easter egg nest cupcakes

This Easter long weekend, I decided to make some fun cupcakes for some of my friends. I threw together some Cadbury chocolate eggs (decorated with icing), used chocolate sprinkles for the nests and made the chicks out of almond marzipan. :)

Posted 1 month ago — 1 note

coconut flake panda cupcakes

Keeping it simple with some coconut flakes and mini chocolate cookies. :) 

Posted 2 months ago — 3 notes

a newb’s cake pop attempt

I got a cake pop maker (on sale at JCPenny) ages ago while I was visiting the states last year. After sitting around unopened for a good while, I decided to make some cake pops with my cousin. For two newbs, they all turned out pretty good, lol.

Posted 2 months ago — 1 note

witch hat oreo cupcakes

I apologize, it’s been a while since I’ve updated my blog. I’ve made several random goodies but just failed to ever post them. Here’s a recent creation of mine that I made for halloween. Oreo and chocolate cupcakes with witch hats :) For this post, I’m mainly going to explain how I made the witch hat decor rather than focus on the recipe of the cupcakes.

Prep time: 30 min.
Cooking time: 20 min. (per batch)
Serves: 24
 

Ingredients/specifics:

Cupcakes and witch hat decor:

• Chocolate cake mix
• 1 tub of buttercream icing
• Food colouring (If you don’t have an assortment, that’s okay, just make sure you have the primary colours - red, blue and yellow)
• 1 pk. of regular-sized oreos 
• 1 pk. of mini ice cream cones (You’ll only need 24 but it’s good to have extras in case they break)
• Cupcake liners (Preferably green or black coloured)

Directions:

Making oreo cupcakes:

Beforehand, place at least 12 oreo cookies aside for the base of the witch hats. After you separate them, you’ll have 24 for your 2 dozen cupcakes.

1. Create your basic chocolate cupcake mix. If the mix is too light in colour, add in black food colouring to darken the cupcakes for that halloween look. To make black, add equal parts red, blue and yellow.
2. Line the cupcake pan with your green or black cupcake liners. You have two options here…OPTION ONE: Crumble some oreos into large chunks (one oreo divided into 4 pieces) and then place them into the liners…OR…OPTION TWO: Place a full oreo cookie into the bottom of each liner. 
3. Pour your cupcake batter over the oreos in the liners and then bake away. :)
4. Once they’re ready, take them out and let them cool. 

Making the witch hat decor and icing:

1. As mentioned above, you should have some oreo cookies placed aside for the rims of the witch hats. Separate the oreos so you’ll have enough for each cupcake. The middle white icing can be scraped off each oreo and placed into a bowl to combine with the buttercream icing later on.
2. Now to prepare the tips of the witch hats. Gather 24 mini ice cream cones…depending on how tall you want the hats to be, you can use them as is or trim them shorter. I used a very handy paring knife to score and cut the hats shorter to my preference (and also so it could fit into my containers in terms of height without getting ruined). Visually, make sure the circumference of the cones remain smaller than the circumference of an the oreo-hat-rims.
3. Once all the pieces for the hat are ready, begin making the coloured icing. You will be making two coloured batches, green and black. Depending on how rich you would like the colours, add as many drops of food colouring as you prefer. Remember, when making black, you may need a lot since you are combining with a white coloured icing and you will end up with a grey tone if the colours aren’t strong enough.
4. With the green icing, lather that over the cupcakes for a witch-like look. Once complete, place an oreo rim (the ones you separated earlier) onto each cupcake. Tilt the rims if you want for a visual variety so that the hats aren’t centered the same on each cupcake.
5. With the black icing, ice the cones so that they are completely covered and dip the bottom (circular part) so that it has a generous amount of icing. Then place the iced cones onto the oreo rims. A fair amount of icing will help hold it in place, but too much icing will make it drip and look messy, so be careful while assembling these last touches.

And that’s it! :) All you need is a little creativity and your halloween cupcakes are ready to serve!

Posted 7 months ago — 3 notes

nutella & teddy grahams

Sometimes, all you have to do is keep things simple and think like a kid. What’s more awesome than nutella used as frosting and being creative with some teddy grahams and icing? 

:) Have fun and just go with it.

