Coffee Hazelnut Friands & why I've been MIA for so long

Hi!

I'm sorry that I've been away for more than a year.
Last year, I thought I wanted to be blogging again, but some health issues came up.

After I blogged about the Chocolate Ombre Cake, I went to Vietnam with my friend for few days. It was a tiring trip and I had trouble sleeping. And when I came back, there was more travelling with the kids, my body ended up exhausted. Two days after reaching home (finally), I fetched my mom for her medical appointment, and as I was driving home, the pain came.... simply put it as, my fourth time going into active labour. Yes, it was that type of pain, as if I was labour induced. Stopped my car beside the road and called my brother, who was the nearest one to me at that moment. I couldn't breathe whenever the pain came, you know, like when the strongest contractions come?
I was rushed to the hospital. I lost my ability to stand for the next few days because my spine flared up very badly. A month later, I flared up again. Anyway, cut the story short, it took me two hospitalizations to finally got diagnosed as having Spinal Osteoathritis. Couldn't stand for long, couldn't carry my handbag anymore, couldn't walk for long, .... took me one year of resting to be actively back in the kitchen. I started cooking again a month after my second hospitalization. But it was all simple meals, that I needed a few rests in between.

I thank God that I could stand and walk again, and it's a blessing to be able to do that. Actually it's not really a big issue, but when I was bed ridden, I realized that being able to stand each day, is really a blessing, His grace.

Chocolate Sponge Cups

My kids bring food for school recess almost everyday. They prefer homemade and homecooked food rather than eating canteen food.

I made these one fine afternoon and my kids raved about them. It's the first time I'm recording this attempt down as I always make them without a fixed recipe. I just put in whatever I feel like putting.

Calamansi Muffins - AFF Philippines Merienda Cakes #2

1st recipe

Calamansi muffins is famous in the beautiful island of Boracay, Philippines. Just do a google search and you will know.

I am crazy! I made this muffin 4 times!

First time I used a mixer to do it, whacking it too much causing the muffin to be so fluffy! Not right! According to Swee San, it's supposed to be dense and moist, with a cake like texture. It wasn't as tangy as I will like it, kind of bland in terms of zing. And it had that fine texture that sticks to parts of your mouth and will need some effort to swallow, you know what I mean?

It's this type of texture, the main reason, I don't enjoy certain cafe muffins. Shenny, my reader friend will vouch with me on this.

Blueberry Baby Cakes with Cheesecake Topping - Berries #2

I was pretty much attracted to how the cake looked with 2 layers of colours, but I don't know why mine came out looking pretty homogenous, the lower layer didn't look brown like the source.

The original was baked direct in the muffin pan, but I was a bit chickened out, scared I'll mar the cake's surface when I lift it up, so I better line it.

Sweet Potato and Feta Quickbread - Sweet Potato #1

A good and nutritious breakfast item. One that you can can prepare the day before, combine the batter and bake the next day for breakie.

I have achieved 4 Firsts with this simple quickbread. Sage, feta, sweet potato and nutmeg.

I’ve cooked with sage before, but never baked with it. I was totally taken by this recipe due to the use of sage in this. I have a huge sage plant in my garden. Almost 3 ft high now! I was glad the recipe called for amount of sage leaves, not counted in sprigs and that makes it easier to get the right amount. The fragrance is there, but not overpowering. It complements the bread very well.

The original recipe called for chevre, of which is a type of soft goat’s cheese. I can’t get that here and had to settle for feta, and even that is not real feta. It’s cow’s feta. Real feta is made with goat’s milk. I have never had feta before. I purposely went to buy some feta because I really wanted to try out this cake. The feta is really yummy and soft, but also salty. I might have broken up the cheese too much so can’t really get them in chunks in the bread.

Strawberry Almond Muffins - Strawberry #2

It was one of those hungry afternoons again.

I rumaged the fridge and saw this box of strawberries bought 2 weeks before and still looking pretty good untouched under the cling wrap. Then I took out some milk, ground almond and few eggs and this and that and some muffin liners recently given to me by fellow blogger HKChoo. I started baking muffins without a recipe.

Coffee Chiffonlets with Dulce De Leche Whipped Cream - DDL Week # 3

Recipe tried out in July 2011

Another post with the DDL that my brother brought back from Brazil.
SSB or Min, does this qualify for the cupcake month for Aspiring Bakers?

