Birthdays!!!

March was another busy month. Started out with my turning another year WISER --- I hope!! ;) I was so tired from all the Chinese New Year baking, I didn't even felt like making any thing for myself this year. Luckily, my very sweet hubby went to Cheesecake Factory and got my favorite carrot cake cheesecake and 2 other slices of cakes for himself and the kids. We had a simple celebration. The next day, hubby had to fly off to Taiwan for work!! :(



A friend/neighbor, K asked if I could make a cake for her son's 7th birthday. Of course I said yes! Lucas will be in kindergarten in September, one year after that, he'll be in school full day. I 'd love to take these 2 years and gain as much experience as possible, so that by the time he's in school full day, I can possible start my business, get my kitchen license...etc. So, I jump on any opportunity I get. Back to the cake, K requested for a Mario cake. I Google and found MANY adorable Mario cakes to get an idea on the characters. Went to the Decorette Shop to look for a cake topper, but they didn't have any...so I checked online...WOW! It's expensive!! Forget it! But I really needed a Mario figurine...cos' I knew I wouldn't be able to make HIM! So I went to Toys 'R Us...thank goodness they have ONE Mario left!! Phew!

Honestly I really like the idea of having a toy figurine for the cake, instead of making ALL of them out of fondant...reason behind that is that after all the cake and icing are gone, the birthday child will still have a toy to play and remember with!! :) So, I started making the other characters. It's so fun, cos' they ARE SOOO CUTE!!! :D And I sure LOVE the edible markers!!! They are so convenient for the little eyes!!

I didn't make Mario, he was from Toys 'R Us!! :)

See the fluffy clouds?? I learn that trick from Melody of My Sweet and Saucy. If you're in the Long Beach area, check out her bakery!! I also thought about using marshmallow for filling up the inside of the cloud ---it'd be fun when the kids bite into it...but I didn't wanna go out and buy a BIG bag of it.

K told me that the kids were debating as to who gets to eat WHAT!! :)

Two days before she pick up the cake, K called and asked if I could make her daughter --- Ellie's birthday cake!!! I was nervous about it, since I only have a few days to work on that. Poor K, have both kids' birthday ONE week apart!! Try organizing 2 birthdays in a row!!! Yikes! I'm already complaining about the birthdays between Lucas, Yesmin and Nd(Lee)...which is 3 weeks part from each other's. I told her that I can't make detail fondant decorations like Mario's, but a simple and fun one should be alright. The nice thing about K is she isn't picky either. On the day she picked up Mario cake, I showed her the cakes from the Whimsical Bakehouse...and I showed her 3 choices that I thought would suit Ellie best.

Other Baked Stuff...

A friend asked if I could make a doll cake for her 2 year old back in December. Of course I would. I'd take any chance to practice my baking and cake decorating skills! So, I told her to go get a doll...that way, N can play with it after the cake has been eaten...and not freak out if she sees that the "doll" doesn't have feet when the cake is gone! She bought a Snow White doll. We dressed her up in an evening gown in PURPLE! :P The little princess was so happy, I heard. :)


These are some baby shower cookies I made for a best friend in L.A. It's a surprise gift for her and her baby shower guests. I was supposed to attend her baby shower this past weekend. However, the cost of the airfare is way above my budget. And since we do plan on bring the kids to Disney this summer, it'd be a good chance for me to catch up with her then and I'd also get to see the baby!! I made these with Elisa Strauss' Chocolate cookie recipe. It's DELICIOUS!!! Cos' she uses melted dark chocolate instead of cocoa powder. YUM!