Posted 9 months ago — 6 notes

classic cocoa tiramisu

I’m a little late with posting this recipe, but I’ve been busy these past few months :P But back in the beginning of March, I had made a classic tiramisu dessert for my sister’s birthday which consisted of lady fingers and zabaglione cream filling to compliment the coffee and liqueur tiramisu flavour. Tiramisu is an italian dessert and when translated, it literally means, “pick me up”. This is a very easy recipe to make and fun to create! For the decorations, I cut the extra lady fingers that I had into shapes, where for this occasion, I made cut outs of my sister’s puppies (can you tell one of them is a chihuahua? LOL) and used decorating gel to draw on the details. :)

Prep time: 30 min.
Cooking time: 15 min.
Serves: 8-10
 

Ingredients/specifics:

Zabaglione cream filling:

• 4 egg yolks
• 200 ml heavy cream
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 310 g mascarpone cheese, softened to room temperature (This is a key ingredient for the cream filling, you can find this near the deli section of the grocery store)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup coffee liqueur 
• Double boiler and whisk

Cake layers:

• 1 1/2 pk lady fingers
• 1 tbsp. coffee liqueur
• 1 cup brewed expresso coffee, room temperature  
• Cocoa powder
• Dark chocolate and a chocolate shaver 
• A deep dish bowl
• About 8.5” x 11.5” clear deep baking dish

Directions:

Making the Zabaglione cream filling:
The traditional way of making tiramisu calls for raw eggs in the cream filling, but for those who are conscious of salmonella, this is a technique on preparing the eggs for the filling without fully cooking them. 

1. Set the double boiler on the stove, with the bottom pot filled half way with water. Bring to a full boil and then turn the heat down to medium.
2. In the top pot, combine the separated egg yolks and the sugar, whisk together while stirring constantly. DO NOT STOP stirring, you do not want the eggs to solidify fully. Do this for about 10 minutes. The end result should look like a pale yellow thick cream and the heat should have blended the sugar so you won’t have that grainy texture.
3. Add in the coffee liqueur and vanilla extract, stir and remove from heat. Refrigerate to cool.
4. As you wait, begin to beat the heavy cream until the whipping cream creates soft peaks. When ready, combine both mixtures by folding them gently until fully and smoothly blended. Place aside until needed for the layering process of the tiramisu. Now onward to the lady fingers! 

Making the cake layers:

1. Combine the expresso coffee and the coffee liqueur in a deep dish bowl. 
2. Begin to dip the lady fingers into the coffee mixture, each finger for about 2 seconds. Lady fingers absorb very easily and overdunking them will make the cake wet and soggy. 
3. Line the lady fingers across the clear deep baking dish, all in the same direction. This is a preference since some like their cakes firm or soft, but if you feel like your lady fingers are not soaked enough, you can sprinkle a bit more of the mixture over the entire layer with a spoon. 
4. Once the first layer is completely done, generously spread on a layer of the Zabaglione cream filling. Shift over with some cocoa powder and then some chocolate shavings. 
5. Now onto the second layer, repeat steps 1-4, but this time, place the lady fingers in the opposite direction (so if you placed them horizontally on the first layer, place them vertically on the second layer).
6. Decorate the top to your liking and then refrigerate for a couple of hours, preferably overnight so the layers can set and firm.

Posted 1 year ago — 22 notes

flavoured hk-styled egg tarts

Three years ago while I was visiting Los Angeles with a friend, we found an assortment of flavoured Hong Kong styled egg tarts with various fruity and exotic flavours. Since returning back home to T-dot, I haven’t been able to find those same kind of tarts…so I decided to make some of my own! This style of egg tart (a.k.a. “Dan Tat”) consists of a shortcrust pastry with an egg custard filling, where I decided to make three different flavoured fillings: honey dew, almond and mango. Not only does this make a nice treat for any occasion, but also an appropriate dish for the upcoming Chinese New Year ;) 

Prep time: 15 min.
Baking time: 45 min.
Serves: 12
 

Ingredients/specifics:

Shortcrust pastry tarts:

• 4 cups All-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp Salt
• 1 Whole egg, beaten
• 1 1/2 cup Lard (Lard creates a more authentic and flakier tart, you can substitute with shortening or butter but you will not get the same results)
• 1 cup Water 

