Carrot Cake (with Cheese Frosting)

Here's a very easy-to-make tasty carrot cake that I made for someone's birthday.
The only tough part is preparing the ingredients as the grating of carrots takes pretty much efforts and time.
Other steps are basically just whipping all together with an electric mixer XD


If you want a healthier choice, omit the cheese frosting and it will still taste as good!


In this demo, I baked 2 times for this measurement as I only have 1 square pan. And I actually used 1 part of the cake, halve it & create a rectangular cake rather than a square one as a birthday cake. The other part that I baked second time was "topless", without the cream frosting and my family loves it too! :)

Carrot Cake Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for pan)
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt
• 1½ cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 3 cups grated carrots
• ½ cup mashed pineapple
• 1½ cup walnuts (chopped)

Cheese Frosting Ingredients:

• 16 oz cream cheese
• ½ cup unsalted butter (plus more for pan)
• 25g powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Line the bottom of the 7" pans with parchment paper. Then grease the paper and dust it with flour.
Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Step 1: Combine the sugar, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a mixing bowl. Set aside.

Step 2: Beat the eggs and vegetable oil in another mixing bowl, using a mixer, whisk till smooth & fluffy.

Step 3: Sift in all the pre-mixed dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Continue to whisk well.

Step 4: Add in grated carrots, mashed pineapples and chopped walnuts. Mix thoroughly.

Step 5: Pour batter into baking tray, bake for 30mins. When done, cool the cake for 10mins before removing.

I trimmed the edges of the cake before proceeding...

Steps to make Cream Frosting
1) Set cream cheese at room temperature and whisk it in a mixing bowl. Add lemon juice and vanilla extract and whisk till creamy.

2) Gradually add in tablespoon by tablespoon of the powdered sugar till the consistency of a frosting cream has reached.

3) Spread the cream onto one side of each piece of the halved cake. Sandwiched them together and cover the entire cake with more cream cheese frosting. And you are done!

 

Well, because it is meant to be a birthday cake for someone ^^, so I combined my other recipe - the langue de chat for the decorations. Kinda a little messy, still trying to improve on my cake decorating skills though. HAHA!

Almond London Cookies

Almond London Cookies

Chinese New Year is here again! And yes, as usual will be busy in the kitchen whipping up goodies for this festive. This year, can't miss out Kuih Bangkit, I made a slight variation in aesthetic-wise by adding green coloring to highlight the presence of pandan in the cookies. :)
And this year, a NEW recipe I tried as well, the Almond London Cookies! These cookies can be an all-time-favorite for all due to the mouth-watering chocolate coating and especially the nibble-size cupcake look. Yet, super duper easy to make! Here's how~!

Ingredients: (Recipe yearns approx 50-60)

• 125g unsalted butter
• 75g icing sugar (sifted)
• 1 egg yolk (you can use the whites for royal icing or macarons!)
• 225g plain flour (sifted)
• 150g ground almonds / *Variation: plus 200g chopped almonds
• 1 teaspoon almond essence
• 450g dark chocolate

Steps:

Preheat oven to 170°C.

1) Using an electric whisk, cream butter and sugar till light ad fluffy.

2) Beat egg yolk and almond essence into batter till light pale yellow.

3) Add in sifted plain flour, fold well into a dough. (if too wet, may add in a bit more flour)

*Variation: May add chopped almonds into batter for a crunchier texture.

4) Pinch marble-size dough and roll into balls. Line balls of dough onto baking sheet on baking tray.

5) Bake 170°C for 20mins-25mins. Place baked cookies on tray to cool.

 

6) While cooling the cookies, line paper cups & melt dark chocolate in microwave. Divide each sessions to 20secs so that you won't burn the chocolate. I did an approx 2-3 sessions to melt the dark chocolates.

TIPS: I also added little coating milk chocolate (ratio of 1:5) to yearn a smoother flowing chocolate for easy pouring.

7) Using a teaspoon, drizzle some chocolate into base of each paper cases. Next, place each paper cases with a cookie.

8) Cover the cookies with more chocolate and sprinkle ground almonds on top.

9) Let chocolate sit to harden or you may chill in refrigerator for 5mins.

TADA! SERVE!

HAPPY PROSPEROUS RABBIT YEAR 2011!!!

Chocolate Eclairs (with Baileys Buttercream filling)

Bailey's buttercream eclairs

Using the same Choux Puff recipe, accompanied with ideas of interesting flavors, created a variation of the similar dessert - Baileys Buttercream Eclairs.