Baby buggy

Knowing how bz my friend is going to be, I send her an e-mail telling her to make sure to open up the package 'cos she's the type who can stand NOT opening a present/box for a couple of days!! And since I had paid over $40 for the shipping (as usual, I didn't make them until last minute, hence using the express mail instead of the priority mail service), so that the cookies get there in time for her baby shower, AND not rot in the box!!! True enough, she was in such hurry, she didn't open the box even the day after she received it...however, her hubby, who should now be awarded with the title "Cookie Hero of the Year," asked if she knows what's in there, and thought they should open it that morning (the morning after they received it)...she still insist it'd be fine!! Thank goodness for his persistence, he opened the box which was sitting by the window with the sun shining in!!! :P He had figured that I might have sent some "food stuff"!!! :) LOL ....I'm so honored he has made an equation of Jenny's parcel= Food!!! ;)

Bib - the ribbons on the bib aren't very clear in the pic

Ladybug Cake

Early last month, a friend's friend asked if I could make a cake for her daughter's soccer team. She specifically requested a ladybug cake. How cute is that? Of course I said yes!

I thought of making a whole ladybug cake...but figured might not be enough to feed everyone. So, I decided to make a quarter sheet cake with 6 ladybugs, representing the 6 girls in the team. My husband had commented that he hoped there isn't ANY boys in the team! :P


L was such an easy "customer." She left it to me to decide EVERYTHING. So I picked a yellow cake with chocolate butter cream filling. I had so much fun making them! :D

The Golden Years

Not long after our return from Malaysia (yes, I still haven't blog about that trip...in fact I have SO MANY things that are backdated!!), a friend told me that she and her sister-in-law were planning a 50th Anniversary for her in-laws. She later asked me if I could make a cake! You see, I'm not a professional baker. I'm still experimenting. I'm ok with baking for my family and experimenting, but when someone PLACES an order with me, that's A LOT of pressure! Anyway, I said yes! (Which I later question myself if I was just too excited and still haven't overcome the jet lag??! :P )




So, I brought some magazines over for her to look at, to chose the design, talk about the flavor, size..etc. She also came over to my house, and that's when she saw my Yellow cake (the cake I submitted for the State Fair competition), and she liked that design. She needed the cake for 60 people. She called up some local bakery and asked what size would best feed that number of people. They told her a 12" and a 9". Yikkeess...I have never made any cake bigger than a 9"!!! I have covered a 12" dummy cake for the Oregon State Fair cake decorating competition. But THAT was a Styrofoam! I didn't have to worry about a Styrofoam! Nevertheless, I figured this is a great opportunity for me...and I better not screw up!

I broke down the days into making this cake. There was the chocolate cake for the 12" cake and butter/vanilla cake for the top. They are both filled with raspberry buttercream, and covered with fondant. Originally, the number "50" was supposed to be upright. I place toothpick under the numbers to help them stand. As I was placing the other decorated pieces, the number 5 started to "cracked"!!! *sigh* I knew I had no time to make another "5" (gum paste might have worked better in this case), so I had no choice but to lay them down F-L-A-T! :( The design also included fondant roses, which I'm pretty pleased with, but still need to work on placing them on a toothpick/wire stem and working on the calyx. I hand painted the other little golden flowers, the numbers and the pearls with petal dust.

When the cake was done...all I have left to worry about was whether it will stay in one piece all the way until they cut the cake, and if they liked the taste of the cake! It was difficult for me to be the judge...cos' 1st of all, I always set higher expectations for myself...2nd, I don't like to eat cakes...I liked the buttercream I made, that I know (it was a meringue buttercream), but cake?! It was hard for me to judge...I'm not a cake person, I only like to make them for others, I'm VERY picky when it comes to cakes. I like desserts and pastry, but I don't really have a sweet tooth...so, that makes me even pickier!!! :P

Anyhow, I was nervous the whole night....until I saw her e-mail giving her thumbs up! *phew* :) I'm so grateful for A to give me this opportunity.