Flavoured egg custard fillings:

• 3 Whole eggs
• 2 Egg yolks
• 1 1/2 cup Water
• 1 cup Sugar
• 200 ml Evaporated milk
• 100 ml Cream 
• Flavouring additives (At T&T, I found some almond paste and then some powdered bubble tea mix for the honey dew and mango flavours)
• Food colouring

Other:

• Strainer
• Whisk
• Rolling pin
• 12 2” Metal tart tins

Directions:

Making the pastry tarts
For the tarts you will be creating two different doughs that will then be kneaded together, this helps create a slight flaky texture in the shortcrust. 

1. DOUGH A: First, combine the butter with 1 cup of flour, knead until you make a yellow soft dough. Place into the fridge for 45 minutes.
2. DOUGH B: In a mixing bowl, sift in 3 cups of flour and the salt. Add in the water and the beaten egg and hand mix the ingredients together. Pour the contents onto the counter and knead the dough together until it forms a whitish dough. Place into the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. When ready, roll out Dough B into a flattened oblong shape. Then take Dough A (rolled somewhat into an oval shape) and place it into the center of Dough B. 
4. Fold the corners of Dough B to envelope Dough A, then turn it over. Roll out the entire thing and then fold the flattened combined doughs into fours. Place into the fridge and chill for 15 minutes. 
5. After 15 minutes, roll the dough out again and fold into fours. Do 3 reps. Then chill the entire dough overnight and knead again before using.

Making the egg custard fillings:

1. Boil the water with the sugar until it is completely dissolved. Divide the sugar water equally into 3 bowls. In each bowl, add in a flavouring (in this case, I had added 2 packs of honey dew in one bowl, 2 packs of mango in another, and 1 pack of almond paste in the third bowl). Set all the bowls aside to cool down to room temperature. 
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk the whole eggs and yolks. Then mix in the evaporated milk and cream to cream a pale yellow liquid. Strain the entire mixture through the strainer to get rid of any excess egg. You want the mix to be smooth and liquified with no solids.
3. Divide the egg mixture equally into the three bowls from step 1.
4. This is optional, but add food colouring to enhance the fillings.

Baking directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 300ºC and have your tart tins greased and arranged on a baking sheet. Do not bake with a higher temperature or it will cause the fillings to burst and bubble up.
2. Divide your dough into 12 evenly sized balls. To make a tart, place a ball on the center of a tart tin and using your indexes and thumbs, begin to press it down and outward to the sides. It’s important not to “stretch” the dough, but rather use a firm pressing motion to spread the dough evenly.
3. Once all the tarts have been made, use a fork and poke some holes at the bottom, and then pour your flavoured egg custard fillings into the tarts, filling about 80%. 
4. Place into the oven for about 45 minutes (or until the crust is slightly browned and the filling looks risen). 
5. Afterwards, I used food colouring to draw on faces for fun. Do this only after the tarts are completely cooled off and that there is no moisture or it will run.

Posted 1 year ago — 29 notes

fun-&-flirty marshmallow fondant

For one of my best friend’s quarter-century sweet 16 birthday, I decided to make a fun-and-flirty themed cake using home made fondant, which is basically an edible icing that is great for coating and sculpting cake decor. This recipe will focus on how to make your very own fondant using marshmallows, which is much more flavourful than store-bought fondant. I also made it as a 2-tier heart shaped cake to play up the fun and flirty theme. The fun thing about this is using your imagination to do something creative. I’m pretty content with the outcome considering this is my first time making it :)

Prep time: 15 min.
Total time: 1 hr or +

Ingredients/specifics:

Marshmallow fondant 

• 1 8oz Bag of mini white marshmallows
• 4 cups icing sugar
• 1/2 cup Crisco  
• Food colouring (I chose purple, blue and black as my colour scheme)
• 3 tbsp. water

Other

• Vanilla cake mix (I made a low-fat mix using a recipe I found online)  
• Heart shaped baking pan
• Silver edible chocolate balls
• Vanilla cream icing
• Parchment paper
• Saran wrap

Directions:

