Baking woes

I’m pretty sure by now everyone knows that my cakes usually doesn’t turn out right during the first try. It’s either the cakes/muffins

Sinks ,

browns unevenly,

  

has cracked top,

or has a heavy layer at the bottom of the cake

And more often than not I’m left puzzled wondering what went wrong since I followed the recipe to the T. Luckily a friend told me of a wonderful site called Baking 911. Ah how appropriate the name for the site, an emergency site for all your baking problems ! Although sometimes I’m just as confused as before for some of the possible explanations for why my cake turned out that way. For example,

Heavy layer on bottom

• Not enough mixing
• Too much liquid
• Too many eggs

how is it that I have too much liquid or eggs when I followed what the recipe asks for or for uneven browning, the heat in the oven isn’t being circulated evenly but I only have an oven like this with limited functionality (but I reckon it’s good enough especially when I bought it only at RM30!)

 

I can only fit two 6's muffin trays and I have to rotate them otherwise one side usually the one at the back of the oven browns faster than the side nearer to the door

The oven's heating element


I have the option of turning off either of the up or bottom heating element 

When a recipe states ‘bake at 170 Celsius’. I usually just turn the knob slightly after the 160C mark not sure if that’s right at all.

So really, I'd appreciate a lot if someone especially those who uses this kind of oven could shed some light and rescue me from my baking woes. :D 

When you’re sick

 

I honestly think that the best meal to have when you're feeling under the weather is rice porridge with condiments!

Stir Fry French Beans with Anchovies and Vegetarian Goose (Chai Siew Ngor)

 Preserved Radish Omelette

Pickled Lettuce and Preserved Olive Leaves 

Preserved Radish Omelette  

You Need
A handful of sweet preserved chopped radish (soaked in water for 30 minutes, drained, washed and pat dry on kitchen towel)
2 eggs
1 onion, chopped
salt and pepper to season

How To
1. Beat eggs with salt and pepper until light and fluffy. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in wok. Stir fry the radish and onion.
3. Once the radish starts jumping around the wok or make popping sound pour in the beaten eggs.
4. As the omelette starts to set, lift an edge of the omelette with your spatula and tilt the wok so that the runny unset egg mixture can run underneath and once it’s set flip over.
5. When the omelette sets, slide onto a plate.
6. Serve and enjoy!

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Stir Fry French Beans with Anchovies 
You Need
200gm French beans, sliced diagonally
50gm carrot, julienned
A handful of dried anchovies cleaned and washed
1 teaspoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon of water

How To
1. Heat a little cooking oil in a wok.
2. Fry the anchovies until crispy and set aside.
3. In the same wok, stir fry garlic until fragrant. Add in carrots and stir fry for a minute before adding in the French beans.
4. Once the French beans looks a little translucent, add the remaining ingredients except for the anchovies and cornstarch mixture.
5. Simmer for a few minutes and just before you turn off the stove, add in the cornstarch mixture give a quick stir and add in the anchovies.
6. Serve and enjoy!

I’d be posting the recipe for the porridge/congee in a different blog post only because it would be a mighty long post :) So it’s not that bad to be sick when you get to enjoy great meal like this eh ;)

Vanilla Sponge Cake

I joined this baking club on Facebook honestly out of fun and surprised to know their challenges aren’t exactly that complicated at all. And for June their challenge was Vanilla Sponge Cake for daddy’s (Father’s day) and I decided why not. Below is the recipe by the founder of the club and my first attempt didn’t turn out how I thought it to be and even though I’m quite sick, I decided to try making it for the second time seeing that Ashley wants them so badly and this time she helped me out a bit :) 

(Makes a 8 inches Round tin / 7 inches Square tin)
Ingredients
130gm Self Raising Flour
¼ tsp Baking powder
4 Eggs (separated)
¼ tsp Cream of Tartar
Salt A pinch
180gm Castor sugar
60gm Butter, melted
60ml Water
1 tsp Vanilla Essence

Method
1. Preheat oven to 170~C .
2. Sift flour, baking powder and salt 2 -3 times. Set aside.
3. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar and salt until stiff peaks are formed. Add sugar and continue whisking until stiff peaks form again.
4. In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks with melted butter, water and vanilla essence. Fold into the egg whites and combine well.
5. Finally fold in the sifted dry ingredients and pour batter immediately into a cake tin lined with greaseproof paper. Bake the cake for approximately 30 – 40 minutes. The cake is done when the top springs back when lightly pressed.
6. Remove cake from oven and let it cool completely before decorating it.

Check out my album for behind the scenes in making this yummy cake.

What’s in her lunchbox.

Now that Ashley is starting school, I have to make snacks for her to bring to school and I simply love doing so! I feel so much like a mother now that I am preparing her lunch box. I know it’s silly but it’s just what I’ve always wanted to do. :D

Usually I’ll just make a simple French toast or PB & J or sometimes some sausages or hash. So today I made Banana & Chocolate Toasties. I first made this during her 3rd birthday bash and it was a hit! But this time I didn’t have a sandwich maker so I used the usual toaster oven.

Anyway it’s very simple to make, all you need is two slices of bread, one banana, sliced and 2 tablespoon of chocolate spread (Nutella). Spread one side of the bread with Nutella , place slices of banana on the other slice of bread. Top the chocolate side up and toast. Let it cool before cutting it into quarters.
   

A sneak peek of what’s to come