Fruit Delight

Well, I don't know the exact name for this cake actually. Fruit delight, fruit flan, vanilla sponge with fruits... Whatever... All I know is this cake serves as my favorite cake for years and years and years. Even since kindergarten. Well, basically I like anything that is with pure vanilla sponge. Yum.

An easy one... Bake the sponge, cream the cake, arrange the fruits, voila! Looks very refreshing isn't it? But actually the cake was a bit senget! Haha, what to do, my first time creaming a cake. It's a healthy one too! I used non-dairy whipping cream. Light and yummeh!

For the sponge I used Martha Stewart's Vanilla Sponge Recipe. Easy!

Makes one 9-inch-square cake

• Unsalted butter, for pan
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
• 1/2 cup cornstarch
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup sugar
• Pinch of salt

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.Butter a 9-inch-square baking pan. Line pan with parchment paper, and butter again. Flour the pan, and set aside. In a small bowl, sift together flour and cornstarch; set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg yolks, vanilla, and 1/2 cup sugar on high speed until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Transfer the egg-yolk mixture to a large bowl. Wash and dry the mixer bowl and the whisk attachment.
3. Combine egg whites and salt in the mixer bowl, and beat on medium speed until whites hold soft peaks, about 1 1/2 minutes. With mixer running, slowly add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Continue beating until stiff and glossy, about 1 minute.
4. Fold the egg-white mixture into the egg-yolk mixture. In three additions, fold the reserved flour mixture into this new mixture. Transfer the batter to prepared pan, and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Bake until a cake tester inserted into middle comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool; turn out cake, and wrap it in plastic wrap until ready to use.

(I made one 8-inch round cake, plus 3 small cupcakes. You can actually use all the batter for a thicker 8-inch cake.)

Marbled Cut-Out Sugar Cookies

Have been baking two days in a row for SooHui's Project Home Roadshow. Went to few places to look for dog shape cookie cutter, but end up only able to get dog bone shape :(

Used thekitchn's recipe of "Best Cut-Out Sugar Cookies" but omitted the cream cheese to save cost.

3 cups butter, softened at room temperature for an hour
3 cups sugar
3 eggs
6 ounces cream cheese (3/4 of a standard cream cheese package)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 teaspoons lemon zest
9 cups flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon salt

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and add the sugar. Cream until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until golden. Add the cream cheese and again beat until well incorporated. Add the flavorings and lemon zest.

Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl then add, bit by bit, to the butter/sugar mixture.You will have chosen a large bowl for this particular recipe, I hope - mine was overflowing by this point and I ended up doing the final mix in a large plastic bag.

Refrigerate the dough for at least an hour - preferably overnight.

Heat the oven to 350° F. Divide the dough into smaller balls and roll out 1/4 to 1/8 inch thickness. Cut out cookies.

Bake cookies for 8-12 minutes, depending on thickness. The small, thinner ones started browning after about 8 minutes, and I didn't want these brown at all. The larger ones had a slight golden bottom after 11 minutes, which was perfect for my purposes.

Let cool before icing or decorating, and store in a tightly covered container.

(Mine was too sticky, so I had to add in additional few cups of flour)

Was told that the cookies lack of taste... maybe because I cut down the sugar by one cup. I always cut down the sugar by 1/3 in all recipes.

Hmm... lots more to improve... ganbate eve.

[Recipe] Dorie Greenspan's Chocolate Chocolate Cupcakes

Chocolate Chocolate Cupcake

Moist and yummy! The steps are slightly complicated but the result is good! I feared Dorie's recipe before this due to my failed World Peace Cookie. But this is really a keeper! :) I skipped the glaze cuz the cupcakes were very sweet by itself already even when I cut 1/4 of the sugar! I accidentally melted the butter, but the result is still good! :)

Copied from masak-masak

For the cupcake

1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 stick (8 tbs) [113gm] unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup caster sugar (I used 1/2 cup)
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
½ cup buttermilk (I used a mix of yoghurt and milk instead)
2 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

For the glaze

3 oz bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 tbsp confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 tbs cold unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces

Getting Ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Fit the 12 molds in a regular-size muffin pan with paper muffin cups, or butter them with flour and tap out the excess.

To make the cupcakes:

Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter at medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat for about 2 minutes, until it is blended into the butter. Add the egg, then the yolk, beating 1 minute after each addition and scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the vanilla, then reduce the mixer speed to low and add half the dry ingredients, mixing only until they disappear. Scrape down the bowl and add the buttermilk, mixing until incorporated, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients. Scrape down the bowl, add the melted chocolate and mix it in with the rubber spatula. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin molds.

Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until the tops of the cakes are dry and springy to the touch and a knife inserted into their centers comes out clean. Transfer the muffin pan to a rack and let the cakes cool for 5 minutes before unmolding. Cool to room temperature on the rack before glazing.

To make the Glaze:

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Transfer the bowl to the counter and let stand for 5 minutes.

Using a small whisk or rubber spatula, stir the confectioners’ sugar into the chocolate, followed by the pieces of cold butter. The glaze may be very thin at this point or may be perfectly spreadable. If it is too thin to spread or use as a dip, stir it over ice water for a few seconds – really less than a minute. With a small metal icing spatula, give each cupcake a crown of shiny ganache, and let the glaze set at room temperature (or in the fridge if you are in a hurry). If the ganache loses its gloss and you miss it, give the tops of the cakes a puff of hot air from a hairdryer right before serving.