The cake in the book looked very pretty. I don't have any mini tube pans or anything like such. I only have lots of disposable aluminium muffin casings that I am dreading to finish up. So I used this in place of mini tube pans and made 12 cupcake sized chiffonlets ;p

Steamed Pumpkin Muffins

For mothers out there, pregnancy is a wonderful experience. The changes that one goes thru thoughout the pregnancy is sometimes weird and unanticipated.

I've heard of people eating toothpaste, eating shoe polish or some find clay to be tasty. Disgusting, right? But I've only heard about such incidences where those people actually consume a limited diet, and they might be malnourished in some way and the body makes then comsume something that in nature contains the nutrient that the mother so needed. I've never heard of funny stories from people who lived in town, or consumes a veriety of food and never impoverished.

In one of the schools I worked in before, the school cleaner once chatted with me, about how she survived all her pregnancies craving for toothpaste, consuming only cream crackers with chilli paste and drinking only tap water for 9 months!! The rest are all, yucks to her. And she was the one who told me stories about people who eat funny stuff, and those people are relatives of hers.  Hard to believe? But I guess it could be true. Just that we are too privileged to be in contact with people who are never deprived of proper food.

When I was pregs with Lydia, from week 5 onwards, I was binging. Eating meals, not snacks every 3 hours. I gained 4 kg in just 2 weeks. Mike looked at me in horror, to see the way that I'm eating.I told him, I can't help it, my tummy is growling furiously.  But when week 7 came by, my appetite dropped drastically. I could eat nothing except fruits. Food made from rice were the worse. From congee to vermicelli, they all smell yucks! I could look at a burger, just look. I don't feel like picking it up. And if I pick it up, I won't feel like biting. And if I finally bit into it, I don't feel like chewing. After chewing, I don't want to swallow it. The whole eating process is just a torture to me. But if I see fruits, I can eat and eat. I dropped 7 kg throughout this difficult period. Which was 3 kg less compared to pre pregnancy. If I wasn't binging during early pregnancy, I'd lose even more.

Actually that time, my hormones were all crazy and I was having bad constipation. Constipation during pregnancy is due to the increment of progesterone. It's the way that my body reacted and helped me to overcome the problem that I was facing by rejected all foods except fruits. Taking in whatever that is needed to help the mother. When the constipation stopped at week 14, my appetite came back, in a snap! Even now, I totally believe in listening to my body. Eat when it tells u to, and don't eat when it doesn't tell u to. So, if I crave, there's no excuse for not eating. That's one pretty good excuse. Hahahaha!

This time, the pregnancy affected not my appetite, but my kitchen mojo. It hit me so bad that I don't want to wash my cup. I didn't want to touch the sink, didn't want to cook anything at all. I didn't bake anything out of fun, but only out of neccesity. I was craving for something with coconut milk, so I made and oil-less pandan chiffon. It was Mike's birthday and  I made him Chocolate Enigma Cake. With the extra cream from the cake, I baked another cake (I'll post that within this week) And I did a sponsored post with a health product that I've promised way before my pregnancy. I didn't cook a proper meal for almost 4 months!! We were eating out daily. Now that I'm at week 22, I'm pretty much the old me now. Not all there, but almost. Still not cooking 3 dishes 1 soup, but one plate meals mostly, like noodles, pasta, fried rice, and congee mostly. Won't call them one pot meals as cooking rice uses one pot and frying uses another wok. LOL.

Funny right? Hard to believe? I was still posting daily, right? hahaha! What you are seeing were usually posts so stale that they were made months ago. Haha! I still have lots of back logs to last me til I move in March.

So now, if you think that this bun in me is a sausage roll, which explained the different pregnancy experience, nah!!! Even Lydia and Lyanne weren't the same. Being pregs with Lyanne was a breeze. I loved food, especially white plain rice during the first 3 months, whereas I hated rice when I had Lydia. Both were burgers, and yet, different. Even now, both girls are very different. One is lingustic, the other technical and artistic. Haha.

Enough pregs talk, let's food talk.
This is the first thing I made, right after I got back my mojo at week 16. And I attempted this recipe twice.

First attempt flopped bad time. Simply because I read in one of the comments that aunty Yochana said the baking powder has to be double action baking powder, whereas the recipe itself called for only baking powder. My first attempt used DABP and weirdly the muffin was super dense and tasted sourish. I’ve encountered this when I simply substituted regular baking powder with DABP and my baking results were always less than acceptable.

