Halloween 2015

Ahhhhhh spiders on my cupcakes!!!

Made these for my daughter to bring with  her to a Halloween party.

Cupcakes: Mini Egg cake 

http://fromchinshome.blogspot.com/2014/10/mini-egg-cake.html

Spiders were made from black fondant. 

Baby Dragons Cupcakes

Having a little fun with cupcake decorating. Made 18 baby dragons with fondant. They are all ready to go to the school's medieval summer fête! 

Lovely Cherry Almond Cupcakes

My childhood friend, SiewLoon brought me a lovely silicone mould from Florence Italy. She is in Paris for a few days before she returns to KL, Malaysia. We met for dinner at my home & she insisted that I must try to bake something with the new mould as she was eager to see the end products.

Decided to bake some cupcakes with the cherry almond loaf recipe. A recipe which I wanted to try as cupcakes.

Here is our lovely bakes. The cupcakes turned out very pretty. 

From this mould : 

From this silicon mould.

Chin's notes:

1. Here is the link to the recipe: 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1039628/Cherry-almond-loaf.html

2. We baked the cupcakes at 170 degree C for 30mins. 

3. It is a lovely recipe. :) Here my Cherry Almond Loaf

http://fromchinshome.blogspot.fr/2015/05/cherry-almond-loaf.html?m=1

Pandan Chiffon or Mushroom?

Baked some chiffon cupcakes using IKEA's cupcake baking tray. The shape of the chiffon turned out well & the dome stays nice without much sunken in after an hour in the cooling period. 

I'm very satisfied with  today's bake! :) 

Chin's notes: 

1. Baked these in a preheated oven @ 160 degree C for 30 mins.

2. I'm using the following recipe: 

http://fromchinshome.blogspot.fr/2015/04/chiffon-cupcakes-again.html?m=1

Yummy Moist Butter Cupcake

Janice shared the following recipe. There is a method that was used in the preparation. I did tried the method, they really turns out moist. But I am lazy to do the whites & yolk separately, hence I combined & used the ingredients measurements. The cupcake is really moist even after days! 

Added chocolate chips

Butter Cupcakes adapted from 

The Famous Mrs NgSK's Super Moist Butter Cake

Ingredients : 

230g soft butter at room temperature 

4 eggs - about 200g or there about

200g plain flour 

200g sugar 

60ml fresh milk 

1 tsp vanilla essence / extract

1 tsp baking powder

Preparation steps:

1. Cream butter until creamy then add the sugar. Cream until light & fluffy. 

2. Add egg one at a time, then milk & vanilla extract. Beat until well combine. 

3. Turn the electric mixer to slow, slowly fold in the flour. Stop the machine until all well combine.

4. Put paper liners on muffin moulds, then fill it up 2/3 with the cake mixture. 

5. Bake in a preheated oven at 150 degree C for 30 - 35mins or until the cupcakes are fully cooked. Toothpick test, if it comes out clean, the cake is ready. 

6. Take them out from the oven & leave to completely cool before dressing up the cakes. 

Voilà !! 

Butter Cream Icing 

125g soft butter at room temperature 

125g icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence / extract 

Colouring ( optional ) 

Preparation steps:

1. Whisk butter until it turns pale / light.

2. Slowly add in the icing sugar & vanilla extract. Whisk until light & fluffy. Add choice of colouring & whisk until well combine. 

3. Transfer to piping bags with attached nozzle & pipe on to the cupcakes. 

Voilà ! 

Chin's notes: 

1. The link to the original recipe : 

http://life-is-like-a-long-journey.blogspot.sg/2013/03/the-famous-mrs-ngsk-super-moist-butter.html?m=1

2. You can also add chocolate chips into the mixture.

3. The mixture yield about 16 - 18 cupcakes. 

Chiffon Cupcakes Again

I'm very pleased with my bake today. :) Tried the following method and it seems to give me a nicer chiffon cupcakes after they have completely cooled. 