More Cheesecake -- Japanese Cheesecake

When the April DB challenge was announced, I was excited, but at the same time, I knew I wasn't exactly a cheesecake person. The only cheesecake I like is Cheesecake Factory's Craig's Crazy Ccarrot Cake-Cheesecake (almost half of it is carrot cake), and a mascarpone cheesecake that I get occasionally from Safeway, which, is too sweet for my taste, but I get it anyways, for a quick fix! :P To me, cheesecake or the famous New York style cheesecakes are too rich, too dense, too heavy. After a few bites, I often feel like gagging...not because it doesn't taste good, but just the feeling in my mouth, makes me feel that way. So, I wanted to look for something lighter --- a mascarpone cheesecake (for the challenge) and a Japanese style cheesecake. I set my sail up (my search engine- google), in search for the yummy and light cheesecake. I came across a couple of blogs for Japanese cheesecake, and finally settle on dock with Cotton Soft Japanses Cheesecake submitted by Irene Oon in Diana's Dessert.

Japanese cheesecake is very much like a souffle or a chiffon cake. It doesn't call for a huge amount of cream cheese, in fact, only one part of it - just enough for a light taste. The main component here is the eggs being separated, and the whites are whip till medium-soft peak and gently folded in to the rest of the batter. This creates the light and fluffy, soft souffle like texture. It is the PERFECT type of "cheesecake" for me.

I was nervous though, knowing that I could easily deflate the egg whites! And I believe that it is true, when you feel nervous before you even begin the process, this is the result you'd get! :P

Eeekkkk!!!! My deflated 1st attempt on the Japaneses cheesecake!

I knew this was gonna happened even before I set it into the oven....as I could already see how "liquidy" instead of fluffy, when I pour the batter into the pan! :P But I was determine to get it right. So, the next day, I talked myself into not allowing the egg whites to "intimidate" me! ;) And...ta-da!!


Finally! They rise (this time, I made them in a 7" spring form and a 6" regular cake pan) and DID NOT collapse! Wooohooo!!! ;) I was so happy, I did a little dance in the kitchen! - too bad no photo nor video clips! Ha. It taste really yummy! So soft, not a whole lot of cheesy taste, and SOOO MUCH lighter, that my husband had some for breakfast! :P

The dense, deflated Japanese cheesecake (R) and the light and fluffy, cotton soft Japanese cheesecake (L)

However, I do have to say that the deflated one was pretty good too! It taste more like a Southeast Asian form of "kuih"!! So, we ate up the deflated one, and gave away some of the good looking one to some friends. I mean, we had 3 cheesecakes (one for the DB challenge, one deflated Japanese cheesecake and one fluffy soft Japanese cheesecake) within 6 days! How can I NOT share 'em??? So, if you don't like cheesecake because of its tangy taste, or its dense and heavy texture, give the Japanese style cheesecake a try...you might be surprise! :)

This was taken on a gloomy day...I think I should have turn the whole plate the other way so it's not so dark on the blackberries! :P

Here's the recipe submitted by Irene Oon to Diana's Dessert.

Cotton Soft Japanses Cheesecake

Servings: 12

Comments: This cheesecake really lives up to it's name. It is very light and soft. My family and friends like it and I hope you do too.

140g/5 oz. fine granulated sugar (I reduced it to 4oz.)
6 egg whites
6 egg yolks
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
50g/2 oz. butter
250g/9 oz. cream cheese
100 ml/3 fluid oz. fresh milk
1 tbsp. lemon juice (I added lemon zests)
60g/2 oz. cake flour /superfine flour
20g/1 oz. cornflour (cornstarch)
1/4 tsp. salt

Instructions:
1. Melt cream cheese, butter and milk over a double boiler. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, the cornflour, egg yolks, lemon juice and mix well.

2. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk until soft peaks form. (I whisked till medium - soft peaks for my 2nd attempt)

3. Add the cheese mixture to the egg white mixture and mix well. Pour into a 8-inch round cake pan (Lightly grease and line the bottom and sides of the pan with greaseproof baking paper or parchment paper). (In my 1st attempt, I used a 9" spring form pan, on the 2nd attempt, I used a 7" spring form & a 6" regular round cake pan)

4. Bake cheesecake in a water bath for 1 hours 10 minutes or until set and golden brown at 160 degrees C (325 degrees F).

