American sour cream cheesecake

Wish everyone a very happy Women's day !



I am submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #5 : Fruity March , hosted by Jess from Bakericious .

Noted : I am all along not a fan of cheese , specially cheesecake. I have never finished a small piece of cheesecake in my life so far  , but this recipe changed the whole idea  . It's so yummy ! If you are fan of cheesecake , don't wait , grab whatever is needed and pamper yourself with this wonderful recipe .
 Recipe : ( from Crave- Cheese Desserts to die for by MAC WOO & JUNE LEE )
Ingredients :
* Base :
- 165g digestive biscuits , finely ground
- 1 1/2 tbsp light brown sugar
- 3 tbsp butter , melted and still warm
*Fillng :
- 540g creamcheese , soften
- 120g caster sugar
- 1 3/4 tbsp plain flour , sifted
- 2/3 tsp vanilla essence
- 1 1/4tsp  lemon zest
- 3 large eggs
- 50ml whipping cream
* Sour cream topping :
- 250g sour cream
- 1 1/2 tsp caster sugar
- 2/3 tsp vanilla essence
* Strawberry or blueberry pie filling ( optional )
Method :
   Prepare base : Mix together digestives , light brown sugar & warm melted butter . Press firmly onto the bottom and 2,5cm up the sides of an 18cm round springform pan , Refrigerate for 1 hour .
   Preheat oven to 150 degree C .
   Prepare filling : With an electric mixer , beat cream cheese and sugar at medium speed until creamy .Beat in sifted flour , vanilla essence and lemon zest until smooth . Lower speed & add eggs , 1 at a time , mixing until just incorporated . Gradually add whipping cream until well mixed .
  Pour filling onto prepared base . Bake in a water bath for 1 hour 20 mins to 1 hour 40 mins , or until edge of filling is almost set & centre is slightly wobbly .
   For topping , stir together sour cream , sugar and vanilla essence until smooth . Remove cheesecake from oven , spread sour cream mixture  evenly on top and return to the oven .
   Lower temperature to 130 degree C and bake for another 20-25 mins . Turn oven off & leave the cheesecake inside for 30 mins with oven door closed . Open oven door and leave cheesecake for another 30 mins . Remove cheesecake from oven and cool on a wire rack .
  Refrigerat for at least 6 hours before unmoulding and serving . Top with strawberry or blueberry pie filling , if used .

Car cake

This cake I made for my friend's son for his birthday in his kindergarten . I had only 1 morning to prepare so the result was not so good ( such a lame excuse , ha ha ...) .
Btw , the cake was Hongkong sponge cake and the cream was buttercream .

Chocolate Sponge cake with caramel cream for Valentine's Day

I am submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #4 for February 2011 : Love in the air  hosted by  Ellena from Cuisine Paradise .

( Hic , my decoration skill is really sulk ...)

Recipe :
* For the sponge :
- 3 eggs , separate white & yolks
- 75g cake flour , sifted
- 5g Valhora cocoa powder
- 75g caster sugar
- 35g fresh milk
- 35g corn oil
- 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
* For the caramel cream :
- 200g whipping cream
- 2 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp caramel powder
Method :
* For the sponge : Mix egg yolks , sifted flour , cocoa powder , fresh milk and corn oil together in a mixing bowl . Mix well with a whisk until the mixture become thich and smooth . Beat egg whites in another bowl in high speed till foamy , add in cream of tartar , beat for 1 more min . Slowly add in sugar and continue beating till become soft peak . Carefully fold the egg yolk mixture into eggwhite until well combined . Pour into an ungreased heartshape pan , lined with baking paper at the bottom . Bake in preheated oven at 170 degree C for 40 mins until the cake is done . Take it out from the oven , put the pan up side down on the rack to let cool before unmould it .
* For the caramel cream : Put the icing sugar & caramel powder into the whipping cream , mix well . Pour everything into a mixing bowl , keep refrigered for at least 1 hour . When it's cold , whip it until just thick , becareful , do not over whip .
* When the cake is completely cool , decorate with the whipped cream . Keep cold until served .

My whole family enjoyed it so much that we finish half of it in a blink . This sponge cake have never failed me .

Happy Valentine !

Unripe rice butter cake

Unripe rice is a very famous street food in Hanoi . It reminds me of my childhood in Hanoi. This rice can be made into many yummy desserts or can just simply eat with banana . Now while leaving far away , I am still lucky enough to have the dried one to satisfied myself whenever i think of it .



Recipe :
Ingredients :
- 4 eggs ( I use 55g eggs )
- 200g cake flour
- 170g caster sugar
- 200g unsalted butter , softened
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 80ml fresh milk
- pinch of salt
- 50g dried unriped rice , soaked till soft in hot water .
Method :
Put Soaked unriped rice and fresh milk together into a blender , blend till mixed well . Put aside .
Cake flour , baking powder , salt , all mix together , sift well .
Preheat oven at 170 degree C for 10 mins .
Beat butter with sugar until butter becomes light and pale in colour . Add in eggs 1 at a time , mixing well after each addition . Change mixer to low speed , put in flour mixture and followed by the milk mixture . Whisk till all just combined , becareful not to overmix . Pour batter into greased pan . Bake in preheated oven until the cake is done , about 40-50 mins .
Enjoy baking !

Japanese milky madeleine

Recipe : ( from Okashi sweet treats made with love )

Ingredients :( makes about 18 )
- 120g pastry flour
- 20g corn flour
- 15g milk powder
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 15g honey
- 1 tbsp hot water
- 100g unsalted butter
- 50g double cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 140g eggs
- A pnch of salt
- 150g caster sugar
Method :
Preheat oven to 170 degree C . Sift together flours , milk pwder & baking powder . Combine honey and hot water in a small bowl . Place butter , cream and vanilla in a bowl & heat over a double boiler until butter is melted . Set aside . In another bowl , beat eggs & salt with a whisk . Add sugar , place the bowl over a double boiler and mix well . When egg mixture is warm , use an electric mixer to beat on high speed until light and fluffy . Reduce speed to medium & continue beating for about 1 min . Add honey and mix well . Gently fold in flour , milk powder & baking powder mixture with a spatula . Add cream and butter mixture and fold until just incorporated . Pipe batter into prepared baking cups . Bake for about 25 mins until madeleines are light golden in colour . Cool on a wire rack .