Fill the cake mixture to about slightly more than half full in the baking liners.

Baked at 165 degree C for 20 mins then lower oven temperature to 160 degree C for another 25 mins. 

After 4hrs, the cupcakes still looks good. 

Pandan Chiffon Cake recipe: 

Ingredients 

A 

6 egg whites 

80g sugar 

1/2 tsp cream of tartar 

B 

6 egg yolks 

100g sugar 

100g plain flour 

1 tbsp pandan extract 

1/4 cup / 50g coconut milk 

1/4 cup / 50g vegetable oil 

Preparation steps: 

1. Whisk ingredients for A until stiff peak. 

2. In a separate bowl, mix well all the ingredients  for B. 

3. Gently fold mixture A into B. 

4. Transfer mixture to muffin tray lay baking liners. Fill to slightly more that 1/2 full. 

5. Bake on the lowest rack in a preheated oven at 165 degree C for 20 mins then 160 degree C for another 25mins. 

6. Remove from oven, & leave cupcakes to cool upside down on cooking rack. 

Voilá! 

Chin's notes: 

1. This is the same recipe that I used for the normal chiffon baked in the chiffon pan. 

2. For normal chiffon bake, bake for 55 mins to get the lovely crust on the side. Turn baking tin upside down for cooling. Remove cake from baking tin. Slice the cake into serving portion before serving. 

3. Other chiffon bakes 

http://fromchinshome.blogspot.fr/2014/09/earl-grey-chiffonc.html?m=1

4. These were baked in March 2015. 

I did not get the nice dome then. 

5. Added on 26 April 2015 - baked more cupcakes by halving the ingredients. I managed to get 17 cupcakes. I also got the same results with nice dome & they stays nice. 

Middle & bottom racks were used for these bakes. 

Pandan Chiffon Cupcake

Trying to bake pandan chiffon in the form of cupcakes. Always wonder if it can be done. Saw some others tried & posted their bakes.

Here are my bakes. They are nicely baked on the outside & soft on the inside. I like the outcome.  

Pandan Chiffon Recipe:

Ingredients 

Batter A : 

6 egg whites 

100g sugar 

1/2 tsp cream of tartar 

Batter B:

6 egg yolks 

100g sugar

100g plain flour 

50g ( 1/4 cup) oil

50g ( 1/4 cup ) coconut milk 

1 tbsp Pandan extract 

1/2 baking powder ( optional ) 

Preparation steps : 

1. Separate the ingredients needed respectively. Batter A & batter B. 

2. Put all the ingredients for batter A in a mixing bowl & whisk until stiff peak. 

3. In a separate mixing bowl, add egg yolks & sugar. Mix well. Then add the coconut milk , oil & Pandan extract. Mix well. 

4. Fold in the flour until well mixed. 

5. Gently fold batter A into batter B until well combined. 

6. Line muffin trays with liners & fill in the batter until 2/3 full. Tap a few times to release the trapped air if there is any. 

7. Bake in a preheated oven at 160 degree C for 30 minutes. 

8. Remove & let it cool completely. 

Bon appétit ! 

Chin's notes: 

1. This is the same recipe that I used for baking chiffon in the chiffon baking tin.

2. For normal chiffon bake, bake for 55 mins to get the lovely crust on the side. Turn baking tin upside down for cooling. Remove cake from baking tin. Slice the cake into serving portion before serving. 

3. Other chiffon bakes 

http://fromchinshome.blogspot.fr/2014/09/earl-grey-chiffonc.html?m=1

4. 1 March 2015 - a few asked if Cream of tartar is a must. I don't think it is a must as long as the egg white is whisked to stiff peak. I just have to test it out.  It is possible & below is my bake without cream of tartar added to the egg whites. 

Crossy Road Characters Cupcakes

Birthday cupcakes for my son's 11th birthday. He did not asked for MindCrafts & I thought it was a relief but Crossy Road characters were equally challenging.  My 13th year old helped to create some of the very challenging characters. I'm impressed by his imagination & crafting skills. 