1. Beforehand, have a sheet of parchment paper laid out onto the counter, the crisco scooped out into a bowl for easy access and the icing sugar already measured out. 
2. In order to make my particular design, I needed to make three different colours of fondant. To make one batch, pour 1 cup of mini marshmallows with 3 tablespoons of water into a microwaveable bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Mix it around and place the bowl back into the microwave for another 30 seconds. Continue this process until all the lumps have been melted.
3. Time to get really, really messy! Grease the parchment paper and shift some icing sugar over it. Shift 3/4 cups of icing sugar over the melted marshmallows.
4. Now generously grab a handful of crisco and lather over your hands. Trust me, you’ll understand why in a bit. Pour the marshmallow mix onto the parchment paper and begin to knead it with the icing sugar. Add and pour the icing sugar over as you knead, this part gets really sticky.
5. After a good 10 minutes of kneading the marshmallows with the icing sugar, you should begin to form a soft play dough like state. Keep kneading until you are able to stretch the fondant easily without it tearing. If it tears, then it means it’s too dry and you need to add a tablespoon of water to mix in.
6. Add in one of your desired food colouring colours and blend it into the mix. Roll the fondant into a ball or thick roll and saran wrap it, place it into the fridge for at least half an hour (better to leave overnight if anything).
7. Continue this process for any additional colours you may want varying on how much you need for your decor.
8. While I was waiting for the fondant to harden in the fridge, I began making my 2-tier cake. I made a basic low fat vanilla recipe using egg whites and added food colouring to compliment the colours used in the cake decor. In this case, I enhanced the blue detailing by making my cake blue as well. 
9. After baking 2 layers of heart-shaped cakes (one big and one small), I covered them both with vanilla cream and placed them into the fridge to harden. This will help the fondant stick to the cake.

Applying rolled fondant

1. For the little heart, I covered the base with purple and the large heart with black. Measure the diameter of the cakes that you intend to cover and be sure you roll out to the necessary size to create a thin layer (not too thin or it can break). 
2. Lift the fondant to hover over the cake and drape it over from one side to the other. Smooth the top over with your hand and begin to form the fondant to the sides by gently fitting and pulling according to the curves. It’s helpful if you “lift” and smooth the fondant down as you do so.
3. Cut off the extra fondant along the edges. Stack the tiers on top of each other.
4. Once done, place the cake covered fondant back into the fridge to firm and harden slightly. As you wait, create any moulds or decorations with the other fondant rolls that you made earlier. 
5. Now decorate! Use utensils to create indentations or designs into the fondant. For mine, I also incorporated silver chocolate balls and wrote with sparkled decorating gel for more effect…HOWEVER, do not use decorating gel if you intend to keep this cake for a long period of time. If you are serving promptly, then it’s okay, otherwise, within a certain time span, it will begin to melt and ruin the fondant (see “michee’s tidbits” below).

Posted 1 year ago — 11 notes

mario kart themed jello

There’s something wonderful about combining two of your favourite childhood things: video games + jello. I love and have always adored the Nintendo’s Mario video game series, so I decided to base my next dish on the classic Mario Kart game using jello layers and molds to create the iconic star and rainbow item boxes. :) This is a fairly easy treat to create, however, it takes a lot of patience to get it to work. I saw some jello layers where carnation milk was mixed in the jello, but I chose not to add that in for it makes the colours opaque and to get the rainbow effect of the item boxes, I wanted the colours to remain transparent.

Prep time: 20 min.
Total time: 2 hr +
Serves: 10 +

Ingredients/specifics:

Rainbow Jello layers (item boxes)

• 5 pk of different coloured jello (red, yellow, green, blue and purple)
• Small metal deep dish baking tray (unlike plastic containers, a metal base will speed up the cooling process)
• White tube of decorating gel

Star Jello mold

• 1 pk yellow jello
• Metal baking tray with star-shaped molds OR medium sized star-shaped cookie cutters
• Black and white tube of decorating gel

Directions:

