oven to 180 C

- Cream Cheese Filling: Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, egg, and vanilla extract and beat until creamy and smooth. Set aside.
- Chocolate Cupcakes:
- In a large bowl sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl mix the water, oil and vanilla extract. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and stir in the wet ingredients until nice and smooth.
- Evenly divide the batter into cupcake cases. Then spoon a few tablespoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of each cupcake. Sprinkle some chocolate chips on the cheese.
- Bake about 25 minutes, or until the cream cheese filling has set and the cupcakes feel springy to the touch (a toothpick inserted into the chocolate part of the cupcake will come out clean). Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.