We have forget-me-not, crab, tree frog, gift, dark lord, dice, zombie & unihorse. 

Where is the chicken? 

27 Jan 2015 - another cake for the family  to share. 

Lychee Cupcakes

Trying out a new flavour with the basic cupcakes recipe & reduced 50% sugar.

Lychee Cupcakes Recipe : 

Makes 16 - 18 mini cupcakes 

Ingredients : 

18 pieces of canned lychees 

100g butter , soften at room temperature. 

100g self raising flour 

50g brown sugar

2 eggs 

Preparation steps : 

1. Cream butter & sugar until creamy. 

2. Add in the eggs. Mix well. 

3. Add in the flour & mix well. 

4. Line the cupcakes tray with paper liners. Fill up 1/2 to 3/4 full. I used ikea papers liners. Add lychee on each batter, gently pressed lychee into batter. 

5. Baked at preheated oven at 180 degree C for 20 minutes or until cook. 

6. Remove from the oven & leave to cool on the cooling rack. 

Chin's notes: 

1. I did not use the mixer for this cupcake. Reference to Easy vanilla cupcakes.

2. Brown sugar compliments the lychee taste. You can always replace with white sugar. 

3. If you do not have self raising flour, use  all purpose flour + 1 tsp baking powder. 

Bon appétit ! 

Zebra Cake Finally!!!

Finally after a few failed attempts to get the zebra prints on my cake.  The lines are more visible. This time round I just used a normal butter cake recipe with added buttermilk & cocoa powder.

If you are using non stick pan. I'll suggest you line with a piece of baking paper, to prevent the batter from spreading too fast. I think this could be the reason that caused my failure previously. 

Alternate the batter to get the prints : 

Alternating batter to fill up the baking pan

Here is the basic butter cake recipe : 

8" baking pan. 

Ingredients :

5 eggs 

250g butter 

250g self raising flour

250g sugar 

1 tsp vanilla extract / essence 

60ml buttermilk

20g cocoa powder 

Methods : 

1. Prepare buttermilk : 60ml of fresh milk & 1 tbsp of lemon juice. Leave for 10 minutes. Make this before you start measuring the ingredients for the cake. 

2. Cream butter & sugar until creamy.

3. Add egg one at a time into batter. Mix well. 

4. Add in the vanilla essence then add in buttermilk to the batter. 

5. Divide the batter equally into 2 portions  into 2 mixing bowls.

6. Add cocoa powder to one of the batter, mix well. 

7. Grease & line the baking pan. I only add a piece of baking paper on my non-stick pan. 

8. Spoon 1 tbsp plain batter in the middle of the pan, then add 1 tbsp of cocoa batter onto the plain batter. Keep alternating both batters until you finished both batters. 

9. Bake in a preheated oven at 175 degree C for 45mins or until cooked. Perform the toothpick test, toothpick should come out clean when cake is fully cooked. 

10. Leave on the cooling rack to cool. 

Chin's notes :

1. You can also make these into cupcakes. Baked in preheated oven at 180 degrees C for 20 mins or until cook. 

2. If you like coffee, you can add a sachet of instant coffee mix to the cocoa batter. 
3. Previously failed to get the visible prints with a different recipe. Here is a link Owl cake ?

Bon appétit !

Made 6 cupcakes with the same batter

Same concept, alternate the batter to fill up the liners

Mini Egg Cake

This is one of the first few recipes that I tried since I started my baking adventure in Jan 2014.  An easy recipe & the cakes taste yummy! My kids loves them.. 

Recipe from Rasa Malaysia : 

http://rasamalaysia.com/mini-egg-cake-recipe/2/

Here is a video tutorial from Fun at Sassy's Kitchen http://youtu.be/RHmj8ZxD50A

Bon appétit !! 

Apple Cupcakes

Apple cupcake with apple topping

Saw this recipe from cuisineaz.com a few days ago & decided to give it a try.  