Item boxes 

1. Follow the instructions of the gelatin jello packages and begin preparing the red colour first. After mixing the 1 cup of hot water to dissolve the powder and then the 1 cup of cold water, pour the first layer into the metal tray.
2. Place the tray into the fridge (or freezer to speed it up), and let the mixture set until it is completely solidified. 
3. Repeat “step 1” for the yellow colour and let the mixture cool. When it is cool enough and after the previous layer in the tray has been fully set, then proceed to pour the mixture into the tray. Place back into the fridge/freezer to set.
4. Continue this process with each layer with the green, blue and then purple, respectively. You want to create a gradual rainbow with these layers.
5. Once all the layers have been made, leave the tray to set until the jello is very firm and not fluid-like anymore. Pop the entire mold out by dipping the tray into a sink full of luke warm water for a couple of seconds. You will see that the sides will automatically melt and come loose. Flip the tray over onto a board covered in wax paper to pop the mold out.
6. Carefully dry off any access fluid that has melted. Begin to cut off the edges and slice the mold into squares. Arrange them onto a tray or into cupcake papers as desired. Presentation is all up to you.
7. Place back into the fridge to freeze the molds again. When it seems set, use the white decorating gel to draw on question marks.

Yellow star

1. Follow the instructions of the gelatin jello package for the yellow colour. Pour the mixture into the star-shaped molds. IF you do not have a mold, pour into a small rectangular shaped metal tray.
2. Once set, dip the tray for a few seconds into a tub of luke warm water. The star molds should pop right out. IF using without the mold, pop out your rectangular mold and use the star cookie cutters to cut out your star-shapes. It helps to dip the cookie cutters into the luke warm water to create a clean cut.
3. When the star shaped jellos are ready, use the black decorating gel to draw two vertical lines for eyes, and then a dot with the white decorating gel for the shine.

Posted 1 year ago — 81 notes

bite-sized lemon poppy seed rolls

There are several variations in making the swiss roll, I particularly enjoy the Hong Kong version (a.k.a Egg Roll) which consists of a very standard but light spongy egg cake rolled with a whipped cream filling. I decided to combine the egg roll with lemon poppy seed ingredients and a lemon flavoured whipped cream, not only because I love lemon poppy seed, but because I haven’t seen a swiss roll infused recipe for it yet. So I wanted to be a pioneer and give it a go :P …however, my first attempt was absolutely ghastly. I thought I could cheat and use a bigger pan. BAD IDEA! It thinned my batter out and the cake barely rose at all, instead it was a poppy seed crepe, lol. But my second attempt (as seen above) was a lot more successful as I decided to add in more flour into the recipe and used a 10” x 14” baking pan.

Prep time: 15 min.
Cooking time: 8 to 10 min.
Total time: About  30 min. 
Serves: 8-10  

Ingredients/specifics:

Sponge Cake:

• 3 Eggs
• 3/4 cups Flour (I used Soy flour, just a preference for dietary benefits)
• 1/4 cup Sugar
• 1 tsp. Lemon extract 
• 1 tsp. Almond extract 
• 1/4 cup Milk
• 1 tsp. Baking powder
• Poppy seeds 
• Pam cooking spray

Lemon butter cream Filling:

• 1/2 cup Margarine
• 3/4 cup Low fat cream
• 1 tsp. Lemon extract
• 1 tbsp. Lemon rinds
• 1 tbsp. Almond extract
• 3/4 cup Castor sugar

Other:

• 10” x 14” flat baking pan (any bigger will require you to alter the ingredient quantities)
• Mini cupcake papers
• Parchment paper 