So, with some pumpkin left, immediately I did my 2nd attempt with just regular baking powder. The results were wonderful, all smiling happily and they were all soft and fluffy. I’m now wondering how the taste will be with coconut milk… maybe next time.

Steamed Pumpkin Muffins

Adapted from Aunty Yochana

Yields12 steamed muffins (I used egg tart pans)

125gm steamed pumpkin flesh

1 egg

120gm sugar

100gm evaporated milk or coconut milk

30gm corn oil

180gm cake flour

20gm rice flour

1.5tsp baking powder

1. Prepare your steamer and bring the water to a boil

2. Put steamed pumpkin flesh, egg, sugar, milk and oil in blender and whizz for 30 seconds.

3. Sift cake flour, rice flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl.

4. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour the blended ingredients into the well. Mix until well combined.

5. Spoon into lined steaming cups and steam on high heat for 15 minutes. It will bloom by itself, no need to make a cross with oil.

Verdict:

I love this. My kids love this. My hubby the pumpkin hater said nothing. But please don't ask me if this taste like Fatt Gou, I have no idea. I've never eaten a proper fatt gou in my life, except once, a very very dry yucky one. The muffin stays soft the next day, not as soft as fresh from the steamer, but acceptable even when cold.

See Lydia's thumb????

LOL

Butternut Squash Muffins

Do you like me from this side of view.... Orrr..

This side of view....... Or do you like me undressed???

Tell me you want to eat me......

Awwww... Why la!!! Don't be so hasty... savour me slowly...

I'm always here, but

NOT FOR LONG!!!!!!

The muffins smell so good when they were baking. The aroma was filling up my head. When the buzzer beeped, I quickly removed them from the oven, and when they have cooled down slightly, I quickly ate one. The walnuts, vanilla and butternut squash was such good combination, the muffin tasted oh so good.

With muffins being a quick bread, it is always leavened with lots and lots of baking powder. Something that I do not wish to consume too much. The baking powder that we now mostly use contains aluminium in the acidic compound of the leavening and it is linked to Alzhiemers. Do read about it here.

So, I changed the method to creaming, and whacked the eggs with the pumpkin in the blender so that I can reduce the baking powder that is required.

You may substitute butternut squash with pumpkins as they really taste pretty much the same. And I’ll label anything with butternut squash on my blog as pumpkins as well.

Butternut squash muffins recipe

adapted from Jamie Oliver

Makes 12 muffins

300gm raw butternut squash , peeled weight, cut into small cubes, (those local long necked pumpkins are actually butternut squash) 

3 eggs
150gm light brown sugar (greatly reduced from original recipe)
100gm butter
Seeds from 1 vanilla pod / 1tsp vanilla extract (original recipe called for cinnamon)
230gm all purpose flour
1 heaped tsp baking powder
50gm chopped walnuts, chopped

1. Preheat oven at 170/180C. Line a 12 hole muffin tin with paper liners.
2. Place eggs and cubed squash into the blender and whizz it for 2 minutes.
3. Sift flour and baking powder, set aside.
4. Beat butter, sugar and vanilla seeds for 2 minutes until pale and fluffy.
5. Put in half of squash, mix until smooth. Put in half of flour, mix on low speed until smooth.
6. Put the all the squash, and all of the flour and mix until smooth.
7. Fold in chopped walnuts.
8. Spoon batter into lined muffin tins.
9. Bake for 30 minutes or until skewer comes out clean.


I made the frosty topping(based loosely on the original recipe), but in the end I didn’t use it, because these muffins were already a star on their own. I never eat 2 muffins in a row, but these were so good, that.. gosh, I almost wanted to have my third. But I told myself.. no no… 2 is a company, 3 is a crowd. That’s too much.

Designer Chocolate Baby Grands

These are unfinished cupcakes.

There are 3 parts to it, and I did only 2 and I stopped. I didn’t want to. I was forced to stop, because there’s no space to fill in the final part. This cupcake is supposed to look flat with a shiny lacquer glaze, just like a serene lake. A graceful swan could've swam in it.

The original recipe was really lengthy and I had to read it a few times to get the whole picture because Rose really talks a lot , a bit too much at times, but sometimes it’s really good. Depends on the weather : )

So here, let me simplify it.

Part One
-33gm cocoa powder (I did 30gm)
-59gm boiling water
In your mixing bowl, combine both to a smooth paste and set it aside, let it cool down.

