Berries Trifle in a Jar

It's the most wonderful time of the year again! Hello December! For some reasons December just seem to be the most "well-liked" month. And I wonder if Christmas is the main reason for that. For me, I love December not just because of Christmas, but because it's my birthday month. too ^_^ Well, do share with me if you happen to know of anyone who doesn't like December. I haven't been in the mood to do just anything (not literally) ever since I got back from my Korea trip. I was told it's "normal" since I haven't gotten, or rather, I am unwilling to get over the holiday mood. But since almost everyone around me is in their high-spirited festive mood, I bet I will get over with my holiday blues (soon). Haha! 

I have been cracking my brain on what's suitable to make during this festive season since we will be expecting quite a few gatherings and parties. As I was looking through my archives, I found this pretty dessert in a jar that I'd made for one of my high-tea sessions with my twinning friend. This was one taken from the personally autographed recipe book, Glorious Layered Desserts by Glory Albin which I've won through a contest on Instagram some time back. *Grin!

Berries Trifle in a Jar

This recipe is definitely a keeper for various occasions! I love the idea of being able to prepare them in advance and the individualised portions which look just so lovely and appetising. I hope you'll like them too! ^_^

Hot Milk Cake

It's been more than two months since I last shared a recipe. My husband and I have finally settled down well in our birth country. But I must say the hot and humid weather here is still unbearably hard to accept. With the haze from our friendly neighbouring country, I hope it's just a matter of time before we re-adapt to the weather and get some fresh air.

Every time I look out of the window, I can't help but miss the bright blue sky and clean breathing air back at the sunshine state. As I recall how reluctant I was when I was clearing up, especially the stuff in the fridge before we left for good, I realised I have this unpublished recipe which I had made out of my ever-lasting bottle of milk. For some reasons, I was never able to finish the bottle of milk lying in the fridge before its expiry. 

To prevent such wastage, I have been in search of a recipe that could use up my leftover milk. As the name of this recipe suggests, this cake is made out of heated milk. This cake is dense yet unusually soft and moist. Perfect to be enjoyed anytime during the day! ^_^

To celebrate the newfound usage of leftover milk lying in the fridge, I am pleased to share this Hot Milk Cake with Our Growing Edge (October 2015) hosted by me! Genie of Bunny Eats Design, founder of this monthly blog event that aims to connect food bloggers and inspire us to try new things has given me the honour to host this month's edition. October 2015's Our Growing Edge runs from now till 31st October 2015. Do head over to this link here and join us in sharing your food-related experiences!

In addition, I would also like to share this recipe with blog event, No Waste Food Challenge (October 2015) organised by Elizabeth of Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary and hosted by Kate of Veggie Desserts this month. Say No to future milk wastage!

Mini Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes

I was flipping through my recipes file when I found this Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes recipe from the one and only baking class I'd attended with my sister a couple of years ago! I recalled we attempted this recipe for a second time at our home's kitchen which didn't turn out quite well. Haha! I didn't know I would have the patience to bake then, and yet now, baking seems to be part of me. Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes are very delicate, and they are definitely ones that will not make you sulk when you see them shrink after they cool. In fact, these cupcakes are supposed to shrink so that they will puff up nicely after being filled with cream frosting piped into the cakes.  

Mini Hokkaido Chiffon Cupcakes

After almost two years of self-taught baking and experimenting, I decided to attempt this recipe again and I'm glad they turn out pretty well. These cupcakes certainly bring back beautiful memories....

I'm sharing this recipe with Best Recipes for Everyone (June 2015: BREE #10 Secret of Chiffon & Roll Cakes) organized and hosted by Fion of XuanHom's Mom; and

Tea Time Treats (June 2015: Muffins, Fairy Cakes and Cupcakes) hosted by Karen of Lavender and Lovage and Janie of The Hedgecombers.

Homemade Croissants (A 3-day affair)

Who can't get enough of croissants? Because I can't! Sorry if I'm boring you with another croissant recipe! But this is definitely worth it. Finally succeeded in baking these flaky crispy croissants. Yay! Subsequent to the success of my Pain au Chocolat, I've decided to make some classic croissants out of the same dough recipe so as to be convinced that the recipe is a keeper. And indeed! In fact, I made these classic croissants concurrently with my Pain au Chocolat. I mean, it's a three-days wait before the actual baking after all...

Homemade Croissants

I am sharing this recipe with blog events Recipe of the Week hosted by Emily of A Mummy Too; CookBlogShare hosted by Lucy of Supergolden Bakes; and Bake of the Week organised by Helen & gang of Casa Costello.

          

Pain au Chocolat (Chocolate Croissants)

I am so into making croissants this week! Right after the unintentional creation of Brioche-Croissants in my previous post, I immediately google and work on another croissant dough recipe which I couldn't wait to share the results! I must say the time spent and efforts really paid off. And I have come to terms that croissants-making is definitely one that cannot be rushed. This 3-day baking affair was certainly worth the wait. The flaky Pain au Chocolat were soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. Until now I still couldn't believe I actually did it! Yay!

Well, and the reason why I'd decided to try out another recipe (instead of the same recipe in my earlier post) is because I've noticed that most croissant dough recipes add butter to the making of the dough. However, the previous recipe I'd worked on (plainly due to the small quantity) didn't (although I might not have succeeded because I did not follow the instructions, and not because of the butter @_@). Not too sure if the addition of butter has any impact on the croissant dough until I re-make the previous recipe. But until then, I must say I am happily satisfied with the results from this recipe that I'm sharing below. Woohooo!

Pain au Chocolat

They might not be the prettiest looking Pain au Chocolat, but they are definitely a delicious one. Guess I have to work on wrapping the chocolates between the dough. But I'm glad that the decision to turn the classic croissant dough recipe into these Pain au Chocolat version worked just as I have hoped for. For those of you who have been intimidated by the making of these delicate pastry and still contemplating if you should give it a shot, hesitate no more! If I can do it, you can too! ^_^

Chocolate Cream-filled Profiteroles (Chocolate Cream Puffs)

"No, egg yolks are bad and we should only eat the whites". This is what my husband always insist whenever I fry him an egg. All these years, I have long given up proving to him with health articles about the benefits of egg yolks, or at least the harmless of eating egg yolks and "coaxing" him into eating the yolks. I know very well that it's just his plain excuse for not eating the yolks, which he claimed has a funny taste, when he refuses to accept that egg yolk has its beneficial contents. That's also his way of refuting my claim that he behaves just like a big kid picking on his food. And for that reason, we always have leftover egg yolks which I sometimes have to throw away if he is eating eggs too often. >,<

But fortunately or unfortunately, the leftover egg yolks prompted this bake when I decided to turn the yolks into pastry cream. And my immediate association with pastry cream are these delicious cream puffs, a French dessert otherwise known as Profiteroles.

Chocolate Cream-filled Profiteroles (Chocolate Cream Puffs)

This French dessert may be delicate, but they are definitely not difficult to make. I have adopted the same pastry dough recipe that I'd used for my mini Chocolate Eclairs since it was an easy and successful recipe. Looking back at my post archives, I then realised that those were made almost a year ago. *Gosh~ how time flies! Anyway, I find it really interesting how two different desserts could be formed from the same recipe when they just appear in different shapes (and sizes). ^_^

Mini Lemon Cranberry Chiffon Cakes

The combined fragrance of lemon + cranberry still lingers after I baked those Lemon Cranberry Scones last month. And when I was thinking of making chiffon cake with cranberries, I was reminded immediately of the white and fluffy cranberry chiffon that I would often buy from the bakery at Bugis Junction for tea-time or breakfast (the next day) during lunch time when I was still working. Anyway, those were the days~~

Most recipes on cranberry (yogurt) chiffon cake I've found require plain yogurt which I don't normally stock in my fridge. So I've decided to transform those lingering fragrance and twist them into these Mini Lemon Cranberry Chiffon Cakes!

Mini Lemon Cranberry Chiffon Cakes

Results from a successful experiment using the recipe of a lemon chiffon cake and the technique of incorporating cranberries from recipe of a cranberry yogurt chiffon cake. Ta-da! Although these don't look white like the ones store-bought (which I'm suspecting they might be using a steam-bake method), they are still soft and fluffy!

Chocolate Éclairs (Minis)

It was a lazy week for me after a long weekend as the federal holiday, Memorial Day happened to fall on the recent Monday. After cracking my brain on what to bake to fit the respective themes of the baking events I have been participating over the past weeks of the month, I was inspired by a store-bought dessert, Chocolate Éclairs, which a friend had brought along to our recent potluck dinner. And that's definitely one of my favourite pastry desserts!

Chocolate Éclairs (Minis)

Just like my past bakes, I would do a fair bit of research by comparing the various recipes, reading the reviews and comments of others who have attempted, including watching online videos on the making process, if available before I embark on my own baking experiment. Honestly, I felt a little intimidated after doing my homework because it seems like the challenge faced by many is in the making of the choux pastry, otherwise called pâte à choux, or simply known as the "shells" of the éclairs. Finally, I decided and settled on Paula Deen's Chocolate Stuffed Eclairs recipe found on FoodNetwork.com, but guess what? My choux pastry, that is the shells of the éclairs turned out to be a success on my first attempt and I actually failed on the chocolate cream filling. @_@! I suppose I'm one of the fewer minority for that matter. The chocolate cream filling felt like the texture of red bean paste, if you know what I am referring. Somehow somewhere, I couldn't figure how and where it went wrong. So I quickly turned to the crème pâtissière of the alternative recipe by Gale Gand's Chocolate Eclairs which I've kept from my research and made a vanilla cream filling for my éclairs instead. And there goes my original plan of finishing up the last two episodes of my Taiwanese drama after my bake when a half day baking affair took almost the entire of my day. Thought I could enjoy these éclairs for my tea-break which I didn't get to have one today, and ended having these éclairs as an after-dinner dessert. Still, this is definitely worth it!

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

(P.S. And I realised I have past the submission deadlines for the respective baking events, namely The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (May 2014: Favourites) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than…, AlphaBakes (May 2014: Letter "E") hosted by Ros of The More than Occasional Baker & Caroline of Caroline Makes, and Treat Petite May 2014 theme, World Baking Day hosted by Kat of The Baking Explorer & Stuart of Cakeyboi, which I had intended to share this baking post with when I was ready to publish this post. @_@!)

Cinnamon Rolls

After pushing back this recipe for sometime, I finally attempted my first trial in making these Cinnamon Rolls. My sister pretty much loves cinnamon rolls and she was the one who gave me the idea of making them. Oh wait, did I mention before I have two sisters? Since my previous baking post on Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pound Cupcakes was inspired by the elder of my two younger sisters, I shall dedicate these Cinnamon Rolls to my youngest sister. *_*

Cinnamon Rolls

Many of the recipes online involves double-proofing of the dough. Thankfully my diligent research paid off and I found this easy recipe that required only one time proofing. Though I have not tried one made from a double-proofing method, the cinnamon rolls made from this one rise method were just as tasty and definitely a must-try recipe, especially suitable for first-time bakers. While these rolls were slightly over-baked by me, I consider my first attempt an above average pass with rooms for improvement in terms of the fluffy texture (keep in mind not to roll out the dough too thinly). Meanwhile, I have also discovered an interesting guide about kneading which is worth reading. Now, wait no longer and get your hands dirty by trying out these yummy cinnamon rolls at home today. ^_^

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also sharing this post with The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (May 2014: Favourites) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than… because this is my youngest sister's favourite!

Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pound Cupcakes

I was going through the photos stored in my mobile phone when I recalled a snapshot of this recipe which my sister had sent me months ago that she had kept from a Chinese magazine cut-out (unfortunately we could not track back the original source of this recipe and the Chinese magazine since it was many years ago). Back to the time when I was still staying at my parents' place before I got married, my sister used to be the one baking at home. Then, I didn't have much time (and interests) for baking since I was seldom at home during my non-working weekends. *Oops!

Lemon Glazed Vanilla Pound Cupcakes

I remember there was once when I tried to help her with the preparation of the cupcake batter and made a mess since I wasn't quite good at handling the electric mixer. Back then, she would nag at my ears repeatedly to caution me not to over-mix the batter since I was having much fun with the electric mixer after having a grasp of it. It was not until I started my own baking experiments that I realised the importance of each and every steps in baking (and the reasons for her anxious screams at me). Haha~ Those were the days…

In conjunction with the World Baking Day (and instead of baking a whole cake), I have made these vanilla pound cupcakes with my own twist as a reminiscence of the good "young" memories. My sister is a fan of most lemon-flavoured products and the "marriage" of the vanilla pound cupcakes and lemon glaze definitely makes a great combination to commemorate our sisterhood. This vanilla pound cupcake batter itself is a very good cake base. Instead of this lemon glaze, mix in some chocolate chips, cranberries, raisins or nuts and you will be surprised how yummy they still taste.

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also submitting this post to Treat Petite May 2014 theme, World Baking Day hosted by Kat of The Baking Explorer and Stuart of Cakeyboi because this is a bake for my sister as a commemoration of our sisterhood. *_*

Lastly, I am also sharing this post with The Biscuit Barrel Challenge (May 2014: Favourites) organised by Laura of I'd Much Rather Bake Than… because this is my sister's all-time favourite!

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

The weather in this small city in the west of Florida is getting unbearably hot in the day as summer approaches. And I wonder if the bananas in the kitchen are ripening at an accelerated speed due to the heat. Personally, I'm not a fan of banana baked goods. I seldom explore baking with bananas except for these banana chocolate chip muffins which is everyone's favourite and my recent attempt in making my husband's favourite Awfully Chocolate Banana Cake. If I'm not wrong, this is the fifth time I am making these banana chocolate chip muffins. However, what's worth mentioning is that the recipe which I had referenced for my previous four bakes (which were all successful) was from my sister's best friend's sister and her friends' blog, Forget Those Calories (Umm by the way, this is not a paid advertisement for their blog). *Grin*

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

I tend to settle with one recipe for each of my bakes as long as the end product turns out well for me. But this time, I resorted to looking for an alternative recipe because I'm out of plain yogurt and sour cream (and its equivalent substitutes) called for in the usual source recipe I'd referred, and the bananas sitting at the kitchen table doesn't look like they could "survive" another day! Ok alright, I am over exaggerating here. *Lol! Anyway, this alternative recipe turned out to be a successful one too. In both recipes, the ingredients used were almost similar except for the difference in quantity which I have no intentions of doing a comparison analysis. @_@ Instead of using plain yogurt or sour cream, I could make do with milk for these muffins. This was also in a way helping me "kill two birds with one stone" as I realised that the bottle of milk sitting in my fridge is nearing its expiry too. *Oops~

Conclusion? There were no significant difference in taste and texture from those made from plain yogurt, sour cream or milk! The muffins were just as moist but not dense on the inside. The trick in this taste and texture test comes from balancing the ratio of the ingredients which is always so in baking. After all, baking is a science! So here's sharing the banana chocolate chip muffins made out of milk which were gobbled up by my friends in a wink.

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also submitting this post to Treat Petite May 2014 theme, World Baking Day hosted by Kat of The Baking Explorer and Stuart of Cakeyboi because sharing is caring. =)

Glazed Fruit Tarts

If you have tried making these angel food cakes, then save the egg yolks for this must-try and mouth-watering recipe! Without further ado, here's presenting the prettiest and yummiest fruit tarts filled with silky smooth and delicious custard filling. Simply irresistible! ^_^

Glazed Fruit Tarts

I am sharing this post with the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also sharing this post with the event, Tea Time Treats (May 2014: Open Top Tarts, Pies and Quiches) hosted by Jane of The Hedge Combers and Karen of Lavender and Lovage.

Custard Pudding

It wasn't until recently that I felt my efforts put into setting up this blog and sharing my baking experiments have been worthwhile. It's very heart-warming to know that there are serious people reading my posts especially after my recent participations in the baking events (refer to the sidebar) organised by other bloggers. Thanks to all who have left me very encouraging comments and kind compliments. I really appreciate it. And to the organisers/founders/hosts of the respective baking events, I really salute all of you because you have certainly created a meaningful cause for people (bloggers) with passion in baking, on top and above of your time spent and efforts put into garnering those recipes from people in different places.

Coming to know these baking events sort of motivated me to carry out (at least one of) my experiments rather than immersing my time in countless drama series (my plain excuse for being lazy actually). To have the best of both worlds, I have been marking out recipes from my list that are quick and easy and here's definitely one not to be missed! ^_^

Custard Pudding

I am sharing this post to the event, Little Thumbs Up (May 2014: Milk) organised by Bake For Happy Kids and My Little Favourite DIY hosted by Tze of Awayofmind Bakery House.

I am also sharing this post to the event, AlphaBakes (May 2014: Letter "E") hosted by Ros of The More than Occasional Baker and Caroline of Caroline Makes. The letter "E" represents one of the star ingredients, Eggs!

Shortcrust Egg Tarts

I enjoy watching TV programmes on cooking demonstrations since young. I never fail to dream about owning all those fanciful kitchen tools and baking essentials whenever I see them at the departmental store. Even till now, I felt I can never have enough of them though I have most of the (basic) required baking tools. I can't recall when and what I first baked, but I do have one clear memory and that was (together with my sister) helping my Mummy when she was making fruit egg tarts. I somehow recollected we tasted and disliked the custard filling in usual fruit tarts (which were not

as tasty as these days) and my Mummy had made her own version of fruit tarts by baking her usual homemade egg tarts and topping them with our favourite fruits. I remembered her version as the only and tastiest fruit egg tarts I've ever had. To date I don't think I have seen anywhere selling fruit tarts with egg tart as the base. In my later years when I learnt about blogging, I remember the very first food blog I stumbled upon was the blog of Wokking Mum (although I cannot remember how I discovered the blog). I even kept a file of the recipes I'd printed from the blog which I was interested and thought of making someday, recognising my lack of trust in online information  because I feel that the website might just collapse or become unavailable. Haha! The file "grew" eventually with lots of other recipes I'd collected from web sources and cut-outs from magazines. I decided to try my hands on these egg tarts when I was sorting out my recipe file and found that the required ingredients are readily available in my pantry. The only essential which I lacked was the egg tart moulds with the flower ridges. That's when I thought I could use the muffin pan instead. Although I did not top these egg tarts with fruits, they were good enough to reminisce the memories of baking with my Mummy and sister during my childhood days. ^_^ Does homemade egg tarts bring back fond memories of yours too? Try out this recipe someday!

I am re-sharing this post for the event, AphaBakes (May 2014: Letter "E") hosted by Ros of The More than Occasional Baker and Caroline of Caroline Makes. The letter "E" represents the star ingredients, Eggs!