Makes 1 (8-inch) cheesecake, 12 servings.

Daring Bakers' Challenge - Cheesecake!!

Lemon-Chambord Cheesecake with Toasted Almond Crust

The fun of taking part in the Daring Baker's Challenge is that, you don't know what's waiting for you the following month. This is my 2nd challenge, but I believe, every month, after we get our challenge up on our blog, we're all sitting in front of the computer, waiting for the next month's challenge to be revealed (though we know WHEN they will be posted)! :)

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

Many people have tried baking cheesecake, and many more that have shied away because a baked cheesecake is a lot trickier. If you have tried, or have talked to some others who have baked a cheesecake, you'll hear all those "nightmares of baking a cheesecake stories" --- the cracked top monster and the soggy crust devil! :P So, you might wonder "what's so challenging about this challenge??" Well, in this challenge,with the basic recipe in hand, we are "unleashed" to use our creativity to the max in terms of flavorings, the crust, and the decoration! (you should check out some other Daring Bakers HERE ~ there are some REALLY interesting flavors that I wished I could just reach into the screen and take it out of the pictures! ;P )

Also, this is not any cheesecake. If you have baked a cheese cake before, you'll be surprised by how "liquidy" the batter is! It is very creamy, unlike the New York style cheesecake that I often feel like it's too dense, dry and heavy ~ just one bite and I've have enough. Plus, with this recipe, you don't have to prebake the crust - one step eliminated!! ;)

Here's the recipe:

Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake:

Crust:
2 cups / 180 g graham cracker crumbs
1 stick / 4 oz butter, melted
2 tbsp. / 24 g sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cheesecake Filling:
3 sticks of cream cheese, 8 oz each (total of 24 oz) room temperature
1 cup / 210 g sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup / 8 oz heavy cream
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. vanilla extract (or the innards of a vanilla bean)
1 tbsp liqueur, optional, but choose what will work well with your cheesecake

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (Gas Mark 4 = 180C = Moderate heat). Begin to boil a large pot of water for the water bath.

2. Mix together the crust ingredients and press into your preferred pan. You can press the crust just into the bottom, or up the sides of the pan too - baker's choice. Set crust aside.

3. Combine cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand-mixer) and cream together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Make sure to scrape down the bowl in between each egg. Add heavy cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and alcohol and blend until smooth and creamy.

4. Pour batter into prepared crust and tap the pan on the counter a few times to bring all air bubbles to the surface. Place pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. If cheesecake pan is not airtight, cover bottom securely with foil before adding water.

5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes, until it is almost done - this can be hard to judge, but you're looking for the cake to hold together, but still have a lot of jiggle to it in the center. You don't want it to be completely firm at this stage. Close the oven door, turn the heat off, and let rest in the cooling oven for one hour. This lets the cake finish cooking and cool down gently enough so that it won't crack on the top. After one hour, remove cheesecake from oven and lift carefully out of water bath. Let it finish cooling on the counter, and then cover and put in the fridge to chill. Once fully chilled, it is ready to serve.

Pan note: The creator of this recipe used to use a springform pan, but no matter how well she wrapped the thing in tin foil, water would always seep in and make the crust soggy. Now she uses one of those 1-use foil "casserole" shaped pans from the grocery store. They're 8 or 9 inches wide and really deep, and best of all, water-tight. When it comes time to serve, just cut the foil away.

Prep notes: While the actual making of this cheesecake is a minimal time commitment, it does need to bake for almost an hour, cool in the oven for an hour, and chill overnight before it is served. Please plan accordingly!