While it’s cooling down, preheat your oven at 175C. I did mine at 170C. Line 14 muffins pans with paper liners.
Prepare dry ingredients,
-37.5gm all purpose flour
-37.5gm cake flour
-1 tsp baking powder
-½ tsp sodium bicarbonate
-150gm sugar together.
-1/8 tsp salt
Mix all together and set aside.

When the cocoa paste has cooled down, put in
-2 large egg yolks
-54gm corn oil
Beat on medium speed for 1 minute. It’ll look like mayonnaise. Well, it is chocolate mayonnaise 

Put in
-½ tsp vanilla extract.
Beat for a few seconds.
Put in half the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Put in the balance and beat on high speed for 1 minute.

Put in
-2 large egg whites
and whisk on high speed for 2 minutes.
Pour batter into lined muffins pans until 40% full.
Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until skewer comes out clean

Part 2
While cake is baking, prepare the chocolate ganache syrup…. Err… doesn’t look a bit of syrup to me. So thick.
Anyway, here goes.

-85gm milk chocolate (with at least 40% cocoa. For baking, not eating)
-87gm heavy cream (I used whipping cream 36%)
-½ tsp vanilla extract.

Break milk chocolate into small pieces. Put in a microwave safe bowl. Scald cream (cook over medium heat until small bubble appear around the periphery). Pour scalded cream onto chocolate. Leave for 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Put in vanilla and stir.

When cakes are done, remove from oven and immediately poke lots of deep holes(I did 20) in each cake using a skewer. Brush syrup over cake. Let the syrup penetrate the cakes. Brush again after all the syrup has penetrated. (After I brush the cakes with the choc syrup, I always put the cakes back into the warm oven so that the warmth will cause the syrup be more liquidy and penetrate better). Continue to apply until all the syrup is used up. Zap the syrup in the microwave if it gets too cool. The syrup penetrates most readily when it is at 43C, almost hot to the touch.

Allow the syrup to set, for about an hour. (Well, in 38C Malaysia, do you think it’ll set at our room temperature? Fat hopes!!!! )

Well, I stopped here, because my cakes couldn’t take in anymore. They were so full.
There’s supposed to be another Lacquer Glaze that I skipped.

So I just decorated the cupcakes with some silver dragees. That’s it, leave them slightly sticky and serve warm. Utterly delicious!!!

The cakes aren’t supposed to be domed. There’re not many online who have tried making this cake, yet. This book is still quite new. I saw one who successfully made it flat. And I also saw some others complaining about the higher than liner dome. I had the same problem, so I decided, if I want to make it as nice as the picture in the book, I’ll do these next time
1. Reduce the baking temp to 160C or 150C.
2. Bake in 15 cups rather than 14.

Either one…. I’ll see how. I’m determined to finish off the recipe, up to the last step.

The cakes are utterly delicious and they don’t harden in the fridge. I took one cold piece out from the fridge and ate it, still soft and fluffy. Ever seen mayonnaise getting solid in the fridge? Never right? That’s why this cake is soft , even when chilled. It’s made with chocolate mayonnaise. The cake itself is a keeper. I'll be using this cake recipe whenever chocolate cake calls. Nothing better than this : )

I will be doing this again, but not near future. I still have loads of to-do’s on my list.

Rearranged Instructions

Part One
-33gm cocoa powder (I did 30gm)
-59gm boiling water
-37.5gm all purpose flour
-37.5gm cake flour
-1 tsp baking powder
-½ tsp sodium bicarbonate
-150gm sugar together.
-1/8 tsp salt
-2 large egg yolks
-54gm corn oil
-½ tsp vanilla extract.
-2 large egg whites


1. In your mixing bowl, combine cocoa powder and boiling water to a smooth paste and set it aside, let it cool down.
2. Preheat your oven at 175C. I did mine at 170C. Line 14 muffins pans with paper liners.
3. Combine all purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, sodium bicarb, sugar and salt. Whisk it.
4. When the cocoa paste has cooled down, put in yolks and oil and beat on medium speed for 1 minute.
5. Put in vanilla and beat for a few seconds.
6. Put in half the dry ingredients (3) and beat on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Put in the balance and beat on high speed for 1 minute.
7. Put in egg whites and whisk on high speed for 2 minutes.
8. Pour batter into lined muffins pans until 40% full.
9. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until skewer comes out clean


Part 2


-85gm milk chocolate (with at least 40% cocoa. For baking, not eating)
-87gm heavy cream (I used whipping cream 36%)
-½ tsp vanilla extract.