Here is a link to the actual recipe ( in French ) : http://m.cuisineaz.com/recettes/cake-aux-pommes-au-beurre-sale-60141.aspx

I'd simplified the recipe & made them into apple cupcakes.  This cake is very moist, I'll try baking a little longer in the next bake. 

Apple cupcakes 

Ingredients : 

4 small gala apples

3 eggs

125g caster sugar

100 g flour

125g salted butter (soften at room temperature) 

2 tsp baking powder

Method : 

1. Peel the apples and cut them into small cubes.

2. Sift flour & baking power together & set aside. 

3. Cream butter & sugar until creamy. 

4. Add in the eggs one at a time. Mix well. 

5. Add in the flour. Mix well

6. Stir in the apples 

7. Fill up the cupcakes liner. 

8. Bake at preheated 180 degree C oven for 30 minutes or until cook. 

Cake texture

Chin's notes:

1. Chop the apples into small & tiny cubes, cut some circles for decoration. 

2. Can be baked in a loaf pan, for 45 minutes @ 180C

3. This is a very moist cake.

Bon appétit !! 

Vanilla with chocolate cupcakes

Vanilla Cupcakes tops with Chocolate Chips

An easy vanilla cupcakes. They are my kids favourite. This time round added some chocolate chips as topping.  This is a lovely cupcakes for other decorations such as sugar glacé or fondant.

Easy Vanilla Cupcakes tutorial video: 

http://youtu.be/EsgqxMxuF7o

Easy Vanilla Cupcakes

Ingredients :

115g self raising flour 

115g sugar 

115g butter at room temperature 

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla essence / extract

Chocolate chips for toppings ( optional )

Methods :

1. Cream butter & sugar, then add the eggs (one at a time), then vanilla & finally the flour. 

2. Add toppings ( chocolate chips / nuts / dried fruits )
3. Baked at preheated over @ 180C for 15 to 20 mins

Chin's notes : 

1. This is a lovely vanilla cupcake recipe. Can be used for sugar glacé toppings or to be decorated with fondant.

2. If you do not wish to add any toppings, just skip step 2.
3. If you like to top with dried fruits like raisins/cranberries best to soak them in water for 15mins before adding as toppings to prevent burnt.

Bon appétit

Sugar glacé video tutorial: http://youtu.be/xCOXwOhlDQs

Vanilla Cupcakes decorated with Sugar Glacé & M&Ms

Vanilla Cupcakes decorated with Sugar Glacé & decorative sugars

Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chips & Nuts

I'd always love muffins that looks "full". Our all time favourite Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chips & Nuts.

Tutorial video: 

http://youtu.be/bjNa_XJ-G6U

Banana muffins with chocolate chips & nuts recipe:
Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

Makes 8 - 9 muffins

190g all purpose flour 

1 tsp baking powder 

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3 large ripe bananas mashed 

150g sugar 

1 egg

75g melted butter 

Toppings:

Chocolate chips & nuts of choice. 

I used : 

Chopped Almonds & hazelnuts

Method: 

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt. 

2. In a mixing bowl, add in butter & sugar. Mix well. Then add in the egg.

3. Mash bananas, add into mixture. Mix well.

4. Fold in the flour in 2 parts. Mix well until you get a smooth texture. 

5. Scoop into the muffin pan with paper liners. I like fuller muffins, will fill up to ard 80% - 90% full. 

7. Sprinkle with chocolate chips , almond & hazelnuts. 

6. Baked at preheated oven @ 175 degree C for 25 mins / until cook. 

7. Cool on the cooling rack. 

Chin's notes:

1. Don't mash the bananas too early, as it will change the color of your muffins due to oxidization. Best to mash just before mixing into the mixture. 

2. You can always use an electric mixer ;)

3. Remember to sift the flour, baking powder & baking soda to prevent uneven rising of muffins.

4. Added on 5th Feb 2015

Bake in cake pan, I baked in the preheated oven at 180 degree for 35mins.

Baked for Year 6 moms' coffee morning.