In this months challenge, one of the topic the members discussed most was the water bath issue. In almost every cheesecake recipe you find, you'll be told to wrap the the bottom of the pan with layers of foil up to the sides, then place the cheesecake into the water bath. In my experience, EVERY TIME I follow THAT instruction, my crust comes out soggy, no matter what! Then I read some where, a anonymous reviewer for a mascarpone cheesecake recipe mentioned the idea of placing the water bath on the LOWER rack of the oven, so I tried it. It worked! :) -- no cracking mosters or soggy devil!!! My cheesecake came out beautifully! However, in the discussion, this is not the original intentional way of baking a cheesecake. It seems like the hot waterbath is to gently bake the cheesecake and to bake it in the low temperature. So, I will try this method once again in the future to see if I was just lucky! ;P Another way is to do as Jenny & Abbey have suggested under Pan Note.


Anyway, I didn't stray away too much from the original recipe. Only a few substitutions.

• I liked the taste and feel of mascarpone cheesecake, they are lighter. So, I substitute one part of the cream cheese for on part of mascarpone, which, in the future, I would try with 2 parts.

• I also added lemon zests.
• Omitted the lemon juice and vanilla - replaced with Chambord - note: NOT ENOUGH Chambord flavor!!!
  
• Cut down on the sugar to about 3/4 cup.
• Replace 1 cup of the gramham crackers with finely ground toasted almonds.
• Cut the butter for the crust to 6 Tablespoons.

Besides, I am also a person who likes sauce with majority of my food, dessert included. I think this habit comes from the time when I was growing up, as a typical Malaysian-Chinese family, my mom would mix all the dishes into my bowl/plate of rice, with gravy/sauce or soup. Come to think of it now, it doesn't look appealing at all, and it is exactly what I do for Lucas too! :P I did not do this with Yesmin back when she was younger, and now, I am always told by her to NOT put her dishes on top of her rice! ~ while Lucas could careless! Anyway, back to cheesecake... so, since I love sauce, I made a chocolate sauce and a raspberry sauce to go with my cheesecake.

with raspberry and chocolate sauce

Chocolate Sauce (Chef Raymond Ost of Sandrine's, MA, published in Chocolatier magazine)

8 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 Cup heavy cream
1/4 Cup whole milk

Place chopped chocolate into medium bowl. Combine cream and milk in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Immediately pour the hot cream/milk mixture onto the chopped chocolate, gently stir till smooth and blended.

Raspberry Sauce

1 bag of frozen raspberry
sugar to taste

Place frozen raspberry into a saucepan, bring it to a gentle boil. Add sugar to taste. Pass raspberry sauce through a fine sieve and discard the seeds. Chill it in the fridge before serving.

Thanks Jenny from JennyBakes for this fun challenge, and thanks to Jenny's friend Abbey for this recipe! :)

Cupcakes

Last Friday, we went to check out a Wu Shu center (recommended by a friend) in the Pearl District. Diana and her son Michael came with us. As we driving down NW17th Ave, looking for the center, we passed by a cupcake shop. Everyone agreed after our visit to the WuShu center, we'd stop by this place! :P

It's called Saint Cupcake. It's a cute little shop with just a handful of tables. There were a few selections of cupcakes...the kids obviously went for the Chocolate ones, and I, for my favorite flavor - carrot cake. At first I didn't get any for Nd(Lee) --- what a bad wife huh?! Then Diana just had to make me feel bad...so I got him one too! When I was told how much it was, I was stunned! I had expected it be expensive...but NOT THIS expensive!!! The 4 cupcakes that I got, 3 standard size, one mini was $8.75!!! Can you believe that? (there were no price list in the shop...not that I was aware of, at least) I had gone to another cupcake shop before some where else...but it didn't cost THIS much! Thank God it didn't taste BAD :P

Anyway, I love the way the box opens. Very fancy...guess that IS why the cupcakes were $2.50! ;) And most interesting of all, before I threw away the box (yup, I threw away...if there weren't any icing on it, I, who like to keep everything...WOULD keep the box! ;P), this is what it's printed at the bottom of it!!