Break milk chocolate into small pieces. Put in a microwave safe bowl. Scald cream and pour scalded cream onto chocolate. Leave for 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Put in vanilla and stir.


When cakes are done, remove from oven and immediately poke lots of deep holes in each cake using a skewer. Brush syrup over cake. Let the syrup penetrate the cakes. If syrup get cold, zap in microwave and repeat brushing until all are used up.


Allow the syrup to set, for about an hour before serving.

Chocolate Strawberry Yogurt Cake

This is only for 2 mini cakes , one for mama and one for papa. Must serve one to papa, if not he will be jealous. But make the one for mama extra special, maybe with extra strawberries. There is no cream here, so it is perfect for senior citizens who are careful about what they eat and this is definately not cloying but very light. :)

I made created this for someone I knew, who totally not well versed in cookery terms and rarely goes in the kitchen. For this year's Mother's Day, she wanted to make something for her mom, and tried out my Castella cake. Gosh, of all the cakes she wanted to do, she did a castella. Well, it didn't quite work out. With her determination and filial piety to make this day a special day, I decided to help her out a bit by making this cake for her reference. This is actually very easy but definitely will be long winded with the instructions, need to give very very proper elaboration, like what the Chinese say, "draw a picture that even shows the intestines". Please bear with me :)

To make the disposable cake ring and cake cutter
(You can skip this and use a pretty short glass to do this. Just use the glass as your cake cutter and the glass to serve the cake in it)

Stuff that you need:
8X30cm manila card, 2 pieces
Some plastic wrap or just cut from a plastic bag, bigger than the manila card 1inch on all sides
Or you can just use those plastic sheets used as binding covers and skip the manila card
Some cellophane tape
1 empty drink can
Marker pen
Blade Cutter or scissors

1. Wrap manila card strip with plastic wrap, secure with cellophane tape. (skip this step if using those plastic sheets)
2. Wrap manila card around empty drink can. Mark the spot where the card ends. This is the first mark. Make another mark 2-3mm after that first mark. This is your second mark. Remove from can, while retaining the curl. Move the end of the card to the second mark and secure it with cellophane tape. Cake ring is ready.
3. Place pen or pencil on a book about 1 inch thick.
4. Place can next to pen/pencil and turn the can (make sure base touches the table at all time), so that the pencil can make a line around the can.
5. Make an incision into the line using blade cutter. Cut along the line, make sure the line is on the shorter side, so that when you’re done cutting, the line is no longer there. Trim with sciccors.
6. There, you cake cutter is ready.

Making Temporary Cake ring

Making Temporary Cake cutter

Cake and fillingChocolate cake, any chocolate cake you enjoy eating, you only need four pieces of 1cm thick cake., Silverbird or any other dark moist chocolate cake will be fine.
140ml strawberry yogurt (single portion cup), I recommend Dutch Lady. Taken out from fridge 20 minutes before use, if this is too cold it will not give you a good smooth mixture with the gelatin later.
1 level tsp gelatin (measuring teaspoon)
2 Tbsp water (2X15ml), please use measuring tablespoon
1 level tsp sugar, or more
Some strawberries for decoration

1. Put 2 Tbsp of water into a ceramic rice bowl or any heatproof bowl, stainless steel also can.
2. Sprinkle the gelatin over the water. Let it sit for 2 minutes.
3. Heat a pan of water, the water should be about 1 inch in height, bring to a simmer. On low heat, place bowl of gelatin into pan and heat the gelatin mixture until the gelatin melts. You will no longer see any grains of gelatin. Remove bowl from pan. Lightly stir it with a teaspoon so that the melted gelatin will be evenly dispersed in the liquid. If you need sugar, put it in now and gently stir.
4. Let gelatin mixture cool down, you should no longer feel that the bowl is warm.
5. While waiting for the gelatin to cool down, cut your cake with the drink can. Cut 4 circles of cake
6. Place cake rings onto a plate lined with baking paper or plastic wrap. Put one piece of cake into each cake ring. The cake should not feel loose in the ring. It should be nice and snug. Now back to the filling…..
7. Stir the yogurt to even it out. For right handers, with yogurt on your left hand and a spoon on your right, pour the yogurt into the gelatin mixture (Do not scrap the yogurt cup, have to be fast here) and quickly mix it. After you have mixed it, only then you scrap the yogurt cup clean into the gelatin bowl and mix again.
8. Pour 2 heaped teaspoon of yogurt onto each cake in ring. Place the 2nd piece of cake over yogurt in ring.
9. Pour the balance of yogurt into cake ring. Level the surface.
10. Place plate of cake into the freezer for 30 minutes (not more than this) or chill for a minimum of 2-3 hours. Overnight will be even better.
11. Transfer cake to serving plate.
12. Use a sharp blade cutter, cut the sticky tape to release cake ring.
13. Top with a chocolate coated strawberry, or a plain one, up to you.

Melting gelatin

Cutting Cake

Preparing the filling

Cake Assembly

Final touches, before serving

To make chocolate coated strawberry
Some cooking chocolate or some eating bittersweet chocolate will be fine
Cold strawberries

In a rice bowl, pour some boiling water, halfway up. Place another slightly bigger bowl (with chocolate in it) over the bowl with hot water. Let it sit for 1 minute. Then stir with a spoon to make sure the chocolate has melted. Dip strawberry into chocolate and let the chocolate harden.

And this final picture, the yogurt is actually frozen in heart shaped moulds, instead of made into jelly

Blueberry Muffins with Lemon Sugar Crust

I made up the muffin recipe myself to accomodate the stuff in my pantry and the topping is from one site that I've forgotten to note down. I made these Nov 2009 when blueberries from Australia were in season.

The topping makes it different, with a tang. Blueberry muffins are everywhere with different versions on the internet, but not many comes with a tangy topping. Try this if u love lemons and blueberries.

My Mother in Law who is not a muffin lover find this to be good. She finds usual muffins to be dense and sticks to the palate and teeth. But no.. not this one. Muffins made with yogurt are soft and fluffy.

Recipe

250gm cake/superfine flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
200gm sugar
1 heaped tsp lemon zest
125gm blueberries

2 eggs

80gm melted butter

200ml plain yogurt

1. Preheat oven to 180/170C.

2. Sift cake flour with baking soda and baking powder.

3. Remove 2Tbsp of sugar and combine it with the lemon zest. Set aside.
4. Mix the balance of sugar with sifted flour. Set aside.
5. Lightly beat eggs and combine with melted butter and yogurt.
6. Make a well in the centre of (4) and pour in (5).
7. Mix just to wet ingredient. Do not combine until very smooth.
8. Put in blueberries and lighty mix. Do not break the berries.
9. Spoon batter into 12 4oz muffin cups. Top with some lemon sugar (3).
10. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

I was greedy and baked them in 10 muffin cups and see what happened.. Don't repeat my mistake and bake them in 12.

I was trying to snap some pictures using natural light on my window sill and here's what happened....

The blueberries got stolen.... by Lydia.

Surprise Egg

I once saw on J's Kitchen, carrot cakes baked in egg shells. Wow is all I can say to her.

I saved up some egg shells, not sure if I want to do that for Christmas. But my mind was getting blur as what to bake for give away to my church friends. There was no idea... until just before the baking day (24th), did I only have the whole idea of making a sponge, filling it with cream.



Sponge: This method taught to me by Lydia's nanny produces a less fragile sponge, and I'd say, spongy sponge. It's rather stable, even piping the sponge into the shells didn't deflate the batter much. And it'suitable for all the peeling and breaking of shells.

6 eggs, separated
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
150gm sugar
150gm flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
50gm melted butter

30-35 pcs clean egg shells

1. Preheat oven to 180C.
2.Beat egg whites until frothy, put in cream of tartar and continue to beat until soft peaks, add in sugar gradually and beat until stiff (soft droopy hook peak, but won't fall when overturned).
3. Mix in egg yolks one by one.
4. Sift flour and baking powder. Fold this into (2)
5. Fold in melted butter.
6. Place batter into a piping bag with a 1cm round nozzle.
7. Pipe batter into egg shells(on egg trays) until 2/3 full.
8. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool down totally before filling.

Filling:
1&1/2 cup whipped cream + 2 Tbsp sugar, if using non dairy, omit the sugar
Some strawberries, finely chopped, or pureed
1. Trim cake tops with a knife
2. Place filling into a piping bag fitted with a long filling nozzle.
3. Puncture cake through the top with the filling nozzle until 2/3 of the way into the egg. Pipe in filling, pulling the nozzle upwards slowly.
4. Chill before serving.



Pic above: Right after baked... the top looks like a small mushroom. Trim that off.
Pic below: Packed up and ready to be given away





How to eat:










Just knock the cake to crack the shells... The cake won't break but the shell will. :)