 
Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 250°C and line and grease your baking pan with parchment paper (I greased the pan before laying down the paper, I find that it helps hold the shape and the paper in place)
2. Combine eggs and sugar and beat on a low setting until it turns pale and frothy (should take about 3 minutes, be careful not to over beat as it will make it runny).
3. Add in milk, lemon extract and almond extract and using a metal spoon, begin to mix them in while stirring slowly.
4. Combine the baking powder and flour, shift the dry ingredients into the wet batter. Blend together by folding the flour in one continuous direction (do not mix/stir, use the spoon to scoop the bottom of the batter and lift to the top in an under-over motion, hence “folding”). Do this until the flour is blended and the batter is thickened.
5. Pour the batter by drizzling it evenly over the pan and use a flat smoother or spoon to spread from the centre to the corners. Once done, lift the pan and shift it back and forth to make sure it is all spread evenly.
6. Take a handful of poppy seeds and sprinkle it over the batter’s surface.
7. Place the pan into the oven and bake for 8-10 minutes. Keep a close eye on it, do not just rely on it browning, watch for it to rise and to make sure the corners do not burn. You know it is ready when you press down onto the cake and it indents but springs back up (like a foam mattress) and the sides begin to shrink slightly from the edge of the pan.
8. While you are waiting, whip the butter cream filling ingredients on low setting. It should look creamy, if it is runny, add a bit of dry ingredients to thicken it.
9. Once the cake is ready, take it off the hot pan ASAP. On a board covered with parchment paper, flip the cake upside down and peel the paper that lined the pan off of the bottom side. Cut off the edges on all 4 sides (about 1 cm).
10. Use a clean sheet of parchment paper to begin rolling the cake tightly (optional to use a cloth instead) and then place it to the side to cool for about 5 min. Do not let it cool down completely as it will be harder to roll back again.
11. After it cools, unroll the cake and spread the filling. Leave an inch of marginal width from the sides, this will prevent the filling from overflowing when re-rolling.
12. Roll the cake back up again tightly and place it into the fridge, leave it uncovered to avoid condensation which can cause sogginess. Refrigerate for about 3 hours or overnight.
13. Slice into mini rolls and present them with mini cupcake papers for individual bite-sized servings. :)

Posted 1 year ago

chocolate berry cheese cupcakes

With the holidays upon us, I was debating on what kind of treat to make for my cousins and my boyfriend’s family. Fortunately, they all enjoy cheesecake. Downside though, I didn’t have the time and patience to make 2 whole cheesecakes for two separate families, nor enough cream cheese on hand. That’s when I came across some ideas to make individual-sized mini cheesecakes using a cupcake pan, that way, I can split the batch in half for each family. Turned out to be pretty good since cheesecake can be a very rich and heavy dessert, and these mini sized cakes are good for portion control as well as making sure you’re not cheated out of your fair share (apparently my boyfriend’s mom tends to take the bigger pieces, lol).

Prep time: 30 min.
Cooking time: 15 min.
Total time: 45 min. 
Serves: 12  

Ingredients/specifics:

Bottom Crust:

• 1 1/2 cup HoneyMaid Biscuit Graham cracker crumbs (I use the saturated fat-free version sold in the green box which is 42% less fat than the original)
• 4 tbsp. Margarine 
• 2 tbsp. Sugar
• Pam cooking spray 

Filling:

• 2 pk. (250g each) Low-fat Philidelphia cream cheese (softened at room temperature)
• 2 Large eggs
• 1 tsp. Vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 2 tbsp. Cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup Low-fat plain yogurt

Topping:

• 1 cup Frozen or fresh berries 
• 1 pk. Fruit gelatin glaze

Other:

• Cupcake pan 
• Cupcake papers

 
Directions:

1. Crush the graham crackers until they are fine crumbs (blender or food processor works well for this, unless you want to crush them by hand, lol), combine in a bowl with melted margarine and sugar. Mix evenly so that the melted margarine is mixed well throughout.
2.  After spraying the cupcake papers with a bit of Pam, spoon the graham cracker mix and pack down hard at the bottom of each cup. You want to make sure that the crust at the bottom is firm and evenly spread. Once done, set aside. 
3. Now onto the cream cheese filling! In another bowl, add in the cream cheese, eggs and sugar and begin to beat them together on the lowest setting. Once it’s fairly blended well together, add in the cocoa powder, vanilla extract and yogurt. Beat at the medium setting until all is mixed. The end result should look creamy and mousse-like.
4. Spoon the filling into the cups fairly close to the top. Spread evenly with the spoon and make sure there are no air bubbles between the filling and the bottom portion. Once done, bake for 15 minutes at 200°C. Once the cheese filling sets (should seem more firm and edges are puffed), take it out of the oven and let it cool for at least half an hour. 
5. While you are waiting, begin making the fruit gelatin glaze, some packages will say to add in a cup of water, but I use a cup of fruit juice to give it more flavour. As the mixture cools (for about a minute), begin to arrange your berry toppings on the cakes, and then glaze the gelatin over the top.
6. Chill in the fridge for a couple of hours (I tend to just leave it overnight) and then serve. Enjoy! :) 

Posted 1 year ago — 3 notes