Choux Puff Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup all-purpose-flour
• 1/2 tsp caster white sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup water (slightly lesser by 1/4 cup)
• 2 eggs (beaten)

Steps:
1) In a bowl, sift flour + sugar + salt. Set aside.

2) Melt and boil butter + water in a pot over medium flame. Remove from heat.

3) Quickly but gently add the sifted flour mixture in, keep stirring with a wooden spoon/spatula. Return pot to low heat, keep stirring will dough comes away from sides.

4) When dough turns into thick smooth ball, off the flame. Slowly pour in egg 1 tbsp by tbsp. Mix well till mash-potato-like paste.

5) Spoon into piping bag (DIY piping bag, click here to learn how to DIY). Pipe out long stripes of dough about 2 inches each.

6) Dip a fork into water and use it to create line-patterns on each dough. (This is the classic elcair look ^^)

7) Bake 15mins at 200°C, then reduce oven temperature to 170°C and bake another 30mins-40mins.

8) Once baked, let air out by slitting a tiny pocket at sides with a butter knife and cool 15mins.


Bailey's Buttercream Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• 30ml baileys (approx 2 tbsp)
• 2 cups powdered sugar (add amount till right consistency)
• 1/4 tsp salt

Steps:
1) Cream butter with mixer till smooth.
2) Add salt & whisk well blended.
3) Add a bit of Baileys, whisk and add a bit more till complete.
4) Slowly add in tablespoon of powdered sugar bit by bit till cream consistency.


Completing Steps:
1) Use piping bag to fill the eclairs with the bailey's buttercream.
2) Melt some coating chocolate (my favorite is the dark chocolate!), use a spoon and coat the top of each elcairs with chocolate.
3) Best is to chill the eclairs first before serving!


ENJOY!

Halloween No-Bake Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies

This is a very very very easy no-bake fudge-like cookies that is chewy and chocolaty, not forgetting, rich in peanut flavor. And you can make in various shapes to welcome the Halloween! Great for a last-minute-prep on some trick-or-treat with your family & friends or Halloween party!



Ingredients 

- 3 1/2 cups dry quick-cooking oats, divided

- 1/2 cup peanut butter

- 2 teaspoons vanilla

- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter, cut into pieces

- 2 cups sugar

- 1/2 cup milk

- 4 tablespoons cocoa
- Almond flakes (for decoration purpose)
 

1. Place the butter, sugar, milk and cocoa in a small saucepan. Give them a quick stir. Turn the heat on high, and leave the mixture alone.

2. Bring mixture to a full, rolling boil, and let it boil for exactly 1 minute. Remove immediately from the heat, and pour the chocolate mixture over the oats and peanut butter.
3. Use a large fork, quickly stir the ingredients together. (if mixture is wet, add in more oats)

5. Scoop & drop the mixture by tablespoons onto the wax paper or using the hands, roll into tomb-shapes or finger-shapes. (as shown in picture)

6. Let the cookies cool until set or chill in the fridge for 30mins before serving.


  

Egg Tarts

This is a very simple recipe to make delicious egg tarts at your very own kitchen. Though I am still in love with the Portuguese style egg tarts, sometimes I do still crave for these classic ones as they are still as fragrant, crispy and yet soft & runny in the center. Also, not to forget, it's definitely of a much lower calories compared to the Portuguese egg tarts since the absence of double cream in the egg filling.  XD

So here's the recipe, it is really simple and yet fun to make especially the tart part!

INGREDIENTS:

Pastry Tart

- 50g butter (chopped into small pieces)

- 100g plain flour

- 1/2 of a beaten egg (keep the other half for filling)

- 25g caster white sugar

Filling

- 1 1/2 eggs

- 40g caster white sugar

- 50ml water

- 50ml milk

Preheat over to 160°C.

1) Mix flour and sugar in a big bowl.

2) Use fingertips, rub the butter into the flour and sugar mixture, lifting it high to incorporate more air into mixture till crumbs-texture. Here's a video showing the butter & flour rubbing technique.

3) Slowly add in the 1/2 egg mixture while using hands to mix well.

4) Knead the dough on a floured table till smooth. (you may add 1 tsp of water if dough is still crumby)

5) Prepare the tart moulds and divide dough into equal size balls first.

 

6) Press dough into the small tart mould. Punch holes at the bottom with a fork to prevent center from raising while baking.

7) Whisk all filling ingredients together & strain the filling with a sieve into (preferably) a jug.

8) Pour the egg filling mixture into the tarts.

9) Bake at 160°C for 20-25mins. Remove from oven, cool for 5mins before removing tarts from the mould.

 

ENJOY!









Some equipments you may need for this recipe: